Box Office Update: Half-Hearted Benefits

Last weekend was a nice step in the right direction in terms of where the film industry is financially and where it needs to be, so there are about two ways that you can respond to these numbers. You can keep with the pessimistic tone of the last several weeks and say that the box office is regressing back to where it was before, or you can keep hope alive and see the decent numbers for what they are. I can confidently say that the array of poor films earned far more than they probably deserved to, and that's a good thing. It means that audiences are still making as poor decisions as they always have, and they haven't just gotten tired of going to the movies.

Liam Neeson ruled the box office this weekend, with Unknown coming in just $3 million short of Taken's opening two years ago. I Am Number Four came in at number two, although that might change when numbers for Monday's earnings make their way in. Big Mommas earned far more than it should have, and it makes me sad that people actually wasted their time with it, and even worse, that some actually enjoyed it. Gnomeo and Juliet held onto third place, dropping only 23.5%, with Just Go With It and Justin Bieber: Never Say Never dropped 40.4% and 53.9% respectively. Finishing it off on a lighter note, Black Swan and The King's Speech passed the $100 million mark this weekend, meaning that more than half the Best Picture nominees this year have reached that milestone. I don't believe that people don't notice or appreciate quality filmmaking anymore. Just look at those numbers.

1. Unknown (First Weekend; $21.8 million)
2. I Am Number Four (First Weekend; $19.5 million)
3. Gnomeo and Juliet (Second Weekend; $19.4 million)
4. Just Go With It (Second Weekend; $18.2 million)
5. Big Mommas: Like Father, Like Son (First Weekend; $17 million)
6. Justin Bieber: Never Say Never (Second Weekend; $13.6 million)
7. The King's Speech (Thirteenth Weekend; $6.6 million)
8. The Roommate (Third Weekend; $4.1 million)
9. The Eagle (Second Weekend; $3.6 million)
10. No Strings Attached (Fifth Weekend; $3.1 million)