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It is difficult to know where to begin when one is considering the insidious nature of the film-award ceremonies. Roughly 82 years in, praising mediocrity and pandering to the white liberal elite are the norm. Still, somehow, this past weekend’s Golden Globes left me feeling particularly distraught and a bit flabbergasted. Among the many issues I had — from the Christina Hendricks weight comments to the absurdly excessive parade, while hundreds of thousands go days without food or water — I feel compelled to elaborate on the focus of the evening’s events. Avatar, a film that examines white guilt in...

comScore, Inc., a leader in measuring the digital world, today released December 2009 data from the comScore Video Metrix service, showing that nearly 178 million U.S. Internet users watched online video during the month. Online video viewing continued to reach record levels in December, with 33.2 billion videos viewed during the month.

Central Partnership, Russia's leading independent production company, has won a government tender to make the first fully state-funded feature since Soviet times — $8 million budgeted patriotic war film, “The Brest Fortress� — in association with state film studio Belarusfilm in Russia’s Western neighbor Belarus. It is the first of a raft of similar government-backed patriotic films that will roll out from 2010 onwards under a new policy that switches state funding to projects more in line with wider Kremlin political priorities. The amount of money pledged is nearly 10 times as much as the maximum amount given in Russia...

James Cameron's Avatar has sailed past his blockbuster Titanic to become number one on the all-time US domestic box-office chart. Avatar climbed to $US601.1 million ($A678.29 million) domestically on Tuesday, putting it a fraction ahead of the $US600.8 million ($A677.95 million) haul for Titanic. With more than $2 billion worldwide, Cameron's sci-fi sensation shattered the global box-office record of $US1.84 billion ($A2.08 billion) held by Titanic last week. Avatar still has plenty of box-office life left. It passed $US600 million ($A677.05 million) domestically on its 47th day of release. Back in 1998, Titanic was at barely half that amount -...

The air was crisp with excitement as the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences announced the list of nominees for 2010’s big Oscar Show. We all look forward with inexplicable excitement to that magical night when somewhere between deep probing questions like, “Who are you wearing” and the monotony of watching celebs congratulate themselves over and over and over for their own greatness and earth-changing achievement we (the unwashed masses) are allowed to see who Hollywood thinks is the best of their best.

David Brown, an urbane New Yorker whose publishing background was the foundation of a producing career in Hollywood, with films like “The Sting,” “Jaws,” and “The Verdict,” and on Broadway, died Monday at home in Manhattan. He was 93.

The sequel, which once again stars Michael Douglas as Gordon Gekko, along with newcomer Shia Labeouf, finds the disgraced Gekko released from prison into a new gilded age where even he can’t believe the corporate corruption and vast wealth accumulation. “Someone reminded me I once said greed is good,” Douglas says in the trailer. “Now it seems it’s legal.” WATCH TRAILER...

These sure bring back the memories. Turn the speakers up a little to drown out the background noise and enjoy a few minutes of nostalgia.

Glee actress Lea Michelle Our favorite locale at the SAG Awards, The Red Carpet, was equally impressive, with superb appearances by the likes of Diane Kruger, Carey Mulligan, Dianna Agron, Anna Paquin and a whole host of other glitterati who bedazzled us. We love award shows! Carey Mulligan blew us away in a breathtaking red Lanvin gown.

A proposed sale of Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, the most powerful and lucrative studio during the golden age of film, drew only meager offers last week, and now Hollywood must confront a troubling question: Are movie studios becoming a financial footnote? Loaded with debt and virtually at a standstill, MGM — now owned by a consortium that includes Sony, Comcast and the investment firms Providence Equity Partners and TPG — put its skeletal remains on the block in a complicated process that allowed potential bidders to review detailed financial information after showing their bona fides and indicating a price range based on a...

Medved's Top 10 movies of 2009 1. The Last Station 2- (500) Days of Summer 3- Up in the Air 4- The Hurt Locker 5- Up 6- The Blind Side 7- Julie & Julia 8- An Education 9- The Stoning of Soraya M. 10- Bright Star

For those that have been going back and forth on wanting to see Avatar, because of the unprecedented special effects, but don't want to put a dime in the Anti-American's pocket here's what I'll do...

An excerpt from the script from the movie coming August 6, 2010: ------- Derek hands them a folder. DEREK JETER A guy by the name of Carl Bastion, CEO of MacroBank. He took three billion in TARP funds, but refuses to give documentation on how he spent it. Take him down. But be careful, this guy’s got Blackwater mercenaries on the clock 24/7. ALLEN (Will Ferrell) This guy Bastion is nasty. He summers with Dick Cheney.

I’m pleased to note that a short film I did is finally coming out on DVD on January 25. I have a small but good role (the Handicapper General) in “2081,” a film based on Kurt Vonnegut’s “Harrison Bergeron.” Here’s Amazon’s description: A short film adaptation of Kurt Vonnegut’s Harrison Bergeron, 2081 depicts a dystopian future in which, thanks to the 212th Amendment to the Constitution and the unceasing vigilance of the United States Handicapper General, everyone is “finally equal….” The strong wear weights, the beautiful wear masks and the intelligent wear earpieces that fire off loud noises to keep...

Take a look.

Visiting with family over the Christmas holiday, my brother talked me into going to see “Avatar,” the part-animated, part-live action and wholly computer-generated sci-fi movie. Normally, I don’t like to go to see movies, but this was in 3-D at an IMAX theater. Well, I just had to check that out. It was an incredible visual experience, once you got past the idea that the movie looked like a Yes album cover — complete with floating mountains. In fact, a lot of the movie is familiar. The story borrows heavily from “Dances With Wolves,” most of which was filmed northeast...

In the February issue of Elle UK, Natalie Portman says, "I've always tried to stay away from playing Jews." Then she adds, "I get like 20 Holocaust scripts a month, but I hate the genre." Because the entire interview is not online, I am going to give Portman the benefit of the doubt. I don't think she's a self-loather who doesn't want movie audiences to know she's Jewish (though she benefits from looks that are not stereotypically Semitic—her nose is small, her hair is straight). It's more that she's lamenting the lack of good Jewish roles outside of Holocaust movies....

Please forgive the vanity post, but I am moved to say something about the movie "Taking Chance". I was completely unaware of this movie until yesterday and admit to some trepidation as I rented it. I distrust Hollywood's treatment of our military and especially their treatment of our war dead, so was expecting something completely different than what I watched last night. The movie is reverential and touching and shows the love that REAL Americans actually feel for our soldiers. I admit that my estimation of Kevin Bacon has taken a new high and his portrayal of the Marine officer...

In the spirit of the current thread "Best Films of all Time?", I just have to ask for the other end of the spectrum. I don't mean "Night of the Lupus", "Attack of the Killer Tomatoes", or other standard bad/forgettable films. I don't mean just box-office flops. I want to see tour-de-force bad.

...But amid this avalanche of praise and popularity, guess who hates the movie? America's prickly cadre of political conservatives.

This Just In: Hollywood heavy Sean Penn, who dropped out of the Farrelly Brothers’ “Three Stooges” movie during the bust-up of his marriage, is back on board to play middle Stooge Larry, Bobby Farrelly told the Track .

10. March of the Penguins 9. Enchanted 8. The Incredibles 7. Amazing Grace 6. The Nativity Story 5. Ratatouille 4. Wall-e 3. Up 2. The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe

The following list are classics, which are defined as movies you’d enjoy watching even when you wouldn’t enjoy watching a movie. To qualify as a spoof, a movie must tease a genre of film and not just a single movie. Thus, Date Movie, Epic Movie, Meet the Spartans, and the other modern-day stinkers depend too much for their audience to be familiar with specific other movies, which themselves are usually poor. Mockumentaries don’t qualify because they spoof an activity and not a style of film. Movies which are too self-contained also don’t make the cut: a spoof, after all, needs...

Some guy named Mike from Milwaukee, WI put together a 70-minute video review discussing the many reasons why the movie was horrible. And this isn’t your usual fanboy rant, this is an epic, well-edited well-constructed piece of geek film criticism. This is astounding film making. Watch ALL of it.

OH HELLS YEAH

ctor Sam Elliott claims that the Catholic Church prevented Hollywood from proceeding with the next two film’s in the His Dark Materials trilogy based on Philip Pullman’s books. “The Catholic Church ... lambasted them,” said Elliott. “I think it scared New Line off.” The film...angered Catholics who accused it of promoting atheism. In the book trilogy, set in a series of parallel worlds, heroine Lyra fights the Magisterium, an evil organisation some have interpreted as being based on the Catholic Church. Pullman, 63, told the Western Mail: "If Sam is right then I am very disappointed because it obviously would...

Classic British Cinema Has Become An Elusive Delight The England I love is in the old films of Ealing, Elstree and Shepperton - and they're becoming harder to see. Simon Heffer 26 Dec 2009 We all have a cultural comfort zone. It is the place where we go when we need to feel entirely at one with the world and have the ultimate relaxation. For years – actually, decades – I thought that, for me, it was music. Then, not so long ago, I realised that was not the case. Most of my favourite music is loud, agitated, violent stuff...

The era of the ‘Man’s Man’ is coming ever closer to ending. Soon it will be acceptable for all men to see a film and let it truly effect them emotionally. But that time isn’t upon us just yet. These are the top ten movies that not only make men cry, but it is deemed acceptable for them to do so. 10. The Wrestler 9. Saving Private Ryan 8. Braveheart 7. Field of Dreams 6. E.T. The Extra Terrestrial 5. The Shawshank Redemption 4. Friday Night Lights 3. Terminator 2: Judgement Day 2. Good Will Hunting 1. Star Trek II:...

I know…technically the decade doesn’t end until next year. Whatever. The first 10 years of the 20th Century, as it was, was a great era for great movies. In my mind, we saw a true resurgence of innovation and imagination…with some routine Hollywood nonsense thrown in. Now, I took some editorial leeway on some of these, as you will see. For what it is worth, here is my top 10 list:

Just for fun, see an over-the-top preview

Now, please note…this is just the most hyped movies of the year, and the ones I am personally most interested in. I am sure there are dozens, if not more, of excellent movies coming out. But on hype alone, these should get you started for a wonderful year of movie watching.

Perhaps no area of discernment is more difficult and more controversial than the Christian’s engagement with culture. Are we to be cultural gluttons, immersing ourselves in the culture around us so we can speak to it from the perspective of first-hand experience? Are we to be cultural anorexics, avoiding culture altogether lest it corrupt us? Or are we to take some middle ground where we appreciate aspects of it while rejecting others? In Hollywood Worldviews, filmmaker and screenwriter Brian Godawa (To End All Wars) weighs in on the task of “Watching Films with Wisdom & Discernment.” While looking at movies...

I see tons of movies...it is one of my guilty pleasures. Between the movie theater, Netflix, and my absurd DVD purchasing budget, I see the bulk of the popular movies every year. Admittedly, I miss a fair amount of the independent films, so take my list for what it is worth...

Avatarocious Another spectacle hits an iceberg and sinks. by John Podhoretz 12/28/2009, Volume 015, Issue 15 AvatarDirected by James Cameron Avatar, we are told, does things with cameras and computers and actors that have never been done before. Its painstaking combination of real-life action and animation has, we are told, taken cinema to a new level. It cost anywhere from $328 million to $500 million, we are told, and took four years to make. It is a breakthrough, we are told, the boldest step into the future of filmmaking, an unparalleled achievement. What they didn't tell us is that Avatar...

Dec 18 2009 10:38 AM EST 'Avatar': Pass The Kool-Aid, By Kurt Loder The greatest movie, uh, ever? James Cameron's "Avatar" is the most amazing ... no, wait: the most staggeringly amazing, jaw-droppingly triple-awesome unbelievable movie ever made. That's the feeling among the reviewers aggregated at Rotten Tomatoes, anyway. I quote: "An overwhelming feast of visual artistry unlike anything you have ever seen before." "Much more than a film. It's a prescribed cinematic experience." "An entertainment to be not just seen but absorbed on a molecular level." "Cameron has achieved no less than a rebirth of cinema." "Make sure you...

I really enjoyed the responses from last week's "What Are Your Favorite Movies Made Before 1950?" thread (http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/2406295/posts). So here's another movie topic - favorite foreign language films of any era. (Hey, we need a pleasant distraction from the debacle going on in DC!) If you know the date or even decade of the film and the language, please include it. Thank you and enjoy!

Battle Royale: When Movie Robots Fight TV Robots BY Sam Ashurst Jun 1st 2009 11:11AM To celebrate Terminator Salvation rolling into cinemas, we've decided to bring together the baddest and saddest 'bots in movie and telly history for a big metal scrap. These bad-ass bags of bolts can't wait to brawl - so we're going to step out of the way and toss the terrible twosomes into the ring, and see which metallic maniac makes it out operational.

The Top Seven Awesome Things You Didn't Know About Steven Seagal Steven Seagal has been a cultural icon representing everything squinty and badass about action films for the past 20 years. A lot of people think they know everything there is to know about this mysterious man of part-time law enforcement and energy drinks, but the truth of the matter goes deeper. Much deeper. Source: A&E TV By Nathan Bloch 7. Steven Seagal speaks fluent Japanese Source: Nathan Shanahan/Getty Images It’s pretty impressive that the man spent ten years in Japan and became a 7th dan black belt aikido master,...

Soundtrack albums are the hidden pleasures of pop. Composed and performed to accompany moving images, they're emotional enhancers. This dramatic quality, coupled with the depth of sound-field in full cinema reproduction, ensures that many soundtracks stand apart from their parent films as a listening experience.

Click film to view. At the height of the Great Depression, the showman of a renowned circus leads his troupe through the devastated American landscape, lifting the spirits of audiences along the way. During their travels they discover a man without limbs at a carnival sideshow, but after an intriguing encounter with the showman he becomes driven to hope against everything he has ever believed. Starring Eduardo Verástegui (Bella), Doug Jones (Pan’s Labyrinth, Fantastic Four) and featuring the debut performance of Nick Vujicic.

Watching "Avatar," I felt sort of the same as when I saw "Star Wars" in 1977. That was another movie I walked into with uncertain expectations. James Cameron's film has been the subject of relentlessly dubious advance buzz, just as his "Titanic" was. Once again, he has silenced the doubters by simply delivering an extraordinary film. There is still at least one man in Hollywood who knows how to spend $250 million, or was it $300 million, wisely. "Avatar" is not simply a sensational entertainment, although it is that. It's a technical breakthrough. It has a flat-out Green and anti-war...

For Old Timers or fans of old time movies, list your favorite movies made before 1950. Include the date of the movie. Please don't list any movies made after 1950. Thanks!

THR Film Review-Bottom Line: A titanic entertainment — movie magic is back! A dozen years later, James Cameron has proven his point: He is king of the world. As commander-in-chief of an army of visual-effects technicians, creature designers, motion-capture mavens, stunt performers, dancers, actors and music and sound magicians, he brings science-fiction movies into the 21st century with the jaw-dropping wonder that is “Avatar.” And he did it almost from scratch. There is no underlining novel or myth to generate his story. He certainly draws deeply on Westerns, going back to “The Vanishing American” and, in particular, “Dances With Wolves.”...

Hollywood poised for record-breaking year at the box office; 2009 set to best 2007's record intakeBy Amy Eisinger DAILY NEWS STAFF WRITER Thursday, December 10th 2009, 3:26 PM The Hollywood box office is having its best year in history, reports Hollywood.com Box Office. This week the box office grand total for 2009 is expected to hit $9.682 billion -- surpassing previous record holder 2007, when the tally was $9.68 billion. With potential top-grossing holiday films still to come, Hollywood is bracing for their first $10 billion year ever. Movies that are still on the way this year include James Cameron's...

What would everyone consider the best 5 movies of this last decade?

BDS is still going strong in our MSM. Take for example this article from Newsweek in which the author blames the recent depressing movies coming out of hollywood on you know who: (h/t Big Hollywood) There are grim movies, and then there are movies that should list the Grim Reaper in the credits. No Country for Old Men, the 2007 Oscar-winning drama, falls into the latter category, but it's as cuddly as a hamster compared with The Road, the latest adaptation of a Cormac McCarthy novel. The Road is set in a post-apocalyptic world where everything and almost everyone is...

Well, back in the summer of 1977, flyover country was pissed. The nation they loved was being run into the ground by the jet-setters. Skyrocketing inflation. Rampant unemployment. Plummeting GDP. Crushing misery index. Multiple oil crises. Vanishing trade surpluses. A wretched President. Ordinary people were scared and angry, looking for — what’s the word? — oh yeah, “change.” Spare or otherwise.

<p>It seems that Hilary Swank is going to be on top of our ‘Best Dressed Of The Year’ list. The Oscar winning actress makes each of her red carpet appearances, dramatic and unforgettable, as if it is part of her DNA.</p>

This is an opinion piece about the awful Twilight series of books and the inevitably horrible movies that will follow. I am only posting the link because the opinion piece is chock full of profanity but I thought it was funny as hell... THE DEVIN'S ADVOCATE: WHY BREAKING DAWN MUST BE MADE INTO A MOVIE

When DVDs first began to contain those now ubiquitous special features, those mini documentaries, series of interviews, or behind the scenes shoots, it seemed like such an exciting idea, especially for film buffs (or series fans). But now that they have become fairly common and now that I've seen a lot of them, I have to say that they are almost entirely worthless for anything other than time-wasting, disc stuffers. Did you know that JJ Abrams is a great camera shaker and is "the life" of the new Star Trek movie? Did you know that no one worked harder than...