1. Valentine's Day: $52.4 million ($52.4 million total)

If a movie called Valentine's Day didn't open at number one on Valentine's Day weekend, we're pretty sure the world would have stopped spinning on its axis. The definition of critic-proof—seriously, the Garry Marshall film had some of the worst reviews of the year, and that's saying something—Valentine's Day bowed to the third biggest February opening on record and just missed passing Sex and the City's romantic comedy opening benchmark of $57 million. Any bets on how much Valentine's Day crumbles next weekend? Throw us down for a 75 percent drop. 

2. Percy Jackson and the Olympians: The Lightning Thief: $31.1 million ($31.1 million total)

And if a movie with Olympians didn't open at number two on the first weekend of the Winter Olympics... well, you get the idea. Not a juggernaut like Harry Potter or even The Chronicles of Narnia, the Chris Columbus-directed fantasy adaptation still performed quite well and should be a decent money returner for 20th Century Fox (The Lightning Thief was reportedly budgeted at $95 million). The film to keep in mind here is Bridge to Terabithia, which opened on this weekend three years ago with $22.5 million and wound up with $82 million. Should The Lightning Thief follow a similar path, it could wind up with somewhere around $120 million in total grosses.

3. The Wolfman: $30.6 million ($30.6 million total)

About the best thing we could say about the opening for The Wolfman was that it wasn't nearly the disaster many had anticipated. After nearly 18 months of delays, scoring an opening weekend north of $30 million feels like a major victory for the sputtering Universal. Of course, considering The Wolfman reportedly cost $150 million (and that doesn't include the massive marketing campaign), champagne corks probably aren't being popped on the studio lot today.

4. Avatar: $22 million ($659.6 million total)

Yawn. If we were to tell you that Avatar broke the record for the biggest ninth weekend on record (surpassing Titanic once again), would you even bat an eyelash? We didn't think so. That said: as boring as Avatar's runaway success has become, that it only dropped 4 percent this weekend is worth mentioning. People are clearly still rabid to see Pandora in all its 3-D glory over two months after the initial release.

5. Dear John: $15.3 million ($53.1 million total)

With the whirlwind that was Valentine's Day sucking up all the romantic comedy dollars a big drop from Dear John was certainly expected. The tear jerking weepy dipped 49 percent but still had no problem holding off The Tooth Fairy ($5.6 million/$41.5 million total) for fifth place and should end its run with $75 million. Considering other high profile films like The Lovely Bones and Nine couldn't even come close to a gross that large, this certainly qualifies as good news.

Valentine's Day

What's the story: How bad must the actors and actresses who didn't get the call from Garry Marshall to appear in Valentine's Day feel? Everyone—and we mean everyone—from Julia Roberts to Taylor Swift to Taylor Lautner to McDreamy (Patrick Dempsey) to even McSteamy (Eric Dane) co-star in this panoply of love lost and gained on one Valentine's Day in Los Angeles. Think of it as Love Actually but without charming British accents. The reviews have been scathing  (Rex Reed called Valentine's Day "lame," "contrived" and "boring"), but they won't matter. This thing is going to make bank on top of bank.

Who should see it: People who wore out their copies of He's Just Not That Into You.

The Wolfman

What's the story: This remake of 1941's The Wolf Man has been on the shelf for such a long time that we're surprised it didn't get remade as well. Originally scheduled for release in November of 2008, The Wolfman—no time for spaces here in the 21st century—finally gets to see the light of the full moon this weekend, almost 15 months after it was first scheduled to open. Benicio Del Toro stars as the titular lycan and Anthony Hopkins does his best "Anthony Hopkins in Legends of the Fall" impression as his nefarious—and possibly wolfy—father. The reviews have been predictably ugly, but since there is supposedly plenty of gore, expect the horror buffs to show up in droves.

Who should see it: Frankenstein.

Percy Jackson & the Olympians: The Lightning Thief

What's the story: Say hello to the most under-the-radar possible franchise blockbuster ever. We had never even heard of Rick Riordan's Percy Jackson series of books—maybe because we graduated high school in the early '90s—but we kinda wish we did. Combining parts of Harry Potter, Greek mythology and C.S. Lewis, The Lightning Thief stars newcomer—and possible Tobey Maguire replacement in the Spider-Man reboot—Logan Lerman as he attempts to solve the mystery of who stole Zeus' lightning bolt while also searching for his missing mother (Catherine Keener). Parents take note: Ms. Keener isn't the only appealing adult in the cast. Be on the lookout for Pierce Brosnan, Uma Thurman, Rosario Dawson, Steve Coogan and Grey's Anatomy doc Kevin McKidd.

Who should see it: Harry Potter.

So let’s get the easy ones out of the way. Come May 5, Tom Cruise will be pushing Mission: Impossible III hard, an excuse to get away from his pregnant wife. A week later, Poseidon, a remake of the 1972 disaster film The Poseidon Adventure starring Ernest Borgnine—I miss him. Then, well, only God (or perhaps Opus Dei) could stop The Da Vinci Code (May 19).

March boasts two—yes, two!—films to hope for the best from: the dark comedy Thank You for Smoking (March 17), by Jason (“Son of Ivan”) Reitman, and the futuristic V for Vendetta (March 17), from the furtive minds behind The Matrix, the Wachowski Brothers. (They’re still brothers, right? Didn’t one have a sex change? If so, are they still brothers? Discuss.) Smoking boasts what looks like a breakout performance from the perennially impressive Aaron Eckhart as a tobacco lobbyist at the top of his game. As for V for Vendetta … the last two Matrix installments were disappointments, but here’s hoping that the brothers have been energized by new material and a new muse (Natalie Portman). If you can’t get enough of this raven-haired ingénue, check out the small but poignant Israeli film Free Zone on April 7.

The sequel to 1992’s Basic Instinct arrives on March 31. Yes, Sharon Stone returns as the murderously sexy novelist Catherine Tramell. But no Wayne Knight. Why didn’t they bring him back? He made the crotch scene in the first film—his sweaty brow, his jaw-dropped expression. Michael Douglas had to play it cool, but Mr. Knight, he played it like the rest of us. But I digress ….

On April 7, Nicholas Jarecki’s documentary The Outsider debuts, about James Toback and the 12 days he had to shoot When Will I Be Loved, making Nicholas the third Jarecki brother to release a nonfiction film in the last three years. It should be good, considering the pedigree: Eugene’s Why We Fight is in the theaters now and has received decent reviews; Andrew’s Capturing the Friedmans was nominated for an Academy Award in 2004. Watch out, Maysle Brothers!

Nicole Holofcener’s Friends with Money, with a great cast, opens in … April? It has Frances McDormand, Joan Cusack, Catherine Keener (yum!) and Jennifer Aniston. Are studios afraid of another In Her Shoes, a well-received “chick flick” that didn’t make any money?

Two promising comedies emerge toward the end of spring: Terry Zwigoff’s Art School Confidential (April 28) and Scott Marshall’s Keeping Up with the Steins (May 12). With the deliciously aloof John Malkovich playing the mentor to a bunch of burgeoning painters in Confidential, Mr. Zwigoff ( Crumb, Bad Santa) looks like he’s found another subject to appeal to his fascination with the high art of the lowbrow (and vice versa). Meanwhile, Mr. Marshall, the son of director Garry Marshall, makes his feature-length, big-screen directorial debut with The Steins. The plotline: A boy uses his bar mitzvah to reconcile his feuding parents. (That’s nice. I used it to buy a car …. ) It stars Jeremy Piven (yes!) and Daryl Hannah (weird!).

So let’s get the easy ones out of the way. Come May 5, Tom Cruise will be pushing Mission: Impossible III hard, an excuse to get away from his pregnant wife. A week later, Poseidon, a remake of the 1972 disaster film The Poseidon Adventure starring Ernest Borgnine—I miss him. Then, well, only God (or perhaps Opus Dei) could stop The Da Vinci Code (May 19).

March boasts two—yes, two!—films to hope for the best from: the dark comedy Thank You for Smoking (March 17), by Jason (“Son of Ivan”) Reitman, and the futuristic V for Vendetta (March 17), from the furtive minds behind The Matrix, the Wachowski Brothers. (They’re still brothers, right? Didn’t one have a sex change? If so, are they still brothers? Discuss.) Smoking boasts what looks like a breakout performance from the perennially impressive Aaron Eckhart as a tobacco lobbyist at the top of his game. As for V for Vendetta … the last two Matrix installments were disappointments, but here’s hoping that the brothers have been energized by new material and a new muse (Natalie Portman). If you can’t get enough of this raven-haired ingénue, check out the small but poignant Israeli film Free Zone on April 7.

The sequel to 1992’s Basic Instinct arrives on March 31. Yes, Sharon Stone returns as the murderously sexy novelist Catherine Tramell. But no Wayne Knight. Why didn’t they bring him back? He made the crotch scene in the first film—his sweaty brow, his jaw-dropped expression. Michael Douglas had to play it cool, but Mr. Knight, he played it like the rest of us. But I digress ….

On April 7, Nicholas Jarecki’s documentary The Outsider debuts, about James Toback and the 12 days he had to shoot When Will I Be Loved, making Nicholas the third Jarecki brother to release a nonfiction film in the last three years. It should be good, considering the pedigree: Eugene’s Why We Fight is in the theaters now and has received decent reviews; Andrew’s Capturing the Friedmans was nominated for an Academy Award in 2004. Watch out, Maysle Brothers!

Nicole Holofcener’s Friends with Money, with a great cast, opens in … April? It has Frances McDormand, Joan Cusack, Catherine Keener (yum!) and Jennifer Aniston. Are studios afraid of another In Her Shoes, a well-received “chick flick” that didn’t make any money?

Two promising comedies emerge toward the end of spring: Terry Zwigoff’s Art School Confidential (April 28) and Scott Marshall’s Keeping Up with the Steins (May 12). With the deliciously aloof John Malkovich playing the mentor to a bunch of burgeoning painters in Confidential, Mr. Zwigoff (Crumb, Bad Santa) looks like he’s found another subject to appeal to his fascination with the high art of the lowbrow (and vice versa). Meanwhile, Mr. Marshall, the son of director Garry Marshall, makes his feature-length, big-screen directorial debut with The Steins. The plotline: A boy uses his bar mitzvah to reconcile his feuding parents. (That’s nice. I used it to buy a car …. ) It stars Jeremy Piven (yes!) and Daryl Hannah (weird!).