Despite the Super Bowl, the box office enjoyed another successful weekend. Both Chronicle and The Woman In Black opened to more than $20 million each, far more than we predicted. 20th Century Fox’s Chronicle was expected to make $12.5 million, but instead the superhero flick shocked with $22 million, debuting at No. 1. Daniel Radcliffe‘s first major role in a film outside of the Harry Potter franchise, The Woman In Black, also got off to a good start and came in at No. 2 with an estimated $21 million. Last weekend’s winner The Grey dropped to third place and brought in $9.5 million. Drew Barrymore and John Krasinski‘s Big Miracle didn’t do as well as the other new releases, but still managed to exceed our expectations with $8.5 million. And finally, rounding off the top 5 was Underworld Awakening, which brought in an additional $5.6 million.

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When you look at a list of the lowest grossing box office weekends of all time, you’ll find that the two months that pop up the most are January and September (and it’s often the last weekend of January, specifically). The reason for this is simple: The Superbowl. And it’s for film fans too – years ago, people would have just fast-forwarded through the commercials, now there are people who fast forward through the game. Last weekend The Grey trumped all, but now there are three new pictures to contend with it. Let’s see how it might shake out…

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It’s unusual for one event to make the whole world blink at the same time, but in Ken Kwapis‘ latest that’s exactly what happens. Big Miracle, starring Drew Barrymore and John Krasinski, tells the fascinating true story of three grey whales who captured the world’s attention when it was discovered that they were trapped in ice near Point Barrow, Alaska. It’s hard to go wrong with a story about whales, just like it’s hard not to smile at a YouTube video of a kitten. But this story is about more than cute whales, it’s about real people and real lives. Let’s review Big Miracle, but beware, some of these stories will shock you.

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Kristen Bell can relate to her character in the new Ken Kwapis film Big Miracle. In this true tale about ‘Operation Breakthrough,’ in which three gray whales were trapped and then freed from the ice in Alaska, Bell  plays a young journalist in search of the story that will make her career. Bell, who rose to fame when she starred on the hit TV show “Veronica Mars,” knows competition. Sure, she’s starred in a bunch of movies, and was even able to get on another show with Don Cheadle (“House of Lies”), but she’s aware that there’s always someone out waiting to take her job. We recently spoke to the actress, and she shared all sort of things. Did you know her dad was a newscaster? She told us that’s the reason she speaks in soundbites. See what else Kristen Bell had to say about working on Big Miracle below.

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John Krasinski and Drew Barrymore are two of the most charming people in Hollywood, and to top it off, they star in a new film about whales. Who doesn’t love whales? In Ken Kwapis‘ Big Miracle, Krasinski plays Adam Carlson, a small town news reporter, and Barrymore plays Rachel Kramer, an outspoken Animal lover based on real life Greenpeace advocate Cindy Lowry.  In the film, Adam and Rachel work together to help a family of gray whales trapped underneath the Alaskan ice.

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