Weekend Box Office (March 7 - 9, 2003)

THIS WEEKEND American moviegoers were in the mood for a laugh and Steve Martin and Queen Latifah were happy to provide it. The odd couple's new comedy Bringing Down the House exceeded all industry expectations with its powerful number-one debut leaving the new Bruce Willis war pic Tears of the Sun settling for the runnerup spot.

Buena Vista brought the house down with the new Martin-Latifah laugher which topped the box office generating an amazing $31.1M weekend haul, according to final studio figures. The PG-13 film played in 2,801 theaters and averaged a muscular $11,104 per location. In Bringing Down the House, Martin plays an uptight attorney who gets mismatched with an ex-con (Latifah) through a blind date. The rapper-turned-actress also served as executive producer.

With its polar opposite leads, House was able to appeal to a broad demographic group. According to studio data, 53% of the audience was female and 55% was over 25. Reactions were extremely positive as an incredibly high 98% rated the film "excellent" or "very good" which bodes well for the film's future. Audiences polled by CinemaScore.com, however, gave the film an overall B+ grade. For the month of March, House generated the fourth biggest opening ever following last year's Ice Age ($46.3M), Blade II ($32.5M), and Liar Liar ($31.4M).

Bringing Down the House is just the latest in a series of hit comedies that have been attracting huge audiences this year. Moviegoers have spent $280M on seeing the films Just Married, How to Lose A Guy in 10 Days, Shanghai Knights, Old School, and House. The eventual combined gross for the five hits should reach over $400M. Miramax and Paramount are hoping that America's thirst for funny films continues in the weeks ahead as the studios are releasing the comedies View From the Top with Gwenyth Paltrow and Mike Myers and Head of State starring Chris Rock and Bernie Mac, respectively.

Despite a solid debut, the Bruce Willis military picture Tears of the Sun had to settle for second place with a bow of $17.1M. The R-rated Sony release opened in 2,973 locations and averaged $5,737. In Tears, Willis plays a Navy SEAL on a rescue mission in Nigeria. Reviews were not that favorable but audiences were pleased as the actioner earned a grade of A- from CinemaScore.com.

The DreamWorks comedy Old School delivered another solid frame grossing $9.2M, off 35%, raising its 17-day cume to $50.8M. Oscar favorite Chicago followed in fourth place easing just 13% to $6.8M for a total of $114.4M.

Paramount's hit comedy How To Lose A Guy in 10 Days dropped 35% to $6.7M in its fifth frame and pushed its sum to $86.9M. Last weekend's number one film, the action pic Cradle 2 the Grave, tumbled 60% to $6.5M falling to sixth place. The Warner Bros. release has banked $26.9M in ten days and looks headed to about $40M.

Fox's Daredevil, another former chart-topper that is now fading fast, fell 53% to $5.2M lifting its cume to $91.5M. Disney's The Jungle Book 2 took in $4.3M, down 39%, putting its total at $39.5M. Studio stablemate Shanghai Knights grossed $2.7M for ninth place and was followed by the Universal drama The Life of David Gale with $2.1M. Cumes stand at $54.7M and $17.1M, respectively.

A pair of action films dropped out of the top ten. The big-budget Civil War picture Gods and Generals fell 53% to $1.4M giving it a disappointing $11.1M in 17 days. The Warner Bros. title should surrender at around the $14M mark. The Al Pacino thriller The Recruit lost half its audience and collected $1.4M as well. With $50.3M in sales, the Buena Vista release should conclude its run with a solid $53M.

The top ten films grossed $91.7M which was up 17% from last year when The Time Machine opened at number one with $22.6M; and up an astounding 55% from 2001 when The Mexican remained on top with $12.2M.


Compared to projections, Bringing Down the House far exceeded my $17M forecast although Tears of the Sun was close to my $19M prediction.

Take this week's NEW Reader Survey on whether Chicago will win the Oscar for Best Picture. In last week's survey, readers were asked whether Bringing Down the House or Tears of the Sun would have the bigger opening. Of 1,798 responses, 57% said Tears while 43% correctly predicted House.

For reviews of Bringing Down the House and Bend It Like Beckham visit The Chief Report.

Be sure to check back on Thursday for a complete summary, including projections, for next weekend when Agent Cody Banks, The Hunted, and Willard all debut.

Marketplace: Shop for videos, DVDs, music, books, and posters at discounted prices using search engines

# Title Mar 7 - 9 Feb 28 - Mar 2 % Chg. Theaters Weeks AVG Cumulative Distributor
1 Bringing Down the House $ 31,101,026 2,801 1 $ 11,104 $ 31,101,026 Buena Vista
2 Tears of the Sun 17,057,213 2,973 1 5,737 17,057,213 Sony
3 Old School 9,190,062 14,039,612 -34.5 2,707 3 3,395 50,768,507 DreamWorks
4 Chicago 6,844,634 7,853,903 -12.9 2,600 11 2,633 114,442,185 Miramax
5 How To Lose A Guy in 10 Days 6,688,675 10,252,364 -34.8 2,897 5 2,309 86,885,012 Paramount
6 Cradle 2 the Grave 6,535,475 16,521,486 -60.4 2,625 2 2,490 26,878,648 Warner Bros.
7 Daredevil 5,214,469 11,121,009 -53.1 2,778 4 1,877 91,536,021 Fox
8 The Jungle Book 2 4,258,002 6,984,002 -39.0 2,553 4 1,668 39,521,501 Buena Vista
9 Shanghai Knights 2,688,514 5,027,902 -46.5 1,905 5 1,411 54,749,445 Buena Vista
10 The Life of David Gale 2,124,235 4,537,395 -53.2 1,872 3 1,135 17,112,763 Universal
11 The Hours 1,475,801 2,051,515 -28.1 962 11 1,534 35,303,998 Paramount
12 The Pianist 1,393,292 1,459,117 -4.5 565 11 2,466 16,779,231 Focus
13 Gods and Generals 1,377,431 2,946,476 -53.3 1,233 3 1,117 11,122,627 Warner Bros.
14 About Schmidt 1,376,030 1,860,510 -26.0 845 13 1,628 60,007,505 New Line
15 The Recruit 1,359,539 2,728,478 -50.2 1,071 6 1,269 50,281,018 Buena Vista
16 The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers 1,227,603 1,618,139 -24.1 703 12 1,746 332,075,527 New Line
17 The Quiet American 1,153,381 1,123,552 2.7 381 16 3,027 7,291,271 Miramax
18 Final Destination 2 1,034,114 1,892,344 -45.4 881 6 1,174 44,625,000 New Line
19 Kangaroo Jack 772,413 1,363,485 -43.4 1,110 8 696 64,691,137 Warner Bros.
20 Gangs of New York 518,916 696,852 -25.5 378 12 1,373 75,469,504 Miramax
Top 5 $ 70,881,610 $ 59,788,374 18.6
Top 10 91,702,305 82,012,627 11.8
Top 20 103,390,825 97,382,284 6.2
Top 10 vs. 2002 103,390,825 94,529,763 9.4

Last Updated : March 10, 2003 at 7:30PM EST