..Gary Dretzka
..Noah Forrest
..Leonard Klady
..David Poland
..Douglas Pratt
..Ray Pride
..Kim Voynar
..Michael Wilmington

April 30, 2006 Weekend Estimates Worldwide Releases Domestic Market Share Planes, T-r-a-i-n-s and RVsy Better than anticipated debuts for RV and United 93 once again translated into improved box off ice results with the former comedic hijinx grossing an estimated $16.3 million to rank as the weekend's top attraction. The frame also saw disappointing bows for the familycentric Stick It and Akeelah and the Bee and good response for limited openers The Lost City and Water. Tracking had indicated that the Robin Williams family comedy RV would be the weekend's top ticket but it was perceived initially as having primarily youth appeal. Its appeal to families proved to be even better than anticipated and the initial boost will be an asset as such juggernauts as Mission: Impossible 3, Poseidon and The DaVinci Code enter the marketplace in May. Far more scrutiny was accorded United 93 that was expected to rank third behind Stick It with pundits wondering whether it would gross $10 million in its bow. Initial estimates put the masterful recreation of events on 9/11 slightly ahead with an estimated $11.5 million to the inspirational family movie's $11.3 million. United 93 certainly benefited from press attention and a media tour that included real life family members of victims. Universal has designated that 10% of the opening weekend box office will go to the flight's memorial and one can only hope that exhibitors will follow suit. Weekend business should exceed roughly $102 million that translates into a boost of 14% from 2005. Ticket sales were down by approximately 6% from the immediate prior weekend. With the exception of adult appeal fare, most holdover titles experienced erosions between 45% and 55% that once again underlined the brutal, quick burn tendency of modern movie going. The generally well-reviewed Akeelah and the Bee ranked eighth overall in its premiere round with a $5.7 million. The saga of a African-American girl whose keen literacy takes her to the finals of the National Spelling Bee was strongest in black communities and is the type of audience pleaser that would have benefited from sneak previews to spread word-of-mouth prior to its bow. Limited openers stepped up in an effort to get a toehold in theaters that will become increasingly difficult as the summer season swings into top gear. Andy Garcia's long-cherished dream project The Lost City posted good initial response. The tale of Havana in the politically turbulent 1950s garnered roughly $163,000 from 18 locations. There was also a positive result for Deepa Mehta's Indian drama Water that grossed $57,500 in five initial outings. The film previously rang up about $2.1 million in Canada where it was co-produced. The rest of the field lacked standouts including fest favorite Clean with $15,200 in two exposures, the Korean import Lady Vengeance grossing $11,100 from two playdates and Hungarian Oscar submission The Death of Mr. Lazarescu with a box office of $5,770 from a single outing. - by Leonard Klady Weekend Estimates - April 28-30, 2006 Title Distributor Gross (average) % change Theaters Cume RV Sony 16.3 (4,490) - 3639 16.3 United 93 Uni 11.5 (6,420) - 1795 11.5 Stick It BV 11.3 (5,550) - 2038 11.3 Silent Hill Sony/Alliance 9.1 (3,100) -55% 2932 34 Scary Movie 4 Weinstein Co. 7.7 (2,260) -54% 3418 78.1 The Sentinel Fox 7.6 (2,660) -47% 2851 24.5 Ice Age: The Meltdown Fox 7.0 (2,250) -47% 3122 177.7 Akeelah and the Bee Lions Gate 5.7 (3,540) 2195 5.7 The Wild BV 4.7 (1,800) -44% 2605 28.4 The Benchwarmers Sony 4.4 (1,620) -40% 2695 52.7 Friends with Money Sony Classics 2.1 (2,090) -34% 1010 8.1 Inside Man Uni 2.1 (1,610) -45% 1294 84.5 Take the Lead New Line 2.0 (1,160) -53% 1708 32.6 Thank You for Smoking Fox Searchlight 1.7 (2,360) -38% 734 18.3 American Dreamz Uni 1.6 (1,080) -56% 1500 6.2 Lucky Number Slevin MGM 1.1 (1,490) -56% 724 20.7 Failure to Launch Par .58 (870) -59% 664 86.6 V for Vendetta WB .52 (1,440) -50% 362 68.9 Weekend Total ($500,000+ Films) $97.00 - - - % Change (Last Year) 14% - - - % Change (Last Week) -6% - - - Also debuting/expanding La Mujer de Mi Hermano Lions Gate .28 (1,850) -50% 152 2.4 The Lost City Magnolia .16 (9,060) - 18 0.16 Water Fox Searchlight 57,500 (11,500) - 5 2.9 Killer Diller Innovation 17,600 (550) - 32 0.02 Three Times IFC 17,400 (4,350) - 4 0.02 Clean Palm 15,200 (7,600) - 2 0.02 Lady Vengeance Tartan 11,100 (5,550) - 2 0.01 Guys and Balls Regent 7,300 (2,430) - 3 0.01 Death of Mr. Lazarescu Tartan 5,770 (5,770) - 1 0.01 Mistress of Spices Rainbow 5,500 (500) - 11 0.01 Top Worldwide Releases: January 1 - April 27, 2006 Ice Age: The Meltdown Fox 514,823,178 The Chronicles of Narnia * BV 303,378,281 King Kong * Uni 168,074,505 Brokeback Mountain * Focus 164,043,404 The Pink Panther Sony 156,102,674 Inside Man Uni 150,592,419 Fun with Dick and Jane * Sony 144,428,248 Big Momma's House 2 Fox 130,595,873 Memoirs of a Geisha * Sony/Spyglass 126,629,963 Munich * Uni 118,657,446 Failure to Launch Par 115,742,768 V for Vendetta WB 108,296,110 Scary Movie 4 Weinstein/BVI 108,088,882 Underworld: Evolution Sony/Lakeshore 108,059,884 Final Destination 3 NLC 104,583,432 Eight Below BV 98,643,462 Walk the Line * Fox 91,948,635 Nanny McPhee * Uni/Working Title 89,962,816 Chicken Little * BV 88,708,490 Les Bronzes Amis pour la vie TF1 Intl 85,427,884 Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire * WB 81,124,703 Domestic Market Share: January 1 - April 27, 2006 Fox (11) 430.2 16.40% Sony (14) 395.7 15.10% Buena Vista (13) 344.5 13.20% Universal (9) 304.6 11.60% Warner Bros. (10) 235.6 9.00% Weinstein Co. (9) 171.6 6.70% Paramount (6) 162.4 6.20% Lions Gate (8) 130.5 5.00% New Line (6) 105.9 4.00% Focus (7) 100.5 3.80% Fox Searchlight (6) 84.7 3.20% Sony Classics (11) 35.8 1.40% DreamWorks (3) 24.7 0.90% MGM (1) 19.6 0.80% Other * (107) 71.2 2.70% * none greater than 0.5% 2617.5 100.00%