The weekend box-office showdown turned into a bit of a dogfight as the crew of the space vessel Serenity took on Jodi Foster and her suspense thriller set aboard a commercial airliner. And though Joss Whedon’s Serenity has been getting better reviews, it couldn’t quite muster enough firepower to knock Flightplan out of the top spot during a decidedly lackluster frame.
Flightplan, which features vfx work by Lola Visual Effects and Peerless Camera Co. Ltd., earned an estimated $15 million in its second weekend, bringing its grand total to some $46 million. By no means impressive, the film’s sophomore performance was enough to keep its closest competitor at bay.
Serenity docked at No. 2 with an estimated $10.1 million, a respectable take for a film that many, perhaps even Universal Studios, had written off as a cult offering. And while the Browncoats (fans of Whedon’s short-lived FOX sci-fi series, Firefly) came out in force to catch this big-screen leap, it appears to have captured an audience larger than its built-in fan base. According to Box Office Mojo, Serenity actually logged a higher per-theater average than Flightplan, suggesting that Universal may have had a No. 1 hit on its hands if it had released it a bit wider.
Though best known for his TV creations Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Angel, Whedon, is an accomplished screenwriter with credits that include Toy Story, Alien Resurrection and Titan A.E. Loaded with effects by Zoic Studios, Rhythm & Hues and Illusion Arts, Serenity marks his feature directorial debut and serves as a taste of things to come as he brings comic-book heroine Wonder Woman to big-screen for Warner Bros. in 2007.
Close on Serenity’s tale was Tim Burton’s Corpse Bride, which earned an estimated $9.7 million in its second week. The gothic animated feature has earned close to $33 million for Warner Bros., and should stay buoyant as Halloween approaches, provided DreamWorks’ Wallace & Gromit: Curse of the Were-Rabbit doesn’t steal too much of its stop-motion thunder when it opens this weekend.
Newline Cinema’s A History of Violence enjoyed an impressive debut considering it only rolled out in 1,340 theaters. Based on a graphic novel by John Wagner and Vince Locke, the Viggo Mortensen vehicle took in around $8.2 million to claim fourth place ahead of Sony’s more widely released Maritime thriller, Into the Blue, which plundered approximately $7 million in box-office booty.
Jim Henson Co.’s MirrorMask, a fantasy hybrid of live action and CG animation took in around $127,000 from 18 venues. Respected fantasy writer Neil Gaiman (Coraline) scripted this tale of a bored young girl who is transported to a surreal universe populated by strange creatures. The film has been receiving critical praise for its unique digital visuals, despite being produced on a shoestring budget.
Before screenings of Wallace & Gromit: Curse of the Were-Rabbit, DreamWorks will treat moviegoers to the new CG short film A Christmas Caper, starring the crafty penguins from Madagascar. The birds will also be back in their own direct-to-video feature in 2009.
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