'Anna Karenina' premieres in London

LONDON: Keira Knightley and Jude Law swept along a red carpet, complete with chandeliers, at the world premiere of their new movie "Anna Karenina."

The London event Tuesday was slightly less theatrical than the film itself - an interpretation of Leo Tolstoy's epic love story, set in 19th century Russia.

Knightley portrays the title role, the tragic heroine torn between reputation and romance.

Law plays her jilted husband, while Aaron Taylor-Johnson is the man she falls for.

Knightley says one daunting aspect of playing Anna was "trying not to simplify her at all and actually go with all the complexities."

"Anna Karenina," directed by Joe Wright, opens in the UK on Friday and hits the US this November. (AP)

Red carpet premiere of 'Spy Kids 4' held in LA

LOS ANGELES: The red carpet premiere of 'Spy Kids 4' was staged in Los Angeles in which actress Jessica Alba and the director of the movie Robert Rodriguez among various personalities were also present.

The movie is the fourth in the Spy Kids franchise, but the first time Alba has had a role.

She plays the part of retired spy Marissa, who is thrust back into action along with her two step children, played by Rowan Blanchard and Mason Cook, after maniacal Timekeeper (Jeremy Piven) attempts to take over the world.

Extravagant premiere of ‘Harry Potter’ held in NY

NEW YORK: Cast and crew members of the "Harry Potter" movies reflect on their ten years in the series.

On the final big red carpet screening of the last Harry Potter movie, cast and crew members speak their minds about their ten-year ride with the boy wizard.

Cast and crew of the final Harry Potter installment, "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2" braved the heat to walk the final major red carpet for the series -- the North American premiere at Lincoln Center in New York on Monday (July 11).

Welcomed by hordes of screaming Potter-fanatics, the stars graced the massive red carpet to take pictures and hand out their final autographs to fans as Harry, Hermione and Ron.

In a night filled with nostalgia, the stars took their time to speak about the past ten years with the series.
Radcliffe who is in the lead role of boy wizard Harry Potter, when asked what he would miss the most.
"So I will that, and I will also miss the crew the cast everything about what was my day to day life for ten years," he added

Director David Yates was at the helm of the last four Potter movie adaptations, and said that the red carpet event did not feel like an ending.

In the final episode Harry finally faces off with his arch enemy Lord Voldemort, and it will tie lose ends from the previous films including the the romantic relationship between Hermione and Ron. In the film the two finally share a kiss, which was a hard thing to do for both the actors according to actress Emma Watson who is in the role of Hermione Granger.

More than 400 million copies have been sold around the globe, making Rowling the first billionaire author and providing a huge support base upon which the films were built.

But for many fans the adventures of Harry Potter had a deep impact on their personal lives, such as Yarineth Pena, who spent 12 hours in the heat to catch a glimpse of her heroes.

But not all is coming to an end as Rowling has recently unveiled Pottermore, a website allowing fans to interact with the characters and storylines, and will finally retail the stories as ebooks exclusively on the site.

The movie opens in some countries on July 13, and in the key British and U.S. markets on July 15. (Reuters)

French director gives 'Green Hornet' a fresh twist

LOS ANGELES: French director Michel Gondry, best known for directing brainy indie movies, makes his Hollywood blockbuster debut this weekend with "The Green Hornet," an action-comedy that refuses to take its comic book hero too seriously.

The movie is the latest take on the adventures of a masked millionaire avenger and his sidekick Kato, a story line that began as a radio show in the 1930s, reached its zenith with a television show in the 1960s, then found a second life in the comic books.

The movie stars Seth Rogen, 28, the Canadian actor famous for his man-child roles in comedies like "Superbad" (2007) and "Pineapple Express" (2008).

The 108-minute, 90 million dollar production is directed by Gondry, best known for low-budget but well-reviewed movies like "Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind" (2004) and "Be Kind, Rewind" (2008).

"My goal was never to do movies for intellectuals," Gondry, 47, said. "In fact, I have this complex that I have not read enough, so when people say I'm an intellectual director, I laugh. I'm not like that at all."

Gondry said he has always liked popular movies like "Back To The Future," "Groundhog Day," "Ghostbusters" and "48 Hours," all light-hearted character driven films.

But he says you can forget the brooding hero types. "I'm not crazy about the superhero movies when the characters are too serious or presumptuous," he said.

Gondry made a mark early in his career with music videos, using innovative techniques to film musicians such as Iceland's Bjork performing songs such as "Human Behavior" and "Army of Me" in the 1990s.

Aside from "Eternal Sunshine" -- which star Kate Winslet has said is her favorite movie -- his work includes "The Science of Sleep" (2006), another low-budget flick, starring Mexican Gael Garcia Bernal and French actress Charlotte Gainsbourg.

Big budget Hollywood blockbusters however beckoned.

"Yes, I wanted to do an action movie, but action with comedy," said Gondry.

The French director said he has been working on "The Green Hornet" screenplay for years, even as other directors, including Kevin Smith and George Clooney, were briefly considered for the project.

Gondry had not met Rogen when the star was linked to the project, so he went to see "Superbad" and "Pineapple Express," movies with a strong appeal to the under 30 crowd. Rogen wrote the script to the films, and also wrote "The Green Hornet" script.

"I saw something very engaging in these movies," he said, concluding that he would make a good match with Rogen.

In "The Green Hornet" Rogen portrays Britt Reid, a rich kid from Los Angeles and the son of a media magnate who dies in mysterious circumstances. Rogen's character, along with Kato, one of his father's trusted employees, don masks and fight crime as they unravel the mystery.

In the role of Kato, which launched martial arts legend Bruce Lee to superstardom in the 1960s TV show, is Taiwanese pop singer Jay Chou, who is largely unknown in the United States but has a loyal following in Asia.

"Yesterday he did a concert with 10,000 girls screaming at him, right here, at the Sports Arena (in Los Angeles)," Gondry said. "Sold out. He's a huge star.

"What I liked about him is that he looks boyish and unassuming... He's even older than Seth, but he looks so young that you don't even know. He had to compensate his lack of English, which I thought was endearing."

The movie's villain is Austrian actor Christoph Waltz, who won a 2010 Oscar for his role in Quentin Tarantino's "Inglourious Basterds." Cameron Diaz is the love interest.

Gondry, who spends his life shuttling between Los Angeles and New York, even played drums in several parts of the movie soundtrack. "I'm not very skilled but I play music, drums, I'm making a disc album with my girlfriend right now," he said.

As for movie reviews -- "I wish I could say I don't read reviews but I do," he confessed.

"It's not necessarily pleasant. I'm always hoping that they will understand me and forgive me, and sometimes I'm hurt by the reviews, but on these movies it's such a team work that I won't feel so personal if people don't like it," he said.

'Green Hornet' poised to be first hit of 2011

LOS ANGELES: Fueled by younger males, Sony Pictures' 3D superhero pic "The Green Hornet" should sport a potent sting this weekend.

Universal Pictures' "The Dilemma," directed by Ron Howard, will have a tougher time and could bring muted numbers for a Vince Vaughn or Kevin James comedy.

Conservative estimates have "Green Hornet" grossing in the mid-$30 million range for the four-day Martin Luther King Jr. holiday weekend. The film goes out Friday in 3,584 theaters domestically, including 174 Imax runs, and will easily place No. 1.

Favorite holdovers to watch include Paramount Pictures' "True Grit," Fox Searchlight's "Black Swan" and the Weinstein Co.'s "The King's Speech."

With the Golden Globes airing Sunday, many moviegoers will rush to catch up on awards frontrunners.

"Black Swan" and "King's Speech" are assisting in this task by making major expansions "Swan" ups its theater count from 1,552 to 2,331 on Friday, while "King's Speech" goes from 758 theaters to 1,543.

Among other Globe-nominated films, the Weinstein Co.'s "Blue Valentine" expands from 40 runs to 230, and Sony Pictures Classics opens "Barney's Version" in four theaters in New York and L.A. after a brief qualifying run last month.

"Green Hornet," converted to 3D, is poised to become the first commercial hit of 2011. Tracking has been exceptionally strong, enough to impress one-time skeptics.

The film also makes a major push overseas, opening day and date in a number of key territories.

Directed by Michel Gondry and toplining Seth Rogen and Jay Chou, "Green Hornet" cost upward of $100 million to produce. Christoph Waltz and Cameron Diaz also star.

Opening in 2,941 theaters domestically, "The Dilemma" will have to compete for adult eyeballs with "True Grit" and "Black Swan."

Universal expects "The Dilemma" to gross in the mid to high teens over the four-day weekend. That would be enough to put the movie which cost $70 million to make on the right track financially, according to the studio.

However, "The Dilemma" will need good word-of-mouth and strong legs to end up in the black. Universal is comparing the movie to "Something's Gotta Give," which opened to $16.1 million and grossed $124.7 million domestically. However, that film played during the Christmas frame, when the multiple is much higher.

"The Dilemma," also starring Winona Ryder, Jennifer Connelly and Channing Tatum, is the first comedy directed by Howard in more than a decade. The plot revolves around a man (Vaughn) who discovers that the wife of his best friend and business partner (James) is having an affair and doesn't know what to do.

The film is tracking best among women over 25. The softest quadrant is men over 25, prompting some box-office observers to suggest the subject matter could be off-putting.

Universal says "The Dilemma" deals with serious relationship issues, similar to "The Break-Up," which paired Vaughn with Jennifer Aniston. "Break-Up," also a Universal film, opened to $39.2 million domestically on its way to grossing $118.7 million.

Vaughn's previous film, "Couples Retreat," bowed to $34.3 million in October 2009 and brought in $109.2 domestically.

"The Dilemma" opens in the same slot that Sony used to debut "Paul Blart: Mall Cop," which rocketed James to movie stardom after opening to an unexpectedly strong $31.8 million en route to a $146.3 million domestic gross.

This week at the domestic box office, "True Grit" has continued to place No. 1, followed by "Black Swan" and Universal's Christmas comedy "Little Fockers." "True Grit's" gross through Wednesday was $113.8 million, with "Black Swan" at $63.9 million and "Fockers" at $126.2 million.

‘Morning Glory’ red carpet premiere

LONDON: Rachel McAdams was met with a rapturous response as she hit the red carpet in Berlin last night for the premiere of Morning Glory Dazzling fans as she made her entrance at the Berlin premiere, Rachel had opted for full-on drama in a black and scarlet Grecian-style Michael Kors gown matched with a bold red lip.

While she turned redhead for her part in Morning Glory, the Notebook-famed starlet debuted newly blonde locks for the `film's premiere last night, worked into a dramatic twisted up-do.

Rachel was joined by co-stars Harrison Ford and Diane Keaton, who play rival presenters in the new comedy about a struggling morning TV show.

The Green Hornet premiered

LOS ANGELES: Helping to fight bad guys and rid the world of crime clearly appears to have done wonders for Cameron Diaz.

The actress looked in the best shape of her life as she arrived at the premiere of her latest film in Hollywood last night.

She posed for the cameras as she walked into Grauman's Chinese theatre and showed off a very trim figure which looked toned and lean in her fitted red Azzaro dress.

Diaz, who looked tanned from her New Year's holiday to Mexico with baseball star boyfriend Alex Rodriguez, has always boasted a slimline figure since she shot to fame in The Mask in 1994 aged 21.

But Diaz, 38, looked like she could still pass for a woman in her twenties with her stunning figure giving any younger counterpart a run for their money.

She demanded the flashbulbs' attention in her asymmetrical Azzaro dress and nude Casadei shoes as she joined her co-stars for the screening.

The Green Hornet is a superhero film, based on the fictional character created by American writer Fran Striker for radio in the 1930s.

Written by and starring Seth Rogen, the Knocked Up star plays Britt Reid, the son of wealthy newspaper publisher James Reid- played by Tom Wilkinson - who inherits his father's media empire when he dies.

He teams up with his father's assistant Kato, played by Jay Chou, to become a masked crime fighting team, that, with some extra help from new secretary Lenore Case, played by Diaz, battles Russian criminal Benjamin Chudnofsky, played by Christoph Waltz, who controls the city's criminal underworld.

And most of the cast were in attendance last night, including Taiwan-born Chou, 31, and Edward Furlong, 33, who is better known for his role as John Connor in Terminator 2.

Then 14, he is now 33 and looked all grown up as he smiled for the cameras at the premiere of the film, in which he plays Tupper, one of Chudnofsky's minions.

The film is released on Friday in the US and UK and is available in 3D after having its release date pushed back from its original date of July 9 last year.

And Rogen said he found the action scenes quite tough to film.

He said: 'We tried to use as few visual effects as possible. So there's a lot of cars crashing through buildings and explosions and stuff, and I just had to try to not look as terrified as I was for the most part.

'In the action scenes, what you have to be most conscious of is not getting blown up or run over by a car. It can be dangerous.'