As Apple and Fox announced a new deal to distribute the studio's movies as rentals via iTunes, retail giant Wal-Mart abandoned selling downloadable movies, according to various published reports.

Wal-Mart confirmed yesterday that it had discontinued its movie download service, which was powered by HP technology. HP decided to ditch its technology after analyzing disappointing sales figures, forcing Wal-Mart's hand. The international retailer previously pitched its DVD rental-by-mail service in 2005.

The Apple-Fox deal is for downloadable rentals only; Fox will not sell its movies through the iTunes store, as Disney does with its current titles and Lionsgate, paramount, and MGM do with older titles. An official announcement is expected at the MacWorld Expo in San Francisco, which begins Jan. 14.

It is expected that Fox will have access to Apple's proprietary DRM technology, making it the only outside company with such access.

One challenge for the new service will be the lengthy download times for purchased movies. Will consumers be willing to wait as long to download a movie they're only renting?
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The Writer's Guild of America's (WGA) walkout on contract negotiations with the Alliance of Motion Picture & Television Producers (AMPTP) topped the list of seven "Moments of Significance" affecting the changing world of the moving image, according to an American Film Institute (AFI) announcement today.

The WGA's concern over royalties connected with emerging media was noted as "part of a larger paradigm shift" in the way movies are distributed and viewed. Another entry on the list -- the birth of the iPhone -- pointed to the same trend.

Rounding out the list, according to AFI, were:

• The deaths of legendary filmmakers Ingmar Bergman and Michelangelo Antonioni, both on July 30 of this year.
• The Planet Earth series, produced by the BBC, which ran on cable's The Discover Channel earlier this year.
• The large number of films dealing with the War on Terror and war-related issues, such as In the Valley of Elah, Lions for Lambs, A Mighty Heart, Charlie Wilson's War, The Kite Runner, etc.
• The increasing number of TV shows debuting in the summer on basic cable, challenging the traditional fall season premieres.
• The increasingly tabloid nature of TV news.
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The Library of Congress announced today it is adding Stephen Spielberg's Close Encounters of the Third Kind (1977), Robert Zemeckis' Back to the Future (1985), Peter Yates' Bullitt (1968), and several other classics to its National Film Registry. The Registry lists films on the basis of "artistic character, historical significance, or reflection of both the good and bad sides of American culture," according to The Hollywood Reporter.

Also added to the list were two classic Westerns: John Ford's The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance (1962) and Kevin Costner's Dances with Wolves (1990). Jules Dassin's film noir essential The Naked City (1948) joins the Registry, as does Sidney Lumet's courtroom drama, 12 Angry Men (1957). Also joining the list: Terrence Malick's Days of Heaven (1978), In a Lonely Place (1950), Grand Hotel (1932), Wuthering Heights (1939), Oklahoma! (1955), and Now, Voyager (1942).

The purpose of the National Film Registry isn't just honors, however. As many of the films made in the past physically deteriorate, the Registry preserves prints of the films it lists so future generations are sure to enjoy the films. As Librarian of Congress James Billington noted, "Even as Americans fill the movie theaters to see the latest releases, few are aware that up to half the films produced in this country before 1950 -- and as much as 90% of those made before 1920 -- are lost forever."

A total of 25 films -- including animated shorts, short subjects, and documentaries -- joined the permanent list of 475 films. You can see the complete list here.
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We're on the verge of concluding another year of blockbusters and indie favorites, of searing dramas and delightful comedies ... and plenty of less-stellar efforts, too. Infuzemag.com's staff took part of December to reflect back on a year of movie watching and pick their favorites for 2007, both as theatrical releases and as DVDs.

Of course, part of the challenge of putting together a list like this is the necessary limitation of time. None of us are paid critics; we see movies in our spare time. We see all we can, but we certainly don't see anything, nor could we if we wanted to. So consider this a "best of what we saw," rather than a definitive list. (And please do add your own picks on our message board -- you'll find a link to discuss this at the bottom of this article. I know I'd love to read what you found worthy, and why!)

So, without further adieu ... Here are a few of our favorites for 2007!

Holiday Inn is that "other" holiday film starring Bing Crosby. Filmed more than a decade before the more popular White Christmas, 1942's Holiday Inn was the first of the two movies to showcase Crosby's classic Christmas song, "White Christmas." It's also my favorite of the two. (I should note here that I'm not using the word "holiday" as a sanitized surrogate for the word Christmas. Holiday Inn is a movie that attempts to cover as many of the calendar holidays as possible.)

Holiday Inn is based on composer Irving Berlin's idea to buy an inn that would only open on holidays. Eventually, the idea was fleshed out into a screenplay. Berlin would write all of the movie's songs; and famous Hollywood crooner Bing Crosby would be the lead.

In the film, Jim Hardy (Crosby) and Ted Hanover (the affable and energetic Fred Astaire) are song-and-dance men in New York City. Hardy tires of the endless shows -- and love triangles -- that make up his partnership with Hanover, and he dreams of a simpler, more pastoral life. So he buys a farmhouse in rural Connecticut -- and quickly finds out that country life isn't all that easy. Eventually, he formulates a plan to have the best of both worlds: He keeps the house but turns it into an inn that only opens on holidays. He also decides that he will provide his guests with variety shows on those holidays.

Admittedly, I'm a huge fan of the original National Treasure movie. It is standard fare at our house and we've watched it dozens of times. It's considered absolute comfort food at the end of a hard week at work, or just fun family fare.

The just-released two-disc Collector's Edition DVD promised new deleted scenes plus four new featurettes, a treasure trove for a fan. I eagerly looked forward to exploring the new features, having already delved deep into the previous "treasure hunt" offerings in the original DVD, which included commentary, alternate endings, deleted scenes, three decoding puzzles, and a documentary on the Knights Templar, those crusading favorites of conspiracy theories most recently made famous by The Da Vinci Code.

The new bonus features on the two-disc DVD include a documentary, "Ciphers, Codes, & Codebreakers," and on-set, behind-the-scenes featurettes "On the Set of American History," "To Steal a National Treasure," and "Exploding Charlotte." While these were interesting to watch, they didn't include much in the way of cast interviews, delving instead into the technical aspects of the movie.

“D’Oh!” Or “Woo-Hoo?”

Which would be the assessment when the long-awaited Simpsons Movie finally reached the big screen? Clearly. “Woo-Hoo!”

The movie is a home run. It was created by the geniuses who have been doing the hit television show for the past 20 years, including co-creators Matt Groening and James L. Brooks. The writing was handled by a committee of some of the best writers in the show’s long run, and their deft touch is on display throughout. The characterizations are dead-on accurate, and the story feels big enough to be in theaters. The humor is laugh-out-loud funny, and the movie just makes you wish a sequel were around the corner.

The Simpsons Movie starts with a concert featuring Green Day speaking to the residents of Springfield about the dangers of pollution. Spoofing An Inconvenient Truth, Lisa finally gets through to them, and the townsfolk change their ways. All except for Homer, that is. Homer’s lazy streak brings him to destroy the environment, forcing the government to crack down on Springfield once and for all. Homer and the family escape (to the wonderland of Alaska!) but finally decide to go save the day back home. Being the Simpsons, though, there is much, much more to the story than that basic plot outline.

My family owns the DVD of the first National Treasure movie. We've watched it so many times, we know the dialogue and yet, it still thrills. It's the testosterone equivalent of The Princess Bride at our house. Its intelligence, comedy, dialogue, exotic locations, and incredibly entertaining cast set the bar very high for its sequel in our eyes.

National Treasure: Book of Secrets does not disappoint, I am delighted to say. It stays true to the ethos and action of discovering those clever, quirky clues that led us through U.S. history in the first movie, and still manages to improve upon its predecessor in two distinct ways: it supplies us with a more complicated villain and provides us with more reasons to laugh, relax, and just enjoy the ride without thinking too much -- a great holiday recipe!

The dialogue and situational comedy are spot on, and for fans of the original National Treasure, the sequel pure joy through being reunited with old friends (Nick Cage, Diane Kruge, Justin Bartha, Jon Voigt, and Harvey Keitel reprising their roles) and being introduced to new (Helen Mirren, Ed Harris). Indeed, the performances of Mirren and Harris raised the bar for this stellar ensemble cast.

Charlie Wilson's War opens with the title character (Tom Hanks), a drinking, drug-using, womanizing congressman from Texas, receiving the highest civilian award given by the CIA for his actions in delivering "a lethal body blow" to the Soviet insurgence in Afghanistan, essentially spelling the beginning of the end of the Cold War. Without his efforts, they acclaim, "History would be sadly different."

With this auspicious opening scene, the stage is set for a story told in flashback.

The first 10 minutes of the movie alone earn it its R-rating. We see at least four pairs of bare breasts in a hot tub, a couple of bare behinds (I'm wondering if Hanks used a butt double?), and plenty of drinking and cocaine usage -- and that's just Wilson in a hot tub for 5 minutes. I took my 69-year-old mother with me to see the film. She was not amused.

During the hot tub scene, Wilson sees Dan Rather reporting from Afghanistan about the war the Mujahedin are fighting against the Red Army with little to no weaponry. When Wilson returns to Washington, he uses his position on the Foreign Affairs Committee to double the funding in support of Afghanistan's fight against America's greatest adversary during the Cold War.

The Screen Actors Guild Award nominations were announced Monday, with Sean Penn's adaptation of Jon Krakauer's book Into the Wild leading the nomination totals with four. Star Emile Hirsch is nominated in the Best Actor category, his first nomination. Hal Holbrook and Catherine Keener are nominated for their supporting roles, and the entire cast was nominated in the Ensemble category.

Cate Blanchett is nominated twice -- as Best Actress for her portrayal of Queen Elizabeth I in Elizabeth: The Golden Age, and as Best Supporting Actress for her portrayal of Bob Dylan in Todd Haynes' innovative I'm Not There. She has now compiled 11 SAG nominations in her career.

In the Ensemble category, Into the Wild is up against 3:10 to Yuma, American Gangster, Hairspray, and No Country for Old Men.

As with the other creative guild-given awards, SAG has a waiver from WGA to use that union's writers for its awards show. The SAG Awards will be broadcast on cable channels TNT and TBS on Jan. 27.

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