Specialty Box Office: Ringing In “Another Year” at the Box Office

Weekend Box Office: December 31st to January 2nd

While box office receipts are down from 2009, the specialty market ended on a high note with two promising releases this past weekend. Another Year, a look into one not-so-golden year of married life, managed to average $20,000 in its limited debut. The Sony Classics release of another British import from writer-director Mike Leigh (“Happy-Go-Lucky”) will look to find an audience for its study of the everyday as it expands to more theaters. One picture that will have no trouble creating buzz is Blue Valentine starring Ryan Gosling and Michelle Williams. Derek Cianfrance’s new film features the changing life of a married couple over many years, and “Valentine” recently underwent a change of its own from “NC-17” (for a graphic oral sex scene) to “R” (for a not-that-graphic oral sex scene) after an appeal from The Weinstein Company. With a $45,000 average in just four theaters, “Valentine” has started off the New Year with a bang.

With only two new releases this past weekend and only two this week (“Season of the Witch,” “If I Want to Whistle, I Whistle”), the specialty market will undoubtedly see a string of holdovers as “The King’s Speech” and “Black Swan” continue to battle it out at the top. As the Golden Globes approach, it is important to note that 8 out of 10 actor and actress nominations in the drama category were for leading roles in an independent film. While the Globes don’t exactly represent the bar for awards, they can be a real indicator in terms of upcoming Oscar nominations and increased box office receipts for that independent film looking for a big boost in the right direction (i.e. “Slumdog Millionaire”). With promising contenders like “Black Swan,” “The King’s Speech,” and “127 Hours,” the all important awards season “boost” could make all the difference in who stays and who goes amidst a crowded specialty market.

U.S Indie:
Fox Searchlight’s “Black Swan” soared to new heights as it flirted with the $50 million mark that it hopes to hit soon it thanks to a $5,441 average. With few newcomers this weekend, “Swan” should look to hover around the top ten as it grinds its way into a seventh week at the box office.

“Somewhere” maintained solid numbers in its sophomore week, grossing $143,000 in only eight theaters. Sofia Coppola’s film has grossed well over $5 million overseas and hopes to bring its domestic total up as it expands into more territories. For now, $437,000 over the last couple weeks is a pretty decent share considering the size of the specialty market this week.
“Rabbit Hole” and “Casino Jack” entered their third weekend of low numbers, but the overall lack of new studio releases gave the two a much needed percentage boost. “Hole” grossed $136,000 on its way to a total of $429,000 over three weeks. The $4,000 average might not seem like much, but Lionsgate is hoping that nominations for the film’s star, Nicole Kidman, might help boost numbers after a much wider release in the coming weeks. ATO Pictures has also bet their money on a star, Kevin Spacey in “Casino Jack,” and hopes that the film will see more receipts and reasons to expand in the coming week.

Meanwhile, “I Love You, Phillip Morris” has managed to breach the million dollar mark in its fifth week and has hovered around 68 theaters as Roadside Attraction prepares for its wide release. The $2,956 average is deceptively low as word of mouth has continued to fuel the film’s stay on the charts.

World Cinema:
In addition to a good start for “Blue Valentine,” The Weinstein Company had another great weekend for “The King’s Speech” to be happy about. “Speech” held at 700 theaters but saw a %70.1 increase from last weekend that was good enough to raise its average even higher ($10,927 per theater). The King is clearly here to stay as it pushes its way into the top ten this week.

Specialty Box Office Top 5

Box Office Top 10

Next Weekend:
“If I Want to Whistle, I Whistle,” “Season of the Witch”