‘The Taste Of Things’ Savors Sweet Limited Opening; ‘Out Of Darkness’, ‘Perfect Days’ Debut; ‘American Fiction’, ‘Poor Things’ Hold In Top 10 – Specialty Box Office
11.02.2024 - 20:43
/ deadline.com
The Taste Of Things, a meditation on turn-of-the-century French cooking — no chicken wings or nachos in sight — is stirring up a nice weekend for IFC Films with $126k and the best per-theater opening of the year so far on Super Bowl weekend.
Wim Wenders’ Perfect Days from Neon is looking at $100k on five screens. In wider release, Bleecker Street’s Out Of Darkness is at a solid $1 million on circa 900 screens. American Fiction and Poor Things are holding in the top ten.
The Taste Of Things, which premiered at Cannes, winning Best Director for Vietnamese-born French filmmaker Tràn Anh Hùng, is seeing a $42k PTA from three screens (NYC’s IFC Center and Film At Lincoln Center, LA’s Laemmle Royal). Originally The Pot-au-Feu, it stars Juliette Binoche and Benoît Magimel as cook Eugenie and her boss Dodin, longtime partners in love and in the kitchen of Dodin’s country villa. Much of its 2 hours-16 minute runtime lingers on the preparation and reverent enjoyment of elaborate meals.
IFC is expanding nationwide to about 500 screens on Wednesday (Valentine’s Day). Those grosses will be interesting to see since the film, with an upbeat opening, yes, and at a heady 99% with critics on Rotten Tomatoes, carries an initial RT audience score of 35% (50+ ratings).
“Since Cannes, we have been passionate about highlighting The Taste Of Things as a cinematic experience which touches all the senses. This weekend’s results showcase how deeply audiences and critics alike are connecting with this stunning work of art,” said Scott Shooman, head of the film group at IFC Films’ parent AMC Networks. “Hùng is a warm and meticulous auteur, and we are proud to share in his ongoing success.”
Shooman said the weekend was also the highest per-theater