I’ve heard good things about A History of Violence, starring Viggo Mortensen, Maria Bello and Ed Harris. Director David Cronenberg’s previous films have been odd, disturbing and/or controversial (Naked Lunch   and 1996′s Crash), but it appears that this one is more mainstream and the consensus is that the strong performances really drive the movie. It’s on my list of new films to see, along with The Prize Winner of Defiance, Ohio (starring my fav Julianne Moore) and Everything is Illuminated (the directorial debut of underrated actor Liev Schreiber).
 
I am not a Cameron Diaz fan (don’t get me started on how she ruined Gangs of New York), but I will see In Her Shoes simply because it was written by Erin Brockovich scribe Susannah Grant and helmed by Curtis Hanson (L.A. Confidential and Wonder Boys), who is making a 360 degree turn by directing this chick flick after last conquering  I will ignore Diaz and her grating laughter, and focus instead on the great Toni Collette (8 Mile. Muriel’s Wedding and About a Boy).

Thank goodness there are decent new shows keeping me company now that my regular season baseball has ended. The pilot episode of My Name is Earl made me laugh out loud, although I have a commitment to Amazing Race on Tuesdays which conflicts with Earl. I am enjoying and intrigued by Bones on FOX, which is an updated and slightly more entertaining version of The X-Files. This is Emily Deschanel’s first major role of note, and her steely blue eyes and Kathleen Turner-esque voice make for a quirky forensic anthropologist and a refreshing character. She and former Buffy star David Boreanaz share a visible onscreen chemistry, and even the purposely awkward scientist sidekicks are tolerable distractions to the science behind the show. Sidenote: Deschanel’s sister Zooey is a comedic character actress, perfectly cast as the sarcastic co-worker in both The Good Girl and Elf.