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'The Blind Side' sacks 'New Moon' at box office

12/07/2009 11:56:00 AM kenmouse , Posted in , 1 Comment

It was as inevitable as a Taylor Lautner reference: New Moon wasn't going to stay No. 1 forever; The Blind Side wasn't going to stay No. 2 forever.

Sandra Bullock's insta-Oscar vehicle ran up an estimated $20.4 million Friday-Sunday, and finally overtook the Twilight sequel in the weekend box-office standings.

The deposed New Moon added another $15.7 million to a worldwide haul that's approaching $600 millon, and wasn't known to complain about a thing.

More Blind Side-versus-New Moon factoids, plus a look at the debut of George Clooney's own Oscar vehicle:

• The Blind Side has been dogging New Moon since their debuts three weekends ago. But aside from a Thanksgiving Day blip, when the Bullock movie finished No. 1, New Moon remained on top. Until Wednesday, that is, when the building Blind Side edged New Moon, per Box Office Mojo stats. New Moon moved back into first on Thursday, but Blind Side built a $1.5 million lead on Friday—and didn't look back.

• The Blind Side is Bullock's second No. 1 movie of the year.

• Both movies are bottom-line wonders. The $29 million Blind Side has grossed about $130 million domestically. The $50 million New Moon has taken in about $256 million. Worldwide, it's at an astounding $570 million.

• Any day now, New Moon should pass Star Trek for fifth place among 2009's top box-office hits.

• For those keeping score at home, Twilight was No. 1 for six of its first 17 days in theaters; New Moon bettered that average, going 12 for 17.

• First Iron Man, now Brothers. The Tobey Maguire-Natalie Portman-Jake Gyllenhaal drama beat the war-movie jinx, with a solid $9.7 million, third-place debut.

• In limited release, Clooney's buzzed-about Up in the Air enjoyed good reviews and good business: $1.2 million at 15 theaters. Only The Princess and the Frog ($744,000 at two theaters) had a higher per-screen average. The Disney hand-drawn movie goes wide—and likely to the top—next weekend.

• There's only so much Clooney moviegoers can take, apparently. The Clooney-voiced Fantastic Mr. Fox ($2.9 million) fell out of the Top 10, as did the Clooney-led The Men Who Stare at Goats ($401,000).

• Fantastic Mr. Fox didn't cost all that much to make: only $40 million. Unfortunately, for the Wes Anderson family film, it's slowing down after taking in only $14.1 million overall.

• Precious ($2.3 million; $36.3 million overall) slipped from the Top 10, too, but look for it to return once Oscar nominations are issued.

• Robert De Niro's and Drew Barrymore's Everybody's Fine (weak $4 million) made life way too easy for headline-writers.

Here's a look at the weekend's top-grossing films based on Friday-Sunday estimates as compiled by Exhibitor Relations:

1. The Blind Side, $20.4 million
2. The Twilight Saga: New Moon, $15.7 million
3. Brothers, $9.7 million
4. Disney's A Christmas Carol, $7.5 million
5. Old Dogs, $6.9 million
6. Armored, $6.6 million (tie)
6. 2012, $6.6 million (tie)
8. Ninja Assassin, $5 million
9. Planet 51, $4.3 million
10. Everybody's Not Fine, $4 million

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hollows Teaser

12/07/2009 11:55:00 AM kenmouse , Posted in , , 0 Comments



Entertainment Weekly recently did a special feature on the best of the decade. At the top of the list was Harry Potter. I can see that, considering how he had an entire decade to dominate movie screens and bookshelves. (Though, I would rather see Potter packing an AK-47 instead of a magic wand.) Now with Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince hitting DVD shelves this week, you know Warner Bros. wants to whet the appetites of the Potter faithful. So they’ve managed to include an early look at the next movie in the series. Frankly, the Potter series hit its high point with The Prisoner of Azkaban but that’s just my opinion. But for those who get a kick out of wizards and muggles, check out the clip below:



What’s It About: Voldemort’s power is growing. He now has control over the Ministry of Magic and Hogwarts. Harry, Ron, and Hermione decide to finish Dumbledore’s work and find the rest of the Horcruxes to defeat Voldemort.

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows marks the third time British filmmaker David Yates has tackled the Potter franchise. Previously he helmed Order of the Phoenix and Half-Blood Prince. The script is from Steve Kloves, who has adapted all the Potter books except for Order of the Phoenix. And if you didn’t know already, the films are based on the beloved book series by J.K. Rowling. Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows: Part I arrives in theaters on November 19, 2010.

Apple Tablet and CrunchPad: Do Consumers Want These Things?

12/07/2009 11:55:00 AM kenmouse , Posted in , , , , 0 Comments

All signs point to the launch of slate-like touchscreen computers next year. The highly-anticipated Apple tablet will appear sometime in 2010, according to a variety of sources, and the soap opera known as the CrunchPad may or may not appear, depending on the outcome of a likely bout of legal wrangling. There are signs that Microsoft may enter the market too.

Conceptually, a tablet device is appealing: An 8- or 10-inch LCD color display with touch input -- essentially a netbook screen minus the rest of the computer. A tablet could resolve many of the ergonomic limitations of today's smartphone, namely the small display that limits its usefulness as a Web browser and media player.

But given the saturation of mobile phones and laptop computers, particularly in the consumer market, is there a place for the tablet? Assuming that a slate computer would work best in the home -- not many of us would want to lug a 10-inch tablet around all day -- what benefits would it provide to the average user? Here are some pros and cons:

Kitchen appliance: A Web-enabled tablet would offer a lot of benefits here. Cooks could easily access recipes online, and watch TV shows via iTunes, particularly if reports of Apple's plans to offer subscription TV service are true. A kitchen touchscreen would need a screen-protecting film and a protective case -- many iPhone owners have these -- or run the risk of Canola-clogged circuits. In addition, a stand or wall mount might be necessary. After all, you can't hold a touchscreen while making dinner.

Home Web browser: Many people like smartphone touchscreens, which I find too small for Web browsing. A tablet with a netbook-sized display would a big plus, particularly for touch input. If I'm sitting on the sofa, I'd rather hold a tablet than perch a notebook on my lap. Then again, if you're sitting at a desk, a laptop would be the better choice.

E-book reader: The Amazon Kindle, Sony Reader, and Barnes & Noble Nook are all turning out to be hot items this holiday shopping season. A tablet's book-like dimensions and lightweight portability would seemingly make it a natural e-reader -- or perhaps not. If the Apple tablet and similar devices have backlit displays, they might not make very good e-readers at all. By comparison, the Kindle's paper-like E-link screen reduces eyestrain and uses less power than backlit devices.

Video player: For watching short YouTube clips, news reports, and other video snippets, a tablet would be great. For longer shows, including sitcoms, hour-long TV dramas, and feature films, I'm not so sure. Would you want to hold a tablet for 2 ½ hours while watching, say, The Dark Knight? Probably not, but a stand or wall mount would make video-viewing a lot easier. In-home use is questionable, particularly when an inexpensive media-streaming box like the Roku Player combined with a living room HDTV sounds like the better choice.

Music box: Today's MP3 players are tiny, portable, inexpensive, easy to use, and can hold a staggeringly large number of tracks. As a result, I don't see the benefits of a tablet-sized music player. Perhaps if a tablet came with integrated stereo speakers, or some other feature made possible by the large form factor, it would gain an advantage. Could the larger displays resurrect the lost world of album cover art? Perhaps, but that's not a strong selling point to consumers who grew up with audio CDs and digital downloads.

A laptop alternative: Could you ditch your laptop and use a tablet for all your computing needs? Possibly, with a wireless keyboard for word processing and other productivity apps. You might also need a wireless mouse, as the back-and-forth between keyboard and touchscreen might prove awkward over time. But without external input devices, the tablet would likely remain a niche product rather than a laptop replacement.

Add-ons: What will tablets cost? We don't know the answer yet, but the retail price may not fully reflect the total cost to consumers. If add-on devices are required, including an optional stand or wall mount for video/TV viewing, a protective case and screen cover for kitchen use, a wireless keyboard for productivity software, and perhaps even wireless speakers for music playback, consumers may balk.

We'll see what happens next year. Apple has proven naysayers wrong before. With its iPod, it conquered an established MP3 player market when critics said it was too late to the game. And it accomplished a similar feat with the iPhone in 2007. The difference this time, however, is that Apple and its fellow tablet-makers would be creating a new market, not redefining an existing one. Can they pull it off?

HTC's 2010 roadmap goes on display?

12/07/2009 11:54:00 AM kenmouse , Posted in , , 0 Comments



Those among us with minds like steel traps might recall that HTC's 2009 was leaked with shocking accuracy way back in January of this year, which lends some credibility to this already-believable series of slides we have seemingly showing off most of the good stuff we can expect out of the company in the coming months. The stuff we're privy to here was allegedly presented at a meeting in Vienna back in October, with both Windows Mobile and Android designs broken up into four target demo categories: Design / Lifestyle, Social, Performance (we like the sound of that), and Productivity -- but don't take our word for it. Follow the break for everything you need to know about this very real-sounding downpour of specs and renders.

Design / Lifestyle



Legend: This looks to be the successor to the Magic (and possibly the Hero, too), featuring an 11.4mm metallic frame that we're already dying to hold along with a clickable optical pad, 5 megapixel AF cam, and 3.2-inch AMOLED display. T-Mobile is mentioned by name, though we're not sure which markets will get it; retail in March.



Salsa: We bet you've never seen a released Android handset quite like this one -- it's portrait QWERTY, not unlike Google's early Android prototype. 3.2 megapixels and an FM radio paired up with a Qualcomm MSM7225 at 528MHz. This one's coming in June.

Social



Tide: Here's another Android form factor we haven't seen before -- full touch with a numeric keypad below the display. 3.2 megapixels and a 528MHz MSM7225 mean it should be pretty reasonable on a contract. April is the target release.



Buzz: This is a funky one in the same vein as the Tattoo with changeable backplates available in a variety of interesting designs; it's got full HSPA and a 5 megapixel AF cam with flash to boot. Like many of the others here, it has T-Mobile's name attached to it, which leads us to wonder whether this whole thing wasn't done as a presentation for T-Mobile -- we'd be shocked if the carrier's various markets around the world actually ended up getting all of them.

Performance



Bravo: Now this is what we're talking about -- HTC finally marries Android with Snapdragon to make the device we suspect that many of us are going to be lusting for in 2010. It's got DivX support, 720p video capture through a 5 megapixel AF cam with flash, a mighty 3.7-inch AMOLED display, and that Qualcomm Snapdragon humming along at 1GHz. If all goes well, we should start to see this (hopefully everywhere) in April.

Productivity



Photon: If WinMo 6.5 is more your thing, the Photon looks like it could be a winner. 3.2-inch HVGA capacitive display, 5 megapixel cam, and a 600MHz MSM7227 all suggest that this is a likely successor to the Touch Diamond2; it should swing by around April.



Trophy: This could very well be the coolest portrait QWERTY phone ever released -- at least, the coolest running Windows Mobile 6.5 -- thanks to a 3-inch VGA capacitive display atop the keyboard. Like the Photon, it's rocking a 600MHz MSM7227, but it's scheduled to hit a month later in May.



Tera: If the Touch Pro2 needed a little brother, the Tera could be it; it preserves the form factor but moves down to a 3-inch WQVGA resistive display. It's expected in April.

Perhaps the most telling thing about this roadmap -- assuming it's even remotely accurate -- is that HTC is very explicitly rounding up its WinMo devices under the buttoned-up "Productivity" umbrella and letting Android shine through the rest of the market segments. It's gonna be an exciting year to watch these guys -- and even though most of these handsets are quoting Euro 3G in the spec sheets, we certainly hope American carriers have every intention of commissioning versions that'll work on this side of the pond.

Big Bang to return with concert and new album!

12/07/2009 11:54:00 AM kenmouse , Posted in , , 0 Comments

It's official. Big Bang will be returning in January 2010 with a concert, known as the Big Bang "Big Show."


At G-Dragon's first solo concert (Shine a Light), the Big Bang members made a surprise appearance at the end of the show and performed, "Lies" and "Last Farewell."

After performing, Seungri hinted at a concert and G-Dragon confirmed, making the fans go wild.

A YG Entertainment rep stated:
"Towards the end of January 2010, we are planning to have Big Bang's 'Big Show' concert. We plan to have the 'Big Show' every January."

In addition YG Entertainment stated:
"Next summer, we are planning for Big Bang to return with a new album."

They're finally coming back as one. Girls y'all excited?

2PM’s “My Color” music video released!

12/07/2009 11:54:00 AM kenmouse , Posted in , , 0 Comments



With a second teaser still warm off the press from earlier today, the full music video of 2PM's My Color for Samsung Corby has been revealed! With its futuristic look and eye-catching outfit concepts, there's no doubt that this MV is going to get many people talking!

For Rihanna, 'Rated R' doesn't reveal it all

12/07/2009 11:53:00 AM kenmouse , Posted in , , , 0 Comments

When Rihanna entered the recording studio last March to begin work on Rated R, she knew what kind of album she didn't want to make.

"I didn't want to talk about relationships," the 21-year-old R&B singer says. "Or at least, I didn't want to do just love songs. Love wasn't what I wanted to talk about."

That's hardly surprising, given what had just transpired in her personal life. In February, less than an hour before the Grammy Awards were to air live, Rihanna and her then-boyfriend, Chris Brown, abruptly canceled plans to perform on the show. Before the night was out, the world learned that Brown had attacked a woman and was in police custody. Photos of Rihanna's battered face soon surfaced.

Going back to work wasn't the first thing on her mind. "I hid out for a while, but that just drove me crazy. I got cabin fever. I was ready to make music again. It was a hard time, but I found peace in the studio."

Rihanna allows that Rated R is her "most personal album" yet, but she stresses that the songs – which do address love, though seldom from an idealistic perspective – don't refer directly to her well-documented troubles. (The album made its debut at No. 4 last week, selling 181,000 copies.)

The single Russian Roulette (No. 26 on USA TODAY's top 40 airplay chart) likens a relationship to that potentially fatal game, ending with the sound of a shot. In one of several disturbing images in the video, Rihanna faces a young man holding a gun.

But Rihanna says she's "disappointed that some people are taking the song so literally. Any time someone is in love, the greatest fear is of getting hurt, and Russian roulette is a metaphor for that."

On the similarly emotional Stupid in Love, "blood on your hands" is one metaphor hurled at an unfaithful beau. "That song was actually written two days before the Grammys," chiefly by Ne-Yo, also the principal writer of Roulette and previous hits Take a Bow and Unfaithful. "It was amazing, like a premonition."

Other collaborators on Rated R, which has a denser, grainier feel than previous Rihanna fare – "I wanted something grimy," says the singer, whose voice sounds deeper and more raw – include Tricky Stewart and The Dream (who helmed Rihanna's Umbrella), Stargate and Justin Timberlake. "It was important to have familiar people in the studio, for there to be a comfort level, because of what I wanted to say."

Yet Rihanna points out that "not all the songs are angry and sad. There are songs about having fun and having sex, and cocky, bragging songs like Hard and Wait Your Turn."

Island Def Jam Music Group chairman L.A. Reid, Rihanna's co-executive producer, sees the album as "a bold artistic statement. Like all greats, she has taken her life experiences and transformed them into an ambitious leap forward. I'm very proud of this record."

Rolling Stone deputy managing editor Nathan Brackett says Rated R's prospects will hinge "on how much her fans connect to her as a person. There's always been a bit of darkness in her sound, but she's basically been a pop creation. She's going for something deeper here, and the question is whether she can pull that off."

Rihanna plans to tour in spring and says she's eager to face the public again. "Fearlessness – that's the attitude I want to give off. If other people can learn from my mistakes, that's a positive thing."

Lots of young adults still sexting shock

12/07/2009 11:53:00 AM kenmouse , Posted in , 0 Comments

Another survey of US teenagers has shown an unprecedented proportion are sending nudie pictures of themselves to each other.

The latest figures come from a poll organised by the Associated Press and MTV, which questioned around 1200 youths and semi-youths aged from 14 to 24. What they discovered, among other things, is that boys think naked pictures are "hot" while girls consider them "slutty".

We'll go out on a limb here and say that boys and girls feel much the same ways about thigh-high boots and micro-skirts - one boy's hot is another girl's slutty, but that's another issue. Young people do seem peculiarly blind to the long-term risks of naked photographs, though perhaps they should be admired for having such confidence in their own bodies.

About half of those surveyed thought the risks were overplayed - the rest were suitably wary, but did it anyway. Greater education about the risks doesn't seem to be the answer: it's almost as though young people aren't listening to the advice provided by their elders and betters.

Overall the survey found that ten per cent of those questioned had sent pictures of themselves naked, while 17 per cent had passed on such photographs without permission, though we don't know what proportion of those claimed it representative of their own assets.

Rainbow : SNSD's Biggest Competition?

12/07/2009 11:53:00 AM kenmouse , Posted in , , , 0 Comments

According to the Japanese website, HMV, the latest girl group from DSP Entertainment, Rainbow, is close to out-selling Korea's most popular girl group, SNSD in Japan.


Although they only debuted a month ago, Rainbow, has already been receiving much love over seas in Japan. The online website of HMV, which is one of the biggest online album sellers in Japan, has stated that Rainbow has already passed 4minute, 2NE1, T-ara and Kara, and is soon to pass SNSD in album sales. The website also lists Rainbow as, "the 7 skillful girls that practiced all year long to show off all their skills in the upcoming year of 2010."

HMV released a statement saying, "They're SNSD's new rivals. In Japan, after they debuted, they became number 1 most searched in nearly every portal website."

"Impressions West Lake" nominated for Grammy, includes song by Jane Zhang

12/07/2009 11:52:00 AM kenmouse , Posted in , , 0 Comments

Jane Zhang sung the theme to "Impressions West Lake," recently nominated for Best New Age Album for the Grammy's

Impressions West Lake is composer Kitaro's soundtrack to theZhang Yimou (Beijing Olympics Opening Ceremony) -directed themed performance set in Hangzhou's West Lake (of Madame Lady Snake fame).

Featured in the album is theme song for the show - Impressions West Lake Rain by Jane Zhang. Jane has also recently performed the song live at Kitaro's concert:


Chinese composer Tan Dun's Marco Polo was also nominated for Best Opera Recording.

Look away now Sam Ronson! Lindsay Lohan is spotted leaving Jason Segel's house after spending the night

12/07/2009 11:52:00 AM kenmouse , Posted in , , , 0 Comments

After more than a year of speculation that Lindsay Lohan and Samantha Ronson's relationship is no more, this could be evidence the pair have parted company.



For the former was seen leaving actor and producer Jason Segel's home this morning - a move sure to shock Hollywood.

The star of Forgetting Sarah Marshall departed his sprawling abode, accompanied by a puppet, denying Lohan had stayed over.

But an hour later, the 23-year-old emerged, having sent for her assistant to come and pick her up.

Unluckily for the actress, the paparazzi hadn't been deterred by Segel's insistence she was not there and oversized sunglasses were not quite enough to disguise a face as famous as her's.

It is unknown how the pair met but it is fair to say perhaps the person who will be most surprised by these pictures is Lohan's ex Ronson.



In October they were reportedly still an item, but since then the Freaky Friday star has been linked to Gerard Butler and Jessica Alba's husband Cash Warren - a rumour she has vehemently denied to be be true.

Perhaps Segel was just giving the actress a shoulder to cry on and some much needed advice.

In addition to her love life being tabloid fodder this year, her family's dirty laundry was also publicly aired.



Last month, she used networking site Twitter to claim her estranged father Michael had threatened to kill her mother Deanna if she ever left him.

'She blames herself for staying with him for so long, I'd beg her not to leave because he always threatened to kill her if she did.'

This followed her father releasing audio recordings - one of Lindsay sobbing to him about the breakdown of her relationship with Sam Ronson, and another of Dina talking about their daughter's alleged drug abuse.

Motorola's Opus One leaks out, whispers of 'iDEN' and 'Android' overheard

12/07/2009 11:51:00 AM kenmouse , Posted in , , , , , 0 Comments



There's an excruciatingly small amount of detail to go on right now, but the Boy Genius has managed to snag a few tasty shots of what could be the world's first iDEN Android handset. The Opus One (as it's currently codenamed) certainly smacks of the myTouch 3G in terms of design, though the bottom-mounted ball is obviously replaced with what appears to be an intensely large home button.

Dead Space 2 Teaser Image Deciphered

12/07/2009 11:51:00 AM kenmouse , Posted in , , 0 Comments

A few days ago, a strange image appeared on the Dead Space twitter feed, which featured some weird scribblings, as well as a ink-blotted drawing. Since then, communities all over the internet have been attempting to figure out exactly what the writing means, and it's taken just over a day for some results.


Apparently, the message below the drawing says "The nightmare is over but it will not end." - it doesn't exactly give much away, that's for sure. Instead, it just opens up a can of worms, as the statement in itself is a contradiction.

The game is set to officially be unveiled on the 22nd of December, so hopefully all will be explained then.

The Wonder Girls’ next US track?

12/07/2009 11:50:00 AM kenmouse , Posted in , , 0 Comments

Producer/Writer Dave Stewart, released a preview of the Wonder Girls' upcoming US track, "Always without me," as well as a quick behind the scenes of their photoshoot.


Not sure if this will be the next song that will be promoted here in the states, but I'm in love with it! It's so elegant, classy and will really showcase their vocals. I have a really good feeling about this track and it seems to have major potential.

Check it out for yourself!


So what do you think? Will the Wonder Girls be able to break onto the Billboard charts again? Definitely - It's got an amazing sound, sure to be a hit.

Se7en, “It’s been 2 years since I’ve performed in Korea, and it feels good”

12/07/2009 11:50:00 AM kenmouse , Posted in , , 0 Comments

Se7en greets fans performing in Korea after 2 long years.

Se7en was present as guest appearance for GDragon’s ‘Shine A Light’ concert on 6th December in Seoul Olympic Stadium.

He performed his American debut song ‘Girls’ and joked, “You know who I am?”. He continued, “It has been 2 years since I’ve performed in Korea. I’m feeling really happy now.”

Se7en added, “When I was in the States, I really longed for Korean stage, and I miseed everyone so so much. About a month back, JiYoung asked me to guest his concert, and I thought ‘this is the moment’ that I should come out.”

He also revealed, “I am currently working on my Korean album. If fast enough, it will be out early next year, I hope that everyone will show loads of support.”

After that, Se7en went on to perform ‘I’ll Do Well’ and ‘Lalala’. And even though it was GDragon’s concert, many fans brought along placards with Se7en’s Korean name written on it to show him support during his appearance.

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