The Couch Potato reviews 'Daybreakers' on DVD

I'll admit it, I'm a sucker for high-concept movies. If the premise seems cool, you can bet I'll be checking it out. Of course, sometimes the movie lives up to the hype, but most of the time, it falls short. And sometimes, even then, I still don't care. There are instances when I like a movie for what it's trying to be, rather than what it actually is. 

My favorite example of this phenomenon is the Holiday bomb “Surviving Christmas” with Ben Affleck and James Gandolfini. The movie tanked at the box office, and rightly so, because it was, by all accounts, a poor movie.  And yet, I still liked it because it was something that no one had tried before, a seriously dark comedy about Christmas. The attempt scored points for me.

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'Avatar' still doing fine with $5M Monday

After great weekend, 'Avatar' ticket sales start to slow down

James Cameron's "Avatar" is slowing down a bit during the week at the North American box office, but the film is still doing very well after 25 days in release. On Monday, Fox' sci-fi action flick bagged another $5.1 million in ticket sales.

Right now, the film's total gross stands at a superb $435 million, and it looks like it will perform well for the rest of the week. It is also poised to score another high weekend, even though competition gets a little tougher these days.

This weekend, "Avatar" will go up against new entry "The Book of Eli" with Denzel Washington. Also opening is "The Spy Next Door," and "The Lovely Bones" will expand as well. "Avatar" is now also the fifth highest-grossing film domestically.

The box office was otherwise rather quiet Monday, with "Sherlock Holmes" taking No. 2 with a daily gross of $1.2 million and a total of $166.3 million. Following in third place with $1.1 million was "Daybreakers," which reached $16.3 million.

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Box Office: 'Avatar' still king with $48M

Weekend of January 8 – 10, 2010: ‘Avatar’ repeats box office win

As expected, James Cameron’s sci-fi hit movie “Avatar” stayed on top of the North American box office this weekend with another solid $48.5 million in ticket sales, according to studio estimates Sunday.

Still playing at 3,422 locations, “Avatar” scored an average of $14,173 per theater, bringing its domestic gross to a stunning $429 million after only 25 days in release. Domestically, the film is now the 7^th highest grossing movie of all time.

This weekend’s new releases failed to secure a spot in the top three. Lionsgate’s vampire flick “Daybreakers” debuted in fourth place with a decent $15 million, scoring an average of $5,945 per theater at 2,523 locations.

Also opening this weekend was Anand Tuker’s romantic comedy “Leap Year,” which picked up $9.1 million at No. 6. Starring Amy Adams, the film follows a woman falling for an innkeeper (Matthew Goode) on her way to Dublin to propose to her boyfriend.

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'Avatar' starts weekend with $13M Friday

'Avatar' on track for another weekend win; 'Daybreakers' starts well

James Cameron's successful sci-fi action flick "Avatar" is still in the lead at the North American box office after picking up another $13.2 million Friday. That brings the film's domestic total to $393.8 million after 22 days in release.

With an average of $3,879 per theater at 3,422 locations, "Avatar" is on track to beat its competition this weekend. Case in point: the No. 2 film Friday was new release "Daybreakers," which bagged $5.9 million at 2,523 locations.

Following in third place with $5.1 million was Guy Ritchie's "Sherlock Holmes," which reached a domestic gross of $153.6 million. "Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Squeakquel" bagged $3.5 million for a total haul of $165.4 million.

Debuting at No. 5 Friday was new entry "Leap Year," which generated $3.3 million in ticket sales at 2,511 locations. The film stars Amy Adams as a woman who falls for an innkeeper (Matthew Goode) while heading to Dublin to propose to her boyrfiend (Adam Scott).

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Movie Review: “Daybreakers”

Seen on: January 8, 2010

The players: Directors: Michael Spierig, Peter Spierig, Writers: Michael Spierig, Peter Spierig, Cast: Ethan Hawke, Willem Dafoe, Isabel Lucas, Sam Neill

Facts of interest: None.

The plot: It's the year 2019, and vampires are ruling the world. But as their supply of human blood runs out, one man (Hawke) must find a way to prevent chaos and save the remaining humans.

Our thoughts: Michael and Peter Spierig’s “Daybreakers” is a highly entertaining vampire action flick, and believe it or not, it’s also one of those films blessed with an awesome concept. I wouldn’t go as far and call it a masterpiece, but for a January release, it’s definitely worth checking out. Trust me, it really delivers the goods.

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Official: 'Avatar' is now world's No. 2 movie

The king of the world is the king of the world again...

James Cameron's "Avatar" is now officially the second highest grossing film ever! As predicted, the sci-fi epic passed "The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King" Wednesday, bringing its worldwide total gross to an amazing $1.13 billion!

After delivering a solid performance earlier this week, "Avatar" bagged another $6.9 million domestically Wednesday, lifting its North American total to $374.4 million. Despite new releases this Friday, the film should still end up scoring another big weekend.

Still following in second place was "Sherlock Holmes," which earned $2.3 million Wednesday for a domestic total of $146.6 million. At No. 3, "It's Complicated" picked up $1.5 million, reaching a cume of $63.9 million after two weeks in release.

This weekend's releases include "Youth in Revolt," "Leap Year" and "Daybreakers." They all open wide, and while one or two may do relatively well at the box office, I still see "Avatar" winning the race this weekend. We'll know Sunday.

Source: Box Office Mojo (www.boxofficemojo.com)

Explosive 'Daybreakers' trailer hits web

Here's a pretty intriguing trailer for Peter and Michael Spierig's upcoming action horror flick "Daybreakers," which will land in theaters Jan. 8, 2010. Check out the explosive footage below.

The film stars Ethan Hawke as Edward Dalton, who is a researcher in the year 2019, in which an unknown plague has transformed the world's population into vampires.

As the human population nears extinction, vampires must capture and farm every remaining human, or find a blood substitute before time runs out. However, a covert group of vampires decides to save the human race.

The film boasts quite the impressive cast, including Willem Dafoe, Isabel Lucas and Sam Neill. I know we've seen more vampire movies than many of us can handle, but the concept of "Daybreakers" intrigues me. Bring it on!

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