Box Office Charts: w/e 10 October 2008

In the US: The top 10 makes for awful viewing this week! Talking dog movie "Beverly Hills Chihuahau" (ranked 2.8 on IMDb) somehow takes #1! Michael Cera comedy "Nick & Norah's Infinite Playlist" does well to reach #3... the resurgence of the Western may have been exaggerated, with"Appaloosa" (starring Viggo Mortensen) only managing#5 with a paltry $5m in its opening week... and there's no love for contentious documentaries and spoofs, as "An American Carol" (a right-wing attack on Michael Moore) flops in at #9, and comedian Bill Maher's skewering of religion, "Religulous", fares even worst at #10. Ouch.

US TOP 10

(-) 1. Beverly Hills Chihuahua $29.3m
(1) 2. Eagle Eye $17.7m
(-) 3. Nick & Norah's Infinite Playlist $11.3m
(2) 4. Nights In Rodanthe $7.37m
(-) 5. Appaloosa $5.05m
(3) 6. Lakeview Terrace $4.56m
(5) 7. Burn After Reading $4.12m
(4) 8. Fireproof $3.99m
(-) 9. An American Carol $3.66m
(-) 10. Religulous $3.41m

In the UK: It may have sank without a trace in the US (not even cracking the box-office top 10, despite co-starring hot property Megan Fox), but Simon Pegg's countrymen rally behind him and propel "How To Lose Friends & Alienate People" to #1... the other new releases all fair dismally, with "Brideshead Revisited" and CGI animation "Fly Me To The Moon" both with sub-£500k business at the bottom of the chart.

UK TOP 10

(-) 1. How To Lose Friends & Alienate People £1.1m
(2) 2. Taken £1.09m
(1) 3. Tropic Thunder £987k
(5) 4. Mamma Mia! £771k
(4) 5. Death Race £448k
(7) 6. The Boy In The Stripes Pyjamas £436k
(3) 7. Righteous Kill £422k
(-) 8. Brideshead Revisited £375k
(-) 9. Fly Me To The Moon £311k
(6) 10. The Women £265k

FILM OF THE WEEK
"THE HOUSE BUNNY"

Comedy. A playboy bunny is kicked out of Hugh Heffner's mansion and is taken in by a group of sorority girls.
Director: Fred Wolf Starring: Anna Faris, Rumer Willis, Katharine McPhee, Colin Hanks, Emma Stone, Kat Dennings & Dana Goodman
US Box Office: $48 million
Tomatometer: 39% (Rotten; based on 114 reviews) "Anna Faris is game, but she can't salvage this middling, formulaic comedy."

OTHER UK RELEASES

"City Of Ember"

Fantasy adventure. The power generator that brings light to people who now live underground begins to fail, so two teenagers must race against time to solve the problem.
Director: Gil Kenan Starring: Harry Treadaway, Tim Robbins, Bill Murrray, Toby Jones & Lucinda Dryzek
Tomatometer: 41% (Rotten; based on 44 reviews) "City of Ember is visually arresting, and boasts a superb cast, but is sadly lacking in both action and adventure."

"Mirrors"

Horror thriller. An ex-cop and his family are targeted by an evil force that uses mirrors to enter their home.
Director: Alexandre Aja Starring: Kiefer Sutherland, Amy Smart, Paula Patton, Cameron Boyce & Eric Gluck
US Box Office: $30 million
Tomatometer: 13% (Rotten; based on 67 reviews) "Inconsistency and listless plot make this K-horror remake a less-than-frightening time at the movies."

"The Mutant Chronicles"

Sci-Fi action. In the distant future, following an attack that turned most of the population into mutants, a group of survivors on Mars return to the planet.
Director: Simon Hunter Starring: Thomas Jane, Ron Perlman, John Malkovich, Devon Aoki & Sean Pertwee
Tomatometer: 18% (Rotten; based on 11 reviews) "Bad acting, poor CGI and clunky script mean this sci-fi thriller is lacking in all departments including the thrills."

"Nights In Rodanthe"

Romantic drama. A doctor travelling to see his estranged son finds himself drawn to an unhappily married woman.
Director: George C. Wolfe Starring: Diane Lane, Richard Gere, Christopher Meloni, Viola Davis, Becky Ann Baker & Scott Glenn
US Box Office: $27 million
Tomatometer: 30% (Rotten; based on 105 reviews) "Derivative and schmaltzy, Nicholas Sparks' Nights in Rodanthe is strongly mottled by contrivances that even the charisma of stars Diane Lane and Richard Gere can't repair."