Speaking of the Zac Efron flick, it came in second place this weekend. It fell a little more than I expected, but was still strong enough to hold onto the number two spot, despite strong competition from the number 3 finisher. I am sure people like the film, but when I look at those two films at the top of the chart, I just feel terribly indifferent. They strike me as films made to just make money, more business decision than artistic endeavor.
Coming in third is a film that plays a bit like a grittier version of Never Back Down, what with the street fights and the awkward romance. Unfortunately, neither film is all that good. Fighting stars Channing Tatum as a young man hustling on the streets of New York when he is discovered by a hustler/promoter who gets him involved in an underground fighting ring. Surprisingly, I found it rather boring.
Fourth place is another new film, The Soloist. The drama, based on a true story, centers on a reporter and a homeless musician. The pairing of Downey and Foxx is a good one, and their strength carries the film to be as likable as it is. The problem lies with the screenplay, which is not as rounded as it could have been.
Disney's new Disneynature imprint gets off to a nice start with earth. It opened with over $8 million in its opening weekend, not bad for a nature documentary. I have not yet seen it, but it looks to contain some breathtaking footage.
Moving on down the list we begin to see more holdovers from last week. They are led by Monsters vs. Aliens, which is enjoying a pretty good run for being a film that I did not enjoy as much as I had hoped. Not that my enjoyment has any bearing on box office.
The next three films all finished within a $600,000 of each other. Yes, it was a middle of the pack dogfight. First there is State of Play, which looks to be a fast fader. Next is Hannah Montana: The Movie, which has had a decent run and will likely make a killing on DVD. Rounding out the trifecta is Fast & Furious, a movie I expected little from, got it, and also got to see it take in a ton of money.
Rounding out the top ten is the sure to be labeled as a flop actioner Crank: High Voltage. I loved every ridiculous moment, but it clearly has a narrow band of interest that seems to have gotten its fill. Mainstream audiences may warm to it on DVD.
Next week will see the official start of the blockbuster season with the arrival of X-Men Origins: Wolverine. Also opening next weekend is the twist on A Christmas Carol, Ghosts of Girlfriends Past, plus the lame looking animated feature Battle for Terra.
Four movies dropped off the top ten this week: I Love You, Man (11), Knowing (12), Observe and Report (13), and The Haunting in Connecticut (14).
| This Week | Last Week | Title | Wknd Gross | Overall | Week in release |
| 1 | N | Obsessed | $28,612,730 | $28,612,730 | 1 |
| 2 | 1 | 17 Again | $11,518,495 | $39,823,333 | 2 |
| 3 | N | Fighting | $11,024,370 | $11,024,370 | 1 |
| 4 | N | The Soloist | $9,716,458 | $9,716,458 | 1 |
| 5 | N | earth | $8,825,760 | $14,472,792 | 1 |
| 6 | 4 | Monsters vs. Aliens | $8,520,826 | $174,813,830 | 5 |
| 7 | 2 | State of Play | $6,848,885 | $25,081,890 | 2 |
| 8 | 3 | Hannah Montana: The Movie | $6,437,141 | $65,655,057 | 3 |
| 9 | 5 | Fast & Furious | $6,204,940 | $145,367,040 | 4 |
| 10 | 6 | Crank: High Voltage | $2,618,379 | $11,735,952 | 2 |
Box Office Predictions Recap
Last week was probably the best week of predictions I have had all year. The chances that I would string together a pair of strong predictions was unlikely, and turned out to be the truth. While I did not have a bad week, it is not up to the level of last week. Seriously, who would have guessed Obsessed would reach $30 million's doorstep? Or that Fighting would nearly take the second spot? Not I, obviously.
Here is how the field matched up:
| Actual | Prediction | Title | Wknd Gross | Prediction |
| 1 | 1 | Obsessed | $28,612,730 | $17 million |
| 2 | 2 | 17 Again | $11,518,495 | $13 million |
4 | 3 | The Soloist | $9,716,458 | $11 million |
| 5 | 4 | earth | $8,825,760 | $9.5 million |
| 3 | 5 | Fighting | $11,024,370 | $8 million |
| 7 | 6 | State of Play | $6,848,885 | $7.25 million |
| 6 | 7 | Monsters vs. Aliens | $8,520,826 | $6.75 million |
| 8 | 8 | Hannah Montana: The Movie | $6,437,141 | $4.25 million |
| 9 | 9 | Fast & Furious | $6,204,940 | $3.5 million |
| 10 | 10 | Crank: High Voltage | $2,618,379 | $2.5 million |
0 comments:
Post a Comment