Tim Burton’s Alice in Wonderland has entered the North America box office at number one, with record opening takings for a 3D movie.

The film, starring Johnny Depp and Helena Bonham Carter, raked in $116.3m (£76.8m), beating the first weekend performance of blockbuster Avatar.

Police thriller Brooklyn’s Finest made its debut at two with a relatively small return of $13.5m (£8.9m).

Shutter Island by Martin Scorsese fell from the top spot to number three.

Alice in Wonderland, which had been expected by makers Disney to rake in closer to $70m (£46.2m), also set a record for the highest first weekend earner in the first three months of any year.

The benchmark was previously set by Mel Gibson’s The Passion of the Christ in 2004.

Tim Burton’s interpretation of the Lewis Carroll classic benefited from being awarded a child-friendly certificate in the US, despite some objections to the presence of a smoking caterpillar in the film.

3D blockbuster Avatar - which lost out on the Oscar for best picture on Sunday - maintained its box office presence for a 12th week in North America, in fifth place.

In the US and Canada alone, it has made more than $720m (£475m) since its first week of release.

Source: http://news.bbc.co.uk

Actor in a Leading Role

Jeff Bridges in “Crazy Heart”

Actor in a Supporting Role

Christoph Waltz in “Inglourious Basterds”

Actress in a Leading Role

Sandra Bullock in “The Blind Side”

Actress in a Supporting Role

Mo’Nique in “Precious: Based on the Novel ‘Push’ by Sapphire”

Animated Feature Film

“Up” Pete Docter

Art Direction

“Avatar” Art Direction: Rick Carter and Robert Stromberg; Set Decoration: Kim Sinclair

Cinematography

“Avatar” Mauro Fiore

Costume Design

“The Young Victoria” Sandy Powell

Directing

“The Hurt Locker” Kathryn Bigelow

Documentary (Feature)

“The Cove” Louie Psihoyos and Fisher Stevens

Documentary (Short Subject)

“Music by Prudence” Roger Ross Williams and Elinor Burkett

Film Editing

“The Hurt Locker” Bob Murawski and Chris Innis

Foreign Language Film

“The Secret in Their Eyes (El Secreto de Sus Ojos)” Argentina

Makeup

“Star Trek” Barney Burman, Mindy Hall and Joel Harlow

Music (Original Score)

“Up” Michael Giacchino

Music (Original Song)

“The Weary Kind (Theme from Crazy Heart)” from “Crazy Heart” Music and Lyric by Ryan Bingham and T Bone Burnett

Best Picture

“The Hurt Locker” Kathryn Bigelow, Mark Boal, Nicolas Chartier and Greg Shapiro, Producers

Short Film (Animated)

“Logorama” Nicolas Schmerkin

Short Film (Live Action)

“The New Tenants” Joachim Back and Tivi Magnusson

Sound Editing

“The Hurt Locker” Paul N.J. Ottosson

Sound Mixing

“The Hurt Locker” Paul N.J. Ottosson and Ray Beckett

Visual Effects

“Avatar” Joe Letteri, Stephen Rosenbaum, Richard Baneham and Andrew R. Jones

Writing (Adapted Screenplay)

“Precious: Based on the Novel ‘Push’ by Sapphire” Screenplay by Geoffrey Fletcher

Writing (Original Screenplay)

“The Hurt Locker” Written by Mark Boal

Source: http://www.oscars.org

What is it about islands that makes them so intriguing? Whether it’s a tropical speck in the midst of a vast ocean, or a tree-shrouded hummock in the river of a great city, it’s still somehow set apart, unique, proud, lonely, even mysterious. The waters around it ineffably define it, in a way that no plot of mainland can be defined. And because effort is required to get there — whether it’s simply driving across a bridge or chartering a private plane — once you’ve reached its shores, you know you’re somewhere different.

Our new book 500 Extraordinary Islands began to take shape as a sort of life list — how many islands have you been to, and which have you always dreamed of seeing? As our final list evolved — 500 is a lot of islands, but there were thousands of others we might have included — we found ourselves broadening the definition, expanding our concept of what makes an island alluring. But our main criterion was simple: We wanted to offer the 500 islands you’d most want to visit — or perhaps stay on forever. Here are 10 of the most interesting.

Usedom: The Singing Island - Germany

Bora Bora: Romantic Heaven on Earth - French Polynesia

Prince Edward Island: Beyond Green Gables - Canada

Gorgona: Welcome to the Jungle - Colombia

Malta: Crossroads of the Mediterranean

Lamu: Exotic Enclave -Kenya

Isla Grande de Tierra del Fuego: El Fin del Mundo - Argentina and Chile

Isle of Wight: Victoriana by the Sea - Channel Islands, U.K.

Mauritius: Sophisticated Paradise

Ile Sainte-Hélène & Ile Notre-Dame: Beaucoup Recreation - Montreal, Canada