Box Office Preview: 07-04-2011

Welcome to our weekly preview of all the latest films that will be opening in local cinemas this weekend. Our duty is to inform you on what to see and what to avoid so that you don't spend your hard earned money on duds that should've never been given the production greenlight in the first place. Check out the full list of new releases after the jump.


Rio (3D) - Director: Carlos Saldanha. Starring: (Voice Cast) Jesse Eisenberg, Anne Hathaway, George Lopez, Tracy Morgan, Jamie Foxx and will.i.am. Distributor: 20th Century Fox Animation. Age Restriction: PG. Running Time: 95 Minutes.



It's animated. It's got Jesse "Mark Zuckerberg" Eisenberg. It's set in Rio. Most importantly, it looks good.


Unknown - Director: Jaume Collet-Serra. Starring: Liam Neeson, Diane Kruger, January Jones, Aidan Quinn and Frank Langella. Studio: Warner Bros. Pictures. Age Restriction: 13V. Running Time: 113 Minutes.



Liam Neeson is in it!!!!!


The Eagle - Director: Kevin Macdonald. Starring: Channing Tatum, Jamie Bell Donald Sutherland and Mark Strong. Studio: Focus Features. Age Restriction: 13V. Running Time: 112 Minutes.



It's a swords and sandals film. Deduct points for having Channing Tatum in it. Add points for having Jamie Bell in it. Should be just about watchable.


Somewhere - Director: Sofia Coppola. Starring: Stephen Dorff, Elle Fanning, Michelle Monaghan, Chris Pontius and Simona Ventura. Studio: Focus Features. Age Restriction: 13SNL. Running Time: 98 Minutes.



It's directed by Sofia Coppola. She directed Lost In Translation. She is Francis Ford Coppola's daughter. You should really, really see this.


Barney's Version - Director: Richard J. Lewis. Starring: Paul Giamatti, Rosamund Pike, Minnie Driver, Rachelle Lefevre, Scott Speedman and Dustin Hoffman. Studio: Entertainment One. Age Restriction: 13DLS. Running Time: 132 Minutes.



Paul Giamatti won Best Actor in a Comedy or Musical for this at the Golden Globes. And it was nominated for a Best Make-Up Oscar. Too bad it was made in Canada.


Thank You - Director: Anees Bazmee. Starring: Akshay Kumar, Bobby Deol, Suniel Chetty, Irfan Khan, Sonam Kapoor, Celina Jaitley and Rimi Sen. Studio: UTV Motion Pictures. Age Restriction: TBA. Running Time: 130 Minutes.



It's a Bollywood film. There's lots of singing and dancing. You'll either love it or hate it.

I predict the family friendly Rio should win this weekend quite easily without any real challengers. From there on it will be a deadly fight to the death between Liam Neeson and Channing Tatum for second place. There will be blood...