Box Office Breakdown: Rambo Outgunned by Spartans
Posted by Veronica Santiago Categories: 20th Century Fox, Buena Vista, Disney, Fox Searchlight, Lionsgate, Paramount, Sony, Warner Bros, Action, Adaptation, Drama, Horror, Satire, Sequels, Comedy, Thrillers, Box Office, Lists, New Releases,
Although Sylvester Stallone was hoping to end the Rambo series on an up note, it appears the actor/writer/director will just have to settle for second place. Many had expected the fourth installment would come away with the weekend’s spoils, unfortunately the aging action hero was overpowered by a group of toga-clad warriors.
It should be said though that Meet the Spartans had an extremely narrow victory. The spoof of 2007’s 300 edged out the action flick by just $300,000. But a win is still a win, right? The satire also had the best per screen average of any movie in the Top Ten ($7104).
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Variety
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Box Office Breakdown: Cloverfield Attacks the Charts
Posted by Veronica Santiago Categories: 20th Century Fox, FOCUS, Disney, Fox Searchlight, Paramount, Sony, Warner Bros, Action, Adaptation, Adventure, Animation, Drama, Family, Horror, Independent, Period, Romance, Sequels, Comedy, Books, Lists, New Releases,
Final numbers for the three-day weekend revealed what many had suspected: Cloverfield toppled New York and the competition. The strong numbers were a result of Paramount’s smart marketing. In addition to the eerie trailers, the film debuted in January - usually a fairly quiet month for decent films. Cloverfield’s $46 million take has already covered the movie’s budget (estimated at around $25 million). That dollar amount also earned the Matt Reeves flick the title for best MLK and January opener ever.
Although 27 Dresses raked in $20 million less than the horror flick, Katherine Heigl had nothing to cry about. Thanks to more strategic marketing - this time by Fox - the film was able to take advantage of those looking for something less dark. Dresses was originally scheduled to debut last week but was repositioned so it could open during the busy weekend.
Unfortunately, female focus on the romantic comedy didn’t help the female-filled Mad Money. The movie - co-starring Queen Latifah, Diane Keaton and Katie Holmes - cashed out in 8th place. This makes two disappointing debuts in a row for the Cruise Clan (the first being Tom’s Lions for Lambs). Let us not forget that Katie opted to do this film instead of the Batman sequel for her post-Tom movie return. Come to think of it, maybe it was for the best. I could just hear Tom telling us now that if he had known Heath was doing drugs, he would have cured Ledger himself.
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Yahoo! Movies
Box Office Breakdown: The Bucket List Rises to the Top
Posted by Veronica Santiago Categories: 20th Century Fox, FOCUS, Disney, Sony, Universal, Warner Bros, Action, Adaptation, Adventure, Animation, Drama, Family, Horror, Music, Period, Romance, Science Fiction, Sequels, Comedy, Thrillers, Box Office, Lists, New Releases,
After placing 23rd last week, The Bucket List - starring Jack Nicholson and Morgan Freeman - soared 22 spots to take the #1 spot this past weekend. It seems a simple case of addition was all that was needed to accomplish this feat. Up until now, the movie had only been playing in 16 theaters total; it expanded to nearly 3000 on Friday. Bucket’s impressive finish was not only a win for 70-year-olds everywhere, it was a win for director Rob Reiner. His biggest opener had been 1992’s A Few Good Men. (That film grossed $15.5 million.) Maybe Reiner should write Jack into all his films.
Debuting at #2 was the latest Ice Cube comedy. First Sunday, co-starring Tracy Morgan (30 Rock), earned an impressive $8000 per screen average. That was the best median performance for any movie in this week’s Top Ten. (There Will Be Blood, this week’s #17, averaged $14,421 over the past three days.)
Will this yesterday’s Golden Globes have any effect on Sweeney Todd’s financial future? After only 4 weeks in release, the dark feature dropped off the chart and landed at #12. Assuming theatergoers are still interested in watching potential Oscar nominees, I’m guessing the win for Best Comedy/Musical will give the movie a nice boost next weekend.
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Yahoo! Movies
Box Office Breakdown: Juno Makes An Impressive Surge
Posted by Veronica Santiago Categories: 20th Century Fox, DreamWorks, Disney, Fox Searchlight, Sony, Universal, Warner Bros, Action, Adaptation, Adventure, Animation, Drama, Family, Horror, Music, Musicals, Period, Political, Romance, Satire, Science Fiction, Sequels, Comedy, Thrillers, Box Office, Lists, New Releases,
Come Wednesday morning, the box office chart saw very few changes at the top. That’s not to say the five-day holiday weekend didn’t have any notable moments at all:
- Strong word of mouth helped boost last week’s #10, Juno, up five whole spaces. The movie - already in it’s 4th week - continues to soar despite its fairly limited release. It’s $15,788 per screen average even topped National Treasure’s $14,232.
- Golden Globes buzz also contributed to the success of seven-time nominee Atonement. Although it only placed 14th overall, the romantic weeper scored a $15,764 average.
- Alvin and the Chipmunks outmuscled last week’s #2, I Am Legend. The family-friendly flick traded spots with the Will Smith blockbuster thanks to its $2.5 million edge.
- The Debaters narrowly missed a place in the Top Ten despite its connection to both Denzel Washington and Oprah. You heard it right - the talk show host’s touch does not always mean gold.
- Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story followed up its disappointing debut with another out of tune performance. The musical satire plummeted five spots all the way down to #13.
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Yahoo! Movies
Box Office Breakdown: Book of Secrets a National Hit
Posted by Veronica Santiago Categories: 20th Century Fox, DreamWorks, Disney, Fox Searchlight, New Line, Sony, Universal, Warner Bros, Action, Adaptation, Adventure, Animation, Drama, Family, Horror, Music, Musicals, Period, Political, Romance, Satire, Sequels, Comedy, Thrillers, Box Office, Lists, New Releases,
This holiday weekend introduced a slew of big-ticket features in our cineplexes. It also brought us a wide cast of former Oscar-winners competing for our theater dollars. By Monday, Tom Hanks, Julia Roberts, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Johnny Depp, Hilary Swank and Oscar-nominee John C. Reilly had all made entries into the Top Ten - but it was Nicolas Cage who wound up striking gold.
National Treasure: Book of Secrets earned $45 million, an increase of $10 million over the 2004 original. This was the second hit for Cage this year, following the critically-panned Ghost Rider. In addition to having the weekend’s best gross, Secrets also had the best average of any movie over those three days. Although Charlie Wilson’s War‘s fourth place was respectable (especially for a politically-based film these days), its $3760 per screen take clearly set it apart from this week’s champ. In contrast, Juno earned an $11,184 average for an impressive 10th place finish.
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Opening National Treasure’s Book of Secrets
Posted by K.C. Morgan Categories: Disney, Action, Adventure, Sequels, Box Office, New Releases,
The reviews, and the secrets, are out when it comes to the much-anticipated Nicolas Cage sequel, National Treasure: Book of Secrets. One critic describes the film as a “letdown,” though it contains lots of elements from the first film. Even though the sequel boasts Academy Award-winning Helen Mirren, there’s not enough newness to keep fans entertained. Yes, Book of Secrets is a lot like the first film…maybe too much. But sequels sell, and chances are Secrets will outdo even its own predecessor.
The movie is about the secrets of the Masons, a group that has been credited with owning several treasures, including the Holy Grail. In the movie, the Masons have hidden clues and maps inside monuments, furniture, you name it. Cage, ensemble in tow, races around collecting these clues to solve the mystery, which in this movie focuses on John Wilkes Booth. The almost impossible plot might be hard for viewers to swallow, but special effects and the Cage name will no doubt carry this one all the way to number one.
Hollywood Reporter
Review: ‘Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street’
Posted by David Onda Categories: DreamWorks, Warner Bros, Action, Adaptation, Classics, Drama, Horror, Musicals, Period, Thrillers, New Releases, Theatrical Reviews,
I just got back from the midnight showing of Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street. Previously, I had seen the original Broadway cast perform this show via video cassette tape in my “History of Theater” class. I also saw a very stripped down version of the show performed by a national touring cast without sets or costumes. This film was every bit as good visually, musically and narratively as either one of those shows. For those of you who are unaware of the plot, let me catch you up.
Benjamin Barker (Johnny Depp) is a happily married man with a beautiful yellow-haired wife and a bouncing bay girl living in ye olde London. A man by the name of Judge Turpin (Alan Rickman) takes a liking to Barker’s wife and frames him for a crime which he is convicted and exiled for. Upon Barker’s return to London years later, he finds that his wife is dead and his little girl is being held hostage by the evil Turpin. Hell bent on revenge, and now going by the name Sweeney Todd, Barker takes up residence above Mrs. Lovett’s (Helena Bonham Carter) Meat Pie shop. There, the trained barber kills his customers in hopes that one day it will be the Judge’s turn for a shave.
Oh yeah, and the bodies get baked into the pies.
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In Theaters This Weekend (12/21)
Posted by Veronica Santiago Categories: DreamWorks, Disney, Sony, Universal, Warner Bros, Action, Adaptation, Adventure, Drama, Horror, Musicals, Romance, Comedy, Sports, Thrillers, Box Office, Lists, New Releases,
Here are some possible suggestions for your upcoming weekend:
- Charlie Wilson’s War (R): starring Tom Hanks, Julia Roberts, Philip Seymour Hoffman (directed by Mike Nichols)
- National Treasure: Book of Secrets (PG): starring Nicolas Cage, Jon Voight, Helen Mirren (directed by Jon Turteltaub)
- P.S. I Love You (PG-13): starring Hilary Swank, Gerard Butler, Lisa Kudrow (directed by Richard LaGravanese)
- Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street (R): starring Johnny Depp, Helena Bonham Carter, Sacha Baron Cohen (directed by Tim Burton)
- Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story (R): starring John C. Reilly, Jenna Fischer, Kristen Wiig (directed by Jake Kasdan)
- Steep* (PG): starring Ingrid Backstrom, Doug Coombs, Shane McConkey (directed by Mark Obenhaus)
*limited and/or gradual release
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