In EDGE OF DARKNESS, Mel Gibson, who hasn’t appeared onscreen for seven years, reacts to his daughter being murdered in front of him by using broad facial expressions as though the rest of his body wasn’t on camera until the third act, when Mad Max suddenly reappears.

Joan Price author of Better Than I Ever Expected: Straight Talk About Sex After Sixty, Carylon Alexander, publisher of the Napa, Sonoma, Marin Edition of TRAVELHOST Magazine, and Gina Williams and Andrea Sazo from The Sensuality Shoppe and Sensuous Beauty join host Gil Mansergh on KRCB FM’s Word By Word to offer expert advice for a sensual Valentine’s Day

Aiming for a fifth Oscar-nomination, Jeff Bridges plays an aging, down-and-out, alcoholic country singer as an old, vomiting, drunkard in CRAZY HEART—and it works (he sings well too).

In Alice Sebold’s novel, THE LOVELY BONES we know immediately what happened to the girl, but in the movie, for some inexplicable reason, things are kept “secret” from the audience. Instead, directo Peter Jackson leaves clues the size of the Statue of Liberty.

Based on Sebastopol writer C.D. Payne’s popular novel, YOUTH IN REVOLT has been on the shelf for two years. Michael Cera steals the film as a randy teen who creates a pencil-thin-mustache-wearing alter ego named Francois to try to lose his virginity.

“Pamela Gray’s Screenwriting Secrets,” at 7:30 PM on Saturday, January 9th as part of the Filmmakers Sampler series at the Sebastopol Center for the Arts, 6780 Depot Street. Clips from Pamela’s films will be shown to illustrate and elaborate each of her secrets.

NOTE: The Studios have already released their blockbusters and Oscar hopefuls. Here are some worth catching: AVATAR 3 and 1/2 pieces of awesome 3-D toast FANTASTIC MR. FOX 3 and 1/2 pieces of Dahlish toast” THE HURT LOCKER 4 pieces of must-see toast THE MESSENGER 3 and 1/2 pieces of honest toast PRECIOUS 4 pieces of powerfully and frighteningly realistic toast THE PRINCESS AND THE FROG 3 and 1/2 pieces of Disneyfied singing toast UP IN THE AIR 3 and 1/2 pieces of Clooney gets better and better toast

In UP IN THE AIR, George Clooney is a professional downsizer—the guy the suits call in to fire people. He likes his job because it allows him to travel all the time and reach his goal of ten million frequent flier miles, and it allows him to let people pursue their dreams, albeit without a steady paycheck or health benefits.

“Avatar’s” amazing technology is well worth a visit and the story may provide some unintended chuckles as well—starting off like a first-generation “Star Trek” episode and then becoming a “Dances With Blue Aliens” cultural immersion movie.

There’s an intentional familiarity in Disney’s return to hand-drawn animation, THE PRINCESS AND THE FROG. Set in jazz-infused, 1920’s New Orleans, the princess is a feisty African-American waitress, the villain is a suave and mellow voiced con man who has “friends on the other side,” and the fairy godmother is a blind, 197-year-old voodoo queen.