Geekscape’s Box Office Roundup For the Weekend of 9/16/11

If I were a lazy writer, I’d make some incredibly lame joke about how the Lion King 3D re-release roared it’s way into the top spot this weekend, but I’m not, so I’m just gonna tell you pun-free that The Lion King 3D re-release opened in the number one spot 17 years after it’s initial debut.

The Top

The Lion King 3D dominated the weekend box office by pulling in $29.3 million 17 years after opening number one with $40.9 million the first time around. Granted, those numbers aren’t even close when you consider 17 years of inflation. But still, it made more money this weekend than the number two and three films combined, and also more than the other three new wide releases put together.

The Lion King became the first re-release to open number one since Return Of The Jedi did in 1997. It also more than doubled the success that Disney had when they re-released Toy Story 1 & 2 in 3D two years ago. It sadly didn’t take any steps towards killing the current 3D trend, as 92% of it’s tickets sold were to 3D showings.

I’m usually all for things that are 17 years old, but this re-release didn’t make any sense for a few reasons. First off, it releases on DVD and BluRay in just a few weeks. Secondly, it was already re-released in IMAX in 2002. Thirdly, 3D is the devil. Not to mention, who re-releases something on the 17th anniversary? Or the 8th for that matter? What is going on over there at Disney? Besides rolling around in money, of course.

If you wanna compare this using a lion angle, The Lion King’s $29 million is much better than 1996’s The Ghost and the Darkness, which opened number one with $9.2 million. Even with inflation and increased ticket prices, the Michael Douglas/Val Kilmer lion thriller would still trail the Lion King by more than $10 million. If I reach from there and compare it to what I feel is the best Val Kilmer movie, Willow, The Lion King still comes out on top. Willow opened with $8.3 million in 1988, which in today’s dollars, would come close, but still not surpass The Lion King. Either way though, Willow is an amazing film.

Sidenote: the thought of Val Kilmer today in 3D compared to Val Kilmer in 1988 in 3D is frightening. There’s a whole lot more to come out at your face.

Even though the strong opening for the re-release vaulted The Lion King from 25th to 17th on the all-time domestic earner’s list, I still say that the best lion related film is on YouTube. Forget Simba, Scar and Matthew Broderick, if you wanna see some real lions in action, along with some badass buffaloes and awesome crocodiles, watch the below Battle at Kruger. It is amazing. And not in 3D.

The Rest

Last week’s winner, Contagion, only saw a 35% drop to land at number 2. To keep the obvious comparisons with Outbreak going, Outbreak held onto the top spot for three weekends in a row and didn’t see drop larger than 35% until it’s tenth week. Granted, that really means nothing, as it was a March release and the box office climate was completely different in 1995, but it’s fun to make obvious comparisons. Take that, Soderbergh.

The best debuting new release that wasn’t a re-release was Nicholas Winding Refn’s Drive. It came in at number three with just over $11 million. Not bad for a violent arthouse film packaged as a mainstream action movie. Sadly, word of mouth among mainstream movie goers and a misleading ad campaign will probably lead to quite a drop off in the coming weeks, which is sad for what is quite possibly one of the best made films of the year.

Looking at Drive from a Ryan Gosling angle, it fell a couple million behind his biggest headlining opening with The Notebook from 2004, and $8 million behind his ensemble Crazy, Stupid, Love from a few months ago. With Drive and Crazy, Stupid, Love, Gosling currently has two films in the top 12, and a third one that’s surely to open in the top five when it’s released in a few weeks, The Ides Of March. Pretty crazy for an actor that has pretty much avoided the mainstream since 2007. Plus, I can’t be the only one that’s still fully convinced he should have been Hal Jordan, right?

In number four was The Help, which continues it’s impressive run. It actually added theaters in it’s sixth week, and will surpass the $150 million mark through the week. Again, this movie had a budget of $25 million.

The remake of a 40 year old Dustin Hoffman film, Straw Dogs, raped it’s way into a disappointing fifth place by only making $5 million. Who cares about box office numbers from 40 years ago? So instead, let’s compare it to one of the other recent rape revenge releases, The Last House On the Left, which opened with just over $14 million in 2009. Between these two titles and the essentially direct to DVD remake of I Spit On Your Grave, Hollywood has to be running low on rape revenge remakes. Which is kind of a bummer, because whenever I see a preview for any of them, I like to pretend the guy from those old Under Armour commercials are cut into the film screaming “YOU MUST PROTECT THIS HOUSE!!” That always makes me smile.

Sticking with Straw Dogs but shying away from the rape aspect, it greatly outperformed the James Marsden teen sex comedy, Sex Drive, which only opened with $3.6 million in 2008. Marsden was only a supporting character in that, whereas he’s the lead in Straw Dogs, but Sex Drive is criminally underrated and you totally should watch it.

Sarah Jessica Parker dropped another turd as I Don’t Know How She Does It opened in sixth place with $4.5 million. Two years ago, Parker’s Did You Hear About The Morgans? was a bomb when it brought in $6.6 million, and this one did worse. Thank you, America.

To compare it to other similar titles, it paled in comparison to Hidalgo’s $18.8 million opening in 2004 and Seabiscuit’s $20.9 million in 2003.

The Debt came in seventh place, while The Warrior failed to be saved by word of mouth and plummeted to eighth with a 47% percent drop. Despite everybody who sees it apparently loving it, The Warrior may struggle to make back it’s $25 million budget domestically. It may end up on a lot of year end best of lists, but may have to wait a little longer to turn a profit.

Rise Of The Planet Of The Apes came in ninth, while Columbiana fell five spots from number five to round out the top 10.

Kevin Hart’s concert film, Laugh At My Pain, saw a 40% drop, despite opening in 230 theaters compared to 98 in it’s opening weekend and fell three spots to 16 after a phenominal opening weekend.

The Worst

Bucky Larson: Born To Be A Star was unable to find any mercy. Even though it bombed majorly its opening weekend, it still managed to fall 73% with by only earning $338,000. After two weeks it sits at $2.3 million, which is a long way from its $10 million budget. At this rate, it’ll be lucky to make the $3 million mark before it’s yanked out of theaters.

Next

Next week sees four more new releases looking to shake things up. Brad Pitt and a pre-skinny Jonah Hill will try to outsmart everybody into the top spot with Moneyball, while Jason Statham, Clive Owen and Robert DeNiro will try to kick and punch their way there with Killer Elite. Can Taylor Lautner prove he’s more than just a pretty second option with Abduction? Can Morgan Freeman build a fake dolphin tale and swim his way into the top five with A Dolphin Tale? Seriously, does anybody want to see A Dolphin Tale?