'G.I. Joe' blasts competition for box office top spot
AFP
LOS ANGELES- "G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra," a movie adaptation of the popular toy franchise, stormed its way to the top of the North American box office on Sunday, according to initial weekend figures.
"G.I. Joe," which follows a group of elite operatives battling the mysterious Cobra organization, pulled in 56.2 million dollars over the weekend, according to box office tracker Exhibitor Relations.
In second place was "Julie and Julia," a movie that tells the story of Julia Child, an American famed for cooking French cuisine, and Julie Powell, a woman who tries to cook a recipe a day from Child's most famous cookbook for one year.
Staying at third place for a second week was "G-Force," an action-comedy about a crack squad of guinea pig spies, which earned 9.8 million dollars.
Down two places to number four in its fourth week in theaters was "Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince."
The sixth installment of the franchise, which sets the stage for the boy wizard's final confrontation with his arch-nemesis Lord Voldemort, took 8.9 million dollars in receipts.
Down from first place last week was "Funny People," a comedy starring Adam Sandler as a terminally-ill famous comedian who decides to mentor a young comic, which took fifth place with earnings of 7.9 million in its second week in theaters.
"The Ugly Truth," a romantic comedy starring Katherine Heigl as a romantically-challenged producer seeking love, took the number six spot, earning seven million dollars.
At seventh place was new release "A Perfect Getaway," a thriller about a serial killer on a Hawaii island popular with honeymooners, which took in 5.8 million dollars.
"Aliens in the Attic," a family adventure tale about a group of children who discover aliens that are trying to invade Earth, fell to the number eight spot, earning four million dollars over the weekend.
At number nine was "Orphan," a horror movie about a couple who discover the Russian orphan girl they have adopted is not who she seems, which took in 3.73 million dollars in its third week in theaters.
Rounding at the top ten was "(500) Days of Summer," an offbeat romantic movie that moved up two spots in its fourth week in theaters to make it into the top ten with earnings of 3.72 million dollars this weekend.
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