Mumble (voiced by Elijah Wood), Lovelace (voiced by Robin Williams) and the Amigos meet the Elephant seals in the movie 'Happy Feet'. - Contributed
LOS ANGELES (AP):
A dancing penguin was king of the Thanksgiving birds among movie-goers.
The animated penguin romp Happy Feet remained the number one movie over the Thanksgiving holiday with US$37.9 million from Friday to Sunday, while the James Bond adventure Casino Royale stayed in second place with US$31 million, according to studio estimates yesterday.
Fending off a rush of newcomers, Happy Feet, from Warner Bros., took in US$51.5 million Wednesday to Sunday, while Sony's Casino Royale did US$45.1 million.
Disney's thriller Déjà Vu, starring Denzel Washington as a police officer bouncing back in time to try to prevent a deadly ferry explosion, led new movies with US$20.8 million for the weekend and US$29 million since opening Wednesday.
The 20th Century Fox comedy Deck the Halls, with Matthew Broderick and Danny DeVito as neighbours feuding over excessive Christmas lights, debuted at number four with a US$12 million weekend and US$16.9 million since it premiered Wednesday.
It was a sturdy but unremarkable holiday weekend overall, with the top-12 movies taking in US$208.1 million from Wednesday to Sunday, down 3.4 per cent from last year, when Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire took in US$81 million to lead Hollywood to its second-best Thanksgiving ever. The best Thanksgiving period ever was in 2000, when the top-12 films grossed US$232.1 million.
A flurry of movies debuted or expanded from limited release, led by writer-director Emilio Estevez's Bobby, weaving the stories of 22 characters gathered at Los Angeles' Ambassador Hotel the night Robert Kennedy was assassinated in 1968.
Bobby, from MGM and the Weinstein Co., came in at number nine on the weekend with US$4.9 million.
While Happy Feet started out mainly a family film, good reviews and word-of-mouth were pulling in more adults without children on the holiday weekend, said Dan Fellman, head of distribution at Warner Bros.
Along with ravishing computer-animated visuals, the adult appeal of Happy Feet includes a positive environmental statement and wall-to-wall pop tunes reinterpreted by its vocal cast, led by Elijah Wood, Nicole Kidman, Jackman and Robin Williams.
"I think it's just a good message, and it's just well made. And we all like the music," Fellman said. Happy Feet raised its 10-day total to US$100.1 million.
Movie listing at box office
1. Happy Feet
