September 16th, 2015
Sleeping with Other People wasn't expected to do well in theaters, because it only earned mixed reviews, while it was also playing on VOD. Despite this, it led the way on the per theater chart with an average of $17,820 in five theaters. Goodbye Mommy was in second place with an average of $15,063. It could do well in the art house circuit, but expanding wide will be nearly impossible for this German film. Meet the Patels was right behind with an average of $14,436. It too could do well in the art house circuit, but it is a documentary, so expanding wide is likely out of the question. The Black Panthers: Vanguard of the Revolution was the only holdover in the $10,000 club with an average of $13,288 in three theaters. The overall number one film, The Perfect Guy, was next with an average of $11,656. The final film in the $10,000 club was A Brilliant Mind with an average of $10,469 in three theaters.
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September 15th, 2015
Both of the two true wide releases had amazing openings this past week. Or to be more specific, amazing openings for a September release. The Perfect Guy did earn first place, but by less than half a million dollars over The Visit. Both films opened substantially above expectations. Thanks to this, the overall box office rose significantly, both compared to last week and compared to last year. The total box office was $102 million, which is 13% higher than last week. It is also 13% higher than the same weekend last year. September is already looking really good. Year-to-date, 2015 has pulled in $7.65 million putting it 5.3% ahead of last year's pace of $7.26 million. 2015 is nearly $400 million head of 2014's pace and there's not a lot of time for 2015 to blow that lead. It wouldn't be impossible, but it is getting more and more unlikely.
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September 9th, 2015
There was just one film in the $10,000 club, The Black Panthers: Vanguard of the Revolution, which earned $20,215 in its lone theater over the weekend. This is even more impressive, as it was a Wednesday release and earned $28,580 over five days. While it was the only film to reach $10,000 over the three-day weekend,
Un gallo con muchos huevos did earn an average of $11,030 if you include Monday.
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September 9th, 2015
While first trying to come up with picture / title ideas for the weekend columns, I saw the image above and was reminded of "Simply Irresistible" by Robert Palmer. Ever since then, the song has been stuck in my head. It's been there for more than 48 hours now and I'm starting to think I will need medical help getting rid of it. The overall box office was more or less in line with Friday's expectations. A Walk in the Woods matched predictions (nearly) perfectly, while The Transporter Refueled was on the low end of expectations. Fortunately, War Room showed off strong legs leaping into first place. It was able to help the overall box office grow 3.5% to $90 million over the three-day weekend. This was 38% higher than the same weekend last year; however, this is due to a misalignment of holidays. Compared to last labor day, the box office was 18% lower. With that, the summer of 2015 is officially over and while records were broken, the overall box office was actually the second best on record, falling just short of 2013 at $4.48 billion to $4.75 billion. Year-to-date, 2015 has a 5.3% lead over 2014 at $7.53 billion to $7.15 billion.
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September 6th, 2015
Summer, 2015 comes to a sedate finish this weekend, with The Transporter Refueled falling flat, and War Room moving to the top of the chart in its second weekend in release. The faith-based drama is expected to earn $9.3 million for the three-day portion of the weekend, comfortably clear of Straight Outta Compton’s $8.8 million in its fourth weekend. War Room will top the chart while playing in only 1,526 theaters, the fewest theaters for a number one film since the Hannah Montana/Miley Cyrus: Best of Both Worlds Concert Tour topped the chart from 683 theaters back in 2008 (see fewest theaters for number one movie since 2000).
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September 4th, 2015
As bad as the overall box office looks, the list of limited releases is arguably worse. The biggest limited release in terms of buzz is Before We Go, a film that was earning zero positive reviews when I checked late last night. (A couple of positive reviews have since trickled in.) That's not to say there are no films earning overwhelmingly positive reviews. The Black Panthers: Vanguard of the Revolution and Elle L'Adore are both being praised by critics. However, as a documentary and a foreign-language film respectively, their box office chances are not strong.
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