The Halloween spirit came earlier this year, as fans gathered to see 'The Grudge 2', making long lines outside some venues and helping the studio make an estimated $22 million in ticket sales. The horror flick opened without prior press screening and the critics who saw it premiere generally gave it very poor reviews.

But that didn't stop aficionados of the genre go and see it, thus confirming once again that, no matter how good or bad are the reviews, the niche for such movies is usually very well contoured. In fact, the horror fans are so loyal that, by their endeavor, they even managed to push 'The Grudge 2' on the first spot of the American box-office and replace the acclaimed mob drama, 'The Departed'.

Scorsese's chef d'oeuvre that ruled so proudly the box-office last week, came in second this weekend, grossing $18.7 million in ticket sales. Robin Williams' comeback movie, 'Man of the Year', another one that got so-and-so reviews, made it to the number three, with earnings of almost $12.55 million.

'Open Season' is still holding tight into the first five positions, with $11 million, while last week's number two, the story of how Leatherface became a murderer in 'The Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Beginning', slipped to fifth, cashing only $7.75 million.

John Bonito's 'The Marine' opened in sixth ($7 million), while 'The Guardian' with Ashton Kutcher and Kevin Costner fell from fifth to seventh, with $5.85 million in ticket sales. Jessica Simpson's movie, the romantic comedy 'Employee of the Month' did as expected, slipping to number eight from the fourth ($5.6 million). The ninth position went to another new-comer, the historical drama 'One Night With the King' ($4.3 million).

This weekend's chart ends with 'Jackass: Number Two', that slipped yet another four position on its way out of the top ten, grossing only $3.3 million in ticket sales.