French films released abroad in the first two months of 2007 have registered very encouraging results.
Arthur and the Minimoys (Arthur and the Invisibles) has stamped itself as one of French cinema’s driving forces in foreign theaters at this start of 2007. The film has taken $14 million in the USA, €7 million in the UK, € 3.65 million in Spain, €3 million in Germany, €1 million in Poland, €1.6 million in Italy, and close to €0.6 million in Denmark and Quebec, to name but a selection of territories.
Although on a smaller scale, La Science des rêves (The Science of Sleep) by Michel Gondry has met with fine success, earning €0.6 million in Italy, €0.32 million in Great Britain, and €0.2 million in Spain.
La Tourneuse de pages (The Page Turner) by Denis Dercourt has proved a surprise hit in the UK, boasting €350 000 in ticket sales in this period. This film has raked in €180,000 in Italy and €50,000 in Denmark.
In the USA, the star performer is Danièle Thompson’s Fauteuils d’orchestre (Orchestra Seats aka Avenue Montaigne), which took $70,000 in two weeks in two theaters. Basking in the glory of its Oscar nomination in the Best Foreign-Language Film category, Indigènes (Days of Glory) has crossed the $100,000 mark. And despite a less ambitious release, Abderrahmane Sissako’s Bamako has taken $30,000 in the USA and €10,000 in the UK.
The collective film Paris, je t'aime has appealed to audiences in Germany, attracting 130,000 spectators.
Italy offered a warm welcome to Patrice Leconte’s latest film Mon meilleur ami (My Best Friend), which registered 275,000 admission. Cœurs (Private Fears in Public Places) by Alain Resnais won over 150,000 spectators and Azur and Asmar by Michel Ocelot has topped 50,000 admissions.
In Poland, two French comedies came up trumps on their opening weekend: Prête-moi ta main (I Do: How to Get Married and Stay Single) took €100,000 in 40 theaters, while Hors de prix (Priceless) took €140,000 in 50 theaters.
And finally La Môme (La Vie en Rose) is enjoying a promising international debut. The film by Olivier Dahan stood at 3rd place at the box office in Germany, where it attracted 100,000 spectators on 200 prints.
