“Rango” ropes in first spring green

Johnny Depp and Gore Verbinski have made another top-grossing film together in “Rango.” The animated Western was the undisputed No. 1 at the box office with $38 million. Although a little on the lower end compared to most animated March offerings of the recent past, considering it had no Pixar or DreamWorks name or previous material as its basis, the slightly modest opening makes sense. Expect it to hold strong throughout most if not all of March.

1. Rango – $38.1 M (weekend) … $38.1 M (gross)
2. The Adjustment Bureau – $21.1 M … $21.1 M
3. Beastly – $9.8 M … $9.8 M
4. Hall Pass – $8.8 M  … $26.8 M
5. Gnomeo & Juliet – $7.2 M … $84 M
6. Unknown – $6.5 M  … $53 M
7. Just Go With It  – $6.4 M … $88.1 M
8. The King’s Speech – $6.2 M … $123.5 M
9. I Am Number Four – $5.7 M … $46.4 M
10. Justin Bieber: Never Say Never – $4.3 M … $68.8 M

“The Adjustment Bureau” also had a successful opening to celebrate. The film debuted to generally positive reviews and made $21.1 million, more that most films in the heady sci-fi sub-genre tend to make in their first three days. According to Box Office Mojo, Universal said audiences were 53 percent female, which means the film’s romantic thriller angle was successful in widening its audience. Matt Damon has never starred in a non-“Bourne” film that opened with $20 million until now.

“Beastly” came in third with an expected $10 million, pretty good compared to a $17-million budget for a film deemed a failure when it was moved out of last summer. It will likely not be long for the top ten with “Red Riding Hood,” due out next week, aiming squarely at its teen demographic and with a marketing campaign leaning toward horror and suspense.

The fourth new film of the weekend, “Take Me Home Tonight,” flatlined, failing to make the top ten with just $3.5 million.

Surprisingly, to me at least, “The King’s Speech” did not expand and saw no increase after winning Best Picture last weekend.