Walt Disney Co.'s drama 'The Help' repeated as the top-grossing film at the North American box office this past weekend, as attendance overall was battered by Hurricane Irene and theater closures in the Northeast.

The top 12 films this weekend earned a total of $73.2 million, 23% less than the $95.1 million grossed by the top 12 films during the same time frame last year. 'The Help' brought in $14.3 million of that.

Taking into account all films, the weekend took in an estimated $88 million, according to Hollywood.com, making the period the second-lowest grossing weekend of the year.

Dave Hollis, Disney's executive vice president for theatrical sales and distribution, said theater closures certainly had an impact on grosses for 'The Help,' but the company supported its 'partners in exhibition in keeping their employees safe.'

As of Sunday, AMC Entertainment Inc. had closed all of its theaters in New York and New Jersey and select theaters in Washington, D.C., and Philadelphia, among other cities.

Of the weekend's new releases, the action film 'Colombiana' fared the best, earning an estimated $10.3 million. Released by Sony Corp.'s TriStar, the film stars Zoe Saldana as an assassin and appealed primarily to women, who made up 57% of the audience.

'Don't Be Afraid of the Dark,' an R-rated horror film from FilmDistrict, 'Rise of the Planet of the Apes,' from News Corp.'s Twentieth Century Fox and 'Our Idiot Brother,' a comedy from Weinstein Co., rounded out the top five. News Corp. also owns The Wall Street Journal.

Erik Lomis, Weinstein Co.'s president of theatricaldistribution and home entertainment, said the closures in the Northeast may have hurt its film more than the other new releases. The comedy, which stars Paul Rudd as a naive do-gooder, was rated R and appealed to an older demographic that was more likely to stay home because of the storm.

Michelle Kung

• account [ə´kaunt] vi.说明 vt.认为 n.帐目 (初中英语单词)
• executive [ig´zekjutiv] a.行政的 n.行政官 (初中英语单词)
• distribution [,distri´bju:ʃən] n.分配；分布(状态) (初中英语单词)
• entertainment [,entə´teinmənt] n.招(款)待；联欢会 (初中英语单词)
• jersey [´dʒə:zi] n.毛织运动衫；毛线衫 (初中英语单词)
• horror [´hɔrə] n.恐怖；战栗 (初中英语单词)
• planet [´plænit] n.行星 (初中英语单词)
• repeated [ri´pi:tid] a.反复的；重复的 (高中英语单词)
• exhibition [eksi´biʃ(ə)n] n.展览；显示；表演 (高中英语单词)
• comedy [´kɔmidi] n.喜剧；喜剧场面 (高中英语单词)
• northeast [,nɔ:θ´i:st] n.东北 a.东北的 (高中英语单词)
• weekend [´wi:kend, ,wi:k´end] n.周末休假 (英语四级单词)
• hurricane [´hʌrikən] n.飓风 (英语四级单词)
• theatrical [θi´ætrikəl] a.戏院的；戏剧(性)的 (英语四级单词)
• primarily [´praimərəli, prai´merəli] ad.首先；主要地 (英语四级单词)
• impact [´impækt] n.影响，作用；冲击 (英语六级单词)
• assassin [ə´sæsin] n.刺客，暗杀者 (英语六级单词)