Penoptic

The attack on and death of Sean Taylor continues to stun the world, earning top real estates in newspapers such as the Miami Herald , online news sites from BBC.com to washingtonpost.com , and news broadcasts from your local six o'clock broadcast to PTI and SportsCenter. Just as chilling is the fact that this attack is only the latest in what could be determined a rather frightening trend. And I'm not even talking about Michael Vick. The break-in incident reported in Taylor's home eight days ago is mentioned in nearly every article on yesterday's shooting. But don't forget that on Jan. 1 of this year, Darrent Williams, cornerback for the Broncos, was killed in a drive-by shooting in Denver. Bryan Pata, a defensive lineman at U. Miami (ironically enough, Taylor's alma matter) was shot and killed a few miles from Taylor's home. Thirty years ago, politicians and musicians (Kennedy, Kennedy, King, and Lennon) were the ones getting gunned down in their homes or ...

I wonder that more people don't marvel at the wonder that is Julie Andrews. Has the woman ever done anything that didn't turn out to be pure gold? Even 'The Princess Diaries' are enjoyable, albeit predictable, but still thoroughly charming. Not every woman can recover from a botched throat surgery with the grace and resilience of the amazing Mrs. Blake Edwards, especially when such a woman made her career on her singing talents. But Julie Andrews continues to make movies and redefine her career. And so, I'm taking just a quick moment to pay a small tribute to Julie Andrews. 'Cause she's just that damn cool.

Of all the terrible made-for-TV movies out there, this one might take the cake. Catherine the Great, empress of Russia, had a life that was anything but dull, but this bio-pic from 1995 bores to tears. Though it seems to take scant fewer poetic licenses than Josef von Sternberg's 1934 masterpiece 'The Scarlet Empress,' any comparison between the two would be the height of hubris. Von Sternberg could make tension crackle in black and white with the use of candles, one blond face, and a strategically-placed banister; this film, though it continues longer into Catherine's reign than 'Scarlet Empress' did, can't make even a spark from this fiery woman. Whereas one wishes that 'Scarlet Empress' would go on and on, this film moves slowly and doesn't end soon enough. Catherine Zeta-Jones made this film three years before her break-out role in 'The Mask of Zorro,' and while she does show a moderate amount of potential in the role here, she is now...

Julie Taymor’s new film “Across The Universe” (Columbia & Revolution, 131 min.) paints a picture of a world without the members of the Fab Four ... almost. The group is gone, but the music remains, covered by a gang of friends who float in and out of the lives of two characters named (brace yourself now) Jude and Lucy as they blunder their way through the decade’s dose of sex, drugs, and rock & roll, and healthy side of “revolution.” It’s hard to tell exactly what Taymor hoped to achieve with the film. If the answer is another example of beautiful lighting and cinematography, then “Across the Universe” would be a success. If she hoped to give viewers a headache by using more colors than a pris m reflects light, once again the woman succeeds. If she wanted to demonstrate yet another example of her skill as a puppeteer (as if, after directing “Frida” and Broadway’s “The Lion King,” we needed it,) then she did an impressive, though perhaps poorly conceived, job. But if she wished ...

Julie Delpy’s latest film ‘2 Days in Paris ’ has her name written all over it - literally. Delpy made her first feature-length directorial debut at feature length with this film, and also wrote, produced, edited, composed the music and provided still photography for it, and holds her ground on each count. If Delpy could have played every role, she probably would have, but then the viewer would have missed out on the hilarious performances and interactions of the other actors. But if she ever turns the film into a one-woman play, it’d definitely be worth seeing. The plot seems exactly what the title suggests: Marion (Delpy) and her boyfriend Jack (played by real-life ex Adam Goldberg) spend two days in Paris with Marion ’s parents (played by Delpy’s parents), her sister, and several ex-boyfriends. But the cultural differences that spring from seemingly nowhere complicate the comfortable two-year relationship, exposing the parts of themselves that they’ve kept hidden from each other...