It sure sounds strange, but it's true.

February '09 was indeed the highest grossing month ever in North America, according to Brandon Gray at Box Office Mojo.

Gray says the total gross for the month came in at about $770 million, which is indeed quite impressive, especially considering the weak quality of new releases.

One of the top players was Pierre Morel's entertaining thriller "Taken," which opened at the end of January but has been delivering strong performances at the box office over the past weeks. The film's current total stands at $118 million.

Other films contributing to the month's success were "He's Just Not That Into You," "Madea Goes to Jail" and "Coraline."

Of course, some major January releases continued to earn big in February, including "Gran Torino" and "Paul Blart: Mall Cop."

Yep, most of the February films certainly sucked, but they sure managed to pull large audiences. How about that...

Note: As Gray points out, when the results are adjusted for inflation of ticket prices, February '09 ties with February '04.