..Gary
Dretzka
..Leonard
Klady
..Emanuel
Levy
..David
Poland
..Doug
Pratt
..Ray
Pride
Weekend Estimates
I.D.ing the Competition
Rather than an identity crisis, Sony had to share the wealth between its seasonal hit Anger Management and the debuting thriller Identity with the latter film topping weekend box office with an estimated $17.1 million. The ensemble nail biter was the only one of the frame's quartet of national premieres to open well despite generally tepid reviews.
Meanwhile, the Adam Sandler-Jack Nicholson comedy was close behind with $16.4 million and passed $100 million in ticket sales Saturday after 16 days in theaters.
Clearly, there was more length than strength in the marketplace with overall box office headed toward $95 million for the three-day span. Business experienced a modest 9% drop from Easter weekend seven days ago but rose 11% from 2002 when Scorpion King's second weekend generated $18 million and the top freshman was third ranked Jason X with a $6.6 million gross.
The crop of new pictures failed to garner much critical heat and ran or sputtered on marketing acumen. That certainly provided Identity with an edge over Lions Gate's Confidence, a con game yarn that sported a slightly higher profile cast and was targeted to the same audience as the Sony release. As occurs with so many films, emphasis was placed on cast interviews at the expense of story but Identity's ad campaign played heavily on the fact that it was a riddle to be solved.
Confidence tied for fifth spot in the chart with $4.4 million and a wan theater average. Similarly, MGM's family (Michael, Kirk and other Douglases) warmity It Runs in the Family failed to spark more than mild interest and a $2.7 million box office. Again, too much was made of the blood bond at the expense of content, albeit the type of story that lacks easy marketing hooks.
Lost in the shuffle, despite a ferocious ad blitz was New Line's big screen reality clone The Real Cancun that flagged a dour $2.2 million. Though touted as the first crossover from TV verite (Jackass: The Movie?), it was often difficult to decipher whether this in fact was a movie or the sort of clever parody ad familiar from Saturday Night Live. Ultimately, movie goers decided it was neither a date movie nor did they want to spend $8 or $9 (plus parking and a stop at the concession stand) for something they could experience on the home screen.
Among continuing titles, Chris Guest's folk music spoof A Mighty Wind maintained its niche crowd and only time and slow expansion will determine whether his audience has grown since Best in Show. Searchlight's Bend It Like Beckham is wearing well employing that strategy but Paramount Classics' Better Luck Tomorrow experienced a slight speed bump as it broadened this weekend and may have to retool its campaign.
The weekend's debuts in regional and specialized included the Canadian launch of Steal, an English-language heist picture (titled Riders in Europe) from the director of the very successful Taxi movie series. It grossed a dull $112,000 from 98 venues. Miramax acquired the film for U.S. release but will likely send it direct to video.
Both MGM's City of Ghosts (starring, written and directed by Matt Dillon) and Miramax's oft delayed People I Know starring Al Pacino and featuring a corrupt New York City mayor (guess when it was shot?) generated near carbon copy grosses from respectively six and five screens and the Russian House of Fools eked out close to $7,500 from three venues. There was also extremely limited interest in the documentary A Decade Under the Influence (the 1970s) with a $2,300 B.O. from a single Manhattan screen.
So, S.A.R.-ry
The staff at Warner Bros.' branch office in Toronto weren't about to break into a refrain of South Park's "Blame Canada!" last week when they were informed an invitation to the studio's distribution seminar was being rescinded.
A WB spokesman said somewhere in its policy brochure there's a clause relating to World Health Organization advisories and when the Ontario capital went on its travel warning list, there was no choice but to quarantine that city's reps from the national meeting to be held in L.A. To no one's surprise it strained relations, especially in light of the Canadian government's physical support that amounted to a bill of good health.
However, in this instance, the story has a happy ending. The W.H.O. dropped its advisory Friday and by end of business day bruised feelings were soothed and arrangements made for the Toronto group to attend this week's event. But there's still no word when and if the Elton John-Billy Joel concert will be re-scheduled.
Weekend Finals - April 25-27, 2003
Title Weekend % Change Theaters Cume Identity 16,225,263 - 2733 16,225,263 Anger Management 15,006,174 -40% 3556 103,524,440 Holes 12,552,722 -23% 2349 36,378,174 Malibu's Most Wanted 7,337,473 -42% 2503 23,840,528 Confidence 4,563,588 - 1871 4,563,588 Bulletproof Monk 4,402,635 -49% 2955 18,957,471 What a Girl Wants 3,235,190 -28% 2450 32,853,869 Phone Booth 3,007,474 -47% 2113 40,173,290 It Runs in the Family 2,804,441 - 1207 2,804,441 The Real Cancun 2,108,796 - 2261 2,108,796 Bringing Down the House 2,068,521 -37% 1668 126,063,177 Chicago 1,584,015 -37% 1310 163,500,278 Bend It Like Beckham 1,539,366 -21% 421 9,062,896 House of 1000 Corpses 1,478,398 -41% 815 9,636,367 A Mighty Wind 1,363,232 -35% 155 4,750,088 A Man Apart 1,200,774 -57% 1235 25,105,722 Chasing Papi 1,193,051 -50% 584 5,009,234 Better Luck Tomorrow 1,031,470 111% 380 2,197,172 Ghosts of the Abyss 1,013,200 -18% 97 5,279,330 Head of State 929,718 -58% 1006 36,382,054 Agent Cody Banks 779,089 -21% 1422 46,259,075 The Core 612,745 -66% 1228 30,108,032 Piglet's Big Movie 586,941 -49% 744 22,032,694 The Pianist 534,316 -50% 539 30,340,394 The Good Thief 452,611 -24% 202 1,923,611 Basic 338,273 -70% 438 26,403,093 Nowhere in Africa 315,996 -18% 74 2,576,515 Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers 247,078 -30% 269 337,949,941 Shanghai Knights 224,240 248% 275 59,674,835 Laurel Canyon 214,357 -19% 117 2,617,753 The Quiet American 183,641 -32% 225 12,289,268 How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days 168,463 -42% 219 103,890,713 Raising Victor Vargas 166,950 25% 53 551,410 Space Station 142,934 -4% 30 36,511,002 The Jungle Book 2 139,376 -41% 292 47,549,511 Daredevil 126,352 -33% 160 100,806,279 Old School 126,157 -55% 211 74,608,545 Steal 123,087 - 125 123,087 Kangaroo Jack 121,562 -9% 248 66,401,580 Dreamcatcher 120,705 -74% 196 33,331,599 The Recruit 101,381 -29% 184 52,617,389 Bowling for Columbine 101,362 -37% 100 20,080,297 About Schmidt 92,168 -35% 161 64,706,199 City of God 80,763 -38% 74 3,797,334 The Man Without a Past 75,300 51% 16 235,735 Russian Ark 70,677 4% 27 2,000,775 Cradle 2 the Grave 68,906 235% 184 34,500,994 The Hunted 67,878 -64% 213 33,918,009 Boat Trip 66,272 -52% 76 8,525,095 National Security 64,864 -42% 94 36,111,775 Assassination Tango 61,214 -56% 38 647,174 T-Rex: Back to the Cretaceous 58,166 3% 6 43,166,059 The Hours 57,802 -41% 94 41,340,695 Talk to Her 50,947 -51% 58 8,959,870 Final Destination 2 49,847 -18% 70 46,756,672 Tears of the Sun 44,827 -50% 71 43,509,938 Catch Me If You Can 44,271 -44% 77 164,513,572 L'Auberge Espagnole 39,412 -33% 22 649,077 People I Know 34,211 5 34,211 Winged Migration 31,802 -4% 2 84,436 Darkness Falls 31,443 -29% 47 32,516,824 The Hero: Love Story of a Spy 31,094 -52% 21 269,194 Rabbit-Proof Fence 30,935 -38% 55 6,165,429 City of Ghosts 30,547 6 30,547 Cowboy Bebop 30,259 -58% 22 617,351 Spider 29,220 -40% 30 1,299,789 Dysfunktional Family 28,697 -75% 50 2,223,990 Shackleton's Antarctic Adventure 28,401 -11% 9 14,520,516 The Lion King (Large Format) 26,532 -23% 11 15,647,634 Spirited Away 25,972 -75% 47 9,934,369 Haunted Castle 25,793 160% 4 6,014,145 Rivers and Tides 25,452 2% 10 1,432,187 View From the Top 25,410 -81% 68 15,589,458 Frida 25,365 -56% 35 25,829,386 Just Married 24,032 -36% 42 56,092,438 Lawless Heart 21,279 1182% 7 111,560 Lilja 4-Ever 19,712 -42% 4 71,648 Adaptation 19,618 -51% 39 22,281,936 Deliver Us From Eva 19,551 -24% 41 17,515,676 The R.M. 18,918 -31% 17 908,032
Weekend Estimates - April 25-27, 2003
Title Identity - 2733 17.1 Anger Management -34% 3656 104.9 Holes -21% 2349 36.7 Malibu's Most Wanted -38% 2503 16.5 Bulletproof Monk