Buoyed by the strength of opening numbers for the Meryl Streep- and Philip Seymour Hoffman-helmed Doubt and Clint Eastwood’s Gran Torino, which opened with $284,000 on only six screens, the independent box office enjoyed one of its biggest weekends ever. A combination of Golden Globe nominations and year-end lists released by critics groups also boosted Milk, Slumdog Millionaire, and Frost/Nixon despite showing on a few hundred theaters each. Although The Day the Earth Stood Still topped the box office this weekend, so-called “specialty” titles are expected to draw crowds as they expand in the coming weeks.
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