RE: [scifinoir2] Re: District 9 Does Well at Box Office
Mr Worf, I had the same thought. If all the world's a stage and all the people merely players, who in bloody hell hired the director? -- Charles L Grant http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fQUxw9aUVik To: scifinoir2@yahoogroups.com From: hellomahog...@gmail.com Date: Mon, 17 Aug 2009 21:30:06 -0700 Subject: Re: [scifinoir2] Re: District 9 Does Well at Box Office There is also Whiteout which looks like a rip off of the Thing. On Mon, Aug 17, 2009 at 8:54 PM, Keith Johnson keithbjohn...@comcast.net wrote: I expected it to do well. There wasn't any new scifi competition (unless you count The Time Traveler's Wife), GI Joe has dropped precipitously in box office, and while Panyo was great, it's a cartoon aimed at younger audiences. - Original Message - From: ravenadal ravena...@yahoo.com To: scifinoir2@yahoogroups.com Sent: Monday, August 17, 2009 8:19:45 AM GMT -05:00 US/Canada Eastern Subject: [scifinoir2] Re: District 9 Does Well at Box Office Wow! I would have thought this as unlikely as Tiger losing the PGA Championship. ~rave! --- In scifinoir2@yahoogroups.com, Keith Johnson keithbjohn...@... wrote: [AP News] 'District 9' lifts off with No. 1 weekend at $37M By DAVID GERMAIN The Associated Press LOS ANGELES †The first-time director and cast of unknowns of the acclaimed sci-fi thriller District 9 have given Hollywood a late-summer box-office boost. Enlarge photo This movie still released by Sony Pictures shows, left to right, Sharlto Copley, Mandla Gaduka and Kenneth Nkosi in District 9. (AP Photo/Sony Pictures)This movie still released by Sony Pictures shows, left to right, Sharlto Copley, Mandla Gaduka and Kenneth Nkosi in District 9. (AP Photo/Sony Pictures) The Sony release produced by Lord of the Rings director Peter Jackson led the weekend with a $37 million debut, according to studio estimates Sunday. District 9 is the debut feature from commercial and music-video director Neill Blomkamp, who co-wrote the tale about extraterrestrials forced by humans to live in squalor in a ghetto in South Africa. The movie built audience interest with a clever marketing campaign playing up the theme of prejudice against aliens, including posters instructing citizens to report non-humans and ads on bus benches stating that the seats are for humans only. Everybody was like, 'What is this?' There was a big question mark in people's minds, said Rory Bruer, head of distribution for Sony. It did really pique their interest and drove them to the Internet and elsewhere to discover what's going on. The previous weekend's No. 1 movie, Paramount's G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra, slipped to second place with $22.5 million, raising its 10-day total to $98.8 million. Another sci-fi tale, the Warner Bros. romance The Time Traveler's Wife starring Eric Bana and Rachel McAdams, opened asolid No. 3 with $19.2 million. The film joined the previous weekend's JulieJulia as a choice for women, with females accounting for 76 percent of its audience. District 9 and Time Traveler's Wife led a wave of five new wide releases for mid-August, when Hollywood's summer output normally is petering out. The rush continues next weekend with another surge of new releases, led by Quentin Tarantino's World War II saga Inglourious Basterds. It's getting very crowded, and it's these films that want to compete in the summer time frame but can't compete in the sweet spot of summer, said Paul Dergarabedian, box-office analyst for Hollywood.com. Opening 'District 9' against 'Star Trek,' that would not be a good strategy. But to release it now makes sense. August is the month of opportunity for films that in other months of summer would get slaughtered. The weekend's other debuts: Paramount Vantage's used-car comedy The Goods: Live Hard, Sell Hard, opening at No. 6 with $5.4 million; Disney's animated adventure Ponyo from animation master Hayao Miyazaki (Spirited Away), coming in at No. 9 with $3.5 million; and Summit Entertainment's teen rock 'n' roll tale Bandslam, which tanked at No. 13 with just $2.3 million despite a cast that includes Vanessa Hudgens of High School Musical. It was Hollywood's second weekend in a row of rising revenues after a monthlong slide compared with summer 2008, when the Batman blockbuster The Dark Knight was smashing box-office records. Overall receipts came in at $142 million, up 14 percent from the same weekend a year ago, when Tropic Thunder debuted at No. 1 with $25.8 million. Revenues since the summer season opened the first weekend of May are at $3.77 billion, just a fraction below where Hollywood was last
Re: [scifinoir2] Re: District 9 Does Well at Box Office
Whiteout? - Original Message - From: Mr. Worf hellomahog...@gmail.com To: scifinoir2@yahoogroups.com Sent: Tuesday, August 18, 2009 12:30:06 AM GMT -05:00 US/Canada Eastern Subject: Re: [scifinoir2] Re: District 9 Does Well at Box Office There is also Whiteout which looks like a rip off of the Thing. On Mon, Aug 17, 2009 at 8:54 PM, Keith Johnson keithbjohn...@comcast.net wrote: I expected it to do well. There wasn't any new scifi competition (unless you count The Time Traveler's Wife), GI Joe has dropped precipitously in box office, and while Panyo was great, it's a cartoon aimed at younger audiences. - Original Message - From: ravenadal ravena...@yahoo.com To: scifinoir2@yahoogroups.com Sent: Monday, August 17, 2009 8:19:45 AM GMT -05:00 US/Canada Eastern Subject: [scifinoir2] Re: District 9 Does Well at Box Office Wow! I would have thought this as unlikely as Tiger losing the PGA Championship. ~rave! --- In scifinoir2@yahoogroups.com , Keith Johnson keithbjohn...@... wrote: [AP News] 'District 9' lifts off with No. 1 weekend at $37M By DAVID GERMAIN The Associated Press LOS ANGELES †The first-time director and cast of unknowns of the acclaimed sci-fi thriller District 9 have given Hollywood a late-summer box-office boost. Enlarge photo This movie still released by Sony Pictures shows, left to right, Sharlto Copley, Mandla Gaduka and Kenneth Nkosi in District 9. (AP Photo/Sony Pictures)This movie still released by Sony Pictures shows, left to right, Sharlto Copley, Mandla Gaduka and Kenneth Nkosi in District 9. (AP Photo/Sony Pictures) The Sony release produced by Lord of the Rings director Peter Jackson led the weekend with a $37 million debut, according to studio estimates Sunday. District 9 is the debut feature from commercial and music-video director Neill Blomkamp, who co-wrote the tale about extraterrestrials forced by humans to live in squalor in a ghetto in South Africa. The movie built audience interest with a clever marketing campaign playing up the theme of prejudice against aliens, including posters instructing citizens to report non-humans and ads on bus benches stating that the seats are for humans only. Everybody was like, 'What is this?' There was a big question mark in people's minds, said Rory Bruer, head of distribution for Sony. It did really pique their interest and drove them to the Internet and elsewhere to discover what's going on. The previous weekend's No. 1 movie, Paramount's G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra, slipped to second place with $22.5 million, raising its 10-day total to $98.8 million. Another sci-fi tale, the Warner Bros. romance The Time Traveler's Wife starring Eric Bana and Rachel McAdams, opened asolid No. 3 with $19.2 million. The film joined the previous weekend's JulieJulia as a choice for women, with females accounting for 76 percent of its audience. District 9 and Time Traveler's Wife led a wave of five new wide releases for mid-August, when Hollywood's summer output normally is petering out. The rush continues next weekend with another surge of new releases, led by Quentin Tarantino's World War II saga Inglourious Basterds. It's getting very crowded, and it's these films that want to compete in the summer time frame but can't compete in the sweet spot of summer, said Paul Dergarabedian, box-office analyst for Hollywood.com. Opening 'District 9' against 'Star Trek,' that would not be a good strategy. But to release it now makes sense. August is the month of opportunity for films that in other months of summer would get slaughtered. The weekend's other debuts: Paramount Vantage's used-car comedy The Goods: Live Hard, Sell Hard, opening at No. 6 with $5.4 million; Disney's animated adventure Ponyo from animation master Hayao Miyazaki (Spirited Away), coming in at No. 9 with $3.5 million; and Summit Entertainment's teen rock 'n' roll tale Bandslam, which tanked at No. 13 with just $2.3 million despite a cast that includes Vanessa Hudgens of High School Musical. It was Hollywood's second weekend in a row of rising revenues after a monthlong slide compared with summer 2008, when the Batman blockbuster The Dark Knight was smashing box-office records. Overall receipts came in at $142 million, up 14 percent from the same weekend a year ago, when Tropic Thunder debuted at No. 1 with $25.8 million. Revenues since the summer season opened the first weekend of May are at $3.77 billion, just a fraction below where Hollywood was last summer, according to Hollywood.com. Factoring in higher ticket prices, admissions are off 4 percent compared to summer 2008, though movie attendance remains strong given how The Dark Knight dominated a year ago. The biggest blockbuster since Titanic
RE: [scifinoir2] Re: District 9 Does Well at Box Office
New movie with Kate Beckinsale, Keith. Here... http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0365929/ If all the world's a stage and all the people merely players, who in bloody hell hired the director? -- Charles L Grant http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fQUxw9aUVik To: scifinoir2@yahoogroups.com From: keithbjohn...@comcast.net Date: Tue, 18 Aug 2009 23:17:18 + Subject: Re: [scifinoir2] Re: District 9 Does Well at Box Office Whiteout? - Original Message - From: Mr. Worf hellomahog...@gmail.com To: scifinoir2@yahoogroups.com Sent: Tuesday, August 18, 2009 12:30:06 AM GMT -05:00 US/Canada Eastern Subject: Re: [scifinoir2] Re: District 9 Does Well at Box Office There is also Whiteout which looks like a rip off of the Thing. On Mon, Aug 17, 2009 at 8:54 PM, Keith Johnson keithbjohn...@comcast.net wrote: I expected it to do well. There wasn't any new scifi competition (unless you count The Time Traveler's Wife), GI Joe has dropped precipitously in box office, and while Panyo was great, it's a cartoon aimed at younger audiences. - Original Message - From: ravenadal ravena...@yahoo.com To: scifinoir2@yahoogroups.com Sent: Monday, August 17, 2009 8:19:45 AM GMT -05:00 US/Canada Eastern Subject: [scifinoir2] Re: District 9 Does Well at Box Office Wow! I would have thought this as unlikely as Tiger losing the PGA Championship. ~rave! --- In scifinoir2@yahoogroups.com, Keith Johnson keithbjohn...@... wrote: [AP News] 'District 9' lifts off with No. 1 weekend at $37M By DAVID GERMAIN The Associated Press LOS ANGELES †The first-time director and cast of unknowns of the acclaimed sci-fi thriller District 9 have given Hollywood a late-summer box-office boost. Enlarge photo This movie still released by Sony Pictures shows, left to right, Sharlto Copley, Mandla Gaduka and Kenneth Nkosi in District 9. (AP Photo/Sony Pictures)This movie still released by Sony Pictures shows, left to right, Sharlto Copley, Mandla Gaduka and Kenneth Nkosi in District 9. (AP Photo/Sony Pictures) The Sony release produced by Lord of the Rings director Peter Jackson led the weekend with a $37 million debut, according to studio estimates Sunday. District 9 is the debut feature from commercial and music-video director Neill Blomkamp, who co-wrote the tale about extraterrestrials forced by humans to live in squalor in a ghetto in South Africa. The movie built audience interest with a clever marketing campaign playing up the theme of prejudice against aliens, including posters instructing citizens to report non-humans and ads on bus benches stating that the seats are for humans only. Everybody was like, 'What is this?' There was a big question mark in people's minds, said Rory Bruer, head of distribution for Sony. It did really pique their interest and drove them to the Internet and elsewhere to discover what's going on. The previous weekend's No. 1 movie, Paramount's G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra, slipped to second place with $22.5 million, raising its 10-day total to $98.8 million. Another sci-fi tale, the Warner Bros. romance The Time Traveler's Wife starring Eric Bana and Rachel McAdams, opened asolid No. 3 with $19.2 million. The film joined the previous weekend's JulieJulia as a choice for women, with females accounting for 76 percent of its audience. District 9 and Time Traveler's Wife led a wave of five new wide releases for mid-August, when Hollywood's summer output normally is petering out. The rush continues next weekend with another surge of new releases, led by Quentin Tarantino's World War II saga Inglourious Basterds. It's getting very crowded, and it's these films that want to compete in the summer time frame but can't compete in the sweet spot of summer, said Paul Dergarabedian, box-office analyst for Hollywood.com. Opening 'District 9' against 'Star Trek,' that would not be a good strategy. But to release it now makes sense. August is the month of opportunity for films that in other months of summer would get slaughtered. The weekend's other debuts: Paramount Vantage's used-car comedy The Goods: Live Hard, Sell Hard, opening at No. 6 with $5.4 million; Disney's animated adventure Ponyo from animation master Hayao Miyazaki (Spirited Away), coming in at No. 9 with $3.5 million; and Summit Entertainment's teen rock 'n' roll tale Bandslam, which tanked at No. 13 with just $2.3 million despite a cast that includes Vanessa Hudgens of High School Musical. It was Hollywood's second weekend in a row of rising revenues after a monthlong slide compared with summer 2008, when the Batman blockbuster The Dark Knight
Re: [scifinoir2] Re: District 9 Does Well at Box Office
Something happens to a team in Alaska at a remote base. It is the doctor's job to find out what happened. http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0365929/ On Tue, Aug 18, 2009 at 4:17 PM, Keith Johnson keithbjohn...@comcast.netwrote: Whiteout? - Original Message - From: Mr. Worf hellomahog...@gmail.com To: scifinoir2@yahoogroups.com Sent: Tuesday, August 18, 2009 12:30:06 AM GMT -05:00 US/Canada Eastern Subject: Re: [scifinoir2] Re: District 9 Does Well at Box Office There is also Whiteout which looks like a rip off of the Thing. On Mon, Aug 17, 2009 at 8:54 PM, Keith Johnson keithbjohn...@comcast.netwrote: I expected it to do well. There wasn't any new scifi competition (unless you count The Time Traveler's Wife), GI Joe has dropped precipitously in box office, and while Panyo was great, it's a cartoon aimed at younger audiences. - Original Message - From: ravenadal ravena...@yahoo.com To: scifinoir2@yahoogroups.com Sent: Monday, August 17, 2009 8:19:45 AM GMT -05:00 US/Canada Eastern Subject: [scifinoir2] Re: District 9 Does Well at Box Office Wow! I would have thought this as unlikely as Tiger losing the PGA Championship. ~rave! --- In scifinoir2@yahoogroups.com scifinoir2%40yahoogroups.com, Keith Johnson keithbjohn...@... wrote: [AP News] 'District 9' lifts off with No. 1 weekend at $37M By DAVID GERMAIN The Associated Press LOS ANGELES †The first-time director and cast of unknowns of the acclaimed sci-fi thriller District 9 have given Hollywood a late-summer box-office boost. Enlarge photo This movie still released by Sony Pictures shows, left to right, Sharlto Copley, Mandla Gaduka and Kenneth Nkosi in District 9. (AP Photo/Sony Pictures)This movie still released by Sony Pictures shows, left to right, Sharlto Copley, Mandla Gaduka and Kenneth Nkosi in District 9. (AP Photo/Sony Pictures) The Sony release produced by Lord of the Rings director Peter Jackson led the weekend with a $37 million debut, according to studio estimates Sunday. District 9 is the debut feature from commercial and music-video director Neill Blomkamp, who co-wrote the tale about extraterrestrials forced by humans to live in squalor in a ghetto in South Africa. The movie built audience interest with a clever marketing campaign playing up the theme of prejudice against aliens, including posters instructing citizens to report non-humans and ads on bus benches stating that the seats are for humans only. Everybody was like, 'What is this?' There was a big question mark in people's minds, said Rory Bruer, head of distribution for Sony. It did really pique their interest and drove them to the Internet and elsewhere to discover what's going on. The previous weekend's No. 1 movie, Paramount's G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra, slipped to second place with $22.5 million, raising its 10-day total to $98.8 million. Another sci-fi tale, the Warner Bros. romance The Time Traveler's Wife starring Eric Bana and Rachel McAdams, opened asolid No. 3 with $19.2 million. The film joined the previous weekend's JulieJulia as a choice for women, with females accounting for 76 percent of its audience. District 9 and Time Traveler's Wife led a wave of five new wide releases for mid-August, when Hollywood's summer output normally is petering out. The rush continues next weekend with another surge of new releases, led by Quentin Tarantino's World War II saga Inglourious Basterds. It's getting very crowded, and it's these films that want to compete in the summer time frame but can't compete in the sweet spot of summer, said Paul Dergarabedian, box-office analyst for Hollywood.com. Opening 'District 9' against 'Star Trek,' that would not be a good strategy. But to release it now makes sense. August is the month of opportunity for films that in other months of summer would get slaughtered. The weekend's other debuts: Paramount Vantage's used-car comedy The Goods: Live Hard, Sell Hard, opening at No. 6 with $5.4 million; Disney's animated adventure Ponyo from animation master Hayao Miyazaki (Spirited Away), coming in at No. 9 with $3.5 million; and Summit Entertainment's teen rock 'n' roll tale Bandslam, which tanked at No. 13 with just $2.3 million despite a cast that includes Vanessa Hudgens of High School Musical. It was Hollywood's second weekend in a row of rising revenues after a monthlong slide compared with summer 2008, when the Batman blockbuster The Dark Knight was smashing box-office records. Overall receipts came in at $142 million, up 14 percent from the same weekend a year ago, when Tropic Thunder debuted at No. 1 with $25.8 million. Revenues since the summer season opened the first weekend of May are at $3.77 billion, just a fraction below where Hollywood was last summer, according to Hollywood.com. Factoring
Re: [scifinoir2] Re: District 9 Does Well at Box Office
On Tue, Aug 18, 2009 at 12:30 AM, Mr. Worfhellomahog...@gmail.com wrote: There is also Whiteout which looks like a rip off of the Thing. When I saw the trailer, I thought it was an adaptation of In the Mountains of Madness. Justin -- Read the Bitter Guide to the Bitter Guy. http://thebitterguy.livejournal.com
Re: [scifinoir2] Re: District 9 Does Well at Box Office
I expected it to do well. There wasn't any new scifi competition (unless you count The Time Traveler's Wife), GI Joe has dropped precipitously in box office, and while Panyo was great, it's a cartoon aimed at younger audiences. - Original Message - From: ravenadal ravena...@yahoo.com To: scifinoir2@yahoogroups.com Sent: Monday, August 17, 2009 8:19:45 AM GMT -05:00 US/Canada Eastern Subject: [scifinoir2] Re: District 9 Does Well at Box Office Wow! I would have thought this as unlikely as Tiger losing the PGA Championship. ~rave! --- In scifinoir2@yahoogroups.com , Keith Johnson keithbjohn...@... wrote: [AP News] 'District 9' lifts off with No. 1 weekend at $37M By DAVID GERMAIN The Associated Press LOS ANGELES †The first-time director and cast of unknowns of the acclaimed sci-fi thriller District 9 have given Hollywood a late-summer box-office boost. Enlarge photo This movie still released by Sony Pictures shows, left to right, Sharlto Copley, Mandla Gaduka and Kenneth Nkosi in District 9. (AP Photo/Sony Pictures)This movie still released by Sony Pictures shows, left to right, Sharlto Copley, Mandla Gaduka and Kenneth Nkosi in District 9. (AP Photo/Sony Pictures) The Sony release produced by Lord of the Rings director Peter Jackson led the weekend with a $37 million debut, according to studio estimates Sunday. District 9 is the debut feature from commercial and music-video director Neill Blomkamp, who co-wrote the tale about extraterrestrials forced by humans to live in squalor in a ghetto in South Africa. The movie built audience interest with a clever marketing campaign playing up the theme of prejudice against aliens, including posters instructing citizens to report non-humans and ads on bus benches stating that the seats are for humans only. Everybody was like, 'What is this?' There was a big question mark in people's minds, said Rory Bruer, head of distribution for Sony. It did really pique their interest and drove them to the Internet and elsewhere to discover what's going on. The previous weekend's No. 1 movie, Paramount's G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra, slipped to second place with $22.5 million, raising its 10-day total to $98.8 million. Another sci-fi tale, the Warner Bros. romance The Time Traveler's Wife starring Eric Bana and Rachel McAdams, opened asolid No. 3 with $19.2 million. The film joined the previous weekend's JulieJulia as a choice for women, with females accounting for 76 percent of its audience. District 9 and Time Traveler's Wife led a wave of five new wide releases for mid-August, when Hollywood's summer output normally is petering out. The rush continues next weekend with another surge of new releases, led by Quentin Tarantino's World War II saga Inglourious Basterds. It's getting very crowded, and it's these films that want to compete in the summer time frame but can't compete in the sweet spot of summer, said Paul Dergarabedian, box-office analyst for Hollywood.com. Opening 'District 9' against 'Star Trek,' that would not be a good strategy. But to release it now makes sense. August is the month of opportunity for films that in other months of summer would get slaughtered. The weekend's other debuts: Paramount Vantage's used-car comedy The Goods: Live Hard, Sell Hard, opening at No. 6 with $5.4 million; Disney's animated adventure Ponyo from animation master Hayao Miyazaki (Spirited Away), coming in at No. 9 with $3.5 million; and Summit Entertainment's teen rock 'n' roll tale Bandslam, which tanked at No. 13 with just $2.3 million despite a cast that includes Vanessa Hudgens of High School Musical. It was Hollywood's second weekend in a row of rising revenues after a monthlong slide compared with summer 2008, when the Batman blockbuster The Dark Knight was smashing box-office records. Overall receipts came in at $142 million, up 14 percent from the same weekend a year ago, when Tropic Thunder debuted at No. 1 with $25.8 million. Revenues since the summer season opened the first weekend of May are at $3.77 billion, just a fraction below where Hollywood was last summer, according to Hollywood.com. Factoring in higher ticket prices, admissions are off 4 percent compared to summer 2008, though movie attendance remains strong given how The Dark Knight dominated a year ago. The biggest blockbuster since Titanic, ''The Dark Knight topped out with a domestic haul of $531 million. Considering we had a movie of that magnitude in the mix, I think this summer has held up very well for itself, said Dan Fellman, head of distribution for Warner Bros., which released The Dark Knight. Estimated ticket sales are for Friday through Sunday at U.S. and Canadian theaters, according to Hollywood.com. Final figures
Re: [scifinoir2] Re: District 9 Does Well at Box Office
There is also Whiteout which looks like a rip off of the Thing. On Mon, Aug 17, 2009 at 8:54 PM, Keith Johnson keithbjohn...@comcast.netwrote: I expected it to do well. There wasn't any new scifi competition (unless you count The Time Traveler's Wife), GI Joe has dropped precipitously in box office, and while Panyo was great, it's a cartoon aimed at younger audiences. - Original Message - From: ravenadal ravena...@yahoo.com To: scifinoir2@yahoogroups.com Sent: Monday, August 17, 2009 8:19:45 AM GMT -05:00 US/Canada Eastern Subject: [scifinoir2] Re: District 9 Does Well at Box Office Wow! I would have thought this as unlikely as Tiger losing the PGA Championship. ~rave! --- In scifinoir2@yahoogroups.com scifinoir2%40yahoogroups.com, Keith Johnson keithbjohn...@... wrote: [AP News] 'District 9' lifts off with No. 1 weekend at $37M By DAVID GERMAIN The Associated Press LOS ANGELES †The first-time director and cast of unknowns of the acclaimed sci-fi thriller District 9 have given Hollywood a late-summer box-office boost. Enlarge photo This movie still released by Sony Pictures shows, left to right, Sharlto Copley, Mandla Gaduka and Kenneth Nkosi in District 9. (AP Photo/Sony Pictures)This movie still released by Sony Pictures shows, left to right, Sharlto Copley, Mandla Gaduka and Kenneth Nkosi in District 9. (AP Photo/Sony Pictures) The Sony release produced by Lord of the Rings director Peter Jackson led the weekend with a $37 million debut, according to studio estimates Sunday. District 9 is the debut feature from commercial and music-video director Neill Blomkamp, who co-wrote the tale about extraterrestrials forced by humans to live in squalor in a ghetto in South Africa. The movie built audience interest with a clever marketing campaign playing up the theme of prejudice against aliens, including posters instructing citizens to report non-humans and ads on bus benches stating that the seats are for humans only. Everybody was like, 'What is this?' There was a big question mark in people's minds, said Rory Bruer, head of distribution for Sony. It did really pique their interest and drove them to the Internet and elsewhere to discover what's going on. The previous weekend's No. 1 movie, Paramount's G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra, slipped to second place with $22.5 million, raising its 10-day total to $98.8 million. Another sci-fi tale, the Warner Bros. romance The Time Traveler's Wife starring Eric Bana and Rachel McAdams, opened asolid No. 3 with $19.2 million. The film joined the previous weekend's JulieJulia as a choice for women, with females accounting for 76 percent of its audience. District 9 and Time Traveler's Wife led a wave of five new wide releases for mid-August, when Hollywood's summer output normally is petering out. The rush continues next weekend with another surge of new releases, led by Quentin Tarantino's World War II saga Inglourious Basterds. It's getting very crowded, and it's these films that want to compete in the summer time frame but can't compete in the sweet spot of summer, said Paul Dergarabedian, box-office analyst for Hollywood.com. Opening 'District 9' against 'Star Trek,' that would not be a good strategy. But to release it now makes sense. August is the month of opportunity for films that in other months of summer would get slaughtered. The weekend's other debuts: Paramount Vantage's used-car comedy The Goods: Live Hard, Sell Hard, opening at No. 6 with $5.4 million; Disney's animated adventure Ponyo from animation master Hayao Miyazaki (Spirited Away), coming in at No. 9 with $3.5 million; and Summit Entertainment's teen rock 'n' roll tale Bandslam, which tanked at No. 13 with just $2.3 million despite a cast that includes Vanessa Hudgens of High School Musical. It was Hollywood's second weekend in a row of rising revenues after a monthlong slide compared with summer 2008, when the Batman blockbuster The Dark Knight was smashing box-office records. Overall receipts came in at $142 million, up 14 percent from the same weekend a year ago, when Tropic Thunder debuted at No. 1 with $25.8 million. Revenues since the summer season opened the first weekend of May are at $3.77 billion, just a fraction below where Hollywood was last summer, according to Hollywood.com. Factoring in higher ticket prices, admissions are off 4 percent compared to summer 2008, though movie attendance remains strong given how The Dark Knight dominated a year ago. The biggest blockbuster since Titanic, ''The Dark Knight topped out with a domestic haul of $531 million. Considering we had a movie of that magnitude in the mix, I think this summer has held up very well for itself, said Dan Fellman, head of distribution for Warner Bros., which released The Dark Knight
