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SUNDAY AM: This weekend’s movie gross showed that Hollywood couldn’t revive the slumping box office during spring break even though 30% of students are out of school. No. 1 is Sony Pictures’s PG-rated based-on-a-true-story 21, which opened to a solid $8.6 million Friday and $9.6 million Saturday from 2,648 theaters. With Sunday estimates, that makes a better than expected $23.7M for the moderately budgeted pic (sources tell me it cost $35M). The casino card-counting caper suddenly came on strong tracking-wise these past two weeks to surprise everyone but the studio execs. A shocker was how weak the reviews were: only 22% positive among top critics on Rotten Tomatoes. But audiences craved the escapism. As a rival marketer gushed to me, “It is wish fulfilment in the truest sense of the phrase, this notion of a real person being able to beat the system, get the girl and live the life. The pic tapped into that really nicely.” I’m told the audience was broad based, drawing from all 4 quadrants — older and younger men and women, with 53% male and 47% female with 53% under the age of 25.
In its 3rd weekend in release, Fox’s Horton Hears A Who! continued playing strong in 3,826 dates for $5.2 million Friday and $7.3 million thanks to Saturday kiddie matinees to surge well past the all-important $100 million mark. It’s new cume is $117.2M after this weekend’s extra $17.4M because there was little else at the cineplex aimed at tots.
In 3rd place is The Weinstein Co’s Dimension/MGM spoof Superhero Movie which was a superdud. Despite playing wide in 2,960 venues, the newcomer finished Friday virtually stillborn with only $3.4 million and Saturday with $3.8 million. That meant a $9.5 million weekend which is 33% less than its studios were hoping and the experts were predicting. Frankly, it’s unthinkable since this pic had a big 75% awareness equally divided among males and females. Gee, Bob Weinstein’s Dimension banner used to be the best at making this genre of light satires when it was based at Disney. But maybe audiences are tired of seeing the same old shtick. However, some analysts astutely foresaw a problem with Superhero going after the same PG-13 audience as 21. A Superhero insider told me over the weekend: “We played young because of Drake Bell. 
We were doing well during the day but fell off at night. 21 ended up with the audience we needed. It seems they got the teens and did better than expected with them.”
No. 4 was Tyler Perry’s Meet The Browns which scored $7.7M this weekend from 2,016 runs for Lionsgate starting its 2nd week in release. Its new cume is $32.8M. Two holdovers, Paramount’s Drillbit Taylor (3,061 dates) and Fox’s Shutter (2,756 plays) duked it out for 5th place. The Owen Wilson starrer from Judd Apatow and Seth Rogen won with a $5.8M weekend (and new $20.5M cume) while the horror flick finished 6th with a $5.3M weekend (and new $19.1M cume).
Friday’s No. 7 Stop-Loss fell a spot to 8th after it opened to only $1.7 million Friday and Saturday from a limited 1,291 plays. It eked out a $4.5M weekend. Although the drama from MTV Films was the best-reviewed movie opening this weekend, Paramount wasn’t expecting much because no Iraq war-themed movie has yet to perform at the box office. “It’s not looking good,” a studio source told me before the weekend. “No one wants to see Iraq war movies. No matter what we put out there in terms of great cast or trailers, people were completely turned off. It’s a function of the marketplace not being ready to address this conflict in a dramatic way because the war itself is something that’s unresolved yet. It’s a shame because it’s a good movie that’s just ahead of its time.”
Finishing out the Top 10: Warner Bros’ 10,000 BC was #7 with a $4.8M weekend and still anemic new cume of $84.9M from 3,055 theaters; what a bad sign that, starting its 4th week in release, this expensive CGI-bloated pic still hasn’t broken the $100M barrier. Disney’s College Road Trip held onto 9th with $3.5M for its 4th weekend in release at 2,270 dates. And No. 10 was Lionsgate’s The Bank Job, hanging in for a $2.8M weekend from 1,869 venues.
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The reason no Iraq war movie has done well is because they have all been anti-American themed, with the exception of The Kingdom (which tried to be somewhat neutral).
Hollywood will never get it. The average American doesn’t think like they do. If they would make an Iraq war movie that was actually positive and showed a real American hero, it would do very well (assuming it was a well made movie of course) but that won’t happen. They can’t even imagine such things.
Maybe if Hollywood made an Iraq war movie that wasn’t so set on making the U.S. out to be the bad guy, America would go see it.
When will Hollywood reaslize that they are out-of-touch with the majority of America and making movies against a war most people support will flop. It isn’t rocket science. I would bet a great deal of money that a positive, pro-soldier, pro-America movie would make millions for them instead of these out-of-touch, anti-war, anti-America films.
I anticipate a string of excuses as to why it failed…but lets face facts…it failed because people don’t like a movie that insults or belittles their country, their president (Democrat controlled Congress has a lower approval rating), or the men and women that VOLUNTEER to defend it. Soldiers are not a combination of red-neck dunces from Texas and poor people that have no choice if they want to stay in this country. I quick survey would find that the vast mojority of soldiers (wait..this may stun some Hollywood Leftists) WANT to be soldiers!
Just pathetic…if that is how the people that make these movies feel…I am of the mind-set they they can take their attitude, policies and socialist mind-set and move to a place more fitting for them….maybe Venezuela….Maybe Cuba….it would be paradise for you guys!
A Soldier
Folks stop loss isnt being anti american.its a fact that our military is being pulled too thin. I know someone that had this happen to them and as a viet vet if I was told i had to go back to vietnam after my contractual obligation was up I would have headed to canada. either the COUNTRY has to support the war or get the troops the hell out of there. all americans MUST serve if this is a real war and or if america isnt behind it then bring them home for gods sake. and no I am not some hippie anti war nut. but this is becoming vietnam part 2. back the war which means backing the troops all the way or get them all the wya home. we cannot be for the war as a country then have a very select few fight it for us. this isnt WW2 in as much as the WW2 generation wants to beleive it and for those who have never served then you need to either put your money where your mouths are or admit this isnt a World Wide conflict and bring our troops home. We confess to supporting on one hand then do the absolute oposite with the other.
saw Stop-loss last night. excellent film. President Bush should be ashamed of himself.
Hollywood has just become an extentiion to the anti-american left.
I live next door to several veterans of the Iraq war who argue and fight about who had more fun while serving in the middle east and who is gonna re-enlist first. Maybe the general public would enjoy a war movie written by an actual soldier or even someone who has stepped foot in Iraq within the last 5 years. Movies made by clueless actors detached from the real world will never be taken seriously. Directors like Oliver Stone and Michael Moore had better pay attention.
Stop Loss did poorly because it is based on a lie. Anyone knows in the military the terms of service. You can and will be called back. Sometimes immediately even after being told otherwise.
No one tells you “You’ve been stoplossed”. That’s more Hollywood B.S.
Maybe if Hollywood made a movie where soldiers were not portrayed as victims or murderes or overall failures then people would go to see it.
Reality is a popular theme these days. Iraq War films that are anti-American to their core and based on non-reality will always do poorly.
Some people will always hate America and the military. They just won’t pay $10.
I’m burned out completely on any movie set in the screwed up middle east
Stop Loss is a loser because the rest of America is not as anti-America as Hollywood or B. Hussein Obama.
When will they learn that socilism destroys creativity and individual expression. Go to a socialist or communist country and see how grey, drab and lifeless they are – and how sad the people are. Wake up Hollywood
debra- stupid liberals should be ashamed of themselves, for being stupid and for being liberal, you stupid liberal.
There wasn’t much to the 21 advertising campaign. Just that horrible line “Don’t call me Dude.” What the hell does that have to do with anything.
I guess perhaps people have finally gotten tired of the spoof movie genre. Though that doesn’t explain Meet the Spartans doing very well for some inexcplicable reason. Another beef I have with movie commercials is the tired cliche of lines that utter profanity being stopped by another shocked character. Like in Superhero Movie, the Invisible Bitch line, cuts to another character being shocked. That’s perhaps the worst cliche in comedy commercials today. Which probably will never go away.
Stop Loss is a loser because the rest of America is not as anti-America as Hollywood or B. Hussein Obama.
When will they learn that socilism destroys creativity and individual expression. Go to a socialist or communist country and see how grey, drab and lifeless they are – and how sad the people are. Wake up Hollywood
WHEN IS THE MEDIA AND HOLLYWOOD GOING TO FIGURE OUT THAT THE ONLY PEOPLE AGAINST THE WAR ON TERROR,ARE THE MEDIA AND HOLLYWOOD.MAKE ONE MOVIE SUPPORTING THE TROOPS AND IT WILL BE A BLOCKBUSTER.JOHN WAYNE IS ROLLING IN HIS GRAVE.
I think that Super Hero Movie would have done better if Epic Movie wasn’t such a flop.
Stop Loss is a loser because the rest of America is not as anti-America as Hollywood or B. Hussein Obama.
When will they learn that socilism destroys creativity and individual expression. Go to a socialist or communist country and see how grey, drab and lifeless they are – and how sad the people are. Wake up Hollywood
The anti-American bias of Hollyweird elites will not sell outside the tiny cocoons of the two left coasts. It’s like the old AA saying, Hollywood keeps doing the same thing again and again with the same bad results.
Ideologues never learn.
With all the movie-goers staying home, Hollywood needs a “Stoploss” of it’s own.
The problem with Iraq themed movies is not that they are “anti-american” or “anti-military” but that they are not escapist. Everyone goes to see ’21′ because it’s a fun fantasy and makes you feel good. If I want to be depressed about the state of the world, I’ll just stay home and watch the news.
The premise of Stop-Loss is that the military recruits are all stupid and don’t know what they signed on for.
The reverse is true…. and Hollywood is stupid.
The following is my favorite part of the article.
‘Paramount on behalf of MTV Films wasn’t expecting much because no Iraq war-themed movie has yet to perform at the box office’
This is the definition of LIBERALISM. FORCE YOUR VIEWS ON EVERYBODY ELSE.
They knew it wasn’t going to make money….but b/c the MESSAGE is so important….make the film anyway.
Typical Hollywood. I love how pill-popping, botox- injecting liberals think they need to educate the public about the war in Iraq.
How would they know? Can anybody name any modern actor/actress that has served in the military?
Hollywood sucks as bad as the movies it makes. They just don’t get it.
At the risk of sounding redundant, it would take real courage on behalf of Hollywood to make a balanced, dare I say – even positive Iraq war movie. As a Middle East doctoral student, I am floored by the disconnect between Hollywood/Media/Entertainment elites blind to the money potential for even a “balanced” movie about Iraq. Everyone else on the planet knows that Northern Iraq is growing by 10% per year since 2004 and the economic/financial players are scrambling to benefit from the Kurdish “Dubai” experience. As for here. No. There’s only negative reporting ad nauseum. Make a movie with some positives, based on the facts, and Hollywood will be awash in money…
Hollywood continues their slide into oblivion.
There are better video games, with better stories than any movie. And the video games aren’t trying to “educate” me with some PC message. Also, the box office numbers are grossly inaccurate, nor do they include advertising or promotions costs. The money lost by Hollywood at this point is staggering.
I don’t think they get that there is a total re-alignment in “media land” at the moment. Also, note to Hollywood, you make movies no one wants to watch.