There is no life more punishing than that of the young, successful actor. | Photo courtesy of Studio Canal While many fans of Wong Kar-wai were disappointed by My Blueberry Nights, there's no resisting its lush art direction and cinematography. Norah Jones, however, may have been too inspired a choice. To any who think the Apatow stamp is a guarantee of funny, please watch Drillbit Taylor (if you can make it through the whole, dreary......

While I deeply love many different kinds of Christmas music, this is one form that tugs hard at the heartstrings. Soul music is just a perfect vehicle for the kind of unironic SINCERITY that I want from a good Christmas song, that makes their heartwarming messages hit home completely. Here's a few to put your mind at ease. BIG DEE IRWIN & LITTLE EVA - I Wish You A Merry Christmas An oldie but goodie......

Hearts of Darkness is such a perfect complement to Apocalpyse Now that it's hard to watch one without thinking of the other. Though it's not the greatest print, the former is finally available on DVD. Now that the year is coming to an end, people are starting to talk about Oscar contenders. Why is the superb Rescue Dawn being left out of the mix? Live Free or Die Hard doesn't play like a Die......

Spider-Man 3 would have been an immeasurably better movie if it had just stuck to one villain. Seriously, Venom should not be sharing the screen with anyone else. No End in Sight received ecstatic reviews when it was released in theaters so, naturally, no one saw it. Correct that mistake when it lands on DVD shelves. Talk to Me was better than I expected; Wendell Baker was worse; Day Watch was unwatchable nonsense. The......

L.A.’s glorious summer evenings are perfect for enjoying cinema al fresco. Check out these goings on around town for the weekend & beyond. Downtown’s Million Dollar Drive-In, which launches this Saturday is described as L.A.’s first “urban drive-in” and will primarily cater to bike & foot traffic, unless you have a classic car that is pre-1965—then you have the chance of nabbing one of the 15-20 parking spots that will be available. This weekend’s film......

Two extortionists have been arrested for trying to blackmail Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes. David Hans Schmidt got his hands on some photos of the blessed wedding of the oh-so-happy couple. Schmidt wanted one million bucks for the return of the pics. But when he contacted Holmes and Cruise, they didn't reach for their checkbook -- they contacted the FBI. The Smoking Gun explains that Schmidt specializes in peddling sex tapes and nude photos of......

A Word or 14: Check out all the crazy bands performing tonight on late night shows(??) Bolded below. Tonight - Friday - April 27th, 2007 Angels @ White Sox (KCOP, 5:00 p.m.) Ghost Whisperer/Close to Home/NUMB3RS (CBS, 8-11:00 p.m.) Melinda meets another ghost whispererer!/Anabeth discovers police corruption!/Death-row inmate wants to reveal location of bodies Bill Moyers' Journal (PBS, 8:00 p.m.) The Daily Show's Jon Stewart! Henry Rollins Show (IFC, 8:00 p.m.) John Waters visits;......

Tonight - Tuesday - March 13th, 2007 Clippers @ Spurs (KTLA, 5:00 p.m.) Dateline NBC (NBC, 8:00 p.m.) Top 10 preverts American Idol (Fox, 8:00 p.m.) Down to the top 12 finalists Pussycat Dolls Present: The Search for the Next Doll (the CW, 9:00 p.m.) Welcome to the Dollhouse - the finalists move in. Primetime (ABC, 9:00 p.m.) Porn porn porn porn porn The Real Housewives of Orange County (Bravo, 10:00 p.m.) Season finale.......

Valentine's Day is only a few days away, and we here across the Gothamist network wanted to express would like to tell you, in the spirit of the holiday, just how much we love you, our readers. Don't let it get to your heads, though. There are plenty of things we love, you included. Just be glad you're not amongst the things we hate. SFist saw their beloved mayor enter rehab, and they loved the......

#95 A 6th grader protecting himself from two 8th grade bullies, pulls out a paring knife and stabs one of the boys three times. No one is seriously hurt, but the 6th grader now faces felony charges for possessing a knife on school grounds. - Miami Herald #96 Jacksonville woman given 15 years for her role in a labor camp and selling crack and beer to the laborers - Fox 21 #97 Man kicked......

- The two dead bodies found in the crawl space in the Westwood home that caught fire were part of the painting crew - NBC-4 - Might want to stay away from Will Rogers Beach, Venice Beach, and Dockweiler Beach for a few days - eMax Health - Phil Spector awarded $900,000 in embezzlement case - Forbes - What do the CEO of MySpace, Barbra Streisand, and model/anchor Willow Bay have in common? -......

John Waters was in town on Monday (as Elina warned) to meet and greet fans and talk about a new CD that he's releasing, which features his favorite love songs. We were thrilled to see that Waters had included "Ain't Got No Home" by Clarence "Frogman" Henry in the compilation, entitled "A Date With John Waters". The quirky director autographed CDs and took Polaroids with locals like expat French journalist Emmanuelle Richard. If you......

OUT TODAY: Aereogramme - My Heart Has a Wish That You Would Not Go (Sonic Unyon) Barenaked Ladies - Barenaked Ladies Are Men Belinda Carlisle - Voila [Bonus Disc] (Rykodisc) Bloc Party - Weekend in the City (Vice) Chicken Shack - Complete Blue Horizon Sessions (Blue Horizon) Deerhunter - Cryptograms (Kranky) Dexys Midnight Runners - Projected Passion Revue (Umvd Import) Eleni Mandell - Miracle of Five (Zedtone) Fall Out Boy - Infinity on High......

Still wondering what to give your sweet transgressive for Valentine's Day? Filthy, lovable, mustachioed filmmaker John Waters is releasing A Date With John Waters, a stirring yet suitably bizarre compilation album of his favorite love songs. To celebrate the album's release Waters will be at Amoeba Records in Hollywood tomorrow, February 6 at 6 PM, signing CDs and posing with fans in a Valentines setting. The album spans oddities such as the first record......

Recommended This Film Is Not Yet Rated - Keep the violence cartoonish and the sex missionary -- that seems to be the guiding principle of America's self-appointed film censors, the MPAA. In this fascinating look into the heart of a corrupt, shadowy and increasingly out-of-touch organization director Kirby Dick deftly exposes the MPAA's rank hypocrisy vis à vis depictions of homosexuality, female pleasure, "abnormal" sexuality and violent content. Dick employees a detective to stake......

Tonight - Thursday Frickin' hell day for the TV Junkie, a jillion appy-polly-logies to LAistas "The Daily Show With Jon Stewart" (Comedy Central, 11:00 p.m.): Tenacious D hopefully complete their talkshow tour here, don't worry, you'll have a chance to see them on "SNL" or that gawdawful movie if you miss this "The Late Show With David Letterman" (CBS, 11:30 p.m.): Jennifer Connelly pushing "Blood Diamond", Tom Dreesen does his washed-up comic bit "The......

TUESDAY • Nickel Creek performs a live in-store tonight at 8 PM at Amoeba Music, celebrating their new CD, Why Should the Fire Die?. • The Sugar Water Festival takes place at the Greek Theatre at 7 PM, featuring Erykah Badu, Jill Scott, Queen Latifah and Floetry. Tickets range from $51-$126. • At Tangier, Richard Swift, Great Northern, Cold War Kids and The Places will be performing tonight at 8 PM. Cover is $7.......