Sean Connery w / AB	Daniel Craig		Pierce Brosnan w / AB
Dateline London, UK: As the world’s new James Bond, Daniel Craig, begins filming his second  007 movie amid world record audiences for his first outing, the old ‘brash with panache’ impression fostered by the likes of Sean Connery, Roger Moore and Pierce Brosnan is quickly morphing into a cold, cruel and dark image of a professional killer in the hire of Her Majesty’s Secret Service.  The Carey Grant feeling imbued in the older Bond outings is going by the wayside.  And if the producers don’t stop the writers, a lean, mean total antihero will soon appear.  We all remember 007’s Vesper Martini (3 parts gin, one part vodka and half a jigger of Lillet Blanc vermouth, shaken and served with a twist of lemon rind). Soon you will probably be able to see that only in a James Bond Museum, as Heineken, the Belgian beer maker, has signed an exclusive product placement contract with the Bond producers. What’s next? Trading in his tux for a ripped t shirt and flip flops and appearing on a Doritos commercial.

Salma Hayek	William H. Macey

Dateline Los Angeles, CA: Salma Hayek, the current hottest Latino entertainment celebrity on the planet, is wending her way in front, as well as behind the cameras with equal skill and passion. And if you don’t believe it, just wait until you see her starring in the Independent film, ‘La Banda’, which she will also produce. It’s a Spanish-language romantic comedy in which  she'll play a wealthy housewife who finds herself without money when her husband leaves her. To make ends meet she secretly becomes a singer in a wedding band, but finds it hard to keep this fact  from her rich friends when the band becomes famous. In addition to occasional appearances in the hit television “Ugly Betty” series, which she also produces, Salma is now filming “Keep Coming Back” a drama co-staring and directed by William H. Macy about a teenager with a heart condition and a crush on a stripper (Salma), twice his age who decides to join her Alcoholics Anonymous group, just so he can be in the same room with her.

"Spider-man 3" Poster		Tobey Maguire

Dateline Hollywood CA: the movie capital of the world  has not only told many tales of those who have sold their souls, but the town has historically had plenty of individual residents in that category to spare. However it's seldom heard that today people are publicly buying them. Now it has come to light that Tobey Maguire has become a buyer and he wants to make it a major film star. Toby, as most know is best known for his Spider-Man portrayal, but the superhero has nothing to do with this story. In reality, Tobey has purchased the story of Gerald Fraller, who is selling his soul in an on line auction. When Gerald was 28 his life took a downhill turn as he lost a dream job and so he vowed to turn his life around. Instead of searching for another job Gerald created a website  in which he stipulated the conditions that he would sell his soul. To everyone’s amazement, including his, Gerald has actually so far received over 4,000 bids on his eternal spirit and will reveal the winner in November. And what, pray tell, does Gerald’s soul really consist of ?  First of all the winning bidder will receive the right to name Gerald’s future children and receive a share of his personal earnings. The latter could be quite lucrative now that Toby’s paid a hefty sum  for the rights to his life story. Film plans are in the pre-pre-production stages. But a script will soon be written and then Toby will shop it around the studios. If you are in the soul buying business and would like to make a bid:

THIS WILL BE THE YEAR OF THE '3QUEL'!

'Pirates of the Caribbean' Poster	'Shrek the Third' Poster

In their never ending quest to maximize profits above everything else, Hollywood producers this year, by and large, are taking the same low  and safe road. The films that generated multi million ticket receipts internationally with their first film and sequel are now the best bet for a ‘3quel’. It’s going to begin with “Shrek the Third”, whose franchise to date made over one billion four hundred million dollars. Of course Capt Jack Sparrow will bring back his “Pirates of the Caribbean” for the third go, as his first two outings grossed over one billion, seven hundred million dollars worldwide. And everyone wants ‘Spidey’ to return for a third go at the bad guys.  But two of the expected winners, ‘The Hulk’ and ‘Superman Returns’ are not even going to go for number two, as their worldwide grosses were not in the blockbuster class. We guess that’s why Hollywood classifies film making as the Motion Picture ‘Industry’, where the medium is definitely not the message. The bottom line is truly the bottom line- Profit is king. So get ready for even more with “Rush Hour 3”, “Hannibal Rising”(actually a prequel but the third in its series), “Ocean’s 13”, “Resident Evil 3” and “The Bourne Ultimatum” and who knows how many more in the wings.