Box-office roundup – Nov. 2, 2014 – "Nightcrawler" and "Ouija" in tight race for No. 1

It was a slow weekend for theaters as Halloween proved too tempting a lure for moviegoers to spend Friday night in theaters and few inspiring choices convinced them to come out Saturday or Sunday.

1. Nightcrawler – $10.9 million – Jake Gyllenhaal’s latest thriller was a massive hit with critics, which gave it a 94% rating on Rotten Tomatoes, but that didn’t translate to audiences as even if it wins (pending Sunday evening numbers) will have the lowest box office win of the year.  This was lower than 2012’s “End of Watch” ($13.1 million) and much further away from Gyllenhaal’s most recent big hit, “Prisoners,” which had a $20.8 million opening last year. “Prisoners” benefited from its ensemble, which also included Hugh Jackman, Viola Davis and Melissa Leo and serious Oscar buzz, and while Gyllenhaal is earning raves, it’s unlikely to make much waves come award season.

1. Ouija – $10.9 million [2nd week; $34.9 million] – The horror film actually won on Friday, but couldn’t create enough space to definitively win this week. Expect this to drop further next week with a slew of heavily-anticipated films including Christopher Nolan’s “Interstellar” and Disney’s “Big Hero 6.”

3. Fury – $9.1 million [3rd week; $60.4 million] The World War II drama has struggled to connect with widespread audiences despite Brad Pitt headlining it and looks like it will peter out right around the $78 million of fellow World War II theme film “The Monuments Men,” another under-performing war film starring George Clooney and Matt Damon.

4. Gone Girl – $8.8 million [5th week; $136.6 million] – The Oscar contender remained a Top 5 mainstay throughout October and proved to be Director David Fincher’s biggest hit surpassing “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button,” which earned $127 million in 2008. It also now looks to be a lock to surpass star Ben Affleck’s latest big hit, “Argo,” which earned $138 million in addition to Best Picture Oscar honors.

5. The Book of Life – $8.3 million [3rd week; $40.5 million] Benefiting from its Day of the Dead story (a Mexican holiday celebrated  on Oct. 31), this animated film held up well in its third week. By this time next week, it will make back its $50 million budget.

6. John Wick -$8 million [2nd week; $27.5 million] – Keanu Reeves’ action extravaganza dropped two spots and looks like it will end its run around $40 million at best. No numbers have been released about its production budget, but it should turn a meager profit.