Friday, September 07, 2012

Box Office Preview: Falling Off

Fall gets off to a slow start this weekend at the movies...

Henry Cavill, Bruce Willis and Sigourney Weaver finally feel The Cold Light of Day (reviews) after its original release date was pushed back; Bradley Cooper and Zoe Saldana have plenty to say in the rom-drama The Words (reviews)



Pamela McClintock of THR:

Post-summer blues are likely to grip the domestic box office this weekend as the Bradley Cooper-Zoe Saldana drama The Words opens alongside Summit Entertainment's Henry Cavill action pic In the Cold Light of Day.

Lionsgate's horror pic The Possession has a strong shot at beating both and staying at No. 1 in its second weekend. The film grossed $21.1 million over Labor Day weekend and has grossed $23.1 million through Wednesday.

The Words is tracking to gross in the $6 million to $7 million range. CBS Films acquired domestic rights to the film for $2 million at the Sundance Film Festival earlier this year, and expects it to play heavily to older females, possibly portending solid legs.

In the movie, Cooper plays a writer who pays the price of stealing another's work. Directed by Brian Klugman and Lee Sternthal in their feature directorial debut, The Words also stars Olivia Wilde, Jeremy Irons, Ben Barnes and Dennis Quaid.

Cold Light of Day may only reach $2 million in its debut. Summit and co-financing partner Intrepid Pictures had limited financial exposure on the film, between Spanish production rebates and foreign pre-sales.

Directed by Mabrouk El Mechri, Cold Light of Day follows a man whose family is kidnapped by intelligence agents during a weeklong sailing vacation in Spain. The agents are hell-bent on recovering a mysterious briefcast, and the husband and father soon finds himself on the run.

Cold Light of Day, also starring Sigourney Weaver, Veronica Echegui and Bruce Willis, cost in the $20 million to $30 million range. Intrepid's Trevor Macy and Marc D. Evans produced.

Both Cooper and Willis have high-profile films playing at the 2012 Toronto Film Festival, which got underway Thursday night with the worldwide premiere of Rian Johnson's Looper, starring Willis opposite Joseph Gordon-Levitt. Cooper stars in two films playing at the festival over the next week, Silver Linings Playbook and The Place Beyond the Pines.

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