The Labor Day weekend releases are generally there to be shrugged off; the slot is a dumping ground for films in which no one believes. Things got better for a little while when Focus started using the last Wednesday of August to launch an arty thriller like “The Constant Gardener” or “The American”, but this year they went with “Lawless”, which smacks more of desperation than anything else.

So, what’s out this week?

“The Bullet Vanishes”: Law Chi-leung’s tale of mismatched detectives in 1930s Shanghai sounded an awful lot like an uncredited Sherlock Holmes riff; Phil confirms that, but also says it’s well-made and entertaining. So, yay.

“For a Good Time, Call”: Revered Canadian short filmmaker Jamie Travis makes the jump to features with this comedy about two women (Ari Graynor and Lauren Miller) who bond while working a phone-sex line. Phil was unimpressed.

“In My Mother’s Arms”: Almost a year after its TIFF premiere, Atea and Mohamed Al Daradji’s documentary about an Iraqi orphanage lands a commercial run. Susan calls it “devastating” but only gives it a 3/5 rating. Hmm.

“The Matchmaker“: Israeli journeyman Avi Nesher staples a tale of post-Holocaust survivor’s guilt onto a generic coming-of-age picture. The former’s worth your time; the latter isn’t.

“The Possession”: Andrew finds Ole Bornedal’s Dybbuk movie lacking in thrills and chills. But then, has there ever been a good Dybbuk picture? The Jumby movie wasn’t exactly a film for the ages.

Oh, and “Jaws” is back at the Lightbox for the long weekend, but it won’t be in Cinema 1 — that’s given over to the 70mm revival of Jacques Tati’s “Playtime”, of which many of my colleagues think far more highly than I. Bonne chance.

Yup, it’s that time again. TIFF’s a-coming, and this week’s NOW is all about the preview. Not only have we got capsule reviews aplenty, but you’ll find me talking to Ruba Nadda, who returns to the festival with the thriller “Inescapable”, and with Jorge Hinjosa and Ice-T, director and producer of the documentary “Iceberg Slim: Portrait of a Pimp”.

Fun fact: I spoke to Ice-T while he was shooting “Law & Order: Special Victims Unit”, which technically makes me part of the Munchiverse.

At last, I am immortal.

Here’s another way to tell that the summer is winding down: I’m wrapping up my Harbourfront Free Flicks duties tonight. I’ll be introducing the audience-choice winner, the original version of “The Karate Kid“, around 8:45 pm; come on down and share the magic, would you?

Or at least enjoy a proper ’80s movie the way it was meant to be enjoyed — nearly thirty years later, surrounded by people who grew up trying to take its lessons to heart. (I do not include myself in their number, mind you.)

Also, “Lawless” opens today. But it’s pretty awful, so go see “Premium Rush” instead.

Despite the entreaties of not only myself but literally several other film critics, “Premium Rush” failed to set the box office on fire, opening all the way down in seventh place during one of the year’s weakest weekends.

I mean, “The Expendables 2” managed to hold onto the top spot with just $13.5 million, which is downright pitiful. “Premium Rush”, the biggest opener of any of this week’s newbies, earned just $6.3 million.

It’s not all bad news, mind you; “ParaNorman” continued to do decent business, taking $8.6 million for third place and a ten-day total of $28.3 million. That’s a great movie, and one that deserves as big an audience as possible. But come on, people. Go see “Premium Rush” already.

I’ve got at least three TIFF screenings waiting for me today, so you’ll forgive me if I play the six-w0rd game again this week …

“The Apparition”: Scary movie, not screened in advance.

“Bill W.”: Doc about the founder of AA. [Glenn]

“Darwin“: Life in the middle of nowhere.

“Easy Money“: Swedish gangsters, something something, Ikea joke.

“Farewell, My Queen”: Marie Antoinette, from a fan’s perspective. [Rad]

“Hell and Back Again“: “Hell” is Afghanistan. “Back” is rehab.

“Hit & Run“: Great conversations, but goes nowhere fast.

“Premium Rush“: The year’s best pulp movie. Go.

“Robot & Frank“: Nearly a great film. And then …

“Snap“: What’s Irish for “bollocks”? Oh, right.

There, that’s all of it. And now if you’ll excuse me I have to go sit in the dark for two and a half hours and worry about all the phone calls I’ll be missing …

Hey, remember that Q&A with “Easy Money” director Daniel Espinosa I mentioned last week? It’s running in this week’s NOW, and our long national nightmare is over.

I also spoke to the French writer-director Mia Hansen-Love about her excellent films “Tout est Pardonne”, “The Father of My Children” and “Goodbye, First Love”, which are being screened at the Lightbox tonight through Saturday in a little mini-retrospective dealie.

If you’ve seen any of her films, you’ll want to catch up to the others, especially since Hansen-Love is doing intros and Q&As for each film, and for Friday night’s Carte Blanche selection as well. And if you haven’t seen any of her films, start with “Tout est Pardonne” and work your way along. It’s worth it.

August rolls onward, bringing another Wednesday with it, which means it’s time for another Free Flick down at Harbourfront.

Tonight’s feature is “Moneyball“, and its slightly-longer-than-average running time means we’ll be kicking things off a little earlier; I’ll be taking the stage around 8:30 pm, and the movie will get underway around 8:40. If you were planning on coming, you’ll want to factor that into your travel plans.

And really, you should come. It’s a good movie — one that’s grown on me considerably since I first saw it at TIFF last year — and it’ll be fun with a crowd. Plus it’s free, and free is awesome.

Oh, and speaking of TIFF, they made another wave of announcements yesterday. I wrote about them here. Whatever.

Tony Scott jumped off a bridge yesterday. He was 68.

As I explain in greater detail in this NOW obituary, Scott defined the aesthetic of the Hollywood blockbuster; the choices he made in “Top Gun”, “Beverly Hills Cop II” and “Days of Thunder” echo through the decades, adopted and enhanced by a new generation of movie brats.

One of them is Simon West, whose latest film, “The Expendables 2”, topped the box office this weekend. Make of that what you will.