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ACCLAIMED Australian actor David Gulpilil has joined Nicole Kidman and Hugh Jackman as one of a bevy of high-profile local stars to work their magic on Baz Luhrmann’s Outback epic Australia.

As the lights on the $100 million drama faded to black after nine months in production last week, the first picture of the Australian Film Institute winner was unveiled showing Gulpilil playing tribal elder King George.

The 54-year-old, who was rushed to hospital with pneumonia earlier this month after suffering chest pains on a flight from Brisbane to Sydney, features in several pivotal scenes in the movie, which also requires him to sing.

The Ten Canoes, The Proposition and Rabbit Proof Fence star said he had been recovering in Sydney since his hospital dash two weeks ago and is preparing to record additional dialogue work for the film.

Luhrmann has made no secret of the Aboriginal essence that flows throughout the star-studded blockbuster with part of the main story revolving around a young Aboriginal boy named Nullah.

For Gulpilil, the role signifies a symbolic milestone.

"Our tometic ancestors created the land in the Dreamtime," Gulpilil said.

"Everything you see, including animals, trees, rocks and rivers were created in the Dreamtime. Our ancestors called the land into life, giving names to places and animals through song. Our songs represent our stories and our connection to this land. Without our songs we have nothing."

Meanwhile, tourism experts have predicted Luhrmann’s blockbuster will lure thousands more Britons Down Under.

The Association of British Travel Agents has predicted Australia will again top exotic travel destinations list in 2008 with new research showing travellers chase remote locations featured in movies.

According to the association, fans are likely to head to Australia’s Top End where Australia is set.

Angelina Jolie has revealed that her biggest fear isn’t an enraged Jennifer Aniston but being a bad mother.

The Tomb Raider actress adopted her six-year-old son Maddox from Cambodia in 2002 but has admitted she had reservations about her potential for motherhood.

"I was always considered so dark and I thought maybe I shouldn’t be someone’s mom because I’m not so sure about myself - am I going to be the best mom?"

She says, "They put him [Maddox] in my arms and I stared at him and I started crying and he smiled. I hadn’t held children before in my life.

"The fact that this little kid seemed so at ease gave me the courage to feel I could make him happy and so we became a family."

Jolie and partner Brad Pitt also have two other adopted children - four-year-old Pax Thien from Vietnam and two-year-old Zahara who they adopted in Ethiopia - as well their own biological daughter, 19-month-old Shiloh.

But Shiloh’s resemblance to her father set her apart from her siblings, the Beowulf star recently explained.

"She looks like Brad. It’s funny because she’s almost going to be the outcast in the family because she’s blonde and blue-eyed," Jolie said.
 

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National Treasure: Book of Secrets has seen off strong competition to hold the number one spot at the American box office for a second week.

The Nicolas Cage-starring movie took $35.6 million (£17.8 million) from 3,832 sites while children’s tale Alvin and the Chipmunks overtook I Am Legend to grab second spot.

In the action sequel Cage reprises his role as treasure hunter Ben Gates to discover the truth behind the assassination of Abraham Lincoln.

He is joined by an all-star cast including Helen Mirren, Jon Voight, Diane Kruger and Harvey Keitel.

Though its second weekend saw a 20 per cent drop in taking compared to its $45.5 million (£22.9 million) opening three days, Book of Secrets has still taken $124 million (£61.7 million) after its first ten days in theatres, easily surpassing the $87.5 million (£43.6 million) grossed by National Treasure in its first ten.

"I honestly think grosses for Book of Secrets will finish the holiday ahead of the final domestic gross for the first movie," Disney president of distribution Chuck Viane told Variety.

Political satire Charlie Wilson’s War - directed by Mike Nichols and scripted by West Wing creator Aaron Sorkin - held firm in fourth, while indie comedy Juno built on its Oscar buzz to climb five places to fifth.

Despite only showing in 998 theatres, Juno - featuring 20-year-old Ellen Page as a pregnant teen - improved its gross by a huge 201 per cent from the previous weekend.

The top five movies at the US and Canada box office are:
1 National Treasure: Book of Secrets - $35.6 million (£17.8 million)
2 Alvin and the Chipmunks - $30 million (£15 million)
3 I Am Legend - $27.5 million (£14.6 million)
4 Charlie Wilson’s War - $11.7 million (£5.6 million)
5 Juno - $10.3 million (£5.2 million)
 

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THEY have survived the Great Crash, the Great Depression, World War II and the attempted assassination of Ronald Reagan. But fears are growing that the Academy Awards, universally known as the Oscars, may have to be cancelled for the first time in 80 years.

The tens of millions of fans around the world, who treat the awards like a celebrity horse race, would not be the only ones to suffer if the February 24 event were called off.

Movie stars, studio executives, socialites and gatecrashers are all aghast at the idea of being denied the lavish parties that accompany Hollywood’s biggest night.

Perhaps most aghast are the party organisers themselves - most of whom have solicited sponsorship deals to help to pay for events that can cost up to $US700,000 ($800,000) to stage.

Ballot papers have been posted to the Academy’s 5829 voters, who will decide which films and actors are nominated. The first round of voting will end on January 12.

But the awards season is at risk of becoming the highest-profile casualty so far of a stand-off between studios and writers that began two months ago.

The writers, represented by the Writers Guild of America, are demanding to be paid for television shows or films broadcast over the internet. The studios argue that online technology is untested, and that to agree to fees now could prevent them from experimenting with new methods of distribution.

The strike is starting to sting on both sides. Nightly news-talk shows, such as The Daily Show with Jon Stewart - who is scheduled to host the 80th Academy Awards - have been off the air for so long, staff fear ratings may have been damaged permanently, with viewers migrating to YouTube or video games.

But at the weekend there were signs of movement when TV host David Letterman’s production company, Worldwide Pants, reached an agreement with the leadership of the WGA. The deal will allow Letterman’s Late Show to return to the air in the US on Wednesday night, armed with his staff of comedy writers.

Other night-time talk shows, including The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, are scheduled to return this week too - but without writers.

In a statement, Mr Letterman said: "This is not a solution to the strike, which unfortunately continues to disrupt the lives of thousands. But I hope it will be seen as a step in the right direction."

So far films have been less affected by the strike because scripts were stockpiled in advance. Nevertheless, some big projects will suffer next year.

But the biggest question mark of all now hangs over Oscars night. The best indication of its ability to go ahead as planned will come this week - when the Hollywood Foreign Press Association decides if it will stage its January 13 Golden Globes ceremony, which has been held every year since 1944.

Before Christmas, the WGA refused to give its members permission to write material for the show, even though it granted a waiver for the smaller-scale Independent Spirit Awards.

The union also refused to allow the Globes organisers to use video clips that included work produced by its members. This could make the event impossible to stage.

Regardless of what happens at the Golden Globes, however, all eyes will be on the Oscars a month later. Since its debut in 1929, the ceremony has run every year for 80 years, surviving industrial disputes - and even the attempted assassination of Reagan in 1981, which delayed the ceremony by a day.

The Times

STEVEN Spielberg has persuaded the creator of Ali G and Borat to move from comedy to serious politics by playing a hippie opponent of the Vietnam War.

In The Trial of the Chicago Seven, Sacha Baron Cohen will portray Abbie Hoffman, a figure from the 1960s counterculture, who used a series of pranks to campaign against the war. Baron Cohen is expected to be paid about $6 million for the film.

Baron Cohen, 36, became famous in his native Britain for his Ali G persona in the 1990s but won international acclaim with last year’s film Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan. He has now "retired" his Borat character.

The Spielberg film is said to be closer to Munich, the director’s exploration of the morality of political assassination, based on the 1972 terrorist attack on the Olympic Games, than to his next Indiana Jones frolic, due in the middle of next year.

The Trial of the Chicago Seven follows protesters who disrupted the 1968 Democrat Party convention with an anti-Vietnam War "carnival" that turned nasty.

Demonstrators threw bricks, police responded with tear gas and the centre of Chicago was engulfed in flames. Curfews only escalated the violence.

After the clashes, independent investigators blamed eight police officers and eight protesters, including Hoffman, who had already disrupted the New York Stock Exchange with showers of fake money.

The police were not charged but the protesters were accused of inciting a riot. One was jailed for contempt, leaving the other seven to fight the charges.

Hoffman went on to become an irascible celebrity who, later diagnosed with a bipolar disorder, killed himself with pills in 1989.

Baron Cohen will not have to undergo a big transformation to play the part. Hoffman, who was Jewish, attended Berkeley University in California, while Baron Cohen, an urbane Orthodox Jew, more than 183cm tall, cut his teeth entertaining friends at Christ’s College Cambridge with subversive wit and surreal pranks.

Baron Cohen is already planning a return to the screen in the guise of Bruno, a camp Austrian fashion show presenter with an unpleasant line in Nazi jokes. It is reported he will receive a $14 million advance and 15 per cent of box office receipts for the role.

The Sunday Times

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HARRY Potter fans have reacted enthusiastically to strong hints J.K. Rowling may pen an eighth book in the series.

A new book about Harry, a prequel or a novel about the boy wizard’s friends would be a certain bestseller.

Rowling has admitted she has "weak moments" when she feels she will write another novel about Harry or his friends.

In an interview with Time magazine, Rowling said: "There have been times since finishing, weak moments, when I’ve said, ‘Yeah, all right’ to the eighth novel.

"If - and it’s a big if - I ever write an eighth book, I doubt that Harry would be the central character.

"I feel I’ve already told his story.

"But these are big ifs. Let’s give it 10 years."

Shannon Meilak, who runs the Melbourne Harry Potter Meet-Up Group, said supporters were still hungry for more.

"Although J.K. has given us a lot, there is a lot more to tell," she said.

"I think the fans were sort of left with mixed feelings about the last book, and because of that people want to see another.

"I know most fans want to see a prequel.

"A lot of people would like to see the series go back to the Marauders (Harry’s dad and his friends) at Hogwarts.

"It could be a Harry Potter-style novel, but it would be interesting to bring back characters who have died."

Book store manager Markus Taylor said the release of an eighth Harry novel "would be like nothing seen in book publishing.

"Harry could be a guest character and make an appearance in a few chapters and it would still sell," Mr Taylor said.

He said a book focusing on a minor character would generate huge sales.

"People are intrigued and they want to know every nitty-gritty detail about all of the characters," he said.

"The release of book number seven was the most amazing day I’ve had in my 11-year career.

"I’ve never seen anything like it.

"It wasn’t a book release, it was an event.

"We sold at least 10,000 in the first day just in my store."

The Harry Potter phenomenon has been reflected in the series selling more than 330 million copies worldwide.

The latest book, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, sold 573,845 copies on its first day in July, breaking the previous record of 350,396.

Meanwhile, the Harry Potter film series is the most lucrative in box office history.

The five movies about the adventures of the boy wizard have earned $5.42 billion around the world and two more Harry films will be released over the next three years.

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By Anthony Breznican, USA TODAY Nicolas Cage learned a lot from history during the first National Treasure, and he repeats it in the hit sequel Book of Secrets. The film involves a hidden city of Native American gold linked to the Confederacy during the Civil War. The movie plays fast and loose with facts in service of adventure, but Cage shot many scenes in historic locations. USA TODAY takes you on a trip around the world with the actor.
The location The lowdown

Buena Vista Pictures

Mount Vernon: Alexandria, Va.

As historian/treasure seeker Benjamin Franklin Gates, Cage goes to the plantation home of George Washington for a birthday party for the current U.S. president (Bruce Greenwood). His plan is to kidnap the commander in chief so he can learn more about a legendary Book of Secrets that leads to the hidden city of gold.

“We were actually there at Mount Vernon, and that, I have to say, was one of the highlights for me,” Cage says. “It’s quite inspiring to see the degree of quintessence our first president had in terms of the architecture of his home. He wasn’t swept away by too much glitz and material things. He was interested in what was absolutely essential and necessary and the simplicity and thought that went into it.”

Library of Congress: Washington, D.C.

Cage and company follow a clue to the national library, the largest in the world.

“That is a spectacular and imposing building. It really takes your breath away at the grandeur and the size,” Cage says. “That’s a completely different statement than Mount Vernon. This is to awe you and overwhelm you.”

One gaffe librarians will notice: In the movie, the clue they follow involves the Dewey Decimal System, which is unlikely. The national library invented its own system for cataloging books, which is more widely used, the Library of Congress Classification.

Buena Vista Pictures

Mount Rushmore: The Black Hills of South Dakota

“That was my favorite location because you can really see into that countryside why the Native Americans thought that was sacred ground,” Cage says. “There was a symmetry and harmony to the nature there, the way the trees are embedded in the hills with the rocks, and there are these very still pools of water. It doesn’t seem real, it’s so gorgeous. I felt an incredible sense of peace out there, and I would encourage any families, if they want to go traveling, to explore that, especially if they’re interested in camping or hiking.”

AP

Buckingham Palace: London

Cage’s character needs to break into the official residence of the Queen of England to solve the mystery.

“England has thousands of years of stories to tell,” Cage says, “and it’s undeniable when you’re filming there that you can feel these things, especially for my character, who is so passionate about history.” Interior scenes were shot at an adjoining building, but Cage was at Buckingham Palace for exterior sequences. “There is an energy there when you see the guards in the front of the palace, and you know when the queen is there or isn’t there based on the flying of the (royal) flag. It’s quite unusual for an American, because we don’t have that level of antiquity. But it’s very much alive in England.”

Buena Vista Pictures

The French Statue of Liberty: Paris

The quest for the gold takes Cage to this replica of the New York Harbor statue, a gift from France in the late 1800s. Cage’s character initially thinks that larger, better-known statue is his next stop for sleuthing, but it becomes clear that the one on the Seine is the true destination.

“We were there for a couple of days shooting right by the Statue of Liberty,” Cage says. “Compared to the one the French gave us, it’s quite a bit smaller.” But there are similarities: “It’s on the river, so you can’t really get to it unless you have a boat.”

To report corrections and clarifications, contact Reader Editor Brent Jones. For publication consideration in the newspaper, send comments to letters@usatoday.com. Include name, phone number, city and state for verification.

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By Scott Bowles, USA TODAY Holiday films finished the year with a flourish as National Treasure: Book of Secrets topped theaters for a second straight weekend.

The Nicolas Cage sequel took in $35.6 million, according to studio estimates. The movie has done $124 million in 10 days.

Alvin and the Chipmunks remains a surprisingly strong performer, taking second place with $30 million and $142.4 million overall.

Will Smith’s I Am Legend also continues to chug along, doing $27.5 million, good for third place and $194.6 million in three weeks.

Charlie Wilson’s War was fourth with $11.8 million, bringing its total to $34.6 million.

Aliens vs. Predator — Requiem was the only newcomer to crack the top 5, taking fifth place with $10.5 million, meeting most analysts’ expectations.

At least one small film finally found a foothold with mainstream audiences. Juno was sixth with $10.3 million. Since its release a month ago, the comedy has done $25.7 million.

Among the newcomers, the Jack Nicholson and Morgan Freeman comedy The Bucket List did $323,000 in 16 theaters for a healthy $20,188 per-theater average. And the Daniel Day-Lewis drama There Will Be Blood did $185,000 in two theaters for a $92,700 average.

Six movies did $10 million or better over the weekend, helping keep ticket sales about 4% ahead of last year’s pace.

Final figures are due Wednesday, after the holiday.

To report corrections and clarifications, contact Reader Editor Brent Jones. For publication consideration in the newspaper, send comments to letters@usatoday.com. Include name, phone number, city and state for verification.  Enlarge Disney via AP

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Plot Summary:
The once-beautiful planet Eternia lies devastated, a victim of the demonic Skeletor and his vile minions. Momentarily vanquished, Eternian hero He-Man and his forces of good escape to a land of strange creatures and customs: Earth, the next battlefront in the quest to become Masters of the Universe. Who awaits the beckon of Skeletor’s cadaverous finger? Evil-Lyn (Meg Foster), the Air Centurions and the ghastly foursome of Beastman, Saurod, Blade and Karg. And assisting He-Man? Teela,Man-at-Arms, puckish Gwildor (Billy Barty). And two small-town America kids who stumble across the lost Cosmic Key — and share an adventure beyond their wildest dreams.

Starring:
Dolph Lundgren | Frank Langella | Meg Foster | Billy Barty | Courteney Cox | Robert Duncan McNeill | Jon Cypher | Chelsea Field | James Tolkan | Christina Pickles | Tony Carroll | Pons Maar | Anthony De Longis | Robert Towers | Barry Livingston |

Directed By:
Gary Goddard |

Stills gallery for this movie is here.