LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - With less than a week until Harry Potter bewitches moviegoers, the Disney cartoon ''Monsters, Inc.'' enjoyed its second - and likely last - weekend as the No. 1 movie at the North American box office.
According to studio estimates issued Sunday, "Monsters,'' Inc.'' earned $46.2 million in ticket sales for the three days beginning Friday, taking its 10-day total to $122.8 million.
The cartoon passed the century mark in nine days, setting a new record for an animated feature. Disney's "Toy Story 2'' held the record - 11 days - with help from a Thanksgiving holiday release in 1998. Both films played in a similar number of theaters.
Three movies entered the top 10 - two new releases, ''Shallow Hal'' at No. 2 with $23.3 million and "Heist'' at No. 5 with $8 million; while "Life as a House'' jumped 12 places to No. 8 with $3.7 million in its first weekend of wide release.
Receipts for the top 12 films totaled $116.5 million, down 12 percent from last weekend, but up 20 percent from the year-ago period, when "Charlie's Angels'' was tops for a second round.
"Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone'' opens next Friday in both the United States and Britain - where it is called ''Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone'' - and the family movie is expected to shatter box office records.
"They're going to be huge,'' said Chuck Viane, president of distribution at Walt Disney Co., which released ''Monsters, Inc.'' via its Walt Disney Pictures banner. "I think we'll be hit. No question.''
"Harry Potter'' - one of the most anticipated films of the year - will be released by Warner Bros. Pictures, a unit of AOL Time Warner Inc. The media giant's New Line Cinema unit will distribute the only other wide new release next weekend, "The Wash,'' an urban comedy starring rap singers Snoop Dogg and Dr. Dre.
"HAL'' WEIGHS IN
In addition to retaining pole position, "Monsters, Inc.'' also suffered the least erosion among top 10 holdovers, losing just 26 percent of its audience from last weekend. By contrast, ''The One'' (Columbia) and "Domestic Disturbance'' (Paramount), two thrillers that also opened last weekend, fell 52 percent and 39 percent, respectively.
"Monsters, Inc,'' a production with Pixar Animation Studios Inc., revolves around a civilization of colorful critters whose power supply is fueled by the screams of human children visited in the night by a "Top Gun''-like squadron of scaremeisters who bottle the squeals. The voice cast includes John Goodman, Billy Crystal, Steve Buscemi and Jennifer Tilly.
The romantic comedy "Shallow Hal'' (Fox) stars Jack Black in the title role as a superficial guy hypnotized by self-help guru Tony Robbins into thinking that a morbidly obese woman (Gwyneth Paltrow in a fat suit) is a slender beauty.
In a country where studies show that half the population is overweight, the film apparently did not touch any raw nerves. The film's directors, Peter and Bobby Farrelly (''There's Something About Mary''), played down their usual gross-out humor in order to win a PG-13 rating.
"It plays kinda sweet,'' said Bruce Snyder, president of distribution at Twentieth Century Fox, a unit of Fox Entertainment Group Inc. The film skewed towards young women, he added.
"Heist'' (Warner Bros.) stars Gene Hackman, Danny DeVito and Delroy Lindo as professional thieves looking to score one last job amid general intrigue. David Mamet directed. Warner Bros. distributed the film for a fee on behalf of producer Franchise Pictures, the company behind "Battlefield Earth.''
"ONE'' BIG IN ASIA
"The One'' and "Domestic Disturbance'' rounded out the top five, at Nos. 3 and 4, respectively, both down one position from last weekend. "The One,'' starring Chinese action hero Jet Li, grossed $9.1 million, taking its 10-day total to $31.9 million. Columbia Pictures, a unit of Sony Corp., said the film opened this weekend at No. 1 in Singapore, Malaysia, the Philippines and Hong Kong.
"Domestic Disturbance,'' starring John Travolta, earned $8.5 million, for a 10-day haul of $26 million. Paramount Pictures is a unit of Viacom Inc.
"Life as a House,'' a family drama starring Kevin Kline, earned $3.7 million, falling a little short of expectations, said a New Line spokeswoman. Its total, which includes two weekends in limited release, is $4.9 million.
In the limited release arena, French romantic comedy ''Amelie'' (Miramax) expanded to 48 theaters in the top 40 markets after bowing last weekend in three theaters in Los Angeles and New York. Its three-day haul of $730,000 took the total to $962,000.
In contrast to most arthouse films, which tend to attract an older, upscale audience, "Amelie'' is playing to a slightly younger audience, which augurs well for its expansion, said a spokesman at Disney-owned Miramax. France has submitted the film as its contender for a foreign-language Oscar nomination.
Estimated ticket sales for Friday through Sunday at North American theaters, according to Exhibitor Relations Co. Final figures are to be released Monday.
1 "Monsters Inc.," $63.5 million.
2 "The One," $20 million.
3 "Domestic Disturbance," $14.5 million.
4 "K-Pax," $10.7 million.
5 "Thirteen Ghosts," $8 million.
6 "Riding in Cars with Boys," $4.5 million.
7 "From Hell," $3.7 million.
8 "Training Day," $3.2 million.
9 "Bandits," $3 million.
10 "Serendipity," $2.5 million
