Weekend estimates place Ice Age: Dawn Of The Dinosaurs and Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen neck and neck for the number one spot at the box office.

Both took c$42.5m, but Transformers: ROTF is the winner when you look at the big picture. Already the number one grossing film of 2009, it’s about to pass the final total of its predecessor and still has plenty of steam left. Ice Age: DOTD on the other hand is doing worse than its predecessor. It’s taken $67.5m in the five days since it opened on Wednesday, compared to Ice Age: The Meltdown’s $75.6m. This probably has something to do with the move to a summer release date, but it’s also worth noting that the $148m it’s taken worldwide makes it the biggest international opening of all time for an animated film.

Third place went to Mann/Depp/Bale 30’s-’em-up Public Enemies. It also opened on Wednesday, taking $26m at the weekend, for a total of $41m. This may not sound fantastic, but it is one of the biggest ever openings for a gangster movie – selling more tickets in 5 days than previous summer crime flicks like Road to Perdition or Collateral.

In fourth place with $12m was Sandra Bullock’s rom-com sleeper hit The Proposal. Just behind that with $10m was the other sleeper of the summer, The Hangover. Incredibly, The Hangover has now broken $200m and is the 4th biggest grosser of 2009, behind Transformers: ROTF, Up and Star Trek.

U.S. Weekend Box Office (July 3–5) (Estimates)
1. [New] Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs – - $42.5m [total $67m]
2. [1.] Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen – - $42.5m [total $293m]
3. [New] Public Enemies – - $26m [total $41m]
4. [2.] The Proposal – - $12m [total $94m]
5. [3.] The Hangover – - $10m [total $204m] [budget $35m!]
6. [4.] Up – - $6.5m [total $264m]
7. [5.] My Sister’s Keeper – - $5m [total $25m]
8. [7.] The Taking of Pelham 123 – - $2.5m [total $58m] [budget $100m!]
10. [9.] Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian – - $2.1m [total $167m]

Sources: Hollywood Reporter, Variety, Box Office Mojo