Box Office Power Rankings: November 21-23, 2008

bolt.jpgAs we all expected, Bolt ran away with this week’s Box Office Power Rankings … . Hmmm. Let’s step back a second. That Disney’s computer-animated dog won isn’t an upset, but its five-point margin is surprising. Even after I began plugging in the numbers, I was anticipating something close to a three-way tie between Bolt, Twilight, and Quantum of Solace. What I didn’t process was the effect of the bunching of critical scores – and the bunching of critical scores higher than we’ve seen for a few months.

Box Office Power Rankings: November 14-16, 2008

quantum-of-solace.jpgDoes it make sense to get out of the way of a certain blockbuster? Or should studios try to tap into a market being unserved by that which every human is required to see on its opening weekend? There are certainly examples of effective counter-programming. Mamma Mia! found a $28-million opening-weekend audience despite The Dark Knight’s $158-million debut. It has earned more than $143 million in the United States. Yet the numbers suggest that studios were wise to avoid putting any wide releases against Quantum of Solace.

Box Office Power Rankings: November 7-9, 2008

role-models.jpgIt was odd to read these two things within a few minutes of each other. On Role Models: “[T]he kind of movie you don’t see every day, a comedy that is funny. The kind of comedy where funny people say funny things in funny situations, not the kind of comedy that whacks you with manic shocks to force an audible Pavlovian response.” On Slumdog Millionaire: “[O]ne of the rare ‘feel-good’ movies that actually makes you feel good, as opposed to merely jerked around.”

Box Office Power Rankings: October 31-November 2, 2008

zackandmiri.jpgThe consensus that Kevin Smith’s Zack and Miri Make a Porno and Clint Eastwood’s Changeling were poor performers – the weakest Halloween weekend in a decade! – certainly isn’t based on the track records of the filmmakers. Smith’s bawdy comedy debuted with a little more than $10 million, while Eastwood’s missing-child drama brought in $9.4 million in expanded release. Those numbers might not be good for that particular weekend (compared to previous years), but they’re in line with Smith’s and Eastwood’s recent careers.