It’s the documentary about Michael Jackson’s big concert tour, which abruptly screamed to a halt upon his death. Fortunately, there’s plenty of film of the rehearsals and his creative process putting the tour together. 

Check out the official site, the trailer, and all of Film Gecko’s coverage.

Also released today are several films in limited release, including:

“The Boondock Saints II: All Saints Day” – Sequel to “The Boondock Saints” about  bloody murders in the underworld of Boston. Stars Norman Reedus, Sean Patrick Flanery, and Clifton Collins (read my interview with Collins here).

“Gentlemen Broncos” – Offbeat story about a home-schooled kid who gets ripped off by a legendary fantasy novelist. Stars Michael Angarano and Jennifer Coolidge.

“The House of the Devil” – The title says it all. Stars Jocelin Donahue and Tom Noonan.

“How to Seduce Difficult Women” – Do men need to be reminded how to seduce women? Yeah, maybe.

“Labor Day” – A documentary about how Election Day was turned into Labor Day. Appearances by Barack Obama, Hilary Clinton, Ted Koppel and others.

“Looking for Palladin” – A comedy about an arrogant Hollywood talent agent (David Moscow) who’s sent to  Guatemala to find Oscar winning actor Jack Palladin (Ben Gazzara).

“Skin” – Story about a black child born in the 1950s to white Afrikaners. Stars Sophie Okonedo, Sam Neill and Alice Krige.

Image: Sony Pictures Entertainment

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Movie: The Invention of Lying * Premiere Pics * Official Site	In Theaters: Oct. 2, 2009
Runtime: 99 minutes	Directed by: Ricky Gervais
MPAA Rating: PG-13 for language, including some sexual material and a drug reference	Gecko Rating:

“The Invention of Lying” is a sweet little movie – not particularly funny, but sweet with a nice message: we need to look beyond the surface of people to see what they’re really like inside.

It stars Ricky Gervais, the award-winning creator and star of the original BBC series "The Office" and HBO’s "Extras," as Mark, a down-on-his-luck loser who lives in an alternate reality where lying — even the concept of a lie — does not exist. Everyone –from politicians to advertisers to regular joes — speaks the truth.

I often dream about this concept, where we could just say what’s on our minds without thinking about the consequences, but of course, it has its downfalls. For one thing, people can be horribly hurt when you just come out and say what you think of them.

More after the jump…

When Mark snags a date with Anna (Jennifer Garner), she has no problem telling her mom on the phone exactly what she thinks of him – he’s short and snub-nosed and there’s no way she’s going to sleep with him, not now or ever. Keep in mind that Mark is sitting across the table from her.

If that’s not depressing enough, Mark loses his job writing screenplays for the “Lecture Film” company, because his era is the 1300’s and the only thing that ever happened during this time is awful stuff like the Black Plague.

The trailer made it seem like “The Invention of Lying” would be funny, but it’s really more of a thoughtful, philosophical film. Like what happens after we die? What role does faith play in our lives? How important is it to be kind to others? And if NOT saying what you really feel is lying, then some of us need to do more of that, out of respect for others’ feelings.

In supporting roles are Jonah Hill as Frank, Mark’s suicidal neighbor; Louis C.K. as Greg, another loser type whom Mark befriends; Jeffrey Tambor as Anthony, Mark’s boss who’s tasked with the job of firing him, even though he doesn’t want to; Rob Lowe as Brad, a co-worker who’s riding through life on his good lucks and breeding genes; and Tina Fey  as Mark’s secretary. It seems like a funny little role for Fey, as she’s so big in TV and films, but whatever. She does a good job with it, as do all of the supporting players. 

If you’re a fan of Ricky Gervais or any of the other players, this movie is worth a look. I saw it with my 12-year-old daughter, and while there’s a bit of sex talk here and there, it’s nowhere near as suggestive as many PG-13 movies. I’d say it’s ok for kids 12 and up.

Check out the trailer:

Image: TM and (c) 2008 Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc

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Couples Retreat (PG-13). Vince Vaughn, Kristen Bell and a cast of stars populate this romantic comedy about a group of couples who go on a retreat to a lush tropical island. [Trailer] [Film Gecko Links] [Official Site]

St. Trinian’s (PG-13). The tagline for this edgy flick is "School for Bad Girls," and it stars Mischa Barton, Rupert Everett, Colin Firth, and Lena Headey in a story about a girls’ school suffering with financial problems. Rated PG-13 for thematic elements, drug and alcohol content, sexual material and language. [Trailer] [Official Site]

Free Style (PG). Corbin Bleu, Madison Pettis and Penelope Ann Miller star in this movie about a young man who dreams of winning a spot on the Grand National motocross racing team. In limited release beginning Oct. 9, 2009. [Film Gecko Links] [Official Site]

Also opening in limited release: Adventures of Power, An Education, Bronson, The Damned United, From Mexico with Love, Good Hair, Peter and Vandy, Trucker.

Image: Universal Pictures

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Woody Harrelson

1. Zombieland, $25M
2. Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs, $16.7M
3. Toy Story / Toy Story 2 (3D), $12.5M
4. The Invention of Lying, $7.35M
5. Surrogates, $7.34M
6. Capitalism: A Love Story, $4.85M
7. Whip It, $4.85M
8. Fame, $4.75M
9. The Informant!, $3.8M
10. Love Happens, $2.77M
11. Tyler Perry’s I Can Do Bad All By Myself, $2.67M
12. Pandorum, $1.92M

Image: Sony Pictures Entertainment

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Zombieland (R ). Woody Harrelson and Jesse Eisenberg battle zombies and each other in this horror comedy. [Film Gecko Preview & Trailer] [Official Site]

Whip It (PG-13). Drew Barrymore and Ellen Page have some roller derby fun in this flick about a girl who finds her tribe. [Film Gecko Preview & Trailer] [Official Site]

The Invention of Lying (PG-13). Ricky Gervais actually CAN tell a lie. It’s the rest of the characters in this comedy – including Jennifer Garner – who can’t. [Premiere Pics] [Official Site]

Toy Story and Toy Story 2 in 3D (G). Andy’s toy pals are back, and they’re in 3D! [Tim Allen Video] [Official Sites]

In Limited Release: A Beautiful Life, A Serious Man, Afterschool, Chelsea on the Rocks, Do Knot Disturb, More Than a Game.

Image: Sony Pictures Entertainment

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Jennifer’s Body (R). A sexy horror film starring Megan Fox as a demon-possessed teenager out to kill all those pesky guys. Also stars Amanda Seyfried, Adam Brody, and J.K. Simmons. [Images] [Official Site]

Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs (PG). The classic children’s book comes to animated life with Anna Faris, Bruce Campbell, Bill Hader and Andy Samberg voicing the characters. [Preview & Trailer] [Red Carpet Premiere] [Official Site]

The Informant! (R). Matt Damon plays a rising star at an agri-industry company who turns whistleblower to bring down the bad guys. Also stars Scott Bakula and Joel McHale. [Red Carpet Premiere] [Official Site] 

Love Happens (R).  Aaron Eckhart and Jennifer Aniston star as two people who meet the right person at exactly the wrong time. [Official Site]

Opening in limited release: Bright Star (PG), The Burning Plain (R), Paris (R).

Images: TM and © Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation. All Rights Reserved.

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9 (PG-13). It’s a post-apocalyptic world with ragdoll muppets. Ok, not really muppets, more like burlap bag castoffs. Elijah Wood, Christopher Plummer and Martin Landau (who’s still going strong at 78) star in this dark animated film. [Clips] [Official Site]

Whiteout (R). Kate Beckinsale plays a U.S. marshal tracking a serial killer in Antarctica. [Trailer and Red Carpet Video] [Official Site]

Sorority Row (R). It’s a sorority prank gone horribly wrong, and what are Rumer Willis, Briana Evigan and Leah Pipes to do? [Images] [Official Site]

Tyler Perry’s I Can Do Bad All By Myself (PG-13). Tyler Perry continues to rule the cinematic universe with his latest installment, in which everyone’s favorite pistol-packing grandma Madea catches a 16-year-old doing something oh so wrong. [Official Site]

Opening in limited release this week: Walt & El Grupo, Beyond a Reasonable Doubt, White on Rice, The Red Canvas

Image: © FOCUS FEATURES LLC. All Rights Reserved

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Here’s the thing, though. Apparently, Fox is still pretty happy with those “All About Steve” numbers. According to Yahoo Movies, some Fox official said they were "thrilled with that number.” Apparently, they were expecting a lot less.

I expected more from the movie, awarding it only 2.5 out of 5 Geckos. It was interesting, but the trailer made it seem like it’d be a laugh riot, which it wasn’t. Still, “All About Steve” managed to beat out Gerard Butler’s “Gamer,” which scored only $9 million in its first weekend. And that was more than twice as much as Mike Judge’s “Extract,” which opened in 10th place at $4 million.

Here are the weekend estimates, Sept. 4-6, from Box Office Mojo:

• The Final Destination, $12.43M
• All About Steve, $11.20M
• Inglourious Basterds, $10.84M
• Gamer, $9M
• District 9, $7M
• Halloween II, $5.60M
• Julie & Julia, $5.20M
• G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra, $5.10M
• The Time Traveler’s Wife, $4.21M
• Extract, $4.18M
• Shorts, $2.60M
• G-Force, $1.97M

Image: TM and © Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation. All Rights Reserved

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New in theaters over the Labor Day weekend are four movies – a romantic comedy, a workplace comedy, a sci-fi thriller, and a horror movie. Here’s the scoop:

All About Steve (PG-13). Sandra Bullock and Bradley Cooper star in this romantic comedy about an eccentric crossword puzzle writer who falls hard for a handsome news cameraman and starts stalking him. [Film Gecko Preview] [Official Site]

Extract (R ). Jason Bateman, Kristen Wiig, Ben Affleck, and Mila Kunis star in this Mike Judge comedy about the goings-on in a flavor extract company. [Trailer] [Characters] [Official Site]

Gamer (R). Sometimes it’s hard to know where the online games leave off and the real people begin. Everything is meshed together in this sci-fi action thriller starring Gerard Butler and Michael C. Hall. The gam "Slayers" allows people to act out savage fantasies online using real prisoners as avatars with whom they fight to the death. Don’t try this at home, kids. [Film Gecko Preview & Trailer] [Official Site]

Carriers (R). A virus threatens to wipe out humanity (don’t they all?), and Danny (Lou Taylor Pucci), his brother Brian (Chris Pine), and their friends Bobby (Piper Perabo) and Kate (Emily VanCamp) embark on a journey across the southwestern desert to try and elude the virus. But, as is usually the case during a major catastrophe, the humans are tested beyond their limits. [Film Gecko Preview & Trailer] [Official Site]

What are YOU seeing this weekend?

Image: TM and © Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation. All Rights Reserved.

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The story is all about corporate intrigue, spies and secrets, but it’s more light-hearted than you might think at first glance. Instead of missiles and terrorists, we’re dealing with something more benign, along the lines of body lotion, hair gel and pizza crust. The great Tom Wilkinson and Paul Giamatti also star in this fun caper, written and directed by Tony Gilroy.

Read my review here, and see if you agree with my assessment.

• Buy the DVD
• Buy the Blu-ray
• Buy the Video on Demand
• Buy it on iTunes:

Image: Amazon.com

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