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Haley Joel Osment is speaking out following his arrest earlier this month, and subsequent charges.

The 37-year-old actor was arrested in Mammoth Lakes on April 8th at a ski resort, and he has since been charged with multiple misdemeanors, including drug possession.

In a new statement, the actor says he is horrified by his actions and apologizes for his behavior and the language he used while apparently blacked out. This comes after police body cam footage was released.

Keep reading to find out more…

“I’m absolutely horrified by my behavior. Had I known I used this disgraceful language in the throes of a blackout, I would have spoken up sooner,” Haley shared with People. “The past few months of loss and displacement have broken me down to a very low emotional place.”

If you recall, Haley was one of the many people who lost their home earlier this year...

Haley Joel Osment could be facing charges following an arrest earlier this month.

The 37-year-old actor was reportedly arrested on Tuesday afternoon (April 8) in Mammoth Lakes, Calif., while visiting a ski resort, according to TMZ.

Keep reading to find out more…

The outlet reports that police were called just before 2pm for an alleged intoxicated individual at the Mammoth Mountain Ski Area, and when authorities arrived, ski patrol were with the actor.

He was booked for public intoxication and possession of a controlled substance, and he was released shortly after. Now it’s up to the district attorney on whether or not he will be prosecuted.

Just over a week before the incident, Haley was in Los Angeles while attending a press event for the second season of Poker Face, which he is guest starring on.

Haley Joel is also set to appear in the upcoming TV series adaptation The ‘Burbs,...

Since the early 2000s, the Syfy channel has made a name for itself within the monster-movie sub-genre of horror. The network has produced countless creature features that are memorable, not for their high quality, but for their inexplicably entertaining low-budget films that are so bad they morph into hilarious romps audiences can't get enough of. Despite greenlighting famously cheesy franchises like Sharknado and mediocre must-see flicks like Frankenfish, one of Syfy's original films ditches the corniness for creating a worthwhile watch.

Written and directed by Ryan Schifrin, Abominable first premiered in theaters on April 10, 2006, and was released on DVD in October of that year. Following a tragic climbing accident of the now paraplegic widower Preston Rogers (Matt McCoy), the film expertly confronts grief through the fear of the unknown. Throughout its runtime, Schifrin's work includes convincing characters, realistic special effects, and a terrifying creature reveal that leaves audiences never...

Haley Joel Osment might have found his new calling as a celebrity impersonator if his impression of Republican vice presidential nominee Jd Vance is anything to go by. The Sixth Sense actor appeared on Jimmy Kimmel Live! on Tuesday, October 1, in a parody political ad spoofing Vance’s cringe-inducing visit to a donut shop back in August. Adorned in a suit, beard, and eyeliner, Osment’s Vance fired back at those who called him “weird,” “creepy,” and “awkward” by showing he could have a normal interaction with everyday folk. “They want you to think that I can’t order a simple door nut — donut. S***,” Osment said at the start of the segment. He then strode into the donut shop, cut in front of an elderly woman, and made awkward small talk with the employee behind the counter. “Donut,” he said, to which the employee replied, “Which one?” “Whatever makes sense,...

It’s been 25 years since Haley Joel Osment saw dead people in The Sixth Sense. While Osment had a small role in Forrest Gump prior, would go on to work with Steven Spielberg and later be a welcome face in movies and TV, nothing could or will top The Sixth Sense. And so for the occasion, he remembers working with Bruce Willis and the movie’s famous twist.

Sitting down with Entertainment Weekly, Haley Joel Osment said that Bruce Willis was everything he had imagined and more on the set of The Sixth Sense. “It was fantastic…It made a huge impression on me because that was the first gigantic celebrity that I’d worked with at an age where I was aware of his stardom. And he did everything in such a cool way, and had such charisma, and was the person that you want on set setting the...

Haley Joel Osment confirms The Sixth Sense was a breakout film that impacted the rest of his career. The actor fondly remembers how his co-star Bruce Willis was a great friend and source of inspiration during those years.

Haley Joel Osment said he was well aware of Bruce Willis' celebrity before they co-starred on The Sixth Sense. Osment, who was 11 when that film was released, had already joined stellar ensembles years prior; fans might know him from TV's Thunder Alley or The Jeff Foxworthy Show, but film buffs note his standout performance in Forrest Gump. Osment said working with actors like Willis was a career-defining moment: "It made a huge impression on me because that was the first gigantic celebrity that I'd worked with at an age where I was aware of his stardom," he told Entertainment Weekly. "And he did everything in such a cool way, and had such charisma,...

Now, this is a twist that everyone saw coming: Haley Joel Osment loved working with Bruce Willis on M. Night Shyamalan's 1999 film, The Sixth Sense. Spoiler alert! The supernatural horror movie, which centers around a young boy named Cole (Osment), who sees dead people, is well-known for its incredible, jaw-dropping twist ending. And as the psychological thriller continues to celebrate its 25th anniversary, Osment recalls how Willis would call him up to check in and leave thoughtful messages for his co-star. Osment said in an interview with Entertainment Weekly:

I heard from him a lot after it came out in those subsequent years. He'd leave voicemails at the house from time to time, just checking in. He would just call out of the blue, so sometimes it was in the lead up before travel. We went to Japan together twice, if I remember correctly, to open Sixth Sense in different cities.

After 25 years, Haley Joel Osment is fondly remembering his on-set experience with Bruce Willis.

The Oscar nominee recently reflected on his “fantastic” time as a child actor working with Willis on the M. Night Shyamalan movie The Sixth Sense (1999) and how their behind-the-scenes friendship endured over the years.

“I heard from [Bruce] a lot after it came out in those subsequent years,” he told Entertainment Weekly. “He’d leave voicemails at the house from time to time, just checking in. He would just call out of the blue, so sometimes it was in the lead up before travel. We went to Japan together twice, if I remember correctly, to open Sixth Sense in different cities. So he would call ahead of that, and then sometimes I would just come home from school and the answering machine would be blinking and it’d be him going like, ‘Hey, Haley Joel. Just saying hi.

Haley Joel Osment joined Entertainment Weekly to reflect on the 25th anniversary of M. Night Shyamalan’s “The Sixth Sense” and remembered getting voicemails from co-star Bruce Willis in the years that followed the release of the blockbuster horror film. Osment was just 10 years old when he starred in the film, which earned him an Oscar nomination for best supporting actor. “The Sixth Sense” was the second-highest grossing movie of 1999 with $672 million worldwide.

“I heard from [Bruce] a lot after it came out in those subsequent years. He’d leave voicemails at the house from time to time, just checking in,” Osment said. “He would just call out of the blue, so sometimes it was in the lead up before travel. We went to Japan together twice, if I remember correctly, to open ‘Sixth Sense’ in different cities. So he would call ahead of that, and then sometimes I would...

It seems the truth may lie behind the scenes. Fox has released a new behind-the-scenes promo for the 11th season of The X-Files. The new video features stars Gillian Anderson and David Duchovny, as well as creator Chris Carter. The trio sets up the coming installment, as they address the massive cliffhanger that was the season 10 finale. The X-Files season 11 premieres on Wednesday, January 3, 2018 at 8:00pm Et/Pt. A sci-fi mystery thriller which originally ran on Fox between 1993 and 2002, The X-Files stars Duchovny as FBI Special Agent Fox Mulder and Anderson as FBI Special Agent Dana Scully. Returning in season 11 are Mitch Pileggi, William B. Davis, Annabeth Gish, Lauren Ambrose, Robbie Amell, Veronica Cartwright, Chris Owens, and Dean Haglund. New players include Barbara Hershey and Haley Joel Osement. Read More…...

The Napa Valley Film Festival (Nvff) is pleased to announce its collaboration with Napa based non-profit, Jameson Animal Rescue Ranch (Jarr), a new partner of the upcoming 7th annual event, taking place November 8-12.

Jarr is giving the Jameson Animal Rescue Ranch Humanitarian Award to Ian Somerhalder and Nikki Reed at the Celebrity Tributes on Thursday, November 9, at the Lincoln Theater in Yountville.

The Jameson Animal Rescue Ranch Humanitarian Award celebrates those individuals who have shown outstanding compassion, advocacy and dedication to animal protection issues. The recipients, actors Ian Somerhalder (Vampire Diaries, Lost) and Nikki Reed (The Twilight Saga, Twilight, Thirteen), exemplify Jarr’s mission to show compassion to all animals in need and by using their unique platform to bring a spotlight to animal welfare issues help further the work to end animal cruelty in all it’s forms.

“I am delighted to dedicate the 2017 Jarr Humanitarian Award to...

Stephen Harber Jul 14, 2016

Low on nightmare fuel? Fill up your tank by reliving your scariest memories from The Real Ghostbusters, a truly twisted 80s cartoon...

The Real Ghostbusters was a pretty messed-up cartoon sometimes. I think that’s one of life’s universal truths. I’m not quite sure why the world needed an unholy amalgam of anime, cheesy 80s synth music, and mind-bending eldritch horror with a chiselled version of Bill Murray on top. But it did, and it still feels so right to this day.

Video of The Real Ghostbusters: Intro and Closing (without credits) [HD]

Ah, Dic Enterprises. What would my childhood have been without you? Well, for starters, I suppose I wouldn't have been terrified of the cartoon demons you dreamt up in your Real Ghostbusters cartoon, you sadistic monsters!

Ahem. Sorry, I didn’t mean to snap. It’s just… Rgb (as the hardcore fans...

It’s been a long time coming, but the Entourage movie is finally here. Well, not actually. But it’s almost here, as evidenced by the first official trailer for the long-awaited film.

The footage kicks off with a faux trailer for Vinnie’s new movie, which is apparently titled Hyde and co-stars Calvin Harris. Eventually, someone hits the pause button and it’s revealed that the gang is watching the trailer with Ari, who isn’t too happy about how the film has turned out. As you may or may not know, Mr. Gold now has his own studio and his first big project looks like it’s Hyde.

From there, the trailer is a barrage of celebrity cameos, Ari being Ari (which is always a treat to watch), partying, scantily clad women, fast cars, oversized yachts, a couple throwbacks to the original series….pretty much everything you’d want from an Entourage movie.

The first trailer for the long-gestating "Entourage" movie has arrived, and it's full of what you'd expect from the HBO series's leap to the big screen: scantily-clad women, lavish parties, wisecracking, and...an evil robot DJ?

That last item comes courtesy of Vince Chase's (Adrian Grenier) foray into directing, just one of the new developments for the titular gang, which also includes a recently slimmed-down Turtle (Jerry Ferrara). But before you go thinking that everything's changed, there's Drama (Kevin Dillon) making a boneheaded comment, Ari (Jeremy Piven) getting angry, E (Kevin Connolly) looking exasperated, and celebrity cameos (hey there, Mark Wahlberg!) to remind us that these guys are still the same deep down.

There's not too much of a plot to follow in this trailer -- Vince and Ari argue over the budget for Vince's directorial effort, Turtle gets beaten up by a girl -- but fans of the HBO...

While Tusk didn't light up the U.S. box office (it still has to see the light of day on this side of the pond), Kevin smith's True North trilogy of Canadian set horror movies continues with Yoga Hosers, and THR has the first image from the movie with the focus squarely on the two leads, Smith's own daughter Harley Quinn and Johnny Depp's daughter Lily Rose. Reprising their roles from Tusk, the two play high schoolers, working part time in a convenience store, who team up with Depp's legendary hunter Guy Lapointe (who played a big part in Tusk) to fight an ancient evil threatening to destroy the world (namely an army of FX monsters played by Smith himself). Most of the cast of Tusk, including Michael Parks, Justin Long, Haley Joel Osmet, and Genesis Rodriguez return, and they are joined by Adam Brody, Stan Lee, Tony Hale,...

Chicago – The headline is a quote (“Don’t say that you love me!”) from Fleetwood Mac’s song “Tusk,” which Kevin Smith gratefully includes in his film of the same name. The movie is either the most outrageous audacity of the year or a blatant middle finger from Smith to the audience. You decide.

Rating: 3.5/5.0

I liked it, I hated it, I was mesmerized by some of the lengths the story took to stay on track. There were times during the proceedings where it seemed like the whole thing was a fraud, in the sense that Wizard-of-Oz like, Smith was going to walk on camera and say, “ha, dopes, you fell for it” (but he would have said something more piquant than “dopes”). The film defies logic, definition or a basis in dreamland, but it makes up in chutzpah, which has never been lacking in Smith. Whatever the final analysis will be,...

Step aside, Haley Joel Osmont (and no, we're not talking about the recent pics of the former child star dressed as a Nazi, we're referencing his Sixth Sense days).  Kate Hudson, along with her Wish I Was Here costar Zach Braff, stopped by Alan Carr's Chatty Man Show on Friday where the 35-year-old stunner shared a surprising confession about herself and mother Goldie Hawn: the two "can see dead people." Well, sort of.  The Wish I Was Here star clarified that, "'It is not really seeing, it is feeling a spirit. A fifth energy. I believe in energy. I believe our brains can manifest into visual things." And while we're not really sure what...

Kevin Smith's Tusk will hit theaters next week, but the director has already started production on his next film Yoga Hosers, a project we first learned about last month. Most of the cast from Tusk will be back for Yoga Hosers, including Haley Joel Osment. The actor was recently spotted while filming scenes for the upcoming film, and it appears he'll be playing some sort of Nazi politician in the Kevin Smith movie. Heil Haley! Several sites are reporting Haley Joel...

It's been 15 years since Haley Joel Osment starred in "The Sixth Sense" -- and these days, he's looking very different.The actor started trending on Twitter on Wednesday after new photos of him from the set of Kevin Smith's upcoming film, "Yoga Hosers," dropped online.Sporting a business suit, Nazi stache and slicked back hair, the 26-year-old former child star was barely recognizable as he worked. It's unclear who he'll be playing in the film, but he was surrounded by Nazi propaganda on set.While it's a pretty shocking transformation for the young star, keep in mind this is still a set -- and he looks pretty different in real life.Osment hit the red carpet just last week at the Toronto Film Festival, where he was promoting another Smith film, and looked more like the Haley Joel we've come to know in the past couple years (right).It's...

Twenty years ago, Tom Hanks inspired movie audiences around the world to reflect on the parallels between life and chocolate in the Oscar-winning Forrest Gump. In honor of its anniversary, the film is screening in IMAX theaters for one week, starting Sept. 5. For Gump superfans out there, it's a chance to relive some movie magic - just think how intense that floating feather will look on an IMAX screen! To some observers, since its 1994 theatrical run, Forrest Gump has permeated pop culture, leaving a legacy that has inspired further creative efforts and manages to still make news today. 1. Tom Hanks...

Tusk, Kevin Smith's dark horror movie born from a discussion on one of his weekly podcasts, makes it debut this weekend at the Toronto International Film Festival, and the festival's website has shared with us new images from the movie, featuring Justin Long, Michael Parks, Haley Joel Osmet, and Genesis Rodriguez. The first trailer was insanely creepy, and the main plot of a young man (Long) turned into a walrus by a crazy recluse (Parks) is so unique and crazy, that I can't wait to see how it turns out. Tusk is released in the U.S. on September 19th. No word on a European release date, but hopefully we won't have to wait too long.

It may not be released yet, but Kevin Smith is already planning a reunion with the cast of his upcoming micro budget horror movie Tusk with the Christmas themed horror movie Anti-Claus. Michael Parks, Justin Long, Haley Joel Osmet, and Genesis Rodriguez will reunite with the director for a fright filled anthology movie focusing on the Krampus, an evil version of Santa Claus in Alpine folklore who eats naughty children during the holiday season. Much like Tusk, Anti-Claus comes from a story told on a show, this time Edumacation, from his podcast network. Production begins on the project in September, and Xyz Films, who have picked up the international rights to both this and Tusk, will shop around the film to buyers at this years Cannes Film Festival.

Universal Pictures

You could say that the star of a movie puts butts in seats. Their name shines above the posters and on trailers, establishing a connection with a larger pre-existing fan base. But how does one reach such heights? Nobody is an A-Lister straight off the bat. It can take years of slogging away to acquire the appeal of someone like Brad Pitt or Tom Hanks as they’re can be the driving force behind a picture; the person the whole film and advertising campaign revolves around.

However, once in a while an actor will rise up and quite literally steal the show. They’ll put in a performance so inspired and well-crafted, the ‘intended star’ will cease to shine so brightly in comparison. All of a sudden, the public will take a vested interest in a new talent. All it takes is one performance; an opportunity only a...

Haley Joel Osment said, "I see dead people," 15 years ago in his Oscar-nominated role in "The Sixth Sense," a sentence whose longevity still amazes the actor.

"I will not stop being surprised by how much of a catchphrase that became," Haley Joel told Billy Bush and Kit Hoover on Thursday's Access Hollywood Live.

"Looking back, it makes sense now, but when we shot the movie nobody was thinking... that it was going to be the hit that was and established that sort of call sign," he continued.

Photos: Former Child Stars Then & Now

After ...

Copyright 2014 by NBC Universal, Inc. All rights reserved.

This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Better-known for romantic comedies and drama, Emily Blunt certainly stepped out of her established comfort zone by accepting the role in "Looper." Drawn in by the unique storyline and original screenplay, Blunt plays Sara, a mysterious, isolated country woman whose motives are murky and unclear -- at least until the very end.

Moviefone got the chance to chat with Blunt at the Toronto Film Festival, where she spoke in detail about why, despite her opinion of sci-fi films, she chose to star in "Looper," the ridiculously good child actor in the movie and hanging out in rural Louisiana.

You've said before that you're not a fan of sci-fi movies. What made you want to be a part of this particular film?

Maybe I'm not a fan of the more generic idea of what a sci-fi film is, that might be a better way to put it. I'm not very interested...

Now in its 30th year, Outfest is not only Los Angeles’ premier gay-and-lesbian film festival, but the city’s longest-running film festival, period. Taking place in a variety of L.A. venues and theaters, Outfest promotes equality, spotlights new talent and celebrates artistry within the Lgbt community.

The fun begins on July 12 opening with the Outfest Achievement Award. This year the award will be presented to national treasure and pencil-mustached raconteur, director John Waters. Waters is famed for bridging the gap between the underground gonzo movie scene and mainstream Hollywood fare without ever compromising his trash aesthetic, eventually working with Johnny Depp,...

With the Sundance Film Festival drawing to a close, it's time to reflect on the best movies that your friendly Moviefone staffers saw at the very-crowded film fest. Of the seven films that we were looking forward to seeing, we did get to watch five. Of those five, three are on this list. (Sorry, Red Lights and John Dies at the End.) Ahead, the best of the fest. Mike Ryan 5. The End of Love What a pleasant surprise this turned out to be. Mark Webber plays a fictionalized version of himself in a life that toes the line between absurd -- mainly Michael Cera and, briefly, Amanda Seyfried playing caricatures of themselves -- to heartbreaking: Webber raising his 2-year-old son (played by his actual son) on his own after the death of his wife. Worth viewing just to watch Cera brandishing a pistol at his own party. 4. The Surrogate My...

Hugo

Directed by: Martin Scorsese

Cast: Asa Butterfield, Chloë Grace Moretz, Ben Kingsley, Sacha Baron Cohen

Running Time: 2 hours and 7 mins

Rating: PG

Release Date: November 23, 2011

Plot: A historical fiction, set in 1930s Paris, about a young orphan boy (Butterfield) who lives in the walls of a train station. He believes that if he can fix an automaton, left behind from his father, his life will make sense.

Who’S It For? If your child has a short attention span, this might be a tough one to sit through. So, you’ve been warned. For everyone else, it’s a 3D must-see family adventure film.

Expectations: I worship at the Scorsese-alter. I was curious, not nervous, about what he could do with a family film. In an interview he said something about his 11-year-old wanting a 3D movie. That motivation made me hope he knew what he was doing.

Scorecard...

So, you just woke up the baddest vampire in the history of all vampires. What now?

For "The Vampire Diaries" resident Haley Joel, Jeremy, the answer is simple: you get your butt home in time for your sophomore history class.

"You know what, at the beginning of this episode, it's the first day of school! He can't miss that," Steven R. McQueen told us. Jeremy is done cavorting with Katherine in Charlotte. "Jeremy's back at school, dealing with his relationship and how the ghosts are going to affect it."

With all the chemistry between Jeremy and ghostly Anna, we had to ask: Can a ghost and human hook up? And, more importantly, where does that leave Bonnie? "I don't know," McQueen laughs. "We'll see. Anna was really important to Jeremy and it definitely causes some friction with Bonnie. There are definitely going to be some conversations about that. At the end of the day,...

When does a child actor stop being merely precocious and enter the pantheon of acting gods? You know the gods of which we speak; they look down from their mighty pedestals as we shower them with tributes year after year… The Oscar Nominees.

Well, in order to walk through that threshold into Hollywood’s elite circle, these young folks have to have chops, serious chops. Or be really, really cute. Either way, it takes sacrifice, hard work and possibly some crazy-ass stage parents.

In honor of this year’s youthful nominees Hailee Steinfeld (“True Grit”) and Jennifer Lawrence (“Winter’s Bone”), and for your continued cinematified education, we present the youngest ever Academy Award nominees and winners from throughout the history of the awards.

Justin Henry, ‘Kramer vs. Kramer’ (1979)

Age: 8

Nomination: Best Supporting Actor (Youngest Nominee)

A troubled family is at the center of 1979′s “Kramer Vs. Kramer,” where Henry...

This Friday (January 28th) sees the release of the new supernatural drama Hereafter. Oscar winner Matt Damon teams up with Academy Award winner Clint Eastwood and two time Oscar nominated screenwriter Peter Morgan to make this supernatural drama that:

…tells the story of three people who are haunted by mortality in different ways. Matt Damon stars as George, a blue-collar American who has a special connection to the afterlife. On the other side of the world, Marie (Cécile de France), a French journalist, has a near-death experience that shakes her reality. And when Marcus (Frankie/George McLaren), a London schoolboy, loses the person closest to him, he desperately needs answers. Each on a path in search of the truth, their lives will intersect, forever changed by what they believe might-or must-exist in the hereafter.

To celebrate the release of Hereafter we are taking a look at the 5 of the best supernatural flicks in cinema.

1 year ago I attended the best festival I have ever been to as a filmmaker. All the movies were free. The location was beautiful. The people were amazing. And apparently I inspired them to create an Independent Spirit Award just to give to me.

Well the Orlando Film Festival is back and it kicks off Wednesday November 3rd at the Plaza Cinema Café in Downtown Orlando. While I won.t be screening anything at the festival, I will still be on hand checking out some films and promoting my own. I will also be handing out the Independent Spirit Award, which has been named after me this year.

The festival runs from Wednesday November 3rd through Sunday November 7th. All the film screenings are free but you must get a ticket for each at the booth in front of the theater. The Plaza Cinema Café is located at 155 South Orange...

Leonardo DiCaprio, Christina Ricci, Toby Maguire, Scarlett Johansson -- they all started out as child actors. And while, sometimes, an early beginning in the biz can morph into an adult-size career, often being a child star can be the kiss of death. Time will tell what will become of the Dakota Fannings and Haley Joel Osments of the world. Perhaps they can learn something from the fates of these actors. 10. Anna Chlumsky, My GirlA whole generation cried its eyes out at the romantic tragedy occasioned by a mere bee sting. (Don't know what I'm talking about? Just watch the movie: My Girl is a tween Crying Game.) Chlumsky turned in a lovely performance as a tomboy in this bittersweet coming-of-age story but getting roles in later years has proven difficult for her. Although she recently landed a part on 30 Rock -- as Tina Fey's doppelgänger, Liz Lemler -- for...

It is fast approaching that unique portion of the year when all true matters arcane and diabolical are given the festive treatment, as Halloween prompts folks to deploy their broomsticks for something other than sweeping up after the household pet. Although we have recently seen cinematic quotas of the supernatural gobbled up by vampire and zombie flicks, it would be remiss to overlook the genuine chills instilled by the most successful exponents of the ghost movie genre. So here are ten of the scariest ghost movies to put the frighteners on us poor, trembling cinema-goers.

10. Dark Water (2002)

Leaky plumbing becomes an unlikely source of spine-tingling terror in this J-Horror offering from director Hideo Nakata, the man who had previously attached creepy connotations onto video cassettes and cold-calling in the first two Ringu films. Sharing some narrative ground with his earlier horror hits, Dark Water finds Nakata once again casting a...

As far as upcoming family movies go, Astro Boy looks like a lot of fun. I caught the original on Adult Swim, but was too tired to follow. The clip is kinda funny at moments but really good. It definitely peaked my interest. I also really like the messages on the robot soldier helmets. Freddie Highmore voices Astro, and he's actually been a really great child actor. He kinda reminds me of Haley Joel Osmet, except for the whole getting busted for marijuana thing. Included are some photos...

Photo: Touchstone Home Entertainment Ten years ago I went to see The Sixth Sense at a midnight showing in Mizner Park. I heard it was a solid, creepy horror film with a "cool" ending. I remember the experience of watching it and leaving the theater with a Whoa, I just saw something feeling. It's the type of movie you can't wait to tell everyone else about. And the best thing: you could recommend it to virtually anyone. When I left, for example, Fight Club, I had a great movie high, but I knew I couldn't talk excitedly to everyone about it. Fight Club just isn't for everybody. The Sixth Sense was a completely different situation. I couldn't think of a single soul who wouldn't like it, and it was clear to me M. Night Shyamalan had tapped into something cosmic.

There's a scene a little more than halfway through the...

Entertainment Weekly is running a poll to see who should star opposite of Dakota Fannings Jane as her brother AlecnbspNow that Dakota Fannings casting as vampire Jane in the Twilight sequel New Moon is official we can resume our discussion about who should be cast as her bloodsucker brother Alec in a manner so serious that the PopWatcher who posts as Sgt. Hatred will be forced to once again comment This article fans of this series and any others involved in it are the cancer that is killing worthwhile entertainment. Keep in mind that actors can play younger than their age dye their hair and survive a Disney career and vote in our readergenerated poll below.Who should play the Alec to Dakota Fannings Jane?High School Musicals Lucas GrabeelRace to Witch Mountains Alexander LudwigHarry Potters Tom FeltonHannibal Risings Gaspard UllielAugust Rushs Freddie HighmoreBirths Cameron BrightJumpers Max ThieriotGossip Girls Connor...

Chicago International Film Festival

CHICAGO -- March Madness shows its sinister side in Home of the Giants, a saga about Indiana state-championship basketball. The main rivalry is not on the court, but off the hardwood, as two brothers go one-on-one in a good-vs.-evil showdown. This appealing, heady independent film won audience fans here at the Chicago International Film Festival.

Starring Ryan Merriman as Matt, a high-school basketball star, and Haley Joel Osment as Gar, his loyal, brainy sidekick, Home of the Giants is funny and gritty. With sly digs at high-school culture, filmmaker Rusty Gorman spins a sharp morality story centered on the tribal insanity of Indiana high-school basketball.

In this sharp depiction of middle-American life, Matt is reveling in his "glory days": He's the high-school star who realizes that he'll never play at the next level. He's got a one-man entourage in his brainy friend Gar (Osment), who, both realize, will someday far outpace Matt in the game of life.

Filmmaker Rusty Gorman puts a shrewd trajectory on this jock yarn, layering the drive to the championship with some unsettling human issues. At its core, Home of the Giants is played out on a much larger court, and Matt's greatest challenge is to overcome the dark legacy of his older brother.

Giants is smartly shot with just the right character rotation between its two leads: As the sharp-shooting star, Merriman struts with high-school star cockiness and self-absorption, while Osment is winning as the sidekick who must assume leadership.

Other players deliver solid turns: Kenneth Mitchell is riveting as Matt's bad-apple brother. Danielle Panabaker's new-girl-in-school freshness adds a perky dimension to the storyline. Writer-director Gorman shows a talent for credible character creations and a deft control of the story, no mean feat since Giants blends multiple narrative styles of drama, romance and comedy.

Technical contributions are A-game, most prominently editor Dan Schalk's up-tempo pacing and cinematographer Rodney Taylor's on-target framings of the heartland.

HOME OF THE GIANTS

SymPics International and Blue Rider Pictures present

a Rusty Gorman Film

Credits:

Director/writer: Rusty Gorman

Producers: William R. Greenblatt, L. Charles Grimes, Dan Schalk, Eugene Osment

Director of photography: Rodney Taylor

Production designer: Jennifer O'Kelly

Music: Michael Suby

Costume designer: Lisa Norcia

Editor: Dan Schalk

Cast:

Gar: Haley Joel Osment

Matt: Ryan Merriman

Keith: Kenneth Mitchell

Bridgette: Danielle Panabaker

Prock: Brent Briscoe

Mrs. Gartland: Kathleen LaGue

Running time -- 101 minutes

No MPAA rating...

Great movie teams have always added spice to moviegoing. Think of a romantic team like Tracy and Hepburn or the comic pairing of Lemmon with Matthau. It's too early to add Alexa Vega and Daryl Sabara to this honor scroll, but there's no doubt the young actors hold together the pleasantly anarchic "Spy Kids 2: The Island of Lost Dreams." Plot and characters are even more unhinged than the original film, released more than 16 months ago, as filmmaker Robert Rodriguez has let his boyhood imagination run cheerfully amok. So the byplay and bickering between the now spy-savvy siblings, Carmen Vega) and Juni (Sabara) Cortez, anchor the film in a very real and amusing give-and-take.

This playful family film with a hipster's attitude should be every bit as successful as the first installment. Add to this the sheer pleasure, for adults at least, of seeing Ricardo Montalban back onscreen, and you have a welcome diversion for all.

Rodriguez succinctly sums up the process in this film when he says, "I took every dream or imaginative thought I ever had as a kid -- the gadgets I wished I could have, the fantastic places I wished I could travel -- and threw them all into this movie." So along with high-tech gadgets, you get a lost island run by a Dr. Moreau-inspired mad scientist, such exotic hybrid animals as a flying pig and a lizard with a snake's head and a pirates' cave filled with glittery loot and buccaneer skeletons.

Since the previous film, Carmen and Juni have joined the family spy business. The story opens with the spy kids saving the daughter of the U.S. president, with Juni developing a crush on the willful girl (Taylor Momsen). But political maneuvers have reduced the role of their father, Gregorio (Antonio Banderas), at the agency. This results in a rival pair of kids, Gary (Matt O'Leary) and Gerti (Emily Osment, Haley Joel's sister) Giggles, getting the plum assignments from their spymaster father, Donnagan ("Beavis and Butt-Head" creator Mike Judge).

When the Giggleses are sent to recapture the transmooker device, which can shut down electricity on Earth, Carmen reroutes them to the Gobi Desert. Then she and Juni take off in their underwater spy ship for a mysterious island where the device disappeared.

They arrive with a new crop of gadgets designed by Machete (Danny Trejo), the family's inventor. But the transmooker shuts down all their gear, forcing them to use their ingenuity and disprove Gary's theory that "an agent is only as good as his gadgets." They encounter the island's eccentric scientist, Romero (who else but Steve Buscemi). He has engineered a host of exotic creatures but is now too terrified to venture from his lab to confront his monsters.

In the midst of these adventures, their rivals arrive, and the kids suffer the embarrassment of having the whole family come to the rescue, meaning not only Dad and Mom (Carla Gugino) but also their grandfather (Montalban) and grandmother (Holland Taylor).

This second installment does suffer from gigantism, where the need to top oneself is misconstrued as a need to grow bigger instead of better. There are too many ideas rattling around inside this movie that are never fully developed. A couple of characters turn up from the first movie, Alan Cumming's Fegal Floop and Tony Shalhoub's Minion, who are not really needed.

Nevertheless, it's still refreshing to experience a family film outfitted with both wit and action. This time Rodriguez functions as a multihyphenate, taking on or sharing chores in writing, producing, directing, production design, editing, photography, rerecording and composing. Using customized high-definition digital cameras and wild, colorful designs, Rodriguez manages to turn a West Texas wilderness into an exotic isle that feels like a theme park gone wacky.

SPY KIDS 2: THE ISLAND OF LOST DREAMS

Miramax Films

Dimension Films presents a Troublemaker Studios production

Credits:

Screenwriter/director/production designer/editor/director of photography: Robert Rodriguez

Producers: Elizabeth Avellan, Robert Rodriguez

Executive producers: Bob Weinstein, Harvey Weinstein

Music: Robert Rodriguez, John Debney

Costume designer: Garciela Mazon

Visual effects supervisors: Robert Rodriguez, Daniel Leduc

Cast:

Gregorio Cortez: Antonio Banderas

Ingrid Cortez: Carla Gugino

Carmen Cortez: Alexa Vega

Juni Cortez: Daryl Sabara

Romero: Steve Buscemi

Donnagan: Mike Judge

Machjete: Danny Trejo

Felix Gumm: Cheech Marin

Gary Giggles: Matt O'Leary

Gerti Giggles: Emily Osment

Running time -- 100 minutes

MPAA rating: PG...

For years, the Walt Disney Co. has recycled its cartoon and live-action characters into TV shows, video releases, theme park rides, action figures, T-shirts -- you name it. Now Disney is reversing the flow with theme park attractions heading for the big screen. Later this year, a movie based on the fabled Pirates of the Caribbean ride goes into production. Even before that film, though, the company is releasing "The Country Bears", a family film based on its audio-animatronics novelty show "The Country Bears Jamboree".

Like that show, in which animatronic bear characters put on a hootenanny, the film confines itself to entertaining small children and perhaps a few adolescents. Anyone older will find himself glancing at his watch more than once. Theatrical prospects appear modest, but there may be gold in that ancillary mother lode.

The Mark Perez script lacks the clever humor and odd twists that can help a family film transcend age. Peter Hastings directs competently but without much visual style or playfulness.

While the movie is derived from the park attraction, its inspiration comes from the original "The Blues Brothers", with a group of characters hitting the road to get a legendary band back together. The Country Bears was a country group in which every musician other than the drummer was, yes, a bear.

The driving force behind the reunion is Beary Barrington (voiced by Haley Joel Osment), an 11-year-old cub who acts as if he were human because he has been adopted by a human family. Beary can't seem to take a hint about his "difference" from his older, disgusted brother Dex (Eli Marienthal). Beary, a huge Country Bears fan, wants to reunite the group for a benefit concert to help save Country Bear Hall, the venue where the band got its start.

Each bear character is a collaboration among four people: the suit performer, the puppeteer, the voice actor and the musician doing the singing. The characters are fun but a little dorky because bears are not the easiest animals to animate. The music is the best thing the film has to offer. John Hiatt has written six original songs, and such talents as Don Henley, Willie Nelson, Brian Setzer, Bonnie Raitt and Krystal Marie Harris mix it up with rock, country and blues music.

A guitar duel in the Honey Bar (where Queen Latifah turns up as the bartender) between a bear fiddle player and Setzer is fun. A retro coffee shop comes alive with "Kick It Into Gear", thanks to Jennifer Paige's singing waitress. The latter won't make you forget Aretha Franklin's memorable "Think" in "Blues Brothers", but it does give the movie a momentary charge.

Daryl "Chill" Mitchell and Diedrich Bader provide slapstick comedy as a pair of bumbling cops sent to look for the family's runaway son. Their chase of the Country Bears' tour bus through a car wash should have children squealing with delight.

Seeing Christopher Walken essay the film's twisted villain is strange, to say the least, but he plays it straight without any camp. Veteran actors Stephen Tobolowsky, Meagan Fay and Alex Rocco -- the latter not given nearly enough to do -- slip comfortably into the human roles.

THE COUNTRY BEARS

Buena Vista Pictures

Walt Disney Pictures

Credits:

Director: Peter Hastings

Screenwriter: Mark Perez

Producers: Andre Gunn, Jeffrey Chernov

Director of photography: C. Mitchell Amundsen

Production designer: Dan Bishop

Music: Christopher Young

Songs by: John Hiatt

Costume designer: Genevieve Tyrrell

Editors: George Bowers, Seth Flaum

Cast:

Reed Thimple: Christopher Walken

Norbert Barrington: Stephen Tobolowsky

Officer Hamm: Daryl "Chill" Mitchell

Raodie: MC Gainey

Officer Cheets/voice of Ted: Dietrich Bader

Rip Holland: Alex Rocco

Mrs Marrington: Meagen Fay

Dex: Eli Marienthal

Voices:

Beary: Haley Joel Osment

Trixie: Candy Ford

Big Al: James Gammon

Fred: Brad Garrett

Tennessee: Toby Huss

Henry: Kevin Michael Richardson

Zeb: Stephen Root

Running time -- 88 minutes

MPAA rating: G...