By Margaret A. McGurk
The Cincinnati Enquirer

No matter what industry pundits predict, or how harshly critics may judge, audiences have ways of picking their own hits.

This year is no exception. Based on a nonscientific formula, here are the People's Top 10 of 2002 - movies that found success that defied studio expectations, critics' ratings and sometimes both:

1. My Big Fat Greek Wedding - The all-time sleeper champ, with $216 million and still counting, this modest comedy would have been considered a huge hit if it had made one-tenth as much.

2. Scooby-Doo - Absolutely nobody expected more than middling success for yet another TV-inspired comedy, certainly not a $54-million opening weekend on the way to a $153 million tally.

3. Barbershop - Low-budgets and low expectations go hand-in-hand, particularly for African-American films. With good honest belly laughs, excellent reviews and a dash of controversy, this family-values comedy brought home $75 million.

4. Snow Dogs - Maybe it's because so few movies for young children make it into theaters, especially early in the year, but this dog-sled comedy earned $81 million in spite of generally brutal reviews.

5. Mr. Deeds - Most critics, as usual, loathed this Adam Sandler remake of a classic Jimmy Stewart film. Fans didn't care, to the tune of $126 million.

6. Jackass: The Movie - The English language could barely convey the contempt of critics for this glorified TV episode. Yet, $64 million later, the people have spoken.

7. The Santa Clause 2 - Another kid-comedy that took a beating from critics, fans so far have ponied up $126 million to see it.

8. The Ring - Though inspired by what was a monster hit in Japan, this eerie thriller at first looked like it would come and go fast, despite respectable reviews. That was in October. Today, after $125 million, it is still playing in some theaters.

9. XXX - Not necessarily the most surprising winner, given the earlier surprise success of Vin Diesel's The Fast and The Furious, but with $141 million, this Gen-Y James Bond looks like a new franchise.

10. One Hour Photo - Not only is its $31 million box office a major smash by indie-film standards, this critically acclaimed Robin Williams thriller is still playing in theaters around the country.