While US cinemas regularly rake in eight-figure dollar sums in a single weekend, “Sex and the City: The Movie” topped the charts in Budapest with revenue of just Ft 46.2 million – in forints – last week. According to Index.hu, 39,969 people saw the film last week, which grossed an impressive $55 million (Ft 8.7 billion, €35 million) stateside in its opening weekend.
The flick toppled Indiana Jones from the top spot after two weeks: Indy and Co. drew 17,632 viewers and raked Ft 20.5 million (€83,000), while the romantic comedy What Happens in Vegas was third with 6,008 viewers.
Between Thursday and Sunday, 2,374 moviegoers donned 3D glasses to watch Space Station 3D at Aréna Plaza’s IMAX. The theater said the number of viewers would have been higher if there had been no bomb scare at the mall Sunday afternoon. 2,331 people bought tickets for In Bruges and Iron Man still attracted 2,190, even though it opened back in April. Untraceable, which was fourth on the previous weekend, footed the top ten.
The poor figures reflect a lack of disposable income in Hungary, as well as the popularity of illegal downloading and offline sharing of pirated material.
With respect to these movies it also shows good taste