Box Office: 'Shutter Island' takes the weekend again!

Weekend of February 26 – 28, 2010: 'Shutter Island' scares off competition

Martin Scorsese’s thriller “Shutter Island” beat its competition to stay on top at the North American box office this weekend with a decent $22.2 million in ticket sales at 3,003 locations, according to studio estimates Sunday.

Domestically, the film starring Leonardo DiCaprio and Mark Ruffalo has reached a total haul of $75 million after a little more than one week in release. “Island” ended up scoring an average of $7,393 per theater.

Following in second place with $18.5 million was Kevin Smith’s new comedy “Cop Out,” a film starring Bruce Willis and Tracy Morgan as two cops hunting down a gang of murderers while trying to find a stolen baseball card.

New entry “The Crazies” came in third this weekend, bagging a solid $16.5 million from ticket sales at 2,476 locations. The horror remake directed by Breck Eisner follows a group of survivors as they struggle with the outbreak of a dangerous virus.

Meanwhile, James Cameron’s “Avatar” is not giving up its spot in the top five. The hit sci-fi epic landed at No. 4 with a weekend gross of $14 million, reaching a cumulative gross of $706.9 million after 11 weeks in release.

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Box Office: 'Valentine's Day' takes the crown

Weekend of February 12 – 14, 2010: 'Valentine's Day' shows no love for competition

Garry Marshall’s new romantic comedy “Valentine’s Day” stormed to the top of the North American box office this weekend with an impressive $52.4 million in ticket sales, according to studio estimates Sunday.

The Warner Bros. title landed a superb average of $14,300 per theater at 3,665 locations, making it impossible for its competition to catch up. Despite negative critic’ reviews, the film largely benefited from its gigantic all-star cast.

New entries “The Wolfman” and “Percy Jackson & the Olympians: The Lightning Thief” battled it out for second place, but the latter prevailed according to early estimates, scoring $31.1 million from ticket sales at 3,356 locations.

Following closely in third place with $30 million was Universal’s “The Wolfman,” the Joe Johnston-directed horror flick starring Benicio Del Toro and Anthony Hopkins. The film scored an average of $9,506 per theater at 3,222 locations.

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'Valentine's Day' scores big at Friday box office

Romance rules at the box office...

It's been a great weekend for new releases at the North American box office as "Valentine's Day" scored the No. 1 spot Friday with a solid $14.6 million in ticket sales. The Garry Marshall-helmed romantic comedy is playing at 3,665 locations, making it hard for the competition to catch up.

Boosted by its all-star cast, "Day" follows what happens to several individuals and couples in Los Angeles on Valentine's Day. Critics around the nation slammed it with bad reviews, but the film easily found a large audience to make it to the top.

At No. 2, Universal's "The Wolfman" opened with $9.8 million; another decent start. Joe Johnston's horror flick with Benicio Del Toro is playing at 3,222 locations. Following in third place with $9.7 million was new entry "Percy Jackson & the Olympians: The Lightning Thief."

Meanwhile, James Cameron's "Avatar" slipped to No. 4, earning another $4.5 million, which is not bad, considering the film has been in release for 57 days. The film reached a domestic total gross of $642.1 million. "Dear John" finished fifth with a daily gross of $4.1 million and a total of $42 million.

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Video: Channing Tatum & Amanda Seyfried meet fans in San Francisco

Channing Tatum and Amanda Seyfried recently stopped in San Francisco during a promotional tour for their new film "Dear John," and more than 200 fans got to meet the stars during an autograph session at Union Square's Macy's. Let me just say that standing right in the middle of it all was quite intense.

Of course, I was there to capture all the madness on video, and right after the jump, you can check out a series of clips showing exactly what it was like for some to shake hands with and get hugs from their favorite movie folks. Please note I turned down the volume a bit because of all the crazy screaming. Enjoy!

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Box Office: 'Dear John' wins race with $32M

Weekend of February 5 – 7, 2010: 'Avatar' reign ends; 'Dear John' prevails

Screen Gems’ romance drama “Dear John” dethroned James Cameron’s “Avatar” at the North American box office this weekend with a surprisingly solid $32.4 million in ticket sales, according to studio estimates Sunday.

Lasse Hallstrom’s big-screen adaptation of the Nicholas Sparks novel scored an average of  $10,913 per theater at 2,969 locations, enough to end the impressive winning streak of Cameron’s hit epic “Avatar.”

At No. 2, “Avatar” bagged another $23.6 million from ticket sales at 3,000 locations, a solid weekend gross after eight weeks in release. Domestically, Fox’s sci-fi hit flick has reached a cumulative gross of $630 million.

New entry “From Paris with Love” generated $8.1 million in third place. Pierre Morel’s thriller with John Travolta and Jonathan Rhys-Meyers is playing at 2,722 locations and scored a mediocre average of  $2,983 per theater.

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Interview with Channing Tatum, star of 'Dear John'

I recently had a chance to sit down and chat with Channing Tatum during a round-table interview here in San Francisco, and here's what he had to say regarding his latest movie "Dear John," which co-stars Amanda Seyfried and is currently playing in theaters. Tatum also starred in "G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra."

The film tells story of John Tyree (Channing Tatum), a young soldier home on leave, and Savannah Curtis (Amanda Seyfried), the idealistic college student he falls in love with during her spring vacation. Over the next seven tumultuous years, the couple is separated by John's increasingly dangerous deployments.

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'Dear John' dethrones 'Avatar' Friday!

Could the box office reign of "Avatar" come to an end this weekend? Looking at the estimated numbers for Friday, it sure could, because "Dear John" opened with a surprisingly strong $13.8 million in first place.

Lasse Hallström's big-screen adaptation of the Nicholas Sparks novel scored a solid average of $4,648 per theater at 2,969 locations. The romance drama stars Amanda Seyfried and Channing Tatum.

James Cameron's "Avatar" took a dive and landed at No. 2 Friday, earning $6.2 million ($612 million total). Considering it's half of what "Dear John" made, it will be hard for the sci-fi flick to regain momentum.

Also opening Friday was Pierre Morel's thriller "From Paris with Love," which scored $3 million from ticket sales at 2,722 locations. Lionsgate's flick stars John Travolta as an agent trying to stop a terrorist attack.

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Interview with Amanda Seyfried, star of 'Dear John'

I recently had a chance to sit down and chat with Amanda Seyfried during a round-table interview here in San Francisco, and here's what she had to say regarding her latest movie "Dear John," which co-stars Channing Tatum and is currently playing in theaters. Seyfried also recently starred in "Jennifer's Body."

The film tells story of John Tyree (Channing Tatum), a young soldier home on leave, and Savannah Curtis (Amanda Seyfried), the idealistic college student he falls in love with during her spring vacation. Over the next seven tumultuous years, the couple is separated by John's increasingly dangerous deployments.

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Movie Review: “Dear John”

Seen on: January 28, 2010

The players: Director: Lasse Hallstrom, Writer: Jamie Linden, Cast: Channing Tatum, Amanda Seyfried, Richard Jenkins, Henry Thomas

Facts of interest: Based on a novel by Nicholas Sparks.

The plot: A solider falls in love with a girl while he's on leave, and they two enter a turbulent long-distance relationship.

Our thoughts: Ready for some hardcore, over-the-top drama that requires strong nerves and a bunch of patience to sit through? If that answer’s yes, make sure you don’t miss Lasse Hallstrom’s “Dear John,” a flat, through and through cheesy and yet partly entertaining big-screen adaptation of yet another Nicholas Sparks novel.

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'Avatar' sinks 'Titanic' domestically, advances to $603M gross!

James Cameron is the king of the worldwide box office, for sure. His sci-fi epic "Avatar" raced past his own "Titanic" domestically Tuesday, lifting its total gross to $601.1 million after only 47 days in release.

"Avatar" took another $2.6 million Wednesday, reaching a total of $603.7 million. The film is on track to deliver another solid weekend. Competing against Fox's flick are "From Paris with Love" and "Dear John."

To be honest, I can see "Avatar" take the crown yet again, although I 'm, sure "Dear John" will find its audience as well. I also admit I am quite interested to follow how far "Avatar" will actually go.

"Avatar" is now the highest-grossing film of all time, without the adjustion for inflation, of course. Estimates  also suggest 60.7 million "Avatar" tickets have been sold since the film's Dec. 18, 2009 release.

Source: Box Office Mojo (www.boxofficemojo.com)