Oscar Buzzes Around Holiday Films

Jess Cagle Looks At The Hot Ones

(CBS) 

FAMILY FILMS

ALVIN AND THE CHIPMUNKS: Three chipmunk brothers, Alvin, Simon, and Theodore, are adopted by a man named Dave. Stars Jason Lee of "My Name is Earle."

WATER HORSE: THE LEGEND OF THE DEEP: A boy discovers an egg on a beach in Scotland that eventually hatches into a "water horse." Later, that water horse grows up to be the Loch Ness monster.

COMEDIES

WALK HARD: The Dewey Cox Story -- America loves larger-than-life musician and songwriter Dewey Cox! But behind the music is the up-and-down-and-up-again story of a musician whose songs would change a nation. On his rock 'n' roll spiral, Cox sleeps with 411 women, marries three times, has 22 kids and 14 step-kids, stars in his own 70s TV show, collects friends ranging from Elvis to the Beatles to a chimp, and gets addicted to -- and then kicks -- every drug known to man. But despite it all, Cox grows into a national icon and eventually earns the love of a good woman, longtime backup singer Darlene. Stars John C. Reilly and Jenna Fischer.

THE BUCKET LIST: A long time ago, Carter Chambers, a philosophy professor, suggested that his students compose a bucket list, a collection of all the things they wanted to do, see and experience in life before they kicked the bucket. But while Carter was trying to define his private dreams and plans, reality intruded. Marriage, children, myriad responsibilities and, ultimately, a 46-year job as an auto mechanic turned his concept of a bucket list into little more than a bittersweet memory of lost opportunities and a mental exercise he occasionally thought about to pass the time. Meanwhile, corporate billionaire Edward Cole never saw a list without a bottom line. He was always too busy making money and building an empire to think about what his deeper needs might be beyond the next big acquisition or cup of gourmet coffee. Then life delivered an urgent and unexpected wake-up call to both of them. Carter and Edward found themselves sharing a hospital room with plenty of time to think about what might happen next -- and about how much of that was in their hands. For all their apparent differences, they discovered they had two very important things in common: an unrealized need to come to terms with who they were and the choices they'd made, and a pressing desire to spend the time they had left doing everything they ever wanted to do. So, against doctors' orders and all good sense, these two virtual strangers check themselves out of the hospital and hit the road together for the adventures of a lifetime -- from the Taj Mahal to the Serengeti, the finest restaurants to the seediest tattoo parlors, the cockpit of vintage race cars to the open door of a prop plane -- with just a sheet of paper and their passion for life to guide them. Adding and crossing items off their list while taking in the grandeur and beauty of the world, they grapple with the difficult questions and the even more difficult answers that plague all of us. And, without even realizing it, become true friends. Stars Jack Nicholson and Morgan Freeman.

ACTION PICS

NATIONAL TREASURE: BOOK OF SECRETS: Treasure hunter Benjamin Franklin Gates looks to discover the truth behind the assassination of Abraham Lincoln, by uncovering the mystery within the 18 pages missing from assassin John Wilkes Booth's diary.

I AM LEGEND: Robert Neville (Will Smith) is a brilliant scientist, but even he couldn't contain the terrible virus that was unstoppable, incurable -- and manmade. Somehow immune, Neville is now the last human survivor in what is left of New York City, and maybe the world. But he isn't alone. He is surrounded by "The Infected" -- victims of the plague who have mutated into carnivorous beings who can only exist in the dark and who will devour or infect anyone or anything in their path. For three years, Neville has spent his days scavenging for food and supplies and faithfully sending out radio messages, desperate to find any other survivors who might be out there. All the while, The Infected lurk in the shadows, watching Neville's every move, waiting for him to make a fatal mistake. Perhaps mankind's last, best hope, Neville is driven by only one remaining mission: to find a way to reverse the effects of the virus using his own immune blood. But his blood is also what The Infected hunt, and Neville knows he's outnumbered and quickly running out of time.

[p-syrus]

That one of the best film translations of a stage musical, a film made by some of the finest creative film makers alive today, a musical which is openly acknowledged to be a masterpiece by a man who is widely considered a GENIUS of musical theater, that such a film gets 3 modest sentences from this film critic is a SCANDAL!

Admittedly, this movie musical is one which many people might be very uncomfortable viewing. The music & story are emotionally dissonant. Burton''s film adaptation relies on a vivid hyper-realistic & gory portrayal of the storied violence, violence which is usually rendered on stage in a abstract & symbolic fashion. Also, Burton emphasizes and reinforces the horrific & dark elements of the story throughout with his visual imagery. The darkly comedic elements of the play are reduced somewhat in the interests of "tightening" the show.

Nevertheless, the film of "Sweeney Todd" is a magnificient achievement. All connected with it are rightly proud of their efforts in bringing this major master work of modern theater to film.

Especially worthy of note are the efforts of Mr. Sondheim, Mr. Burton, Mr. Depp, Ms. Bonham Carter, and the young Mr. Edward Sanders.

Kudos all.

[mbcsmith]

BOYCOTT Hollywood! If a LIB actor (which is most of them) is in a movie, don''t go. If you see a LIB actor promoting LIB agenda, boycott. If you see a LIB actor promoting a LIB candidate, don''t promote by paying your hard earned dollar. BOYCOTT HOLLYWOOD!

[allunknowing]

United States news broadcasting companies and hollywood producers owe a lot of thanks to Saddam.

[egresor]

well.....entertainment aside--- *
we are seeing TODAY the true results of "Charlie Wilson''s War".

i''ve not yet seen the movie, so cannot comment on it''s entertainment value, but we shouldn''t go away with a good feeling about what he introduced into policy.
we''re paying the price for that right now!
''(

[pressenter1]

I SAW CHARLIE WILSON`S WAR TODAY. IT`S ONE OF THE BEST MOVIES OF THE YEAR,AND SHOULD DESERVE SEVERAL OSCAR NOMINATIONS. ESPECIALLY FOR TOM HANKS,JULIA ROBERTS, AND PHILIP SEYMOUR HOFFMAN. IT WAS A KNOCKOUT.