July 21 - 23, 2006
THTRS = Number of Screens
* Denotes new release.
Click on title to read CB Review
| 1. | Pirates of the Caribbean:Dead Man's Chest |
| $35,049,000 - Total: $321,733,000 | |
| LW: 1 WR: 3 THTRS: 4133 |
| 2. | Monster House * |
| $23,000,000 - Total: $23,000,000 | |
| LW: N WR: 1 THTRS: 3553 |
| 3. | Lady in the Water * |
| $18,210,000 - Total: $18,210,000 | |
| LW: N WR: 1 THTRS: 3235 |
| 4. | You, Me and Dupree |
| $12,787,000 - Total: $45,318,000 | |
| LW: 3 WR: 2 THTRS: 3134 |
| 5. | Little Man |
| $11,000,000 - Total: $40,611,000 | |
| LW: 2 WR: 2 THTRS: 2537 |
| 6. | Clerks II * |
| $9,625,000 - Total: $9,625,000 | |
| LW: N WR: 1 THTRS: 2150 |
| 7. | My Super Ex-Girlfriend * |
| $8,700,000 - Total: $8,700,000 | |
| LW: N WR: 1 THTRS: 2702 |
| 8. | Superman Returns |
| $7,460,000 - Total: $178,427,000 | |
| LW: 4 WR: 4 THTRS: 2826 |
| 9. | The Devil Wears Prada |
| $7,425,000 - Total: $97,571,000 | |
| LW: 5 WR: 4 THTRS: 2248 |
| 10. | Cars |
| $4,910,000 - Total: $229,449,000 | |
| LW: 6 WR: 7 THTRS: 2410 |
There was no stopping the pirates yet again this weekend. Despite competition from four newly released films and the fact that the movie is in its third weekend, Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest rested quite comfortably at the top.
Critics, on the whole, handed Dead Man's Chest a negative review, but audiences have been undeterred. The movie is already the highest grossing film of the year at $321 million, has broken two major records (largest single day earning and largest 3-day opening weekend) and may very well go on to break the $400 million mark before it sails off into movie history. Nevermind that there's only one more movie in the franchise slated (POTC: At World's End, out next year), with this kind of success you know the execs at Disney are scrambling to pull together meetings on the further adventures of Jack Sparrow.
M. Night Shyamalan's Lady In The Water received a watery reception indeed, not only from critics but at the box office as well, bring in only $18 million. Of his five widely released films, none have performed this poorly. Lady comes in dead last for opening weekends, right behind Shyamalan's first hit Sixth Sense which started at $26 million.
It's hard to tell whether this box office failure is due more to bad taste left in audiences minds from The Village or that all the critics out there with no inner child panned the film so hard that it scared movie-goers off. At this point all Shyamalan can do is pick himself up off the ground and take his filmmaking genius away from Shyamaland (the fictional world where he can only make movies that he himself has written) and move onto making other people's stories. He needs some collaboration for the world to be able to once again appreciate his creative style.
The CG romp Monster House turned out to the be surprise victor among the newcomers, coming in at number 2 with a solid $23 million. Niche movie Clerks II, which has garnered more attention from its director's antics and outrages than its own. More people tuned in to keep up with the war between Kevin Smith and critic Joel Siegel details on that battle here) than turned out to see the film. It only earned $9.6 million, but that was enough to edge out My Super Ex-Girlfriend which opened at a miserable number 7 with only $8.7 million. Not that Smith minded much. With a reported budget of only $5 million (cheap + niche = payoff) Clerks II turned a decent profit in only 3 days.
You thought this weekend was wild? We haven't seen anything yet. Next weekend looks to be just as crazy and ecclectic as this one with three new releases of completely varied genres rolling out to mix it up with what's currently out. Animated The Ant Bully will go head to head with teen comedy John Tucker Must Die and action flick Miami Vice. Somebody will finally take the pirates down, but the question is who it will be.
