15/09/2005

European production, and in particular French production, has three films in the US Top 10 this week. Among the group are two French films, Le Transporteur 2 and March Of The Penguins, plus the German-British-Kenyan co-production The Constant Gardener [+see also:
film review
trailer
film profile] which totalled 15 millions dollars last week-end with 7104 prints. A performance worth noting in the context of a difficult box office US this year.

Luc Jacquet’s penguins have imposed themselves as the big surprise of the summer (read news 15/07 and 23/08), March Of The Penguins is the most successful French feature in history in terms of receipts in North-American theatres. With more than 67 million dollars in 12 weeks of distribution in the USA and Canada, this first feature produced by Bonne Pioche and sold by Wild Bunch overtook The Fifth Element by Luc Besson (66 million in 1997) and Le fabuleux destin d'Amélie Poulain by Jean-Pierre Jeunet (34 million). A score which could improve since the film made another 2,6 million dollars last week-end with a total of 2403 prints, reaching tenth place at the box office. Estimated at between 75 - 80 million in receipts, its North-American potential could be even higher should it be nominated for Oscars. Worth noting too March Of The Penguins also gathered 8 million dollars in receipts in Japan, attracting 500 000 admissions in China (a record for a French production) and its European results will climb thanks to October releases in Austria and Hungary, in November in Germany and in Italy, and in December in the UK, and Finland.

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Dispossessed of his record, Luc Besson has not lost his value on American territory. His production EuropaCorp (for which he co-wrote the script), Le Transporteur 2 directed by Louis Leterrier, banked more than 30 million receipts in 10 days with 3320 prints. With the best start of all time for Labour Day (9-11 September), the action film played notably by Englishman Jason Statham and Italian Alessandro Gassman reached third place in the BO in week two, knocking back a place an European production The Constant Gardener (read article) by Brazilian Fernando Meirelles (19 million dollars of receipts in two weeks with 1381 prints). Released in France on the 3rd of August, Le Transporteur 2 which was coproduced notably by TF1 Films Production, has so far accumulated 1,1 millions admissions. The film realised 937 000 euros of receipts in its first week in Germany and 100 000 euros in two weeks in Belgium. It will be released on the 13th October in Holland, the 4th November in Italy and the 18th November in the UK.

(Translated from French)