SUMMERTIME BLUES : Maybe It Was the Title. Surely, Not the Wedding. Let’s See, Could It Be . . . <i> Satan</i> ?

Going into the summer movie season, “Dying Young” looked like 20th Century Fox’s ace in the hole. Positioned against a barrage of action-adventure and special-effects films like “Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves” and “Terminator 2,” the love story starring Julia Roberts, the world’s No. 1 female box-office star appeared to be inspired counterprogramming. And with the last-minute postponement of her marriage to Kiefer Sutherland, Roberts was landing more ink than any other actress.

But “Dying Young,” which opened June 21, seems to be dying fast. Though the movie took in a respectable if unspectacular gross of $9,725,885 in its first weekend and $13,948,798 for the week, box-office grosses for the second weekend plunged 52%.

Some blame the downbeat subject matter: a relationship between Roberts and a young man dying of leukemia (Campbell Scott), which has been a particular liability with older women. “Younger people are less afraid of disease, less in touch with their mortality,” said one film executive. “Older people have a lot more baggage and experience. Why pay money to see what you’re trying to avoid in life?”

The title--which the studio had all along considered changing--may have been a particularly tough hurdle. “It was ballsy to go with it,” observes one marketing analyst. “But it may have been a little too much for some people. The tenor of the times is conservative. People aren’t looking for ‘happy’ movies as much as ‘escapist’ ones. ‘Robin Hood’ is a fairy tale, ‘Naked Gun 2 1/2’ an escapist comedy, ‘Terminator 2’ escapist science fiction.

“In the end, though, it probably boils down to quality. A major star in the right vehicle can ‘open’ a movie . . . and Julia did,” the analyst continued. “But word of mouth on ‘Dying Young’ isn’t strong enough to counter the influx of new movies.”

Roberts’ off-camera romantic escapades, everyone agrees, haven’t affected the film’s performance. “What the American public understands--or doesn’t understand--about Julia’s personal life doesn’t affect the fact that they’re crazy about her,” says one industry observer. “She’s one personality who can do no wrong.”