The Pursuit of Happyness emerged as the top box office draw in a closer than expected race with the sword and fantasy outing Eragon. The Will Smith human comedy grossed an estimated $26.8 million to Eragon’s $23.1 million tally. The fierce rivalry at the top left the latest screen adaptation of Charlotte’s Web a distant third with $11.8 million.

The frame was also highlighted by a dynamic $342,000 box office for Dreamgirls from just three screens and an OK bow of $78,500 for The Good German at five venues. Additionally there were good results of $410,000 for local hero Romeo et Juliette in Quebec.

Overall the frame experienced a significant 25% boost from last weekend but still lagged behind 2005 by 8% when King Kong bowed to $50.1 million and Narnia followed at $31.8 million. Box office for the year stands at approximately at $8.66 billion or a slim 3% gross improvement with admissions roughly consistent.

The session also pushed Sony’s box office past $1.6 billion to set a new domestic industry record with 14 days left in the calendar. Its global tally now exceeds $3 billion for the year.

The true life tale of a man that beat the odds, Pursuit of Happyness fits nicely into the sub-genre of hopyness movies with Will Smith bringing charisma and dignity to his role. Smith’s appeal and record had pundits predicting a $30 million debut but significant competition pared it back by about 10%.

Eragon entered the marketplace with the trappings of a Ring clone that no one was entirely convinced audiences would buy. The potent results and exit polls indicate that at least the Ring bearer’s young male quotient was ready for Middle Earth redux. The challenge remains to expand that core or quickly confront the perils of the box office abyss.

Industry trackers were bullish on Charlotte’s Web with projections of $15 million to $20 million from a family crowd that’s very strong during the season. However, its first hoof was unsteady with some blaming its similarity in style to Babe worked against it. Favorable word-of-mouth will be crucial as the holidays close in next week.

Holdover titles progressed in not unexpected fashion with last week’s leader Apocalypto taking close to a 50% hit and The Holiday off a more encouraging 38%. The films showing surprising strength were Blood Diamond that held at a 72% level and The Nativity Story benefiting from yuletide ardor with a slim 19% decline.

The Dreamgirls gamble of a high-ticket pre-holiday roadshow run payed off handsomely with high capacity response that generated better than a $112,000 average from three screens. Though early critic’s honors have largely singled out the performances of Jennifer Hudson and Eddie Murphy, reviews have been giddy and awards prognosticators have pegged the picture as an Oscar frontrunner.

Critical response has been more savage toward The Good German, a stylized thriller that nonetheless had a better than respectable gross in five initial forays. The jury’s still out about just how wide and accessible the picture can be pushed. Also peeking out at three locations was the saga of war on the homefront in Home of the Brave. Its $5,900 gross at three outposts proved commercially moribund.

In Quebec the season kicked off with a contemporary Shakespearian spin of Romeo et Juliette that posted good but not stellar response. Strong opening day numbers fell by 18% on Saturday, quashing hopes of a $500,000 weekend

– Leonard Klady

Top Releases: To December 14, 2006

Domestic Market Share: To December 14, 2006

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