Gladiator Works As Dream Maker At US BO

files/pictures/picture-35.jpgSlaying the competition at the U.S. box office, DreamWorks' GLADIATOR easily finished in the top spot. The Roman action epic, with primary special effects by Mill Film Ltd., grossed a Goliath US$34.82 million, which is nearly the combined gross of the rest of the top ten films. GLADIATOR dethroned two-week box office champ U-571, which fell to second. The Universal World War II submarine story grossed another $7.77 million bringing its total theatre receipts to $49.59 million. Despite horrid reviews from about every source, THE FLINTSTONES VIVA ROCK VEGAS managed to finish in third place. The FLINTSTONES prequel grossed out parents to the tune of $6.64 million, which raised its cume to $18.64 million. New Line’s tear-jerking time twister FREQUENCY finished at 4th, grossing $6.51 million and bringing its total to $17.85 million. New Line’s FINAL DESTINATION finished the weekend in 12th place with a gross of $1.63 million bringing its cume to $48.16 million. DreamWorks' THE ROAD TO EL DORADO, while dreaming of better days on video, slipped to #14. The travel toon grossed $907,993 raising its cume to $47.77 million. ROMEO MUST DIE, with primary special effects by Manex Visual Effects, stayed steady at #18 with a gross of $447,176 and bringing its cume to $54.38 million. Finishing out the top twenty was AMERICAN BEAUTY. The Oscar-winning best picture tallied another $429,026, bringing its cume to $128.8 million. USA Films' PITCH BLACK made its way back into the top fifty by grossing $187,607. The ALIENS wanna-be, with primary visual effects by Double Negative Ltd. and The Chandler Group, increased its cume to $38.69 million. The toon titan TOY STORY 2 came in at #27, down three places from last week. The second highest grossing animated film in history grossed another $162,970 in the States bringing its U.S. total to $244.6 million. Other special effects laden films finishing in the top fifty were: T-REX: BACK TO THE CRETACEOUS at #30, with a gross of $127,850 and a cume of $28.93 million; THE NINTH GATE at #33, with a gross of $101,262 and a cume of $18.53 million; MISSION TO MARS at #43, with a gross of $66,163 and a cume of $59.16 million; ALIEN ADVENTURE at #45, with a gross of $64,461 and a cume of $0.68 million; and THE GREEN MILE at #47, with a gross of $61,962 and a cume of $136.7 million. Box office reports obtained in THE HOLLYWOOD REPORTER.