I know I’m a week late in getting this March preview out. To be honest, I just totally forgot to do it. That said, we’re moving out of the doldrums of February. The days are getting longer, the temperatures are getting warmer, the snow is melting and the movies are (or at least should be) getting be better, with increased box office potential. Let’s take a look at what’s coming out in March (excluding 300: Rise of an Empire and Mr. Peabody and Sherman because this preview is late).

March 14

Tyler Perry’s The Single Moms Club

My Thoughts: Well, here’s the requisite Tyler Perry movie of the year. He’ll probably have something come out in autumn as well. I’ll give the man credit; he certainly stays busy. And, aside from a few hiccups here and there, his films do pretty well. The Single Moms Club probably figures to err toward the lower end of his films, but it should do all right for itself.

Opening Weekend: $17 million

Total Gross: $43 million

Need for Speed

My Thoughts: Who doesn’t like Aaron Paul after his amazing performance throughout the five years of Breaking Bad? The man proved he can act. Now, we’ll see if he can carry a film on his own. This movie takes its title from a popular video game, but it seemingly borrows little else, which probably works in its favor because video game films almost never do well. I don’t think Need for Speed will come anywhere close to approaching Fast and Furious levels, but it doesn’t need to. I think it’ll put up decent numbers.

Opening Weekend: $15 million

Total Gross: $40 million

March 21

Muppets Most Wanted

My Thoughts: 2011’s The Muppets did solid numbers, opening to $29 million en route to an $88 million total. However, that had a better release date, right in the thick of the holiday season, and it feels as though a lot of the fun in seeing The Muppets being brought to the silver screen will have died down. It does boast a pretty solid cast, but even still, I think Muppets Most Wanted will fall short of its predecessor, especially since kids and families have been spoiled lately.

Opening Weekend: $22 million

Total Gross: $60 million

Divergent

My Thoughts: Here we are, another adaptation of a young adult novel hoping to be the next big thing. And it’s released by who else but Summit Entertainment. That said, Divergent clearly a few steps above recent failures like The Mortal Instruments and Beautiful Creatures. Its cast is pretty strong (Shailene Woodley, in particular, is quite the up-and-comer), the plot seems somewhat intriguing, the special effects look respectable, and most importantly, the fanbase is much bigger than many of the other young adult adaptations we’ve seen fail. Buzz and anticipation is building for this flick and I don’t think it will have any trouble becoming the highest grossing film of March.

Opening Weekend: $53 million

Total Gross: $148 million

March 28

Sabotage

My Thoughts: Here’s Ahnuld again in an 80s throwback action flick. Actually, to be honest, I just saw that he’s in this, the title is “Sabotage,” and looked at the poster. I have no idea if it’ll be another 80s throwback. Let me go watch the trailer…Yeah, basically. Sabotage does look like it’s taking itself too seriously, though, and a distinct lack of Beastie Boys is disappointing. This probably won’t do any better than The Last Stand.

Opening Weekend: $11 million

Total Gross: $30 million

Noah

My Thoughts: My hatred of Black Swan notwithstanding, I think Darren Aronofsky is an extremely talented director, and Requiem for a Dream and the underrated The Fountain are among some of the best films I’ve ever seen. Noah is an interesting project for him, as he’s never really tackled a big, budget, high-on-special effects picture like this before. But I have faith in Aronofsky to deliver a solid movie, and this could end up being his first true blockbuster success.

Opening Weekend: $33 million

Total Gross: $110 million

Even counting the weekend I missed, March doesn’t have a whole lot of movies coming out; just eight for the whole month. There’s not a whole lot of breakout potential for any of these flicks, aside from Divergence, which should lead the whole month with total ease. Still, it kinda feels like March is just a build up toward April when Captain America: The Winter Soldier arrives. But we’ll get to that when the time comes. Until we meet again.