Wonderful Life's Young George Dies

Movie reviews: Rachel McAdams, Channing Tatum can't save amnesia romance

(NEWSER) - In The Vow, Rachel McAdams plays a woman who must learn to love her husband again after amnesia wipes her memory. It's no surprise it was released ahead of Valentine's Day: It's pure mushiness, critics say.

• In the New York Daily News , Elizabeth Weitzman calls the film a "down-the-middle, by-the-numbers fantasy, in which no one is too quirky or interesting or challenging in any way." Still, "there’s no shortage of viewers ready to embrace an old-fashioned, guilty-pleasure romance."

Kristen Wiig comedy snags another record

(NEWSER) - It's official: Bridesmaids has become the most popular video-on-demand movie ever, with 4.8 million rentals in four months, says the Hollywood Reporter . It's just the latest record for the sometimes raunchy female comedy, which is also the top-grossing movie in its genre ever made—$288 million worldwide. And that's not counting $100 million in Blu-ray and DVD sales in the US and two potential Oscars—for original screenplay and supporting actress (Melissa McCarthy). More»

'60s B-movie 'Santa Claus Conquers the Martians' ranks worst: poll

(NEWSER) - What are the top 10 most cringe-inducing, holiday-ruining, Santa-offending Christmas movies of all time? Online ticket seller Fandango set out to find out, and polled its customers. Among the films that you probably shouldn't watch tonight:

1. Santa Claus Conquers the Martians : a 1964 ultra-low budget fantasy flick; good luck making it all the way through the 1:22 trailer, at left
2. Silent Night, Deadly Night : a 1984 horror film featuring a murderous man in a Santa suit
3. Jingle All the Way : Sinbad and Arnold Schwarzenegger fight over a toy action figure

Ken Russell's wild films stirred 1970s controversy

(NEWSER) - The Oscar-nominated director of Women in Love and the Who’s Tommy has died at 84. Ken Russell’s often outrageous films provoked controversy into the 1970s; the former film, for instance, featured two male actors wrestling nude. Russell “pushed the barriers completely and got away with it sometimes and didn't others,” a fellow filmmaker tells the BBC . Russell's contribution to British filmmaking was “enormous,” the director adds, even if he didn’t get the attention some say he deserved. “It was almost as if he never existed—I find it utterly scandalous for someone who was so innovative,” said actress Glenda Jackson. More»

But war movies aren't

(NEWSER) - To give your heart a boost, turn on The Hangover—but make sure you avoid Halloween. Movies that make you chuckle are good for your vascular function, while stressful war and horror movies hurt your system, a study finds. Researchers showed bits of funny movies one day and the opening scenes of Saving Private Ryan another day. When subjects viewed the comedies, the lining of their vessels expanded. More»