What a difference $200,000 makes. If the Footloose remake had made $200,000 more than Real Steel over the weekend, it would be the triumphant tale of a dubious ‘80s remake silencing the doubters and emerging victorious at the box office. As it stands, however, it’s the ho-hum debut of a film that couldn’t even beat that stupid robot boxing movies on its second weekend. With $16.3 million, Real Steel again won the box office, crushing the feeble Footloose, which collected just $16.1 million, barely enough to cover all the Sunday shoes kicked off in the movie. We Love The ‘80s week fizzled altogether with the prequel/remake of John Carpenter’s great 1982 remake of The Thing, which opened middling reviews and $8.7 million in receipts for third. With Paranormal Activity 3 on the immediate horizon, The Thing looks to drop out of sight quickly, perhaps disappearing into the form of a penniless movie producer slouching out of the Universal studio gates. But nothing on this weekend of fail failed quite as spectacularly as The Big Year, which couldn’t convince moviegoers of the pulse-pounding excitement of bird-watching, despite the affable trio of Steve Martin, Jack Black, and Owen Wilson in the lead roles. With $3.3 million, it opened in ninth place, below the Christian indie drama Courageous in its third week. It’s your loss, America: Those birds are going to be hard to spot on video. They must be observed on the big screen.
In limited release, Pedro Almodóvar’s The Skin I Live In opened like all Almodóvar movies open—well. With $38,500 per screen on six screens, it enjoyed by far the highest average of any film on offer this week, though that number may sink once the iffy reviews take hold. 10 or 15 years ago, a home invasion thriller starring Nicolas Cage and Nicole Kidman and directed by Joel Schumacher would be a surefire bonanza, but in 2011, Trespass was good for just $18,200 total ($1,820 per screen). That’s not going to save any castles from the bank. Or Priuses, for that matter.
For more detailed numbers, visit Box Office Mojo.