Italy's box office may typically be dormant during summer months but it is making up for it now as three titles generated nearly $7m this weekend, accounting for 5.5% of the international top 40's revenue.

New entry Winx Club: Il Segreto Del Regno Perduto catapulted to number eight in the chart, with a $3.2m take after opening only in its home territory. The CGI animation played across 532 screens for a $6,081 screen average. It is based on the hit TV series Winx Club, created by Iginio Straffi, and is produced by Italian animation studio Rainbow S.p.A.

Medusa's Matrimonio Alle Bahamas remains in the top 15 despite dropping 45% over the weekend. The comedy, directed by Claudio Risi and starring local favourite Massimo Boldi, generated $2.1m across 352 screens for a $6,094 screen average. It has grossed $12.8m after three weekends on release.

Crime saga Milano Palermo: Il Ritorno fell 30% to number 29 with a $1.5m weekend take. The film, directed by Claudio Fragasso, played on just 251 screens in Italy for a $6,064 screen average. It has a $4.4m tally to date and is released through Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures International.

Germany's new entry, Warum Manner Nicht Zuhoren Und Frauen Schlecht Einparken, was the second highest opener this weekend at number 12. The comedy, directed by Leander Haussmann, enjoyed a $2.2m take from 290 screens for a $7,740 screen average. Released through Constantin Film, it opened to number one at the German box office, ousting American Gangster.

Meanwhile, Spanish horror film [Rec] was up 5% this weekend with a $2.4m take across 272 screens in its home territory. It shot up eight places to number 11 and boasted the weekend's highest screen average at $8,821 per screen. It also managed to creep up one spot to number two in the Spanish chart, while new entry Bee Movie opened to number one in the territory. [Rec], directed by Jaume Balaguero and Paco Plaza, is released through Filmax.

A slew of Japanese films generated $5.2m over the weekend, accounting for 4.2% of the top 40 revenue. New entry Sanjuro grossed $1.4m from 325 screens in its home territory, putting it at number 30 on the chart. The samurai adventure, distributed by Toho, had a $4,367 screen average over the weekend.

And Toho enjoyed more international success with Always: Sunset On Third Street 2, which stayed within the top 20 in its fifth weekend. The drama, based on the comic book by Ryohei Saigan, fell 24% over the weekend with a $2m take. It played across 382 screens in Japan for a $5,253 screen average and has generated more than $30m to date.

Toho's third film in the international chart, Sky Of Love, fell 26% to number 22 with a $1.8m take. The romantic drama, also in its fifth weekend, played on 290 screens for a $6,283 screen average. It has a $26.8m international tally.

Korean films made their imprint in the international arena this weekend, with three films generating more than $4m despite having only been released in South Korea. Prime Entertainment's Seven Days fell a modest 15% with a $2m take across 270 screens. The crime drama, directed by Won Shin-yeon, enjoyed a $7,472 screen average and has generated $9.5m after three weekends on release.

New entry Our Town had more than 154,000 admissions in South Korea over the weekend, taking $1.2m at the box office. The thriller, released through Cinema Service, was at number four on the Korean chart and opened to number 37 on the international chart. And CJ Entertainment's Le Grand Chef just managed to stay in the top 40 with a $1.1m take from 270 screens. It has grossed $18.7m after five weekends on release.

India rolls on

Indian cinema continues to fare well - Yash Raj Films released Aaja Nachle at the weekend, which took $1.3m from 15 territories. Anil Mehta's film played on 535 screens for a $2,387 screen average.

And Turkish drama The White Angel (Beyaz Melek) was up 17% with a $1.9m take from 240 screens. The family drama, directed by Mahsun Kirmizigul, enjoyed the weekend's second highest screen average at $7,929. It has a $6.5m tally to date after three weekends on release and is distributed by Boyut Film.

Elsewhere in the chart, Fox International's Hitman was up a whopping 700% after expanding to territories including UK, Spain, Denmark and Mexico. The action film generated more than $10m from 29 territories this weekend. Warner Bros' Beowulf remained king with a $19.6m weekend take for a $74.1m running total.

The top-40 international films generated $126.4m from 38,288 screens for the period of November 30-December 2.

Analysis: International box-office Weekend November 30-december 2
(Last3-day
week)Film (origin)gross $ScrsCume $Terr
1(1)Beowulf (US)$19,060,9296,229$74,067,86156
2(3)Enchanted (US)$12,001,0002,093$21,437,00017
3(33)Hitman (UK-US-Fr)$10,719,4802,134$12,487,08529
4(2)American Gangster (US)$6,946,5131,627$40,767,76917
5(4)The Heartbreak Kid (US)$6,750,2752,130$71,902,77438
6(47)Bee Movie (US)$6,712,9551,288$19,428,75611
7(43)Fred Claus (US)$5,204,8341,105$7,905,98811
8NewWinx Club: Il Segreto del Regno Perduto (It)$3,234,997532$3,234,9971
9(55)August Rush (US)$3,068,183714$4,617,9473
10(5)Saw IV (US)$2,641,2211,249$47,978,88924
11(19)[Rec] (Sp)$2,388,740272$5,258,7131
12NewWarum Manner Nicht Zuhoren... (Ger)$2,244,722290$2,244,7221
13(6)Lions For Lambs (US)$2,199,3511,827$29,484,54440
14(8)Ratatouille (US)$2,173,0002,188$405,755,00026
15(9)Matrimonio Alle Bahamas (It)$2,144,948352$12,782,3921
16(13)Lust, Caution (Chi-US-HK-Tai)$2,133,858588$42,880,99915
17(12)1408 (US)$2,031,269667$42,133,05914
18(17)Seven Days (S Kor)$2,017,540270$9,467,7261
19(14)Always: Sunset On Third Street 2 (Jap)$2,006,663382$30,208,3281
20(*)We Own the Night (US)$1,999,718448$3,960,7499
21(26)The White Angel (Tur)$1,902,940240$6,534,2704
22(15)Sky Of Love (Jap)$1,822,206290$26,836,6321
23(7)Elizabeth: The Golden Age (UK-US-Fr)$1,753,7441167$31,727,31122
24(25)The Kingdom (US)$1,642,067788$35,176,89134
25(*)The Nanny Diaries (US)$1,637,889439$11,962,51711
26NewOne Foundation (Chi)$1,602,447300$1,584,6231
27(31)30 Days Of Night (US)$1,578,446983$18,913,06022
28(10)Om Shanti Om (Ind)$1,556,040617$34,145,70213
29(20)Milano Palermo: Il Ritorno (It)$1,522,089251$4,428,8461
30NewSanjuro (Jap)$1,419,309325$1,419,3091
31(18)Resident Evil: Extinction (Aus-Ger-UK-US)$1,411,354838$93,823,96333
32(16)Stardust (UK-US)$1,315,703985$94,680,40636
33(11)Dhan Dhana Dhan... Goal (Ind)$1,313,428561$5,832,21216
34(28)Michael Clayton (US)$1,301,480685$27,419,11318
35NewAaja Nachle (Ind)$1,276,884535$1,276,88415
36(24)Surf's Up (US)$1,251,9741,396$83,670,56521
37NewOur Town (S Kor)$1,158,467239$1,383,7162
38NewIn The Name Of The King... (Ger-Can-US)$1,120,279484$1,120,2793
39(22)Les Deux Mondes (Fr)$1,099,225510$3,325,4361
40(21)Le Grand Chef (S Kor)$1,068,382270$18,697,3483
(c) Screen International, compiled by Leonard Klady