‘Shutter Island’ has staying power

When “Shutter Island” opened with an average grade from moviegoers of just C+, Paramount Pictures had to wonder: Did audiences genuinely dislike the movie, or were they just unsure what to think of the twist ending as they walked out of theaters?

The studio got the answer it wanted this weekend, as ticket sales for the Martin Scorsese-directed thriller starring Leonardo DiCaprio declined a relatively modest 46%, indicating that word-of-mouth is pushing the picture along, rather than sinking it.

“Shutter Island” easily topped the box office chart this weekend, selling a studio-estimated $22.2 million worth of tickets in the U.S. and Canada from Friday through Sunday.

Of the two new nation-wide movies, Warner Bros.’ “Cop Out” performed better, collecting $18.6 million, while Overture Films’ horror remake “The Crazies” brought in $16.5 million.

That’s actually a stronger start for “Crazies,” however, which cost Overture and its financing partners just under $20 million to produce while Warner spent nearly $40 million to make “Cop Out,” the Kevin Smith-directed buddy comedy starring Bruce Willis and Tracy Morgan.

Moviegoing was sharply curtailed by a major snowstorm in the Northeast on Friday, which kept many at home.

“We did particularly well in urban areas, so we were probably hurt more than anybody by the snow,” said Dan Fellman, domestic distribution president of “Cop Out” distributor Warner Bros. “It probably took half a million dollars out of our pocket.”

“Shutter Island” has grossed $75.1 million in its first 10 days and is on track to roughly match the total of Scorsese and DiCaprio’s last collaboration, “The Departed,” which finished its domestic run with $132.4 million. That’s an impressive performance given that many R-rated dramas have fared poorly at the box office in the recent past, including “The Wolfman” and “Brothers.”

Paramount Pictures should end up in good shape on “Shutter Island,” which one person close to the production said cost close to $100 million to make, though a spokeswoman said the cost after tax credits was $75 million.

It remains to be seen, however, whether “Shutter” can come anywhere close to the $157.5-million international box office total of “The Departed.” After opening in 20 foreign territories so far, including France, Germany, and Australia, “Shutter Island” has taken in $34 million. Major markets including Britain, Japan and all of Latin America are yet to come.

“Cop Out” drew predominantly male ticket buyers, according to exit polls. Fellman called the picture’s opening “really good,” though it’s unclear whether it will keep playing or fade quickly after garnering a mediocre average audience grade of B-.

“The Crazies” got the same grade, though it’s typical that horror movies fade fast anyway after they debut. Given its low cost, Overture should end up making a profit on the film, providing a much needed boost as its corporate parent Liberty Media considers offloading or even shutting down the studio.

Overture focused a big chunk of its marketing on digital platforms, including a Facebook game and iPhone application, and succeeded in drawing a mostly young crowd of both genders.

In limited release, Roman Polanski’s political drama “The Ghost Writer” continued to perform well on its second weekend, expanding from four to 43 theaters and taking in a healthy $870,000, bringing its total to $1.1 million.

Sony Pictures Classics debuted French best foreign language film Oscar nominee “A Prophet” at nine theaters in Los Angeles, New York and Montreal to a solid $170,000.

ben.fritz@latimes.com