The Screening Room

No pressure or anything: Steve Weibe goes barrel jumping as Walter Day looks on (Picturehouse)

So tell us: what's your favorite '80s video game, and why? I'm still a Centipede guy (which is not to say I'm any good); every time I shop at Good Records I get a few games in on the free play machine. But I love me some Tron too.

From books guru Mike Merschel:

The discussion about great movie lines reminds me of a Writers Guild ad campaign from years ago, where they cited scenes from great movies and added, "Somebody wrote that." For example:

"Remember the movie where Steve McQueen is thrown in the cooler of this prison camp, and he keeps whipping this baseball against the wall, PLINK-PLANK-PLONK-SMACK, PLINK-PLANK-PLONK-SMACK? Yeah right, like those Nazi dudes ever had a chance. Somebody wrote that."

You can see the whole series here: http://scottroeben.com/somebody.htm
And in particular, check out the story about the story behind that "Great Escape" ad here: http://scottroeben.com/article5.htm

Ah, Thursday. Around here, that's the busiest day of the week, as we frantically try to put together our movie coverage for our fine readers. Not to mention, we're facing a three-day holiday weekend, and you know what that means? More frantic work to get everything done today so you can sneak out early tomorrow.

SO! In an effort to entertain without actually doing anything, let's have a quote-off. Share your favorite movie quote below.

Keep it clean, though. Remember: I possess the mighty power of delete. So to kick it off, I offer just one of my many many favorite Mel Brooks' quotes, from History of the World, Part I:

Don't get saucy with me, Bernaise.

Go.

I am slaving away on our back-to-school-themed fall movie preview - ask for it by name this Sunday - and staring at one of the clever classroom categories we're using to group upcoming releases: Literature. I haven't seen any of the book-to-movie attractions we're spotlighting (Beowulf, No Country for Old Men, Reservation Road, The Kite Runner and Lust, Caution), but I got to thinking (never a good idea): what makes a successful literary adaptation? Some would say slavish devotion to the source material, an argument with which I strongly disagree. A movie has to live and breathe as a movie, not a book on film. Yet the spirit of the book still has to come across onscreen. As that Hamlet guy once said, there's the rub.

What we want to know from you is: what book you love became a movie you hate? Or, an even tougher one: what book you didn't care for took on bold new life in the movies? I can't think of an immediate example for the second question - I never did read The Godfather - but I know I'd be a happier man if Brian De Palma had kept his hands off The Bonfire of the Vanities.

Going back for refills
A question: Did you all really like the movies that were already out, or were the new movies just not that appealing? Last week’s top three movies remained unchanged (though The Bourne Ultimatum did leapfrog Rush Hour 3) as Superbad retained the title with $18 million. That brings this starless wonder’s total to an impressive $68 million.

Today's mid-week treat? Balls of Fury, starring one mightily bewigged Christopher Walken. My records show that this film was originally slated to open here on Jan. 26. Usually an eight-month delay doesn't bode well for a film. So you can imagine my surprise when it brought in a respectable C+, which means it actually fared better than The Nanny Diaries (C), Mr. Bean's Holiday (C) , The Eye of the Dolphin (D) , September Dawn (D) and War (F).

[Insert shrug here] Shows what I know. I think that film owes a LOT to the Great Mr. Walken, though. But I'm just speculating.

Have you seen it? What did you think?

For a heartfelt and personal take on a king-size tragedy check out Still Waiting: Life After Katrina at 8 tonight on KERA (Channel 13). Dallas filmmaker Ginny Martin spent countless hours with local resident Connie Tipado, a New Orleans native who did yeoman's service in providing refuge and assistance to extended family members who evacuated St. Bernard's Parish in the aftermath of Katrina. As the family begins to trickle back to the Crescent City, the film dramatizes a chilling question: Can you go home again when home and community as you knew them no longer exist?
The Katrina debacle still reverberates far and wide with intimate stories; this one is well worth a look.

Robert Benton ruminates (DMN file: Mei-Chun Jau)

I've been thinking about Bonnie and Clyde - the movie, not the real people - ever since I hung out with Waxahachie and Oak Cliff's own Robert Benton late last week. Benton co-wrote the 1967 film that further immortalized the Texas-born bank robbers; his new film, Feast of Love, opens Sept. 28.

So last night I watched it for umpteenth time, keeping in mind the ways in which it changed the way we look at violence in the movies. As A.O. Scott argued in the New York Times a few weeks back, B&C paved the way for the mixture of savagery and humor that defines Quentin Tarantino's work; it was also the first big movie to show a bullet being fired and entering its victim in the same shot. (Of course, The Wild Bunch made this idea seem quaint just two years later).

But I kept coming back to something Benton told me. What he remembers as revolutionary and unnerving is not the violence so much as the "Just folks" behavior of the characters who commit the violence. For instance, when C.W. and Blanche drive over to pick up dinner for the gang - they're eventually tailed from the chicken restaurant, leading to a bloody shoot-out - they discuss their respective religious denominations. Much earlier, Bonnie and Clyde win over a farmer by letting him shoot out the windows on the home he has just lost to the bank. (Remember, this was the Great Depression).

In other words, we can like and relate to these killers. We cheer for them as they escape to the jovial bluegrass of Flatt & Scruggs. This is disturbing - and somehow ingenious.

If you haven't seen the movie in a while, please revisit. In the meantime: What movie's violence got under your skin? And a more troubling question: Did you like it?

Read about it.

Turns out Bridgette was right: Boy Culture really is the best movie evar.

I was already sold on the eye candy prospect. (You don't even want to know how many times I watched Queen of the Damned for a leather-pants-clad Stuart Townsend.) One of the glories of my job is spending quite a bit of time tracking down photos and trailers, so I had a pretty good idea of what to expect:

Shiny pretty yay.

It delivered the yay. But the story was more than worthy too. Maybe you can't identify with a gay hustler who is secretly pining for his male roommate. But really its about the risks we take to find love, and what we're willing to give up for it. And that's really pretty universal.

Take me to Lower Greenville or suffer my wrath: Robocop digs on Dallas (MGM/Fox/Orion)

The producers chose Big D to play "New Detroit" for its tripped-out techno skyline and sleek architecture. The coolest parts of the movie play the skyscrapers against the more industrial streets of West Dallas (actually one chase looks like it was shot down on Industrial or nearby, not far from Reunion Tower, which sticks its head up in the near distance). In another scene, The I.M. Pei-designed Fountain Place (otherwise known as that beveled glass building downtown) can be spotted in all its modern glory. (Incidentally, the building opened in 1986, one year before Robocop came out).

So: What's your favorite movie that made good use of our fair burg?

So the annual Asian Film Festival of Dallas kicked off last night with Justin Lin's mockumentary, Finishing the Game. (Read more about it here, thanks to Mr. Vognar.)

The screenings start in earnest today, going from noon to midnight (later, actually; the final screening begins at midnight). Check out the full schedule at the official site.

So talk: what do you think so far? What do you recommend? What are you excited to see?

Headed out to a screening of Leonardo DiCaprio's environmental doc The 11th Hour last night, and, as much as it pains my environmentalist heart to say it, it was boring. Which sounds sort of strange to say: making a boring movie about the end of civilization is quite an accomplishment, but it seems that Leo, et. al. have done it. Which is not to say that there are not some important lessons in there. It's just that it covers so much of the same ground that An Inconvenient Truth covered: Global warming is a real problem, the only way to fix it is to find cleaner energy sources, and the only way to do that is to elect officials who aren't in bed with the auto and energy industries.
That's all good information for those who go into The 11th Hour without having seen An Inconvenient Truth. But my Spidey sense tells me that the vast majority of those seeing the new movie have already seen the original. So this isn't the great unwashed here -- these are people who already know what's what and are interested in taking the conversation further. Toward the end of the 95 min. movie, it seemed like just that was going to happen. But what resulted was really a tease of what The 11th Hour should have been -- there were lightening quick references to a new Bank of America building in New York that is now the most energy efficient building in the world, a building in San Francisco that uses a ventilation system instead of air conditioning and a dance club that powers itself through the movement of people on the dance floor. Those are all things that sound cutting edge and exciting and would actually get environmentalists excited about the possibilities out there.
Instead, 11th Hour spends most of its time convincing viewers of what they already know -- the Earth is in trouble and we need to fix it now. It's a good message, but unfortunately it's one we've already paid once to hear.

Lot's to see this weekend, but not much great. Stephen Becker already warned you that we're reaching the lean season. So this might not be a bad time to revisit some of the summer's earlier offerings.

For me? I think I'll give The Nanny Diaries and The 11th Hour a shot. Plus, I've still got about a half-dozen to catch up on.

What are you guys heading out to this weekend?

The Nanny Diaries (C) | Trailer

Resurrecting the Champ (C+) | Trailer

The 11th Hour (B+) | Trailer

Lady Chatterley (B) | Trailer

2 Days in Paris (B) | Trailer

Illegal Tender (C+) | Trailer

Mr. Bean's Holiday (C) | Trailer

The Eye of the Dolphin (D) | Trailer

September Dawn (D) | Trailer

War (not screened) | Trailer

So I'm in the midst of a three-screening day: Eastern Promises and Into the Wild, both of which will be at The Toronto International Film Festival next month, and a new Western, 3:10 to Yuma, which will bring Peter Fonda to Dallas Friday on his publicity horse. It's Good practice for Toronto, where four-a-days are common. And it beats roofing. Or ditch digging, for that matter.

The Question: What's the most movies you've ever seen in a day? And did they all start globbing together in your brain after a while?

Javier Bardem has a gas with Old Men (Miramax)

Feel free to ask any questions about the largest fest in North America, which also happens to be a heck of a good time in bustling, friendly city (think of it as a clean New York). In the mean time, here are a few highlights from the most recently annouced titles:

The Walker: Paul Schrader directs Woody Harrelson as a well-heeled man about town for hire in Washington, D.C.

Man From Plains: Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter will be in town for Jonathan Demme's doc about the former president.

Redacted: Brian de Palma goes to Iraq in search of the Black Dahlia. OK, everything is true except the Black Dahlia part.

Previously announced fest titles include the Coen Bros. No Country for Old Men (shot partially in Marfa); Michael Clayton, starring George Clooney as a lawyer who grows a conscience; and Ang Lee's Lust, Caution. We could keep going, but with 349 films it might take a while. We'll touch the ground opening day, Sept. 6. Look for frequent and dazzling dispatches here in the Screening Room.

Yes, I've been away from my post, taking in the awesome sights and hairpin turns of Highway 1 in California. It's a drive everyone should make before they die (and keep your eyes on the road or you might die before you actually finish the drive).

Speaking of finishing, I just visited with Justin Lin. He's the director of the new comedy Finishing the Game, a mockumentary about the quest to find a replacement for Bruce Lee after Lee died during the shooting of Game of Death. It kicks off the 6th annual Asian Film Festival of Dallas 7 p.m. Thursday at the Magnolia.

Lin has played the indie/Hollywood shuffle the last few years, following up the Asian stereotype-busting Better Luck Tomorrow with a pair of big action flicks, The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift and Annapolis. He's been around the block, and he wonders how much things have really changed for Asians in film since the days when Lee was launching his spin kicks.

"The only time Asian-American actors usually get to show up is when the script says 'Asian,'" he says. "I know how talented and versatile my actors are, and they sound as American as anyone. But when they go read for a part they have to do fake Asian accents. Color blind casting is still very rare."

Look for more on Lin and the festival Thursday at guidelive.com.

... Boy Culture .
Now don't freak out about the subject matter. It's not nearly as graphic as it could be. And, honestly, Derek Magyar and Darryl Stephens make delightful eye candy no matter what they're doing.
What surprised me was how good the movie actually is. It's a pretty cool love story as well. I was all drawn in with the ups and downs of X, the main character, and his room mates.
Hey, did I menition the eye candy thing? Good flick, snappy dialogue, believable characters, but did I mention the eye candy?

For you local writerly types, Ken Levine will be the guest speaker at this month's Dallas Screenwriters Association meeting. Mr. Levine is an Emmy-winning writer who has worked on shows like Cheers, M*A*S*H, Frasier, The Jeffersons and The Simpsons. You name it -- if it's funny, he's written it.
The meetings will be held Friday from 7-9 p.m. at KD Studios, 2600 Stemmons Frwy, Suite 117. It's free for members and $10 for nonmembers.

I guess Superbad has been a popular movie for teenagers to try to sneak into. My husband and I went this weekend at Stonebriar Centre and were warned, not once, but twice that they might check our IDs at the door (once when we bought tickets, once by the ticket-taker).

However, they didn't. Not because they weren't checking, but because we have gray hair and stuff.

Movie fans, it is with great sadness that I welcome you to the cruddiest part of the movie year. The last of the summer blockbusters has been released. The post-Toronto International Film Festival goodies that mark the beginning of Oscar season are still a month away. And so the next few weeks rival February as the leanest time for moviegoers. The reason I think February has some merit is that that month has become the time when everyone catches up on those last few Oscar-nominated films that they haven't seen yet, while some of the best foreign film nominees are just being released. But there are no such pleasures during this time period. Which is not to say that there isn't ANYTHING to see -- Tom Maurstad has provoked my interest in The Invasion, a movie I couldn't have cared less about before reading his review. And there are some smaller gems to be taken in, such as Manufactured Landscapes, which Chris Vognar raved about today.
But just looking at the schedule for the next few weeks, it seems to be that we're going to be in kind of a lull until Sept. 14 or so. 3:10 to Yuma, the remake of the 1957 Western now starring Russell Crowe and Christian Bale, looks promising on Sept. 7. But Sept. 14 seems to be the real kick off to fall, with David Cronenberg's Eastern Promises and The Brave One, starring Jodi Foster, both debuting.
Until then, enjoy your Mr. Bean's Holiday on Aug. 24, your Balls of Fury on Aug. 29 and your Rob Zombie-directed Halloween on Aug. 31 (Halloween? Really?). I'll be catching up on some DVDs and waiting for the temps to cool down.

So I saw The Invasion on Tuesday night and wrote my review yesterday, which will appear on Friday. Not to give too much away, but I really like the movie -- it's the latest remake of the classic sci-fi thriller, The Invasion of the Body Snatchers.

It's gotten me thinking about movie reviews and spoilers; that is, the revelation of significant plot points or events in a review that spoil the pristine viewing experience of the first-time viewer (the Norman-dresses-up-as-his-own-mother school of film criticism). Now, don't get me wrong: I hate spoiler-centric criticism. There's no reason to reveal details and ruin the fun of not only experiencing it for his/herself, but also of the movie unfolding for the viewer in the way the filmmaker intended. It's not only irresponsible, it's just flat-out rude and lazy writing. I'll even take it further than that: I hate needless plot exposition in a review. It drives me crazy when I'm reading a review in which the critic just goes on and on in describing the plot; to paraphrase Truman Capote's famous quip about Jack Kerouac's On The Road (that's not writing, it's typing), that's not criticism, it's stenography.

Courtesy

I first saw Flash Gordon on cable (back when a cable box had a slide dial to pick the channels) when I was at the delicate impressionable age of four. And my 4-year-old self was in love. In love with its blond Adonis of a star, Sam Jones; in love with the rock opera stylings of Queen; and in love with the new magical world of science fiction. In fact, I loved this movie long before Hans Solo came snarking his way into my life and heart.

The impact? Twenty-five years later, I still love Queen, am one heck of sci-fi geek, and have special place in my heart for large blond Scandanavian-looking men (this could be why I like hockey).

We've already talked about what movies scarred your childhood. Now I want to know which movies influenced you or just stuck with you after all these years. Star Wars? Goonies? The Breakfast Club? Howard the Duck? Let's hear 'em.

The Video Association of Dallas office is moving to new digs, so it's having a sale at the Magnolia Lounge in Fair Park on Saturday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Expect to find Dallas Video Festival-related stuff, shelves, file cabinets and assorted odds-and-ends. If it's anything like our movie critic's desk, the odds-and-ends will surely be interesting and abundant.

Parents of back-to-schoolers can sign them up to get a wake-up call from a High School Musical 2 character, courtesy of Disney and Wal-Mart. Through Sept. 15, you can go here and sign them up to get a recorded message from Sharpay or Chad. That is, if they actually get up to answer the phone.

The Dallas/Ft. Worth team competing in the Samsung Fresh Films contest (a national teen-produced filmmaking program) won the vote for the best Action/Thriller film and is now moving on to go head-to-head with the top voted Comedy and Drama films. Their film, No Place Like Home, follows a woman trying to figure out why the neighborhood kids keep vandalizing her house. You can watch it here and vote for it as it goes against the other films made by teams from Seattle and New York.

Hour by hour
On the surface, producing a trilogy in which each movie opens at No. 1 should be quite an accomplishment. The Rush Hour franchise achieved that distinction when No. 3 earned $49 million. But when you factor in the fact that it earned $18 million less on opening weekend than Rush Hour 2 and that 3’s budget was $50 million more than its predecessor, it seems that the weekend also proved that the odds on a Rush Hour 4 are long.

With Russell Crowe reportedly onboard and Heroes star Zachary Quinto
signed up to play Mr. Spock, the upcoming J.J. Abrams-directed Star Trek movie is beginning to take shape. But one crucial role remains uncast: Capt. Kirk. So I'll throw it out there -- who should fill William Shatner's shoes? Keep in mind: this is a role with a long tradition of overacting, so don't go suggesting an actor who's ever been accused of subtlety.

Slowly but surely, the Toronto International Film Festival is announcing bits of its lineup, including today's annoncement of its Midnight Madness films. (For the list, head over here. Or just take my word for it that it's stuff that mostly no one has heard of.)
The big announcement of the full schedule will come Aug. 21, but the cat's out of the bag on some of the showpiece films. The Screening Room will be double represented at the fest this year with Chris Vognar (making I believe his 9th or 10th trip up there) and your's truly, making my maiden voyage.
Of the films that I've heard about so far, here's the ones that have perked my ears up:

If you like to make it out to the movies but are one of the few parents courteous enough not to bring the little screamers into the theater, the Magnolia Theatre has got your back. Beginning next Monday (Aug. 20), the Magnolia will have a Rattle and Reel matinee each week at 11 a.m., where parents are welcome to bring the little ones without having to worry about the noise. The first film in the series is Death at a Funeral. Tickets are $6.50, and the kiddo gets in free.
The series is similar to the Cry Baby Matinee that the Dallas and Plano Angelikas have been running for a while now. Their show times vary, but this week the Plano location is showing Becoming Jane at 1:30 p.m. on Thursday and Dallas is showing Arctic Tale on Tuesday and Wednesday at 1:30 p.m.

I look danger in the face and laugh (Universal)

1) Jason Bourne is basically indestructable. He kind of reminds me of the bad terminator in Terminator 2 -- the one that would get shot and break into a thousand pieces, only to reform and keep on terminating. Who else would back a car off the side of a building and land upside down on top of another building, only to crawl out, dust himself off, and get back to business? Yes, I realize that puts him right in the company of Bond, Indiana Jones, etc. But at least those guys make it look like it hurt just a little.

2) I'm not a fan of the handheld camera. Sure, it adds a sense of urgency to the action sequences and really gets you in close for the fight scenes. But half the time I thought I was going to yak on the row in front of me while watching it. It's becoming a sort of Paul Greengrass calling card, but I sure wish he would show a little restraint with it sometimes.
OK -- I'm done complaining about what otherwise was one of the coolest movie experiences of the summer.

Get me out of this movie and step on it (New Line)

Which brings us to The Question: what is the least necessary sequel you're ever seen? Breakin' 2: Electric Boogaloo? Exorcist: The Beginning? The options are endless. So step right up and cast your vote. And ask yourself: wouldn't life be more fun if every sequel that ended in a "2" were subtitled "Electric Boogaloo?"

I stayed up way too late last night to watch Little Miss Sunshine, and I'm still not sure if it's one of those movies you like? You know? It's cute, funny, and kind of thinky in a way. But the thing that kept me from going to bed was the idea that good gracious that could so be my family. Not sure if that's a good thing ...

Am I only one that has movies like that -- ones that I don't really like, but that I can't help but watch? Like, Sleepers or anything with Renee Zelwegger or Hilary Duff? Hmm. Maybe it's just me.

I will be introducing Francois Truffaut's 1959 New Wave classic The 400 Blows (or Les Quatre Cents Coups, for you French speakers) tonight at 8 at the Fort Worth Museum of Modern Art. The screening is part of the museum's Magnolia at the Modern tribute to Janus Films, the distributor that was responsible for bringing seemingly every important art film of the '50s and '60s to America. (Janus also gave birth to the Criterion Collection , which carries the same high standards over to the DVD age).

Why should you see The 400 Blows? It's an indelible mix of tenderness and anger and one of the best films ever made about being young in a world of hypocritical adults. It has some divinely liberated and lyrical camera work. Plus, I'll be there. What more could you want? Other than me not being there?

T-Bone steak, cheese eggs and Welch's Grape: Biggie (file photo)

According to the Associated Press, the studio will look at actors and non-actors to fill the ample shoes of Christopher Wallace, the enormous and enormously gifted rapper who was gunned down in Los Angeles in 1997. Peep the specs here. Who would you cast? And don't forget: he still loves it when you call him Big Poppa.

There should be a little something for everyone this week, with comedies, a documentary and a grown-up fairytale.

My $8 is on Stardust. A Neil Gaiman story + an all-star cast can scarcely go wrong. Besides, there is no way you're getting me to Daddy Day Camp or Skinwalkers (though it should appeal to my CW/Sci Fi Channel heart).

• Stardust (B+) | Trailer

• Rush Hour 3 (D) | Trailer

• No End in Sight (A-) | Trailer

• Molière (B) | Trailer

• Daddy Day Camp (D) | Trailer

• Skinwalkers | Trailer

So tell us: What gets your money this weekend?

Thanks to all who contributed their traumatic childhood moviegoing experiences. Because of you I've remembered the following:

The flying monkeys didn't scare me as much in The Wizard of Oz as the Cowardly Lion, who made me hide in the closet. Go figure.

Seven is the best movie I've seen that made me want to take a shower (whereas Psycho is the best movie I've seen that made me scared of the shower).

The earwig scene in The Wrath of Kahn made me scared of Q-Tips. (Which, coincidentally, you're not supposed to put in your ear).

Finally, there are movies listed here that I still can't revisit, namely Last House on the Left, Helter Skelter, and, yes, Seven, which I saw as a college student. There's a part of us that never grows up, and for that I thank the power of movies.

‘Bourne’ again
The Bourne Ultimatum doubled the take of its closest competitor and then some, pulling in $69.3 million in its opening weekend. That total easily tops the opening weekends of the previous two films in the series — 2002’s The Bourne Identity ($27 mil.) and 2004’s The Bourne Supremacy ($52.5 mil).

"Yeah, the reviews aren't looking too good, De Palma." (Universal)

When I told colleague Chris Vognar that I recently bought Brian de Palma's Black Dahlia, he responded "Well, every movie needs a champion," which got me to thinking: What movies do you champion? What movies, despite hatred from critics or peers, do you still profess your love for? I'll cast my vote for Dahlia, which is no L.A. Confidential, but still a smart, stylish, noir throwback. I'll also say (and I'd love to know if anyone knows about this one) Neil Israel's Surf Ninjas. It's one of the most ridiculous (Leslie Nielsen as a cyborg dictator!) but hilarious movies I've ever seen, and far superior to some of those painful "family" movies of the early '90s like 3 Ninjas or anything with Hulk Hogan. So get to defending!

Hang on, Deckard. There's more where that came from. (Warner Bros.)

So it's just been announced that there will be (after years of speculation) a definitive "final cut" of Ridley Scott's Blade Runner (recently added to AFI's 100 best films list) coming in December. Other options will include a two-disc version (with the new cut plus a three-and-a-half-dour documentary called "Dangerous Days," about the grueling production), a four-disc version (the aforementioned materials plus three other cuts and another disc of bonus material), a 5-disc ultimate collector's edition (which includes a "workprint" version and more features), as well as HD-DVD and Blu-ray incarnations. Phew. It's more Blade Runner than anyone can probably handle. At least in one sitting.

Donald Sutherland opens wide and ruins my childhood (United Artists)

I'm happy to report that Kaufman's film holds up quite well on the new Collector's Edition DVD, which comes with cleverly designated "pods" of special features. The '50s Red Scare brainwashing fear that fueled the 1956 original somehow works for the '70s Me Decade. Back then, though, I just knew it freaked me out. (Yet another variation, The Invasion, is due out next week).

Which brings us to the question: What childhood movie watching experience gave you the Willies? More important: Have you recovered yet?

According to this data I'm quite profitable (Universal Pictures)

Who comes up with this stuff? Forbes.com, of course. They also report that "Damon earned the top spot mainly through his work playing an amnesiac spy in the Bourne trilogy." Which is funny, because his last three roles, according to our calculations, were The Good Shepherd, Ocean's 13 and The Bourne Ultimatum. Which would make the $26 million he pocketed for Bourne Supremacy a tad irrelevant.

And yet, at the end of the day, it's still pretty good to be Matt Damon.

Among the work-in-progress clips shown Sunday night at the Dallas Video Festival was Stop the Presses: The American Newspaper in Peril. Made by local doc maker Mark Birnbaum and former Dallas Morning News TV critic (and colleague of mine) Manny Mendoza, the film - or at least the 15 minutes shown Sunday - is a studious, well-sourced overview of the changes that continue to rock the American newspaper industry. (Plus, Ben Bradlee is in it, and how cool is that)? If location is the key to real estate, then context is the mother's milk of documentary. Presses has it in king-size font. Look for a finished version later this year.

Office chatter among The Monday Afternoon Critic, Jerry "Mr. Dallas" Bokamper and Bill "Fries With That" Addison has revealed the following about The Bourne Ultimatum:

It's really, really good, perhaps even good enough to justify its $70 million opening weekend.

The ending leaves open the possibility for another sequel, though we kinda wish it doesn't happen - let's go out on a high note.

When was the last three-part franchise in which each movie was better than the previous one?

Discuss.

Ok, so I bought 300 on DVD yesterday for $19.96, and it came with a "final super-swank director's cut" of Alexander.

Alexander was on the Big List of DVDs I Want. But "I Want" tends to translate to "only if I come across them in a big bi somewhere for about $5." So you see, attaching it 300 made me spend about $5 on Alexander than I normally would have. Smart marketing based on the convenience factor and the Ancient Story Told with Pretty Boys with Swords factor. But annoying nonetheless.

I never would have thought that two of the best movies I've seen this year are foreign and star German movie star Sebastian Koch (whom I had never heard of before)! Koch plays a Nazi officer in the emotionally complicated Black Book, out of theaters now and heading to DVD Sept. 25. And I just watched a DVD of The Lives of Others in which he plays an East German playwright under surveillance by the East German police before the Berlin Wall came down. As much as I now like Koch, the most fascinating character in The Lives of Others is played by Ulrich Muhe as the guy who does the surveillance. There's a remarkable arc in which he starts out as a pitiless Javert-like inspector for whom everything is black and white. As he spies on the playwright, he is slowly and subtly changed by him. It is truly a remarkable story. It will be released Aug. 21 and I really recommend it.

Further evidence that movie critics aren't as useless as you probably think we are: Christopher Kelly, my counterpart at the Fort Worth Star-Telegram, has a novel coming out. And A Push and a Shove is getting some nice blurbage from the likes of David Benioff (The 25th Hour) and Scott Smith (A Simple Plan). When did he have time to write it? Not sure. But publication is set for Sept. 25. Mazel tov to CK.

Video: Andy Samberg discusses Hot Rod and Saturday Night Live

Bourne to run: Matt Damon works the crowd (Universal Pictures)

This is the most kinetic film I've seen in ages; it also to happens to be a timely story about our current spying and surveillance culture. I'm not a big gusher, so I was a little suspicious of my own enthusiasm - rare is the movie I give a straight A. But the more I relive the experience, the better it gets.

So what is the blogging public stoked for this weekend?

Three words: Shakey camera bad.

Sometimes you just want to stay home. The movie theater doesn't have what you're interested in. Or it's packed. Or you don't feel like paying 9 bucks a pop to see stuff blow up. So you go to Hollywood Video (or, God forbid, Blockbuster) or even some local libraries to rent a DVD. You get an hour or so into your movie and the screen freezes. How many times has this happened to you? Frankly, I'm sick of paying money to rent a scratched-up DVD. Are stores going to have to go back to "Be Kind" stickers? Instead of reminding customers to rewind, remind them that DVDs are not:

-Frisbees
-knife sharpeners
-coasters

Remember. These are movies. People who rent it want to see the whole thing. So take care of the DVDs you rent.

Postscript: What have you faithful blog readers found as alternatives to chains? Netflix? Premiere Video? Let us know.

Beowulf (voiced by Ray Winstone) and King Hrothgar (voiced by Anthony Hopkins) in Paramount Pictures' Beowulf

All hail the rise of the sci-fi/fantasy geek. Seriously.

Robert Zemeckis' screened two trailers and the entire secon reel of his latest masterpiece, Beowulf, last week at San Diego's own sci-fi/fantasy geek Holy land: Comic Con. And its penned by writer Neil Gaiman (The Sandman, MirrorMask, Stardust) and Rogar Avary (Pulp Fiction)? Oh, I am ALL in.

It's filmed using the same 3D technology as Zemeckis' The Polar Express, and there's more than one face you'll recognize: Ray Winstone. Anthony Hopkins. Angelina Jolie. John Malkovich. Cripsin Glover. Robin Wright Penn.

You can catch the first trailer for it here.

Ebert will chat and introduce a video archive Thursday. (AP)

Clear your schedules, film fans. Arguably the greatest film critic of all time, Roger Ebert, will host a chat this Thursday at the Ebert and Roeper website. Not only is this your chance to talk with the Pulitzer Prize-winning writer, but also a chance to see reviews from days gone by. Thursday also marks the debut of The Balcony Archive (on the same site), with video of thousands of reviews from as early as the late '80s (unfortunately, most shows taped before then have been lost or destroyed). The chance to see Siskel and Ebert in their heyday is a treasure for fans of film and film criticism. The world's largest online video review library will be something to behold. You can start submitting your questions now. The chat takes place this Thursday at 7 pm local time.

Well, I'm excited now! New Line is presenting sing along screenings for Hairspray in 100 theaters across the country starting Friday and Dallas is in the mix! Here are some fo the stops where "you can't stop the beat" (as the lyrics pop up on the screen):
Dallas/FW: Legacy 24, Tinseltown Plano, AMC Grapevine, AMC Stonebriar
Houston – Cinemark 18, AMC Deerbrook, AMC Gulfpointe 30, ANC Willowbrook 24, First Colony 24 Sugarland, Regal Greenway, Cinemark Tinseltown 17 Woodlands
San Antonio – Santikos Palladium, AMC Huebner Oaks
Austin – Cinemark Barton Creek

Can't get enough of Once stars Glen Hansard and Markéta Irglová? Yeah, me, neither. And luckily for us, an avid Screening Room reader pointed out that they'll be performing tonight on CBS' The Late Late Show With Craig Ferguson, which oddly enough starts at 12:37 a.m.

Not 12:36 or 12:38. But 12:37.

So set your TiVo. Or your alarm clock. And if you're not lucky enough to have seen Once yet, you can still catch it tonight, and be home in time for the live performance.

The Dallas Video Festival churns along tonight and continues through Sunday. Tonight's Vognarian pick: Inside the Circle, a documentary about two breakdancing friends and the separate ways life leads them. B-boying doesn't really get its due anymore, but to me it's still a vital and incredibly difficult element of hip-hop culture. Marcy Garriott's doc also features music by local hip-hop artists including Bavu Blakes - a former Dallas Morning News intern-turned rap genius - and Hydroponic Sound System, led by producer/Quick contributor/radio personality Skin. Bust a move to the Angelika tonight at 9:15 to check it out.

NetFlix is the best thing ever. I have decided. Of course, it might be just the act of getting DVDs in the mail. But I have managed to broaden my movie horizons. Chris Vognar will be proud of me. I have added The Seventh Seal to my queue. It's like the 80th flick in line, but still. It was an important gesture.

Besides, 300 came out on DVD yesterday, and Leonidas get my attention first