Box Office: Carol Boxes With Men and Goats

Halloween slowed down box office figures, but Michael Jackson's This Is It still managed the top honors for the weekend. Here's the top five:

1. Michael Jackson's This Is It: $23.2 million (total of $34.4 million)
2. Paranormal Activity: $16.3 million
3. Law Abiding Citizen: $7.4 million
4. Couples Retreat: $6.4 million
5. Where the Wild Things Are: $5.9 million

With only one wide release last week studios are making up for it with four new flicks this week.

The Box:
What's It All About: A couple in a tough financial situation are given a box that will grant them riches, except every time they use it someone somewhere will die.
Why It Might Do Well: Donnie Darko director Richard Kelly is at the helm, with a script based on a Richard Matheson story.
Why It Might Not Do Well: 55% at Rottentomatoes.com.
Number of Theaters: 2,500
Prediction: $16 million

A Christmas Carol:
What's It All About: Jim Carey stars in several roles in this 3D animated version of the classic Dickens Christmas tale.
Why It Might Do Well: This Robert Zemeckis guy has got some decent flicks on his resume.
Why It Might Not Do Well: Good lord, how many times has this been adapted before?
Number of Theaters: 3,500
Prediction: $42 million


The Fourth Kind:
What's It All About: Remember Close Encounters of the Third Kind? Well The Fourth Kind represents a much less touchy-feely kind of alien visitation. Milla Jovovich stars as a psychotherapist whose patients are being abducted by aliens.
Why It Might Do Well: People are paying to see horror movies these days and the trailer looks pretty creepy.
Why It Might Not Do Well: Might this have been better received before Halloween?
Number of Theaters: 2,450
Prediction: $12 million

The Men Who Stare at Goats:
What's It All About: A reporter researches an army regiment that was trained to use psychic abilities during the Iraq war.
Why It Might Do Well: You've got your Ewan McGregor, your George Clooney, and your Kevin Spacey.
Why It Might Not Do Well: The title sounds like some bizarre fetish video.
Number of Theaters: 2,200
Prediction: $9 million

Even though it's still early enough in the year for the idea of Christmas to give me hives I can see A Christmas Carol taking the lead next week. Here's my prediction:
1. A Christmas Carol
2. The Box
3. The Fourth Kind
4. Paranormal Activity
5. Michael Jackson's This Is It

Most of us did not anticipate Saw VI dropping out of the top five in its second week, but it fell 62%, causing some of our predictions to veer off course. Congratulations to Vera for pulling the top score of the week. Here's how we all did:
1. Vera: 13
2. Ryan: 12
3. Clark: 11
3. Garrett: 11
4. WJDR: 10
5. Matt: 9
5. Evil Ash: 9
5. Sebastian: 9
5. Alex Focker: 9
5. lostinafog: 9
5. greatone: 9
6. Brandon: 7
7. Gregory Rubinstein: 4
7. Ryan S.: 4
7. Ray: 4

Post your predictions for the top five movies in the comments section below before 5:00PM Eastern Time on Friday. One point for every top five movie correctly named, two points for every correct placement, and one extra point for the top movie.