By Dean Goodman

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - "The School of Rock," a family comedy in which a crazed substitute teacher turns his preteen charges onto Led Zeppelin and AC/DC, earned the top grade at the North American weekend box office, according to studio estimates issued on Sunday.

The Paramount Pictures release, which stars Jack Black of "High Fidelity" fame, sold about $20.2 million worth of tickets in its first three days since Oct. 2, opening at the higher end of the studio's expectations.

It was followed by another new release, "Out of Time," a thriller starring Denzel Washington, which opened with $17 million. Last weekend's champion, "The Rundown," starring former wrestler Dwayne, "The Rock" Johnson, slipped to No. 3 with $9.8 million in its second round.

Elsewhere in the top 10, writer/director Sofia Coppola's acclaimed comedy "Lost in Translation," starring Bill Murray, jumped three places to No. 7 with $4.3 million after boosting its theater count.

However, the overall take was down sharply from last year, according to tracking firm Exhibitor Relations. The top 12 films grossed $82.2 million, down 19 percent from the year-ago period when "Red Dragon" opened at No. 1 with $34.5 million.

"SCHOOL" FOR ALL AGES

While many music-based films, such as "Almost Famous" and "Rock Star," never connected with the masses, Paramount undertook a "delicate" task by marketing "The School of Rock" across the board, said Wayne Lewellen, president of distribution at the Viacom Inc -owned studio. Youngsters would be drawn to the ensemble cast of tykes, and older hipsters to the classic rock.

Exit data appeared to show the effort was a success. The audience was split evenly between males and females, and almost half the viewers was aged over 25, he said. The film was also helped by favorable reviews and strong word-of-mouth after some sneak previews last weekend.

Richard Linklater ("Dazed and Confused") directed "The School of Rock," which cost in the low-$30 million range. It co-stars Mike White, the film's writer, Joan Cusack and Sarah Silverman.

The $17-million bow for "Out of Time," in which Washington plays a police chief caught up in a double homicide, fell within expectations, said Erik Lomis, president of distribution at Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Inc., which released the film. It cost about $50 million, but MGM's exposure is about $30 million since it pre-sold some foreign rights.

The audience was 56 percent female, while 58 percent was aged over 30, he said. The film was directed by Carl Franklin, who previously worked with Washington in the 1995 film noir "Devil in a Blue Dress."

"The Rundown," an action movie released by Universal Pictures, has earned $32.7 million after 10 days. The studio, a unit of Vivendi Universal SA, expects it to finish with about $60 million -- far below the $90 million haul of Johnson's last effort, last summer's "The Scorpion King."

Rounding out the top five, "Under the Tuscan Sun" fell one spot to No. 4 with $7.9 million; its 10-day total rose to $21 million. The romance, which stars Diane Lane, was released by Touchstone Pictures, a unit of Walt Disney Co .

"Secondhand Lions," a period comedy-drama starring Michael Caine, Robert Duvall and Haley Joel Osment, slipped one place to No. 5 with $5.4 million in its third weekend; its total rose to $30.8 million. The film was released by New Line Cinema, a unit of AOL Time Warner Inc .

"Lost in Translation," from Vivendi's Focus Features unit, has earned $14.2 million after four weekends. After adding 376 theaters, it is playing in 864 outlets. By contrast, "The School of Rock" is in 2,614 theaters and "Out of Time" in 3,076 theaters.

1. The School of Rock .......... $19,622,714

BOX OFFICE SO FAR: $19,622,714

2. Out of Time .......... $16,185,316

BOX OFFICE SO FAR: $16,185,316

3. The Rundown .......... $9,682,780

BOX OFFICE SO FAR: $32,646,055

4. Under the Tuscan Sun .......... $7,682,053

BOX OFFICE SO FAR: $20,740,822

5. Secondhand Lions .......... $5,183,674

BOX OFFICE SO FAR: $30,624,785

6. Underworld .......... $5,068,277

BOX OFFICE SO FAR: $44,808,894

7. Lost in Translation .......... $4,163,333

BOX OFFICE SO FAR: $14,017,704

8. The Fighting Temptations .......... $3,386,543

BOX OFFICE SO FAR: $24,576,247

9. Once Upon a Time in Mexico .......... $2,626,304

BOX OFFICE SO FAR: $53,068,097

10. Cold Creek Manor .......... $2,511,141

BOX OFFICE SO FAR: $18,340,205

John L.: For those about to read this report, I salute you. Jack Black is back with another number one film with School of Rock. He has been a cult favorite with his Tenacious D. band with Kyle Gass (K.G.). With his role as a rock scholar teaching young and uptight kids the best way to let out their inner Keith, Pete, and Robert appears to be a hit. Has the world finally seen Mr. Black in his best element? Full review to next.

This movie is for all of you people that have heard of this strange duo called Tenacious D (defense, as in Marv Albert's "tenacious d" calls during NBA games) and wondered what the hell is this all about? Jack Black is known for his love of music, especially the so called classic rock sound that makes up the guitar sounds from about 1967 to 1984 before rock sold out to da man. Black and Kyle Gass have been underground for a long time but over the next year or so, they will be getting more mainstream. Shallow Hal sort of introduced the world to the mind of Black. SOR is part two in his plan to rule the world. It is good to start with the children, and this next phase of attack is a good one. Jack Black plays Dewey Finn, rock god wannabe. He has been kicked out of his band, and is being threatened with eviction by his roommates Ned (Mike White) and Patty (Sarah Silverman). If he does not get a job by the end of the week, then he will be homeless. The phone rings and Dewey answers. It is Principal Mullins (Joan Cusack) needing a sub for her high school 5th grade class. Ned is a certified teacher who subs, Dewey is nearly a stoner. As movies like this always lead to, Dewey says that he is Ned and takes the job as substitute. Instead of Mr. Finn, he is now Mr. Ned Schneebly. Not knowing the first thing about teaching since when he was in school as a student he didn't pay much attention, he just assigns recess to the kids. But things change when he sees some of them playing in band class. This gives Dewey the idea to turn his new pawns into rooks, or should I say Rocks, or Rockers who could potentially win the upcoming Battle of the Bands that he hoped to get into with his former band. At this point the movie becomes this Music History 101-666 as he instructs on the ways of the guitar lick, the windmill, the power chord, and how to stick it to da man. All of this is fine, but very predictable. One kid is great at guitar, but his father doesn't want him to play this horrible music. There is the shy kid who feels he is too uncool to play in the band. Then there is the slightly overweight black girl who has the super voice that is dying to come out. My two favorites were Summer (Miranda Cosgrove) who is the super smart girl who always raises her hand to remind the teacher that they forgot to assign homework, and Billy (Brian Falduto) who's life ambition appears to be to one day star on Bravo Network reality ensemble show. The movie follows the standard formula that is done in every unique teacher teaches the private school kids while at the same time the kids teach the teacher. There is no edge to the movie as it is pretty PG friendly with just a few curse words thrown in for generic shock value. Also, while watching the movie, you wait for the inevitable moment when Dewey has to confess to not being a real teacher and then the kids banding together to support the man who made them want to be better than they ever thought they could be. If that is ruining the movie for you, sorry, get out more. That formula is never strayed from, and if it ever is, no one ever sees the movie. Standing ovations and slow claps to you all. Jack Black carries the film and has a great chemistry with the kids and with the audience. You root for him to succeed at all times, and you know he will for the most part. Black has the ability to act with his eyebrows that only a few guys can do like Nicholson, Keaton, and Belushi. Adults who grew up listening to the music that Dewey swears to makes the movie more meaningful. Children who watch this who listen to a lot of rap, pop, or modern alternative rock may be a bit confused at the inside rock humor. The kids in the movie didn't know the difference from Led Zeppelin and the Goodyear Blimp, and I'm afraid many children that this movie is geared to will understand either. Watching it got me to think about when did music stations decide that they would never play a song made after January 1, 1987. What killed the rock and roll from the 1970s that is so loved by people over 25 today? Was it disco, MTV, Run DMC/Aerosmith, Hair Metal, Nirvanna, or N'Sync? We may never know. The movie sort of implies MTV killed rock, but is never made official. It is something to try to think about as you leave the movie School of Rock. That type of music isn't being made anymore that would get Jack Black to jump in the air and scowl in maniacal glee. School of Rock is a good start in the education of learning why there are so many stations on the radio that have not bought an album/CD in about 15 years. Final Review: 3 stars out of 5; 7 out of 10; B; thumbs up.

1. Denzel does his annual mainstream action cop pic in between those more noble Oscar worthy roles with the opening of Out of Time this week.

2. Eva Mendes and Denzel together again after getting so much attention when they were together in Training Day.

3. As a fan of The Rock, I feel a slight bit of glee with the 50 percent drop of the Rundown this week which means he is that much closer to coming back to wrestling full time.

4. The sleeper hit of the list is Under the Tuscan Sun as it is holding up pretty well for a 65% of the audience chick flick.

5. Second Hand Lions is getting most of its business from Lord of the Rings fans since it is the only movie showing the trailer to Return of the King.

6. Even though Underworld's box office is somewhat underwhelming, a sequel is planned.

7. Bill Murray is getting closer to making a serious movie that is successful and not full of his usual buffoonery.

8. Fighting Temptations is the best received Cuba Gooding Jr. movie in this millenium.

9. Once Upon a Time in Mexico continues the profit making streak of Robert Rodriguez movies.

10. Cold Creek Manor's secret will remain one to the majority of the public as it is fading fast out of the top 10.

Next week is volume one of Quentin Tarantino's Kill Bill. It is his homage to the Kung Fu Theater. Even though those movies are based on Hong Kong and deep Asian cultural ideas, the most effective warrior is a Nordic looking white chick with a head wound. Typical American filmmaking. We shall see how this all plays out. Bye for now.