Welcome to the Rileys: Blu-ray
As yet another Sundance festival sails slowly into the sunset, swag bags stowed safely below deck, it’s worth recalling the large number of films that seemed destined for greatness in the rarified air of Park City, but lost traction at sea level. Can’t count that high, you say? For indie filmmakers fortunate enough to have their films included in the festival, reality tends to kick in once “ET” and “TMZ” no longer are interested in taking your picture and the lines on those contracts have gone unsigned.
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Posts Tagged ‘Conviction’
The DVD Wrap: Welcome to the Rileys, Conviction, No Tomorrow, A Woman, a Gun and a Noodle Shop, Let Me In and more …
Tuesday, February 1st, 2011Tags: a Gun and a Noodle Shop, A Woman, Alice in Wonderland: 60th Anniversary Edition: Blu-ray, All About Eve, American Experience: Robert E. Lee, An Affair to Remember, Beverly Hills Chihuahua 2, Braving Iraq, chain letter, Conviction, History: Jefferson, Legion of the Final Exorcism, Let Me In, Nature: Revealing the Leopard: Blu-ray, Nature: Wolverine: Chasing the Phantom: Blu-ray, Never Let Me Go, No Tomorrow, Red Hill, Ronald Reagan: An American Journey, Still Bill, The Tillman Story, Tupac Uncensored and Uncut: The Lost Prison Tapes, Welcome to the Rileys, Which Way Home
Posted in Columns, Dretzka, DVD & Blue Ray, DVD Reviews, MCN Originals, MCN Weekend, Movie City News, Reviews | 1 Comment »
Weekend Box Office Report — December 26
Sunday, December 26th, 2010Grit and Bear It
Little Fockers and True Grit led the Christmas charge with respective opening debuts estimated at $34 million and $25.5 million that topped weekend movie going. The session also featured a Christmas day bow for the animated Gulliver’s Travels, which netted a two-day gross of $6.9 million.
Bollywood’s seasonal offering Tees Maar Khann rang up an impressive $700,000. However, several other Hindi, Telegu and Tamil releases were non-starters. China’s If You Are the One 2 opened up day-and-date (a first) with its Mainland release and chimed in with a potent $208,000 launch.
The frame also featured a clutch of last-minute releases for award season consideration. Best of the bunch was Venice-prized Somewhere with $148,000 from seven venues. The animated The Illusionist displayed comparable strength with a two-day tally of $52,600 on two screens and a four screen push for Barney’s Version in Canada proved effective with $64,400 (a single U.S. Oscar qualifying run was unreported). Lastly, Country Strong lilted $33,800 from two sneak peeks.
Overall the Christmas session got clobbered with calendar positioning that landed the eve on Friday (expect something similar with New Years). And while an estimated $155 million weekend provided an 11% boost from the prior weekend it translated into a pounding 45% drop from 2009. As the door quickly closes on the year, box office gross has slipped behind the prior year and admissions are approaching close to double digit erosion. A year ago Avatar’s second weekend grossed $75.6 million and debuts of Sherlock Holmes and The Alvin Squeakquel added $62.4 million and $48.9 million respectively.
All that said, tracking wasn’t exactly on target for new entries and holdovers. The third in the Fockers series was expected to render a first weekend of between $40 million and $45 million while the sophomore edition of TRON: Legacy was pegged at $25 million. Conversely True Grit outperformed pundits soothsaying that had it shy of $20 million.
Holiday crowds clearly voted for The Fighter, Black Swan and The King’s Speech as their Oscar favorites. Still there are seven additional slots to fill and the campaigning is apt to intensify in the upcoming weeks.
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Weekend Estimates – December 24-26, 2010
| Title | Distributor | Gross (average) | % change * | Theaters | Cume |
| Little Fockers | Uni | 34.0 (9,610) | NEW | 3536 | 48.2 |
| True Grit | Par | 25.5 (8,360) | NEW | 3047 | 36.6 |
| Tron: Legacy | BV | 20.6 (5,960) | -53% | 3451 | 88.7 |
| Chronicles of Narnia: Dawn Treader | Fox | 10.9 (3,240) | -12% | 3350 | 63.9 |
| The Fighter | Par/Alliance | 8.6 (3,430) | -29% | 2511 | 27.7 |
| Yogi Bear | WB | 8.4 (2,380) | -55% | 3515 | 36.3 |
| Gulliver’s Travels * | Fox | 6.9 (2,700) | NEW | 2546 | 6.9 |
| Tangled | BV | 6.7 (2,590) | -24% | 2582 | 143.8 |
| Fox Searchlight | 6.4 (4,390) | -23% | 1466 | 28.9 | |
| The Tourist | Sony | 5.6 (2,020) | -35% | 2756 | 41.1 |
| The King’s Speech | Weinstein Co. | 4.6 (6,530) | 317% | 700 | 8.4 |
| How Do You Know | Sony | 3.7 (1,480) | -51% | 2483 | 15.1 |
| Harry Potter & the Deathly Hallows, Part 1* | WB | 3.3 (1,920) | -34% | 1732 | 273.1 |
| Tees Maar Khan | UTV | .70 (6,780) | NEW | 103 | 0.7 |
| Due Date | WB | .37 (910) | -71% | 404 | 98.3 |
| Unstoppable | Fox | .36 (920) | -80% | 393 | 78.5 |
| Megamind | Par | .35 (460) | -49% | 764 | 142.6 |
| Burlesque | Sony | .33 (660) | -77% | 501 | 36.7 |
| The Social Network | Sony | .31 (1,230) | 9% | 249 | 92.3 |
| If You Are the One 2 | China Lion | .21 (9,040) | NEW | 23 | 0.21 |
| 127 Hours | Fox Searchlight | .20 (1,720) | -64% | 115 | 9.8 |
| * Christmas Day opening | |||||
| Weekend Total ($500,000+ Films) | $145.90 | ||||
| % Change (Last Year) | -45% | ||||
| % Change (Last Week) | 11% | ||||
| Also debuting/expanding | |||||
| Somewhere | Focus | .15 (21,140) | 7 | 0.2 | |
| Rabbit Hole | Lionsgate | 88,700 (2,610) | 65% | 34 | 0.16 |
| Barney’s Version | eOne | 64,400 (16,100) | 4 | 0.06 | |
| Casino Jack | IDP | 60,500 (4,030) | 75% | 15 | 0.11 |
| The Illusionist * | Sony Classics | 52,600 (26,300) | 2 | 0.05 | |
| Country Strong | Sony | 33,800 (16,900) | 2 | 0.05 | |
| The Tempest | Miramax/Maple | 32,700 (2,520) | -44% | 13 | 0.19 |
| Toonpur Ka Superhero | Eros | 9,600 (400) | 24 | 0.01 | |
| Isi Life Mein | Rajshri | 4,500 (250) | 18 | 0.01 |
Domestic Market Share (Jan. 1 – Dec. 23, 2010)
| Distributor (releases) | Gross | Market Share |
| Warner Bros. (30) | 1861 | 18.40% |
| Paramount (19) | 1634.7 | 16.10% |
| Fox (19) | 1442.4 | 14.20% |
| Buena Vista (17) | 1349.1 | 13.30% |
| Sony (26) | 1239.1 | 12.20% |
| Universal (18) | 798.7 | 7.90% |
| Summit (11) | 522.2 | 5.20% |
| Lionsgate (16) | 519.3 | 5.10% |
| Fox Searchlight (8) | 105 | 1.00% |
| Overture (8) | 87.4 | 0.90% |
| Focus (7) | 75.2 | 0.70% |
| CBS (3) | 72.5 | 0.70% |
| Weinstein Co. (9) | 65.5 | 0.60% |
| Sony Classics (22) | 59.5 | 0.60% |
| MGM (1) | 50.4 | 0.50% |
| Other * (317) | 253.5 | 2.50% |
| 10135.5 | 100.00% | |
| * none greater than .04% |
Top Limited Releases * (Jan. 1 – Dec. 23, 2010)
| Title | Distributor | Gross |
| Hubble 3D | WB | 19,359,509 |
| The Ghost Writer | Summit | 15,569,712 |
| The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo | Music Box/Alliance | 11,287,817 |
| The Young Victoria * | Apparition/Alliance | 11,131,232 |
| 127 Hours | Fox Searchlight | 9,321,571 |
| Get Low | Sony Classics | 9,106,802 |
| Fair Game | Summit | 8,650,388 |
| A Single Man * | Weinstein Co. | 7,935,872 |
| The Girl Who Played with Fire | Music Box/Alliance | 7,848,496 |
| Cyrus | Fox Searchlight | 7,461,082 |
| Babies | Focus | 7,444,272 |
| The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus | E1/Sony Classics | 7,394,171 |
| Conviction | Fox Searchlight | 6,768,063 |
| City Island | Anchor Bay | 6,671,036 |
| The Last Station | Sony Classics | 6,617,867 |
| Waiting for “Superman” | Par Vantage | 6,410,257 |
| The Secret in Their Eyes | Sony Classics | 6,391,436 |
| It’s Kind of a Funny Story | Focus | 6,362,514 |
| Winter’s Bone | Roadside Attraction | 6,237,371 |
| Under the Sea 3D * | WB | 5,732,362 |
| * does not include 2009 box office |
Tags: 127 Hours, A Single Man, Babies, Barney's Version, Black Swan, Burlesque, Casino Jack, Chronicles of Narnia: Dawn Treader, City Island, Conviction, Country Strong, Cyrus, Due Date, Fair Game, Get Low, Gulliver's Travels, Harry Potter & the Deathly Hallows, how do you know, Hubble 3D, If You Are the One 2, Isi Life Mein, It's Kind Of A Funny Story, Little Fockers, Megamind, Part 1, Rabbit Hole, Somewhere, Tangled, Tees Maar Khan, The Fighter, The Ghost Writer, The Girl Who Played With Fire, The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo, The Illusionist, The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus, The King's Speech, The Last Station, The Secret In Their Eyes, The Social Network, The Tempest, The Tourist, The Young Victoria, Toonpur Ka Superhero, Tron - Legacy, True Grit, Under the Sea 3D, unstoppable, Waiting For 'Superman', Winter's Bone, Yogi Bear
Posted in MCN Originals, MCN Weekend, The Weekend Report | Comments Off on Weekend Box Office Report — December 26
Weekend Box Office Report – November 7
Sunday, November 7th, 2010No Brainer
Megamind led a torrid weekend box office frame (the largest for a pre-Thanksgiving November) with a first salvo estimated at $47.5 million. Two other national openers followed in succession with strong numbers. The comedy road trip Due Date grossed $33.4 million and the Afrocentric For Colored Girls bowed to $20.1 million.
There was also a pair of Bollywood films timed to the Dwali holiday. Golmaal 3 had solid returns of $443,000 from 86 screens while Action Replayy was disappointing with $232,000 from 99 venues. In Quebec Reste avec moi pancaked on a gross of $25,600 in an initial 19 playdates.
In limited and exclusive runs the politically charged Fair Game polled a respectable $663,000 that indicates challenging expansion plans. Among the remaining newcomers there was a good solo for Algerian Oscar submission Outside the Law of $7,500. But the big noise of the weekend was the not-for-the-squeamish 127 Hours, which played to near capacity at four and generated a staggering screen average of $66,570.
Weekend revenues ballooned as a result of buoyant new titles and some very strong holdovers.
The latest from DreamWorks Animation, Megamind, was generally pegged to debut in a mid-$40 million arena though some felt it could have performed better on a less competitive weekend. Though that contention is dubious, the rest of the year really doesn’t offer that option with both pre-sold and award titles beginning to open up the multiplex floodgates.
Due Date — with its obvious references to Trains, Planes & Automobiles — renewed faith in the power of a high concept comedy. But the riskier For Colored Girls, based upon the acclaimed play by Ntozake Shange, was the session’s major question mark. Many had pursued the property for decades and concluded that it was unfilmable, so when Tyler Perry unexpectedly stepped forward there was a collective shudder. Critical response was mixed to positive while the opening box office was better than anticipated.
Overall box office should top $155 million for the weekend and best the immediate prior session by 67%. It’s also a 28% improvement from 2009 with the launch of the animated A Christmas Carol opened to $30.1 million with the frame’s other debs The Men Who Stare at Goats and The Fourth Kind slotting third and fourth with respectively $12.7 million and $12.2 million.
If you believe that there’s no such thing as bad publicity, the opening weekend of 127 Hours would certainly buttress your argument. Aside from sterling reviews, the fact-inspired tale of endurance has generated a lot of ink centering on the intensity of the viewing experience that appears to cause at least a few patrons to faint at every screening. The industry will be watching intently to see whether it remains a date movie as it expands nationally.
Also under the microscope is Fair Game that fell short of dynamic initial business. There’s already debate about the decision to open in more than a handful of venues and a feeling that rapid expansion will result in further disappointment along the lines of Conviction.
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Weekend Estimates – November 5-7, 2010
| Title | Distributor | Gross (average) | % change * | Theaters | Cume |
| Megamind | Par | 47.5 (12,040) | New | 3944 | 47.5 |
| ue Date | WB | 33.4 (9,960) | New | 3355 | 33.4 |
| For Colored Girls | Lionsgate | 20.1 (9,440) | New | 2127 | 20.1 |
| Red | Summit | 8.8 (2,720) | -18% | 3229 | 71.8 |
| Saw 3D | Lionsgate | 7.9 (2,820) | -67% | 2808 | 38.5 |
| Paranormal Activity 2 | Par | 7.1 (2,250) | -57% | 3168 | 77 |
| Jackass 3D | Par | 5.0 (2,330) | -41% | 2165 | 110.8 |
| Secretariat | BV | 4.1 (1,570) | -18% | 2614 | 51.1 |
| Hereafter | WB | 4.0 (1,680) | -38% | 2365 | 28.7 |
| The Social Network | Sony | 3.5 (1,890) | -22% | 1860 | 85 |
| Life As We Know It | WB | 3.1 (1,610) | -23% | 1950 | 48.6 |
| Conviction | Fox Searchlight | 1.5 (2,280) | -16% | 672 | 4.5 |
| The Town | WB | 1.2 (1,510) | -39% | 801 | 89.8 |
| The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet’s Nest | Music Box/Alliance | .74 (3,720) | 2% | 199 | 2 |
| Fair Game | Summit | .66 (14,410) | New | 46 | 0.66 |
| Easy A | Sony | .50 (1,070) | -53% | 468 | 57.3 |
| Legend of the Guardians | WB | .45 (610) | -74% | 740 | 54 |
| Golmaal 3 | Eros | .44 (5,140) | New | 86 | 0.44 |
| Waiting for “Superman” | Par Vantage | .38 (1,570) | -36% | 242 | 5.4 |
| Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps | Fox | .34 (960) | -57% | 353 | 51.9 |
| Weekend Total ($500,000+ Films) | $149.10 | ||||
| % Change (Last Year) | 28% | ||||
| % Change (Last Week) | 67% | ||||
| Also debuting/expanding | |||||
| 127 Hours | Searchlight | .27 (66,570) | 4 | 0.27 | |
| Action Replayy | Viva | .23 (2,340) | 99 | 0.23 | |
| Stone | Overture | .18 (1,630) | -28% | 109 | 1.5 |
| Four Lions | Drafthouse | 41,300 (5,160) | 8 | 0.04 | |
| Reste avec moi | Seville | 25,600 (1,350) | 19 | 0.03 | |
| Client 9 | Magnolia | 18,400 (6,130) | 3 | 0.02 | |
| Red Hill | Strand | 8,400 (1,680) | 5 | 0.01 | |
| Outside the Law (Hors-la-loi) | Cohen Media | 7,500 (7,500) | 1 | 0.01 | |
| Trapped | CJ Entertainment | 4,400 (4,400) | 1 | 0.01 |
Domestic Market Share (Jan. 1 – Nov. 4, 2010)
| Distributor (releases) | Gross | Market Share |
| Warner Bros. (25) | 1457.6 | 16.50% |
| Paramount (16) | 1423.7 | 16.00% |
| Fox (16) | 1290.9 | 14.50% |
| Buena Vista (15) | 1163.9 | 13.10% |
| Sony (23) | 1151.1 | 13.00% |
| Universal (17) | 776.9 | 8.80% |
| Summit (10) | 488.3 | 5.50% |
| Lionsgate (13) | 444.2 | 5.00% |
| Overture (7) | 81.2 | 0.90% |
| Fox Searchlight (6) | 75.9 | 0.80% |
| Focus (7) | 74.8 | 0.80% |
| Weinstein Co. (7) | 62.3 | 0.70% |
| Sony Classics (21) | 55.5 | 0.60% |
| MGM (1) | 51.2 | 0.60% |
| CBS (2) | 50 | 0.60% |
| Other * (281) | 233.2 | 2.60% |
| 8880.7 | 100.00% | |
| * none greater than .04% |
Top Global Grossers * (Jan. 1 – Nov. 4, 2010)
| Title | Distributor | Gross |
| Avatar | Fox | 1,953,205,209 |
| Toy Story 3 | BV | 1,061,408,156 |
| Alice in Wonderland | BV | 1,024,537,295 |
| Inception | WB | 831,539,135 |
| Shrek Forever After | Par | 737,766,901 |
| Twilight: Eclipse | Summit | 691,483,448 |
| Iron Man 2 | Par | 622,718,600 |
| How to Train Your Dragon | Par | 495,792,295 |
| Despicable Me | Uni | 492,994,376 |
| Clash of the Titans | WB | 489,778,913 |
| Sherlock Holmes * | WB | 367,796,599 |
| The Karate Kid | Sony | 359,315,646 |
| Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time | BV | 335,692,394 |
| The Last Airbender | Par | 318,404,181 |
| Robin Hood | Uni | 311,826,207 |
| Shutter Island | Par | 301,977,955 |
| Sex and the City 2 | WB | 301,158,934 |
| Salt | Sony | 291,684,047 |
| Resident Evil: Afterlife | Sony/Alliance | 277,419,991 |
| Grown Ups | Sony | 270,265,798 |
| The Expendables | Lionsgate/NuImage | 269,273,037 |
| Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Squeakquel | Fox | 264,341,533 |
| Knight and Day | Fox | 256,518,022 |
| Percy Jackson & the Olympians | Fox | 226,497,209 |
| Valentine’s Day | WB | 217,596,116 |
| * does not include 2009 box office |
Tags: 127 Hours, Action Replayy, Client 9 Red Hill Outside the Law (Hors-la-loi) Trapped, Conviction, Due Date, Easy A, Fair Game, For Colored Girls, Four Lions, Golmaal 3, Hereafter, Jackass 3D, Legend of the Guardians, Life As We Know It, Megamind, Paranormal Activity 2, Red, Reste avec moi, Saw 3D, Secretariat, Stone, the girl who kicked the hornet's nest, The Social Network, The Town, Waiting For 'Superman', Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps
Posted in Klady, MCN Originals, MCN Weekend, The Weekend Report | 1 Comment »
Weekend Box Office Report – October 31
Sunday, October 31st, 2010See … Saw … Ouch!
Saw 3D whipped into cinemas with an estimated $24.3 million to take top spot in weekend movie going. Distributors gave a wide berth to the Halloween frame when traditionally there are sharp drops in attendance; making the Saw finale the sole new national release.
A different sort of ghoul — the Millennium finale The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet’s Nest — went limited wide to solid returns of $890,000, but otherwise the frame’s new entries were dominated by niche and exclusive launches. The best of the bunch was the Chinese trembler Aftershock with a single screen entry of $17,600. Other newcomers with good but not spectacular returns included indie drama Welcome to the Riley’s, Brit spy spoof Wild Target, Mexican prize winner Nora’s Will, Claude Chabrol’s final effort Bellamy and non-fiction entry Waste Land.
Overall box office saw a sharp fall from last weekend and a slight bump from 2009 results.
The seventh annual edition of the Saw franchise was hoping for an exit with bite with the addition of stereoscopic imagery. But pre-release tracking indicated that with or without gimmicks the mania was fading and its mid-$20 million weekend tally was pretty much in line with pundit’s predictions. The gore crowd would appear to be sated with current splatter fare but the past month has seen every segment of the audience unenthusiastic for the new crop of movies beyond their opening sessions.
The global juggernaut for the Millennium trilogy continued with the U.S. bow of The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet’s Nest. The first installment, The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, has racked up $99 million internationally and it and its second chapter are the top grossing foreign-language movies in America post-Pan’s Labyrinth.
Weekend revenues generated about $95 million in sales that translated into a 28% drop from the immediate prior session. It was a modest 6% improvement from 2009 when Michael Jackson: This Is It bowed to $23.2 million followed by Paranormal Activity with $16.4 million.
The fact-based Conviction expanded nationally to fair results and appears to be headed to the same sort of indifferent commercial returns as the rest of the early award season contenders. A sharp drop for last weekend’s Hereafter departs from the sort of holds associated with recent films directed by Clint Eastwood whereas the better than expected stamina of the geezer spies of RED has confounded box office mavens.
But apart from Jackass 3D (which passed a $100 million tally this weekend) such well-reviewed positive word-of-mouth entries as The Social Network and Secretariat have struggled to maintain a presence (forget about momentum) in a marketplace that has all but eliminated the possibility of a second wind.
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Weekend Estimates – October 29-31, 2010
| Title | Distributor | Gross (average) | % change * | Theaters | Cume |
| Saw 3D | Lionsgate | 24.3 (8,660) | New | 2808 | 24.3 |
| Paranormal Activity 2 | Par | 16.4 (5,070) | -60% | 3239 | 65.6 |
| Red | Summit | 10.9 (3,250) | -28% | 3349 | 59 |
| Jackass 3D | Par | 8.5 (2,720) | -60% | 3139 | 101.7 |
| Hereafter | WB | 6.4 (2,630) | -47% | 2424 | 22.2 |
| Secretariat | BV | 5.0 (1,610) | -28% | 3108 | 44.7 |
| The Social Network | Sony | 4.7 (1,690) | -36% | 2767 | 79.7 |
| Life As We Know It | WB | 4.1 (1,440) | -33% | 2860 | 43.6 |
| The Town | WB | 2.0 (1,250) | -27% | 1608 | 87.7 |
| Conviction | Fox Searchlight | 1.8 (3,220) | 501% | 565 | 2.4 |
| Legend of the Guardians | WB | 1.8 (880) | -46% | 2010 | 52.7 |
| Easy A | Sony | 1.1(880) | -37% | 1262 | 56.3 |
| The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet’s Nest | Music Box/Alliance | .89 (5,830) | New | 152 | 0.89 |
| Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps | Fox | .78 (840) | -37% | 933 | 51.2 |
| Waiting for “Superman” | Par Vantage | .52 (1,580) | -33% | 330 | 4.6 |
| Devil | Uni | .51 (800) | -21% | 635 | 33.1 |
| Alpha and Omega | Lionsgate | .48 (710) | -34% | 676 | 24.1 |
| It’s Kind of a Funny Story | Focus | .46 (960) | -32% | 477 | 5.8 |
| You Again | BV | .41 (610) | -37% | 673 | 24.7 |
| You Will Meet a Tall Dark Stranger | Sony Classics | .33 (1,022) | -24% | 323 | 2.4 |
| Toy Story 3 | BV | .31 (920) | -34% | 337 | 413.9 |
| Weekend Total ($500,000+ Films) | $89.70 | ||||
| % Change (Last Year) | 6% | ||||
| % Change (Last Week) | -28% | ||||
| Also debuting/expanding | |||||
| Stone | Overture | .22 (1,760) | -39% | 125 | 1.2 |
| Nowhere Boy | Weinstein Co. | .13 (840) | -62% | 153 | 1 |
| 10.50 | Alliance | 55,800 (4,290) | 13 | 0.06 | |
| Welcome to the Riley’s | IDP | 41,600 (4,160) | 10 | 0.04 | |
| Nora’s Will | Menemsha | 25,300 (4,220) | 6 | 0.03 | |
| Wild Target | FreeStyle | 23,200 (5,800) | 4 | 0.02 | |
| Bellamy | IFC | 19,700 (9,850) | 2 | 0.02 | |
| Monsters | Magnolia | 18,100 (6,030) | 3 | 0.02 | |
| Aftershock | AMC | 17,600 (17,600) | 1 | 0.02 | |
| Waste Land | Arthouse | 10.300 (10,300) | 1 | 0.01 | |
| Walkaway | IABA | 9,400 (360) | 26 | 0.01 | |
| Strange Powers | Variance | 4,800 (4,800) | 1 | 0.01 | |
| The Kids Grow Up | Shadow | 4,600 (4,600) | 1 | 0.01 |
Domestic Market Share (Jan. 1 – Oct. 28, 2010)
| Distributor (releases) | Gross | Market Share |
| Warner Bros. (25) | 1436.3 | 16.40% |
| Paramount (16) | 1389.1 | 15.90% |
| Fox (16) | 1289.8 | 14.70% |
| Buena Vista (15) | 1155.5 | 13.20% |
| Sony (23) | 1142.4 | 13.10% |
| Universal (17) | 774.3 | 8.90% |
| Summit (10) | 473.3 | 5.40% |
| Lionsgate (12) | 412.7 | 4.70% |
| Overture (7) | 80.6 | 0.90% |
| Focus (7) | 74.1 | 0.80% |
| Fox Searchlight (6) | 73.4 | 0.80% |
| Weinstein Co. (7) | 61.9 | 0.70% |
| Sony Classics (21) | 54.7 | 0.60% |
| MGM (1) | 51.2 | 0.60% |
| CBS (2) | 50 | 0.60% |
| Other * (277) | 229.7 | 2.70% |
| 8749 | 100.00% | |
| * none greater than .04% |
Top Limited Releases * (Jan. 1 – Oct. 28, 2010)
| Title | Distributor | Gross |
| Hubble 3D | WB | 17,246,918 |
| The Ghost Writer | Summit | 15,569,712 |
| The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo | Music Box/Alliance | 11,270,373 |
| The Young Victoria * | Apparition/Alliance | 11,131,232 |
| Get Low | Sony Classics | 8,980,294 |
| A Single Man * | Weinstein Co. | 7,935,872 |
| The Girl Who Played with Fire | Music Box/Alliance | 7,768,761 |
| Cyrus | Fox Searchlight | 7,461,082 |
| Babies | Focus | 7,444,272 |
| The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus * | E1/Sony Classics | 7,394,171 |
| City Island | Anchor Bay | 6,671,036 |
| The Last Station | Sony Classics | 6,617,867 |
| The Secret in Their Eyes | Sony Classics | 6,391,436 |
| Winter’s Bone | Roadside Attractions | 6,204,696 |
| It’s Kind of a Funny Story | Focus | 5,342,641 |
| Under the Sea 3D * | WB | 5,256,073 |
| I Am Love | Magnolia | 4,982,446 |
| An Education * | Sony Classics | 4,963,224 |
| The Hurt Locker * | Summit | 4,531,548 |
| Solitary Man | Anchor Bay | 4,360,548 |
| * does not include 2009 box office |
Tags: 10.50, A Single Man, Aftershock, Alpha and Omega, An Education, Babies, Bellamy, City Island, Conviction, Cyrus, Devil, Easy A, Get Low, Hereafter, Hubble 3D, I Am Love, It's Kind Of A Funny Story, Jackass 3D, Legend of the Guardians, Life As We Know It, Monsters, Nora's Will, Nowhere Boy, Paranormal Activity 2, Red, Saw 3D, Secretariat, solitary man, Stone, Strange Powers, The Ghost Writer, the girl who kicked the hornet's nest, The Girl Who Played With Fire, The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo, The Hurt Locker, The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus, The Kids Grow Up, The Last Station, The Secret In Their Eyes, The Social Network, The Town, The Young Victoria, Toy Story 3, Under the Sea 3D, Waiting For 'Superman', Walkaway, Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps, Waste Land, Welcome to the Rileys, Wild Target, Winter's Bone, You Again, You Will Meet A Tall Dark Stranger
Posted in MCN Originals, MCN Weekend, Movie City News, The Weekend Report | Comments Off on Weekend Box Office Report – October 31
Weekend Estimates – October 31
Sunday, October 31st, 2010Saw 3D|24.3|New|24.3
Paranormal Activity 2|16.4|-60%| 65.6
RED|10.9|-28%|59
Jackass 3D|8.5|-60% |101.7
Hereafter|6.4|-47%|22.2
Secretariat|5.0|-28%|44.7
The Social Network|4.7|-36%|79.7
Life As We Know It|4.1|-33%|43.6
The Town|2.0|-27%| 87.7
Conviction|1.8|501%|2.4
Tags: Conviction, Hereafter, Jackass 3D, Life As We Know It, Paranormal Activity 2, Red, Saw 3D, Secretariat, The Social Network, The Town
Posted in Estimates, MCN Weekend | Comments Off on Weekend Estimates – October 31
Friday Estimates – October 30
Saturday, October 30th, 2010Saw 3D|10.8|2808|New|10.8
Paranormal Activity 2|6|3239|-57%|55.2
Red|3.4 |3349|-25%|51.5
Jackass 3D|3.1|3139|-59%|96.2
Hereafter|2.1|2175|-50%|17.9
Secretariat|1.5|3108|-22%|41.2
The Social Network|1.5|2921|-33%|76.5
Life As We Know It|1.4|3019|-28%|40.9
The Town|0.6|1918|-24%|86.3
Conviction|0.55|565|610%|1.1
Also Debuting
The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet’s Nest|0.28|124||0.28
10.50|19,200|13||19,200
Welcome to the Riley’s|12,500|10||12,500
Wild Target|7,600|4||7,600
Bellamy|6,500|2||6,500
Monsters|6,000|3||6,000
Waste Land|4,800|1||4,800
Aftershock|4,600|1||4,600
Walkaway|3,500|26||3,500
The Kids Grow Up|2,650|1||2,650
||||
*in millions|||
Tags: 10.50, Aftershock, Bellamy, Conviction, Hereafter, Jackass 3D, Life As We Know It, Monsters, Paranormal Activity 2, Red, Saw 3D, Secretariat, the girl who kicked the hornet's nest, The Kids Grow Up, The Social Network, The Town, Walkaway, Waste Land, Welcome to the Rileys, Wild Target
Posted in Friday Box Office Estimates, MCN Originals, MCN Weekend, Movie City News | Comments Off on Friday Estimates – October 30
Weekend Box Office Report – October 24
Sunday, October 24th, 2010Back to Paranormal
Paranormal Activity 2 exceeded pundit expectation (though not necessarily fans) with an estimated $41.6 million to lead weekend movie ticket sales. The session’s only other national bow was Hereafter, which shot up to $11.9 million following last weekend’s limited opener.
Niche and regional bows included a solid $212,000 (in Hindi and Telegu versions) bow for the Indian crime saga Rakhtcharitra. Fans won’t have to wait long for its second part conclusion that’s scheduled for late November. Meanwhile up in Canada the Toronto fest curtain raiser Score: A Hockey Musical failed to live up to its name with a discordant $143,000 from 127 rinks.
Exclusives included good though unsensational debuts that included non-fiction Boxing Gym with a $6,100 TKO in its solo bout and Taqwacores — the tale of an Islamic rock band — grossing $5,500 also in a single outing.
Though there was a marginal dip from last weekend’s box office, the frame saw its first uptick from 2009 in a month with industry mavens already predicting expanded revenues through the end of the year.
Critical response to sleeper sensation Paranormal Activity 2 was at best tepid with the more negative reviews viewing it as a cynical rehash of its inspiration. Nonetheless avids were cueing up to provide Thursday midnight shows a record preview for an R-rated film. It lost traction as the weekend proceeded but the fast start was sufficient to speed past tracking that suggested an opening salvo of not much more than $30 million.
Exit polls for both Paranormal Activity 2 and Hereafter were disappointing. The latter film pretty much brought in the anticipated older crowd and filmmaker Clint Eastwood’s films have a history of hanging in for longer than typical runs and much higher multiples than is the industry norm. Still, this yarn could well stray from that trend.
Weekend revenues amassed roughly $130 million in torn ducats. It represented a slight 2% dip from seven days back but the unexpected Paranormal Activity 2 and overall strong holdovers translated into a 13% box office boost from 2009. A year ago the first Paranormal Activity (in its initial wide weekend) led with $21.1 million followed by Saw VI and Where the Wild Things Are with respective tallies of $14.1 million and $14 million.
With the exception of Waiting for “Superman” it’s been a brutal season for Oscar hopefuls trying to set an early footprint on the awards landscape. Granted, very few have received a wholehearted critical embrace, but even by niche standards the likes of Nowhere Boy, You Will Meet a Tall Dark Stranger and Jack Goes Boating among others have been comparative under-performers when measured against past films that have employed this tactic.
__________________________________________________
Weekend Estimates – October 22-24, 2010
| Title | Distributor | Gross (average) | % change * | Theaters | Cume |
| Paranormal Activity 2 | Par | 41.6 (12,930) | New | 3216 | 41.6 |
| Jackass 3D | Par | 21.5 (6,920) | -57% | 3111 | 87.1 |
| Red | Summit | 15.1 (4,620) | -31% | 3273 | 43.6 |
| Hereafter | WB | 11.9 (5,450) | 2175 | 12.2 | |
| The Social Network | Sony | 7.2 (2,450) | -31% | 2921 | 72.8 |
| Secretariat | BV | 6.9 (2,210) | -26% | 3108 | 37.3 |
| Life As We Know It | WB | 6.1 (2,010) | -32% | 3019 | 37.5 |
| Legend of the Guardians | WB | 3.1 (1,390) | -26% | 2236 | 50.1 |
| The Town | WB | 2.7 (1,390) | -33% | 1918 | 84.6 |
| Easy A | Sony | 1.7 (1,050) | -35% | 1632 | 54.7 |
| Wal Street: Money Never Sleeps | Fox | 1.2 (960) | -49% | 1255 | 50 |
| My Soul to Take | Uni/Alliance | 1.0 (600) | -68% | 1689 | 13.9 |
| Waiting for “Superman” | Par Vantage | .76 (2,620) | 2% | 290 | 3.7 |
| Alpha and Omega | Lionsgate | .71 (980) | -14% | 727 | 23.5 |
| It’s Kind of a Funny Story | Focus | .66 (1,180) | -46% | 560 | 5.1 |
| Devil | Uni | .63 (980) | -35% | 642 | 32.4 |
| You Again | BV | .61 (680) | -50% | 901 | 24 |
| N Secure | FreeStyle | .53 (1,190) | -55% | 445 | 1.9 |
| Toy Story 3 | BV | .42 (1,211) | -21% | 350 | 413.4 |
| You Will Meet a Tall Dark Stranger | Sony Classics | .40 (1,060) | 46% | 381 | 1.8 |
| Case 39 | Par Vantage | .38 (530) | -69% | 721 | 12.7 |
| Weekend Total ($500,000+ Films) | $123.90 | ||||
| % Change (Last Year) | 13% | ||||
| % Change (Last Week) | -2% | ||||
| Also debuting/expanding | |||||
| Stone | Overture | .34 (3,030) | 49% | 113 | 0.76 |
| Conviction | Fox Searchlight | .30 (5,420) | 192% | 55 | 0.34 |
| Rakhtcharitra | Viva/Happy | .21 (6,230) | 34 | 0.21 | |
| Nowhere Boy | Weinstein Co. | .21 (870) | -39% | 215 | 0.76 |
| Score: A Hockey Musical | Mongrel | .14 (1,130) | 127 | 0.14 | |
| Jhootha Hi Sahi | Viva | 64,700 (1,350) | 48 | 0.06 | |
| My Girlfriend’s Boyfriend | Fiftyfilms | 10,300 (5,150) | 2 | 0.01 | |
| Boxing Gym | Zipporah | 6,100 (6,100) | 1 | 0.01 | |
| Taqwacores | Rumanni | 5,500 (5,500) | 1 | 0.01 | |
| Inhale | IFC | 5,600 (2,800) | 2 | 0.01 |
Domestic Market Share (Jan. 1 – Oct. 21, 2010)
| Distributor (releases) | Gross | Market Share |
| Warner Bros. (25) | 1403.9 | 16.30% |
| Paramount (15) | 1310.6 | 15.30% |
| Fox (16) | 1287.9 | 15.00% |
| Buena Vista (15) | 1144.7 | 13.30% |
| Sony (23) | 1129.9 | 13.20% |
| Universal (17) | 771.4 | 9.00% |
| Summit (10) | 453.6 | 5.30% |
| Lionsgate (12) | 411.5 | 4.80% |
| Overture (7) | 79.7 | 0.90% |
| Focus (7) | 73.2 | 0.90% |
| Fox Searchlight (6) | 72.7 | 0.80% |
| Weinstein Co. (7) | 61.6 | 0.70% |
| Sony Classics (21) | 53.7 | 0.60% |
| MGM (1) | 50.4 | 0.60% |
| CBS (2) | 50 | 0.60% |
| Other * (271) | 226.9 | 2.70% |
| 8581.7 | 100.00% | |
| * none greater than .04% |
Top Domestic Grossers * (Jan. 1 – Oct. 21, 2010)
| Title | Distributor | Gross |
| Avatar * | Fox | 476,726,209 |
| Toy Story 3 | BV | 413,013,123 |
| Alice in Wonderland | BV | 334,191,110 |
| Iron Man 2 | Par | 312,445,596 |
| Twilight: Eclipse | Summit | 300,531,751 |
| Inception | WB | 289,881,124 |
| Despicable Me | Uni | 247,148,995 |
| Shrek Forever After | Par | 238,667,087 |
| How to Train Your Dragon | Par | 218,685,707 |
| The Karate Kid | Sony | 176,797,997 |
| Clash of the Titans | WB | 163,214,888 |
| Grown Ups | Sony | 161,942,598 |
| The Last Airbender | Par | 131,733,601 |
| Shutter Island | Par | 128,051,522 |
| The Other Guy | Sony | 118,236,912 |
| Salt | Sony | 118,229,865 |
| Valentine’s Day | WB | 110,509,442 |
| Sherlock Holmes * | WB | 106,967,985 |
| Robin Hood | Uni | 105,425,146 |
| The Expendables | Lions Gate | 103,068,524 |
| * does not include 2009 box office |
Tags: Alice in Wonderland, Alpha and Omega, Avatar, boxing gym, Case 39, Clash of the Titans, Conviction, Despicable Me, Devil, Easy A, Grown Ups, Hereafter, How to Train Your Dragon, Inception, inhale, Iron Man 2, It's Kind Of A Funny Story, Jackass 3D, Jhootha Hi Sahi, Legend of the Guardians, Life As We Know It, My Girlfriend's Boyfriend, My Soul To Take, N Secure, Nowhere Boy, Paranormal Activity 2, Rakhtcharitra, Red, Robin Hood, Salt, Score: A Hockey Musical, Secretariat, Sherlock Holmes, Shrek Forever After, Shutter Island, Stone, Taqwacores, The Expendables, The Karate Kid, The Last Airbender, The Other Guy, The Social Network, The Town, Toy Story 3, Twilight: Eclipse, Valentine's Day, Waiting For 'Superman', Walt Street: Money Never Sleeps, You Again, You Will Meet A Tall Dark Stranger
Posted in MCN Originals, MCN Weekend, Movie City News, The Weekend Report | 1 Comment »
Best Picture Chart – 19 Weeks To Go – 10/21/10
Thursday, October 21st, 2010|
BEST PICTURE
|
|||||
|
|
Picture
|
Studio
|
Director
|
Stars |
Comment
|
| The Ten, If I Had To Pick Today | |||||
|
Dec 25
|
True Grit |
Par
|
Coens
|
Bridges
Brolin Damon |
|
|
Nov
24 |
The King’s Speech |
TWC
|
Marshall
|
Firth
|
|
|
Dec 1
|
Black Swan |
FxSch
|
Aronofsky
|
Portman
|
|
| Oct 1
|
The Social Network |
Sony
|
Fincher
|
Eisenberg
|
|
|
Dec 10
|
The Fighter |
Par/Rel
|
O. Russell
|
Wahlberg
|
|
|
Nov 5
|
127 Hours |
FxSch
|
Boyle
|
Franco
|
|
|
Oct 22
|
Hereafter |
WB
|
Eastwood
|
Damon
|
|
|
June 18
|
Toy Story 3 |
Disney
|
Unkrich
|
–
|
|
| July 16 |
Inception |
WB
|
Nolan
|
DiCaprio
|
|
|
July 9
|
The Kids Are All Right |
Focus
|
Cholodenko
|
Bening
Moore |
|
| The Next Tiers Of Likely | |||||
|
Dec 17
|
Everything You’ve Got |
Sony
|
Brooks
|
Witherspoon
Nicholson |
|
|
Nov 24
|
Love & Other Drugs |
Fox
|
Zwick | Hathaway | |
|
Dec 29
|
Another Year |
SPC
|
Leigh
|
Broadbent
Staunton |
|
| June 11 | Winter’s Bone |
RdAtt
|
Granik
|
Lawrence
|
|
|
Feb 19
|
Shutter Island |
Par
|
Scorsese
|
DiCaprio
|
|
|
July 30
|
Get Low |
SPC
|
Schneider
|
Duvall
Spacek Murray |
|
|
Sept 15
|
Never Let Me Go |
FxSch
|
Romanek
|
Knightley
Mulligan Garfield |
|
|
Sept 17
|
The Town |
WB
|
Affleck
|
Renner |
|
|
Nov 19
|
Made In Dagenham |
SPC
|
Cole
|
Hawkins
|
|
|
Oct 8
|
Secretariat |
Dis
|
Wallace
|
Lane
|
|
| Dec 25
|
Somewhere |
Focus
|
Coppola
|
Dorff |
|
|
Dec 10
|
The Tempest |
Mir
|
Taymor
|
Mirren
|
|
|
Dec 31
|
Blue Valentine |
TWC
|
Cianfrance
|
Gosling
Williams |
|
|
Dec 29
|
Biutiful |
RdAtt
|
Gonzalez-
Inarritu |
Bardem
|
|
|
Dec 29
|
The Way Home |
NewMkt
|
Weir
|
Farrell
|
|
by David Poland
Previous Chart
Tyler Perry was on Oprah this week. After all, it’s a little more than two weeks until his award aspirant, For Colored Girls, goes into theaters. But he didn’t say more than a couple of sentences about the film. Hmmm… But he’s going to be on again on his film’s opening day, November 5. And that episode was described by Oprah as being like no Oprah episode before. Interesting. So the movie… oh… no… the show will have 200 grown men who were molested as children, including Perry himself.
I was going to write about how tight the Oscar race already is as we enter the month of October. But looking back at last season’s post-Toronto column… 8 of 10 of the eventual nominees were already well in focus. And had I not been so stubborn about believing that District 9 could make it, I would have had every film except The Blind Side in my Top 13 possibles at the time.
