I must say that I was surprised to find Burn After Reading sitting pretty atop this week's box office charts. I was sure that Tyler Perry's The Family That Preys was going to take the top spot. I have (like many others) shortchanged Perry's ability to draw an audience for whatever reason. I was determined not to let that happen again, and here I go and pick incorrectly. Such is life. I am not upset, as I loved the latest Coen Brothers film.

Burn After Reading is a magnificent piece of pointless absurdity. Seriously, the screenplay is masterfully constructed around an insignificant MacGuffin that whips all involved into a frothy frenzy of thriller-tinged comedy. It is the sort of film that was clearly intended as a purge from the bleak Oscar winner No Country for Old Men. Believe me, it worked. The film is a weird crowd pleaser that draws in audiences with its big name stars and then delivers an experience unlike anything many of them have likely seen before. The film is completely and utterly pointless. It is great to see that people went out to see it and helped the Coens to the biggest opening of their career.

Following not too far behind is Tyler Perry's latest film, Tyler Perry's The Family That Preys. I have not seen the film, but it is clear that Tyler Perry has a loyal audience, and this will be sure to turn a profit. It opened a bit lower than his last film, Tyler Perry's Meet the Browns, but not terribly far off. This will likely show decent legs over the next few weeks.

Next up is yet another new wide release, Righteous Kill. The Al Pacino/Robert De Niro pair-up would seem like a potent combination but unfortunately the film fails to deliver more than mediocrity, and that would be generous. I suspect that as the bad word spreads, this film will slip pretty quickly.

Rounding out the top four is the final new wide release of the weekend, The Women, based on the 1939 film of the same name. This is another film that I have not seen, but it has not been very well received and will likely slip away in short order. The film stars Annette Bening, Meg Ryan, Debra Messing, and a cast made up entirely of women. That's right, not a single guy.