Weekend Box Office: 'Resident Evil' Tops 'Finding Nemo,' 'The Master' Shines

The box office bounced back a bit this weekend, but considering how dismal last weekend was, it was bound to. The comeback was fueled by "Resident Evil: Retribution," which managed to pull in a solid $21.1 million without much in terms of action movie competition. That's less than the previous "Resident Evil" movie, but this series does well abroad and should be just fine. I know you were worried.

"Finding Nemo" got a 3D re-release as part of Disney/Pixar's continuing strategy of upcycling old material in between new releases. You could be mad at them for the cheap ploy, but hey, animated movies take a long time. The re-release brought in $17.5 million, which is less than "The Lion King 3D" made last year.

Those were the only two major openers, so the rest of the top five was made up of returning films: "The Possession" dropped to $5.7 million for a cumulative total of $41.1 million; "Lawless" gained another $4.2 million for a cume of $30.3M, continuing a disappointing run; and "The Expendables 2" came in fifth place with $3.1 million for a cume of $80.4M after its fifth weekend.

The big story was in the specialty box office, as "There Will Be Blood" direction Paul Thomas Anderson and the Weinstein Co. released "The Master." The movie, which stars Joaquin Phoenix and Phillip Seymour Hoffman and is said to be an allegory about Scientology, set a per-theater record with $145,949 averaged over just five theaters. That breaks the previous record, held by "Moonrise Kingdom."

Here's this weekend's top five:

1. "Resident Evil: Retribution" - $21.1 million
2. "Finding Nemo 3D" - $17.5 million
3. "The Possession" - $5.7 million ($41.1M)
4. "Lawless" - $4.2 million ($30.3M)
5. "The Expendables 2" - $3.1 million ($80.4M)