Free Republic

As two dramas about the conflict vie for attention at TIFF, normally outspoken actors and filmmakers on hand for the fest remain conspicuously mum on the subject. The conflict in Syria and the increasing likelihood of Western involvement is occupying hearts and minds at this year’s festival. Still, when it comes to Hollywood voices publicly weighing in on the debate over U.S. intervention in the territory, the silence has been deafening. A number of high-profile Hollywood names on hand for the festival, who’ve been outspoken in the past on U.S. military intervention, have been uncharacteristically quiet on the issue. THR...

Why is so much of the Hollywood product, produced for both the big screen and television, so aggressively and stubbornly leftist in it themes, plot points, ideological perspective, and assumptions about American culture, values, and history? Why is there so much leftist bias, both subtle and overt, in a vast array of films across genres, from romantic comedies and action films to horror and science fiction? Why does so much of what is produced in Tinseltown appear threatening, alien, and hostile to most Americans when they reflect upon what it is actually trying to say to them? One answer, and...

Well, your wait, if you were waiting, is over. The trailer for the Coen Brothers' TRUE GRIT has been released. Thoughts? It's a good lookin' trailer. However, that song instantly drove me insane. The whole time I was like, "When will this fade out?" Maybe something instrumental would have been better? I might be alone in this thought. Other than that, it's really my only complaint. It also reminds me of how bad ass and manly John Wayne was. Then again, so is Jeff Bridges, who from the looks of this trailer slides comfortably into the role of Rooster Cogburn....

1. Pixar/Disney's Toy Story 3 is the 3D monster everybody thought it would be with $41 million Friday and $37 million Saturday and an estimated $31M Sunday on 4,028 locations, including 2,463 3D screens (of which 180 are IMAX which did $8.4M at 180 theaters or 8% of TS3 overall weekend domestic gross for the biggest IMAX animated film ever and the 5th highest IMAX domestic opener ever). The 3D ticket price advantage made this Pixar's biggest, swamping previous Pixar 2D opening weekends, including 2003 Finding Nemo's $70.2M and 2004 The Incredibles' $70.4M. Toy Story 3 will debut to $111M...

This is the story of hope and reality. First the hope from Bloomberg News 10 days ago with the very hopeful title of Oliver Stones' W May End Political Films' Drought: ``W.'' distributor Lions Gate Entertainment Corp. is betting the movie can break a box-office drought for political films. None of the five released in the weeks ahead of the Nov. 4 election has brought in more than half of the $55.3 million in sales generated by Walt Disney Co.'s ``Beverly Hills Chihuahua,'' the current box-office champ, since Oct. 3. ``A lot of eyes are on `W.,''' said Gitesh Pandya,...

Josh Brolin ready for the Oval Office? It’s all in the latest edition of the Access Hollywood Casting Call! Josh Brolin will play the president in the Oliver Stone-directed film “Bush,” according to The Hollywood Reporter. Stone, who also helmed films about John F. Kennedy and Richard Nixon, is hoping to start production as early as the spring, in order to release the film around the fall presidential election. Brolin currently stars in the Coen brothers’ critically acclaimed drama “No Country For Old Men.”

LOS ANGELES — Actor Josh Brolin was cited for misdemeanor domestic battery over the weekend after his wife, actress Diane Lane, called police during an argument at the couple's home.

     Update. And the answer is: It will be on NBC and it stars the son of Barbra Streisand’s husband, her stepson.     The November 11 CyberAlert noted that NBC has a prime time drama about the White House titled The West Wing, though it’s been dubbed “The Left Wing,” and we may soon be referring to a new prime time drama about a U.S. Senator and his staff as “The Left Hill” or “The Left Chamber.” CNN’s Bill Schneider on Friday gave a glimpse at a new show in which the model for one star is Paul Wellstone and...