News
Japanese Box Office, May 5-6
posted on by Lynzee Loveridge
Hideki Takeuchi's live-action Thermae Romae film held the No. 1 spot during its second weekend. Based on Mari Yamazaki's manga, the story follows Roman architect Lucius Modestus (Hiroshi Abe), who designs bath-houses in ancient Rome. One day he's sucked into modern-day Japan. Able to travel back and forth in between worlds, Lucius uses Japanese ideas to improve the Roman baths he builds in the past. The film grossed US$6,835,550 on 304 screens for a total of US$27,758,574.
The live-action adaptation of Chūya Koyama's Space Brothers (Uchū Kyōdai) manga opened in the No. 2 spot. The film stars Shun Oguri and Masaki Okada as brothers Mutta and Hibito. The two make a vow to go into space but only Hibito succeeds at becoming an astronaut. However, Mutta's life changes one fateful day. The film pulled in US$4,773,705 on 322 screens.
Detective Conan: The Eleventh Striker film dropped from No. 2 to the No. 3 spot in its fourth weekend. It earned US$3,927,360) more on 351 screens for a total of US$35,054,850.
Osamu Kaneda's live-action Kamen Rider X Super Sentai Super Hero Taisen film fell from No. 3 to No. 4 in its third weekend. The latest film in the Kamen Rider frachise features about 200 heroes — from every team in the live-action special-effects Super Sentai franchise — and about 40 Kamen Riders from the four-decade-long Kamen Rider franchise. The film grossed US$1,922,515 on 295 screens for a total of US$16,481,360.
The second film in Takahiro Miki's two-part live-action film adaptation of Yuuki Obata's We Were There (Bokura ga Ita) romance manga dropped from No. 4 to the No. 5 spot for its third weekend. Toma Ikuta (Akihabara @ DEEP) and Yuriko Yoshitaka (Gantz) lead the films' cast. The story follows a girl named Nanami Takahashi (Yoshitaka) as she struggles with her decade-long relationship with Motoharu Yano (Ikuta), her high school's most popular boy who has his own issues from his past. The film earned US$1,847,351 on 297 screens for a total of US$15,756,763.
Crayon Shin-chan: Arashi o Yobu! Ora to Uchū no Princess, the 20th film in the Crayon Shin-chan franchise, rose from No. 7 to No. 6 in its fourth weekend. The film sends the title kindergartner and his family into outer space. Box Office Mojo ranked it at No. 7 and it grossed US$1,408,976 on 330 screens for a total amount of US$10,657,035.
The anime film A Letter to Momo dropped from No. 12 to No. 13 in this third weekend. Hiroyuki Okiura and Production I.G's "date" movie follows a girl named Momo who struggles with her father's sudden passing and resulting move to the countryside. Momo finds an otherworldly surprise at her new home. The film grossed US$645,089 on 276 screens for a total gross of US$4,969,070.
Doraemon: Nobita to Kiseki no Shima ~Animal Adventure~, this year's Doraemon film, returned to the Box Office Mojo's chart at No. 15 during its tenth weekend. The story takes the robot cat Doraemon, his owner Nobita, and their friends to an island paradise full of animals that would have otherwise gone extinct. The film guest stars Nana Mizuki, Kouichi Yamadera, Masako Nozawa, and Atsuko Tanaka. The film earned US$296,872 on 277 screens for a gross-to-date of US$44,649,222.
The live-action film adaptation of Bisco Hatori's Ouran High School Host Club romantic comedy manga is not ranked on Box Office Mojo's list, but the website does list that the film earned US$2,045 on two screens during its eighth weekend for a new total of US$2,810,244.
The first We Were There film is no longer listed on Box Office Mojo's chart.
Sources: Kogyo Tsunshinsha, Box Office Mojo
follow-up of Japanese Box Office, April 28-29