1. Katy Perry: Part Of Me (Opened Yesterday, Paramount, 2,730 Theaters, 95 Minutes, Rated PG):I have to admit, I am a fan of Katy Perry. This is an embarrassing fact to admit because A) I am not a tween and B) I am not a girl. And I am not a fan of hers because of her obviously attractive physical attributes, I am a fan of her music. She is a rarity in today’s music scene–a pop songstress that writes her own music and manages to have her songs be both catchy and unique. “I Kissed a Girl” doesn’t sound like “E.T.” which doesn’t sound like “Part of Me.”

This would be enough to build a documentary/concert film around, but Perry’s rise to fame is an interesting story all in its own. Starting as a gospel musician named Katy Hudson and going through one name change, several genre shifts,and being dropped by no less than three record labels in the nine years before her “overnight success,” the pot holes on her road to fame would have disabled many a less determined person.

So, this might be a cut above the typical film of this type. And it’s in 3D, so those remarkable physical attributes will come popping right out at you.

2. Savages (Universal, 2,627 Theaters, 130 Minutes, Rated R): Do you get the feeling that Taylor Kitsch is cursed. In January, 2012 appeared to be a big year for him, as he was set to star in three major releases. However, John Carter was such a big disappointment that people were tripping over themselves calling it a flop, Battleship, while a success overseas, wasn’t the Transformers level hit that Hasbro expected. And now this film, which had a lot of buzz going for it, will likely be trounced at the box office by Spider-Man, Katy Perry and a talking stuffed bear.

The film centers on a pair of pot dealers (Kitsch and Aaron Johnson) who won’t play ball when a Mexican cartel muscles in on their territory. The war of wills gets nasty when their girlfriend (Blake Lively) gets kidnapped. The film was co-written and directed by Oliver Stone and also stars John Travolta and Benicio Del Toro.

Maybe the film will get lucky. Maybe a bunch of confused pre-teens will see Salma Hayek’s picture on the poster and think its the Katy Perry movie. After all, they have the same wig, only a different color.

A second orphan from Universal’s deal to develop feature films from toy maker Hasbro’s vast library of properties has perhaps found a new home.

Adam Sandler’s production shingle, Happy Madison, is currently in final talks to acquire the rights to a big screen feature based on the children’s board game Candy Land. The game had been one of several Hasbro properties that Universal Studios had been developing as part of a 2007 deal with the games manufacturer.

According to the press release issued today, Sandler is attached to star in the project and will likely co-write the screenplay with Robert Smigel. Kevin Lima is set to direct, a holdover from when Universal was developing the project. It does sound however, that with Sandler and Smigel taking on scripting duties, the original screenplay by Etan Cohen and further worked on by Jonathan Aibel and Glenn Berger which had been grandiosely described as “The Lord Of The Rings but in a land made of candy” has probably been trashed in favor of a more comedic take.

Universal may have passed on developing a movie based on Hasbro’s Stretch Armstrong toy as part of the studio’s overall deal with the toy manufacturer, but Relativity is certainly interested in the prospect. Relativity announced today that they are picking up the option to make a film based on the rubbery hero.

It is not known how much of the work that was done at Universal will carry over to the new project, but the Hollywood Reporter’s Heat Vision blog is reporting that star Taylor Lautner and director Rob Letterman, who were attached to the project while it was at Universal, have dropped out.

The Stretch Armstrong was being developed at Universal as part of a 2008 package deal that is bringing us the summer tent-pole picture Battleship this coming summer. The studio has already shot down films based on Ouija, Clue, Monopoly and Magic: The Gathering after trying to develop scripts that they liked. Hasbro now has the option to shop any of these properties to other studios.

Originally introduced onto store shelves in 1976, the Stretch Armstrong toy’s primary appeal was the fact that you could stretch his arms and legs and they would resume their original position. As a toy, the figure came with no real playability backstory, leaving the character a blank slate for moviemakers.

The movie is set for an April 11, 2014 release.

A proposed film based on the Hasbro game Ouija has become the fourth project in a development deal between the toy manufacturer and Universal Studios to be shut down.

New York Magazine’s Vulture blog broke the story stating that the plug was pulled over concerns about the project’s budget. Back in May, a rumor circulated that Universal had shut down pre-production on the film scripted by Edward Kitsis and Adam Horowitz and set to be directed by McG. Although Universal denied the report it appears that there was some truth to it after all.

Hasbro is now free to shop the project around to other studios. If someone were to express interest, Universal could still participate as a co-financer of the project.

Ouija was just one of a number of toy and game properties that Universal entered into a deal with Hasbro to develop as potential films back in 2008. Although the studio is currently working on finishing a Battleship film for next summer and has Taylor Lautner lined up to headline Stretch Armstrong, they’ve already placed in turnaround three other projects – Monopoly, Magic: The Gathering and most recently, Clue.

This does leave the question remaining what shape is this project in if Universal is willing to swallow its development costs as well as a $5 million penalty fee to Hasbro if the film goes unmade?

With this story, it is becoming even more obvious that even the big studios are feeling the pinch of the current economic climate and are showing greater reluctance at throwing the dice on expensive but risky films. Stories about budgetary concerns causing films to be cancelled have become more commonplace over the last few months. Universal backed out of Guillermo del Toro’s proposed H. P. Lovecraft adaption At The Mountains Of Madness because the filmmaker’s proposed R-rated film might not be able to make back its proposed budget with the ticket-selling limitations of a restricted rating. Disney is currently balking over the price tag of producer Jerry Bruckheimer’s proposed The Lone Ranger feature, even with surefire box office attraction Johnny Depp attached to star.

Maybe someone decided that there wasn’t anything a horror film based on a Ouija board can say that the film Witchboard didn’t already say in 1986 and again and again with its two sequels.