'XXX' MARKS THE SPOT FOR MOVIEGOERS.

Byline: Greg Hernandez Staff Writer

Vin Diesel's ``XXX'' parachuted over the box office competition to land in first place with a powerful $46 million gross during its debut weekend. The action spy thriller posted the third-biggest August opening ever, according to studio estimates released Sunday.

Released by red-hot Sony Pictures Entertainment and produced by Revolution Studios, ``XXX'' drew a crowd that was 60 percent under the age of 25 but scored high marks in exit polls from all age groups, said Jeff Blake, Sony's president of distribution.

``I think it's a great late summer opening,'' Blake said. ``It should be at or near the top for several weeks to come.''

While ``XXX'' drew big crowds, overall movie attendance slumped for the fourth week in a row when compared with last year. This puts in jeopardy what had seemed a certainty: a new box office record for the traditional summer season (Memorial Day through Labor Day).

``There's not as much depth as there was last year,'' said Paul Dergarabedian, president of the box office tracking firm Exhibitor Relations. ``I still think we'll have a summer record but it will be tight. There has tended to be one dominant opener each week.''

Last week's dominant film, ``Signs,'' fell to second place but continued to perform well for Disney's Buena Vista Pictures with estimated ticket sales of $30 million.

Starring Mel Gibson and written and directed by M. Night Shyamalan (``The Sixth Sense''), the film enjoyed robust business all week and has grossed $118.3 million in 10 days. On Saturday, it became the 12th film in 2002 to cross the $100 million mark.

Landing in third place with a weekend estimate of $17 million was ``Spy Kids 2: The Island of Lost Dreams'' released by Dimension Films. The film opened Wednesday and has a cumulative gross of $25.3 million so far. It was followed by fourth place finisher ``Austin Powers in Goldmember'' which took in an additional $13 million in its third weekend for an overall gross of $167.7 million to date.

Clint Eastwood's latest effort, ``Blood Work,'' opened in fifth place with a lukewarm $7.2 million, according to Warner Bros. estimates.

``This was a counter-programming move,'' Dergarabedian said. `` 'Blood Work' appeals to an older audience who doesn't run out on opening weekend. They love Eastwood's films.''

The summer's Cinderella story, IFC Film's ``My Big Fat Greek Wedding,'' saw its ticket sales grow by 5 percent as it began its fifth month in theaters. Now playing in 723 locations, the sleeper hit has grossed an estimated $45 million to date, adding $3.15 million to its total over the weekend to remain in ninth place.

Fox Seachlight Films is hoping for similar success with another specialty film, ``The Good Girl,'' which has received critical raves for its star Jennifer Aniston. The movie opened on two screens in Los Angeles and two in New York and made $148,703 over the weekend.

TOP MOVIES

Estimated ticket sales for Friday through Sunday at North American theaters, according to Exhibitor Relations Co. Inc. Final figures are to be released today.

1. ``XXX,'' $46 million.

2. ``Signs,'' $30 million.

3. ``Spy Kids 2: The Island of Lost Dreams,'' $17 million.

4. ``Austin Powers in Goldmember,'' $13 million.

5. ``Bloodwork,'' $7.2 million.

6. ``The Master of Disguise,'' $5.1 million.

7. ``The Road to Perdition,'' $4 million.

8. ``Martin Lawrence Live: Runteldat,'' $3.17 million.

9. ``My Big Fat Greek Wedding,'' $3.15 million.

10. ``Stuart Little 2,'' $2.7 million.

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TOP MOVIES (see text)