Moviegoers stay away from multiplexes in worst weekend in more than a decade

The top twelve movies totaled just over $50 million this weekend, a sum so glum it necessitates a sad comparison. The last time this box office sank this low was in the two weeks after the attacks of September 11, eleven years go. What happened? The start of the football season and families busy with back-to-school hubbub help explain part of the slump. There were also no new good films. Gangster Squad was supposed to open this weekend, but was bumped for reshoots because of movie theatre shootout was judged too close for comfort to the Aurora shooting.

Of the two new releases, only The Words made it into the top ten with a paltry $5 million.
Lackluster reviews may sink this movie further, as word spreads this isn't a picture worth the ticket price. Above The Words, horror movie The Possession continued on top with $9.5 million, its 47% fall better than average for the horror genre. In second, Weinstein Co. showed its ability to do well even with a movie with mixed reviews. Lawless earned $6 million in second place, not so bad for the Prohibition-set tale of rural bootleggers.

Opening in 13th place was The Cold Light of Day with $1.8 million. Even with only a couple dozen critics weighing in on the movie, which didn't screen in advance, it only has 8% positive reviews. Audience members were a bit kinder, with
28% of Rotten Tomatoes voters giving it a "fresh" rating.

The Raiders of the Lost Ark re-release in IMAX grabbed $1.7 million. That's paltry compared to Titanic 3D, but in this case the re-release was more about promoting an Indiana Jones box set that will go on sale next week.

Specialty releases fared a bit better. Buoyed by "This American Life" fans, Sleepwalk with Me went up 6% as the comedy expanded from 29 to 73 locations, averaging $4,700 per screen.

Bachelorette was the big test for pre-theatrical VOD release, which after a month supposedly
earned over $4 million. But the comedy came up with just $191,000 at 47 theatres this weekend, a per-screen average of $4,000. People understand the higher rental price for VOD releases, since they "haven't hit theatres" yet, but that same mindset makes people think they are paying too much for a movie ticket when it's available at home.

Also featuring 20 to 30-something female friendships, For a Good Time, Call... gathered steam in its second week, going up 50% as it added 33 locations. Its total of $215,000 beat the debut of Bachelorette, though its per-screen average was slightly lower.

This Friday, the beloved Pixar film Finding Nemo will re-release in 3D. Resident Evil: Retribution will go for the adult portion of the audience with the next installment of the sci-fi action franchise.