We were on vacation for more than a week, so this is a “two-fer” report.
Variety reports the top movies, in terms of box office take, for the week of 16-22 December 2011. Robert Downey Jr.’s second outing as Arthur Conan-Doyle’s wacky brain, Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows, topped the charts with an opening week box-office take of $39.6 million. Animated sequel Alvin and the Chipmunks: Chipwrecked opened at #2, singing up $36.9 million. Tom Cruise’s newest sequel, Mission: Impossible: Ghost Protocol opened at #3. The US remake of Stieg Larsson’s novel with Rooney Mara and Daniel Craig, The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, opened on 20 December, yet still managed to find its way to #4 on the charts, seeking out $8.4 million. Arthur Christmas held steady at #6, gifting itself $6.5 million, for a four-week total of $41.5 million. Hugo slipped from #5 to #7, ratcheting up $6.2 million, for a four-week total of $41.6 million. The animated The Adventures of Tintin, which opened on 21 December, still managed to find itself at #9 on the charts, adventuring up $4.7 million.
The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn fell from #3 to #11, devouring $4.2 million, for a five-week total of $266.3 million. The Muppets, fell from #4 to #12, earning $3.5 million, for a four-week total of $71.0 million. Happy Feet 2 fell from #8 to #14, dancing up $1.8 million, for a five-week total of $59.6 million. Immortals fell from #10 to #16, taking in $1.2 million, for a six-week total of $82.2 million. Puss In Boots fell from #12 to #20, swashbuckling up $450 thousand, for an eight-week total of $142.8 million. In Time fell from #16 to #25, saving $250 thousand, for an eight-week total of $36.8 million.

Then, in the final week of the year (23-29 December 2011), Mission: Impossible: Ghost Protocol climbed from #3 to #1. Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows fell from #1 to #2, deducing $51.3 million, for a two-week total of $110.0 million. Alvin and the Chipmunks: Chipwrecked fell from #2 to #3, singing up $39.4 million, for a two-week total of $76.4 million.The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo held on to the #4 spot in its first full week in release, seeking out $32.4 million, for a one-plus week total of $40.8 million. The Adventures of Tintin, in its first full week in release, climbed from #9 to #5, adventuring up $27.8 million, for a one-plus week total of $35.8 million. Family film We Bought a Zoo opened at #6, while Disney’s adventure War Horse opened at #7. Post-apocalyptic alien invasion film The Darkest Hour opened at #9, battling up $9.0 million. The Muppets showed surprising strength, climbing from #12 to #10, earning $6.3 million (80% more than last week), for a five-week total of $79.9 million.
Hugo fell from #7 to #12, ratcheting up $5.4 million, for a five-week total of $47.0 million. The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn slipped from #11 to #14, devouring $4.6 million (10% more than last week), for a six-week total of $273.4 million. Arthur Christmas fell from #6 to #17, gifting itself $3.8 million, for a five-week total of $45.2 million. Puss In Boots slipped from #20 to #23, swashbuckling up $1.5 million (three times more than last week), for a nine-week total of $144.8 million. Happy Feet 2 fell from #14 to #24, dancing up $750 thousand, for a six-week total of $60.4 million.
Falling out of the top 25 this week were:
Immortals (last week’s #16) in its seventh week in release (box office total: $82.5 million)
In Time (last week’s #25) in its ninth week in release (box office total: $37.0 million)