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Vol. 9
No. 22
Pick Hits
At The
Movies
Finding
Nemo
Brought to you by the people behind the hugely
successful Monsters Inc. and Toy Story, this film
follows the comedic and eventful journeys of two fish,
Marlin and his son Nemo who become separated in the
Great Barrier Reef when Nemo is unexpectedly taken from
home and thrust into a fish tank in a dentist's office
overlooking Sydney Harbor. Buoyed by the companionship
of a friendly-but-forgetful fish named Dory, the overly
cautious father embarks on a dangerous trek and finds
himself the unlikely hero of an epic journey to rescue
his son who hatches a few daring plans of his own to
return safely home. Finding Nemo is like a great foreign
film, its visuals and energy have such clarity that
subtitles (or words or stories) are almost unnecessary.
On Video
The Recruit
An
intriguing spy thriller that revolves around the
recruiting and training of CIA agents. Al Pacino plays
Walter Burke, a high-powered CIA veteran who recruits
Colin Farrell's computer whiz, James Clayton, by
asserting that Clayton's father, who died mysteriously a
decade earlier in a plane crash in South America, was
also a "spook." It's off to the CIA training camp, the
Farm, where agents are trained to be liars and cheats,
and where Pacino keeps pounding into the heads of the
new recruits: "Trust no one" and "Nothing is what it
seems". At the Farm the recruits are taught to master
the fine lethal arts. From here its back to CIA
headquarters, where missions are assigned and
double-crossing and betrayals come to the fore. A highly
watchable outing.
On Tour
Lisa Marie Presley
Embarking on her first ever tour, Lisa Marie is hitting
the road in support of her just-released To Whom It May
Concern, which features her debut single Lights Out.
Many will be skeptical about Lisa Maries talent to
perform, and being the only child of Elvis and
Priscilla, she has been tabloid fodder since she was
born 35 years ago. So far the votes are in and she is
well on her way to a successful run at the tour circuit
and music industry her father dominated for most of his
life. But the comparisons end quickly, the new Presley
on the charts has a distinctive style that is all her
own. Lisa has left the building.
The Buzz...
In a vote cast by 24 million phone callers, Ruben Studdard
won the second American Idol talent contest over Clay
Aiken. The two-hour telecast
captured the highest ratings numbers recorded for any
regular show this season, ranking only behind the
Super Bowl and the Academy Awards telecasts.
A public feud in the American Idol family broke out after
Simon Cowell remarked on a Los Angeles TV talk show
that he would not be returning for a third edition of
the talent contest and host Ryan Seacrest
remarked later that Cowell was simply "posturing" in
hopes of upping his salary.
The star of the Disney
Channel's hit Lizzie McGuire sitcom and its spin-off film is parting ways with
the company that catapulted her to fame. After weeks of negotiations over the
future of 15-year-old Hillary Duff's career, the two sides confirmed
Friday that they have split. Duff wanted to move beyond the role as the awkward
but cute middle-schooler that has brought her a devoted following among "tweens"
children ages 9 to 14.
Atari Inc. has sold more than 1 million copies of Enter the
Matrix one week after the video game hit the shelves.
Atari sales expectations, if reached, would put Enter the Matrix on track to be
one of the best-selling games of all time.
Arnold Schwarzenegger
says he may think about running for California governor after the summer release
of his new movie, Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines.
The new June-debuting comic book
series Kingpin is already being described as "The Sopranos meets Godfather Part
II Marvel-style." The series follows the violent early life of Wilson Fisk -
a.k.a. the one-day Kingpin of Crime - a shrewd young man who built his New York
City organized crime empire the old-fashioned way, one dead body at a time.
Betrayal, gang-wars, and alliances are built and shattered in this first glimpse
at the Kingpins rise to power. Plus: the first encounter of the Kingpin and
Spider-Man!
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MATRIX
MISTAKES PILE UP |
The summer blockbuster The Matrix Reloaded has broken box
office records but it's also topping a less flattering
list - of movie mistakes. Website moviemistakes.com has
already logged 55 mistakes on the film - with more being
reported every day. One example reads, "During a car
chase, the twins shoot out most of the windows in the
car that Trinity and Morpheus are driving in. But every
time they cut to a shot of them inside of the car, the
windows are intact and there is no shattered glass to be
seen."
The new Bad Boys sequel, due for release in July, is in
trouble - needing drastic rework before it is ready for
release. Eight years after the original film scooped
$140 million at the box office, Will Smith and
Martin Lawrence have reunited, but Bad Boys II was
reported to be causing studio bosses difficulties,
because it's too long, too expensive and too violent.
Simpsons mastermind Matt
Groening has been named Outstanding Cartoonist of the Year at the 2003
Reuben Awards, honoring the best cartoonists.
Despite not being set to return
till the June 3rd SmackDown! taping, Kurt Angle has officially received
medical clearance to return to the ring. Kurt Angle will be feuding with
Brock Lesnar upon his return, leading to a match at the first SmackDown!
brand only PPV Vengeance live on July 27.
Director Gus Van Sant's
Elephant, an intimate look at the victims and killers in a fictional shooting at
an American high school, won the top prize at this year's Cannes Film Festival.
Betty Garrett, the
once-blacklisted actress who co-starred as Edna Babish on Laverne & Shirley, was
honored with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. Garrett and her late husband
Larry Parks were both briefly blacklisted during the McCarthy era for
their interest in communism in the early 1950s.
Puddle of Mudd's
Blurry won Song of the Year kudos at the 20th annual ASCAP Pop Music Awards.
Incubus' Drive, Linkin Park's In the End, Staind's It's Been
Awhile and Jimmy Eat World's The Middle were among the other tunes
honored by the performing-rights organization.
P.O.D. have
reportedly set Payable On Death as the title for their forthcoming CD, due on
Nov. 4 through Atlantic Records.
Pearl Jam have
fulfilled their contractual obligations with Epic Records, their label of nearly
12 years, and will seek a new deal after completing their current North American
tour, according to a band representative.
CSI: Crime Scene
Investigation was the 2002-03 most-watched prime-time show, averaging 26.2
million viewers, according to Nielsen Media Research. Joe Millionaire struck it
rich in second place, with 22.9 million fans, with reality shows accounting for
half of the top 10.
American Idol host Ryan
Seacrest is making his bid to become the next Oprah Winfrey. Seacrest
has sealed a deal to host and executive produce his own hourlong syndicated
daytime show, which will launch next January.
Advertisers are reportedly
planning to spend a record $9.3 billion on prime-time TV next season.
Jennifer Aniston
and Brad Pitt are bringing a new version of Roald Dahl's classic
novel Charlie And The Chocolate Factory to movie screens. The Hollywood couple
will serve as producers of the Warner Bros while Planet Of The Apes director
Tim Burton is in talks to helm the production.
Following last week's
suicide bombings in Casablanca that killed 41 people, producer Dino De
Laurentiis and director Baz Luhrmann have decided to abandon shooting
Alexander the Great in Morocco and move the entire production to Australia.
A lawsuit filed by
Michael Jackson's former financial advisers claims the erstwhile King of
Pop, whose fortune once approached a half-billion dollars, is close to
bankruptcy. The suit also alleges Jackson owes the South Korean-based Union
Finance and Investment Corp. $12 million in unpaid fees.
Bruce Almighty set new
benchmarks for Jim Carrey himself and for a non-sequel comedy. Its
three-day sum of $70.8 million surpassed the 2000 Carrey hit Dr. Seuss' How the
Grinch Stole Christmas, which held both those records with a $55.1 million
opening.
Former WWE Superstar
Jeff Hardy is wrestling for
Impact Championship
Wrestling, an
independent promotion in Lancaster, South Carolina. Hardy appeared as "Willow
the Whisp" - an old gimmick he used before he made a name for himself in WWE.
L.A.
rappers Black Eyed Peas have been added to the Justin Timberlake/Christina
Aguilera "Justified & Stripped" tour this summer.
Staind have cut
their ties with the man who discoved them limpbizkit frontman Fred
Durst.
Britney Spears is hooking up with J. Lo's ex. As the singer gets
closer to finishing up her fourth album, Spears is
lining up her crew, dancers and, of course, that
ever-essential choreographer: Cris Judd.
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