HOLLYWOOD - With Memorial Day only days away, Fox and Warner Home Video are releasing special DVD editions of classic war films, as well as debuting several titles. A new two-disc edition of the multi-Oscar-winning 1970 epic Patton (Fox, $20) may be worthwhile even if you own the previously released digital edition of the film starring George C. Scott as Gen. George S

What do you get when you mix a mock crucifixion, Kabbalah, political diatribes and a plea for AIDS relief with a giant crystal-covered disco ball? Why, the first night of Madonna's Confessions tour, of course. The 47-year-old pop icon jumpstarted the North American leg of her tour with a bada-bang Sunday night at the Forum in Los Angeles, dazzling the sold-out crowd with million-dollar set pieces, seven costume changes and her yoga-buffed bod

Sir Paul McCartney, Neil Young, Bob Dylan...50 Cent? The times really are a-changing. The hip hop superstar took home top honors at the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers' Pop Music Awards Monday night, where he was named Songwriter of the Year by a group of industry peers

The visa application for Namibia doesn't mention Brad Pitt or Angelina Jolie, but it may as well. Any journalist wishing to travel to the African republic to cover the pending birth of the celebrity couple's first child together must include a letter of consent--from the celebrity couple, the Namibian embassy in Washington, D.C., confirmed Wednesday. It was not known if Pitt and Jolie had actually drafted any missives on behalf of reporters

Chinese media have speculated that flashes of underwear and other "inappropriate" images in the China scenes of Mission Impossible 3 might jeopardise the mainland release of Tom Cruise's latest Hollywood blockbuster. Despite hitting American screens over a week ago, China's State Administration of Radio, Film and Television (SARFT), is yet to approve MI3's mainland distribution, the Beijing News newspaper said on Monday

It may be high noon for Deadwood, HBO's gritty Western drama. HBO has allowed options on the cast to lapse, freeing the actors of their obligations to the show. But a spokeswoman for the premium cable channel said Friday the door hasn't been shut on the possibility of another season. The series, about life in the infamous 19th-century mining town, returns for its third season June 11. The ensemble cast includes Ian McShane, Timothy Olyphant, William Sanderson and Molly Parker

Hollywood has been tiptoeing its way toward letting consumers buy a movie online, burn it onto a DVD and watch it on a living-room TV. While the studios hesitate, the adult film industry is taking the leap. Starting May 15, Vivid Entertainment says it will sell its adult films through the online movie service CinemaNow, allowing buyers to burn DVDs that will play on any screen, not just a computer

Everything's in its right place for Thom Yorke. Radiohead's wiry frontman has announced that his first solo album, The Eraser, is set to hit stores on July 11. But don't go getting all paranoid android thinking the Grammy-winning British art rockers are going to disappear completely. In a message to Radiohead fansite W.A.S.T.E., Yorke emphatically denied that bandmembers have any intention of going their separate ways with his new musical foray

Workplace injuries are common, and you can never be too careful, especially when there are sheep around. Just ask Steve Carell. Universal Pictures confirmed Monday that the Golden Globe-winning star of NBC's The Office sprained his ankle over the weekend while shooting a scene involving sheep for the upcoming film Evan Almighty. It's far more innocent than it sounds

I wouldn't say meeting Ron Howard was an anticlimax, exactly. I did not, after all, expect the 52-year-old director and movie mogul to be like his friend Russell Crowe, an exciting mixture of bluntness and volatility. But there was a big build-up to my meeting with him and, with it, a certain anticipation; a tightening of the air. With the imminent release of his estimated $US125 million ($161