From The Associated Press:

Estimated ticket sales for Friday through Sunday at U.S. and Canadian theaters, according to Hollywood.com. Where available, latest international numbers are also included. Final domestic figures will be released Monday.
1. "Texas Chainsaw 3-D," $23 million. (Review by The AP's Frank Schenk: 'Chainsaw' loving homage to '74 original)
2. "Django Unchained," $20.1 million. (Review by The News-Herald's Mark Meszoros: With fun, vulgar and violent 'Django Unchained,' Waltz, Tarantino again a terrific tandem)
3. "The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey," $17.5 million ($57.1 million international). (Review by Meszoros: 'The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey' has familiar ring to it)
4. "Les Miserables," $16.1 million ($14.5 million international). (Review by Meszoros: Director, female stars make 'Les Miserables' a winning adaptation)
5. "Parental Guidance," $10.1 million. (Review by The AP's Michael Rechtshaffen: You can go only so wrong with 'Parental Guidance')
6. "Jack Reacher," $9.3 million ($22.3 million international). (Review by The AP's Christy Lemire: In twisty thriller 'Reacher,' Tom Cruise oozes low-key charisma)
7. "This Is 40," $8.6 million. (Review by Lemire: Apatow's latest comedy, 'This Is 40,' shows growth, reunited Rudd, Mann)
8. "Lincoln," $5.3 million. (Review by Meszoros: 'Lincoln,' powered by Daniel Day-Lewis' portrayal, engrossingly brings to life crucial bit of presidential history)
9. "The Guilt Trip," $4.5 million. (Review by The AP's Todd McCarthy: ‘Guilt Trip’ a flick only a mother (or Streisand fan) could love)
10. "Promised Land," $4.3 million.

-- Cheryl Sadler | CSadler@News-Herald.com | @nhcheryl

From The Associated Press:

Estimated ticket sales for Friday through Sunday at U.S. and Canadian theaters, according to Hollywood.com. Where available, latest international numbers are also included. Final domestic figures will be released Monday.
1. "The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey," $32.9 million ($106.5 million international). (Review by The News-Herald's Mark Meszoros: 'The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey' has familiar ring to it)
2."Django Unchained," $30.7 million. (Review by Meszoros: With fun, vulgar and violent 'Django Unchained,' Waltz, Tarantino again a terrific tandem)
3."Les Miserables," $28 million ($38.3 million international). (Review by Meszoros: Director, female stars make 'Les Miserables' a winning adaptation)
4."Parental Guidance," $14.8 million ($7 million international). (Review by The AP's Michael Rechtshaffen: You can go only so wrong with 'Parental Guidance')
5."Jack Reacher," $14 million ($18.1 million). (Review by The AP's Christy Lemire: In twisty thriller 'Reacher,' Tom Cruise oozes low-key charisma)
6."This Is 40," $13.2 million. (Review by Lemire: Apatow's latest comedy, 'This Is 40,' shows growth, reunited Rudd, Mann)
7."Lincoln," $7.5 million. (Review by Meszoros: 'Lincoln,' powered by Daniel Day-Lewis' portrayal, engrossingly brings to life crucial bit of presidential history)
8."The Guilt Trip," $6.7 million. (Review by McCarthy: ‘Guilt Trip’ a flick only a mother (or Streisand fan) could love)
9."Monsters, Inc. 3-D," $6.4 million.
10."Rise of the Guardians," $4.9 million ($11.6 million). (Review by The AP's Todd McCarthy: Animated 'Rise of the Guardians' overly busy, should appeal to kids)

-- Cheryl Sadler | CSadler@News-Herald.com | @nhcheryl

From The Associated Press:

Estimated ticket sales for Friday through Sunday at U.S. and Canadian theaters, according to Hollywood.com. Where available, latest international numbers are also included. Final domestic figures will be released Monday.

1. "The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey," $36.7 million ($91 million international). (Review by The News-Herald's Mark Meszoros: 'The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey' has familiar ring to it)
2. "Jack Reacher," $15.6 million ($2.5 million international). (Review by The AP's Christy Lemire: In twisty thriller 'Reacher,' Tom Cruise oozes low-key charisma)
3. "This Is 40," $12 million. (Review by Lemire: Apatow's latest comedy, 'This Is 40,' shows growth, reunited Rudd, Mann)
4. "Rise of the Guardians," $5.9 million ($13.7 million international). (Review by The AP's Todd McCarthy: Animated 'Rise of the Guardians' overly busy, should appeal to kids)
5. "Lincoln," $5.6 million. (Review by Meszoros: 'Lincoln,' powered by Daniel Day-Lewis' portrayal, engrossingly brings to life crucial bit of presidential history)
6. "The Guilt Trip," $5.4 million. (Review by McCarthy: ‘Guilt Trip’ a flick only a mother (or Streisand fan) could love)
7. "Monsters, Inc." in 3-D, $5 million.
8. "Skyfall," $4.7 million ($9 million international). (Review by Meszoros: New Bond film 'Skyfall' almost lives up to all that buzz)
9. "Life of Pi," $3.8 million ($23.2 million international). (Review by The AP's David Germain: Ang Lee's 'Life of Pi' is inspiring 3-D art)
10. "The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn — Part 2," $2.6 million ($6.6 million international). (Review by Meszoros: 'Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn — Part 2,' although still painful for non Twi-hards, has welcome sense of humor)

-- Cheryl Sadler | CSadler@News-Herald.com | @nhcheryl

How well did "The Hobbit" do in its first weekend at the box office? It made nearly 11.5 times what second-place finisher "Rise of the Guardians" pulled in. The Associated Press reports that its $84.8 million was "a record-setting opening better than the three previous "Lord of the Rings" films."

From The AP:

Estimated ticket sales for Friday through Sunday at U.S. and Canadian theaters, according to Hollywood.com. Where available, latest international numbers are also included. Final domestic figures will be released Monday.

1. "The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey," $84.8 million ($138.2 million international). (Review by The News-Herald's Mark Meszoros: 'The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey' has familiar ring to it)
2. "Rise of the Guardians," $7.4 million ($20.1 million international). (Review by The AP's Todd McCarthy: Animated 'Rise of the Guardians' overly busy, should appeal to kids)
3. "Lincoln," $7.2 million. (Review by Meszoros: 'Lincoln,' powered by Daniel Day-Lewis' portrayal, engrossingly brings to life crucial bit of presidential history)
4. "Skyfall," $7 million ($12.2 million international). (Review by Meszoros: New Bond film 'Skyfall' almost lives up to all that buzz)
5. "Life of Pi," $5.4 million ($11.5 million international). (Review by The AP's David Germain: Ang Lee's 'Life of Pi' is inspiring 3-D art)
6. "The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn, Part 2," $5.2 million ($13 million international). (Review by Meszoros: 'Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn — Part 2,' although still painful for non Twi-hards, has welcome sense of humor)
7. "Wreck-It Ralph," $3.3million ($4.7 million international). (Review by The AP's Justin Lowe: Animated 'Wreck-It Ralph' has fun celebrating video games old and new)
8. "Playing for Keeps," $3.2 million ($1.4 million international). (Review by The AP's Christy Lemire: Gerard Butler stars in rom-com 'Playing for Keeps,' one of year's worst movies)
9. "Red Dawn," $2.4 million. (Review by Meszoros: 'Red Dawn' remake falters, despite solid effort by star Chris Hemsworth)
10. "Silver Linings Playbook," $2 million ($370,000 international). (Review by Lemire: Charming 'Silver Linings Playbook' has great performances from Bradley Cooper, Jennifer Lawrence)

-- Cheryl Sadler | CSadler@News-Herald.com | @nhcheryl

I caught the pilot episode of NBC's new, post-apocalyptic drama "Revolution" on Hulu. You can watch it there now (or just scroll down to where I embedded the video at the end of this post) or wait until it premieres at 10 p.m. tonight on NBC.

Tracy Spiridakos as Charlie Matheson, left, and Billy Burke as Miles Matheson from the new series "Revolution." NBC/Associated Press

In case you haven't caught a commercial or promo for NBC's new, post-apocalyptic drama "Revolution," NBC offers this synopsis of the show:

What would you do without it all? In this epic adventure from J.J. Abrams' Bad Robot Productions and "Supernatural's" Eric Kripke, a family struggles to reunite in an American landscape where every single piece of technology - computers, planes, cars, phones, even lights - has mysteriously blacked out forever. A drama with sweeping scope and intimate focus, "Revolution" is also about family - both the family you're born into and the family you choose. This is a swashbuckling journey of hope and rebirth seen through the eyes of one strong-willed young woman, Charlie Matheson (Tracy Spiridakos, "Being Human"), and her brother Danny (Graham Rogers, "Memphis Beat"). When Danny is kidnapped by militia leaders for a darker purpose, Charlie must reconnect with her estranged uncle Miles (Billy Burke, "The Twilight Saga"), a former U.S. Marine living a reclusive life. Together, with a rogue band of survivors, they set out to rescue Danny, overthrow the militia and ultimately re-establish the United States of America. All the while, they explore the enduring mystery of why the power failed, and if - or how - it will ever return.

Swashbuckling? A long journey? A rogue band of companions? Sounds an awful lot like my favorite book: "The Hobbit." But unlike J.R.R. Tolkien's classic children's story soon to be a likely bloated three-movie silver screen escapade, which I will be first in line to see, there's actually female characters to be found here. In fact, the lead is a teenage girl who feels a bit like Everdeen Katniss from "The Hunger Games." The whole show has a certain Panem-feeling of decayed society turning back to a tech-free world, and I'd wager that if you liked Suzanne Collins' trilogy or it's film adaption you'll enjoy "Revolution," too.

The fast-paced pilot, directed by "Iron Man" director Jon Favreau, doesn't waste time. The world goes dark about two minutes into the episode with an eerie sequence that showcases some of the immediate results of a complete failure of all things tech.

A requisite commercial break interrupts the mayhem, and it returns "15 years after the blackout" with a educational voice describing what happened over vast scenes of decayed cities, overgrown streets, deserted parks, etc. The show has a lot of these vast landscapes interspersed with more intimate shots and scenes between the characters. "Revolution" has truly created an immense world in great detail for its characters to traverse.

JD Pardo as Nate. NBC/Associated Press

I'll not spoil anything for you but the show took a couple of twists I wasn't expecting and had some surprising moments, both violent, funny and intriguing.

The opening hour (or nearly 44 minutes plus commercials) sets up some mysteries (Why did the power go out? Can it be turned on? How do they keep there hair and makeup looking so fantastic?) that I'm sure we'll be getting to the bottom of bit by back for as long as the series remains on air.

It's definitely worth tuning into the pilot, and here's hoping subsequent episodes live up to the grandeur and intriguing nature of this opener.


— Nicole Franz | NiFranz@News-Herald.com | @FranzOrFoe