The Weekend Report

XTheory of Relativity  

From the sublime to the ridiculous, the debut of Bad Grandpa led weekend movie going with an estimated $31.8 million. The Counselor, the session’s other major national debut, got clobbered in a fourth place finish that courted a dismal $8 million.

Exclusive newcomers were also generally disappointing though the non-fiction The Square on the Egyptian Arab Spring posted $12,600 from a solo effort. Also strong was the U.S. release of Cannes winner Blue is the Warmest Color with a $105,000 box office from four screens following its bow in Québec three weeks ago. In the niches the Philippines trumped India with the rom-com She’s the One grossing $310,000 at 41 venues while new entries in Hindi, Telugu and Punjabi all sputtered at the box office.

Second weekend expansions of 12 Years a Slave and All is Lost displayed the necessary strength to keep both titles in the race while The Fifth Estate fell precariously close to final edition levels.

Overall weekend revenues topped $105 million for a slight 2% slip from the prior frame but saw its first upturn in a month with a 10% boost from 2012. A year ago the third weekend of Argo led with $12.1 million gross, with the opening of Cloud Atlas bowing with $9.6 million.

Barnum (and Johnny Knoxville) was well aware of the juncture of taste and commerce and Bad Grandpa proved the point by exceeding high-end expectations of a $30 million debut. The Jackass mixture of orchestrated real life buffoonery was just the ticket to perk up the autumnal blahs. The film skewed 56% male with a crowd that was 63% aged 25-years and older. It also launched day-and–date in 16 international territories including Germany and the UK to excellent results that added $8.1 million to the larder.

Conversely, The Counselor had the critics unsheathing their knives about the star-driven yarn of a lawyer in over his head in illegal doings. “Pretentious,” “inept” and “impenetrable” were among the kinder charges and the audience got the message with the film sinking below expectations that weren’t especially strong anyway. Studio exit polls identified an audience that was 51% female with a whopping 85% aged 25-years old and over and heading for the exit.

The early fourth quarter landscape is definitely proving to be Darwinian with the likes of Gravity (poised to surpass $200 million Monday) and Captain Phillips surviving new predators while Carrie, Escape Plan and Rush struggle to sustain in the unforgiving jungle.

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