That question seems so common nowadays but a lot of the time, the answer might be negative. Young teens always have this notion (well, some of them anyway!) that keeping a secret from their parents is 'fun' and 'just right' coz they really 'don't get it!'. We talk much about 'teen angst' and argue so much about the validity of the age difference, that sometimes we get lost in the maelstrom of why and how.

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Then comes a book - actually a novel, about vampires and love and patience and trust and much more. For some, the book has already made a difference. So let me ask you again, when was the last time you shared something special with your mom? But before you answer that, let's hear it from the moms...

I am a parent and was thrilled to see the way Stephenie Meyer handled her books. My nine-year-old was reading the books with me and I'm glad I didn't have to tell her she couldn't read the last book because it was too graphic. Of course my daughter knows about sex, but I don't need her delving into sex novels. I've taught my daughter about life because I see it all too clearly. I'm a nurse and I work two jobs that affect my views on teenage sex.

Did you read about those students at a primary school somewhere in Washington state (or perhaps it was somewhere else in the country?) who made a pact to get pregnant? They even celebrated who got pregnant first! But what happens afterwards?

Starring: François Cluzet, Marie-Josée Croze,
Marina Hands, Kristin Scott Thomas
Director: Guillaume Canet
Release Date: July 2, 2008 (Limited)
Running Time: 96 min
MPAA Rating: Unrated
Distributor: MusicBox Films

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Review by David DiMichele

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Tell No One is a French thriller that requires its viewing audience to know nothing more than the main character does. In this way, director Canet heightens the level of realism and creates scenes that have us scratching our heads alongside the main character, Alexander Beck (Francois Cluzet). This confusion couldn’t have worked if Cluzet didn’t have the face of both an innocent puppy and of a sly secret assassin, a man capable of just about anything. So much so that when he changes his attire during the film he takes on the persona that the clothing represents. He’s an everyman and that makes us even more suspicious as Tell No One moves towards its rewarding climax. In order to get there, however, the film follows a procedural route that leads to a detour which takes the film into a complex labyrinth of events with scenes a first-rate spy film would kill for.

...it was made in a time when people had the guts to make movies this good without settling for a cheap spoof.

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Most movies about the college experience happily paint a picture of booze injected partying and chemical experimentation without rules or consequence. Almost as long as kids have been going to college, we have had movies about kids strapping up and taking on the quest. So it shouldn’t come as much of a surprise that high school kids look forward to, and seek out, that very experience – like they should.

Just like the genre itself, this list will be anything but groundbreaking. But on the weekend of the release of the latest addition to the movie fraternity and just as colleges across the country are infiltrated with the newest incoming class of wide-eyed freshman, it was fun to go back and watch some of the old favorites from the list.

tMF Top Five – Best College Movies
By Jeremy Welsch

In the seventeenth century, a 14-year-old orphan named Krabat flees the horrors of the Thirty Years War by becoming an apprentice to the ominous master of a mysterious mill. One of 12 young men working for the miller, Krabat is not only taught the craft of milling but is also initiated into a sinister world of dark arts. When the life of his friend and protector becomes threatened, Krabat must struggle to free himself from an evil sorcerer’s control in a gripping fight for freedom, friendship and love.

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If the recent news of the delayed release of Harry Potter disappointed you, then perhaps you might want to watch a new German movie about sorcery, magic and mystery. While it seems unfair to compare the two movies, I for one was looking forward to seeing the latest Harry Potter this year, so I was definitely on the lookout for movies dealing with similar themes.

From the director Marco Kreuzpaintner, who gave us the critically acclaimed Summer Storm (starring Robert Stadlober and Kostja Ullmann), comes a movie called Krabat. Aside from two of my all-time German favorites Daniel Brühl and Stadlober, the film also introduce us to one of Germany's rising teen actors, David Kross. [See the movie trailer right after the jump ]

I loved that this film recognizes the intelligence of the viewer, allowing the layers to peel from the characters through their interactions with each other about the unspoken loss that has so affected each of them.

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With such praise for an indie movie, what can you do but get interested, right? Well, I did and to a certain extent I think some other people are also interested. The only problem is that it's already been released and the only way for you to watch it now is on DVD. But is it really worth it? I definitely think so. For starters, the lead is no other than the awesome young actor Ryan Donowho, with whom I just did an interview.

This young guy can act and act well. I don't know if I watched him first in Imaginary Heroes or Home at the End of the World, but I simply don't care anymore. He's so good in both films, you need to buy them or rent them in advance.

Back to the movie! The Pacific and Eddy is directed by Matthew Nourse and one of its producers is Thomas J. Rasera. tMF is fortunate that both agreed to an interview and we'll be featuring those soon.

One of my all-time favorite actors is Romain Duris. I probably have all of his movies on DVD and watch them from time to time while doing tMF. He has this aura of mystery about him and he's quite a character himself. It's hard to say how good he is as an actor because you never know what to expect from him. But perhaps it's this unpredictability that makes him the fine actor that he is.

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I still remember the first time I saw him, in The Beat That My Heart Skipped from filmmaker Jacques Audiard. It's one of the most powerful and moving films I've ever watched. In that film, he yearns to get away from his life as a thug and pursue a musical career as a pianist. The movie is filled with gems: there is this one scene where Thomas (played by Duris of course) meets up with his father and his new girlfriend, played by the one and only Emmanuelle Devos (who was fantastic in Kings and Queen and Read my Lips). It was a difficult scene for Chris (Devos) who wanted so much to please her boyfriend's son. But it's the scene that kept me watching it again and again.

Another incredible scene is when Thomas is talking on the phone and warning the leader of the Russian mafia who managed to steal money from his father. It was hilarious! There are also some incredibly moving tragic scenes. I think the most important reason why I like it so much is the way the father-son relationship is explored. I'm not very close to my father but I have a lot of respect for him. Many like me would probably be able to identify with Duris, wanting so much to please a father and in the end sacrificing something personal for the sake of the relationship.

The movie won the BAFTA Best Film award as well as an incredible 17 other major and minor awards.

My introduction to Spanish cinema came a few years back when I watched Pedro Almodovar's All About My Mother. It was an enlightening experience, to say the least. I was engrossed by Almodovar's filmmaking style. Its different, very satisfying, and filled with excitement, drama and flamboyance. For a while I followed the filmmaker's career and watched almost all of his recent films - including Bad Education (with Gael Garcia Bernal) and Volver (starring his muse, Penelope Cruz). After that, I somehow lost interest... and it is only now that I have become interested in Spanish cinema again.

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When we started the tMF initiative for Little Ashes, we wanted to focus on many things, and one of them was to provide viewers with more than just an introduction to the cast. There is no problem with Robert Pattinson: everyone knows him and there are enough resources on the web to write a 3-page profile (or longer if you want) on young Rob. But what about Javier Beltrán? For someone to get first billing in a Paul Morrison movie, he must surely be good!

Let's see what we have at the moment. Beltran's role in Little Ashes is actually his first in a movie. If that surprises or even alarms you, then maybe you're a fan of Robert Pattinson and you want him to have top billing?

What makes an amazing actor? What causes an ordinary moviegoer to become an ardent, hardcore fan? Are good looks enough in today's almost cutthroat competition to create the next big Hollywood star? Are talents really being recognized, and are fans mature enough to embrace the really talented actors?

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And the biggest question of all: who are the hottest, most talented young actors today? The Movie Fanatic asked industry insiders, ordinary movie fans, film critics and reviewers to give us some of their top choices. We also based our list on the latest announcements coming from British, German and French cinema industry reports. While we're still compiling the votes and drawing up the final list, here's an introduction into which factors we considered while drawing up the list and what goes into the actual rankings.

Factor#1: Talent agents' favorites and those making waves in theater and recent high-profile movies (aka the continuing British invasion...now let's hear it for the new faces!) Our friend Nick Shannon voted Colin Morgan as one of his top choices for an up and coming talents and here's why:

Hailed as the most exciting drama school graduate since Ben Whishaw, Colin Morgan dazzled the critics with his electrifying stage debut in last year's Vernon God Little at the Young Vic. He followed it with All About My Mother at the Old Vic and A Prayer For My Daughter at the Young Vic. Morgan is now taking the lead in the BBC's high-profile series Merlin, to air later this year. Not afraid of waiting until the right film project comes his way, he says he wanted a strong grounding in the theatre but is now enjoying being in front of the cameras. "Screen work is more unnerving," he says, "because the end result is so far down the line; you're never quite sure you've got it completely right." Reaction from film insiders suggest he has nothing to worry about.

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