'Inglourious Basterds' proves glorious, challenges 'District 9' for top spot on weekend movie chart

August 23, 3:02 PMAtlanta Movies ExaminerRyan McNally

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Inglourious Basterds, the latest film from Quentin Tarantino’s fertile imagination, opened in distinguished fashion this past weekend, topping the box office with $37.6 million and posting a lofty IMDB user rating of 8.7, which was tied for No. 1 among the box office Top 20. Critical response was also splendid, with Tarantino bouncing back from the worst-reviewed film of his career (Death Proof), to post strong scores at Rotten Tomatoes (86, No. 4) and Metacritic (69, No. 6).

Despite Inglourious Basterds’ esteemed debut, the sci-fi thriller District 9 edged it out for the top slot on the AME weekend movie chart**, dropping only one notch on the box office chart while holding an edge with critics (No. 2 at Rotten Tomatoes and Metacritic) and matching Inglourious Basterds’ score at IMDB. District 9’s grosses to date have already more than doubled its budget, and Oscar talk has begun, especially now that the Best Picture Oscars category has expanded to 10 films.

The family film Shorts also debuted this week but came up small with filmgoers, registering a minuscule 4.6 rating among voters (No. 19). The latest from Robert Rodriguez (Spy Kids) measured a bit taller with critics, posting a 53 at Metacritic (No. 11), but its $6.6 million debut (No. 6) suggests it could be Rodriguez’ smallest-grossing film since he burst onto the scene with El Mariachi, which famously cost less than $10K to make.

The week’s only other major debut, Post Grad, got a degree in critical failure, coming in dead last at Rotten Tomatoes. Audiences didn’t exactly graduate it with honors either, as the Alexis Bledel comedy scored just 5.3 among IMDB users (No. 18). It added up to a No. 10 debut at the box office, with Post Grad grossing just 2.8 million.

On a more positive note, the smash hit The Hangover charted at No. 7 this week, marking three full months of partying it up in the AME Top 10. Twelve weeks after it debuted, it’s still in the box-office Top 15, and its 8.2 IMDB user rating—particularly high for a comedy—is worthy of a toast.

The AME weekend movie chart for August 21-23:

1) District 9 (1)

2) Inglourious Basterds (NR)

3) Ponyo (2T)

4T) (500) Days of Summer (2T)

4T) Julie & Julia (4)

6) Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (5)

7) The Hangover (6).

8) The Time Traveler’s Wife (7)

9) Funny People (9)

10) G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra (10T)

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3) District 9 otherworldly, tops weekend movie chart as Ponyo, The Time Traveler's Wife debut

**Tired of reading about the latest dumb action flick, lame gross-out comedy or played-out torture porn horror pic that took home the box office crown? Wish the media balanced screaming headlines about box office winners with more stories about “the top reviewed films” or the “films audiences loved the most”?

I’m with ya. And that’s why I’ve devised a new ranking system (see list above) that combines critics’ reviews, audience response and, yes, box office to deliver a comprehensive list of what’s hot in theaters in each weekend. (The previous week’s chart position is listed in parentheses after the film title.)