the buzz log

Do you ache for love and yearn for miracles? Or would you prefer to partake in scams and indulge in a little tech paranoia? From the many choices this weekend, audiences seem to be hankering for love in the Buzz Multiplex ... with a dash of paranoia. Have a little faith in hand for the three most anticipated movies this weekend.

1. "Fireproof" (PG, limited release). Kirk Cameron segued his child-star sitcom success into the "Left Behind" video series. Now he finally gets his first big-screen shot in 20 years as a firefighter out to save his marriage. A zealous nationwide drive aims to make this marital-drama-disguised-as-a-firefighter-flick the box office king this weekend: Churches have bought advance tickets, and the Christian Post reports one North Dakota woman paid for 1,000-admission minimum to get a showing in her town. The gambit might work: A nearly 200% pump in searches gets this Atlanta ministry-funded film into the top 5,000 terms, with intense interest coming from the South.

2. "Nights in Rodanthe" (PG-13). Stretch those heartstrings—the latest Nicholas Sparks adaptation is out to tug at them. New York Sun dubs Sparks the "Stephen King of the mush-brained romantic novel," and critics might not argue with that characterization for this movie. The love story reunites Diane Lane as a woman in a bad marriage with Richard Gere as a doctor with his own issues. Throw them in a North Carolina bed-and-breakfast, cue a hurricane, and watch the intensely female Web interest (76% of searches) flow. While interest is coast to coast, the biggest fans hail from (of course) the Tar Heel State.

3. "Eagle Eye" (PG-13). Shia LaBeouf tests his mettle as a leading man (come on, "Transformers" didn't really count) in this so-called techno thriller about two strangers manipulated into peril by an anonymous cell phone voice. The compromise date movie of the week attracts Web interest from kids to people in their 40s. Still, the relatively lukewarm appeal could mean now's not quite the time for LaBeouf to take that next level on the celebrity ladder.