‘Hannibal’ Eats Up the Competition

Far exceeding even the most sanguine expectations, the Grand Guignol thriller “Hannibal,” starring Anthony Hopkins and Julianne Moore, dominated at movie theaters across the country, debuting to an estimated $58 million in 3,230 theaters in its first weekend.

If that number holds, it’ll be the third-largest debut ever.

“Hannibal” accounted for approximately one out of every two tickets sold over the weekend, though reviews for the sequel to the Oscar-winning “Silence of the Lambs” were generally mixed, with critics singling out the gruesome nature of the film’s violence.

But patrons, some of whom were prepared for the horror by Thomas Harris’ novel of the same name, flocked to theaters starting Friday and, unlike most horror movies, actually increased in attendance on Saturday night.

The R-rated film’s audience was composed of slightly more women than men, and evenly divided between younger and older (over 30) patrons, according to Larry Gleason, president of distribution at MGM, the studio that co-financed the $80-million film with Universal Pictures and is releasing it in the United States.

The satisfaction level for “Hannibal” was good, he said, with audiences approaching it more like a scary thrill-ride film, a la “The Exorcist,” than a conventional horror movie.

Gleason said the studio was successful in keeping the film away from the under-17 crowd, citing the pre-opening awareness levels, which were lowest among teens, who had been exposed to the least advertising. Further, he said, MGM encouraged theater owners to step up their policing policies in checking for identification.

With the Presidents Day holiday weekend coming up, “Hannibal” could hold on slightly better than most horror sequels, which usually experience a sharp downturn, though its eventual cumulative total could be somewhat hampered by the explicit nature of the film’s violent sequences.

The only other film to brave “Hannibal” over the weekend was the gross-out teen comedy “Saving Silverman,” which got off to a middling start with an estimated $7.4 million in 2,467 theaters and looks to have a modest life in theaters before heading to video and cable.

“Silverman” didn’t even have enough moxie to take second place away from another Sony comedy, “The Wedding Planner,” which is one of the better performers of the new year, ushering in approximately $7.8 million in its third weekend in 2,726 theaters for a 17-day total of $38 million.

Rising a notch in anticipation of Tuesday’s Academy Award nominations announcement was Ang Lee’s “Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon,” which has only expanded to more than 1,000 screens in the last two weeks. Now on 1,204 screens, “Tiger” managed about $5.1 million over the weekend, taking the film above the $60-million mark.

In so doing, “Tiger” became the largest-grossing foreign-language film ever released in the United States. Since it’s likely to play right into April, “Tiger” should continue to add to its lead, distancing itself from the previous record-holder, “Life Is Beautiful” ($57.6 million).

“Cast Away,” starring Tom Hanks, is on its way to becoming the star’s second-biggest-grossing movie and capturing the runner-up slot behind “How the Grinch Stole Christmas” among last year’s releases. With $5 million anticipated in its eighth weekend on 2,354 screens, the survivor drama is approaching $210 million. Soon, it will surpass last year’s “M:I-2,” which grossed about $215 million, and will pull ahead of the $216 million amassed by Hanks’ “Saving Private Ryan.” The actor’s personal best is “Forrest Gump” at $330 million.

Totals for the weekend’s top 12 films again ran well ahead of last year, with “Hannibal” propelling the top 12 movies to about $107.5 million, almost 43% better than last year, according to box-office tracking firm Exhibitor Relations. So far, every weekend of 2001 has surpassed the comparable weekend last year. According to Variety, January’s cumulative receipts were 25% ahead of last year.

“Save the Last Dance” fell out of the top five for the first time in its five weeks in theaters, down to an estimated $4.8 million on 2,506 screens. But with almost $75 million to date, it’s a solid hit.

“Valentine” got hit by the double whammy of taking the usual second weekend drop most horror films experience and having to compete with “Hannibal.” Grosses plummeted 62% to about $3.8 million, for a total of $15.8 million to date.

“Head Over Heels” suffered a similar fate, plummeting 46% in its second weekend to $2.6 million or so in 2,364 theaters and a 10-day total of about $8 million, taking it out of the weekend’s top 10.

“Traffic” held on at No. 7 for the weekend and is another film that’s likely to get a bump from probable multiple Oscar nominations. Its seventh weekend, in 1,740 theaters, was estimated at $4.4 million, and Steven Soderbergh’s drug war drama is now trafficking in the $71-million area.

In ninth place is “Chocolat,” with $3.1 million estimated in 1,148 theaters and $26 million to date, followed by “O Brother, Where Art Thou?” In only 835 theaters, “Brother” crooned its way to about $3 million over the weekend and has now topped $20 million in limited release. “Brother” looks to be the biggest-grossing Coen Brothers film ever, surpassing “Fargo’s” $24.6 million.

In limited release, Wong Kar Wai’s “In the Mood for Love” had a strong second weekend on six big-city screens, grossing $102,650 for $265,964 to date.

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THE WEEKEND’S TOP 10 MOVIES

1. “Hannibal” $58 million

2. “The Wedding Planner” $7.8 million

3. “Saving Silverman” $7.4 million

4. “Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon” $5.1 million

5. “Cast Away” $5 million

6. “Save the Last Dance” $4.8 million

7. “Traffic” $4.4 million

8. “Valentine” $3.8 million

9. “Chocolat” $3.1 million

10. “O Brother Where Art Thou?” $3 million