Specialty Box Office: Killer Halloween Weekend for Lionsgate’s Saw 3D

No surprises this weekend as “Saw 3D”, the latest in the gore-friendly series that began in 2004 topped a weekend without debuts from any of the major studios. While the seventh (and final) installment of Lionsgate’s most successful franchise of all time made $24.2 million instead of the projected $28 million, its final chapter overcame poor reviews with the help of 3D sales that accounted for 93% of its total gross.

“Paranormal Activity” came in at second with a respectable $16.5 million. The low-budget sequel’s success is due largely to an innovative marketing campaign from Paramount stemming back to the film’s predecessor. But the real story is in who completed this week’s trifecta.

While “Jackass 3D” continued its box office blitz by surpassing the hundred million dollar mark, it was “Red” that came in third with $10.8 million (with only a 28% drop). Slow and steady might not win the race, but consistency delivers in a room full of 3D behemoths and strong sequels.

In the realm of all things but slow and steady, Fox Searchlight’s “Conviction” expansion to 565 screens paid off with a $1.8 million dollar showing this weekend. The film shot up from 25th to 10th on the box office leader board in its third week. Sam Rockwell’s bid for a best supporting actor nomination is looking better and better by the week.

“Saw 3D” wasn’t this week’s only strong newcomer. “The Girl Who Kicked The Hornet’s Nest” gave executives at Music Box Films more to smile about with $915,000 from 153 screens. With the wrapping of “Nest,” Noomi Rapace (Sweden’s most talked about export since the pacemaker) delivers another performance that has essentially got Hollywood directors’ underwear in knots.

However, it’s not all good news for Lionsgate. “Buried” continues on its slow march to the grave with a $430 per-screen average (with the studio expanding each week despite weak numbers). Meanwhile, a healthy $205,000 was posted this weekend by Sony Classic’s documentary, “Inside Job.” In four weeks of steady domestic expansion, the film about financial meltdown has been anything but a bubble bust.

In the rest of the documentary world, few films this year have garnered success like “Waiting for Superman.” In its sixth week en route to $4.5 million dollars, the Paramount Vantage vehicle has capped off another strong weekend with $500,000. Hoping to put up similar numbers is Arthouse Film’s newcomer, “Waste Land.” The film, which explores art in the world’s largest dump, made a mountain out of a mess-hill in garnering $11,600 from one screen.

Kristen Stewart’s “Welcome to the Rileys” and Rupert Grint’s “Wild Target” did not find similar per-screen success with their new films. With Warner Brother’s “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1” to debut in three weeks, it will be interesting to see how the film and Grint’s star power effects Freestyle’s strategy surrounding “Target.”

In other specialty news, the U.S. debut of IFC’s “Inspector Bellamy” has critics raving about French director Claude Chabrol’s final film. The film marks an exquisite end to decades of Chabrol’s work keeping audiences guessing. “Bellamy” also sets the stage for Chabrol’s first collaboration with French superstar Gerard Depardieu. With a $22,400 gross and $11,200 per screen average, “Inspector Bellamy” looks to expand stateside in the coming weeks with a strong showing overseas to back it up ($3.5 million foreign).