Big family pix vie for weekend auds
'Bicentennial,' 'Stuart,' 'Anna' fight for big b.o.
Disney launches "Bicentennial Man," starring Robin Williams and helmed by Chris Columbus. The pair last teamed on "Mrs. Doubtfire," which grossed $219 million. The Mouse House will also ride three-week toon champ "Toy Story 2."
Sony hopes to rebound at year's end with "Stuart Little," a part-animated take on the E.B. White tyke tome.
Fox counters with history-based epic "Anna and the King," starring Jodie Foster and Chow Yun-Fat.
With each of the three debuts taking up more than 2,000 screens, ongoing releases like "End of Days," "Sleepy Hollow" and "The World Is Not Enough" are apt to lose traction.
The staying power of Warner Bros.' "The Green Mile" and Disney's "Deuce Bigalow: Male Gigolo" should be tested, but demographically they offer a clear alternative to the G- and PG-rated glut.
In limited release, New Line uncorks "Magnolia," a character fugue by "Boogie Nights" director P.T. Anderson that runs two minutes longer than "Titanic." Pic will play on seven screens in Gotham and L.A.
Other micro bows include Samuel Goldwyn's "Onegin," starring Ralph Fiennes, and Sony Classics' Chinese import "The Emperor and the Assassin." One-week Oscar qualifying runs are on tap for Fine Line's Sam Shepard adaptation "Simpatico" and USA's "Topsy Turvy," helmer Mike Leigh's pic based on the lives of musical tandem Gilbert and Sullivan.
