Onetime collaborators Wes Anderson and Noah Baumbach each have a new DVD release this week. The two last worked together on Anderson’s gorgeous and witty Fantastic Mr. Fox, and their idiosyncratic proclivities and points of view are very much on display at both ends of the High/Low spectrum. (As a bonus, both films feature Frances McDormand!) more »
Two animated features sit atop the box office this past weekend. Disney/Pixar's Brave seized the top of the b.o. as expected. The animated feature grossed over $66.7 million Friday through Sunday. That total is above Pixar's previous feature title Cars 2, which opened with $66.1 million in 2011. Madagascar 3: Europe's Most Wanted held strong with $20.2 million.
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Those colorful wild animals sat atop the box office once again over the weekend. Madagascar 3 held onto the premiere position for the second consecutive week, while Warner Bros. Rock of Ages bit the dust despite its star-wattage. It wasn't a total surprise, however, though a disappointment all the same. The Tom Cruise starrer grossed just over $15 million in 3,470 theaters. Prometheus outshined Rock in its second weekend, holding onto the number two spot in the broader box office. The Fox feature took in $20.2 million in 3,442 theaters, averaging $5,869 - over $1,500 more than Rock of Ages - ouch.
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Also rounding out Friday's round up of news briefs, Harvey Weinstein receives UCLA honors, New York's LGBT Festival sets its opener, the Austin Film Festival touts its record submission and California is chided for not doing enough to keep productions from ditching the state.
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Prometheus held the box office throne in the United Kingdom last weekend. Madagascar 3 won't have its British theatrical roll out until the fall of all things, so Prometheus had no big newcomers to contend with in the United Kingdom last weekend. The Ridley Scott directed feature took in £3.14M ($4.87M) in its second weekend, a 50 per cent drop. Still, its ten day total is £15.47M ($23.99M), just behind the complete cumulative for Ridley Scott's Robin Hood which totaled £15.65M, according to figures by The Guardian.
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Those wild animals in Madagascar 3: Europe's Most Wanted showed their box office heft, beating out Prometheus to land atop the overall box office for the weekend. The opener for the third installment of the animated feature figured bigger than anticipated for the pic which debuted at the Cannes Film Festival last month and is clearly flexing its franchise prowess. The film had an 8% increase Saturday, bringing out families. But Prometheus is certainly not a disappointment. The feature also had better than expected numbers. Internationally, the pic stood at $91.5 million over the weekend after nearly two weeks in release in some territories and its IMAX $9.1 million total is a June record.
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Also happening Friday morning in news, Warner Bros. is going for a new action-adventure project using Chinese mythology and Hugh Jackman takes a short leave at Les Miserables for Tony. RIP J. Michael Riva and Pinochet doc sparks protests in Chile.
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