Studio Estimates for October 3-5

1.  Beverly Hills Chihuahua - $29 million
2.  Eagle Eye - $17.7 million
3.  Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist - $12 million
4.  Nights in Rodanthe - $7.4 million
5.  Appaloosa - $5 million

Beverly Hills Chihuahua won the weekend box office as expected with $29 million.  And now every kid wants a talking dog.  Even though I haven't seen this film, I have seen the ridiculous trailer and can conclude that's a movie I never intend on watching.  But hey, Disney got the job done and that's all that matters I guess.

Eagle Eye captured second place this weekend with $17.7 million, bringing its total gross of two weeks to $54.6 million.

In third place was the teenage romcom, Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist that grossed $12 million.  Not too bad, but not great either.  This is the first movie with Michael Cera (Juno, Superbad) that I really had no interest to see. 

The chick-flick Nights in Rodanthe came in fourth place with $7.4 million and the Ed Harris, Viggo Mortensen western, Appaloosa surprisingly came in fifth with $5 million. 

So those were the Top 5.  The rest of the bunch included the very disappointing Blindness, An American Carol, and How to Lose Friends and Alienate People.  Bill Maher's Religulous came in 10th place with $3.5 million, but this is a very good number since the film only opened in 500 theaters.
As for out predictions, looks like Dan comes away with the title again.  He was able to predict the Top 4 correctly, and his predicted grosses were almost right on the mark.  Kudos!

Check out our upcoming predictions on Friday.

I think this movie's success in the midst of the presidential election is hilarious. While the rest of ther world watches, we decide to watch pooches. Granted, I know this is a kid's movie, but I'll bet a lot of parents would rather listen to a talking dog than listen to Sarah Palin make another speech.

Sixteen amazing sports movie feats. Including Karate Kid. Awesome.

Interview: Greg Gillis (aka Girl Talk) on his sample-crazy mix stuff.

Kevin Bacon is producing a John Wilkes Booth series for Showtime.

Polaroids by Warhol. I suppose, by default, these are cooler than your polaroids.

$30m for Beverly Hills Chihuahua... here's a review.

The top ten Wired.com photos.

Polyamory is moving mainstream.

Thirty nude scenes never to forget.

Who has the best moustache of the year?

Here's a preview of Sunshine Cleaning, starring Amy Adams and Emily Blunt.

Oasis were beaten out for the number one spot by Pink.

The Cottage's Paul Andrew Williams may direct 28 Months Later.

Jupiter. From Earth. Cool.

Listening to Creedence is good.

Interview: Philip Seymour Hoffman.

Other box-office items of interest: the Ed Harris directed western, APPALOOSA, in which he also starred, pulled in 5.5 mill on 1045 screens. David Zucker’s anti-left-wing spoof comedy, AN AMERICAN CAROL, grossed 3.8 on 1619 screens and Bill Maher’s RELIGULOUS did a better than expected 3.5 mill on just 502 screens. FLASH OF GENIOUS and BLINDNESS both bombed and finished out of the top ten!  HERE’S a LOOK at the TOP TEN

Ho boy. From Variety:

"Chihuahua," playing in 3,215 runs, was a clear hit in a month when big grosses are usually reserved for horror and gore pics. Opening number is Disney’s best ever for October and a big part of the reason why the weekend was up a whopping 40% over the same sesh a year ago.

The movie took in $29 million, defeating Larry Charles' doc Religulous and that movie about a woman named Rachel getting married. I guess I could say something scathing and cynical here, but fuck it, kids need movies too. And milk and candy and 9 hours of sleep a night.

Today, Becky and I have just enjoyed a quiet day, watching Nascar, eating some leftovers and generally winding down from the past week and getting ready for a new one.

Since the ability to post in any great detail has escaped me, today's post will end now.

Weather report...sunny and warm...still looking for rain.

As always...I must be off.

Beverly Hills Chihuahua Junior Novel (Junior Novelization) is available at Amazon for $4.99. To Order click here
Amazon Product Pages contain a lot of other details on this product as Customer Reviews, Sales Ranking, Special Offers, Alternate products that customers are going for and much more.Want to read these details? click here

Want to get some other Format / Binding / Version? You can search for them from here

Other Products of Interest

• Disney High School Musical 3 Junior Novel (Junior Novelization)
• The Everything Chihuahua Book: A Complete Guide to Raising, Training, And Caring for Your Chihuahua (Everything: Pets)
• The Little Mermaid - Ariel's Beginning
• Igor Movie Novelization (Igor)
• The Chihuahua Handbook (Barron's Pet Handbooks)

Okay, I swear I have a point, as this is connected to Beverly Hills Chihuahua, which I saw on Friday night and actually really enjoyed. After having seen the highly enjoyable Choke immediately before, I wasn't expecting much from this, especially since the movie starts out with a scene full of spoiled lap dogs at the spa and their mouths are moving in such a fake way it just was annoying, but once I got past that it was actually quite an entertaining movie. This spoiled Chihuahua from Beverly Hills gets left with its owner's niece who then takes it to Mexico, where it gets lost and then kidnapped by some of the most infamous Mexican dog fighters. Anyhow, I won't give more away than that, but the whole movie is hilarious and the dogs are actually are quite forward in their flirtations with each other ("if you ever need somone to lick inside your ears or chew the hard to reach places") and are very lovable! If you have any little ones in the family, it is a great excuse to go see this, or else just rent it when it comes out on video...

I guess the movie was called South of the Border while it was being filmed, here is a cute video I found of an interview by a Mexican television station with the actors from the film. I love Manolo Cardona, the Colombian actor who plays the sexy landscaper... *drool* Colombia te quiro!

The girls were on a one way path to see the new Disney movie, Beverly HIlls Chihuahua this weekend. Selfishly, I was rolling my eyes and trying to figure out how to make this a better Saturday experience for myself.  We gathered some friends and headed into the crowds.

The movie was saccharin sweet and looked pretty bleak for the first 10 minutes.  Dogs played out a story line that I'm pretty sure I've read in a Harlequin Romance novel thirty years ago.  However, the girls loved it.  We scampered into a classic good guys/dogs versus bad guys/dogs flick.

Our ten year old viewers sighed over the romance and adventure and we all laughed at the ridiculous outfits.  There were a few, well-written humorous lines and all in all, not bad for a movie full of Chihuahuas in sunglasses and booties having parties, playdates and spa treatments.

The computer graphics were actually pretty amazing.  The animals indeed looked like they were talking--a far cry from Mister Ed.  Some of the scenes were even nail biting with either very talented stunt-chihuahuas or excellent technology.

My six year old didn't find it scary, although there were some young children obviously upset by the scary dog scenes.  Remember, she was the one that enjoyed Iron Man.

As my friend said, "What can you expect from a movie called Beverly Hills Chihuahua?"  Indeed, if you set your sights low, I think you are already miles ahead of the pack.  You can always snooze, do e-mail on your blackberry or wait for the few amusing doggie bones that this movie throws your way.

The show was good in a way because you get to compare many different vendors offering the same service. We actually found a business who can refinish old claw foot tub for $595--inside and out. Others offering the same service would charge more--around $800. I also made an appointment for a handyman to come out to our house next weekend--need help in installing privacy fence. I entered into so many drawings--hopefully they won't spam me. In summary, the show was good and we actually spent hours at the show.

Tonight, we are going to the movie to see Beverly Hills Chihuahua. I am so excited. Right now  my husband is watching football game on TV. It will be over in less than an hour and after that we're going to get something light to eat before going to the movie.

So exciting.

Happy Saturday, everyone!

A good friend (Daisy0 posted yesterday about the release of Beverly Hills Chihuahua.  She used this great poster, and told us to distribute it far and wide.

The issue here is that after a movie starring dogs is released, there is often a rush by people to get a dog "just like" the one in the movie.   I think most of us know how 101 Dalmatians led to massive overbreeding (and irresponsible breeding) of the Dalmatian.

This can also happen after a TV show, such as Frasier, which led to many people buying Jack Russell terriers without a real understanding of the breed's needs.

Because they don't know the real needs of the dog they are getting, people end up surrendering many, many of these poor animals to SPCAs, humane societies, and other animal shelters.  Their expectations don't square with the reality of the breed, and they give them up.

Now we've got a movie about Chihuahuas.  It looks like a cute and fun movie.  But we want to get the word out:  if watching this movie makes you want to have a Chihuahua of your very own, PLEASE do your research!  Learn about the breed to find out if your lifestyle and the Chi lifestyle are compatible.

And just as important, PLEASE start your search for your new Chi best friend at animal shelters and rescue groups!

Not long ago, I did a post about puppy mills.  Well folks, this is just the kind of situation that has puppy mill owners and irresponsible backyard breeders rubbing their hands together in glee (and greed).  They know that there will be an increased demand for Chihuahuas as a result of this movie, and they will overbreed and inbreed the poor Chis in order to meet this demand.

What many people might not know is that the Chihuahua is the fifth most posted breed on www.petfinder.com.  (This is a great site!  It advertises the animals available for adoption at shelters, rescue groups, and animal control facilities all over North America.  I just did a search for Chihuahuas in Western Canada and the Western US, and I stopped looking once I hit 500 dogs up for adoption.  I don't know how many more there were, but seriously:  500 Chihuahuas!)  There are so many Chis out there already who are looking for a home.  If you or someone you know decides that they want a Chihuahua, please adopt one from a shelter or rescue!

Spread the word!  Rescue dogs are AWESOME!

An American Carol - A cynical American filmmaker who wants to abolish the 4th of July holiday is visited by three spirits who try to give him patriotic spirit. It's basically A Christmas Carol, except it's a comedy, and about the 4th of July.

Appaloosa - Ed Harris and Viggo Mortensen are hired guns whose job of cleaning up a dangerous town is complicated further when they fall for the same woman(Renee Zellweger) in this Western directed by Ed Harris.

Beverly Hills Chihuahua - A talking Chihuahua heads out to Mexico to save the spoiled pooch he loves.

Blindness - A woman(Julianne Moore) pretends she's blind to stay withe her husband(Mark Ruffalo) when he's quarantined with other victims of a terrifying blindness epidemic.

The Duchess - A smart, beautiful, and popular English aristocrat(Keira Knightley) gets involved in the politics of her day, but her husband(Ralph Fiennes) isn't pleased.

Flash of Genius - An inventor(Greg Kinnear) passionately sues Ford for stealing his invention, the intermittent windshield wiper, while putting his health and family at risk. Based on a true story.

How to Lose Friends and Alienate People - A British celebrity journalist(Simon Pegg) hired to write for an upscale magazine in New York doesn't play well with others; Kirsten Dunst and Megan Fox co-star in the comedy.

Nick and Nora's Infinite Playlist - Two strangers (Michael Cera and Kat Dennings) with mutual friends and bad dating histories bond during a night of misadventures and musical pursuits.

Enjoy!

Beverly Hills Chihuahua

Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist

Blindness

How to Lose Friends & Alienate People

An American Carol

Religulous

There are a handful of movies opening today that are worth checking out. Ed Harris and Viggo Mortensen will fight nude in "Appaloosa" (75% top critics), Michael Cera will play out of his league with Kat Dennings in "Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist" (83%), and Simon Pegg will try to not look disgusted by Kirsten Dunst in "How To Lose Friends & Alienate People" (29%).

As far as me, I'll be staying home watching sports and catching up on TV shows. However, if I was to suggest a movie or go see one, it would be "Flash Of Genius" with Greg Kinnear. It's only at 33% but I dig me some Kinnear.