'HSM3' Maintains Its Box Office Grades With $15M

[comedyfreak]

Hollywood made audiences repeat senior year.

Disney's "High School Musical 3: Senior Year" hauled in $15 million to remain the top movie for the second straight weekend, according to studio estimates Sunday.

Starring Zac Efron and Vanessa Hudgens in a big-screen sequel to the Disney Channel TV movies, "High School Musical 3" raised its 10-day total to $61.8 million.

Debuting at No. 2 with $10.7 million was the Weinstein Co. comedy "Zack and Miri Make a Porno," starring Seth Rogen and Elizabeth Banks as pals who do a skin flick to dig themselves out of debt.

Lionsgate's horror sequel "Saw V," the latest tale about psychokiller Jigsaw, slipped from second place to third with $10.1 million, lifting its 10-day total to $45.8 million.

Expanding nationwide after a weekend in limited release was Clint Eastwood's "Changeling," which took in $9.4 million to finish at No. 4. The Universal Pictures drama stars Angelina Jolie as a single mother victimized by police who botched the investigation into her missing son.

Freestyle Releasing's "The Haunting of Molly Hartley" debuted with $6 million to come in at No. 5. The movie stars Haley Bennett as a traumatized teen who finds fresh terror at her new school.

"RocknRolla" the latest from Madonna's soon-to-be-ex-husband, Guy Ritchie was a dud as it expanded from limited to nationwide release. The crime romp featuring Gerard Butler and Thandie Newton took in just $1.8 million, finishing well outside the top 10. Madonna and Ritchie announced their separation last month.

After a big surge the previous weekend, Hollywood revenues plunged. The top 12 movies took in $75.2 million, off 38 percent from the same weekend last year, when "American Gangster" opened with $43.6 million and "Bee Movie" debuted with $38 million.

Non-scary movies were hurt with Halloween falling on Friday. "High School Musical 3" did just $1.7 million on Friday, but it rebounded with $8.2 million Saturday.

"The target audience was out collecting candy or trick-or-treating Friday, but Saturday came back like a monster," said Mark Zoradi, president of Disney's motion-picture group.

Likewise, "Zack and Miri" opened with only $2.2 million Friday but pulled in $4.8 million Saturday. The movie also faced some audience resistance over the racy subject matter and the word "Porno" in the title.

"I would anecdotally speculate that that hurt us," said Steve Bunnell, head of distribution for Weinstein, which had trouble placing ads because of the movie's title and themes. "We were surprised that we ended up with the controversy. We thought everybody in America would understand that it was a joke."

The film has nudity but is tame compared to hard-core adult films. Yet the ratings board of the Motion Picture Association of America initially slapped it with an NC-17 rating, the kiss of death at the box office.

Writer-director Kevin Smith talked it down to an R rating on appeal.

James Bond got off to a big start overseas in advance of the U.S. debut of the super-spy's latest adventure, with Sony's "Quantum of Solace" taking in $38.6 million in Great Britain, France and Sweden.

"Quantum of Solace" opens in 57 more countries this week and arrives in U.S. theaters Nov. 14. The film picks up where 2006's "Casino Royale" left off, with Bond (Daniel Craig) out for payback over his lover's death.

Hollywood blockbusters rarely open weeks in advance of their U.S. premiere, but the Bond franchise does a huge ratio of its business overseas. "Casino Royale" took in 72 percent of its $600 million worldwide total outside the United States, said Mark Zucker, Sony's president of international distribution.

Weekend Box Office Estimates (U.S.)
This Wk Last Wk Title Dist. Weekend Gross Cumulative
Gross Rlse
Wks # of
Theaters
1 1 High School Musical 3: Senior Year Buena Vista Pictures Distribution $15,035,000 $61,753,000 2 3626
2 - Zack and Miri Make a Porno Dimension Films, The Weinstein Company $10,682,000 $10,682,000 1 2735
3 2 Saw V Lionsgate $10,110,000 $45,837,000 2 3084
4 20 Changeling Universal Pictures Distribution $9,407,000 $10,087,000 2 1850
5 - The Haunting of Molly Hartley Freestyle Releasing $6,009,000 $6,009,000 1 2652
6 4 Beverly Hills Chihuahua Buena Vista Pictures Distribution $4,747,000 $84,061,000 5 3004
7 6 The Secret Life of Bees Fox Searchlight Pictures $4,000,000 $25,287,000 3 1611
8 3 Max Payne 20th Century Fox Distribution $3,700,000 $35,550,000 3 2564
9 8 Eagle Eye DreamWorks, Paramount Pictures $3,400,000 $92,534,000 6 2007
10 5 Pride and Glory Warner Bros. Pictures Distribution $3,260,000 $11,616,000 2 2585
11 7 W. Lionsgate $2,450,000 $22,398,000 3 1803
12 9 Body of Lies Warner Bros. Pictures Distribution $2,365,000 $34,612,000 4 1414

[MusicJunkie]

is SAW V considered a disappointment? it's grossed in two weeks what the last couple installments did opening weekend

[comedyfreak]

I'd like to see it, heard there's more violence than the last one.

[MusicJunkie]

Originally Posted by comedyfreak

I'd like to see it, heard there's more violence than the last one.

see, I'm the reverse. When it comes to sadism, I am a big ol' wuss. I watched Bravo's "30 even scarier movie moments" last night and was covering my eyes when they showed the razorbox scene (I also covered by eyes during Cabin Fever). I did see the first SAW in a heavily edited Sci-Fi Channel airing and thought it wasn't too much, but the sequels look far gorier.