1. Snitch (Summit Entertainment, 2,511 Theaters, 112 Minutes, Rated PG-13): Dwayne Johnson has built quite the eclectic career for himself. One of the rare professional wrestlers that has grown a long-lasting film presence through appearing not only in action films , but also in comedies (Be Cool), family fare (The Game Plan) and inspirational dramas (The Gridiron Gang). He is as comfortable in the lead, sharing the screen with a co-lead or in a supporting role. He might not be the biggest name in action films since Schwarzenegger, but he has consistently worked.

He’s playing the sole lead in this one, acting in the role of a father who must go undercover for the DEA to infiltrate a drug ring in order to clear his son’s name.

While it might not be the most original concept, Johnson has surrounded himself with a great group of actors (Susan Sarandon, Barry Pepper, Benjamin Bratt, David Harbour, Jon Bernathal) that the final product should rise above the what you’d typically expect from a film like this.

2. Dark Skies (Dimension Films, 2,313 Theaters, 97 Minutes, Rated PG-13): Personally, I saw the trailer to this film and I was impressed. I thought there were a few good scares in there, and a pretty creepy vibe throughout.

I also thought the film was going to be about a supernatural possession, more Poltergeist than anything else. Apparently not, because it is about an outer space alien who takes a special interest in a suburban family, especially their children. I mean, the fact that demons might have singled out one particular family to terrorize has been done before, but it is far easier to explain that space aliens.

I think it’s hard to get aliens to work in a horror sense (outside of the Aliens franchise, that is). Add to that the fact that the film’s PG-13 rating, and there is nothing to draw me in.

1. Warm Bodies (Summit Entertainment, 3,009 Theaters, 97 Minutes, Rated PG-13): Let’s get one thing straight; Shaun of the Dead is the best zombie romantic comedy there ever was, and it likely will be for the foreseeable future.

But this doesn’t mean that there’s not room for more zom rom coms, especially ones with an inventive twist to them.

Based on teh novel of the same name, the film focuses on a zombie named R (Nicholas Hoult) who comes across Julie  (Teresa Palmer), a woman fighting his kind. Their eyes meet. A spark happens. And when R saves Julie from an attack from an especially vicious breed of zombie, they realize that something is happening. But what is happening? And what does it have to do with R eating Julie’s boyfriend’s brain?

The fact that a zombie can turn back to being more human through the power of love might be a bit too much for hardcore zombie fans to accept, but I think it’s an interesting take on the genre. I’d be interested to see where they go with it.

2. Bullet To The Head (Warner Brothers, 2,404 Theaters, 91 Minutes, Rated R): Two weeks ago, it was Arnold Schwarzenegger making his return to the big screen. Now, its Sylvester Stallone. Granted, Sly has been a bit more active than Arnie in the last few years, but I’m holding out hope that this is the start of a 80s octogenarian action movie icon revival. Maybe Chuck Norris is next!

Stallone plays a hit man who teams up with a Washington, DC cop to gain vengeance against a common foe who killed both of their partners.

This film is also the year’s first comic book adaptation. It was based on a French graphic novel by Alexis Nolent. That is not the only thing that adds an international flavor to the mix. The producers seem to be chasing after the worldwide market. The part of the cop was originally intended for Thomas Jane, but producers cast Asian-American actor Sung Kang in the hope that he would appeal to an Asian market overseas, with the idea that it would add to Stallone’s already strong international appeal. Whether or not the film does well in the United States might be inconsequential.

1. The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn Part 2 (Summit Entertainment, 4,070 Theaters, 115 Minutes, Rated PG-13): No longer will fans at the San Diego Comic Con have to worry about camping out overnight to get into Hall H. The Twilight saga is at its end.

While I know that there will be legions of fans who are heartbroken over this turn of events, and I’m sure this installment will make a boatload of money, but I can truly say I’m happy to see this franchise go away. I wasn’t a fan of the books–certain plot elements turned me off from the get go–and the 10 minutes or so I saw of the first film showed me that I wasn’t missing anything special.

This installment focuses on the Cullens. Bella is now a vampire and rumor has it that her daughter Renesmee was turned into one at birth as well. This is a big no-no for the Volturi, who come after the Cullen’s with great vengeance. Now it’s up to Edwards, Bella,  Jacob and their families to keep Renesmee safe.

2. Lincoln (Touchstone, 1,775 Theaters, 149 Theaters, Rated PG-13): Even though, technically, this is not a new release, we are including it to show that there is an better alternative to the vampires and the werewolves.

I don’t really need to speak on the quality of the film. It’s cast if filled with award-winning actors from just about every performing art field. Watching the trailer, it becomes an exercise of repeatedly saying “He’s in the movie!?! Him too!?!” You can’t help but be impressed.

So, if you are as sick of Twilight as I am, well, here’s another option for you. My only wish is that this Lincoln also killed vampires–at the box office.

1. Paranormal Activity 4 (Paramount, 3,412 Theaters, 88 Minutes, Rated R): The problem with horror franchises is that the powers that be take the franchises just a bit too far. Usually, by the time a fourth installment is offered, the franchise has jumped the shark.

There are, of course, exceptions, but that is pretty much the rule. And this week, the Paranormal Activity franchise enters the fourth film of the franchise. Be afraid, be very afraid.

And, quite frankly, it’s amazing this concept was able to be stretched to four installments. The first was a rather unique “found footage” of a house possessed by demons and the homicidal effect it had on the women who lived there. The second follows the homicidal woman to her sisters house for more homicide, and the third features the sisters as children showing that the demons might have gotten an earlier start than anyone could have imagined. Now, in this one, the homicidal, possibly demonically possessed woman and the nephew she stole from her sister move in next door to a new family. Enough already.

2. Alex Cross (Summit Entertainment, 2,539 Theaters, 101 Minutes, Rated PG-13): Is guess being a renowned playwright, screenwriter and director wasn’t enough for Tyler Perry. And dressing up in drag and having “take-you-out-of-the-film” cameos in sci-fi reboots didn’t stretch his acting muscles quite enough. Because Perry is back in movie theaters this week, in a film he didn’t write or direct, purely as an actor.

He plays the title role in this film, and if the name sounds familiar to you, then either you are a fan of James Patterson’s writing or perhaps saw Kiss The Girls or Along Came A Spider. Because the character appeared in those films as well.

Only difference is that in those films, the character was portrayed by Morgan Freeman. Granted, I am not a big Tyler Perry fan, but I don’t know how anybody can’t think of that as a major step down.

1. Argo (Warner Brothers, 3,250+ Theaters, 120 Minutes, Rated R): Based a formerly classified, hard-to-believe-if-it-was fiction true story, the film tells the tale of a rescue mission set in the days of the Iranian Hostage Crisis. Six embassy members managed to escape the embassy take over and take residence in the Canadian Embassy. The CIA hatches a plan to get them out–they’ll pose as a Canadian film crew scouting locations. The embassy workers will pose as part of the Canadian crew. The only problem is that the Iranians are very suspicious and if the embassy workers are caught, they are dead.

While ”Argo” is fake,the CIA based it on an abandoned adaptation of Roger Zelazny’s novel, Lord of Light. It got to the pre-production stages, with comic book legend Jack Kirby doing design drawings for the film. So, while Ben Affleck won’t be directing the Justice League film, he at least has done another film with a connection, tenuous though it may be, with comics.

2. Here Comes The Boom (Sony/Columbia, @3,000 Theaters, 105 Minutes, Rated PG): Kevin James is turning into a thinking man’s Adam Sandler. Now, wait! Hear me out on this!

Paul Blart: Mall Cop, for some, was a silly exercise in seeing a fat man trip over stuff. I saw it as a witty parody of the Die Hard-type films with Kevin James as the fat guy who trips over stuff recast in the Bruce Willis role. If it was just the former, I probably would have joined the naysayers who didn’t like it. As the latter, I liked it quite a bit.

I did not see The Zookeeper, so I can’t comment on that one, but this film appears to be a return to form. Come to see the fat guy get pummeled repeatedly, stay to see a subversive parody of the “Inspirational Teacher” and “Underdog Sports” genres.

3. Sinister (Summit Entertainment, @2,500 Theaters, 110 Minutes, Rated R): Hey, horror fans! Stop me when this sounds familiar. A family moves into a new house and…

What? Stop there? But I haven’t even gotten to the fact that dad’s a writer and the evil box of film he found which releases an evil entity that threatens his family!

Yeah, this film is Frankenstein construction of parts of better films. You don’t need a screenwriter for this, all you need is a computer program. And not even a new computer. You can run it on a dusty old Commodore 64 from the 80s.

The reason why films like The Cabin in the Woods and Scream take such a hold in the horror fandom is because the conventions they mock are ground into dust by films like these. Sure, there will probably be scares in this film, but only because the scene was scary in an earlier film. We need sick bastards to create original horror, not people to rip off the sick bastards that came before them.

4. Seven Psychopaths (CBS Films, @1,475 Theaters, 109 Minutes, Rated R): Speaking of sick bastards, let me present you with Martin McDonagh. I believe me when I say that in this case I mean “sick bastard” as the highest compliment.

McDonagh is one of my most favorite writers. I followed his writing from the stage to the screen, and have been impressed by his talent and ability all along the way. His writing is not for all tastes. He blends the wacky with the gruesome, the pathetic with the fearsome, into a dark comedy brew with great characters, excellent dialog and more than its fair share of heart.

If you are adventurous, and can see only one film this week, and if it playing near you, go see this film. If it wasn’t for a little thing called New York Comic Con, I would be seeing it at Friday’s first showing. But even without seeing, I know it has the best potential to be the best film this weekend.

1. The Words (CBS Films, 2,801 Theaters, 96 Minutes, Rated PG-13): Bradley Cooper is in danger of being typecast. However, this typecasting is a very specific and unique–he’s becoming the go-to guy for films about writers who become successful by disreputable means and who eventually run afoul of older men played by Oscar-winning actors.

In last year, it was Limitless, the disreputable means was a drug that increased his mental faculties, and the Oscar-winner was Robert De Niro. This time, his writer character becomes famous by stealing another man’s novel manuscript and passing it off as his own, causing him to come in conflict with the manuscript’s true author, played by Oscar-winner Jeremy Irons.

This is the second film in the past month that Bradley Cooper starred in that was written and directed by longtime friends of the actor (see Hit and Run). While that’s a commendable use of his fame, I wish his friends had better material for him to work with.

2. The Cold Light of Day (Summit Entertainment, 1,511 Theaters, 93 Minutes, Rated PG-13): And then, we have this one, which, to be honest, I knew next to nothing about before I started writing this post. That’s never a good sign.

But what I could find out from the Internet, this film is about a Wall Street trader (new Superman Henry Cavill) whose family is kidnapped while vacationing in Spain. Turns out, the Wall Street trader (an occupation that just SCREAMS action hero) is the son of a CIA agent (Bruce Willis) who made off with a very important MacGuffin, er, briefcase that a lot of shady people want to get their hands on. Now, the bad guys want the briefcase in exchange for the trader’s family.

Just want to point out that both films released this week onlt add up to a 25% fresh rating COMBINED over at Rotten Tomatoes. Granted, that’s only with about 50 reviews in, but still. Even the Cleveland vs. Philadelphia game should be better than that.

1. The Watch (Fox, 3,168 Theaters, 98 Minutes, Rated R): On paper, this film has a lot going for it. It’s Ben Stiller reunited with Vince Vaughn for the first time since Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story. This film was co-written by Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg of Superbad and Pineapple Express fame. It’s directed by Lonely Island’s Akiva Schaffer. And it should be the first widespread exposure America get of talented British comedian Richard Ayoade (The Mighty Boosh, The IT Crowd).

However, Stiller and Vaughn seems to be just doing the same roles they have done in most fo their other movies (Stiller as the uptight and slightly anal man who takes thing much too seriously, Vaughn as the sarcastic man-child who doesn’t take things seriously enough), the plot–a neighborhood watch group uncovers an alien invasion–seems a bit too one-note to build a film around, and the last film Rogen and Goldberg wrote was the incredibly lame The Green Hornet. So, it’s anybody’s guess what kind of film you will be getting.

2. Step Up Revolution (Summit Entertainment, 2,567 Theaters, 99 Minutes, Rated PG-13): So, it appears that they are still making Step Up films. And why not? They are the McDonalds of the film world–made cheaply (no -name actors are a must), the quality is bad (hackneyed plots are the rule) yet enchantingly tasty (there’s a lot of flashy dancing and attractive people wearing tight clothing to ogle) , and you forget the experience hours after you leave the building (I defy you to quote me the plot of any Step Up movie without getting it mixed up with the plot of another Step Up movie).

This year’s version focuses on Emily, a girl who loves to dance who relocates to Miami. While there, she falls in with a group of flash mob dancers and falls in love with their leader, Sean. The group is ready to combat a land developer who is looking to raze a historic district to modernize it. In a stunning plot complication, the developer just happens to be Emily’s dad.

Now, Sean and his friends have to fight back the only way they know how–with intricately choreographed dance routines that seem impromptu but are not and Emily has to decide where she stands–with the man who loves her, provided for her, and brought her up, or that cute guy who dances she just met.

1. Act Of Valor (Relativity, 3,039 Theaters, 111 Minutes, Rated R): If you’ve seen any marketing for this film, you’ll know that one of the biggest marketing aspects for the film is that the cast consists of active-duty Navy Seals in the cast.

My response? So what?

Don’t get me wrong. I have nothing against the brave and intelligent men who serve in the Navy Seals. They brought down Bin Laden and did it so well that it looked easy. They are my heroes.

And if I have any terrorist overlord to take down, they’ll be first on my contact list. But their skills in stealth combat has no bearing on their acting abilities. I assume their work experience does add an air of authenticity, but this authenticity would be better served if they wrote or directed the film. As it is, it’s just a flimsy gimmick.

2. Gone (Summit Entertainment, 2,186 Theaters, 94 Minutes, Rated PG-13): When her sister goes missing, Jill knows exactly what happened. The serial killer who kidnapped her years ago has returned and is out for vengeance. Problem is, Jill has no proof of this and no one else believes her. Jill must face her tormentor and rescue her sister—alone.

This film would be annoying to me on so many levels, all tied to the plot. Why wouldn’t the serial killer just come after Jill? I mean, why other than then the film would only be an hour long–if that? I know they are trying to set up that the killer is trying to mess with Jill’s mind, but serial killers typically don’t work that way.

And why wouldn’t the police believe her? She escaped from a serial killer, right? Would it kill the cops to check on the killer’s whereabouts?

3. Tyler Perry’s Good Deeds (Lionsgate, 2,132 Theaters, 111 Minutes, Rated PG-13): No, this isn’t a list of the charitable contributions Perry has made with his Madea money. He’s not THAT arrogant (I think).

No, this is the latest film from Tyler Perry and it marks a bit of a change of pace for him. He is in the lead role, but not in drag. He plays a successful businessman who’s life is turned around when he meets a struggling single mom who works on the custodial staff where he works. He is inspired to take action to close the distance between the working rich and the working poor.

In other words, this is a fairy tale. If this election period has taught us anything, it’s that the rich care about anything, it’s only getting richer.

4. Wanderlust (Universal, 2,001 Theaters, 98 Minutes, Rated R): If Good Deeds provides an idealistic look at the recent economic turmoil, then this film provides a more archaic, if not just as unrealistic, approach to the subject matter.

Paul Rudd and Jennifer Aniston play Manhattanites who lose their jobs and have to seek cheaper ways to live. They eventually settle on that bastion of the 1960s Free Love movement, the commune.

Communes do still exist today, but more often than not they are created for economic reasons rather than just so everybody can have sex with one another.

The film is written by David Wain and Ken Marino and directed by Wain. They have been involved in a lot of great projects in the past, all the way back to The State. So I got to have faith that they will make this film pay off even though it is a stretch.

1. The Grey (Open Road Films, @2,850Theaters, 117 Minutes, Rated R): So, over the last couple years, Liam Neeson has fought against all odds to save his daughter from white slavers in Paris, has fought against all odds to save his identity from a sinister conspiracy in Berlin, and, now, fights against all odds to save his life from a pack of wolves in Alaska. If I was Neeson, I’d just stay home.

Yes, a plane accident sets Neeson and his team of oil drillers down in the wilderness where the local wolf population sees them as intruders/lunch. It’s up to Neeson to lead his people to civilization by kicking as much wolf ass as he can.

This is a formula that works for Neeson, so this might not be that bad to see. But you know what I’d like to see? Neeson in a role that earns Oscar talk. He’s long overdue.

2. Man On A Ledge (Summit Entertainment, @2,800 Screens, 102 Minutes, Rated PG-13): This is a pretty high concept which ever way you look at it.

The plot appears to be about an ex-cop who is on a ledge of a high-rise building and threatening to jump. Seems he was sent to prison for a crime he didn’t commit, and now he wants to end it all.

However, as his cry for help is going on, thieves are attempting to steal some diamonds. Is the suicide attempt real and the buglary a coincidence, or is the ex-cop in on the robbery and trying to draw attention away from the crime? Or is there something else going on?

The film’s mix of a crime caper with a personal drama is a unique concept as well. If it works, this could be a pretty darn good film.

3. One For The Money (Lionsgate, @2,700 Theaters, 106 Minutes, Rated PG-13): Stephanie Plum is one of the most popular female characters in modern genre fiction. She has appeared in 18 novels (the latest? Explosive Eighteen), four novellas, a bunch of short stories and has made Janet Evanovich (one assumes) a very rich woman. She is a character with quirks and personality out the wazoo with a large and loyal fanbase eager for more adventures of the female bounty hunter.

So, why then is the adaptation of the first novel in Evanovich’s Plum series sneaking into theaters this week under the radar? I have not seen anywhere near the amount of publicity this film should have received or needs to make a mark. Is the film that bad? Has Katherine Heigl’s stock plummeted that much that her movies are risky propositions? I don’t know.

Regardless, it is interesting to see the “brokeback pose,” most often seen done by female superheroes on comic covers, put into play on the film’s poster. It couldn’t have been easy for Heigl to stand in such a way that patrons can look at both her derriere and her breasts at the same time. I hope her efforts bring some people in to see the movie at least.

1. War Horse (Touchstone, 2,376 Theaters, 146 Minutes, Rated PG-13): Steven Speilberg, like Daniel Craig, is hedging his bets this week. Like Craig, he has two films hitting theaters within days of each other.

The film is adapted from a children’s book by Michael Morpurgo, with elements from the play adapted from the same book (which is currently playing on Broadway and from what I heard is terrific in both a technical and quality perspective). The story takes place during World War I and centers on a young boy who’s favorite horse is sold to the army. He enlists in the hopes of being reunited with the animal.

2. The Darkest Hour (Summit Entertainment, 2, 324 Theaters, 89 Minutes, Rated Pg-13): This has to be counter programming at its finest. Who wants to see films about family men buying zoos or Belgian cartoon boys seeking adventure over Christmas? You want action, right? But not too dark like that one about the girl and the Swedish serial killer. You want sci-fi armageddon!

Yeah, this seems pretty darn out of place for the holiday, doesn’t it? Who knows? It might work.

The film centers on five people in Russia who fight back against an alien invasion. Why Russia? Who knows. But I’m sure the fact that Timur Bekmambetov is producing it has some role to play in the location.