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Japanese Box Office: August 25-26, September 1-2 (Updated)

posted on by Egan Loo
Evangelion: 1.0 opens at #1 to standing-room-only crowds on just 84 screens

The first of four Evangelion science fiction movie remakes, Evangelion: 1.0 You Are [Not] Alone, opened to packed houses to take #1 on the top ten chart for this past weekend's box office in Japan. The distributor Nikkatsu announced that 236,158 people spent 280 million yen (about US$2.4 million) at 84 theaters to watch it, the only new film in the top ten. This was one of the rare times that a film opened in less than 100 theaters at first place.

Nikkatsu had planned to show the movie in Tokyo's Shinjuku ward in the 224-seat Cinema Square Tōkyū theater, but changed theaters to the 1,046-stadium-seat Milano 1 just before opening to accommodate the growing crowds. All of that theater's seven opening-day showings sold out with standing-room-only audiences. That theater alone sold 12,500 tickets during the two days for a 15-million-yen (US$130,000) weekend box office take. Each screen that showed the movie nationwide earned an average of 3 million yen (US$30,000).

Pocket Monsters Diamond & Pearl: Dialga vs. Palkia vs. Darkrai dropped to #9 in its eighth weekend; it had fallen from #5 to #8 the previous weekend. Vexille - 2077 Nippon Sakoku and Naruto Shippūden the Movie both dropped out of the top ten charts during that August 25-26 weekend.

The Saiyuki live-action special-effects feature clung to #10 this past weekend after dropping from #9 the weekend before. This movie is based on a 2006 live-action series whose 1978 predecessor enjoyed popularity in several English-speaking countries under the title Monkey or Monkey Magic. The live-action franchise is based on the same Journey to the West Chinese fantasy novel that was the loose inspiration for Dragon Ball, the Saiyuki anime, and countless other adaptations. Another live-action special-effects project, the Masked Rider Den-Ō/Denei-ban Jūken Sentai Gekiranger double feature, had dropped out of the top ten during the August 25-26 weekend.

Source: animeanime.jp, Kogyo Tsushinsha

Image © Khara, Gainax


This article has a follow-up: Japanese Box Office, September 8–9: Eva Drops to #2 (2007-09-10 07:09)
follow-up of Japanese Box Office, August 18–19: Vexille Opens at #9
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