Play it again, Sam

Samantha Mumba's big screen debut has proved to be a commercial success with The Time Machine currently number four in the U.S. Box Office Charts.

The H.G. Wells update grossed $10.8 million over the St. Patrick's Weekend, which was only bettered by Ice Age ($46.3m), Resident Evil ($17.7m) and Showtime ($15m).

According to Variety magazine, Mumba "shows some spunk" in her portrayal of Mara. They're less enthusiastic about the film itself, which they describe as being in "generically familiar territory that's far closer to that of last year's lamentable Planet Of The Apes remake than anyone might've wished."

Meanwhile, Mumba is fresh back from Sweden where she's been working on the first batch of tracks for her new album.

"I was there for three weeks writing and recording and I have to say it's sounding hot," she gushes. "I've been working with the same people who did 'Gotta Tell You' and 'Baby Come On Over' and all's been going well. We were recording in two big houses in the middle of a forest, which made it kinda like Blair Witch, which was kinda freaky."