NEW RELEASES HAIRSPRAY - It has taken nearly 30 years for John Travolta to make it from 1959 (in "Grease") to 1962 (in "Hairspray"). In his defense, the man's been busy, what with getting a sex change and gaining about 200 pounds. Travolta is the expansive Baltimore mom Edna Turnblad in "Hairspray," the   'HAIRSPRAY' - Christopher Walken, as Wilbur Turnblad, and John Travolta, as Edna Turnblad, star in the remake of 'Hairspray.' CNS Photo courtesy ... [full story]

I once knew a guy who had his name legally changed to Love 22. He was an "Abecedarian" which, as he practiced it, was the ability to find the number 22 in virtually everything. He could take any word, title or sentence and by applying a pre-existing numerical value for each letter, get the whole thing to add up to 22.   'THE NUMBER 23' - In the thriller 'The Number 23,' Jim Carrey is a ... [full story]

NEW RELEASES "HARRY POTTER AND THE ORDER OF THE PHOENIX" - Director David Yates' "Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix" is one of the best in what may prove to be the finest movie series ever made. With Daniel Radcliffe now budding almost manfully, Harry is deep into disturbing adolescence. Nothing like zit problems, more like: Can he save both the magic and mortal worlds from the Dark Lord often called you-know-who? Lord ... [full story]

Linda Hanson is having a really - I mean really - bad week. In the psychological drama "Premonition" (Sony, 2 stars), Linda (Sandra Bullock) wakes up on Thursday to find that her husband, Jim (Julian McMahon) is dead.   'PREMONITION' - Shyanne McClure, Courtney Taylor Burness and Sandra Bullock are featured in the psychological thriller 'Premonition.' CNS Photo courtesy of Ron Batzdorf.  DVD RATINGS 4 stars: Don't miss: rent it/buy it 3 stars: Worth the risk: rent ... [full story]

It's a Hasbro ad. It's a Chevy commercial. It's a pitch for Homeland Security. (A pretty ineffective one.)   'TRANSFORMERS' - 'Transformers,' with Shia LaBeouf, is only the latest incarnation of the popular 1980 toys. The concept has been a hit cartoon and even a 1986 movie. CNS Photo courtesy of DreamWorks.  There's a whole lot of shape-shifting going on in "Transformers," and that's not even counting the movie's hulking robots. Actually, the movie - "based on" ... [full story]

"License to Wed" has a license to drop dead, and does. Why anyone should peel away from their home screen for this defies belief, especially when it shall fairly soon be buried in full plastic honor as a DVD.   'LICENSE TO WED' - John Krasinski, Robin Williams and Mandy Moore star in the romantic comedy 'License to Wed.' CNS Photo courtesy of Warner Bros. Pictures. Directed by Ken Kwapis, a TV titan whose very name settles ... [full story]

NEW RELEASES   'TRANSFORMERS' - Mankind's fate hangs in the balance as berserk machines battle each others in the sci-fi thriller 'Transformers.' CNS Photo courtesy of DreamWorks. TRANSFORMERS - It's a Hasbro ad. It's a Chevy commercial. It's a pitch for Homeland Security. (A pretty ineffective one.) There's a whole lot of shape-shifting going on in "Transformers," and that's not even counting the movie's hulking robots. Actually, the movie - "based on" the '80s toy line (the ... [full story]

A man's gotta dream. Only, Charlie Farmer's dreams are just a bit bigger and crazier than most. The Texas cattle rancher wants to build a rocket ship and blast himself into outer space - and orbit the Earth at least once. That's the story behind the often charming and entertaining family film "The Astronaut Farmer" (Warner Bros., 2 1/2 stars).   'THE ASTRONAUT FARMER' - Billy Bob Thornton stars as Charlie Farmer in the family adventure ... [full story]

Only one letter separates pet from pest, and that "s" attaches to the tiny hero of "Ratatouille" like a stigma. After all, Remy is a rat. And he is in Paris, a great rats' city but also the capital of French cuisine. And never the deux should meet, as Remy discovers when he rises from the alleys and sewers to high cuisine (though raised on trash, this rodent has Remy Martin tastes).   'RATATOUILLE' - In ... [full story]

People who call "Evening" a chick flick are not far wrong but may be ducking what the film offers. The best element is casting, possibly the most elite gallery of women this year. Can a film go wrong that has Vanessa Redgrave, Claire Danes, Toni Collette, Natasha Richardson, Meryl Streep, Glenn Close, Eileen Atkins and endearing young Mamie Gummer?   'EVENING' - In 'Evening,' Vanessa Redgrave, right, plays an elderly mother who reminisces about her romantic ... [full story]

NEW RELEASES   'RATATOUILLE' - In 'Ratatouille,' a young rat, Remy, living within the walls of a famous Paris bistro, wishes to become a chef. CNS Photo courtesy of Disney and Pixar Animation.  RATATOUILLE - Only one letter separates pet from pest, and that "s" attaches to the tiny hero of "Ratatouille" like a stigma. After all, Remy is a rat. And he is in Paris, a great rats' city but also the capital of French cuisine. ... [full story]

It won't be long now before the entire world stops what it is doing to catch the newest episode in the "Harry Potter" series - well, that would be the fifth movie and the seventh and final book, both of which come out this month.   'DRIVING LESSONS' - Rupert Grint tries to keep his eyes on the road in the funny coming-of-age film 'Driving Lessons.' CNS Photo courtesy of Jain Maidmont.  Perhaps this is why the ... [full story]

"A Mighty Heart" uneasily pops a question beyond (and also below) the timely issues that it mostly raises well: How far should a real-life tragedy become the pedestal for a brand-name movie star?   'A MIGHTY HEART' - 'A Mighty Heart,' starring Angelina Jolie and Daniel Futterman, is based on the real-life kidnapping and murder of journalist Daniel Pearl in Pakistan, and what his wife went though in trying to save him. CNS Photo courtesy of ... [full story]