When it comes to horror,  for the last several years October has been monopolized by the persistent and prolific offerings of a one Saw series. Jigsaw might be smarting a bit this Monday, because he was decidedly trounced by “the little demon that could,” otherwise known as Paranormal Activity.

Based on early estimates from Box Office Mojo,  Paranormal Activity finally claimed the top spot at the box office in its fifth week of release.  This makes it only the second movie this decade to do so after that many weeks in release, the other being Gran Torrino (2008).   Scaring up another $22M, the film played on 1,956 screens and brought its cumulative total up to $62.4M.

Despite playing on over 1,000 more screens than Paranormal, Saw VI brought in only $14.8M for second place.  This is the worst opening weekend for the franchise since the original Saw.

Where the Wild Things Are had a fairly steep dropoff of 55.9% from its opening week, which indicates few repeat attendees, and less than stellar word of mouth.  Still, it made $14.4 bringing its cumulative total to $53.9M for its first two weeks.

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The new biopic Amelia stars two-time Oscar winner Hilary Swank as the aviation pioneer Amelia Earhart. Often remembered more for her mysterious disappearance than her aerial accomplishments, the new movie tries to steer focus back to her highly publicized, if short lived career as a professional female pilot. Only eight years after the Nineteenth Amendment granted women the right to vote, Earhart burst onto the public radar in 1928 by being the first women to fly across the Atlantic Ocean, becoming an instant celebrity. Just nine years later, on July 2, 1937 while attempting to circumnavigate the globe, her plane disappeared over the Pacific Ocean, giving birth to several theories and myths regarding her death.

Directed by Mira Nair (Salaam Bombay!, Monsoon Wedding, The Namesake) Amelia is a visual feast, as expected by a director that seems to delight in filming rich colors and textures—the only thing Vanity Fair had going for it was the exquisite Indian-influenced production design, while Monsoon Wedding, a personal favorite, burst with it’s saturated color choices. What impressed me the most was the aerial footage, vast and luscious and beautifully shot, they transported the audience and inviting us to experience the wonder and infatuation Earhart must have felt while in the cockpit.

Watching the film, you GET why Earhart risked her life and spent a fortune financing her voyages. At a time when women were barely able to work outside of the home, she was sailing through the sky (phenomenon that is viewed more as a tedious hassle by modern day travelers, than the improbable feat it actually is) and accomplishing feats that only a few men had successfully done before her.

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