By Chris Kavan - 04/19/18 at 06:40 AM CT
Rampage burst onto the scene last weekend, while A Quiet Place continued to show a lot of staying power, becoming one of highest-grossing horror films hitting $100 million in just two weeks. This weekend offers up a sequel to cult favorite comedy, another female-centric comedy and a weekend getaway turned thriller when a biker gang gets involved. Despite the competition, it's hard to see Rampage or A Quiet Place losing much ground. All this, of course, is just a bit of calm before next weekend when Avengers: Infinity War is going to bury everything with what is sure to be a near-record opening.
SUPER TROOPERS 2 It has been a long-time coming but Broken Lizard is back to what put them on the map: a misfit group of police officers near the U.S./Canadian border who, more often than not, act worse the people they ticket (or occasionally even arrest!). The original took awhile to become a cult classic, but I consider it one of my favorite comedies with just the utterance of "liter of cola" enough to get me going. Of course the original team is all back: Jay Chandrasekhar (who also directs) as Thorny, Kevin Heffernan as the hapless Farva, Steve Lemme as the insane Mac, Erik Stolhanske as the still-rookie? Rabbit, Paul Soter as the aw shucks Foster and Brian Cox as the put-upon Captain O'Hagan. Marisa Coughlan and Lynda Carter also reprise their roles as Ursula and Governor Jessman. Newcomes include Rob Lowe, Tyler Labine, Damon Wayans Jr., Bruce McCulloch, Will Sasso and Emmanuelle Chriqui. The plot revolves around our favorite Vermont policemen involved with a border dispute with our neighbors to the north and establishing a Highway Patrol in the region to set things right. By all accounts, this is not so much a sequel as a continuation - everyone is older, but no one has grown up. I just hope this doesn't wind up like Anchorman 2 that squandered its chance as a followup. Plus it comes out on 4/20 - that's just genius marketing right there.
Amy Schumer had a pretty good debut with Trainwreck but followed it up with Snatched, which was a disappointment. She returns with I Feel Pretty, but based on early reviews and word-of-mouth, it's not going to turn things around. Schumer plays Renee Bennett, a woman with little confidence as the world around her is constantly reminding her of how she doesn't fit in - too big, too awkward, too meek - but everything changes when she falls off an exercise bike and wakes up thinking she is the most beautiful woman in the world. This newfound confidence lets her get ahead at her place of work, a cosmetics company, and even talk to her role-model and boss Avery LeClaire (Michelle Williams). But all good things must come to end - and when this bout of confidence wears off, how will Renee react? The film also stars Emily Ratajkowski, Busy Philipps, Tom Hopper, Aidy Bryant, Lauren Hutton and Naomi Campbell. The film has been pretty savaged for trying to convey a positive message about body image and what it means to be a woman in the modern world, but takes every opportunity to make the easy fat-shaming joke. I have a feeling this disparity is going to sink it and while it may open decently, it's not going to challenge the top films.
Opening in just 1000 theaters, Traffik is likely to only make a modest impact at the box office. The film follows a couple (Paula Patton and Omar Epps) who decide to spend a romantic weekend on an isolated mountain retreat only to stumble upon a biker gang, and insidious plot and people who will stop at nothing to keep their secrets. William Fichtner, Missi Pyle, Roselyn Sanchez, Luke Goss, Laz Alonso and Dawn Olivieri help round out the cast. Much like last weekend's Beirut, this is a classic thriller that is going to get lost amidst the competition and will be lucky to hit the top 10, let alone the top 5. Still, I think if they releases this late summer (late July, early August) without the competition, it would have done a lot better. But I don't make these decisions.
The new films don't look to shake things up too much this weekend with Rampage and A Quiet Place likely to stay on top for at least one more weekend. I'll be back on Sunday with the complete breakdown.
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