By Franck Tabouring
Weekend of December 26 – 28, 2008

David Frankel’s family comedy “Marley & Me” raced to the top of the North American box office this weekend with $37 million in ticket sales, according to studio estimates Sunday.

Starring Owen Wilson and Jennifer Aniston as a couple struggling to keep their dog in check, the film lifted its domestic total to an impressive $51.6 million after only four days in release.

At No. 2, Adam Sandler’s latest comedy “Bedtime Stories” took home $28 million, reaching a cumulative gross of $38.5 million. The Adam Shankman-directed adventure follows a hotel handyman whose bedtime stories come true the next day.

Meanwhile, David Fincher’s acclaimed drama “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button” collected $27 million in third place, lifting its total gross to $39 million after a strong four-day run. In the film, Brad Pitt stars as a man who ages backwards.

Click to read more ...

David Frankel's family comedy "Marley & Me" remained at the top of the North American box office Friday with $14 million in ticket sales. The film's domestic total currently stands at $28.6 million after just two days in release.

At No. 2, David Fincher's "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button" took home another $10.2 million, lifting its total haul to $22 million. Starring Brad Pitt, the film follows the story of a man who ages backwards.

Following in third place with $9.8 million was Walt Disney's family adventure "Bedtime Stories," which reached a cumulative gross of $20.1 million. Meanwhile, Tom Cruise's WWII drama "Valkyrie" collected $8.1 million for a two-day total of $16.4 million.

Jim Carrey's latest comedy "Yes Man" held on to the No. 5 spot, pulling $5.9 million to reach a total gross of $39.1 million after one week in release.

As for "The Spirit," the week's other wide release, it only picked up $2.6 million at No. 9 Friday, lifting its two-day gross to $6.4 million.

Source: Box Office Mojo (www.boxofficemojo.com)

David Frankel's family comedy "Marley & Me" stormed to the top of the North American box office Christmas Day with an impressive $14.6 million in ticket sales. The film starring Owen Wilson and Jennifer Aniston debuted at 3,480 locations, easily knocking out its competition.

Debuting in second place with $11.7 million was David Fincher's acclaimed drama "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button," which Paramount released at 2,988 sites. Starring Brad Pitt, the film follows a man who ages backwards.

At No. 3, new entry "Bedtime Stories" collected $10.3 million. Directed by Adam Shankman, the film stars Adam Sandler as a hotel handyman whose life changes when the bedtime stories he tells his niece and nephew come true the next day.

Meanwhile, Tom Cruise's latest WWII drama "Valkyrie" picked up $8.3 million in fourth place. The film focuses on a group of soldiers plotting to assassinate Hitler. Following at No. 5 was "Yes Man," which took home $5.9 million and lifted its domestic total to $33.1 million after almost one week in release.

"The Spirit," this week's other wide release, only made it to No. 7 with a daily gross of $3.8 million.

Source: Box Office Mojo (www.boxofficemojo.com)