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Documentary box office · May 2009

Documentary Box Office, May 2009: Top-Grossing Releases

Burma VJ: Reporter i et lukket land (2009) is the highest-grossing documentary movie released in May 2009, with $127.1K worldwide, ahead of The Boys: The Sherman Brothers' Story (2009) at $55.5K and Orgasm Inc. (2009) at $49K. 7 documentary films released in May 2009 report a worldwide gross, $330K in all, 72% of it from the US & Canada. By language, English leads with $285.2K across 6 documentary releases.

May 2009 releases with a gross
7
combined worldwide
$330K
Burma VJ: Reporter i et lukket land (2009), the #1
$127.1K
earned in the US & Canada
72%
Top 5

What Were the Biggest Documentary Hits of May 2009?

Burma VJ: Reporter i et lukket land (2009) leads with $127.1K, 39% of the total. The top 5 together took $296.5K, 90% of what all 7 films earned. Each bar splits a film's gross into the US & Canada and the rest of the world.

  1. Burma VJ: Reporter i et lukket land (2009) movie poster Number 1
    $127.1K Burma VJ: Reporter i et lukket land (2009)
    $51.7K US & Canada · 41% $75.4K elsewhere · 59%
  2. The Boys: The Sherman Brothers' Story (2009) movie poster Number 2
    $55.5K The Boys: The Sherman Brothers' Story (2009)
    $55.5K US & Canada · 100% elsewhere · 0%
  3. Orgasm Inc. (2009) movie poster Number 3
    $49K Orgasm Inc. (2009)
    $49K US & Canada · 100% elsewhere · 0%
  4. Pressure Cooker (2009) movie poster Number 4
    $44.8K Pressure Cooker (2009)
    $44.8K US & Canada · 100% elsewhere · 0%
  5. A Wink and a Smile (2009) movie poster Number 5
    $20.2K A Wink and a Smile (2009)
    $20.2K US & Canada · 100% elsewhere · 0%

US & Canada (domestic) Rest of the world

The chart

Every Documentary Release of May 2009, Ranked by Worldwide Gross

Lifetime worldwide grosses in US dollars, not adjusted for inflation; domestic means the US & Canada. Films are grouped by their release date in May 2009.

  1. 1 Burma VJ: Reporter i et lukket land (2009) movie poster
    Burma VJ: Reporter i et lukket land (2009) May 20, 2009 · English · History, Thriller, Crime $127.1K worldwide
    May 20, 2009 US and Canada: $51.7K Rest of the world: $75.4K Worldwide: $127.1K
  2. 2 The Boys: The Sherman Brothers' Story (2009) movie poster
    The Boys: The Sherman Brothers' Story (2009) May 22, 2009 · English · Documentary $55.5K worldwide
    May 22, 2009 US and Canada: $55.5K Rest of the world: Worldwide: $55.5K
  3. 3 Orgasm Inc. (2009) movie poster
    Orgasm Inc. (2009) May 2, 2009 · English · Documentary $49K worldwide
    May 2, 2009 US and Canada: $49K Rest of the world: Worldwide: $49K
  4. 4 Pressure Cooker (2009) movie poster
    Pressure Cooker (2009) May 27, 2009 · Telugu · Documentary $44.8K worldwide
    May 27, 2009 US and Canada: $44.8K Rest of the world: Worldwide: $44.8K
  5. 5 A Wink and a Smile (2009) movie poster
    A Wink and a Smile (2009) May 1, 2009 · English · Documentary $20.2K worldwide
    May 1, 2009 US and Canada: $20.2K Rest of the world: Worldwide: $20.2K
  6. 6 Great Directors (2009) movie poster
    Great Directors (2009) May 19, 2009 · English · Documentary $17.9K worldwide
    May 19, 2009 US and Canada: $17.9K Rest of the world: Worldwide: $17.9K
  7. 7 Facing Ali (2009) movie poster
    Facing Ali (2009) May 29, 2009 · English · Documentary $15.5K worldwide
    May 29, 2009 US and Canada: – Rest of the world: – Worldwide: $15.5K
US & Canada vs the world

Where Did the Money Come From in May 2009?

Of the top 7, The Boys: The Sherman Brothers' Story (2009) earned the biggest share at home (100% in the US & Canada), while Burma VJ: Reporter i et lukket land (2009) made 59% of its gross abroad. Across all 7 films, $239.1K (72%) came from the US & Canada. 1 film of the top 7 reports no US & Canada figure.

  1. 1 Burma VJ: Reporter i et lukket land (2009) $127.1K
    $51.7K US & Canada · 41% $75.4K elsewhere · 59%
  2. 2 The Boys: The Sherman Brothers' Story (2009) $55.5K
    $55.5K US & Canada · 100% elsewhere · 0%
  3. 3 Orgasm Inc. (2009) $49K
    $49K US & Canada · 100% elsewhere · 0%
  4. 4 Pressure Cooker (2009) $44.8K
    $44.8K US & Canada · 100% elsewhere · 0%
  5. 5 A Wink and a Smile (2009) $20.2K
    $20.2K US & Canada · 100% elsewhere · 0%
  6. 6 Great Directors (2009) $17.9K
    $17.9K US & Canada · 100% elsewhere · 0%
  7. 7 Facing Ali (2009) $15.5K
    No US & Canada figure reported
By release week

Which Week of May 2009 Had the Biggest Releases?

Films released in week 21 (May 17–23) took $200.5K, led by Burma VJ: Reporter i et lukket land (2009). Each column links to that week's chart; weeks are Sunday to Saturday.

  1. Week 18 Wk 18 Apr 26–May 2 Orgasm Inc. (2009) $69.2K Orgasm Inc. (2009)
  2. Week 19 Wk 19 May 3–9 No reported grosses – No reported grosses
  3. Week 20 Wk 20 May 10–16 No reported grosses – No reported grosses
  4. Week 21 Wk 21 May 17–23 Burma VJ: Reporter i et lukket land (2009) $200.5K Burma VJ: Reporter i et lukket land (2009)
  5. Week 22 Wk 22 May 24–30 Pressure Cooker (2009) $60.3K Pressure Cooker (2009)
  6. Week 23 Wk 23 May 31–Jun 6 No reported grosses – No reported grosses
Earlier years

How Does May 2009 Compare With May in Earlier Years?

Of these 10 years, May 2006 earned the most: $51.8M from 5 films, led by An Inconvenient Truth (2006). May 2009 took $330K.

Month Films Worldwide Change Biggest film
May 2000 4 films 4 $21.7M – Michael Jordan to the Max (2000) $21.5M
May 2001 4 films · −90% 4 $2.2M −90% Startup.com (2001) $1.8M
May 2002 5 films · +163% 5 $5.7M +163% Ultimate X: The Movie (2002) $4.8M
May 2003 6 films · −14% 6 $4.9M −14% Capturing the Friedmans (2003) $4.1M
May 2004 8 films · +396% 8 $24.4M +396% Super Size Me (2004) $20.6M
May 2005 10 films · −48% 10 $12.8M −48% Mad Hot Ballroom (2005) $9.1M
May 2006 5 films · +304% 5 $51.8M +304% An Inconvenient Truth (2006) $49.8M
May 2007 11 films · −97% 11 $1.7M −97% Prinzessinnenbad (2007) $741.8K
May 2008 7 films · −5% 7 $1.6M −5% Maradona by Kusturica (2008) $684.2K
May 2009 7 films · −79% 7 $330K −79% Burma VJ: Reporter i et lukket land (2009) $127.1K
Archive

Documentary Box Office in 2009, Month by Month

The months of 2009 with their totals: October leads with $280.3M, led by This Is It (2009).

FAQ

Documentary Box Office May 2009: Questions & Answers

The chart's numbers in short: the #1 film, the total, the billion-dollar hits and the US & Canada share, answered from the same 7 films as the chart.

What is the highest-grossing documentary movie in May 2009?

Burma VJ: Reporter i et lukket land (2009) leads with $127.1K worldwide, $51.7K of it in the US & Canada. Next come The Boys: The Sherman Brothers' Story (2009) at $55.5K and Orgasm Inc. (2009) at $49K.

How much did documentary movies released in May 2009 earn?

7 documentary films released in May 2009 report a worldwide gross, $330K in all, or $47.1K per film on average.

How many documentary movies released in May 2009 made $1 billion?

None. The biggest, Burma VJ: Reporter i et lukket land (2009), earned $127.1K.

How much of the May 2009 Documentary box office came from the US and Canada?

$239.1K of the $330K total, or 72%, was earned in the US & Canada (the domestic market); the rest came from other countries. 1 film of the 7 report no domestic figure.

How is the May 2009 documentary box office chart ranked and where do the numbers come from?

Films are ranked by lifetime worldwide gross in US dollars, not adjusted for inflation, and grouped by their release date in May 2009. The figures are the reported box office grosses in our database. A gross that looks misattributed, such as one figure shared by two unrelated films or a blockbuster total on an obscure title, is left out rather than shown as a fact.

How often is the May 2009 documentary box office chart updated?

Grosses change while films are in theaters and whenever a new figure is reported; this chart reads the latest numbers in our database, so an older film can still move after a re-release.