This week’s video clip of the week is a compilation of Julia Roberts‘ best scenes in her Academy Award winning performance in Erin Brockovich.

It’s my favorite movie of hers–she basically makes the movie worth watching. A few people are pissed she didn’t thank the real Erin in her Oscar speech, but you know what people? Get over it.

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Freddie Prinze Jr. and Hustle & Flow star Taryn Manning are starring in a film called Jack and Jill v. the World by writer-director Vanessa Parise (Kiss The Bride).

The movie is a romantic satire of the advertising world concerns a cynical guy who falls for a carefree young girl with a secret.

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Vince Vaughn is ready to stretch his dramatic chops in a new movie by Oscar winning writer and director Paul Haggis (Million Dollar Baby, Crash). Haggis wants to cast Vince in his hot-button political drama Against All Enemies.

The movie chronicles how the Bush administration handled the al-Qaida threat both before and after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.

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Lucy Liu and Batman Begins star Cillian Murphy will star in the romantic comedy Watching The Detectives.

“Detectives” centers on a film noir buff (Murphy) whose world is turned upside down when a beautiful, unpredictable femme fatale (Liu) provides far more adventure than he ever experienced — and possibly more than he can handle.

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Sienna Miller and Peter Sarsgaard (well overdue for an Oscar nomination by the way) are in final negotiations to star in The Mysteries of Pittsburgh, based on the novel by Michael Chabon.

Michael Chabon’s debut novel is set in Pittsburgh in the mid-1980s and chronicles the joy, sexual awakening, and heartache of growing up for the story’s central character, Art Bechstein.

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I always knew Ann Coulter was a bitch…but I didn’t know she was a lying, cheating, stealing bitch.

The offical cover for Christina Aguilera’s new album “Back To Basics” has finally been unveiled.

She says “The glamour from those eras was so amazing as well [as the music], so I’m referencing Marlene Dietrich … Marilyn [Monroe] … Carole Lombard … Greta Garbo, Veronica Lake, there’s so many.”

Earlier this year we reported Will Smith will soon begin shooting his long awaited in-development film “I Am Legend“. Currently the film is still in pre-production and Smith is still the only person listed as a cast member, but good rumor has it Johnny Depp is slated to star in the film as well.

It’s very rare we see stars as big as Smith and Depp appear together in movies–and if this rumor’s true, the film should be box office gold. They must have a pretty steep budget though, as Smith demands 30 million a film (plus a percentage of gross), and Depp a close 25.

The critically acclaimed fictionalized memoir “Running With Scissors” by gay author Augusten Burroughs has been turned into a motion picture, and it seems promising.

The movie wields an all-star cast including Annette Bening, Alec Baldwin, Gwyneth Paltrow, Evan Rachel Wood, Brian Cox, Joseph Fiennes, Kristin Chenoweth, and Gabrielle Union.

Here’s the trailer:

We’ve always hated Ann Coulter (aka The Anti-Christ). How could you not? It’s unfathomable that even conservatives would buy into her I’m-gonna-say-things-that-are-controversial-because-I-know-it-sells-books bull shit. But I suppose there are quite a few mindless people out there that will blindly follow any unwarranted liberal bashing they find.

Here a few quotes from the “always brilliant” Ms. Coulter:

To a disabled Vietnam vet: “People like you caused us to lose that war.”—MSNBC

“I think [women] should be armed but should not vote…women have no capacity to understand how money is earned. They have a lot of ideas on how to spend it…it’s always more money on education, more money on child care, more money on day care.” - Politically Incorrect, February 26, 2001.

“Frankly, I’m not a big fan of the First Amendment.” - University of Florida speech, October 20, 2005

“My only regret with Timothy McVeigh is he did not go to the New York Times Building. ”

“We should invade their countries, kill their leaders and convert them to Christianity. We weren’t punctilious about locating and punishing only Hitler and his top officers. We carpet-bombed German cities; we killed civilians. That’s war. And this is war. ”

“Whether they are defending the Soviet Union or bleating for Saddam Hussein, liberals are always against America. They are either traitors or idiots, and on the matter of America’s self-preservation, the difference is irrelevant. ”

Oh but this is my favorite:

” These self-obsessed women seem genuinely unaware that 9-11 was an attack on our nation and acted like as if the terrorist attack only happened to them. They believe the entire country was required to marinate in their exquisite personal agony. Apparently, denouncing bush was part of the closure process.”"These broads are millionaires, lionized on TV and in articles about them, reveling in their status as celebrities and stalked by griefparrazies. I have never seen people enjoying their husband’s death so much.”

That one’s from her book.

As you can see, she’s well educated and is quite the articulate speaker.

And this is what she has to say about Global Warming:

Cybercast News Service: Most people consider evolution to be a branch of science, or at least a scientific theory, yet in “Godless,” you refer to it as a “cult” and a “fetish.” What is your basis for calling it that?

Ann Coulter: There is no evidence that it is true. The fossil record contradicts it, and it is a theory that cannot be disproved. Whatever happens is said to “prove” evolution. This is the very definition of a pseudoscience, like astrology. (Of course, I would say that. I’m just a Capricorn, aren’t I?)

Cybercast News Service: Creationism is not considered a science because it can’t be observed or empirically tested. You assert in your book that the theory of evolution has the same problems. Why then has the U.S. public school system been willing to accept the theory of evolution, but snubbed creationism?

Ann Coulter: Because evolution is the official state religion. Although it is possible to believe in God and evolution, it is not possible to not believe in God without believing in evolution — otherwise, atheists have no explanation for why we are here. Thus, it’s very important for the liberal clergy to force small school children to believe in a discredited mystery religion from the 19th century — evolution — in order to prepare them to believe in the nonexistence of God, one of the main goals of the American public education system.

….I’m speechless.

Now to the showdown. Matt Lauer v. Ann Coulter on the Today Show. Once again, Ann was handed her own ass. Too bad Katie Couric wasn’t there to join in like last time Ann left with her face on the floor. I particularly like the part where Ann so eloquently explains why Bush’s approval ratings are at 30%…(after a long pause)”——-Uh–uh—uh”.

Moviegoers gave their blessing to the “The Da Vinci Code” over the weekend, spending an estimated $77 million to see the Tom Hanks religious thriller.

While the film didn’t set a domestic box office record, it was the largest weekend opening of the year so far and became the second largest worldwide release after “Star Wars: Episode III.” It garnered some $224 million worldwide, according to Sony Pictures.

The film was also the best domestic opening for both Hanks and director Ron Howard.

The movie’s performance, combined with the family film “Over the Hedge” debuting in second place with $37.2 million, was a welcome contrast to the last two weekends that saw disappointing results from “Poseidon” and “Mission: Impossible III.”

The total box office was down about 2.8 percent from the same weekend last year, according to studio estimates released Sunday. But that’s a tough comparison given that last year’s numbers included the record-setting debut of “Star Wars: Episode III.”

“‘Da Vinci‘ opening this big just tells you that people do want to go to the movies, they just need the right movie to go,” said Paul Dergarabedian, president of box-office tracker Exhibitor Relations.

Sony Pictures took a risk in the marketing of “The Da Vinci Code,” keeping the adaptation of the Dan Brown best-seller under wraps until a few days before its opening.

The film received mixed reviews and protesters picketed outside a number of theaters, upset over the story’s suggestion that Jesus Christ was married and had a child. But the controversy did little to deter moviegoers, who packed theaters in almost every country the film debuted.

“You had a built-in audience from the book and the awareness levels were so high from this film,” Dergarabedian said. “You would have to live under a rock not to know this movie was opening.”

The movie also set opening-weekend records in Italy and Spain, Sony Pictures said.

“This is a fantastically great surprise for us this morning,” said Jeff Blake, vice chairman of Sony Pictures.

It was good news for the studio, which had been struggling of late and had been counting on “The Da Vinci Code” to boost its fortunes.

“This is starting out to be a very good year,” studio chief Amy Pascal said.

The animated film “Over the Hedge” had a strong showing with its $37.2 million as part of a counter-programming strategy from distributor Paramount Pictures. While the opening was slightly low for a computer-animated family movie, the studio believes the film will hold its own next weekend as children have the Memorial Day holiday off.

“We thought we could very easily coexist with `The Da Vinci Code‘ and I think the numbers bear that out,” said Dan Harris, executive vice president at Paramount.

The Tom Cruise action film “Mission: Impossible III” crossed the $100 million mark in its third weekend with a total domestic box office take of $103 million.

Estimated ticket sales for Friday through Sunday at U.S. and Canadian theaters, according to Exhibitor Relations. Final figures will be released Monday.

1. “The Da Vinci Code,” $77 million.

2. “Over the Hedge,” $37.2 million

3. “Mission: Impossible III,” $11 million.

4. “Poseidon,” $9.2 million.

5. “RV,” $5.1 million

6. “See No Evil,” $4.4 million

7. “Just My Luck,” $3.4 million.

8. “An American Haunting,” $1.7 million.

9. “United 93,” $1.4 million.

10. “Akeelah and the Bee,” $1 million.

Despite the less than spectacular reception by critics and Catholics, the movie version of Dan Brown’s The Da Vinci Code, starring Tom Hanks and Audrey Tautou, has grossed an estimated $30.17 million its opening day in 3,735 theatres according to ShowBIZ Data. If that number sticks, it will enter the Top 10 for opening day grosses just ahead of Star Wars: Episode II, which opened on a Thursday roughly four years ago. Depending on how well it sticks up to that opening day number, The Da Vinci Code could end up grossing between $84 and 88 million over the weekend.

Opening in almost 300 more theatres, DreamWorks Animation’s latest comedy Over the Hedge grossed an estimated $11 million in its first day, and should bring in enough business over the weekend to end up somewhere between $41 and 45 million for the weekend.

The potential for the top 2 movies to gross over $120 million means that the box office could exceed the same weekend last year when Star Wars: Episode III Revenge of the Sith opened to over $108 million. Check back tomorrow for an update on how “Da Vinci” fared in international markets, as well as the estimated grosses for the other movies in theatres.

JK Rowling, the author of the Harry Potter books, has this week come out in support of P!nk’s “Stupid Girls” single, in an article on her own website.

“[Stupid Girls] is the antidote-anthem for everything I had been thinking about women and thinness. [The song] satirises the talking toothpicks held up to girls as role models: those celebrities whose greatest achievement is an un-chipped nail polish, whose only aspiration is seems to be getting photographed in a different outfit nine times a day, whose only function in ther world appears to be supporting the trade in overpriced handbags and rat-sized dogs”.

“Let my girls be Hermiones, rather than Pansy Parkinsons. Let them never be Stupid Girls”

You can read the full article at jkrowling.com, in the ‘Extras’ section.

James Frey, who admitted two months ago he made up much of his best-selling memoir “A Million Little Pieces,” has been dropped by his publisher, Riverhead Books, Frey’s representative said Thursday.

Frey’s unmasking and public confession to Oprah Winfrey, the daytime television host whose endorsement catapulted the drug-rehab memoir to the top of the bestsellers list, has rocked the U.S. publishing industry, stirring debate about the nature of memoirs and the importance of accuracy.

After writing “A Million Little Pieces” for Random House, Frey moved with his editor Sean McDonald to Penguin imprint Riverhead Books, which published his second book, “My Friend Leonard,” last June. Riverhead then contracted Frey to write two more books, one of them a novel, for an undisclosed sum.

Penguin said last month that deal was “under discussion” and Frey’s representative, Lisa Kussell, said Thursday the deal had been canceled.

“All I can say is he no longer has a deal with them,” Kussell said, declining to give any more details.

Penguin spokesman David Zimmer declined to comment.

The uproar over Frey’s book started when the Smoking Gun Web site said it could find no public records supporting the author’s claim he had spent three months in jail after trying to run over a police officer with his car.

Frey’s book sold more than 1.77 million copies last year after being chosen by Winfrey for her Book Club.

On another appearance on Winfrey’s show last month, Frey admitted that much of the book was fiction. He spent two hours in jail, not 87 days, and an account of his breaking up with a woman who later committed suicide was condensed in time and changed, he said.

The Los Angeles Times reported last month that Warner Brothers was reconsidering plans to make a movie version of “A Million Little Pieces.”

Despite the controversy Frey’s sales remain strong.

“A Million Little Pieces” was in the No. 2 spot on The New York Times’ latest paperback non-fiction bestseller list, just behind Elie Wiesel’s “Night,” which is Winfrey’s latest Book Club recommendation. “My Friend Leonard” was in fifth place on the hardcover non-fiction list.

Super sexy Jessica Simpson is reportedly in love the novel ‘Lovers & Players’ as it is so “steamy and sleazy and fun,” Star People reports.

She is so in love with Jackie Collins’ novel, that she wants it developed into a movie so she can play the female lead.

It is a good book.

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“She’s read the book several times. She loves it so much because because it’s so steamy and sleazy and fun,” a source tells Star People.

Say something nice - Jessica could read a book several times. It’s only 512 pages.

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The report continues:

Collins’ murder-and sex-drenched novel centers around a billionaire, his three sons and a 19-year-old waitress and aspiring singer named Liberty. Jessica, 25 — who is currently filming Employee of the Month in Santa Fe, N.M. — thinks Liberty’s role “is perfect for her,” the source says.

“Jessica feels this part will showcase both her sexiness and her serious-actress side.”

The Hours gave me two of the best hours of my life. Being one of the most intricate and detailed pictures I’ve seen in years, it shimmered with beautiful make-up, costumes, and hair, resplendent sets, and the actors couldn’t have made single choice or line reading even the least bit more believable or riveting.

Although the Academy felt the need to make up for Nicole’s non-Oscar win for Moulin Rouge last year, Julianne Moore actually delivers the most powerful and superlative performance in this film. I was brought to tears just seeing the interactions between her character and her son about an event as simple as making a cake for her husband. And I’m extremely heated that she did not even receive a leading actress nomination for her role in this movie (she did receive a supporting acting nomination for The Hours), which I think obviously surpasses her performance in Far From Heaven, which she was nominated for.

Though many parts of the movie seem unexplained because of the time frame incompatibility of book-to-movie, the outline of the plot and the characterization fixate the audience from beginning to end - both of which are surprising.

Although this movie does seem to drag at times, and certain supporting characters seem to have no purpose whatsoever, the movie is a huge success for the intelligent and intellectual audience member, and will be a baffling bore for the ordinary mainstream idiotic sheep that just eat up laughable crap like Charlie’s Angels: Full Throttle and Jeepers Creepers 2.