In addition to breaking the April record, “Fast and Furious”’s $72.51 million was nearly as much as all of the Top 12 movies combined for the same weekend in 2008 ($80.22 million April 4-6, 2008).

“Adventureland” opened in 6th place, while “Sunshine Cleaning” cracked the top 10 as it opened in West Michigan for the first time.

So much for staying power, “Watchmen” drops out of Top 10 in just its 5th week (from 8th to 13th)… meanwhile “Taken” holds on in its 11th week, losing 41% of its audience from last week, moving just 2 spots (2 new movies) from 9th to 11th.   But “I Love You, Man” lost the least of the top 15 movies, down just 38% from the previous weekend. 

 TOP MOVIES AT WEEKEND BOX OFFICE (estimated results):
1. “Fast and Furious” – $72.51 million (1st week)

2. “Monsters vs. Aliens” – $33.51 million
(2nd week, was #1 last week, lost 44% of audience from last week)

3. “The Haunting in Connecticut” – $9.55 million
(2nd week, was #2 last week, lost 59% from last week)

4. “Knowing” – $8.13 million
(3rd week, was #3 last week, lost 45% from last week)

5. “I Love You, Man” – $7.85 million
(3rd week, was #4 last week, lost 38% from last week)

6. “Adventureland” – $6.01 million (1st week)

7. “Duplicity” – $4.30 million
(3rd week, was #5 last week, lost 44% from last week)

8. ”Race to Witch Mountain” – $3.35 million
(4th week, was #6 last week, lost 42% from last week)

9. “12 Rounds” – $2.30 million
(2nd week, was #7 last week, lost 57% from last week)

10. “Sunshine Cleaning” – $1.88 million
(4th week of limited release, was #11 last week, gained 48% from last weekend, adding 312 theaters, including West Michigan)

—

11. “Taken” – $1.58 million
(10th week, was #9 last week, lost 41% from last week)

12. “The Last House on the Left” (2009) – $1.31 million
(4th week, was #10 last week, lost 50% from last week)

13. “Watchmen” - $1.09 million
(5th week, was #8 last week, lost 60% from last week)

14. “Slumdog Millionaire” - $0.51 million
(21st week, was #12 last week, lost 56% from last week)

CLICK HERE FOR LAST WEEK’S BOX OFFICE REPORT 

“Fast & Furious” poster courtesy Universal Pictures

Box Office numbers courtesy Box Office Mojo

BEST BETs: Best Picture winner “Slumdog Millionaire” should be your first choice to rent if you haven’t yet seen it… “Marley & Me” is a good drama, but I’ll warn pet lovers again: YOU WILL CRY… the Will Smith drama “Seven Pounds” got snubbed by critics and the Oscars – but its first on my list here… “Tell No One” is a foreign thriller that got great reviews, but I haven’t had the chance to see myself… “Bedtime Stories” is a fun family movie if you have BluRay, otherwise it comes out on DVD next Tuesday.

—

New at Theaters (Friday):  ”Adventureland”, “Fast and Furious”, “Sunshine Cleaning” (new to Grand Rapids market)

BEST BETs: “Sunshine Cleaning” is new to the Grand Rapids market, but has been gaining momentum in the first 3 weeks of release and this drama may be our first Oscar worthy movie of the year.  “Adventureland” is an R-rated romantic comedy.  “Fast and Furious” is a sequel with the return of original actors Paul Walker and Vin Diesel.

 CLICK HERE TO FIND A MOVIE SHOWTIME

Next Week at Theaters: “Dragonball Evolution”, “Hannah Montana The Movie”, “Observe and Report”

Next Week on DVD: “Bedtime Stories”, “The Day the Earth Stood Still (2008)”, “Donkey Punch”, “Doubt”, “Not Easily Broken”, “The Tale of Despereaux”, “Yes Man”

MY REVIEWS OF OTHER MOVIES CURRENTLY PLAYING IN THEATERS OR AVAILABLE TO RENT/BUY: 

Playing at West Michigan movie theaters:
“Slumdog Millionaire” (9.5/ 10)
“The Curious Case of Benjamin Button” (9.5 / 10)
“The Wrestler” (8.9 / 10)
“Defiance” (8.0 / 10)
“I Love You, Man” (8.0/ 10)
“Revolutionary Road” (7.9 / 10)
“New in Town” (7.9 / 10)
“Taken” (7.5 / 10)
“Fanboys” (8.5 for me, adjusted to 7.5 for most)
“Quantum of Solace”  (7.5 / 10)
“He’s Just Not That Into You” (7.5 / 10)
“Bride Wars” (7.5 / 10)
“Four Christmases”  (7.5 / 10)
“Paul Blart: Mall Cop” (7.0 / 10)
“Knowing” (7.0 / 10)
“Watchmen” (7.0 / 10)
“Hotel for Dogs” (7.0 / 10)
“The Day the Earth Stood Still” (6.5 / 10)
“Monsters Vs. Aliens” (6.0 / 10)
“Confessions of A Shopaholic” (5.5 / 10)

- – -

Available to rent or buy:
“Slumdog Millionaire” (9.5/ 10)
“The Dark Knight” (9.5 / 10)
“Changeling”  (9.5 / 10)
“WALL-E” (9.0)
“Pride and Glory” (9.0 / 10)
“Righteous Kill” (8.9 / 10)
“Eagle Eye” (8.5 / 10)
“Burn After Reading” (8.5 / 10)
“Wanted” (8.0 / 10)
“The Visitor” (8.0 / 10)
“Australia”  (7.9 / 10)
“Frozen River” (7.9 / 10)
“Traitor” (7.5 / 10)
“The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian”
“Marley & Me” (7.5 / 10)
“Get Smart” (7.0 / 10)
“Bedtime Stories” (7.0 / 10)
“Twilight”  (7.0 / 10)
“Appaloosa” (6.9 / 10)
“Lakeview Terrace” (6.5 / 10)
“Hellboy II: Golden Army” (6.5 / 10)
“Noise” (6.0 / 10)

—

Follow my updates on twitter: http://twitter.com/aaronlafferty

Add to your RSS feed: http://feeds2.feedburner.com/woodtv8-blogs-laff-at-the-movies?format=html

YouTube Highlights:
http://www.youtube.com/profile?user=WOODTV8&view=videos&query=laff+at+the+movies

Last week’s number one “Knowing”, number two “I Love You, Man”, and number three “Duplicity” dropped two spots, holding their order from last week, but “I Love You, Man” lost the least from last week, just 29% of its audience while “Knowing” lost 40% of its audience and “Duplicity” lost 46% from last week.

“Sunshine Cleaning”, which opens in Grand Rapids market this Friday, nearly cracked the Top 10 in its 3rd week of limited release, despite playing in just 167 theaters nationwide. 

 TOP MOVIES AT WEEKEND BOX OFFICE (estimated results):
1. “Monsters vs. Aliens” – $58.20 million (1st week)

2. “The Haunting in Connecticut” – $23.01 million (1st week)

3. “Knowing” – $14.71 million
(2nd week, was #1 last week, lost 40% of audience from last week)

4. “I Love You, Man” – $12.60 million
(2nd week, was #2 last week, lost 29% from last week)

5. “Duplicity” – $7.56 million
(2nd week, was #3 last week, lost 46% from last week)

6. ”Race to Witch Mountain” – $5.64 million
(3rd week, was #4 last week, lost 56% from last week)

7. “12 Rounds” – $5.30 million (1st week)

8. “Watchmen” - $2.76 million
(4th week, was #5 last week, lost 60% from last week)

9. “Taken” – $2.70 million
(9th week, was #7 last week, lost 34% from last week)

10. “The Last House on the Left” (2009) – $2.61 million
(3rd week, was #6 last week, lost 55% from last week)

—

11. “Sunshine Cleaning” – $1.34 million
(3rd week of limited release)

12. “Slumdog Millionaire” - $1.14 million
(20th week, was #8 last week, lost 58% from last week)

14. “Paul Blart: Mall Cop” - $0.83 million
(11th week, was #11 last week, lost 55% from last week)

15. “He’s Just Not That Into You” – $0.47 million
(8th week, was #12 last week, lost 62% from last week)

69. “Fanboys” - $0.01 million (opened 3/6 in West Michigan)
(8th week, playing in just 28 theaters nationally, 2 more than last week)

CLICK HERE FOR LAST WEEK’S BOX OFFICE REPORT 

“Monsters vs. Aliens” poster courtesy Summit Entertainment

Box Office numbers courtesy Box Office Mojo

“Taken” continues to hold on, now in its 8th week of release, it is losing less than the movies that have been in theaters for fewer weeks, losing 38% of its audience from last week while “Watchmen” lost 62%, “Last House on the Left” lost 58%, and “Race to Witch Mountain” lost 47% of the audience from last week.

 TOP MOVIES AT WEEKEND BOX OFFICE (estimated results):
1. “Knowing” – $24.81 million (1st week)

2. “I Love You, Man” – $18.00 (1st week)

3. “Duplicity” – $14.40 million (1st week)

4. ”Race to Witch Mountain” – $13.00 million
(2nd week, was #1 last week, lost 47% from last week)

5. “Watchmen” - $6.73 million
(3rd week, was #2 last week, lost 62% from last week)

6. “The Last House on the Left” (2009) – $5.92 million
(2nd week, was #3 last week, lost 58% from last week)

7. “Taken” – $4.10 million
(8th week, was #4 last week, lost 38% from last week)

8. “Slumdog Millionaire” - $2.70 million
(19th week, was #6 last week, lost 46% from last week)

9. “Tyler Perry’s Madea Goes to Jail” – $2.50 million
(5th week, was #5 last week, lost 51% from last week)

10. “Coraline” – $2.14 million
(7th week, was #9 last week, lost 21% from last week)

—

11. “Paul Blart: Mall Cop” - $1.88 million
(10th week, was #7 last week, lost 40% from last week)

12. “He’s Just Not That Into You” – $1.27 million
(7th week, was #8 last week, lost 57% from last week)

 13. “Confessions of A Shopaholic” – $0.76 million
(6th week, was #11 last week, lost 61% from last week)

56. “Fanboys” - $0.01 million (opened 3/6 in West Michigan)
(7th week, playing in just 26 theaters nationally, 1 fewer than last week)

CLICK HERE FOR LAST WEEK’S BOX OFFICE REPORT 

“Knowing” poster courtesy Summit Entertainment

Box Office numbers courtesy Box Office Mojo

Also new over the weekend were “The Last House on the Left” (2009) and “Miss March”.   The horror remake gave “Watchmen” a run for its money, while the buddy comedy “Miss March” barely made the top 10.

Word of mouth or bad reviews, or both??   “Watchmen” saw one of the biggest declines in recent memory (67%) for a number one movie after its opening weekend (last week’s $55 million was the biggest opening of the year so far).

“Taken” is holding its own, now in its 7th week of release, it continues to hover around 4th place, losing just 9% of its audience from last week.

 TOP MOVIES AT WEEKEND BOX OFFICE (estimated results):
1. ”Race to Witch Mountain” – $25.00 million (1st week)

2. “Watchmen” - $18.07 million
(2nd week, was #1 last week, lost 67% from last week)

3. “The Last House on the Left” (2009) – $14.66 million (1st week)

4. “Taken” – $6.65 million
(7th week, was #4 last week, lost 9% from last week)

5. “Tyler Perry’s Madea Goes to Jail” – $5.13 million
(4th week, was #2 last week, lost 40% from last week)

6. “Slumdog Millionaire” - $5.03 million
(18th week, was #4 last week, lost 26% from last week)

7. “Paul Blart: Mall Cop” - $3.10 million
(9th week, was #5 last week, lost 25% from last week)

8. “He’s Just Not That Into You” – $2.91 million
(6th week, was #6 last week, lost 28% from last week)

9. “Coraline” – $2.66 million
(65th week, was #7 last week, lost 19% from last week)

10. “Miss March” - $2.35 million (1st week)

—

11. “Confessions of A Shopaholic” – $2.00 million
(5th week, was #8 last week, lost 35% from last week)

48. “Fanboys” - $0.02 million (opened last Friday in West Michigan)
(6th week, playing in just 27 theaters nationally, 18 fewer than last week)

CLICK HERE FOR LAST WEEK’S BOX OFFICE REPORT 

“Race to Witch Mountain” poster courtesy Disney

Box Office numbers courtesy Box Office Mojo

“Tyler Perry’s Madea Goes to Jail” dropped to second after two weeks at the top of the box office, but lost less of its audience than the previous week.  “Slumdog Millionaire” is still seeing returns on its Oscar win for Best Picture, but the box office momentum may be slowing down, as it lost 40% of its audience and slipped down to 4th place.

 TOP MOVIES AT WEEKEND BOX OFFICE (estimated results):
1. “Watchmen” - $55.66 million (1st week)

2. “Tyler Perry’s Madea Goes to Jail” – $8.80 million
(3rd week, was #2 last week, lost 46% from last week)

3. “Taken” – $7.45 million
(6th week, was #4 last week, lost 25% from last week)

4. “Slumdog Millionaire” - $6.93 million
(17th week, was #3 last week, lost 42% from last week)

5. “Paul Blart: Mall Cop” - $4.20 million
(8th week, was #6 last week, lost 25% from last week)

6. “He’s Just Not That Into You” – $4.02 million
(5th week, was #5 last week, lost 33% from last week)

7. “Coraline” – $3.13 million
(5th week, was #7 last week, lost 37% from last week)

8. “Confessions of A Shopaholic” – $3.12 million
(4th week, was #9 last week, lost 33% from last week)

9. “Jonas Brothers: The 3D Concert Experience” – $2.79 million
(2nd week, was #2 last week, lost 78% from last week)

10. “Fired Up” – $2.60 million
(3rd week, was #10 last week, lost 30% from last week) 

—

39. “Fanboys” - $0.03 million (opened Friday in West Michigan)
(5th week, playing in just 45 theaters nationally, 11 more than last week)

CLICK HERE FOR LAST WEEK’S BOX OFFICE REPORT 

Box Office numbers courtesy Box Office Mojo

The Oscar winning bump saw a 45% increase in audience for “Slumdog Millionaire” moving up from 5th to 3rd place.

Another trend of weak post-Oscar offerings is the week’s other new movie “Street Fighter: The Legend of Chun-Li”… opening in 8th place.

 TOP MOVIES AT WEEKEND BOX OFFICE (estimated results):
1. “Tyler Perry’s Madea Goes to Jail” – $16.50 million
(2nd week at #1, lost 60% from last week)

2. “Jonas Brothers: The 3D Concert Experience” – $12.70 million (1st week)

3. “Slumdog Millionaire” - $12.15 million
(16th week, was #5 last week, gained 45% more from last week)

4. “Taken” – $9.95 million
(5th week, was #3 last week, lost 12% from last week)

5. “He’s Just Not That Into You” – $5.88 million
(4th week, was #4 last week, lost 31% from last week)

6. “Paul Blart: Mall Cop” - $5.60 million
(7th week, was #8 last week, lost 18% from last week)

7. “Coraline” – $5.25 million
(4th week, was #2 last week, lost 54% from last week)

8. “Street Fighter: The Legend of Chun-Li” – $4.65 million (1st week)

9. “Confessions of A Shopaholic” – $4.49 million
(3rd week, was #8 last week, lost 33% from last week)

10. “Fired Up” – $3.80 million
(2nd week, was #9 last week, lost 31% from last week)

Box Office numbers courtesy Box Office Mojo

The other new movie of the week, “Fired Up” opened in 9th place with just $6 million.

Last week’s number one “Friday the 13th” (2009) dropped to sixth, losing 81% of its audience from the week before… the biggest week-to-week loss by a number one movie so far this year.

 TOP MOVIES AT WEEKEND BOX OFFICE (estimated results):
1. “Tyler Perry’s Madea Goes to Jail” – $41.12 million (1st week)

2. “Taken” – $11.40 million
(4th week, was #3 last week, lost 40% from last week)

3. “Coraline” – $11.03 million
(3rd week, was #5 last week, lost 25% from last week)

4. “He’s Just Not That Into You” – $8.54 million
(3rd week, was #2 last week, lost 56% from last week)

5. “Slumdog Millionaire” - $8.05 million
(15th week, was #9 last week, gained 11% more from last week)

6. “Friday the 13th” (2009) – $7.83 million
(2nd week, was #1 last week, lost 81% from last week)

7. “Confessions of A Shopaholic” – $7.02 million
(2nd week, was #4 last week, lost 53% from last week)

8. “Paul Blart: Mall Cop” - $7.00 million
(6th week, was #6 last week, lost 36% from last week)

9. “Fired Up” – $6.00 million (1st week)

10. “The International” – $4.45 million
(2nd week, was #7 last week, lost 52% from last week)

Box Office numbers courtesy Box Office Mojo

Originally published 11/17/08:

“Slumdog Millionaire” is an inspirational journey of rags to riches, the story of a boy who works his way up from nothing to something, and carries the audience through to the end.  Its not the sugarcoated musical rags-to-riches of “Annie” – this is the eye-opening and uplifting tale of a young man risking everything for his true love.

“Slumdog Millionaire” won the “People’s Choice Award” at the Toronto Film Festival… and like other little movies before it, this train is starting to pick up momentum with critics across the country… including me.

 “Slumdog Millionaire”

(2008) (rated: R for some violence, disturbing images and language) (2 hrs)

Starring: Dev Patel, Freida Pinto, Anil Kapoor, Saurabh Shukla, Irfan Khan

Director: Danny Boyle

Genre: Drama/Mystery/Romance

The Plot: The story of how impoverished Indian teen Jamal Malik became a contestant on the Hindi version of “Who Wants to be A Millionaire?” — an endeavor made without prize money in mind, rather, an effort to prove his love for his friend Latika, who is an ardent fan of the show.

Every once in awhile a movie comes along and just grabs you… its realism grabs you, its story inspires you, its little moments make you smile, and in the end root for the main character – this is one of those movies.

I have to be honest, when I heard some of those national critics saying good things about it, I had my doubts, but I also tried to avoid their reviews (as I’ve tried to do with every movie until I see it).  And in the end, Slumdog Millionaire delivers a great story.

Slumdog Millionaire has a love story, but its not a romance.  Its about the relationship between two brothers and their female friend.   Its also set in India: a different country and culture than most of us our used to seeing - but its themes are easy to translate to our own lives.

(contains minor spoilers):

Ayush Mahesh Khedekar as young Jamal in "Slumdog Millionaire"

The audience is dropped into the slums of India, with people living in poor, unhealthy conditions – and as this theme is weaved in, it gives the audience an overwhelming sense to root for the main characters: two young brothers Jamal and Salim, who are constantly on the run from from one life-preserving scheme to another as cool, upbeat soundtrack weaves its way through the story, enhancing the great cinematography and editing.

But when an older Jamal (Dev Patel) makes it on as a contestant for the Indian version of “Who Wants To Be A Millionaire”, the police are called in to investigate how an uneducated slum kid could know so many answers.

Dev Patel and Anil Kapoor in "Slumdog Millionaire" courtesy Fox Searchlight

The movie uses the flashback, something we’ve all seen before – but in a way that is somewhat fresh: Jamal flashes back to different chapters of his life, showing us how he might have known the answers to each question on the game show.

When he’s first interrogated by the Inspector and his officer, we start to get the feeling that he might have cheated, but as the movie goes on, we and police officers begin to believe the opposite.

This is another movie with great work by young actors – a good third of this movie hinges on the acting of the young kids playing Jamal, Salim, and Latika.

Remember when “Who Wants to Be A Millionaire” was the event on tv?   When millions would tune in to watch, or you and your co-workers would huddle around the tv to watch, then call in to try to be a contestant?   This movie harnesses that feeling: but its not just the studio audience and people all over India rooting for Jamal as he moves up the prize winnings, becoming a national obessession – the audience is also pulled in.

The host, Anil Kapoor is very good as the Indian version of Regis, but he’s not as simple to figure out as he first seems.   And his line saying “from rags to riches” couldn’t be more perfect on multiple levels.

THE BOTTOM LINE: Slumdog Millionaire HAS TO BE considered for Academy Awards, the movie is inspiring with an underdog you can’t help but root for!   Its almost perfect: I give it 9.5 out of 10.

So what did you think?  Please post a comment!

“Slumdog Millionaire” poster courtesy Fox Searchlight

** CLICK HERE TO CHECK OUT MY OTHER MOVIE REVIEWS **

Follow me on twitter: http://twitter.com/aaronlafferty

And it wasn’t even close… with the remake “Friday the 13th” taking in more ($42 million) than the second and third place movies combined, the slasher movie also becomes the biggest opening of the year, passing “Paul Blart: Mall Cop”’s $31 million opening in January. 

Last week’s number one “He’s Just Not That Into You” slipped to second and new movies “Confessions of A Shopaholic” and “The International” opened in fourth and seventh place.

 TOP MOVIES AT WEEKEND BOX OFFICE (estimated results):
1. “Friday the 13th” (2009) – $42.25 million (1st week)

2. “He’s Just Not That Into You” – $19.61 million
(2nd week, was #1 last week, lost 29% from last week)

3. “Taken” – $19.25 million
(3rd week, was #2 last week, lost 6% from last week)

4. “Confessions of A Shopaholic” – $15.41 million (1st week)

5. “Coraline” – $15.32 million
(2nd week, was #3 last week, lost 9% from last week)

6. “Paul Blart: Mall Cop” - $11.70 million
(5th week, was #5 last week, gained 7% more than last week)

7. “The International” – $10.00 million (1st week)

8. “The Pink Panther 2″ - $9.00 million
(2nd week, was #4 last week, lost 22% from last week)

9. “Slumdog Millionaire” - $7.15 million
(14th week, was #8 last week, lost 0.5% from last week)

10. “Push” – $6.93 million
(2nd week, was #6 last week, lost 31% from last week)

- – -

11. “Gran Torino” – $6.75 million
(10th week, was #7 last week, lost 6% from last week)

13. “Hotel for Dogs” – $4.23 million
(5th week, was #10 last week, lost 26% from last week)

17. ”The Wrestler” – $1.80 million
(4th week of wide release, was #15 last week, lost 19% from last week)

18. “New in Town” - $1.72 million
(3rd week, was #12 last week, lost 47% from last week)

19. “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button” – $1.60 million
(8th week, was #13 last week, lost 30% from last week)

20. “Revolutionary Road” – $0.98 million
(8th week, was #17 last week, lost 42% from last week)

Box Office numbers courtesy Box Office Mojo