Box Office Boffo is going dark. I've taken on additional duties, so we've decided that my time and attention are better spent elsewhere. In tough economic times, it's back to the basics.

Thanks to one and all.

Warner Bros. tells me it is screening Zack Snyder's "Watchmen" for theater owners this week, as well as for press. I wonder what the reaction will be. Things we already know--film's running time is a hefty 2:45. It also is incredible violent. 

Here's a poll just pust out by MovieTickets.com on "Watchmen," followed by a survey on other upcoming releases:

WATCHMEN

According to over 3,000 ticket buyers polled on MovieTickets.com from Feb. 3 - Feb. 15, 25 percent of males and 14 percent of females are aware of the film "Watchmen." Of those aware, over half of both genders expect to see the film opening weekend (77% males, 57% females).

WEEKLY MOVIETICKETS.COM POLL

Which Spring release (March 20-June 21) are you most anticipating?

35% - X-Men Origins: Wolverine (May 1)

30% - Star Trek (May 8)

17% - Terminator Salvation (May 22)

13% - Angels and Demons (May 15)

4% - The Soloist (Apr. 26)

Total Votes on MovieTickets.com: 5,197

New Line/Warner Bros./Paramount's redo "Friday the 13th" grossed $19.3 million as it debuted Friday in theaters, pulling off the best opening day gross ever for President's Day and the second best gross for a horror movie after "Hannibal," which posted a Friday gross of $19.7 million. Some might not consider "Hannibal" a horror movie, since the original "Silence of the Lambs" was nominated for an Oscar..

"Friday the 13th" should hit $50 million for the four-day weekend. Gulp.

Battling it out for No. 2 is 20th Century Fox's hit "Taken" and New Line/Warners holdover "He's Just Not That Into You." Coming in No. 4 on Friday was Disney debut "Confessions of a Shopaholic," which couldn't quite compete with "He's Just Not That Into You."

Stay tuned.

Yet another femme movie has conquered the domestic box office. Warner Bros. and New Line's star-powered "He's Just Not That Into You" grossed roughly $10 million as it debuted Friday in theaters. That's well ahead of expectations. For years, fan boys have been the coveted demo, but fan girls are now proving just as potent.
 
Coming in No. 2 on Friday was Fox's holdover sleeper hit "Taken," starring Liam Neeson. Film grossed north of $6 million. Movie is the favored choice among adult moviegoers. What can I say, "Taken" is pure fun.

Focus Features' stop-action family pic "Coraline" surprised in its strength, opening north of $4 million. Family friendly is the first stop-action pic filmed in 3-D, and is the favored choice among female girls.

Boys and young men went for Summit Entertainment's sci-fi thrilled "Push," which grossed nearly $3.5 million as it opened in theaters Friday. That put Sony's Steve Martin topliner "Pink Panther 2" at No. 4 for the day, grosing north of $3 million. Film could pick up the pace today and Sunday, since it should play to families.

Warning: Do not play this if there are children in the vicinity.

http://network.nationalpost.com/np/blogs/theampersand/archive/2009/02/02/235923.aspx

According to a poll released today by MoviesTickets.com, Paramount's "Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen" was the most memorable movie trailer airing during the Super Bowl.

More than 83% of those surveyed remembered the trailer, while 23% said it was the most effective in terms of making them want to see the movie when it's released on June 26. Paramount's "Star Trek" trailer came in second in terms of being most memorable. Your thoughts?

MovieTickets.com Poll: Which of the following movie advertisements (trailers) do you remember seeing during the Super Bowl?

1. "Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen" (83%)
2. "Star Trek" (79%)
3. "Monsters vs. Aliens" (78%)
4. "Fast and Furious" (77%)
5. "Land of the Lost" (75%)
6. "Race to Witch Mountain" (74%)
7. "Angels and Demons" (64%)
8. "G.I. Joe" (59%)
9. "Up" (48%)
10. "Year One" (34%)

I went to see Gus Van Sant's "Milk" over the weekend at the Arclight in Hollywood, and sat next to a straight couple. During every kissing scene, the man squirmed nervously. He certainly seemed to like the movie overall, but as I left the theater, I couldn't help but wonder if the Fidget Factor is stopping "Milk" from breaking out at the box office and capturing mainstream's heart.

I'm not accusing anyone of being homophobic. Even I slightly squirmed when first seeing the film at the premiere in San Francisco. It's a natural response. I remember feeling the same way about "Brokeback Mountain" (both films are from Focus Features). The difference is, "Brokeback" become a box office phenemenon. It was also a love story, whereas "Milk" is not. 

One also has to wonder whether the Fidget Factor will hurt "Milk's" Oscar chances. The good news for Focus is that "Milk" has already grossed north of $23 million domestically, a perfectly respectable sum. In other words, there's no use crying over split milk.

Here's an early story on the Friday box office:

Twentieth Century Fox’s Liam Neeson action-thriller “Taken” grossed an estimated $9.5 million from 3,183 theaters at the Friday box office to score the best opening day ever for Super Bowl weekend.

Historically, male-driven pics have avoided the Super Bowl frame, but Fox decided to break that tradition in a move that will likely result in other studios doing the same, considering the strength of “Taken.”

Paramount’s new horror entry “The Uninvited” performed more in line with Super Bowl pics, grossing an estimated $4.4 million to $4.5 million from 2,344 runs on Friday.

Lionsgate’s Renee Zellweger-Harry Connick Jr. romantic comedy “New In Town,” the weekend’s third opener, had a difficult time besting three holdovers—Sony’s surprise hit “Paul Blart Mall Cop,” Warner Bros.’ “Gran Torino” and Sony’s “Underworld: Rise of the Lycans.”

“New In Town” grossed roughly $2.4 million to $2.5 million from 1,941 runs.

“Taken,” starring Liam Neeson as a former government operative who goes to any length to save his kidnapped daughter, is on track to tackle the second-best opening weekend gross for a film daring to bow on Super Bowl weekend, when Sunday traffic can fall off by as much as 75% from Saturday.

In 2006, Sony’s “When a Stranger Calls” posted an opening day take of $9 million on its way to grossing $21.6 million for the weekend.

While “Taken” should beat “Stranger” for the weekend, it will have a tough time besting Disney’s 3-D blockbuster “Hannah Montana/Miley Cyrus: Best of Both Worlds Concert Tour,” which posted a Super Bowl weekend debut of $31.1 million a year ago on the strength of tween girls unconcerned with football (concert film’s opening day take was $8.7 million).

Among Oscar best picture hopefuls on Friday, Fox Searchlight’s “Slumdog Millionaire” easily remained the box office leader, grossing an estimated $2.3 million from 1,633 theaters for a boffo domestic cume of $61.9 million. It is only the film’s second weekend in wide release.

Best pic noms “The Reader,” from the Weinstein Co., and Focus Features’ “Milk” both expand nationwide this weekend.

“Reader” grossed an estimated $680,000 from 1,002 runs for a per location average of $685 and cume of $11 million.

“Milk,” expanding to 822 theaters, grossed an estimated $415,000 for a per location average of $470 and cume of $22.2 million.

“Frost/Nixon,” expanding nationwide last weekend, grossed an estimated $420,000 on Friday from 1,105 runs for a location average of $380 and cume of $13.3 million.

 

 

Everybody knows that you don't open a male-driven film on Super Bowl weekend. And I mean everybody. So what's Fox thinking in deciding to go out with "Taken?" It's called taking a chance. It's also called too many movies, and too little room on the release calendar.

Most think "Taken" will open in the high teens, and perhaps cross the $20 million mark. It's harder to say how horror pic "The Uninvited" will do, but it good give "Taken" a run for its money.

Fandango's Harry Medved just sent over this groovy poll:

* According to a Fandango/Comcast.net poll of more than 2,500 moviegoers today (as of 3 pm PT today), 41% said that Oscar’s “biggest snub” today was the omission of The Dark Knight in the Best Picture category.

 * According to a separate Fandango poll, 81% of moviegoers say that the Academy is out of touch with the tastes of mainstream moviegoers.

 * There was a considerable increase in ticket sales for all five of the Best Picture nominees today. Below you’ll find a comparison of  yesterday’s pre-Oscar nominations ticket sales (Wednesday, 6 am – 2 pm PT) to today’s post-Oscar nominations ticket sales (Thursday, 6 am – 2 pm PT) on Fandango:

 Fandango Ticket Sales (as of 1/22/2009, 2 pm today)

 Title                           % Increase from Yesterday (between 6am and 2pm)

Frost/Nixon                   152%

Milk                              150%

Slumdog Millionaire        142%

Benjamin Button            212%

The Reader                    350%

 

Disney has good reason to be happy this morning. Turns out the the First Daughters invited friends over inauguration night to watch "Bolt" and "High School Musical 3: Senior Year." 

Oh yes, and the Jonas Brothers stopped by 1600 Pennsylvania Ave. to surprise Sasha and Malia during a post-screening scavenger hunt.

I'm happy to see the White House theater being used again, and so quickly. George Bush and Laura Bush weren't exactly known for being big movie lovers. (Mrs. Bush is an avid reader, much to her credit.)

Police in Greensboro, N.C., are investigating a shooting in the lobby of a multplex Friday that left a man wounded, but couldn't say whether there was a connection between the shooting and Fox Searchlight's biopic "Notorious," which follows the life of rap artist Christopher Wallace, a.k.a., Biggie Smalls and Notorious B.I.G.

Rapper and actor Jamal "Gravy" Woolard, who plays B.I.G. in the film, was in the theater at the time of the shooting, police and witnesses said. 

For now, the theater is pulling all shows of "Notorious" until further notice, according to press reports, although it could be playing again as soon as Sunday.

"We can't say whether or not this shooting is in direct relationship to the movie 'Notorious' B.I.G. We just can't say," a police spokesman told the Greensboro News-Record. 

This is the second shooting at a theater in the last month. On Christmas Eve, a Philadelphia man watching "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button" shot someone after a brawl ensued over talking too loudly.

There's a storm brewing over Hollywood and it has nothing to do with Mother Nature.
 
There's such a glut of films that distributors were going out of their minds on Monday and Tuesday as they scrambled to keep screens. Imagine the cajoling distribs had to do when talking to theater owners (then again, it's the fault of studios, not exhibs) And it's only January, for God's sakes. It's not supposed to be like this.

One studio distribution topper said he can't remember such a bad couple of days. "It's disasterous," he explained. "Good movies are being knocked off of screens."

I guess that's what happens when you don't count on so many films clicking with moviegoers, as nearly all of the Christmases releases did, plus last weekend's successful wide openers, "Gran Torino," "Bride Wars" and "The Unborn."

On Friday, there's three new wide entries; horror pic "My Bloody Valentine 3-D," Notorious B.I.G. biopic "Nortorios" and family comedy "Hotel For Dogs."
 
Jan. 23 sees SIX nationwide releases, including family adventure "Inkheart," "Underworld 3" and comedy "Paul Blart Mall Cop." Three specialty films that have been playing in limited runs expand nationwide; "Frost/Nixon," "Revolutionary Road" and "Slumdog Millionaire."

If you're a distributor, break out the Tylenol--or the booze. 

Here's the early skinny on the weekend: There was no post-Christmas fatigue among moviegoers on Friday. 

Warner Bros.' Clint Eastwood starrer "Gran Torino" quickly sped to No. 1 in its nationwide debut, grossing at least $10 million for the day. Eastwood both directed and stars in the film. Box office insiders have been predicting that "Torino" will do bigger business than any of  his previous works.

The race for No. 2 on Friday was looking too close to call between 20th Century Fox's female comedy "Bride Wars" and Rogue Pictures' horror title "The Unborn." Pics are looking like they did in the $8 million range for the day, give or take. "Bride Wars," which follows closely on the heels of Fox holiday hit "Marley & Me," should finish the weekend ahead of "The Unborn" when all is said and done.

Talk about good timing for Ryan Kavanaugh's Relativity Media, which just this week closed a deal to buy Rogue Pictures from Universal. "Unborn" is the first film covered by the pact. "Unborn," as well as all future Rogue titles, will be distributed by U.

"Bride Wars" looks like it will continue the success female pics have been enjoying at the box office over the last year. Romp stars Kate Hudson and Anne Hathaway, and was produced by Fox 2000 and New Regency. Duo are on on fire, what with "Marley & Me" and now this film.

Paramount's "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button" also did good biz on Friday, coming in not far behind "Marley."

If you're doubting that Clint Eastwood's "Gran Torino" and Anne Hathaway-Kate Hudson comedy "Bride Wars" are going to do well at the box office, don't.

Both films have appeal built into their names. Warner Bros.' "Gran Torino" equals the name of a car equals male moviegoers. (Oh yes, there are guns, too.) That's before factoring in the star appeal of Eastwood--one rival studio honcho says that Eastwood is nothing short of a national treasure.

"Bride" equals bride equals female moviegoers. Never mind that the 20th Century Fox movie is getting stood up at the altar by reviewers. Just look at "Four Christmases," which was likewise chewed up and spit out by critics, yet it's gone on to gross north of $100 million at the domestic box office.

Here's my weekend box office preview.