FRIDAY...

1) CHARLIE AND THE CHOCOLATE FACTORY 9.0
Total: 94.9

2) WEDDING CRASHERS 7.7
62.8

3) ISLAND, THE 4.4

4) BAD NEWS BEARS 4.2

5) FANTASTIC FOUR 3.6
112.3

6) DEVIL'S REJECTS, THE 3.1

7) HUSTLE & FLOW 2.7

8) WAR OF THE WORLDS 2.5
202.3

9) BATMAN BEGINS 1.1
190.2

10) MR. AND MRS SMITH 1.1
172.1

I figured Charlie and the Chocolate Factory would win this weekend. I expected The Island to be fairly low ($25-$30 million for the weekend), but I did not think it would be that low.

i am supprised how the island is doing, the movie was really good. so as its going, it should do only around 15 million?

WOW! I never expected The Island to perform so poorly. Must go see and support one of the only working directors who knows how to put a good action movie together.

The general movie-going public SUCKS. The Island is one that keeps it's storyline pretty cryptic in the advertising. And it shows that's just not what people want. I thought it had a good trailer - very invigerating. Maybe they should have plastered faces all over Burger King and Wal-Mart ads. From what I've heard, The Island is a good movie, to boot! I'm sure Michael Bay is pretty down about those numbers.

Will also be seeing The Devils Rejects today or tomorrow.

HOLY SHIT!!! This weekend is terrible.

Wedding Crashers shown that it has legs, but everything else is crashing and burning around it.

Charlie looks like to have a 50% drop from last weekend.

The Island and The Bad News Bears will be lucky to pull in $15 million.

Fantastic Four looks to have another huge drop (probably 60% or so this time).

The Devil's Rejects is actually doing better than House of 1000 Corpses, but that's not saying much.

Hustle and Flow is underpreforming big time. Paramount/MTV have been pushing this film for months and it's opening weekend will probably be that of $8 million.

People neeed to go see Batman a few more times so it breaks $200 million. Suprirising about The Island, though. Thought it would be a much bigger opening.

Wow, what was the budget for The Island? I had a feeling it would open disappointingly, as it's ads had that "generic sci-fi feel" that plagued Minority Report, Paycheck, etc. (Granted Minority Report did $130 or so mil domestic, but they were expecting more considering the director and star.) But I was thinking more along the lines of a $20 mil opening for Island.

Seems pretty clear mainstream audiences aren't very director-conscience/loyal. I'm curious what percentage of the mainstream population could even name the director of their favorite movie (excepting obvious ones like Spielberg, Lucas, Tarantino...).

The production budget for the film was around $120-130 million.

That's too bad about The Island. I've heard nothing but good things about it from those I know who have seen it. I'm a fan of Michael Bay, so i hope to catch it this weekend.

Michael Bay's movies are designed for the general movie going public. I can't believe it's opening so poorly. Anytime you put above the title "from the director of Armageddon and The Rock", you would think people would probably check this one out.

Of course, we could always use the excuse that everyone is reading the new Harry Potter book again and that's why the box office is weak this weekend.

Ha Ha! Michael Bay, eat sh*t! I love that this arrogant bastard now has one of the biggest bombs of the summer on his filmography.

Well, I guess we can cross Ewan McGregor and Scarlett Johansson off the "A" list of actors capable of opening films to large box office grosses (at least those not within a film franchise, a la Star Wars).

I'd probably watch the chase scenes from The Island a few more times just because they are fun and nutty as hell, but otherwise, it's a movie that just lacks any sort of real emotional connection to the audience that would earn decent word of mouth as well. And now that it's going to earn less than $20 million in its opening weekend, it'll be lucky to pull in $55 million to $60 million domestically.

Word

Yeah, I'll be surprised if the Island cracks 50 million with this opening. Ouch for Bay, though his next film will be a massive hit so I suppose his career isn't in too much trouble. Transformers has little chance of failing like this.

But Wedding Crashers is very impressive. It's looking to have a less then 30% drop. It very well, if it keeps this up, crack 150 million. That's very, very impressive.

No, but the argument was that it may have accounted for the Friday -> Saturday drop last weekend for Charlie. Not a whole weekend of weak numbers.

Could we have somewhat of a "There's Something About Mary" with "Wedding Crashers" in terms of box office drop-off (or the steady shallow drop-off week after week)? The word of mouth for "Wedding Crashers" has been good, and I think it's funny enough not to disappoint those who see it after getting good word of mouth as well. It's not an event movie, it's just one of those films that most people can relate to in some way if they ever attended a wedding, and have a libido.

Though I haven't seen it yet, I'm glad "Wedding Crashers" is doing well. See, it is okay to make an R-rated movie.

I guess it is too early to have a Scarlett Johansson bandwagon.

After seeing the movies of Uwe Boll, hearing all the shit he's said and seeing the way he behaves. I have no discontent toward Michael Bay anymore.

Thank God for that one. Now if we can get that hack Tim Burton out of Hollywood, I might have more faith that there is a God.

And I think Bad News Bears would've done better if it had been distanced from Wedding Crashers. Bears is positioned as a brash rowdy comedy, but when there's a brasher, rowdier comedy out there...

No matter, that list of actors is only like 5 deep anyways

At least I knew better than to like the shitfest known as Fantastic Four! ALL RIGHT!

It would've helped Bad News Bears's box office if the flick was an actual decent film. I know I didn't give Wedding Crashers the nicest of words, but Wedding Crashers looks like the greatest comedy ever put on film compared to Linklater's hackjob on The Bad News Bears.

Seriously... the film has a director with an amazing track record, the writers of one of the best comedies of 2003, the star of said 2003 comedy, and fantastic source material.... HOW DO YOU FUCK THAT UP!?!?

I think Charlie can pull a $30m+ this weekend keeping it's sophomore drop in the 40% range, which is great nowadays.

I think Batman can still squeak out a 200mil finish.

I wonder how those penguins will do...