"Vantage Point" makes clean sweep of video charts

By Thomas K. Arnold

LOS ANGELES (Hollywood Reporter) - Call it shrewd marketing: A film about the shooting of a U.S. president is released on home video just before the Fourth of July, in a presidential election year, no less.

The ploy worked: "Vantage Point" coasted to an easy victory on all three home video charts during the week ending July 6. The Sony release, starring Dennis Quaid and Matthew Fox, even beat a pair of high-profile comedies to clinch the No. 1 spot on the Nielsen VideoScan sales chart.

"Vantage Point," with a box office gross of $72.3 million, also was the week's No. 1 renter and Blu-ray Disc seller in its first week in stores.

On the DVD sales front, the latest Tyler Perry comedy "Meet the Browns" ($42 million at the box office) came in at No. 2, while another comedy, "Drillbit Taylor" ($32.9 million), debuted at No. 5. It trailed "10,000 BC" and "The Spiderwick Chronicles," the two top sellers the previous week.

On Home Media Magazine's rental chart, "Drillbit" debuted at No. 2, and "Meet the Browns" at No. 6.

"Vantage Point" also replaced "10,000 BC" as the top Blu-ray seller of the week, with "Drillbit" debuting at No. 6 and "Browns" at No. 8.

Reuters/Hollywood Reporter