VIDEO RENTALS : ‘Flatliners’ Moves Into No. 2 Spot

Tom Cruise didn’t stand up too well to the surge of Julia Roberts. After just a week at No. 2 on the Billboard rental chart, Cruise’s “Days of Thunder” slipped meekly to No. 3, making way for the charging “Flatliners,” the Roberts smash hit which jumped two notches to No. 2 in its second week on the chart. Can “Flatliners” topple the firmly-entrenched chart leader, “Die Hard 2”? Probably. “Die Hard 2” is a real crowd-pleaser but Roberts’ star power, which is pulling in renters, could propel “Flatliners” to the top in the next week or two. “Darkman,” the comic-strip-style action/drama which raced up to No. 4 in just two weeks, is a dark-horse candidate for No. 1. “Quick Change,” a comedy starring Bill Murray and Geena Davis, debuted at No. 16 and is on its way to the Top 10.

Ranking Weeks Ranking 2 Weeks On Rental Top Rentals Last Week Ago Chart 1. “Die Hard 2” (CBS-Fox) 1 1 4 2. “Flatliners”(RCA/Columbia) 4 ... 2 3. “Days of Thunder”(Paramount) 2 7 3 4. “Darkman” (MCA/Universal) 9 ... 2 5. “Navy SEALS”(Orion) 3 3 4 * “Air America”(LIVE) ... ... 1

* “Air America,” an action-comedy set during the Vietnam War, entered the chart at No. 9 and should jet into the Top Five next week, probably replacing “Navy SEALS,” (No. 5) which should lose steam now that the Persian Gulf War appears to be over.