2012 destroys the global box office as Precious expands and continues to impress. Weekend box office in review (11/15/09)
Roland Emmerich's 2012 almost made back its $260 million budget in just three days. The domestic opening weekend was a whopping $65.2 million and the global total was a mammoth $225 million. This is the seventh-biggest domestic bow ever in November, and just shy of the $67 million that Emmerich's The Day After Tomorrow pulled in during the Fri-Sun portion of its four-day Memorial Day weekend launch in 2004. With its $160 million non-domestic weekend gross, it's also the fifth-largest non-US debut of all time and the all-time non-US debut champ for a non-sequel/franchise picture. So the film pulled in a surprisingly potent 2.8x weekend multiplier and actually had a token increase on Saturday from $23 million to $24 million. Point being, this one is playing as a normal grown-up smash hit and should have decent legs until Avatar comes down the pike in just over a month. See, that's what happens when you actually deliver the goods and have the decency to be not all that bad.
Emmerich's sci-fi adventures have always done around 2/3 of their business overseas (only the US-centric The Patriot had about a 50/50 split). Since the film basically delivers what it promises (full-scale worldwide destruction, tear-jerking melodrama, better than expected acting), it will likely be the second-choice of casual moviegoers for the near future. Expect a big drop (-55%) next weekend as Twilight Saga: New Moon attempts to kick sand in 2012's face, but the film will level off over the long Thanksgiving Day weekend. Roland Emmerich is officially one of the most consistently solid big-time money makers in the book. Independence Day and The Patriot aside, I wish his previous movies were better (fifteen years later, Stargate still stinks), but the man can make trailer-ready movies like no one else. Of course, since 2012 is arguably the Love Actually of disaster flicks, I do wonder where he will go from here. From a genre standpoint, you really can't one-up this one, so it will be interesting to see if Emmerich can find comparative success in different genres. Regardless, $225 million worth of people paid to see Chiwetel Ejiofor and Oliver Platt in starring roles, so that's good news for everyone.
Second place went to Robert Zemeckis's A Christmas Carol, which held fast with just a 25.8% drop in weekend two. The film scored $22.3 million and now has a ten-day total of $63.2 million. It actually had an 8% smaller drop than The Polar Express's second weekend, and its ten-day total is still far ahead of the 12-day $51 million gross of The Polar Express (the latter film opened on a Wednesday). It also grossed about $1 million less on its second weekend than the 2004 picture grossed over its initial Fri-Sun debut. This one should cross $100 million right before the start of the Thanksgiving holiday and will try to reach Polar Express's $162 million total before Avatar steals away its 3D and IMAX screens on December 17th at 12:01am. It will still be an uphill battle to match the $200 million production cost, but the film isn't going to go down without a fight. I'll get to third place in a moment, but fourth place went to The Men Who Stare At Goats, which plunged 51% for a $6.2 million second-weekend. Still, the $5 million acquisition has already grossed $23 million for Overture films, so everything from here on in is pure gravy.
Third place went to this month's unstoppable juggernaut. Last month, Paranormal Activity burst into the top-five on just 169 screens, scoring $7.9 million for a $49,000 per screen average (by the way, congratulations on crossing the $100 million mark on Friday). This month, it's all about Precious. The Lionsgate acquisition grossed $104,000 per screen in 18 theaters last weekend. This weekend it expanded into 174 screens and had to settle for a sad, sorry $33,762 per screen average. At $5.8 million, the critically-acclaimed drama had the second-biggest weekend total for an under 200 screen release (behind you know who). The $10 million picture has now grossed $8.7 million, and it's just getting started. The film is all but guaranteed to receive several major Oscar nominations, and it will go wider next weekend. Precious has become the queen of buzz, with everyone and their brother adding their two-cents in about the film's quality and its alleged racial, gender, and class politics. I think much of the debate is silly, as the movie never pretends to be about every single person who's life resembles the lead character. Any popular movie that isn't about white men or nerd-friendly characters seems to get attacked as being offensive or stereotypical to someone somewhere. But as long as pundits as wringing their hands one way or another, then people will be inclined to check out what all of the fuss is about. Ironically, while Oprah Winfrey and Tyler Perry did nothing more than procure the film for Lionsgate and put their publicity machines behind it (no small worth), this very well may be the first Tyler Perry-related film to reach $100 million.
Fifth place went to the Michael Jackson documentary This Is It, which at $67.1 million is now the highest-grossing concert film of all time. It also crossed the $200 million mark in global receipts, so all in all a good weekend for something that everyone (including myself) assumed was a one-weekend wonder. Couples Retreat also crossed the $100 million domestic gross mark, so yay for all involved (nice poster, nitwits). The Box dropped 58% and The Fourth Kind dropped 62%, owing mainly to the fact that no one liked either of those films. The only other new opener, Pirate Radio, debuted with just $2.9 million on 882 screens. The Fantastic Mr. Fox debuted on four screens and grossed $265,900 (about $66,475 per screen). The critically-acclaimed Woody Harrelson/Ben Foster war drama The Messenger also debuted on four screens, grossing $11,131 per.
That's all the news that's fit to print. Join us next weekend when the major new releases are the Sandra Bullock drama The Blind Side (a 'you wouldn't believe it if it wasn't a true story' movie) and the animated Planet 51 (basically The Battle For Terra, with more comedy and less genocide). The limited releases are John Woo's Red Cliff and Werner Herzog's Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call New Orleans. Am I forgetting anything? Oh, right, we get to see if Twilight Saga: New Moon grosses $70 million in its first weekend or in its first day and a half. For more box office, movie reviews, trailer reviews, news commentary, and original essays, go to Mendelson's Memos.
Scott Mendelson
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I've seen 2012, and -- spoiler alert! -- you die.
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But, but, but ... What if it's all true?
I'm worried whether it'll be out on DVD in time for me to see it before the world ends?
Stargate couldn't have been all that bad, it's spawned 3 series, one of which ran 11 years. The brand is MGM's flagship franchise.
If it's mostly CGI then it should be called animation.
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I missed the movie. I was busy playing Call of Duty : Modern Warfare 2.
I just felt that the director was laughing at me while I was watching the movie. In my opinion, it is a very bad movie, i would not suggest to any of my friends..
I enjoyed the movie, and, for me, the best part was that Tom Cruise wasn't the lead character.
Still didn't have Will Smith in it. What's a winter blockbuster without Will Smith. In it.
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Will Smith has had exactly one winter blockbuster (I Am Legend) and exactly one winter hit (Enemy of the State). The rest of his mega hits (ID4, Men In Black, Wild Wild West, I Am Robot, Bad Boys 2, Hancock, Men In Black 2) were mostly in the summer, with Shark Tale opening in October and Hitch opening in February.
The Day After Tomorrow was utterly terrible. I watched half of the movie in fast forward. Now that I know who directed 2012 I will skip it.
For those of you who liked this or DAT, please don't take this as a knock on the genre or style of movie. It's simply my opinion.
I saw 2012 on the weekend and while the special effects were spectacular, I don't think I have seen a more cliche-ridden film since Poseidon Adventure. It had every predictable tug to the emotions, sense of fair play, politically correct notions, etc. There was nothing fresh or new about it; perhaps if they had made more of the science, it might have been bearable but otherwise it was a waste of my $20 (well my partner's actually since it was his choice).
In two words; it sucked. Walked out unimpressed by another Bullshit Hollywood "Blockbuster". The only thing worse than the story was the fact that thought they needed to drag it out for 2.5 hours. It could have easily been edited down at least 30 minutes.
I could tell in the first 5 minutes it would be crap movie when they pushed the PC crap on us with a black president and a black geologist.
Right. I'm with you brother! It was totally PC. Who in their right minds would believe in a black presiden..
well, there would have to BE some science before they could make more of it after all...
". . . nothing fresh and new about it. . . " you say?
I am wondering how you would have liked cataclysmic disasters and mortal reactions to them to be SPUN in a "fresh and new" way?
Keep in mind that while Americans paid an average of $15 a pop to see this movie -
Most of the rest of the world will see it for free
Saw this movie Saturday. Not great cinema, but great fun, and THE best disaster special effects ever, and plenty of them from start to finish. Most movies like this are 20 minutes of special effects, and one and a half hours of crappy aftermath filmed on a sound stage.
I give it four Mayan pyramids.
I saw it on Saturday and thought it was great. I enjoy all types of movies and sci-fi is very entertaining. The CGI was and special effects were great. Although it is sci-fi, the human race needs to keep in mind that massive global extinction has occurred repeatedly throughout the planet’s history. It will happen again… not if but when. If we value the extraordinary diversity of life that has evolved on our pale blue dot and if we want future inhabitants or visitors to know that we ever existed, we should and probably are preparing for that eventuality.
Buried far beneath the earth’s surface in Switzerland is an underground massively reinforced facility where scientists are currently in the process of storing vast quantities of genetic materials, seeds, music, libraries, the total of human knowledge and etc. Given our lack of adequate space exploration and travel, it is unknown whether we will be able to survive a global catastrophe in the future, but scientists around the world are trying the preserve some record of our existence.
This is a reflection of the internal despair and angst that humanity is experiencing. The Mayan prophecy just happens to be the storytelling vehicle but the underlying message of an unsustainable society resonates with the collective conscience.
We've been experiencing this "dispair" since we were being chased around the jungles by lions and hunting with yack bones. Those cave paintings in France are probably early human attempts at sharing an "underlying message of an unsustainable society resonates with the collective conscience
It's just entertainment!
There ain't no Mayan "prophecy".
It's just the end of a calendar cycle ... which means nothing more than it's time for a new calendar cycle. Ain't no different than your 16 month 2008 Kittens & Puppys calendar running out Dec 31.
The Mayans just ran their cycle for 394 years, instead of using "centuries" like we do. The Mayans didn't even invent the calendar, they just "improved" the existing calendars they inherited from their predecessors, the Olmec and Zapotec cultures.
The only significance of Dec 21, 2012 is it begins a new 394 year cycle in the Mayan calendar ... the first day of the 14th b'ak'tun ... just like 01/01/01 was the first day of the 21st century in our calendar.
The people who are going bonkers over 12/21/12 (or 21/12/12 if you use the DD/MM/YY convention common in Europe) are the same idiots who thought the new millennium started 01/01/00.
The hysteria does provide a good hook for a sci-fi end-of-the-world adventure film.
Thank God I will never see this type of movie
All these things they make these days to kill people's brains as though we do not have enough problems already.
Thank you but not for me
You might be surprised how much scientific research went into creating this movie. Although it is based on the Mayan calendar, the science behind the movie was fairly accurate with a healthy dose of fantasy. It contained loosed explanations of cosmology, plate tectonics, geothermal, geology, and other scientific aspects. It was semi-informative but still sci-fi.
um, "loose" is being overly kind...
Considering that people never use more than 10% of their brain anyway, murdering a few thousand surplus cells at a Saturday afternoon matinee is as good a use for them as any other.
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