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UK Box Office April 25-27

Good weekend weather over large swathes of the UK may have been appreciated by sunshine fans, but the warm rays spelt bad news for the multiplexes. Only Forgetting Sarah Marshall, from the producer of Knocked Up and Superbad, did decent business, with opening weekend takings of £2.14 million, including Thursday previews of £394,000. That figure was more than three times the one achieved by the runner-up, fellow new entrant The Eye. The Hollywood remake of the Pang Brothers' Asian hit took £705,000 including previews of £70,000.

Two other wide new releases flopped. Deception, starring Ewan McGregor and Hugh Jackman, took a mediocre £256,000 from 291 screens for a per-cinema average of £880. Even worse, British comedy Three And Out managed just £189,000 from 380 locations for an average of £499. The film stars Mackenzie Crook, Colm Meaney, Gemma Arterton and Imelda Staunton.

UK Box Office April 18-20

Newspaper reviews varied between wildly positive (the majority) and strongly negative (minority voices, thankfully) so there may have been some nerves this weekend at the offices of Momentum Pictures, the distributor for Mike Leigh’s new picture Happy-Go-Lucky. If so, there were smiles all round when the numbers came in on Monday: £383,000 (including £46,000 in previews) from 77 screens, for a per-cinema average of £4,979. No other film in the top 15 boasted a screen average in excess of £3,000, and only one other title (blackjack drama 21) managed above £2,500.

The result for Happy-Go-Lucky represents the biggest opening of Leigh’s career. His previous best, Vera Drake, debuted in January 2005 with £266,000 from 65 screens. The film before that, All Or Nothing, opened with £164,000 from 55 sites. Topsy-Turvy debuted in February 2000 with £140,000 from 78 cinemas.

Fool’s Gold

Fool’s Gold centres around a separated couple who have lost faith in each other, and in ever finding the 18th century ‘Queen’s dowry’ treasure they have been hunting for their whole lives. This Pirates of the Caribbean-esque swashbuckler - set on a beautiful, sunny island - has a better-than-usual storyline for a blockbuster and reunites Matthew McConaughey and Kate Hudson.
 

UK Box Office April 11-13

Posting the gentlest decline of any film in the top 15, Son Of Rambow continues to impress as the most commercially successful specialist film currently on release. Declining just 14% from the previous weekend, the British indie comedy has now taken a healthy £2.34 million after ten days. Such a modest fall (30-40% is considered normal) suggests word-of-mouth among cinemagoers is very positive, and augurs well for a solid lengthy run. Son Of Rambow is directed by Garth Jennings (Hitchhikers’ Guide To The Galaxy), and tells the story of two young lads in 1983 shooting their own lo-fi homage to the first Rambo film, First Blood.

Son Of Rambow was beaten in the box-office chart by just one other film: new entrant 21, based on the true story of Boston maths students who learned to card count at blackjack and made a killing in Las Vegas. Despite relatively low star-wattage (the lead actor is Britain’s Jim Sturgess, playing opposite Kate Bosworth, Kevin Spacey and Laurence Fishburne), the glossy casino drama took £1.65 million, including £142,000 in Thursday previews.

UK Box Office April 4-6

Films about kids but aimed at adults can be tricky sells to audiences – as the relative commercial disappointment of titles such as Millions, Purely Belter and There’s Only One Jimmy Grimble show. On the other hand, as Billy Elliot proved, they can sometimes be real winners.

Ever since its triumph at the 2007 Sundance Film Festival, hopes have been high for the UK release of Son Of Rambow: the story of two English 11-year-old boys making their own lo-fi sequel to original Rambo film First Blood, in the summer term of 1983. And following some contractual wranglings, the film finally opened here on Friday, buoyed by positive buzz. Son Of Rambow proved the biggest of the new releases, entering the chart at number two (behind 27 Dresses), with takings of £897,000, including previews of £21,000.

Son of Rambow

Although an undeniably British film, set in the glorious 80s, Son of Rambow is reminiscent of some of the great American film classics made in the 80s, such as Flight of the Navigator, E.T. and Weird Science; all of those wonderful films that were filled with the wonderment of pre-teen lads on adventures. Although Son of Rambow is without the aliens of these other films, it certainly has the same special qualities.

Lee Carter (Will Poulter) is a little tearaway, who manages to blackmail Will Proudfoot (Bill Milner), a boy from a strict Plymouth Brethren family, to do his bidding. Never permitted to watch television, Will is captivated and transformed entirely by a pirate copy of Rambo: First Blood. The two then set about making their own homage to Rambo with Lee Carter’s video equipment.

U2 3D Digital masterclass

The UK Film Council recently ran a masterclass on the technology behind the groundbreaking 3D concert film U2 3D. Jon Shapiro and John Modell, director Catherine Owens and visual effects supervisor David Franks discuss how they created the world's first independent, live action film of U2 in 3D.

If you’d like to know more about the technology developed for U2 3D, if you’re intrigued by the difference between 2D and 3D or if you’re simply wondering whether you can see 3D at home, click on U2 3D masterclass to watch the videos and find out more.

UK Box Office March 28-30

Easter came early in 2008, causing havoc for film distributors, thanks to a wildly uneven pattern of school holidays. Some kids have broken up for the “Easter” break; others don’t do so until Friday. Takings so far for the likes of 10,000 BC, Horton Hears A Who and The Spiderwick Chronicles, all have grossed between £5 million and £6 million, seem unimpressive, given the expectations for these pictures and the generally strong performance of family titles, but all may benefit when the holidays finally reach all corners of the country.

Romantic comedy 27 Dresses defied mostly negative reviews to debut at Number 1, with a decent £1.75 million from over 400 screens, including Thursday previews of £256,000. The film has a primary market of young women, but should also appeal to female teens, and might consequently expect to benefit from the Easter holiday when it kicks into full gear. Currently that younger audience is flocking to Step Up 2 The Streets, with a very healthy £5.68 million after ten days. A lack of star power (Channing Tatum, from the original Step Up, just has a cameo) has proved no barrier for the teen-dance flick. The sequel has already out grossed the original 2006 Step Up, and should continue to post solid returns throughout the holiday period.

My Brother is an Only Child

My Brother is an Only Child evokes all that is romantic about Italian cinema, and by this I don’t mean lolling Tuscan hills and scenic ruins. This film reminds us of the mixed joys of growing up, family squabbling, finding an identity and falling in love.

In the opening scenes, we see the protagonist, Accio (Elio Germano – young Accio is played by Vittorio Propizio), living with and being taught by priests. But his inquisitive and argumentative nature land him back at home, where his presence is seen as an inconvenience and a threat to precious floor space. Overshadowed by his older siblings and prevented from studying Latin by his parents, Accio becomes increasingly bad-tempered and at odds with his family. But after becoming friends with a local, redneck shop owner, and defying his inherited socialist views, Accio signs up to the Italian Fascist party.