Weekend Receipts: How to Train, You're Draggin'

Were any of the new entries at this weekend's box office breathing fire, or will they have to teleport back to the 80's to avoid embarrassment? The boombox is thumping with the news of some weekend receipts.

1. How to Train Your Dragon

Gross: $43,300,000 (new)

Screens: 4,055 (PSA: $10,678)

Weeks: 1

It's entirely possible that the well-liked How to Train Your Dragon will hold up well in the coming weeks, but then again, Clash of the Titans is about to go Kraken on all the films in the marketplace hoping to retain their 3D screens. There's no question that DW/Paramount was hoping for a better foothold to begin with. Instead, even with higher ticket prices, it was well behind last year's Monsters vs. Aliens.

2. Alice in Wonderland

Gross: $17,300,000 (cume: $293,100,000)

Screens: 3,384 (PSA: $5,112)

Weeks: 4 (change: -49.4%)

I would laud Alice's impressive hold in the face of another 3D family film, but I don't want to provoke an embarrassing third-act dance of joy from Johnny Depp. So I'll just keep my comments to myself for now, thank you very much.

3. Hot Tub Time Machine

Gross: $13,650,000 (new)

Screens: 2,754 (PSA: $4,956)

Weeks: 1

Hot Tub Time Machine is kind of a what-you-see, what-you-get situation: Everything about the movie is implicit in that title, and everything about its gross is in line with those expectations too. If you were looking for more, look on 'shrooms.

4. The Bounty Hunter

Gross: $12,400,000 (cume: $38,812,000)

Screens: 3,074 (PSA: $4,034)

Weeks: 2 (change: -40.1%)

After a humiliating opening weekend where Bounty Hunter got sand kicked in its face by Diary of a Wimpy Kid, the Jennifer Aniston vehicle lurched ahead in its second week. Wimpy Kid, watch out for Aniston's wet willies.

5. Diary of a Wimpy Kid

Gross: $10,000,000 (cume: $35,776,000)

Screens: 3,083 (PSA: $3,244)

Weeks: 2 (change: -54.8%)

Dear Diary: Maybe it wasn't a great idea to open smack in the middle of Alice in Wonderland and How to Train Your Dragon. Next time, early February might be better? I mean, last week's gross was pretty good and all, but now I feel like I've gotten lost in the mall and Mom won't realize it until she climbs in the Taurus. Security?



Comments

  • soccerboy says:

    I don't understand how "Bounty Hunter's" opening weekend was humiliating. It lost to a kids movie - that's almost expected nowadays. Plus, "Wimpy" was the first real kids movie to be released in weeks, so those kids were jonesing for a movie. Then, "Bounty" made more than a third of it's budget back, and will have made back it's entire budget by next Friday? When it comes down to whether something is a hit or not, what really matters is the rate of return, not comparing it with something else.

  • HwoodHills says:

    Absolutely. All points sound.
    In regard to HOT TUB you also had a flick aimed at males opening on less screens during a big sports week for the target audience.

  • ami says:

    Good point Hwoodhills. I think positive reviews and positive word of mouth will keep HOT TUB afloat for weeks to come. Sorry, couldn't resist.

  • Allen says:

    Maybe Dreamworks and the exhibitors shouldn't have been so GREEDY to boost the cost of 3D tickets?