'Salmon Fishing in the Yemen' reels in older viewers at the UK box office

It was hardly a hit with the upscale critics and is saddled with a title that's not exactly multiplex-friendly, but Salmon Fishing in the Yemen nevertheless is the top new release at the UK box-office, opening with a highly creditable £1.17m. In a week where a record 17 new releases competed for the attention of cinemagoers, this adaptation of the Paul Torday novel proves once again the power of the older, middle-class, Middle England audience that has already proved so potent this year with the success of The Iron Lady and The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel. While Salmon Fishing lacks older cast members equivalent to Meryl Streep and Jim Broadbent, or Judi Dench and Maggie Smith, it was clearly pitched at this market, with newspaper ads including endorsements from Woman & Home, Woman's Own and Easy Living, as well as quotes from regular cinemagoers with ages ranging from 28 to 61.

Lionsgate reports that more than a quarter of its gross was earned outside the major multiplex chains.With The Hunger Games going back up to number three, and The Cabin in the Woods just one place lower, Lionsgate has achieved the extremely rare feat of three films in the UK box-office top five all from the same distributor. With £21.26m so far, The Hunger Games is now the ninth biggest-grossing film of the past 12 months, and the biggest of the 2012 calendar year, just ahead of The Woman in Black (£21.22m).

The Salmon Fishing gross is about half the debut number achieved by Marigold Hotel (£2.22m) and The Iron Lady (£2.15m), and is roughly level with the opening weekend of director Lasse Hallstrom's previous film Dear John (£1.27m), as long as you strip out paid previews of £722,000 from that film's figure. Distributor Lionsgate will be hoping that Salmon Fishing achieves the same multiple of its opening that has been earned by Exotic Marigold, which would be enough to deliver a total in excess of £10m. That happy outcome, of course, is far from certain.

Top 10 films

1. Battleship, £1,282,091 from 497 sites. Total: £6,088,174

2. Salmon Fishing in the Yemen, £1,169,235 from 412 sites (New)
3. The Hunger Games, £1,070,787 from 443 sites. Total: £21,259,368

4. The Cabin in the Woods, £1,033,533 from 422 sites. Total: £3,543,472

5. Titanic 3D, £925,740 from 398 sites. Total: £9,919,113

6. The Pirates! In an Adventure with Scientists, £772,887 from 527 sites. Total: £14,085,303

7. Lockout, £596,500 from 333 sites (New)
8. Mirror Mirror, £535,093 from 427 sites. Total: £6,070,901

9. 21 Jump Street, £376,781 from 271 sites. Total: £9,465,305

10. Gone, £275,087 from 253 sites (New)

The Guardian: April 24,2012