As we’ve said before on the Fan Fare blog, opening weekend box office is not the only predictor of a film’s success and, sometimes, can be downright misleading.

Director Quentin Tarantino’s widely-hyped “Inglourious Basterds” enters its second weekend at U.S. and Canadian box offices on Friday after claiming the No. 1 spot last weekend with a debut of  around $38 million. Tarantino has many loyal fans who can be counted on to show up on the opening weekend, but the second weekend is a bigger question. If fans liked the movie and if their “word-of-mouth” recommendations to friends are strong, then “Inglourious” may be able to retain audiences and beat newcomers “The Final Destination” and “Halloween 2.”

So far, “Inglourious” has scored fairly well with critics and fans. At review site rottentomatoes.com, it receive an 88 percent positive score among critics. At Metactric (http://www.metacritic.com), it received a score of 69 out of 100 among critics and a user rating of 7.8, based on 206 votes. We talked to a few fans who’d seen the movie and got their opinion. You can watch by clicking below.

(video by Marc Price)

Diane Kruger and Brad Pitt starred together in the 2004 movie “Troy,” and they reunite on screen in the movie “Inglourious Basterds” opening on Friday. But the reunion comes with a bloody twist, a moment more akin to a Freddy Krueger movie than a Diane Kruger’s flick, when Pitt’s U.S. Army lieutenant character sticks his finger in a fresh bullet wound in her leg.

It’s squeamish stuff, in line with the movie itself, which is high on over-the-top violence and the sometimes gruesome irony that is inherent in much of Tarantino’s work. But Kruger isn’t sore about the painful scene, and she has nothing but good things to say about Pitt and Tarantino.

“When you work with Brad, it’s a lot of fun,” Kruger told Reuters. “He’s a great playmate and you can really bounce off him.”

As for Tarantino, the actress said that she and most actors are big fans of the director. 

“All his movies are performance-driven and he writes incredibly well for women,” she said. “I loved Pam Grier in ‘Jackie Brown.’

(Writing by Alex Dobuzinskis: reporting by Zorianna Kit)

Another day; another hot, hunky Hollywood actor.

Tuesday, we brought you Vanity Fair readers’ idea of the world’s most handsome man, Robert Pattinson, 23, (see the blog post below). So today, Wednesday, we thought Fan Fare readers might want to know who was dubbed the hottest bachelor by People magazine. He is (drumrollllllllllll), “Gossip Girl” actor Chace Crawford.

At People’s website, Crawford, 23, talks about his first kiss and the perfect date, “all you need is a pool table, beer, an electric jukebox and good conversation.”

We’re thinkin’ you might want to do more than pool and beer, Chace, but hey, whatever works. (For Pattinson, it’s a pair of fangs). You can read about Chace here.

There’s definitely a sea change afoot in Hollywood where the title “hot” is concerned. It wasn’t too long ago that those monikers belonged to the likes of Brad Pitt, Matt Damon or Johnny Depp, but those guys are, well, older now (Pitt, 45; Damon, 38; Depp 46) and dads.

But wait! There’s still hope for guys who’ve transitioned into fatherhood.

Word comes from movie site Fandango.com that they have their own poll: Top 10 sexy movie star dads! Nothing wrong with being a dad, (this weekend is father’s day in the U.S., after all). We all gotta grow up sooner or later, and it’s especially good if you’re a “hot” dad.

And who should top Fandango’s list? Brad Pitt with 14 percent of some 1000 votes, followed by Depp with 13 percent and Will Smith with another 13 percent. Damon landed at No. 7 with just four percent of the votes. Maybe he should get a better daddy publicist. Click on Fandango’s site here.

In any case, it does set our mind to racing. Do you have to be young to be “hot”? Do you have to shoot pool and drink beer? Put on a pair of fake fangs? We wonder if Brad ever takes Angie for pool and a couple of cold ones. Somehow, we doubt it.

As the Cannes film festival headed toward it’s final weekend with a few films left to play on Saturday and awards to give away on Sunday, the reactions to films screening here seemed to be mixed and the star power decidedly low, which was what had been expected going into the world’s largest film gathering.

The frontrunner for the coveted Palme d’Or, the festival’s top honor, appears to be French film “Un Prophete” (”A Prophet”) from director Jacques Audiard, telling of a 19-year-old man who learns how to survive in prison. Read more about it here. Because Cannes is considered a festival where cinematic art is explored, winning the Palme d’Or does not always translate into commercial success, especially in the Hollywood-dominated United States. But Sony Pictures Classics acquired U.S. distribution rights to the film, and they are masters at luring U.S. audiences to foreign films. Perhaps their biggest success in that arena was Oscar nominee “Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon.”

The major starpower of the festival was, as expected, the Wednesday premiere of Quentin Tarantino’s “Inglourious Basterds,” which brought Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie to Cannes’ red carpet. You can read about that movie here. And if you want a peak inside their premiere party, just scroll down the Fan Fare blog, and we give you some video behind the velvet rope. The other major star on the carpet was Spain’s Penelope Cruz in Pedro Almodovar’s “Los Abrazos Rotos,” (”Broken Embraces”). Click here for a story on that title. Both of those movies ended up with mixed buzz from their Cannes screenings.

The big bomb was “Antichrist” from Denmark’s Lars von Trier, mostly because people considered it excessively brutal to the point of being gross. Read about it here. But But von Trier is considered an artist of cinema, and the thing about art is that it is supposed to challenge people, make them think in new ways and see the world differently. Perhaps that is what “Antichrist” eventually will do. It was picked up for distribution in the U.S. by IFC Films.

And the parties? Going into Cannes, merchants, caters, restaurateurs and others were expecting business to be down about 30 - 40 percent. That has likely proven to be true, but the real result won’t be known until after all the receipts are tallied up. But it is certain, there were fewer events, fewer invitations and fewer crowds along Cannes beachside Croisette and inside its posh hotels. That tale of low lights and dim star wattage — with the exception “Twilight” heartthrob Robert Pattinson, is here. Still, if you got in, the parties were just as fun as ever. We tried to bring you the parties here on the Fan Fare blog, and you can watch some of them by scrolling down.

Business was mixed, too. If you had a good movie, business was good. If not, it was pretty rough. That tale of haves and have-nots is here. And business can’t be frowned upon even at an art-focused, cinema-loving event like Cannes because, after all, money does make the world go around. That is as true in Cannes as it is in Hollywood.

As if to dispel all the rumors of discord in the relationship between Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie, the glamour couple strolled the red carpet at the Cannes film festival premiere of Brad’s “Inglourious Basterds” on Wednesday night. They also showed up at the after party.

The party was jam packed with media on the outside and studio execs inside, and we couldn’t get anywhere near the couple at the party — security being what it was. Actually, it was more like onlookers four-deep using their peripheral vision to sneak peaks at the Hollywood couple. We didn’t want to play that game. In any case, we promised we’d take Fan Fare readers inside, so click below. You’ll see Harvey Weinstein walk across one sequence, and stay to the end where you’ll get a fan reaction to the Quentin Tarantino-directed film.

Director Quentin Tarantino’s new movie, ‘Inglourious Basterds” shot its way into the Cannes film festival on Wednesday morning for early press and public screenings ahead of its red carpet premiere and after-party in the evening, and what a blood bath it was.

Tarantino, director of movies such as “Pulp Fiction,” has created a sort of cartoonish, comic book-style nod to shoot ‘em up World War II movies such as 1967’s “The Dirty Dozen.” But it is far more graphic with its violence, which includes scalping dead soldiers’ heads, and more modern than that old war tale — using background music ranging from David Bowie to ”The Green Leaves of Summer” from the soundtrack of the motion picture “The Alamo.” In fact, the movie opens with the feel of an old Clint Eastwood spaghetti western such as ”The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly.” 

Brad Pitt portrays tough-as-nails American Lieutenant Aldo Raine who leads a band of Jewish soldiers with nicknames like “The Bear Jew” working behind enemy lines in France to kill Nazis in such a gruesome fashion that it strikes fear into the hearts of Hitler’s army. Diane Kruger portrays German actress Bridget von Hammersmark who is an undercover spy, and there is a cameo appearance by comic actor Mike Myers as a British military officer. The truly stand-out performance comes from Christoph Waltz as a Nazi known as “The Jew Hunter.”

The early morning press screenings were packed with journalists and an overflow room had to be opened to accomodate the crowds. Outside the Palais where the movie is screening throughout the day, Tarantino fans clamored for tickets. And click on our story with comments from Tarantino and Pitt at Wednesday’s press conference.

But we wonder, is ”Inglourious Basterds” too violent? Since the movie hits theaters starting in August, it would be hard for any of our readers to comment, specifically. But two years ago, war movies came out in significant numbers, and they flopped at box offices as battles raged in Iraq and Afghanistan. People just weren’t in the mood. Escapism, fantasy and comedy have been what’s worked in theaters, and that has carried into 2009. The interesting thing is, “Inglourious Basterds” mixes fantasy and comedy with a lot of blood and guts. Is that what people really want to see? Or, has the time for bloody violence in movies come to an end?

Plus ca change…

The Cannes film festival IS different from recent editions, but not radically. For me, the most noticeable difference between 2009 and 2005/6/7/8 is the absence of stars, be they genuine cinema greats or headline-grabbing celebrities who people care about, however fleetingly.

Sure, there are famous people here — Quentin Tarantino, Penelope Cruz, Mariah Carey, Brad Pitt, (a little later on) and Bill Clinton (in town soon for a charity dinner). But there are significantly fewer than we in the press are used to. In one sense that’s a good thing in that reporters can concentrate more on the film festival itself rather than the red carpets and celebrity-driven stunts. On the other hand, any major festival, and particularly the world’s biggest in Cannes, needs the glamour that star power brings to generate interest around the world.

So that’s what is different. But what is the same is the sunshine, the extortionate prices, the yachts in the harbour occupied by scantily-clad women and not-so-scantily-clad men, the parties (albeit fewer) and that “Cannes attitude”, in other words, “put-on-your-Sunday-best-even-if-it’s-Monday-because-you-never-know, someone-important-might-notice-you.”

The Cannes film festival lineup just announced has a familiar ring to it, with several past winners vying for that nice gold-coloured leaf grandly called the Palme d’Or in 2009. Quentin Tarantino (who won in 1994) unveils the oddly spelled “Inglourious Basterds”, his World War Two caper starring Brad Pitt. Ken Loach (2006) and Jane Campion (1993) are also in the running in the main competition lineup as is Lars von Trier (2000).

Grabbing just as much limelight on the French Riviera, though, will be Terry Gilliam and his “The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus”, the late Heath Ledger’s last movie with stars Johnny Depp, Jude Law and Colin Farrell stepping in to complete his role.

Finally hoping to break his Cannes duck will be another favourite on the palm-lined Croisette waterfront, Spain’s Pedro Almodovar who once again teams up with Penelope Cruz in “Broken Embraces”. He was favourite to take the top prize in 2006 with “Volver”, and ended up calling the billing as frontrunner a “curse”. Could it be Pedro for Palme d’Or this time?

With Valentine’s Day coming up on Saturday, many movie fans will be looking for a good romance film to spark their own love life. But not all movie couples can convince fans they belong together, either on-screen or off.

Online ticket seller Fandango conducted a poll of customers buying tickets for February movies, asking people about their favorite and least-liked romantic movie pairings. On Tuesday, Fandango released a top 10 and worst 10 list.

Ryan Gosling and Rachel McAdams lead all couples for their performance in the 2004 movie “The Notebook.” They won 14 percent of the vote, four percent more than runner-ups Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie in the 2005’s “Mr. and Mrs. Smith.” The other couples on the list were, in order: Richard Gere and Julia Roberts (”Pretty Woman”); Patrick Swayze and Jennifer Grey (”Dirty Dancing”); Leonardo DiCaprio and Kate Winslet (”Titanic”); Patrick Swayze and Demi Moore (”Ghost”); Robert Pattinson and Kristen Stewart (”Twilight”); Heath Ledger and Jake Gyllenhaal (”Brokeback Mountain”); and at No. 10, Johnny Depp and Juliette Binoche (”Chocolate”).

Pitt and Jolie became inseparable after their on-set meeting in “Mr. and Mrs. Smith”  and the two have since become a Hollywood supercouple with six children, including three adopted kids.

But Harry Medved, spokesman for Fandango, said that off-screen romance only counts for so much. “When it comes to classic mismatches, like Ben Affleck and Jennifer Lopez in ‘Gigli,’ the fact that the two stars may have been a couple off-screen didn’t make the on-screen chemistry between them any more convincing,” Medved said.

But JLo and Affleck, who since their 2003 movie “Gigli” have separated and are married to other entertainers, are not the most mismatched couple, according to Fandango customers.

Leading Fandango’s top 10 most mismatched couples were Jessica Alba and Mike Myers in 2008 movie “The Love Guru,” which was panned by critics and made only $32.2 million worldwide. That couple got 9 percent of votes, followed in second place by Woody Allen and Charlize Theron in “The Curse of the Jade Scorpion,” a 2001 movie that came out when the acclaimed actor and director was 65 and she was 26. The other names on the list in order were: Katherine Heigl and Seth Rogen (”Knocked Up”); Adam Sandler and Kevin James (”I Now Pronounce You Chuck & Larry”); Anne Heche and Harrison Ford (”Six Days Seven Nights”); Kate Winslet and Jack Black (”The Holiday”); Julia Roberts and Woody Allen (”Everyone Says I Love You”); Nikki Blonsky and Zac Efron (”Hairspray”); Jennifer Lopez and Ralph Fiennes (”Maid in Manhattan”); and at No. 10, Jennifer Lopez and Ben Affleck (”Gigli”).

This Valentine’s Day, movie goers will have a couple romantic comedies to choose from. “He’s Just Not That Into You” opened on Feb. 6 with an A-list ensemble cast that includes Ben Affleck, Jennifer Aniston and Scarlett Johansson, and had a strong opening weekend of $27.5 million, while “New In Town” starring Renee Zellweger and Harry Connick Jr. has earned a disappointing $11.9 million worldwide since its Jan. 30 opening.

(Writing and reporting by Alex Dobuzinskis) 

For years,  the media has seized on the slightest signs of a feud between actresses Jennifer Aniston and Angelina Jolie over their man-in-common, Brad Pitt.

But in an interview with W magazine released online on Wednesday, Pitt tried to put all that to rest. Pitt addressed a comment Aniston made in December, saying that Jolie was “really uncool” for talking about how her romance with Pitt blossomed on the set of “Mr. & Mrs. Smith” in 2005 – when Pitt and Aniston were still married.

“Listen, man, Jen is a sweetheart,” Pitt said. “I think she got dragged into that one, and then there’s a second round to all of that Angie versus Jen. It’s so created” 
    
Pitt also told W that filming “Mr. & Mrs. Smith” took a year.
    
“We were still filming after Jen and I split up,” he said. “Even then it doesn’t mean that there was some kind of dastardly affair. There wasn’t. I’m very proud of the way that it was handled. It was respectful. (The film) will mean something to our kids. It will, that’s all.”
    
The interview with Pitt appears in the February issue of W.