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Black is back
MIB--II reels in the green at the US BO
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Arthur J Pais
Overcoming the we-have-seen-it-before reviews and stiff competition, Sony's Men In Black II raked in loads of green dollars in its first five days.
The sequel to the 1997 hit that grabbed about $580 million worldwide, pocketed $90 million by Sunday evening.
If it holds well in the coming weeks against such potential hits as Harrison Ford's K-19 and the Mel Gibson supernatural drama Signs, MIB II, which reunites Tommy Lee Jones and Will Smith as dark clad agents for an agency that polices smart, comic and vicious aliens and seeks to save mankind from 'the scum of the universe,' could top $500 million worldwide.
While many people had expected solid business for MIB II, the strong grosses for the new film Like Mike, an NBA basketball fantasy starring rapper Lil Bow-Wow, and older hits such as The Bourne Identity and The Sum of All Fears, were beyond expectations.
Like Mike, made for less than $30 million (MIB II cost over $110 million; some believe $140 million), grossed $20 million in five days, primarily from black audiences. The amnesia drama The Bourne Identity woke up with $9 million in three days, taking its total to about $90 million.
Expect the Matt Damon thriller to end its American run with at least $120 million while his close friend Ben Affleck, whose The Sum of All Fears took $3.8 million over the weekend will have a better box-office run, with a $140 million final tally expected
'We see it as proof that all of them are working and there is room for all these films to do well,' Jeff Blake, Sony's head of distribution and marketing told reporters Sunday.
Unlike many summers in the past, this summer has seen just a movie or two tanking badly. Even the disappointing The Powerpuff Girls Movie, which took about $6 million in five days, will not lose money because it cost about $10 million. In fact, it could end with a small profit if it does well in video sales.
Among the holdovers, the critically roasted Adam Sandler populist comedy from Sony, Mr Deeds, lost about 48% of its last weekend’s box-office but with a tidy $18.8 million this weekend and a gross reaching $74 million, it has set its sight on a profitable $120 million final tally.
Among the kid movies Lilo And Stitch is holding strong with $12.7 million and a $103 million gross, but Scooby-Doo, which barked at $7 million is also steady. In the final reckoning, expect the former, a Disney movie, to go home with a $150 million gross, while the latter from Warner Bros, could top the number.
The sci-fi drama Minority Report, one of the best reviewed movies in last six months, has grossed about $98 million, including $12.4 million taken this week.
Expect the Steven Spielberg film, a strong contender for Oscar nominations, to end its American run with about $130 million.
It will face tough competition coming weekend from another serious and riveting film, Road To Perdition, a gang drama directed by Sam Mendes (American Beauty).
Like Minority Report, Perdition, which stars Tom Hanks, Paul Newman and Jude Law, is a co-production between Spielberg’s DreamWorks and 20th Century Fox.
Meanwhile, Spider-Man, which continues to draw repeat audiences, grossed $2.2 million, knocking at a $400 million gross. It became only the third movie, after Titanic ($630 million in North America) and Star Wars: Episode I -- The Phantom Menace ($420 million) to top $400 million in its first release.
Worldwide, it is expected to gross $850-$880 million, making it the third highest grossing film, following Titanic ($1.8 billion) and Star Wars: The Phantom Menace ($930 million).
Star Wars: Attack of the Clones is still around and is struggling to reach $300 million. It has seized about $294 million. By any reckoning the movie is a hit but for its maker, George Lucas and distributor Twentieth Century Fox, is a disappoint, considering the early expectations for a $400 million gross. But the challenge of Spider-Man was too much for the fifth entry in the Star Wars saga.