This week’s new openers in the UK include several titles that will be jostling for a space in the top five.
Entertainment One has The House With A Clock In Its Walls, the family feature starring Jack Black and Cate Blanchett in the story of a young orphan who has a magical uncle. Eli Roth directed the feature, a change of pace for a filmmaker whose credits include Death Wish and Hostel. The film previewed in more than 500 sites last weekend, grossing £1.1m ahead of its official launch.
Also out this week is Lenny Abrahamson’s The Little Stranger, the director’s first feature since his Oscar-winning drama Room. The film – which stars Domhnall Gleeson as a doctor who visits a crumbling manor where eerie things are beginning to occur - was notably absent from the autumn festival circuit, despite Abrahamson’s awards success. Room started with £674,033 in the UK and eventually grossed £4.1m, and Pathe will be looking to top those numbers by releasing into 300+ sites this weekend.
Vertigo has The Intent 2: The Come Up, the follow-up to Femi Oyeniran and Kalvadour Peterson’s The Intent, which attracted a cult following after being released in 2016. The second film, which is directed by Oyeniran with Nicky Slimting Walker, is a prequel, following a man whose allegiance to his crew and crime boss cripples his dreams and ambitions.
Dogwoof has Matangi/Maya/M.I.A., Stephen Loveridge’s feature documentary about the Sri Lankan artist and musician’s career to date, which premiered at Sundance in January this year where it won the World Cinema – Documentary special jury prize.
Arrow Film’s has Gaspar Noe’s Climax following its premiere in Directors’ Fortnight at Cannes in May this year. Sofia Boutella stars in the story of a group of French dancers who gather in an empty school building to rehearse on a wintry night. A24 is releasing in the US.
STXinternational’s latest release is Mile 22, the Mark Wahlberg-starring action film from his regular director Peter Berg, following Patriots Day and Deepwater Horizon. Their latest collaboration follows an elite American intelligence officer who tries to smuggle a mysterious police officer out of the country.
Lionsgate has A Simple Favour, the mystery thriller from Paul Feig starring Anna Kendrick and Blake Lively in the story of a vlogger who tries to uncover the truth behind her best friend. The film is based on Darcey Bell’s novel of the same name.
Elsewhere, Curzon has Agnès Varda and JR’s Oscar-nominated documentary Faces Places, Park Circus is re-releasing Francis Ford Coppola’s classic mafia tale The Godfather, Signature has Robert Schwentke’s German-language war drama The Captain, and Eros International has Hindi comedy drama Batti Gul Meter Chalu.
Key holdovers include Warner Crazy Rich Asians, which got underway with £1.6m in its first weekend, horror The Nun (also Warner), which topped the chart for a second straight weekend last week, 20th Century Fox’s The Predator, and Studiocanal’s King Of Thieves.
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