Summer movie totals still trail last year

Cheerleader spoof rallies crowd

LOS ANGELES – Three cheers for Bring It On.

The spoof about high school pep squads competing for a national championship debuted as the top film at the box office over the weekend with $17.4 million in revenues, according to studio estimates Sunday.

Wesley Snipes' spy thriller The Art of War, about a United Nations agent caught up in turmoil over China trade relations, premiered in second place with $11.2 million.

The mobster comedy The Crew, this month's second new movie featuring a geriatric foursome, opened at No. 7 with $4.1 million. The movie stars Richard Dreyfuss, Burt Reynolds, Dan Hedaya and Seymour Cassel.

The other old-timers flick, Space Cowboys, held strongly at No. 4 with $6.6 million, raising its take to $63.8 million in four weeks. Last weekend's top movie, The Cell, dropped to third place with $9.6 million.

"The girls ruled the box office," Paul Dergarabedian, president of Exhibitor Relations, which tracks movie attendance, said.

"It had real female appeal, and there's not been a lot this summer targeted at women and girls," he said. "When you starve an audience for something, they will come out and see it when you finally tap into that audience."

Here are the estimated ticket sales for Friday through Sunday at North American theaters, according to Exhibitor Relations. Final figures are to be released Monday: