News Cycles: Entertainment Reviews

Schreker's opera 'Distant Sound' heard at Bard (AP)

AP - His name is all but forgotten today, but a century ago Franz Schreker was considered perhaps the most important operatic composer since Richard Wagner.

"Charlie St. Cloud" a silly failure (Reuters)

Sid Vicious absolved in erratic documentary (Reuters)

Paparazzo gets his due in "Smash His Camera" (Reuters)

"Rubicon" a stylish conspiracy thriller (Reuters)

Capsule reviews: `Dinner for Schmucks' and others (AP)

AP - Capsule reviews of films opening this week:

Review: Efron sleepwalks through corny 'Cloud' (AP)

AP - Zac Efron and the rest of the crew behind "Charlie St. Cloud" want their movie to be weepy, soulful, inspirational, cathartic, ethereal, life-affirming and who knows what else on the New Age emotional barometer.

Review: `Dinner for Schmucks' an unsatisfying meal (AP)

AP - There's a lot less bite in "Dinner for Schmucks" than there was in the classic French farce that was its inspiration.

Moody explores love, longing in 'Four Fingers' (AP)

AP - "The Four Fingers of Death" (Little, Brown and Co., $25.99), by Rick Moody: I'm afraid that when I do that book reviewer thing and give you the obligatory summary of the plot of "The Four Fingers of Death" by Rick Moody, it will scare off all but the most hardcore of sci-fi geeks, but there's really no way around it.

Review: 'DeathSpank,' 'Limbo' bring summer heat (AP)

AP - This summer has been so oppressive throughout most of the United States that even driving to the video-game store feels like an ordeal. Fortunately, you don't have to leave home to experience some of the season's most interesting games — you can download them directly to your console.

Tony Robbins' new NBC show a glorified infomercial (Reuters)

"MasterChef" off to a tasty start (Reuters)

Adler unapologetic about living life on the edge (AP)

AP - "My Appetite for Destruction: Sex & Drugs & Guns N' Roses" (It Books, $25.99), by Steven Adler, with Lawrence J. Spagnola: A rocker's life seems to be an endless party. But what happens when the partying takes over?

"Cats and Dogs" sequel a charmless tale (Reuters)

Review: The NYC quirk of `The Extra Man' (AP)

AP - Shari Springer Berman and Robert Pulcini were the filmmaking couple behind "American Splendor," the wonderful 2003 film that was as charming as it was brutally honest.

"Scott Pilgrim" conjures a limp comic-book world (Reuters)

Reuters - Chore No. 1 is accomplished: The fanboys and girls gave a resounding shriek of approval to Universal's "Scott Pilgrim Vs. the World" at Comic-Con following its "surprise" screening here at this event that has become a kind of Halloween for adults.

Review: Avenged Sevenfold's 'Nightmare' indecisive (AP)

AP - Avenged Sevenfold, "Nightmare" (Warner Bros.)

Billboard CD reviews: Eminem, Cyndi Lauper, Macy Gray (Reuters)

Reuters - Throughout "Recovery," the rapper's first album since overcoming an addiction to pharmaceuticals, Eminem is unsparing in assessing the weakness of character that led to his descent into drugs.

Review: Duvall and Co. fly high with 'Get Low' (AP)

AP - Robert Duvall looks great as a grizzled old coot, while Bill Murray makes a mighty fine funeral director. Surround them with sharp old-timey details of the Depression-era boondocks and the roles fit them even better.

"Mad Men" season off to a powerful start (Reuters)