“The Day the Earth Stood Still” magnetized moviegoers into
theaters across North America, rising to the
top of the weekend’s box office and earning $31 million for 20th Century Fox.
The remake of the 1951 sci-fi film, starring Keanu Reeves and
Jennifer Connelly, earned mixed reviews from film critics but nevertheless
convinced fans (of the genre, of the actors) to flock into theaters.
Reeves stars as Klaatu, a representative of an alien race
which hopes to save Earth from the self-destructive human race. His encounter
with astrobiologist Dr. Helen Benson, portrayed by Connelly, and her son Jacob,
portrayed by Jaden Smith (son to Will Smith and Jada Pinkett Smith), helps him
see another side of human nature – the loving, self-sacrificing side and thus
humanity is saved from certain extinction.
Kathy Bates appears in the role of Secretary of Defense,
while “Mad Men’s” Jon Hamm appears as a NASA official and John Cleese as a
physicist who has received the Nobel Peace Prize for his work on the
evolutionary basis of altruism.
Director Scott Derrickson’s previous work includes 2005’s
horror film “The Exorcism of Emily Rose.”
“The Day the Earth Stood Still” topped last weekend’s first
four movies, whether romantic with a tinge of winter holiday-theme or a bite of
vampire or some epic adventure set in bellic Australia.
Warner Bros.’ holiday comedy “Four Christmases,” starring
Reese Witherspoon and Vince Vaughn, slipped to No. 2 with $13.3 million,
bringing its three-week total to $88 million. The two star as a couple whose
devious plan of spending the winter holidays in an exotic location is trumped
by delayed flights and their unwilling appearance on the news, which leaves
them with no excuses to visit all four of their divorced parents (an excellent
cast including Sissy Spacek, Mary Steenburgen, Jon Voight and Robert Duvall.)
Last week’s No. 2, vampire love story/teen phenomenon
“Twilight,” brought Summit Entertainment an additional $8 million. The film,
based on Stephenie Meyer’s young adult novel of the same name, has earned more
than $184 million around the world since its release in late November.
Disney’s animated film “Bolt,” which features John Travolta
in his first ever voice work for a cartoon, ranked fourth, with $7.6 million,
having thus earned $84 million at the North American box office in four weeks.
Miley Cyrus lends her voice to Penny, his loving owner.
Fifth place went to “Australia,” Baz Luhrman’s epic
romance film starring Nicole Kidman and Hugh Jackson, which brought Fox another
$4.3 million. This brings its three-week total to $27.9 million.
