Monday, March 17, 2008

An Elephant's Favorite Color Is Green

Dr Seuss' Horton Hears A Who...And a whole lotta ka-ching in the process as the CGI-animated feature wins the weekend at the cineplex.



Meanwhile: Never Back Down beats down Doomsday...

Pamela McClintock of 'Variety:

Twentieth Century Fox's "Dr. Seuss' Horton Hears a Who!" enjoyed a who-licious bow of $45.1 million at the domestic box office, the biggest opening of the year and furthering Fox's successful foray into the animated and family marketplace.

"Horton"--toplining the voices of Jim Carrey and Steve Carell and produced by Blue Sky Studios--becomes the fifth-best opening ever for a G-rated toon, a market otherwise owned by Disney and Pixar. It also is the fourth-best opening ever for March, after Warner Bros' "300" and Fox's own animated PG toons "Ice Age" and sequel "Ice Age: The Meltdown."

"It's a who-mongous opening. It played to whos from ages 2 to 92. Blue Sky has made a film that makes you feel like you are immersed in the pages of Dr. Seuss' world," Fox senior VP of distribution Chris Aronson said.

Looking to take full advantage of kids starting to be out of school for the Easter break, "Horton" went out in 3,954 theaters.

Elsewhere at the box office, Summit Entertainment seemed to score a victory with mixed-martial arts drama "Never Back Down," which grossed an estimated $8.6 million from 2,729 runs to place No. 3 for the frame after "Horton" and Warner Bros.' holdover "10,000 BC," according to Rentrak. "Back Down" is the first in-house production released by Summit's new distribution arm.

Universal and Rogue Pictures weren't so lucky with horror pic "Doomsday," which grossed an estimated $4.7 million from 1,926 theaters in its debut to place only No. 7. It is the first Rogue title released by Universal since Rogue came under the U banner, instead of Focus Features.

In its second sesh, Warners' "10,000," declined 54% to an estimated $16.4 million from 3,410 runs for a cume of $61.2 million in the pic's first 10 days.

Also in their second framers were Disney's Martin Lawrence starrer "College Road Trip" and Lionsgate's crime actioner "The Bank Job."

Placing a solid No. 4 for the weekend, "Road Trip" declined 42% to an estimated $7.9 million from 2,706 theaters for a cume of $24.3 million.

"Bank Job" enjoyed one of the strongest holds in recent months, declining just 17% to an estimated $4.9 million from 1,613 runs for a cume of $13.1 million. Film placed No. 6 for the weekend...


Joshua Rich of Entertainment Weekly:

The family film ''Horton Hears a Who!'' dominated the box office with the year's best opening so far, $45.1 mil


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