Winning the weekend box office for the second week running, PAUL BLART: MALL COP earned $21.6M for Sony with a total cume of $64.9M.
Opener UNDERWORLD: RISE OF THE LYCANS (ScreenGems, vfx by Duran-Duboi, Luma Pictures, Intelligent Creaturs, Celluloid, Furious FX, Element, Foret Blue, Ntropic, Proof and Sub/Par) did $20.8M for second place.
Third went to Clint Eastwood's durable GRAN TORINO (vfx by Pacific Title and Art Studio, which made $16.2M for Warner Bros. in its seventh week out, for a total gross of $97.8M.
HOTEL FOR DOGS came in fourth with $12.86M (Paramount/DreamWorks, vfx by Animal Makers and Proof) and in two weeks has a cume of $37.5M.
Getting a big boost from its 10 Academy Award nominations, SLUMDOG MILLIONAIRE jumped from 10th to fifth place and made $10.7M, an 83 percent leap in ticket sales. Over 11 weeks, it has done $56.1M for Fox Searchlight.
Horror remake MY BLOODY VALENTINE 3-D placed sixth with $10.01M and has a two-week gross of $37.7M for Lionsgate. In the widest theatrical 3D film release to date, RealD, an outfitter of 3-D-enabled theatres, brought in 71 percent of the total box office for the film, which topped $27 million in its first week of release. Opening week 3-D screens outperformed 2-D screens 6:1.
Seventh place went to fantasy actioner INKHEART (Warner Bros./New Line) with $7.6M in its opening weekend. The Brendan Fraser-led film has vfx from Double Negative, Cinesite London, Peerless Camera Company, Rainmaker U.K., The Senate and Mattes and Miniatures.
Romantic comedy BRIDE WARS made $6.87M for Fox, good enough for eighth place. In three weeks the film has made $48.57M under stars Kate Hudson and Anne Hathaway.
Paramount's THE CURIOUS CASE OF BENJAMIN BUTTON stayed mostly stagnant in its fifth week out, despite 13 Oscar nods, making $6.09M. It did move back up into the top 10 with a ninth place finish. In five weeks, it has made $111.13M and has vfx by Asylum VFX, Digital Domain, Drac Studios, Evil Eye Pictures, Gentle Giant Studios, Hydraulx, Lola Visual Effects, Matte World Digital, Ollin Studio and Special Effects Atlantic.
And rounding out the top ten was Christopher "The Notorious B.I.G." Wallace's biopic NOTORIOUS with $5.8M and a two-week haul of $31.9M.
In animation, MADAGASCAR: ESCAPE 2 AFRICA (Paramount/DreamWorks Animation) made $509,443 and in 12 weeks has a cume of $178.85M. THE TALE OF DESPEREAUX brought in $288,540 and in six weeks has made $49.6M for Universal.
Disney's BOLT made another $182,603 and has a 10-week gross of $112.8M. Nominated for Best Foreign Film, WALTZ WITH BASHIR (Sony Pictures Classics) did $150,458, a 91 percent jump in ticket sales, and in five weeks has made $754,796. FLY ME TO THE MOON from Summit Ent. made $35,577 and $12.7M in 24 weeks.
Box office information from BoxOfficeMojo.com.
