Box Office Report: Marty’s Wolf devours Australian box office

Never underestimate Martin Scorsese. The legendary director has another hit on his hands with controversial black comedy The Wolf of Wall Street. After opening inAustralia on January 23rd, the film broke two box office records; the biggest opening day for any Scorsese film and the biggest opening day for any R18+ film in Australian history. This is a remarkable feat given the intense nature of the film and its 3 hour running time, but it is helped by the presence of the beloved Leonardo DiCaprio and two-time Oscar nominee Jonah Hill (gonna take a while to get used to saying that). The film, which is nominated for five Oscars and four BAFTAs, should benefit from strong word of mouth and is likely to remain atop the chart for at least another week.

This week sees the release of two very different films. The first is critically acclaimed Oscar frontrunner 12 Years a Slave. The confronting film has been gathering an immense amount of praise since it debuted in the US last year, and is the current favourite to take home the Best Picture Oscar at the Academy Awards on March 2^nd. The film should do quite well with Australian audiences, who are unlikely to avoid it like many Americans might have done given the sensitive subject matter. The second film is boxing comedy Grudge Match starring Robert DeNiro and Sylvester Stallone. The film may appeal to fans of the two stars and those who have the desire to see them face off against each other (it’s Jake LaMotta vs. Rocky Balboa!). Outside of that, the film’s appeal is quite limited.

The last weekend saw buddy cop comedy Ride Along take the #1 spot at the US box office for the second weekend in a row with $21.3 million. Given the fact that the film stars Ice Cube and comedian Kevin Hart, we’ll definitely file this one under ‘How the Hell Was This Movie Successful?’ The only major new release, I, Frankenstein, bombed with an opening of $8.6 million. The supernatural action pic was absolutely blasted by critics and should therefore have a short lifespan.

I, Frankenstein has its Australian release on February 27th, and Ride Along does not currently have an Australian release date.

All figures from The Motion Picture Distributors Association of Australia and Box Office Mojo.

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