Director Quentin Tarantino and cast members Melanie Laurent, Brad Pitt and Diane Kruger pose during a photocall to promote "Inglourious Basterds" in Berlin, July 28, 2009.
Nazis and Quentin Tarantino proved a lethal combination at the worldwide box office as the bad-boy director topped the weekend charts with his violent World War Two movie "Inglourious Basterds."
According to studio estimates issued on Sunday, the film sold a total of $65.1 million worth of tickets in North America and 22 foreign territories, a promising start after the disappointment of Tarantino's previous effort, "Death Proof," two years ago.
In the United States and Canada, the $37.6 million tally surpassed his previous best opening of $25.1 million for "Kill Bill Vol. 2" in 2004.
The foreign contribution of $27.5 million was led by No. 1 openings in such countries as France ($6.1 million), Britain ($5.8 million), Germany ($4.3 million) and Australia ($2.7 million). It will roll out across the rest of the world over the next three months,
Brad Pitt stars as the leader of a group of Jewish-Americans who carry out violent wartime acts of retribution across Europe. Pundits had forecast a North American opening in the $25 million range.
The film, which reportedly cost $70 million to make, also provides a much-needed boost for the struggling independent studio Weinstein Co., which co-financed it with international distributor Universal Pictures, a unit of General Electric Co.
