DAN’S MOVIE DIGEST 119

THE HITCHHIKER’S GUIDE TO THE GALAXYDouglas Adams’ seminal sci-fi comedy franchise will finally become a movielater this year, with Martin Freeman (TV’s The Office), Mos Def and SamRockwell in the cast.

A photo of some of the hitchhiker’s, with Marvin The Paranoid Android, hasbeen released (see right)

DODGEBALL 2’20th Century Fox’ are hoping to get a Dodgeball sequel up and running,after the original grossed $166.7 million worldwide.

SAHARAClive Cussler’s bestselling book Sahara will hit the big screen in March,with explorer Dirk Pitt (Matthew McConaughey) taking on the adventure of hislife when he embarks on a treasure hunt through some of the most dangerousregions of West Africa.

Searching for what locals call The Ship Of Death, a long lost Civil Warbattleship which protects a secret cargo, Pitt and his wisecracking sidekick(Steve Zahn) use their wits and clever heroics to help Doctor Eva Rojas(Penelope Cruz) when they realize the ship may be linked to mysteriousdeaths in the very same area.

Directed by Breck Eisner, the adaptation also stars Lambert Wilson, GlynnTurman, Delroy Lindo, and William H. Macy.

All figures are weekend box-office gross.

• 1. Meet the Fockers ($28.5m) (total to date: $204m)
• 2. White Noise ($24.1m)
• 3. The Aviator ($7.49m)
• 4. Lemony Snicket’s A Series of Unfortunate Events ($7.44m) (total to date: $106m)
• 5. Fat Albert ($5.75m)
• 6. Ocean’s Twelve ($5.31m) (total to date: $115m)
• 7. Spanglish ($4.25m)
• 8. National Treasure ($4.25m) (total to date: $161m)
• 9. The Phantom of the Opera ($3.42m)
• 10. The Life Acquatic ($2.74m)

UK TOP 10 (CINEMA)

• 1. White Noise (£1.78m)
• 2. The Aviator (£1.31m)
• 3. Alexander (£1.20m)
• 4. The Incredibles (£0.97m)
• 5. Lemony Snicket’s A Series of Unfortunate Events (£0.96m)
• 6. National Treasure (£0.94m)
• 7. Without a Paddle (£0.498m)
• 8. The Phantom of the Opera (£0.497m)
• 9. Shi mian mai fu (£0.44m)
• 10. The Polar Express (£0.29m)

All the following are U.K. release dates, and are subject to change.