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Specialty Box Office: ‘Charles Swan III’ Tops Newcomers; ‘Amour’, ‘Quartet’ Hold Steady

By THE DEADLINE TEAM | Sunday February 10, 2013 @ 10:32am PSTTags: A Glimpse Inside The Mind Of Charles Swan III, Amour, Lore, Quartet, Specialty Box Office, The Playroom

Brian Brooks is a Deadline contributor.

Indie Films

The Weinstein Company’s Quartet and Sony Pictures Classics’ Amour held steady in their expansions this weekend, while Zeitgeist’s Koch and Sony Classics’ The Gatekeepers remained solid in their second frames. Newcomers, however, fared comparatively softly, though the Blizzard that hit the Northeast certainly had an impact. A24 Films’ Charlie Sheen-starrer A Glimpse Inside The Mind Of Charles Swan III lead the trio of reporting limited-release debuts with a modest $6K average. Music Box Films’ Lore bowed in a half-dozen locations, averaging $5,167 while AMC Theatres roll-out Lost In Thailand averaged a paltry $833. Lost In Thailand, which packed a punch in China with over $200 million in that market clearly did not resonate here, at least yet. Still, the film remains China’s biggest domestic creation, second only to Avatar in that market. Freestyle Releasing did not report figures for its opener The Playroom.

New distributor A24 Films rolled out its first release Charles Swan III in New York and L.A. in a pair of theaters. The distributor said the title climbed 141% from Friday to Saturday. A24 also said the feature had a “successful Ultra VOD window” performing “especially strong on Cable VOD. Charles Swan III will expand to 15 markets on February 15th with additional nationwide rollout through March. Lore set out in six theaters, grossing a light $31K. It will open at two locations in Chicago February 15th and expand to an additional 10 runs on March 1st.

Zeitgeist’s Koch bowed last weekend on the same day the documentary’s subject, former NYC Mayor Ed Koch, passed away. The distributor had planned to expand from its initial two locations to four, but the storm popularly known as Nemo took out one location, according to the company. It averaged $9,330 compared to $20K in its first round.

Both Amour and Quartet remain 2013′s shining lights in the specialty realm. The two titles continue to show strength in expansion and both managed to pass milestone cumes this weekend. TWC added 42 theaters in Quartet‘s fifth weekend in release, grossing $951K averaging $3,898. The Dustin Hoffman feature directorial debut passed the $5 million mark. Amour, meanwhile, passed the $3 million mark. SPC added 31 locations in its 8th weekend of release, grossing just under $381K from 125 runs, averaging $3,046.

 

NEW

A Glimpse Inside The Mind Of Charles Swan III (A24 Films) NEW [2 Theaters] Weekend $12K, Average $6K

Lore (Music Box Films) NEW [6 Theaters] Weekend $31K, Average $5,167

Lost In Thailand (AMC Theatres) [35 Theaters] Weekend $29,143, Average $833

RETURNING / 2ND WEEKEND

The Gatekeepers (Sony Pictures Classics) Week 2 [3 Theaters] Weekend $42,449, Average $14,150, Cume $152,916

Koch (Zeitgeist Films) Week 2 [3 Theaters] Weekend $27,988, Average $9,330, Cume $ 79,724

HOLDOVERS / 3RD+ WEEKEND

Quartet (The Weinstein Company) Week 5 [244 Theaters] Weekend $951K, Average $3,898, Cume $5,010,487

Amour (Sony Pictures Classics) Week 8 [125 Theaters] Weekend $380,721, Average $3,046, Cume $3,023,599

The Impossible (Summit Entertainment/Lionsgate) Week 8 [739 Theaters] Weekend $915K, Average $1,238, Cume $16,625,744

Hyde Park On Hudson (Focus Features) Week 10 [130 Theaters] Weekend $131,143, Average $1,009, Cume $5,816,310

Anna Karenina (Focus Features) Week 13 [91 Theaters] Weekend $55,729, Average $612, Cume $12,652,788

The Master (The Weinstein Company) Week 22 [29 Theaters] Weekend $23K, Average $793, Cume $16,246,401

Searching For Sugar Man (Sony Pictures Classics) Week 29 [20 Theaters] Weekend $20,709, Average $1,035, Cume $3,245,825

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Specialty B.O. Preview: ‘The Playroom’, ‘Lore’; Plus ‘Amour’, ‘Quartet’ Expand

By THE DEADLINE TEAM | Friday February 8, 2013 @ 1:01am PSTTags: Amour, Lore, Quartet, Specialty Box Office Preview, The Playroom

Brian Brooks is a Deadline contributor.

Specialty film newcomers remain sparse this weekend, while two stalwart limited-release box office stars — Amour and Quartet — will continue their expansions. Golden Globe-nominated (for The Sessions) John Hawkes stars in The Playroom with Jonathan Brooks, Alexandra Doke and Olivia Harris. The story centers on four children who take to their attic hideaway and make up a fantastic story, while downstairs their parents weave a drunken intrigue of their own. Hawkes learned of his nomination while making this movie which has been available via iTunes. And war thriller Lore takes a look at the Holocaust through a unique story of about a girl who leads her siblings on a journey of “truth” about their parents’ beliefs.

The Playroom
Director: Julia Dyer
Writer: Gretchen Dyer
Cast: John Hawkes, Molly Parker, Olivia Harris, Jonathan Brooks, Cody Linley
Theatrical Distributor: Freestyle Releasing

All hailing from the same family, The Playroom producer Stephen Dyer, director Julia Dyer and writer Gretchen Dyer were the collective force behind the feature that endured multiple setbacks including health problems that lead to the death of Gretchen Dyer in 2009. Originally slated to star, Hayden Panattiere exited. “But something we had was John [Hawkes],” said Stephen Dyer. “This was before [his Oscar-nominated role in] Winter’s Bone, and Julia had a passion to have this made for Gretchen.” The project received a shot in the arm when the filmmaking team found “a perfect ’70s house” as its main location, which gave the production some freedom to concentrate on other areas of development. “It was a house we played in in the ’70s,” said Dyer. “Somehow the light went on in Julia’s head and we re-worked the script a bit to fit the architecture of the house.”  Read More »

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EFM Roundup: Spotlight Pictures Finds ‘The Playroom’; Grindstone, Recreation In ‘Brooklyn’; Beta Attends To ‘Farewell Party’

By NANCY TARTAGLIONE, International Editor | Wednesday February 6, 2013 @ 7:01am PSTTags: EFM, The Playroom

Spotlight Pictures has taken all international rights to Julia Dyer’s The Playroom starring Oscar-nominee John Hawkes (The Sessions) and Molly Parker (Dexter, The Firm). Spotlight will handle overseas sales at the EFM. The … Read More »

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Freestyle Acquires ‘The Playroom’

By DOMINIC PATTEN | Monday December 17, 2012 @ 3:48pm PSTTags: Freestyle Releasing, John Hawkes, The Playroom

Freestyle Releasing and Freestyle Digital Media have acquired theatrical and DVD/VOD rights to the Julia Dyer-directed drama The Playroom and has slated a February 9, 2013 release date. Set in the suburbs during … Read More »

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