Box Office Update: Oh, The Horror

I really do look forward to next weekend when I can get back to a more natural setting at the theaters. We've had quite a few weeks in which there's been only one notable release, and this weekend should've been a complete failure. It's what I expected, and it's what I actually hoped for. Instead, Saw 3D managed to rake in an dishonest living, grabbing the fifth highest opening weekend of the series. Of course, we should still expect it to take a huge dive next weekend, not only from competition in the 3D market with Megamind, but because of negative word of mouth.

Speaking of such word of mouth, it certainly took its toll on Paranormal Activity 2, which suffered a near 60% drop from last weekend. Jackass 3D took a similar drop of the same amount, but that can mostly be attributed to the fact that the film is really a one-and-done sort of affair. In any case, the film still passed the $100 million mark this weekend, so that's a plus. Oddly enough, Red overtook it this weekend, taking a steady 28% drop and remaining in third. In summation, this weekend was a good 8.1% rise from the same weekend last year.

1. Saw 3D (First Weekend; $24.2 million)
2. Paranormal Activity 2 (Second Weekend; $16.5 million)
3. Red (Third Weekend; $10.8 million)
4. Jackass 3D (Third Weekend; $8.4 million)
5. Hereafter (Third Weekend; $6.3 million)
6. Secretariat (Fourth Weekend; $5 million)
7. The Social Network (Fifth Weekend; $4.7 million)
8. Life as We Know It (Fourth Weekend; $4 million)
9. The Town (Fifth Weekend; $1.9 million)
10. Conviction (Third Weekend; $1.8 million)

For Your Acknowledgement: Just Don't

In all honesty, there are some times when familiarity works for a film. There's a point where it's cliche, but The Town was smart enough not to pervade too far into that territory. My hope is that Conviction will be similar in that respect, and reviews have actually been quite positive. Don't expect an Oscar nod out of it, but it may surprise you.

Toronto Days. Toronto Nights: Conviction

These days, I'm getting more used to Hillary Swank films disappointing than succeeding, and Conviction looks to continue that trend. I pointed out from the beginning that this film looked like absolute Oscar bait, just from the trailer. It was pushing to the front every cliche from past winners, and it just wasn't working to its advantage. You can't blame the actors for anything other than signing onto the script, because they're usually pretty good in their roles. However, the roles just aren't good enough for them.

Brad Brevet (Rope of Silicon): "Beginning in 1980 with the bloody murder of Katharina Brow, Conviction tells the true story of Betty Anne Waters (Hilary Swank) and her pursuit of a law degree in an effort to free her brother, Kenny (Sam Rockwell), of a wrongful murder conviction. Directed by Tony Goldwyn (The Last Kiss), Conviction is a rather simple film, but the emotional impact of the story comes through in the end after what is a rather mundane and cliched story of the innocent man in jail and the person working hard on the outside to get them out. At no point does this seem like new territory, but outside of being about ten minutes too long it's a decent film despite its rather traditional dramatic nature."

Ray Bennett (Hollywood Reporter): "Goldwyn and screenwriter Pamela Gray have a fine grasp of classic storytelling and while the pace never slackens, they always find time for the small but important touches that add to a film's depth. Swank and Rockwell are very effective as siblings locked at the hip and their scenes together smack of a real shared history. Driver adds some important pepper to the proceedings and Juliette Lewis makes a vital impression in two scenes as a bedraggled, not very bright witness."