New in theaters this weekend are a couple of very different movies, featuring John Travolta as a bad guy and Eddie Murphy as a clueless dad:

The Taking of Pelham 123 (R). It’s a little sad watching John Travolta play a bad guy and thinking about all the grief he’s had this year after losing his son. Still, this movie has couple of great character studies, with Travolta and also Denzel Washington as a subway navigator who’s forced into a take charge position. [Film Gecko Preview & Trailer] [World Premiere Pics] [Official Site]

Imagine That (PG). It’s a familiar story of a distant dad (Eddie Murphy) bonding with his little girl (Yara Shahidi), but the two share some sweet moments. And Thomas Haden Church plays a goofy Native American character – well, sort of! [Film Gecko Preview & Trailer] [Official Site]

In limited release: "Call of the Wild 3D"; "Food, Inc."; and "Moon." "Away We Go" expands this weekend, as well.

Image Credit: © 2009 PARAMOUNT PICTURES. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED

Attention, anyone looking to play Seth or Leah in "The Twilight Saga: Eclipse"!

There’s an open casting call listed for these two characters at EclipseOpenCasting.com. Thanks to Nieko in Film Gecko’s "New Moon Casting News & Rumors" thread for the heads up!

From the Open Casting site:

Seth Clearwater: Seth is a Quileute Indian and the youngest member of the La Push wolf pack. He is a tall, gangly limbed boy with a huge, happy grin, the son of Harry and Sue Clearwater and the younger brother of Leah. Seth idolizes Jacob, and is always eager to please. NOTE: This is an excellent opportunity for Native American and First Nations actors. Seeking age 14-19 to play age 15.

Leah Clearwater: Leah is a Quileute Indian and the only female member of the La Push wolf pack. She is tall and slender with beautiful skin and short cropped black hair. She would be considered gorgeous if not for the perpetual scowl she carries due to a broken heart and her anger issues. She is the daughter of Harry and Sue Clearwater and the protective older sister of Seth. NOTE: This is an excellent opportunity for Native American and First Nations actors. Seeking age 18-25 to play 19.

Auditions are due by June 30, 2009. Again, visit the Eclipse Open Casting site for more info and to submit your audition.

Good luck, everyone! First dibs on interviewing the lucky actors who make it!

Image: TM and © 2009 Summit Entertainment, LLC. All Rights Reserved.

My pal Julie Bonner, who blogs at DisneySociety.com, had an opportunity to talk with Yara Shahidi, the girl who plays Eddie Murphy’s daughter in "Imagine That."

The movie hits theaters tomorrow, June 12, and Yara had some fun things to say about it. Have you seen the trailer with the pancake scene? That was her favorite scene (it would have been mine, too!).

She said that Eddie Murphy didn’t actually eat the pancakes; instead, he threw them over his shoulder and pretended like he ate them. I can totally see him doing that.

Read Julie’s interview here, and see what Yara had to say about Queen Latifah and  learning karate, as well as her philosophy: "If you don’t enjoy it, then don’t do it."

My kind of girl! Check out her official site, and watch the trailer below:

Image Credit: © 2009 PARAMOUNT PICTURES. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

Depending on which tabloid you’re reading, Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie are either pregnant, breaking up, living in separate houses, or locked in a bitter custody battle. This report says that Angie offered Brad $90 million for the kids. Believe it?

James Franco is one of those actors who’s done so many types of roles, it’s hard to pin him down to one genre or character. That’s a good thing in the world of acting, because it opens actors up to any sort of role. They don’t get tied to one thing. 

James Franco has played a comic book character in “Spider-Man 3,” a stoner in “Pineapple Express,” and a sergeant in “In the Valley of Elah.”

Now he’s set to star in "In Praise of Shadows," an indie drama written and directed by Jay Anania, whose other credits include “Day on Fire” and “Her Name is Carla.”

According to the Variety story, Anania is head of the directing program at the graduate film school at NYU. Franco just completed his first year there, while also completing his master’s degree in English at Columbia University. And yet, he still continues to make movies; he’s got way more energy than I do.

In “In Praise of Shadows,” Franco plays William Vincent, a man who returns to New York City after four years in exile to rescue the woman he loves from a crime syndicate.

After this movie, Franco will head off to Ireland to star opposite his "Pineapple Express" co-star Danny McBride and Natalie Portman in "Your Highness.” Then it’s back to fall classes. More power to ya!

Image: INF; Source: Variety.com

It doesn’t hit U.S. theaters until June 24, 2009, but “Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen” is making the rounds across the globe.

Here are a few pics from the premiere in Tokyo, and check out the trailer, behind-the-scenes clips, Super Bowl spot, and Megan Fox on the set.

The movie picks up where the first “Transformers” movie left off, with the evil Decepticons returning to Earth to take Sam Witwicky (Shia LaBeouf) prisoner. He’s learned the truth about the origins of the ginormous robots. But don’t forget that in Sam’s corner is Optimus Prime, who joins forces with armies on Earth to battle the Decepticons.

Directed by Michael Bay, “Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen” also stars Megan Fox, Rainn Wilson, Josh Duhamel, John Turturro, and Tyrese Gibson. It’s rated PG-13 for intense sequences of sci-fi action violence, language, some crude and sexual material, and brief drug material.

More after the jump…

Read more

A friend just sent this note along. TalentHunter.com has a note saying they”re casting extras for "Twilight." You can register for free and apply online here.

I assume they’re talking about "New Moon" and possibly "Eclipse" and "Breaking Dawn," but they don’t specify in the ad. Anyone know anything about this site, or whether they’re legit?

This particular ad says: "No experience is needed. All looks and types wanted. Make $150-$300 per day."

If anyone knows anything about this site, tell us in the comments below!

Image: TM and © 2009 Summit Entertainment, LLC. All Rights Reserved.

"The Taking of Pelham 123" arrives in theaters June 12, 2009. Below are a few images from the world premiere at the Mann Village Theater in Westwood, Los Angeles on June 4, 2009.

No John Travolta, so I imagine he’s still trying to re-group from the tragic loss of his son earlier this year. I’m sure it would be hard to come out in public and have everyone asking how you’re doing 1000 times.

Are you planning on seeing "The Taking of Pelham 123"? I’m looking forward to it.

Denzel Washington:

Read more

My pal Tiffany McFadden sent me this link, and passed the word along about a campaign to get Hana Pestle’s song "Need" into "The Twilight Saga: New Moon."

All I can say is: Oh.My! I just listened to the song (about 5 times) on Hana’s MySpace site, and it is SO beautiful. It would be absolutely perfect for "New Moon" – especially the heartbreaking scene where Edward leaves Bella in the woods (check out the first "New Moon" trailer here).

Hana Pestle wrote "Need", one of her first compositions, in 2004 at the age of 15. It was produced/co-written (the bridge) for her album by Ben Moody and Michael "Fish" Herring and recorded in Los Angeles last year. The string arrangements are by David Campbell, piano performance by David Hodges, engineered and mixed by Dan Certa, and mastered at Sterling Sound in NYC.

Hana started performing live in Montana at the age of 14 with just her acoustic guitar. In 2006, at age 16, one of her performance DVDs reached Evanescence creator and writer Ben Moody, who helped to craft her first solo CD. She spent the last seven months of 2008 touring the U.S. with bands Live, Collective Soul, Blues Traveler, Joshua Radin, Graham Colton, Jon McLaughlin, Ingram Hill, Corey Smith. Look for her new CD to be released July 7, 2009.

So what do you think? Should Hana Pestle’s "Need" be in "New Moon"? Tell us your thoughts in the comments below!

Image: NeedForNewMoon, Hana Pestle, 2009

With the success of the new “Star Trek” movie, we’re seeing all the vintage “Star Trek” shows in a new light. Or maybe an old light with a new lightbulb. Or something.

At any rate, I’m a “Star Trek” fan from way back, and it’s fun to see people take an interest in the TV shows. Personally, “Star Trek: The Next Generation” is my favorite, although “Star Trek: Deep Space Nine” is extremely underrated. Really, they’re all good in their own way.

Now we have two new sets out, released on DVD May 12, 2009:

The Best of Star Trek: The Original Series (1 disc, 201 minutes, buy it on Amazon). While this set only offers four episodes of the original series, they’re four of the best:

1) “The Trouble With Tribbles” brings those cute Tribbles to the Enterprise, showing that you can indeed have too much of a cute thing. Elsewhere, a barroom brawl with Klingons takes center stage.

Read more