Weekend Report: No Stopping 'M:I-4' Over New Year's

With 2011 coming to an end this weekend, Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol once again claimed the top spot at the box office. Not far behind were fellow sequels Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows and Alvin and the Chipmunks: Chipwrecked, followed by a surging War Horse and The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo. The Top 12 earned an estimated $151 million, which is a slight improvement over the same frame last year and 15 percent up on 2005 (the last time New Year's fell on a Sunday).

The fourth Mission: Impossible movie was up six percent to $31.3 million, which brings its total to $134.1 million through Sunday. If that figure sticks when actuals are reported on Tuesday, Ghost Protocol will have exceeded Mission: Impossible III's $134.03 million total through just 17 days in theaters. Additionally, the movie is projected to pass the latest Sherlock Holmes movie on Sunday to become December 2011's top-grossing movie. The next big milestone on the horizon is the original Mission: Impossible's $181 million, which looks reachable at this point.

Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows improved nine percent to an estimated $22.1 million. With the help of holiday grosses, it's been closing the gap with the original Sherlock Holmes, though its $132.1 million total still trails the first installment by $33 million.

Chipwrecked leaped 45 percent to $18.3 million for a total of $94.6 million. It should pass $100 million on Monday or Tuesday, which is a minor consolation prize considering the first Alvin was already at over $140 million through its third weekend.

After languishing in sixth and seventh place from Tuesday through Friday, War Horse received a boost on Saturday and Sunday and finished the weekend in fourth place with an estimated $16.94 million. Through eight days in theaters, the Steven Spielberg WWI drama has earned $42.97 million, and it's quickly closing in on the final total of Spielberg's Munich ($47.4 million).

The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo wasn't far behind War Horse, and could actually swap spots for the four-day weekend (or for the three-day frame when actuals are reported on Tuesday afternoon). The David Fincher-directed remake was up 28 percent to an estimated $16.8 million, and has made $57.1 million so far.

We Bought a Zoo leaped an impressive 53 percent from its opening weekend and snagged an estimated $14.3 million. The Cameron Crowe-directed drama is likely benefiting from strong word-of-mouth among family audiences, and it will be interesting to see if that can keep the movie going even after holiday activities wrap up this week. Through 10 days in theaters, We Bought a Zoo has made $41.8 million.

The Adventures of Tintin doesn't appear to be catching on quite as well as We Bought a Zoo: the Spielberg-directed animated adventure improved 24 percent to an estimated $12 million. After 12 days in U.S. theaters, and including earlier grosses from Quebec, Tintin has earned $47.8 million.

Unsurprisingly, New Year's Eve received a big boost coinciding with the arrival of the titular holiday. The movie more than doubled its weekend tally to $6.7 million; unfortunately, it's likely to fall hard in the coming weeks, and with $46.4 million in the bank it has no chance of coming anywhere close to predecessor Valentine's Day's $110.5 million.