Actually, Disturbia took the box office crown again on what was a relatively lackluster weekend, but I hate repeating the titles on these things, so second place Fracture gets the headline. The official numbers came in with Disturbia doing $13.4 million, a decent slide of 39%, and a $40 million total off a $20 million budget. It should take a hit next weekend when Buena Vista opens The Invisible, which they seem to be marketing like crazy in the wake of Disturbia's numbers. Seems like a gamble to me, given that Invisible has no stars, a tired premise (how many times can you use a tag line that is some form of "How do you solve a murder when the victim is you?"), and a target demographic coming off of a similarly-themed flick.
That's the pre-summer rush for you, I guess.
Ryan Gosling didn't draw much post-Oscar-nom business with Fracture, a thriller that has him squaring off with Anthony Hopkins in full bad-guy mode. I have to confess that I'm interested in watching these two on screen together, even though the movie is supposed to be a pretty standard potboiler. It's a little like watching Johnny Depp and Marlon Brando in Don Juan DeMarco; the content almost isn't the point. You just want to see if Gosling can hold his own against Hopkins, and the consensus seems to be that he can. Still, I'm waiting for Sir Anthony to turn in one last great performance; he'll be immortal for Hannibal Lechter, but I haven't really liked him in anything since Hearts in Atlantis.
Blades of Glory continues to rake it in, falling 43% to $7.8 million and bringing it's total to $101 million. I'm guessing Dreamamount is already talking sequel, and the Dreamworks acquisition is looking like a better investment than initially suspected. Vacancy opened in fourth with $7.6 million and a $2.9k average. That's not stellar, obviously, especially with Luke Wilson and Kate Beckinsale headlining (better names than horror movies like this can generally draw), but it's still more than I expected in the wake of the Virginia Tech shootings. It seems to me that when confronted with real-life horrors, especially so close to home, we lose our taste for the vicarious horrors movies offer us. Expect a big drop-off next weekend (poor Luke really needs a hit), and red ink for ScreenGems (the budget is reported at $19 million), but look for a more accurate test of last week's tragedy when Hostel II opens in June.
Meet the Robinsons continues to do reasonably well, dropping 43% to $7 million and an $82 million total. It could creep over $100 before it's done. You may remember I pointed to James Cameron's forthcoming Avatars as a better test of 3D technology's viability; well it's just been announced that Dreamworks is pushing a 3D animated film called Aliens vs. Monsters to open the same weekend as Avatars in 2009. The problem is, there won't be enough screens equipped with the new technology to open both films simultaneously, so what we're looking at is a game of chicken with hundreds of millions of dollars at stake. I'm betting on Cameron, personally.
Edgar Wright's action movie parody Hot Fuzz opened well in sixth place with $5.8 million from just 825 screens for a good $7k average, and is an impressive step up from Wright's previous spoof, Shaun of the Dead (which is awesome, by the way). Fuzz has already done $48 million overseas, and looks to expand in the coming weeks and do a good bit better than Shaun's $13 million domestic total.
Are We Done Yet? is also turning into a minor hit for Ice Cube, adding $5.2 million to it's $39 million total. It's hard to believe the former front man for NWA has turned into a serious draw for family movies, but there it is. As Eddie Murphy proved, the public can be very forgiving. 
Jonathan (son of Lawrence) Kasdan's directing debut, In the Land of Women, opened poorly in eighth with $4.9 million from 2,155 theatres for a $2.2k average. Adam Brody has some believers behind him, but I don't see the guy turning into a movie star. Co-star Kristen Stewart, though, has impressed me with her post-Panic Room staying power (she basically toplined The Messengers earlier this year), and could break out with Sean Penn's next directorial effort Into the Wild, which is scheduled to open in September. I'm telling you, keep an eye on this girl.
Comments (3)
Has anybody squandered an Oscar faster?
Does Cuba Gooding Jr ring a bell? :)
1 of 3 | Posted by Kyle | Posted on April 24, 2007 5:08 PM
Have you seen Anthony Hopkins in The Worlds Fastest Indian? It's a little gem from New Zealand writer-director Roger Donaldson. His acting is superb as usual, as he simply becomes the part he plays.
2 of 3 | Posted by thomasweet | Posted on April 24, 2007 5:41 PM
The trailer has me kinda interested. The fact that the nogoodnicks throw this kid in a hole and leave him to die struck me as unexpectedly dark.
3 of 3 | Posted by Flyinguillotine![[TypeKey Profile Page]](http://www.tvgasm.com/newsgasm/nav-commenters.gif)
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Posted on April 25, 2007 9:58 AM