I typically use just 10% of my brain to write Movie Monday blogs.
What is the other 90% of my brain up to? Who knows? Maybe it has a second job or something, or it just likes to hum ’80s pop tunes to itself while the rest of my brain is hard at work. But no matter. For this blog, like the titular character in Lucy, I will try to unlock the other 90% and see what—
Good heavens! I now understand all those obscure references the movie makes to Chaucer! And how it all connects with molecular biology! And quantum nuclear bifurcated economic strategy! Wait, is there such a thing? There is now! I just thought of it! Why, if I concentrate, I think I can open my desk drawer with my mind and—
Man, I’m wiped. It’s hard to think that efficiently for very long. Or at least it is without my morning dose of Mountain Dew. I barely have enough brain power to mention that Lucy, Scarlett Johansson’s newest sci-fi flick, won the Box Office tourney this weekend. It generated an estimated $44 million in ticket sales, allowing the movie to soar above its competition like a very thoughtful bird—in search, perhaps, of a jewelry store in which to spend its newfound wealth. Lucy in the sky with diamonds, you might say.
The mighty Hercules, starring the mighty Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson, wasn’t nearly muscular enough to push Lucy off her lofty perch. Indeed, the famous Greek hero managed only to lift $29 million from people’s wallets—a rather so-so premiere for the perennially popular Rock.
After two weeks of throwing banana peels at its competition, Dawn of the Planet of the Apes slipped to No. 3 with $16.4 million. The summer’s big, bleak hit has collected nearly $172.1 million domestically now, guaranteeing we should see Breakfast With the Planet of the Apes in the next couple of years.
The Purge: Anarchy staggered into fourth place with $9.9 million, staving off a challenge from Planes: Fire & Rescue. Disney’s animated feature closed out the Top Five with $9.3 million.
Two other new releases of which to make mention: And So It Goes, the weekend’s third major release, suffered a bit against the competition, earning just $4.6 million to finish eighth. This autumnal romance was perhaps an uncomfortable fit for the dog days of summer. Meanwhile, indie flick A Most Wanted Man—one of the last star turns for the late Philip Seymour Hoffman—closed out the Top Ten with a $2.7 million weekend.
Final figures update: 1. Lucy, $43.9 million; 2. Hercules, $29.8 million; 3. Dawn of the Planet of the Apes, $16.8 million; 4. The Purge: Anarchy, $10.5 million; 5. Planes: Fire & Rescue, $9.5 million. And So It Goes still finished eighth with $4.6 million, while A Most Wanted Man was 10th with $2.7 million.
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