The Forgotten, a female-oriented thriller (without Ashley Judd for once), took the weekend box office crown with a surprisingly strong $22 million debut.  While The Forgotten starring Julianne Moore surpassed expectations, the total take for the entire Top Ten was a mediocre $56.5 million.  Last week's leader, Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow, a science fiction film with a graphic novel visual look, fell 56.8%, earning an estimated $6.7 million.  In spite of generally positive reviews, the film's September release may have precluded some of its 'all ages' appeal.  Look for the Sky Captain to perform well on DVD.

 

The humor-laden zombie film, Shaun of the Dead posted a strong per theater average (second only to The Forgotten among the Top Twenty-Five films, but since it was only in 607 theaters, it finished in the eighth position.  The martial arts saga Hero dropped to tenth, and though it has earned almost $50 million, it doesn't appear to have the 'legs' to come anywhere close to Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon's category-leading total.