Maybe all the comic book fans were in San Diego last weekend, or perhaps moviegoers were just tired of the constant stream of action-packed blockbusters, but comedy ruled at the weekend box office with Tim Burton's Charlie and the Chocolate Factory at number one with an estimated total of $55.4 million (the fourth biggest opening of the year) and the 'R' rated Wedding Crashers coming in a solid number two with an estimated $32.2 million.  Charlie and the Chocolate Factory represents the ideal melding of a popular children's tale and the quirky eccentricities of director Tim Burton and actor Johnny Depp, who is currently at the height of both his powers and popularity. 

 

Based on the kid lit classic by Roald Dahl, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory had a built-in audience of kids (and parents), while the movie's 'edge' provided by Burton and Depp gave it a strong appeal to hip teens and twenty-somethings.  Meanwhile the 'R' rated Wedding Crashers mixed the female-friendly themes of weddings and romance with enough raunch and easy-to-identify-with male leads (Owen Wilson and Vince Vaughn) to avoid the 'chick flick' label and draw in a substantial male audience.

 

After performing well all through the week, last weekend's box office champion, the Fantastic Four, dropped nearly 60% (59.5% to be precise) over the weekend, earning an estimated $22.7 million.  Marvel's stock registered a significant uptick last Monday, when the FF outperformed expectations and it should be interesting to see if the market takes back those gains after seeing that the FF doesn't have the 'legs' of a Spider-Man for example.  But it is way too early to writ the obit for the 'first family of comics' -- the film has already earned more than $100 million, and one should remember that the original X-Men film fell only slightly less (57%) in its second frame back in 2000.

 

War of the Worlds dropped 51% in its third week of release, slipping from #2 to #4 and taking in an estimated $15 million.  Spielberg's version of the H.G. Wells' science fiction classic has already earned $192.2 million and should be over the $200 million mark by this time next week.  Batman Begins slid from third to fifth place, dropping 44% and earning an estimated $5.6 million in its fifth week of release.  The Christopher Nolan-helmed Batpic has now earned $182 million domestically and should finish around $200 million.

 

Hayao Miyazkai's Howl's Moving Castle is now down to 133 theaters and earned just $142,000 in its sixth week of release, though it has earned more than $4 million during its run.  Miyazaki's previous film Spirited Away earned $10 million here in the U.S., but it benefited from a second release after it won an Academy Award and was shown in 714 theaters in its widest release compared with fewer than 200 for Howl's Moving Castle.