Not one, but two local films finally ended Beauty and the Beast’s seven-week streak at the Japan box office.

Crime thriller Memoirs of a Murderer (22年目の告白―私が殺人犯です―) opened at number one, earning ¥321 million (US$2.91 million) from 233,000 admissions over its first two days of release.

Distributed by Warner Brothers Japan and directed by Yu Irie, the crime thriller is a remake of the South Korean film Confession of Murder (내가 살인범이다). Tatsuya Fujiwara stars as a serial killer who publishes a book about his crimes right after the stature of limitation expire. Hideaki Ito co-stars as the obsessive detective who has been investigating the case for 22 years.

Hirugao – Love Affairs in the Afternoon (昼顔) opened in second place, earning ¥294 million (US$2.67 million) from 210,000 admissions over its first two days on release. The film, which had its world premiere at the Udine Far East Film Festival in April, is the continuation of the hit television series. Aya Ueto and Takumi Saito reprise their roles as a couple rekindling their affair several years after the events of the TV series. According to local reports, women made up over 80% of the audiences over opening weekend.

The romantic drama is expected to be screened at the Shanghai International Film Festival this weekend with the stars in attendance.

With a week-on-week drop of only 5.4%, Beauty and the Beast dropped to third place, earning ¥288 million (US$2.62 million) on Saturday and Sunday. The Walt Disney fantasy romance has now earned ¥11 billion (US$100.2 million), becoming the 25th highest grossing film of all time in Japan.

Opening in just 56 locations, King of Prism – Pride the Hero managed to open in seventh place. However, box office Rentrak, did not make numbers available.

Logan dropped to fourth place in its second weekend, earning an additional ¥88.8 million (US$807,000) on Saturday and Sunday. The gritty superhero drama has made ¥502 million (US$4.56 million).

Takashi Shimizu’s Innocent Curse (こどもつかい), King Arthur: Legend of the Sword and Nobuhiro Yamashita’s Yamada Takayuki in 3D (映画 山田孝之3D) open this weekend.