And this is why sci-fi movies are a dying genre, because when they actually come out nobody goes to see them. That is unless they have Star Trek or Star Wars plastered across the title. Still, it has to sting a little to get beaten out by a movie about falling pancakes. That's just wrong.
1. Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs- $24.6M/$60M
So I guess I really do need to check this movie out, eh? I promised I would see it if it proved to be something of a powerhouse, and two weeks at the top surely indicates that, especially in the face of some stiff competition. Cloudy only dropped a mere 19% from last week, suggesting that hungrey audiences came back for a second helping.
2. Surrogates- $15M
Ouch. When asked about this movie a few days ago by a friend, my response was "It looks like I, Robot and not in a good way". They would kill for I, Robot's opening weekend right now. The Bruce Willis actioner about a world where people have essentially been replaced by robotic duplicates, failed to connect with viewers, and part of me thinks it's because all we really get to see in the TV spots and trailers is this Life Model Decoy of Bruce Willis looking vaguely amused while he investigates a murder. Little action, if any, is shown to indicate that this might be a movie worth sitting through and not just some lame robot procedural.
3. Fame- $10M
I know a lot of people idolize the original, but let's be totally honest and admit that Fame wasn't nearly the classic most people think it was. The smarter play would've been to start this thing over from scratch with a new label, as recent years have shown that there is an audience for musical dramas, but what people want is a new take on it, not a rehash of a film that has just as many negative connotations as positive. If you want an idea how much of a misstep this debut was, just know that it took in less than Take the Lead, an awful film by any measure.
4. The Informant!- $6.92M/$21M
Proving that people just weren't into this week's new crop of films, Steven Soderbergh's price fixing farce held on to 34% of it's audience for a strong second week.
5. I Can Do Bad All by Myself- $4.75M/$44.5M
People continue to watch the same Tyler Perry movie with a different title. The guy is a genius at that, there's no denying.
6. Pandorum- $4.41M
The dismal week for sci-fi films continues with a disastrous opening for the Dennis Quaid spacehip horror. They did themselves no favors with a trailer that was almost incomprehensible, and TV spots that were shorter and yet less decipherable. It always helps to be able to tell what's going on. Plus, other than Quaid there was little real star power to push this thing. I like Ben Foster, but does he put butts in seats? No.
7. Love Happens- $4.33M/$14.7M
Zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz....
8. Jennifer's Body- $3.5M/$12.3M
As bad as this drop is, it's actually worse. The gross for the sneak previews of Ellen Page's new coming of age flick, Whip It, went to Jennifer's Body. Now if only they had managed to combine rollerball and Megan Fox in her pj's, they would've had a better movie to push. But hindsight is 20/20 they say.
9. 9- $2.83M/$27.1M
Buoyed by it's amazing visuals, 9 continues to hold strong in the top 10. No, it's not a world beater by any stretch of the imagaination, but considering it's lackluster opening one could have easily figured it'd be off the radar by now.
10. Inglourious Basterds- $2.72M/$114M
Also...
The top per site average of the week went to Michael Moore's latest doc, Capitalism: A Love Story, which raked in $240,000 in only 4 sites. That's enough dough to make any body a little greedy, if you ask me. Next week it expands to more theatres, where it's sure to make a much bigger splash, even if the subject matter is about a year late, if you ask me.
