With The Great Depression 2 : Electric Boogalo hitting America soon, will peoplereally want to go to the movies? Will they really feel that their precious $12.50 better be spent on Shia LaBeouf shouting “NO!NO!NO!NO!NO!NO!NO!NO!” than on their own personal savings? The answer? Probably.

Entertainment is considered to be pretty much recession-proof.  If you’re worrying about keeping your job or home, there will be a need for escapism. Seeing something blow up is always a great cure for the blues. And keep in mind that the highest grossing film of all-time (adjusted for inflation) Gone With The Wind was released during the great depression.

So I’m betting on Shia “The Beef” LaBeouf’s new star vehicle to take number one. With a strong ad campaign promising action galore and hot chicks (Michelle Monaghan and Rosario Dawson FTW), it’s safe to say this is good escapism. But will the film’s terrorist themes make it underperform? People may want escapism, but with a reminder of current events, it might not fully do that. But either way, I’m predicting Eagle Eye for a very good 29 Million Opening Weekend. Will it have legs? Considering the reviews, probably not.

Other stuff hitting theaters this weekend is the new Chick Flick starring Richard Gere and Diane Lane. Count on chicks to flock to it. I’d say a solid 13 million opening weekend. The other wide release is Spike Lee’s newest joint, Miracle at St. Anna. A film like this would need outstanding reviews to have any chance to do well. But critics are ripping it apart. Sorry Spike, but this is going to bomb hard. I’d say a 3 million opening weekend.