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http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=2...refer=muse

Quote:By Andy Fixmer and Dan Hart

Jan. 27 (Bloomberg) -- ``Meet the Spartans,'' a spoof of ``300'' from News Corp.'s Fox, captured the top spot at U.S. and Canadian box offices with $18.7 million, ousting the horror film ``Cloverfield'' from first place.

The movie beat out new competitors from Lions Gate Entertainment Corp. and Sony Corp. in its debut. Lions Gate's ``Rambo'' finished second with $18.2 million, box-office tracker Media By Numbers LLC said today in an e-mailed statement.

News Corp.'s 20th Century Fox's ``Meet the Spartans'' repeats a formula that succeeded with last January's ``Epic Movie,'' and February 2006's ``Date Movie,'' said Paul Dergarabedian, president of the Encino, California-based Media By Numbers.

``Never underestimate the power of the teen audience,'' Dergarabedian said. His company estimates that ``Epic Movie'' debuted at No. 1 and took in $19.2 million on its first weekend. ``Date Movie'' debuted at second place with $21.8 million.

``Meet the Spartans'' is Fox's first No. 1 since ``The Simpsons Movie'' on July 29 with $71.9 million. In ``Meet the Spartans,'' Sean Maguire plays King Leonidas, who travels with his Spartans to face the Persians at the battle of Thermopylae. Carmen Electra portrays Leonidas' wife, Queen Margo.

`Cloverfield'

``Rambo,'' which came in second, stars Sylvester Stallone as war veteran John Rambo in a reprisal of his role in the 1982 film. Stallone leads a group of mercenaries into Burma to rescue Christian aid workers. Gitesh Pandya, BoxOfficeGuru.com editor, forecast the film to open with $18 million in sales.

News Corp.'s ``27 Dresses,'' starring Katherine Heigl as a woman whose sister is about to marry the man she secretly loves, fell to third place with $13.6 million. It was second last week.

THIS won over Cloverfield?

*facepalm*

And we wonder why so many American teens are so retarded.

Think of it as social commentary, as a public service to expose the ever greater need for escapism here in the US.

If it'll make money, Fox will make it. Because Foxes love money!

They're Foxy that way.

What do Americans need to escape from? They're one of the richest countries in the world.

Bah. Faux...I watch them only to remind me that ABS-CBN isn't THAT bad a network

Americans might be better off than the average nation, but the government can't ever seem to balance its budget and always ends up going into debt. There's also the huge trade deficit between the US and China, and people getting unemployed because their jobs were outsourced.

And then there's George Bush Jr. See. Lots of stuff to escape from!