"... any time you can say Matthew Lillard is the best part of anything, you should know you’re in trouble."

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We are only one month into the summer movie season and we’ve already had two bad examples of TV shows adapted into feature films: Speed Racer and Sex and the City. While the films themselves haven’t done much for me personally, they have afforded me the opportunity to dig in and see if there were any out there that were worse. Naturally I was able to find some.

tMF Top Five – Worst TV-to-Film Adaptations
By Jeremy Welsch

MTV has just premiered a much anticipated Twilight clip of a scene in the movie where James lures Bella to the dance studio, but thirsty Edward has a surprise in store for him.

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You can also watch the clip in High Definition HERE.

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Review by Jeremy Welsch

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The idea of being terrorized by strangers is nothing new to the horror or thriller genres. Exponentially, the idea of being terrorized by those same strangers within the confines of your home should be scarier. The idea of someone forcing their way into your house threatens the belief we have that we are safest in the sanctuary of our own home. The Strangers attempts to weave that idea into a story, which it does pretty well. It then attempts to sustain that idea for the length of a two-hour movie, which it doesn’t do very well.

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But if a movie boasts a strong supporting cast - and so many of these guys show great potential - we can't help but become interested in them too as we take a closer look at them and discover more about their work as actors.

In the latest installment of our Twilight Saga series, tMF takes a serious look at the young male actors taking part in this highly-anticipated film.

Nick Stahl is back in the limelight! Not that he ever left the industry - he just seemed rather elusive for a while, becoming quite selective regarding the roles he played. After taking the lead in The Terminator way back in 2003, Nick only made one film a year for the next four years. But 2008 will be a banner year for Stahl - he has four movies on offer and one of them is Quid Pro Quo.

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“I told the actors in rehearsal to think of the story as unfolding entirely within that moment that transpires between deep sleep and wakefulness. So from the earliest rehearsals and creative discussions, all the way through scoring and final sound design, we approached the film within that framework -- that the film itself should be experienced as a kind of dream. Even to the extent that we avoided the usual overtly "dreamy" filmmaking and editing tricks -- in favor of a straightforward style that would, like an actual dream, invite you to perceive it as real.”

A dark spy-comedy from Academy Award winners Joel and Ethan Coen. An ousted CIA official’s (Academy Award nominee John Malkovich) memoir accidentally falls into the hands of two unwise gym employees intent on exploiting their find.

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A few days ago, Latino Review broke the news that Patrick Fugit was being considered as the heir to the Spider-Man throne. His suitability was hotly debated, but apparently all for nothing if the Internet is to be believed.

CHUD happened to be on set of Cirque du Freak, which Fugit has just finished filming, and one of the producers sent off an inquiry as to the truth of the casting rumor. The e-mail was the first Fugit had heard about it -- which means little in the world of "insider scoops," as Fugit could still quite possibly be on a "to be considered" list. Every 20-something male in the world could be on it. Maybe there's a Cinematical reader just waiting to be plucked from obscurity! [ read more ]

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A slang-filled diary narrating the adventures of two Russian dropouts in London won a prestigious literary prize in 2000. Now the book has been turned into a low-budget, English-language film, "Bigga Than Ben," with a cast of British and Russian actors including Andrei Chadov and Ben Barnes. It is set to premiere at the Cinequest Film Festival in California next month.

The book's authors, Pavel Tetersky and Sergei Sakin, were close friends who traveled to London in 1999 with the aim of staying as long as possible. Originally written as a joint diary, "Bigger than Ben" chronicled their dubious methods, including mobile phone and bank-card scams.

When the book won the First Debut prize in 2000, its authors were not talking to each other due to a dispute over who had contributed more to the writing. Sakin went on to star on the Russian version of "Survivor," while Tetersky wrote several solo novels. [ read more ]

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The film began life as a brief newspaper story and will have taken more than 22 years to reach the screen by the time you see it next autumn. That has to be one of the longest gestation periods — even by Hollywood standards. For example, the movie Rain Man , starring Dustin Hoffman and Tom Cruise, took eight years from first draft to first night.

Update:  MTV reports Jack Black denies 'Hobbit' rumors:

“No, no. There’s no talk of it,” the comic proclaimed, denying the article’s validity. “So I’m not gonna talk about it.”

Black said he was a big fan of Del Toro and seemed to indicate that should he eventually be contacted he would be interested. [ read full story ]

While waiting for the upcoming film Wanted with Angelina Jolie, James McAvoy remains one of the most sought-after actors with projects such as The Edge of Love (together with Keira Knightley, among others) and now a possible return to fantasy-adventure (after Chronicles of Narnia) in the LOTR prequel, the Hobbit.

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More from Showbiz Spy:

Scottish actor JAMES McAVOY has been tipped to take the lead role in the new movie version of LORD OF THE RINGS prequel THE HOBBIT. J.R.R. Tolkien's novel is set to be turned into a major blockbuster under the direction of Guillermo del Toro and filming is due to begin in New Zealand later this year (08).

Sir Ian McKellen will reprise his role as Gandalf and McAvoy is rumoured to be the favourite to take the lead role of hobbit Bilbo Baggins. The character was played by Ian Holm in the previous films of the fantasy franchise, but he is due to be replaced by a high profile star for the new movie.

'Gomorra' takes Grand Prix; Jury prize to 'Il Divo'
By Rebecca L. Leffler

CANNES - French director Laurent Cantet proved that last is certainly not least when his docu-like fiction "The Class" ("Entre les Murs") won the coveted Palme d'Or after screening on the last day of the Festival de Cannes. The win was the first Palme d'Or for a French title since 1987.

Based on an autobiographical novel by Francois Begaudeau, who also plays himself as a French teacher, the realistic film stars real teachers and pupils in a rough Parisian neighborhood high school. Though "The Class" screened on the last day of Competition at the Festival, the film received high marks across the board from international critics and audiences.

Robert De Niro, who stars in closing night film Barry Levinson's "What Just Happened?" presented Cantet, Begaudeau and all 25 students who star in the film with the prize at the traditional ceremony in Cannes Palais de Festival grand theater.

"It is ironic that tonight's closing night film is 'What Just Happened?' because when we announce the prizes, many of you will say "What Just Happened"? And that's how it should be," jury president Sean Penn said before presenting the awards. His words rang true as the list of mostly surprising winners unspooled.

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Review by David DiMichele

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If Babe Ruth, arguably the best baseball player of all time, was alive today, would he plunge head-first into the steroid/human growth hormone fiasco that has led to the decay of the game? He was a great player in an era where these enhancements, not to mention the fancy equipment that players of today now swear by, were non-existent…so what need would he have for them? This is what has happened to Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull, the latest installment in what is arguably the greatest series of action films of all time.

The latest buzz on some of your favorite actors is here! The last time we heard about Jake Gyllenhaal was with regard to his upcoming movie called Nailed and the acting duel he's into in Brothers, with Tobey Maguire. This time he'll be taking on a more 'medieval' role as the Prince of Persia, says the Hollywood Reporter:

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In the fantasy adventure, Gyllenhaal will play Dastan, a young prince in sixth century Persia who must join forces with Tamina (Arterton), a feisty and exotic princess, to prevent a villainous nobleman from possessing the Sands of Time, a gift from the gods that can reverse time and allow its possessor to rule the world. [ read more ]

So what gives? Is there a chance for a connection here? Aside from their huge fan bases, a possible question here is - is there a chance for Archuleta and Cook perhaps to render a song as part of the Twilight soundtrack? Is that so far-fetched? Remember, the Twilight fandom can do something about it.

I would think Stephenie Meyer, who prefers rock music, might perhaps choose David Cook...but how about Archuleta with his legions of teen fans? (I'm a huge David A. fan myself!)

What do you think? Is there a chance to join these two massive fandoms and make this upcoming movie even more awesome???

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