American Hustle, the comedy inspired by an FBI sting in the 1970s, directed by Silver Linings Playbook's David O. Russell, has struck a chord with Australian cinemagoers.
The film starring Bradley Cooper, Jennifer Lawrence, Amy Adams and Christian Bale raked in $2.18 million on 285 screens last weekend.
That was just 4 grand more than the fourth weekend of The Hunger Games: Catching Fire, which advanced to $31.9 million, albeit falling by 38%. Hence two films starring Jennifer Lawrence occupy the top two spots at the Australian box-office, a rare feat.
Takings overall slipped by 8% to $9.2 million as none of the other newcomers made serious money. There will need to be a strong finish to the year if the 2013 B.O. is to match or beat the 2012 total. Through the end of November industry-wide grosses were trailing last year by about 3%.
Animated comedy Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs 2 continued to draw kids and families, fetching $1.7 million in its second outing, up 4%, which brings its cumulative total to $4.4 million. It will face competition from Disney's Frozen which is being sneaked next weekend.
Sony unloaded US flop Battle of the Year, the flimsy tale of an international dance crew tournament which the Yanks had not won for 15 years, on 62 screens, yielding a miserable $97,000.
The Gilded Cage, director Ruben Alves’ comedy based on his experiences as the son of Portuguese immigrants in Paris, is one of the few art-house titles that’s doing respectable business. The film rang up $80,000 on 20 screens, and $143,000 including previews.
Hong Kong 3D action thriller Firestorm, which stars Andy Lau as a hard-boiled cop who’s forced to cross moral lines in order to hunt down a crew of seasoned criminals, took $49,000 at nine cinemas.
How To Fight in Six Inch Heels, a Vietnamese romantic comedy about a fashion designer in New York who fears her boyfriend is cheating on her in Saigon, misfired with $4,500 on five screens.
WEEKEND BOX OFFICE Dec 12-15
|
|
Title |
Week/ Screens |
Box Office |
% +- |
Total
|
|
1 |
American Hustle |
1/285 |
$2,180,567 |
NA |
$2,180,567 |
|
2 |
The Hunger Games: Catching Fire |
4/563 |
2,176,465 |
-38 |
31,976,793 |
|
3 |
Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs 2 |
2/465 |
1,674,745 |
+4 |
4,438,861 |
|
4 |
Delivery Man |
2/240 |
693,803 |
-34 |
2,356,047 |
|
5 |
Ender’s Game |
2/208 |
543,814 |
-36 |
1,785,108 |
|
6 |
Jackass Presents: Bad Grandpa |
5/177 |
304,982 |
-43 |
9,366,402 |
|
7 |
Thor: The Dark World |
7/180 |
236,117 |
-42 |
22,690,559 |
|
8 |
One Chance |
3/234 |
183,356 |
-51 |
1,910,229 |
|
9 |
Carrie |
3/134 |
172,959 |
-49 |
1,636,040 |
|
10 |
Gravity |
11/66 |
118,354 |
-21 |
20,658,110 |
Source: Motion Picture Distributors Association of Australia