ENTER THE “DRAGON” — PUFFING

Paramount/DreamWorks Animation’s How to Train Your Dragon didn’t exactly set the box office on fire over the weekend. True, the computer-animated film ended up in first place with an estimated $43.3 million, but much of that figure reflected premium 3D pricing. And it reportedly cost $165 million to make. (Audience members polled by market research firm CinemaScore, however, gave it an average A grade, suggesting that it could generate positive word-of-mouth.) Last year the studio opened Monsters vs. Aliens with $59.3 million over the same weekend. The only other film to open wide, MGM’s Hot Tub Time Machine, wasn’t so hot either, taking in $13.7 million, placing third after Disney’s Alice in Wonderland, which lost hundreds of its 3D screens and all of its IMAX venues to Dragon in its fourth weekend and ended up with $17.3 million.

The top ten films for the weekend, according to studio estimates compiled by Box Office Mojo:1. How to Train Your Dragon, $43.3 million; 2. Alice in Wonderland, $17.3 million; 3. Hot Tub Time Machine, $13.7 million; 4. The Bounty Hunter, $12.4 million; 5. Diary of a Wimpy Kid, $10 million; 6. She’s Out of My League, $3.5 million; 7. Green Zone, $3.3 million; 8. Shutter Island, $3.2 million; 9. Repo Men, $3 million; 10. Our Family Wedding, $2.2 million.