FILM: New to the Box Office - 2/01/08

The Eye

The first time I saw the trailer for this movie I thought it was about a blind woman (Jessica Alba), who received cornea transplants to regain her sight and ended up with the ability to see dead people. But after watching the theatrical trailer I realized not only can she see the dead, but when she looks in the mirror she sees a completely different person. It's like they switched her brain instead of her eyes. There's a chance the movie could be crappy anyway, but at least it'll make it a little more interesting. Also starring are Alessandro Nivola (Goal!) and Parker Posey (Broken English).


Over Her Dead Body

Trying to get a Valentine's Day headstart, Eva Longoria stars in this romantic comedy where she isn't the one who's falling in love. That's probably best. She doesn't do gushy well. Instead she plays a bridezilla who gets killed by one of her own ostentatious demands, an ice sculpture for her wedding. Her groom, oddly played by Paul Rudd, is so devastated that his best friend (Lindsay Sloane from "Sabrina the Teenage Witch") gets a psychic (Lake Bell from "Surface") to lie to him and say that Longoria wants him to move on. Of course, he ends up moving on with Bell, who is reluctant at first, but is encouraged to by her own bff (Jason Biggs). But since she's soooo psychic, Longoria appears to her as a ghost and refuses to let her move in on her man...even though she's dead...hence the title. Hey, if you've got some money to burn...


Strange Wilderness

This is kind of like MTV's "Wildboyz," except one (Steve Zahn from Sahara) of these nature buffs--and I use that term loosely--is actually trying to inform the public about animals, but because of his crack team of imbeciles he's stuck with half-assing it. Among his crew are Allen Covert (Adam Sandler's balding cameo-regular), Justin Long (Live Free or Die Hard), and Jonah Hill (Superbad), with Ashley Scott ("Jericho") as the eye candy. The writers are Peter Gaulke (Ice Age: Meltdown and Black Knight) and Fred Wolf (Without a Paddle, Dickie Roberts, Joe Dirt, and Black Sheep), so expect a lot of white trash, dumbed-down humor.

And then there's the Hannah Montana/Miley Cyrus: Best of Both Worlds Concert Tour. Shut up! I know you already have tickets.

ALBUM REVIEW: Lupe Fiasco's "The Cool"

I finally got around to listening to rapper Lupe Fiasco's sophomore album The Cool, released on December 18. I know, I'm late. But after listening to the rhyme-savvy 25-year-old, I came to the conclusion that he's a tad deficient on the beats--they haven't quite reached Kanye or Jay-Z levels. Although he's already released "Dumb it Down" and "Superstar," I actually found myself replaying "Little Weapon," having to start all over every time I discovered a politically-driven lyric that made my mind race.

The song is about youths using guns, but not like inner-city youth. It's more like the kid who shoots up a school or robs a convenience store or is recruited into an African rebel army. My favorite line is when he says that there are "Camouflage suits/made to fit youths/cuz the ones off the dead soldiers/hang a lil loose." The fact that they went through the trouble to fit the kids for battle uniforms is a sick thought. Then he says, "Childhood destroyed/devoid of all childish/ways/Can't write their own names/or read the words/that's on their own graves." The idea that any kid is old enough to kill, but not read is jarring. And then rapper Bishop G closes the song with his own verse saying, "Imagine if I had to console/the families/of those slain/I slayed/on game consoles." Relating the child rebels to kids at home, goofing off on their PS2's, brings home the cultural differences in a major way. Matched up with the drum beat it makes for a good listen. Try it for yourself and spot your own fave lyrics:

FILM: Katherine Heigl + Gerard Butler

Gerard Butler's last romantic venture, P.S. I Love You, amassed $52 mil domestically and got creamed by critics, while Katherine Heigl's 27 Dresses is already up to $47 mil after two weeks and didn't take as much of a beating critically. Maybe some of her good luck will rub off on him--and she'll need it to since they'll be each other's romantic love interest in The Ugly Truth. Butler will play the TV host of a chauvinistic segment called ''The Ugly Truth'' and Heigl will play a loveless morning show producer who gets roped into a series of Butler's experiments to prove his theories on relationships. The upside is that he's supposed to help her find love. This has potential for being slapstick funny, which we know Heigl is capable of, but can Butler pull the role off being a cock-sure cad?

FILM: Elijah Woods' Murders & Pacino's 88 Mintues

The last time Elijah Wood was in a thriller was back in '98 for The Faculty. So it's a little odd to picture him in his newest film The Oxford Murders, an adaptation of Guillermo Martínez's novel. The story follows an Oxford University professor (John Hurt from V for Vendetta) and a grad student (Wood) who work together to prevent a series of murders that are seemingly linked by mathematical symbols. It sort of reminds me of Number 23, except without all the stylistic cinematography. Check out the trailer to see a different side to this hobbit...I mean actor:


In the thriller 88 Mintues, Al Pacino plays Jack Gramm, a forensic psychiatrist and college professor, who testifies in a trial that convicts serial killer Jon Forster (Neal McDonough from "Tin Man"). Jon thinks that Jack cohersed people into testifying against him. On the day he is to be executed, Jack gets a phone call from a man who tells him that he will die in 88 minutes. Meanwhile, someone is committing copy cat murders to relieve Jon from his sentence. Jack has to investigate quickly before his time is up. Benjamin McKenzie ("The O.C.") plays a suspect. Also starring are Amy Brenneman ("Private Practice"), Leelee Sobieski, and Alicia Witt ("Cybill"). I feel like there's a twist in there somewhere and I'm really interested in finding out what it is. In theaters April 18th.

FILM: Emma Roberts is a Wild Child

Emma Roberts' career isn't going the way she--or anyone--planned. When comparing her performance on her NICK show "Unfabulous" to Jamie Lynn Spears' on "Zoey 101", it's obvious that she can actually act. But for some bizarre reason she keeps getting poorly written scripts and over-done plot lines to work with. Aquamarine was okay. But then I subjected myself to watching Nancy Drew...in theaters. And it was BEYOND boring. They made the kick ass young detective a tight-ass. She could've been this generation's suburban Lara Croft, but instead we got the most unrelatable nerd since Pee-Wee Herman. Honestly, I just went to see Max Thieriot, because he's super cute...and legal. And just when I thought to give her a second shot, she comes out with Wild Child, where she plays a rebellious teenager who gets sent to boarding school in England so she can be turned into the girl her deceased mother would approve of. Technically, that could be a good story...if well done. But here's what it looks like when written and directed by amateurs.

FILM: Star-studded Gangster Film

Earlier this year it was reported that Johnny Depp and Christian Bale would be going head-to-head in the Depression-era drama Public Enemies. It's about the notorious gangster John Dillinger (Depp) and the FBI agent Melvin Purvis (Bale) who tried to bring him down. Ever since the immediate popularity of Martin Scorcese's remake The Departed, films like American Gangster are being optioned all over Hollywood.

New to the cast are Oscar nominee Marion Cotillard (La Vie En Rose), playing Depp's girlfriend, up and comer Channing Tatum (A Guide to Recognizing your Saints), Giovanni Ribisi, Stephen Dorff (Blade), and Jason Clarke ("Brotherhood") will play bank robbers. The FBI dubbed these outlaws Public Enemies, a term to be consistently used for any criminal whose actions were damaging to society. Hey, who knows? Maybe it'll restart the career of rap group Public Enemy, like American Gangster did for Jay-Z. Michael Mann (Miami Vice) is co-writing and directing.

TV: Last week on the tube...

Funny lines and interesting or annoying plot points of the week:

Big Shots
Brody tried to hide his secret apartment filled with manly stuff from his wife and she tainted it with her competitive streak--beating him at basketball and Guitar Hero. The boys were, naturally, surprised that Brody even had a place of his own. As Duncan said, "You rented an apartment for your balls?" But apparently, it's really important for guys to have some time to themselves. Their toys are so treasured that when he arranged for a guy to "dispose" of his toys after telling his wife he no longer required such an apartment, the guy returned everything as Brody planned and specified his carefulness with the foosball table: "I carried it like it was my own child." Meanwhile, Duncan fought off his wife's need for revenge, reacquainted himself with Terrence's sister, who he once slept with, and got an eerie message from his fake son requesting approval of his murderous actions. Karl finally told his wife that he cheated on her and then discovered that he impregnated both his mistress and his wife. Last, but not least, Katie almost quit her job so she could be with James, but instead they decided to throw caution to the wind and flaunt their happiness in front of their coworkers. Sounds like trouble.

Friday Night Lights
Smash was accused of assaulting a racist white teenager and instead of following his mother's advice to keep out of the press and stand by his on-air apology, he reacted rashly towards the teenager's persistent accusations and got himself suspended from the last 3 games of the season--leaving it to the rest of the team to make it to State. This could screw over his acceptance to TSU. Landry got a phsyics partner who just so happened to be a quirky girl who loves the same music as him and is as ingenious as him. Apparently, Tyra suddenly realizes that she and Landry are an odd match when she gets insanely jealous...but of course keeps her mouth shut. And the highlight of the night, Riggins gets beat up by his meth dealer buddy for stealing $3,000 from him and is given a deadline to return it. He chooses this opportunity--when his face is all bloodied--to go to Lila's church and beg her to come over that night. When she arrives, he stutters for a while before confessing his emotions for her. When she rejects him, he demands that she look him in his eyes and say she doesn't have feelings for him and when she does, you can visibly see the heartbreak. Nonetheless, the next day she comes over and drops off $3,000 so he can pay off the meth dealer. Hmmm.

One Tree Hill
I miss Gossip Girl and it seems that Brooke's mom is on the wrong show, because she was acting as remarkably bitchy as Serena's grandmother. If you watch that show, then you know that granny doesn't approve of broke ass Dan. And in the same fashion, Brooke's mom tears Lucas a new one, criticizing his high school love affair with her and pretty much calling him a loser. And Lucas' reaction: "Did she just...?" Peyton sympathizes with him saying, "...Verbally punched you in the goodies? Yeah, that's how she stays high." Keep that kind of dialogue going and maybe this season won't be so much of a snooze fest. It was certainly spiced up by Peyton's sudden desire to flirt with the bartender at Brooke's store opening and Lucas' need to inform her that the guy is "not good enough" for her. Naturally, Peyton flipped and demanded that he never say that to her again, since he has no right to control who she dates. That budding love triange mixed with Mouth's unwise relationship with his manipulative boss and Haley's sudden decision to produce for artists on Peyton's label overrides the truly annoying addition of a Nathan-double who just can't stop being obnoxious. I'll take Chris Keller (Tyler Hilton) over this guy any day.

Cashmere Mafia
Zoe finally one-ups her annoying former assistant, showing her who's boss. Caitlin starts to realize that lesbianism is not the "easy dating." It's just as hard and involved and complicated as any other type. So, naturally, she gets smitten over a guy she meets during a baby shower. Juliet decides to divorce her husband after she finds out he used all of their funds for his business without tell her. But the best part of all was when Mia went on a blind date her mom set her up with who happened to be a hot Asian brain surgeon. He had the audacity to end the date with a handshake, which practically threw her off her rocker. She was very obsessive over it at lunch with the girls until Jack walked into the room with some news anchor chick and said he'd see her at a dinner that their mutual friend was throwing. Once he left, the girls immediately pounced. Zoe said, "You're not going to that thing alone." "Not if he's going with that thing," Juliet asserted. And Caitlin brought it on home with her Jersey-tude: "Do you wanna go to that party alone with that talking head of a slut throwing you shade? I don't think so." [I swear, those executives think she is the equivalent of having a black person on the show.] So in the end, she asks the surgeon on a date and when he kindly reveals that he's not really attracted to Asian women, she begs him to fawn over her at a dinner to make Jack jealous. He obliges if only to meet the impressive world traveler of a host. But by the end of the farce, he was smitten and Mia officially has a new guy...well until the next episode, where from the previews I gather she's found herself a new boy toy in the form of Zoe's manny.

Chuck
Oh, double-dose of Chuck. Too much happened, watch it on nbc.com. Read my favorite quotes:
Captain Awesome hears Ellie saying "awesome" and he says: "It gives me chills to hear you say it."
After learning that Casey was once in love, Chuck reveals: "For a long time I thought Casey was built like a Ken Doll..you know, down there."
The boys at the store get Captain Awesome to play poker with them, but he's unaware that it's strip poker and bails as soon as he finds out. The Indian guy then says: "We gotta get that guy's pants off." [A sentiment I'm sure all female (and some male) viewers share.]
Chuck figures out that several Russian criminals are gathering at a hotel nearby and he dubs the occasion a: "douchebag convention," fittingly.
When Chuck pries into Casey's love life, Casey gets a little peeved, hoists him up, and proceeds to gently choke him. Chuck protests, gurgling out: "You're hurting the Intersect."
When Casey finally admits his feelings for Ilsa, his supposedly deceased love, Chuck over-animates screaming "It's ALIVE!" [This might be an insider reference to the fact that Zachary Levi was supposed to be in the Broadway musical Young Frankenstein, but he turned it down to play the lead in Chuck.]
When Captain Awesome and Ellie have a big argument, leading to Awesome vacating the premises, Morgan ends up comforting Ellie. She snuggles up on him on the couch and he rightfully mumbles: "I thought we issued a no-touch policy back in 98." Interesting policy.
Morgan was also hilarious when Chuck refused to let him play the new videogame prototype that arrived in the store: "I'm almost at the age where I need to get my prostate checked annually." Yeah, that's not a big selling point. It just means you're old.
When Captain Awesome decides to propose to Ellie, he asks Chuck to hold the ring, saying: "I always knew you could handle my family jewels." Awesome!

This week tune in for new episodes of...
Monday: Kyle XY, Wildfire, October Road
Tuesday: One Tree Hill, Carpoolers
Thursday: Lost, Smallville, Eli Stone
Friday: Friday Night Lights, Monk, Psych

Also, the new series "In Treatment" will be premiering on HBO Monday and will have a new episode every night at 9:30pm.

FILM: Box Office Results - 1/25/08

EW predicted a Cloverfield backlash, and it seems they were right. Dropping three spots to #4, it was replaced by the spoof Meet the Spartans and the 80s reboot Rambo--the unlikeliest of candidates--for the top spot. Spartans took in $18.7 mil and Rambo lured enough moviegoers for $18.1 mil. The thriller Untraceable was not only crushed by the critics, but practically ignored in theaters, pulling in $11 mil. How She Move did worse, scrounging up a pathetic $4.5 mil. The indies, Air I Breathe and 4 Months, 3 Weeks, and 2 Days, had limited releases. 4 Months took in $48,000 domestically and $15 mil in foreign markets. Breathe didn't too well in either markets, taking between $20-40,000 in each.

Last week's entries: 27 Dresses dropped from #2 to #3 and reaches $45 mil. Unsurprisingly, Mad Money dropped from #6 to #10 and is about to exit the box office with $15 mil. Alvin and the Chipmunks finally made its exit with an astounding $204 mil. Even more shocking, Juno's broken the $100 mil mark. Here's the rest of the box office:

7. The Bucket List - $57.7 mil

8. There Will Be Blood - $14.8 mil

9. National Treasure - $205.4 mil

Next week we've got, Jessica Alba's horror film The Eye, the romantic comedy Over Her Dead Body, and the ridiculous comedy Strange Wilderness.

MUSIC: Timbaland's Justin Clone

France had the NRJ Music Awards and it turns out Americans actually go to it. Rihanna was spotted on the red carpet and Timbaland had one of his proteges, M. Pokora, perform. And when he came out on stage, he looked remarkably similar to Justin Timberlake. Heck, he even danced like Justin Timberlake. [I want to clarify that Justin looks better, sings better, and dances better.] But still, it's a disturbing sight to witness. Apparently, M. Pokora is a French pop singer who has teamed up with Timbaland to produce his third album. Although, he's already been nominated for Male Artist of the Year at NRJ, he was once a member of a boy band that was a product of a reality show. Hmmm, similar backgrounds, similar appearance...just check it out for yourself:

MUSIC: "Get Buck" by Akon + Diddy + Ludacris + Lil Jon

Diddy has been kind of half-assing his way through the music industry for the last decade, since he has a clothing line, a reality TV show, and street cred as THE best party-thrower. But after hearing him on this track with Ludacris, Lil Jon and Akon, I can honestly say he's still got it...well some of it...unless what he really has is a ghostwriter. tsk tsk

Check out the video for this club banger with an uber amount of cameos:

FILM: New to the Box Office - 1/25/08

Untraceable

Diane Lane and Colin Hanks star in a thriller about a serial killer who kills his victims using the Internet--it was bound to happen. Basically, he gets web surfers to visit his site--the more people who visit the faster his victim dies. The government can't seem to dissuade people from going to the site or shut it down or find the killer. Thus, he's untraceable, which proves to be a problem when he starts to hunt down Lane.


Rambo

Sylvester Stallone needs money, so go watch a reboot of his late-80s film that he wrote and directed about: "In Thailand, John Rambo assembles a group of mercenaries and leads them up the Salween River to a Burmese village after hearing that a group of aid workers he assisted have gone missing."


How She Move

If you like urban dancing and urban plotlines, then you'll watch this movie no matter what it's about. But in the event you need to be persuaded. Think of it as Stomp the Yard with a little Save the Last Dance thrown in. A girl whose sister dies from a drug overdose has to enroll in public high school (as opposed to private) because her parents are bankrupt. To get the hell out of the ghetto, she decides to train in step-dancing so she can win $50,000 at a competition. But first she'll have to regain her street-cred and fend off the oreo-haters. Tre Armstrong (Save the Last Dance) is in the lead.


Meet the Spartans

Um *sighs* it's basically a spoof on 300 with cameos from several out-of-work actors brought to you by the boys behind the Scary Movie saga, Date Movie, and Epic Movie. And in case the cast will entice you to tune in, here's a rundown of a couple: Sean Maguire ("The Class") as Leonidas, Carmen Electra as the queen, Kevin Sorbo, Diedrich Bader ("The Drew Carey Show"), Method Man, Nicole Parker ("Mad TV") as Britney Spears/Paris Hilton/Paula Abdul/Ellen Degeneres, and Ike Barinholtz ("Mad TV") as Dane Cook. There will also be lookalikes and references to "Ugly Betty," Lindsay Lohan, Tom Cruise, Donald Trump, Tyra Banks, Brad Pitt, Angelina Jolie, K-Fed, President Bush, Rocky, Ryan Seacrest, Sanjaya, Transformers, and Happy Feet.


The Air I Breathe

This dramatic indie is based on a Chinese proverb about the four emotional cornerstones of life: happiness, pleasure, sorrow and love. And the major characters' lives intertwine as each emotion is conveyed. Forest Whitaker plays a businessman who bets his life on a horse race to shake things up because he's tired of being happy. Brendan Fraser plays a gangster who sees his unfortunate future. He's dating Sarah Michelle Gellar, who plays a pop star who gets manipulated by a crime boss (Andy Garcia). And Kevin Bacon plays a doctor who is faced with the task of saving the love of his life. I'm not sure which emotion fits which scenario, but I think you'll discover that at the end of the movie...in an enlightening way.


4 Months, 3 Weeks, and 2 Days

This French drama is about a woman who tries to get an illegal abortion in Romania around the 80s. It was so very well reviewed by a majority of critics that I'm surprised it wasn't nominated for an Oscar in the category for Best Foreign Film.

And in case you missed seeing Michael Clayton in theaters, it's been re-released--probably because it was nominated for Best Picture.

FILM: New James Bond Title

I could've sworn they already announced the title of the upcoming James Bond movie, but I guess not. Even though everyone's been referring to it as Bond 22, it's actually called Quantum of Solace. The title comes from a short story in Ian Fleming's For Your Eyes Only collection, even though it doesn't actually follow the story diligently.

As for the characters:
The film's villain will be "a ruthless businessman seeking to control huge natural resources," which is timely for our current global warming crisis. One of the Bond girls, Olga Kurylenko, stated that her part involves a lot of combat and not just posing and strutting. The other Bond girl, Gemma Arterton, is more of the eye candy, having already filmed her sex scene with Daniel Craig.

So far the release date is set for Nov. 7th.

FILM: Julia Roberts = Con Artist?

I think maybe watching George Clooney, Brad Pitt, and Matt Damon have all the fun in the Ocean's trilogy has influenced Julia Roberts's decision to join Billy Bob Thornton, Clive Owen, and Tom Wilkinson (Michael Clayton) in the spy thriller Duplicity. She will play Owen's "longtime lover and rival corporate spy" a la Mr. and Mrs. Smith. The basic plot of the movie is their elaborate plan to pull off a stellar con. Both Wilkinson and Thornton will play CEOs. I've never perceived Roberts as a thieving character, but maybe this is her way of reinventing her career. It's about time she stop being America's Sweetheart--that's Reese Witherspoon's job (even though I'm positive after watching Cruel Intentions that she's got a mean streak).

TV: Grey's Anatomy & Smallville Cast Updates

According to TV Guide, there's a rumor that someone on "Grey's Anatomy" is trying to jump ship. The obvious suggestions would be T.R. Knight, who faced discrimination from one of his own cast members last year, and Katherine Heigl, who has been quite successful in the box office recently. I, personally, can't do without Alex, Christina or Mark (McSteamy), and since none of them are big time actors I can't imagine why they would want to leave.


Meanwhile, "Smallville" announced that a new super hero played by Alaina Huffman ("Painkiller Jane") will be joining the cast February 7th in the very same way that Green Arrow/Emerald Archer popped in last season. Apparently, he and the comic character Black Canary have a tumultuous romance, so they've decided to initially peg them against each other making her work for Lex Luthor. Since the Justice League is trying to bring Lex down, he'll order her to attack Green Arrow. She's a "martial arts expert whose superpower is a 'canary cry'— a high-pitched scream that can shatter objects and take down opponents."

The show's creators also ominously reported that after the 15th episode, Smallville will never be the same. When the show returns, it'll be up to it's 10th--in which James Marsters' evil character will be resurrected as...a Terminator-like nemesis. No seriously, his finger turns into pointy metal just like in the movie.

TV: New Character on "Gossip Girl"

This afternoon I had the pleasure of reading a Popwatch post that alluded to the possible identity of THE gossip girl voiced by Kristen Bell. Alas, the name that I saw wasn't of a female, but that of Eric van der Woodsen. Hmmm.

THEN! I had the even greater pleasure of learning that--depsite the fact that production has halted on set due to a lack of new scripts to film--they've cast Eliska Sursova as...wait for it...Chuck's love interest! Now I know what you're thinking. Are they going to make him a softie? Give him a Dan-Nate redeeming side after he got his heart shredded by the self-centered Blair? But by the looks of his new lady, me thinks there's no reason to assume she's going to be a saint. Heck, if I could have it my way I'd make her character steal Lil J's new Queen B crown before Blair claws her way back up to the top. Not only would it throw Blair's plans off, but it might unite her and Lil J on a leveled plane where they could actually be friends. Naturally, this is wishful thinking. But I see it as the only way that Chuck won't start using non-perverted pet names or sending a dozen roses "just because" or writing poetry or...god forbid, spending an entire 24hrs not trying to bed his current female obsession.

As for the identity of this up-and-coming actress Eliska: she's a Hispanic model raised in NYC who was recently accepted into Brown University. And if her character is as compelling as I hope, it will be her breakout performance.

FILM: Films Sold at Sundance

Hamlet 2 was purchased by Focus Features for $10 million. Chuck Palahniuk's adaptation Choke was picked up by Fox Searchlight for $5 million. Mark Pellington's Henry Poole is Here, starring Luke Wilson and Radha Mitchell, was nabbed by Overture Films for an estimated $3.5 million. As for the buzz, no one's swooned over Barry Levinson's What Just Happened? or Christine Jeffs' Sunshine Cleaning, starring Amy Adams and Emily Blunt.

FILM: Heath Ledger Dies

Heath Ledger was found naked and unconscious in Mary-Kate Olsen's apartment today, and an accidental sleeping pill overdose might be the cause. He was in the middle of filming the fantasy film The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus, but already wrapped The Dark Knight. Hopefully, the manner in which he died won't cloud the promotions for the long-awaited Batman sequel. But on the bright side, he'll be immortalized in the image of the new Joker, which is already getting iconic buzz.

FILM: Cameron Diaz marries Ashton Kutcher in Vegas

When I first heard about Cameron Diaz and Ashton Kutcher doing a romantic comedy together, I thought, "Did they pick them because they're really tall?" I don't really see the connection. Then when I heard it was called What Happens in Vegas and its concept was an accidental Vegas marriage a la Britney Spears, I thought, "Great. More crap." But then I saw the trailer and learned that after they get married, Cameron gives Ashton a quarter and he uses it for one of those machines, then he wins millions of dollars. Naturally, she wants her cut and he refuses, so she invokes her right as his wife. They go to court and the judge rules that they must stay married for 6 months and reconcile their differences, but whoever initiates the divorce loses their right to the money. So they spend the entire film trying to get each other to give up. Tadah! Hilarity ensues.

FILM: My Oscar Picks

To be perfectly honest, I haven't seen 90% of these movies--but I will eventually--so I can't exactly peg any of them against each other. However, I can guess.
(Side note: all of my choices would involve Juno if I didn't.)

Best Picture
My guess is that this category is about a film that has the whole package: amazing screenplay, impeccable acting, and superb direction. The film that has the most buzz in all three of those areas is hard to determine...but I think I'll go with:
Atonement
Juno
Michael Clayton
No Country for Old Men
There Will Be Blood

Best Director
This category caters to the person who managed to evoke the best performance from their actors and create scenes that were so visually compelling that they were seared into the viewers memory. Although every one is worshipping at the altar of the Coen Brothers, I personally found There Will Be Blood chilling simply from the sequence of images in the trailer...imagine the whole film.
Julian Schnabel, 'The Diving Bell and the Butterfly'
Jason Reitman, 'Juno'
Tony Gilroy, 'Michael Clayton'
Joel Coen and Ethan Coen, 'No Country for Old Men'
Paul Thomas Anderson, There Will Be Blood

Best Actor
The guy who gets this honor manages to make you admire him whether his character is the embodiment of evil or a symbol of justice. Although Daniel Day-Lewis transforms himself, in my opinion, better than Johnny Depp ever will, I have never been more convinced of a foreign impresonation than Viggo Mortensen's turn as a Russian mafia member.
George Clooney, 'Michael Clayton'
Daniel Day-Lewis, 'There Will Be Blood'
Johnny Depp, 'Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street'
Tommy Lee Jones, 'In the Valley of Elah'
Viggo Mortensen, Eastern Promises

Best Actress
The lady who gets this honor tugs at your heartstrings and has women everywhere idolizing her. Although I've heard great things about Marion Cotillard's remarkable transformation, I'll shoot for the underdog, Ellen Page--even though she's already getting typecast as a snarky young girl.
Cate Blanchett, 'Elizabeth: The Golden Age'
Julie Christie, 'Away From Her'
Marion Cotillard, 'La Vie en Rose'
Laura Linney, 'The Savages'
Ellen Page, Juno

Best Supporting Actor
This guy manages to steal the entire movie with his penetrating performance. I heard great things about Casey Affleck, but Javier Bardem is a force to be reckoned with.
Casey Affleck, 'The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford'
Javier Bardem, No Country for Old Men
Philip Seymour Hoffman, 'Charlie Wilson's War'
Hal Holbrook, 'Into the Wild'
Tom Wilkinson, 'Michael Clayton'

Best Supporting Actress
This lady also manages to steal the entire movie with her penetrating performance. Hollywood's abuzz about Cate Blanchett's impressive cross dressing and Amy Ryan's astounding come back--but I'll give it to the indistinguishable Bob Dylan lookalike.
Cate Blanchett, I'm Not There
Ruby Dee, 'American Gangster'
Saoirse Ronan, 'Atonement'
Amy Ryan, 'Gone Baby Gone'
Tilda Swinton, 'Michael Clayton'

Best Foreign Film
I'm thinking these films are honored because Americans wish they made them. However, I've never heard of them.
'Beaufort' (Israel)
'Counterfeiters' (Austria)
'Katyn' (Poland)
'Mongol' (Kazakhstan)
'12' (Russia)

Best Original Screenplay
A good screenplay is comprised of quotable dialogue, memorable scenes, and a life-changing story. Out of the two films I've seen from this category, I'd most certainly give that credit to Diablo Cody. Although I do worry that giving her an Oscar this early in the game might screw her over in the long run.
Diablo Cody, Juno
Nancy Oliver, 'Lars and the Real Girl'
Tony Gilroy, 'Michael Clayton'
Brad Bird, 'Ratatouille'
Tamara Jenkins, 'The Savages'

Best Adapted Screenplay
An adapted screenplay has the pressure of being properly translated from book to script. That sounds easy because it's practically all already written. But a good adapter must know which scenes/dialogue to cut, which to lengthen, and which plot points will either take the forefront or a nose-dive. From what I hear, Atonement did the best in this respect.
Christopher Hampton, Atonement
Sarah Polley, 'Away From Her'
Ronald Harwood, 'The Diving Bell and the Butterfly'
Joel Coen and Ethan Coen, 'No Country for Old Men'
Paul Thomas Anderson, 'There Will Be Blood'

Best Animated Feature Film
For this award, you have to have amazing graphics and a moral in your story that resounds with children and adults. For that reason I think Persepolis has this one in the bag.
'Persepolis'
'Ratatouille'
'Surf's Up'

Best Art Direction
This film must utilize aesthetics to enhance the story. It seems to really be a cross between Golden Compass and Sweeney Todd--and even though I only saw Compass, I think Todd deserves it for sheer effort alone.
'American Gangster'
'Atonement'
'The Golden Compass'
Sweeney Todd The Demon Barber of Fleet Street
'There Will Be Blood'

Best Cinematography
This film has to be imaginative and innovative enough so that the viewer feels like they've never seen anything like this before. Although the use of shadows in American Gangster and Jesse James were an interesting addition, I feel the visuals of There Will Be Blood are half the reason it's an incredible movie.
'American Gangster'
'The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford'
'Atonement'
'The Diving Bell and the Butterfly'
'No Country for Old Men'
There Will Be Blood

Best Documentary Feature
Hmm, I'm more of a scripted kind of girl, but Sicko did get a lot of buzz...
'No End in Sight'
'Operation Homecoming: Writing the Wartime Experience'
'Sicko'
'Taxi to the Dark Side'
'War/Dance'

Best Original Score
I do not remember a single note from 3:10 to Yuma's score. On that fact alone, I'll leave this one blank.
'Atonement'
'The Kite Runner'
'Michael Clayton'
'Ratatouille'
'3:10 to Yuma'

Best Original Song
A lot of people have been raving about Once's song, and even though I heard all of Enchanted's songs, I really liked August Rush's on first listen--especially the solo parts sung by an 11-year-old girl.
'Falling Slowly' from 'Once'
'Happy Working Song' from 'Enchanted'
'Raise It Up' from August Rush
'So Close' from 'Enchanted'
'That's How You Know' from 'Enchanted'

Best Makeup
I can't really differentiate between CGI and makeup when it comes to Pirates, but I think Norbit--despite it's horrible attempt at comedy--had the most impressive transformations.
'La Vie en Rose'
Norbit
'Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End'

FILM: "Fanboys" = Star Wars Nostalgia

There are movies that employ spoofs of blockbusters to get a laugh, like Scary Movie, Spaceballs, and the upcoming Meet the Spartans. Then there are movies that have respectful homages to iconic films. And if you love Star Wars then you'll love Fanboys. In the trailer alone there are charaters donning Death Star Trooper uniforms, blatant animosity towards Trekkies, and a hilarious garbage compactor scene. So grab your friends, your lightsabers, and put your Wookies on silent because it's time to get teary-eyed for a saga that has officially ended.

MUSIC: New Singles from Eve & Ashanti

Check out this live performance of Eve's single "Fantasy" with Robin Thicke. It reminds me of the Eve that I used to love, who said what was on her mind about her romantic life--unedited.

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Ashanti hasn't had a single I liked in a while...or possibly ever. So when I heard this beautiful ballad "The Way That I love you," I was slightly impressed. Try it for yourself:

TV: Last week on the tube...

Funny lines and interesting or annoying plot points of the week:

Cashmere Mafia
Mia finally admitted that she believes Jack will rethink his mistake and chose to send him a message through one of her men's magazines, telling him not to be intimidated by her power and ambition. Caitlin decided to not stress about her lesbianism. Zoe poked her nose where it didn't belong and ended up promoting her annoying slutty assistant. Juliet decided she couldn't cheat, but still made her husband think she did. And she also made her priorities pretty clear when she confronted his lover for spreading the girls' secrets on a Gawker-like blog: "It's one thing to screw my husband, it's quite another to screw with my friends." Declarations like that run amok in this show's dialogue and I wish it would stop. No one actually talks like that. The only thing that's got me tuning in this week is Mia's parents setting her up with some cute Asian guy and making Jack jealous. It'll be interesting watching Mia fake her Asian-ism to please her parents.

Ugly Betty
Daniel's mom gets set free, Betty gets all slutty because of poisonous perfume, and Gio falls for Betty even more. Meanwhile, Christina decided to have Wilhemina's baby, even though she said, "My uterus is officially closed to devil spawn." She was the funniest of the episode, especially when she told Betty: "Well look who went from flirty to dirty," after she practically molested Henry in front of an elevator full of people. But of course Amanda had to make me laugh with her subtlety. When Betty asks, "You did the right thing. Feels good doesn't it?", Amanda responds "Eh, it'll pass," like it's gas or something.



Friday Night Lights
The main story of the night was Smash's interracial relationship. Apparently, his mom and his girlfriend's parents informed them at a cute meet-and-greet dinner that it's unwise to mix races. Before they got into that conversation, his girlfriend's younger sister mentioned their Wii and he was really excited about it. So when they burst his jungle fever bubble, I almost felt like I saw the question: "So....I can't play with the Wii?" pop up in his head. But the situation doesn't end there. When they go to a theater frequented mainly by white people, he gets into an altercation and punches some kid half his size in the face. Another archaic belief that was bustling around in the episode was that wives should stay home with the kids. Tammy was not having it, but thankfully neither was the coach. However, he still had to help her let go of Gracie and finally enroll her in day care so she could go back to work. It was really funny when she watched Gracie leave, because Gracie--being a baby--doesn't look back, which prompts Tammy to say, "I think she's totally over me." And of course coach's: "If daycare screws her up, she's always got you to counsel her" didn't hurt. Carlotta had to leave for her home country in a hurry, breaking Matt's heart. It was really adorable when she took him to a quincenera and he was counting his dance steps aloud. But the highlight for me was Riggins pranking Lila on her Christian radio show, because right after Street got him to stop he asks him "Is that how you tell her you like her?", and Riggins' face drops. He was like "How did you notice?" DUH! He tries to make up for it by bringing her flowers, but then he caught her kissing her on-air partner (Matt Czuchry from "Gilmore Girls"). No worries, next week's preview shows him professing his undying love. Oh yeah!


What's new this week (of what I watch):
Monday: Prison Break, Kyle XY, Wildfire, Sarah Connor Chronicles, Notes from the Underbelly, October Road
Tuesday: One Tree Hill, Carpoolers
Thursday: Chuck (8pm & 10pm), Ugly Betty, Big Shots
Friday: Friday Night Lights, Monk, Psych

FILM: Box Office Results - 1/18/08

Cloverfield stormed the box office this weekend, taking in $41 mil at #1, and Katherine Heigl officially got her romantic comedy credentials, bringing 27 Dresses to the #2 spot with $22 mil. Meanwhile, that crapfest Mad Money came in at #7 with close to $8 mil. Under limited release, Woody Allen's Cassandra's Dream grossed half a million dollars. Last week's number one film The Bucket List dropped to #3 with $42 mil and its number two First Sunday dropped to #6 with $28 mil. Here's the rest of the box office:

4 - Juno $85 mil

5- National Treasure $198 mil

8 - Alvin and the Chipmunks $196 mil

9 - I am Legend $247

10 - Atonement $31

Next week, we'll have the thriller Untraceable, the tired ass revitilization of Rambo, the "urban" dance movie How She Move, and the indies: The Air I Breathe, Michael Clayton, and 4 Months, 3 Weeks, and 2 Days.

And if you're in the mood to stay in this weekend, out on DVD are: Sydney White, Game Plan, Mr. Woodcock, Wedding Daze, and Suburban Girl.

FILM: 2008 Sundance Picks

Here are a few gems from the 2008 Sundance Film Festival that'll be in theaters within the year.

COMEDY
Assassination of a High School President - Mischa Barton, Bruce Willis
Director by Brett Simon
Written by Tim Calpin and Kevin Jakubowski
A geeky high school journalist (Reece Thompson from Rocket Science) is determined to get into a summer journalism program, so he tries to reveal a scandal in school that'll turn everyone's world upside down.
RELEASE DATE: August

Be Kind Rewind - Jack Black, Mos Def
Written and Directed by Michel Gondry (The Science of Sleep)
"A man whose brain becomes magnetized unintentionally destroys every tape in his friend's video store. In order to satisfy the store's most loyal renter, an aging woman with signs of dementia, the two men set out to remake the lost films."
RELEASE DATE: Feb. 22

The Deal - Meg Ryan, William H. Macy & L.L. Cool J
Directed by Steven Schachter
Written by William H. Macy
A reckless movie producer decides to bet all his chips on a recently converted black action star who wants to act in a Jewish film---hilarity ensues.

Diminished Capacity - Matthew Broderick & Virginia Madsen
Directed by Terry Kinney
Written by Sherwood Kiraly
"Full of wit and observant character humor, [this comedy] is cleverly set in the world of baseball cards and commercialized nostalgia that allows us to explore the value of our memories and who we are without them."

Hamlet 2 - Steve Coogan (Around the World in 80 Days), David Arquette & Amy Poehler
Directed by Andrew Fleming (Nancy Drew)
Written by Andrew Fleming and Pam Brady (Hot Rod)
"The plot revolves around an ex-actor, ex-user, relentless dreamer, and sometimes-delusional high school teacher played by Coogan. He has just mounted one of his infamous screen-to-stage productions—this time it’s Erin Brockovich—but the reviews aren’t all that he hoped for. When his students rebel and his job is threatened by budget cuts, he is forced to...stage an original production of Hamlet 2, a sequel to Shakespeare’s classic."

In Bruges - Colin Farrell, Ralph Fiennes, Brendan Gleeson
Written and Directed by Martin McDonagh
"Holed up in Bruges, Belgium after a difficult job, two hit men (Farrell and Gleeson) begin to differ on their views of life and death as they become used to local customs." "As they wait for their boss Harry's (Ralph Fiennes's) call, they are caught up in a series of weird encounters with locals, tourists, a dwarf American filmmaker, and Dutch prostitutes, and a romantic liaison that is not what it seems. When the call finally comes, it prompts a life-and-death struggle that is violent, darkly comic, and surprisingly touching."
RELEASE DATE: Feb. 8

Sunshine Cleaning - Amy Adams, Emily Blunt, Alan Arkin, Steve Zahn
Directed by Christine Jeffs
Written by Megan Holley (Sylvia)
"Two sisters who, in their effort to escape the malaise and general shabbiness of their day-to-day existence, undertake a very specialized business: cleaning up the blood and body parts at various crime scenes and suicide sites."


DRAMEDY
Birds of America - Matthew Perry
Directed by Craig Lucas
Written by Elyse Friedman
Perry plays a guy who is forced to raise his siblings, Ida and Jay, after their parents die. Naturally, they don't turn out as great as they would've with real parental supervision. Ida is a poor artist who sleeps around and Jay is severely antisocial. Meanwhile, Perry's character Morrie is a stressed out people-pleaser, who has been giving so much of himself for so long that he's forgotten how to relax. The truth is he can't relax if he's still "raising" his siblings, which will ultimately get in the way of his own life.

Great Buck Howard - John Malcovich, Colin Hanks, Emily Blunt, Tom Hanks, Steve Zahn
Written and Directed by Sean McGinly
"Law-school dropout Troy Gable answers an ad for a ;personal assistant to a celebrity performer,; hoping it will catapult him to a glamorous career in the entertainment industry. Little does he know that performer is Buck Howard, a 'mentalist' infamous for his 61 appearances on The Tonight Show, who has been reduced to a has-been magician in need of a pretty big trick to get him out of this slump."

Henry Poole is Here - Luke Wilson, George Lopez, Morgan Lily
Directed by Mark Pellington
Written by Albert Torres
"Henry Poole abandons his fiancée and family business to spend what he believes are his remaining days alone. The discovery of a 'miracle' by a nosy neighbor ruptures his solitude and restores his faith in life."
RELEASE DATE: April 4th

The Wackness - Ben Kingsley, Famke Janssen, Mary Kate Olsen, Josh Peck (Drake & Josh), Method Man, Olivia Thirlby (Juno)
Written and Director by Jonathan Levine
"Luke Shapiro is trying to figure out how to solve his parents’ insolvency, beat depression, and get laid before pushing off to college. Luckily he’s got a nifty deal with a psychiatrist, Dr. Squires, who trades him therapy sessions for weed. It happens that the oddball doctor’s marriage is crumbling, so the two—one in late adolescence, the other in late middle-age—embark on messy passages into new life stages. As Luke falls for a classmate who just happens to be Squires’s daughter, the summer heats up, and he follows doctor’s orders, learning to coexist with pain and make it part of him, rather than let it become his downfall."

What Just Happened? - Robert De Niro, Bruce Willis, Sean Penn, Stanley Tucci, John Turturro, Kristen Stewart, Moon Bloodgood
Directed by Barry Levinson
Written by Art Linson
"Two weeks in the life of a fading Hollywood producer who's having a rough time trying to get his new picture made."

Year of Getting to Know Us - Jimmy Fallon, Lucy Lui, Tom Arnold, Illeana Douglas
Director - Patrick Sisam
Written - Patrick Sisam & Ethan Canin
"A commitment-phobic man reunites with his estranged, ailing father and comes to terms with his own childhood."


ROMANTIC DRAMEDY
Good Dick - Jason Ritter, Mark Webber (The Hottest State), Tom Arnold
Written and Directed by Marianna Palka
"A look at the relationship between a lonely introverted girl and a young video store clerk vying for her attention."

Last Word - Wes Bentley, Winona Ryder, Ray Romano
Written and Directed by Geoffrey Haley
"Evan Merck is a writer who has found a most peculiar niche. Evan makes his living composing other people’s suicide notes. His reclusive world is thrown for a loop when, at a client’s funeral, Evan meets the beautiful, free-spirited Charlotte, the dead client’s sister. Unaware of his real day job—much less his connection to her brother’s suicide—Charlotte develops a fascination for the young writer."

Smart People - Dennis Quaid, Sarah Jessica Parker, Thomas Haden Church, Ellen Page
Director: Noam Murro
Written by Mark Jude Poirier
"Smart People is the darkly comic story of Lawrence Wetherhold (Quaid), a widowed, acerbic, and self-absorbed literature professor who has alienated his son and turned his daughter into an overachieving, friendless teen. He falls for Janet (Parker), one of his former students; at the same time, his ne’er-do-well brother (Church) unexpectedly shows up at his door, low on cash and needing a place to stay. Suddenly, Lawrence's well-thought-out, though not well-managed, life comes crashing down on him. All the intelligence in the world can’t unstick his life."
RELEASE DATE: April 11


DRAMA
American Son - Nick Cannon, Chi McBride, Jay Hernandez
Directed by Neil Abramson
Written by Eric Schmid and Neil Abramson
"The story of a young Marine, fresh from Camp Pendleton, who is forced to confront the complexities of adulthood and a volatile home life during a four-day Thanksgiving leave." He needs to say his good-byes before he heads off to war, except he fails to mention that to his family and friends.

August - Josh Hartnett
Directed by Austin Chick
Written by Howard A. Rodman
"August centers on two brothers fighting to keep their start-up company afloat on Wall Street during August 2001, a month before the 9/11 terrorist attacks." It also touches on the hubris of Americans who think they're financially untouchable.

Bottle Shock - Chris Pine & Eliza Dushku
Directed by Randall Miller (Houseguest)
Written by Randall Miller and Lannette Pabon
This dramedy is about two wine lovers in 1976 from opposite sides of the world, who both have a passion wine that could change the industry forever. It's literally is a comedic love letter to wine and a dramatic examination of ambition and passion.

Death in Love - Josh Lucas & Adam Brody
Written and Directed by Boaz Yakin
It "depicts the effects of a Jewish woman's love affair with the doctor in charge of human experiments in a Nazi concentration camp on the lives of her sons many years later." It "is a piercing exploration of the effects of choices made by one generation on the next."

The Guitar
Directed by Amy Redford
Written by Amos Poe
"The life of a woman is transformed after she is diagnosed with a terminal disease, fired from her job and abandoned by her boyfriend. Given two months to live, she throws caution to the wind to pursue her dreams."

Incendiary - Michelle Willaims, Ewan McGregor
Written and Directed by Sharon Maguire (Bridget Jones' Diary)
"An adulterous woman's life is torn apart when her husband and infant son are killed in a suicide bombing at a soccer match."

Merry Gentleman - Michael Keaton, Kelly Macdonald (Nanny McPhee), Tom Bastounes
Directed by Michael Keaton
Written by Ron Lazzaretti
"The film begins with a woman who leaves an abusive relationship to begin a new life in a new city, where she forms an unlikely and ironic relationship with a suicidal hit man (unbeknownst to her). Enter a worn, alcoholic detective to form the third party in a very unusual triangle, and this dark, soulful, sometimes-funny story begins to unfold."

Mysteries of Pittsburgh - Sienna Miller, Peter Sarsgaard, Mena Suvari, Nick Nolte
Director - Rawson Marshall Thurber
Screenwriter - Rawson Marshall Thurber, Michael Chabon
"Based on Michael Chabon's novel, the film chronicles the defining summer of a recent college graduate who crosses his gangster father and explores love, sexuality, and the enigmas surrounding his life and his city."

Phoebe in Wonderland - Elle Fanning & Felicity Huffman
Written and Directed by Daniel Barnz
"This is at once a tale of Phoebe, a young girl who is different, and a portrait of her mother, a woman caught between trying to raise a child and striving for success in an academic career, while feeling a failure in both. It also includes an unusually gifted, but peculiar, educator—a drama teacher, who is directing the school production of Alice in Wonderland, which Phoebe longs to be part of. As talented and exceptional as Phoebe appears to be, she is also increasingly far away, retreating into fantasy and frustrating her parents and teachers."

Quid Pro Quo - Vera Farmiga (The Departed), Nick Stahl (Terminator 3)
Written and Directed by Carlos Brooks
"Isaac, a paraplegic, is a popular New York City public-radio reporter who is investigating a story from an anonymous source about a man who walked into a hospital demanding that his leg be amputated. While pursuing the story to satisfy his own probing curiosity, Isaac meets the strikingly beautiful and mysterious Fiona, a restoration artist. Isaac's investigation not only initiates a relationship with Fiona but also leads him into the strange subculture of 'wannabes,' those longing for wholeness—or lack thereof—in rather peculiar ways. Will Fiona lead Isaac to answers about this underworld of seekers, or will their stormy association push him toward a more painful truth?"

Sleepwalking - Nick Stahl, AnnaSophia Robb, Charlize Theron, Dennis Hopper, Woody Harrelson
Directed by William Maher
Written by Zac Stanford (The Chumscrubber)
"Tara is a 12-year-old girl whose mother, Jolene, can’t seem to get her life together, let alone build a stable environment for her daughter. When her boyfriend is arrested for growing marijuana, Jolene takes off, and Tara is put in foster care. Jolene’s brother, James, isn’t much better off than Jolene, but he feels a responsibility toward Tara, and when he decides to break her out of her foster home, they set off on a journey with no set destination except to find a better life. The road leads them to James and Jolene’s father’s farm and the violent childhood that James has never confronted. Tara learns of Jolene’s past and the reasons why she has lived such a scattered, scarred life, and James is forced to finally stand up to a cold, scary father while there is still a chance to save Tara from a gloomy future."

Sugar
Written and Directed by Anna Boden & Ryan Fleck
"Sugar follows Miguel Santos, a Dominican baseball player struggling to make it to the big leagues and pull his family out of poverty. He gets his break at age 19, when he advances to the United States's minor league system and travels from his tight-knit community to a small town in Iowa. Miguel struggles with the new language and culture despite the welcoming efforts of his host family. When his play on the mound falters, he begins examining more closely the world around him and his place within it, and ultimately questions the single-mindedness of his life's ambition."


THRILLER
Downloading Nancy - Maria Bello (History of Violence), Rufus Sewell (Knight's Tale), Amy Brenneman ("Private Practice")
Directed by Johan Renck
Written by Pamela Cuming & Lee Ross
"The story follows the fate of the unhappy wife Nancy who orders the guy she meets over the Internet to kill her, but the two of them fall in love."

Funny Games U.S. - Naomi Watts, Michael Pitt
Written and Directed by Michael Haneke
Two young guys torture a family betting them that they can’t survive the next 12 hours. Haneke is actually remaking his own 1997 Austrian film.
RELEASE DATE: March 14


Check out the documentaries, shorts, and other films at Sundance.

FILM: New to the Box Office - 1/18/08

Cloverfield

So by the Statue of Liberty's head rolling down a New York City street, you can tell that this is one of those apocalyptic action films. But since J.J. Abrams is producing and Drew Goddard ("Lost," "Alias," "Angel," and "Buffy the Vampire Slayer") is writing, there's a chance there's a bit more to it than that. For starters the entire film is recorded Blair Witch-style, except with better lighting. Then there's the fact that it's less Independence Day and more The Host. The cast may be filled with newcomers, but that's just so they don't distract from the real attraction that'll probably have you screaming right along with them.

27 Dresses

Katherine Heigl tries to solidify her place in the romantic comedy Hall of Fame by having her second foray into the genre with James Marsden (Enchanted) and Ed Burns (One Missed Call) as her love interests. The story is basically an exploration of that old saying, "Always a bridesmaid, never a bride." Well this chick has been a bridesmaid 27 times and she's got the dresses to prove it. And just when she spots her dream guy (Burns), her own sister snatches him up, and there she is again, forced to don another atrocious gown. What better way to commemorate this horrid occasion than to have a nosy reporter (Marsden) try to capitalize off of your pain? Since this movie is kind of like a mixture of Wedding Planner and Runaway Bride, me thinks this reporter will fall for the groom-less bridesmaid--not that that's going to stop me from watching. Honestly, I'm mostly interested in watching Marsden play a cad, since he's always such a sweetheart.


Mad Money

Apparently, all paper is recyclable including money, and banks destroy money after it gets too worn. Now I don't know if it's harder to believe that people haven't tried to steal this money before or that the serial numbers on the cash hasn't been flagged or that anyone would believe that Diane Keaton was a janitor that masterminded this plot. A janitor? Really? Annie Hall? Fine. I'm going suspend belief long enough to imagine that Keaton recruited a flighty ditz (Katie Holmes) and seemingly intelligent token black person (Queen Latifah) to pull a low-budget heist and then spend the next hour of the film acting girlie and irresponsible.


Cassandra's Dream

Woody Allen's dramatic thriller is about two brothers (Colin Farrell and Ewan McGregor) who try to prove their love to a scheming young woman (Hayley Atwell from Mansfield Park) who's pegging them against each other so she can get their money.


Teeth

Remember when everybody was all wigged out by Hard Candy's racy scenes of Ellen Page castrating a pedophile? Well, in this movie a girl (Jess Weixler) learns that her...body can defend itself from rapists in a...violent, bloody, and sharp way. And by the looks of the trailer, she's about to flip the switch on horny guys everywhere. You might want to check your balls at the ticket booth.

FILM: Tina Fey's "Baby Mama"

Tina Fey is starting to seem like Judd Apatow's penis-less equivalent. Both have mastered the teen comedy for their respective genders (Mean Girls and Superbad) and now both have put their two-cents in about the beauty of child birth (Knocked Up). Fey's, however, is way more pro-pregnancy. In the film, she plays a lonely infertile woman who must get a surrogate in order to have her dream child. Unfortunately, the surrogate that she chooses, played by Amy Poehler ("SNL") is ridiculously incompetent. I mean, she didn't find her in a trailer park, but she might as well have. Both ladies, along with Sigourney Weaver, Greg Kinnear, Romany Malco (40-Year-Old Virgin), Dax Sheppard (Employee of the Month), Maura Tierney ("ER"), and Holland Taylor ("Two and a Half Men"), are hysterical in the trailer. If you love "30 Rock," you're going to love this:

FILM: Ryan Reynolds has a "Proposal" for Sandra Bullock

Anne Fletcher just might be gearing up to be the director-equivalent to Nora Ephron, the go-to-girl for romantic comedies. With 27 Dresses about to hit theaters, she's already signed up to direct a Sandra Bullock-Ryan Reynolds (Just Friends) pairing in The Proposal. The story is about a publishing executive (Bullock) who orders her assistant (Reynolds) to marry her so she isn't deported back to Canada. Depending on how pathetic or bitchy she is, this could actually be pretty funny. However, for an example as to how it could fizzle, watch ABC Family's Holiday in Handcuffs, where Melissa Joan Hart (Sabrina the Teenage Witch) kidnaps some hot successful guy played by Mario Lopez (Saved by the Bell) to pretend to be her fiancee so her family doesn't think she's a loser. The Proposal will hit theaters in 2009.

FILM: Studios Butchered Star Wars' "Fanboys"

The comedy Fanboys, starring Kristen Bell, Chris Marquette (Just Friends), Jay Baruchel (Knocked Up), Sam Huntington ("Cavemen"), and Dan Fogler (Balls of Fury), has been pushed back several times. The story is about a group of Star Wars fanatics who go all the way to the Skywalker Ranch to steal an early copy of Episode I: The Phantom Menace so their friend, who has cancer, can see it before he dies. Apparently, cancer isn't funny--no shit--and it was a hard-sell to test-audiences even with the addition of cult-fave Kristen Bell. So they re-edited it so that there's no mention of cancer and it's all about a geeky obsession. Chances are--even with this new turn of events--the film will have a limited release and get barely any love.

I remember during the second season of "Project Greenlight," the drama The Battle of Shaker Heights had to be refocused into a comedy. And when I saw the finally product, it barely made any sense. The character played by Shia LaBeouf had a drug addict for a father, which hit home for LaBeouf since his father was one too. When the character's dad was admitted into rehab, it was supposed to be a very emotional moment, but instead it was cut short. The behind-the-scenes access that "Project Greenlight" granted showed that the emotional scene took a toll on LaBeouf and had him shook. Imagine going through all that trouble and then discovering that it was cut.

I guess the question I'm asking is: Would you view a film differently if you knew that its genre was changed so it would sell better?

TV: New "Knight Rider" series

There seems to be a new trend in Hollywood, where future films get a TV series as a precursor to their premiere. First "Terminator: Sarah Connor Chronicles" hit DVRs everywhere this weekend with the promise that Terminator Salvation: The Future Begins will hit theaters in 2009, and now the 80s scifi series "Knight Rider" has been revamped and will be adapted for the big screen in 2010.

The new TV series isn't exactly like it's predecessor. In the 80s show, David Hasselhoff's Michael Knight was a crime fighter, sort of like Bruce Wayne minus the cape. When he gets seriously injured--kind of like the Bionic Woman--a mysterious organization known as Knight Industries, gives him a new face, a new name, and a new car called KITT with built-in artifical intelligence. In the revamped show, soap star Justin Bruening plays Mike Traceur, a former Army Ranger and a crappy race car driver who owes dangerous people money. An organization known as FLAG is seeking a new driver for their suped-up ride KITT, but he's suspicious of them and the car's abilities. KITT is being voiced by Will Arnett ("Arrested Development"), and Hasselhoff is rumored to be making an appearance as his former character, but I'm not sure to what capacity. The first airing will be 2 hours long on February 17th and if ratings are high, they'll order a full season. Watch a clip from the show.

FILM: Johansson & Barrymore's directorial debut

The multi-director romantic film Paris, Je T'aime will have a sequel with a change of scenery called New York, I Love You. The film is compiled of 12 shorts about love in different areas of NYC, each with its own director. Scarlett Johansson will direct a five minute segment, along with Anthony Minghella (Cold Mountain), Zach Braff (Garden State), Mira Nair (The Namesake), Park Chan-Wook (Old Boy) and potentially Woody Allen.

Drew Barrymore has already dipped her foot in producing with 8 films and a new game show ("Shoot to Kill"), and now she's directing her first film, Whip It!, starring Ellen Page (Juno). Although it's a coup for Barrymore, it seems to be the beginning of Page's typecasting. She'll be playing a scarstic teenager--adding another to the pile--in the adaptation of Shauna Cross's Derby Girl. In the story, Page plays a girl who refuses to be in a beauty pageant and decides to rebel by participating in a rollerskating derby. We'll see if it's got that Diablo magic.

FIM: "Confessions of a Shopaholic" Book adapted

The literary adaptation of Sophie Kinsella's popular chick lit Confessions of a Shopaholic is in production. The main charater is a compulsive shopper, played by Isla Fisher (Wedding Crashers), who ironically has to become a financial advice columnist when she goes into debt. Hugh Dancy plays her editor and Krysten Ritter ("Gilmore Girls") plays her bff. Directing is P.J. Hogan (My Best Friend's Wedding) and screenwriting are Tim Firth (Kinky Boots) and newcomer Tracey Jackson (The Guru).

TV: "Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles" Review

I wasn't exactly as pumped for a Terminator series as I was for Bionic Woman, but so far it's made a better impression. If you're unfamiliar with the backstory, you should probably rent the three films that are in your nearest video store. The gist of it is that humanity will soon come to an end during an apocalypse engineered by artificially intelligent machines that we created. Our only savior is a boy named John Connor and his only protection is his mother Sarah. Grown-up Johnny ingeniously sends A.I. bodyguards back in time in order to save his teenage self. In the films, that bodyguard is known as the Terminator and is played by Arnold Schwarzenegger. In the TV show, the kid's protection is a young girl named Cameron, played by the chillingly robotic Summer Glau (Serenity). Cast as the messiah is Heroes' alum Thomas Dekker. But as the title infers, the main character of the show is his mother, the resilient Lena Headey (300).

In the pilot, Sarah has a nightmare about her son being murdered by a mechanical mercinary, which she takes as a prophecy. She immediately packs her bags and ditches her fiancee, so she and John can escape the inevitable. Luckily, Cameron infiltrates his new school as a student and slows the mercenary down long enough to take both of them to safety. All of this ruckus plus her fiancee's missing person's claim, raise the awareness of an FBI agent, James Ellison (Richard T. Jones from Why Did I Get Married?), who has been searching for them ever since she killed a man who would one day design Skynet, the cause of the apocalypse. John is so fed-up with running all the time and never getting to be a normal kid that he begs his mom to let him fight back. She resolves to find the new person who develops Skynet, which leads to Cameron helping them time travel. They go from 1999 to 2007.

Once they're in this new time period, they're pretty much at the mercy of Cameron, since they are not too familiar with this world. Think about it. If you skipped roughly 7 years of time, you'd have missed a lot--especially politically and technologically. When some gangster she's trying to get fake IDs from mentions how dangerous it is to provide such a thing after 9/11, she is completely clueless as to what he's referring to. Then he describes the ill-fated day, giving her the opportunity to explain why this show is such a poignant addition to this generation's pop culture history: "I cannot imagine the apocalypse...If I had witnessed [9/11], I'm sure I would've thought the end is near. I'm sure I would've thought, we have failed."

I'll keep watching the show for a couple of reasons, the main one being that there is still so much that Cameron has failed to tell them that I'm interested in finding out. For example, I believe the real reason they time-traveled was because Sarah dies from cancer in 2005. Such a secret adds the element that she'll have to not only fight off machines, but a fatal disease while preparing John for war. And if she doesn't find a donor, she'll only has 5-6 years to live. Then there's the additional aspect of time travel which isn't heavily used in the films. According to Cameron, they can't bring anything with them from the future, so they have to send people back to build it--meaning there are hidden treasures all over. The people that they send are resistance fighters, which means that there are people from the future hidden in plain sight. Their enemy also sent Terminators back in time, but they cannot identify John because they don't know what he looks like. But if their systems are updated, they will try to attack--meaning, random people can assault him on the street.

The action itself is sometimes boring--honestly, it's just a bunch of machines clunking together with blank expressions. The most interesting and amusing portions of the show are when Sarah and John interact with Cameron. Like I said, she has a lot of secrets. One of which may have to do with her assertion that she's not like the other Terminators. I have a feeling she might have been modeled after John's future girlfriend/wife and infused with all of her memories. But the fact that she's keeping secrets puts Sarah on edge. She continuously makes a point of treating her like a machine and not a person, referring to her as Tin Man and chucking her out of the window a couple stories up when her system shuts down. John, however, shows signs of being smitten. But usually he's just griping about not being able to hang out at the mall or use computers.

So if you love the films and are interested in a little more action--in addition to your Chuck, Heroes, and Bionic Woman roster--then you might want to TiVo this.