‘Postcards’ Arrives on Top

Mike Nichols’ “Postcards From the Edge,” a mother-daughter relationship comedy starring Shirley MacLaine and Meryl Streep, grossed a five-day total of $7.9 million to top the weekend box office chart. Among the weekend’s other new releases, MGM/UA’s “Death Warrant,” starring Jean Claude Van Damme as a cop who goes undercover in prison, ranked third with ticket sales of $5 million.

* “State of Grace,” Orion Pictures’ drama about the Irish Mob in Hell’s Kitchen, starring Sean Penn and Gary Oldman, did an impressive $179,927 on 14 screens for a per-screen average of $12,852. By comparison, Warner Bros. “White Hunter, Black Heart,” a fictionalized account of events leading up to the making of “The African Queen,” directed by and starring Clint Eastwood, earned $165,450 on 24 screens, for a per-screen average of $6,894.

WEEKEND BOX OFFICE

Movie Weekend Screens/ Weeks in Total 1.”Postcards From the Edge” $7.8 1,013 1 $7.9 (Columbia) Million $7,771 Million 2.”Ghost” $5.8 1,756 10 $141.4 (Paramount) Million $3,337 Million 3.”Death Warrant” $5 1,089 1 $5 (MGM/UA) Million $4,610 Million 4.”Presumed Innocent” $2.7 1,410 8 $75.7 (Warner Bros.) Million $1,928 Million 5.”Flatliners” $2.6 1,483 6 $48.1 (Columbia) Million $1,784 Million *”State of Grace” $179,927 14 1 $179,927 (Orion) Million $12,852