Bows buoy biz o'seas
'Beauty,' 'Sleepy' wake up box office
Some exhibs, however, griped that similar-themed films were cannibalizing each other. Scarefest fans in Spain had to choose between "Sleepy Hollow" in its buoyant second round and rookies "House on the Haunted Hill" (which was just fair) and "Lake Placid" (which sank without a trace).
In Mexico, "Sleepy Hollow" squared off against "The Bone Collector" (an easy victory for Tim Burton's chiller) and Brazil (where Phillip Noyce's serial killer was more potent). In France, "Collector" narrowly edged out "Haunted Hill," although the latter was on far fewer screens and neither had much to shout about.
'Sense' of scale
Demonstrating a gravity-defying power not witnessed in Europe since "Titanic," "The Sixth Sense" retained the top spot in France, Spain, Belgium, Holland and Switzerland, salting away about $16.3 million abroad. Cume hit $294.5 million and will blast past $300 million by today.
"American Beauty" bowed superbly on limited screens in the U.K., Australia, Spain, Norway and Portugal, in each case posting screen averages comfortably ahead of the entries of "Shakespeare in Love" or "The Truman Show." The Kevin Spacey-Annette Bening starrer added prints and gained momentum in its soph sessions in Italy, Germany, Austria and Holland as it minted $10.3 million in 12 countries. Cume reached $15.3 million.
"Sleepy Hollow" fetched $1.6 million in six days on 265 in Mexico (13% up on "Double Jeopardy"), $1.3 million in three days on 245 in Italy, $763,000 in five days on 52 in Korea and a mediocre $711,000 in five days on 145 in Brazil. Estimated cume is $30 million.
"Bone Collector" ascended to about $27.8 million from 23 territories.
"Double Jeopardy" commanded pole position in the U.K. (beating "The General's Daughter" by 53%) but was less alluring in Holland. Cume is $21.1 million from 21 countries, highlighted by Oz's nifty $6.2 million, Mexico's $3.1 million in 19 days and Brazil's $1.8 million in 19 days.
Posting yet another record in the Bond canon, "The World Is Not Enough" snared $1.3 million in five days on 53 in Taiwan. But pic is wilting in Italy, plunging by 40% for a sub-par $4.7 million in 20 days. Cume is $193.4 million and will overtake "Tomorrow Never Dies" ($221.3 million) after its Feb. 5 launch in Japan.
"Stuart Little" had big debuts in Argentina and Chile. Cume topped $16 million from 12 markets, led by Mexico's $7.5 million and Korea's $3.2 million.
'Insider' inroads
In its first major offshore territory, domestic slow-burner "The Insider" performed sturdily at 54 locations in Australia.
"Toy Story 2" ($48.1 million cume) smashed the all-time first-day record for BVI in France Feb. 2, grossing $795,000 on 633, cueing a massive weekend. "Tarzan" raced past "Pretty Woman" ($259.8 million) to $264.2 million, now BVI's fourth biggest-grosser ever behind "The Lion King," "Aladdin" and "Armageddon."
'Anna' and Allen
"Anna and the King" hit $40 million, surpassing its domestic take, after a soft preem in Germany; it had a moderate bow in France. The Gallic love affair for Woody Allen continued as "Sweet and Lowdown" unspooled brightly.
Luc Besson's "The Messenger: The Story of Joan of Arc" saw undistinguished debuts in Spain, Sweden, Denmark, Finland and Portugal, and wobbled in its second in Italy. Cume is $50 million.
Despite the sizable number of baseball fans in Japan, "For Love of the Game" scored a lowly $1.3 million in five days at 185 dugouts in its first foreign try-out.
