Box Office: Women, in gangs, pump “Wonder Woman,” bad word of mouth deflates “It Comes at Night”

butterOne thing you notice, going out this weekend, is the feminine tenor (soprano?) of the chatter at your neighborhood multiplex.

That’s because “Wonder Woman” is playing. That’s because women don’t need no stinking “Women only” screenings to show up the comic book blockbuster. Art D’Allesandro at Deadline.com breaks down some of the box office stats for the film, which has dropped omly 45% from its opening weekend blowout, leading to a $57-58 million take by midnight tonight (Sunday). Groups of women showing up to watch and revel in the movie in which Princess Buttercup teaches an ex-Israeli soldier and model with some fairly jingoistic attitudes her native land and how it treats non-Jews to fight.

An “honorary UN ambassador” (another controversy) and “not American enough” (per Fox News), “Wonder Woman is ginning up the controversy only a hit movie can create.

Meanwhile, there’s little to no controversy over “It Comes at Night.” Great reviews (I thought it was good, downbeat and just cryptic enough — but nothing to stand in line for). But it’s only managing $5.7 million. Why? “Bad word of mouth,” Deadline reports, citing poor audience exit polling (Cinema Score). So, not giving people hope or uplift or a happy ending is killing it.

“The Mummy” is tracking steady, an underwhelming $32 million opening seems just beyond reach. Will this end the whole “Dark Universe” dream? Maybe. The idea of tying a string of horror franchises together seems dubious. “Mummy” leaves the door open to sequels, but bad reviews had to tamp down turn out. That, and a bigger chunk of the public has bailed on Tom Cruise than it has Russell Crowe. And they’re both in the same movie.

 

About Roger Moore

Movie Critic, formerly with McClatchy-Tribune News Service, Orlando Sentinel, published in Spin Magazine, The World and now published here, Orlando Magazine, Autoweek Magazine
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