So, I watched M. Night Shyamalan's latest The Happening on DVD last night. I'll save my review for the end of this entry, since it will contain SPOILERS!


Chef Rocco
Due to the debates, there wasn't much else on last night, but I will give you the requisite Dancing with the Stars update if you, like me, can't bring yourself to waste the time watching it, but still want to know ... celebrity chef Rocco DiSpirito came in last place. However, due to the medical-related dismissal of Misty May-Treanor, he was allowed to stay on until at least next week. The Olympic champion went on to have surgery yesterday to repair the Achilles tendon she ruptured last Friday while rehearsing for the show. http://abc.go.com/primetime/dancingwiththestars/index?pn=index

So, on to tonight: Over on Bravo at 9 p.m. it's the first part of a 2-part season finale for Project Runway. As those of you who have followed this show in prior season's we all know that tonight's episode will feature fashion guru Tim Gunn visiting the remaining contestants at their homes/studios and critiquing their clothing lines so far ... don't expect anyone to be eliminated tonight. For more info visit http://www.bravotv.com/Project_Runway/season/5/index.php

The Critical Gunn

I'm looking forward to tonight's season premiere of that wicked little cartoon South Park over on Comedy Central at 10 p.m. Can't wait to see who Trey Parker and Matt Stone will be victimizing in this episode! You can be sure Kenny, Stan, Kyle and Cartman will be out in full force lampooning some cultural phenomenon! For more on South Park or to watch previous episodes visit http://www.southparkstudios.com/


And on ABC, Dirty Sexy Money will continue to intrigue and disgust viewers with the second installment of Season 2 at 10 p.m. Unfortunately, I missed last week's season premiere and was later told by coworkers that it was a doozy! Starting out with a birthday party for Darling family attorney Nick George and ending with the arrest of the Darling's matriarch for the murder of Nick's father, Dutch George! And a whole lotta mess in between ... remember, this is the show I compared to Dynasty and Dallas last week.
So if you're a fan of over-the-top evening soaps, you don't want to miss this. For more info or to watch last week's ep or read a recap, visit http://abc.go.com/primetime/dirtysexymoney/index?pn=index

The Darling clan

Of course, I'll be watching my Sons of Anarchy over on FX at 10 p.m. (Dirty Sexy Money will have to wait). I'm really beginning to look forward to this Sopranos-style show about a motorcycle gang in Charming, California. I won't go on, because I have every week. If you're not already watching, you might want to give it a shot. Tonight's ep re-airs immediately after at 11 p.m. For info visit http://www.fxnetworks.com/shows/originals/soa/#Nav/Homepage

Tomorrow morning Leonardo DiCaprio makes a rare appearance on live TV on NBC's Today Show (7-11 a.m.). Lucky Leo, not too comfortable with the whole interview process, will be promoting his new flick with Russell Crowe (who's been on every talk show this week) - Body of Lies. Early reviews are really good for this Ridley Scott-directed flick. Check for Leo early, usually between 7-9 a.m. I know I'll be taping ...

Leo

And I thought I watched a lot of movies: Suresh Joachim of Toronto, and Claudia Wavra of Germany, claim to have broken the world record for continuous movie watching, after seeing 57 films in 123 hours in a plastic-glass house in New York's Times Square.
A Guinness World Records spokesman said it appears the non-dynamic duo have broken the record, but said it will take two weeks to officially verify.
According to the rules, each movie had to be viewed until the last credit rolled, and competitors couldn't divert their eyes from the screen. They were allowed 10-minute breaks between movies. I can honestly say that I'd never make it!


King of All Media
Belated congratulations to the King of All Media Howard Stern on his wedding (yes, I said Wedding) to long-time girlfriend Beth Ostrosky last Friday. Odd enough that Stern, a man known for pressing the sexual envelope on his highly-rated radio show, is married again, but wait till you hear the guest list: Donald Trump, Billy Joel, Chevy Chase, Tommy Mottola, Joan Rivers and Barbara Walters (Yes Barbara Walters!) were all on hand at New York's trendy Le Cirque restaurant to see the nuptials. Barbara Walters - really?? Did she attend on purpose or just happen to have reservations that night ...

And speaking of Walters - it seems that Rosie O'Donnell is ready to come to TV. Rosie, who hasn't done a TV show since leaving Walters' The View suddenly over 18 months ago, will present Rosie's Variety Show live from New York on Nov. 26 on NBC.USA Today speculates the NBC special is a taste of a new show to start early next year.


The Happening Review: SPOILER ALERT! If you haven't seen and are planning to watch, don't read any further ...


So I watched The Happening. And the best thing I can say is that it's only 91 minutes long. Don't get me wrong, I'm a usually big fan of M. Night Shyamalan's movies. I LOVED The Sixth Sense, was perplexed by Unbreakable, and really impressed by Signs. However, The Village was ruined for me when I figured out the "twist" in the first 3 minutes. Lady in the Water I waited until DVD to watch. It was OK. Towards the end, I really started to like the story, but not interested enough to see it again.
Which brings me to The Happening. I already stated previously that I wasn't interested enough to go to the theater to see it. And I'm glad I didn't. The film starts out eerily enough, with people all over NY's Central Park suddenly being overcome with desire to kill themselves ... the panic spreads to Philadelphia, then throughout the Northeast. At first, everyone's fearing the worst -- terrorism. But we all already know from his track record, there's more to this Shyamalan tale.
Like most of Night's films, the central story tends to revolve around human relationships, rather than the supernatural. And in my opinion he's done this much better in prior films (Sixth Sense and Signs, particularly). Mark Wahlberg does fine with the material given, but what happened to John Leguizamo? He's a much better actor than portrayed in this flick. Night, as usual, makes a cameo, this time as the voice of Joey, who keeps calling Wahlberg's wife, played by the very blue-eyed Zoey Deschanel. Betty Buckley turns in an absolutely frightening performance, but that's based more on her looks (which I hope can be attributed to the hair/make-up department), rather than on her performance.
Anyway, it all boils down to what I thought was a completely ridiculous premise - here comes the SPOILER:
Plants. Yes, plants. It seems that plants feel that we humans have done enough damage to the planet and are taking out their anger on us by releasing toxins into the air. The toxins just happen to make humans extremely suicidal. So wherever there's a large gathering of humans, the plants react this way. And, in the end, "the happening" in The Happening ends as suddenly as it began and Mark, his wife and his best friends child are all spared their suicidal fate. However, it's just beginning in Paris ...