National Video Rentals : ‘Lethal’ Finally Takes Over 1st Spot

“Lethal Weapon 3” is finally where it belongs, at the top of the rental chart. Since it came out a month ago, many stores reported it as their dominant rental--particularly in its first two weeks in release. It took a while, though, for that dominance to show up on the chart. “Prelude to a Kiss,” the oddball romantic comedy, entered last week at No. 35 and landed at No. 14 this week. There should be enough fans of stars Alec Baldwin and Meg Ryan to boost it into the Top 10 next time. Some video stores are reporting that “Housesitter,” the Goldie Hawn-Steve Martin comedy, is their top rental. On the chart, though, it jumped three notches to No. 4. Look for it to rise a notch or two next week. The romantic ice-skating drama “The Cutting Edge,” which many critics trashed, has been a surprisingly enduring hit. After 10 weeks on the chart, it’s still in the Top 10--at No. 10. The racy “Poison Ivy,” which has Top 10 potential, entered at No. 17. It features Drew Barrymore as a seductive teen, similar to the role she played recently in one of the TV movies about Amy Fisher.

Rank Weeks Last on the Week Chart 1. “Lethal Weap. 3” 2 5 2. “Patriot Games” 1 5 3. “Sister Act” 3 8 4. “Housesitter” 7 2 5. “Alien 3” 4 7 6. “Far and Away” 6 7 7. “Universal Soldier” 8 4 8. “Basic Instinct” 5 11 9. “My Cousin Vinny” 9 13 10. “The Cutting Edge” 13 10 * “Boomerang” -- 1

* The Eddie Murphy romantic comedy, “Boomerang,” may have grossed $66.7 million but it was still perceived in some circles as a disappointment--mainly because it didn’t do those mega numbers his action movies did in the first half of the ‘80s. But this one figures to do fairly well in the rental market. It opened at No. 18 and, based on early reports of strong business around the country, should shoot into the Top 10 next week.

Source: Billboard Publications Inc.