ENGLISH continues to reign!

26 Sep 2011

5 new releases, but none really made any huge impact as JOHNNY ENGLISH maintains its box office crown.

JOHNNY ENGLISH REBORN rakes in another US$1,072,791 - more than the rest of the films in release combined. It is also the only film this year to score two consecutive weekends with a screen average above US$20,000. ENGLISH is proving to be this year's biggest hit outside the summer blockbuster season - it now ranks 9th amongst this year's top film and is climbing. It has already amassed US$3,207,458 and hitting US$4.5m by the end of its run looks likely.

ABDUCTION starring teen star Taylor Lautner fails to set the charts on fire as it debuts at no. 2 with a weekend gross of US$245,686 gross from 27 screens. Earlier this year - I AM NUMBER FOUR - a teen action sci-fi film based on a hot property kicked off with US$534,059 (34 screens) despite having no big name cast. Reviews haven't been great and the film could end its run in the range of US$480,000-US$500,000.

FRIGHT NIGHT is the widest new release but its total gross of US$229,160 (from 2D and 3D versions) must be a disappointment considering it opened on 41 screens. Horror films have not done well lately - DON'T BE AFRAID OF THE DARK opened with US$95,313 (19 screens) last week while TWISTED started off with US$139,870 (20 screens). The only exception being FINAL DESTINATION 5 which started off with US$738,084 (54 screens) despite an edited M18 rating. FRIGHT NIGHT could end its run in the range of US$450,000-US$500,000.

Opening in moderate release, I DON'T KNOW HOW SHE DOES IT grosses US$108,507 from 16 screens. Films about the modern woman generally don't set the box office on fire. Last week's low brow release CHALET GIRL manages a disastrous US$9,052 from 5 screens, while the rowdy BRIDESMAIDS fared better with a US$154,307 kickstart from 13 screens. Although headlined by Sarah Jessica Parker, I DON'T KNOW is not in the same league as BRIDESMAIDS and could end up with a total tally of around US$200,00-US$220,000.

THE TREE OF LIFE - the Palme d'Or Cannes winning film by Terrence Malick manages a respectable (but not great) gross of US$19,483 from 3 screens. It may end up with a total gross between US$35,00-US$40,000 as this type of film appeals usually to a niche audience.

AFRICAN CATS's US$2,867 gross from 1 screen is one of the worst debut for any film this year. While documentaries are in a class of their own, last year's EARTH managed a US$10,502 debut while BABIES started with US$10,484. The release date for CATS couldn't be worse. Apart from F1 drawing some audiences away, families will also be staying away as parents are probably be keeping their children at home to prepare for the upcoming PSLE exams. Look for CATS to end its run around US$5,000 - US$6,000 (in comparison, EARTH - released during Earth Day grossed US$14,280 while BABIES made US$26,245).

This week, THE FAST AND THE FURIOUS 5 a.k.a. FAST FIVE gets re-released - this time in IMAX and takes in an additional US$3,597 to push its total cume up to US$3,510,602.

Some notable holdovers:

With US$2,864,224 now in the bank (and probably a bit more to come before it ends its run), THE SMURFS is now the 10th highest grossing film of 2011.

MAYDAY 3DNA takes in another US$21,043 from limited screenings for a total of US$140,443. Not bad for this kind of concert film - and more sessions have been added for the following weekend.

R21 films not in wide release that make it pass US$20,000 are a rarity. I SAW THE DEVIL has now gross US$21,585 in its 2nd week, and may conclude its run anywhere between US$24,000-US$40,000.

THE FIRST GRADER - a single print release has now grossed US$23,882 after 4 weeks - pretty good numbers for this sort of thing.

TATSUMI collects another US$3,315 in its 2nd week for a US$9,877 total - terrible numbers.

Two films end their runs with pretty decent numbers: BEGINNERS has amassed US$55,468 after 6 weeks - the second highest grossing R21 rated film this year (and top grosser of independent R21 releases if you exclude SEX AND ZEN which benefitted from a much wider release); FOUR LIONS concludes its run with US$33,779 after 4 weeks.

For the full box office list, click here.

JOHNNY ENGLISH and MAYDAY explode, TATSUMI and CHALET GIRL sink

19 Sep 2011

JOHNNY ENGLISH REBORN and MAYDAY 3DNA open big, while THE SMURFS continue to show strong legs. Other new releases yield terrible to moderate results. Here's a quick running (opinionated) commentary -

Rowen Atkinson continues to prove his box office draw - never mind that it's been quite a while since the last Mr Bean and Johnny English outings. REBORN's first weekend gross is US$1,645,282 with a bustling US$32,260 screen average (only KUNG FU PANDA 2 scored a marginally higher US$32,843 screen average this year).

MAYDAY 3DNA has a screen average of US$16,100 for a total of US$96,600. Very good numbers for a concert film.

Most of the other new releases debut with moderate to terrible results - DON'T BE AFRAID OF THE DARK managed a US$5,016 screen average for a total of US$95,313. This is marginally less than MAYDAY (which was playing on only 6 screens vs. DARK's 19 screens).

Released with little publicity in a crowded marketplace, romance pics A LITTLE BIT OF HEAVEN and CHALET GIRL and action flick BLITZ performed pretty much badly. CHALET GIRL's screen average of US$1,952 is one of the lowest this year. A LITTLE BIT OF HEAVEN (US$5,507) and BLITZ (US$4,479) did not perform too encouragingly either considering that the genres are pretty much mainstream.

And amongst the 3 foreign language films released -

TATSUMI had wide newspaper coverage and positive reviews - it debut at Cannes earlier this year and it's announced as Singapore's entry for the Oscars next year for Best Foreign Language Film. But it scored only a US$2,450 screen average for a total of US$4,899 from 2 screens.

Korean horror I SAW THE DEVIL had a screen average of US$5,791 for a total of US$11,581. Encouraging numbers - as a R21 rating usually severely limits a film's outreach.

1,778 STORIES OF ME AND MY WIFE opens without much publicity and grosses US$3,187 from 1 screen.

Amongst holdovers -

THE SMURFS continue to show strong legs even as it dips a hefty 71,2% from the previous week. It has now grossed more than US$2.72m in just 3 weeks, and could finish in the range of US$3-3.5m at least. (In comparison, CARS 2 has so far grossed only about US$1.64m although it was released a week earlier)

The homosexual themed comedy BEGINNERS has gross US$54,132 after 5 weeks. That's just about what a film of this genre will make when the cinema attendance is healthy (THE KIDS ARE ALL RIGHT made US$53,320 earlier this year, while A SINGLE MAN made US$76,510 in 2010).

The terrorist comedy FOUR LIONS and biographical drama THE FIRST GRADER have grossed US$30,615 and US$19,362 to date. Numbers are probably within expectations for these kinds of small releases.

For the full box office list, click here.

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WU XIA fights its way to Top Screen Average!

31 July 2011

WU XIA is the top screen average earner (US$17,521) for the weekend of Jul 21-24.

Playing only on 25 screens, the latest martial arts flick from Hong Kong debut with US$438,014. In comparison, the last Donnie Yen film, THE LOST SWORDSMAN opened to US$639,176 from 29 screens and a screen average of US$15,433.

WU XIA is currently the 4th highest grossing HK film in Singapore this year, and will attempt to outdo SWORDSMAN, which made US$1,082,246.

The much publicized SEX AND ZEN: EXTREME ECSTASY, which is available in both 2D and 3D versions, arrives on 11 screens and grosses US$158,354. The result is encouraging, with reports of sold out shows despite poor reviews, a truncated international version and a release more than 3 months after the film opened in HK, Taiwan, Australia and New Zealand.

Raunchy chick flick BRIDESMAIDS starts off with an encouraging US$154,307 from 13 screens, while HANNA, the thriller about a young female assassin starts off with US$111,127 from 12 screens.

Three independent releases also fight for the box office dollars, with Michael Winterbottom's A SUMMER IN GENOVA (US$9,613, 2 screens) and the Keanu Reeves headlined HENRY'S CRIME (US$4,859, 1 screen) debuting to average numbers. The only real casualty seems to be the mis-titled WIN WIN. The comic drama starring Paul Giamatti limps out of the door with a weak US$2,997 from 1 screen.

Meanwhile, HARRY POTTER AND THE DEATHLY HALLOWS PART 2 continues to reign at no.1 - grossing more than US$1m during its second weekend. Only 2 other films achieved this feat this year - TRANSFORMERS: DARK OF THE MOON and KUNG FU PANDA 2.

THE DEATHLY HALLOWS PART 2 also edges out PART 1 to be the top Harry Potter film in Singapore - it's currently the 3rd highest grossing film this year and the 10th highest grossing movie in Singapore of all time.

TRANSFORMERS: DARK OF THE MOON is inches away from dethroning AVATAR as Singapore's top film of all time. With S$10,533,931 earned to date, it is less than S$900k from achieving its goal. However, this may be a difficult feat if the film continues at its current rate of depreciation.

Meanwhile, last week's release A BEAUTIFUL LIFE ends its run with US$10,504 - very close to the last Shu Qi romance drama IF YOU ARE THE ONE 2 (US$10,451).

For the full box office list, click here.

(To check out the trailers of the new films, click on the film's title).

Final Harry Potter explodes with US$3m debut!

24 July 2011

HARRY POTTER AND THE DEATHLY HALLOWS PART 2 opens on 107 screens to score an impressive screen average of US$28,227 (S$34,404) and a total gross of US$3,020,290 (S$3,681,280). It's the second biggest weekend debut and second widest opening film this year (and perhaps, ever *).

The final chapter in the Harry Potter series improved upon the previous installment which grossed US$2,207,425 (S$2,858,814) over its first weekend with a screen average of US$20,042 (S$25,956).

With such numbers, the final Harry Potter film stands a strong chance of outgrossing the last installment of the Harry Potter film, which was also the top grossing film in the franchise to date with US$4,546,240 (S$5,879,198).

Most of the blockbuster movies usually end their run with a total gross that is at least double their debut weekend gross (TRANSFORMERS 3 debut with US$4.162m, total gross is now US$8.373m; KUNG FU PANDA 2 debut with US$2.627, total gross is now US$7.41m; X-MEN: FIRST CLASS debut with US$1.724m, it has grossed US$4.444m to date).

So it's also a safe bet that the film will at least end up in the year's top 3 by the end of its run, behind the phenomenally successful TRANSFORMERS and KUNG FU PANDA sequels.

TRANSFORMERS LOOKING TO BEAT AVATAR

Meanwhile, TRANSFORMERS: DARK OF THE MOON hits S$10,205,626, becoming only the second film in Singapore to gross more than S$10 million.

It stands a chance at setting a new record as it's just about S$1.178m short of matching AVATAR - Singapore's top grossing film of all time.

BROWN SUGAR HITS; BEAUTIFUL LIFE NOT SO SWEET

There aren't that many R21 films released here, so BROWN SUGAR's gross of US$14,941 from 2 screens is actually not bad. The film might actually turn out to be profitable if the acquisition fee is not that high.

The Shu Qi and Liu Ye headlined A BEAUTIFUL LIFE from director Andrew Lau starts off with a single print and US$4,419. Not terrific numbers. For comparison's sake, the last Shu Qi starring romance IF YOU ARE THE ONE 2 ended its run with US$10,451 from a first weekend debut of US$5,595.

This week's box office can be found here.

* based on available data that stretches back to mid-2007.

Transformers All-Time No. 3!

13 July 2011

TRANSFORMERS: DARK OF THE MOON is now the 3rd highest grossing film of all time in Singapore. And next week, it'll probably surpass KUNGFU PANDA 2 to become 2011's top movie and no. 2 film of all time. Only US$32,032 separate the two titles as of last weekend.

Meanwhile, JANE EYRE becomes the highest grossing single print release, surpassing THE KIDS ARE ALL RIGHT. It's also the second longest running film of the year (8 weeks) after THE FIGHTER (9 weeks).

Amongst new releases, LARRY CROWNE (US$135,333) and MR. AND MRS. SINGLE (US$23,761) debut to unimpressive results. The French comedy BEAUTIFUL LIES starring Audrey Tautou opens outside the top 10 on 1 screen, but it's off to a promising start as its screen average is the 2nd highest this week, ahead of LARRY CROWN and almost 2.5 times that of MR. AND MRS. SINGLE.

This week's box office can be found here.

Transformers Stomp Sg Box Office!

7 July 2011

As expected, TRANSFORMERS: DARK OF THE MOON stomps into theatres on a record breaking 126 screens and has grossed US$4,120,240 (S$5,050,714) to date. Its weekend gross accounted for almost 88.98% of all the tickets sold and the film is now the 4th highest grossing film in Singapore this year.

Without a doubt, it will be no. 2 when the box office figures are tabulated next week, and stands a shot at trying to de-throne this year's top film KUNG FU PANDA 2 which has grossed an estimated US$7,292,761 (S$8,939,685).

The previous TRANSFORMERS movie REVENGE OF THE FALLEN grossed US$5,834,711 (S$8,399,767).

Meanwhile, showing amazing legs is JANE EYRE, a 1-print release that has grossed US$52,853 in its 7th week of screening. That puts it in 2nd place amongst highest grosses for a single print release this year behind only THE KIDS ARE ALL RIGHT (US$53,320).

Two other single print releases did not fare quite as well:

BARNEY'S VERSION grossed US$8,587 while PINOY SUNDAY, the first film under The Picturehouse Exclusive Showcase banner (since the demise of the Picturehouse as a physical screening venue), grossed only US$9,894 after 3 weeks of screening. As of now, both films are amongst the lowest grossing films for a single print release this year.

Some of the films that were suppose to act as counter programming to the blockbusters this season have fared poorly. MIRAL - another new single print release grossed US$3,121 - one of the lowest for a single print release in its opening weekend.

The full list of films can be found here:

http://www.boxofficemojo.com/intl/singapore/?yr=2011&wk=26&p=.htm

Another Record Breaking Weekend!

9 June 2011

For the second week in a row, box office sales reach a new peak - as US$4,236,701 (S$5,205,762) worth of tickets were sold - the highest in about four years since Box Office Mojo started tracking in 2007. More research will need to be done - but could this be a all-time record? Last week, a new peak was reached, but that record is now history.

This week, the top 3 films X-Men: First Class, Kung Fu Panda 2 and The Hangover Part II accounted for 92.9% of total ticket sales.

X-Men: First Class's first weekend gross of US$1,724,673 makes it the 9th highest grossing film of the year.

Meanwhile, Kung Fu Panda 2 became the year's top grossing film - its total gross now stands at US$5,090, 498 (S$6,254,848) - possibly earning it a spot in the Top 10 highest grossing films of all time in Singapore.

Source:

http://www.boxofficemojo.com/intl/singapore

Notes:

Box office figures are estimates based on info from the above source.

BO Weekend of 29 May Sets New Records?

4 June 2011

It's the start of the school holidays as new box office records are set.

KUNG FU PANDA 2 debuts at No. 1 and is reported in its newspaper ads to have set a new record for biggest opening film in Singapore.

For the weekend of 29 May, the box office grossed a total of US$3,902,602. Could this be the highest figure ever in Singapore cinematic history? In US$ and according to records that go back to April 2007, this certainly seems the case.

In the past five years, the US$3m mark has only been breached 7 times during a weekend: twice this year, twice in 2010, twice in 2009 and once in 2008. Of course when the figures are converted to S$, the weekend of 24 Dec 2009 is still champion (US$3,751,909/S$5,279,686), followed by this weekend (US$3,902,602/S$4,822,640).

Back to PANDA, which lays claims to being Singapore's biggest opening film to date. With US$2,627,425, it beat the previous record holder, TRANSFORMERS: REVENGE OF THE FALLEN which grossed US$2,478,544 during its 1st weekend in 2009. But when converted to S$, TRANSFORMERS still wins (S$3,606,232 vs. S$3,246,840).

Here's an update on the top films of 2011 so far:

This year's top earners:

1. THOR (3D) * (US$4,295,507)

2. PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN: ON STRANGER TIDES (3D/IMAX) * (US$3,499,420)

3. THE FAST AND THE FURIOUS 5 * (US$3,390,736)

4. KUNG FU PANDA 2 (3D/IMAX) * (US$2,627,425)

5. THE GREEN HORNET (3D) (US$2,222,872)

6. SHAOLIN (US$1,969,435)

7. IT'S A GREAT GREAT WORLD (US$1,902,926)

8. RIO (3D) (US$1,878,218)

9. BATTLE: LOS ANGELES (US$1,635,954)

10. I AM NUMBER FOUR (US$1,463,707)

* denotes still in release

This year's top average screen gross:

1. KUNG FU PANDA 2 (3D) (US$32,843) - 26 May

2. THE FAST AND THE FURIOUS 5 (US$27,015) - 5 May

3. THOR (3D) (US$25,393) - 28 Apr

4. PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN: ON STRANGER TIDES (3D/IMAX) (US$21,233) - 19 May

5. HOMECOMING (US$20,898) - 3 Feb

This year's widest opening films:

1. PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN: ON STRANGER TIDES (3D/IMAX) - 100 screens

2. KUNG FU PANDA 2 (3D) - 80 screens

3. THOR (3D)- 70 screens

4. THE GREEN HORNET (3D) - 64 screens

5. RIO (3D) - 46 screens

So even as big budget Hollywood films continue to dominate the box office in Singapore, 1 Singapore film and 1 HongKong film have managed to end up in Top 10 highest box office gross, and 1 Singapore film managed to be amongst the Top 5 highest screen average gross to date this year.

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Perhaps worthy of note is the Colin Farrell and Keira Knightley crime romance drama LONDON BOULEVARD, which opened on 1 screen and grossed US$11,994. This makes it the 2nd highest debut for a 1-screen release this year.

The others 1-screen releases this year and their debut gross/total gross are:

THE KIDS ARE ALL RIGHT (US$19,212/US$53,320)

JANE EYRE * (US$8,949/US$23,127)

IF YOU ARE THE ONE 2 (US$5,595/US$10,451)

UNCLE BOONMEE WHO CAN RECALL HIS PAST LIVES (US$5,511/US$22,904)

ALL GOOD THINGS (US$5,014/US$13,397)

MARY AND MAX (US$4,952/US$14,064)

THE RESIDENT (US$4,012/US$14,645)

FREAKONOMICS (US$4,120/US$17,871)

THE LAST DAYS OF EMMA BLANK (US$3,921/US$16,911)

CARMEN (3D) - Info N/A

* denotes still in release

This year, only 3 1-print releases have grossed more than US$20,000 so far, with THE KIDS ARE ALL RIGHT leading the pack at US$53,320, followed by JANE EYRE (US$23,127 and counting) and UNCLE BOONME WHO CAN RECALL HIS PAST LIVES (US$22,904).

Source:

http://www.boxofficemojo.com/intl/singapore/

Notes:
The box office figures reported are just estimates based on the above sources.

Pirates Attack 100 Screens in Singapore

26 May 2011

Could this be a new record for the widest opening film in Singapore?

PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN: ON STRANGER TIDES premiered on 100 screens and grossed a total of US$2,123,292 (S$2,628,423). That's also the highest first weekend gross for any film in Singapore this year so far.

Just for the record, PIRATES is the eighth film to open with 40 or more prints in Singapore this year. The others being THOR (70 screens), THE GREEN HORNET (64), RIO (46), SHAOLIN (43), SUCKER PUNCH (43), PRIEST (41) and THE FAST AND THE FURIOUS 5 (40). The local film with the widest opening this year is THE GHOSTS MUST BE CRAZY (34).

So why did I choose the number 40? Just to keep the club exclusive :)

The last time any film grossed more than US$2m in its opening weekend was back in April 2010 when CLASH OF THE TITANS made US$2,191,177 (S$3,067,494). That's marginally less than PIRATES in US$, but significantly higher in S$ due to the stronger Singapore dollar this year.

CLASH was also available in 3D but was released on only 75 screens. Its per screen average of US$29,216 - the highest for any film last year, was also way ahead of PIRATES' per screen average of US$21,233.

It'd be interesting to see how much of each film's gross came from 3D sales, just to track how audiences in Singapore are responding to 3D movies. Unfortunately, I don't have access to the information. In the US, it's reported that 3D accounted for less than half of total ticket sales for PIRATES [1].

So far, this year's top earners in Singapore are:

1. THOR (3D) * (US$4,221,908)

2. THE FAST AND THE FURIOUS 5 * (US$3,212,376)

3. THE GREEN HORNET (3D) (US$2,222,872)

4. PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN: ON STRANGER TIDES (3D) * (US$2,123,292)

5. SHAOLIN (US$1,969,435)

6. IT'S A GREAT GREAT WORLD (US$1,902,926)

7. RIO (3D) (US$1,878,218)

8. BATTLE: LOS ANGELES (US$1,635,954)

9. I AM NUMBER FOUR (US$1,463,707)

10. THE GHOSTS MUST BE CRAZY (US$1,133,837)

* denotes still in release

UPDATE: The last PIRATES movie PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN: AT WORLD'S END could be the previous record holder with an opening on 98 screens back in 2007. It grossed an estimated US$1,652,539 (S$2,524,914) with a screen average of US$16,863 (S$25,765). This is just marginally less than the latest PIRATES' flick.

Sources:

http://www.boxofficemojo.com/intl/singapore/
[1] http://www.boxofficeguru.com/052311.htm

Notes:
The box office figures reported are just estimates based on the above sources.

Mars Flops in Singapore with Disastrous Results

6 April 2011

MARS NEEDS MOM has made only US$129,704 (S$163,400) up to the last weekend.

The new animated Easter theme film HOP debut at No. 1 over the weekend with US$350,104 (S$441,058) - that's close to three times as much as what MARS has grossed in 4 weeks.

Two other recent animated films - RANGO has made US$969,122 (S$1.22m) to date and GNOMEO AND JULIET US$736,902 (S$928,342) - both far ahead of MARS.

Even taking into account a crowded marketplace filled with films for families and kids, it's hard to think of any recent major Hollywood release that have fared so badly at the Singapore box office - either animated film or live action.

Last year's lowest grossing American animated film was ALPHA & OMEGA - it opened on 14 screens for a total gross of US$105,531 (S$138,464) after 3 weeks. But it beat MARS in terms of average per screen - it's first weekend per screen average of US$2,543 (S$3,396) was about twice that of MARS' US$1,402 (S$1,776). And it was playing on fewer screens without any benefit from the Disney brand name or 3D either.

To date, the US$150 million production has grossed about US$36.3 million worldwide. So what went wrong? Was it a film that nobody really wanted to see?

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Fly Entertainment's first venture into filmmaking under A.I. Pictures - PERFECT RIVALS has raked in US$120,794 (S$152,175) after 3 weeks in release. It's way ahead of Wee Li Lin's FOREVER, which was last reported to have collected S$41,000 in a Today article after 2 weeks in release.

Opening next week is THE ULTIMATE WINNER - TV actor Li Nanxing's debut as director and star. Local films featuring local TV stars do not usually perform well, as evident from the Christopher Lee vehicle KIDNAPPER (S$436,033), the Fann Wong led HAPPY GO LUCKY (S$223,027) and LOVE CUTS starring Zoe Tay (S$150,087).

Without the benefit of a huge marketing campaign and the general lukewarm reception of the local audience to most local films, it's possible that THE ULTIMATE WINNER may open with a per screen average gross in the same range as PERFECT RIVALS (US$5,773/S$7,345) and last year's OLD COW VS. TENDER GRASS (US$6,556/S$8,980).

Also opening is AKU TAK BODOH - the Malaysian remake of I NOT STUPID. It'd be interesting to see how well this one does - as data for Malay films is usually left out of Box Office Guru.

The number of local films released this year now number six with Liao Jiekai's RED DRAGONFLIES slated to open on May 5.

The other films released this year are: IT'S A GREAT GREAT WORLD - US$1.9m (S$2.42m); THE GHOSTS MUST BE CRAZY - US$1.13m (S$1.45m) and HOMECOMING - US$1.09m (S$1.39m).

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Oscar nominee THE KIDS ARE ALL RIGHT finished off with about US$53,320 (S$67,212). Not too shabby for a 1-print release after 5 weeks that kicked off with lots of controversy when the MDA restricted the R21 film to only 1 print and 1 location.

A SINGLE MAN, also an Oscar nominated gay theme film grossed US$76,510 (S$104,954) from 4 screens when it ran for 4 weeks back in 2010.

ALL ABOVE LOVE, which opened recently collected only US$18,472 (S$23,503) after a 3 week run on 2 screens without facing the same legal restrictions placed on KIDS.

So the answers we'd never know are: without the controversy, would the film have done as well, or would it have done much better if it was allowed to screen at more locations?

Sources:
http://www.boxofficemojo.com/intl/singapore/
http://www.smf.sg/SFC/Documents/Box%20Office%20Information%20for%20Singapore%20Films%20from%201991.pdf

Notes:
The box office figures reported are just estimates based on the above sources.

The Kids @ Singapore Box Office - is it a new record?

4 Mar 2011

There's been some interesting happenings at the Singapore Box Office of late.

Last weekend, I AM NUMBER FOUR was No. 1 spot at the Singapore box office. It grossed US$534,059 (S$679,494) from 34 screens. But if ranked according to per screen average, it comes in at no. 2 with a per screen average of US$15,708 (S$19,986) - this is about US$3.5K behind the no. 1 film.

So what film beat I AM NUMBER FOUR when it come to per screen average?

A 1-print 1-location R21-rated film that failed to even crack the Top 10 called THE KIDS ARE ALL RIGHT.

It's total Box office takings ranks it at no. 13, but it's per screen average gross was US$19,212 (S$24,444). Compare this with last year's two highest per screen average for a single print release: the documentary BABIES (US$10,404/S$14,045) and the Iranian film SON OF BABYLON (US$10,795/S$13,871).

What makes this achievement even more significant is when you compare against some of last year's top films during their highest per screen average weekends:

CLASH OF THE TITANS - US$29,216/S$40,900

IRON MAN 2 - US$24,304/S$33,301

HARRY POTTER AND THE DEATHLY HALLOWS - US$20,042/S$25,972

THE KIDS ARE ALL RIGHT - US$19,212/S$24,444

INCEPTION - US$17,283/S$23,784

This year, only one other film has a higher per screen average - HOMECOMING with US$20,898 (S$26,638) made during the Chinese New Year weekend [KIDS was released over a non-holiday weekend frame].

Nominated for 4 Oscars, the film received some news coverage when it became the first film to be restricted to a 1-print screening in Singapore, even with a R21 age restriction. A possible comparison - last year's gay-theme drama A SINGLE MAN opened on 2 screens with a per screen average of US$4,719 (S$6,660).

So is this a record of sorts for a single print release? More research will be needed to find out, but KIDS looks very much in a class of its own in terms of commercial success for a single print release.

Source: Box Office Guru

http://www.boxofficemojo.com/intl/singapore/?yr=2011&wk=8&p=.htm

http://www.boxofficemojo.com/intl/singapore/?yr=2011&p=.htm

http://www.boxofficemojo.com/intl/singapore/?yr=2010&currency=us&p=.htm

Notes:

[1] Box Office Gross figures are just an estimation.

[2] Conversion to S$ is at the exchange rate of the period of the film's release

Singapore Box Office

17 Sep 2010

RESIDENT EVIL: AFTERLIFE is doing very well in Singapore (US$1.034m), as is this little film called BABIES.

BABIES failed to crack the Top 10, but if taking into account a per screen average, it's actually the No. 2 film just behind RESIDENT EVIL!

Likewise, VILLON'S WIFE and HEARTBREAKER, 2 other foreign films that failed to crack the Top 10 are actually #3 and #4 respectively if taking into account per screen average earnings.

Meanwhile, INCEPTION continues to prove to be one of the year's biggest box office hits, and has now raked in US$3.961m.

Top Earners This year (I hope I got the numbers right):
1. AVATAR (US$8.113m - excludes special edition earnings)
2. IRON MAN 2 (US$4.194m)
3. INCEPTION * (US$3.961m)
4. CLASH OF THE TITANS (US$3.945m)
5. THE KARATE KID (US$3.345m)
6. ALICE IN WONDERLAND (US$3.319m)
7. IP MAN 2 (US$3.292m)
8. TOY STORY 3 (US$3.155m)
9. SHREK FOREVER AFTER (US$3.019m)
10. HOW TO TRAIN YOUR DRAGON (US$2.968m)

* still showing

Local film HAUNTED CHANGI has scored a respectable US$359,632 in its second week, but the new Zoe Tay film LOVE CUTS is off to a poor start with only US$64,005.

Source:
http://www.boxofficemojo.com/intl/singapore/?yr=2010&wk=37&p=.htm