LOS ANGELES. May 29. KAZINFORM "Men in Black 3," Sony Corp. (6758)'s sci- fi comedy, led the U.S. box office over the U.S. Memorial Day weekend, collecting $55 million in ticket sales and ending a three-week, first-place run for "Marvel's The Avengers."

"The Avengers" fell to second with $37 million, researcher Hollywood.com Box-Office said yesterday in an e- mailed statement. "Chernobyl Diaries" finished in fifth place in its debut with $8 million in sales.

The 3-D "Men in Black 3" is the fifth Sony film to open in first place this year, following releases that included "Underworld Awakening" and "The Vow." "Men in Black" was expected to generate $73 million over the four-day holiday weekend ending today, an estimate from researcher Boxoffice.com.

"It was a little bit of a disappointing first weekend," Paul Sweeney, a media and entertainment analyst for Bloomberg Industries, said in a telephone interview. "But it should have some legs. My sense is it's going to be one of the movies that will play well for several weeks."

Will Smith and Tommy Lee Jones star in the effects-laden film as operatives in a government agency charged with managing Earth's secret alien population. Smith's character, Agent J, travels back in time to prevent a villain's attempt to change history. To accomplish his mission, he must work with a younger version of Jones's character, played by Josh Brolin, Kazinform has learnt from Bloomberg.

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