Robots rule Japan
'A.I'' computes while 'Pearl' peek bodes well
Meanwhile, "Cats and Dogs" had a promising foreign preem in Taiwan and "Atlantis: The Lost Empire" shrugged off its watery domestic perf with a buoyant bow in Mexico.
In Japan, "A.I." earned $6.5 million in its soph session on 526 screens (abating by just 21%, excluding sneaks), selling 545,444 tickets. That stands as an industry record in local currency, surpassing the second weekends of "Mission: Impossible 2" by 22%, "Jurassic Park" by 23% and "Star Wars: Episode 1 -- The Phantom Menace" by 24%. Its nine-day tally is $25.1 million.
'Harbor' harbinger
"Pearl Harbor" sneaked in Japan on Saturday, clocking 123,000 admissions and $1.6 million on 389 screens, eclipsing "Armageddon's" previews by 139% to rank as the market's fourth-highest in history behind "A.I.," "Phantom Menace," and "M:I2." The omens are bright for its nationwide preem this Saturday.
The WWII epic raked in $10.7 million overseas, elevating its cume to $130.1 million. Michael Bay's pic captured $1.5 million on 282 in Spain, 4% up on "Armageddon" and 22% better than "Saving Private Ryan" but not in the stratosphere.
"Pearl" did set opening records for BVI in Sweden ($820,000 on 105, the third-best for a U.S. title there behind "Independence Day" and "Phantom Menace"), Norway ($490,000 on 79, 13% ahead of "Armageddon"), Poland ($425,000 on 100) and Portugal ($280,000 on 73, beating "Gone in Sixty Seconds").
"Lara Croft: Tomb Raider" seized pole position in the U.K. with $5.3 million on 448, including previews, outrunning "Gladiator's" entry by 8%. The actioner tumbled by 48% in France, scoring $7 million in 12 days, and by about 45% in Germany for an estimated $6.5 million in 11 days. All told, Simon West's pic pocketed about $11 million in 16 markets, propelling the cume to around $41 million, excluding contributions from Latin America, which were not available at press time.
Green monster
The frame's pacesetter, "Shrek" whistled up $17.1 million from about 3,000 engagements in 20 territories, hoisting its cume to $47.1 million. Toon devoured $1.9 million in three days in Korea -- an all-time high for an animated entry and a local DreamWorks record. It also commanded top spot in France with $3.2 million on 690 and Germany at $2.7 million on 669 -- comfortably ahead of "Toy Story 2" and "A Bug's Life" in both territories but below "Dinosaur" and "Tarzan."
The ogre's $734,000 debut in Hong Kong was good but was buffeted by a typhoon that caused havoc last Thursday and Friday. Demonstrating terrific playability, "Shrek" eased by 16% in the U.K. ($13.4 million in 10 days) and 3% in Oz ($9.2 million in 18 days).
"Atlantis" captivated Mexico with $2 million on 400, slightly below "A Bug's Life" but almost double the take of "Mulan" and "Hercules."
Animal magnetism
"Cats and Dogs" whistled up $777,000 on 56 in Taiwan, its Taipei figures surpassing "Toy Story 2" by 3%, the first "Dr. Dolittle" by 17% and "Babe: Pig in the City" by 175%.
"Dr. Dolittle 2" entered Australia in third place, ringing up $1 million on 271 plus $431,000 in sneaks, but was bitten by "Cats and Dogs" in Taiwan, taking $181,000 on 49.
"Swordfish" nabbed a nifty $399,000 on 70 in Thailand and $598,000 on 75 in Korea, and dipped by a reasonable 26% in Oz, fetching a smart $3.5 million in 11 days.
Ivan Reitman's "Evolution" initialed in Italy with $390,000 on 276 --No. 1 in an idle market -- but could manage only third spot in Holland behind "Pearl Harbor's" second and the fifth outing of "Bridget Jones's Diary."
Baz Luhrmann's "Moulin Rouge" danced into Singapore with an OK $243,000 on 25 and climbed to $11.7 million in its seventh lap Down Under.
"The Mummy Returns" is poised to become the first blockbuster to hit $200 million abroad this year, cuming $197 million.
