TIDAL WAVE OF SALES FOR ON STRANGER TIDES

It was only available as a $34 Blu-ray disc combo package, but there were enough sales in that format alone to make the fourth Pirates of the Caribbean movie, On Stranger Tides, the top seller last week, according to Nielsen VideoScan First Alert, which does not release actual sales figures. Disney’s home entertainment unit plans […]

CAPTAIN AMERICA TRIUMPHS OVER HARRY IN AMERICA

Just as it had during another war with Great Britain — one that no doubt cost far less than the current one — America returned from crushing defeat last weekend to win the latest weekend at the box office in spectacular fashion. Paramount’s Captain America: The First Avenger blew past the U.K.-produced Harry Potter and […]

HALLOWS: FIRST IN SALES; SIXTH IN ATTENDANCE

It didn’t come close to the $195 million that some of the wildest forecasts envisaged, but Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2 did earn slightly more than Warner Bros.’ Sunday estimate — coming in at $169.2 million, a record for a three-day domestic weekend (versus the estimated $168.55 million). That record was achieved, […]

HALLOWS IS DEATHLY TO BOX-OFFICE RECORDS

Warner Bros.’ Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2 shattered one record after another over the weekend, culminating with an estimated $168.6 million domestically for the three days, making it the all-time champion for a regular weekend opener. The previous record, $158.4 million, set in 2008, was held by another Warner Bros. film, The […]

TRANSFORMERS 3: BIGGEST MOVIE OF 2011

Transformers: Dark of the Moon officially became the top movie at the box office this year when it earned an additional $47.1 million in its second weekend to bring its domestic total to $261.1 million. It thereby replaced The Hangover: Part II in the top spot. Two other new — and relatively low-cost — films […]

TRANSFORMERS SEQUEL LAYS WASTE TO NAYSAYERS

Transformers: Dark of the Moon brightened up the July 4th holiday weekend as it earned $97.8 million between Friday and Sunday and $115.9 million over the four-day holiday. It represented the biggest opening for a July 4th weekend ever, beating Spider-Man 2‘s $88.2 million for the three days and $115.8 million for the four. The […]

CARS 2 DRIVES OVERALL BOX OFFICE TO VICTORY

With the top two films raking in far more than even the most optimistic forecasters had envisaged, the box office resumed its summer march forward, erasing a little more of the shortfall from 2010. After two weeks of coming in behind year-ago revenue, last weekend’s total take of $176.2 million came in at 6.8 percent […]

CARS 2 WINS BOX-OFFICE RACE

Disney/Pixar’s Cars 2 sped past analysts’ forecasts to take in an estimated $68 million over the weekend. The film, which opened to mostly terrible reviews — unheard of for a Pixar production — had been expected to earn $55-60 million. Overseas, it added another $42.9 million in 18 countries. Reporting on the victory, Daily Variety […]

CARS 2 EXPECTED TO NAB CHECKERED FLAG

Critics may have made a wreckage out of Disney/Pixar’s Cars 2, but that probably won’t dissuade moviegoers from rubbernecking to see it this weekend, analysts say. While Toy Story 3 opened last year with $110 million, most forecasters suggest that Cars 2 will wind up with a little more than half that amount — $55-60 […]

MOVIE REVIEWS: BAD TEACHER

Justin Timberlake may decide to reconsider his reported decision to switch careers from singing to acting after he reads the reviews for Bad Teacher, in which he stars with Cameron Diaz and Jason Segal. Actually Timberlake himself is getting OK notices — critics particularly like a scene in which he sings an awful song off […]