Reviews and More

Two new releases took over the top spots at the box office this weekend, as last week’s champ Prom Night slipped to No.3 in the country with $9.1 million in sales — less than 50% of what the film did in its opening.

The new champ is the pre-teen adventure romp The Forbidden Kingdom starring Jackie Chan and Jet Li. About a kung fu-obsessed 12-year-old American boy who suddenly finds himself on a mission in China, The Forbidden Kingdom earned $20.9 million for the weekend.

Second place went to Forgetting Sarah Marshall, a raunchy comedy written by and starring Jason Segel of How I Met Your Mother fame (among other television and film credits. This movie was produced by Judd Apatow and features a few other faces that you’d expect from one of his efforts (including Jonah Hill and Paul Rudd), and actually received some very positive reviews from critics. It earned $17.3 million.

Last week’s second-place film, the cop drama Street Kings, plunged all the way to No.7 with just $4 million in revenue. I wanted to see this one because of Hugh Laurie, but now I don’t know. Maybe I’ll wait for the DVD!

Anyway, here’s the complete Top 10 at the box office for the weekend of 4/20/08:

1. The Forbidden Kingdom, $20.9 million
2. Forgetting Sarah Marshall, $17.3 million
3. Prom Night, $9.1 million
4. 88 Minutes, $6.8 million
5. Nim’s Island, $5.65 million
6. 21, $5.5 million
7. Street Kings, $4 million
8. Horton Hears a Who!, $3.5 million
9. Expelled: No Intelligence Allowed, $3.15 million
10. Leatherheads, $3.02 million

I just started watching Bones in October of last year, but thanks to the WGA strike, I was able to catch up on all episodes from the first two seasons, as well as the nine episodes from the current season that aired before the strike. So when the show finally came back with a new ep last Tuesday, I was happy to see Booth, Brennan, and the rest of the gang again.

I didn’t realize how much I missed Bones until the first time Booth and Brennan were on screen together. They started bickering within a minute (as usual), which brought a smile to my face. I like these two characters, and think the actors have great chemistry together. Sure, they’re complete opposites, with Bones being the kind of meticulous person who puts Dymo labels on everything and has to be in control of every last detail of her life while Booth is more of a laid back, take-it-as-it-comes kind of guy, but that’s what makes them so great as a couple.

Anyway, the mystery of the week wasn’t all that exciting. I don’t like the “fresh” murders, as it doesn’t seem as likely to me that Bones would even be on the case at all, but whatever. I consider this show to be a guilty pleasure, as I watch it more for the Booth/Brennan interactions than for the mystery. And for that reason, I can’t wait for the next new ep tomorrow night!