Ocean's apart

Crime caper sequel Ocean's Twelve has nabbed the top spot in the US box office chart, taking a commanding $40.8 million in weekend ticket sales alone.

16:56 14 December 2004

Little surprise with a cast as glitzy and talented as it must have been expensive to assemble, but crime caper sequel Ocean's Twelve has nabbed the top spot in the US box office chart, taking a commanding $40.8 million in weekend ticket sales alone.

The sequel to the star-studded original sees Brad Pitt, George Clooney, Matt Damon et al joined by new addition Catherine Zeta Jones as the motley gang of thieves embark on three more heists across Europe.

Not surprisingly, the film knocked Nicolas Cage's National Treasure, last week's number one, into third place, with yet another sequel, this time Blade: Trinity starring Wesley Snipes as the titular vampire slayer, staking its claim to second place with $16.1 million.

Christmas cheer withered a little, with Tom Hanks and Robert Zemmickis's Polar Express in fourth place and festive comedy The Kranks coming in fifth.

For the second Ocean's film, the opening weekend performance is no mean feat, with Twelve having taken the fourth biggest opening for a December release in the US, only preceded by the Lord of the Rings trilogy.

The sequel narrowly beat its 2001 predecessor, which took $38.1 million on its opening weekend and $184 million in total.

US Box Office top five:
1. Ocean's Twelve
2. Blade: Trinity
3. National Treasure
4. The Polar Express
5. Christmas with the Kranks