Photo courtesy of Universal Wow! Most weeks I'm happy if there are a couple of new DVDs worth picking up. Today, I count at least eight that would be solid editions to any library. American Gangster may not have been the great film that many were expecting, but it was still solid studio fare. I'll say the same for Michael Clayton even though it inexplicably got better critical attention. Has Ang Lee ever made......

"No Country For Old Men," "There Will Be Blood," "Juno," "Michael Clayton," and "Atonement" all received nominations for Best Picture this morning, as the Academy Award nominations were announced in Beverly Hills. "No Country" and "There Will Be Blood" are the front runners with eight noms apiece, including a Best Actor nod for perennial Oscar fav Daniel Day-Lewis, and directing nominations for the Coen Bros. and Paul Thomas Anderson. While Javier Bardem was recognized......

Despite being thoroughly outed by Vikram Jayanti in his superb documentary, The Golden Globes: Hollywood's Dirty Little Secret, the Globes do retain some credibility in certain quarters. I don't buy that they are any sort of barometer for Academy Award nominations, but they do give nominees the extra media attention that may tip an Oscar nod their way. That said, here's what I thought about tonight's results and what they may portend. BEST MOTION......

Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to the worst opening weekend of the year! Granted, it's only the first weekend of the year but with a mere one movie opening--one!--I think it may hold the title for the next 51 weeks. That movie, of course, is One Missed Call. It's your typical, 'let's trick bored teenagers into seeing another bad re-make of a better Japanese horror film.' I thought that trend had run its course, but......

Like American Gangster earlier in the fall, Charlie Wilson's War tells a fascinating and (mostly) true story that's so improbable you wonder what's taken it so long to reach the big screen. If you don't already know, Charlie Wilson was a fairly nondescript Congressman from Texas (known more as a hedonist than a legislator) who almost single-handedly provided the money and weapons that the Afghan Mujahideen used to defeat the seemingly invincible Soviet Union.......

"Atonement" leads the pack of nominees for the 2008 Golden Globe Awards with seven nods, including top actor nominations for both leads, Keira Knightly and James McAvoy. "American Gangster," "No Country for Old Men," and "Sweeney Todd" also garnered nominations; you can read a partial list of the nominees here at the Hollywood Foreign Press Association website. Hayden Panettiere, Dane Cook, Ryan Reynolds and Quentin Tarantino read the list at the Beverly Hilton at......

I've always been intrigued by other "best of" lists, but this year I decided to take it to a whole new level. I e-mailed a handful of bands that I've seen this past year in order to unearth what exactly captivated them in '07. As music listeners, it is our duty to take a keen interest in our favorite musician's influences. After all, they rocked our little world, might as well see what rocked their......

I've always been intrigued by other "best of" lists, but this year I decided to take it to a whole new level. I e-mailed a handful of bands that I've seen this past year in order to unearth what exactly captivated them in '07. As music listeners, it is our duty to take a keen interest in our favorite musician's influences. After all, they rocked our little world, might as well see what rocked their......

Ghostface Killah The Big Doe Rehab Def Jam December 4, 2007 "No time...there's never any time," cried a caffeine pill crazed Jesse Spano in that very special episode of "Saved by the Bell." Ghostface Killah laughs at you and your complaints, Spano. While you can't find the time to balance a geometry midterm, getting into Stanford and covering Pointer Sister tunes, Pretty Toney is having no trouble finding time to spit sick verses on 8......

Enchanted joined the small circle of films that have topped the box office over consecutive weekends this year. It brought in 17 million dollars, raising its cume to a healthy $70.6M. This Christmas was second to Enchanted once again. It made an extra $8.4M and--considering its meager $13M budget--is now a bona fide hit with a gross of $36.9M. Beowulf was third in its third week, adding $7.9M to its $68.6M worth of treasure.......

To no one's surprise, Enchanted handily won the weekend box-office crown. Though early estimates ranged as high as 58 million dollars for the 5-day holiday weekend, the actual returns were a still robust $50.048M. Excellent word of mouth and a strong appeal to families should ensure that the Disney fantasy flick continues to do good business during the Christmas season. Speaking of which, This Christmas surprised somewhat with a strong $27.1M since its Wednesday......

While it easily won the weekend box-office crown, Beowulf disappointed somewhat with a 28.1 million dollar opening. If it's anything like Zemekis' last film Polar Express, though, the amazing 3-D will continue to pull in audiences for weeks to come. Having seen it at the IMAX theater at the Bridge, I can say that it is totally worth the price of a ticket. Bee Movie stayed strong in its third week, adding $14.3M and......

Covering the weekend box office race can sometimes be a tedious job for the simple reason that there are rarely big surprises. Typically, a movie opens on a bunch of screens, makes a large portion of its money in its opening frame, then drops 50% in each successive weekend before finally disappearing from theaters. There are, however, occasional outliers who don't follow the normal pattern and make life much more interesting. Bee Movie is......

First, let me take a chant straight from the picket-line and just say, EVVAA-LONGORIA, WE WRITE THE STORYIA. Second, here is Greg's official statement on the writers strike (exclusive): "Please support the Writers Strike. I don't want to drive past studios every day that look like they are holding auditions for "Revenge of the Nerds: 30 years later." --- If there was no such thing as the "Artie-chair," it'd probably be called the "Fitz-chair."......

There was a welcome flight to quality this weekend as movie-goers finally gave some love to a good flick. American Gangster blasted its way to the top with an impressive haul of 46.3 million dollars. Bolstered by positive reviews and the stellar box-office power of Denzel Washington, Gangster should continue to thrive in the coming weeks. Jerry Seinfeld's initial foray into the motion picture business can certainly be called a success. Despite mediocre notices,......

This weekend is one of those weekends where--if you love movies--you'll be hard-pressed to choose which one (or two) to see. Most will probably settle on American Gangster, and I don't see anything wrong with that. Couple two powerhouse actors (Denzel & Crowe) with a reliable director (Ridley), add a compelling story that has slipped through the cracks for years and you have what looks to be a great, studio picture. If, like the......

In celebration of his new album, American Gangster, a collection of songs inspired by the movie starring Denzel Washington and Russel Crowe, Jay-Z is lining up five shows across the country at intimate venues. Luckily for us, Hova is kicking it off right here. On November 6, the same date the album drops, the DefJam CEO takes the stage at the House of Blues in West Hollywood. Tickets go on sale Friday, for the price......

To no one's surprise 30 Days of Night topped the box office this weekend, though its 16 million dollar take hardly qualifies it as a hit. Year-over-year, it is the fifth down weekend in a row and relief doesn't appear to be in sight for a few more weeks when American Gangster and Bee Movie should pull some asses into seats. Tyler Perry's Why Did I Get Married? held up fairly well in its......

Tonight - Tuesday Got Charlie Brown for all the kids, and then late night TV is really kickin' it. "NBA Basketball" (PRIME, 7:00 p.m.) Clippers @ Kings - also Bucks @ Lakers on Fox Sports at 7:30 "A Charlie Brown Christmas" (ABC, 8:00 p.m.) The perennial classic. "Big Day" (ABC, 9:00 p.m.) Sitcom series premiere. A sitcom about frickin' weddings. This is gonna be a winner. "Veronica Mars" (the CW, 9:00 p.m.) Dean Begley......