OWLS AND BEARS DEBUT ON SCREEN

Although the critics are mostly bearish on it, box-office analysts are quite bullish on Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps, which they figure should open this weekend with around $20 million in ticket sales. Several analysts suggest it’s a toss-up between the Wall Street sequel and the family film Legend of the Guardians: The Owls of Ga’Hoole for the No. 1 spot, with most giving Wall Street the edge, while others noting that there hasn’t been a strong family film in theaters for quite a while. (It also has the advantage of 3D premium pricing, but the surcharge is likely to be offset by lower pricing for kids.) A third entrant, You Again, has received relatively little promotion, and given a cast featuring Sigourney Weaver, Jamie Lee Curtis, Kristen Bell and Betty White, it is being targeted mostly at women. Finally, Sony is opening the comedy The Virginity Hit at about 700 theaters without screening it for critics. Although it reportedly cost less than $2 million to make, it is not expected to earn even that much this weekend.