Today's film news: 'Hurt Locker' wins award, James Marsden boards 'I Hop,' 'Apes' reboot a go?

James Marsden gets ready to 'Hop'

James Marsden ("The Box") will join Russell Brand in Tim Hill's upcoming comedy "I Hop," a mix of live-action and CGI about a guy (Marsden) who injures the Easter Bunny (voiced by Brand) and must care for him until he's all fit again. To tell you the truth, I know this one's going to suck big time. (THR)

'Hurt Locker' picks up major award

Kathryn Bigelow's "The Hurt Locker" didn't win at the Globes, but the war drama scored the Darryl F. Zanuck Producer of the Year Award in Theatrical Motion Pictures at the 21st annual PGA Awards this past weekend. Bigelow, Mark Boal, Nicolas Chartier and Greg Shapiro are sharing the prize! (PGA)

'Fourth Kind' director to helm thriller

Olatunde Osunsanmi, who last directed the disappointing "The Fourth Kind," will next helm "The Commuter," a thriller focusing on a man's deadly commute from work in NYC. Byron Willinger and Philip De Blasi wrote the script for the film developed by Gold Circle Films (Variety)

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'New Moon' scores third highest opening gross!

Weekend of November 20 – 22, 2009: ‘Twilight Saga: New Moon’ has come to rule them all!

“The Twilight Saga: New Moon” stormed to the top spot at the North American box office this weekend with a phenomenal $140.7 million in ticket sales, according to studio estimates Sunday.

The Chris Weitz-directed sequel to “Twilight” scored a huge average of $34,965 per theater at 4,024 locations, scoring the third highest opening of all time (following "The Dark Knight" and "Spider-Man 3").

“Moon” already broke records when it bagged $26.2 million from midnight screenings Friday. The sequel starring Kristen Stewart and Robert Pattinson outgrossed its predecessor by a solid $71.1 million.

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Box Office: '2012' explodes with $65M!

Weekend of November 13 – 15, 2009: Emmerich's action flick destroys everything!

Roland Emmerich’s apocalyptic action spectacle “2012” destroyed its competition at the North American box office this weekend with a solid $65 million in ticket sales, according to studio estimates Sunday.

Sony’s “2012” opened at 3,404 locations Friday and scored an explosive average of $19,095 per theater this weekend, easily beating the $35,8 million opening gross of Emmerich’s previous film “10,000 B.C.”

Starring John Cusack, Amanda Peet, Oliver Platt and Danny Glover, the action adventure follows a group of individuals trying to survive a series of cataclysms as the world is coming to an end.

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'Christmas' reigns for Disney at the box office

Weekend of November 6 – 8, 2009: Scrooge beats goats, aliens and creepy boxes...

As expected, Walt Disney’s “A Christmas Carol” took the No. 1 spot at the North American box office this weekend with a solid $31 million in ticket sales, according to studio estimates Sunday.

The Robert Zemeckis-directed 3D motion-capture adventure based on Charles Dickens’ classic tale opened at 3,683 locations and scored an average of $8,417 per theater, enough to crush its competition.

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'A Christmas Carol' easily tops Friday box office

Robert Zemeckis' 3D motion-capture version of "A Christmas Carol" topped the North American box office Friday with a solid $8.9 million in ticket sales. Opening at 3,683 locations, the Walt Disney release scored an average of $2,433 per theater.

New entry "The Fourth Kind" also delivered a decent start at the box office, pulling in $5 million from ticket sales at 2,527 locations. Based on actual case studies, the film stars Milla Jovovich as a psychologist investigating unstable patients in Alaska.

At No. 3, Grant Heslov's comedy "The Men Who Stare at Goats" brought in $4.6 million. The film started its theatrical run at 2,443 locations and stars George Clooney as an eccentric solider who claims he's a psychic spy with paranormal powers.

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Movie Review: "The Fourth Kind"

Seen on: November 3, 2009

The players: Director: Olatunde Osunsanmi, Writer: Olatunde Osunsanmi, Cast: Milla Jovovich, Elias Koteas, Will Patton, Corey Johnson

Facts of interest: Apparently based on actual case studies...

The plot: The film follows a psychologist investigating mentally unstable patients who claim they made contact with aliens.

Our thoughts: Contrary to my expectations, Olatunde Osunsanmi’s “The Fourth Kind” totally failed to scare me. Sure, the film boasts a couple of creepy moments here and there, but most of the time, it finds itself resorting to incredibly cheap thrills to keep its audience captivated. In my book though, this one misses its mark.

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This week's new movie releases - Nov. 6, 2009

Opening this week are Richard Kelly's "The Box" with Cameron Diaz; "A Christmas Carol" with Jim Carrey; "The Men Who Stare at Goats" with George Clooney; and "The Fourth Kind" with Milla Jovovich.

A CHRISTMAS CAROL (with JIM CARREY)

Synopsis: Ebenezer Scrooge begins the Christmas holiday with his usual miserly contempt, barking at his faithful clerk and his cheery nephew. But when the ghosts of Christmas Past, Present and Yet to Come take him on an eye-opening journey revealing truths Old Scrooge is reluctant to face, he must open his heart to undo years of ill will before it's too late.

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