'The Matrix' regains the No. 1 spot, but it's the weekend's only big winner

”The Matrix” was back on top this weekend with an estimated $12.9 million after taking one week off from the No. 1 spot. But the action film — which has pulled in a total of $117.4 million — was the only big success story. While the four-week-old hit dropped just 28 percent from last week, ”Life” fell 43 percent in its second week, to $11.6 million, sentencing it to second place after only one week at the top. And it was only part of a general plummet: The total box office gross was down 20 percent from last weekend.

Two new releases landed with a resounding thud: The air traffic controller comedy ”Pushing Tin” crashed into fourth place with $3.6 million, while David Spade’s ”Lost & Found” ended up in the doghouse with a sixth-place $3.1 million. Rounding out the top five were third-place ”Never Been Kissed” ($6.2 million) and No. 5 ”Analyze This” ($3.2 million). The only new bright spot came from the Reese Witherspoon high school satire ”Election,” which opened in New York and L.A. with a whopping $20,000 per-screen average (compared to ”Pushing Tin”’s meager $2,800). Paramount has decided to open ”Election” wider next weekend — one week earlier than the studio originally planned — in hopes of building on the film’s early momentum and positive reviews.