As expected, Ride Along easily claimed a second frame on top of the domestic box office.  The Universal comedy took in an estimated $21.1 million this weekend, or more than twice the amount credited to the week’s sole new release: I, Frankenstein.  The Lionsgate release pulled in an estimated $8.2 million in its first three days – falling below the very low bar set by the studio’s last feature, The Legend of Hercules, just two weeks ago.

Here’s a look at this week’s new Blu-ray releases:

• Oz the Great and Powerful (Blu-ray / DVD + Digital Copy) – $27.99 (38% off)
• Hansel & Gretel: Witch Hunters, Unrated Cut (Blu-ray 3D / Blu-ray / DVD / Digital Copy + UltraViolet) – $22.99 (58% off)
• Wrong (+ Digital Copy) [Blu-ray] – $19.99 (33% off)
• House of Cards: The Complete First Season [Blu-ray] – $29.99 (55% off)
• The Newsroom: The Complete First Season (Blu-ray/DVD Combo + Digital Copy) – $39.96 (50% off)

Writer-director Tommy Wirkola’s style is one that will either delight you with its over-the-top gore and sick brand of humor, or will disgust you for the same reasons.  I’m happily in the former camp.  My first introduction to Wirkola’s work was the fantastic original film Dead Snow – two words: Nazi zombies.  While I missed his broader effort Hansel & Gretel: Witch Hunters when it opened in theaters, last night I had the opportunity to attend the premiere of the film in all of its uncut glory.  The film may not have found its audience stateside, but the global box office of nearly $225 million gives hope that Wirkola will be around for future efforts.  Perhaps the unrated cut version of Hansel & Gretel: Witch Hunters, available now on digital platforms and due out on Blu-ray/DVD on June 11th, will find more of a home with American audiences.  For my review of that particular cut, which features 12 minutes of previously-unseen bloody and violent footage, hit the jump.

Paramount Pictures is now officially developing a sequel to this past January’s R-rated genre pic Hansel & Gretel: Witch Hunters.  You’d be forgiven for being a bit surprised at the news, as the film was a flop domestically with a total gross of just $54.6 million.  However, overseas the film has now taken in over $150 million.  Against a purported budget of $50 million, the pic’s worldwide gross of $205 million is apparently enough to justify moving forward with the follow-up, as Deadline reports that a sequel is now officially in development.  Hit the jump for more.

Just in time for Halloween, a new red band trailer and poster for Hansel & Gretel: Witch Hunters have been released.  The action-fantasy film stars Jeremy Renner and Gemma Arterton as the titular fairy tale characters, though in this story they’re all grown up and out for some very bloody witch payback.  The pic actually looks like it could be a fun ride, with plenty of gore and inventive kills to keep genre fans happy.  I’m a little disheartened by the reliance on CGI effects vs. practical work as the story provides the perfect opportunity for some great physical effects.  It’s also a tad disappointing to see the “damsel in distress” role that Arterton appears to be thrown into while Renner is painted as the “sexy hero,” but we’ve only seen brief glimpses of the characters in the trailers so hopefully she holds her own in the full film.

Hit the jump to check out the red band trailer and poster.  Directed by Tommy Wirkola, the film also stars Famke Janssen and Peter Stormare.  Hansel & Gretel: Witch Hunters opens in 3D on January 11th, 2013.

Generally speaking, I try and keep the Top 5 opening paragraph as topical as possible (i.e. films, television, posters, etc.). This week that protocol is easier than ever to follow as I recently got my first chance to check out director Gareth Evans‘ The Raid. Keeping this short and sweet, if you’ve yet to partake in The Raid and have ever derived any joy from watching action fare, martial arts, and the like, then you have a giant favor to do for yourself. Quickly find a way to check out this actioner and try to keep a smile from forming across your face while watching.

Movie recommendations aside, this weekend brings you a recap of all of our 2012 Toronto International Film Festival thus far, the first trailer and poster for Hansel & Gretel: Witch Hunters, video interviews with the cast and director of Bachelorette, the inaugural installment of our Hollywood! Adapt This feature spotlighting Disney’s Gargoyles, and The Words video interviews with Bradley Cooper, co-writer/co-director Brian Klugman, and more. A brief recap and link to each awaits on the other side.

An international trailer for Hansel and Gretel: Witch Hunters has gone online, and gives us our first look at the movie.  The action-fantasy flick stars the eponymous fairy tale characters all grown up (played by Jeremy Renner and Gemma Arterton), and looking to take down witches everywhere.  Part of me really wants to give this movie the benefit of the doubt and hope it will be some goofy dumb fun, but the trailer just makes it look dumb minus the fun.  The film was supposed to come out this past March, but was delayed to January 2013, and this trailer kind of explains why.  The effects look shoddy, the dialogue is cringeworthy, the story sounds rote, and it just seems like it’s trying way too hard to be cool.  Yeah, your movie has gatling guns even though it takes place before gatling guns were invented.  My mind remains intact.

Hit the jump to check out the trailer.  The film also stars Famke Janssen and Peter Stormare.  Hansel and Gretel: Witch Hunters opens in 3D on January 11, 2013.

[Update: The film's official U.S. trailer is also now online along with a poster, both of which are now included after the jump.]

Originally scheduled for release in March of this year, Paramount made the decision back in January to push the fantasy actioner Hansel & Gretel: Witch Hunters all the way to January of 2013.  We heard relatively little about the film in the meantime, but yesterday reports from IMDb users popped up suggesting that the studio was testing both R-rated and PG-13 versions of the film. Reactions to both versions differed, with most users preferring the supposed R-rated cut to the PG-13 iteration.

It appears that the IMDb users were mistaken, as trusted sources now tell us that both versions of the film used in test screenings were the R-rated versions, and Paramount absolutely plans on releasing Hansel & Gretel: Witch Hunters as R.  Hit the jump for more.

Hansel and Gretel: Witch Hunters got a big knock back on the release schedule when Paramount moved the 3D fantasy-action film from March 2, 2012 to January 11, 2013.  The movie stars Jeremy Renner and Gemma Arterton as the eponymous characters who are all growed up and looking for a little payback against the witch community.  In an interview last December, Arterton said the flick was “as much Pulp Fiction as fairy tale.”  The studio has been test-screening the picture, and it seems like they’re not sure what they have on their hands.  According to recent reports from IMDb users, the studio is showing two versions of the film: one is R-Rated and the other is PG-13, and the R-rated cut is getting the positive feedback.

Hit the jump for more.  Hansel and Gretel: Witch Hunters also stars Famke Janssen and Peter Stormare.

Well this is a doozy of a scheduling change. Paramount has pushed back the release of Hansel and Gretel: Witch Hunters from this coming March to January 11th, 2013. The film stars Jeremy Renner and Gemma Arterton as the titular fairy tale characters, and as one can surmise the plot involves their hunt for women in pointy hats. Having seen no trailer and only one image of the film thus far, it’s not all that shocking that Paramount is pushing the release back. This scheduling shift comes on the heels of the studio’s The Devil Inside bringing in over $30 million on the first weekend of the month despite a terrible reputation from critics and the general public alike.

Renner stars in this May’s The Avengers and will get his shot at the lead with this fall’s The Bourne Legacy, so the studio may want to capitalize on his stardom by placing Hansel and Gretal after these two major releases. Harvey Weinstein recently admitted to doing the same with The Wettest County, which stars Tom Hardy. The release date was moved to after The Dark Knight Rises comes out in order to capitalize on Hardy’s recognition following his turn as Bane. Hansel and Gretel currently has no competition on the January 11th date, but the Arnold Schwarzenegger actioner The Last Stand, the 3D re-release of Monsters Inc., the Russell Crowe drama Broken City, and the star-studded magician heist flick Now You See Me all open the following weekend.

The first image from fairy tale re-imagining Hansel & Gretel: Witch Hunters has gone online. The movie stars Jeremy Renner and Gemma Arterton as the eponymous characters who are all growed up and looking for a little payback against the witch community.  Arterton tells Entertainment Weekly that the movie is “as much Pulp Fiction as fairy tale.”  So how do you defeat witches?  Do you burn their gingerbread houses to the ground?  Judging by this image, witches are terrified by the black leather.

Hit the jump for the full image plus more on what Arterton had to say about the movie.  The film also stars Famke Janssen and Peter Stormare.  Hansel & Gretel: Witch Hunters opens March 2, 2012.

The first unofficial set photos from Hansel & Gretel: Witch Hunters have leaked online.  Jeremy Renner and Gemma Arterton star as the title characters who are still harboring resentment because they were almost killed by witches when they were kids.  There’s nothing super-remarkable about the photos although you’ll see that just because you’re hunting witches, doesn’t mean you can’t look stylish.

Hit the jump to check out the set photos.  Directed by Tommy Wirkola (Dead Snow), the film also stars Famke Janssen, Ingrid Bolsø Berdal, and Peter Stormare.  Hansel & Gretel: Witch Hunters opens in 3D on March 2, 2012.

We have two quick pieces of casting news for you this morning.  First up, Peter Stormare (Fargo) has joined Jeremy Renner, Gemma Arterton, and Famke Janssen in Tommy Wirkola’s Hansel and Gretel: Witch Hunters.  The 3D re-imagining of the Grimm fairy tale has the siblings Hansel and Gretel (played by Renner and Arterton) all grown up and still holding a grudge against witches for that whole “trying to cook and eat children” unpleasantness.  According to Deadline, Stormare will play “the villainous town sheriff ‘Berringer’.”

Hit the jump for news about ubiquitous character actor Stephen Root (Office Space) joining Clint Eastwood’s J. Edgar.

Norwegian actress Ingrid Bolsø Berdal is the latest to join the cast of the fairy-tale update Hansel & Gretel: Witch Hunters. The film, starring Jeremy Renner and Gemma Arterton as the titular siblings, finds Hansel and Gretel as adults, who just so happen to be bounty-hunters who specialize in killing witches. Bloody Disgusting reports that Berdal will portray one of the witches who is a “superbad killing machine.” Famke Jansenn stars in the 3D film, directed by Tommy Wirkola (Dead Snow), as the head of the witches, and therefore the leading villain. Hansel & Gretel: Witch Hunters is slated for a March 2, 2012 release.

MGM, the home studio of James Bond, has been in financial limbo for what seems like forever.  After dumping rights to The Hobbit to Warner Brothers, and continuing lengthy discussions on the fate of the Bond franchise, MGM looked to be on its last legs.  But according to Variety, the long-standing studio is finally ready to get moving on no less than five different projects.

In addition to long-rumored reboots of Robocop and Poltergeist, the studio is reportedly financing or co-financing remakes of 1980s classics Mr. Mom and The Idolmaker.  MGM is also looking to produce “A ‘Hercules’ project.”  My fingers are crossed that Kevin Sorbo will be involved.  The studio also just recently joined up with Paramount to co-produce the 3D-shot Hansel & Gretel: Witch Hunters which stars Oscar-nominee Jeremy Renner and the very attractive Gemma Arterton as the witch killin’ siblings.  The story takes place 15 years after the familiar fairy tale.  Hit the jump for more on MGM and my thoughts on their post-resurrection projects.