Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, the third film in the popular fantasy series, dominated the weekend box office results with an estimated total of $92.6 million, dwarfing the efforts of Shrek 2, which took in an estimated $37 million in its third week of release.  The new Harry Potter film, which was directed by Mexican helmer Alfonso Cuaron, scored the biggest opening ever for the Potter series, and clearly appears to have revitalized the cinematic component of the worldwide Harry Potter phenomenon, with a darker, more teen-friendly approach.  Just as the characters age in the original novels by J.K. Rowling, so the audience for the series has also begun to mature -- and Cuaron has evidently hit on the right formula to keep Harry interesting for the generation of readers that originally made the books such a unparalleled success.

 

Meanwhile Shrek 2 dropped by some 48.7% in its third weekend, but the film has still grossed a highly impressive$313. 6 million.  Shrek 2 remains the film to beat in the summer box office sweepstakes, but now it does appear that it is at least possible that the new Harry Potter film (or Spider-Man 2) might be able to catch the big green ogre.  The Day After Tomorrow, which slid almost 60% in its sophomore session, is no longer a contender.  Van Helsing declined a further 55%, but remained in the top 10 at #8.