France's $5 Million Baby

April 3, 2005

Million Dollar Baby performed brilliantly this week earning $8.8 million for an international total of $60 million, placing fourth on the international box office charts. In France the film dominated the marketplace with $4.94 million on 450 screens and in Germany the film earned $760,000 in semi-limited release (120 screens) for the best per screen average in the market. On the other hand, the film flopped in Slovakia where it missed the top ten in its debut. On the holdover front, the multi-Oscar winning front saw its weekend haul climb by 20% in Spain to $980,000 and it's still doing well in Australia, Italy and South Korea.

  • Manuale d'amore saw its fortunes grow by 8% in its native home of Italy lifting its box office in the market to $3,901,041 for the weekend and $9,455,156 after two weeks.
  • With no new openings for a while, Meet the Fockers is relying on holdovers that are mostly a month or older. Over the weekend the film added $3.15 million from 1750 screen in 30 markets for an international total of $226.3 million. Germany remains its biggest single market with $1 million over the weekend and $22 million since it opened six weeks ago.
  • Hostage may have had a poor week last weekend, but very strong holdovers this weekend help mitigate the problem. fell just 18% in South Korea to $747,314, lifting it to third place for the weekend. In the U.K. and Germany the film did nearly has well dropping just 19% to $860,000 and 22% to $855,000 respectively. It performed even better in Italy dropping just 8% to $420,000. Add it up and you have $2.88 million for the weekend.
  • National Treasure saw its box office drop by 35% to $1.9 million during its second weekend in Japan, which is very high drop-off for the market. In China the film dropped further percentwise to an estimated $700,000, but that's not as bad relative to market norms. The $2.6 million it took in this weekend pushed its international total to $160.7 million.
  • The South Korean films, Mapado and Stake Out, switch spots on the chart again with $2,533,875 and $2,271,981 respectively.
  • An all-star cast couldn't help Valiant do better than $2.05 million on 403 screens in its native U.K. This is not as strong as the studio would have liked and does not bode well for the film's August 19th opening stateside.
  • Son of the Mask opened in France but failed to make much of an impact with just $1,253,708 on 389 screens finishing in fourth place. The film managed to do even worse in Australia with just $21,000 on 43 screens, missing the top twenty. Overall the film added just $1.9 million on 1000 screens for an early international tally of $12.5 million.
  • Be Cool really struggled in its debut in France finishing in seventh place with $1,086,890 on 396 screens for the second worst per screen average in the top ten. Overall, the film added $1.6 million to its early total of $6.4 million internationally.
  • The unstoppable Howl's Moving Castle continues its 19 week stay on the Japanese top ten with $496,632 on 450 screens pushing its total there to $178,957,100. The film also opened in Hong Kong with an amazing $1.1 million on just 35 screens.
  • The Aviator hit Japan with a $1,545,371, second place debut. It's $102 million internationally is now just ahead of its domestic total but with no more markets to open in, there will be no more milestones left to hit.
  • Saw fell from fifth to ninth in France this week losing nearly half its box office in the process. Its $706,840 in the market was its biggest single market of the weekend while holidays helped the film fall just 8% in Spain to $550,000. Lastly, the film opened in Greece with a very respectable $230,000 on 50 screens for a second place finish.
  • Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events had a good week in Italy as it climbed 21% to $726,614, which pushed its total in the market to $1,634,811. Overall the film brought in $1.36 million on 500 screens bringing its international box office to $78.6 million and $195.3 million worldwide.
  • Ray's showing off some long legs as it winds down its international box office run. This week it pulled in $1.33 million, $820,480 of which came from France alone boosting its total in the market to $8,268,294 and $41.67 internationally.
  • Blade: Trinity saw its weekly drop-off in Spain shallow out to just 34% earning $885,000, which was the majority of the film's $1.33 million weekend. The film now has $6.6 million in Spain and $69 million internationally.
  • Lorelei stuck around in third place for another weekend in Japan with $1,224,562 raising its total in the market to $16,010,349 so far.
  • In Good Company had a series of debuts including in the major markets of Germany and Italy but couldn't find breakout success in any of them. It's best placing was sixth in Austria with $147,982 and on 28 screens and seventh in Germany with $606,000 on 222 screens while it just managed ninth place in both Italy, ($333,000) and Hong Kong, (box office figures are not available.) Ironically, even though the film missed the top ten in Finland, it was there that the film showed real promise earning $40,000 on 6 screens for s strong per screen average. Overall the film added an estimated $1.2 million to its international total of $4 million.
  • As expected, Bridget Jones: Edge of Reason topped the original and hit $250 million worldwide this week. What wasn't expected was the 33% drop-off in Japan to just $1,155,352, which is awfully steep for the market; after two weeks in the market the film has made $5,261,590 there and $211.7 million total.
  • Shark Tale crossed $10 million in Japan with $1,151,981 over the weekend and $10,947,476 since it opened four weeks ago.
  • Holidays helped Pooh's Heffalump Movie grow by more than 75% in Spain to $290,000, by 20% in the U.K. to $355,000 while the film dropped a very mild 3% in Italy to $195,000. This helped push its weekend box office to an estimated $1 million while its international total now sits at $14 million.
  • The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou had a couple more opening this week, but neither of them were inspiring. In Argentina the film opened in sixth place with $36,000 on 20 screens while in Spain the film barely made the top twenty with $175,000 on 100 screens. Holdovers saw the film plunge 62% in France to $166,390 and 46% in Germany to $221,359. There was some good news as the film expanded into 30 more screens in Australia, but the per screen average barely slipped resulting in a $260,000 weekend. Overall the film added an estimated $900,000 to its $7.2 million international total.
  • Boogeyman opened in Russia with $320,000 for sixth place, just less than what the film took in during its third weekend in Germany. Add in the $155,000 in the U.K. and you have a $800,000 weekend and a nearly $6 million internationally total.
  • The Pacifier opening in Australia with less than stellar result of fifth place and $610,000, $700,000 if you include previews.
  • At this pace, Rockman exe & Duel Masters won't last one more weekend in the top ten in its home market of Japan. This week it saw its box office sliced in half to just $559,800 while its total box office grew to $6,178,840.
  • Assault on Precinct 13 dropped a spot in Spain to ninth with $465,000.
  • Wimbledon's debut in South Korea was a case of good news / bad news. Bad new, the film only managed a seventh place, $423,906 opening. Good news, that was on only 65 screens giving the film the third best per screen average in the top ten. It did help push the film's international box office to $22 million, which is well below what the studio was expecting.
  • Racing Stripes turned up lame in its debut in Italy making just $392,793 on 186 screens settling for eighth place. That was the film's last major market, but it does have a few smaller ones to open in which should help push its $23.7 million international box office a bit higher.
  • Creep went nowhere in Spain, despite that market's preference for Horror films. The film missed the top ten with just $390,000 on 150 screens.
  • Andrew Lloyd-Webber's The Phantom of the Opera stuck around in the top ten in Japan for one more weekend bringing in $376,143 for a total in the market of $35,227,824 and $101.5 million internationally.
  • Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind hung onto tenth place for the second weekend in a row in Japan with $352,903 on 75 screens for a running tally of $1,474,750 in the market.
  • Melinda and Melinda had debuts in both the U.K. and Greece earning $240,000 and $110,000 respectively.
  • Being Julia did very well in its opening in Argentina with a third place, $90,000 debut on just 20 screens, while in New Zealand the film managed a $45,000, eighth place opening on 10 screens. In Greece the film didn't do as well finishing in tenth place with $34,000 on 10 screens. The film also added $150,000 to its $420,000 box office in Australia.
  • Despite holidays that helped many films grow in Spain, The Wedding Date dropped 20% to $310,000 and twelfth place. The film has made just $1.2 million internationally, but doesn't begin its international run in earnest till late April when it opens in the U.K. and Italy in consecutive weekends.
  • Elektra dropped out of the top ten the France with $300,000 pushing its total in the market to $3.1 million.
  • Kinsey is struggling in yet another international market, this time it's Germany where the film could only take in $250,000 on 107 screens. In Austria the prognosis wasn't better with just $16,359 on 3 screens for the week.
  • Cursed continues to live up to its name missing the top ten in Italy with a twelfth place, $240,000 debut. That was the films first major market, but overall the film has $1.25 million internationally.
  • Outside of the English speaking markets, Team America: World Police has not been able to opened well and this week was no different. The film debuted with just $230,000 on 165 screens in Spain, which was only good enough for 16th place and resulted in the second worst per screen average in the top ten. Overall the film has made $17 million internationally, $9.2 million coming from the U.K. and $3.8 million from Australia.
  • In Australia the home grown film, Hating Alison Ashley, plunged from fourth to eleventh losing nearly half its box office. This week it made $210,000 for a two week total of just $740,000.
  • Maria Full of Grace snagged the tenth spot on the U.K. charts with $157,000 on just 24 screens while the film didn't do as well in Australia with $50,000 on 15 screens.
  • Suspect Zero flopped in France bringing in just $200,000, missing the top ten by a wide margin.
  • Ladder 49 barely made the top ten in its debut in South Korea bringing in just $170,284 on 75 screens, ($189,539 if you include previews.)
  • Alfie barely made the top ten in its debut in Russia with $150,000.
  • Les Choristes added $150,000 during its third weekend of semi-limited release in the U.K.
  • Downfall opened Turkey with $90,000 on 35 screens, and while it only placed sixth it did have the best per screen average out of the four new films in the top ten. Internationally the film has made $65.4 million, nearly $40 million of that coming from its native market of Germany.
  • Bad Education opening in limited release in Australia with $80,000 on 14 screens.
  • White Noise opened in third place in Chile the week $77,772 on 20 screens.
  • Darkness lost nearly two thirds of its opening box office in the U.K. falling to 23rd place with $64,000. On the plus side, the film only cost $10.6 million to make and it made more than that in its home market of Spain and then beat that figure here, so the film has probably already made a profit with the home market to go.
  • The Passion Recut was released for Easter in a couple of markets doing about as well as it did here. In Australia the film limped in with $17,820 on 82 screens and it was even worse with $13,200 on 62 screens in the U.K.
  • The Merchant of Venice opened in Finland with $17,000 on just two screens, only the overall box office champ, The Ring 2 had a better per screen average in the market.
  • Hide & Seek has dropped off the radar, but we do know it crossed $100 million worldwide matching its domestic box office with $50.8 million internationally.

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    Filed under: International Box Office, The Passion of the Christ, Meet the Fockers, National Treasure, Shark Tale, Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events, The Pacifier, The Aviator, Million Dollar Baby, The Ring Two, Ray, Ladder 49, White Noise, Be Cool, Saw, Blade: Trinity, The Phantom of the Opera, Hide and Seek, Racing Stripes, Boogeyman, In Good Company, Bridget Jones: The Edge Of Reason, Hostage, Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, Team America: World Police, The Wedding Date, Elektra, The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou, Darkness, Assault On Precinct 13, Valiant, Cursed, Pooh's Heffalump Movie, Son of the Mask, Wimbledon, Alfie, Kinsey, Suspect Zero, Being Julia, Maria Full of Grace, Der Untergang, La mala educación, Hauru no ugoku shiro, Melinda and Melinda, The Merchant of Venice, Les Choristes