Shia LaBeouf’s newest film, action thriller “Eagle Eye,” soared to the top of the box office this weekend, earning an impressive $29.2 million in tickets sales in North America, despite less than stellar reviews from critics.

Shia LaBeouf is joined by Michelle Monaghan in the D. J. Caruso-directed action thriller which tells the story of a young man and a single mother who find themselves entrapped in the tenebrous conspiracy of a terrorist cell.

LaBeouf, whose A-list status was confirmed this year once and for all due to his co-starring in “Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Lost Ark,” last collaborated with Caruso on 2007’s “Disturbia,” which was also a box office success. The new project however had a weekend opening worth $7 million more than the previous one.

Shia LaBeouf, 22, has double reason to celebrate. Not only is his most recent movie a success, but his personal life has taken one certain turn for the better. Authorities have decided to press no charges against him in relation with the July car accident which led to his requiring extensive surgery on his left hand.

Settling for No. 2 is the repairing of A-list pros Richard Gere and Diane Lane in the romantic drama “Nights in Rodanthe,” directed by theater director and playwright George C. Wolfe. Based on a novel by Nicholas Sparks (“The Notebook,” “Message in a Bottle,” “A Walk to Remember”), the film tells the story of two people past their prime who are each at a crossroads in their lives and sort through the confusion and chaos as they fall in love and rediscover who they really are.

Despite lukewarm reviews from critics who deemed “Nights in Rodanthe” a tad too sentimental and improbable, the film earned $13.6 million, showing once more that fall is a lovely time for watching romantic pics, no matter how unrealistic the story.

The Samuel L. Jackson thriller “Lakeview Terrace,” which opened at No. 1 last week, fell two positions this weekend, with ticket sales worth an estimated $7 million. It was followed by another new release, “Fireproof,” starring Kirk Cameron, earning $6.5 million.

“Burn After Reading,” directed by Joel and Ethan Coen and featuring an esteemed cast which includes John Malkovich, Brad Pitt, George Clooney, Tilda Swinton and Frances McDormand, remained in the top five, with a respectable $5 million more in ticket sales. The film has now grossed $45 million in three weeks.

Spike Lee’s World War II drama “Miracle at St. Anna” made its debut at No. 9. Other releases were not as lucky. “Choke,” a screen adaptation of the Chuck Palahniuk novel of the same name, directed by Clark Gregg and starring Sam Rockwell and Angelica Houston, and Iraq war drama “The Lucky Ones,” starring Tim Robbins and Rachel McAdams, had very modest earnings. Both screened in a limited number of theaters.

For the first time in ten weeks, “The Dark Knight” failed to remain in the top ten movies being sought at North American theaters.