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'Straight Outta Compton' tops box office again, 'We Are Your Friends' doesn't find many

'Compton' taking first place three weeks in a row echoes the success of such action-oriented films as 'Jurassic World' and 'The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 1.' Meanwhile, the new film 'War Room,' which centers on a couple trying to work on their marriage through prayer, came in second.

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Jaimie Trueblood/Universal Pictures/AP
'Straight Outta Compton' stars Corey Hawkins.

The film “Straight Outta Compton,” which chronicles the formation of the influential rap group N.W.A., came in first at the box office for the third week running. 

“Compton” took in more than $13 million domestically to take first place again. 

The new movie “War Room,” which centers on a couple struggling with their marriage but who are helped through prayer, also did very respectably, coming in close behind “Compton” to take second place. “War Room” grossed $11 million. 

The new release “We Are Your Friends,” which stars Zac Efron as a member of the electronic dance music scene, did not succeed this weekend, grossing only a little less than $2 million. That didn’t allow the movie to even crack the top 10.

Behind “War” was “Mission: Impossible – Rogue Nation,” which came in third place with more than $8 million, and the new thriller “No Escape,” which also grossed more than $8 million. “Sinister 2” came in fifth with more than $4 million.

“Compton” taking first place at the box office three weekends in a row echoes the success of “Jurassic World,” which did the same earlier this summer. Further back, “Captain America: The Winter Soldier” did the same in 2014, as did 2014’s “The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies,” which was the final chapter in the “Hobbit” trilogy. “The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 1” also managed the feat the same year. All those movies are notably different from “Compton,” with all being action-oriented and, with the exception of “Jurassic,” based off a literary source, either a book or comic book. “(The “Jurassic” film series was initially based on the book by Michael Crichton.) The amount these movies grossed is, of course, different – for example, while "Compton" took in more than $13 million domestically this week, "Jurassic" took in more than $54 million in its third week on top of the box office.

Meanwhile, the success of “War” echoes the respectable box office performance of previous movies by “War” director Alex Kendrick. His films “Courageous” and “Fireproof,” which were released in 2011 and 2008, respectively, also had Christian themes and did well financially considering their budgets. 

However, “We Are Your Friends” now ranks among some of the worst box office openings of all time. Critics weren’t enamored with the film and moviegoers may have just been unaware of the release of the EDM film or been uninterested.

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