#573. Movie Buzz

1. Transformers bags a ton of change with US$60m opening day
Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen scored a huge first day take of US$60.6mil (about RM220mil) on Wednesday, the second highest opening day ever after The Dark Knight's US$67.2mil (RM242mil) last July.Poor critical reception doesn't seem to have dampened the fans' enthusiasm for the sequel.After this weekend's anticipated fan frenzy, it is expected to come close to, if not match, The Dark Knight's five-day US$203mil (about RM730mil) haul last Summer.

2. Dark Knight wins big at Saturn Awards
The 35th Annual Saturn Awards, presented by the Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy and Horror Films, saw The Dark Knight cleaning up with five honours.Sci Fi Wire reports that the Batman epic won Best Action/Adventure/Thriller Film, Best Writing, Best Supporting Actor (Heath Ledger), Best Music and Best Special Effects.Best Fantasy Film was The Curious Case of Benjamin Button while Iron Man picked up the statuette for Best Science Fiction Film.Battlestar Galactica won three in the TV category: Actor (Edward James Olmos), Actress (Mary McDonnell) and Syndicated/Cable TV Series.Leonard Nimoy picked up the Lifetime Achievement Award. Come on, you all know it wasn't just for In Search Of ...

3. Early Avatar footage causes a sensation
James Cameron screened some footage from his highly-anticipated 3D CGI epic Avatar, due out at the end of this year, at the recent CinemaExpo International in Amsterdam.
According to Dark Horizons, the response was almost unanimously overwhelming, with attendees giving it a standing ovation.It seems the footage was so realistic that even alien creatures and landscapes seemed utterly believable.Can we believe the hype? Heck, why not - it's better than sitting around waiting for the world to end, that's for sure.

4. Oscars to double Best Picture nominees
And that means we'll have nine losers instead of four! Well, it seems that in keeping with the practice of critics, critics circles and circular critics issuing Top 10 lists of movies, the Oscars are going to expand the Best Picture nominee field to 10 from the current five.The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences said in a statement reported on the LA Times' The Envelope site that it was returning to the days of yore when Best Picture nominees could stretch up to that number.The first 16 years of the Oscars saw at least 10 films competing. The final year of this practice, 1943, saw Casablanca walking into the misty night with the statuette.Academy president Sidney Ganis said in its statement: "Having 10 Best Picture nominees is going allow Academy voters to recognise and include some of the fantastic movies that often show up in the other Oscar categories, but have been squeezed out of the race for the top prize."

5. Life As We Know It to change for Heigl
Grey's Anatomy star Katherine Heigl (who's sticking with the hit show after earlier reports had her being written out) will headline the drama Life As We Know It.Yahoo! Movies says the drama tells the story of two single people who suddenly become the guardians of an orphaned girl after her parents, mutual best friends to both parties, are killed in an accident.Heigl adds what sounds like a meaty role to an already solid film portfolio that includes the 2007 comedy Knocked Up, 27 Dresses, and the upcoming The Ugly Truth in which she co-stars with Gerard Butler.Life will be directed for Warner Bros by Everwood creator Greg Berlanti, although no start date has been set.

6. Daniel Craig to get shaken ... and stirred?
Current James Bond Daniel Craig is reported to be in early talks to star in Dream House, a psychological thriller to be directed by Irish filmmaker Jim Sheridan (In America, My Left Foot) for indie producer Morgan Creek, Yahoo! Movies reported.Reps stress, however, that the two sides have not reached a deal.The David Loucka script sees a man (Craig) who moves his family to an idyllic small town, only to find his house haunted by its former inhabitants, who were murdered there.Working with a pedigreed director like Sheridan could help establish Craig as a more prestigious actor post-Quantum of Solace while keeping him in the realm of the commercial.Like other Bond actors, Craig has faced a crossroads coming off 007 hits.His recent role in Defiance, for example, essentially saw Craig taking on a more art house version of the Bond character of hit man and vigilante - as did his earlier turn in the Steven Spielberg revenge drama Munich.