|
Story by: Jack Foley
TIM Burton went fishing for the number one spot at the US Box
Office at the weekend, and looks to have caught a piece of cinema
history.
His new movie, Big Fish, starring
Ewan McGregor and Albert Finney, took virtually the same amount
of money as Peter Jackson’s Lord
of the Rings: The Return of the King, prompting the US box
office officials to delay announcing the top spot until final
figures could be confirmed on Monday.
|
 |
The Return of the King has already enjoyed a three-week stint
in top spot, thanks to overwhelming critical praise and audience
anticipation, but, according to Sunday’s estimates, could
be nudged into second place by Big Fish, which enjoyed takings
of $14.1 million (£7.6 million).
Paul Dergarabedian, president of box office monitor Exhibitor
Relations, said that it was ‘very rare’ to have a ‘photo
finish’ for the number one spot in America.
Critics have hailed Big Fish, about the relationship between
a dying father with a penchant for storytelling and his estranged
son, as a return to form by Burton, after the critical derision
which greeted his ramke of Planet
of the Apes.
Big Fish enjoyed a limited theatrical release in the States in
December, as part of its bid for an Academy Award nomination.
|
