Horror cinema beat the horror of history—albeit, heavily revised and modified history—this weekend as Texas Chainsaw 3D massacred Quentin Tarantino’s Django Unchained at the box office. Well, “massacred” might be an exaggeration, as it only brought in three million more, but the sum was unexpectedly high at $23 million. In third was Peter Jackson’s The Hobbit, which is still going on an unexpected box office journey, catching up to the grosses of The Lord of the Rings films. In fourth was the revolutionary musical, Les Misérables, which dropped over 40% in ticket sales. In fifth, Parental Guidance proved that Bette Midler is still relevant to a large, economically powerful segment of the population. Go git ‘em, Devine Miss M!
Texas Chainsaw 3D $23,000,000
Chainsaws and skin masks alive! We’re now on the seventh part of the franchise, the first time, however, Leatherface appears in three dimensions. Here we jump back to immediately following the murders of the original film, where a baby is stolen and raised as Heather (Alexandra Daddario). Years later she returns to Newt, Texas when she inherits a house. And with it, a Leatherface.
Django Unchained $20,082,000 (Total: $106,351,000)
Chainsaws unchained Tarantino’s film, blocking the semi-historic take on slavery from nabbing first. No matter, Django is well on track to become the director’s highest grossing film.
The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey $17,525,000 (Total: $263,820,00)
Not many new developments from Middle-earth. It’s still in 48 frames per second, there are still two more films to come.
Les Misérables $16,117,000 (Total: $103,605,000)
You can read it here first: We predicate a strong showing for Tom Hooper’s (middling) film at the Golden Globes this weekend.
Parental Guidance $10,125,000 (Total: $52,761,000)
Billy Crystal doing things other than the Oscars!
