Japan Box Office Report – August 20th/21st

"Kung Fu Panda 2" / "Harry Potter 8" / "Transformers 3"

Nothing can stand in the way of the final move in the “Harry Potter” series and once again it claimed first place for the second week in a row (fifth time overall). It added another billion Yen to its revenue, adding the total up to 8 billion Yen (104 million USD).
A new movie made its way into the top three, DreamWorks‘ “Kung Fu Panda 2“. The sequel to the popular animated film grossed more than 200 million Yen (2.6 million USD) on its first weekend. With this result, Kung Fu Panda chopped “Transformers 3” back to third place.
After overtaking the “Pokémon” movie last weekend, Studio Ghibli’s “Kokuriko-zaka Kara” continued to climb up the box office chart and actually reached fourth place this weekend. It also finally broke through the 3 billion Yen mark (39 million USD).
Two new entries made it on the seventh and eight spots respectively. The interesting “Shanghai“, starring John Cusack, Gong Li, Chow Yun-fat, and Watanabe Ken, grossed more than 100 million Yen (1.3 million USD).
The cute and touching “Usagi Drop“, starring Matsuyama Kenichi and popular child actress Ashida Mana, also grossed slightly more than 100 million Yen. Mostly fans of the manga, especially women, and couples went to see this movie on its opening weekend. Ashida might already be a miracle on the small screen, but she has yet to prove herself on the big screen. Fortunately she still has plenty of time before becoming the star of a 5 billion Yen box office seller.
Check out the trailers of the new Japanese movies below the ranking!
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	Rank/Last		Title	Weeks
	01 (01)		Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 2	06
	02 (00)		Kung Fu Panda 2	01
	03 (02)		Transformers: Dark of the Moon	04
	04 (05)		Kokuriko-zaka Kara	06
	05 (04)		Kamen Rider OOO Wonderful the Movie: The Shogun and the 21 Core Medals	03
	06 (06)		Pocket Monsters Best Wishes! The Movie Victini and the Black Hero: Zekrom / Victini and the White Hero: Reshiram	06
	07 (03)		Cars 2	04
	08 (00)		Shanghai	01
	09 (00)		Usagi Drop	01
	10 (07)		The Tree of Life	02

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> “Usagi Drop” (Human Drama)
Cast: Matsuyama Kenichi, Ashida Mana, Karina, Kiritani Mirei, and more

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> “Takumi-kun Series: Ano, Hareta Aozora” (‘Boys Love’)
Cast: Hamao Kyosuke, Watanabe Daisuke, and more

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> “Nanatsu Made wa Kami no Uchi” (Suspense, Mystery)
Cast: Hinami Kyoko, Asuka Rin, Fujimoto Nanami, Kirishima Reika, and more

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> “Hakai Niso Yuki” (Low-Budget Action)
Cast: Matsuyama Yuki, Moriyama Riko, and more