"Avengers" sinks "Battleship"

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Writer: Elaine Ewe

Nick Fury (left) and Hawkeye (right) in a scene from "Marvel's The Avengers".

22 May – It was no surprise that "Marvel's The Avengers" continued to dominate the weekend box office charts once again, given the three new lacklustre movies that debuted over that period of time. However, it was a surprise that the clichéd naval war film "Battleship" emerged second after Joss Whedon's superhero epic's total gross of US$457.6 million, although its earnings are only a fraction of previous Hasbro tie-in films such as the first "Transformers" and "G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra". In third place is the less fantastical and more satirical "The Dictator", directed by Larry Charles, who previously directed Sacha Baron Cohen's mockumentaries "Borat" and "Brüno". Baron Cohen stars as Admiral General Aladeen, a dictator from the fictional North African country of the Republic of Wadiya who risked his life to ensure that democracy would never come to the country he so lovingly oppressed. Despite its controversial themes and approach, the comedy has managed to obstruct Tim Burton and Johnny Depp's horror comedy, "Dark Shadows" from being in the top three in its second week together with "Battleship", according to sources at Box Office Mojo (17 to 20 May).

There is nothing new to report regarding "Marvel's The Avengers" box office status in Malaysia, seeing as it is still in top spot last weekend, while surprisingly, Burton and Depp's "Dark Shadows" remained in its second place. Considering the high saturation of horror, comedy and horror comedies in the country, it could be said that Malaysians' cinematic interest runs along these lines. If that is not enough proof, in third place is the local horror comedy titled "Nongkrong", about three men who end up summoning three spirits when they try to use mystical means to obtain winning lottery numbers.

Similarly in Singapore, the top two are "Marvel's The Avengers" and "Dark Shadows", although third place falls to the romantic comedy, "What To Expect When You're Expecting". Kirk Jones directs this film about five Atlanta couples who undergo various joys and sufferings that come with the process of childbirth which also stars an ensemble cast of Cameron Diaz, Jennifer Lopez, Elizabeth Banks, Chace Crawford, Brooklyn Decker, Anna Kendrick, Joe Manganiello, Matthew Morrison, Dennis Quaid and Chris Rock.

New movies opening in Malaysia this week are "You Believe In Ghost?", "Mantera", "Din Tao: Leader Of The Parade", " What To Expect When You're Expecting", " Bad Girls ", "Department" and "Narashima IPS".

In Singapore, new movies opening this week are "The Raid: Redemption", "The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel", "Ghost On Air", "Love In The Buff" and "Department".

Box office takings for the weekend just gone (17 May – 20 May 2012)
Malaysia 1) Marvel's The Avengers 2) Dark Shadows 3) Nongkrong 4) What To Expect When You're Expecting 5) Safe 6) Ghost Buddies 7) You Believe In Ghost? 8) Mantera 9) Battleship 10) Din Tao: Leader Of The Parade	Singapore 1) Marvel's the Avengers 2) Dark Shadows 3) What To Expect When You're Expecting 4) Ghost On Air 5) 21 Jump Street 6) The Raid: Redemption 7) The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel 8) Safe 9) Love In The Buff 10) My Girlfriend Can See Ghosts