Mr. Smith Goes to the Financial District


"The Pursuit of Happyness" is the true Hollywood story of Christopher Gardner, played by Will Smith, and his son, who is played by Smith's real life son, Jaden. In this film with a misspelled title, Christopher was left by his wife to support and raise their only child. The only problem is that Christopher is broke. So he does what any responsible parent in his position would do, and gets an unpaid internship. Fueled by the desire to drive a Ferrari and feed his kid, Gardener is triumphantly able to achieve the American Dream. If this trailer doesn't make you cry, then you are just a jerk.

By the way, when you decide to see this, keep an eye open for Dan Castellaneta, the voice of Homer J. Simpson.

Jack Black in Chick Flick


In "The Holiday," Cameron Diaz and Kate Winslet have just about had it with men, so they decide to swap lives for a couple of weeks to get away from it all. Cameron goes to England, and Kate settles in the good ole U.S. of A. While in England, Cameron immediately falls for Jude Law who is obviously different from other guys and would never cheat, just ask Sienna Miller. And Kate, well she forms a relationship with Nacho Libre.

I can tell you now that with every holiday season comes the fact that men everywhere will get dragged to romantic comedies. Might as well make it one that has Jack Black.

Killer



It's refreshing to see Hollywood release a movie with scary elements (i.e. a serial killer on the loose, terrorizing San Francisco) that doesn't luxuriate in the gory details of teeth pulling, bone splitting and flesh flaying so many recent horror movies trade in. This looks promising and with director David Fincher, who brought us Fight Club, Alien 3... and crucial Paula Abdul videos like Straight Up and Cold Hearted, ZODIAC should bring a good mix of scares and fancy footwork. Plus, Robert Downey Jr. looks like he's playing a lost 3 Musketeer, which can only help.

Dungeons and Fountains



Six years ago, Darren Aronofsky introduced the term "Ass to Ass!" into the frat-boy lexicon with Requiem for a Dream. Since then, he's been crafting The Fountain, which follows Hugh Jackman as he drinks from the fountain of youth in 1500 (A.D.) and pursues his lost love for 1,000 years. From the looks of it, audience members may either need to sip the sap of the Tree of Life themselves to stay awake for the whole movie, or just drop 3 hits of LSD before hand. Godspeed to the brave souls who attempt either.

Apocalypto Never

When Mel Gibson was arrested for driving under the influence of anti-semitism, people were wondering if his off-the-screen problems would cause a drop in ticket sales for his upcoming epic, Apocalypto. What's more likely to cause a drop in sales for Apocalypto is the fact that it has no real actors, it uses only the ancient Yucatec Maya language, and it lasts about 3 hours. Top that off with reports of enough violence and gore to make you vomit pop-corn and Twizzlers on your date, and I'd say you've got a winner.

I do have to admit though, the plotline seems somewhat compelling, and the prospect of seeing National Geographic style boobies also piques my interest, but ultimately it just seems wrong to keep encouraging Mel to make these epics. Doesn't he know we've all been patiently waiting for "What Women Want 2"?

I guess what I'm saying is, if you really have the urge to learn about ancient Maya, stick to Wikipedia.

Playstation 3


Ok, so this review sort of strays from our normal format, but since the PS3 has not yet been released, this commercial is pretty much a preview. I think it works.

So what's the friggin deal with this commercial? Is Sony trying to scare us in to buying a PS3? If so, it worked. I'll buy one. Just keep that freaky baby away.

That's actually hot.



Ah, sequels. Hard to believe it's already been four short years since Van Wilder (the original) hit theaters. Now, the producers have resurrected the franchise for a little trip across the pond. That's right, Van Wilder's going to stuffy old England (won't they be surprised!).

Sadly, Van Wilder 2 is missing both Ryan Reynolds and the straight-faced Tara Reid of the original. Instead, we get Taj, played by Kal Penn, who shrewd stoners will recognize as that dude who played Taj in Van Wilder and the guy who played Kumar in Harold and Kumar go to White Castle. Apparenly, there's a H&K sequel in the works too. Looks like Van the Man beat them to it.