Because no gaudy box-office numbers can be reported without mentioning how they broke some record nobody was keeping, it's apparently worth noting that Transformers enjoyed the best Independence Day opening ever by a non-sequel, bringing in $67.6 million over the weekend and $152.5 over the six-day frame (seven, if you include Monday previews). After stumbling with Pearl Harbor and The Island, director Michael Bay successfully returned to the big/loud/dumb formula that made him the star graduate of the Jerry Bruckheimer School Of Filmmaking and all that cash will no doubt allow him to snort the finest cocaine off the prettiest hooker's asses. Given the (mysteriously) positive notices the film has received from critics and audiences alike, the film looks to be the summer's biggest hit over the long haul.
The week's other big opening, the critically drubbed Robin Williams vehicle License To Wed, fared considerably worse over the same stretch, bringing in $10.4 million over the weekend and $17.8 million total. Werner Herzog's belated bid for mainstream respectability, Rescue Dawn, did well in limited release, bringing in a $17,000 per-screen-average on six screens. It will expand nationwide in short order.
More detailed numbers at Box Office Mojo.