Box office magic continues for Harry

LOS ANGELES—

A boy wizard and a country- music legend outclassed a flurry of box-office contenders last weekend. Movie theatre attendance was doubtless boosted by the fact this was a holiday weekend south of the border with U. S. Thanksgiving.

Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire took in $ 54.9 million ( all figures U. S.) over the weekend to remain the top movie, while the Johnny Cash film biography Walk the Line

stayed in second place with $ 19.7 million.

That was a boost for the slumping movie business, which has had attendance running 8 per cent behind last year’s.

“ You’ve got to look at Harry Potter as being the saviour of the box office right now,” said Paul Dergarabedian, president of box- office tracker Exhibitor Relations.

Dennis Quaid and Rene Russo’s family flick Yours, Mine & Ours overcame bad reviews to lead the new movies, finishing third with $ 17.5 million. The animated tale Chicken Little held up strongly at No. 4 with $12.4 million, lifting its fourweek total to $ 118.2 million.

Rent, featuring Taye Diggs and Rosario Dawson in an adaptation of the Broadway musical sensation, debuted in fifth with athree- day total of $ 10.7 million and $ 18.1 million since opening Wednesday.

Premiering at No. 6 was Canadian actor Ryan Reynolds’ romantic comedy Just Friends with $ 9.3 million. John Cusack and Billy Bob Thornton’s crime caper The Ice Harvest debuted at No. 10 with $ 3.7 million Friday to Sunday.

Goblet of Fire

shot past $200 million in just 10 days, the fastest of the four Harry Potter movies to cross that mark.