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

November 9, 2008 Weekend Finals Domestic Market Share Top Domestic Releases The Lion in Autumn The animated antics of Madagascar: Back 2 Africa roared to an estimated $63.3 million to corral about 45% of weekend ticket sales. Despite its dominance, there was still ample room for a potent bow for the teen comedy Role Model of $19.1 million to rank second. The third national newcomer - the urban musical comedy Soul Men - had a disappointing bow of $5.5 million. In limited and niche debuts, occult thriller House had few bidders with $313,000 from 362 locations while the wartime drama The Boy in Striped Pajamas scored a sturdy $242,000 from its initial platform at 17 sites. There was also good response for the offbeat horror musical Repo! The Genetic Opera of $55,300 at eight theaters as well as the weird and oddly emotional JCVD of close to $22,000 from two screens. A number of single screen bows generated very encouraging initial numbers including the an $8,100 gross for the documentary Pray the Devil Back to Hell on recent political strife in Liberia. The opening of the Madagascar sequel expanded sales considerably from both the prior frame and from the comparable 2007 session. Domestic box office currently stands at $8.22 billion for a slim 1% improvement from last year's pace. Expectations were high for Madagascar: Back 2 Africa, although pundits suggested a more cautious opening between $45 million and $50 million. Regardless the sequel's bow was more than twice as big as its inspiration. A harbinger to its success came last weekend when it got an early premiere in Russia and the Ukraine and ran up record breaking box office of $18.1 million. Last weekend's top international grosser - Quantum of Silence - racked up $40 million from debuts in three countries. This weekend it added 57 nations and early estimates are for a $106.5 million gross that would rank it second only to the latest Indiana Jones opening this year. The film opens domestically on Friday and all tracking has it performing significantly stronger than Casino Royale's $40 million launch in 2006. Role Models launched a short, concentrated marketing campaign that proved both savvy and effective. Together with High School Musical 3 and Madagascar, the trio of pictures dominated sales for the under 25s and left the field open for adults who elected Changeling as first choice with a faint 22% downward tremble. Soul Men, a raucous yarn about a musical reunion, failed to get elected and the commercial fate of W. took on lame duck status as its real life inspiration waits out a much later January departure. The weekend's new primary award season candidate, The Boy in the Striped Pajamas, build a solid platform. The tale of friendship between a German boy and a Jewish lad in a concentration camp has already racked up $20 million in Spain and the UK where it was a bestseller and its tragic saga will require continued vigilance and critical support to push forward in the marketplace. Among current contenders, both Rachel Getting Married and Happy-Go-Lucky expanded; the former now present in the top 25 markets. And both films maintained healthy screen averages with hopes of establishing a beachhead prior to the onslaught of kudos competitors that begins in earnest at Thanksgiving. - Leonard Klady Weekend Finals - November 7-9, 2008 - - Title Distrib Weekend % Change* Theaters Cume Wks 1 New Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa Par 63,106,589 * 4056 63,106,589 1 2 New Role Models Uni 19,167,085 * 2792 19,167,085 1 3 1 High School Musical 3: Senior Year BV 9,159,523 -40% 3464 75,573,993 3 4 4 Changeling Uni 7,252,940 -22% 1855 20,559,497 3 5 2 Zack and Mira Make a Porno Weinstein Co. 6,274,530 -38% 2735 20,686,907 2 6 New Soul Men MGM 5,401,605 * 2044 5,401,605 1 7 3 Saw V Lions Gate 4,067,071 -58% 2829 52,187,337 3 8 5 The Haunting of Molly Hartley FreeStyle 3,318,694 -39% 2576 10,063,348 2 9 7 The Secret Life of Bees Fox Searchlight 3,089,467 -23% 1481 29,902,363 4 10 9 Eagle Eye Par 2,541,602 -27% 1407 96,348,829 7 11 6 Beverly Hills Chihuahua BV 2,518,049 -48% 2359 88,258,841 6 12 8 Max Payne Fox 1,789,136 -51% 1476 38,653,498 4 13 14 Fireproof IDP 1,585,555 -8% 872 28,327,659 7 14 12 Body of Lies WB 1,537,219 -33% 850 36,950,974 5 15 17 Rachel Getting Married Sony Classics 1,505,507 112% 391 5,415,820 6 16 10 Pride and Glory WB 1,293,389 -61% 1340 14,381,710 3 17 11 W. Lions Gate 1,120,600 -53% 839 24,231,628 4 18 13 RockNRolla WB 1,047,334 -44% 826 4,373,979 5 19 16 Appaloosa WB 668,415 -18% 735 18,658,697 8 20 21 Religulous Lions Gate 423,273 -27% 274 12,125,806 6 21 19 The Duchess Par Vantage 403,984 -35% 323 13,016,496 8 22 26 Happy-Go-Lucky Mrmx 402,076 45% 102 1,248,218 5 23 22 Burn After Reading Focus 376,323 -18% 270 59,513,989 9 24 23 Passchandaele Alliance 357,864 -36% 155 3,192,948 4 25 New House Roadside Attract. 329,836 * 363 329,836 1 26 20 Nights in Rodanthe WB 329,346 -43% 402 40,920,857 7 27 41 Synecdoche, New York Sony Classics 293,646 195% 35 675,537 3 28 15 Quarantine Sony 293,321 -74% 353 31,451,718 5 29 New The Boy in the Striped Pajamas Miramax 253,085 * 17 253,085 1 30 18 Nick and Nora's Infinite Playlist Sony 234,349 -66% 216 31,286,789 6 31 27 The Dark Knight WB 219,425 -19% 125 528,535,317 17 32 30 Wall-E BV 208,915 -1% 239 223,003,468 20 33 35 I've Loved You So Long Sony Class/Metro 186,821 54% 22 711,158 9 34 29 What Just Happened Magnolia 149,777 -32% 86 876,002 4 35 28 City of Ember Fox 133,651 -41% 180 7,416,488 5 36 34 Journey to the Center of the Earth WB 119,881 -20% 163 101,473,713 18 37 37 The House Bunny Sony 116,914 1% 198 48,646,069 12 38 39 Mamma Mia! Uni 112,616 1% 147 143,875,571 17 39 52 Ghost Town Par 98,827 142% 170 13,214,030 8 40 36 Tropic Thunder Par 95,882 -20% 165 110,416,702 13 41 47 Let the Right One In Magnolia 92,533 39% 17 266,886 3 42 43 Vicky Christina Barcelona MGM 92,153 12% 55 22,249,713 13 43 33 The Express Uni 87,772 -42% 157 9,731,497 5 44 96 Traitor Overture 85,505 678% 188 23,422,957 11 45 46 Righteous Kill Overture 81,622 19% 129 39,618,049 9 46 32 Lakeview Terrace Sony 78,912 -57% 109 39,399,316 8 47 24 Sex Drive Summit 75,920 -80% 111 8,234,346 4 48 42 Igor MGM 75,434 -11% 116 18,969,088 8 49 45 Noah's Arc:  Jumping the Broom Open Door 75,034 1% 9 389,184 3 50 57 Kung Fu Panda Par 71,394 99% 77 215,855,605 23 51 25 Nightmare Before Christmas 3D (re) BV 65,334 -78% 62 1,027,711 3 52 31 Golmaal Returns Studio 18 64,502 -74% 54 313,102 2 53 New Repo! The Genetic Opera Lions Gate 53,684 * 8 53,684 1 54 90 Fly Me to the Moon Summit 48,832 235% 29 12,207,728 13 55 48 Le Deserteur TVA 48,395 -20% 38 270,139 3 56 40 Fashion UTV 44,158 -58% 37 173,551 2 57 55 Deep Sea 3-D WB 42,769 23% 10 36,826,307 141 58 67 Forever Strong Crane 33,821 39% 17 719,556 7 59 51 Sea Monsters: A Prehistoric Adventure nWave 32,916 -37% 21 19,663,058 58 60 38 Heroes Eros 30,832 -73% 55 686,370 3 61 54 Death Race Uni 29,066 -23% 58 36,276,305 12 62 59 The Mummy: Tomb of Dragon Emperor Uni 27,262 -21% 55 103,152,219 15 63 63 A Secret Strand 27,572 -6% 8 451,586 10 64 58 Tell No One Music Box 27,266 -23% 21 6,024,900 19 65 44 The Family That Preys Lions Gate 26,191 -67% 45 37,404,511 9 66 56 Dolphins and Whales 3-D 3D Entertainment 25,892 -28% 11 5,022,718 39 67 49 The Women Picturehouse 24,984 -58% 70 26,872,727 9 68 75 Man on Wire Magnolia 24,649 22% 18 2,812,485 16 69 76 Magnificent Desolation Imax 24,366 21% 7 26,302,783 164 70 60 The Longshots MGM 22,351 -31% 38 11,467,696 12 71 78 One Day You'll Understand Kino 22,249 16% 7 50,028 2 72 84 My Name is Bruce Image 21,694 32% 4 43,462 2 73 61 Pineapple Express Sony 21,145 -31% 44 88,109,151 14 74 79 Le Premier jour de reste de ta vie Seville 21,016 15% 8 51,328 2 75 85 Space Station 3D Imax 20,394 25% 4 76,852,730 343 76 New JCVD Peace Arch 20,119 2 20,119 1 77 66 Frozen River Sony Classics 19,793 -24% 30 2,230,237 15 78 62 Heaven on Earth Mongrel 19,215 -36% 8 107,775 2 79 73 Flash of Genius Uni 18,038 -13% 43 4,406,797 6 80 69 Step Brothers Sony 17,107 -25% 33 101,283,759 16 Source: MCN/EDI   Estimates - November 3- November 9, 2008 Title Distributor Gross (average) % change * Theaters Cume Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa Par 63.3 (15,620) - 4056 63.3 Role Models Uni 19.1 (8,840) - 2792 19.1 High School Musical 3 BV 9.3 (2,690) --39% 3464 75.7 Changeling Uni 7.3 (3,920) -22% 1855 20.6 Zack and Miri Make a Porno Weinstein Co. 6.5 (2,370) --36% 2735 20.9 Soul Men MGM 5.5 (2,710) - 2044 5.5 Saw V Lionsgate 4.1 (1,440) -58% 2829 52.2 The Haunting of Molly Hartley Freestyle 3.1 (1,210) -43% 2576 9.9 The Secret Life of Bees Fox Searchlight 3.0 (2,040) -25% 1481 29.8 Eagle Eye Par 2.4 (1,730) -30% 1407 96.2 Beverly Hills Chihuahua BV 2.4 (1,010) -51% 2359 88.1 Max Payne Fox 1.7 (1,180) -53% 1476 38.6 Fireproof IDP 1.5 (1,690) -15% 872 28.2 Body of Lies WB 1.4 (1,680) -38% 850 36.8 Rachel Getting Married Sony Classics 1.4 (3,730) 94% 370 5.3 Pride and Glory WB 1.2 (890) -65% 1340 14.3 RockNRolla WB 1.0 (1,250) -45% 826 4.4 W. Lionsgate 1.0 (1,170) -59% 839 24.1 Appaloosa WB .63 (860) -23% 735 18,6 Happy-Go-Lucky Miramax .43 (4,220) 56% 102 1.3 Passchendaele Alliance .42 (2,610) 10% 161 3.3 Weekend Total ($500,000+ Films) $135.83 - - - % Change (Last Year) - 24% - - - % Change (Last Week) - 64% - - - Also debuting/expanding The Duchess Par Vantage .38 (1,180) -39% 323 13 House Roadside .31 (860) - 362 0.31 Synecdoche, New York Sony Classics .27 (8,060) 177%- 34 0.65 The Boy in the Striped Pajamas Miramax .24 (14,230) - 17 0.24 Repo! The Genetic Opera Lionsgate 55,300 (6,910) - 8 0.06 JCVD Peace Arch 21,800 (10,900) - 2 0.02 The Guitar Lightning 11,400 (11,400) - 1 0.01 The Alphabet Killer Anchor Bay 9,800 (9,800) - 1 0.01 Pray the Devil Back to Hell Balcony 8,100 (8,100) -  1 0.01 Real Time Seville 4,500 (750) -  6 0.01 The World Unseen Regent 3,800 (1,900) - 2 0.01 Otto: Up with Dead People Strand 3,400 (3,400) - 1 0.01 Domestic Market Share - To November 6, 2008 Distributor (releases) Gross Mrkt Share Warner Bros. (26) 1571.1 19.50% Paramount (15) 1342.2 16.60% Sony (23) 1055.1 13.10% Universal (19) 987.5 12.20% Fox (21) 824.9 10.20% Buena Vista (16) 817,9 10.10% Lions Gate (17) 373.7 4.60% Fox Searchlight (7) 180.7 2.20% Focus (6) 124.1 1.50% MGM (15) 106.5 1.30% Overture (6) 94.9 1.20% Paramount Vantage (11) 85.6 1.10% Picturehouse (7) 63.2 0.80% New Line (4) 61.8 0.80% Miramax (8) 58.8 0.70% Summit (4) 55.2 0.70% Other * (288) 274.8 3.40% * none greater than 0.4% 8078 100.00% Top Domestic Grossers - To November 6, 2008 Title Distributor Gross The Dark Knight WB 528,315,892 Iron Man Par/Marvel 318,338,993 Indiana Jones & Kingdom of the Crystal Skull Crystal Skull Par 317,023,851 Hancock Sony 229,408,948 Wall-E BV 222,794,553 Kung Fu Panda Par 215,784,211 Horton Hears a Who Fox 154,529,439 Sex and the City WB 152,647,258 Mamma Mia! Uni 143,762,955 The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian BV 141,682,713 The Incredible Hulk Uni 134,617,678 Wanted Uni 134,512,024 Get Smart WB 130,319,208 Juno * Fox Searchlight 115,568,583 Tropic Thunder  Par 110,320,820 The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor Uni 103,124,957 Journey to the Center of the Earth WB 101,353,832 Step Brothers Sony 101,266,652 You Don't Mess with the Zohan Sony 100,112,110 10,000 B.C. WB 94,819,450