• 'Think Like a Man' overtakes 'Hunger Games' at box office

    Sony Pictures

    By Reuters

    The box office competition finally overwhelmed "The Hunger Games" as the romantic comedy "Think Like a Man" beat expectations with a chart-topping $33.0 million in U.S. and Canadian ticket sales over the weekend.

    Love story "The Lucky One" also exceeded forecasts to finish second with $22.8 million from Friday through Sunday, according to studio estimates. The two films pushed the blockbuster "Hunger Games" to third, ending its four-week streak at No. 1.

    "Think Like a Man" is based on comedian Steve Harvey's best-selling, non-fiction relationship guide "Act Like a Lady, Think Like a Man."

    The movie follows four couples trying to work out various issues and stars Gabrielle Union, Kevin Hart, Michael Ealy, Romany Malco, hip-hop singer Chris Brown and Oscar-nominated actress Taraji P. Henson. Harvey was executive producer and has a small role playing himself.

    Video: Watch the 'Think Like a Man' trailer

    The film cost a modest $13 million to make, and received positive feedback in pre-release screenings, said Rory Bruer, president of worldwide distribution for Sony Corp's Sony Pictures studio.

    "We definitely felt like we had a hit coming," Bruer said. Still, the weekend performance "exceeded everyone's expectations," he said.

    Audiences gave "Think Like a Man" an "A" grade in polling by survey firm CinemaScore.

    "The Lucky One" tells the story of a U.S. Marine who returns from his third tour of duty in Iraq, convinced that the one thing that kept him safe and alive was a photograph of a beautiful woman he found in the rubble of war.

    It also was based on a book, a 2008 best-seller from well-known "Notebook" author Nicholas Sparks. The movie stars Zac Efron and Taylor Schilling and cost about $25 million to produce.

    Efron's female fan base helped the movie beat forecasts. Fifty-seven percent of moviegoers polled said the actor was their top reason for seeing the film, said Jeff Goldstein, executive vice president of domestic distribution for Time Warner Inc's Warner Bros. studio.


    "The Lucky One" added $3.8 million from nine international markets, bringing its global debut to $26.6 million.

    "Hunger Games," the smash hit about an oppressive society's televised teen death match, took in an estimated $14.5 million at U.S. and Canadian theaters during the weekend. Global sales for the film from Lions Gate Entertainment Corp reached $572.7 million since its release.

    The weekend's other new movie, nature documentary "Chimpanzee," finished in fourth place with $10.2 million. It scored the highest opening among four films released by Walt Disney Co's Disneynature film unit, which makes wildlife movies and supports conservation efforts.

    Comedy "The Three Stooges," from News Corp's 20th Century Fox studio, finished fifth with $9.2 million.

    Also this weekend, action movie "Battleship" pulled in $58.4 million during its second weekend in international markets and brought its total to $129.6 million. The movie from Comcast Corp's Universal Pictures opens in the United States and Canada on May 18.

    Did you go to the movies this weekend? What did you see, and did you like it? Share your thoughts on Facebook.

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  • 'Think Like a Man' gets smart about battle of the sexes

    The cast of "Think Like A Man" uncovers some romantic strategies.

    By Michael Rechtshaffen , The Hollywood Reporter

    REVIEW: The age-old battle of the sexes is equipped with some fresh ground rules in the astute, contemporary romantic comedy, "Think Like a Man."

    As executed by an appealing ensemble of smooth operators, this adaptation of the Steve Harvey advice book "Act Like a Lady, Think Like a Man" often hits its amusing marks, but with a weighty running time of two hours, it often feels more like a lecture than an intended romp.

    Nevertheless, that attractive cast and the silky production values, combined with Harvey’s loyal radio, stand-up and "Family Feud" following, should ensure that the Screen Gems release opens strongly, drawing an urban audience in the market for a more urbane Tyler Perry.

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    Harvey plays the part of himself here -- that of a best-selling author whose book instructs women to kick their relationships up a notch by spilling a few secrets regarding how guys really feel about stuff like intimacy and commitment.

    Among those who manage to get their hands on a hot copy are Gabrielle Union (she also appeared in the similarly themed 2004 rom-com, "Breakin’ All the Rules"), who plays the longtime live-in girlfriend of slacker Jerry Ferrara (the Non-Committer) and is tired of their place resembling a dorm room.

    There’s also Taraji P. Henson’s demanding exec, who learns to readjust her high standards in order to let in Michael Ealy’s attentive but broke struggling chef (the Dreamer), and Regina Hall as a single mom who meets nice guy Terrence J, who’s great with her kid but turns out to be a classic Mama’s Boy.

    Rounding out the quartet of readily identifiable types is Romany Malco, the Player, a sweet-talking commitment-phobe whose bluff is called when he meets vulnerable Meagan Good, who adopts Harvey’s 90-day rule before succumbing to his advances.

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    But just when these women seem to be getting the upper hand in the respective relationships, the men get wise to Harvey’s teachings and proceed to turn the tables.


    While screenwriters Keith Merryman and David A. Newman ("Friends With Benefits") know their way around smart male-female banter, they never quite succeeded in making a seamless book-to-movie transition.

    Having Harvey frequently dispensing advice from his book can be a real distraction from the fictional characters and their stories, not to mention resemble something that could be confused for shameless self-promotion.

    And although director Tim Story ("Barbershop") is no stranger to ensemble comedy-dramas, all the intersecting stories being told here could have benefited from a lighter, less purposeful touch.

    He does coax some fine performances from his impeccably manicured cast, which also includes the always terrific Jenifer Lewis as the suffocating mother in question. Kevin Hart provides extensive comic relief as the strip bar-frequenting Happily Divorced Guy.

    And Chris Brown keeps popping up as Good’s professed last of the one-night stands.

    Technically, the production is sleekly high gloss, thanks to Chris Cornwell’s upscale production design and Larry Blanford’s elegant cinematography, which, while on the subject of marketing opportunities, effectively combine to serve as a ready-made promo for L.A. Live and environs. 

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