By Franck Tabouring
Weekend of December 5 – 7, 2008

“Four Christmases” topped the North American box office for the second consecutive weekend with $18.1 million in ticket sales, according to studio estimates Sunday.

Seth Gordon’s holiday comedy starring Vince Vaughn and Reese Witherspoon easily dominated its competition, lifting its domestic total to $70.8 million. In the film, a San Francisco couple pays a visit to all four of their divorced parents.

This week’s new releases weren’t that lucky, with Lexi Alexander’s “Punisher: War Zone” delivering the best result at No. 8 with $4 million. New entry “Cadillac Records” closely followed in ninth place with only $3.5 million.

As for “Nobel Son,” the third wide release this weekend, it only finished at No. 15 with a disappointing $371,000. Directed by Randall Miller, the film focuses on a student (Bryan Greenberg) who’s kidnapped on the eve of his father (Alan Rickman) receiving the Nobel Prize.

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By Franck Tabouring
Weekend of November 28 – 30, 2008

Seth Gordon’s holiday comedy “Four Christmases” topped the North American box office this weekend with $31.6 million in ticket sales, according to studio estimates Sunday.

Starring Vince Vaughn and Reese Witherspoon as a couple paying a visit to all four of their divorced parents on Christmas Day, the film lifted its domestic total to $46.7 million after only five days in release.

Jumping to No. 2 this weekend was Walt Disney’s “Bolt,” which collected another $26.5 million and brought its cumulative to $66.8 million. Featuring the voices of John Travolta and Miley Cyrus, the family adventure follows a dog who believes he has superpowers until he realizes he’s merely the star of a popular TV show.

At No. 3, Catherine Hardwicke’s vampire romance “Twilight” took home $26.3 million, reaching an impressive total haul of $119.6 million after a two-week run. With Robert Pattinson and Kristen Stewart in the lead roles, the movie focuses on a teenage girl falling in love with a friendly vampire.

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By Franck Tabouring
Weekend of November 21 – 23, 2008

Summit Entertainment’s “Twilight” stormed to the top of the North American box office this weekend with a whopping $70 million in ticket sales, according to studio estimates Sunday.

Catherine Hardwicke’s adaptation of the popular Stephenie Meyer novel started its path to box office glory early this weekend when it collected $7 million from midnight screenings. The vampire romance ended up beating studio expectations, prompting Summit to quickly green-light a sequel.

At No. 2, Marc Forster’s “Quantum of Solace” delivered another strong result, collecting $27.4 million to reach a total haul of $109.4 million after only two weeks in release. The 22nd official James Bond adventure is now $58 million away from topping the cumulative gross of its predecessor, “Casino Royale.”

Debuting in third place with $27 million was Walt Disney’s latest animated family film “Bolt,” which follows the story of a dog who believes he has superpowers until he realizes he’s just the star of a popular TV show. The movie’s voice cast includes John Travolta and Miley Cyrus.

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By Franck Tabouring
Weekend of November 14 – 16, 2008

“Quantum of Solace” crushed its competition at the North American box office this weekend with a whopping $70.4 million in ticket sales, according to studio estimates Sunday.

Marc Forster’s 22nd official James Bond adventure scored the best opening for a Bond movie ever, beating the opening weekend gross of predecessor “Casino Royale” by $29.6 million. That currently makes “Solace” the worldwide box office leader.

Last week’s winner “Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa” slipped to No. 2, earning an impressive $36.1 million to reach a domestic total of $118 million after only two weeks in release. The sequel to the 2005 hit features the voices of Ben Stiller, Jada Pinkett Smith, Chris Rock and David Schwimmer.

At No. 3, David Wain’s comedy “Role Models” picked up another $11.7 million, lifting its total haul to $38.1 million after a solid two-week run. Starring Seann William Scott and Paul Rudd, this R-rated comedy follows two co-workers who join a program that encourages adults to spend some time with lonely kids.

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By Franck Tabouring
Weekend of November 7 – 9, 2008

DreamWorks Animation’s “Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa” dominated the North American box office this weekend with a stunning $63.5 million in ticket sales, according to studio estimates Sunday.

Eric Darnell and Tom McGrath’s sequel to the 2005 hit family flick raced to the top spot early on, beating its predecessor’s opening weekend gross by $16.3 million. In the film New York zoo animals Alex, Marty, Gloria and Melman try to fly back home but accidentally end up somewhere in Africa.

Debuting in second place with a surprising $19.2 million was David Wain’s R-Rated comedy “Role Models.” Starring Paul Rudd and Seann William Scott, the film focuses on two co-workers who are ordered to spend some quality time with two lonely kids.

At No. 3, Disney’s “High School Musical 3: Senior Year” collected another $9.2 million, lifting its domestic total to $75.7 million after three weeks in release. Following closely at No. 4 was Clint Eastwood’s "Changeling,” which reaches a total haul of $20.5 million after this weekend’s earnings of $7.2 million.

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