Weekend Recap: Alice in Moneyland

America has caught a glimpse of the white rabbit and fallen down the hole. The Disney-Tim Burton imagining of Alice in Wonderland had a record-breaking weekend, the best March weekend ever and one of the biggest opening day and opening weekend pulls of all time.

It’s further proof that the demand for 3D is high … for now. When every major blockbuster has a 3D option over the next two years, the novelty will certainly wear off. But for now, “Alice” is riding high off what Avatar has planted in people’s minds with regard to 3D. Clearly not every movie will “earn” its pair of glasses, but a Burton world with a classically quirky and visual story certainly does and has.

1. Alice in Wonderland – $116.1 M (weekend) … $116.1 M (gross)
2. Brooklyn’s Finest – $13.3 M … $13.3 M
3. Shutter Island – $13.2 M … $95.7 M
4. Cop Out –$9.3 M … $32.5 M
5. Avatar – $8.1 M … $720.6 M
6. The Crazies – $7.1 M … $27.4 M
7. Percy Jackson & The Olympians: The Lightning Thief – $5.1 M … $78 M
8. Valentine’s Day – $4.1 M … $106.3 M
9. Crazy Heart – $3.3 M … $29.5 M
10. Dear John – $2.7 M … $76.6 M

It appears that Avatar took its first big hit with the release of another major 3D competitor. Many theaters likely dropped it from their 3D screens and a result the money dropped like a normal movie would, something I didn’t take into account when I predicted it would finish third instead of fifth. With a disappointing night at the Oscars, I think we’re about to see Avatar finally fade away.

“Alice” was frankly the only reason the box office was up a lot this weekend. Most movies that didn’t have a girl’s name in them fell by significant amounts.  The Crazies fell nearly 60 percent proving almost no horror movie is immune to the big second-week drop-off unless it is all the rage.

Two-time Academy Award-winning Crazy Heart also had another great weekend, moving into 126 more theaters this weekend and earning a boost of 36 percent. It’s pretty clear that a Best Actor nomination is good for business.