Wahlberg tops US box office chart

Action movie Max Payne, starring Mark Wahlberg, topped the US box office with takings of $18m (£10.2m), beating Oliver Stone's political movie W.

W, which is based on President George W Bush and stars Josh Brolin, opened in fourth place after taking $10.6m (£6m) in its first weekend.

Family comedy Beverly Hills Chihuahua was number two, followed by adventure drama The Secret Life of Bees.

Rounding off the top five was Shia LaBeouf's Eagle Eye.

Presidential election

Stone's last movie, World Trade Center, debuted with takings of $18.7m (£10.7m).

NORTH AMERICA BOX OFFICE

• 1. Max Payne - $18m
• 2. Beverly Hills Chihuahua - $11.2m
• 3. The Secret Life of Bees - $11.1m
• 4. W - $10.6m
• 5. Eagle Eye - $7.3m
• 6. Body of Lies - $6.9m
• 7. Quarantine - $6.3m
• 8. Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist - $3.9m
• 9. Sex Drive - $3.6m
• 10. Nights in Rodanthe - $2.7m

However, the 2006 film was shown in nearly 3,000 cinemas, about 900 more than W.

"For me, an Oliver Stone film about George Bush doesn't necessarily scream big box office," said Paul Dergarabedian, from box office tracker Media By Numbers.

"A film like this is very tough to gauge, but this is exactly what I thought it would do."

The decision was made to release the movie two weeks before the US presidential election, said Steve Rothenberg, from distribution firm Lionsgate.

"We felt it was very important to release the film after the presidential debates but before the election."

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