Warner Bros International's The Last Samurai continued to slice through thecompetition in its second weekend in Japan, adding an estimated $4.6m (Yen511.9m)from 538 screens.

The action epic, in which TomCruise plays a disillusioned Civil War veteran who undergoes a spiritualawakening in Japan, has now grossed $19.2m (Yeb2.1bn) in the territory.

The runningtotal is roughly on a par with Armageddon and is tracking 239% ahead of Vanilla Sky and 110% ahead of Pearl Harbor.