Avatar
Blu-ray/DVD Combo
Directed by: James Cameron
Starring: Sam Worthington, Zoë Saldana, Sigourney Weaver, Stephen Lang, Giovanni Ribisi, Joel Moore, Michelle Rodriguez
20th Century Fox
Release Date: April 22, 2010

Avatar. The biggest movie that has ever been made by any film director on this planet. Ever. Oh, my. Where does one even begin? By watching the movie, I suppose.

Going in, I was about as unsure what to expect as I have ever been with any movie. Over the past couple of years, myself and many others have heard what seems like constant updates and information regarding director James Cameron‘s game-changing film. How huge it would be; how revolutionary the effects would be; how immersive the cinematic experience would be. And all of these promises were seemingly confirmed when a select group of eyes was introduced to 24-minutes of footage in 3D, which led to a level of high-praise that we’ve never heard before. At this moment, buzz and excitement was in orbit, higher than anyone could possibly think to reach.

Then came the first official teaser trailer, and everything seemed to change. People weren’t so sure that Avatar could live up to all the hype that had been created now that they had seen with their own two eyes what it looked like…and I was one of these people. Don’t get me wrong, it still looked like a lot of fun and I was excited to see it, but the “game-changer” looked more like just your typical summer blockbuster than anything else, and this was a little depressing.

As always, we like to have the results of the big awards ceremonies here for all to see, and tonight was the biggest of them all: the 82nd annual Academy Awards.

This, the king of all awards shows, has faced much criticism the last few years, and their nominations this year did not help bring validity to their cause. Many of the films and actors were very deserving of their nominations, but many others were passed over in lieu of some big box office successes of questionable overall quality. And though they made a valiant effort to increase the excitement of the show with 10 Best Picture nominations, the end result was frustrating to we the film lovers of the world?

In the end, some fantastic films and performances were justly awarded, and as always, there were a few that rubbed the wrong way. Continue on over to the other side to see all of the final results!

With James Cameron’s Avatar up for nine Academy Awards tonight, including Best Picture and Best Director, here’s an detailed look back at the record-breaking film.

Over $700 million in domestic box office grosses later, James Cameron‘s epic sci-fi adventure Avatar has beaten months of mediocre buzz and a cryptic advertising campaign to become the highest-grossing movie of all time. Ironic given that the last time Cameron was behind the camera the result was Titanic, another movie which took on similar, insurmountable odds and became the #1 box office champ in history. Sure the inflation nerds will always pipe up and say, “But wait! When adjusted for inflation Gone with the Wind is really the highest-grossing movie of all time!” To which we’d all say, “Yeah but Gone with the Wind didn’t have big blue aliens with long tails, did it?” Thus there is no comparison.

The movie is a full-blown phenomenon with critics and audiences and now it’s being showered with awards, including a slew of Oscar nominations including Best Picture (for which Avatar is a front-runner) and Best Director (Cameron is competing with ex-wife Kathryn Bigelow, the director of The Hurt Locker, for the prize). I had the good fortune of seeing Avatar when it was first released in December before strong word-of-mouth, a lackluster holiday movie line-up, and the promise of mind-blowing visual wonders exploding from the screen through the magic of 3D transformed a potential Christmas turkey into a celluloid slot machine that’s been paying off in cash and prestige for Cameron and 20th Century Fox ever since.

What’s the worst possible thing you could think of happening to your favorite Best Picture nominees for this upcoming weekend’s 82nd annual Academy Awards ceremony? For me, the thought of the cast of MTV’s Jersey Shore spoofing them would be pretty high up on that list.

Many Oscar ceremonies over the years have featured spoofs of the nominated films — the most famous of such were presented by Billy Crystal during his many brilliant hosting gigs. Well, apparently someone thought that these kids from Jersey Shore could bring some similar laughs to the table with their own spoofs, and a handful of them were recording for use on George Lopez’s Lopez Tonight show on TBS.

Click on over to the other side to watch a couple of these parodies…if you dare. Included below you’ll find The Hurt Locker and Inglourious Basterds, but you can also head over to TBS’s YouTube page for a second Basterds and Avatar.

Let me get thing clear right off the go: I have a significant religious background. For eight years or so, I went to church three times a week or more, was part of a Christian drama group that performed all over the country, and even taught Sunday School to kids ages 6-12 for a couple of years.

With that said: those days have long since past for me now, and I’ve made a long and slow transition from happily optimistic to cautiously agnostic (forgive me, I watched Woody Allen’s Manhattan the other night). Nonetheless, when I see and hear things like this story that you’re about to read, it absolutely infuriates me.

Founder and Pastor of the Mars Hill Church in Seattle, WA, Mark Driscoll has been making quite a name for himself as of late. With his young, hip, and energetic appearance, and his grasp on what’s “cool,” he’s custom built to attract the multitudes of young people who seek guidance and answers in their life, and he and his church have been gaining popularity at an amazing rate. In this, there is absolutely nothing wrong; if these kids seek guidance and he offers them some hope, all power to him.

Continue reading on for a lot more and to watch a video clip.