MOVIE OPENINGS – Nov 21, 2008
BOLT
Director: Byron Howard Chris Williams
Stars: John Travolta, Miley Cyrus, Susie Essman
Studio: Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures
The Plot: Bolt (voice of Travolta) is a celebrity dog and the star of a hit TV show where his amazing feats and powers draw big ratings. But when a mail-room mix-up finds him roaming free on the streets of New York City, the wonder dog will have to learn to rely on his actual strengths -- as well as his new friends, an abandoned housecat and a starry-eyed hamster -- in order to find his way back home to his owner and co-star, Penny (voice of Cyrus).
TWILIGHT
Director: Catherine Hardwicke
Stars: Kristen Stewart, Robert Pattinson, Billy Burke
Studio: Summit Entertainment
The Plot: In her new town of Forks, Washington, misfit teenager Bella Swan (Stewart) falls for her alluring and mysterious classmate, Edward Cullen (Pattinson). As it turns out, Edward belongs to a lineage of vampires, although he doesn't fit the typical vampire mold. As their passion reaches dizzying heights, can Edward resist his natural urges, and will he be able to defend Bella from his family members who have come for her?
SPECIAL
Director: Hal Haberman Jeremy Passmore
Stars: Michael Rapaport
Studio: Magnet Releasing
The Plot: Metermaid Les Franken (Rapaport) has an unexpected reaction to the anti-depressant he's taking as part of a clinical trial; suddenly convinced he's a superhero, he embraces his new powers, dons a homemade costume, and hits the streets to protect the citizens of his city. the corporation behind the pill, fearing bad publicity about their drug, set out to bring down our hero, who in turn hones his abilities to fight off his new arch-nemeses.
The Making of ‘Twilight’ – A Video Journey
The following series of videos on the making of 'Twilight' features behind the scenes moments and interviews with the stars and director.
EXPLORE THE DVD SPECIAL FEATURES FOR 'TWILIGHT'
Is new media hurting or helping TV?
A conference Tuesday on the future of television turned up differing opinions about whether new-media options were hurting or helping TV ratings.
Several members of TV-heavy traditional media companies, including CBS Corp. and NBC Universal, said full-length Web videos on sites like Hulu and the broadcast networks' own sites were starting to see some real traction with millions of users. They said that it was helping, not hurting, TV use. Yet a forthcoming IBM study, which was presented in part on the first day of the Future of Television conference in lower Manhattan, showed that TV use is declining among a small but growing part of viewers who are watching TV shows on computers and mobile devices.
"It's really now having an effect," said William Serrao, an executive with IBM Global Business Services.
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The 10 movies you shouldn’t watch online
Movies are increasingly creeping online, as video sites like YouTube and Hulu are adding feature films to their extensive libraries.
At the Google-owned YouTube, there is the YouTube Screening Room, which every two weeks, adds four new films — mostly independent works — to the site. Hulu, the joint creation of NBC Universal and News Corp., has hundreds of films available for stream, from "Basic Instinct" to "Wuthering Heights."
Of course, many people download films illegally on BitTorrent sites, but movies are nevertheless becoming more populated — legally — online.
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Sci-fi fans go into warp drive over an independent Star Trek film
At first, the scene at the Fine Arts Theatre resembles any other Hollywood movie première. Autograph hunters throng the red carpet, cameras flash like strobe lights, and passing cars slow down in the hope of a celebrity sighting. But a closer look reveals something amiss. No one from the evening entertainment TV shows is here. Someone in the crowd is wearing what look like blue pajamas, Nike-swoosh eyebrows, and pointy ears. And when a driver rolls down his window to ask which film is being screened, he's confused by the answer: "Star Trek: Of Gods and Men."
This isn't the première for 2009's "Star Trek" reboot by movie director J.J. Abrams. The budget of "Star Trek: Of Gods and Men" probably wouldn't cover the cost of Spock's ears in that film. But the independent feature, funded by a single fan and made outside the aegis of franchise owners Paramount Pictures and CBS, does boast a cast and crew of "Star Trek" alumni. Indeed, fans of the show have come to the theater to witness the onscreen reunification of Nichelle Nichols and Walter Koenig – Uhura and Chekov from the original series – both of whom are working the red carpet
Filmmaker creating Hollywood by the sea
An Encinitas filmmaker is determined to create a new Hollywood by the sea with a community of like-minded movie makers who want to pursue their craft outside Los Angeles.
"There are L.A. refugees who love the art, and they want to make it work," said Jeremy Saville, a veteran actor and director who is bringing Hollywood how-to expertise to Encinitas with a new group called SoCal Moviemakers.
The group meets each month at the Encinitas Library.
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Amy Poehler and Friends Launch New Digital TV Series Aimed at Young Girls and Their Parents
ON Networks(R) (ON) today announced the release of the first episode of Smart Girls at the Party - the original digital TV series that aims to help young girls find confidence in their own aspirations and talents. The series was created by and stars actor/writer Amy Poehler and friend Meredith Walker, former senior producer for Nickelodeon's Nick News, and former head of talent for Saturday Night Live. Amy Miles, recording artist and performer and host of PBS children's show LOMAX: Hound of Music, stars as the series' regular musical act.
ON Networks also announced that the first season of Smart Girls at the Party will be sponsored by Barbie(R), an iconic brand that continues to encourage girls to be who they want to be -- whether it's a princess, doctor, fashion model or president of the United States.
Unhappy people watch more TV: study
An extensive new research study has found that unhappy people watch more TV while those consider themselves happy spend more time reading and socializing.
The University of Maryland analyzed 34 years of data collected from more than 45,000 participants and found that watching TV might make you feel good in the short term but is more likely to lead to overall unhappiness.
"The pattern for daily TV use is particularly dramatic, with 'not happy' people estimating over 30 percent more TV hours per day than 'very happy' people," the study says. "Television viewing is a pleasurable enough activity with no lasting benefit, and it pushes aside time spent in other activities -- ones that might be less immediately pleasurable, but that would provide long-term benefits in one's condition. In other words, TV does cause people to be less happy."
John Travolta’s ‘Bolt’ is next out of the animation pack
"All this work, and that's what it took to be a superstar in her eyes," Travolta says. "That's the one thing she'll watch, regardless of what it is."
So, too, will moviegoers, it seems. Cranking out nearly three times the number of animated movies than in the 1990s, the industry counts on cartoons as its most bankable genre.
The latest offering arrives Friday with Travolta's Bolt, about a TV dog who finds himself lost in New York
INTERVIEW: Daniel Craig bonds with the ‘Quantum of Solace’
MoviesOnline sat down with British actor Daniel Craig to talk about his new film, “Quantum of Solace,” directed by Mark Forster. Hailed as one of the finest actors of his generation on stage, screen and television, Craig returns to the role of the legendary 007 Agent James Bond following his highly acclaimed debut in Casino Royale, the highest grossing film in the history of the 007 franchise.