“Dawn of the Planet of the Apes” made $73 million this weekend. So you’d think the box office was booming But this past weekend was down 25% from last year at this time, and overall the box office is off 45% from last year. “Apes” was the last best hope to save the summer of 2014 as we head into specialty films like Richard Linklater’s “Boyhood” and Woody Allen’s “Magic in the Moonlight.”
But my favorite news is that John Carney’s “Begin Again” is a box office winner. The charming music-oriented romantic comedy led the indie films this week with almost $3 million added to its box office. The total now is $5.3Â million.
The Weinstein Company is now using Maroon 5’s “Maps” as the background music in the TV commercial. But the real Adam Levine hit of the summer is the song the Maroon 5 singer performs in “Begin Again” called “Lost Stars.” Call your local radio station and insist on them playing “Lost Stars” ASAP.
And “Boyhood” took in almost $400,000 at 5 locations. Have you seen it yet? As soon as the World Cup is over, get up and go!
