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I wanted to see movies this weekend, I really, really did. But with work, work, my show and work. I saw nothing but myself in the mirror. I did like what I saw though.

‘Big Fish’ Duels ‘Rings’ for No. 1 Spot
LOS ANGELES – The top spot at the weekend box office was too close to call, with Tim Burton’s “Big Fish” holding a narrow lead over “The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King.”
Studio estimates Sunday showed “Big Fish” took in $14.5 million to squeak past “Return of the King,” which grossed $14.1 million. But with just $400,000 separating the top films, rankings could change when final numbers are released Monday.
Final figures often end up slightly lower than estimates made on Sunday, when studios are making projections on how big an audience their films will draw on the last day of the weekend.
“This is very rare to have a photo finish for the No. 1 spot,” said Paul Dergarabedian, president of box-office tracker Exhibitor Relations. He predicted that the movies would stay in the same order on Monday.
Other studios were tracking Sony’s “Big Fish” and New Line’s “Return of the King” at slightly lower weekend grosses. Some had “Big Fish” in first place and some had “Return of the King” as No. 1.
Rory Bruer, Sony head of distribution, said the studio’s $14.5 million figure for “Big Fish” was a reasonable estimate.
This was the first weekend in wide release for “Big Fish,” which stars Albert Finney and Ewan McGregor in the fanciful adventures of a man who tells larger-than-life tales. The film opened in late December in a handful of theaters for Academy Awards consideration.
Expanding to 2,406 theaters, “Big Fish” averaged $6,027 a cinema, compared to $3,999 in 3,532 theaters for “Return of the King.”
The weekend’s only new wide releases were two poorly reviewed movies, the Eddie Griffin comedy “My Baby’s Daddy,” which ranked No. 6 with $7.8 million, and Mandy Moore’s romance “Chasing Liberty,” which was No. 7 with $6 million.
January is traditionally a dead zone for new releases, with audiences shrinking after the holiday boom and studios dumping mediocre flicks into theaters.
The overall box office was up compared to last year, though, with the top 12 movies taking in $92.5 million, up 5 percent from the same weekend in 2003.
Distributor Sony rolled out “Big Fish” slowly to build audience word of mouth for a complex film that was not an easy sell for Hollywood’s marketing machine.
“It was a tough picture to represent marketing-wise in terms of letting people know what the story was,” Bruer said. “It felt like going slower with the picture would give audiences a chance to kind of discover the story for themselves.”
“The Return of the King” is about to pass the total $314.8 million domestic gross of the fantasy trilogy’s first installment, “The Fellowship of the Ring.” The final film also is expected to top the $341.7 million haul of the middle chapter, “The Two Towers.”
The serial-killer drama “Monster,” which has earned Academy Award buzz for star Charlize Theron, did well expanding into wider release. The film, based on the life of executed murderer Aileen Wuornos, took in $865,160 in 82 theaters for a strong $10,551 average.
Here are the estimated ticket sales for Friday through Sunday at North American theaters, according to Exhibitor Relations Co. Inc. Final figures will be released Monday.
1. “Big Fish,” $14.5 million.
2. “The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King,” $14.1 million.
3. “Cheaper by the Dozen,” $12 million.
4. “Something’s Gotta Give,” $8.2 million.
5. “Cold Mountain,” $7.9 million.
6. “My Baby’s Daddy,” $7.8 million.
7. “Chasing Liberty,” $6 million.
8. “Paycheck,” $5.2 million.
9. “The Last Samurai,” $4.53 million.
10. “Mona Lisa Smile,” $4.5 million.