It was a close run thing this weekend between two new films tempting American cinemagoers. But when the dust settled, Sony’s Screen Gems arm claimed victory with The Perfect Guy arriving top of the charts with $26.7 million, according to studio estimates.
The stalker thriller stars Sanaa Lathan, Michael Ealy and Morris Chestnut in the tale of a woman who breaks up with her boyfriend and starts dating a charming new guy, only for him to turn out as… Well, you can probably figure that out. With a relatively low $12 million budget, the film is already earning money, and is a big success for the three leads. But if you’re talking budget-to-earning power, M. Night Shyamalan’s **The Visit **has the edge, since it was produced by the Blumhouse team for Universal and kept to an even tighter $5 million. The horror thriller’s blend of scares and laughs took in $25.6 million and marks a significant success for a writer/director who has had a bad run in recent years.
Last week’s unexpected champ, Christianity-themed War Room fell to third with $7.4 million, pushing it close to $40 million in its third week of release. It’s another low budget effort, topping out at $3 million and relying on a less pricey grassroots effort promotional strategy. It was ahead of A Walk In The Woods, with the Robert Redford film earning $4.6 million in fourth for its second week in the charts. Rounding out the top five and clinging to fifth like its hero clings to buildings and vehicles is Mission: Impossible – Rogue Nation, with $4.1 million this weekend and $188.1 million in total across the pond.
Straight Outta Compton finally began to slip in the charts, sinking to sixth from second with $4 million. But with more than $155 million in the bank after five weeks on release, nobody will be worried. No Escape fell one place to seventh with $2.8 million, while **The Transporter Refueled **dropped a few places from fourth to eighth with $2.67 million.
Slipping in almost unnoticed (and little advertised) at ninth was Michael Polish’s** 90 Minutes In Heaven**, which stars Hayden Christensen and Kate Bosworth. The film, adapted Don Piper’s memoir, tells the story of his being pronounced dead after a car crash, but coming back to life and claiming to have been in heaven. Surely hoping to capture the same audience as War Room, the film opened on more limited release in 878 screens, but could only manage $2.1 million for ninth place at launch. Finally, at 10th we find Mexican ‘toon Un Gallo Con Muchos Huevos (A Rooster With Many Eggs), which slipped one place with $1.9 million.
To see Michael Ealy stalk the elderly weirdoes of **The Visit **in the full chart listings, head to Box Office Mojo.