One of the cheapest movies of the year scored the biggest box-office upset of summer as The Purge knocked Fast & Furious 6 from the top spot and trounced The Internship.<\/p>\n
Purge, a $3 million horror film that was expected to vie for third place this weekend, raked in $36.4 million, according to studio estimates from box-office trackers Hollywood.com.<\/p>\n
The debut stunned analysts, who forecast $17 million for the critically ravaged Ethan Hawke movie, expected to be disposable fare between studio tent-poles.<\/p>\n
But the film, a futuristic tale where all crime is legal for one night a year, began picking up online momentum last month, when its trailer \u2014 shot largely on shaky, hand-held cameras \u2014 hit the Internet.<\/p>\n
MORE: The weekend’s top 10 films<\/p>\n
The debut marked the latest low-budget horror movie to upend major studio films. In January 2012, the $1 million horror film The Devil Inside opened to $34 million on its way to $53 million. In January, the $15 million fright flick Mama took No. 1 with a $28 million debut that led to a $72 million haul.<\/p>\n
But Purge pulled the upset in summer, when the industry’s most expensive movies dominate the cineplex.<\/p>\n
“The Purge is in a bulletproof genre and its unique concept brought out viewers tired of franchise film after franchise film,” says Tim Briody of Boxofficeprophets.com.<\/p>\n
Ray Subers of Box Office Mojo says the film resonated with younger audiences with a savvy marketing campaign that included fake government warnings about the approaching night when all crime would be legal and emergency services would be suspended for 12 hours.<\/p>\n
“Universal Pictures has done an excellent job (with) eye-catching posters and billboards that at first glance appear to be a public service announcement,” he says.<\/p>\n
Critics attempted their own public service in warning moviegoers away from the movie, which earned a thumbs-up from just 41% of critics, says survey site Rottentomatoes.com.<\/p>\n
Even moviegoers seemed only mildly entertained, as just 59% of audiences liked it, the site says, while other moviegoers gave it just a “C” grade, according to CinemaScore.<\/p>\n
But the concept was enough to knock Furious from the perch it held for two weeks. The Vin Diesel action film did $19.8 million, good for second place. Now You See Me, the film about bank-robbing magicians, was third with $19.5 million.<\/p>\n
The Internship, the $58 million comedy starring Vince Vaughn and Owen Wilson, found little to laugh about this weekend. The movie took fourth place with $18.1 million, which met forecasters’ modest projections but was no match for its micro-budget competition.<\/p>\n
The animated fantasy Epic rounded out the top five with $12.1 million. Final figures are expected Monday.<\/p>\n
Attendance and ticket sales are down about 6% from the same period last year, says Hollywood.com.