Best of Celeb

For Christmas movies this holiday season we've got Four Christmases and Nothing Like the Holidays as new offerings here in the U.S. Elsewhere in the world there's Un conte de Noel and Navidad, S.A.

The French film Un conte de Noel (more commonly referred to as A Christmas Tale here) stars excellent actors like Catherine Deneuve and Diving Bell and the Butterfly's Mathieu Amalric, and has been generating rave reviews. Critics are likening director Arnaud Desplechin's style to that of Noah Baumbach ("if he were French and a little more hopeful about humanity"), or a combination of Ingmar Bergman and Wes Anderson. The plot description reads: "The Vuillard's shared history of physical and mental illness, estrangement, self harm, and loss doesn't lend itself to the idea of a cheerful holiday season. But can a Christmastime reunion, a scheme concocted by three of the youngest family members, finally bring peace their clan?" The trailer, which you can view after the jump, completely sealed the deal for me. Apparently A Christmas Tale is currently available from IFC on OnDemand.

Down in Mexico there's a slightly more innocent and whimsical Christmas story in Navidad, S.A. The movie had a record-breaking opening weekend in Mexico in mid-November, marking the "largest domestic release in the nation's history." The sweet-looking film's plot is as follows: "With Christmas approaching, Santa Claus has to contend with the fact that the North Pole is melting and find a way to rid the holiday of its capitalist nature."

Unfortunately, I couldn't find a trailer for Navidad, S.A. with English subtitles but the one in Spanish is so endearing even if you don't understand the words. To check out the trailers for these two new Christmas movies from afar,

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Filed under: Programming, What To Watch Tonight, Reality-Free

• At 7, ABC has a new America's Funniest Home Videos, followed by new episodes of Extreme Makeover, Desperate Housewives, and Brothers & Sisters.
  
• CBS has a new 60 Minutes at 7, then new episodes of The Amazing Race, Cold Case, and The Unit.
  
• NBC has a new Football Night in America at 7, followed by the Bears/Vikings game.
• The CW has the Jericho pilot at 7.
• At 8, FOX has a new Simpsons, then a new King of the Hill.
• Food Network has a new holiday Challenge at 8, followed by new holiday episodes of Iron Chef America and Throwdown with Bobby Flay.
• Nickelodeon has two new episodes of The Fairly OddParents at 8.
• HGTV has the special Home for the Holidays at 8.
• Also at 8: Showtime has a new Brotherhood, then new episodes of Dexter and Californication.
• At 9:30, FOX has a new American Dad.
• At 10, TBS has Cheech and Chong: Roasted.
• At 10:30, HBO has a new Summer Heights High.
• At 11:45, Cartoon Network has a new Superjail.
• At 12:15am, Cartoon Network has a new The Drinky Crow Show.

Check your local TV listings for more.

 

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The book publisher Random House recently announced that it will be releasing thousands more of its books in digital format over the next few months. The idea is that while the market for regular ol' words-on-paper books is struggling, electronic books have grown by leaps and bounds over the past year, thanks to Amazon's Kindle (Oprah's favorite gadget), among other things.

Still, the overall number of people buying electronic books is still estimated to be pretty small — which got me wondering how you're reading books these days. Have any of you jumped on the e-book bandwagon? Do you download or rent audiobooks? Or are you content with paper?

Source

What Ways are You Reading Books These Days?

I stick to good ol' paper.

I download/rent audiobooks and read regular books too.

I download digital books and read regular books too.

I do digital, audio, and paper.

I just do digital and/or audio — no paper for me.

I'm just not a big book reader.

Other (tell me below)

Guess who's taking his family to church?

Filed under: Programming, Music and Variety, Celebrities, Cancellations, Ratings, Reality-Free

It seems that the show NBC hoped would revive the variety show format was getting an autopsy before it even had a chance to get off of the operating table.

E! Online reports that Rosie O'Donnell said her live variety show, the cleverly named Rosie Live, won't make it past the first episode, or as she so cutely wrote on her web site, "there will b no more."

The one and only episode of Rosie's return from TV purgatory was dismal, to say the least. Friday's episode only drew 5 million viewers, despite the appearance of high profile celebrities like Alec Baldwin, Alanis Morissette and Ne-Yo to help them forget the fact that they were watching a show where Rosie O'Donnell is the star.

Continue reading Rosie Live now among the living dead

 

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Britney made multiple stops this weekend performing her hit single, "Womanizer." Her first one was at the Bambi Awards which most of you all thought was amazing. She continued on to Paris to perform on Star Academy and then to London for X Factor. Each act was slightly different (check out videos after the jump) and the good news is Britney's confidence is back and she's got a busy week ahead of her. She had a huge smile on stage and even Simon Cowell gave her a standing ovation! Tonight is her MTV documentary which we can't wait to watch. Then Circus drops on Tuesday which is Brit's 27th birthday when she will also stop by Good Morning America. Britney was seen leaving London today to head to NYC for part two of her promotional tour. Will you be watching Britney on MTV and GMA?

For lots more picture of Britney in Germany, Paris and London and two of her latest video performances,

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Lance Bass recently said a reunion for all the members of 'NSync is "a definite possibility." With the comeback of the New Kids on the Block that you've been loving, it sounds like there's a possibility for Justin Timberlake and the guys to reconnect as well. But tell us — would you be psyched for an 'NSync reunion?

Source

Would You Be Excited For an 'NSync Reunion?

OMG Yes — They were my favorite and I'd love to see them back together!

No — They should keep doing their own thing.

Maybe — But only if JT is definitely in.

Holy frak, Battlestar Galactica fans! The trailer for the show's final batch of episodes is out now, and it's a pretty dramatic-looking batch of scenes. There's Cylon-seeking, lots of talk of suffering, and some things blowing up. Much of the imagery is minimalist, gray and black, and almost more like an independent film than a big-name Sci Fi series.

Battlestar's final episodes, dubbed "The Epic Journey," start airing Jan. 16. How are you all hoping it ends? You can always test your knowledge of the last batch of episodes or catch up on the whole show in just over eight minutes, and to check out the final promo, just

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Filed under: News, Programming, OpEd, Celebrities, Pickups and Renewals

When I heard that TMZ had been renewed for two more years, I thought, yeah, I get that. In my neck of the woods, the show airs at 7:30 p.m. every weeknight. Tabloid TV has gotten to the point where it's no longer relegated to a 3 a.m. timeslot. Now it airs at a respectable hour, which has somehow made the show respectable, too.

So what IS it about the rich, famous and screwed-up that we find so fascinating? Other than the fact that it's just plain fun to gawk at these folks, I've come up with a few reasons why TMZ is one of the best things to enter our lives in years:

1. TMZ shows us that even though the rest of us might be struggling out here, we're still way better off than the people on TMZ's radar. That's comforting in a weird way.

Continue reading TMZ renewed for two more years ... it's all good!

 

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Robert Pattinson did his best to protect his head from the rain under his hoodie in LA earlier this week, but there was no hiding that now-recognizable face. Twilight is already breaking records at the box office, though we'll have to see how it stands up against all the new heavy hitters that are opening this holiday weekend. While many of you would rather stick to the book series, we have a feeling that Robert's huge fan base is already counting down to the next movie now that he's signed on for a sequel.

Pacific Coast News Online and Splash News Online