Paramounts actioner SAHARA (with vfx from Cinesite and Double Negative) debuted with $18M for the weekend ended April 10, 2005, good enough for the top spot, beating out Robert Rodriguez SIN CITY, last weeks headliner. The visually provocative and stunning adaptation of Frank Millers graphic novels which debuted in the top spot last week collected $14M for Dimension Films in its sophomore outing. The vfx-intensive neo-noir (divided between CafeFx, Hybride and The Orphanage) now has a cume of $50.7M. Debuting in third place was Foxs romantic comedy, FEVER PITCH, with $12.4M. Sonys GUESS WHO slipped to the fourth spot with $7M and a cume of $51M. MGMs BEAUTY SHOP came in fifth with $6.8M and a cume of $26.1M. Fox/Blue Skys 3D-animated ROBOTS dipped to sixth place with $4.6M and $111M to date. Finishing seventh was Warner Bros. MISS CONGENIALITY 2: ARMED AND FABULOUS, with $4.1M and a cume of $37.5M. Buena Vistas THE PACIFIER followed in eighth place with $3.1M and a cume of $100M. DreamWorks THE RING 2 (with vfx from Rhythm & Hues) fell to ninth with $2.8M and a cume of $72.2M. New Lines THE UPSIDE OF ANGER settled for the 10th spot with $2.5M and a cume of $12.2M.
In its fourth week, Katsuhiro Otomos retro sci-fi anime, STEAMBOY, tallied $11,209 on 13 screens for Triumph for a cume of $392,659. Box office information obtained from boxofficemojo.com.
Bill Desowitz, former editor of VFXWorld, is currently the Crafts Editor of IndieWire.
