April Forecast

By Walid Habboub

April is much like Fenster, Benicio Del Toro's star making role in The Usual Suspects, in that it doesn't really matter in the grand scheme of things. April is just the quiet before the storm that is the summer box office season, which will be kicked off this year by X2. With respect to that, here's my quick preview of what to expect in April. Each number beside the movies is a forecast of how it will rank as an overall performer for the months of April.

X Minus 4 Weeks

8) Eddie Griffin: Dysfunktional Family
With the success of The Original Kings of Comedy and Martin Lawrence: Runteldat, Dysfunktional Family brings arguably the most talented of the BET Comicview alumni to the big screen in his very own stand-up comedy feature length film. Griffin more or less already has a stand-up film in Foolish but this film allows him to truly arrive on the scene. The Undercover Brother should be a big hit this month and the MTV crowd should eat this film up.

5) A Man Apart
If the star of this film isn't really talking about it, I'm sure the fans won't either. Unfortunately, this horrendously reviewed film still carries a marquee name in Vin Diesel and should still do well.

3) What a Girl Wants
This film is basically The Princess Diaries 2 and should be just as successful. The concept is tired but proven and the star is well known enough to pull this film off. The film should have tremendous legs and have a solid month.

2) Phone Booth
Having already seen this movie at the Toronto International Film Festival, I know that it will be a film that fans will like. It's a very intense thriller that moves along briskly and keeps you on the edge of your seat. Due to the appeal of the premise, I'm predicting it to be a breakout hit upon opening and expect it to have very decent legs. A crowded weekend starts off a thin month.

X Minus 3 Weeks

1) Anger Management
This film could very well be the biggest April opener in history. The premise and the leads are fantastic, the advertising campaign has been mind-numbingly persistent and the film actually looks funny. Put all those together and you have a film with breakout written all over it. Think Analyze This, only bigger. The film will also appeal across many age groups, which will only help its cause. Ladies and gentlemen: the champion of April.

X Minus 2 Weeks (Sort Of)

7) Bulletproof Monk
Hard to believe that Chow Yun-Fat's follow up to Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon is this lovely cinematic masterpiece, but nonetheless. I'm not sure of who the target audience is, but the high camp factor should keep many people away.

X Minus 1 Week

10) Holes
I have no idea how this film will sell itself. It's on the list because a list of nine films would feel incomplete.

9) It Runs in the Family
Michael Douglas in a comedy is a recipe for disaster but this film looks quite decent. It's fairly low on the radar screen and I'm guessing only a small demographic will be intrigued by the Michael and Kirk Douglas team up. Not a lot to this one.

6) Malibu's Most Wanted
The trailer was hilarious, the ads not so much. Still, Jamie Kennedy fits in perfectly as the fish out of water white rapper who finds himself in the middle of the hood at the horror of everyone around him. This had the potential to be big but the television ads have betrayed it. Yet the film still might find an audience and do reasonably well.

4) Identity
I've got to say that I am really looking forward to this film. On the other hand, I'm hoping that it'll be a more traditional mystery rather than a slasher film. Identity has a decent cast, an interesting premise and what looks like great atmosphere. The film should do well with very little same-genre films in release. Another mild surprise

So, I'm expecting the top ten to break down as follows:

1) Anger Management
2) Phone Booth
3) What a Girl Wants
4) Identity
5) A Man Apart
6) Malibu's Most Wanted
7) Bulletproof Monk
8) Eddie Griffin: Dysfunktional Family
9) It Runs in the Family
10) Holes


  • Read David Mumpower's April forecast
  • Read Stephanie Star Smith's April forecast

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