1. The Brave One - $14.015 million
For a second straight weekend, American moviegoers largely ignored the big-screen product the studios dumped into theaters, showing roughly the same level of grudging interest in Jodie Foster's vigilante gunplay as they did in Russell Crowe and Christian Bale's period drama about the obstacles facing commuters in the Old West. But as pointed out by our east-coasted siblings at Gawker, at least one high-profile movie fan was excited about The Brave One's achievement, celebrating Foster's claiming of the top spot with this classy tribute.

2. 3:10 to Yuma - $9.150 million
Spoiler alert: Though each scene shared by dangerous outlaw Russell Crowe and desperate, peg-legged rancher Christian Bale crackles with sexual tension (especially with the looming threat that Crowe's stalkerish, estranged lover might appear at any moment heightening our anticipation), our grizzled heroes never do get around to booking a sleeper car on that mid-afternoon train to Yuma to further explore their complicated relationship.

3. Mr. Woodcock - $9.1 million
The weak recent openings for both Balls of Fury and Woodcock probably means that one-sheet designers will abandon the testicular imagery that was red-hot just a couple of weeks ago.

4. Dragon Wars - $5.376 million
We don't want to live in a world where Robert Forster can't open a South Korean dragon epic to at least $10 million.

5. Superbad - $5.2 million
We're fresh out of penis-doodle and menstrual blood jokes, so let's move along to the rest our day, shall we?

• WEEKEND BOX OFFICE September 14-16, 2007 [Box Office Mojo]

Let's talk about your ring.

This one? [Proffers left hand] It's Tiffany, an eternity ring.

You're wearing it on your wedding ring finger.

I am. I've always worn a ring. Even taking photos. Even on magazine covers. I don't take it off.

Don't you think wearing a ring like that raises questions?

Well, but that's my life. I thought about this recently: I had a nightmare the other night. Well, anyway. . .

C'mon! Let's hear the nightmare!

I was being interviewed by somebody, like an innocuous [press] junket thing. They were asking me questions about food I liked or whatever. Then they said, [in a high, innocent voice] "Have you ever written any homemade anti-Semitic cards?" And I was like, [horrified] "No!" Then she said, "Come with me," and I realized to myself, "You're so stupid. Haven't you ever seen that 60 Minutes thing where they ask you a banal question? You're not supposed to say yes or no. You're supposed to go, 'Well, that's interesting.' Because if they ask you the banal question, it's because they have some kind of document on you. And now you've got to go! And now the camera's going to follow you!" Then my dream was over. [Pauses and reflects before continuing]

My life is my life. I'm not going to change my life for anybody. I don't have any problems with it. I just don't talk about my health, my dad, who I voted for or what I think of the death penalty, because that would be trivializing my life, selling it for a magazine.

Foster has grown quite adept over the years at the cautious, playful dance of words that ensures her sexual anonymity: By labeling the obviously significant piece of jewelry as an "eternity ring," she manages to evoke the basic essence of indentured lesbian servitude without having to rely on the subject-opening "commitment" word. Still, we can't help be concerned about what the effects of decades of tight-lipped repression are doing to the actress's subconscious. Sometimes, it's easier to just come out and address the elephant in the room than risk being visited that evening by the nightmarish specter of Mike Wallace, waving a phallic microphone in your face and demanding to know where you keep your collection of hand-painted Nazi Hanukkah cards.

• Jodie Foster's Killer Instincts [More.com via Josh & Josh]

[*As we've all learned from Entourage, agents are delightfully foul-mouthed.]

• The Brave One [WarnerBros.com]
• The Brave One [IMDb]