Universal's The Bourne Ultimatum once again set the pace at the international box office this weekend, grossing an estimated $13m from 4,269 dates in 48 territories.
The marketplace's only new entrant, Sony's Resident Evil: Extinction, opened in Mexico day-and-date with its chart-topping domestic launch and came in number one with an estimated $2.2m from 350 screens.
Over a typically slow early autumn weekend, the third installment of the Bourne spy thriller franchise led the international pack for the third consecutive time (and for the fifth time out of the last six weekends). Its international total reached $144m, with 11 territories, including Italy and China, still to open.
Universal Pictures International (UPI) reported number one openings in India, Portugal and Turkey and number one holdovers in markets including France and Germany.
France produced an estimated $2.2m (off 40%) from 468 dates, for a 12-day total of $7.1m (already better than the final French tally for 2002's The Bourne Identity and close to passing the total for 2004's The Bourne Supremacy).
Germany delivered a third-weekend take of $1.7m (off 31%) from 669 dates, for a territory total of $10.9m.
In Korea, the film grossed an estimated $2.6m from 276 dates, off just 25% for an 11-day total of $6.9m. In the UK it took $1.2m from 306 dates, off 16% for a 40-day total of $44.4m, and in Mexico it pulled in $565,000 from 354 dates, off 29% for a 17-day total of $3.9m.
Fox International's The Simpsons was Bourne's closest pursuer, taking an estimated $6m from around 2,000 screens in 20 territories.
Most of that take came from Italy, where the animated comedy grossed $5.3m from 706 screens, for a local two-week total of $18m.
The overall international total for the TV spin-off now stands at $332.1m.
UPI's I Now Pronounce You Chuck And Larry expanded to take an estimated $5.5m from 1,778 dates in 30 territories, for an international total (with 21 markets still to open) of $27.4m.
The Adam Sandler comedy opened at number three in the UK with $2.2m from 408 dates and at number two in Singapore with $285,000 from 27 dates.
It took $812,000 from 260 dates in Spain, for a 10-day total of $2.1m, and $210,000 from 93 dates in Italy, for a 17-day total of $1.9m.
Superbad, from Sony Pictures Releasing International (SPRI), also expanded profitably, grossing an estimated $ 5.1m from 1,060 screens in eight markets (for a $10m international total to date).
The high school sex comedy debuted in Australia with $1.7m from 230 screens (making it either number one or number two in the territory) and in Italy with $420,000 from 250.
In the UK it slipped 24% in its second weekend to take $2.3m (for a $7m territory total).
No Reservations , from Warner Bros Pictures International (WBPI), completed the top five with an estimated $4.6m from 592 prints in 50 markets, bringing film's international total to $30.7m.
In Spain, the romantic comedy opened at number one with $1.5m (188,000 admissions) from 298 prints.
Second weekend holdover takes included $650,000 (down 22%) from 427 prints in Germany; $347,000 (down 41%) from 190 screens in Italy; and $487,000 (down 31%) from 247 prints in France.
Buena Vista International's Ratatouille took an estimated $4m over the weekend, from 2,659 theatres in 32 countries, for an international total to date of $215.5m.
The animated tale opened at number one in South Africa, with $260,000 from 80 screens, matching the opening in that territory of The Incredibles and falling just short of the debut number for Cars.
The Paris-set film continued its impressive run in France, coming in fourth in its eighth weekend with $1.3m from 736 theatres. With $55.6m from the territory so far, Ratatouille currently stands as 2007's top earner in France.
In Australia, the film took $825,000 from 260 screens in its third weekend. Total for the territory to date is $6.3m and Buena Vista is hoping to boost that tally over the imminent school holiday.
Disturbia grossed $3m from 1,774 locations across 58 territories, according to estimates from Paramount Pictures International (PPI), pushing the thriller's international total to $32m.
The film opened in Germany with $806,000 from 291 locations and in Spain with $547,000 from 202 screens.
PPI's Shrek the Third took an estimated $3m from 1,364 locations across 64 territories, bringing its international total to $463.4m.
The distributor's A Mighty Heart grossed an estimated $1.7m from 732 locations across 12 territories, with an opening in France producing $634,000 from 198 locations and a debut in the UK $284,000 from 157.
Stardust took an estimated $1.7m for PPI from 655 screens across 10 territories (for an international total to date of $20m). The film's launch in Australia produced $887,000 from 191 locations.
And PPI's Transformers grossed an estimated $547,000 from 820 screens across 63 territories, for a $382m international total.
Fox International's Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer opened in second place in Japan, taking an estimated $2.1m from 542 screens. That was slightly ahead, in local currency, of the original Fantastic Four.
Overall, the sequel grossed $2.2m from around 600 screens in four territories, edging its international total up to $145.6m.
Fox's 28 Weeks Later opened with $1m from 248 screens in France, producing a weekend tally of $1.9m from around 700 screens in 15 territories and a running international total of $31.7m.
And the studio's Day Watch grossed an estimated $1.2m from 510 screens in ten territories. The Russian acquisition entered the German market with $320,000 from 253 screens and hit Spain with $682,000 from 250.
UPI's Atonement grossed $2.8m from 598 dates in just two markets.
In the UK it took an estimated $2.4m (off 14%) from 420 dates, for a 17-day total of $13.4m. The film was beaten to the top of the UK box-office, however, by Entertainment'sRun, Fat Boy, Run.
Atonement opened in Italy with $410,000 from 178 dates.
UPI's Evan Almighty grossed $2.4m from 1,472 dates in 36 territories and raised its international total to $57m.
Australia produced a third-place opening with $1.3m from 231 dates and Taiwan delivered a number two debut with $285,000 from 55 dates.
The distributor's Knocked Up grossed $2m from 1,231 dates in 24 territories. The comedy, whose international total stands at $51.6m, opened at number four in Brazil with $205,000 from 80 dates.
In addition to the figures for Resident Evil: Extinction and Superbad, SPRI also reported a $2.3m estimate, from 2,245 screens in 38 markets, for Surf's Up (international total $46.1m).
And WBPI said Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix brought in an estimated $1.2m from over 2,600 prints in 46 territories, bringing the blockbuster sequel's international total to date to $641.7m.
Warner's Ocean's Thirteen generated an estimated $386,000 from 450 prints in 16 markets, for an international total to date of $193.1m.
Lionsgate's War took an estimated $830,000 from 16 territories, pushing its international total to $7.3m.
No comments yet