Newcomers Take Top Positions

The last weekend of spring break not only trashed various resort towns throughout the country--it also swept in a new flock of big box-office movies. Most surprising of the lot was Warner Bros.’ “Beetlejuice,” an offbeat horror spoof from director Tim Burton that industry analysts at first pegged for the midnight cult-movie circuit. Instead, it scored the largest opening weekend so far this year. Showing the young vacationing audiences’ clout, even Tri-Star’s “The Seventh Sign” did almost $4 million in business its first weekend, in spite of a generally dismissive critical reception.

* By contrast, Alan Alda’s “A New Life” (Paramount) is not doing nearly as well as industry observers had predicted, especially in a generally favorable market (before spring break, anyway) for “adult” fare. Five million dollars is nothing to sneeze at, but it is probably quite a bit lower than the studio expected.

WEEKEND BOX OFFICE

Weekend Gross/ Screens/ Weeks Movie (Studio) Total (millions) Average in Release 1. Beetlejuice $8.0 1,000 1 (Warner Bros.) $10.5 $8,030 2. Biloxi Blues $6.0 1,329 2 (Universal) $16.4 $4,525 3. Bright Lights, Big City $5.1 1,196 1 (MGM/UA) 00 $4,286 4. The Fox and the Hound $4.0 1,567 2 (Disney) $11.5 $2,561 5. The Seventh Sign $3.8 1,256 1 (Tri-Star) 00 $3, * A New Life $1.6 796 2 (Paramount) $5.1 $1,982

SOURCE: Exhibitor Relations Co.