Hey, Dad, moviegoers want to come down to the basement – to watch barbarianthis is.
Despite clear warnings from nearly every horror movie, ghost story, and urban legend since the invention of underground bases, audiences turned out for barbarian, 20th Century Studios’ twisted, low-budget screamer. Earning $10 million, for variety, the horror movie Airbnb doesn’t want you to see made better than expected, proving once again that studios don’t have to spend the GDP of a small nation to get people into theaters. Sometimes, the weather just being hot outside will do it.
Other surprises this weekend: Brahmāstra: Part One – Shivathe original Hindi-language franchise starring Ranbir Kapoor grossed $4 million less than a thousand screens. The film begins a planned trilogy that creates the Indian film industry’s first cinematic universe, The Astraverse. Club AVSalon Gajjar was mostly positive The filmnoting the film’s impressive effects and original plot (even if some of the dialogue is a bit weak):
The grand scale is relatively fresh for Bollywood, unlike, say, the 2015 Telugu and Tamil film Baahubali and its sequel (also directed by RRRSS Rajamouli, by the way), which combines sci-fi action with an exploration of cultural heritage. Brahmastra it hinges on a powerful love story (that doesn’t build enough) and a larger-than-life adventure about Shiva, touching on faith and the history of Indian civilization. The film and its hero’s guiding principle is “light triumphs over darkness”, which is the essence of Hindu festivals like Diwali and Dussehra, both of which feature prominently in the first half of the film. Though it beats the heck out of preaching and pedestrian dialogue, the nearly three-hour Brahmāstra ultimately proves an enterprising effort.
America’s star-studded crowd pleasers took third and fourth places this week, with Brad Pitt edging out Tom Cruise for b.round. Bullet train brought in another $3.2 million, bringing the total to $92.5 million, while Top Gun: Maverick settled for $3.17 million, bringing the latter film’s domestic total to $705 million.
Finally, the invitation delivered a great book at the box office this week, rounding out the top five with another horror film. Sony’s thriller pulled in another $2.6 million, for a three-week total of $18 million.
.