Movies

Despite having spent much of yesterday in bed, ailing, aching and kvetching, yours truly rallied at the end of the day and went to his long-scheduled drinks meeting with a one of his favorite Hollywood talent agents.

No names, of course, but our topic of conversation settled on the rather astonishing performance of "Step Up," the Disney release that cost $12 million and made more than $20 last weekend alone.

Per Box Office Mojo,

"Mixing ballet and hip-hop moves, 'Step Up' brought in a lively $20.7 million at 2,467 theaters. Buena Vista's $12 million dance picture delivered the sub-genre's highest-grossing start since the similarly-themed 'Save the Last Dance' in 2001 and showed a considerable improvement on the previous mash-up, 'Take the Lead,' which disappointed this past spring."

And why was my agent pal so spooked?

As he put it,

"If you'd been here in 2001 and said, 'In five years, Tom Cruise and Mel Gibson's careers will be on roller skates.' I, and everyone like me, would have laughed at you. But look at 'Step Up': What's the lesson here? I'm supposed to sign Channing Tatum? Please. That movie had no one in it, and look what it did. The studios don't want to pay big stars anymore, and signing Channing Tatum just means that the studios will find another nobody. It's a scary time for the movie business."

A quick look at the box office suggest he might be right. Oliver Stone's "World Trade Center" - with Nicolas Cage in the lead role - cost five times as much, and made $2 million less this weekend, which was solid, but not spectacular. The Tim Allen vehicle, "Zoom," finished dismally, too.

Disney has already signaled that it plans to do more of the above, while Paramount has reduced Cruise's production deal and tossed him off the lot. MGM is essentially a shell company that releases movies other people paid for.

DYERSVILLE, Iowa (AP) -- The corn lining the outfield is tall again this year. The white farmhouse, wraparound porch and picket fence appear unaffected by time. The mythic baseball diamond and lush outfield look just like they did in the film made 17 years ago.

And for a few hours, hundreds of children and parents raced around the bases, played catch or hit soft pitches in the field made famous by 1989's "Field of Dreams." For 10-year-old Alexis Turner, the visit included a brush with Kevin Costner, the movie's star who returned Friday for the first time since filming ended.

If you're wondering what the top dog of the North Korean summer blockbuster season is, it might just surprise you to learn that it's not "Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest" or "Superman Returns." Rather, it's the somewhat more muted "Diary of a Student Girl" that is packing in the crowds all over the North -- not that the proletariat has much choice -- and its creator is none other than that famously tempestuous missile-wielding auteur himself, Kim Jong-Il.

The North Korean's official news agency KCNA reports that "Diary" -- which conveys the trials and tribulations of a girl and her younger sister as they strive to be scientists -- is screening "before full houses in [the capitol] Pyongyang every day, evoking lively response from people of all walks of life." What's more, KCNA says that the film "embodies the Juche-oriented idea of aesthetics of leader Kim Jong Il," and that Dear Leader found time during his "continuous inspection tour of frontline army units" to work on the script and produce the film, hailed as "a masterpiece of the times." (Juche is the guiding North Korean ideology of self-reliance.)

TMZ has learned that Lindsay Lohan has a stalker who has repeatedly tried to contact her.

A memo from the movie "Georgia Rule" was posted Wednesday at the security gate where Lohan is filming. It reads: "One of our actresses has a stalker." TMZ has confirmed the actress is Lohan.

We're told the alleged stalker has sent several letters to Lohan asking to meet her. The letter ends with his name and phone number. A source connected to Lohan says her "top notch" security is getting in touch with the man in question.

In addition to sending letters, the alleged stalker has sent Lohan flowers at the studio. Security was concerned enough to sound an alarm.

Milian was just spotted last weekend dropping over $2100 in one Beverly Hills boutique. Only TMZ has Milian's itemized receipt from the celebrity boutique Harmony Lane.

Christina walked in to the trendy boutique carrying a black Fendi bag, yet after falling in love with a white LULA by Angelica Cota LoveLike Hobo bag - the star immediately dumped all her belongings from one purse to the next and actually left the store toting her new bag.

Milian shopped with her mother for hours in the store and both left wearing new Vita gold link snake bangle bracelets - Christina picked one in green and pink while her mother chose black and green. Milian also changed her shoes and left in her new white Jilly Swarovski crystal flip-flops.

Christina was reportedly hunting down clothes to take on a press trip for her latest movie, "Pulse" out August 11th. The 21st-century horror film also stars Kristen Bell.

Take a look inside Milian's shopping bags:

Tom Hanks needed a prescription earlier in the week, and TMZ knows what it was for. The "DaVinci Code" star got a script for Vosol HC. So you're wondering? Well, Vosol is used to treat infections of the outer ear and ear canal by reducing swelling and relieving pain and itching in the ear.

Daniels tells AOL Black Voices that he was skeptical of Halle's talents because she was "at her worst publicity-wise. She had just run over somebody- backed up, took off and left them there; done the Flintstones [movie] and was being called a Black Barbie doll. But you know, I'm an underdog and at that moment she was an underdog and I'm always for an underdog"

Luckily, minus the blip known as "Catwoman", Halle's career has never been healthier.

Daniels latest project is the drama "Shadowboxer." As the director on the film Daniels also expressed concerns over hiring Cuba Gooding Jr.

Despite winning an Oscar for his role in "Jerry Maguire", Gooding has seen his once hot career fizzle.

Daniels adds "With Cuba, something wasn't sitting right with me but I remembered him in 'Boyz N the Hood.' That's when I saw the truth and went for him. [With this film], I think he's gangsta. I think he's thug. I think he's honest and good. And I think he's back."

Most people must face a daily grind of working a 9 to 5 job, but if you're an A-list actor like George Clooney, Susan Sarandon and Russell Crowe your job is a whole different ball game.

Right now, some of the big screen's heaviest hitters are shooting what are sure to be next year's mega box office hits. There's definitely nothing lacking in the assortment of quality actors stepping back in front of the cameras for films hitting theaters next year.

It's a story we've heard a hundred times: Boy and girl hate each other but are forced to work together and eventually fall in love. The new film "Step Up" takes that premise and adds in a little dance flavor, forming the love child of "Save the Last Dance," "The Cutting Edge," and "Dirty Dancing: Havana Nights."

Hotties Channing Tatum and Jenna Dewan do their best Sean Patrick Thomas and Julia Stiles imitations as a hip-hop and ballet dancer, respectively, who are forced to be partners and learn each other's styles.

At the film's premiere director Anne Fletcher explained her vision of the film saying, "Music makes us move. We have the spirit of dance within us. I just wanted to cover an array of dance and how similar they are and how different they are. When they merge together, what does that look like?"

Elisha Cuthbert's new film, "The Quiet," has the blonde starlet in her darkest role yet. Cuthbert stars as Nina, a girl who plots to kill her abusive father.

"It's about a lot of things, this movie dabbles with some secrets in this suburban life," says Cuthbert, "It's about a family who basically adopts a mute, deaf girl and she comes in and unravels all of our secrets."

The actress, whose credits include "24," "House of Wax" and "The Girl Next Door," is definitely branching out and director Jamie Babbit said she was the perfect choice for the role.

"We'd never really seen her do this kind of role before and she is just an amazing actress," says Babbit of her leading lady, "and she has a lot of anger and she has a sexuality to her and those were things that I felt were really important for the Nina character."

Minnillo was in Sin City over the weekend to celebrate the release of "John Tucker Must Die" at Pure Nightclub in Caesar's Palace. The film's leading man, Jesse Metcalfe, was also there.

The former Miss Teen USA appeared to be having a great time as she sang and chatted with the crowd, took pictures of herself with fan's cameras and downed what looked like a shot -- which she did not seem to enjoy.

With Nick no where to be found, the stunning brunette spent the evening with girlfriends laughing and dancing the night away.

Being Beyoncé Knowles' younger and less-successful sister must suck. While B is making platinum albums and starring in high-profile films, her sister Solange barely gets to step into the spotlight.

B's younger sis got her moment yesterday finally at the premiere for the second direct-to-DVD sequel to "Bring it On" which was held in Houston, the Knowles family's hometown. Of course, the attention quickly shifted to Beyoncé once the Grammy winner and her Destiny's Child bandmate Kelly Rowland walked the carpet.

The slither-marketing of "Snakes on a Plane" on the Internet continues unabated: This afternoon, "SoaP" studio New Line Cinema and community-retailing pioneer CafePress.com tell TMZ that they're announcing a licensing deal that lets CafePress users customize t-shirts, mugs, trucker hats, and other merchandise with a "Snakes on a Plane" theme -- in whatever way they like.

Upending the traditional movie licensing deal, wherein a manufacturer or retailer or fast-food joint gets to use images and characters from a film to make action figures or baseball caps or kids' meals under strict regulations from the studio, today's deal between New Line and CafePress doesn't give the site's users any pre-made graphics or images to use in their creations.

"Within two minutes Will Ferrell has his tongue stuck halfway down my throat," says "Da Ali G Show" star Sacha Baron Cohen about his first day of shooting for "Talladega Nights."

The film, which stars Cohen as a gay French race car driver, has many scenes of improvisation. Cohen joked that Ferrell's come-ons didn't end on set, saying, "Later on that night I get a knock on the door, I hear the words 'Room service,' open it up it's Will Ferrell, stinking of booze, only with his underpants on."

Sacha, whose fianceé is "Wedding Crashers" scene-stealer Isla Fisher, says his first same-sex lip-lock took place during the filming of this movie and that he prefers Andy Richter's lips to those of Ferrell. "If you close your eyes you can imagine that he's a woman 'cause he's got quite a good chest on him and not much down below," says Cohen of Richter.

It's official -- Jennifer Lopez has backed out of the movie version of the 1970's hit TV show, "Dallas."

La Lopez was set to star as Sue Ellen, the alcoholic wife of JR Ewing - played by John Travolta.

However, Lopez's rep, Leslie Sloane, confirms to TMZ that the actress has opted not to go through with the project.

This is not the first bump that the film has hit.

Earlier this year, "Legally Blonde" director Robert Luketic, who ironically also directed J.Lo in "Monster-in-Law", quit the project citing "creative differences" and was reportedly unhappy with casting choices.

Cage was given a cross made of steel from the rubble of the World Trade Center by 9/11 survivor John McLoughlin.