Do you usually find yourself saying "pretty bird" whilst stroking the soft head of a feathered friend? If you do, you will appreciate today's long-awaited cinematic news: "Dumb and Dumber 2" will finally start shooting this year. And in this take, the Farrelly brothers have enlisted the original stars -- Jim Carrey and Jeff Daniels -- to play the parts of our beloved idiotic duo, Lloyd Christmas and Harry Dunne. more ›

Other than The Cove, I didn't see a better film this year at the Sundance Film Festival than Humpday (review here). It's inventive; it's challenging; it's odd but, most of all, it's funny. Very, very funny. The premise may scare some away -- two straight friends decide to have gay sex for a porn film festival -- but the treatment of the material is so perfect that I can't imagine anyone not loving it. While not quite as laugh-out-loud funny as Humpday, In the Loop is as smart a comedy as you will ever see (review here). A barely-veiled satire of the run-up to the 2003 Iraq War, In the Loop features at least a half-dozen brilliantly venal performances, especially Peter Capaldi as Malcolm Tucker (nee the Prince of Fucking Darkness!) See these two movies!! more ›

The 15th annual Los Angeles Film Festival kicks off tonight at 7:30 pm with the premiere screening of Paper Man at the Mann Village Theater. The full festival begins in earnest the following morning as over 80 documentary and narrative features unspool in venues across the Westside. In addition to that, the festival features panels and seminars, coffee talks and poolside chats, short-film programs, music video showcases, live concerts and free screenings of such beloved films as Ghostbusters, Election and The Muppet Movie. more ›

. Never have. Never will. I mean, don't people realize that it's Kiefer Sutherland up there on the screen. Anyone really scared of facing down Kiefer in a bar fight? Does anyone still think Jon Stewart is funnier than Stephen Colbert? David Lynch's films don't always work for me, but I love that he exists. more ›

A Word or 12: Dirt - I forgot to mention Dirt yesterday, someone just kill me please. Tonight - Wednesday - January 31st, 2007 The Spiral Staircase (TCM, 5:00 p.m.) This nifty thriller from the '40s features a strangler that follows a mute maid through a dark New England mansion during a storm. Lakers @ Celtics (KCAL, 5:30 p.m.) Monster (IFC, 6:00 p.m.) Charlize Theron transorms herself in an Oscar winning performance. Worth watching just... more ›

We tuned in a little late to the E! pre-red carpet awards. more ›

From gender-bending Mormon punk-rockers to stories about lost dreams in Los
Angeles, there are plenty of off-beat, limited release movies to sink your
teeth into this weekend.


• Christmas
  in the Clouds - Romantic comedy starring Tim Cahle
  and Mari Ana Tosca, directed by Kate Montgomery. Ray "Clouds on Fire"
  (Vahle) is the head of his tribes' struggling ski resort. When the chief's
  old pen pal "Tina" (Tosca) arrives from New York, she's mistaken
  for an anonymous critic by Ray. To add to the comedy of errors, she thinks
  Ray is her pen pal. [trailer | local
  showtimes]


• I
  Love Your Work -
  Drama starring Giovanni Ribisi, directed by Adam Goldberg.
  This movie chronicles the life of Gray Evans (Ribisi), a movie star coming
  to terms with his own celebrity as he simultaneously loses his grip on
  reality. This is not a love letter to Hollywood by any means. [trailer | local
  showtimes]


• New
  York Doll - Documentary/Musical starring Arthur Kane,
  directed by Greg Whiteley. In
  1970s New York, the Dolls were the gender-bending kings of NY City punk.
  After the band split, bassist Arthur "Killer" Kane
  succumbed to alcoholism before finding God and becoming a Mormon. Despite
  the spotty past, he longed to reunite with the band. The movie chronicles
  that 1989 Morrissey-sanctioned reunion in London. [trailer | local
  showtimes]