3 R-RATED MOVIES DEBUT LABOR DAY WEEKEND

With kids heading back to school on Tuesday in many areas of the country, 3 R-rated movies are debuting this weekend — and none is expected to produce sizable returns at the box office. (The Labor Day weekend is the only major U.S. holiday that does not see a spike in ticket sales; in fact, it generally sees a downturn.) Likely to come out on top — but not by much — say forecasters, is Machete, co-directed by Robert Rodriguez and Ethan Maniquis, and boasting a cast that includes Robert De Niro, Steven Seagal, Don Johnson, Jessica Alba, Lindsay Lohan, Cheech Marin, and Danny Trejo as the machete-wielding killer, named Machete. It will be up against the George Clooney thriller, The American, which opened to mixed reviews on Wednesday, and the romcom, Going the Distance, starring Drew Barrymore and Justin Long. Each film is expected to earn in the neighborhood of $15 million.