'Nightmare' chills B.O. competish; 'Flesh' 2nd
Third slot was being hotly contested by freshman outings of Orion's "RoboCop 3" and TriStar's "Look Who's Talking Now," which were both anticipating $ 4.2 million weekends.
The limited 94-screen launch of Columbia's "Remains of the Day" produced a bountiful $ 1.5 million, while the platform release of Gramercy's "A Home of Our Own" was dullish at close to $ 900,000.
Touchstone's "The Nightmare Before Christmas" was off a slim 9% in its second weekend of widerelease in running up its $ 7.5 mil. The grim fairy tale sent a chill up the spine with averages of $ 4,490 from 1,671 haunts, bringing the film's cume to $ 26.5 million.
Paramount's prairie tale "Flesh and Bone" got off to an optimistic start with its $ 4.6 million, but revenues were fairly flat throughout the weekend. The heavy drama received mixed reviews, with critics applauding the filmmaking more than the story. It earned averages of $ 3,830 from 1,200 playdates.
Despite a plethora of new titles, none emerged as a powerhouse. Still, sheer volume propelled the box office upward by some 18% from last weekend. It was also 16% better than the comparable weekend of 1992, when Warner Bros.' "Passenger 57" ascended in its debut to $ 10.5 million. The year to date is nearing $ 4.27 billion and is almost certain to set a new annual benchmark at Thanksgiving.
The scramble for positions three through six was ferocious. Newcomers "RoboCop 3" and "Look Who's Talking Now" were projecting $ 4.2 million, while vet entries "Cool Runnings" and "The Beverly Hillbillies" were close behind at about $ 4.1 million each.
Orion's "RoboCop 3" was running about $ 150,000 ahead of "Look Who's Talking Now" through Saturday, but the latter sequel was expected to pull even on Sunday. Industry trackers felt the respective company numbers were optimistic and that both films would wind up closer to $ 4 million when final accounts were in hand.
"RoboCop 3" at $ 4.2 million would translate to a per-screen average of $ 2, 340. It's currently being detained in 1,795 playdates. It played to a young male audience, with its box office jumping about 40% Friday to Saturday.
TriStar's "Look Who's Talking Now" saw its Friday to Saturday biz jump roughly 60% as it skewed decidedly more family. Launched in 1,859 playpens, it was expecting averages of $ 2,260.
Columbia received very good news with $ 1.5 million returns on its upscale debut of "Remains of the Day" to rank 13th. The pedigree Merchant Ivory production was clearly outgrossing the duo's earlier "Howards End" on a per-screen basis. It had sterling averages of $ 15,960 from 94 screens.
Gramercy's debut of "A Home of Our Own" reported $ 900,000, though tracking pointed to a figure closer to $ 800,000. Regardless, the feel-good family drama did not demonstrate vital box office signs. The best-case scenario was $ 2,100 averages from 429 houses.
The Samuel Goldwyn Co.'s limited five-screen launch of "Wild West" had a discordant $ 6,200 preem weekend. The offbeat musical wasn't leaving audiences humming, with $ 1,240 averages.
Warner Bros. was expansive with "Fearless," which finished 11th with $ 2 million. The drama rose 98% for averages of $ 2,670. In 749 playdates, its cume has taken off to $ 3.8 million.
Disney's "Cool Runnings" rebounded from the shock of Halloween to take fifth place with $ 4.1 million. Demonstrating definite commercial muscle, its earnings rose 11% for averages of $ 2,350. Out of 1,741 chutes for the frame, it has a cume of $ 43.4 million.
Still twangy in sixth, Fox's "The Beverly Hillbillies" also estimated $ 4.1 million. It had mighty fine averages of $ 2,250 from 1,825 vaults. Off just 17% for the weekend, it's banked $ 30.7 million.
TriStar's "Rudy" ran the field for $ 3.2 million to finish seventh. Off 11%, it had averages of $ 2,180. The true-life pep talk emerged from 1,465 locker rooms and touched down with a cume of $ 15.5 million.
Columbia's "Malice" was an active eighth with $ 2.8 million. Buttressed by sneaks of the studio's "My Life," it slumped just 4% in 1,458 house calls. Averaging $ 1,920 for the weekend, it has earned $ 40.5 million to date.
The roughly 800 sneak previews of "My Life" on Saturday reflected strong audience interest. Both "Malice" and "The Age of Innocence"-- which double-billed the new film -- experienced noticeable boosts in business. Columbia reported overall 90% capacity for the sneaks with 70% of the engagements sold out. Exit polls revealed very strong female response, a slightly older audience demographic and a definite "recommend" approval of about 80%.
Still slugging in ninth was Warner Bros.' "Demolition Man" with a $ 2.7 million weekend. Taking a powerful 36% blow, the actioner pumped it out from 1, 601 arenas for averages of $ 1,690. Its cume is $ 49.7 million.
MGM's "Fatal Instinct" took a steep 37% plunge to finish 10th with $ 2.2 million. The hard-boiled parody averaged $ 1,170 from 1,886 reporting precincts. Its 10-day cume is $ 6.8 million.
