The Expendables has legs, albeit creaky and wobbly ones. The Sly Stallone actioner hauled in $16.5M ($64.8M) to hold off shitty newcomer Vampires Suck ($12.2M | $18.5M). In close succession after that it was the silly Eat Pray Love ($12M | $47.1M), the mediocre Lottery Ticket ($11.1M), the okay The Other Guys ($10.1M | $88.1M) and the nude-tastic Piranha 3D ($10M). more ›

Is anyone else as excited to see Piranha 3D as I am? I am both shocked and delighted at the great critical response this paean to 80s jiggle flicks is receiving. In a completely different vein, The Tillman Story provides a searing look into the phony stories that our government tried to tell us about the "heroic" death of Tillman at the hands of the enemy. No, he was negligently -- not accidentally -- killed by his own troops. Kids movies are usually terrible, which is why Nanny McPhee Returns is such a welcome film. Take your kids this weekend. Jennifer Aniston movies are also usually terrible, and the same seems to hold for The Switch. Why is Jason Bateman slumming? Real quick: see A Film Unfinished; don't see Vampires Suck; don't see Lottery Ticket; see Mao's Last Dancer; and don't see The Scenesters. more ›

Quentin Tarantino roared back into prominence as his World War Two revenge flick, Inglourious Basterds, uh, roared to the top of the weekend box office, earning a way-above expectations $37.2M. Last week's champ, District 9 had a reasonable hold and earned an additional $18.9M ($73.4M). After that it was the sort of okay G.I.Joe ($12.5M | $120.5M), the weepy Time Traveler's Wife ($10M | 37.4M) and the winning Julie & Julia ($9M | $59.2M). Kids commanded the next three slots: the lame Shorts debuted to $6.6M followed by the odd G-Force ($4.2M | $107.3M) and the super Harry Potter 6: Harry Battles Voldemort! ($3.5M | $290.2M) more ›

There's already been a ton of Inglourious Basterds material on LAist this weekend, so I'll only say, "Check it out. It's a helluva ride." My One and Only looks like an intriguing film. Based in part on the life of George Hamilton, it tells the story of a determined woman looking for a wealthy man to provide a nice life for her and her sons. It's been awhile since there's been a film about The Troubles, but Five Minutes of Heaven is a welcome addition to the canon. Liam Neeson stars as a man who, as a child, murdered the brother of another man (a fantastic James Nesbitt). The film tells a story of forgiveness as both try to reconcile the past. more ›

(editor's note - LAist sent our intrepid reporter, Lois Lane, er, Courtney Quinn to the Inglourious Basterds Press Day last weekend. In the spirit of Tarantino's film, she's segmented her coverage into something very, well...Basterd-like. It's a good, long read so get comfortable in your chair. Extra points for creativity, Coco.) more ›

The difficulty in reviewing a film like Inglourious Basterds is that it's really two films mashed up into one. One of those films concerns a young Jewish woman named Shoshanna who exacts a brilliant revenge against the Nazis who murdered her family. The other regards a group of mostly Jewish-American military assassins (the titular "Basterds") who scour the French countryside killing everyone in a German uniform. What's strangely problematic about Inglourious Basterds is that while the latter story is full of Quentin Tarantino's characteristic bluster and brio, you can't wait to get back to Shoshanna and find out what's happening with her life. more ›

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A Word or 100+: Ooops, I missed the Tonys, malhereusement. If there's a pick tonight, other than arena football, then it's the US version of Creature Comforts on CBS at 8:00 p.m. (from the creator of Wallace and Gromit). I love the UK version but my kids have a hard time with the various British accents and some of the various topics - I know it's a lot to ask for but I'm hoping... more ›

After a week without a sequel, we're back at it with the lovable scoundrels of "Ocean's 13". Sure, watching the same group of guys we've seen plunder Vegas and steal a Faberge egg plan another elaborate heist is rehashing already trodden ground, but I'll be damned if it isn't a good time. Add to that a torture-porn and another insufferable CG toon about penguins and we're in for an interesting weekend. more ›