Hollywood is littered with the shattered careers of comedians who tried to make the ill-advised leap to romantic lead. Look at Mike Myers in So I Married an Axe Murderer or Jim Carrey in The Majestic. We don’t love comedians when they shut off the part of their appeal we most enjoy. Fortunately, Ricky Gervais is a master comedian who knows his strengths and brings them to his role as Bertram Pincus, DDS in Ghost Town.Pincus is about as caring a dentist as Tilda Swinton is a pediatrician in Burn Before Reading. He hates people, so when ...

Crush object: Russell Crowe, actor.- After bursting onto the international cinematic scene with his powerful performance as a racist skinhead in Romper Stomper, he showed his softer side as the gay son of a very excepting father in The Sum of Us.- Hollywood came calling and he starred in such All-American film genres as the western (The Quick and the Dead), sci-fi (Virtuosity), crime drama (L.A. Confidential) and sports comedy (Mystery, Alaska).- He received his first of three consecutive Academy Award nominations for his mesmerizing turn as Big Tobacco whistleblower Jeffrey Wigand in The Insider; he would win ...

Yes, the Book of Lists is back, well, from the dead, if the newest volume -- The Book of Lists: Horror-- is any indication.Subtitled "An All-New Collection of Spine-Tingling, Hair-Raising, Blood-Curdling Fun and Facts" and featuring contributions from the likes of Stephen King, Ray Bradbury and Eli Roth, the new tome covers everything from literature to music, comic books to (of course) movies.For a peek inside the blood-red covers, head over to the Turner Classic Movies blog where Movie Morlock (and Book of Lists: Horror contributor) R.H. Smith has excerpted a few of his favorite things, including ...

If you enjoyed visiting Fargo with the Coen Brothers, and want to take a darkly funny vacation from No Country for Old Men, Burn After Reading is a Washington DC-based delight. While not as effortlessly layered as Fargo, Burn After Reading features a fantastic cast who are clearly having a ball. Like Fargo, Burn After Reading concerns a dumb crime perpetrated by less than bright criminals. Unlike Fargo (or No Country for Old Men, for that matter), there isn’t a moral compass character for you to identify with, which lends the film a feeling of a farce with ...

The subject of the documentary Saving Marriage -- the hot button issue of gay marriage -- couldn't be more timely as it opens this weekend in limited release. In fact, Regent Releasing has pushed up the release date in an effort to defeat Proposition 8 in California and take advantage of the upcoming elections.For more information on Saving Marriage and to watch the trailer, visit the film's official website. ...

Here's a batch of groovy ghoulies and grim grinning ghosties for ya, trading card style by Dave Perillo at his Montygog's Art-O-Rama! blog. First we have Michael Myers, proudly showing off his carving skills with a fresh Halloween jack o'lantern, along with Leatherface, poised to unleash a Texas Chainsaw Massacre on his take on a trick or treat feast.Friday the 13th's Jason Voorhees and A Nightmare on Elm Street's Freddy Krueger are all smiles after their last encounter with each other ... or, at least I think Jason is smiling underneath that hockey mask. You know how ...

This is the second of Chris' three-part series of influential films that helped him in his coming out.1982 was a watershed year for me in terms of coming-out scenes in movies. In addition to being the year my class watched Suddenly, Last Summer (covered in part 1), it was also the year Blake Edwards’ musical-comedy Victor/Victoriawas released. Although it was adapted from a much earlier German film, Viktor und Viktoria (1933), my 15-year old self was unaware of the subject matter when I attended a sneak preview of Edwards’ remake with my then-girlfriend (go figure).Victor/Victoria was ...

All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy ... All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy ... All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy ... All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy ... All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy ...Even more then the axe he uses later in the film, the voluminous amounts of pages on which Jack Torrance (Jack Nicholson) types the above missive -- over and over again -- are the most famous props in Stanley Kubrick's The Shining. ...

For those of you who like to watch Zac Efron sweat ... I mean, sing ... while he plays basketball, then here's the music video for "Now or Never" from High School Musical 3: Senior Year.The soundtrack album(on sale October 21) is also now available for pre-order. ...

Idol worship: Elton John, recording artist/composer.- In his 40-year recording career, he has sold over 200 million records, making him as one of the most successful artists of all time. He has more than 50 Top 40 hits, including seven consecutive #1 albums and nine #1 hits, and has won five Grammy Awards. His "Candle in the Wind 1997" (dedicated to the late Princess Diana) became the fastest- and biggest-selling single of all time, eventually selling over 33 million copies worldwide.- He won the Academy Award, Golden Globe and a Grammy for "Can You Feel the Love Tonight" ...

This is the first in a month long Halloween-themed series of On Location posts that will take you "back to the scene of the crime" of some of the greatest horror movies ever made.Monroeville Mall, located in Monroeville, Pennsylvania, is your typical American mall ... well except for that time back in the 70's when it was overrun by zombies. That's right, this is the place where George Romero filmed the original (some would say seminal) Dawn of the Dead.For the history of the mall and a firsthand account of a zombie-free visit to Monroeville, head on ...

Here's some good and bad news for fans of Broadway's Hairspray.The bad news first: Playbill.com is reporting that the long running, Tony Award winning crowd pleaser will close in January. The good news is that Harvey Fierstein, who won one of his many Tonys for originating the role of Edna Turnblad, will return to the hit musical next month so the show can go out with a bang (and possible extensions of that closing date).According to Playbill, a spokesman for Hairspray told them that an "official announcement about the show's future is imminent", so watch this space ...

All the spooks and goblins will be out in force at Universal Studios Hollywood when their "Halloween Horror Nights" begin this weekend (the event has already started in their Orlando sister park), including appearances by Leatherface, Jason Voorhees and Freddy Krueger.Plus, visitors who take the "Terror Tram" will also get an exclusive sneak peek of the upcoming remake of The Wolfman, starring Benicio Del Toro, Anthony Hopkins and Emily Blunt.The "Halloween Horror Nights" continue on select nights now through November 1 on both coasts. ...

This week's new releases offer plenty to feed your obsession or satisfy your addiction ... to movies:

• Rachel Getting Married: Our gal Anne Hathaway is receiving the best notices of her career (including plenty of Oscar talk) as a rebellious daughter fresh out of rehab for her sister's wedding. This dysfunctional family drama is directed by Jonathan Demme and also stars Debra Winger (where have you been?), Bill Irwin and Rosemarie DeWitt.
• Beverly Hills Chihuahua: No Oscar talk here, but this Disney frolic should please the family crowd as well as dog lovers everywhere. Jamie Lee Curtis (where have

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The New York City Opera has commissioned Academy Award nominee Philip Glass (The Hours) to compose an opera based on the final days of Walt Disney.I have always felt that Disney's life was rife with possibilities for musicalization, but never thought of opera as the means to do it. Furthermore, the basis for the new piece, the German-language novel The Perfect American by Peter Stephan Jungk, is a fictionalized account of the last months of his life, and not without its share of controversy (among other falsehoods, it perpetuates the ugly rumor that Disney was a racist). The ...

Nice to know that they are finally tapping into the heretofore untapped merchandising potential of The Exorcist; and what better subject to inspire toy makers then a prepubescent girl possessed by Satan himself.First, would-be exorcists can get in a little practice with The Exorcist Regan in Bed Head Knocker. Hey kids, grab your crucifix and holy water and have fun!Next up is a charming little item for fans of The Version You've Never Seen: Cult Classics The Exorcist Spider Walk Regan Action Figure.I think I'll wait for The Exorcist "You're Going to Die Up ...

Well, if this summer's movie didn't turn you off the "galaxy far, far away", then perhaps you'll be interested in the Star Wars: The Clone Wars animated series, premiering on Cartoon Network tomorrow night. No word if the Capote-esque Ziro the Hutt will be making a return appearance. ...

The That's Entertainment! of horror movies, Terror in the Aisles was a 1984 clip job that collected the best of the genre into one gory, scary fright fest. Hosted by Halloween icon Donald Pleasence and Dressed to Kill scream queen Nancy Allen, the documentary included scenes from such classics as Bride of Frankenstein, Psycho, Rosemary's Baby, Night of the Living Dead, The Exorcist, Jaws, Carrie, Alien, The Shining, Poltergeist and many, many more. (The film's absence from DVD is likely due to the rights for all those clips.)And although my selective memory had chose to forget it until ...

Object of our affection: Carole Lombard, actress.- One of the Queens of the Golden Age of Hollywood, she ironically made her film debut as a tomboy in the 1921 silent A Perfect Crime. She also had an uncredited bit role in the original Ben-Hur.- With High Voltage, she made a smooth transition into talkies and became a popular star in her on right. Her big break came when Howard Hawks (her second cousin) cast her opposite John Barrymore in Twentieth Century, proving she could act with the best of them.- She received her one and only Academy Award ...

It seems that all is not rosy in Far, Far Away. Following its Seattle run and prior to its Broadway bow November 8, Shrek the Musical will undergo some casting changes. As Donkey, Chester Gregory is out, replaced by recent Tony Award nominee Daniel Breaker (Passing Strange), while the Dragon has been "reconceived" as a chorus role. As a result, Kecia Lewis-Evans has left the production. Furthermore, rumor has it that a "show doctor" is in the house, not always a good sign for a show this big. The official opening date, December 14, will reportedly not ...