It took 25 days for another movie to finally dethrone The Help from the top of the box office in North America. The last time something like that happened was way back in 1999 when The Sixth Sense held the top spot for 35 consecutive days. Anyway, Contagion did it and congrats to Mr. Soderbergh for a well deserved opening weekend.

Contagion made $22.4 million, more then enough to secure first place from The Help. For Steven Soderbergh this is his second biggest opening yet outside of the Ocean’s franchise (all three opening above $36 million). It also marks the second best opening for star Matt Damon since the Bourne Ultimatum and his 5th collaboration with director Steven Soderbergh. Contagion cost $60 million to make so it will need to make a lot more money over the next few weeks, I’m thinking it could finish around $70-80 million.

The Help, finally 2nd after winning 3 consecutive weekends, grossed $8.9 million and is now at $139.1 million after 35 days. Newcomer Warrior finished 3rd with $5.2 million. A bit disappointing for the $25 million Lionsgate fighter movie. Only fantastic box office legs can turn this around since right now I can’t see it ending up with more then $15 million when it’s all said and done.

The Debt was down to 4th place with $4.7 million for $22.7 million after 14 days. On the other hand, Colombiana was up from 6th to 5th place this weekend thanks to $3.9 million and awful holdovers (Apollo 18 and Shark Night 3D). Rise of the Planet of the Apes was 6th with $3.8 million and $168.4 million after 40 days. At this point it won’t finish above the $180 million made by the 2001 Planet of the Apes remake but it will come awfully close.

The other two new releases of the weekend had absolutely atrocious box office results. The Adam Sandler written Bucky Larson: Born to be a Star grossed only 1.4 million, finishing in 15th place while Creature actually managed to fare worse, much much worse. It only made $0.3 million in 1507 theaters, that means a per-theater average of just $217 over the weekend. That’s the 2nd worst per-theater average ever for a wide release. Probably only 20-25 people saw it over the weekend on average in a single theater.

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With fall approaching it is time to start placing our bets on who 2011’s big award winners will be. The first eight months of the year have provided us with very little award-worthy cinema, but that is usually the way of it. The only film with a wide release to gain serious Oscar buzz so far is The Help. Viola Davis, Octavia Spencer, and Jessica Chastain all turned heads with their performances, and the film’s box office success will probably serve to strengthen its awards season bid.

Speaking of Jessica Chastain, I probably shouldn’t write off The Debt or Terrence Malick’s The Tree of Life, which both feature several respectable cast members, including Chastain. The Tree of Life won the Cannes Film Festival top award, the Palm d’Or, but has received very mixed reviews otherwise. It seems that any movie with Helen Mirren in it makes people take notice, so The Debt might get some love in the coming months.

The Venice Film Festival, which held its closing ceremonies this Saturday, offered what might be an early contender for best actor: Michael Fassbender in Shame, a movie detailing the unraveling life of a sex addict, which also stars Carey Mulligan (An Education, Never Let Me Go). Fassbender, who played Magneto in this summer’s X-Men: First Class and Rochester in the recent Jane Eyre, won the top acting prize at the festival. He will also be seen this year in A Dangerous Method playing real life psychiatrist Carl Jung, alongside Viggo Mortensen (The Road, The Lord of the Rings) playing Sigmund Freud, and Keira Knightley (The Duchess, Pirates of the Caribbean). 2011 has certainly been a busy and impressive year for Fassbender.

The Toronto International Film Festival, one of the most influential and prestigious film festivals around, is currently running. Films such as Moneyball, Faust, The Ides of March, The Descendants, Albert Nobbs, The Hunter, We Need to Talk About Kevin, and dozens of others potential winners will be shown there in the next week.

While TIFF doesn’t hand out competitive prizes, it does give the People’s Choice Award for the highest rated movie of the festival. Last year’s Oscar winner, The King’s Speech, took home the People’s Choice Award, so it’s one worth considering if you’re trying to get an early handle on who might woo the academy this year. The People’s Choice Award will be announced on September 18^th.

Awards season won’t really get moving until December, but in the meantime autumn’s film festivals ought to offer us some insight into who the heavyweights will be.

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The Help has finally found its match at the box office in Soderbergh’s latest flick, the thriller Contagion. There are actually quite a few movies opening and with the same being true for the coming weekends, September won’t suffer when it comes to quantity. Now quality, that will be up for debate at the end of the month.

We’ll start with Contagion since it’s the biggest of the four wide releases of the weekend, opening in 3222 theaters. Director Steven Soderbergh had a great streak about 10 years ago with Erin Brockovich, Traffic and Ocean’s Eleven. That’s 3 movies that made over $100 million each in less then 19 months, not something many directors can brag about. Unfortunately, he’s been a bit down on his luck lately with just Ocean’s Twelve and Ocean’s Thirteen turning into hits. Contagion is a bit of a return to his older more successful self (if only great box office numbers equaled quality) and I’m actually really digging what I’ve seen so far from it. Reviews are very impressive at 81% on Rotten Tomatoes so I’m going to say this, $25 million and first place. Budget was $60 million so an opening like that could lead to good things box office wise and come on, Steven Soderbergh deserves a comeback.

Next up for debate is 2nd place where Warrior has a though opponent in The Help. This fight is particularly interesting because the movies target males (Warrior) and females (The Help) so it’s going to be kind of a war of sexes, a bit. Sure, it’s no The Expandables versus Eat, Pray, Love, but it is an fun way to look at things. Warrior is coming out in 1869 theaters and reviews are even better then Contagion‘s, standing at 83% on Rotten Tomatoes with a 7.4/10 average. I’m thinking $11 million for Warrior and $10 million for previous leader The Help.

4th place is going to The Debt with $6 million while Rise of the Planet of the Apes or Colombiana will land in 5th with $5 million each. Finally the last two new releases, Bucky Larson: Born to be a Star (in 1500 theaters) and Creature (1507 theaters) will most likely get lost in the pack along the holdovers with no more then $2-4 million.

Next week we got Drive, Straw Dogs, I Don’t Know How She Does It and the remastered in 3D re-release of The Lion King, probably the most interesting offering of the bunch.

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As expected, The Help took home the box office crown for a 3rd time in a row over the weekend. Tepid competition and unimpressive holdovers helped the flick become the first in over a year (since Inception in July 2010) to score a hat-trick. So without more babbling, I give you the numbers, right after the break.

The Help actually managed to go up since the last box office count with $14.5 million (+0.4%) over the normal 3-days and a bigger then anticipated $19.8 million over the full labor day weekend. $125.7 million is what this movie made after 28 days (or one might say, 28 Days Later, pun intended) and I’m betting it’s going to gross at least $50-60 million more. Even $200 million is a possibility given the fine box office legs on this movie.

The Debt was rather surprisingly 2nd with $9.9 million over the 3-days and $12.8 over the long weekend. That adds to a $14.7 million 6-day opening for this R-rated thriller. I’ve got no budget on this so I’m gonna guess that it did good enough, all things considered.

In 3rd place the critically panned Apollo 18 made just $10.7 million over the long 4-day weekend. In line with expectations, couldn’t ask for more from this. And don’t worry, we won’t be seeing this again in the top 5.

4th place is a mixed bag since it belongs to both Shark Night 3D and Rise of the Planet of the Apes, depending on how you look at it. You see, over the normal weekend, Shark Night 3D took $8.4 million while Rise of the Planet of the Apes made $7.9 million. Now if we were to gaze at the longer labor day weekend that also includes Monday, then Apes would be 4th with $10.3 million while the 3D shark movie that’s supposed to take place mostly at night (trailers show a lot of day shots, just saying) grossed $10.1 million. Rise of the Planet of the Apes is at $163.1 million after 33 days, good job primates.

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Labor Day weekend is coming up in North America and with that, the chance for The Help to score a hat-trick at the top of the box office. Last time we witnessed such an event was back in July 2010 when Inception won three consecutive weekends. There’s also some competition out there in the form of The Debt, Apollo 18 and Shark Night 3D.

Labor day means the US gets a 4-day weekend since Monday is also free. Because of this I’m going to give the normal 3-day prediction as well as a 4-day one. Now back to the good stuff, The Help could lead the box office one last time with a $14 million 3-day and $17 million over the entire 4-day labor weekend. That should bring the movie to over $121 million in 27 days.

The Blair Witch Project style Apollo 18 opens in 3328 theaters and this is quite possibly the only flick that could deprive The Help of its hat-trick. I’m mixed on this since on one hand I remember movies like Cloverfield or Paranormal Activity, both doing great business in theaters, but on the other hand this just doesn’t look all that interesting as a theater experience. I’d much rather enjoy Apollo 18 with a bunch of friends, at home, on a rented Blu-ray. Maybe I’m wrong and it will gross a lot more, but right now I’m just not convinced so I’ll give it $12 million for the 3-day and $14.5 million for the 4-day, good for 2nd place.

Now Shark Night 3D could be a theater experience but like other similar second grade horror flicks, it has limited appeal. Piranha 3D opened with $10 million a year ago, this could do similar business over the 3-day weekend and $12 million over the 4-day weekend.

In 4th place we’ve got a fight between Rise of the Planet of the Apes and The Debt. Now the later just opened on Wednesday to almost $1 million so it won’t be anything to write home about when it comes to box office. Still, I’m expecting around $6 million for both during the 3-day and $8 million for the 4-day weekend. If it performs like this, Rise of the Planet of the Apes will have made over $160 million in just over a month in North America.

Next week Warner Bros. has the Steven Soderbergh action thriller Contagion, Lionsgate brings some Warriors and Sony throws Bucky Larson: Bord to be a Star into the mix.

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The Debt is one of those movies where one simply needs to read the synopsis when deciding whether or not to give this a look. It’s a balanced spy-thriller where there is just as much rhetoric as there are old-school action sequences – due to the fact that this 114 minute flick takes place in Germany in 1965.

Knowing that, the script is penned by the fantastical Matthew Vaughn and Jane Goldman (Kick-Ass, X-Men: First Class), who have found a way to blend substantial moments with over-the-top fun in their writing collaborations. This time around, there is no time for laughs or even smiles, as The Debt is serious gritty business.

The story begins in 1997 with former Israeli agents Rachel Singer (Helen Mirren) & Stephan Gold (Tom Wilkinson in a wheelchair) being celebrated by their daughter Sarah’s (Romi Aboulafia) literary account of how their team – which also included the absent David (Ciaran Hinds) – captured a Nazi war criminal, who was known as the Surgeon of Birkenau (Jesper Christensen). During the ceremony, Rachel is asked to read a chapter that depicts the climatic moment in their successful mission that is continuously lauded over the years in their home country.

At this point in the story, the film goes into flashback mode during the above reading, where the team of Rachel (Jessica Chastain), Stephan (Marton Csokas) and David (Sam Worthington) and devising a scheme to capture the famed torturer, who is hiding under the identity as a doctor with a legit practice. Once the reading concludes, the story quickly jumps back to 1997 where Stephan alerts his ex-wife Rachel that something from that mission may come back to haunt the entire team.

Once the audience sees that little exchange, the film goes back to 1965 Berlin and the entire mission that has been heralded throughout the years goes on display.

Although this captivating story is paced fairly well and the performances are all solid, there are some sloppy moments mechanically. First off, why Ciaran Hinds was chosen to portray an older Sam Worthington is just laughable. They look nothing alike! It doesn’t make or break the movie, but man that’s just lazy. They would have been better off just using a prosthetic on Worthington’s face. Minor examples such as this are really the only things that hamper the tone of this product (or just royally bug me).

A few other sequences where the film jumps back to 1997 – when the focus is on Helen Mirren and Tom Wilkinson – showed clever storytelling but placed the elder characters in situations that may be considered a stretch for the audience to buy into based on certain actions.

In all seriousness though, the last paragraph or two are drops in the proverbial bucket compared to the rest of the screenplay. Just when you think this flick has lost its marbles, the beautifully orchestrated twist comes in and this story is instantly elevated in your mind. It was already good to begin with, yet it gives one an emotional injection that keeps the interest levels high as the rest of the tale plays out. And both ladies, who are essentially playing the same character, rock this show in both the dialogue and action sequences.

Overall, The Debt gives the audience their money’s worth. A top-notch cast along with the creative delivery of the script pays-off by the time the credits roll. The performances and screenplay easily cover up the sparse continuity errors (eye-rollers) one may catch.

RATING: 3.5 out of 5

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The second trailer for The Debt, written by Kick-Ass duo Matthew Vaughn and Jane Goldman, has been released online. The movie stars Sam Worthington (Avatar) alongside Jessica Chastain (from the upcoming Tree of Life), as well as Helen Mirren (last seen in Arthur) and Tom Wilkinson (The Green Hornet).

From Focus Features:

In this espionage thriller, shocking news reaches retired Mossad secret agents Rachel (Academy Award winner Helen Mirren) and Stefan (two-time Academy Award nominee Tom Wilkinson) about their former colleague David (Ciarán Hinds). Back in 1966, the trio (portrayed, respectively, by Jessica Chastain, Marton Csokas, and Sam Worthington [“Avatar,” “Clash of the Titans”]) tracked down Nazi war criminal Vogel (Jesper Christensen) in East Berlin. At great risk, and at considerable personal cost, the team’s mission was accomplished – or was it? The suspense builds in and across two different time periods, with startling action and surprising revelations.

The Debt is directed by John Madden, who is best known for Shakespeare in Love. Normally I might be concerned about a director known for historical romances working on an espionage movie; but I just saw Hanna, directed Joe Wright, who did Atonement and Pride and Prejudice, and it was fantastic. So I’ll reserve judgment until I see it.

The Debt was one of the films caught up in the death of Miramax last year however Walt Disney Studios, who merged with Miramix and are now in control of it’s slate, has now set an August 2011 release date for the US.

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The first trailer for The Debt, written by Kick-Ass duo Matthew Vaughn and Jane Goldman, has been released online. The film is a remake of the 2007 Israeli film of the same name by Assaf Bernstein and stars Helen Mirren, Sam Worthington and Ciarán Hinds.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1CSKqXgJXWo

Helen Mirren and Sam Worthington star in “The Debt,” the powerful story of Rachel Singer, a former Mossad agent who endeavored to capture and bring to trial a notorious Nazi war criminal—the Surgeon of Birkenau—in a secret Israeli mission that ended with his death on the streets of East Berlin. Now, 30 years later, a man claiming to be the doctor has surfaced, and Rachel must go back to Eastern Europe to uncover the truth. Overwhelmed by haunting memories of her younger self and her two fellow agents, the still-celebrated heroine must relive the trauma of those events and confront the debt she has incurred.

The Debt, directed by John Madden (Shakespeare in Love), was one of the films caught up in the death of Miramax earlier this year. Walt Disney Studios, who merged with Miramix and are now in control of it’s slate, has set a December 29th release date.

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If there is one actor in the world that you should keep your eye on, it’s Sam Worthington. In 2006 he bagged the lead in James Cameron’s Avatar and ever since then he just can’t stop landing good roles. He will be seen later this month alongside Christian Bale in Terminator Salvation (which should take him out of the ‘unknown’ category) and he is currently filming the Clash of the Titans remake. If things work out he could also end up playing Hal Jordan in the Green Lantern for Warner Bros (director Martin Campbell nearly cast him as Bond in Casino Royale, however he lost out to Daniel Craig at the final stage).

While on the rounds for Terminator Salvation he spoke to IESB about all these cool projects he has got himself involved with:

On Avatar:

You’re never dictated by the technology with Jim. Jim is paramount to the actors. Everyone thinks that he’s technology driven, but he’s the best fuckin’ acting director I’ve ever worked with. He picks up on subtleties and details that you wouldn’t believe. So, he’s employed me to come in and do my job, and then we use the technology and I work with him. It’s give and take. Jim isn’t a dictator. He wants it fuckin’ high, but so do I. I’m not there to get pushed around. I’m there to work with the man. And, that’s why I got the job. I don’t get pushed around. I’ve done 10 years [of acting] in Australia. I didn’t do that for nothin’. We worked together. It’s a privilege to work with directors who like pushing the boundaries and taking risks, like McG. He’s taken a hell of a risk on this movie, with his career. That’s what I like to be a part of.

On Clash of the Titans:

We’ve been filming it for two weeks now and I’m more bruised and battered than I was on Terminator. We’ve taken on Medusa, we’ve taken on the witches, and then we just kill everything else. It’s a bit more brutal. There’s no togas, or there’s very little togas. I said, “I’m not wearing a toga. Bugger that!” You can’t look manly in a toga, I’m sorry. I couldn’t do it. Louis is a very good action director, so it’s going to be exciting and big, and my job is to bring the heart.

On Green Lantern:

I’ve been talking to (director) Martin Campbell about it. It’s one of those things where they’re still doing the script. I said, “Give me a script. Let me have a look at it.” I like Martin a lot. I met him on the Bond stuff, and I like his work, but the second step is, “Is it a movie that I’d go and see?”

To read the whole interview click here!

As well as all the above Sam has finished working on a romantic drama with Keira Knightly called Last Night, and he will be playing an agent chasing a Nazi war criminal in The Debt alongside Helen Mirren. If this guy isn’t careful he’ll get beatings by other lead actors for taking all the good roles.

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Sam Worthington is quickly becoming one of my favourite actors, even though I haven’t actually seen him act in anything. The buzz started when it was revealed he would take the lead in James Cameron sci-fi epic Avatar, which I cannot wait for. Then he landed a role in Terminator Salvation which is looking cooler as the days pass. He is also up for the lead role in the Clash of the Titans remake.

Now he will be joining Oscar winner Helen Mirren in The Debt. It’s no Terminator, but it’s got Helen Mirren chasing Nazi’s. Need I say more?

From Variey:

Worthington and Mirren play Israeli Mossad agents hunting a Nazi war criminal. The film is an English-language remake of the Israeli thriller “Ha-hov.”

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