KNIGHT EXPECTED TO RISE AGAIN

Tonight’s (Friday) opening ceremonies of the London Olympics and the weekend Olympic events telecasts will probably present a greater obstacle for Warner Bros.’ The Dark Knight Rises than the aftermath of last weekend’s shooting in Aurora, CO at a theater showing the movie, box-office gurus are predicting. Offering little in the way of competition, they have observed, are this weekend’s new theatrical releases, including the sci-fi comedy The Watch and the dance drama Step Up Revolution. Each film has generated some of the most withering reviews of the summer. Rises, most box-office pundits are estimating, should probably earn $60-65 million in its second weekend. The Ben Stiller comedy The Watch, they say, will likely come in at around $20-25 million, while dance drama Step Up Revolution is likely to wind up with around $10-15 million.