ANGELS & DEMONS #1, STAR TREK #2 at the Box Office

Ron Howard’s Angels & Demons topped the North American box office with $48 million in ticket sales, according to studio estimates Sunday.
The latest big-screen adaptation of one of Dan Brown’s popular novels struggled to beat J. J. Abrams’ Star Trek (above, top photo), which came in a close second with another $43 million this weekend. The sci-fi reboot’s domestic total currently stands at $147.6 million.
In Angels & Demons, Tom Hanks (above, lower photo, with Ayelet Zurer) reprises his role as professor Robert Langdon, who heads to the Vatican to solve a murder and help prevent a ruthless terrorist attack. The film scored $29 million less on opening weekend than its predecessor, [...]

STAR TREK Soars at the North American Box Office

Anton Yelchin, Chris Pine, Simon Pegg, Karl Urban, John Cho, Zoe Saldana in Star Trek

Moviegoers beamed up J. J. Abrams‘ Star Trek reboot to the No. 1 spot at the North American box office, with a solid $72.5 million in ticket sales, according to studio estimates Sunday.
Starring Chris Pine, Zachary Quinto, Eric Bana, Bruce Greenwood, Karl Urban, Zoe Saldana and Simon Pegg, Star Trek lifted its early domestic total to $76.5 million (counting revenues from Thursday’s evening screenings).

Last week’s box-office winner X-Men Origins: Wolverine dropped to second place, earning $27 million. Directed by Gavin Hood and starring Hugh Jackman, Ryan Reynolds, Taylor Kitsch, and Liev Schreiber, the film brought [...]

Beyonce’s OBSESSED at the Top of the Box Office

Beyoncé Knowles‘ Obsessed defeated its competition at the North American box office with $28.5 million in ticket sales, according to studio estimates Sunday.
In the Steve Shill-directed thriller, Idris Elba co-stars as a successful asset manager who gets into trouble with his wife (Knowles) when his new temp (Ali Larter) starts stalking him.

At No. 2, last week’s box office winner 17 Again collected another $11.6 million, lifting its domestic total to $39.9 million. Starring Zac Efron, the comedy follows a 37-year-old who gets to relive his past as a 17-year-old.

New release Fighting debuted in third place with $11.4 million. Directed by Dito Montiel, the drama follows Channing Tatum [...]

Nastri d’Argento 2008

2008 Nastri d’Argento
National Union of Italian Film Journalists’ 2008 Nastri d’Argento (Silver Ribbons) nominations: May 11, 2008
2008 Nastri d’Argento winners: Teatro Antico di Taormina, Sicily, on June 14, 2008
(”*” denotes the winner in each category)
 

Isabella Ragonese plays a college grad who struggles to find work in A Whole Life Ahead
 

Best Director
Antonello GRIMALDI – Caos calmo
Daniele LUCHETTI – Mio fratello è figlio unico
Silvio SOLDINI – Giorni e nuvole
* Paolo VIRZÌ – Tutta la vita davanti / A Whole Life Ahead
Gianni ZANASI – Non pensarci
Best European Film
Across the Universe – Julie Taymor
Elizabeth: The Golden Age – Shekar Kapur
Atonement – Joe Wright
La vie en [...]

Richard Attenborough Film Awards 2008

2008 Richard Attenborough Film Awards
2008 regional British film critics’ Richard Attenborough Film Award winners: Jan. 30, 2008
 

James McAvoy in Atonement
 

Film of the Year: Atonement
Best Director: Joe Wright, Atonement
Best Actress: Cate Blanchett, Elizabeth: The Golden Age
Best Actor: James McAvoy, Atonement
Best Screenwriter: Christopher Hampton, Atonement
Rising Star Award: Sam Riley, Control
 
People’s Choice Awards
Film of the Year: The Bourne Ultimatum
 
Richard Attenborough Film Awards: 2007 2008
Film Awards: 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009

London Film Critics Awards 2006

2006 London Film Critics’ Circle Awards
2006 London Film Critics’ Circle Award winners: Dorchester Hotel on February 8, 2006
("*" denotes the winner in each category)
 

Heath Ledger, Michelle Williams in Brokeback Mountain
 

Best Film:
* Brokeback Mountain
The Constant Gardener
Crash
A History of Violence
King Kong
The Attenborough Award for British Film:
* The Constant Gardener
The Descent
Mrs. Henderson Presents
Pride & Prejudice
Wallace & Gromit in The Curse of the Were-Rabbit
Best Foreign-Language Film:
Hidden
The Chorus
The Beat That My Heart Skipped
The Sea Inside
* Downfall
Best Director:
David Cronenberg (A History of Violence)
Paul Haggis (Crash)
Peter Jackson (King Kong)
* Ang Lee (Brokeback Mountain)
Fernando Meirelles (The Constant Gardener)
Best British Director:
Stephen Frears (Mrs. Henderson Presents)
Terry George (Hotel Rwanda)
Neil Marshall (The Descent) [...]

GASLIGHT To Be Lit Again

Warner Bros. has begun developing a remake of Gaslight, the 1944 thriller directed by George Cukor, and starring Charles Boyer as a suave murderer and Ingrid Bergman as his naive — and quite wealthy — wife, who almost goes bananas before the final fadeout. The film received a total of seven Academy Award nominations: best picture, best director, best actor, best supporting actress (Angela Lansbury, in her film debut), and best screenplay (John L. Balderston, Walter Reisch, and John Van Druten), winning in the best actress and best art direction categories. Additionally, Bergman won a Golden Globe for what is one of the weakest performances of her career.
Also in the Gaslight cast were Joseph Cotten, Dame May Whitty, [...]