'Max Payne,' 'Chihuahua,' 'Bees' out-poll 'W'

[FormerBondFan]

http://movies.yahoo.com/mv/news/ap/2008 ... 80000.html

Sunday October 19 12:50 PM ET

Movie-goers elected a "W," but it was Mark Wahlberg, not George W. Bush.

Wahlberg's action flick "Max Payne" debuted with $18 million to outdo Oliver Stone's film biography of George W. Bush, according to studio estimates Sunday.

Stone's "W." actually ran fourth, opening with $10.6 million to finish behind the family comedy "Beverly Hills Chihuahua" (No. 2 with $11.2 million) and the chick flick "The Secret Life of Bees" (No. 3 with $11.1 million).

"For me, an Oliver Stone film about George Bush doesn't necessarily scream big box office," said Paul Dergarabedian, president of box-office tracker Media By Numbers. "A film like this is very tough to gauge, but this is exactly what I thought it would do."

Lionsgate's "W.," starring Josh Brolin as Bush, came in well behind the $18.7 million debut of Stone's last movie, 2006's Sept. 11 saga "World Trade Center." That movie opened in nearly 3,000 theaters, about 900 more than "W.," however.

Playing in 2,030 cinemas, "W." averaged a solid but unremarkable $5,197 a theater, compared with a $6,334 average for "World Trade Center." "W." was shot on a modest budget of $25 million.

The film had been on political junkies' radar since Stone put "W." on the fast track less than a year ago so he could have it out before the November election. Stone started shooting in May, his five-month turnaround time remarkably short by Hollywood standards, where major movies can take a year or more.

If he needed more time, Stone contractually had the option of releasing the film around the time Bush leaves office in January.

But with two weeks until the election, this is prime time for a Bush biography, said Steve Rothenberg, Lionsgate head of distribution.

"We felt it was very important to release the film after the presidential debates but before the election," Rothenberg said. "We felt interest in the election would be at its height, and interest in George W. Bush would be much greater now than after January. We feel we have a good corridor over the next two weeks."

The movie received mixed reviews, with critics surprised at how relatively tame it turned out coming from liberal firebrand Stone, who made the paranoia-laden presidential tales "JFK" and "Nixon."

Brolin's Bush has some buffoonish moments, but Stone showed empathy for the president, casting him as a man with serious daddy issues but an unshakable relationship with wife Laura to fall back on.

Among the weekend's other new movies, 20th Century Fox's "Max Payne" averaged $5,332 in 3,376 theaters and Fox Searchlight's "The Secret Life of Bees" did $6,945 in 1,591 cinemas.

Disney's "Beverly Hills Chihuahua," which had been the No. 1 movie the previous two weekends, raised its total to $69.1 million.

Adapted from the video game, "Max Payne" stars Wahlberg as a New York City cop hunting the killers of his wife and child.

"The Secret Life of Bees" stars Dakota Fanning, Queen Latifah, Jennifer Hudson, Alicia Keys and Sophie Okonedo in a drama about a troubled teen learning life lessons through the beekeeping operations of three Southern sisters.

"Max Payne" had a predominantly male audience, "The Secret Life of Bees" played to women, "Beverly Hills Chihuahua" continued to grab family crowds and "W." was the choice for politically minded adults.

"You've got all kinds of pictures out there," said 20th Century Fox distribution executive Bert Livingston. "When this business is great is when there are a lot of different pictures out that people want to go see."

Hollywood's overall revenues rose for the fourth-straight weekend. The top-12 movies took in $86.4 million, up 10 percent from the same weekend last year.

Estimated ticket sales for Friday through Sunday at U.S. and Canadian theaters, according to Media By Numbers LLC. Final figures will be released Monday.

1. "Max Payne," $18 million.

2. "Beverly Hills Chihuahua," $11.2 million.

3. "The Secret Life of Bees," $11.1 million.

4. "W.," $10.6 million.

5. "Eagle Eye," $7.3 million.

6. "Body of Lies," $6.9 million.

7. "Quarantine," $6.3 million.

8. "Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist," $3.9 million.

9. "Sex Drive," $3.6 million.

10. "Nights in Rodanthe," $2.7 million.

[katied]

I saw W today..I really liked it ..am going to post a review soon

[Dr. No]

I'm not surprised.

These type of political movies don't do well. I have never wanted to see a movie about a setting president. (Who wanted a "Bill" about Clinton? In 2000 we were tired of him and ready to move on, we are tired of Bush and ready to move on right now)

The made for TV movies aren't much better. Some of the books years later can be fascinating. But nothign will actually give incite behind what was really happening, because no matter who it is about there is a opposing side just as vehement about how evil the president is.

Nixon maybe the only case where the public was united about how bad he was.

[FormerBondFan]

I wonder if Bill Clinton's memoir would be adapted into a movie.

[Kristatos]

And for those who think that negative reviews spell box office disaster, it's worth noting that Max Payne only got 18% on Rotten Tomatoes.

[Mazer Rackham]

And for those who think that negative reviews spell box office disaster, it's worth noting that Max Payne only got 18% on Rotten Tomatoes.

well consider how small the take is (18m). Compared to the cost of the movie (35m) its a good start for the studio but not a great weekend for Hollywood.

Reviews may not have as much to do with success or failure as we like to think. It would be nice to have a world where merit based achievement was a reality, at least we'd like to believe such a reality was possible.

Superman Returns 77% fresh, highly acclaimed universally, struggled
Indiana Jones KOTCS 76% fresh did good BO and is panned by the Jones fans
Prince Caspian 66% fresh struggled to make BO and fell far below its expected potential but still made money.
Mummy 3 13% fresh did as good as Prince Caspian (Better than it deserved)
Sex and the City 50% fresh and did remarkable BO, given the cost to make it was a wonderful deal for the studio.
Hancock 38% fresh and did outstanding BO