‘The Breaker Upperers.’
Raunchy Kiwi comedy The Breaker Upperers was the stand-out among the new releases in Australian cinemas last weekend.
That is, apart from André Rieu’s annual Maastricht concert, an alternate content release, which drew a multitude of admirers of the self-dubbed The King of Waltz.
Feature documentaries Whitney and RBG struggled to connect despite glowing reviews, while Beirut, the saga of a fictional hostage crisis in war-torn 1982 Lebanon, failed to fire a shot after bombing in the US in April.
Punjabi romantic drama Ashke and Chinese fantasy Detective Dee: The Four Heavenly Kings, the third in the franchise about a real-life sleuth of the Tang dynasty, both began brightly.
Australian animated family adventure Maya the Bee: Honey Games, voiced by Richard Roxburgh, The Umbilical Brothers’ Dave Collins and Shane Dundas and Justine Clarke, did OK as an alternate content release, mostly playing daytime sessions.
The top 20 titles harvested $13 million, down 30 per cent on the previous weekend, according to Numero.
Easily No. 1 for the second consecutive weekend, Universal’s Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again rang up $3.9 million, dropping by a reasonable 34 per cent. The musical comedy directed by Ol Parker has banked $12.8 million but may not have the stamina to reach the original’s $31.9 million.
The film starring Amanda Seyfried, Cher and most of the original’s cast has grossed $US70.5 million after 10 days in the US, where Paramount/Skydance’s Mission: Impossible – Fallout opened with a bang, drumming up $US61.2 million, a record for the franchise. That suggests a massive opening here next Thursday for the Tom Cruise starrer.
Sony Pictures’ The Equalizer 2 captured nearly $1.9 million in its second weekend, tumbling by 38 per cent, earning $5.7 million thus far. So the thriller starring Denzel Washington will surpass the original Equalizer which finished with $6.6 million.
André Rieu’s 2018 Maastricht Concert: Amore – My Tribute to Love whistled up $1.28 million on Saturday and Sunday at 123 locations.
Disney/Marvel’s Ant-Man and the Wasp bagged $1.05 million in its fourth weekend, advancing to $17.9 million. The superhero adventure directed by Peyton Reed has pulled in $183.5 million in the US and $212.2 million in the rest of the world for a global total of $395.7 million.
Directed, written and starring Jackie van Beek and Madeleine Sami, The Breaker Upperers minted $718,000 at 228 locations and $867,000 including previews for Madman Entertainment. The comedy about two pals whose job is to de-couple couples, which also features James Rolleston and Celia Pacquola, took a tidy $NZ1.77 million at home.
Disney/Pixar’s Incredibles 2 reached $44.1 million after making $696,000 in its seventh frame.The Brad Bird-directed comedy has hauled in $997.2 million worldwide.
Universal/Amblin Entertainment’s Jurassic Park: Fallen Kingdom ascended to $34.4 million after collecting $695,000 in its sixth outing. The action adventure directed by JA Bayona has amassed $397.6 million in the US and $837.9 million internationally for a cume of $1.2 billion.
Universal’s Skyscraper is crashing to earth, tumbling by 49 per cent to $693,000 in its third weekend. The action adventure starring Dwayne Johnson, Neve Campbell and Chin Han has taken $6.6 million in Australia and a mediocre $55.7 million after 17 days in the US.
Sony Pictures Animation’s Hotel Transylvania 3: A Monster Weekend drew $482,000 in its fifth weekend, raising the total to $17.6 million.
Based on popular folk dance Bhangra, directed by Amberdeep Singh and starring Amrinder Gill, Sanjeeda Shaikh and Sarbjit Cheem, Ashke fetched $186,000 on 33 screens for Mind Blowing Films.
Tsui Hark’s Detective Dee: The Four Heavenly Kings conjured up $153,000 at just 28 screens for China Lion Film.
Beirut has a top-notch cast led by Jon Hamm, Rosamund Pike, Dean Norris and Mark Pellegrino but the theme clearly did not resonate as the Brad Anderson-directed action thriller made just $149,000 on 85 screens and $185,000 with previews for Roadshow.
Released by Transmission Films, Kevin Macdonald’s Whitney, which explores the addiction and self-destruction behind the façade of singer Whitney Houston, who died in 2012, whistled up $74,000 on 48 screens including previews.
Directed by Noel Cleary, Sergio Delfino and Alexs Stadermann, Flying Bark Productions’ Maya the Bee: Honey Games drew $80,000 for StudioCanal, excluding previews and festival screenings.
Julie Cohen and Betsy West’s RBG, which profiles controversial Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg and her success in fighting sex discrimination, yielded a meagre $57,000 on 35 screens and $89,000 including previews for Icon.