DreamWorks to Theaters: Where's the 3D?

Dreamworks' 3-D stunner stuck with one-dimensional storyline

(NEWSER) - Monsters Vs. Aliens looks amazing on screen, but grownups may find the thin jokes and the storyline of Dreamworks' animated spoof of '50s flicks a little grating, say critics.

• James Rocchi, Redbox: The movie "has amazing 3D, solid gags, wacky concepts and great animation; I just wish that at some point along the way someone had been as passionate about the story as they were about the spectacle."

Getting to the theater a problem

(NEWSER) - There are 7 weeks left until the Oscars, and if you start now, and get to the theater every other day, you might just be able to see all the contenders. Hollywood has made being an Oscarphile tough work, writes David Carr of the New York Times. After months of empty fluff, discerning viewers must “drink from a fire hose of prestige movies” at year’s end, Carr complains. “Where were you back in August, pal?” More»

Animated flick wins weekend box office

(NEWSER) - Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa had the year's best opening for an animated family flick, pulling in $63.5 million to win the weekend box office, Variety reports. R-rated gross-out comedy Role Models, meanwhile, surprised by taking second place with $19.3 million. The remaining top five: High School Musical 3: Senior Year ($9.3 million), Changeling ($7.3 million) and Zack and Miri Make a Porno ($6.5 million). More»

(NEWSER) - Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa brings back the on-the-run New York menagerie, and DreamWorks hasn't monkeyed much with the first movie's winning, if slightly tired, formula, say critics. The celebrity-voiced animals' new adventure "is aimed mostly at children and should score a direct hit," Kirk Honeycutt writes in the Hollywood Reporter. More»

Gold Class Cinemas brings luxury moviegoing stateside

(NEWSER) - Think your movie-going experience could be more than sticky floors and greasy popcorn? Village Roadshow Gold Class Cinemas agrees. The high-end theater chain is making its debut in America, offering a bar selling cocktails and sushi, reclining lazy-boy style seats (with service buttons to call waiters), and valet parking for the deluxe price of $35 a ticket, Variety reports. More»