By Bill Bonfanti on 4/28/2009 3:30 PM

 

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By Bill Bonfanti on 4/27/2009 11:33 AM

This weekend audiences proved they love a good cat fight as stalker suspense movie, Obsessed, starring Beyonce and Ali Larter opened at #1. Fighting starring Channing Tatum fought its way to a #3 bow, The Soloist starring Robert Downey Jr. and Jamie Foxx opened mildly in fourth and Disney documentary, Earth, enjoyed a strong opening in fifth place.

Much to my dismay, Obsessed opened strongly at #1 with $28.5M. This was way above my $19M prediction and for that matter way above most industry expectations for the movie. I really dislike movies of this nature but I am clearly in the minority as audiences rushed out to see Beyonce face off with Ali Larter. Obsessed marks Beyonce’s biggest debut at the box office in a lead role.   The movie was widely panned by critics...

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By Bill Bonfanti on 4/23/2009 3:12 PM

There are 4 new choices at multiplexes this weekend, Obsessed starring Ali Larter, The Soloist starring Robert Downey Jr. and Jamie Foxx, Fighting starring Channing Tatum and Disney’s documentary Earth, which opened on Wednesday. Although Obsessed and The Soloist are just opening this weekend, I (and I’m sure others) feel like I’ve seen them both 5 times already due to the trailers basically showing the whole movies. Nonetheless, Obsessed will probably make enough coin to open at #1 and dethrone last week’s champ, 17 Again.

Obsessed starring Ali Larter and Beyonce is about a married man who is stalked by an obsessed woman from his office. I really can’t stand these types of movies, what I call the hand that rocks the cradle genre. I generally find these movies...

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By Bill Bonfanti on 4/20/2009 12:52 PM

Disney “It” boy, Zac Efron proved his career has a future this weekend as he propelled 17 Again to a #1 debut. Russell Crowe’s latest film, political thriller, State of Play, had a solid debut in second place, while Jason Statham’s latest action entry, Crank: High Voltage, opened feebly in sixth place.

Zac Efron proved that he can open a film outside of the Disney umbrella with comedy, 17 Again. The movie had no trouble claiming the top spot, earning an impressive $24.1M, exactly as I predicted. This was Efron’s first leading role outside of High School Musical and the pressure for this film to perform was unbelievable. Reviews have been solid and with any luck, 17 Again should display solid legs in the weeks to come, creating new fans for the former Troy Bolton (his HSM role). I think the film can easily find its way to about $80M when all is said and done. Pretty impressive...

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By Bill Bonfanti on 4/17/2009 11:18 AM

This weekend moviegoers have 3 new choices as Zac Efron’s first movie since graduating from High School Musical, 17 Again opens, Jason Statham returns in the action sequel, Crank: High Voltage and yet another political thriller with a great cast opens, State of Play. The real questions are whether the former Troy Bolton can open a flick on his own and how big a drop Hannah Montana The Movie is in for after a huge opening weekend. Let’s take a look.

I have to admit, initially I didn’t think Zac Efron would have a successful career after High School Musical, but I’ve changed my mind. I think 17 Again is a terrific vehicle for him to prove his chops and it will be a big hit. The question is how big? How many of his High School Musical fans will support him in this new role? My guess is quite a few and I believe he will pick up some new fans as well. 17 Again will easily open at #1 this weekend with about $24M.

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By Bill Bonfanti on 4/13/2009 4:56 PM

Harper’s Island is a new mystery event on CBS that airs on Thursdays at 10 pm EST and after watching the first episode, I was genuinely surprised at how much I enjoyed it. 

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By Bill Bonfanti on 4/13/2009 11:43 AM

Miley Cyrus proved once again this weekend that she is the queen of all teens as Hannah Montana The Movie opened to big numbers, easily taking the #1 spot. Seth Rogen’s 90th movie, Observe and Report opened to middling results and Dragonball Evolution opened even worse than anticipated.

Hannah Montana The Movie collected $34M over the holiday weekend (very close to my $32M prediction) and easily ruled at the box office as the fanbase of tween girls were out in force. Hannah Montana had a brilliant debut Friday with its target audience of school age kids beginning spring vacation, bringing in $17.3M, half of its overall take. Sales fell about 40% on Saturday to $10.3M, while Sunday brought another nearly 40% drop to $6.4M. Given, the sales slip was due to the Easter holiday, but nonetheless, that large of a drop off from Friday to Sunday, does not bode well for the weeks to come. Last year, the Hannah Montana concert film grossed a total of $65M with ticket prices at $15 a pop. This would mean that about 4.3 million tickets were sold overall. The Movie collected $34M at average ticket prices ($7.20) which means about 4.7 million tickets were sold. If you follow those numbers, it is not a huge jump of logic to think that the fanbase has already been satisfied and that the future success of this movie depends on repeat business.   That being said, I expect Hannah Montana to experience a huge drop off next weekend, possibly as much as 70%.

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By Bill Bonfanti on 4/9/2009 9:40 PM

It is an interesting weekend at the box office, as Hannah Montana The Movie opens to the delight of tween girls everywhere, Dragonball Evolution opens a decade too late and Seth Rogen stars in what seems like his 20th movie in the past 2 years, Observe and Report. Hannah Montana will certainly have the biggest opening take out of the 3 new releases, but will it be enough to take the top spot away from Fast & Furious? Let’s take a look.

Last year, 3-D concert film, Hannah Montana: Best of Both Worlds, premiered to a record breaking $31.1M on just 683 screens. Can Hannah Montana The Movie soar as high? There are quite a few differences between the 2 movies. First, the 3-D concert was billed as a 1 week engagement (Disney extended its run after the...

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By Bill Bonfanti on 4/6/2009 11:22 AM

Fast & Furious, the 4th film in the franchise, smoked the competition this weekend, easily taking the top spot at the box office. This weekend’s other new release, Adventureland, had a mild opening landing in 6th place, while Monsters vs. Aliens, continued to play very well to families looking for some fun.

Fast & Furious raced its way to a terrific $72.5M opening, shattering industry expectations and April records along the way. High end predictions for the racing sequel were about $55M (I predicted $53M), so $72.5M was quite the shock to the industry. Fast & Furious destroyed the previous April record holder, Anger Management, which grossed $42.2M back in 2003. 

Fast & Furious also had the best opening of any in the franchise, tripling the opening take of...

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By Bill Bonfanti on 4/2/2009 4:56 PM

The summer season arrives at multiplexes early this year as, Fast & Furious, the fourth movie in the street racing franchise speeds into theatres everywhere. Also opening this weekend, coming of age comedy, Adventureland, from Superbad director Greg Mottola. Fast & Furious should easily be able to take the box office crown this weekend from reigning champ, Monsters vs. Aliens, but expect those kooky creatures to put up a fight.

Fast & Furious, the fourth film in the franchise, brings together the cast of the 2001 original, The Fast and the Furious, Vin Diesel, Paul Walker, Jordana Brewster and Michelle Rodriguez for a new story about street racing. I understand that this may be exciting to fans of the franchise, but I myself, find everything from the poor title of the sequel (might be the worst sequel name ever) to the cast reunion to the familiar story line to be kind of a drag. Nonetheless, F & F will rule multiplexes this weekend and cruise to #1. 

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