Both wide releases opened rather well this weekend, and in this case the weekend gross of the second place film is arguably a more impressive achievement.
As expected, The Hunger Games again topped the box office this weekend, but its relatively strong hold suggests that it may be a bit mightier than a conventional Twilight/Harry Potter sequel.
Even in the post-Twilight age where The Hunger Games is set to open on a massive scale, female-centric franchise pictures are still considered a risky bet, arguably riskier than they were considered just 15 years ago.
On one hand, that means that every respective demographic was ably served this weekend. On the other hand, one can only wonder how much cash was sacrificed by opening these four movies on the same weekend.
Taking away the fact that one film was a cinematic breakthrough and launched the fandom of a hundred-million would-be movie lovers and the other was released under crushing expectations, The Phantom Menace is really no better or worse than Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope.
If he truly makes her happy, then Belle deserves a lifetime of happiness with the now-human prince. But on the basis of his onscreen behavior, the Beast does not deserve Belle.