Corrected - Ruling the International Box Office

June 19, 2005

Correction: Ladder 49 worldwide gross is over $100 million.

Just when the International Details column was getting back to normal we have another film dominating the international scene. Mr. and Mrs. Smith led in nearly every major / midlevel market and those it didn't were mostly owned by Revenge of the Sith. Because of that there isn't as much news to tell as usual, and with Batman Begins opening worldwide this weekend and in two weeks, War of the Worlds doing the same, this trend will last until mid-July at the earliest.

• Leading the best of the rest was Rules of Dating, which topped the South Korean charts with an impressive $3,401,567 on 280 over the weekend and $3,774,392 since its debut on Thursday.
• Next up was another local flick, Samurai Commando 1549, one of many Japanese films to top the charts in that nation. The film got of to be pretty good start with $3,205,969 on 263 screens, but it will be the film's legs that will determine how big of a hit this film will become.
• Madagascar managed a first place finish in Hungary with $430,000 on 35 screens as part of a $3.1 million weekend on 587 screens in 12 markets. It's still early in the film's run, but it has brought in $11.8 million so far.
• A Bold Family finished in second place in South Korea with $3,013,371 over the weekend and $3,390,626 since its debut on Thursday.
• Sahara's debut in Japan didn't go as smoothly as the studio would have liked as it finished in sixth place with just $840,886 on 155 screens. It also collapsed during its second weekend in France plummeting 55% to $490,090. On the bright side, the film dropped just 21% during its second weekend in Germany to $960,000 and that helped the film beat $100 million worldwide and it now sits at $101.9 million.
• Monster-In-Law is holding up inexplicably well in Germany falling just 19% to $1,198,565 for the week, which was the best week-to-week drop-off in the top twenty. In Austria its result was even better, down just 18% to $279,135, which was enough to lift the film into first place in the market. On the other hand, the film didn't do so well in the U.K., (down 54% to $627,993) and Turkey, (down 41% to $133,000.)
• The Interpreter opened in second place in France with $1,704,685 on 371 screens. The film also managed to top its domestic total as it pushed its international tally to $72 million.
• The Longest Yard slipped to second place with $1.45 million, a figure that was inflated by the Queens Birthday Long Weekend. In Mexico the film fell to just $424,000 for the weekend and $1.6 million running tally there.
• Kung Fu Hustle just snagged a place in the top five during its debut in France with $815,407 on 332 screens. The film held up better than expected in Spain with $400,000 but wasn't so fortunate in Germany falling 45% to $394,824 for the week. Internationally the film has reached $72 million, and with the U.K. and Australia left to open, the film has a shot at $100 million worldwide.
• House of Wax held up better than expected in Germany dropping just 31% to $633,184 for the week. On the other hand, in the U.K. film lost 53% of last weekend's haul landing at $460,000. But thanks to the collapse of other films in the market, that was enough for the film to rise to fifth place. Overall the film now has $4.6 million in the U.K. and $22 million internationally.
• Million Dollar Baby continued its leggy run in Japan with a $1,082,187, fourth place finish over the weekend. So far the film has made $7,337,555 in the market, which pushes its international total to $108 million.
• The Forgotten is fading in Japan falling by an uncharacteristically fast 32%. It's sophomore haul of $912,444 was good enough for fifth place and a $3,413,864 two-week total.
• Opening a film in Italy in summertime is suicide, which explains Unleashed poor performance there. The film opened in fifth place with a mere $199,208 on 163 screens. In Spain the film did much better dropping by just 33% to $580,000 pushing its total to $1.7 million in the market and $9.2 million internationally.
• Hitch didn't hold up as well as most film do in Japan dropping 27% to $597,805 for the weekend and $2,151,327. However, with $185.3 million internationally, the film is already a huge hit and anything it earns now is pure profit.
• Hostage had the worst week-to-week drop-off in the top ten in Japan falling 40% to $566,221 for the weekend and $2,419,982 during its run. The film is close to topping its domestic box office, but is miles away from profitability.
• The League of Gentlemen's Apocalypse plummeted by 58% during its second weekend in the U.K. landing at seventh place with just $425,000. But before anyone attacks the film's performance too much, the week's best performance belonged to Revenge of the Sith, which dropped 52%.
• The Grudge added $328,891 to its $3,392,358 total after three weeks in South Korea.
• Millions has now literally earned millions of dollars in it home market of the U.K. This week it grabbed $298,272 for a three-week total of $2,340,691.
• After a slow start in Mexico, Ice Princess has shown tremendous legs staying in the top ten for three weeks adding $170,918 this weekend for a $586,668 total.
• Queens Birthday Long Weekend couldn't help A Lot Like Love as it saw its opening weekend box office sliced in half to just $170,000 on 139 screens. But that was a strong result compared to New Zealand where the film was in free-fall landing at $33,000, down 73% from last weekend.
• Coach Carter added $140,000 from Australia and $30,000 from New Zealand to its $7 million international total.
• Garden State added another $162,386 over the week to its $597,857 running tally in Germany. Given the film's production budget, it is doing very well. On the other hand, when compared to its domestic total of $26.8 million, its $8.6 million international box office just doesn't measure up.
• The Ring 2 flew like a brick during its second weekend in South Korea falling by 74% to $149,708, and that wasn't even the worst performance in the market.
• Being Julia debuted in Italy with $149,608 on 83 screens, but what's really surprising is its per screen average of $1,803 was the second best in the top ten.
• Man of the House may have been a disappointment domestically, but it's turning into a huge bomb internationally. In its debut in Germany it missed the top ten finishing in 12th place with $141,015 on 102 screens and that was for the week.
• The Upside of Anger has spent its last weekend in the top ten in Australia with $125,000 on 128 screens. The film has earned $2.6 million in the market and one must assume the studio is very happy with that.
• The Bollywood film, Bunty Aur Babli was stuck in 11th place in the U.K. over the weekend with $90,000. So far the film has earned $860,000 in that market, not bad for a semi-limited release.
• The Amityville Horror is having a tough time holding onto its open weekend box office in most markets. This weekend it crumbled by 69% to $66,500 in New Zealand. So far the film as earned $17.9 million internationally but will need a lot of help to match its domestic total.
• In a week that saw huge drop-offs in the U.K., It's All Gone Pete Tong suffered the worst at 84%. Its $40,000 did raise the film's box office in the market to $1.35 million and the film is well on its way to covering its $2 million production budget.
• Ladder 49 has fallen out of the top ten in Japan and off the radar screens for good. It does appear to have missed the $100 million mark for its worldwide box office. [Correction: Subsequently, we have received further info on Ladder 49, indicating that it is grossed over $103 million worldwide.]
• Kingdom of Heaven also fell out of the top ten in Japan and off the radar screens. It's last known international total was $157.6 million, but it will probably rise a few million more.

Filed under: International Box Office, Madagascar, Hitch, The Longest Yard, The Grudge, Million Dollar Baby, Monster-in-Law, The Ring Two, Ladder 49, The Interpreter, Sahara, Coach Carter, The Forgotten, The Amityville Horror, Kingdom of Heaven, Hostage, House of Wax, Garden State, Danny the Dog, Ice Princess, A Lot Like Love, Man of the House, The Upside of Anger, Kung Fu Hustle, Being Julia, Millions, It's All Gone Pete Tong