I often wonder what studios look for in their hired guns. Case in point: Jeff Wadlow, director of the tolerable Cry_Wolf and the miserable Never Back Down, who, according to The Hollywood Reporter, has been tapped to direct The Tomb for Summit Entertainment. The Tomb is billed as a prison-escape movie with a MacGyver-like protagonist who uses smarts and ingenious devices to escape from a high-security prison that he himself designed. Summit hopes to make the action-packed film into a franchise cash cow.

I've seen both of Wadlow's movies (the first of which, Cry_Wolf, was made with the money he won in the Chrysler Million Dollar Film Competition), and his m.o. seems clear: slick, blandly good-looking, montage-heavy genre flicks. So in some ways it makes sense for Summit to pin its franchise hopes on him: when you're gambling on a movie, inoffensive competence behind the camera may be your safest bet. Like any cinephile, I wish studios would be a bit more adventurous (and thus cringe whenever a bold move -- putting Ang Lee in charge of Hulk, for example -- backfires at the box office), but as a business decision it's perfectly rational.

For all of the traditional complaints lodged against film critics -- too pointy-headed, too snooty, unable to enjoy a movie on the level of the simple pleasures it may present -- I worry that what I'm about to say may harm my standing in the field; namely, I liked Never Back Down. No, it's not The Battle of Algiers or Jules et Jim; it's a movie where good-looking 20-somethings playing good-looking teens offer American moviegoers the exciting prospect of Mixed Martial Arts action without the daunting possibility they might have to read subtitles. It's far below the fights-and-fury quality of Donnie Yen's Flash Point, another MMA action flick opening in limited release as Never Back Down splashes up on movie screens across America. And yet, Never Back Down seems to know what it is, and executes the rote and required moments in a film like this -- a template set by movies like The Karate Kid and Rocky and a dozen others -- with a certain amount of style and exuberance. Never Back Down revolves around good-looking people beating the holy hell out of each other; it doesn't pretend to be much more than that, and while the pleasures it offers are modest, it nonetheless delivers them.

Despite a putrescent score of 7% over at Rottentomatoes.com, Roland Emmerich's 10,000 B.C. took the saber tooth tiger by the tail and raked in some respectable cash, pulling in more than twice as much as its closest competitor. Last week's two other big releases, College Road Trip and The Bank Job, took second and fourth place respectively. Vantage Point enjoyed its third week in the top five, with sales already exceeding the film's $40 million budget by more than $10 million. Here are last weekend's totals:

1. 10,000 B.C.: $35.7 million.
2. College Road Trip: $14 million.
3. Vantage Point: $7.5 million.
4. The Bank Job: $5.7 million.
5. Semi-Pro: $5.8 million.

Last week's prehistoric adventure is counter-balanced by a post apocalyptic (sort of) romp, a classic children's book brought to the big screen, and teens kicking the living crap out of each other.

Doomsday
What's It All About: In the wake of a devastating plague, an entire country is walled off to prevent the disease from spreading. Thirty years later when the plague resurfaces, a military team is dispatched into the now barbaric quarantine zone in search of a cure.
Why It Might Do Well: Director Neil Marshall has The Descent and Dog Soldiers to his credit, two very cool flicks that have me curious about his latest.
Why It Might Not Do Well: The unimpressive trailer indicates a hodge podge collection of influences including The Road Warrior, Escape From New York and Underworld.
Number of Theaters: 1,800
Prediction: $9.5 million