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Latest Video: FilmCrunch 067: Hairspray, Chuck & Larry, Premonition reviewed

Veronica Santiago and Neil Estep review Hairspray, Chuck & Larry, and Premonition in this episode of FilmCrunch.
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Box Office Breakdown: That Was It for Paranormal Activity

Michael Jackson's This Is It

Based on the numbers from the past week, it looks like This Is It should remain in theaters longer than two weeks. Oh wait - it will.

Since opening late Tuesday night, the concert film has generated a total of $34.4 million domestically - $23.2 million just over the weekend - and approximately $101 worldwide. Although Michael Jackson technically didn’t beat the opener for Hannah Montana & Miley Cyrus: Best of Both Worlds Concert Tour (that entry earned more over 5 days), had the best international debut ever for any concert film.

Sony’s win meant a short victory for . After a steady climb, and only 1 week at the top, the horror film slipped down to second place. Of course, the word-of-mouth hit has nothing to complain about. Not only has the movie grossed $84.6 million to date, it also had the best per screen average of any Top 10 charter.

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Box Office Breakdown: Saw Outdone by Paranormal Activity

Paranormal Activity

Have audiences seen enough Saw?

Although Jigsaw is known for slaying his competition, the serial killer was no match for Katie Featherstone and Micah Sloat. This weekend, those two unknowns saw their small project, , finally top the box office charts. The movie, which was produced for approximately $15,000, reached that position after a steady climb up the ranks. (Aren’t films supposed to go down?) The horror flick also had a higher per screen average than any entry in the Top 10 despite fewer engagements.

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Read More | Variety

Box Office Breakdown: The Wild Things Are #1

Where the Wild Things Are

Who knew a 10-sentence long story could do so well?

It may have taken over three years for Where the Wild Things Are to officially debut, but the long journey was apparently worth the wait. The Spike Jonze project, which was once rumored to be too scary for children, finally unfolded over the weekend and soared to first place. The Maurice Sendak adaptation, which earned approximately $32.7 million, also gave Warner Bros. its best October open ever.

Even though Gerard Butler didn’t bother to promote during his recent Saturday Night Live stint, the film managed to survive on its own. The actioner, which also starred Jamie Foxx, raked in just over $21 million and won a close race for 2nd place. Meanwhile, word-of-mouth hit Paranormal Activity grossed another $19.6 million and moved up one rung to the third spot.

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Read More | Variety

Box Office Breakdown: Audiences Escape to Couples Retreat

Couples Retreat

Depending on how you look at the numbers, the winner this weekend was either or Paranormal Activity.

In the comedy corner, we have a Peter Billingsley-directed film that earned $35.3 million and a first-place finish. The movie - which combined the efforts of Vince Vaughn, Jon Favreau and Jason Bateman - pulled in the best numbers for any Columbus Day weekend entry ever. It also gave Vaughn his 2nd best opening behind The Break-Up.

Meanwhile, on the horror front, made a huge splash despite being in limited release. The Blair Witch-esque movie scared up a shocking $49,000 per screen average. It also raked in nearly 500 times more than its budget. (It only cost less than $16,000 to produce.)

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Sam Mendes Fears for Big Dramas

Sam Mendes

claims the recession has made Hollywood dramas and period movies are “almost impossible” to make.

The director says that while his recent movie, , had been done “very cheaply,” other films are struggling in the current economic climate.

“The recession has hit the industry in a very odd way as big movies are more popular than ever,” Mendes said to BBC Radio 4’s The Film Programme. “But the movies in the middle are almost getting squeezed out, which is the big dramas, the movies that do cost a bit of money with well-known actors in them.”

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Remake News: Cliffhanger, Girls Just Want to Have Fun, Navigator and More

Cliffhanger

Cliffhanger: The 1993 action thriller is the latest Sylvester Stallone project to get a new life. The only difference is that Sly won’t be in this production. In the Renny Harlin-directed version, a mountain rescue worker is forced to help criminals retrieve money stolen from a U.S. Treasure plane. The reboot will reportedly involve a group of climbers and multiple locations. Shooting is expected to begin sometime next year.

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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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Box Office Breakdown: Wolverine Claws Its Way to the Top

Wolverine

Despite a growing list of hurdles (leaked footage, swine flu, mediocre reviews), proved it was a force to be reckoned with last weekend. Although it failed to surpass X-Men: The Last Stand (that 2006 entry debuted at $122.9 million), the Fox feature trounced the competition with an $85.1 million open. In other words, Wolverine earned over $20 million more than the other Top Ten entries…combined.

Sitting far back in second place was , Matthew McConaughey’s attempt to bring a little muscle into the box office. The romantic comedy, costarring Jennifer Garner, grossed $15.4 million on the weekend before Mother’s Day. (That’s less than a million more than what Made of Honor pulled in at this same time last year.) Meanwhile, last Friday’s only other wide release, Battle for Terra, raked in a disappointing $1.1 million for a 12th place finish.

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Transformers 3 a Sure Thing

Transformers 2

**UPDATE: Michael Bay now claims the movie will come out in 2012, not 2011.**

Transformers 3 has been given a release date and officially put on a time table - the robotic movie will be coming to a theater near you on July 1, 2011. According to reports, however, that’s the only thing that’s official.

So far, Paramount and DreamWorks have nothing on paper with director Michael Bay or leading man and lady and Megan Fox. They haven’t even hired a scriptwriter. Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen, the second installment to the franchise, will be released on June 24, 2009.

Read More | Variety

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