Movies With Butter

Channing Tatum's days as a stripper has been turned into a movie by director Steven Soderbergh in Magic Mike. But before one mistaken this movie for a Tatum biopic, know that it's only inspired by his experiences.

For those who don't already know, Tatum stars as a stripper who goes by the moniker Magic Mike. The story follows him trying to find a life outside stripping while, at the same time, he's initiating his girlfriend's brother into the business.

With a Tomatometer of 79% at Rotten Tomatoes, the movie is well-reviewed. Critics say while the story is only skin deep, Magic Mike is a well-acted and light-hearted affair filled with, well, male stripping. If one's fantasy is to attend a stripping session by Tatum, Matt Bomer, Matthew McConaughey, Joe Manganeillo, and Alex Pettyfer, Magic Mike is as close to that as it's going to get.

At the box office, Magic Mike is projected to make in $31-$33 million range by prognosticators, but Warner Bros is only expecting the movie to open in the $15-$20 million range.

Ted may feature a cute, cuddly teddy bear along side Mark Wahlberg in its promotion material, but don't mistaken it for a kid friendly movie. It's an R-rated comedy filled with colorful language and sexual content, insinuated and not.

Wahlberg stars as a man named John who wished for this teddy bear to come alive and stay by his side forever when he was a child. His wish came true and, many years later, he has to deal with the consequences.

Critics say the movie is funny but uneven, with the bear, voiced by director Seth MacFarlane, stealing the show. Ted has a Tomatometer of 67% and is projected to make in the range of $26-$28 million at the box office this weekend.

In DreamWorks' People Like Us, Chris Pine stars as a salesman who discovers a half-sister (played by Elizabeth Banks) he never knew he had when he's getting his recently deceased father's affairs in order.

For reasons that will be revealed in the movie, he sets out to help out this sister without telling how he's related to her.

With a Tomatometer of 55%, People Like Us is well-acted but is slow in parts. Some critics likened the movie to a romantic comedy but without the romance nor the comedy.

People Like Us is projected to make somewhere in the range of $4-$6 million at the box office this weekend.

In Tyler Perry's new comedy, Madea's Witness Protection, Eugene Levy plays an ex-CFO who, along with his family, is enrolled in the witness protection program for his involvement in a ponzi scheme. They are sent to live with Perry's alter ego, Madea. Will hilarity ensues?

The movie wasn't screened for critics, but the movie currently has a Tomatometer of 0% over at Rotten Tomatoes, with 9 critics reporting in.

Needless to say, those critics' funny bones weren't tickled. However, don't discount Tyler Perry fans at the box office. The movie is projected to bring $22-$23 million this weekend.

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