Both "Exit Wounds" and "Romeo Must Die" were directed by Andrzej Bartkowiak. Fellman said "Exit Wounds" received a very strong response in the black community, and pulled in a surprisingly high proportion of female moviegoers. Exit polling indicated that both genders liked it equally.
"Enemy at the Gates," which revolves around a duel between a Russian and German sniper (played by Jude Law and Ed Harris, respectively) during the Battle of Stalingrad, predictably pulled in more males and rated more strongly with older audiences, a Paramount spokeswoman said.
The film also stars Joseph Fiennes, who competes with Law's character for the affections of a Russian recruit played by Rachel Weisz. Frenchman Jean-Jacques Annaud ("Seven Years in Tibet") produced and directed.
"Enemy" cost about $70 million to make, but Paramount picked up North American rights for less than $10 million from studio-based producer Mandalay Pictures, the spokeswoman said.
The film opened in just 1,509 theaters, the lowest count in the top 10, and accordingly posted the highest average, $9,013. By contrast, "Exit Wounds" averaged $6,723 from 2,830 theaters. "Enemy" will expand to nearly 2,000 theaters next weekend, said Paramount vice-chairman Rob Friedman. Paramount is a unit of Viacom Inc..
"The Mexican," playing at the most theaters in the top 10
-- 3,162, up 203 from last weekend -- has grossed $50.9 million after 17 days.
The canine caper "See Spot Run" (Warner Bros.) slipped one place to No. 4 with $5.2 million, taking its 17-day total to $25 million. Fellman expected the low-budget comedy would surpass $40 million.
But things were not quite rosy for corporate sibling New Line Cinema's "15 Minutes," which fell three places to No. 5 with $4.4 million in its second weekend. The Robert De Niro/ Edward Burns thriller lost 59 percent of its audience from last weekend, the steepest drop in the top 10, and has earned just $18 million after 10 days.
The martial arts romance "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon" held steady at No. 6 with $4.1 million after 101 days, and was expected to end Sunday with $100.4 million in the till. The film is up for 10 Academy Awards, including best picture, foreign-language picture and director (Ang Lee).
The drug saga "Traffic" passed the century mark on Saturday, its 81st day, and now has $102.5 million in the bank. This weekend, the five-time Oscar contender grossed $3.4 million, sharing the No. 9 spot with fellow best picture nominee "Chocolat" (Miramax).
Sony Pictures Classics is a unit of Sony Corp. <6758.T>, USA Films is a unit of USA Networks Inc. Miramax Films is a unit of Walt Disney Co. DreamWorks SKG is privately held.
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