Audiences continue to treasure “National Treasure” – keeping the Nicolas Cage heist flick No. 1 at the box office over the weekend, while deeming “Alexander” not too great.
“Treasure,” about an adventurer who swipes the Declaration of Independence to uncover clues to a secret fortune, raked in $33.1 million from Friday to Sunday.
Disney/Pixar’s “The Incredibles” remained in second place, with $24.1 million. And “Christmas With the Kranks,” a comedy from Sony about a family that tries to skip the holiday, debuted at No. 3, with $22.7 million over three days, despite terrible reviews.
Meanwhile, Oliver Stone’s historical epic “Alexander,” starring Colin Farrell, is a big-budget flick in search of an audience. The Warner Bros. release scored just $13.4 million, to come in sixth behind Warner Bros.’ “The Polar Express” and Paramount’s “The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie.”
” ‘Alexander’ [is] beaten and scarred. Audiences proved this weekend that they wanted no-brainer entertainment, and the fall of ‘Alexander’ pushes that point home,” said John Hamann of Box Office Prophets, which tracks ticket sales.
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‘National’ hit
Weekend box-office receipts:
1 “National Treasure” $33.1M
2 “The Incredibles” $24.1M
3 “Christmas with the Kranks” $22.7M
4 “The Polar Express” $20.1M
5 “SpongeBob SquarePants Movie” $17.8M
6 “Alexander” $13.5M