Movie News & Gossip

NEW YORK - It was a memorable and merry Christmas in Hollywood as moviegoers shattered box-office records, responding in droves to a diverse array of high-profile releases over the holiday weekend.

The estimated $278 million in weekend box-office revenue broke the previous record of roughly $253 million set in July 2008, the weekend "The Dark Knight" was released.

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Reigning champ "Avatar" easily beat newcomer "Sherlock Holmes" at the Christmas holiday box office in North America after a closely followed duel that saw both films post sizzling sales, according to studio estimates issued on Sunday.

"Avatar," a costly 3-D extravaganza from "Titanic" director James Cameron, earned $75 million during the three days beginning December 25, said distributor 20th Century Fox.

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - British director Guy Ritchie's "Sherlock Holmes" set a Christmas Day sales record at the box office in North America, taking a narrow lead over last weekend's champ, "Avatar," according to early estimates released on Saturday.

"Sherlock Holmes," in which Robert Downey Jr. reinvents the ascetic Victorian sleuth as a dashing superhero, earned $24.9 million during its first day of release on Friday, distributor Warner Bros. Pictures said.

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Nancy Meyers, the middle-aged men of America thank you.

While older men are most often portrayed in films and on television as guys chasing the skirts of women half their age, your new movie "It's Complicated" plays them somewhat differently.

- Capsule reviews of films opening this week:

"Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Squeakquel" — a movie that offers exactly two big laughs for its kiddo audience — one involving passing gas, the other a shot to the crotch. In the considerable gap between these two bits of comic invention, you have plenty of time to ponder why the movie turns on the idea of Dave (Jason Lee) sending Alvin, Simon and Theodore to high school. Do chipmunks, particularly world-famous rock star chipmunks, really need a diploma? Aren't they already smarter than Dave? While there's no story, the movie does double the number of rodents, introducing the girl group, The Chipettes. Alvin and the boys compete against The Chipettes in a talent show, while that darned Ian (David Cross) tries to kidnap the ... oh, why bother going into detail? Just know there's twice the chipmunks and about half the laughs of the 2007 holiday hit. 89 minutes. One star out of four.

- "It's Complicated" is lying from the moment the title appears.

Writer-director Nancy Meyers' latest relationship comedy isn't what the name promises at all. It's simple, almost as simple about grown-up romance and heartache as the average Hollywood teen comedy is about youthful love and sex.

LOS ANGELES (Hollywood Reporter) - "It's Complicated" is a middle-aged sex comedy but with more rom-com urges than farcical ones. It's from writer-director Nancy Meyers, who has found a comfort zone in gentle, even warm comedies about older adults facing complications that re-direct their lives into pleasantly unexpected emotional channels. "Complicated" forges ahead with these themes. Because no one else in Hollywood seemingly makes movies for middle-aged moviegoers, especially women, Meyers inevitably scores box-office successes, and this one should forge ahead in that area, too. Universal releases the film Christmas Day.

What Meyers doesn't do is take chances. She sticks to formula and predictability. In "Complicated," this is as much a matter of casting as writing.

The Classification and Ratings Appeals Board has upheld the R rating given to "It's Complicated" for "some drug content and sexuality."

Directed by Nancy Meyers, the comedy stars Meryl Streep, caught in a love triangle with her ex-husband, played by Alec Baldwin, and a new suitor, played by Steve Martin.