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Max Braden: I agree that the sci-fi aspect of Nightmare would make it a tougher sell; the more realistic horror movies seem to be scoring well. On the other hand, I Am Legend was huge. And with the success of less campy comic remakes of Batman, Spider-Man and X-Men, I think it would just take a smart screenwriter to turn the Nightmare angle around. I was going to suggest American Werewolf in London but just remembered that I'd forgotten about Rise of the Lycans.

We're just not that into Confessions of a Shopaholic

Kim Hollis: Confessions of a Shopaholic opened to $15.4 million, falling $4 million short of the second weekend He's Just Not That Into You. Why did this one fail to catch on as much as last week's big winner?

Tim Briody: Shopaholic didn't scream so much "date movie" like He's Just Not That Into You as it did "chick flick." I'm sure many men agreed to see the more tolerable HJNTIY over Mrs. Borat's movie.





Brandon Scott: Yeah, Tim is right. This one definitely had the, "why would any self-respecting man see it?", taint to it. With He's Just Not That Into You, the themes were more "universal" in nature. Guys don't get shopping, nor should they aspire to want to "get it." It's a little too bad for Isla Fisher, because I think she missed her shot at solo stardom.

Shane Jenkins: Did Isla get to headline this movie based solely on her role in Wedding Crashers? She's pretty and funny, but who thought she was a big enough name to open a wide release film?

David Mumpower: Shane, I would argue that most actresses who steal the show in a smaller role in a $200 million blockbuster get a trial run as a lead actress in a romantic comedy. The question is what they do with it, and Isla Fisher has done okay but not great here. I think she's a funny woman who has shown a lot of promise in Wedding Crashers and Definitely, Maybe, but circumstances were against her here. At the end of the day, Confessions of a Shopaholic is just too shallow a concept to work as a movie. The books sell because the writer is gifted, but it's quite difficult for that humor to translate to film. And I think that we all know from the reviews that it certainly didn't happen here. Even were there not the issue of our next topic working against the production, I still don't think this one would have ever broken out.

Max Braden: There was no passable appeal to men like He's Just Not That Into You had, and no passable appeal that any self-respecting woman should have. That's being a little harsh, but it just didn't look anywhere near up to snuff compared to The Devil Wears Prada. The economy may have made people more aware of rampant consumerism, but I don't think that trailer would have played well anytime other than maybe 1987. Still, I wouldn't blink at giving Isla another start. The camera loves her, but the chemistry just has to be right.

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