Box Office Weekend: Other Debuts Get Served by The Butler
Despite (or because of) Oprah Winfrey’s recent controversy in Switzerland, her new film, Lee Daniels’ The Butler, made the strongest bid for the box office with an estimated $25 million, almost enough to give the $30 million film a profit over the weekend (and get in good with critics). However, the two other big new releases of the week fared much less successfully; Kick-Ass 2 received poor revie...[Read More]
Box Office Weekend: Filmgoers Give Their Halves to the Have-Nots as Elysium Steals the Box Office
Although not receiving quite the high praise lavished on his previous District 9, director Neill Blomkamp still did well enough with his next outing Elysium, taking the top spot and earning an estimated $30.4 million. It still has much ground to make up, its $115 million budget perhaps as far out of reach as the film’s space station, but it was still enough to hold three other debuts to second pla...[Read More]
Box Office Weekend: 2 Guns Beats Two Claws
Though it is getting only middling reviews, 2 Guns made the top spot at the box office, making a good bid on its $61 million budget with an estimated $27.4 million. It was not as good a debut as The Wolverine, which had to settle for second and a heavy drop-off, earning an estimated $21.7 million. While already a money maker worldwide, it remains to be seen (though likely) if it will be a domestic...[Read More]
Box Office Weekend: The Wolverine Carves a First Place Spot
The Wolverine, Hugh Jackman’s latest venture as the perennially gruff superhero, appears to have redeemed the series in the eyes of the critics, but even though it took the weekend with an estimated $55 million, it fell behind both the prequel X-Men: First Class and only managed to do slightly better than the original X-Men released in 2000. Nevertheless, counting worldwide sales the film has made...[Read More]
Box Office Weekend: The Conjuring Scares Up More Than Good Reviews and Takes Box Office Gold
The Conjuring is generating a lot of buzz…not only for its high reviews, but for its money-making potential. Budgeted at $20 million, the film (directed by James Wan, who previously found success in the world of horror with the Saw franchise) brought in an estimated $41.5 million, making it the second highest opening weekend ever for a supernatural horror film (beaten only by Paranormal Activity 3...[Read More]
Box Office Weekend: Despicable Me Stays Ahead of Robots and Sandler
Once again the box office has proven that keeping a film’s budget reasonable is a good idea, whether the movie is well-received or not. Despicable Me 2 held the top spot for a second week, making an estimated $44.8 million and holding off newcomers Grown-Ups 2 (estimated $42.5 million) and Pacific Rim (estimated $38.3 million). Grown-Ups 2 has been almost universally panned by critics, and still h...[Read More]
Box Office Weekend: Despicable Me 2 Sends The Lone Ranger Packing
Sharing Tuesday openings, it seems strange to think one movie would take the weekend in such a lopsided victory, but it has. Despicable Me 2 opened against The Lone Ranger, and the CG animated family film made its competitor look absolutely flummoxed. While both films took the first and second box office spots respectively, Despicable Me 2’s estimated $82.5 million adds to a domestic total of $142...[Read More]
Box Office Weekend: You Can’t Keep a Good Monster Down
This week saw the release of a female buddy cop comedy and the second “White House Under Attack” themed movie of the year, but neither film could keep Monsters University from scoring the top spot at the box office once again. The Pixar film, which earned an estimated $46.2 million has reportedly been budgeted at $270 million, meaning it has a long, long ways to go in making its deficit up domesti...[Read More]
Box Office Weekend: Monsters University Gets Top Honors
The box office belonged this week to two very different kinds of monsters; the kind that take over the world, and the kind you can take your kids to see. Monsters University, the latest offering from Pixar, handily won the top spot with an estimated $82 million, while the PG-13 rated World War Z, a zombie film notable for its long production time and a surprisingly tame rating for its subject matt...[Read More]
Box Office Weekend: Man of Steel Soars with Moviegoers
As the weekend draws to a close, it is pretty clear that, despite mixed critical reception, Superman still has some box-office power. Man of Steel, written by Christopher Nolan of The Dark Knight fame and directed by Zack Snyder (Watchmen), has suffered at the hands of critics looking for more from the character, but the movie-going public rewarded the long-popular comic hero with a handsome estim...[Read More]
Box Office Weekend: Fast & Furious Purged from Top Spot
It may be receiving mixed to poor reviews, but it was not enough to stop The Purge from knocking Fast & Furious 6 from the top spot at the box office this week. For most other films on the list, an estimated $36.4 million might be considered a slow start, but with The Purge reporting a $3 million budget, it is far and away a success regardless of critical reception, and a second solid weekend ...[Read More]
Box Office Weekend: Still Fast, Still Furious for a Second Week
Like the out of control vehicles in its previews, Fast & Furious 6 could not be stopped by two big new releases. Its estimated $34.5 million weekend take was enough for the box office smash to become domestically profitable, having earned $170.4 million in its two weeks at the box office. It is even closing the ranks on its predecessor, Fast Five, and is likely to surpass even that film in dom...[Read More]