The Weekend Report

There was no puzzling as the debut of Jigsaw ascended to the top of the weekend with an estimated $16.2 million. Two other films bowed nationally to dismal results in a depressed marketplace. Thank You for Your Service — a story of returning soldiers from Iraq — opened to $3.7 million while the Coens-penned comedy Suburbicon fled with $2.8 million.

Religious-slanted Let There Be Light had a very good start of $1.7 million while the = All I See is You lost focus with $130,000 tally at 283 venues. New Indian imports failed to dent last weekend’s Diwali openers with the best start from Telugu Vunnadi Okate Zindagi, with a $198,000 gross from 112 locations. Filipino family comedy Seven Sundays had one of the year’s best starts with a $308,000 opening. in Québec, local historical novel adaptation Pieds nus dans l’aube had a promising debut of $124,000.

Best of the incoming exclusives was Sweden’s Cannes-prized The Square, which grossed $67,800 from four galleries. Expansions of The Killing of a Sacred Deer and the documentary Jane maintained initial momentum.

Revenues for the frame sank to their lowest point in 2017 with slightly more than $75 million generated for the weekend. Box office sank 24% from seven days earlier and was 15% off of the 2016 comparable when the second week of the initial Boo! led with $17.2 million and newcomer Inferno fizzled with $14.9 million.

The international marketplace had upbeat news with the start of Thor: Ragnarok, whch opens domestically later this week. It bowed in 36 foreign climes to an estimated $107 million with the U.K. nosing out South Korea with $15.8 million to $15.5 million. Also getting an early start was Disney’s Latin-flavored Coco, which opened in Mexico timed to Day of the Dead celebrations with a potent $8.4 million.

The title’s new but the Saw franchise continues to cut a swath through the marketplace with grisly tales of dismemberment. The series that began in 2004 appeared to be retired in 2010 with “The Final Chapter” in 3D. But you can’t keep a bad man down, and despite the diminishing returns of the new eighth installment Jigsaw is apt to be profitable. Studio exit demos identified the crowd as 51% male with 52% aged 25 and younger. Jigsaw also opened in 46 overseas territories to an estimated $9.5 million. Top markets included the U.K. with $2.3 million, Russia with $1.7 million and Germany providing $1.4 million.

It was evident that Thank You for Your Service would have a difficult time in the marketplace with a sobering narrative of returning veterans. Playdates were concentrated in the heartland and proved effective in getting close to top end hopes of a $4 million box office.

Suburbicon proved to be a near total turnoff for audiences and fell well below tracking reports that suggested a $5-$6 million opening. Even its studio was dismissive of the effort, emphasizing that it had U.S.-only rights, scored a D- on CinemaScore (improving on mother!’s F) and had an audience that was 54% aged 50 and older.

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