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Jane & J.Lo's
"Monster" Showing  |
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Monster-in-Law
clawed its way
to the top of
the heap.
The love-hate
comedy pitting
screen divas
Jennifer Lopez
and Jane Fonda
in a celluloid
catfight debuted
with $23.1
million over the
weekend,
according to
studio figures
Monday.
That was just
enough to
outscore Will
Ferrell's soccer
dad yukfest,
Kicking &
Screaming, which
shot into second
with an
estimated $20.2
million.
A third new
release,
Unleashed, in
which Jet Li's
martial arts
skills are
tethered to the
wicked ways of
Bob Hoskins'
Glasgow
gangster, opened
in third place
with $10.9
million at
considerably
fewer sites than
the top two
newcomers.
The troika of
newbies bounced
last week's
topper, Kingdom
of Heaven, down
to fourth place
with just $9.6
million, a drop
of 51 percent
from its
opening. The
Crusades epic
has grossed a
relatively
un-epic $35
million.
The final
newcomer in wide
release,
Mindhunters,
barely made the
top 10. Not
screened for
critics, the
crime drama
starring Val
Kilmer,
Christian
Slater, LL Cool
J and Kathryn
Morris earned a
cut-rate $1.9
million in the
10 spot.
Exhibitors must
be frantically
counting down
the days until
Star Wars:
Episode
III--Revenge of
the Sith opens
(that would be
four) to goose
the box
office--this
week was the
12th week in a
row that
receipts were
down from a year
ago. The top 12
movies grossed
$94.5 million,
which although a
gain of 20
percent over
last weekend,
was 8 percent
lower than this
time last year,
when Troy opened
and Van Helsing
and Mean Girls
were still
pulling well.
In the race for
the best
per-site
average,
Monster-in-Law,
the heavily
hyped big-screen
comeback of
double Oscar
winner Fonda
(MIA since
1990's Stanley
and Iris),
opened at 3,424
locations where
it averaged
$6,748. Despite
mostly
lackluster
review, women
over 25 were
reportedly eager
to check out the
New Line
release--which
gave Lopez her
best debut,
beating the
$18.7 million
for Maid in
Manhattan in
December 2002.
At a tad more
sites--3,455--Ferrell's
latest romp, in
which he costars
with Robert
Duvall, Mike
Ditka and a
bunch of kids,
averaged $5,835.
The PG-rated
Universal
flicked
performed at the
top end of
expectations,
and considering
the popularity
of SNL alumnus,
the studio hopes
the film will
have legs in the
wake of Sith.
Unleashed, an
R-rated Focus
release, let
loose at 1,955
sites, averaging
$5,570.
Mindhunters, an
R-rated
Dimension
release, was
dumped in 1,040
sites and
averaged $1,838.
In limited
release, the
highest
per-screen
average belonged
to the dance
documentary Mad
Hot Ballroom.
The Paramount
Classics PG
release averaged
$22,674 at two
sites for
$45,348. At 10
sites, Sony
Pictures
Classics'
R-rated Layer
Cake, a British
crime drama
starring rumored
future 007
Daniel Craig,
averaged a tasty
$8,171 for
$81,706.
Here's a rundown
of the top 10
films from
Friday to
Sunday, based on
figures compiled
by Exhibitor
Relations:
1.
Monster-in-Law,
$23.1 million
2. Kicking &
Screaming, $20.2
million
3. Unleashed,
$10.9 million
4. Kingdom of
Heaven, $9.6
million
5. Crash, $7
million
6. House of Wax,
$6.5 million
7. The
Hitchhiker's
Guide to the
Galaxy, $5
million
8. The
Interpreter,
$4.6 million
9. XXX: State of
the Union, $2.1
million
10. Mindhunters,
$1.9 million
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