‘Hannibal’ Continues to Satisfy Moviegoers’ Hunger for Thrills

The combination of a holiday and the afterglow of Oscar nominations bolstered movie theater admissions over the weekend, keeping 2001’s hot box office streak alive. Led by “Hannibal” and three reasonably strong debuts, the top 12 films soared to approximately $110 million for the first three days of the President’s Day weekend, about 17% ahead of last year, according to box-office tracking firm Exhibitor Relations.

“Hannibal” again ruled at the nation’s movie houses, though not in as lopsided a fashion as last weekend. Taking an expected drop of close to 50%, the R-rated thriller nonetheless grossed an estimated $30 million on 3,238 screens. The 10-day total for the “Silence of the Lambs” sequel is nearly $104 million, making “Hannibal” the first release of the new year to surpass $100 million.

Attendance evidenced a bit more depth than last weekend, thanks in part to a new fantasy comedy, a three-hankie love story and a family animated feature.

In his first full-fledged starring role, Chris Rock scored with audiences (if not with critics) in “Down to Earth,” which claimed about $17.5 million in its debut on 2,521 screens. A loose remake of Warren Beatty’s 1978 hit “Heaven Can Wait,” which itself was a remake of 1941’s “Here Comes Mr. Jordan,” “Down to Earth” was strongest in big cities, but also did well in suburban runs, primarily drawing the 18- to 34-year-old audience.

The second new film, the animated “Recess: School’s Out” from Disney, seems to be another one of those low-cost, can’t-miss family titles. Taking advantage of the President’s Day recess, the TV-to-big-screen adaptation was virtually the only game in town for kids under the age of 12. The first three days rendered about $10.8 million in 2,624 theaters, and its take is projected to end up north of $13 million for the four-day holiday.

Keanu Reeves demonstrated his consistent drawing power with the romance “Sweet November,” another remake, in which he co-stars with Charlize Theron. Critics blindsided the tear-jerker, but females and the date-night crowd showed up in sufficient numbers to launch “November” to a moderately sweet start of approximately $10.5 million in 2,268 theaters.

Last week’s Oscar nominations included 10 mentions for Ang Lee’s “Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon,” including one for best picture. Sony Pictures Classics, which has been rolling out the movie slowly, took the occasion to expand to 1,653 screens and send “Tiger” roaring to an estimated $8.8 million, up about 70% from the previous weekend. That brings the record-breaking foreign-language martial arts film to a grand total of $71.5 million to date.

“Traffic,” another best picture nominee, maintained on 1,742 screens for the holiday weekend. Its estimated take for the three days was up almost 50%, to about $6.5 million, putting it close to the $80-million mark overall. Like “Crouching Tiger,” “Traffic” appears headed toward $100 million by the time the Oscars are announced March 25.

And a third best picture nominee, “Chocolat,” broadened to 1,481 screens over the weekend and saw its fortunes enhanced by more than 50%, up to an estimated $4.8 million--and to just more than $33 million so far.

Even “Cast Away,” which only copped a couple of nominations, including one for Tom Hanks as best actor, showed stubborn survival instincts in its ninth weekend, on 2,249 screens. It grossed an estimated $5 million for an oh-so-grand total of nearly $217 million, making it officially the second-highest grossing film of 2000.

In seventh place for the weekend was “The Wedding Planner,” solid proof that almost any film with the word “Wedding” or “Bride” in the title is magic, though in this case star Jennifer Lopez’s hit single and album (all from Sony, by the way) has certainly helped. The movie’s fourth weekend is planning on $5.7 million in 2,354 theaters as the romantic comedy sprints toward the $50-million mark, where it should land by next weekend.

Sony’s other major release, “Saving Silverman,” dropped like a stone in its second weekend, in 2,467 theaters, down to an expected $4.3 million and just under $14 million in 10 days.

Among specialized films, biopics ruled the day. Julian Schnabel’s “Before Night Falls,” a portrait of Cuban writer Reinaldo Arenas, took advantage of lead actor Javier Bardem’s Academy Award nomination to jump to 74 screens and gross $320,000 for the weekend, with some Los Angeles runs virtually doubling their ticket sales. Its total so far is $1.8 million.

“Pollock” got its official launch over the weekend, following Oscar nominations for Ed Harris and Marcia Gay Harden. Debuting on 16 screens in three cities, the Jackson Pollock drama started with an encouraging $240,522, about $17,000 a theater. Its total, including its previous Oscar qualifying run, is $334,000.

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BOX OFFICE

Estimated weekend grosses (in millions):

1. “Hannibal”: $30

2. “Down to Earth”: $17.5

3. “Recess: School’s Out”: $10.8

4. “Sweet November”: $10.5

5. “Crouching Tiger . . .”: $8.8

6. “Traffic”: $6.5

7. “The Wedding Planner”: $5.7

8. “Cast Away”: $5

9. “Chocolat”: $4.8

10. “Saving Silverman”: $4.3

(From page F1)