Stallone's 'Expendables' storm US, Canadian box office

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Sylvester Stallone roughed up fival flicks as his "The Expendables" took the top spot at the North American box office in its debut weekend, netting 35 million dollars, Exhibitor Relations said Sunday.

The film, about a group of mercenaries out to topple a South American dictator, stars Stallone, Jason Statham and Jet Li.

"Eat, Pray, Love," Ryan Murphy's warmly lit adaptation of Elizabeth Gilbert's novel about a divorcee's jaunt to Italy, Indonesia and India starring Julia Roberts, was in second place in its premier weekend with 23.7 million.

Buddy comedy "The Other Guys," about two officers who take over a high-profile investigation, meanwhile pulled in 18 million dollars in ticket sales for third place.

It outpaced the slick thriller "Inception," the sci-fi summer blockbuster co-starring Marion Cotillard and Ellen Page, which nevertheless pulled in 11.4 million dollars from Friday to Sunday, totaling nearly 248.5 million dollars in ticket sales since it first opened.

In the fourth-place flick DiCaprio stars as a thief who specializes in infiltrating dreams. The movie has impressed critics with its complex science fiction concepts.

In its first weekend, "Scott Pilgrim Vs The World," the Edgar Wright film with Michael Cera and Mary Elizabeth Winstead, netted 10.5 million for a fifth place finish.

The romantic comedy was trailed by blockbuster "Despicable Me," which earned 6.7 million dollars. The 3-D animated film from Universal Pictures stars Steve Carell as the voice of Gru, a villain bent on snatching the moon.

Disney dance movie "Step-Up 3-D," which was praised for its use of 3-D technology but panned for its paper-thin plot, was in seventh place with 6.6 million.

Trailing it was "Salt," starring Hollywood's biggest female action superstar Angelina Jolie, playing a captivating CIA agent accused of being a Russian spy. It netted 6.3 million dollars, and 103.6 million overall since it opened four weeks ago.

The latest Steve Carell vehicle "Dinner for Schmucks," about a quest to find the dumbest guy possible to invite to a dinner meal, sank to ninth place earning 6.3 million dollars.

Kids' comedy "Cats & Dogs: The Revenge of Kitty Galore," scored the 10th-place spot earning four million dollars.