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LONDON ? Britain's Prince Philip left the hospital Tuesday, after undergoing treatment for a blocked coronary artery.
Philip, Queen Elizabeth II's 90-year-old husband, spent four nights in the hospital recovering from a successful coronary stent procedure. He was taken to Papworth, a specialist heart hospital in Cambridge, on Friday after complaining of chest pains.
It was the most serious health scare suffered by Philip, who is known to be active and robust. He has continued to appear at many engagements, most recently taking a 10-day tour of Australia with the queen.
For the first time in years he was forced to miss the Royal Family's traditional Christmas festivities, which include attending a morning church service, viewing the queen's annual Christmas broadcast together, and a shooting party on Boxing Day.
Philip did not speak to reporters as he was driven away from the hospital in a Range Rover Tuesday morning, though he smiled and waved to those gathered to film his departure.
He will return to Sandringham, the queen's private estate in rural Norfolk, to join the queen and other royal family members, Buckingham Palace officials said. The officials spoke on condition of anonymity in line with policy.
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HONOLULU ? Tu Holloway scored 21 points and No. 14 Xavier ended a three-game losing streak with an 87-77 victory over Southern Illinois on Sunday in the seventh-place game of the Diamond Head Classic.
Before a sparse, morning crowd on Christmas Day, the Musketeers won for the first time since Dec. 10, when they beat Cincinnati in a game cut short in the closing seconds by brawling and mayhem on the court.
This was the first three-game losing streak for Xavier under coach Chris Mack and first since the 2007-08 season.
Mark Lyons scored 17 points and grabbed 10 rebounds for Musketeers (9-3). Andre Walker and Travis Taylor added 13 apiece for Xavier, which made 36 of 48 free throws. The Salukis (3-8) were led by Dantiel Daniels' 22 points.
Southern Illinois cut it to 68-64 at 8:45 after a 3-point play by Daniels, but an 8-1 run gave the Musketers a 9-point cushion.
THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. Check back soon for further information. AP's earlier story is below.
HONOLULU (AP) ? Tu Holloway scored 21 points and No. 14 Xavier ended a three-game losing streak with an 87-77 victory over Southern Illinois on Sunday in the seventh-place game of the Diamond Head Classic.
Before a sparse, morning crowd on Christmas Day, the Musketeers won for the first time since Dec. 10, when they beat Cincinnati in a game cut short in the closing seconds by brawling and mayhem on the court.
This was the first three-game losing streak for Xavier under coach Chris Mack and first since the 2007-08 season.
Mark Lyons scored 17 points and grabbed 10 rebounds for Musketeers (9-3). Andre Walker and Travis Taylor added 13 apiece for Xavier, which made 35 of 44 free throws. The Salukis (3-8) were led by Dantiel Daniels' 22 points.
Southern Illinois cut it to 68-64 at 8:45 after a 3-point play by Daniels, but an 8-1 run gave the Musketers a 9-point cushion.
(This version CORRECTS APNewsNow. No. 14 Xavier 87, Southern Illinois 77. Corrects free throws for Xavier.)
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WFAA
Posted on December 24, 2011 at 9:55 PM
Updated today at 2:29 PM
CLEBURNE ? A Cleburne mother and two daughters have been killed in a series of attacks on buses in northern Mexico. Maria Hartsell, 39, and her daughters Karla Hartsell, 19, and Cristina Hartsell, 13, were among the seven people who lost their lives.
?I can?t sleep at night,? said Hartsell?s mother-in-law Margaret Schneider of Cleburne. ?I shut my eyes and I see them.?
Schneider says Hartsell ? who is a U.S. citizen ? was traveling with her four children to visit family members for the holidays in the region known as Huasteca. A group of five gunmen attacked three buses in Mexico?s Gulf Coast state of Veracruz on Thursday in what authorities described as a violent robbery spree.
Soldiers apparently killed the gunmen later.
Schneider said Hartsell?s other daughter Angie was also shot, but her condition is unknown. She said another grandchild, Mike Hartsell, 10, survived, but told her he watched the gunmen murder his mother and sister after killing the bus driver.
?Little Mike told me? they turned around and came back and shot her (his mother) in the head with the gun and they shot Karla,? Schneider said. ?He said he knew that his mom and Karla were dead.?
Schneider said Hartsell worked in the cafeteria at Cleburne?s Santa Fe Elementary School.
The U.S. Consulate has urged Americans to ?exercise caution? when traveling to Veracruz, and to ?avoid intercity road travel at night.?
While the specific area where the Thursday attacks occurred is not frequented by foreign travelers, other parts of the Huasteca? ? a hilly, verdant area on the Gulf coast? ? are popular among Mexican tourists and some foreigners.
The attack occurred near the border with the state of Tamaulipas, an area that has been the scene of bloody battles between the Zetas and Gulf drug cartels. According to some estimates, more than 40,000 people have been killed over the past five years in Mexico?s ongoing drug war.
Schneider said she begged her daughter-in-law not to take the trip.
?I told her not to go to Mexico. I just kept repeating it,? Schneider said. ?Why did they have to lose their life? It?s just senseless.?
E-mail jbetz@wfaa.com
Source: http://www.wfaa.com/news/local/Cleburne-family-killed-in-Mexico-136193938.html
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Despite trailer, Christopher Nolan's Batman film is shrouded in secrecy.
By Eric Ditzian
Christian Bale in "The Dark Knight Rises"
Photo: Warner Bros.
The "Dark Knight Rises" trailer left the MTV News movie staff with a whole fresh set of questions: Is Robin really in the movie? Why is Bruce Wayne walking with a cane? But in a way, there was something very familiar about our state of mind after checking out the new footage.
That's because, since the beginning of the year, we've been consumed with burning questions about Christopher Nolan's third Batman film. And at every turn, we'd tried to get answers to those questions, hitting up the film's stars time and time again. Sometimes, we came away with new insights. Sometimes, answers only led to another set of queries. There's something exasperating about this whole endeavor — but also something awesome. And the movie doesn't even hit theaters for another seven months.
When it does finally arrive, will the film deliver a definite end point to the story line Nolan and his cohorts have been spinning since 2005's "Batman Begins"? After all, Nolan himself promised us back in February, before production even began on the project, that it would: "We're very much excited about really finishing a trilogy and giving a conclusion to our story," he said. "And that's what we're doing."
By the end of the year, after shooting had wrapped, co-star Gary Oldman assured us Nolan had stuck to that promise. "There's a conclusion," he said. "[Nolan] brings and he touches on the first [film, 'Batman Begins'] and he weaves it in, and it resolves. And I think it's a trilogy, but it's just great. The story is terrific. I mean, it's just epic."
So, a tiny bit of confirmation there. Yet Oldman also laughed afterward, "I can't say anything!" That was a theme we heard repeated again and again during the year. When we asked Joseph Gordon-Levitt if his character was Robin, he answered, "You know I can't have this conversation!" When we pressed Tom Hardy about his role as the villain Bane, he exclaimed, "I can't [talk about it], so let's have another question!" And when we wondered whether Marion Cotillard was telling us the truth when she claimed her character, contrary to rumor, would not in fact turn out to be Talia al Ghul, the daughter of "Batman Begins" villain, Ra's al Ghul, the actress responded with a sly smile, "I am!"
We're not sure what's more impressive: Nolan's oeuvre or his ability to keep his actors' lips sealed. They would, however, say one thing without worrying about giving up a "Dark Knight Rises" spoiler: Everyone loves Nolan. "It's genius, what he does," Hardy shared. Cotillard told us, "It's amazing to work on Christopher Nolan's set," while Nestor Carbonell added, "He's one of these amazing storytellers."
If anyone could sum up the year in "Dark Knight Rises" news, though, it was Liam Neeson, who may or may not actually be in the movie (though we're pretty sure he is) and who told us simply that he doesn't have "a f---ing clue what it's about!"
Well put, Mr. Neeson. Us too. But we can't wait to find out.
Check out everything we've got on "The Dark Knight Rises."
For breaking news and previews of the latest comic book movies — updated around the clock — visit SplashPage.MTV.com.
Related Videos Related PhotosSource: http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1676426/dark-knight-rises-news-2011.jhtml
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Republican presidential candidate former House Speaker Newt Gingrich, listens as he is introduced during a campaign stop in Manchester, N.H., Wednesday Dec. 21, 2011. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa)
Republican presidential candidate former House Speaker Newt Gingrich, listens as he is introduced during a campaign stop in Manchester, N.H., Wednesday Dec. 21, 2011. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa)
Republican presidential candidate, former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney speaks during at campaign stop at the Stage Restaurant in Keene, NH., Wednesday, Dec. 21, 2011. Romney is kicking off a three day bus tour of the state. (AP Photo/Matthew Cavanaugh)
Republican presidential candidate, Rep. Ron Paul, R-Texas speaks during a campaign stop in Fort Madison, Iowa, Wednesday, Dec. 21, 2011. (AP Photo/Chris Carlson)
ARLINGTON, Va. (AP) ? Newt Gingrich is frantically playing catch-up in the Republican presidential race, spending precious time trying to get on Virginia's primary ballot while his rivals campaign in crucial Iowa and New Hampshire.
The former House speaker is paying a price for his late start in organizing. Gingrich had to leave New Hampshire on Wednesday and race to Virginia, where he needs 10,000 valid voters' signatures by Thursday to secure a spot on the March 6 ballot.
Virginia is an afterthought for most campaigns at this early stage. They are intensely focused on the Jan. 3 Iowa caucuses and the Jan. 10 New Hampshire primary, which will be followed by primaries in South Carolina and Florida.
But Gingrich's early-December rise in several polls gave him renewed hopes of carrying his campaign deep into the primary season. Failure to compete in Virginia, which is among the "Super Tuesday" primaries, would deal a huge blow to any contender who had not locked up the nomination by then.
Mitt Romney, the former Massachusetts governor, and Ron Paul, the libertarian-leaning congressman from Texas, want to knock Gingrich out long before Virginia. Their campaigns and allied groups are saturating the Iowa airwaves with anti-Gingrich ads.
The tone has gotten so nasty that Gingrich is calling on Romney to halt the ads, or at least defend them in a 90-minute Iowa face-off. Gingrich also mounted a separate petition drive, seeking signatures from voters who don't want to see Republican candidates ripping into each other.
"Attacking fellow Republicans only helps one person: Barack Obama," the petition says.
Republican insiders see Romney, in particular, as having the money, experience and organization needed to survive a long campaign. That makes it urgent for Gingrich to get on all the big-state ballots if he hopes to win the party's nod.
Gingrich said Wednesday he had enough ballot signatures, but he wanted to come to Virginia to deliver them personally. Taking no chances, his volunteers asked everyone to sign petitions before entering Gingrich's rally Wednesday night in Arlington, just across the Potomac River from Washington.
Gingrich, who arrived more than an hour late, planned to campaign Thursday in Richmond with Virginia Gov. Bob McDonnell, who has endorsed none of the nomination-seekers.
Romney, meanwhile, continued his bus tour of New Hampshire, the closest thing to a must-win state for him. For the most part, Romney is letting hard-hitting ads from the Restore Our Future "super PAC" do the ruffian's work against Gingrich. The PAC is made up of former Romney advisers.
On Wednesday, Romney taunted Gingrich, who has objected to the attacks as he falls in several polls.
"I'm sure I could go out and say, 'Please, don't do anything negative,'" Romney told Fox News. "But this is politics. And if you can't stand the heat in this little kitchen, wait until Obama's Hell's Kitchen turns up the heat."
Gingrich shot back from Manchester, N.H., "If he wants to test the heat, I'll meet him anywhere in Iowa next week." He said Romney could "bring his ads and he can defend them."
In Arlington, Gingrich mocked Romney for saying he can't tell Restore Our Future to halt its ads because campaign laws require candidates and PACs to operate independently of each other. If Romney publicly announced his desire to see the ads stop, Gingrich said, those airing them probably would hear of it.
Gingrich vowed to stay positive, even as he said Romney had "no willingness to stand up and tell the truth."
Paul is campaigning this week in Iowa, a wide-open state he potentially could win. He drew large crowds at several town hall meetings in eastern Iowa on Wednesday.
But few campaign veterans think Paul, whose strong libertarian views give him an intense but limited following, can draw enough support nationwide to win the nomination.
Gingrich hopes to do well enough in the first two contests to make it to South Carolina and Florida. They border Georgia, which he represented in Congress for 20 years, ending in 1999.
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Spokane, Wash.?
? A man who admitted to planting a bomb along a Martin Luther King Jr. Day parade route was sentenced Tuesday to 32 years in prison, the maximum punishment as negotiated under a plea deal that he tried to withdraw and then later denounced.
"I am not guilty of the acts that I am accused of and that I plead guilty to," Kevin Harpham said before U.S. District Judge Justin Quackenbush handed down the sentence. He agreed to the deal in September to avoid a possible life sentence, Harpham said.
The statement prompted the judge to impose the higher end of the possible prison sentence, which was negotiated in the plea bargain as between 27 and 32 years. "I am distressed that you appear not the least bit apologetic," Quackenbush said.
Harpham, who has extensive ties to white supremacists, blamed the judge for not giving his defense team enough time. The 37-year-old said he did not intend to injure people with the bomb he placed in downtown Spokane prior to the January parade.
Rather, he intended for the shrapnel to hit the side of a building as a show of protest against the multiculturalism celebrated by the parade, he said.
"I was making a statement that there are people out there who don't agree with these ideas," Harpham said. He likened himself to a Christian protesting gay marriage, "but a bit more dangerous or extreme."
The judge said he was perplexed because Harpham had been honorably discharged from the Army and had no criminal record. Quackenbush wondered whether a "shrill and caustic and vitriolic" culture fueled by talk media was partially to blame.
Just before Harpham was scheduled to be sentenced, his lawyer tried unsuccessfully to withdraw his guilty plea by noting that a newly hired defense expert questioned whether the explosive device in question met the legal definition of a bomb.
Harpham said he intended to seek an appeal, which he has 14 days to file.
Federal prosecutors said it was important that a long sentence be imposed in the case.
"Acts of hate like this one have no place in our country in 2011," said Thomas Perez, assistant attorney general for the civil rights division in Washington.
The pipe bomb was loaded with lead fishing weights coated in rat poison, which can inhibit blood clotting in wounds, officials have said. The bomb was discovered and disabled before it could explode.
The Jan. 17 parade drew a crowd of about 2,000. It was forced onto an alternative route after the bomb was found. Harpham walked in the parade and took pictures of black children and of a Jewish man who was wearing a yarmulke, prosecutors have said.
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U.S. Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta, center right, with U.S. Ambassador to Libya Gene Crets, center left, and Gen. Carter Ham, Commander U.S. Africa Command, third from left, places a wreath at the grave site of 13 U.S. Navy sailors during a ceremony at the Protestant Cemetery in Tripoli, Libya, Saturday, Dec., 17, 2011. Panetta visited the grave site of the sailors, who where killed on the USS Intrepid in 1804. (AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais, Pool)
U.S. Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta, center right, with U.S. Ambassador to Libya Gene Crets, center left, and Gen. Carter Ham, Commander U.S. Africa Command, third from left, places a wreath at the grave site of 13 U.S. Navy sailors during a ceremony at the Protestant Cemetery in Tripoli, Libya, Saturday, Dec., 17, 2011. Panetta visited the grave site of the sailors, who where killed on the USS Intrepid in 1804. (AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais, Pool)
U.S. Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta and Libyan Prime Minister Abd al-Rheem Al-Keeb greet one another during their joint news conference in Tripoli, Libya, Saturday, Dec., 17, 2011. (AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais, Pool)
U.S. Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta, second from left, leaves the grave site of 13 U.S. Navy sailors at the Protestant Cemetery in Tripoli, Libya, after participating in a wreath laying ceremony Saturday, Dec., 17, 2011. Panetta visited the grave site of the sailors, who where killed on the USS Intrepid in 1804. (AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais, Pool)
U.S. Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta, center, leaves his challenge coin on the grave stone during the wreath laying ceremony with U.S. Ambassador to Libya Gene Crets, obscured third from left, and Gen. Carter Ham, second from left, Commander U.S. Africa Command, at grave site of 13 U.S. Navy sailors at the Protestant Cemetery in Tripoli, Libya, Saturday, Dec., 17, 2011. Panetta visited the grave site of the sailors, who where killed on the USS Intrepid in 1804. (AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais, Pool)
U.S. Sec. of Defense Leon Panetta, left, is presented with a gift during his meeting with Libyan Minister of Defense Usama al-Jwayli, right, in Tripoli, Libya, Saturday, Dec. 17, 2011. (AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais, Pool)
TRIPOLI, Libya (AP) ? U.S. Defense Secretary Leon Panetta said "the torch of freedom" has passed to the Libyan people and he pledged during a historic visit Saturday to Tripoli that the United States will do all it can to help the country move toward democracy.
But he and his Libyan hosts acknowledged the threat of Islamic militants gaining ground in this period of political uncertainty following the ouster and death of longtime dictator Moammar Gadhafi.
Panetta and Libyan leaders identified challenges for the government now forming, including how to gain control of the militias that overthrew Gadhafi during an eight-month civil war.
"This will be a long and difficult transition, but I have confidence that you will succeed in realizing the dream of a representative government," Panetta said during a news conference with Prime Minister Abdurrahim el-Keib.
"The torch of freedom that has passed throughout the centuries and now passes from nation to nation in the Middle East and North Africa burns brightly here in Libya. May it light your way to a future of peace, prosperity and freedom," Panetta said.
While his visit was brief, Panetta made history as the first U.S. Pentagon chief to set foot on Libyan soil.
He evoked U.S. history, too, with a visit to the cemetery presumed to hold remains of U.S. sailors killed in Tripoli harbor in 1804. Their deaths were memorialized in the famous "shores of Tripoli" line in the Marine Corps hymn.
Both Panetta and al-Keeb expressed confidence that the fledgling government will be able to reach out to the militias and bring them together.
"We know how serious this issue is," said al-Keeb, "We realize it is not matter of saying 'OK, put down your arms, go back to work or do what you want to do.' We realize that there are lots of things that we need to be organized."
More broadly, Panetta said the revolts across the region represent a quest for sovereignty by the people, but they will all involve different approaches and challenges.
During meetings with the Libyan leaders, Panetta expressed concern about al-Qaida in the Islamic Maghreb militants gaining a foothold amid the chaos of an unfolding democracy. But they told him that the Libyan people will reject the terrorist group, said a senior defense official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because the discussions were private.
Panetta's motorcade from the airport into the city provided views of the nation's violent past and future promise ? lush orange groves, carcasses of bombed buildings and charred and graffiti-covered compound once occupied by Gadhafi. Flying from rooftops were the green, black and red flags, adorned with a star and a crescent, belonging to the new government.
At one point, amid the graffiti splashed across the walls of Gadhafi's former compound was a short comment in English: "Thanx US/UK."
The visit also put the man who has led much of the U.S. terrorism fight over the past several years at the scene of one of the first American wars on terror, more than two centuries ago.
Panetta went to what historians believe is the gravesite of as many as 13 U.S. sailors killed in 1804, when the Navy ship Intrepid exploded while slipping into Tripoli harbor to attack pirate ships that had captured an American frigate.
As the story goes, governments along the Barbary coast had turned to state-sponsored piracy to raise money, attacking and taking over merchant ships, enslaving their crews and stealing their bounties. Unwilling to pay fees to protect its ships, the U.S. sent the Navy frigate Philadelphia to the region but it ran aground just off Tripoli and was captured.
President Thomas Jefferson sent a team to get the Philadelphia back or destroy it. Under cover of darkness, the Intrepid sailed into the harbor, killed about 25 pirates and burned the Philadelphia.
A few months later, Jefferson sent the Intrepid back to destroy as many of the pirate ships as possible. The plan was to pack the ketch with explosives, sail into the harbor and blow her up.
The 13 sailors never got to their destination. The ship exploded prematurely killing all aboard and the next day bodies washed ashore. They were buried outside Tripoli, but in 1949 the remains were moved to The Protestant Cemetery by the Libyan government.
On Saturday, Panetta walked into the small walled cemetery and slowly made his way to a corner where five large but simple white gravestones mark the graves of the American sailors. Markers on four of the stones read, "Here lies an American sailor who gave his life in the explosion of the United States Ship Intrepid in Tripoli Harbour, Sept. 4, 1804."
Panetta placed a wreath at the site and, after a moment of silence, placed one of his U.S. secretary of defense souvenir coins on top of one of the stones.
New life was breathed into the long-ago tale by Congress this year. Lawmakers, prodded by descendants of the sailors, added provisions to the defense bill ordering the Pentagon to study the feasibility of exhuming the bodies and bringing them home to America.
In a statement, Panetta said the recent effort to restore the cemetery is "a symbol of the values we share."
Officials said that Panetta made no specific offers of assistance to the Libyan leaders, and he told reporters that there was no discussion of providing military equipment or weapons.
"They have to determine what their needs are and what kind of assistance is required," he said. "And whatever they need, the United States will be happy to respond."
Ahead of Panetta's visit, the Obama administration announced it had lifted penalties that were imposed on Libya in February to choke off Gadhafi's financial resources while his government was using violence to suppress peaceful protests.
The U.S. at the time blocked some $37 billion in Libyan assets, and a White House statement said Friday's action "unfreezes all government and central bank funds within U.S. jurisdiction, with limited exceptions."
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On January 2nd 2012 a new YouTube channel will launch its first automotive episode. Drive looks very promising with some of the biggest names from the online and offline automotive scene working together including motoring journalist Chris Harris, Matt Farah from SPEED?s The Car Show, transcontinental speed record holder and rally legend Alex Roy, Mike Spinelli and Ray Wert of Jalopnik, Leo Parente from Fast Lane Daily?s Shakedown, professional motorcycle crash test dummy Wes Siler and Jon Alain Guzik.
Drive will take the viewers on the road, to the races, to the factories and places they have never been before. Drive will take on traditional automotive shows like Fifth Gear and Top Gear with a completely new format that is support by YouTube.
Source: http://www.gtspirit.com/2011/12/15/video-drive-the-new-youtube-automotive-show/
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SIOUX CITY, Iowa ? Newt Gingrich says he's trying to edit himself so he doesn't come across as "zany."
Gingrich's remarks at the Republican debate Thursday night were aimed at rival Mitt Romney, who in an interview on Wednesday used the word "zany" to describe the former House speaker.
Gingrich smiled when he was asked a question about how he would counsel Republicans on the political controversy over construction of a new pipeline from Canada to the Gulf of Mexico.
Gingrich said that at times he is accused of using language that is too strong and so he was "editing" himself. He then quipped that he's very concerned about not appearing to be "zany."
Romney has stepped up attacks on Gingrich's temperament as Gingrich has vaulted to the top of the GOP field.
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"Alvin and the Chipmunks: Chipwrecked" ? Puns like these would be unforgivable coming from a human. From high-pitched rodents, they prompt calls for an exterminator. The third in the noxiously contemporary series of new Chipmunks films, "Chipwrecked" is full of the cheapest kind of pop culture references. Here is Alvin aping James Bond with a tail that's "shaken, not stirred," a suggestion to follow the Chipmunks on "Critter" and (gulp) a Charlie Sheen-ism of "winning." This latest Chipmunks film, directed by Mike Mitchell ("Shrek Forever After"), is aimed at a slightly younger demographic than the prior movies (it's rated G), and perhaps shallow references like these are enough to delight youngsters. But I doubt it. Do parents really want stale, cringe-worthy expressions like "Awkward!" instilled in another generation? The Chipmunks' father figure, Dave Seville (Jason Lee, looking vaguely hostagelike), takes his diminutive computer-generated friends on a vacation cruise en route to the Grammy-esque International Music Awards, where the Chipmunks and the Chipettes are an eagerly awaited pop sensation. But the antics of Alvin (Justin Long) throw them overboard and they wash up on a deserted island. David Cross and Jenny Slate do their best to help. G. 87 minutes. One and a half stars out of four.
? Jake Coyle, AP Entertainment Writer
___
"Carnage" ? In Hollywood terms, this is relatively tame violence-wise. A pet hamster may be in peril, a bunch of tulips get mauled and a cellphone gets abused, but that's pretty much it. There's more carnage in "Puss in Boots." But for sheer domestic savagery, this is the film for you. Based on the 2009 Tony Award-winning play "God of Carnage" by Yasmina Reza and directed by Roman Polanski, the film is a dark comedy that focuses on the collapse of good manners when two liberal, middle-class couples get together to discuss an altercation between their young sons. Starring a first-rate cast of Jodie Foster, Kate Winslet, Christoph Waltz and John C. Reilly, this may be uncomfortable stuff for yuppies to watch: A polite discussion of child-rearing approaches descends into racial slurs, drunken insults, the airing of dirty personal laundry and some barfing. To fans of the play, relax. Polanski and Reza, who share screenwriting credits, have added no flashbacks or car chases or explosions to what on stage has always been a four-character talk-fest ? sometimes a scream-fest ? that unspools in real time. In fact, the movie hews so closely to the play that it sometimes feels like a filmed play. R for language. 80 minutes. Three and a half stars out of four.
? Mark Kennedy, AP Drama Writer
___
"The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo" ? To put it bluntly, this movie kicks butt. Director David Fincher orchestrates a stark but enthralling adaptation of the first novel in late author Stieg Larsson's trilogy. Its harsh emotional terrain could have wound up softened and sweetened, yet this was an ideal match of filmmaker and material. Fincher is one of the least sentimental directors in Hollywood. If anything, his "Dragon Tattoo" is even bleaker than the 2009 Swedish-language hit. Rooney Mara, who had a small role in Fincher's "The Social Network," gives a controlled detonation of a performance as traumatized victim-turned-avenger Lisbeth Salander. Mara's the breakout star of the year, a cold, detached waif in form, a fearsome, merciless zealot in spirit. How strange it is to say that the nice guy here is Daniel Craig ? who, of all the big-screen James Bonds, comes closest to the nasty, tortured soul Ian Fleming created. Mara and disgraced journalist Craig make an indomitable screen pair, he nominally leading their search into decades-old serial killings, she surging ahead, plowing through obstacles with flashes of phenomenal intellect and eruptions of physical fury. Larsson left behind two other novels loaded with more dark doings for the duo. We haven't seen the last of this tattooed girl. R for brutal violent content including rape and torture, strong sexuality, graphic nudity and language. 158 minutes. Three and a half stars out of four.
? David Germain, AP Movie Writer
___
"Mission: Impossible ? Ghost Protocol" ? Luckily for Tom Cruise, this is one of his finest action flicks, just what he needs to restore his box-office bankability. For director Brad Bird, though, the fourth "Mission," rock solid as it is, ranks only as his second-best action movie, after the animated smash "The Incredibles." It's the best of the "Mission: Impossible" movies, Bird making a remarkable transition with his first live-action film after three animated ones, among them "Ratatouille." Bird applies the anything-can-happen limitlessness of cartoons and just goes for it, creating thrilling, dizzying, amazing action sequences. This time, Cruise and his team (Jeremy Renner, Paula Patton and Simon Pegg) are blamed for bombing the Kremlin, so they go rogue trying to clear their names and stop a madman (Michael Nyqvist) from starting a nuclear war. Cruise is pretty much doing the same-old, playing the stone-face who's not very interesting when standing still and talking. That work ethic of Cruise, though, shows in every one of the spectacular action moments. If you have the slightest fear of heights, grip the armrests tightly during Cruise's climb up the world's tallest building; even safe in your seat, an unnerving feeling of vertigo is bound to result as you stare down from the 130th floor. PG-13 for sequences of intense action and violence. 132 minutes. Three stars out of four.
? David Germain, AP Movie Writer
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"Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows" ? Robert Downey Jr. and Jude Law bicker and banter and bob and weave with diminishing returns in this sequel to the 2009 smash hit "Sherlock Holmes." Director Guy Ritchie once again applies his revisionist approach to Arthur Conan Doyle's classic literary character, infusing the film with his trademark, hyperkinetic aesthetic and turning the renowned detective into a wisecracking butt-kicker. But what seemed clever and novel the first time around now feels stale and tired; a lot of that has to do with the bleak, gray color scheme, which smothers everything in a dreary, suffocating sameness and saps the film of any real tension or thrills. "Game of Shadows" finds Downey's Holmes facing off against brilliant supervillain Professor Moriarty (Jared Harris), who's cooked up a scheme to pit European nations against each other in hopes of benefiting from the demand for arms. Holmes must stop him with the help of his trusty sidekick, Dr. Watson (Law), who's newly married and not nearly so gung-ho about such wild adventures anymore. And it shows in the script as well as the performances; Law gets little to do beyond functioning as the skeptical straight man, and the chemistry just isn't there this time. Noomi Rapace tags along for some reason as a gypsy fortuneteller looking for her missing brother, but the formidable presence she displayed in the original Swedish "Girl With the Dragon Tattoo" and its sequels goes to waste. PG-13 for intense sequences of violence and action, and some drug material. 129 minutes. One and a half stars out of four.
? Christy Lemire, AP Movie Critic
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Getting good photos or video of fireworks usually?requires special techniques because motion blur and lighting conditions fight against camera sensors. So, why not circumvent that issue entirely by using some daytime fireworks? Admittedly, that's probably not what Chinese artist Cai Guo-Qiang had in mind when he put on his explosion event at the Arab Museum of Modern Art in Doha, Qatar but the results are mighty impressive nonetheless.
You've never seen fireworks like this before
Cai Guo-Qiang created?this display by using microchip-controlled explosives, all calculated to create different patterns, colored smoke, and sounds on both the ground and sky. The display was so huge that just the launching mortars for the ceremony took up a 400-meter footprint. According to?the artist, the presentation is meant to "confront matters of life and death, spiritual homecomings, potential transformations of symbols and the relationship between different cultures." Whether you think the display was successful or not, it's still one heck of a video to watch.
Precise shapes are made possible by computer-controlled explosions
(Source)
This article was written by Michael Gray and originally appeared on Tecca
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Cleveland has had ?serious discussions? with free agent Jose Lopez, according to Jon Morosi of FOXSports.com.
Once upon a time Lopez was a promising young infielder, but he?s hit just .233 with a .263 on-base percentage and .348 slugging percentage in 232 games during the past two seasons and was let go for nothing by both the Rockies and Marlins this year.
He?s still just 28 years old and could be useful as a right-handed-hitting platoon partner for left-handed-hitting third baseman Lonnie Chisenhall, but Lopez has fallen a long way since his All-Star days and might be available on a minor-league contract.
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