March Madness may still be in full swing, but a totally different battle is being waged at the box office this weekend as an unlikely mix of lovers, criminals, monsters, ghosts and aliens descend on unsuspecting theaters. So which movies are meant to make you fall in love and which are sure to scare you? ...

12 Rounds revolves around a pair of lovers, but it is far from a romantic comedy. Professional WWE wrestler John Cena stars as Detective Danny Fisher, an officer who’s out to rescue his girlfriend, played by Ashley Scott (Dark Angel, Jericho), who has been kidnapped by an elusive international terrorist, portrayed by Aiden Gillen (Queer as Folk, The Wire). Gillen’s character ends up forcing Fisher to play a dozen deathly games, the “12 Rounds” to which the title refers, throughout the streets of New Orleans. The film has a true action pedigree with Renny Harlin directing and WWE Studios producing, and the movie hopes to channel all of that March Madness energy in the air these days.

While Monsters vs. Aliens may sound like a horror film, it’s actually the most kid- and family-friendly movies debuting in theaters this week. The film is unique because it’s the first computer-animated film from DreamWorks to have been produced in 3-D, rather than being converted into a 3-D format in post-production. The story is centered on Susan Murphy, voiced by Reese Witherspoon (Legally Blond, Sweet Home Alabama), a girl who is struck by a meteor on her way to her wedding and grows to be almost 50 feet tall. She is taken to secret government facility with other monsters, including a mad scientist with an insect head, an ancient fish and the Missing Link, and the group is asked to help save the world from an alien invasion. Big stars like Paul Rudd, Hugh Laurie, Seth Rogan, Will Arnett, Rainn Wilson, Stephen Colbert and Kiefer Sutherland also lend their voices to the film, which is intended to put a different and more light-hearted spin on the monster movie.

For those who want all of the love with none of action, The Accidental Husband is this weekend’s big romantic comedy romp. The film was actually completed last year, but the release was delayed due to the folding of the movie’s original distributor, Yari Film Group. The flick stars Uma Thurman (Pulp Fiction, Kill Bill) as Emma Lloyd, a radio talk show host who is all set to marry her fiancé, Richard, played by romantic comedy veteran Colin Firth (Bridget Jones’s Diary, Love Actually), when she is informed that she is already married to someone else. Patrick, played by Jeffrey Dean Morgan (Watchmen, P.S. I Love You), is this mystery man, a passionate firefighter who seems to be just as confused by the “accidental marriage” as Emma. As time goes on and the two get to know each other more, Emma is presented with the choice between spontaneous Patrick and the more conservative Richard. The movie is packed with romantic comedy staples and is intended to woo theater-goers away from the more dark and violent offerings this weekend, including ....

The Haunting in Connecticut, which is said to be based on a true story. The film follows the experiences of the Campbell family as they move into a new home in upstate Connecticut. What seems at first like a normal Victorian house is soon revealed to be a former funeral parlor, where children used to summon the spirits of ghosts and demons. When the Campbell’s own son starts experiencing violent and supernatural events, the family quickly realizes they are dealing with the paranormal. Those looking for real chills this weekend, this films should be your first choice.

—John Bavoso