It’s Labor Day weekend and it’s a light release week as just two new movies hit theaters and none reaching more than 2,500 theaters. This is typically the lowest grossing weekend of the summer and with only Morgan and The Light Between Oceans coming out, the weekend should live up to expectations. Here’s MHT’s recommendations on what to see and not see for the weekend of September 2nd:

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Morgan
Theater Count: 2,020
Starring: Kate Mara, Anya Taylor-Joy, Toby Jones, Michelle Yeoh, Paul Giamatti, Jennifer Jason Leigh

Buzz:

The initial trailer for Morgan was received well as it came out of left field. Director Luke Scott is the son of Ridley Scott and nephew of Tony Scott so filmmaking is apparently in the blood. However, the movie’s Facebook page has received an underwhelming 25,000 likes and critics have it at a 48% Rotten Tomatoes score. Audiences are even more down on the film as it currently has a 37% Audience Score but the sample size is small and early Audience Scores are hard to trust on RT. Plus, since it’s a horror movie, don’t expect a great CinemaScore on Friday night.

See the Trailer:

MHT Hot Take:

See it! Somehow, despite all of the negative buzz, Morgan is still something on the “want to see” list for MHT. If Luke is half the filmmaker Ridley and Tony have been, the Scott family has many movie premières in their future.

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The Light Between Oceans
Theater Count: 1,500
Starring: Alicia Vikander, Michael Fassbender, Rachel Weisz

Buzz:

The Light Between Oceans has fared a little better than Morgan with critics as the early Tomatometer is at 59%. The cast is impressive and Vikander and Fassbender fell in love on the set of the film. The movie is getting a smaller release than Morgan but might outdo the film at the box office thanks to the target audience and proven success with this weekend. The adult-targeted A Walk in the Woods (based on a novel, as is The Light Between Oceans) had a solid opening last year during the comparative week.

See the Trailer:

MHT Hot Take:

See it! Right now, anything that comes out with Alicia Vikander on the cast list will be on MHT’s list of recommendations.

Box Office Recap (August 26th)

  1. Don’t Breathe ($26,411,706)
  2. Suicide Squad ($12,248,439)
  3. Kubo and the Two Strings ($7,844,822)
  4. Sausage Party ($7,525,655)
  5. Mechanic: Resurrection ($7,456,525)
  6. Pete’s Dragon ($7,441,458)
  7. War Dogs ($7,022,257)
  8. Bad Moms ($5,573,833)
  9. Jason Bourne ($5,141,045)
  10. Ben-Hur ($4,560,825)

It comes as no surprise that Don’t Breathe dominated the box office while Mechanic: Resurrection fizzled and Hands of Stone didn’t even crack the top 10.

Box Office Predictions for September 2nd Weekend

  1. Don’t Breathe ($16,600,000)
  2. Suicide Squad ($10,200,000)
  3. Kubo and the Two Strings ($7,500,000)
  4. Pete’s Dragon ($7,100,000)
  5. The Light Between Oceans ($7,000,000)
  6. Morgan ($6,800,000)
  7. Sausage Party ($5,800,000)
  8. Bad Moms ($5,600,000)
  9. War Dogs ($5,100,000)
  10. Mechanic: Resurrection ($4,700,000)

Hell or High Water ($4.5m), Jason Bourne ($4.5m), The Secret Life of Pets ($4.4m), Southside With You ($3m), Ben-Hur ($2.5m)

This is a tough week to predict but one thing is for sure: Don’t Breathe will be the #1 movie at the box office over the 4-day weekend.