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Ethan Hawke and Julie Delpy in Sony Pictures Classics' 'Before Midnight'

Must-See Movies Beyond the Blockbusters

"Before Midnight," the third and richest collaboration between Ethan Hawke, Julie Delpy and director Richard Linklater, finds the French and American couple Celine (Julie Delpy) and Jesse (Ethan Hawke) still talking, talking, talking – and making love.

Having met on a train nearly two decades ago and day-tripped together in Vienna (“Before Sunrise”) then reunited years later in Paris after Jesse published a novel about their night together (“Before Sunset”), the pair are currently coupled, with children. Now, in the waning hours of a summer vacation on a Greek isle, Celine and Jesse struggle to navigate the rocky seas of divorce, domesticity and approaching middle age.

Oh, what a difference nearly two decades together makes – both in the way the couple relates to each other, and the way the audiences relates to them!

[Related: Critic’s Pick: ‘Frances Ha’]

The trilogy’s third day unfolds with end-of-summer sweet-sadness. Jesse bids goodbye to his tween-aged son (Seamus Davey-Fitzpatrick) from his troublesome American

Benedict Cumberbatch stripped down for 'Star Trek,' too (Photo: Paramount/TBS)

All that talk over Alice Eve's underwear scene has J.J. Abrams on the defensive. On TBS's "Conan" on Wednesday night, the mega director pointed out that Chris Pine (who plays Captain Kirk) was shirtless in "Star Trek Into Darkness." He even brought in part of a deleted scene to show O'Brien that when it comes to showing skin in "Star Trek," Abrams is an equal opportunist.

"You've been taking some heat for a scene – I personally didn’t see what the fuss was about myself, I was quite happy about the scene – there's this scene where Alice Eve, Kirk gets a quick look at her in her underwear," O'Brien said.

"The intent was, it’s Kirk, who is always this womanizing character," Abrams explained. "The idea was, have a beat like that in the midst of all this action and adventure … I don’t think I edited the scene in quite the right way. To me, it was a sort of balance – there's a scene earlier where [Kirk]'s not dressed either – so it felt like it was sort of a tradeoff. But some people did

Luke Skywalker's pants (Everett/Nate D. Sanders)
Pop quiz, hotshot: Your best friend is having a "Star Wars"-themed costume party, and you want your Luke Skywalker costume to be really, really authentic. How much is it worth to you to know you've got exactly the right pair of pants? $36,000, perhaps?

Well, someone believes Luke's pants are worth that much, and they've written the check to prove it. Nate D. Sanders, an online auction house, sold the off-white cotton pants Mark Hamill wore as Luke in the original 1977 "Star Wars" to an unnamed bidder Wednesday for $36,100, as part of a sale devoted to Hollywood collectables.

Jaimie Alexander and Rodrigo Santoro in Lionsgate's 'The Last Stand'

If Jaimie Alexander has somehow flown under your radar thus far, you might want to get a new radar.

Yes, Alexander's awfully nice to look at, but that's not the only reason to keep an eye on the rising star; she's also well on her way to becoming a bona fide action hero.

Alexander is probably best known for playing Lady Sif in Marvel's "Thor," a role she'll be regally reprising in "Thor: The Dark World," which debuts this November.

And with her recent gig playing opposite Arnold Schwarzenegger in the Governator's big comeback film, "The Last Stand," Alexander certainly pumped up her action resume. Alexander plays Sarah Torrance, a small-town police officer who stands shoulder to shoulder with grizzled Chief Ray Owens (Schwarzenegger) and a ragtag host of deputies (including Luis Guzman and Johnny Knoxville) to fend off a drug kingpin trying to shoot his way across the Mexican border. It's an old-school, good vs bad action flick, and Alexander more than holds her own.

While promoting this week's home entertainment release of "The Last Stand," Alexander spoke with us over the phone. Besides chatting about why the film got a bum rap and what it's like to shoot an action flick with Arnold, Alexander also spoke candidly about what we can expect from Lady Sif in the next "Thor," how her high school wrestling days prepared her for action, and whether or not she can beat up her boyfriend, "Twilight" star Peter Facinelli.

Relativity Media

"There's only a few things I really care about in life. My body. My pad. My ride. My family. My church. My boys. My girls. My porn."

Joseph Gordon-Levitt doesn't waste any time establishing his character's priorities in the first trailer to his directorial debut, "Don Jon," and just because pornography comes last on the list, don't think it's what he values the least. In fact, the title character spends a lot of time locked in a mental debate, wondering if women in real life could ever make him feel as good as the women he ogles online.

Watch the first trailer for 'Don Jon':

As the trailer opens, Jon Martello, played by Gordon-Levitt, explains what he loves in a fast montage while he pumps iron, does the vacuuming, peels out in a vintage muscle car, snaps his picture with his parents and sister, stops by at confession, watches a football game, makes out with a girl at the bar, and finally spends some quality time alone with his laptop.

Jon has this speech worked out like a mantra,

Dane DeHaan in 'Metallica Through the Never' (Photo: Picturehouse)

"Metallica Through the Never" is an upcoming IMAX 3D extravaganza that offers a fresh spin on the whole tried-and-true "concert film" format. More than a just a "spin," actually -- it adds an additional parallel narrative to concert footage of the longtime band proving that nobody rocks quite as hard as guys who traditionally might have retired about two decades ago.