Take a look at the list of the highest grossing films of 2010 and you will see that two main sub-categories unsurprisingly dominate. The sequels and the franchises held a huge number of the top spots, while the children’s features also featured highly in the lists of the high grosser.

It seems that those heading to their local Odeon or other cinema chain in 2010 then, were the loyal fans of ongoing Saga, and families looking for a little light relief in a year that was marred by ongoing financial crisis. So it comes as small surprise that the Top 10 Grossing Films of 2010 were:

1.    Toy Story 3 – Children and grown ups alike flocked to their local cinema to soak up this final instalment in the tale of Buzz, Woody and friends. Mums across the country sniffed into their Kleenexes as little Andy grew up and headed off to University, while a whole new generation of movie buffs were introduced to the delights of Disney Pixar’s longest running movie franchise. The film took the Oscar for Best Animated Feature

2.    Alice in Wonderland – Mia Wasikowska and Johnny Depp star in Tim Burton’s signaturely dark adaptation of the Lewis Carroll classic, which also features Burton’s wife Helena Bonham Carter in a suitably eccentric role. The film took home the 2010 Oscars for both Art Direction and Costume Design as well as being a box office hit.

3.    Iron Man 2 – Robert Downey Jr reprises the action adventure superhero role adapted from the Marvel comic’s character. Directed by Jon Favreau the film was a hit with audiences but missed out on being awarded anything by the academy.

4.    The Twilight Saga: Eclipse – The teen swoon-fest continues with the third film in the Twilight series, following the exploits of the teen vampires and werewolves as they continue on their exciting journey. Loved by girls and their mums across the globe, the Twilight films continue to bring box office gold.

5.    Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 1 – the first instalment of the final book of the world’s favourite wizarding adventure was a big draw for theatre audiences. Fans flocked to watch Daniel Radcliffe reprising the role of the boy wizard as he approached the final showdown with Lord Voldemort.

6.    Inception – Leonardo DiCaprio stars in Christopher Nolan’s mind bending epic which took four Oscars including those for Cinematography and Visual Effects.

7.    Despicable Me: 3D animated adventure featuring the voices of Russell Brand and Julie Andrews, following the exploits of super-villain Felonius Gru.

8.    Shrek Forever After: Comedians Mike Myers and Eddie Murphy come together once again as Shrek and Donkey in this final animated adventure. Also stars Cameron Diaz and Antonio Banderas.

9.    How to Train your Dragon – Based on the book by Cressida Cowell this animated feature is so good it was also nominated for the Best Animated Feature but beaten to the Oscar by Toy Story Three – still an enchanting story that has little ones entranced

10.    Tangled – this irreverent animated Disney take on the traditional Brothers Grimm tale of Rapunzel was a hit with audiences across the world.