Estimated read time: 3-4 minutes
This archived news story is available only for your personal, non-commercial use. Information in the story may be outdated or superseded by additional information. Reading or replaying the story in its archived form does not constitute a republication of the story.
SALT LAKE CITY -- The box office predictions made last week held up fairly well with the first three of the top five proving accurate. "Chronicle" came in first, with a narrow lead over "The Woman in Black."
"The Grey" slipped two positions to third. Fourth place wound up going to "Big Miracle," while "Underworld Awakening" managed to keep itself on the list one more week in fifth.
This week sees several major releases and one re-release. For the first time in over a decade, "Star Wars: Episode 1—the Phantom Menace" will again grace screens. This 3-D re-release marks a significant milestone as the first non-Disney 3-D re-release to be attempted. It should set precedence for future releases. "Phantom Menace" will be followed fairly quickly by the re-release of "Titanic."
#poll
Also competing will be "Journey 2: the Mysterious Island." A sequel to 2008's "Journey to the Center of the Earth," this family adventure is also based on a Jules Verne book of the same title.
In addition, this week sees the release of "Safe House" starring Denzel Washington. Rated R, this action-thriller details the adventures of a CIA agent on the run after an attack in a safe house.
"The Vow" also debuts this weekend. This romantic drama revolves around a woman who loses her memory after an accident and must be courted anew by her husband.
The predictions for the weekend of Feb. 9 are:
1. "Star Wars: Episode 1—the Phantom Menace"
It is tricky to judge where "Phantom Menace" will land this weekend. As the first release in the franchise following "Return of the Jedi," "Phantom Menace" easily took first place during its original opening weekend. When "The Lion King" opened in its re-release, it garnered first, while "Beauty and the Beast" landed in second place. Given the popularity of the series combined with significant advertising, including a Super Bowl commercial, "Phantom Menace" should land in first once again.
2. "The Vow"
This romantic drama is poised to perform well this weekend in anticipation of the Valentine's Day holiday. Despite being based on an incredible true story, "The Vow" may come off as formulaic and may not sustain itself on the top five list long in the wake of some negative early reviews. "The Vow" received a PG-13 rating and is widely expected to be most popular with a female audience.
3. "Safe House"
This action-thriller is trying to prove itself the alternative to "Phantom Menace" this weekend. Bound to be most popular with a male audience, "Safe House" provides an interesting counterbalance to "The Vow."
4. "Journey 2: The Mysterious Island"
Featuring the Rock and Michael Caine, "Mysterious Island" is a great choice for families if "Phantom Menace" proves to be too underwhelming. Rated PG, this film is a special-effects thriller. "Mysterious Island" is essentially a continuation of Jules Verne's literary canon rather than an actual sequel to "Journey to the Center of the Earth." Brendan Fraser is conspicuously absent from "Myserious Island."
5. "Chronicle"
Having taken first place least weekend, "Chronicle" is expected to dive in order to make room for the wave of new releases. Having ousted "The Woman in Black" by just over a million dollars last week, "Chronicle's" place on the list this week may be in jeopardy if "The Woman in Black" performs strongly again.
Joseph Irvine is a self-employed computer engineer in Madison, Ala. A graduate of Utah State University, he hopes to pursue a degree in law at BYU in the near future.
