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Norm!

Kim Hollis: ParaNorman, the latest release from Laika, the creators of Coraline, opened to $14.1 million. What do you think of this result?

Jason Barney: I'll have to reserve judgment on this one. I didn't see Coraline, but do understand that it was a hit. The holds for that film were significant, and many pundits are predicting ParaNorman to do the same. One of my reactions to this one was the animation factor, and I wondered if it would be appropriate for my seven-year-old son. When I take him to the movies, it is only to see the age appropriate releases. He saw Pirates, Madagascar 3, Brave, and Ice Age 4 this summer. It seems like during each of those films there was a trailer for ParaNorman, so I am interested. Opening in third place is never a great accomplishment, but if this follows along the path of Coraline, the studio will be really happy.

Edwin Davies: Given the nature of the film's animation - stop-motion isn't a draw, by and large - and that the film doesn't have established source material to draw upon, I'd say that this is a very promising start. The ads for this have been consistently great, so awareness is pretty high to begin with, so if the word-of-mouth matches the strong reviews then ParaNorman could have a very good run. Obviously the story of this one won't be determined until two or three weekends' time, but this is a nice beginning nonetheless.

Bruce Hall: The Expendables and Bourne are not exactly The Avengers, but they're the much bigger dogs in this fight. So, to come away with what it did is a solid achievement for ParaNorman. Still, ParaNorman wasn't looking to attract the same demographic as two big budget action films. I found the trailers oddly disturbing, mainly because I have two kids in my life who are in the target audience. I'm pretty sure this film would give them nightmares, no matter how cute it thinks it is. But it's getting pretty solid reviews so despite their initial reluctance, word-of-mouth may be the key for ParaNorman.

This time next week, we'll know more.

Felix Quinonez: I have to admit I'm very disappointed in this opening. Not because I expected it to do so much better but because I really wanted it to. I loved Coraline and I think the animation and story of ParaNorman look phenomenal. I didn't get to see it yet but I'm really rooting for it. However its "B+" cinemascore rating isn't too encouraging. And I went back and looked at Coraline's box office performance, I had forgotten how strong its legs were. I just don't see ParaNorman catching on the same way. But I did read that it didn't have a huge budget so it should atleast be a modest size hit when all it's said and done. But because I had really high hopes for this movie I can't help but feel a little let down.

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