Top 12 Stories of 2003:

#7: Disney owns summer

A year ago, Pirates of the Caribbean (a film based on a theme-park ride, for God's sake) looked like it was destined to be nothing more than the latest example of Disney's lack of originality. The summer of 2002 had seen the studio release its first ride-cum-movie, the abysmal The Country Bears, and there was no reason to expect anything different from Pirates. However, things began to look up when the movie's killer trailer was released in the spring. When the movie came out, early word-of-mouth was sensational, and everyone was talking about how great Johnny Depp was. This wasn't merely a lame attempt to make some quick cash; instead, Pirates of the Caribbean was perhaps the ultimate popcorn flick. Easily the most enjoyable summer blockbuster in years, the film rolled to a whopping $305 million (and counting) BO take, more than the domestic grosses of Terminator 3 and Bad Boys II (two other July releases that initially appeared to be event movies) combined.

As wildly successful as Pirates was, Nemo was an even bigger hit. The film marked Pixar's first departure from the cozy confines of fall to the wilds of summer. Some questioned whether Pixar's Midas touch would prove incompatible with the new season, but Finding Nemo squelched every single one of those doubts, eventually becoming not only the highest-grossing film of the year, but also taking in the biggest gross ever for an animated film and becoming the eighth-largest grossing film of all time, with just under $340 million domestically. With the two-headed behemoth of Nemo and Pirates, Disney became the first studio ever to release two $300 million pictures in the same year, let alone in theaters at the same time. Worldwide, the films have taken in an ever-rising $1.3 billion, which, despite what the Chinese calendar may tell us, unquestionably makes 2003 the Year of the Mouse. (Zach Kolkin/BOP)

The Top 12 Stories of 2003: