Unnerving thriller, offbeat chiller hit theaters
n “feardotcom”: A hard-nosed police detective (Stephen Dorff of “Blade”) joins a hardworking health-department researcher (Natascha McElhone of “Ronin”) in an investigation of four people who each died within 48 hours after logging on to a mysterious Web site. Stephen Rea (“Interview With the Vampire”) and cult favorites Jeffrey Combs (“Re-Animator”) and Udo Kier (“Shadow of the Vampire”) co-star in the R-rated picture. William Malone (“House on Haunted Hill”) directed. – “I Am Trying to Break Your Heart”: This black-and-white documentary chronicles the efforts of the Chicago-based band Wilco as the group records the album “Yankee Hotel Foxtrot” and brings it to the attention of the public. Still-photographer-turned-filmmaker Sam Jones made his directing debut.
– “The Last Kiss”: A 29-year-old European man (Stefano Accorsi) worries that all passion will disappear from his life if he marries his pregnant girlfriend (Giovanna Mezzogiorno). Even the man’s unconventional mother (Stefania Sandrelli) seems to want to ignore the pregnancy, since she can’t stand the thought of being a grandmother during this unrated Italian import, which won the Audience Award for World Cinema at this year’s Sundance Film Festival. Gabrielle Muccino (“That’s It”) wrote and directed.
– “Merci Pour Le Chocolat”: In this import, two babies may have been switched at birth, and one grows up to be a concert pianist who embarks on a journey to find out the truth about her past. The unrated thriller stars Isabelle Huppert (“Heaven’s Gate”). Distinguished 72-year-old French filmmaker Claude Chabrol (“Blood Wedding”) directed.
– “One Hour Photo”: A psychologically unbalanced photo-lab technician (Robin Williams of “Insomnia”) becomes obsessed with a suburban couple and their young son, starts to think of himself as a member of the family and then begins stalking its members. Connie Nielsen (“Gladiator”), Gary Cole (“American Gothic”) and Eriq LaSalle (TV’s “ER”) co-star in the creepy R-rated thriller. Mark Romanek made his directing debut.
At the buck$ office
People are talking about M. Night Shyamalan’s uplifting “Signs,” and those strong word-of-mouth endorsements helped the PG-13 picture jump back into the No. 1 spot at the box office in its fourth week of release.
Thus far, “Signs,” starring Mel Gibson, has grossed a whopping $173.2 million and is expected to easily top the $200 million mark before leaving theaters.
The sleeper hit “My Big Fat Greek Wedding” is also enjoying word-of-mouth success. The modestly budgeted PG-rated comedy has thus far grossed $64 million and show no signs of stopping.
The top 10 films last weekend were:
1. “Signs” ($14.4 million)
2. “XXX” ($13.7 million)
3. “Spy Kids 2: Island of Lost Dreams” ($7.8 million)
4. “My Big Fat Greek Wedding” ($7.6 million)
5. “Blue Crush” ($6.5 million)
6. “Serving Sara” ($6.1 million)
7. “Austin Powers in Goldmember” ($5.6 million)
8. “Undisputed” ($4.7 million)
9. “Simone” (4.1 million)
10. “Blood Work” ($4.8 million)