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Box Office Breakdown: Wall Street Rises to a Win

Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps

Twenty-three years after we were first introduced to Gordon Gekko, Michael Douglas and Oliver Stone have both seen their stock go up. , which earned $19 million over the past three days, gave the Oscar-winning actor his first #1 film since 2001’s Don’t Say a Word and Stone his best debut to date. (That total is, of course, considered chump change to Shia LaBeouf.)

The weekend didn’t look quite so rosy for . Although the Zack Snyder-directed adaptation landed in second place, the movie only grossed $16.1 million. (Keep in mind that the movie cost $79 million to produce.)

Meanwhile, Disney proved Betty White’s mere presence doesn’t necessarily mean comedy gold. You Again – also starring Kristen Bell and Sigourney Weaver – debuted in fifth place with $10.6 million. (Somehow I doubt this will help Bell’s chances of ever getting a Veronica Mars movie off the ground.)

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Read More | Box Office Mojo

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Box Office Breakdown: The Town Takes the Crown

The Town

, Ben Affleck’s second directorial feature, surprised analysts this weekend with a win at the box office. The film, which far surpassed Gone Baby Gone’s $5.5 million debut in 2007, earned $23.8 million—a September-best for Warner Bros. The drama, co-starring Jon Hamm and Jeremy Renner, also gave actor Affleck his first #1 film—outside of He’s Just Not that Into You—since Daredevil.

Although many had topping the charts, the film came in a very respectable second place. The Emma Stone-starrer – which only cost $8 million to produce – generated good reviews and a $17.7 million take.

The weekend’s other two new wide releases also landed in the Top 5. The PG-13 horror film raised $12.3 million while Alpha and Omega, a more family-friendly entry, rang up $9.1 million in ticket sales.

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Read More | Box Office Mojo

Box Office Breakdown: Evil Takes Up Residence at Number One

Resident Evil: Afterlife

Who says the third time’s the charm?

—the fourth movie in that sci-fi series—topped the box office this weekend with franchise-breaking numbers. The movie, which was offered in 3D, had the best Evil debut to date. (Yes - higher ticket prices did play into this.) Afterlife‘s $26.7 million take surpassed the bar set by Resident Evil: Extinction in 2007. (That outing opened to $23.7 million.)

Since Resident was the only new wide release, the other notable events occurred outside the Top Ten. , starring Katie Holmes and Josh Duhamel, opened in limited release with a $45,527 debut. More importantly, the movie averaged $22,764 per theater—the best number for all films over the weekend. In comparison, I’m Still Here—featuring a disheveled Joaquin Phoenix—only had a $5,087 per screen average.

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Read More | Box Office Mojo

In Theaters This Weekend: September 10, 2010


Here are a few selections in theaters this weekend:

  • Resident Evil: Afterlife (R): starring Milla Jovovich, Ali Larter, Wentworth Miller (directed by Paul W.S. Anderson)
  • Ahead of Time* (NR): (directed by Robert Richman)
  • Bran Nue Dae* (PG-13): starring Geoffrey Rush, Rocky McKenzie, Ernie Dingo (directed by Rachel Perkins)
  • Expecting Mary* (PG): starring Elliott Gould, Linda Gray, Lainie Kazan (directed by Dan Gordon)
  • Heartbreaker* (NR): starring Romain Duris, Vanessa Paradis, Julie Ferrier (directed by Pascal Chaumeil)
  • I’m Still Here* (NR): starring Joaquin Phoenix (directed by Casey Affleck)

Click to continue reading In Theaters This Weekend: September 10, 2010


This Week on DVD and Blu-ray: September 15, 2009

Here are some of the options available this Tuesday:

Wolverine Blu-ray

  • The 13th Warrior: DVD
  • Amadeus (Director’s Cut): Blu-ray
  • An American Werewolf in London (Full Moon Edition): DVD, Blu-ray
  • Army of Darkness (Screwhead Edition): Blu-ray
  • Child’s Play: Blu-ray
  • Deadgirl: DVD
  • Deep Impact: Blu-ray
  • Easy Virtue: DVD, Blu-ray
  • Fame: DVD
  • Friday the 13th, Part VII: The New Blood: DVD
  • Friday the 13th, Part VIII: Jason Takes Manhattan: DVD
  • Grace: DVD, Blu-ray
  • Hero: Blu-ray

Click to continue reading This Week on DVD and Blu-ray: September 15, 2009

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This Week on DVD and Blu-ray: August 4, 2009

The Soloist DVDHere are some of the options available this Tuesday:

  • August: DVD
  • Big Trouble in Little China: Blu-ray
  • Fragments: DVD
  • Mutant Chronicles: DVD, Blu-ray
  • My Cousin Vinny: Blu-ray
  • The Mysteries of Pittsburgh: DVD, Blu-ray
  • Obsessed: DVD, Blu-ray
  • Race to Witch Mountain: DVD, Blu-ray
  • Sling Blade: Blu-ray
  • The Soloist: DVD, Blu-ray
  • The Tigger Movie: DVD

Click to continue reading This Week on DVD and Blu-ray: August 4, 2009

Read More | Amazon

Box Office Breakdown: Disney/Pixar Flying High with Up

Up

The word “Pixar” always seems to generate smiles, and that’s exactly what did for Disney.

Over the weekend, the Cannes Film Festival opener generated $68.1 million, over $40 million more than its nearest competitor. The movie - which was also offered in 3D - also bested last year’s Wall-E (by $5 million) and had Pixar’s 3rd-best debut. (The Incredibles opened to $70.5 million in 2004; Finding Nemo grossed $70.3 million in 2003.)

Friday’s other new wide release, , scared up only $15.8 million for a 4th place finish. Although it originally looked as if the horror film would surpass Terminator Salvation, the final numbers were $8 million below Sunday’s projections.

Another noteworthy mention: officially crossed the $200 million mark after only four weeks in release. The Paramount feature is now the first movie of the year to reach that achievement.

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Read More | Variety

Box Office Breakdown: Ben Stiller Defeats Christian Bale

Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian

Was it a result of Christian Bale’s rant? The presence of that other science fiction movie? Or the lack of family-friendly fare?

When the dust from the weekend settled, a surprising entry emerged as the winner. Despite the country’s current love for action sequels/prequels, a much calmer feature - - was the choice for entertainment this holiday. Ben Stiller’s comedy follow-up raked in $70 million giving the actor his best live-action debut ever. Smithsonian also became the best PG-rated opener for Memorial Day.

Museum‘s victory meant a disappointing 2nd place finish for . Although the saga’s fourth installment earned more than T3‘s debut, its $51.9 million gross ($65.3 million since Thursday) put it nowhere near the estimated $200 million budget. The numbers did give director McG, though, his best premiere since 2000’s Charlie’s Angels.

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Read More | Variety

Box Office Breakdown: Narrow Victory for Angels & Demons

Angels & Demons

was never as popular as The Da Vinci Code...and its big screen numbers reflected that.

Despite huge success with the overseas box office this weekend (the movie had the 10th best international open ever), the latest Ron Howard/Tom Hanks collaboration barely struck gold domestically. Over the last three days, Angels grossed $46.2 million—just enough for first place. Unfortunately, the Dan Brown adaptation only earned $3 million more than last week’s champ and over $30 million less than the previous installment.

, in the meantime, continued on its warp speed pace. The second place finisher pulled in another $43 million and put itself within $3 million of Wolverine‘s overall total. (The Hugh Jackman film, this week’s #3, had a 7-day head start on the sci fi adventure.)

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Read More | Variety

Box Office Breakdown:  Star Trek Beams Its Way to #1

Zachary Quinto in Star Trek

Based on these numbers, a sequel would seem like the logical response.

After a five-month delay, the highly-anticipated J.J. Abrams feature finally unspooled to an eager crowd. And though it didn’t outearn last weekend’s office champ, the science fiction adventure appeared to be in a galaxy far, far away.

Since it’s debut late Thursday night, Trek grossed approximately $79.2 million. (That’s nearly $3 million more than was estimated a day ago, but still $6 million less than Wolverine‘s premiere.) Around $8 million of Paramount’s haul came from IMAX ticket sales alone. (That figure bests the $6.2 million raked in by The Dark Knight last year.)

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Read More | Variety

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