America Surrenders to New, Walletsucking Vampire Breed

It was the weekend that US moviegoers gave blood whether they wanted to or not; take a moment, relax and recover with us as we comb through the Monday arvo US Box Office:

1. Twilight – $US70.6 million
Multiplex chains were forced to summon crisis counselors after Twilight’s $US33 million opening day, the screeching tween torment of which rang in shellshocked staffers’ ears even as grosses slowed into the weekend. Meanwhile at Summit Entertainment — the indie that bankrolled the the teen-vampire-romance phenomenon — execs are assembling one of the nicest fruit baskets ever to send to Warner Bros., whose bumping of Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince from Nov. 21 to next year gave Twilight a green light to plunder at will.

2. Quantum of Solace – $US27.4 million
The 007 thriller plunged 60% from its record-breaking opening a week ago, once again triggering Broody Bond’s thirst for revenge that will be explored in the series’ stake-wielding 2011 installment, Message For Twilight.

3. Bolt – $US27 million
Disney’s 3-D canine pseudohero took a massive dump on its owner’s carpet over the weekend, underperforming by at least $US10 million below expectations. After a stern talking to, the pooch is expected to behave a little better for the studio’s Thankgsiving guests; another mess like this and it’s straight to the shelter.

4. Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa – $US16 million
On the other hand, runaway zoo animals never require discipline from their masters at DreamWorks Animation, though Madagascar’s own 54% drop was unusual for a famliy film, even one featuring the giraffe-voicing talents of David Schwimmer.

5. Role Models – $US7.2 million
David Wain’s bid for mainstream success has apparently been accepted by, well, the mainstream, with his R-rated mentoring comedy grossing $US48 million to date. Congratulations, David!