Movie Review - Tower Heist (2011) (PG-13)

They Just Want Their Money Back

Brett Ratner's Tower Heist is a triumph of casting and performance over plot, which is admittedly far-fetched and rather ridiculous. It is, essentially, a cross between a crime caper and a revenge fantasy - and a timely one at that, given the recent Bernie Madoff scandal and the current Wall Street protests, which has left so many people in a state of unrest. Here is a movie intentionally designed to be a crowd pleaser; it's not an enriching experience, but it provides you with several good laughs, and it ends on an immensely satisfying note. When you leave the theater, you're more likely to reflect on the humor and the action than on the logistics of the story, or lack thereof. If you do stop and think about them, you will inevitably find that the movie is not physically, dramatically, or rationally possible.

What I savored was the wonderful comedic chemistry between all of the leads, which is not easy to achieve. Apart from a return-to-form for stars Eddie Murphy and Ben Stiller (neither having been in a good comedy in years), we see great wit and energy from the likes of Casey Affleck, Matthew Broderick, Gabourey Sidibe, Michael Peña, Téa Leoni, and many of the smaller supporting players. I grant you it's an odd bunch of people. Some of them, including Broderick, might even seem like ill-fitting casting choices. But if you give them half a chance, I think you'll be pleasantly surprised by what you see. Watching them perform, I sensed that they were genuinely having fun during the shoot. If they weren't, well, that only proves what they're capable of as actors.

The story, as it were, involves the staff of a New York City high-rise discovering that they have fallen victim to a Ponzi scheme concocted by one of the tenants, a wealthy Wall Street businessman named Arthur Shaw (Alan Alda). This would include the building's manager, Josh Kovacs (Stiller), who mistakenly trusted Shaw with not just his pension but also the pensions of the entire staff. Determined to get reparations, Kovacs assembles a team and plots to break into Shaw's penthouse suite and steal millions in stashed-away money. These include: Slide (Murphy), a petty criminal Kovacs regularly passes on the street; Charlie Gibbs (Affleck), the building's well-intentioned but bumbling concierge; Mr. Fitzhugh (Broderick), a desperately broke former Wall Street investor; Odessa Montero (Sidibe), a Jamaican maid on the verge of being deported; and Enrique Dev'reaux (Peña), a newly hired bellhop who's so likeable in large part because he's says such stupid things.

Breaking into the penthouse will not be so easy. Shaw is under house arrest, and the building is enforced with the world's best security and surveillance systems. The team must also sidestep the FBI, most notably Agent Claire Denham (Leoni), who has been assigned to Shaw's case. She and Kovacs will share some interesting if unnecessary scenes together, all of which hint at mild romantic feelings. At least, I think that's what was going on. It's also quite possible that Kovacs is trying to distract Denham in an effort to throw her off track. The possibility of a Saturday-night dinner date confuses matters slightly, and perhaps that was the point. I think it would have been better for Ratner to avoid this subplot altogether, since it's bogged down by its status as an obligatory plot device.

After some close calls and near double crossings - again, obligatory plot devices - all leads to Kovacs and his team trying to smuggle a Ferrari out of Shaw's apartment on Thanksgiving Day. I will not reveal how and why they do this, or even if they succeed, although I will say that part of this involves the car dangling from a window cable hundreds of feet above the streets, where the Macy's Parade floats by as scheduled. The best actor in this particular scene in Broderick, who, after doing it so well in The Producers, proves once again that people can be quite funny when they're in a state of panic.

It cannot be denied that the film gets sillier the further along it goes. But I can't overlook the fact that the movie gives us exactly what it promises, namely a tower and a heist. And I certainly can't forget about the performances, which may not be eligible for awards but kept me smiling all throughout (I was especially taken by Peña, who can play dumb with the best of them). It's amazing that this movie works at all, given the suspension of disbelief required of the audience; what it lacks in plausibility it more than makes up for in casting and performance, which are both integral to the success of any film. I can't say that I needed to see this movie, but then again, so few movies actually need to be seen. As escapist entertainment, Tower Heist does an adequate job delivering the goods.

Although Chris never officially studied film, film theory, or even journalism in college, his Bachelors and Masters degrees in Creative Writing has taught him to appreciate story, character, and the imagination - all aspects that apply to the movies, and if there's anything his years of living in Los Angeles has guaranteed him, exposure to movies would be at the top of the list. He has always appreciated the art of filmmaking, but it wasn't until 2006 that he began writing reviews on various websites for new releases. Still residing in L.A., his reviews can be read at his website, http://www.atatheaternearyou.net.

Movie Review of Tower Heist

Remember the days when a movie with Eddie Murphy in it was guaranteed to be hysterical? I know, it's been awhile. Aside from his 'Beverly Hills Cop' days, I feel safe saying that the last thing he was in that made me really laugh out loud was "Shrek"---there are a lot of "Donkey" quotes going on in my house, especially when someone mentions waffles or parfaits. Sadly, that little gem was followed by 'Daddy Day Care', and more disturbingly, 'Norbit', which I still haven't quite forgiven him for. I know he redeemed himself slightly in his 'Dreamgirls' role, but MY dream has been to see him get back to business and make me laugh. Well, welcome back Mr. Murphy---it's nice to see you again.

THE GOOD: The movie 'Tower Heist' is kind of like a modern day Robin Hood, only instead of taking down the Sheriff of Nottingham, it's Arthur Shaw (played by Alan Alda), the Bernie Madoff-esque character who has managed to line his pockets with his lowly employees pension funds. He surrounds himself with over the top luxury items and enjoys them all from his Penthouse apartment with floor to ceiling windows. And it's Alan Alda, so you'd like to believe that there's been some sort of a mistake and that he's actually a nice guy who's been wrongfully accused---the war cry of all Ponzi schemers. But it becomes increasingly clear that a nice guy he is NOT, and through a series of missteps and fueled by righteous indignation, the General Manager of the luxury apartments, Josh Kovacs (portrayed by Ben Stiller) takes it upon himself to lead a group of less than merry men to render a little vigilante justice to Mr. Shaw. Enlisting the help of Slide (played by Eddie Murphy), a small time criminal that Josh remembers from his childhood, the group set out to set things right for themselves and all the employees at the Towers. The concept of the movie, given the current economic climate and the lack of sympathy most people have for greedy people who take advantage of others so that they can own a Summer home in the Hamptons, is an intriguing one. Yes, we feel absolutely justified rooting for the people breaking the law, because THEIR illegal activity is only going to hurt the greedy piece of work that started the whole mess. And it seems more satisfying than just letting the court system slap their hands. Add to that some fantastic comedy from Murphy, who is allowed to return to his roots a little by using that old school humor that isn't always family friendly. A darker, more subdued version of Axel Foley, if you will. Another surprise of the film is the great one liners being delivered by Mr. Fitzhugh (Matthew Broderick), an ex Wall Street executive who is completely bankrupt and is looking to help out with the heist. His timing and deadpan responses were spot on, and I think it's safe to say that he was a big reason I found the movie as funny as I did.

THE BAD: A couple things worth mentioning here---although Murphy gives one of his better comedic performances in recent memory, he doesn't actually have that large of a role in the movie. He appears about midway through, and pops in from time to time. When he's onscreen, there is some real life in the film... but when he's gone, it lags a little. In fact, the cast is so large, that it felt sometimes like no one was getting their fair share of an opportunity to shine. As previously mentioned, Murphy and Broderick both had some great comedic genius going on, but because they had to share their screen time with others who weren't quite as funny, it seemed like a bit of a waste. The movie would have still worked with less character fillers, and quite possibly would have even raised the laugh factor a little. The other thing I found disappointing was the absurdness of the actual heist itself. I won't spoil anything for you, but it almost felt like the writers worked for MONTHS on the concept of the movie itself, and then 12 hours before filming said to themselves "well, we don't really have any ideas on HOW they're gonna get their money back, and we need SOMETHING... Anybody? Any ideas AT ALL? No? Alright, we'll just punt." And that's where it kind of fell apart for me personally. Had the laughs been a little more constant, I might have been able to overlook the improbability factor, but if I'm not laughing, it gives me too much time to think....and what I was thinking was "Really? REALLY?!"

THE UGLY: Dear Hollywood, there is actually a group of people in the world, however small you believe it to be, that don't find running jokes about the female anatomy all that humorous. We are the same people who stopped laughing hysterically when someone used the word "Boobs" when we were 9. Please attempt to bump up the bar just a tad. I'm not saying I don't enjoy a little immaturity now and then. I've been known to laugh at a lot of things after which someone will say to me "Grow up". But a 3 minute dialogue on childbirth and what it can do to a person's nether region is UN. NECESSARY.

If you can keep your mind open to the fact that this movie is definitely not intended to be based on realistic planning, and is purely for entertainment purposes, it's a safe bet that you'll be amused. And Eddie Murphy doesn't play a fat woman, so there's definitely that.

The Trophy Wife gives this movie 3 ½ trophies.

Tower Heist has a running time of 104 minutes and is rated PG13 for sexual humor and language (No F words---I was pleasantly surprised)

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Shrek and the Mid-Life Crisis

It seems that Hollywood has decided to do away with trilogies and make quadrilogies instead. Why make money on a movie three times when you can make it a fourth time and milk it for what ever its worth? You don't need to come up with another original idea, the fans are already in place, just produce something, it doesn't even need to be good and people will still watch it. That's the feeling I got when I heard the fourth installment of Shrek was coming out.

Shrek the Third wasn't all that good. It wasn't as funny as the first two and was a little draggy. Now they are at it again, so I went to the cinema with very low expectations. I was pleasantly surprised though. Although it might not be as good as the first two Shreks it was definitely better than the third. Available in Tru3d, like most 3D movies you shouldn't sit too far away from the screen to get the full effect.

Without giving too much away, Shrek Forever After: The Final Chapter is basically about Shrek having a bit of a mid life crisis. Like how most guys in their 40s suddenly want to date younger women and go out partying, Shrek longs to be a feared ogre once again. People now ask him to sign their pitchforks and do the Shrek roar just for fun.

Tired of being a mascot he then makes a deal with Rumpelstiltskin to be an ogre for a day. The catch is to get a day you need to give up a day. So you can pretty much guess what day Rumpelstiltskin decides to take. Shrek then gets thrown into an alternate reality where he never existed. Rumpelstiltskin is now king, ogres are now hunted, Fiona is the ogre leader, Puss is fat and Donkey, well is donkey.

Shrek then realises that he didn't know what he had till he lost it. Just like those guys in their 40s who have that mid life crisis and their wives finally throw them out. Bet they wished they listened to Kanye West and hollered "We want prenup!" when they had the chance.

Lucky for Shrek though when he signed the contract, like all Rumpelstiltskin contracts there is always an exit clause. So can Shrek get out of his contract before his time is up and save everyone? Its Shrek, what do you think?

All in all it was pretty entertaining and I while I felt this grumpy green ogre was perhaps stretching his on screen time I am going to miss this franchise. Watch it in 3D on a day you need a feel good movie.

My movie review rating: 3.5/5

For more Entertainment News, Movie previews and videos check out Dotcom.my

Movie Review: Tower Heist (2011)

The premise of a group of disgruntled hotel employees robbing a corrupt investor of $20 million in cash doesn't immediately bring to mind the workings of a laugh-out-loud comedy, yet Tower Heist provides just that. A colorful array of characters and inspired offbeat dialogue blend together with hilarious effect to create a film that carefully fleshes out its subjects and then begins to build scene after scene of increasingly clever lunacy. Ben Stiller opts for more of a straight-man role with his lead character and allows his cohorts to deliver the majority of the comical antics. With veteran comedy actors Eddie Murphy and Matthew Broderick, plus notable turns by Michael Pena, Casey Affleck, and Gabourey Sidibe, Tower Heist has no shortage of star power or laughs.

Devoted Tower Hotel manager Josh Kovacs (Ben Stiller) loves his hectic job of catering to the building's demanding clientele. But when Arthur Shaw (Alan Alda), the hotel's penthouse resident and employees' pension investor, is exposed as a fraud and placed under house arrest by the FBI, Josh determines to get even. Devising a plan to take back $20 million from the extortionate businessman, Kovacs assembles a team of Tower employees including concierge Charlie (Casey Affleck), elevator operator Enrique (Michael Pena), and maid Odessa (Gabourey Sidibe), plus easygoing former finance wizard Fitzhugh (Matthew Broderick) and professional thief Slide (Eddie Murphy) to attempt his outlandish scheme.

It comes as no surprise that Tower Heist is both funny and genuinely suspenseful, especially with Brett Ratner (the Rush Hour films) at the helm. The mix of humor and adventure certainly has its appeal, and here he shows once again that he knows how to fuse the two without either quality eclipsing the other. While the introduction of characters reveals typical traits for Stiller (as the mild-mannered, mistreated nice guy), Alda (a coolly calculating elitist snob) and Pena (the wisecracking, fast-talking, unqualified novice), it's Broderick and Murphy that steal the show, with unusual characteristics for each actor; a mousy, disheartened math wiz and a foulmouthed, mean-spirited conman, respectively. Broderick provides some of the funniest comedy relief quips and Murphy snags the exotic role of playing a stereotypically over-the-top hood that slowly transforms into the cheerier Beverly Hills Cop persona audiences find most endearing.

But the two strongest aspects of Tower Heist are the music and the editing, which ties into the smartly constructed screenplay. The catchy score by Christophe Beck is impressively thrilling and pays homage to the oddly appealing discordance of an uncommon time signature (something other than 4/4, not unlike Lalo Schifrin's famous Mission: Impossible tune). The editing is equally consequential, including a number of unexpected cuts, as if to avoid filming either difficult scenes or ideas that might rapidly diminish in hilarity. During burglary training and the actual robbery, shots end abruptly; perhaps the setup was leading to a fizzle, the details were never meant to be shown, or the editor knew it would be funnier to leave the audience hanging. The dialogue similarly goes off in a tangent, quite humorously, generally when ineptitude or the fairer sex sidetracks the characters' conversations. Stiller's comedies tend to poke fun at himself, but almost always in a more dignified manner than comedians like Adam Sandler or Will Ferrell. In this Ocean's Eleven-like farce, that approach is more rewarding, with laughs that are undeniably more lasting.

- The Massie Twins (GoneWithTheTwins.com)

The Massie Twins are identical twin film critics who have been professionally reviewing movies full time for over 5 years, appearing on TV, radio, online and in print. They are members of the Phoenix Film Critics Society and the Internet Film Critic Society and their work can be seen at GoneWithTheTwins.com

Movie Review - A Thousand Words (2012) (PG-13)

Don't Speak!

A Thousand Words is a film that strains mightily to be both funny and heartfelt but never manages to be either. And yet, like an underachieving high school student, I could see the potential. I just know that buried somewhere within this narrative catastrophe is a rich, complex fable with the power to register emotionally. The points are all there; what's missing is an appropriate, plausible way to make them. This could explain why the film was shelved after principal photography wrapped in 2008. The official reason for the delayed release is that it got lost in the shuffle when DreamWorks separated from Paramount and Viacom. While I have no doubt that this was a contributing factor, I can't help but feel that the film itself created a whole host of problems, ones the producers were worried couldn't be fixed. If this is the case, then it turns out they were right.

It tells the story of Jack McCall (Eddie Murphy), a Los Angeles literary agent. He's mean-spirited, demanding, and manipulative, and he talks nonstop at a hundred miles an hour. He's also a workaholic, although he makes it a point to not read the manuscripts he's sent. In fact, he has devised a system of reading only the first five pages and the last five pages; if the first five establish reliable characters and marketable plot point, and if the last five resolve everything, it's automatically a bestseller. All he really lives for is dressing sharply and making deals with other literary houses. He never listens to his wife, Caroline (Kerry Washington), who feels they should move away from their Hollywood Hills home into a more family friendly suburb for the sake of their infant son.

Currently, he's looking to rope in a New Age guru named Dr. Sinja (Cliff Curtis), a Deepok Chopra parody who claims to have written a book but has thus far been unwilling to sell it. Jack goes to Sinja's ashram to work his magic, which involves underhanded tactics like saying he actually read the book. Somehow, Jack cuts his hand on the trunk of a Bodhi tree, which then magically transports itself into his backyard. It's then determined that whatever happens to the tree will happen to Jack. Example: If it gets sprayed with water, Jack will break into a sweat, and if a pair of squirrels scurry up the trunk, it will tickle Jack's body. And then there's the matter of the leaves; every word Jack speaks or writes down results in the loss of one leaf. Sinja warns him that trees die whenever they lose all their leaves. Jack quickly learns that he must choose his words carefully - or not say anything at all.

This provides the setup for a number of situations that could have been funny had they not been so forced. There are several scenes with Jack's tightly-wound assistant (Clark Duke), who at one point has to close a deal on Jack's behalf at a lunch meeting; he takes the strategy of doing what Jack would do far too literally, talking like a black stereotype and making crude physical gestures. There are also several scenes with a Starbucks employee, who must interpret Jack's exaggerated miming to fill his order. And then there's a cameo by comedian John Witherspoon as a blind man who steps into an intersection even though it's not his turn to walk yet. The oddest scene is when he sits in his therapist's office; the therapist is so used to not getting a word in edgewise that he finds he has nothing to say. So they both just sit there making comical expressions. Never mind the fact that it's never explained why Jack is in therapy at all.

And just like that, the film transitions from a manufactured slapstick comedy to a soppy drama. We meet Jack's mother (Ruby Dee), who always mistakes her son for her late husband, the same man who left his family when Jack was only a boy. It seems that Jack has been holding on to a lot of anger over the years. How the filmmakers believed such overtly dramatic material like dementia and abandonment issues could work in a comedy, I have no idea. And then there's Jack's marriage, which had been falling apart for quite some time. It has only gotten worse since Jack was forced to stop speaking. All leads to a sappy, tearjerker ending that combines personal awakening with spiritual awareness. Too bad it comes too late in the story for us to care one way or the other.

But that's the thing: We could have cared. I believe that if this story had been completely reworked as a dramatic parable, its lessons of letting go of the past and being open and attentive to your loved ones would have registered. As it is, they come off as greeting-card sentiments transplanted from an entirely different movie. Did the reshoots in 2011, a full three years after principal photography ended, contribute to this? Perhaps someone saw a rough cut of A Thousand Words and thought it was too silly for its own good. If that's the case, I'm afraid more harm was done that good. This movie is an absolute mess. Perhaps it would have been a better idea to keep this film on the shelf and let it disintegrate into nothing but scraps of celluloid.

Although Chris never officially studied film, film theory, or even journalism in college, his Bachelors and Masters degrees in Creative Writing has taught him to appreciate story, character, and the imagination - all aspects that apply to the movies, and if there's anything his years of living in Los Angeles has guaranteed him, exposure to movies would be at the top of the list. He has always appreciated the art of filmmaking, but it wasn't until 2006 that he began writing reviews on various websites for new releases. Still residing in L.A., his reviews can be read at his website, http://www.atatheaternearyou.net.

Movie Review: Tower Heist

"Tower Heist", Ben Stiller's latest movie will hit the screens on November 2, 2011. After Jim Carrey's "Fun with Dick and Jane" a dozen movies with similar synopsis flocked the screen. "Tower Heist" too has a similar script. But, we can certainly expect more from Ben Stiller and Eddie Murphy. News is afloat that Ben Stiller is paid $15 million for this movie. We hope the actor does justice to his payment.

Brett Ratner, the director of "Tower Heist" is no new face. He is quite famous for his Rush Hour series. He has a unique style of mixing humor with action. We can see his trademark action scenes and mind-blowing comedy in this movie too. Eddie Murphy and Ben Stiller both are known for their exemplary humor sense. The other cast includes Casey Affleck, Matthew Broderick, Michael Pena, and Gabourey Sidibe. Brian Grazer who enthralled us with his earlier productions like "A Beautiful Mind" and "American Gangster" is the producer of this movie.

The synopsis

Ben Stiller plays the character of Josh Kovacs, a worker in the luxurious Central Park condominium 'The Tower'. His crew manages the day-to-day activities of many well-secured residences in the condominium. One resident in the building Arthur Shaw, robs their pension money in a Wall Street scam. Alan Alda plays the role of Arthur Shaw. He is under house arrest in his deluxe penthouse for stealing more than two billion dollars in the scam.

"Fun with Dick and Jane" fame Tea Leoni plays the part of a FBI agent Claire Denham. She is responsible for guarding Arthur Shaw and capturing the stolen money. Arthur is waiting for the right moment to escape with the stolen money. The staffs of the condominium strongly believe he has hidden the money in his penthouse. They join together under Ben Stiller to hire a petty thief to steal the money from the high security house. Eddie Murphy is comical thief who manages to commit the crime amidst countless blunders.

The burglary takes place amidst the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade. The film's crew had taken painful steps to recreate the original parade with hundreds of amateur actors. All the leading artists in the film, including the Tea Leoni, Ben Stiller and Alan Alda are native New Yorker's. They have grown up witnessing the parade year after year. They co-operated fully with the director's effort to recreate the parade, sacrificing their Thanksgiving holidays.

"Tower Heist" trailer promises a complete family entertainer. The script and the cast had increased the expectations of the film widely. We have no doubt that, this humor cum action movie will be a great pre-festival entertainer.

Find out more movie comments for Tower Heist. More recently released movies trailer can be found at http://recentlyreleasedmovies.org

Taking Your Kids to the Movies - Imagine That, 2009

Seeing Eddie Murphy on the screen can't but leave you with a smile. He's bigger than life. He generates charisma, and he has a self-knowing warmth that extends from his days on SNL right through until Imagine That, his latest small masterpiece.

This is a movie about an everyday man. He's that father who's preoccupied with his job, the man who worked so hard to rise in the company, but he's also the man who had a wife who couldn't deal with it anymore so she left him. The problem is that he has a special young daughter named Olivia. She needs him, but Eddie Murphy will soon discover that he needs her more.

In this movie, Eddie Murphy is overly involved in his career. He's a financial advisor who discovers that his daughter has predictive powers about stocks.

Does this draw him closer? Yes, of course. Is it for right reasons? No. He gets closer to Olivia because he wants to win at the game of money. This movie is a set up for the great drama that working parents have during a divorce. "I'm working for you," but a child knows that he's working for himself.

Imagine That deliciously documents how Eddie Murphy negotiates with his daughter, plays with his daughter, and finds the answers to the future. In doing this, Eddie Murphy realizes that the goal he really is searching for is in Olivia's heart. This is a movie that every father and daughter should see together because they are almost guaranteed to enjoy it and take the movie's message to heart.

My name is Mark Banschick and I am a child and adolescent psychiatrist located in Katonah, NY. My recently published book, The Intelligent Divorce, is the first in a series of three, which demonstrates how to protect children when parents decide to split up.

For more information, please visit my website or Twitter page at: http://www.theintelligentdivorce.com/ and http://twitter.com/MarkBanschickMD

All About Eddie Murphy Movies

Eddie Murphy has already had a very long career that many people have diligently followed. He has many beloved fans and he has worked on a variety of different projects. Most of the Eddie Murphy movies are comedies and this is what people have learned to expect from this original comedian.

Eddie Murphy started his career as a stand up comedian with Raw and Delirious. This gave him the start he needed and made people take a closer look at his comedic skills and this put Eddie on the map.

Eddie then went on to make 48 Hours and this was his major breakout. Nick Nolte plays the cop and Murphy plays the criminal and the two become an unlikely duo to capture a crazy cop killer. He played the unforgettable Billy Ray Valentine in Trading Places and this was his first starring role. Beverly Hills Cop is one movie that Eddie Murphy was in that was wildly successful and a sequel was made for this film.

Coming to America was released in 1988 and was a major hit at the box office. This is the firs of the Eddie Murphy movies where Murphy not only played himself, but also several other characters and over the years he has been notorious for playing numerous roles in the films he is involved in. The Nutty Professor is another movie where he played both leading roles and also many other characters in the movie. In the Nutty Professor Murphy was 7 of the characters and he would go through full makeup to achieve this.

His most noted role lately is the voice of Donkey in the Shrek series. This is a highly successful series and there are four in the series so far, but it is very plausible that the series will continue and to find success. This movie with Eddie has humor for both children and adults adding to the success and it has been extremely popular making it a success all over.

There are many other Eddie Murphy movies that are not mentioned and it is prospected that his career will not fizzle out any time soon. Eddie has become a legend in the comedic business and many people will continue laughing in his honor long after his career is over. It is exciting to see what Eddie Murphy will do next and which way his career will turn.

"And now I would like to invite you to see more invaluable information on Eddie Murphy Movies at http://eddiemurphymovies.com

From Craig Thornburrow - A small business owner and big fan of Eddie Murphy"

Famous Celebrity Paternity Cases

Famous people. We constantly want to know what is happening with life, whether it's about the prosperity of their careers or the lowest point of their personal lives. In 2004, about 300,000 DNA paternity tests had been performed, but famous person paternity lab tests and instances have invariably been on the receiving end of the public's eye. What are one of the most discussed paternity conditions and what can we learn from these celebrities?

• Charlie Chaplin

It was 1945, when Charlie Chaplin was declared as pops of Carol Ann, the daughter of Joan Barry. Their child received monthly financial assist until she turned 21 years of age. Through this time, blood-grouping lab tests were employed to prove paternity. In blood-grouping, the youngster should have inherited the blood sort of either the mum or the father. As a result of this along with the laws of hereditary, Chaplin was singled by the court as the feasible dad.

• Eddie Murphy

Ginger Spice or Melanie Brown's effort to possess her daughter legally acknowledged by papa Eddie Murphy filled magazines and tabloids. Brown got pregnant or turn out to be public with the pregnancy after her divorce with Murphy in 2006. In 2007, DNA lab tests established that Murphy was indeed the dad of Brown's daughter.

• Larry Birkhead/ Howard K. Stern

Anna Nicole Smith's daughter was subjected to the media when determining the dad of the youngster. Five men came forward to claim paternity. But only two came face to face from the court: photographer Larry Birkhead and lawyer Howard Kevin Stern. In 2007, Dannielyn Hope's biological papa became for being Birkhead and was supplied the custody of their child.

• Boris Becker

The well known and former top tennis player, proven the father of the child of model Angela Ermakova. It is said in media incidents that Becker gave Ermakova $2.8 million. Becker first off denied becoming the father of the youngster, but after the DNA check, he admitted to possess fathered the youngster immediately after a "closet" encounter in a very restaurant. In 07, Becker went for and was granted joint custody of Anna soon after she raised questions about how Ermakova was raising their youngster.

• Chris Rock

Rock was happily married for 11 a long time, when Kali Bowyer claimed that her 13- year old son was Rock's little one. Bowyer demanded for a paternity analyze. Except for that she also provided her story to tabloids in exchange of money. Although, the DNA check resulted negative. Rock later on announced that it may be safer to donate all the money paid to Bowyer to charitable institutions.

• Steve Jobs

The wealthy Apple co-founder and CEO took two many years prior to he acknowledged daughter Lisa Brennan-Jobs from painter Chrisann Brennan. Jobs firstly claimed that he was sterile and infertile, but later recognized the daughter when the DNA test returned positive.

• Keanu Reeves

The most recent celebrity paternity analyze is with Keanu Reeves and Canadian, Karen Sala claimed that her four kids exactly where fathered by Reeves. They took a DNA test and also the result was that Reeves was not connected with any from the four children. Sala, later claimed that Reeves use hypnosis to change the results. The situation was dismissed as well as the woman was ordered to pay Reeves $15,000 for the legal expenses.

How would you like to read about the top pregnancy tips online? Visit pregnancy101.org and browse through the free pregnancy advice and be sure to check out pregnancy breast pain.

Top 20 Animation Movies - What Makes Them Tick?

Being in the animation industry, it is in my interest to keep abreast of which animated feature films are taking the most box office profits. Today I run by this list of the top 20 highest grossing animation movies of all time and I would like to share my views on why I think these movies did as well as they did. They will make up my recommended recipe for an animated feature box office hit.

1. Shrek 2 (3D) - $436,471,036

2. Finding Nemo (3D) - 339,714,978

3. The Lion King (2D) - 328,539,505

4. Shrek the Third (3D) - $322,719,944

5. Shrek (3D) - 267,665,011

6. The Incredibles (3D) - 261,657,004

7. Monsters, Inc. (3D) - 255,870,172

8. Toy Story 2 (3D) - $245,852,179

9. Cars (3D) - $244,082,982

10. Aladdin (2D) - 217,350,219

11. Ratatouille (3D) - $206,445,654

12. Happy Feet (3D) - $198,000,317

13. Ice Age: Meltdown (3D) - $195,330,621

14. Madagascar (3D) - $193,595,521

15. Toy Story (3D) - $191,780,865

16. The Simpsons Movie (2D) - $183,135,014

17. The Polar Express (3D) - $179,100,434

18. Ice Age (3D) - 176,387,405

19. Beauty and the Beast (2D) - $171,350,553

20. Tarzan (2D) - $171,091,819

Shrek - Top of the Crop

Shrek 2 takes the lead as you can see from the list. In fact, the Shrek trilogy takes the 1st, 4th and 5th positions, all in the top 5 positions. This is a very impressive feat and in my opinion, Shrek took the cake because the stories were really good and the gags were good. Of course it helped a lot that 4 major stars were casted - Eddie Murphy, Cameron Diaz, Antonio Banderas and Mike Myers. In fact, of the Shrek trilogy, I enjoyed Shrek 2 the most, so personally I am not surprised that it performed the best out of the three.

3D versus 2D

From the list below, we can see that 3D movies take 15 of the spots, in comparison with its 2D counterparts that take only 5 seats. It would seem from this statistic that the audience is favoring 3D animation to 2D animation. Even 2D/3D fusion shows like Spirit: Stallion of the Cimarron and Treasure Planet did not seem to please them enough. It would seem that The Lion King, Aladdin, Beauty and the Beast and Tarzen are only in the top 20 positions because of their strong family-orientated storylines and classic branding. The Simpsons Movie benefited basically through a huge fan base through its TV series. Barring such unique franchises, it would appear that a 3D show would trounce a 2D one any day. The animation studios seem to be echoing this sentiment as the quantity of 2D animated features produced has dwindled drastically in recent years.

A Strong Storyline

This is probably not new to you, but I will say it anyway. I think that one of the most important factors that will drive an animated feature would be a strong and compelling storyline. In fact I would go as far as to say that if you forgo everything else, you must have a great story to tell! Every single movie on the list tells an interesting story (well almost) and they all did well enough to make it to top twenty.

Laughter, the Best Medicine

People like to laugh. They like to laugh at others. They like to laugh at themselves. They just like to laugh. All things constant, I think Shrek takes three of the top five positions because of their gags and original jokes. And do not forget the two maestros of comedy - Mike Myers and Eddie Murphy - who performed the voiceovers for Shrek and Donkey respectively. How can you beat that lethal duo?

A Strong Voiceover Cast

It is a fact that a star-studded cast for the voiceovers is a crowd-puller, especially when the celebrities are well-liked and great performers. Again, refer to Shrek's cast. With Mike Myers, Cameron Diaz, Eddie Murphy, Antonio Banderas, how can the movie go wrong?

The Importance of Recognizable Characters within the Show

This is just my theory, but I strongly believe that besides having a strong storyline, animated features should also showcase recognizable characters. And when I say recognizable characters, I don't mean plain human characters. I mean monsters. I mean animals. I mean super heroes. With characters that are more interesting than humans, they are instantly more recognizable. Look at the list closely. Besides a couple of the old 2D movies, which other movie had a cast that only had plain old human beings for its lead? Having interesting and identifiable characters will most definitely attract ticket sales because people want to pay to watch interesting characters in an animated feature, not plain old human being! I don't have to remind you again what a flop Final Fantasy: The Spirits Within was, do I?

My Personal Favourites

In case you are wondering, my personal favorites are Monster Inc, The Incredibles, Finding Nemo, Shrek 2 and Ice Age in that order. My reason? They all have strong and compelling storylines. And I put them in this order according to how much I enjoyed each individual movie. I must say that Monster Inc gave me the best enjoyment factor!

Conclusion

So here's my recommended recipe for a animated feature box office success:

1. The movie must be done in 3D

2. It must have a compelling story to tell

3. Inject lots of humor into the show

4. Get a strong cast to be your voiceover talents

5. The character designs must be interesting and memorable

I hope that this article has been an interesting read. Please visit my websites to read more of my articles or simply to check out what I am doing.

Aldric Chang is the Founding Managing Director of the Mediafreaks Pte Ltd group and is best described as a creative entrepreneur with business interests in building free online adventure games, cartoon animation, interactive digital media, internet marketing, web 2.0 and music

Tower Heist Review

Judging by the trailer, Tower Heist looked like it could be hit or miss. Some of it looked funny and other parts made the film look like it would be corny. I know that you can't judge a movie by its trailer, so I was more than willing to see it anyway. It starred Ben Stiller and Eddie Murphy together for the first time and also included a deep cast of solid actors, so that was interesting enough for me to at least to give it a chance.

Arthur Shaw (Alan Alda) is a Wall Street businessman who gets in trouble for scheming millions of dollars out of unsuspecting investors. A group of his victims actually work at the high-rise where he lives. Once they realize that they've been robbed of their pensions, they decide to get even by stealing back money that he may have hidden in a secret department in his apartment. Josh Kovacs (Ben Stiller) makes it his duty to the lead the team on this heist with the help of an old "friend" named Slide (Eddie Murphy), who also happens to be a career criminal. Getting together a team who wants to help is easy, but getting them to develop the fortitude to pull the heist off proves to be much more difficult.

Tower Heist is a film where the dialog is its primary source of comedy. The back and forth banter between the characters is entertaining and that's partially because the personalities were so different and they had unique things to bring to the table. All of them helped move the film along as we get to learn about them, parts of their personal lives and their relationships with one another. I'll also say that the characters are far more important to the movie than anything else, including the plot. They are the backbone of the film and it's obvious to see from the beginning.

While I acknowledge the entire cast and their positive contributions as a whole, it has to be said that Tower Heist truly comes alive when Eddie Murphy gets involved. I'm happy to say that this movie manages to brings back the Rated-R version of Eddie Murphy that's been missing for a long time. He appeared to return to his old form in this movie and that's a good thing. Murphy stole the show in every scene he was in and did some of what made him into a star. We haven't seen this version Eddie in a while and I wish he had more screen time. I hope he stays in these roles for the foreseeable future, because that would be good for business.

Although I do like Tower Heist, I wish that it was smarter than it was. It offered itself multiple chances to do that, but it rarely took advantage of those said chances. I'll also point out that it had a few blatant holes in the movie that can't be explained away easily if you tried, you'll have to see those for yourself. In the end, it was just a fun movie that I enjoyed. They brought back the real Eddie Murphy and added a lot of wise cracking jokes that made up for some of its flaws. It's not complicated and I don't think it was supposed to be. Tower Heist is a movie made for laughs and that's what you get.

Score: 3/5

Rating: PG-13

Director: Brett Ratner

Cast:

Ben Stiller

Eddie Murphy

Matthew Broderick

Casey Affleck

Michael Peña

Gabourey Sidibe

Alan Alda

Tea Leoni

Film Length: 99 minutes

Release Date: November 4, 2011

Distributor: Universal Pictures

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Movie Review of A Thousand Words

There was a time---many, MANY years ago---when putting Eddie Murphy in a movie was guaranteed to equal a big box office return and lots of laughs. Lately, however, it's hit or miss, and---let's be honest---quite a bit more miss than hit. Years after the fact, I am still trying to scrub the images of "Norbit" from my brain. However, I still find myself holding out hope that he will redeem himself from the long list of stinkers that have plagued the theaters since the mid '90's. And despite my ever present sarcasm, I am an optimist at heart, and chose to give Mr. Murphy another shot at things by seeing his new film, "A Thousand Words".

THE GOOD: Jack McCall (Murphy) is a big time publishing agent who spends his days smooth talking potential clients, while ignoring or belittling everyone else in his life. His main focus is himself, and he has no problem saying whatever he needs to in order to close the deal. But Jack is about to meet Karma, in the form of a tree----a tree whose life is, inexplicably, tied to his own. When he speaks, leaves fall from the tree, and he soon realizes that when those leaves disappear, he and the tree are both goners. What follows are semi-creative attempts to function in everyday interactions (professional, family and public) without uttering a word. As expected, complications are abundant, and Jack realizes he has to find a way to fix everything with as few words as possible.

There isn't a lot to rave about in this film, but I have to admit I was more than a little impressed with the young actor who plays Jack's secretary/assistant, Aaron (Clark Duke). In those moments when Murphy is forced into silence, Duke shows promise with his "young Michael J. Fox-esque" awkwardness and voice. There may be a future for this boy---although that may not be the case for Eddie.

THE BAD: I understand the point that the writers were trying to make with this idea, I really do. It's all about making what we say actually MATTER, and finding the words that help others more than ourselves. The problem is that they weren't very clear about their moral until the last 15 minutes of the film. To be fair, for a movie that had so little to offer for almost its entire lifespan, I felt some genuine emotion towards the end. It's just a case of too little too late. And, aside from the corniness of a magical tree sprouting up overnight in your yard, the main problem with the whole film is that Eddie Murphy is SILENT during a fair portion of it. We all know that he can be hysterical and has delivered some pretty memorable lines in the past, but a physical comedian he is NOT, so even with all the crazy faces and sign language he attempts in order to communicate, it fell flat without his trademark sarcastic wit.....although I'm not sure even some well placed lines could have saved this one, unless Murphy could have used those lines to make fun of the movie itself. That might have been fun.

THE UGLY: I suppose this next point is subject to debate, but it's my personal opinion that the raunchy, albeit brief, S & M scene between Jack and his wife was not integral to the plot of the movie and was basically unneeded. It just added one more awkward moment of Murphy saying nothing. Axle Foley would have at least given us a witty comment about the leather underwear.

The bottom line is that "A Thousand Words" doesn't hit an all time low for Eddie Murphy---I think that ship might have sailed with "Pluto Nash"---but it certainly isn't his finest performance by a long shot either. The good news is that he doesn't attempt to play numerous characters---but one of his strongest talents is his mouthiness---take that away and it's an uncomfortable silence.

The Trophy Wife gives this movie 2 trophies.

A Thousand Words has a running time of 91 minutes and is rated PG-13 for sexual situations including dialogue, language and some drug-related humor. (F word used once)

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