The Kingdom

One critic is getting very critical of Hollywood's portrayal of Arabs and Muslims in film and television. Jack Shaheen, an American of Lebanese decent, told Reuters that in America, where it is politically incorrect to make derogatory comments about other groups like African Americans or Jews, there is no social taboo against reinforcing damaging Arab or Muslim stereotypes.

In his latest book, Guilty, Shaheen says that the an anti-Arab tendency was present before September 11^th. Disney's Aladdin (1992) and Father of the Bride Part II both fail the test. (Remember the Arab guy trying to buy Steve Martin's house?)

But, since September 11^th, the vilifying has picked up. Shaheen writes that
2006's The Kingdom presented some of the most damaging depictions of Arabs in which "even Arab children cannot be trusted." Movies that make the A-list? Shaheen says Babel (2006) and Rendition (2007) presented a more complex view of Arabs.

Do American movies and television shows rely on the "Arab bogeyman"? Why do you think American society tolerates such indiscriminate demonization?

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The Farrelly Brothers and Ben Stiller are left broken hearted today after their bawdy comedy The Heartbreak Kid failed to draw in the masses at the theaters. Taking home just $14 million its opening weekend, The Heartbreak Kid came in second place at the box office, behind the family friendly Game Plan starring Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson. The Game Plan is enjoying its second weekend of being No. 1 at the box office after its successful opening weekend.

The Kingdom continued to do well with action flick fans, coming in third place with $9.3 million. Resident Evil: Extinction came in fourth place with newcomer The Seeker: The Dark Is Rising following up in No. 5. The George Clooney legal thriller Michael Clayton didn't thrill a whole lot of moviegoers; the movie came in twenty-first place with $704,000 for the weekend.

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After going fancy in Paris and London, Jennifer and Jamie ditched their formal wear for a photocall in Berlin for The Kingdom. This marks the fourth country these two have hit in the last week and we can't even imagine how exhausted they must be. At least they probably got lots of quality bonding time in together, although we know Jennifer would rather be with her family or in her hometown.

Lots more pics of J & J so just read more

Jennifer has just been killing it with gorgeous color out promoting The Kingdom! From green to purple to pink to orange to red to this blue last night in London — stunning, stunning, stunning. Fab wants to know which of Jennifer's looks is your favorite and I just can't decide. Jamie Foxx (who looks slick himself) is a lucky man with such a beautiful lady as his premiere companion. Could I gush more about Garner? It's been a treat seeing Jennifer all glammed up, but I'm sure Violet wants her park partner back soon in NYC. Even when we're back playfully ribbing Jennifer for her backpack-y jeans style, we'll always have these red carpet pics to remind us how amazingly she cleans up. So pretty.

To see more of Jennifer and Jamie just read more

Jennifer Garner definitely turned a few heads in her hot pink mermaid number at the Paris premiere of The Kingdom. Seriously, between the color of her dress and that huge grin on her face we barely even notice Jamie Foxx standing there next to her. That being said, Jennifer claims she would've been even happier to skip Paris entirely and just hang out in her hometown of Charleston, West Virginia. She said,

"I would much rather wake up and go to Taylor Books tomorrow and sit, drink coffee and read the newspaper rather than go to Paris," Garner said in a quick telephone interview that took place while she was riding to the airport. It's just the overall feel of it there. The green's there, the people walking down the street. Anyone that doesn't live there or isn't from there just can't understand it."

Jennifer has always struck us as kind of a homebody, so it doesn't surprise us that she prefers the south to Europe. That being said, she definitely gets points for putting on her happy face and looking fabulous while doing it.

More of Jennifer and Jamie when you read more

In a surprising turn of events — even for people behind the movie itself — The Game Plan, a PG-rated family-friendly flick starring Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson, came in at No. 1 at the box office this weekend. The Disney movie far outpaced the action-war film The Kingdom, which took in $17.7 million and the No. 2 spot. Variety speculates whether The Kingdom's weak opening is an indication of audiences' reluctance "to see films addressing the consequences of the war on terror."

Favorites from last weekend held over: Resident Evil 3: Extinction came in third place with Good Luck Chuck following it at No. 4. 3:10 to Yuma continued to hold its own in its fourth weekend, coming in at No. 5. Feast of Love didn't even make it into the top ten and brought home a slim $1.7 million.

This weekend we'll see if Ben Stiller and Co. will be breaking any hearts at the box office with The Heartbreak Kid.

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We’ve been talking a lot about the onset of the fall movie season. Gone are the hot days of summer and with them the never-ending sequels, gross-out Judd Apatow comedies and big-budget action films. And as the weather gets cooler, suddenly some of the movies get smarter.

The Kingdom tries to parade itself as a fall movie. It wants to be clever and politically relevant, but in the end it’s just a summer movie in sheep’s clothing. And though that’s not necessarily a bad thing, in this case, it’s not especially good either. The movie begins with a brief, written, tutorial of the Saudi Arabia oil empire and the resulting partnerships and conflicts with the United States of America. It’s an informative and authentic intro, but that’s where the authenticity ends. From there, the movie falls into a “blame the terrorist” cliché that has affected other big Hollywood movies like Flightplan. For more about The Kingdom, read more