Whether Avatar is a liberal-Hollywood zinger against American energy policy or just the latest example of the studios’ bizarre penchant for casting people of color as anything but people, one thing is clear: At $429 million in total gross after just four weeks at the box office, it stands poised to overcome Titanic as the biggest film of all time.
Meanwhile, Disney’s The Princess and the Frog ($92.6 million) slipped to No. 10 over the weekend, an indication that after seven weeks in the Top 10, it’s trending downward faster than feel-good charmer The Blind Side ($219.2 million), which held at No. 7 in its eighth week. Invictus ($33.5) dropped out of the Top 10 over the weekend, slipping to No. 11 after five weeks.
Looking at the gross revenue from the weekend Top 10, The Blind Side sits in a respectable second place to Avatar, but appears destined to be eclipsed by Sherlock Holmes ($165.2 million after three weeks) and Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Squeakquel ($178.2 million after three weeks) — both of which have far outpaced The Princess and the Frog in less than half the time.
Opening this weekend: The Book of Eli (Warner Bros.), with Denzel Washington as a post-apocalyptic antihero in what looks to be an updating of the Mad Max story with better special effects, a quasi-religious allegory, and an African American box-office superstar in the lead. Making her way back to the silver screen in a supporting role is Jennifer Beals, fresh from wrapping six seasons of “The L Word” on Showtime. –lance helms
