"Gravity", Alfonso Cuaron's sci-fi drama, shown in 3D showed very good numbers when it was released last Friday. It made about $ 17.5 million in ticket sales on that day alone, based on early estimates.

Gravity is the story of two astronauts who become stranded in space. Starring Sandra Bullock and George Clooney, Gravity has been on of the year's top-reviewed movies. It got a 98% positive rating on Rotten tomatoes. It even impressed critics, with L.A Times Critic Kenneth Turan writing, "Gravity' is out of this world."

The film is said to be filled with lots of action, especially as the lead characters have to primarily deal with the dynamics of outer space, complete with weightlessness. The film is director Cuaron's first movie since he released "Children of Men" back in 2006. "Children of Men" received critical acclaim and a number of Oscar nominations, although failed to do extremely well in the box office. There are high hopes for "Gravity" to exceed Children of Men's box office figures, especially on opening weekend.

There are other highly anticipated films that are also playing alongside "Gravity" this weekend. Ben Affleck and Justin Timberlake's "Runner" also opened on Friday and reportedly made about $2.7 million in the same day. Runner is the tale of a college student, played by Justin Timberlake, who encounters and gets entangled with a gambler, played by Affleck. Review wise, Runner has not had the same success as Gravity. In fact, Rotten Tomatoes only gave Runner an approval rating of only 8%, making it this season's lowest.

Taking second place for the weekend is the family oriented animated film "Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs 2". After topping last week's box office, it continues to do well, earning an estimated $4.7 million last Friday.