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The first thing I would do is set a budget, then you may get more specific suggestions. If your system is primarily for movies, I would probably focus on the center and subwoofer first, but, ideally, it would be best if could go upgrade the entire front stage. Timbre (the qualities or characteristics of the sound) can differ from speaker to speaker quite a lot, and particularly so from brand to brand.
The speakers offered at the big box stores, like Best Buy, tend to be low to mid range models and don't have the best setups for demos. BB in particular, at least our local store, is worse than ever since they moved their speakers out onto the main floor. Bigger A/V shops will have a system where they can select receivers you're interested in and use them to drive the speakers you are interested in. However, if you're like most of my friends, you may be perfectly happy with the big box offerings.
As for brands, I have mostly Paradigm stuff and absolutely love it. Great bang for the buck. And they do have stuff that is relatively inexpensive. There are many others though, like B&W, Polk, etc... but it's difficult to recommend any one brand, since they all have their own sound and appeal to different people. For the receiver, I think Onkyo is a great choice. I currently have a Yamaha, which I do love, but would still lean toward an Onkyo today.
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