It could have been the great cast or the critical acclaim, but the Russell Crowe thriller Prisoners beat out stiff competition to take the U.K box office for its own. It made £1.37m, racing past the Formula One film Rush, which took second place with £987K.

Watch the trailer for Prisoners:

The kidnap thriller sees Keller Dover (Jackman) lose his six-year-old daughter, Anna, who is missing with her young friend. The only lead is an RV that was parked on the street hours before she went missing. Detective Loki (Gyllenhaal) arrests its driver, Alex Jones (Paul Dano) but can’t keep him in custody due to a lack of evidence.

The critics were certainly supportive of Oscar-nominated director Denis Villeneuve’s effort. The film has achieved an overall score of 80% on Rotten Tomatoes and, with a few strong performances – including a distinctively creepy one from Dano – has been the surprise package in a usually drab September for movies.

“In less talented hands, the story could lapse into the maudlin. But Villeneuve, director of the Oscar-nominated Incendies, seems to know just how far to go; only one moment feels less than authentic, but it would be a spoiler to mention it,” said the Associated Press.

Daniel BruhlChris Hemsworth and Daniel Bruhl in Rush

Elsewhere, Woody Allen’s Blue Jasmine grabbed third spot, while Justin Timberlake and Ben Affleck’s crime thriller Runner Runner capitalised on some real star quality to pick up fourth. Horror flick Insidious 2 finished off the top five.

The Figures:

1. Prisoners - £1.37m

2. Rush - £987,549

3. Blue Jasmine - £833,798

4. Runner Runner - £764,886

5. Insidious 2 - £572,554

(BBC)