There was a red-hot movie -- finally -- at the box office.
And by box office, we mean, at a handful of theaters in New York and Los Angeles.
"Resident Evil: Retribution" was the movie nation's overall No. 1 film, per Friday-Sunday estimates, grossing $21.1 million from more than 3,000 screens.
"Beginning of end" for Resident Evil franchise
Domestically, the debut was more of the so-so same for the slumping Hollywood. It was about $5 million under that of the last "Resident Evil" installment, 2010's "Afterlife," and was the smallest yet for a sequel in the sci-fi franchise.
Internationally, the film cleaned up, opening bigger than "The Avengers" in Japan, and scoring $50 million overall overseas. Add it up, and the film's worldwide debut hit $71.1 million.
Back on the homefront, the "Finding Nemo 3-D" re-release was another mild disappointment. The Pixar classic grossed $17.5 million from some 2,900 locations, a far cry from the $30 million-plus made by the 3-D re-release of "The Lion King" in the same weekend last year.
U.S. & World
The real juice, meanwhile, came via Paul Thomas Anderson's "The Master."
The Oscar buzz film, which was inspired by Scientology founder L. Ron Hubbard, but is "not a Scientology movie," per star Philip Seymour Hoffman, grossed $729,745 at five theaters, Exhibitor Relations reported.
Its per-screen average, of about $146,000, was the 11th-biggest for any film ever, per BoxOfficeMojo.com stats.
"The Master" wins, then loses, top prize at Venice
Elswhere, "The Dark Knight Rises" ($2.1 million; $441 million overall domestically) slipped from the Top 10 after a eight-week run that was blockbuster, but ultimately marred by tragedy. Its predecessor, "The Dark Knight," remained in the rankings for 10 weeks, collecting $521 million while it was there.
Here's a complete look at the weekend's top movies, per Friday-Sunday domestic estimates as reported by the studios and Exhibitor Relations:
"Resident Evil: Retribution," $21.1 million "Finding Nemo," $17.5 million "The Possession," $5.8 million "Lawless," $4.2 million "ParaNorman," $3.04 million "The Expendables 2," $3 million "The Words," $2.9 million "The Bourne Legacy," $2.88 million "The Odd Life of Timothy Green," $2.5 million "The Campaign," $2.4 million