J O S H I N Y O U || Hollywood || josh@joshinyou.com

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[Box Office]

The big news wasn't that The Matrix Revolutions opened at the top but how the far less hyped Elf had a Christmas-size biz and how Brother Bear held strong despite competition for family crowds from Elf.

Equally fascinating was how the sweet comedy Love Actually stood up to several savage reviews from the likes of The New York Times and grossed $6.6 million in about 576 movie houses with an impressive $11,500 per theatre average and found itself on the sixth position on the chart.

The coming weekend will add about 600 theatres.

The Matrix Revolutions, with the seen-it-all and been-there kind of look, still managed to gross a formidable $85 million in North America in five days. Its worldwide gross reached $204 million for the same period. Given the enormous popularity of the series abroad, the film will make plenty of money. But don't expect the last installment to beat its predecessor that made about $280 million in America and kicked up about $470 million abroad.

The honchos at distributor Warner Bros correctly pointed out that the second Matrix film, which opened four years after the first one stunned audiences worldwide, began on a massive note six months ago and earned 45 per cent more than the latest film in five days because of the great must-see-soon excitement it had generated.

When the eagerly awaited Master And Commander: The Far Side Of The World, in which Russell Crowe plays a complex, courageous sea commander, opens on November 14, The Matrix Revolutions may receive a mighty blow.

Hollywood

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