Chicken Little wins big at box office

A scene from Chicken Little

The box office tumbled again despite solid weekends for the animated Chicken Little, which debuted with US$40.1 million, and the Desert Storm drama Jarhead, which opened with US$28.8 million, according to studio estimates last Sunday.

Chicken Little and Jarhead each came in as much as US$10 million ahead of industry expectations, a sign audiences are getting into the holiday movie-going spirit. Upcoming releases include Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, King Kong and The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe.

Chicken Little, with Zach Braff providing the voice of the fairy-tale fowl that proclaimed the sky was falling, is Disney's first fully computer-animated movie. It was Disney's second-best animated opening ever, behind The Lion King with US$40.9 million. The debut includes US$2.1 million from 84 theaters showing a 3-D version of Chicken Little.

Still, Chicken Little received so-so reviews, with some critics saying it's an undernourished story compared with hits made by Pixar or rival DreamWorks (the Shrek films, Madagascar).