Feb. 2: Top DVD Rentals-Sales
Five diverse titles an apartheid drama ( Catch a Fire), a military epic ( Flyboys), an action tale ( The Marine: Unrated), a religious picture ( One Night With the King) and an animated hit ( Open Season) are landing in DVD outlets on this first weekend of February. The top DVD rental and sales titles are:
Best Renters
1. Open Season (PG); Grade: B-; with the voices of Martin Lawrence and Ashton Kutcher in a computer-animated tale about a domesticated grizzly bear with no survival skills and a mule deer with no common sense who are stalked by a hunter.
2. Saw III: Unrated Edition (Unrated and R); Grade: B-; with Tobin Bell and Shawnee Smith setting more deadly traps in the hit third installment of the horror series.
3. The Guardian (PG-13); Grade: B-; with Ashton Kutcher and Kevin Costner in a military picture about a grizzled Coast Guard veteran discovering whether young recruits possess the strength and endurance to be rescue swimmers.
4. Flyboys (PG-13); Grade: B-; with James Franco in an old-school military movie about daredevil American pilots flying bombers for the French at the start of World War I.
5. Gridiron Gang (PG-13); Grade: B; with Dwayne The Rock Johnson in a fact-based tale about a probation officer who turns some juvenile felons into a football team.
6. Employee of the Month (PG-13); Grade: B-; with comic Dane Cook and Jessica Simpson in a comedy about a staffer at a warehouse outlet who becomes obsessed with dating a beautiful co-worker.
7. Catch a Fire (PG-13); Grade: B; with Derek Luke and Tim Robbins in a fact-based political thriller set in South Africa during apartheid.
8. The Marine: Unrated (Unrated and PG-13); Grade: NP; with WWE favorite John Cena in an action tale about a veteran who returns from Iraq and then must use his combat skills to save his kidnapped wife.
9. The Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Beginning Unrated (Unrated and R); Grade: C-; with R. Lee Ermey in a prequel that shows how Leatherface became a chainsaw-carrying madman.
10. The Illusionist (PG-13); Grade: B+; with Edward Norton, Jessica Biel and Paul Giamatti in a romantic tale about a master magician using his skills in an attempt to save the woman he loves in turn-of-the-century Vienna.
11. Crank (R); Grade: B+; with Jason Statham and Amy Smart in an outlandishly energized thriller about a hit man who has poison injected into his body and then must keep his heart rate above a certain level to stay alive.
12. Little Miss Sunshine (R); Grade: B+; with Steve Carell, Toni Collette and Greg Kinnear in the highly acclaimed ensemble comedy, which has been nominated for an Oscar as best picture, about a dysfunctional family transporting a young girl to a beauty pageant.
13. The Protector (R); Grade: B; with martial artist Tony Jaa ( Ong-Bak: The Thai Warrior) in an action thriller about a fighter sent to retrieve elephants that belong to the king of Thailand.
14. Snakes on a Plane (R); Grade: B; with Samuel L. Jackson in an outrageous exploitation picture about deadly creatures slithering through a jet and putting the bite on numerous passengers.
15. One Night With the King (PG); Grade: B; with Peter O Toole in a religious picture about a young Jewish girl who becomes Esther, the queen of Persia.
16. Jackass: Number Two (Unrated and R); Grade: B; with slap-happy Johnny Knoxville, Steve-O and their masochistic buddies inflicting more pain upon themselves.
17. Invincible (PG); Grade: B+; with Mark Wahlberg in a fact-based, feel-good sports tale about how 30-year-old Philadelphia athlete Vince Papale got an opportunity to play with the Eagles.
18. Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby Unrated and Uncut! (Unrated and PG-13); Grade: B; with Will Ferrell and Sacha Baron Cohen in a colorful NASCAR spoof about a longtime champion suddenly having doubts about his driving skills.
19. The Devil Wears Prada (PG-13) B+; with Meryl Streep, who received an Oscar nomination as best actress, and Anne Hathaway in a comedy about a young professional with no sense of style who takes a job working for a powerful fashion-magazine editor.
20. The Covenant (PG-13); Grade: C; with Renny Harlin directing a flat horror tale about four young adults who possesses deadly powers and have pledged to keep them a secret.
Best Sellers
1. Open Season (PG); Grade: B-; $28.99, DVD; $38.99, Blu-ray Disc
2. Saw III: Unrated Edition (Unrated and R); Grade: B-; $29.99, DVD; $39.99, Blu-ray Disc
3. The Guardian (PG-13); Grade: B-; $29.99, DVD; $34.99, Blu-ray Disc
4. Gridiron Gang (PG-13); Grade: B; $28.99, DVD; $38.99, Blu-ray Disc
5. Employee of the Month (PG-13); Grade: B-; $28.99, DVD
6. The Illusionist (PG-13); Grade: B+; $29.99, DVD
7. Flyboys (PG-13); Grade: B-; $29.99, DVD; $39.99, two-disc collector s edition
8. The Marine: Unrated (Unrated and PG-13); Grade: NP; $29.99, DVD
9. Crank (R); Grade: B+; $28.99, DVD; $39.99, Blu-ray Disc
10. The Devil Wears Prada (PG-13); Grade: B+; $29.99, DVD
Partial source: Video Business, wire-service and Web reports