Brandon Gray of Box Office Mojo writes in his Weekend Report:
'Borat' raked in an estimated $26.3 million, among the biggest openings ever for a modestly wide release, while 'The Santa Clause 3' [taking the second spot with $20 million in tix sold] and 'Flushed Away' [in 3rd with $19.1 million] duked it out over family crumbs....
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Ian Mohr of Variety:
After broad speculation that Internet buzz could turn Fox comedy "Borat" into "Snakes on a Plane 2," the Sacha Baron Cohen vehicle behaved more like "Fahrenheit 9/11" over the frame, coming in at No. 1 with $26.3 million.
Left-field hit won the weekend handily against all odds, playing on just 837 screens. "Borat" drew a whopping per-engagement average of $31,511, as the pic brought in an aud that was almost half over 25 as well as the expected college crowd.
Monday morning quarterbacks will wonder whether Fox could have captured even more B.O. dough had the studio rolled out "Borat" more widely.
But the studio's execs say that the movie plays best in a packed house, and that the initial run built the word of mouth that a pic such as this would need to expand.
Disney's "The Santa Clause 3," the No. 2 finisher, unspooled on 3,458 to hit $20 million. Disney said it had been expecting to finish at somewhere between $19 million and $21 million.
"Borat" won the day, in part, because "Clause" and Paramount/DreamWorks Animation's "Flushed Away" -- which washed in at No. 3 with $19.1 million -- split the family aud, while the fictional Kazakh TV commentator brought in adults and teens.
"This was not a conventional sell," said Fox production topper Hutch Parker of the "Borat" perf. "It's not a conventional anything. But it has had such unbelievable playability.
"We're not selling 'Wedding Crashers,' " he added. "This is not a TV-friendly sell. Rather than shotgunning it, we made people aware of it."
Comedy also was an international sensation for the studio, which will now ratchet up the pic's domestic play dates to 2,500 next frame. That move makes an already overcrowded fall that much more swamped with pics vying for attention...
Frame's other new wide opener, "Flushed," produced the highest-ever bow for a project produced via Brit banner Aardman. But Sony's "Open Season," which opened at $23 million in September, is still stealing animated biz: Pic finished at No. 9 after six frames and has taken in more than $81 million to date.
"Borat" helped boost B.O. overall from last weekend: Top 10 pics drew more than $111 million vs. $83.3 million last frame, when "Saw III" ruled the roost.
"Saw" this weekend lost more than half of its aud, taking in $15.5 million to bring cume to more than $60 million in just two frames.
Also notable on the weekend was "The Departed," which crossed $102 million to become Martin Scorsese's highest-grossing film ever. Pic slipped just 19% in its fifth frame...
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Joshua Rich of Entertainment Weekly, says in his weekend wrap-up:
"Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan" bags the No. 1 spot...
Yeah, I know Borat won the weekend....but how 'bout Scorsese's The Departed passing the $100 million dollar mark...Hooray for him!!
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