Sometimes a movie comes along that I just know I’m going to love. Death Race is not that movie. Vicious prison inmates drag racing to their deaths? Unless it happens to be an episode of Bad Girls, I think not. I have to say, though, that a certain someone has caused me to reconsider — Joan Allen, to be exact.

Allen plays Warden Hennessey, the corrupt prison matron of Terminal Island. If you’ve never quite understood the meaning of the term “sociopath,” her character could teach you. She would be quite strict, too, with authority oozing from every pore. Uh, what was I talking about again?

Oh, yes, Joan Allen as the prison warden who forces prisoners to participate in violent races and reaps financial rewards via pay-per-view broadcasts of the contests. The year is 2012, and whoever was elected president apparently did not fix the economy. The U.S. is in a depression, crime rules the streets and reality TV has morphed into a futuristic version of Extreme Gladiators called — wait for it — Death Race. The show features felons in armored cars with full artillery racing for freedom or death, with nary a Pennzoil logo in sight.

If you’re wondering why Allen took a role like this, you’re not alone. She has been asked as much at every promotional interview for the movie. Her answer? “It was just really fun.” … continue reading

Who wants to play house — Dollhouse, that is? The ambitious new Joss Whedon/Eliza Dushku sci-fi series is currently casting its principal characters.

Eliza plays Echo, one of the living “Dolls,” a group of men and women who can be imprinted with personality packages — from past memories to physical abilities and language skills — for different assignments. After each assignment, their memories are erased, and they all live together in a dorm/lab dubbed the Dollhouse. The show will follow Echo’s burgeoning self-awareness and how it affects everyone around her. … continue reading

Ah, the chick flick. Much maligned. Often contrived. And, every now and then, downright satisfying. To be perfectly honest, I like a good chick flick — emphasis on good, of course. For me, the appeal is built right into the name. Chick: Well, I am one, and I like them. Flick: Well, movies; who doesn’t love movies? Two upcoming releases seek to find just the right chocolate-and-peanut-butter formula that results in the good kind of chick flick we all love to watch on lazy Sunday afternoons when we should be paying bills or regrouting the tub.

Both also fall into what is usually my favorite of the chick flick subgenres: the female bonding movie. Sure, romantic comedies are the more popular subgenre, but you just get more estrogen for your buck with bonding pictures. The films are Bonneville (opening Feb. 29 limited and March 21 wide) and The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants 2 (opening Aug. 8).

Bonneville, which stars 50-somethings Jessica Lange, Joan Allen, Kathy Bates and Christine Baranski, centers on a cross-country road trip taken by three friends when one of their husbands dies. The trip is done in — you guessed it — a big old convertible Pontiac Bonneville.

Is anyone else getting a decidedly Thelma & Louise feel from that photo? I just hope it doesn’t end the same way. Though, from the trailer, it looks like the ladies have their automotive high jinks in the Utah salt flats, not the Grand Canyon. … continue reading

My name is thelinster and I’m a biblioholic. It’s been three days since my last Amazon.com order. Oh, who am I kidding: I won’t make it to a week. I love books — the way they feel, the way they smell, the way they look on the shelf. And I love the way a woman looks when she’s reading a book.

Growing up, I was a regular at the library. But nothing matched the feeling of having my very own books to read. Every kid deserves to have that feeling.

Organizations like First Book agree and have made it their mission to give kids from low-income families their very first new books. First Book, which just gave its 50 millionth book to a child in need, is in the midst of a national awareness campaign called “What Book Got You Hooked?” A lot of authors and celebrities are participating, telling us their favorite books from childhood.

For actress Rebecca Romijn, it was Bridge to Terebithia. “Forget the movie,” Romijn says, “there’s nothing that could possibly be better than this book.”

See what happens when she forgets to bring a book to read in the tub? … continue reading

Yes, you read that right. Joan Allen has just signed on to play a prison warden in Paul W.S. Anderson's 2008 Death Race.

I'll give you a moment to anticipate Allen, who is so effective at playing the strong, take-charge type, taking charge of an entire prison.

Looks like she's enjoying the idea right along with us, no?

And now I'll spoil your enthusiasm by saying that the movie, also starring Jason Statham and Tyrese Gibson, sounds ... well, awful. Tom Cruise and Paula Wagner are producing, which is a count against it already, but what's more, it's a remake of Death Race 2000, a 1975 Sylvester Stallone/David Carradine "cult classic." Descriptions vary from "a future America in which prison inmates are forced to brutally compete in an enclosed arena" (Hollywood Reporter) to "a group of contestants on a cross-country race who score points for running down pedestrians" (MTV). The warden apparently runs the show. … continue reading