Flexing strong muscles and overcoming a ten-year lean period, Arnold Schwarzenegger led Terminator 3: Rise Of The Machines to the top of the US box office, earning about $72.5 million in five days and terminating rivals, especially Charlie's Angles: Full Throttle.

Given its $200 million cost, many in Hollywood wondered whether the film could be profitable, especially since the previous film in the series was released 12 years ago.

Besides, isn't Schwarzenegger 55 years old?

Though T3 did not record a spectacular opening, it could have stronger legs than many sci-fi adventure films like The Hulk. And if it does far bigger business abroad, as most Schwarzenegger films have done, it will not only be profitable, but could lead to another sequel.

The movie set records for director Jonathan Mostow and Schwarzenegger. The first two instalments were directed by James Cameron, who had refused to be persuaded to direct the third. Mostow's earlier successes, U-571 and Breakdown, had each grossed about $50 million in North America.

The big opening of T3 was terrific news for distributor Warner Bros. MGM too had reason to celebrate, but there was gloom at Steven Spielberg's DreamWorks as the animated Sinbad: Legend Of The Seven Seas faced dry wind.

MGM's Legally Blonde 2: Red White And Blonde, in which Reese Witherspoon goes to Washington to campaign against using animals in scientific experiments, overcame negative reviews and earned $39 million in five days.

Despite the voices of big stars like Brad Pitt, Sinbad, which received mostly negative reviews, could earn only about $10 million.

On the other hand, Finding Nemo, the animated hit, had another splashy spell, earning $11 million over the weekend. Having overtaken the very lucrative The Matrix: Reloaded by about $4 million to become the highest grossing film so far this year, Nemo has an excellent chance of becoming the only movie so far this year to reach the $300 million benchmark.

Among the three movies released on Wednesday, Sinbad, Legally Blonde 2 and T3, the last got better reviews. Though a few critics did slam the film, many leading critics gave it a decent grade.

Roger Ebert, who is often easy to please, roasted the film in Chicago Sun-Times, noting it was 'dumbed down for the multiplex hordes'. Rival Chicago Tribune's Mark Caro called the film 'a taut, exciting science-fiction thriller that pumps up our adrenaline without forgetting to engage our heads'. He would not give it an unqualified thumbs up, though, complaining that the action was overblown in many places.

On the West Coast, particularly in California, where Schwarzenegger is considering a gubernatorial run, the movie received plenty of good reviews. In Los Angeles Times, Kenneth Turan wrote the film 'combines brisk action with compelling drama'.

On the East Coast, many leading publications ran negative reviews. New York Post's Lou Lumenick found it 'pointless and mind-numbing'. And in The New York Times A O Scott wrote, 'Terminator 3 is essentially a B movie, content to be loud, dumb and obvious.'

Last week's leader Charlie's Angels: Full Throttle had a less-than-heavenly second week as collections fell 62 per cent. But it was still strong enough to be at third place on the chart. It will need plenty of prayers and a small miracle to reach the $100 million mark. The previous film in the franchise had grossed $125 million three years ago.

The Hulk tumbled more than 60 per cent from last week.

The surprise hit of the month, the $7 million sci-fi psychological drama 28 Days Later, has already grossed about $21 million in ten days. It is also significant that the movie is playing in just about 1,200 theatres, unlike T3 and Angels, each playing in over 3,000 theatres. The movie has had an excellent run in Britain, Germany and a handful of other European countries, making a decent profit before it opened in America.

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