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'The Majestic' is a bit too sappy

To promote post-Sept. 11 patriotism, movie theaters are showing a short film before "The Majestic" filled with clips from old movies about American idealism and courage. This little film is definitely schmaltzy, but at the same time the intent behind it is so genuine that a viewer can't help but get shivery and teary.

Top 10 Albums of 2001

1. Is This It? (RCA) - The Strokes 2. Love and Theft (Columbia) - Bob Dylan 3. Gorillaz (Virgin) - Gorillaz 4. Hot Shots II (Astralwerks) - Beta Band 5. I Might Be Wrong-Live Recordings (Capitol) - Radiohead and more...

Philipps flows into 'Dawson's Creek'

After several years in the entertainment industry, Busy Philipps has become a familiar face to young audiences. Her big break came in 1999, when she was cast as high school outcast Kim Kelly on the short-lived but critically acclaimed NBC series "Freaks and Geeks." After the show's cancellation, the 22-year-old Philipps won roles in the independent film "The Smokers" and the MTV television movie "Anatomy of a Hate Crime."

Jigga who? Jigga what? Jigga wow!

If you own all or most of Jay-Z's albums, Jay-Z Unplugged no doubt needs to be a part of your collection. Jay-Z, aka Jigga or Young H.O.V.A., whatever you want to call him, has done it again with a hit album less than four months after his previous release, The Blue Print. Few artists can release quality albums one right after the other, but Jay-Z has proved to his fans, as well as the general public that he is capable of things that most artists aren't.

'Ali' fails to deliver knockout punch

Going into the winter, one of the more talked about movies that wasn't based on a book was "Ali," starring Will Smith. Making a film about the greatest boxer and one of the most electrifying sports personalities of all time certainly piqued a lot of interest. Would Smith be able to accurately portray Ali? What parts of Ali's life would be covered in the film? What would the fight scenes look like? Upon seeing the film, these questions were finally answered, but with varying degrees of satisfaction.

I wish I may...

For the past 12 months the entertainment world has been tossed up with a sugercoating in music and wit in movies, only to be trampled with the rest of the United States after Sept. 11. We lost Aaliyah and George Harrison. Movies were held back for violence or to remove clips of the World Trade Center from their backgrounds. Who knows what next year holds. Here's my list of wishes I can't wait to see happen.

Nobody should see 'Somebody'

"Joe Somebody" could've been something. But a great plot idea is wasted on a clean family flick, one only a child could enjoy.

Soundtrack both sweet and sour

I don't know Cameron Crowe. Therefore it's hard for me to say a whole lot about him, but I do know that the man sure does know how to direct a movie, and additionally, he knows how to pick songs to assemble one hell of a soundtrack for these movies. Recent examples, such as "Jerry Maguire" and "Almost Famous," simply stand as examples to prove my point. You can add "Vanilla Sky" to this list.

One film to rule them all

If you haven't read the "Lord of the Rings" trilogy by J.R.R. Tolkien, you'll be furious when you see the movie. Not because you're confused, as many who haven't read the books worry -- but because the movie leaves you in such suspense you're left wondering how you can wait another year for the next movie.

Save this for a boring Friday

In the spirit of Cheech and Chong comes "How High," a new comedy about two stoners who smoke some magical pot before taking their college entrance exams. They ace the tests, earn scholarships to Harvard and proceed to turn the prestigious school upside-down.

Go see a psycho Cameron Diaz

There are some movies that confuse for the sake of surprise. The filmmakers want you to scratch your head and ask yourself, "What the hell is going on?" Well, "Vanilla Sky" will, without a doubt, cause some confusion in the audience's mind throughout the screening.

De La Soul ends set with solid effort

Self-styled and trend defiant, De La Soul continues to maintain diversity in the hip-hop landscape. It's latest album, AOI: Bionix, is the second of three Art Official Intelligence discs. Triple disc sets are ambitious attempts for any group, but by releasing each CD separately, De La Soul lets them have souls of their own.

No more than a decent cover band

Smash Mouth might be destined for the used CD rack, but at least it's putting up a fight. Despite their predictable and often formulaic sound, this album shows they've matured a little along the way. After all, it's not easy rewriting the same song 10 times an album. But at least it's their song and not another faceless band whose sound depends on the rest of the industry.

Recruitment flawed, but necessary

Ground Zero: A new frontier

Retailers feel holiday cheer

Musharraf acts to ease tension with India

ISLAMABAD, Pakistan -- President Pervez Musharraf is close to unveiling a "bold and principled" initiative aimed at easing the threat of war with India, U.S. senators said Tuesday.

Bush looks to lower pollution standards

WASHINGTON -- The Bush administration is considering relaxing clean-air standards for power plants, which environmentalists and Northeastern states strongly oppose and the energy industry favors.

Sharon: Iranian-Palestinian ties threaten Israel

JERUSALEM -- Prime Minister Ariel Sharon called Iran the "center of world terror" and said Tuesday a recently captured arms shipment showed that Iran and the Palestinians were collaborating to strike at Israel.

U.S. troops capture two al Qaeda fighters

WASHINGTON -- U.S. troops captured two senior al Qaeda fighters and confiscated their computers and cell phones near a huge underground cave complex used by Osama bin Laden\'s terrorist network, the nation\'s top general said Tuesday.