By Brendan Swift
Road movie Charlie & Boots has posted the biggest opening weekend for an Australian film this year, taking $805,797 at the box office since last Thursday.
The Paramount Pictures-distributed film, starring Paul Hogan and Shane Jacobson as father and son, opened across 181 screens for a solid screen average of $4451.
Charlie & Boots box office take ranked it in fifth place among all releases, with Disney’s Up in top spot with $2.11 million across 218 screens, according to MPDAA data.
Paramount Pictures Australia’s managing director, Mike Selwyn said the film’s top 20 cinema locations included country and regional centres as well as major suburban multiplexes. "This is a pretty unusual mix and suggests the film is playing well right across Australia, which is obviously very pleasing,” he said in a statement.
Among other Australian fare, Rachel Ward’s incestuous feature Beautiful Kate posted a 40 per cent drop in takings, adding $66,910 to its box office total across 27 screens. It is now the third highest grossing local film at the box office this year.
Warwick Thornton’s debut feature Samson & Delilah added a further $24,046 in its 18th week at cinemas. Its $3,125,291 tally makes it the 61st highest grossing Australian film of all time behind 2006 comedy BoyTown.
Political drama Balibo added a further $84,984 across 35 screens as it prepares for a wider release.
Meanwhile, Ana Kokkinos’ tough drama Blessed, which opens this Thursday, took $8,396 in previews across 14 screens.
| Film | Budget | Distributor | Opening w/e | Weeks | Box Office |
| Samson and Delilah | $1.6m | Para/Trans/Footprint | $ 199,163 | 18 | $ 3,125,291 |
| Mary and Max | $8m | Icon | $ 217,176 | 15 | $ 1,444,617 |
| Beautiful Kate | $6m | Roadshow | $ 273,582 | 4 | $ 1,253,478 |
| Disgrace | $10m | Icon | $ 209,014 | 12 | $ 1,151,013 |
| My Year Without Sex | $3.8m | Para/Trans/Footprint | $ 177,461 | 15 | $ 1,109,929 |
| Charlie & Boots | $9m est. | Paramount/Transmission | $ 800,460 | 1 | $ 805,797 |
| Balibo | $4.5m | Para/Trans/Footprint | $ 206,290 | 4 | $ 797,144 |
| Love the Beast | Madman | $ 241,982 | 9 | $ 777,351 | |
| The Combination | $1.169m | AFS | $ 188,054 | 11 | $ 727,586 |
| Last Ride | $4m | Madman | $ 76,459 | 10 | $ 359,166 |
| Two Fists, One Heart | $8.5m | BVI | $ 96,999 | 2 | $ 295,500 |
| Wake in Fright | Madman | $ 25,446 | 11 | $ 284,382 | |
| Cedar Boys | $1.36m | Hoyts/Mushroom | $ 74,793 | 5 | $ 204,160 |
| Subdivision | $4m est. | BVI | $ 86,649 | 3 | $ 190,500 |
| Beautiful | $2m | Kojo/Jump Street | $ 22,406 | 6 | $ 55,619 |
| Closed for Winter | $2m | Omnilab Media | $ 19,449 | 6 | $ 53,370 |
| Shadows of the Past | $ 820,000 | Summer Night | $ 13,927 | 11 | $ 45,490 |
| Bastardy | $ 260,000 | Film Camp | $ 7,822 | 8 | $ 37,570 |
| Lake Mungo | Darclight films | $ 2,390 | 5 | $ 29,850 | |
| Lucky Country | $2m est. | Para/Trans/Footprint | $ 11,413 | 4 | $ 26,141 |
| The Burning Season | Gil Scrine/Freshwater | $ 4,865 | 5 | $ 21,017 | |
| The Chifleys of Busby St | Ronin | $ 3,760 | $ 13,658 | ||
| Crush | $2m | Filmscope/Odin’s Eye | $ 8,304 | 1 | $ 13,051 |
| Three Blind Mice | Odin’s Eye/Titan View | 3 | $ 5,511 | ||
| Bad Bush | VVVF | $ 1,909 | $ 3,961 | ||
| Salvation | Hopscotch | $ 2,262 | 1 | $ 3,182 | |
| Prey | $4m | Damage Releasing | $ 1,089 | $ 1,089 |
bswift@www.if.com.au