KissaBoo

Box Office Bingo

I really hate to admit that I know the box office for Batman Begins on its opening weekend was 48.8 million, however the sites I read keep spouting this number so I do. We all know the quality of a film has nothing with its box office - but we cannot be naive enough to not realize that box office is why studios make pictures. The reason I alert you to what you already know today, my dear reader, is this weekend, at least to me, raises an interesting debate to who will win the box office. While Batman Begins will probably have enough momentum to win again, among the new pictures you have Herbie, Bewitched, and Land of the Dead. With the recent successes at the box office like Boogeyman (though admittedly during the "dead season"), 28 Days Later, and the Dawn of the Dead remake, I think Dead will have enough juice to barely pull it out with Herbie second and then Bewitched because those two are splitting a core comedy/kids audience and I discount that either is enough of a draw to force people to go to the movies twice this weekend. My Hollywood insider firmly believes in a Herbie, Bewitched, and then Land finish. This Reuter's article says all signs point to Bewitched, Herbie, and then Land in a distant third. Get your bets in now!

Even more! At a first google, the best site devoted to box office is the-numbers and they even have a convenient horror section. Two interesting, and opposing, trends. Of the last 3 American horror movies, 2 finished first (The Ring 2, Amittyville Horror) with the other finishing second (House of Wax). Also no one ever releases horror films in the summer. It will be interesting.

Clarification I do believe Batman will ink out first place (heaven forbid I placed it fourth!), but the new movies intrique me. Though I would bet there is an inverse relationship between how well Batman and Land of the Dead perform.

The Winner Reuters / AP with their insider information did get the weekend correct - minus Mr. and Mrs. Smith placing 3rd. I actually realized shortly after I posted I was in trouble because a) Dead was on 900 less screens, which is to be expected for a R flick and b) I personally didn't see a commercial for the movie until Sunday night - though I don't see many commercials nowadays anyway.