Brangelina set up home in Richmond-on-Thames

Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie have set up home in Richmond-on-Thames, London, which is home to many of Hollywood's A-Listers.

The suburb already houses many popular figures from Hollywood, including Sandra Bullock, George

Clooney, Johnny Depp, Michael Douglas and Catherine Zeta Jones to name a few.

The owner of the house is known for providing one of the most discreet residences to be used by actors while filming at nearby Shepperton studios.

"It has been the best-kept secret for years for many of the Hollywood stars that if they stayed in relatively normal houses in the suburbia of Richmond, they could go around undetected," the Daily Mail quoted a source as saying.

The duo has come along with their six children, to stay in the lavish 10 million pound home owned by the widow of a fashion tycoon, consisting of six bedrooms, ultra modern bathrooms, gym, spa, changing rooms and a kitchenette.

Anchor from Blackbeard's ship raised after 293 years off North Carolina coast

MOREHEAD CITY, North Carolina -- Archaeologists on Friday raised an anchor from the Queen Anne's Revenge, the ship that pirate Blackbeard and his crew intentionally grounded off the North Carolina coast in 1718. The nearly 3,000-pound anchor is the largest artifact yet recovered from the wreck of the notorious pirate's flagship. The anchor was atop a pile of debris, which appears to be the remnants of the middle of the ship, including its cargo hold, said Mark Wilde-Ramsing, director of the

Queen Anne's Revenge project. Next week, researchers hope to dig a small test hole into the pile where the anchor was removed to get a sense of what else might be hidden there. Queen Anne's Revenge was originally a French slave ship that Blackbeard and his band captured in the fall of 1717. Blackbeard, an Englishman whose real name was thought to be Edward Teach, was killed by British sailors in a battle near Ocracoke in 1718.

'Stranger Tides' bows to 3D low

The bow of "Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides" had the lowest percentage of domestic 3D grosses of any non-family film since "Avatar" -- below even the heavily panned 3D conversion "Clash of the Titans." It was just 46%.

Does that mean it's time to question the durability of 3D with U.S. auds? Not necessarily.

"Clash" rode a wave of interest in the format following "Avatar" but battled negative word of mouth for its rushed conversion, tallying 52% of its opening gross from 3D. "Stranger Tides" debuted Stateside with $90 million this weekend, but 37% of that was in 3D, with an additional 9% from Imax engagements, according to Disney stats released Monday.

"Clash" bowed in fewer 3D locations, with 1,602 (or 42% of the total location count), compared to "Stranger Tides," which opened at 2,747 3D engagements (66% of its total locations).

While opening 3D shares have wildly fluctuated since "Clash" -- ranging from 95% for "Piranha 3D" to 50% for "Gulliver's Travels" -- it seems audiences haven't been embracing the format to the extent they did when "Avatar" set the 3D gold standard.

B.O. pundits will tell you that 3D reception hinges on whether auds embrace particular pics as a 3D event. That makes sense -- mostly.

This weekend, the worldwide haul for Disney's four "Pirates" films crossed $3 billion, making the series one of Hollywood's most successful franchises. But because "Stranger Tides" is the first "Pirates" pic released in 3D, bizzers questioned whether auds, already comfortable with Johnny Depp in two dimensions, felt the need to shell out extra cash for the 3D conversion. (With "Thor," Paramount introduced a new potential franchise in the 3D format, and 60% of the opening-weekend aud picked the stereoscopic version.)

The familiar property logic may also impact Warner Bros.' 3D version of the "Harry Potter" finale, which will also be the first pic in the franchise converted to the format and could have auds pondering the added value of 3D for a series that's been a big winner in 2D.

But that's why Disney offered auds the option of seeing "Stranger Tides" in 3D or 2D, Dave Hollis, studio's exec VP of motion pictures sales and distribution, told Variety. "Giving consumers the choice is very important in helping drive global box office," he said. "There are some consumers who will gravitate toward 3D, and there are those that won't."

Auds are also growing savvier about the difference between conversions and pics actually shot in 3D, as evidenced by the growing use of the latter as a marketing point ("Drive Angry" was among the first to use "shot in 3D" in its marketing materials).

Not surprisingly, "Stranger Tides" fared better in 3D with overseas auds, with 66% of the film's record-setting $260.4 million international debut coming from 3D. Moviegoers outside the U.S. have embraced the format more consistently -- though that acceptance also varies market-to-market. In Russia, for instance, the format still plays boffo. But Latin American auds, who are more family-oriented than in most other territories, have yet to show much enthusiasm for 3D.

B.O. observers insist that it's unlikely more audiences would have shown up to "Stranger Tides" had the film been released at more 2D runs; those who wanted to see the film opening weekend did, regardless of the format.

Oddly enough, those who did see "Stranger Tides" in 3D said they liked it more: 94% of 3D screenings scored a "highly favorable" rating vs. 81% for 2D, according to opening-weekend exit polls. That should bode well for the 3D version in repeat frames.

Depp, Bieber win Kids' Choice gongs

Johnny Depp and Justin Bieber were among the big winners at the 2011 Kids Choice Awards in Los Angeles last night.

Depp took home the 'Favourite Movie Actor' gong for Alice In Wonderland, while Bieber earned two Nickelodeon blimps for 'Favourite Male Singer' and 'Favourite Song'. Bieber was unable to make the event due to touring commitments, but Depp attended the event at the Galen Centre and celebrated by sliming the front rows of the audience.

Other winners on the night were Miley Cyrus, whose 'Favourite Movie Actress' accolade means that she is now the most successful female KCA winner of all time, moving ahead of Britney Spears.

Selena Gomez took home the 'Best TV Actress' title for her role in 'Wizards Of Waverly Place', iCarly earned the Favourite TV Show title, while Randy Jackson took home the 'Favourite Reality Show' blimp for
American Idol.

Host Jack Black opened the ceremony by performing with the Black Eyed Peas on a medley of 'Time Of My Life' and 'Just Can't Get Enough'. Band member Fergie later renamed the group the Jack Black Eyed Peas in tribute to the comic, after they picked up the 'Favourite Music Group' title.

Willow Smith flew across the audience on a high-wire for a rendition of her hit track 'Whip My Hair', which had her father Will dancing and singing along on the front row. Meanwhile, boyband Big Time Rush collaborated with hip-hop icon Snoop Dogg for a special performance, which culminated in Dogg getting slimed.

Other special guests who were honoured with a sliming at the ceremony included Russell Brand, who had green gunk thrown at him by kids on the front rows, Jason Segel, who was given a slime slushie by Glee's Jane Lynch, supermodel Heidi Klum and, in the show's finale, Jack Black and Jim Carrey.

Rango: An animated feature that doesn’t force you to like it

With his first animated feature, Pirates of the Caribbean director Gore Verbinski shows ambitions considerably beyond producing the usual standard of most children’s fare. To put it plainly, Rango is one weird movie.

Among other things, it features a mariachi band of owls, functioning like a Greek chorus, that tells us we are about to hear the story of the life and death of Rango. The titular character is a blue-skinned, bug-eyed chameleon (voiced by Johnny Depp) who we first meet while he’s in his terrarium, acting out mini-dramas with his plastic fish, a mannequin torso and fake palm tree.

A few minutes later, a bump in the road sends him flying from his perch in the back of a car, and his unseen owners drive on, leaving him lying in a pile of broken glass on a Mojave Desert highway. After that, the late Hunter S. Thompson (who Depp played in Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas) makes a cameo. Next, as Rango has a conversation with a dying armadillo (a truck tire has nearly severed his mid-section), audiences may begin to wonder who slipped a peyote button into their soft drinks.

Gradually, Rango becomes slightly more conventional, a quest tale in the Finding Nemo line. Soon Rango meets a female lizard named Beans (Isla Fisher) who has an inconvenient habit of freezing at peculiar times (“It’s a defence mechanism”). He also meets a girl rat (Abigail Breslin), who promises he’ll soon die. Through a series of accidents and some ill-advised boasting, Rango finds himself the sheriff of a dried-up town called Dirt, whose population consists of various rodents and reptiles.

As it turns out, the Fear and Loathing reference was just an appetizer. Rango is stuffed with allusions to other films. These aren’t Shrek-like pop-culture references, but more Verbinski’s homage to other filmmakers, which gives Rango an eccentric personal quality. The plot echoes Bob Hope’s The Paleface and its remake with Don Knotts, The Shakiest Gun in the West, about a fast-talking coward becoming, in a case of mistaken identity, a western hero.

Otherwise, it’s chock full of vintage movie references: The town’s mayor is an old tortoise (Ned Beatty) who controls the water supply, and it doesn’t take more than a moment to recognize his impersonation of John Huston playing Noah Cross in Chinatown. There’s an action sequence, perhaps 10 minutes long and overly busy, which involves Rango and a posse chasing down a gang of moles. In rapid succession, it makes reference to the Ride of the Valkyries sequence from Apocalypse Now, 2001: A Space Odyssey and various John Ford films set in Monument Valley.

It even echoes True Grit, a movie still in the theatres. True Grit’s cinematographer, Roger Deakins, was a visual consultant to Rango, helping to create the anamorphic western landscapes which seem to mix Frederic Remington with Salvador Dali.

The same sophistication extends to the screenplay by John Logan. The dialogue, including Rango’s stream-of-consciousness rambling, goes by quickly, but with an unexpected life-likeness. Rather than working in recording studios, the actors performed on stages with partial sets and props, captured on video as references for the animators.

What will all this mean to children? Undoubtedly no more than that this is a story about a homely-but-cute young hero who must defeat an old tortoise for control of the water supply so the little animals don’t die. But don’t look for the big heart-tugging moments of Up or Toy Story 3. Though its level of execution is consistently high, Rango is a non-pandering comedy that takes its message of western individualism seriously: It’s here for you and your children to enjoy – or not – as you please.

‘Rango' a clever nod to famous westerns

“Rango,” an animated spoof of spaghetti westerns, stars the little chameleon that could. Boy, could he.

The score, with lots of horns and a mariachi band of owls, is by Oscar winner Hans Zimmer (“The Lion King”). It more than suggests Ennio Morricone's legendary work on “The Good, the Bad and the Ugly.”

The cinematography, by Roger Deakins, rivals his Oscar-nominated work on “True Grit” and eight more films.

Double Oscar nominee John Logan (“Gladiator,” “The Aviator”) wrote the script.

Gore Verbinski, who knows something about spoofing a genre after helming the “Pirates of the Caribbean” trilogy, directed.

And Johnny Depp gives a voice and character to that little chameleon that echoes more than a little of Capt. Jack Sparrow's swagger, bravado and ability to fly by the seat of his pants when in a tight spot.

As the movie opens, the chameleon (we never learn his real name) lives alone in a terrarium. He uses his imagination to cast a decapitated doll, a plastic palm tree, a dead bug and a yellow wind-up fish as supporting players in his self-starring movies.

Suddenly, the car in which the terrarium is riding swerves, and our lizard friend finds himself out the window, learning new survival skills in the Mojave Desert.

Chased and nearly eaten by a hawk, he ends up in the aptly named town of Dirt, populated by a variety of birds, rodents, bugs, fellow lizards and a turtle mayor. The dilapidated town has mysteriously lost its water supply, and the citizens are desperate.

Amid a hostile crowd downing cactus juice in the saloon, the chameleon calls on his fertile imagination and casts himself as Rango, a legendary gunslinger. Soon he's tracking down the mystery of the missing water, giving the town hope and a hero.

Parents and grandparents will be thoroughly entertained by all the references to classic westerns and a long list of nicely realized characters. Kids will love an exciting chase and aerial assault sequence involving a water-cooler jug passing as a covered wagon and bomb-diving bats.

The animation, from Industrial Light & Magic, is incredibly crisp, finely detailed and realistically rendered with a mix of real-looking objects and animals infused with human personalities. Imagination is on display everywhere.

Depp is by no means alone in the list of top voice talent, which includes Alfred Molina as Roadkill, an aptly named armadillo; Bill Nighy as the fearsome villain, Rattlesnake Jake; Isla Fisher (“Wedding Crashers”) as Rango's love interest who talks with a perfect western twang; Abigail Breslin as a cute little tyke who embodies the town's hope in their hero; and Ned Beatty as the smooth-talking mayor.

I could have sworn the legendary character, Spirit of the West, was voiced by Clint Eastwood, but no, that's Timothy Olyphant doing a mighty fine impersonation.

Just about every western cliche is in here somewhere, including a duel on main street at high noon.

Pixar better watch out. The new kid on the animation block is on the street with both guns blazing.

Friday Box Office: Matt Damon Improves Film-to-Flim, ‘Rango’ Leads Night

The all-star cast of Rango, lead by Johnny Depp, easily topped the Friday box office yesterday with the animated series raking in nearly $10 million. The movie played in 3,917 locations and on 5,200 screens. Matt Damon’s Adjustment Bureau brought in $6.7 million at the 2,840 locations at played in, doing better than the first night of Damon’s last movie, Hereafter, which only was good for $4.1 million on its first night.

The Alex Pettyfer and Vanessa Hudgens led Beastly brought in $3.5 million for CBS Films, surpassing Warner Brothers’ Hall Pass, which was good for fourth place with $2.72 million. All in all, Hall Pass has brought in $20.7 million in the week it has been theaters. The movie had a budget of $36 million.

Just Go With It was fifth with $1.93 million, adding it to the total movie gross thus far of $83.63 million. Unknown now has a total gross of $48.37 million overall. The movie brought in $1.87 million on Friday night, doing better than The King’s Speech (1.64 million, total gross of $118.96 million).

I Am Number Four ($1.61 million, total gross of $42.34 million), Gnomeo and Juliet ($1.51 million, total gross of $78.29 million) and the debut of Take Me Home Tonight ($1.25 million) rounded out the top ten.