"17 Again" and "State of Play" are both great movies, for different reasons. And everyone else thought so, too, based on the box office numbers from this past weekend. Here’s the scoop from Box Office Mojo:

17 Again, $23.72M
State of Play, $14.07M
Hannah Montana: The Movie, $13.40M
Monsters vs. Aliens, $13.24M
Fast and Furious, $11.77M
Crank: High Voltage, $6.96M (Read my interview with Clifton Collins, Jr.)
Observe and Report, $4.17M
Knowing, $3.57M
I Love You, Man, $3.32M
The Haunting in Connecticut, $3.11M

Image Credit: © Universal Studios

Miley Cyrus and her alter-ego Hannah Montana scored big at the office this weekend, but only slightly edging out "Fast & Furious" for the top spot. I actually popped in to see the first scene in "Fast & Furious" again – it was that good.
Meanwhile, Julia Roberts and Clive Owen’s romantic romp "Duplicity" is still hanging in there at No. 10. I’m not surprised, because it’s a really cute film, like the old-time movies with Cary Grant and Katharine Hepburn. Here’s the rundown from Box Office Mojo:

Hannah Montana: The Movie, $32.32M
Fast & Furious, $27.23M
Monsters vs. Aliens, $21.81M
Observe and …read more

Vin Diesel and "Fast & Furious" raced into the top slot at the box office this week, and I’m not surprised. I loved it, especially the opening scene! Reese Witherspoon is still up there in second place with "Monsters vs. Aliens." Here are the numbers from Box Office Mojo:

Fast & Furious, $70.95M
Monsters vs. Aliens, $32.60M
The Haunting in Connecticut, $9.48M
Knowing, $8.14M
I Love You, Man, $7.72M
Adventureland, $5.72M
Duplicity, $4.17M
Race to Witch Mountain, $3.21M
12 Rounds, $2.26M
Sunshine Cleaning, $1.80M

Photo Credits: © Universal Studios

"Monsters vs. Aliens" took last weekend’s box office by storm! I really liked it, and especially loved the 3D version (as opposed to Roger Ebert, who HATED the 3D version!).
Here’s the rundown from Box Office Mojo:

Monsters vs. Aliens, $59.32M
The Haunting in Connecticut, $23.00
Knowing, $14.70M
I Love You, Man, $12.67M
Duplicity, $7.67M
Race to Witch Mountain, $5.80M
12 Rounds, $5.32M
Watchmen, $2.73M
Taken, $2.69M
The Last House on the Left, $2.64M

Photo credit: Monsters vs. Aliens ™ & © 2009 DreamWorks Animation LLC. All Rights Reserved.

Moviegoers went out to see Nicolas Cage save the world this weekend, with "Knowing" coming in at the top slot. Julia Roberts and Clive Owen didn’t fare as well with "Duplicity." Here’s the scoop from Box Office Mojo:

Knowing, $24.60M
I Love You, Man, $17.81M
Duplicity, $13.96M
Race to Witch Mountain, $12.78M
Watchmen, $6.80M
The Last House on the Left, $5.77M
Taken, $4.05M
Slumdog Millionaire, $2.67M
Tyler Perry’s Madea Goes to Jail, $2.56M
Coraline, $2.13M

Photo Credit: Vince Valitutti; TM and © 2009 Summit Entertainment, LLC. All Rights Reserved.

This post comes to us from Maria Diaz, who blogs at Bravo Fan. Maria attended this year’s SXSW festival and graciously agreed to write up a report for Film Gecko. Thank you, Maria! Read on for her inside scoop on the festival, and for more on SXSW, read Lindsay Long’s report here…

The South by Southwest film festival in Austin, Texas is just about wrapped up for the year. Eight days of parties, barbecue, queso and over 200 films screened! If you are a lover of unique, independent films, there is no better place to be in March than SXSW …read more

Julia Roberts returns to theaters today! Along with a couple of bromantic pals and Nicolas Cage in a numbers-centric mystery. What are YOU seeing this weekend?
Duplicity. Julia Roberts and Clive Owen are spies on opposite sides who just might end up working together for their own goals. Or not. Rated PG-13. [Preview] [Trailer] [Official Site]
I Love You, Man. Paul Rudd needs a best friend and a best man for his wedding. So he goes on the prowl and lands a bromance with Jason Segel. Rated R. [Preview & Trailer] [Official Site]

When did the term “bromance” enter into our collective conscience? It certainly has been big lately. I even wrote a story about it for TV Squad, where I’m a co-lead blogger.
“I Love You, Man” is all about the bromance, and it looks really funny. It stars Paul Rudd as Peter Klaven, a guy who realizes that he has no one to act as best man on his wedding day.
So he goes on a series of man-dates and finds Sydney Fife (Jason Segel). As their friendship grows stronger, it’s got the exact opposite affect on his relationship with his …read more

Lindsay Long has graciously volunteered to be a Film Gecko field reporter at SXSW 2009, currently the happenin’ place to be in Austin, Texas. That’s Lindsay pictured with "Twilight" director Catherine Hardwicke. More on that later!
Lindsay attended two panels on Saturday. Read on for her report:
Jeffrey Tambor: "Break the Rules"
The first panel was Jeffrey Tambor’s Acting Workshop. For the first part of the workshop, Jeffrey took two actors, Jess Weixler ("Alexander the Last") and Mark Reeb (John Bryant Productions), and directed them through a scene. The two actors had only memorized their lines and the context of the …read more