"Citizenfour" Edward Snowden doc year’s biggest opening for non-fiction

PanARMENIAN.Net - "Citizenfour", a documentary about NSA whistleblower Edward Snowden, could have the year's biggest opening for a non-fiction. It grossed $125,127 after opening in just five theaters over the weekend, averaging slightly over $25,000 per-screen, AceShowbiz said.

"It's an incredibly intelligent and thoughtful and persuasive overview of what's happening in government, in the halls of the NSA and within our own pursuit of liberty," said Tom Quinn, co-president of the film's distributor, Radius-TWC, adding "It's living, breathing history. It would be as if Woodward and Bernstein had a camera when they were talking to 'Deep Throat'."

The documentary is the third in a trilogy of Laura Poitras' films on national security. She previously directed "My Country, My Country" and "The Oath", the former which was nominated for an Oscar. The doc had its premiere at the New York Film Festival earlier this month to rave reviews. It will expand to about 14 theaters next week, hitting such cities as Boston, Seattle, Philadelphia and Chicago.

"[We had] sell-out crowds, multiple standing ovations and exceptional numbers," said RADiUS co-president Tom Quinn. "It was a truncated release, opening just two weeks after its world premiere at the New York Film Festival. You always hope for the best and that people come out. It's terrific."

Until this weekend, this year's highest-grossing documentary to date was "America: Imagine the World Without Her". Opening in June in three theaters, the Dinesh D'Souza-directed doc took in a $38,608 gross and went on taking $14.4 million in cume.

Meanwhile, the overall record is tough to crack. "You have to go back to Waiting for Superman in 2010 to find a bigger [documentary] opening," said Quinn of the Davis Guggenheim doc that grossed just over $139,000 in four theaters for a $34,758 average.