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Box Office: Hangover Buzz Doesn’t Slow Ticket Sales

The Hangover 2

Critics have widely panned The Hangover, Part II, but that didn’t deter holiday weekend moviegoers. The comedy sequel earned massive bucks for Warner Bros., and surpassed box office earnings for its parent flick.

So who cares what critics say, anyway? The ensemble comedy earned $137.4, after enjoying the biggest-ever Thursday opening for a film ($31.6 million).

Kung Fu Panda 2 fell far short of the first-place mark, earning $62.2 million during the three-day weekend. Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides racked up $50.4 million in third place. Bridesmaids earned $21 million, and Thor finishes off the top five with $12 million. Maybe some bad reviews would boost their box office mojo?

Read More | E! Online

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Box Office: Thor Continues to Rule

Thor

Even the power of Bridesmaids isn’t enough to beat mighty Thor. The superhero flick remains at number 1 at the end of the weekend box office, earning $34.7 million.

Bridesmaids, led by Kristen Wiig’s star power, earned $26.2 million. Fast Five raced into the number 3 position with $20.4 million. Priest earned $14.9 million to lock down the number 4 spot, and Rio is down to number 5 with $8.2 million.

Read More | Yahoo! News

Box Office: Thor Hammers Competition

Thor -- Paramount

Thor debuted as the number one film over the weekend, earning a cool $65.7 million. Fast Five, the previous number one, fell to the second spot with its $32 million take.

Jumping the Broom ($15.2 million), Something Borrowed ($13.9 million) and Rio ($8 million) finish off the top five.

Read More | Yahoo! News

Sacha Baron Cohen to Star in Saddam Hussein Story

Zabiba and the King bookAnd I thought Sacha Baron Cohen playing Freddie Mercury was interesting.

It’s been announced that Cohen will also star in The Dictator, an adaptation of Zabibah and The King. That’s a novel penned by Saddam Hussein (and/or his ghost writers) in 2000.

The story about a woman who is raped by her cruel husband is believed to be an allegory about the United States’ invasion of Iraq.

Paramount Pictures describes the “comedy” as “the heroic story of a dictator who risked his life to ensure that democracy would never come to the country he so lovingly oppressed."

That “heroic” dictator, named Hussein, is the role Cohen will play.

The movie, also being written by Cohen, will debut on May 11, 2012. Larry Charles (Borat, Bruno) will direct Cohen in this feature.

Read More | MTV

Box Office Breakdown: Deathly Hallows Avoids Getting Tangled

Tangled

Tangled's tresses weren't quite long enough to get past the Deathly Hallows last weekend.

Despite a $48.8 million debut ($68.7 million since Wednesday), Disney's latest animated feature found itself in a tight race. The film starring Mandy Moore and Zachary Levi landed firmly into second place -- approximately $300,000 shy of two-time winner Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows.

Burlesque, featuring Christina Aguilera and Cher, rang up $11.9 million in ticket sales and a fourth-place finish. Although that figure isn't exactly something to brag about, it does represent Cher's biggest opening to date.

Promises of nudity couldn't get Love and Other Drugs into the Top 5. The Anne Hathaway/Jake Gyllenhaal movie earned less than $10 million and a sixth place debut. Meanwhile, Faster -- starring Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson and Billy Bob Thornton -- grossed $8.5 million for seventh place.

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Read More | Box Office Mojo

Box Office Breakdown: Harry Potter Breaks Franchise Record

Description

set a new record for the franchise this weekend – without the help of any 3-D prices.

The penultimate film in the series took in a magical $125 million, beating the previous mark set by 2005’s Goblet of Fire (which debuted to $102.7 million). The movie, which more than doubled what the other Top 10 entries did combined, also found itself ranked sixth on the all-time openers list.

In comparison, Paul Haggis’ did about 5% of what Harry Potter accomplished. That’s the smallest open for Russell Crowe since 2006’s A Good Year.

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Read More | Box Office Mojo

Box Office Breakdown: Megamind is Unstoppable

Unstoppable

Denzel Washington and Chris Pine could do nothing but watch Megamind speed past them at the box office.

Despite an early lead for the action film, Unstoppable lost a bit of steam. The movie, which opened to $8.1 million on Friday, slowed to a $22.7 million take and second place-finish by Monday. Of the five films Tony Scott has directed Washington in, this movie – also starring Chris Pine – debuted in the middle of the pack.

Two other wide releases found themselves perched in the Top 10 this weekend. Universal’s sci-fi entry, , dialed up $11.7 million for fourth place. Meanwhile, Morning Glory, starring Rachel McAdams, Harrison Ford and Diane Keaton, produced $9.2 million ($11.8 million since Wednesday) – enough for fifth place.

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Read More | Box Office Mojo

In Theaters This Weekend: November 12, 2010


Here are a few selections in theaters this weekend:

  • Morning Glory (PG-13): starring Rachel McAdams, Harrison Ford, Diane Keaton (directed by Roger Michell) **opens Wednesday**
  • Skyline (PG-13): starring Brittany Daniel, Eric Balfour, Crystal Reed (directed by The Brothers Strause)
  • Unstoppable (PG-13): starring Denzel Washington, Chris Pine, Rosario Dawson (directed by Tony Scott)
  • Cool It* (PG): (directed by Ondi Timoner)
  • Helena from the Wedding* (NR): starring Lee Tergesen, Melanie Lynskey, Gillian Jacobs (directed by Dagmara Dominczyk)
  • Tiny Furniture* (NR): starring Lena Dunham, Laurie Simmons, Grace Dunham (directed by Lena Dunham)

Box Office Breakdown: Megamind Opens Large with $46 Million

Megamind

Will Ferrell, Zach Galifianakis and Tyler Perry contributed to one of the largest November weekends in box office history.

– starring Ferrell, Tina Fey and Brad Pitt – topped the competition this weekend with a $46 million take. The animated comedy opened bigger than How to Train Your Dragon – another Paramount/Dreamworks collaboration – did in March ($43.7 million), but smaller than Despicable Me ($56.4 million) did in July.

Todd Phillips’ , featuring Galifianakis and Robert Downey Jr., also had an impressive open despite landing into second place. The movie, which grossed $32.7 million, had the largest premiere for any R-rated flick in November. (The movie bested the record set by Borat’s $26.4 million in 2006.) The film, though, fell behind The Hangover’s $45 million open in 2009.

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Read More | Box Office Mojo

Box Office Breakdown: Saw Franchise Ends with a Win

Saw 3D

The Saw franchise, which has been churning out annual entries since kicking off in 2004, introduced a new twist to the latest October entry. That visual element, plus a calendar shift, helped Saw 3D take first place over the holiday weekend.

Despite the $22.5 million debut, Saw 3D – the seventh and final film in the series – didn’t exactly end the series with a bloody bang. The horror flick had the fifth-best open in the entire franchise -- and that's including the higher ticket prices. (Only the 2004 original and 2009’s Saw VI – which was pitted directly against Paranormal Activity – did worse.)

Click to continue reading Box Office Breakdown: Saw Franchise Ends with a Win

Read More | Box Office Mojo

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