By Dean Goodman

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Hannibal the cannibal feasted on six wide new releases at the North American box office on Sunday, while the title of Madonna (news - web sites)'s badly reviewed new movie "Swept Away" turned out to be prophetic.

"Red Dragon," which marks Anthony Hopkins (news)' third turn as Hannibal Lecter, was the top movie for a second weekend, pulling in $17.6 million for three days beginning Oct. 11. But its hefty 52 percent slide was the steepest among the five holdovers in the top 10, and compares with a 49 percent second-weekend decline for its 2001 predecessor, "Hannibal."

A remake of the 1986 pulp thriller "Manhunter," "Red Dragon" also stars Edward Norton (news) and Harvey Keitel (news). Brett Ratner ("Rush Hour") directed the film for Universal Pictures, a unit of Vivendi Universal SA . Its 10-day total rose to $63.2 million.

Former box office champ "Sweet Home Alabama" held steady at No. 2 with $14.1 million in its third weekend; its 17-day total rose to $85 million. The romantic comedy, which stars Reese Witherspoon (news), was released by Touchstone Pictures, a unit of Walt Disney Co .

The top 12 films grossed $93 million, up 20 percent from the year-ago weekend, according to tracking firm Exhibitor Relations. Year-to-date receipts stand at almost $7 billion, and observers say the full-year total could pass $9 billion for the first time.

'BROWN SUGAR' TASTES SWEET

Best of the debutantes was "Brown Sugar," an urban comedy that opened at No. 3 with a better-than-expected $11.1 million from just 1,372 theaters. By contrast, "Dragon" and "Alabama" each played in more than 3,300 theaters.

Taye Diggs (news) and Sanaa Lathan (news) star as old friends who stumble over a series of farcical obstacles on their way to a budding romance. The film, budgeted at under $10 million, was directed by Rick Famuyiwa, who previously worked with Diggs and Lathan on his directing debut "The Wood."

"Brown Sugar" played mostly to black audiences, said Steve Gilula, president of distribution at Fox Searchlight, the arthouse wing of News Corp.'s Fox Entertainment Group Inc . Going into the weekend, he had hoped for an opening in the $8 million to $10 million range.

Sister studio Twentieth Century Fox claimed the No. 4 slot with "The Transporter," an action thriller starring British actor Jason Statham. It opened at No. 5 with $9.2 million. A studio spokesman said he was pleased with the score.

Statham previously starred in "Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels" and "Snatch," two acclaimed British crime thrillers both directed by Guy Ritchie (news).

Ritchie's luck ran out with his follow-up, "Swept Away," starring his wife Madonna. The film opened out of the top 10 with just $375,000 from a limited release in 196 theaters.

A loose remake of Lina Wertmuller's 1974 satire "Swept Away ... by an Unusual Destiny in the Blue Sea of August," the role-reversal romance stars Madonna as a wealthy woman stranded on a beach. As with most of the Material Girl's other cinematic efforts, such as "Shanghai Surprise," "Who's That Girl" and "The Next Best Thing," the reviews were bad. USA Today said it could be a contender for a Razzie, the "anti-Oscar" awards given to the year's worst films.

"Swept Away" was released by Screen Gems, the mid-budget arm of Sony Pictures Entertainment . A studio spokesman was philosophical, noting the film cost under $10 million to make. He added there were no plans to expand the film.

AUDIENCES 'LOVE' SANDLER

Sony's Columbia Pictures arm did considerably better with "Punch-Drunk Love," a romantic comedy that casts goofball comic Adam Sandler (news) in a positive new light. The film opened with $380,000 from just five theaters and will reach about 400 outlets by Oct. 15. It was directed by Paul Thomas Anderson (news) of "Magnolia" and "Boogie Nights" fame.

Sony Pictures is a unit of Sony Corp (news - web sites) .

The top 10 contained three other new releases, bunched tightly in the Nos. 7, 8 and 9 positions: "White Oleander," a prison drama starring Michelle Pfeiffer (news), with $5.7 million; the fairy tale adaptation "Tuck Everlasting" with $5.5 million; and "Knockaround Guys," a mob drama starring Vin Diesel (news), with $5.0 million.

"White Oleander" was released by Warner Bros. Pictures; and "Knockaround Guys" by New Line Cinema, both units of AOL Time Warner Inc . "Tuck Everlasting" was released by Disney's Walt Disney Pictures.

Yet another rookie, "The Rules of Attraction" opened at No. 12 with $2.4 million. The grim college satire, based on a book by Bret Easton Ellis, was released by Lions Gate Films, a unit of Lions Gate Entertainment Corp .

LOS ANGELES, Oct 7 (Reuters) - Following are the final data for the top 10 movies at the North American box office during the October 11-13 weekend, according to studio figures released Monday by Exhibitor Relations Co. Inc.

Film Three-day Cumulative

1. Red Dragon .......... $17,655,750

BOX OFFICE SO FAR: $63,279,005

2. Sweet Home Alabama .......... $14,261,720

BOX OFFICE SO FAR: $84,712,801

3. Brown Sugar .......... $10,738,882

BOX OFFICE SO FAR: $10,738,882

4. The Transporter .......... $9,107,816

BOX OFFICE SO FAR: $9,107,816

5. My Big Fat Greek Wedding .......... $8,453,159

BOX OFFICE SO FAR: $158,954,054

6. The Tuxedo .......... $7,046,222

BOX OFFICE SO FAR: $37,038,408

7. White Oleander .......... $5,607,480

BOX OFFICE SO FAR: $5,607,480

9. Tuck Everlasting .......... $5,268,764

BOX OFFICE SO FAR: $5,268,764

8. Knockaround Guys .......... $5,016,852

BOX OFFICE SO FAR: $5,016,852

10. Barbershop .......... $4,016,652

BOX OFFICE SO FAR: $65,440,273

Reuters/Variety

John L.:  Way behind again on the box office report. Just a quick review of Transporter this week.  Nothing new that came out was interesting to the masses.

THE TRANSPORTER - MINI REVIEW

The Transporter is about a retired ex special ops dude who does odd jobs for the bad guys and has special rules that must never be broken. Of course, no one ever follows the rules so this Transporter just wastes his breath. One day while transporting a 102 pound bag, he opens it up and finds a pretty young Asian girl who is in a lot of trouble. What follows and precedes this incident are some fairly exciting action sequences and fights. Jason Statham plays Frank Martin, the Transporter. He can drive real fast and kick real hard. Statham is charismatic enough and does well in this bad boy action hero role. The movie has its slow parts as most action films tend to do, but when the fists, feet, and tires are flying, the movie is quite entertaining. The story makes no sense, but hey that is not the point. If you are in the mood for a quick action fix, this movie will fufill your needs. Final Review: 2 stars out of 5; 5 out of 10; C+; thumbs up.