Upcoming: Burn After Reading

The men who brought us last year's Oscar-winning No Country for Old Men return with Burn After Reading, a dark spy-comedy starring George Clooney, Tilda Swinton, Frances McDermond, Brad Pitt and John Malkovich. An ousted CIA official’s (Malkovich) memoir accidentally falls into the hands of two unwise gym employees intent on exploiting their find. The Focus Features release will hit screens Sept. 12. Check out the trailer

Poli-break: McCain Chooses Little-Known Palin

The presumptive Republican presidential nominee Sen. John McCain chose the little-known, first-term Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin as his running mate. The man who previously criticized Barack Obama as inexperienced chose a woman who has served a little less than two years as governor of a state with a population only slightly larger than the crowd that attended Obama's acceptance speech in Denver. Previously, she was mayor of a small Alaskan suburb.

The New York Times reports that "this month, a bipartisan panel of state legislators appointed an independent investigator to look into whether Ms. Palin had fired a top law enforcement official in her administration because he had failed to dismiss a state trooper who was involved in a divorce with Ms. Palin’s sister."

The Obama camp issued this statement: "Today, John McCain put the former mayor of a town of 9,000 with zero foreign policy experience a heartbeat away from the presidency," Obama spokesman Bill Burton said in a statement.

Burton also criticized Palin as a vice presidential pick for her support of oil drilling in the Alaskan wilderness and her anti-abortion stance, referring to the 1973 Supreme Court decision that made abortion legal in the United States.

"Governor Palin shares John McCain's commitment to overturning Roe v. Wade, the agenda of Big Oil and continuing George Bush's failed economic policies. That's not the change we need, it's just more of the same," he said.

Poli-break: Obama Makes History on a Historic Day

Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.) became the first African-American to accept a presidential nomination from a major political party on a historic day: 45 years to the day when Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. delivered his "I Have a Dream" speech in Washington.

In a 45-minute address before an audience of more than 80,000 people at Invesco Field in Denver, Obama presented his most thorough case to date against his Republican rival, Sen. John McCain of Arizona, while simultaneously describing in detail his plan to change Washington. (Read the FULL TEXT here)

I was most moved by the conclusion of Obama's speech, which summed up the spirit and significance of his campaign.

It is that American spirit, that American promise, that pushes us forward even when the path is uncertain; that binds us together in spite of our differences; that makes us fix our eye not on what is seen, but what is unseen, that better place around the bend. . . .

And it is that promise that, 45 years ago today, brought Americans from every corner of this land to stand together on a Mall in Washington, before Lincoln's Memorial, and hear a young preacher from Georgia speak of his dream.

The men and women who gathered there could've heard many things. They could've heard words of anger and discord. They could've been told to succumb to the fear and frustrations of so many dreams deferred.

But what the people heard instead -- people of every creed and color, from every walk of life -- is that, in America, our destiny is inextricably linked, that together our dreams can be one.

"We cannot walk alone," the preacher cried. "And as we walk, we must make the pledge that we shall always march ahead. We cannot turn back."

America, we cannot turn back...

... not with so much work to be done; not with so many children to educate, and so many veterans to care for; not with an economy to fix, and cities to rebuild, and farms to save; not with so many families to protect and so many lives to mend.

America, we cannot turn back. We cannot walk alone.

At this moment, in this election, we must pledge once more to march into the future. Let us keep that promise, that American promise, and in the words of scripture hold firmly, without wavering, to the hope that we confess.

In response, the McCain camp released the following statement:

"Tonight, Americans witnessed a misleading speech that was so fundamentally at odds with the meager record of Barack Obama. When the temple comes down, the fireworks end, and the words are over, the facts remain: Senator Obama still has no record of bipartisanship, still opposes offshore drilling, still voted to raise taxes on those making just $42,000 per year, and still voted against funds for American troops in harm's way. The fact remains: Barack Obama is still not ready to be President."

Interestingly, on this very night, McCain also released a commercial congratulating Obama on his nomination. McCain says: "Senator Obama, this is truly a good day for America. Too often the achievements of our opponents go unnoticed. So I wanted to stop and say, congratulations. How perfect that your nomination would come on this historic day. Tomorrow, we'll be back at it. But tonight Senator, job well done."

Mad Men: All About Betty

The second season of AMC's Mad Men is a tour de force of television drama. And while Don Draper remains the most intriguing leading man on television since Tony Soprano, this season belongs to the women. No surprise that Don's wife has quickly turned into the Queen B among them. (Check out the episode recap on TVGuide.com)

January Jones is absolutely riveting as Betty Draper. She's the anti-June Cleaver who compares her children to horse manure on the bottom of her riding boots, flirts with a mechanic because she's finally realizing the power of her own sexuality, and pushes her husband because he won't smack their son. While Betty seemed a sad child in the first season, she's matured to something of a conniving teen, playing the kind of psychological games with her philandering husband that just can't end well.

Betty had the least amount of screen time among the women in episode five. But she had the last words.

Don has revealed to her that he has high blood pressure. He comes home from work and his wife and children are at the table eating meatloaf. He takes a bite, looks around the table, and asks for the salt. Better shakes her head.

"You'll get used to it," she said.

"Why can't daddy have salt?" the daughter asks.

"Because we love him," Better asserts.

Though we believe her, there is something cold and unsettling in her delivery.

Her pronouncement silences the table, and the family eats their all-American meal as the scene fades to black.

This, my friends, is TV.

Mad Men airs at 10 p.m. Sundays on AMC.

Trailer: The Secret Life of Bees

Fox Searchlight has released the official trailer for The Secret Life of Bees. Check it out HERE.

Based upon the novel by: Sue Monk Kidd
Produced by : Lauren Shuler Donner, James Lassiter, Will Smith, Joe Pichirallo
Executive Produced by: Jada Pinkett Smith
Cast: Queen Latifah, Dakota Fanning, Jennifer Hudson, Alicia Keys, Sophie Okonedo, Nate Parker, Tristan Wilds, Hilarie Burton and Paul Bettany

The Secret Life of Bees, based on the New York Times best-selling novel and set in South Carolina in 1964, is the moving tale of Lily Owens (Fanning) a 14-year-old girl who is haunted by the memory of her late mother (Burton). To escape her lonely life and troubled relationship with her father (Bettany), Lily flees with Rosaleen (Hudson), her caregiver and only friend, to a South Carolina town that holds the secret to her mother's past. Taken in by the intelligent and independent Boatwright sisters (Latifah, Okonedo and Keys), Lily finds solace in their mesmerizing world of beekeeping.

Poli-break: Obama-Biden '08

Barack Obama has selected Joe Biden to be his running mate.

Upcoming: Blindness

This fall, Julianne Moore, Mark Ruffalo, Danny Glover and Gael Garcia Bernal star in Fernando Meirelles' adaptation of Nobel Prize winner Jose Saramago's novel. An unexplained epidemic of blindness strikes an unknown city, and the stricken are forced to depend on each other and the single sighted person in their midst. Check out the TRAILER. This looks kinda dope. Opens everywhere Sept. 26.

Must See: Tropic Thunder

You must - must - see Tropic Thunder. If only to watch Tom Cruise give the funniest performance of his career. Or to watch Robert Downey Jr. "play the dude that's playin' the dude that's disguised as another dude." Or to see Ben Stiller's oddly endearing performance as the washed-up action hero trying to turn himself into a serious dramatic actor. Or Jack Black as the coked-out comedian whose only claim to fame is a series of movies in which he played all of the members of an overweight family that finds laughs in farting at the dinner table. Or better yet, Brandon T. Jackson as Alpa Chino, the rapper-turned-actor who has found a $2 million revenue stream in hawking a drink called Booty Sweat and an apparel line that includes Alpa Chino chinos at the Gap. From the very first faux trailer to the end credits, this is one of the funniest and smartest movies I've seen in years. Comic genius seems an appropriate phrase right about now.

Waste of Time: Step Brothers

Talk about misleading trailer: I laughed once -- scratch that, chuckled once -- during the wasted minutes I watched Step Brothers. Thank God I didn't pay money to see this piece-of-garbage movie.

Upcoming: The Curious Case of Benjamin Button

This is going to be waaaay cool. Possibly Brad Pitt's first viable chance at an Academy Award. He co-stars with Oscar winners Cate Blanchett and Tilda Swinton. Taraji Henson (Hustle & Flow) plays Pitts mom in the movie. Check this out.

New Release Date for 'Half-Blood Prince'

This is completely F'd Up! The Hollywood Reporter is saying the film adaptation of Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince isn't going to hit screens until July 2009!!!!

Here's the statement:

"We are still feeling the repercussions of the writers strike, which impacted the readiness of scripts for other films -- changing the competitive landscape for 2009 and offering new windows of opportunity that we wanted to take advantage of," Horn said. "We agreed the best strategy was to move 'Half-Blood Prince' to July, where it perfectly fills the gap for a major tentpole release for midsummer."

Upcoming: The Secret Life of Bees

I saw the teaser trailer today for The Secret Life of Bees and it dawned on me: The Oscar season is getting ready to start. Based on a book of the same name, Bees brings together Queen Latifah, Dakota Fanning, Jennifer Hudson, Sophie Okonedo (four women who are no strangers to critical praise for dramatic work) in the moving tale of Lily Owens (Fanning) a 14 year-old girl who is haunted by the memory of her late mother.

To escape her lonely life and troubled relationship with her father, Lily flees with Rosaleen (Hudson), her caregiver and only friend, to a South Carolina town that holds the secret to her mother's past. Taken in by the intelligent and independent Boatwright sisters, Lily finds solace in their mesmerizing world of beekeeping, honey and the Black Madonna.

Upcoming: The Family That Preys

Tyler Perry has stepped up his game since the poorly received Meet the Browns. His upcoming movie, The Family That Preys (due Sept. 12), follows the families of two women: socialite Charlotte Cartwright (Kathy Bates) and her friend Alice Pratt (Alfre Woodard).

If there's any truth in advertising, this movie should bring together all of the themes Perry has been toying with since he made his transition from stage to screen: faith, family, class and fidelity. And because his stock as a filmmaker has been on a steady rise since he brought us Diary of a Mad Black Woman, he was able to fill this latest movie with a string of serious actors - both black and white.

We've mentioned Woodard and Bates, both cast perfectly as powerful yet endearing matriarchs. Their co-stars are equally impressive and familiar: Sanaa Lathan (Love and Basketball, Something New), KaDee Strickland (American Gangster, Private Practice), Rockmond Dunbar (Soul Food), Taraji Henson (Hustle & Flow), Cole Hauser (K-Ville), Robin Givens (no introduction needed since Boomerang and Mike Tyson).

Check out the TRAILER. Lathan looks absolutely stunning and is playing up the kind of bad girl persona that she dabbled with in her guest appearances on Nip/Tuck.

Must See: Tropic Thunder

The critics are swooning over Ben Stiller's latest flick, Tropic Thunder, hailing it as an inventively clever "barrage of scathing hilarity." The star of the flick is Robert Downey Jr.

Check this out from Roger Ebert, who, by the way, gives the movie 4 1/2 stars:

"All but stealing the show, Robert Downey Jr. is not merely funny but also very good and sometimes even subtle as Kirk Lazarus, an Australian actor who has won five Oscars and has surgically dyed his skin to transform himself into a black man. So committed is he to this role that he remains in character at all times, seemingly convinced that he is actually black.

This exasperates his fellow actor Alpa Chino (Brandon T. Jackson), a rapper who was born black and blasts Lazarus for his delusions. Alpa Chino (say it out loud) is like many rappers and promotes his own merchandise, notably Booty Sweat, an energy drink that keeps him going in the jungle."

Tropic Thunder was Certified Fresh on Rotten Tomatoes with 84 percent of the reputable reviewers giving positive reviews. I'm checking this out this weekend.

Upcoming: The Longshots

The last time I saw Ice Cube in a serious dramatic role, the movie was Boyz N the Hood. Since then, the former rapper has appeared in a string of forgettable flicks playing a variation of the same character. In The Longshots, due out Aug. 22, he plays father-figure and coach to Keke Palmer (Akeelah and the Bee). Based on the trailer, it looks like both of these actors have done a lot of maturing since we've last seen them, and together, they'll give us a story that's worth something. The only wild car is the director: Fred Durst.

Upcoming: Vicky Cristina Barcelona

Woody Allen and his muse (Scarlett Johansson) have taken their mojo to Spain. This time they bring along two of the hottest actors on the face of the earth: Penelope Cruz and Javier Bardem. And the early work about Vicky Cristina Barcelona is the movie, hitting theaters on Aug. 15, is smoking! David Denby of the New Yorker says it "has a natural, flowing vitality to it, a sun-drenched splendor that never falters."

Passable: The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor

It ain't as bad as they say (9 percent on RottenTomatoes! Really?!).

Yes, the dialogue is a bit banal.

Yes, Brendan Fraser doesn't do much real acting here.

Yes, Maria Bello seems out of place here (oh, Rachel Weisz, you could have made this sooo much better!).

Yes, the story is a bit trite.

Yes, there are waaaay better action adventure flicks in the cineplex and at the video store.

But the Tomb of the Dragon Emperor is still passable family entertainment. It stomps the second flick in the series into smithereens. And you won't be absolutely bored. You'll laugh, actually, at parts. You'll root for the good guys. You'll enjoy the action sequences, particularly the second, when the creatures that look like North Pole cousins to Wookies show up and do damage to the psycho general and his minions.

As I walked out of the theater, I asked myself: If the studio had saw fit to simply keep the story in the past, centered on Michelle Yeoh (above) and Jet Li's (below) characters, would it have been a thousand times better? Probably.