Filmgoers Take a Holiday : Movies in Limited Release Do Well, but Overall Box Office Down 15%

Business at theaters over the holiday weekend was down nearly 15% over last year, despite an extra moviegoing day. That’s the bad news.

The good news is that five films in limited release played to packed houses across the country. “These films could do a lot of business down the line,” observed Phil Garfinkle, senior vice president of Entertainment Data Inc., a service providing box-office results to Hollywood studios.

Overall, box-office receipts for the 13 films grossing more than $500,000 totaled $51.7 million over the four days between Friday and Monday this Christmas, according to John Krier, president of Exhibitor Relations, which collects box-office figures for theaters. During last year’s shorter, three-day weekend, moviegoers spent $60.6 million for tickets to the 17 movies bringing in more than $500,000, he said.

Last year, 13 films--with Disney/Touchstone’s blockbuster “Three Men and a Baby” leading the way--grossed more than $1 million over the holiday weekend. This year, only 11 films passed that mark, according to Garfinkle.

Comedies continued to be favored among holiday moviegoers. Universal’s “Twins,” starring Arnold Schwarzenegger and Danny DeVito, held onto the No. 1 spot, grossing nearly $9 million at 1,606 theaters, an average of $5,560 per screen, Since its release three weeks ago, the Ivan Reitman-directed film has brought in a total of $35.5 million at the box office.

Other comedies ranking among the Top 10 were Paramount’s “The Naked Gun,” Fox’s “Working Girl,” Orion’s “Dirty Rotten Scoundrels” and Paramount’s “Scrooged” (see box-office figures in Morning Report, Page 2). New World’s latest horror film, “Hellbound: Hellraiser II” ranked seventh.

Ranking No. 2 for the holiday weekend was a film calling for as much Kleenex as laughter--United Artists’ “Rain Man” starring Dustin Hoffman and Tom Cruise. The $25 million film, which went through three directors before Barry Levinson took it on, grossed $8.7 million at 1,254 theaters, for an average of $6,959 per screen. So far, “Rain Man,” which opened two weeks ago, has grossed $20.2 million.

All of the films ranking among the Top 10 over the Christmas weekend played in more than 1,000 theaters. But several films that opened with a limited release logged impressive results over the four-day holiday.

Studios often release difficult-to-market films in only a handful of theaters--a strategy called “platforming”--with hopes that these films will generate good word of mouth. If that works, a studio can more confidently send its film out to hundreds of theaters, spending millions of dollars more on advertising across the country.

The current crop also includes films released into the crowded Christmas market solely to qualify for this year’s Academy Awards.

Last year, for example, both “Moonstruck” and “Good Morning, Vietnam” went into limited release during the holidays. Both films did well--during the Academy Award nominations and when they later went into wider release.

The star of last weekend’s limited releases was Warners’ “Accidental Tourist” with William Hurt and Kathleen Turner. The bittersweet story of a travel writer’s life, directed by Lawrence Kasdan and based on an Anne Tyler novel, grossed $97,578 at three theaters, a per-screen average of $32,626, according to Krier.

Ranked by their per-screen performance, the second-place winner among the limited releases was “Beaches,” a Disney/Touchstone release starring Bette Midler and Barbara Hershey. This tear-jerker about female friendship grossed $198,361 at seven theaters, an average of $28,337 per screen, according to Krier.

“Dangerous Liaisons,” set in the 18th Century but offering as much sex and manipulation as a good “Dynasty” episode, ranked third among the limited releases. The Warners release, directed by Stephen Frears and starring Glenn Close, John Malkovich and Michelle Pfeiffer, grossed $81,448 at three theaters, an average of $27,149 per screen, Krier said.

Orion’s “Mississippi Burning,” a civil rights-era action film starring Gene Hackman and Willem Dafoe, came in fourth place. The Alan Parker-directed film grossed $198,589 at nine theaters, a per-screen average of $22,065. Since its release, the film has grossed $762,696.

“Talk Radio,” the latest from director Oliver Stone, logged a respectable $80,547 at six theaters, a per-screen average of $13,424.