Fifty Shades of Grey
Director Sam Taylor-Johnson’s much anticipated film based on E. L. James’s trilogy
of novels about an unlikely romance between a naive college student and a
handsome, troubled billionaire scooped the top spot at the box office this month.
Even though the frisky flick raked in a whopping R14 129 150 in its opening
weekend locally, it still received mostly negative reviews on a global scale. Starring
Jamie Dornan and Dakota Johnson as the improbable lovers, Fifty Shades of Grey
garnered R23 571 717 nationally in two weeks since its release.
Spongebob Squarepants 2: Sponge Out of Water
Director Paul Tibbitt’s quirky animation of Nickelodeon’s loveable yellow scrubber
“who lives in a pineapple under the sea’ has toddlers and adults alike giggling with
glee. The Guardian commented, “It isn’t just the sheer density of jokes that is
impressive, but the diversity.’ The film earned R1 869 979 in its third week at
South African theatres, an 18% drop on the previous weeks earnings, bringing total
gross national earnings to R7 574 046 in three weeks.
American Sniper
Director Clint Eastwood’s biopic of Navy SEAL sniper Chris Kyle, has received rave
reviews both nationally and internationally since its release. Eastwood’s 34th film as
a director stars Bradley Cooper as Kyle and Sienna Miller as his wife, the action-
packed and truly moving motion picture opened at number three locally, earning R1
771 470 in its opening weekend.
Kingsman: The Secret Service
Gary “Eggsy’ Unwin (Taron Egerton), whose late father secretly worked for a spy
organisation, is seemingly headed for a life in prison due to his felonious behaviour
when agent Harry Hart (Colin Firth) recruits him to be a trainee in the secret
service. The star studded flick by director Matthew Vaughn, which sees stellar
performances by Samuel L Jackson and Michael Caine, brought in R1 224 949 in its
second week at local cinemas, bringing total gross national earnings to R3 818 068.
Jupiter Ascending
Andy Wachowski and Lana Wachowski directed and wrote this intergalactic
spectacle starring Mila Kunis as lead character Jupiter Jones. Jupiter is destined for
greatness, but her reality consists of cleaning other people’s houses. Enter Caine,
played by Channing Tatum, a genetically engineered hunter from outer space, who
enlightens Jupiter to the destiny that awaits her. The film rounds up the top five at
the local box office this month, with total earnings in three weeks sitting at R4 552
076.
Mooirivier
Director Rene van Rooyen’s love story about a clumsy, offbeat young boy and a
modern day princess opened to both rave reviews and impressive local box office
earnings. Filmed in Potchefstroom, the Afrikaans romantic comedy, from the
producers of Klein Karoo, earned R4 042 378 in three weeks since its release.
– Chanelle Ellaya
