Universal Pictures International (UPI)'s drama American Gangster kept a firm hold of the number one position in the UK this weekend with a $3.7m (£1.8m) take across 416 sites.

The crime saga, which re-unites British director Ridley Scott with Russell Crowe for a third time (A Good Year, Gladiator), enjoyed the weekend's highest site average at $9,048 (£4,369) despite dropping 29% over the three-day period. It has generated $11.8m (£5.7m) after two weekends on release.

Warner Bros' CGI -fuelled Beowulf stayed at number two at the weekend with a $3m (£1.5m) take across 487 sites for a $6,212 (£3,000) site average. The Viking tale, directed by Robert Zemeckis and starring Ray Winstone and Angelina Jolie, fell 34% at the weekend. It has made $9.3m (£4.5m) to date.

Local fantasy adventure Stardust re-entered the top three again this weekend, generating $1.5m (£733,826) in its sixth weekend. The family film, starring Claire Danes, Michelle Pfeiffer and a slew of British actors (Rupert Everett, David Walliams, and Ricky Gervais to name a few) fell by a modest 19% over the three-day period. It played across 443 sites for a $3,430 (£1,656) site average and has a $28.3m (£13.7m) running total.

Disney/Pixar's Ratatouille is also enjoying a steady run in the UK top five after seven weekends on release. The animated adventure generated $1.4m (£663,628) from 482 sites at the weekend for a $2,851 (£1,377) site average and looks set to soon cross the $50m mark in the territory.

US comedy Good Luck Chuck stayed at number five at the weekend despite falling by 31%. The film, released through Lionsgate UK, still managed to pass the $1m (£500,000) mark in its third weekend. It played on 356 sites for a $2,973 (£1,436) site average and has grossed nearly $7.1m to date.

Wes Anderson's latest offering, The Darjeeling Limited, was this weekend's highest opener coming in at number six with a $901,218 (£435,198) take. The quirky comedy, which follows the tale of three brothers (played by Owen Wilson, Adrian Brody and Jason Schwartzman) and their travels through India, played on 192 sites for a $4,694 (£2,267) site average, the fourth highest of the weekend. It is released through Twentieth Century Fox.

And hallucinogenic horror Shrooms opened at number seven, taking $782,531 (£377,884) from 236 sites for a $3,316 (£1,610) site average. It is directed by Paddy Breathnach and written by Pearse Elliot and is distributed by Vertigo Films.

Entertainment Film Distributors nabbed the eighth spot with their release August Rush. The musical drama, which stars Jonathan Rhys Meyers, generated $744,593 (£359,564) from 337 sites for a $2,209 (£1,067) site average in its first weekend.

UPI enjoyed another top 10 hit with Cate Blanchett starrer Elizabeth: The Golden Age. The sequel, which is directed by Shekhar Kapur (of first instalment Elizabeth), fell 52% in its fourth weekend with a $452,468 (£218,497) take from 249 sites. It has generated $9.5m (£4.6m) to date.

Vampire thriller 30 Days Of Night fell three places to number 10 this weekend. It took $451,988 (£218,265) from 261 sites in its fourth weekend. The gory film, released through Icon Film Distribution, stars Josh Hartnett and Melissa George. It has taken $8.7m (£4.1m) to date.

Elsewhere in the chart, Michael Caine and Jude Law's Sleuth remake failed to cross the $0.5m mark in its opening weekend while Christian Bale starrer Rescue Dawn grossed $189,349 (£89,988) from just 79 sites. And Indian football adventure Dhan Dhana Dhan Goal opened to $116,910 (£56,456) from only 28 sites.

The top 20 films in the UK generated $15.6m from 4,306 sites for the period of November 23-25. Box office was collectively down 44.9% compared to the same weekend in 2006 due to the enormous success of last year's local favourites Casino Royale and Borat.

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