Exhibitors aren’t complaining about grey clouds and rainy skies, which along with a strong lineup of films such as Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen, Up and Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs, boosted the summer box office to yet another record-setting take in 2009.

In Canada, the total box office from May 1 to Sept. 3 clocked in at $410 million, up 8% from $388 million last year, according to exhibition consultants Zoom Services. Meanwhile, total earnings in North America grew slightly to $4.3 billion, according to Variety.

Cineplex spokesperson Pat Marshall agrees the box-office performance has been ‘huge,’ noting that it has hit or exceeded the $4 billion mark for the past three summers straight.

Dean Leland of Empire Theatres notes that the ‘dreadful’ weather helped business, but says first and foremost it was product that people wanted to see.

‘There was a greater selection of films that hit all demographics, rather than one great big blockbuster,’ he points out. Though the economy put a pinch on people’s wallets, ‘they were still making room for their small indulgence of going out to a movie,’ Leland adds.

Sequels continued to be the big moneymakers, with Paramount’s actioner Transformers ranking number one in Canada with $34.2 million, followed by Warner Bros.’ Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince in second with $30.7 million.

Transformers earned $400 million in North America overall, but fell far short of the monster release of The Dark Knight, which generated $512 million last year.

Also making a strong showing were 3D titles including Disney’s Up and G-Force, with $25 million and $10 million in Canada, respectively, while Fox’s Ice Age earned $20 million. Other films that had a key role in the success of the summer box office include May tentpole releases Star Trek with $24 million, Angels and Demons with $17 million, and X-Men Origins: Wolverine with $15 million.

And the summer disappointments?

‘We were hoping for greater box-office success from Bruno, given the huge success of Borat earlier, and also Land of the Lost, given Will Farrell’s following,’ says Marshall. Sacha Baron Cohen’s Bruno managed just $7 million, while Land of the Lost did not make the list of top 20 films in Canada.

The only homegrown film on the list is Alliance Films’ cop comedy De père en flic with $9.7 million in its summer run.