Were you out there feeling like there were still just too many unanswered questions in The Fast and the Furious franchise? Okay, probably not, because that's like asking for CliffsNotes for an episode of The Hills. But, I guess somebody out there felt there was some explaining to do, because Coming Soon reports that Vin Diesel (who plays muscle car driver extraordinaire, Dominic Torretto) will be directing a 20-minute prequel to the upcoming Fast and Furious.

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Cinematical has received a few new photos from the upcoming Appaloosa, and some additional production photos surfaced over at CanMag. While this film is playing at Toronto next month, it doesn't seem to be attracting the buzz that The Road is getting, which is a downright shame.

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After four weeks as the top movie in America, The Dark Knight finally yielded the spot to the action comedy Tropic Thunder despite the threat of boycotts. Here's the top five:

1. Tropic Thunder: $25.8 million
2. The Dark Knight: $16.4 million
3. Star Wars: The Clone Wars: $14.6 million
4. Mirrors: $11.2 million
5. Pineapple Express: $9.8 million

Four more new releases this week. Will any of them be able to knock Tropic Thunder's, um, thunder? Let's see:

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They didn't have a panel or a party, but the folks behind the upcoming Bitch Slap were everywhere, literally. I, personally, ran into these girls on several different occasions, and in a building packed...

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The first trailer for Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince has just arrived online (watch it above or over on Moviefone in glorious HD), and, well, wow -- is it creepy or what? Not a ton of Harry, but we get our first look at Tom Riddle (as the young Voldemort) and it's clear we're heading in a very dark direction.

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I won't get into the precise reasons, but my friends always seem to think I'm going to LOVE the next big "pot comedy." They chuckle and assume such silly things despite the fact that the only real pothead comedies that I truly enjoy are Up in Smoke, Next Movie,....

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The room was packed for the Red Sonja panel today featuring Robert Rodriguez, Rose McGowan and director Doug Aaroniokoski, and images of Rose McGowan in that skimpy metal bikini were everywhere (what you see above was one of around 2,000 t-shirts handed out. Below are easy-to-read notes on this particular panel:

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Look, I thought The Dark Knight had a lot of strong selling points: Combine a deft pace with thoughtful characterizations and a whopping IMAX design that turns the entire experience into a plot-driven theme park ride, and you've got one hefty dose of Batman adrenaline.

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Some police departments have a unit called the Special Investigations Section, where officers focus on catching dangerous, violent criminals in the act. The Los Angeles Police Department, fairly infamous for a lot of things anyway, has a SIS unit that's frequently been the subject of scrutiny for the way its officers operate under, ahem, somewhat looser rules than regular cops. And now somebody's making a movie about it!

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Earlier today, you saw the trailer for one of the most anticipated adaptations of all time (no, not that one, this one). And it was amazing. Well, I thought so, anyway, and I'm one of the few people who said "ehh" after reading the graphic novel.

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Right about here is where all the gushing and excitement and enthusiasm should begin, because I'll tell you right off the "bat" that Christopher Nolan's The Dark Knight is cause for celebration indeed. But then you'll figure out -- after only one sentence -- that I pretty much loved this movie,

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Those manatees really know how to keep themselves busy. In one of the more irreverent news items of the day, Family Guy creator Seth McFarlane -- whose voice work is currently on display in Hellboy II: The Golden Army -- has told TV Week that he hopes to get a Family Guy movie off the ground in a year or so.

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Christopher Nolan's "real world" Batman is the best thing to happen to the character since, frankly, Frank Miller's The Dark Knight Returns. If there's one flaw in the series thus far, it is that Nolan's Batman is just a little too solitary, a little too dour. Nowhere is this more apparent than in his choice of female companions -- or rather, the lack thereof.

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Maybe you've seen them, maybe you haven't, but French thrillers are making a comeback in North America. That's good news for people uninterested in art houses solely for the sake of watching foreign films: You don't have to be a Francophile to appreciate smart, meticulously generated suspense, and that's exactly the appeal of several French movies hitting American theaters this year.

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I've been to a few conventions before, here in Philly, a couple in New York, and one hazy weekend in legendary Mesquite, Texas. Horror, sci-fi, comic books, and tons of awesome geeks enjoying their own personal flavor of colorful nerd-dom. I enjoy these events, even though my own style of fandom prohibits me from dressing up like Bib Fortuna or Jayne Cobb. (I like to be amicably cynical at these events, so if I happen to make fun of your Buffy costume, please understand it's all in good fun.)

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