LOS ANGELES - "The Amityville Horror" returned from the dead with a vengeance, with the gory update of the 1970s fright flick taking in $23.3 million to top the weekend box office.

The previous weekend's No. 1 movie, the African desert adventure "Sahara," slipped to second place with $13.1 million, lifting its 10-day total to $36.4 million.

"The Amityville Horror" stars Ryan Reynolds and Melissa George as a couple tormented by visions and voices in their new home, the scene of a grisly mass murder a year earlier.

The movie is the latest in a parade of successful horror remakes. With a built-in audience looking for scares, horror movies have become almost a sure thing in Hollywood.

"The Amityville Horror" received mostly bad reviews, yet the under-25 crowd that makes up the genre's core audience rarely heeds the critics.

Estimated ticket sales for Friday through Sunday:

1. "The Amityville Horror," $23.3 million.

2. "Sahara," $13.1 million.

3. "Fever Pitch," $8.8 million.

4. "Sin City," $6.7 million.

5. "Guess Who," $4.9 million.

6. "Beauty Shop," $3.8 million.

7. "Robots," $3.55 million.

8. "Miss Congeniality 2: Armed and Fabulous," $2.9 million.

9. "The Pacifier," $2.4 million.

10. "The Upside of Anger," $1.9 million.