DAREDEVIL HOLDS TOP B.O. SPOT

Ben Affleck's superhero adventure Daredevil remained the No. 1 movie for the second straight weekend with $18.9 million, pushing its 10-day total to $70.3 million.

Old School, starring former Saturday Night Live comedian Will Ferrell with Vince Vaughn and Luke Wilson, debuted a close second with $17.5 million.

A rush of heavy new dramas had modest to weak openings. The Life of David Gale, starring Kevin Spacey, was No. 6 with $7.2 million. The Civil War epic Gods and Generals, featuring Robert Duvall, debuted at No. 8 with $4.8 million.

Dark Blue, with Kurt Russell and Ving Rhames, opened in ninth place with $3.75 million.

Among the new movies, Old School had a healthy $6,508 average in 2,689 theaters. The Life of David Gale averaged $3,580 in 2,002 cinemas, Gods and Generals did $3,115 in 1,533 theaters and Dark Blue managed just $1,723 in 2,176 locations.

Critics welcomed Old School as a lowbrow but fun successor to the campus classic Animal House, with Ferrell earning high marks compared to other Saturday Night Live alumni, whose big-screen efforts often draw bad reviews. Men made up 58% of the audience for Old School, and 56% of viewers were younger than 25.

Daredevil is poised to become the first movie released in 2003 to top $100 million.