| February 8, 2004 |
| February 1, 2004 |
| January 25, 2004 |
| January 19, 2004 |
| January 11, 2004 |
| January 4, 2004 |
| Dec 28, 2003 |
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| Dec 7, 2003 |
..Gary
Dretzka
..Leonard
Klady
..Emanuel
Levy
..David
Poland
..Doug
Pratt
..Ray
Pride
Weekend Finals
A Whole Lotta Love!
There was no question about who stole the hearts of movie goers on Valentine's Day as 50 First Dates set a weekend record for a romantic comedy with an estimated $47.2 million for the four-day President's Day holiday frame. The pairing of Adam Sandler and Drew Barrymore was clearly seen as a potent prospect with all potential contenders steering clear of the date and giving it a clear path for box office glory as it sailed past the prior $35.6 million standard bearer Sweet Home Alabama (Dates grossed an estimated $41.4 in its first three days of release).
While it was good news for the comic romancer, the overall picture was less buoyant. Weekend business will tally to roughly $147 million and that's a decline of 12% from last year when the debut of Daredevil led with $45 million and Disney's bow of The Jungle Book 2 added $14.1 million to the pot.
There was considerable brooding among studio reps about the decision not to go up against 50 First Dates in light of the fact that four films will open next weekend and at least two are expected to falter given the quartet have similar appeal and target audiences. One of the studio reps indicated he would have opened his film earlier but the final print was delivered last week.
Fox sneaked its comedy Welcome to Mooseport Sunday and estimated the previews drew a fair 60% capacity. Early tracking on Mooseport and Paramount's Against the Ropes is worrisome but interest in both Eurotrip and Confessions of a Teenage Drama Queen aren't markedly better. The following week sees the arrival of The Passion of the Christ and that film has yet to set screenings for critics and is still unseen in the dozen or so states that have anti-blind bidding laws.
The long weekend proved a blessing for hold over titles with Miracle, Catch That Kid and Barbershop 2 staving off sharp declines. However, the biggest beneficiaries of the holiday were the Oscar hopefuls as the telecast approaches on February 29. Return of the King, Cold Mountain, Mystic River and Monster all saw slight increases (on 3-day comparisons) while other contenders experienced only minor erosion.
Sony Classics did a major expansion of its animated The Triplets of Belleville but generated disappointing averages as the film has limited appeal to families.
In specialized and limited debuts, New Line bowed its oft-delayed Highwaymen primarily in Texas venues to an anemic $140,000 in 111 locations. It's unlikely the film will receive national exposure.
The Quebec thriller In the Eye of the Cat (Dans l'oeil du chat) was marginally stronger with about $100,000 from 26 screens while the 16 print launch of Deepa Mehta's The Republic of Love failed to spark in Canada with a gross close to $32,000.
IDP's French import La Mentale was another disconnect with just shy of $10,000 from four playdates. The most encouraging of the new limited entries was Monsieur Ibrahim with theater averages of $9,500 from seven engagements. The film had an Oscar qualifying run in December that resulted in a Golden Globe nomination in that group's foreign-language category.
Weekend Finals - February 13-16, 2004
Title Weekend 50 First Dates 45,107,871 3591 45,107,871 Miracle 17,010,471 -28% 2755 40,050,545 Barbershop 2: Back in Business 16,501,117 -40% 2711 44,974,742 You Got Served 6,023,188 -32% 1832 33,006,206 The Butterfly Effect 5,959,335 -19% 2288 49,179,651 Catch That Kid 5,878,900 -23% 2848 12,379,409 Along Came Polly 5,454,855 -29% 2543 82,011,840 Lord of the Rings: Return of the King 5,090,281 -3% 1663 357,367,856 Mystic River 4,308,326 1% 1370 75,269,389 Cold Mountain 3,937,559 7% 1740 87,758,959 Monster 3,809,558 -8% 1093 20,335,017 Something's Gotta Give 2,977,602 1% 1019 119,265,219 Big Fish 2,932,721 -21% 1224 63,444,841 Cheaper by the Dozen 2,447,881 -24% 1335 134,290,873 Lost in Translation 1,749,254 -15% 600 42,072,415 Master and Commander 1,245,690 -21% 547 91,255,360 Girl with a Pearl Earring 1,174,457 -16% 374 7,474,441 Calendar Girls 1,118,065 -23% 814 28,710,500 The Perfect Score 1,113,911 -67% 2012 9,975,810 In America 964,668 -9% 334 12,431,391 The Triplets of Belleville 930,858 137% 468 3,912,688 Win a Date with Tad Hamilton 719,502 -64% 612 16,654,986 The Last Samurai 635,469 -22% 267 109,528,224 21 Grams 626,250 -4% 248 14,786,089 The Haunted Mansion 575,678 304% 396 73,814,627 City of God 550,581 17% 242 5,987,855 The Dreamers 511,207 193% 66 714,458 The Cooler 461,429 -10% 210 7,184,760 The Young Black Stallion 390,507 38% 51 4,925,110 Peter Pan 361,995 -21% 400 47,296,990 Touching the Void 350,462 53% 40 830,240 House of Sand and Fog 309,390 -19% 20 11,894,465 Mona Lisa Smile 260,631 82% 278 63,483,741 The Fog of War 258,622 -7% 47 1,575,825 The Big Bounce 217,303 -85% 375 6,331,346 Highwaymen 216,697 111 216,697 Elf 179,100 -27% 245 173,180,828 Torque 169,733 -61% 208 20,752,187 The Gospel of John 162,777 124% 84 3,717,324 The Company 156,936 -11% 52 1,543,093 Gothika 139,864 -19% 207 59,325,825 The Barbarian Invasions 132,143 -9% 78 6,489,152 Brother Bear 131,097 -22% 196 84,753,645 The Cat in the Hat 113,501 -14% 131 100,880,734 Love Don't Cost a Thing 107,680 448% 156 21,718,038 Love Actually 106,455 -5% 111 59,365,105 My Architect 106,182 17% 19 944,004 Space Station 100,892 32% 17 47,194,467 The Station Agent 98,807 -17% 47 5,727,139 My Baby's Daddy 91,698 -50% 106 17,215,064 Dans l'oeil du chat 79,133 27 79,133 Disney's Teacher's Pet 74,035 -42% 166 6,295,378 Honey 73,450 -33% 100 30,222,640 Stuck on You 71,796 -45% 145 33,700,245 Monsieur Ibrahim 65,696 7 90,750 Osama 65,195 -2% 5 139,026 La Grande Seduction 61,162 9% 35 7,012,192 Ghosts of the Abyss 56,729 169% 12 15,452,519 Pulse: A Stomp Odyssey 53,158 -7% 16 5,668,400 Paycheck 52,761 -30% 106 53,392,194 The Missing 52,246 -32% 94 26,900,336 The Battle of Algiers (reissue) 51,542 136% 5 404,286 The Corporation 48,815 -26% 11 475,432 The School of Rock 46,945 -46% 62 81,208,977 Latter Days 45,273 6% 6 168,426 Matrix Revolutions 44,514 -29% 45 139,224,428 Bad Santa 43,167 181% 201 59,506,308 Wooly Boys 40,480 -12% 5 198,776 The Return 40,348 63% 6 71,116 The Book of Mormon Movie 37,044 -43% 17 1,415,322 Japanese Story 31,651 -49% 16 313,899 Pride & Prejudice 29,512 595% 14 250,785 The Republic of Love 28,009 17 28,009 The Texas Chainsaw Massacre 25,723 -37% 18 80,571,655 Khakee 24,802 -73% 38 564,932 Gloomy Sunday 20,312 28% 6 585,604
Estimates - February 13-16, 2004
Title 50 First Dates - 3591 47.2 Miracle -27% 2755 39.6 Barbershop 2: Back in Business -42% 2711 44.8 The Butterfly Effect -19% 2288 49.3 You Got Served -31% 1832 32.9 Catch That Kid -24% 2848 12.3 Along Came Polly -29% 2545 82.2 Lord of the Rings: Return of King 2% 1663 357.4 Mystic River 3% 1370 75.1 Cold Mountain 11% 1740 87.9 Monster -9% 1092 20.3 Something's Gotta Give -5% 1019 119.2 Big Fish -22% 1224 63.3 Cheaper By the Dozen -25% 1331 134.1 Lost in Translation -20% 600 42.1 Master and Commander