Transformers

The movie is the highest-grossing international debut of Paramount Pictures,ringing over cash registers to the tune of $217 million and beating the release of Transformers 2

Big-budget,effects-filled Hollywood flick Transformers: Dark Of The Moon smashed its way through box-office records with global ticket sales nearing $400 million. Paramount Pictures,which released the movie about shape-shifting aliens battling for control of Earth,said the movie was its highest-grossing international debut ever,ringing overseas cash registers to the tune of $217 million and beating the release of Transformers 2.

The movie opened simultaneously in 58 overseas markets along with its U.S. and Canadian debut. Global ticket sales stand at $398 million.

Industry watchers said the movies four-day domestic box-office forecast of $116.4 million is the best ever for an Independence Day weekend,which is one of the heaviest moviegoing periods of the year. It eclipsed the $115.8 million debut of Spider-Man 2 over the same weekend in 2006.

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Transformers earned a whopping $24,300 per-theatre average from around 4,000 theatres over the three days. By contrast,the No. 2 domestic movie,Disney/Pixar’s animated Cars 2 earned $26.2 million over the three days from just under 4,100 theatres. Its per-theatre average was about $6,400.

About 60 per cent of Transformers domestic revenues came from theatres showing it in more expensive 3D,and about 70 per cent of the international box-office tally came from 3D,which should help bolster the format that in recent months has seemed to fade in popularity.

What you take away is that if you give the public the right movie in the right way,audiences are happy to pay the upcharge,” said Don Harris,executive vice president of distribution at Paramount.

TARNISHED CROWNE

Against the Transformers onslaught,other new releases did not fare so well. The romantic comedy Larry Crowne,starring Tom Hanks and Julia Roberts,failed to generate much excitement.

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Adult-themed Crowne mustered an estimated $15.7 million for the four-day,Independence Day holiday weekend in the United States. That is a small amount for a film with the A-list star power of Hanks and Roberts,and it could only reach the No. 4 spot on box-office charts in its debut.

Muscling its way ahead of Crowne into the No. 3 spot was the comedy Bad Teacher,starring Cameron Diaz,with $17.6 million over the four-day holiday.

Another newcomer failing to generate much buzz was the comedy Monte Carlo,which stars Selena Gomez and was aimed mostly at young women. It landed at No. 6 with estimated earnings of a mere $8.75 million over the four-day holiday.

At No. 5 was the action flick Super 8,which claimed $9.5 million in ticket sales over the U.S. holiday. Paramount Pictures,which released Super 8,is a unit of Viacom Inc. Disney/Pixar is part of The Walt Disney Co. Bad Teacher was released by Columbia Pictures,part of the Sony Pictures Entertainment unit of Sony Corp. Larry Crowne was distributed by Universal Pictures,which is controlled by Comcast Corp,and Monte Carlo was released by 20th Century Fox,a division of News Corp.