'Marley & Me' sold an estimated US$37 million (S$53.6 million) worth of tickets during the traditional three-day weekend beginning on Friday, distributor 20th Century Fox said on Sunday. Jennifer Aniston and Owen Wilson star in the adaptation of a bestseller about a couple and their golden retriever.

The movie about 'life, love and family' - according to Fox senior vice-president of domestic distribution Bert Livingston - played strongly with audiences of all ages seeking feel-good entertainment.

As with the four other new releases, Marley & Me opened on Thursday and earned US$14.7 million - a new Christmas Day record.

The old tally, set in 2001 when Ali opened to US$10.2 million, was also broken by the new Adam Sandler comedy Bedtime Stories and by 'Benjamin Button', starring Aniston's ex-husband Brad Pitt.

Overall Christmas Day sales reached US$75 million, according to tracking firm Media By Numbers, up about US$10 million from last year.

Still, Hollywood is on course for a down year. With three days left, year-to-date sales are off about 1 per cent at US$9.5 billion, while the number of tickets sold has slid 5.2 per cent, Media By Numbers said.

Bedtime Stories was No. 2 for the weekend with US$28.1 million and its Christmas Day haul of US$10.5 million drove its total to US$38.6 million, said Walt Disney Pictures. Sandler plays a man whose bedtime stories come true in real life.

'Benjamin Button', in which Pitt's character ages backward, did better on Christmas Day with a US$12 million opening. Its weekend tally of US$27 million took its total to US$39 million, said Paramount Pictures.

The adaptation of an F. Scott Fitzgerald short story has racked up five nominations from the Golden Globes and eight from the Critics Choice Awards. Women accounted for 60 per cent of the audience and 70 per cent of ticket buyers were over the age of 25, Paramount said.

Tom Cruise's fact-based thriller Valkyrie, about a failed plot to kill Adolf Hitler, opened at No. 4 with US$21.5 million for the weekend and US$30 million for the four days - much better than sceptics had predicted. The United Artists movie has been plagued by bad publicity and shifting release dates.

'We had obstacles to overcome,' said Mr Erik Lomis, head of worldwide distribution at the studio's closely held Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer parent. 'But the movie speaks for itself.'

Male moviegoers comprised 55 per cent of the audience and two-thirds of the audience was over 25 years old.

The only dud among the rookies was Lionsgate's comic book adaptation The Spirit, which opened at No. 9 with US$6.5 million for the weekend and US$10.4 million for the four-day period.

After two weekends in limited release, Doubt expanded nationally and jumped five places to No. 10 with US$5.7 million for the three-day period.

Miramax Films' adaptation of a Pulitzer-winning play about suspected child abuse by a priest stars Meryl Streep and Philip Seymour Hoffman. It has earned US$8.8 million to date.

Last weekend's champ, the Jim Carrey comedy Yes Man, fell to No. 5 with US$16.5 million. The 10-day tally for the Warner Bros release rose to US$49.6 million. -- REUTERS