Australian moviegoers were faced with a choice between seeing a US thriller starring Hugh Jackman and an English time-travelling comedy drama last weekend.
The winners of the News Corp Australia Box Office Awards were announced at a luncheon held at the Australian International Movie Convention today.
Those critics and writers who think Princess Diana ought to be allowed to rest in peace may have a point, judging by the lousy opening figures in Australia for director Oliver Hirschbiegel's Diana.
Box-office takings lifted by 13% to $16.7 million last weekend, powered by an impressive launch for Gravity, a strong hold by Grown Ups 2 and sizable contributions from the children's/family films.
Tim Winton's The Turning drew sizable audiences at Australian cinemas last weekend, earning $215,552 at 14 screens, running for two sessions a day at most locations.
Australian box office takings improved by a modest 8% to $10.7 million last weekend despite the launch of four films aimed at kids and teenagers.
The Australian B.O. rebounded last weekend after sinking to the lowest level of the year, driven by three new films.
Ticket sales at Australian cinemas last weekend slumped to their lowest level of 2013 as none of the new entrants proved to be appealing and most of the holdovers struggled.