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Schmaltz is due a return at the Oscars.

One of the front-runners for this year’s best picture Academy Award is “The Curious Case of Benjamin…

One of the front-runners for this year’s best picture Academy Award is “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button,” right, starring Brad Pitt and Cate Blanchett. “Button” does not disguise its intentions to leave no dry eye in the theater, much like previous best picture winners “Titanic,” top left and “Forrest Gump.”

(AP Photos/Sipa Press)

After the award for best picture went to Scorsese’s gangster epic, “The Departed,” in 2007 and the Coen brothers’ brilliantly suspenseful “No Country For Old Men” last year, one of the front-runners for this year’s star prize is “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button.”

Directed by David Fincher, “Button” is the tale of a man called Benjamin — played by Brad Pitt — who is born old but grows younger and, along the way, finds love.

The plot runs from the end of World War I to 2005. Doing so takes almost three hours, which may just help secure the prized Academy Award.

“One milieu of nominated films is that they’re long,” said public relations guru Michael Levine. “If your ass is sore by the end of the movie, then it’ll probably do well at the Academy.”

Based on F. Scott Fitzgerald’s 1921 short story of the same name, “Button” does not disguise that its intentions are to leave no dry eye in the theater. While in Fitzgerald’s story, Benjamin becomes bored with his aging wife and leaves her to spend many nights alone, Fincher’s Benjamin only leaves so as not to be a burden on her as he grows younger.

Eschewing any degree of selfishness in the lead character and replacing it with Benjamin’s innocent growth makes Fincher’s message — the big picture of Life — hard to swallow for some.

“I was underwhelmed,” said Alexa Dedlow, a consultant at Interscope Records’ TV and film division. “The film was trying throughout to be sentimental, especially at the end when the baby (Benjamin) died. They really wanted to make you cry, but to me, it was all just a bit weird.”

There’s no escaping the so-called Ick Factor in “Button.” Evident throughout, especially when the woman who raises Benjamin — overplayed by Taraji Henson — is on screen, it crescendos in the closing moments when a hummingbird, burdened with significance throughout the film, hits a hospital window. Cue tears from some, the rolling of eyes from others.

“It’s hard to suspend belief when the deformed old man becomes the most beautifully chiseled man in the world (Pitt) and in the next scene gets acne,” Dedlow told ABC News. “I understand he’s going from older to younger, but the ugly to beautiful transition wasn’t exactly conducive to likeability.”

Hasbro has been showing off lots of Transformers toys at the New York Toy Fair as part of the publicity campaign leading up to the release of the movie. These are the official publicity images of released by Hasbro. Enjoy!

The new batch of G.I. action figures are made to look very much like the actors that play the characters in this summer’s upcoming movie. They toys also include many accessories to go along. What could be cooler than having action figures made to look just like you? We envy the lucky actors who are in this movie. Here’s a peek at some of the toys:

Spot #3 for X-Men Origins:Wolverine has been aired on the Fox network on Feb. 17. The spot titled “Legends” once again has never before seen footage, this time in modern times showing the brothers as grown-ups. We see Ryan Reynolds’ character, as well as a mutant with the same ability as Cyclops.

So what do you think, guys? How did cyclops get into this movie?

Liev Schreiber’s career has gotten a boost with so much publicity surrounding X Men:Wolverine, the actor is flying high these days. Now there’s news that Liev’s next project is going to be opposite Angelina Jolie in an action-thriller curiously named “Salt”.

Jolie plays the lead of a CIA agent accused of being a Russian spy. Schreiber’s character has not been revealed yet.

Critics may have universally trashed it, but the public payed no heed as the remake of the classic film was the top draw at the box office during the President’s Day weekend, picking up an impressive $45.2 million over four days.
“He’s Just Not That Into You” is still going strong, thanks to girl power, earning $23.4 million dollars in its second weekend, a drop of 29%.

The Fox network just aired the second TV spot for “X Men Origins:Wolverine” on February 16. The spot titled “Brothers” shows Wolverine’s past with his brother (Liev Schreiber’s character), from running together in the woods, to them fighting in wars together.

As you can see, this one picks up from where the last TV spot left off, so we can expect the next one to continue the story, albeit in short bits.

Obi-Wan Kenobi may have braved Imperial bounty hunters to reach Alderan, and Luke Skywalker faced down a whole galaxy to find a teacher in the swamps of Dagobah, but neither “Star Wars” hero has anything on the “Fanboys” they inspired.
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A new decepticon can be seen in the trailer for “Revenge of the Fallen”, the one with the large wheel in the center. Turns out, it is a combo of many transformers all joined together.
Now here’s a look at a screenshot of the thing from the movie, and a picture of the toy version from toy-maker Hasbro.