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Weekend Movies: Make Way for Spidey
Hollywood's major movie studios ceded the weekend box office sweepstakes to "Spider-Man 2," leaving only a handful of independent films debuting on Friday and prior releases to compete against it. But for movie fans who find their "Spider-Man" screenings sold out over the US Independence Day holiday, there are, perhaps, more well-reviewed movies now playing than in recent memory.
Indies hitting theaters for the first time -- Cole Porter musical "De-Lovely," Robert Redford thriller "The Clearing," and director Richard Linklater's "Before Sunset -- all come with good buzz. And for a little flag-waving inspiration, Disney has documentary "America's Heart & Soul."
On Wednesday, "Spider-Man 2," which is distributed by Sony Pictures Entertainment captured US$40.5 million at box offices to mark the biggest opening day ever.
Playing in 4,152 theaters, it is the widest release in the United States and Canada, and in Hollywood, the question has not been whether it will be the holiday's No. 1 movie, but just how huge it will become. "It doesn't get any better than this," Rory Bruer, Sony Pictures distribution chief, told Reuters.
A more intriguing question for box office watchers is how "Fahrenheit 9/11," director Michael Moore's controversial movie that bashes the Bush White House and questions the war in Iraq (news - web sites), will play in its second week.
"Fahrenheit" rising Distributors Lions Gate Films and IFC Films double the theaters to 1725 on Friday from 868 last weekend when it earned US$23.9 million in three days -- more than Moore's Oscar winner "Bowling for Columbine" did in its entire 2002 run.
"No longer is it controversial ... it's now a pop culture phenomenon," said Lions Gate Films President Tom Ortenberg.
Typically a documentary opens in a few theaters and builds its audience over time like recent hit "Super Size Me." But "Fahrenheit 9/11" could play like a major feature film that opens big at box offices then drops rapidly after a few weeks.
But because its release has been unprecedented, no industry observers really know what its long-run trajectory will be.
Meanwhile, the Walt Disney Co., which refused to distribute "Fahrenheit 9/11," is putting out "America's Heart & Soul," which tells inspiring stories of Americans who have chosen non-traditional lifestyles.
Musical "De-Lovely" stars Kevin Kline (news) as legendary composer Cole Porter and Ashley Judd as his wife, Linda. But Porter was gay and the movie, through theatrical song and dance numbers, explores their relationship and their love for one another.
"It poses the question, what is love ... if you look at the songs, so many are an exploration of love," Kline said.
In "The Clearing," Redford plays a self-made millionaire who is kidnapped, leading him and his family on a exploration of just what the great American dream of wealth and a comfortable life is really about. It premiered at the 2004 Sundance Film Festival (news - web sites) to solid praise.
Finally, romance "Before Sunset," is also earning good reviews. It is a follow-up to director Linklater's 1995 movie "Before Sunrise," and features the same two characters, a French woman (Julie Delpy (news)) and American boy (Ethan Hawke (news)) who meet again after not seeing each other for nine years and get a second chance at love.
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