of Sicko was held in London, Ontario (where some scenes from the movie were filmed), at the Silver City movie theatre at Masonville Place on June 8, 2007, with Moore in attendance. It also had an early première in Washington DC. on June 20, two days before its U.S. release, with Moore appearing at a Capitol Hill press conference to promote the film. The European première was held in Great Britain on October 24, 2007, at the Odeon Leicester Square as part of the 51st London Film Festival. Moore was to introduce the film, but remained in the United States due to a 'family issue', sending a lengthy letter to be read in his absence. Part of the letter gave thanks to the Rt Hon. Tony Benn, featured in the film, who delivered a short speech before the showing. Box office Made on a budget of $9 million, Sicko earned $4.5 million on its opening weekend. In 441 theaters, it took in an average of $10,204 per theater, the second-highest average gross of the weekend. As of February 24, 2008, Sicko has grossed $25 million in the United States and $11 million in foreign markets. Overall, the movie has made over $36 million. The film was also a huge success in DVD sales, in which it accumulated over $60 million in sales. Critical reaction According to the review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, the film boasts a 92% positive rating, based on 218 reviews, with an average rating of 7.71/10. The website's critical consensus reads, "Driven by Michael Moore's sincere humanism, Sicko is a devastating, convincing, and very entertaining documentary about the state of America's health care." Metacritic reported the film had an average score of 74 out of 100, based on 39 reviews, indicating "generally favorable reviews". After its Cannes release, Variety described Sicko as "an affecting and entertaining dissection of the American health care industry". In an early review a week before the premiere, Richard Roeper and Michael Phillips gave the film two thumbs up. Roger Friedman of Fox News called the film a "brilliant and uplifting new film" and praised Moore for the way in which he lets "very articulate average Americans tell their personal horror stories at the hands of insurance companies" and "criticizes both Democrats and Republicans for their inaction and in some cases their willingness to be bribed by pharmaceutical companies and insurance carriers." British film