MUMBAI: The Labour Day saw adults thronging cinema houses to view The Help and the Helen Mirren film The Debt. While the former grossed $19 million, the latter roped in 12.6 million.
The collections from 6 May to Labour Day narrowly beat 2009, the previous best ($4.33 billion), for a rise of over 1 per cent. Last year, the summer revenues totaled $4.21 billlion that put this summer‘s collections ahead by more than 4 per cent. Attendance, however, came down by a mere 1 per cent compared to that of 2010.
Overseas, revenues are expected to reach a record-breaking $8.2 billion this summer, a dramatic rise rom $5.8 billion in summer 2010. Domestic grosses for the long Labor Day weekend were up by around 5 per cent over 2010.
DreamWorks and Participant Media‘s The Help -- reminiscent of The Blind Side in its staying power -- and 20th Century Fox‘s Rise of the Planet of the Apes fueled the August box office domestically, earning an estimated $123.4 million and $162.5 million respectively till Labor Day.
The Help, distributed by Disney, didn‘t drop at all in its fourth weekend, upping its domestic total to $123.4 million and becoming the first film since Inception to be at the No. 1 spot for three consecutive weekends.
The Debt, from Focus Features and Miramax, played better than expected, fueled by adult moviegoers. Opening on Wednesday, the film‘s six-day launch was a stellar $14.5 million, better than the $12 million earned by Focus adult hit The Constant Gardener, another Labor Day release, in its first six days.
