Box Office: ‘Alice in Wonderland’ Sets March Record

Expect to see a surge in aspirin sales this weekend: millions of people now have 3D induced headaches thanks to the color-saturated nonsense of “Alice in Wonderland.” Tim Burton and Johnny Depp might have made a colossal creative misstep, but their box-office muscle can’t be denied when they have the sixth biggest opening ever with $116 million domestic (and a near apocalyptic worldwide total of $210 million). The film also bested the March $71-million opening weekend record set by “300” back in 2007 (those poor Spartans just cannot catch a break).

Variety notes that this is the biggest non-sequel opening ever, and it topped the list of first-quarter opening weekends. This trounces the $77 million opening of “Avatar,” but don’t expect “Alice” to keep up the impressive trajectory of the James Cameron film. Even though the audience at our showing clapped at the movie’s end (they can’t hear you!), negative critical and viewer response should keep Cameron’s records safe. Plus, “How to Train Your Dragon” arrives in just three short weeks to usurp “Alice”‘s 3-D-enabled theaters (and the related raised ticket prices).

The weekend’s only other wide opener, “Brooklyn’s Finest,” did decent business with $13.5 million to come in second. Our positive review put us in the minority (the movie has a moldy 36% at Rotten Tomatoes), but the criticism didn’t seem to hold the cop movie back. The film’s distributor Overture is becoming more of a player, joining “Twilight”-releaser Summit in their efforts to challenge the majors, particularly after Overture’s “The Crazies” brought in another $7 million over the weekend (for a total of $27 million).

“Shutter Island” comes in a close third with $13.3 million and furthers its quest to become Martin Scorsese’s second-biggest movie ever with a total of $95.8 million. We can’t see it cracking “The Departed”‘s $132 million take (since it won’t get the coveted Oscar bump), but it’s going to come very close. Meanwhile, fourth-place film “Cop Out” continues its mindless shuffle toward cable TV with $9.1 million this weekend, and its $32.4 million total makes it director Kevin Smith’s biggest film to date. Plus, fifth-ranked “Avatar” keeps thumbing its blue nose at people who actually care about plot and character with its $720 million haul. The sole bright spot in the top films? “Crazy Heart” increased by another 36% in its twelfth week to bring it to almost $30 million, making it as much of a survivor as Bad Blake himself.

Outside the top ten, “The Blind Side” saw a slight uptick in advance of its lead actress’s almost inevitable win at the Oscars tonight (we would love to be proven wrong). The Sandra Bullock vehicle took in another $1.3 million, bringing its total past the $250 million mark. But it’s not all bad news: Playlist favorites “A Single Man,” “An Education,” and “Un Prophete” also saw increases from those preparing for the Academy Awards. We’re not expecting wins for any of these, but this news acts as a bit of a salve on our wound.

The only film opening in limited release to appear on early estimates is the gorgeously animated “The Secret of Kells” which did excellent business on one lone New York screen to make $40,000 this weekend. We loved the film’s painterly style, and we’re glad to see it on the list of Oscar nominees for Best Animated Feature. Take that, “Planet 51.”

1. Alice in Wonderland – $116 million ($116 mil.)
2. Brooklyn’s Finest – $13.5 million ($13.5 mil.)
3. Shutter Island – $13.3 million ($95.8 mil.)
4. Cop Out – $9.1 million ($32.4 mil.)
5. Avatar – $7.7 million ($720 mil.)
6. The Crazies – $7 million ($27.4 mil.)
7. Percy Jackson – $5 million ($78 mil.)
8. Valentine’s Day – $4.3 million ($106 mil.)
9. Crazy Heart – $3.4 million ($29.6 mil.)
10. Dear John – $2.9 million ($76.7 mil.)