HozNews

Hollywood’s overflowing cash registers rang even louder on Sunday as the cartoon “Monsters vs. Aliens” scared up the biggest opening of the year at the North American box office.

DreamWorks Animation SKG Inc’s first big 3-D film sold an estimated $58.2 million worth of tickets across the United States and Canada during its first three days, the studio said.

The opening was at the upper end of analysts’ forecasts within a $50 million to $60 million range. The year’s previous best start was $55.2 million for “Watchmen” earlier this month, though that superhero film quickly stalled, and finally crawled across the $100 million mark last Thursday.

“Monsters vs. Aliens” also set a record for a 3-D opening — $32.6 million, or about 56 percent of the gross, the studio said. The balance came from traditional movie theaters.

Hollywood is betting a lot on 3-D, with about 40 films scheduled to run in 3-D over the next three years in hopes that audiences will pay $3 to $5 more per ticket than they typically do to watch movies that feature characters and objects popping out of movie screens.

One of the biggest 3-D proponents has been DreamWorks Animation’s Chief Executive Officer, Jeffrey Katzenberg, who has pledged to release all the company’s movies in 3-D at an additional cost of $15 million per film.

The production budget for “Monsters vs. Aliens” was about $165 million to $170 million, including that 3-D premium. Worldwide marketing costs are estimated at $175 million, consistent with past DreamWorks Animation releases.

The film, featuring the voices of Reese Witherspoon, Paul Rudd and Rainn Wilson, was distributed by Paramount Pictures, a unit of Viacom Inc. Witherspoon plays a 50-foot-tall newscaster recruited to help battle an alien invasion. Reviews from top critics were mixed.

EMBARRASSMENT OF RICHES?

Sales for all films were up about 40 percent from the haul this time a year ago, reaching $148 million, according to tracking firm Media By Numbers.

Year-to-date revenues stand at $2.4 billion, up 12 percent from the same period in 2008. The number of tickets sold is up by 10.4 percent.

The windfall presents something of an embarrassment of riches for Hollywood. Lawmakers have looked askance at the moguls’ pleas for bailout money. The studios are also engaged in a lengthy standoff with the Screen Actors Guild, whose film and TV contract expired last June.

But box office revenues are just “one piece of a giant jigsaw puzzle,” said Media By Numbers president Paul Dergarabedian. For starters, the studios generally split sales about 50/50 with the movie theaters, he said.

And the recession has forced studios to tighten their belts along with other sectors of the economy. Indeed, some analysts believe “Monsters vs. Aliens” could have been better had the credit crunch not hampered the roll-out of expensive digital equipment needed to screen 3-D movies.

Also new was the horror film “The Haunting in Connecticut,” which came in at No. 2 with $23.0 million, exceeding the forecast of its distributor, Lionsgate.

The strong opening coincides with an intensifying battle for control of the studio’s parent, Lions Gate Entertainment Corp, by billionaire investor Carl Icahn.

The activist investor, who controls 14.5 percent of Lions Gate shares, has criticized the company for spending too much on overhead and for its recent $255 million purchase of the TV Guide cable channel.

Lions Gate, which also produces the acclaimed “Mad Men” cable-TV series, has had a good year at the box office. Its most recent film, “Madea Goes to Jail,” has earned $89 million, a record for a release by prolific moviemaker Tyler Perry.

Last week’s champ, the Nicolas Cage thriller “Knowing,” fell to No. 3 with $14.7 million, taking its 10-day total to $46.2 million. The film was released by Summit Entertainment, which is privately held.

LONDON (AFP) - - Prince William, who is training to become a full-time military helicopter pilot, wants to fight in Afghanistan, a newspaper said, citing the royal.

The News of the World, Britain’s biggest-selling newspaper, said the 26-year-old royal, who is second in line to the throne, unwittingly spoke to their reporter in a nightclub.

The prince gives away little when speaking publicly.

William also said his brother Prince Harry was missing his ex-lover Chelsy Davy, while giving away no clues about whether he might marry his own girlfriend Kate Middleton.

Harry, 24, served with the British Army in Afghanistan for 77 days with the Household Cavalry regiment until a reporting embargo broke down in February 2008.

He had previously been blocked from serving in Iraq due to the sensitivities of sending senior royals to fight in war zones and the likelihood of them becoming high-profile targets and increasing the risk for their colleagues.

“I’d love to do what Harry did out in Afghanistan,” William was reported as saying.

“That’s why we train — because we want to be out there on the front line. I’m a bit jealous of him to be honest. Hopefully I’ll get my turn.”

William, who graduated as an army officer in December 2006, is training to be a full time pilot with the Search and Rescue Force branch of the Royal Air Force (RAF).

Flight Lieutenant William Wales began his 18-month training course in January. Officers usually serve an operational tour of approximately 30-36 months following successful completion of training, but William may yet be blocked from serving on the front line.

William has briefly glimpsed military life in Afghanistan, taking part in a 30-hour round trip to Kandahar Air Base and Qatar in April 2008 at the culmination of an attachment to the RAF.

Asked whether he would be getting married any time soon, William replied: “You’ll have to wait and see. Wait and see!”

Asked about how his brother was faring following his split from Zimbabwean law student Davy in January, William shook his head and replied: “Harry is still missing Chelsy. They were together for such a long time, so it’s only natural, I guess. He’s coping, but, yeah, he does miss her a lot.”

The News of the World said William spoke to their reporter during a 1940s wartime theme party in a central London nightclub.

A spokesman for the prince said: “Prince William doesn’t talk about his private life to strangers. William does not recall this conversation taking place.”

BANGKOK (AFP) - - Thai Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva Sunday accused fugitive former leader Thaksin Shinawatra of stoking unrest, as protests that have plunged the kingdom into fresh turmoil entered a fourth day.

Thousands of demonstrators loyal to the exiled Thaksin have surrounded Abhisit’s office in Bangkok since Thursday, listening to their leader deliver fiery video addresses against the government each night.

Thaksin urged his supporters Saturday to “rise up” and fight the current administration, while a day earlier he accused two of the revered king’s advisers of masterminding the 2006 military coup that toppled him.

“He is trying to arouse people in an effort to gain benefit for himself,” the British-born Abhisit told reporters.

The prime minister said that while protests were allowed by law, the demonstrators “should not make more trouble for people who are already suffering from economic turmoil.”

Some 1,500 so-called “Red Shirts” kept up the vigil at Government House for the fourth day Sunday. Numbers have swelled in the evening to up to 30,000 as people gather to listen to Thaksin.

Speaking from an unknown location abroad while wearing a red shirt, an impassioned Thaksin called in his video speeches for the Oxford-educated Abhisit to dissolve the government and call fresh elections.

He further hit out at Abhisit’s policies for lifting Thailand out of the slump caused by the global financial crisis, which has hurt the kingdom’s export-dependent economy.

The prime minister defended his government, saying it “is still focused on working, we are confident we can carry on working.”

The protests are the biggest by Thaksin’s loyalists since Abhisit came to power in December, following a controversial court decision to dissolve the previous government led by Thaksin’s brother-in-law.

They accuse the prime minister of being a stooge of Thailand’s powerful army and have demanded the prosecution of the people behind a siege of Bangkok’s airports late last year which helped to hasten the fall of the last administration.

Abhisit meanwhile defended two of the king’s advisers — ex-premiers General Prem Tinsulanonda and General Surayud Chulanont — against Thaksin’s accusations that they were responsible for the coup against him.

Thaksin’s claims were a rare departure for Thailand, where King Bhumibol Adulyadej is protected from criticism from strict lese majeste laws that can see violators jailed for up to 15 years.

“A protest for political demands should be related to politics, there is no reason to mention the privy council,” Abhisit said, referring to the king’s council of advisors.

Foreign Minister Kasit Piromya meanwhile said Sunday that the government was pushing forward on talks with other countries on the possible extradition of Thaksin.

The former premier was sentenced in absentia in October to two years in prison for abuse of power linked to a 2003 land deal.

He said earlier this month that he was in Dubai after months of keeping his whereabouts secret, and he abruptly cancelled plans to appear in person at an event in Hong Kong in early March.

“Prosecutors and the foreign ministry talked to Hong Kong and China recently about the extradition and will talk to Dubai next week,” Kasit said in the ruling party’s annual meeting.

Since his ouster, Thaksin has hopped around the world, with his travels including a brief stint as the owner of English football club Manchester City.

Thailand remains deeply divided between Thaksin’s supporters, primarily the rural and urban poor, and his foes among the old power cliques in the palace, military and the Bangkok elite.

SAN FRANCISCO (AFP) - - Post-apocalyptic adventure “Fallout 3″ has been crowned Game of the Year at a major gathering of videogame makers in San Francisco.

The captivating story-driven videogame made by Bethesda Softworks bested blockbuster rivals including notorious “Grand Theft Auto: IV” and zombie shooter “Left 4 Dead” at the 9th annual Game Developers Choice Awards.

“It’s the first time we’ve ever won this award, and to be given it by other game developers, with so many amazing games that could have won, well, we’re simply overjoyed,” Bethesda game director Todd Howard said Thursday.

“It’s very special to us.”

“Fallout 3″ also won a Best Writing award at Wednesday’s ceremony, considered a highlight of the Game Developers Conference (GDC).

Sony-backed “LittleBigPlanet” developed by Media Molecule of Britain ended the evening with the most awards, capturing top spots for game design technology, innovation, and Best Debut Game.

LittleBigPlanet encourages people to create and share games as well as play.

The latest “Prince of Persia” release by hot French videogame maker Ubisoft won a Best Visual Arts category for “hauntingly beautiful” imagery. “God of War: Chains of Olympus” was declared Best Handheld Game.

“The games being recognized here are virtuoso efforts that have truly advanced the state of video games.” said GDC content director Meggan Scavio.

“The Game Developers Conference has become the premiere videogame award show because it gives voice to those who understand games better than anyone; the people who make them.”

BANGKOK (AFP) - - Fugitive former Thai premier Thaksin Shinawatra addressed by telephone tens of thousands of his devout red-clad followers surrounding the prime minister’s offices on Thursday.

Thaksin thanked the estimated 35,000-strong crowd which has besieged Government House in Bangkok for their support as they step up efforts to topple the three-month-old government of premier Abhisit Vejjajiva.

“I will tell you who is behind the regression of Thai politics for the past 30 years tomorrow,” Thaksin promised the cheering crowd.

“And I will talk about the problems with the economy on Saturday,” he said, inferring that he wished them to continue massing on Bangkok’s central streets until at least then.

“Thank you for coming to call back our democracy,” he concluded in his seven-minute speech.

Ousted in a coup in 2006, Thaksin is currently living in exile to avoid a two-year jail sentence for corruption. He said he could not speak for longer as he was currently travelling between countries, without saying which ones.

Chanting “Get out! Get out!”, the demonstrators earlier used huge cranes to remove shipping containers that police had used to block off roads leading to the sprawling Government House complex.

“Today we have only one aim, to oust this government,” protest leader Jatuporn Prompan said, adding that the demonstrators planned to stay for several days.

The protest began hours after Abhisit doled out the first of around 10 million “gift cheques” of 57 dollars to low-income earners as part of an economic stimulus package, a move denounced by critics as vote-buying.

Abhisit ruled out imposing a state of emergency — a measure used by two Thaksin-backed prime ministers last year when protesters seized control of Government House and Bangkok’s two airports.

“I am confident that the government will not have to declare a state of emergency, but whatever happens we are ready to cope,” he told reporters earlier.

The British-born leader said he had given instructions for police and soldiers to be “extra patient because there are expected provocations.”

Around 6,000 soldiers and more than 2,000 police were guarding Government House while authorities had placed barbed wire atop the fences of the building, officials said.

The protest was one of the biggest of several held by Thaksin loyalists since Abhisit came to power in December following the controversial dissolution of the previous, pro-Thaksin government by a court.

Thursday’s demonstration came just days after Abhisit easily saw off a no-confidence vote called by the opposition over allegations of corruption.

Abhisit’s opponents also accuse him of being a puppet of Thailand’s powerful army, which led the ouster of Thaksin nearly three years ago following months of protests by the royalist People’s Alliance for Democracy (PAD).

The yellow-clad PAD took to the streets again in early 2008 after Thaksin’s allies won the first post-coup elections, launching a campaign that peaked in the siege of the capital’s airports in late November to early December.

Backed by elements in the palace, military and bureaucracy who resented Thaksin’s influence, the PAD only lifted the blockade after a court dissolved the previous government led by Thaksin’s brother-in-law.

Parliament elected Abhisit as prime minister soon afterwards.

Thailand remains deeply polarized by the legacy of Thaksin, a charismatic billionaire who wooed the rural poor with populist schemes but was accused of graft and authoritarianism.

The economy is also on the verge of recession, and deputy prime minister Korbsak Sabhavasu said that the government’s economic strategies targeting the poor, especially in the countryside, would help curb unrest.

Police have arrested the daughter of a former Phetchaburi MP who they claim faked her death in the tsunami four years ago and then underwent facial surgery and assumed a new identity to evade her creditors.

They had lent her and her husband more than 8 billion baht.

Crime Suppression Division police yesterday arrested Kankanit Angkinant, 48, daughter of Piya Angkinant, near a U-turn on Narathiwat Ratchanakharin road in Sathon.

Mrs Kankanit is also known as Panjit.

She was believed to have been killed in the Dec 26, 2004 tsunami that hit six southern provinces on the Andaman coast until police discovered evidence that proved she was still alive.

Her husband Charnchai Chinsiri, 47, was also arrested at their house on Nang Linchi road in Yannawa district.

The couple were wanted on warrants over fraud charges laid in Samut Sakhon on June 8, 2005. They denied the charges.

CSD chief Pongpat Chayaphan said Mrs Kankanit was believed to have been killed in the tsunami until Permkiat Phothianthong, a representative of Choke Chai Mahachai Co, one of Mrs Kankanit’s creditors, asked police to re-investigate her death.

Pol Maj-Gen Pongpat said the company suspected Mrs Kankanit had faked her death.

He said the company believed that with her “death” she could escape the legal cases and huge debts against her.

The couple had run a company dealing in oil called Parnsap Evergreen Co.

However, the business was not a success and the couple found themselves deep in debt.

They were finally declared bankrupt by the Civil Court in 2004, Pol Maj-Gen Pongpat said.

They faced 63 lawsuits brought against them and owed more than 8.2 billion baht.

Their major creditors included PTT Plc to which more than 5 billion baht was owed, TMB Bank (over 800 million baht), Thai Asset Management Corp (over 500 million baht) and Phayathai Asset Management Co (over 200 million baht).

Pol Maj-Gen Pongpat said after the tsunami tragedy, Mr Charnchai notified police in Ranong’s Muang district that Mrs Kankanit’s body had been found in the sea off Ko Phayam. Her identity card and credit card were discovered on the body.

When the death was reported to officials, a death certificate was issued to confirm she had died.

Mr Charnchai then took the body that he claimed to be that of Mrs Kankanit to Wat Suwankhiriviharn in Phuket where funeral rites were held. The body was cremated on Jan 4, 2005.

Later, her children received payouts from Thai Life Insurance Co worth 900,000 baht and from American International Assurance Co amounting to 1.2 million baht.

Pol Maj-Gen Pongpat said investigators later found evidence to prove Mrs Kankanit was still alive.

It included an attempt to get a new ID card.

A woman claiming to be Phayao Panwang tried to apply for a new ID card at the Bang Kruai municipality office in Nonthaburi in June 2005. She said the old one was lost. Bang Kruai officials rejected the request because her fingerprints did not match that of Ms Phayao.

She later successfully received the ID card under the name of Ms Phayao when she went to the municipal office in Suphan Buri.

Forensic experts were then asked to check the fingerprints. That led them to believe Ms Phayao and Mrs Kankanit were one and the same as the fingerprints matched those of Mrs Kankanit, who was pronounced dead in Dec 2007.

Pol Maj-Gen Pongpat alleged Mrs Kankanit had facial surgery so that people would not recognise her.

Police then began looking for the couple.

Mrs Kankanit and Mr Charnchai changed houses often, Pol Maj-Gen Pongpat said.

Pol Col Kittisak Sukwattanakul, chief of CSD Division 5, who headed the investigation team, said inquiries found Mrs Kankanit had facial surgery in China and used fake ID cards under five different names.

“It took police four years to find and capture them,” Pol Col Kittisak said.

A death certificate, fake civil service ID cards and two handguns were also seized from the couple’s house.

They will be taken to Samut Sakhon police station for further questioning.

The performance will be held Friday March 27, 2009 to Thursday April 2, 2009. At Impact Arena Muang Thongtani .Don’t Miss!!

Venue
Impact Arena Muang Thong Thani
Location Pakkred, Nonthaburi
Total 11 performances :
From Friday March 27, 2009 to Thursday April 2, 2009.

When a meteorite from outer space hits a young girl and turns her into a giant monster, she is taken to a secret government compound where she meets a ragtag group of monsters also rounded up over the years.

Vin Diesel … Dominic Toretto , Paul Walker … Brian O’Conner , Michelle Rodriguez … Letty Marciano , Jordana Brewster … Mia Toretto , Laz Alonso … Fenix Rise , Gal Gadot … Gisele Harabo , John Ortiz … Antonio Braga

New Yorker “Harvey Shine” is on the verge of losing his dead-end job as a jingle writer. Warned by his boss that he has just one more chance to deliver, Harvey goes to London for a weekend to attend his daughter’s wedding but promises to be back on Monday morning to make an important meeting–or else. Harvey arrives in London only to learn his daughter has chosen to have her stepfather walk her down the aisle instead of him. Doing his best to hide his devastation, he leaves the wedding before the reception in hopes of getting to the airport on time, but misses his plane anyway. When he calls his boss to explain, he is fired on the spot. Drowning his sorrows at the airport bar, Harvey strikes up a conversation with Kate, a slightly prickly, 40-something employee of the Office of National Statistics. “Kate”, whose life is limited to work, the occasional humiliating blind date and endless phone calls from her smothering mother, is touched by Harvey, who finds himself energized by her intelligence and compassion. The growing connection between the pair inspires both as they unexpectedly transform one another’s lives.