Four new movies opened this week, and the big one is Disney’s A Christmas Carol, which is yet another adaptation of the Charles Dickens story and the latest film to try out well-known actors doing motion-capture performances in an entirely-CG world. It is much like director Robert Zemeckis’s previous films The Polar Express and Beowulf, but this time with Jim Carrey at the helm. The problem with this one, and all of his other ones, is that he still hasn’t found a way to make the CG-people not look creepy; there’s something about how lifeless their eyes are that distracts from the story, and, not to mention, is a new Christmas Carol adaptation absolutely necessary? But despite this, it opened to a solid $31 million this weekend, but with an estimated budget of $200 million, it still has a ways to make its buck back. The Men Who Stare at Goats, the military comedy with an all-star cast that includes George Clooney, Ewan McGregor, Jeff Bridges, and Kevin Space, opened at number 3 with just over $13 million. The Fourth Kind was number 4, with over $12 million, and is yet another horror flick to utilize the consumer-grade camerawork to convince viewers of the amateurish/nonfiction reality, much like the technique of Paranormal Activity. The Box, the fourth wide release, opened at number 6, with nearly $8 million; it stars Cameron Diaz and James Marsden, and is the latest film from Donnie Darko creator Richard Kelly. Michael Jackson’s This Is It dropped to number 2 this weekend, with a still-strong $14 million. It was intended to be only a two-week engagement, but that has since been extended to remain in theaters through Thanksgiving, thanks to its box office performance and positive critical reception. Also, Precious… opened in limited release at only 18 theaters, and it managed an impressive $1.8 million, for a roughly $100,000 per theater average, a high-record number and a sure sign for noteworthy numbers to come.

Austin Film Festival

Austin Film Festival Report: Jason Reitman’s Up in the Air screened on the festival’s closing night, and was met with a warm reception. Reitman was even in attendance, and took time for a lengthy Q&A afterwards. The film, which stars a perfectly-casted George Clooney, tells the story of man that lives to travel and disconnect himself from any commitment that could potentially weigh him down; he even hosts seminars that preach this very lifestyle. With the hire of a young female co-worker to his company, played by Anna Kendrick in what is sure to be a breakthrough performance, Clooney’s character must show her the ropes, and in the process, his outlook on life manages to change. The film plays with the narrative compactness of Reitman’s previous films, Thank You for Smoking and Juno, but seems to explore a new level of maturity, in his craft and thematically. The rich blend of comedy and drama, as well as the many all-star performances, which include Jason Bateman, Vera Farmiga, Danny McBride, and Melanie Lynskey, make it a very rewarding film, and solidifies Reitman as a director you can count on. Precious: Based on the Novel “Push” by Sapphire (which has the longest subtitle ever) also made a big Austin debut at the festival. It tells the story of an, obese teenage black girl growing up with her abusive mother and dealing with her second pregnancy, both her own father is responsible for. It’s a dark, depressing tale that is supported by its strong performances and relentless, yet realistic depictions of inner-city struggle. It quite possibly could have sunk to the quality of a Lifetime-movie, but its director Lee Daniels makes it blossom to what’s being called “the Slumdog Millionaire of 2009.”

Paranormal Box Office Records

Big news: Paranormal Activity beat out Saw VI at the box office the pre-Halloween weekend. The extremely low-budget ghost flick made over $21 million dollars, while the franchise film made barely it over the $14 million mark, making it the lowest opening for a Saw movie since the first one opened in its limited release. Paranormal expanded to 1,185 theaters, about a thousand less than Saw, and has managed to scare up an impressive total of about $61 million. Where the Wild Things Are finished out the top 3, with about $14 million, dropping 57% from its previous opening weekend. It’s a steep decline for the not-so-conventional family film, with a reported $100 million budget. Let be known, readers—it is this writer’s opinion that this movie is worth the price of admission and should be seen, especially in IMAX if available. It’s certainly better than the other wide releases this week. Astro Boy, the new animated pic that’s not from Pixar, opened at number 6 with nearly $7 million. It is quite the under-performance for a film budget at $65 million, but maybe because it relies on its big-name voices to draw audiences in, rather than the value of story. Cirque du Freak: The Vampire’s Assistant opened at number 7, with just over $6 million; it’s the latest movie to try and cash in on the Twilight-vampire tweenie crowd. It is based off a book series like the all-too-popular Twilight, and would be a hopeful franchise had it not had such a dismal opening. Amelia also made a hiccup this weekend, opening at number 11 with close to $4 million, and it most likely will not have much of an improved performance in the weeks to come.

he said, she said

For starters, Mariah Carey tripped while making her entrance on the Jay Leno show, and tried to save face by flirting with him and making him blush!



Another reality show is in the mix: this time Kirstie Alley. What about you ask? Her on again off again weight battles. The show will will be aired on A & E next year, but currently is an untitled series.


Sean Penn's 16 year old son was arrested last week in Los Angeles in his high school, but no reports of why he was arrested will be released since he is underage.

Ugly Betty is getting ugly ratings. Things aren't looking good for the once-loved ABC show! The show hit an all time low on Friday with only 4.5 million viewers.

The former American Idol runner-up Adam Lambert released a video of 30 seconds snippets from each song on his debut album.


And to end today's gossip, I leave you with a quote from Kate Hudson, and her outlook on men. "I sometimes feel like when you're talking to boys, they just hear certain keywords," she tells Elle UK. "But if you had a thought bubble above their head, they would be thinking about game scores, masturbation and food."

Well, that about sums it up. All for now.

Manny Pacquiao vs Miguel Cotto November 14, 2009!

Welterweight Champion Miguel Cotto takes on pound for pound king, Manny Pacman Pacquiao on November 14, 2009!

MLB World Series Update!

The Phillies are gunning for a back to back World Series Championship by keeping hopes alive with a win yesterday against the Yankees 8 to 6. The leader of this game was Chase Utley, who came in by hitting to homers and making this game unreachable.

Yankees lead series, 3-2
Game Matchup Day Date Time ET TV
Gm 1 Philadelphia Phillies 6 @ New York Yankees 1 Wed Oct. 28
Gm 2 Philadelphia Phillies 1 @ New York Yankees 3 Thu Oct. 29
Gm 3 New York Yankees 8 @ Philadelphia Phillies 5 Sat Oct. 31
Gm 4 New York Yankees 7 @ Philadelphia Phillies 4 Sun Nov. 1
Gm 5 New York Yankees 6 @ Philadelphia Phillies 8 Mon Nov. 2
Gm 6 Philadelphia Phillies @ New York Yankees Wed Nov. 4 7:57 PM FOX
Gm 7* Philadelphia Phillies @ New York Yankees Thu Nov. 5 7:57 PM FOX

Texas Trumps another ranked team!

Texas came into Stillwater Oklahoma this past Saturday with a chip on their shoulder. A lot of people doubted this ball club and believed that they had a weak schedule and the win over Oklahoma wasn't good enough of a win! With all this talk going on, the Longhorns, led by Colt McCoy, went into Saturdays game with something to prove. The game started off slow as both teams with the Longhorns only scoring a field goal. However, the Longhorns scored 21 points in the 2nd quarter with touchdown run by Cody Johnson and a touchdown pass caught by Malcolm Williams. But the answer came with the Longhorn defense stepping up and making Zac Robinson's day a long one. The Longhorns scored 2 touchdowns off of 4 Zac Robinson interceptions and gave Colt McCoy and company an easier day when it came to scoring points. Earl Thomas and Curtis Brown were the two studs on defense and the Longhorn Offense put up 3 touchdowns as well. This so called shootout just became a killing by the Longhorns, as they win 41 to 14. With this win over #15 ranked Cowboys, it seems like smooth sailing through the rest of the schedule.