娱乐英语新闻:"Thor" hammers its way to box office crown

LOS ANGELES, May 8 (Xinhua) -- The crown of the North America box office was stormed by a hammer-wielding god from "Thor," the latest in the Marvel Studios productions, as the Paramount- distributed epic adventure opened with 66 million dollars in estimated movie ticket sales collected from Friday to Sunday.

The superhero film, based on comic book character of the same name published by Marvel Comics, landed in the number one place as it debuted in 3,955 locations in Canada and the United States over the Mother's Day weekend. The hammer-wielding god, associated with thunder, lightning and storms, was played by Chris Hemsworth, an Australian newcomer who was lauded by NextMovie.com as one of the "Breakout Stars to Watch for in 2011." The superhero actioner also stars the Academy Award winners such as Natalie Portman and Anthoey Hopkins, and earned an "B+" overall from CinemaScore.

A poster of the film "Thor."

"Thor" had the added advantage of being offered in 3-D, Hollywood observer Paul Dergerabedian said, as the adventure achieved the second blockbuster opening in a row in the wake of " Fast Five," the fifth installment on the "Fast & Furious" franchise which was directed by Justin Lin and released by Universal Studios.

"Fast Five" was in second place over the weekend, which is on track to garner 32.5 million dollars for a total of 139.8 million dollars in estimated sales over 10 days.

"Jumping The Broom," a romantic comedy opened in third place with 13.7 million dollars in ticket sales in 2,034 theaters. The Sony/Tristar release, which is called as "insightful and inspirational," centers on two "Uptown meets Downtown" families who meet for the first time at a weekend wedding on Martha's Vineyard.

"Something Borrowed," another romantic comedy opened over the Mother's Day weekend, was fourth with a 13.2 million-dollar gate for Warner Bros. It was based on Emily Giffin's novel of the same name, and counter-programmed against blockbusters including "Thor" and "Fast Five."

Rounding out the top 10 most-popular films are:

-- No.5: "Rio," Blue Sky Studio/Fox, 8.2 million dollars;

-- No.6: "Water For Elephants," Fox, 5.6 million dollars;

-- No.7: "Tyler Perry's Madea's Big Happy Family," Tyler Perry/ Lionsgate,3.9 million dollars;

-- No.8: "Prom," Disney, 2.4 million dollars;

-- No.9: "Soul Surfer," FilmDistrict/Sony,2.1 million dollars, and

-- No.10: "Hoodwinked Too! Hood vs. Evil," The Weinstein Co,. 1. 9 million dollars.