V FOR VENDETTA - VENDETTA IS NO SLAM DUNK

Although some analysts had forecast that Warner Bros.' V for Vendetta would reinvigorate the box office and become the first big blockbuster of 2006, the movie took in just $25.6 million, even less than what studio estimates had indicated on Sunday. Indeed the overall box office itself produced dismal returns -- some 10 percent below those for the comparable weekend a year ago. Most analysts blamed competition from "March Madness" -- TV's coverage of the NCAA basketball tournament. But Paramount's She's the Man, which was released to attract women with little interest in the basketball tourney, produced absolutely dreary results, winding up in fourth place with $10.7 million. Last week's box-office winner, Failure to Launch, held up pretty well as it earned $15.6 million and slipped into second place.

The top ten films over the weekend, according to final figures compiled by Exhibitor Relations (figures in parentheses represent total gross to date):
1. V for Vendetta, Warner Bros., $25,642,640, (New); 2. Failure to Launch, Paramount, $15,604,892, 2 Wks. ($48,273,823); 3. The Shaggy Dog, Disney, $13,377,363, 2 Wks. ($35,635,419); 4. She's the Man, Paramount, $10,730,372, (New); 5. The Hills Have Eyes, Fox Searchlight, $8,008,822, 2 Wks. ($28,741,291); 6. 16 Blocks, Warner Bros., $4,755,012, 3 Wks. ($30,190,041); 7. Eight Below, Disney, $4,084,276, 5 Wks. ($73,040,379); 8. Tyler Perry's Madea's Family Reunion, Lionsgate, $2,933,815, 4 Wks. ($60,029,631); 9. The Pink Panther, Sony, $2,464,468, 6 Wks. ($78,575,414); 10. Aquamarine, 20th Century Fox, $2,114,445, 3 Wks. ($15,778,293).

21/03/2006