Some audience overlap is apparent among the debutants, and it's likely that one or more of the new pictures will struggle. As for predicting the pecking order of the weekend openers, that's something of a crapshoot.
"He's Just Not That Into You" seems to have the best chance of taking the No. 1 spot. The Warner Bros. release, whose ensemble cast also includes Scarlett Johansson, Ben Affleck and Drew Barrymore, has "chick-flick" written all over it. But some early reviews suggest that it has the goods to attract a few guys as well.
It could gross in the upper-teen millions or higher, which should be sufficient to oust Fox's "Taken" from the top spot in the Liam Neeson starrer's sophomore session.
Elsewhere, Steve Martin reprises his Inspector Clouseau role in the slapstick sequel "The Pink Panther 2," which Sony has been marketing lavishly. It looks likely to draw audiences skewing heavily toward family patrons.
Dakota Fanning is linked to a pair of films. The tyke lends her voice to Focus Features' 3-D animated "Coraline," which totes a kid-friendly rating and a filmic sensibility likely to snag more than a few adults -- certainly older fans of stop-motion auteur Henry Selick ("James and the Giant Peach").
She also stars in "Push," a sci-fi thriller for young adults that bears no connection to this year's similarly titled Sundance prize winner. The Summit Entertainment release appears the weakest of the market entrants and could struggle to open above the single-digit millions.
Pink Panther 2Copyright © 2009 Sony Pictures
Steve Martin reprises his role as the bumbling Inspector Jacques Clouseau in the modern-day farce. John Cleese will play chief inspector Dreyfus in the film. Garcia, Molina and Rai have signed on as detectives and experts who join forces with Clouseau to catch the thief who has been stealing artifacts around the world.
 | February 6th, 2009 |
 | Harald Zwart |
 | Lowell Ganz, Babaloo Mandel |
 | Steve Martin, Jean Reno, Emily Mortimer, Andy Garcia, John Cleese, Alfred Molina, Molly Sims, Aishwarya Rai, Yuki Matsuzaki |
 | Columbia Pictures (Sony), MGM |
 | Comedy |
 | sonypictures.com/movies/thepinkpanther2 |
 | PG for some suggestive humor, brief mild language and action |
 | 1 hour 32 minutes |
He's Just Not Into YouCopyright © 2009 New Line Cinema
An all-star cast is featured in the stories of a group of interconnected, Baltimore-based twenty- and thirty-somethings as they navigate their various relationships from the shallow end of the dating pool through the deep, murky waters of married life. Trying to read the signs of the opposite sex, each hopes to be the exception to the "no exceptions" rule.
| February 6th, 2009 |
| Ken Kwapis |
| Abby Kohn, Marc Silverstein |
| Ben Affleck, Jennifer Aniston, Drew Barrymore, Jennifer Connelly, Kevin Connolly, Bradley Cooper, Ginnifer Goodwin, Scarlett Johansson, Justin Long |
| New Line Cinema |
| Comedy, Romance |
| hesjustnotthatintoyoumovie.com |
| PG-13 for sexual content and brief strong language |
| 2 hours 09 minutes |
PushCopyright © 2009 Summit Entertainment
A riveting action-thriller, "Push" burrows deep into the deadly world of psychic espionage where artificially enhanced paranormal operatives have the ability to move objects with their minds, see the future, create new realities and kill without ever touching their victims. Against this setting, a young man (Chris Evans) and a teenage girl (Dakota Fanning) take on a clandestine agency in a race against time that will determine the future of civilization.
| February 6th, 2009 |
| Paul McGuigan |
| David Bourla |
| Chris Evans, Dakota Fanning, Camilla Belle, Djimon Hounsou, Maggie Siff, Scott Michael Campbell |
| Summit Entertainment |
| Drama, Thriller |
| push-themovie.com |
| PG-13 intense sequences of violence and action, brief strong language, smoking and a scene of teen drinking |
| 1 hour 51 minutes |
CoralineCopyright © 2009 Focus Features
Based on Neil Gaiman's international best-selling book, "Coraline" is the story of a young girl (voiced by Fanning) who unlocks a mysterious door in her new home, and enters into an adventure in a parallel reality. On the surface, this other world eerily mimics her own life - though much more fantastical. In it, Coraline encounters such off-kilter inhabitants as the morbidly funny Miss Forcible and Miss Spink (French and Ms. Saunders, respectively), and a counterfeit mother (Hatcher) - who attempts to keep her. Ultimately, Coraline must count on her resourcefulness, determination, and bravery to get back home.
| February 6th, 2009 |
| Henry Selick |
| Henry Selick |
| Dakota Fanning, Teri Hatcher, Dawn French, Jennifer Saunders, Ian McShane |
| Focus Features |
| Animation |
| coraline.com |
| PG for thematic elements, scary images, some language and suggestive humor |
| 1 hour 40 minutes |
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