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If you could give advice to Britney Spears to correct her mistakes in 2009, what would it be?
How about Madonna, Robert Pattinson of "Twilight" fame, and, yes, even Sarah Palin?
Idol Chatter blogger Esther Kustanowitz offers suggested resolutions to these celebs (and more) on how to have a healthier and happier New Year.
Check out the gallery of Suggested Celebrity New Year's Resolutions and offer your own wisdom for these celebrities to burn brighter in 2009.
By Craig Detweiler
Reprinted with permission from ConversantLife.com.
"Slumdog Millionaire" may be the best film of the year. It juxtaposes the hopes embodied in the game show "Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?" with the depressing squalor of slums. Director Danny Boyle captures the sounds, rhythms, and ethos of India. The movie is intense and absorbing. Yet, heart, soul and romance endure amidst even the most pressing conditions.
Given the recent madness in Mumbai, "Slumdog Millionaire," based upon Indian diplomat Vikas Swarup's bestselling novel, "Q and A," has also become the most prescient film of awards season. We struggle to understand how a small band of terrorists brought a massive Indian metropolis to a standstill. We can find parallels to the attacks on Mumbai's financial center to the assault on the World Trade Center. But the political and religious complications of Pakistan, India, and the disputed Kashmir regions make this latest round of terrorism vexing to many in the west. For those trying to connect to the humanity lost in the attacks, the film offers insightful empathy. It illustrates how economic desperation can lead to violent measures.
By Rebecca Cusey
It is no small task taking a movie considered one of the greatest of all times and remaking it. Director Scott Derrickson took on the job of updating 1951's classic Sci-fi The Day the Earth Stood Still into a slick, action packed new film, which opens today.
While the basic elements remain, Derrickson has switched out the tinny spaceship of the original for a glowing, spinning globe ship, the GORT robot for a giant nano-technology being, and the Cold War message for an environmental one.
"I think the original film has a grand reputation for the political ideas in it," said Derrickson in an interview. "They are certainly there and they're strong. I think both the original film and this film are still films that are much more about human nature than about even the social issues. It's about how our human nature has this propensity toward self destruction and whether or not we have the capacity to avoid that."
The movie tells the story of the arrival of an alien ship in Central Park, New York City. Scientist Helen Benson (Jennifer Connnelly) is drafted as part of the government's reaction team. She learns to trust, at least a little, an alien-human hybrid Klaatu (Keanu Reeves) and helps him escape the government compound where he has been confined.
Along with her adopted son Jacob (Jaden Smith), she helps Klaatu carry out his mission against a backdrop of civil unrest and panic. However, they soon discover that Klaatu has been sent not to save the human race, but to destroy it. Multiple interplanetary civilizations have determined that humans are destroying the earth and have passed judgment on it. The plan is to exterminate all humans and their artifacts. Benson must convince Klaatu that there is something to humanity worth saving. Along the way, eye-popping special effects evoke a new generation of sci-fi advanced alien civilizations and keep the action moving.
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Once upon a time in the kingdom of Dor, a terrible accident left the king broken-hearted, the princess pining and the townsfolk despondent. All hope was lost, sunlight disappeared and the land became dreary gray. Until Despereaux Tilling was born...
A brave and chivalrous mouse, Despereaux is simply too big for his small world. Though tiny, wheezy and saddled with comically oversized ears, Despereaux refuses to live a life of weakness and fear, believing he's destined for great deeds.
When he's banished from his home for not following the rules, Despereaux begins a noble quest to rescue Pea--a princess who can't see beyond her distorted worldview.
From the highest turrets of the castle to the depths of Dor's sewers, friendships are tested as Despereaux and his pal Roscuro embark on a journey that changes the way they look at their world--and themselves--forever.
In this tale of bravery, forgiveness and redemption, one tiny creature teaches a kingdom that what you look like doesn't equal what you are.
"The Tale of Despereaux" hits theaters December 19.
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