‘Perfect’ Gale Knocks Down ‘Patriot’

One day after being hit by a devastating storm, Columbia Pictures has to be asking: What happened?

“The Patriot,” its big-budget, heavily promoted Mel Gibson Revolutionary War epic, was predicted to run neck and neck with Warner Bros.’ weather-run-amok thriller, “The Perfect Storm,” but figures for the five-day Fourth of July holiday weekend show Mel raising the white flag.

“The Perfect Storm,” re-creating deadly gales in the North Atlantic that doomed a Gloucester fishing boat and its crew, grossed $62.7 million from Friday through Tuesday, while “The Patriot,” which opened two days earlier, took in $35.2 million for the holiday weekend and $44.5 million overall. “The Patriot” may have been hampered by its nearly three-hour running time and R rating.

Meanwhile, Universal Pictures’ “The Adventures of Rocky and Bullwinkle” grossed a paltry $10.3 million.

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Five day gross/ Screens/ Weeks in Movie (Studio) Total (millions) Average Release 1. “The Perfect Storm” $62.7 3,407 1 (Warner Bros.) $62.7 $18,417 2. “The Patriot” * $35.2 3,061 1 (Sony/Columbia) $44.5 $11,507 3. “Chicken Run” $21.4 2,851 2 (DreamWorks) $49.8 $7,512 4. “Me, Myself & Irene” $19.4 3,087 2 (Fox) $55.3 $6,294 5. “Adventures of Rocky and Bullwinkle” $10.3 2,460 1 (Universal) $10.3 $4,205 6. “Shaft” $9.7 2,433 3 (Paramount) $56.5 $3,981 7. “Big Momma’s House” $8.8 2,392 5 (Fox) $98.1 $3,682 8. “Gone in 60 Seconds” $7.9 2,651 4 (Disney/Touchstone) $81.4 $2,962 9. “M:I-2” $7.5 2,667 6 (Paramount) $199.7 $2,824 10. “Gladiator” $3.9 1,411 9 (DreamWorks) $171.2 $2,779

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* Opened June 28

SOURCE: Exhibitor Relations Co.