Retreat! Surrender!

It was a box office bonanza this weekend for two films in particular, each an unlikely success story. One was made simply by setting up cameras and letting the actors improvise their way toward some predetermined, terrifying plot points. The other was Paranormal Activity. Let's see how they did!

1. Couples Retreat

Gross: $35,340,000 (new)

Screens: 3,000 (PSA: $11,780)

Weeks: 1

Wow, $35 million! That's bound to unlock a lot of new, rad outfits for everyone's Guitar Hero avatars!

2. Zombieland

Gross: $15,000,000 (cume: $47,801,000)

Screens: 3,038 (PSA: $4,937)

Weeks: 2 (Change: -39.4%)

Horror films tend to drop precipitously in their second weekend, while comedies often show the smallest losses. Good thing Zombieland's latter personality won out here.

3. Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs

Gross: $12,000,000 (cume: $96,251,000)

Screens: 2,992 (PSA: $4,011)

Weeks: 4 (Change: -24.1%)

It was announced this weekend that MGM will be delaying its film The Cabin in the Woods for a full year to convert it to 3D. In its own way, Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs provides the reason why: Though it's a successful family film in its own right, the fact that it's showing in 3D has been such a boon to its box office that it might as well be raining dollar bills.

4. Toy Story / Toy Story 2 (3D)

Gross: $7,674,000 (cume: $22,676,000)

Screens: 1,752 (PSA: $4,380)

Weeks: 2 (Change: -38.6%)

Hey! Toy Story 3 trailer!

5. Paranormal Activity

Gross: $7,066,000 (cume: $8,280,000)

Screens: 159 (PSA: $44,440)

Weeks: 3 (Change: +1,227.6%)

While I'm a little skeptical of Paramount's claim that a wide rollout of Paranormal Activity is only happening because one million people logged into its website to demand it, it must be noted that the film's eye-popping return in limited release this weekend is the sort of thing I'd thought that big studios had forgotten how to do. Congratulations, guys! Any tips you can give Fox Searchlight for Whip It?