`SENSE' SCARING UP BIG MONEY; `BRIDE' IS WEEK'S DISTANT SECOND.Byline: Dave McNary Staff Writer ``The Sixth Sense'' continued its supernatural Supernatural Twilight Zone, The tales of weird events involving ordinary people. [Am. Radio, TV, & Cinema: The Twilight Zone in Terrace] late-summer performance at the nation's multiplexes, easily posting its fifth consecutive victory with an impressive $21 million at 2,775 theaters for Friday-Sunday amid a moderate Labor Day Labor Day, holiday celebrated in the United States and Canada on the first Monday in September to honor the laborer. It was inaugurated by the Knights of Labor in 1882 and made a national holiday by the U.S. Congress in 1894. weekend overall at the box office, studio sources said Sunday. The weekend reflected the ongoing strength of the summer's box office, which has posted its second straight record with a final Memorial Day-Labor Day gross of more than $2.9 billion. That's more than 12 percent above the 1998 record and has been driven by a wide array of mass appeal films, highlighted by ``Star Wars: Episode I,'' ``Austin Powers, The Spy Who Shagged shag 1 n. 1. A tangle or mass, especially of rough matted hair. 2. a. A coarse long nap, as on a woolen cloth. b. Cloth having such a nap. 3. A rug with a thick rough pile. Me,'' ``Big Daddy,'' ``Tarzan,'' and ``The Sixth Sense,'' all of which grossed more than $160 million each. ``Sense,'' boosting its take 5 percent from last weekend, became the first film since ``Titanic'' to win five straight weekends. The Disney release also smashed the four-day Labor Day record of $17.2 million, set six years ago by ``The Fugitive,'' and will likely take in another $5 million or so today. `` `The Sixth Sense' has become the movie that everyone wants to see before the summer's over,'' said Robert Bucksbaum, president of the Reel Source tracking service. ``It's phenomenal for a film to do this in its fifth weekend.'' ``Sixth Sense'' has now grossed $168 million in 31 days, making it the 49th highest domestic performer ever. Bucksbaum said the Bruce Willis Walter Bruce Willis (born March 19, 1955) is an American actor and singer. He came to fame in the late 1980s and has since retained a career as both a Hollywood leading man and a supporting actor, in particular for his role as John McClane in the Die Hard series. vehicle could lead next weekend despite competition from openings of supernatural thrillers - MGM's ``Stigmata'' and Artisan's ``Stir of Echoes'' - and eventually become the 15th film to gross $250 million domestically. Industry tracker Arthur Rockwell said the key to the success of ``Sixth Sense'' has been to appeal to all audiences. ``When you can cross over, that's when you rake it in,'' he added. ``Word of mouth on this movie has been incredible.'' ``Sixth Sense'' elevated what would have been an ordinary Labor Day weekend to well above average as it outgrossed the combined total of the next three films - Paramount's fifth weekend of ``Runaway Bride'' with $6.7 million at 3,013 theaters, Disney's second weekend of ``The 13th Warrior'' with $6.1 million at 2,312 sites and Universal's fourth weekend of ``Bowfinger'' with $5.6 million at 2,704 locations. The overall Friday-Sunday total hit $83 million, up 25 percent over the same period last year. Amid the hoopla hoop·la n. Informal 1. a. Boisterous, jovial commotion or excitement. b. Extravagant publicity: The new sedan was introduced to the public with much hoopla. 2. over ``Sixth Sense'' and ``The Blair Witch Project,'' ``Runaway Bride'' has become a solid late-summer smash with grosses hitting $133.5 million, making it 95th on the all-time list and the second biggest Julia Roberts movie ever after ``Pretty Woman'' at $178.4 million. MGM's fifth weekend of ``The Thomas Crown Affair'' finished fifth with $4.6 million at 1,978 theaters, edging Warner Bros BROS Brothers BROS Benefits and Retirement Operations Section (King County, Washington) BROS Barnes and Richmond Operatic Society (London, UK) .' first weekend of action-thriller ``Chill Factor'' with $4.4 million at 2,557 sites. The results gave ``Factor'' an unimpressive $5.2 million since it opened Wednesday, reflecting the tough market for what audiences perceive as second-tier entries in the action genre. Warner's third weekend of ``Mickey Blue Eyes'' continued to fade in fade v. fad·ed, fad·ing, fades v.intr. 1. To lose brightness, loudness, or brilliance gradually; dim: The lights and music faded as we set sail from the harbor. seventh with $3.6 million at 2,231 sites. The Hugh Grant comedy has topped $25 million but will fall far short of the $114 million total from ``Notting Hill,'' which paired Grant and Roberts. Artisan's eighth weekend of ``Blair Witch'' scared up $3 million at 2,301 sites in eighth to go past $133 million overall. That edged Miramax's opening of ``Outside Providence'' with $2.8 million at 1,050 theaters as the prep school comedy failed to generate much interest despite being promoted as co-written by the Farrelly brothers, whose ``Something About Mary'' grossed $176 million last year. USA Films' second weekend of ``The Muse'' finished 10th with $2 million at 1,263 theaters although the second weekends of New Line's ``The Astronaut's Wife'' and Miramax's ``In Too Deep'' may move into the weekend's top 10 when today's grosses are included. Bucksbaum said Labor Day tends to be a light holiday for moviegoing because of the twin distractions of end-of-the-summer parties and the start of school. Labor Day also represents the end of the summer season, which broke last summer's record of $2.58 billion three weeks ago. Year-to-date business has gone past $5 billion and leads the 1998 pace by 8 percent. Final results for the Friday-Monday period will be released Tuesday. TOP MOVIES Estimated grosses for Friday through Sunday at North American North American named after North America. North American blastomycosis see North American blastomycosis. North American cattle tick see boophilusannulatus. theaters. 1. ``The Sixth Sense,'' $21 million. 2. ``Runaway Bride This article is about meanings of Runaway bride. For other uses of the word Runaway, see Runaway. A runaway bride is a bride who runs away from the wedding chapel, usually shortly before the ceremony, often due to so-called cold feet. ,'' $6.7 million. 3. ``The 13th Warrior Warrior, river, Ala.: see Black Warrior. ,'' $6.1 million. 4. ``Bowfinger,'' $5.6 million. 5. ``The Thomas Crown Affair,'' $4.6 million. 6. ``The Chill Factor chill factor n. Wind-chill factor. chill factor See wind-chill factor. ,'' $4.4 million. 7. ``Mickey Blue Eyes Blue eyes are eyes that have blue irises (see eye color), and may also refer to:
8. ``The Blair Witch Project,'' $3 million. 9. ``Outside Providence Outside Providence is an English language novel by writer, producer, and director Peter Farrelly, published in 1988. Plot summary Largely an autobiographical tale, the novel revolves around Timothy "Dildo" Dunphy, a ne'er-do-well from the town of Pawtucket, Rhode ,'' $2.8 million. 10. ``The Muse,'' $2 million. CAPTION(S): box Box: Top movies (see text) |
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