Archive for the ‘Box Office History’ Category

9. Hannah Montana/Miley Cyrus: Best of Both Worlds Concert Tour – $4.4M

Thursday, February 21st, 2008
Based on the hit Disney television show, HANNAH MONTANA/MILEY CYRUS: BEST OF BOTH WORLDS CONCERT TOUR 3-D provides dedicated fans an all-access pass to the Best of Both Worlds concert tour. Leaving behind character Miley Stewart, the concert instead splits time between pop phenom Hannah Montana and Cyrus, who assumes the role of Montana's "ordinary girl" alter ego. Footage of the concert is interspersed with numerous behind-the-scene vignettes. Among these are pre-tour rehearsals--orchestrated by HIGH SCHOOL MUSICAL impresario Kenny Ortega--and a touching jam session with father Billy Ray Cyrus. Also included are ecstatic fan testimonials and the film's most humorous moment, in which fathers race each other in high-heeled shoes for the chance to win concert tickets and backstage passes. Montana/Cyrus is joined on stage by the Jonas Brothers, who whip up the crowd with their own brand of high-energy pop. The film employs most of its 3-D tricks in the opening credits then pulls back the reins to focus on giving viewers the next best thing to actually being at the show. Filled with fist-pumping anthems ("Girls Night Out," "Nobody's Perfect," and the title track), BEST OF BOTH WORLDS remains true to the television show's dual personality theme: through good times and bad, every girl is her own superstar. For fans and parents alike, it's a wholesome and empowering message wrapped up in pure infectious fun.

10. 27 Dresses – $3.9M

Thursday, February 21st, 2008
KNOCKED UP's Katherine Heigl stars in this romantic comedy about a selfless young woman who is trapped in the role of perennial bridesmaid. Set in New York City, the film opens with Jane (Heigl) racing by cab to appear in two friends' weddings in the same night. She is the maid of honor for both fetes, and she rushes back and forth in time to shimmy to both electric slides. She meets Malcolm (James Marsden), a cynical young man who, unbeknownst to her, writes for a newspaper's wedding column. Malcolm is intrigued by the sheer number of times Jane has played bridesmaid, and he secretly decides to write a story about her. To further complicate Jane's life, her younger sister Tess (Malin Akerman) has just come to town and ensnared Jane's longtime crush, George (Edward Burns). When George and Tess become engaged, Jane faces the humiliating prospect of playing bridesmaid in the wedding of her sister and the man she loves. Meanwhile, Malcolm continues hounding Jane, and Jane's life and closet soon explode in a taffeta-tangled mess that forces her to make some big changes. Heigl is a pleasure to watch, as she has the kind of crowd-pleasing, no-nonsense presence that could ground any film, so 27 DRESSES greatly benefits from her comedic skill and charm. While the film features all of the hallmarks of chick flick fare (wacky best friend, dress-up sequence, obnoxious but strangely attractive love interest) the story often veers into territory that may leave some feeling it stretches even the romantic comedy standards for suspension of disbelief. Heigl deserves comparisons to Julia Roberts for her sheer likability, and like PRETTY WOMAN, women will likely watch 27 DRESSES when it runs on cable--aware of the fantasy, but still delighted by the attractive lady in the different outfits.

4. The Eye – $6.5M

Friday, February 15th, 2008
Sydney Wells is an accomplished concert violinist who has been blind since a childhood tragedy. Sydney undergoes a double corneal transplant, and her sight is restored. But Sydney's happiness is short-lived as unexplainable shadowy and frightening images start to haunt her. Are they a passing aftermath of her surgery, Sydney's mind adjusting to sight, a product of her imagination, or something horrifyingly real As Sydney's family and friends begin to doubt her sanity, Sydney is soon convinced that her anonymous eye donor has somehow opened the door to a terrifying world only she can now see.

8. Rambo – $4.5M

Friday, February 15th, 2008
John Rambo has retreated to northern Thailand, living a solitary and peaceful life in the mountains and jungles. A group of human rights missionaries search him out and ask him to guide them into Burma to deliver medical supplies. When the aid workers are captured by the Burmese army, Rambo decides to venture alone into the war zone to rescue them.

9. Meet the Spartans – $4.1M

Friday, February 15th, 2008
The warriors of 300 might have been able to hold their own--at least for awhile--against an army of thousands, but can they defend themselves against this satire? From the minds behind EPIC MOVIE, MEET THE SPARTANS tackles everything from the action movie to YOU GOT SERVED to Britney Spears.

8. Untraceable – $5.1M

Saturday, February 9th, 2008
Directed by Gregory Hoblit (FRACTURE, PRIMAL FEAR), UNTRACEABLE follows F.B.I. cybercrimes specialist Jennifer Marsh (Diane Lane) as she attempts to track down a serial killer who brazenly displays his murderous deeds on the Internet. Aided by fellow agent Griffin Dowd (Colin Hanks) and local detective Eric Box (Billy Burke), Marsh tenaciously hunts for the elusive criminal in rainy Pacific Northwest settings, but as she closes in on her target, he deviously finds ways to get closer to her, all the while killing his victims in increasingly faster fashion. Clearly referencing a number of renowned thrillers--most notably the SAW films, SEVEN, and SILENCE OF THE LAMBS--UNTRACEABLE is far from an original cinematic exercise. However, Lane's steely, smart, and beautiful heroine ably anchors the film, which also benefits from its appropriately gloomy Portland, Oregon, backdrop. As with any effective suspense movie, the thrill is in the chase, with the cold-blooded killer proving to be quite adept at disguising his real location, even as his disturbingly popular site remains prominently on the web (hence the picture's title). Though not up to par with classics such as SEVEN and SILENCE, UNTRACEABLE is a well-crafted genre film that easily eclipses other like-minded fare, particularly FEARDOTCOM and the SAW sequels.

9. Cloverfield – $4.8M

Saturday, February 9th, 2008
Five young New Yorkers throw their friend a going-away party the night that a monster the size of a skyscraper descends upon the city. Told from the point of view of their video camera, the film is a document of their attempt to survive the most surreal, horrifying event of their lives.

5. National Treasure: Book of Secrets – $9.6M

Thursday, January 24th, 2008
IN THEATRES DECEMBER 21, 2007 Treasure hunter Ben Gates (Nicolas Cage) embarks on a new adventure in director Jon Turtletaub?s sequel to NATIONAL TREASURE. Ben and his father, Patrick (Jon Voight), take great pride in their ancestors and their family's devotion to the United States. When Mitch Wilkinson (Ed Harris) produces a page from the diary of Lincoln assassin John Wilkes Booth allegedly linking Ben?s great-great grandfather to the plot, Ben and Patrick set out on a path to clear their family's name. Ben also believes that the diary page contains hints to the whereabouts of a treasure map leading to an ancient city made of gold, and soon the hunt is on. Tech expert Riley Poole (Justin Bartha) and Ben?s now ex-girlfriend Abigail Chase (Diane Kruger) join the Gates in their quest, which takes them from Washington, DC, to Paris, London and the Black Hills of South Dakota. It's true that the storyline and the actions of Gates and his team--which include breaking into the Queen?s study at Buckingham Palace, sneaking into the Oval Office, and kidnapping the President of the United States--are completely unbelievable. But with a storyline built on true, interesting trivia and great locations, this film is an amusing, family-friendly romp. Cage has some great moments as Gates-- loyal, patriotic, fair to a fault, and very funny as he goads on Buckingham Palace security. Harris plays Wilkinson with just the right air of mystery and menace: is he after fortune, or does he just want to leave his own mark in history? Helen Mirren fits the bill as Ben's mother and Patrick's estranged ex-wife, Emily, a scholar and historian in her own right.

6. First Sunday – $9.5M

Thursday, January 24th, 2008
David E. Talbert makes his directorial debut with this comedy about Durell (Ice Cube) and LeeJohn (Tracy Morgan), childhood friends with a knack for getting into trouble. Despite his continual bad decisions, Durell gets one thing right: he's a good father to his adolescent son. When he learns that the boy's mother, his ex-girlfriend, Omunique (Regina Hall), needs $17,000 to buy her beauty shop or she?ll leave Baltimore and move to Atlanta, he's determined to get her the money to keep his son in his life. Meanwhile, LeeJohn needs big money fast to pay off some bad guys. Durell and LeeJohn decide that the collection plate of their local church holds the answer to their money woes. But their attempt to rob the church is foiled in progress: the money is already missing, and the would-be burglars didn?t realize there would be people at the church. Finding themselves with a group of parishioners and choir members at their mercy, Durell and LeeJohn have to make some decisions about exactly what kind of men they want to be. FIRST SUNDAY also makes a statement about the role of the church in urban areas and its importance within the community. Keith David is Deacon Randy, who has grandiose plans for moving the church to a "less urban" neighborhood. Chi McBride stars as Pastor Mitchell, and Malinda Williams is his strong-willed daughter, Tianna, who wants First Hope Community Church to stay right where it is and expand its services. Loretta Devine is Sister Doris, the parish secretary and foster mother with a heart of gold. Ice Cube and Morgan have good rapport as the bickering buddies, with Morgan?s silliness providing loads of comic relief, but Katt Williams is the scene-stealer as Rickey, the flamboyant choir director with something to say about everything and everyone.

7. Alvin and the Chipmunks – $9.4M

Thursday, January 24th, 2008
IN THEATRES DECEMBER 14, 2007 This live-action/computer-animated update of Ross Bagdasarian's squeaky-voiced cartoon characters finds the chipmunks (in CGI form) transported from their woodland habitat to the city, where they wind up in the home of Dave Seville (Jason Lee). Dave, a down-on-his-luck songwriter, realizes the potential of a singing chipmunk pop act, and becomes an unlikely mentor/father figure to feisty Alvin, brainy Simon, and dopey Theodore. Meanwhile, the threesome causes chaos in his life, leading to plenty of fun, frenetic scenarios. When a devious record executive (David Cross) enters the picture, however, Alvin and the Chipmunks must deal with both the trappings of fame and their loyalty to the amiable, hapless Dave. Directed by Tim Hill (GARFIELD: A TALE OF TWO KITTIES), ALVIN AND THE CHIPMUNKS simultaneously modernizes and pays tribute to the classic title characters, who first appeared in the late 1950s and became wildly popular in the '60s. While Lee (MY NAME IS EARL) is well cast as the perpetually exasperated Dave, Long (LIVE FREE OR DIE HARD) steals the show as the voice of Alvin, who provides the group's lively spirit. Though some older viewers may wince at the prospect of their beloved Chipmunks rapping, the movie is generally respectful of the franchise's long legacy, and will easily win over a younger generation.