..Gary
Dretzka
..Leonard
Klady
..Emanuel
Levy
..David
Poland
..Doug
Pratt
..Ray
Pride
Absorbing Junior
Weekend Finals
It was a weekend cliffhanger as the modern day swashbuckling of National Treasure was pitted against the formidable Spongebob Squarepants Movie for the box office crown. Heroics appeared to have a slight edge with the films generating respective estimates of $34.4 million and $32.3 million. Both pictures debuted to buoyant response and are nicely placed for the upcoming Thanksgiving holiday sweepstakes.
"It really is the kind of result you can only hope for," said the film's co-executive producer Oren Aviv early Sunday. "This is a project that's been on the bubble for eight and a half years and I think the timing was perfect considering the success of books like The Da Vinci Code."
The frame was also marked by good expansions for the national launch of the Bridget Jones sequel, the addition of new markets for Finding Neverland and Kinsey, an extremely strong exclusive run on Pedro Almodovar's Bad Education and an excellent bow for the epic period drama Nouvelle-France in Quebec.
Overall business climbed to roughly $157 million repping a 9% rise from last weekend and a 16% boost from 2003. Last year the top two slots were filled by the debuts of The Cat in the Hat and Gothika with respective grosses of $38.3 million and $19.3 million.
National Treasure provided a bounce back for producer Jerry Bruckheimer following the disappointing domestic performance of King Arthur. While its historic treasure hunt scenario has been liked to the Dan Brown book, it also has more than a few echoes to the Indiana Jones franchise that's been begging for a fourth installment. Initial exit polling indicates that the film's better than expected opening may have resulted from strong sales to families and teens.
Spongebob, the unlikely television cartoon sensation, was soaking up a fair share of the weekend bounty and appeared to be on track to win the weekend. However, some of its appeal appeared to be siphoned off by both National Treasure and the still potent The Incredibles. A Paramount spokeswomen said that they were pleased and surprised to see exit polls showing a particular large non-family component for the film.
The session also featured national sneaks for both Christmas with the Kranks and Finding Neverland. Sony reported 80% overall capacity for Kranks with the picture scoring in the 90 percentile stratosphere for enjoyment and recommendations. Neverland data was unavailable.
In light of the fierce competition for family business, The Polar Express held well against the competition, dropping about one-third to $15.1 million. However, it was difficult to judge whether the platform release of Bridget Jones: The Edge of Reason was fully effective. It ranked fifth with a $10.1 million gross and mid-weeks will determine whether its finally tally is closer to $60 million or $50 million.
It was also difficult to call the expansions of Sideways, Finding Neverland and Kinsey. While each of the trio was generating good numbers, the daunting questions was whether they were strong enough to sustain in a market ramping up for a holiday onslaught. It's also a roll of the dice as to the type of critical kudos each will receive in December and the impact of awards and nominations on box office.
The weekend was relatively light on new titles in limited and regional release but several were truly impressive. Quebec's most expensive production ever, Nouvelle-France, stormed into the province with an estimate close to $700,000 from 88 theaters. Set during the French-English conflict of the 18th century, the historic romantic drama is dotted with an international cast that includes Gerard Depardieu and Tim Roth in addition to local heartthrobs.
Already acclaimed internationally, Almodovar's Bad Education bowed on three screens and generated an eye-popping theater average of more than $50,000. It will expand slowly through the holiday season.
A number of films opened single screens in Manhattan to fair to good response with the Asian import Days of Being Wild receiving the strongest response with an estimated three-day tally of $15,600.
Weekend Finals - November 19-21, 2004
Title Weekend % Change Theaters Cume National Treasure 35,142,554 3017 35,142,554 The SpongeBob Squarepants Movie 32,018,216 3212 32,018,216 The Incredibles 26,523,852 -47% 3683 177,555,485 The Polar Express 15,668,101 -33% 3650 51,463,282 Bridget Jones: The Edge of Reason 10,044,890 16% 2450 21,511,685 After the Sunset 5,075,004 -54% 2819 19,092,384 Ray 4,565,210 -46% 2020 59,192,215 The Grudge 3,812,121 -46% 2112 104,422,638 Seed of Chucky 3,241,211 -63% 2062 13,459,639 Saw 2,882,575 -55% 1679 50,355,671 Shall We Dance 2,336,883 -42% 1535 52,294,268 Sideways 1,828,760 29% 279 6,039,004 Finding Neverland 836,754 279% 57 1,149,279 Alfie 727,388 -73% 1286 12,710,531 The Motorcycle Diaries 621,808 -17% 233 12,733,850 Kinsey 577,721 242% 36 826,679 Shark Tale 575,850 -73% 907 158,432,301 Veer-Zaara 547,956 -35% 83 1,752,335 Friday Night Lights 537,105 -57% 587 60,085,618 Nouvelle-France 468,625 80 468,625 Ladder 49 394,375 -67% 445 72,734,485 Being Julia 391,051 32% 233 2,195,580 I Heart Huckabees 296,895 -45% 163 11,680,406 What the #$*! Do We Know 270,059 -10% 116 8,628,352 Team America: World Police 214,517 -65% 264 32,207,498 Taxi 182,127 -56% 264 35,678,091 Napoleon Dynamite 168,006 -29% 170 43,068,185 Without a Paddle 164,815 180% 200 57,486,538 Princess Diaries 2: Royal Engagement 161,107 287% 281 94,669,508 Spider-Man 2 99,675 -27% 148 373,377,893 Anacondas 87,232 -11% 125 32,103,249 Haunted Castle 56,000 -30% 8 9,780,005 Bugs! 40,624 -4% 24 13,630,720 Shrek 2 39,778 -40% 96 441,192,868 Collateral 37,836 -50% 70 100,970,280 The Cookout 36,037 -25% 66 11,771,616 Therese 30,032 -70% 22 1,551,361 The Manchurian Candidate 24,930 -56% 50 65,948,711 Harry Potter & Prisoner of Azkaban 23,837 -38% 26 249,442,880 Woman Thou Art Loosed 21,334 -80% 40 6,865,795 Beyond the Gates 20,567 -44% 5 67,433 Les Aimants 19,553 -26% 22 1,073,983 Bad Education 147,370 3 147,370 Vera Drake 138,359 -31% 64 1,695,820 The Bourne Supremacy 131,225 -29% 181 175,896,180 Surviving Christmas 105,371 -69% 194 11,198,345 Cellular 86,742 -13% 167 31,815,659 The Forgotten 80,372 -69% 128 66,641,205 The Machinist 66,618 45% 19 379,677 Birth 63,324 -80% 75 4,612,578 Garden State 59,763 -34% 62 26,470,071 Les Choristes 59,149 -30% 34 1,753,977 Hero 57,020 -49% 144 53,583,486 Space Station 49,835 -12% 13 55,609,715 I, Robot 49,271 -42% 96 144,689,408 Enduring Love 38,559 -33% 56 250,575 Aitraaz 38,384 14% 24 91,998 Shaun of the Dead 37,173 -39% 84 13,425,414 Raise Your Voice 34,246 -37% 96 10,411,980 Adrenaline Rush: The Science of Risk 30,184 -8% 11 8,741,376 Santa vs. the Snowman 28,043 4% 10 4,292,723 Tarnation 25,046 -27% 13 392,039 Nascar: The Imax Experience 24,469 -26% 24 19,319,127 The Notebook 20,692 -46% 44 81,001,787 Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow 20,456 -53% 71 37,514,410
Estimates - November 19-21, 2004
Title % change Theaters Cume National Treasure - 3017 34.4 Spongebob Squarepants - 3212 32.3 The Incredibles -47% 3683 177.8 The Polar Express -35% 3650 50.9 Bridget Jones: The Edge of Reason 15% 2450 21.5 After the Sunset -51% 2819 19.5 Ray -46% 2027 59.2 The Grudge -46% 2112 104.4 Seed of Chucky -65% 2062 13.2 Saw -55% 1679 50.4 Shall We Dance