Germany's Die Welle was the highest non-US entry in the international top 40 this weekend with $3.5m, falling just shy of the top 10.

The drama, distributed by Constantin Film, played on 317 screens for a $10,986 screen average, the second highest of the weekend. The film, based on Todd Strasser's novel The Wave, follows a high school teacher whose experiment on fascism spins out of control. It is directed by Dennis Gansel and stars Jurgen Vogel and Frederick Lau.

Out in French force

French films continue their robust run led by last weekend's top film Bienvenue Chez Les Ch'tis, which slipped to second place after two weeks at the top. The Dany Boon comedy fell just 14%, generating $25.6m from 970 screens for a $26,434 screen average. It has grossed nearly $103.5m from just three territories to date.

New entry Mr 73, released through Gaumont Distribution, opened at number 16 with a near $2.7m take on 483 screens for a $5,489 screen average. The crime drama is the fourth feature from Olivier Marchal (Department 36) and stars Olivia Bonamy and Catherine Marchal. It follows the story of a police officer who sets out to protect a woman from her parents' killer.

Asterix At The Olympic Games, also released by Pathe, fell 51% over the week with a $1.6m take from 2,104 screens. The family adventure has generated $126.5m from 26 territories after eight weekends on release.

Jean-Paul Salome's Female Agents saw a 28% weekend drop, taking $1.6m from 495 screens. The espionage drama has grossed more than $4m in Belgium and France after two weeks on release. Meanwhile, Europa's thriller Taken saw a more modest drop - 11% - with a $1.3m weekend take. The film, written by Luc Besson and Robert Mark Kamen, played on 350 screens for a $3,633 screen average. It has made nearly $5.6m to date.

Three Japanese titles accounted for 4% of the top 40 total revenue, led by Toho's latest instalment of the Doraemon franchise. Doraemon: Nobita To Midori No Kyojinten fell 32% with a $3.4m take in its second weekend. The animation played on 344 screens in Japan for a $9,972 screen average and is fast closing in on the $10m mark.

New entry 10 Promises To My Dog opened at number 25 this weekend with a $1.8m take. The film, distributed by Shochiku, played on just 291 screens in its home territory for a $6,229 screen average and came at number five on the Japanese chart. The drama, which follows a sort of "10 commandments" of dog ownership, is directed by Katsuhide Motoki (Kitaro) and stars Lena Tanaka and Ryo Kase.

Toho's Eiga: Kurosagi fell 35% in its second weekend, taking more than $1.8m. The manga-based film played on 315 screens for a $5,809 screen average and has generated $7.3m to date.

Turkish delight

Turkish comedy Recep Ivedik was up 8% this weekend after opening in Germany and Belgium. The film, distributed by Ozen Film, took $2.7m from four territories over the three-day period, generating nearly $1m from its opening weekend in Germany alone. It has grossed $22.3m after just four weekends on release.

Italian holdover title Grande, Grosso E Verdone remains in the top 10 in its second weekend with a $4.4m take in its home territory. The comedy played on 693 screens for a $6,382 screen average and boasts a $15.7m cumulative total. It is released by FilmAuro.

Elsewhere, Lionsgate's The Eye, starring Jessica Alba, was up 262% in its sixth weekend after opening in Spain and Australia. The thriller took more than $1.7m from 616 screens in 10 territories. And Disney's fairytale adventure Enchanted was up 865% in its 16th weekend after a $4.4m weekend opening in Japan. The film has generated $190.3m internationally to date. Warner Bros' 10,000 BC managed to take the top slot this weekend after expanding in 20 territories. The prehistoric epic was up 47% with a $37.1m take.

The top 40 films generated $177.2m across 45,133 screens from March 14-16.

Analysis: International box-office Weekend March 14-16
(Last3-day
week)Film (origin)gross $ScrsCume $Terr
1(2)10,000 BC (US)$37,076,2046,290$72,187,58040
2(1)Bienvenue Chez Les Ch'tis (Fr)$25,641,527970$103,475,0113
3NewHorton Hears A Who! (US)$15,991,5064,868$15,991,50629
4(4)Vantage Point (US)$7,802,0552,709$40,035,05640
5(9)Step Up 2 the Streets (US)$7,603,8221,199$21,987,17619
6*Enchanted (US)$4,882,000824$190,308,00018
7(3)Jumper (US)$4,734,0042,604$105,589,67030
8(6)No Country For Old Men (US)$4,716,3421,587$68,049,95842
9(5)Grande, Grosso E Verdone (It)$4,422,989693$15,741,6121
10(29)The Spiderwick Chronicles (US)$4,306,8731,346$11,391,20118
11(10)The Other Boleyn Girl (US-UK)$4,117,8541,140$13,580,73614
12NewDie Welle (Ger)$3,482,688317$3,482,6882
13(8)Doraemon: Nobita To Midori... (Jap)$3,430,207344$9,568,400 1
14(13)Juno (US)$2,773,0801,520$59,717,04231
15(24)Recep Ivedik (Tur)$2,669,924315$22,291,9784
16NewMr 73 (Fr)$2,651,125483$2,651,1252
17(11)The Water Horse: Legend Of The Deep (US-UK)$2,497,8041,826$49,407,02233
18(7)The Bucket List (US)$2,248,4481,270$51,919,12528
19(23)Earth (Ger-UK)$2,237,071512$63,014,5104
20(18)The Golden Compass (US)$2,232,237722$280,873,1978
21(14)There Will Be Blood (US)$2,224,000925$26,887,00039
22(16)Chaser (S Kor)$2,205,801366$27,550,5741
23(12)27 Dresses (US)$1,999,7581,118$43,843,50820
24(21)Eiga: Kurosagi (Jap)$1,829,713315$7,336,788 1
25New10 Promises To My Dog (Jap)$1,812,768291$1,812,7681
26(15)Meet the Spartans (US)$1,796,7441,096$21,052,90412
27(-)The Eye (US)$1,765,398616$6,580,51310
28(19)Streetracers (Rus)$1,663,760575$5,582,2183
29(32)The Game Plan (US)$1,611,000456$29,990,0005
30(27)Female Agents (Fr)$1,559,169495$4,183,7102
31(17)Asterix At The Olympic Games (Fr-Sp-It)$1,555,7752,104$126,499,60326
32(28)An Empress And The Warriors (Chi-HK)$1,472,196650$4,991,8192
33(31)The Orphanage (Sp-Mex)$1,424,674712$59,204,30714
34*Before The Devil Knows You're Dead (US)$1,378,511277$4,362,4461
35(22)Kings Can Do Everything (Rus)$1,277,958404$4,740,4223
36(37)Taken (Fr)$1,271,731350$5,558,1211
37(20)Rambo (US)$1,229,8631,204$58,667,30033
38(34)The Kite Runner (US)$1,228,814686$35,217,50727
39(30)Be Kind Rewind (US)$1,221,379440$9,345,2133
40(35)Paris (Fr)$1,201,367514$13,764,7073
Note: for an updated chart, go to ScreenDaily.com *Re-entry (c) Screen International, compiled by Leonard Klady