It seems fairly certain that Hancock will do decent business when it hits theaters this week, if only because Will Smith rarely stars in a dud these days -- especially when it's his face selling the movie before all else. Whether or not the film has staying power after opening weekend, however, remains to be seen, but Sony Pictures clearly has a lot of faith in its potential: Last week, the studio revealed its intentions of releasing the film online sometime after its theatrical run and before its DVD release, but only to users with Sony Bravia TV sets. It's a bold maneuver, one that assumes its core base of consumers actually have an interest in Hancock -- but the movie will make a profit either way, so it's a reasonable choice for this intriguing experiment.

Left in the dust by Apple's iPod, Sony continues to struggle in its search for a piece of the digital revolution. Company head Howard Stringer recently told the New York Times that the strategy for releasing Hancock "vanishes the memory of the failures of the Sony Walkman." Well, maybe. While on-demand technology has changed the way audiences consume their media, they don't like paying more money than necessary. Asking your audiences to buy a special device in order to access what, at this point, amounts to one movie -- well, that's asking a lot. But it's still a step in the right direction.

What do you think?

Among the handful of titles Sony Pictures Classics snatched up for American distribution at the conclusion of the Cannes Film Festival, the animated Israeli documentary Waltz with Bashir makes the most sense. While Tyson certainly has potential to alter the public perception of the country's infamous boxer, and Lorna's Silence has appeal for crime fans and art house aficionados alike, both movies could perform well regardless of which distributor picked them up (more or less). Bashir, on the other hand, has SPC written all over it: Relentlessly downbeat and frequently unsettling, Bashir is director Ari Folman's account of his 1982 experience in the Israeli military during the infamous massacre of Palestinian refugees in Lebanon. The animated approach sometimes has a gimmicky feel to it, but that's probably the point; Folman's memories are so foggy that his reconstructions of them seem plausibly unrealistic.

Bashir isn't easy to get into, but you could say that about Thomas Pynchon, too. What we have here is an animated movie for grown-ups, which puts it squarely in SPC's line of expertise. The company has guided many mature animated films to audiences in a manner unparalleled by their colleagues. Last year, talented SPC co-presidents Michael Barker and Tom Bernard commandeered the releases of the outlandish anime Paprika and Marjane Satrapi's Persepolis, and the latter film very nearly won an Oscar. Remember The Triplets of Belleville? That was them, too. These people know their stuff. Listen up, guys: I hear Bill Plympton's new movie is quite good.

With five nominations, it looks like Superbad will be the star of the 2008 MTV Movie Awards, and its three jubilant male leads -- Michael Cera, Jonah Hill, and Christopher Mintz-Plasse -- deserve the kudos. But one major talent behind the whole affair has stayed relatively anonymous while these young up-and-comers bathe in the spotlight: Director Greg Mottola. The erstwhile independent filmmaker, responsible for some of the best installments of Arrested Developed and Undeclared, launched his career a solid decade before the rise of Judd Apatow with a charming little low budget comedy called The Daytrippers. Starring Stanley Tucci, Hope Davis, Liev Schreiber, Parker Posey and a host of other fantastic character actors, the film follows a wildly dysfunctional family over the course of a single day, as Davis, playing a worrisome housewife, tries to track down her unfaithful husband (Tucci).

Mixing warm humanity with pitch-perfect screwball timing, Daytrippers marked the sort of debut that told you a filmmaker had a big career ahead of him. After a modest premiere at the Slamdance Film Festival, it landed at Cannes, barely got a theatrical release and promptly vanished thereafter. Mottola turned to TV work, and slipped out of the film scene for a good ten years. These days, it's no easy task to track down Daytrippers on DVD -- you can nab second-hand copies on Amazon for decent rates, but not a single retail outlet carries it. Aside from the occasionally airings on cable, the movie has vanished.

The completely deranged practice of watching movies on cell phones just got a boost. The Hollywood Reporter has a story on Sony's recent deal to put some of its classics catalog on AT&T's "Mobile TV" network starting this May. Soon, subscribers will be able to watch movies such as Philadelphia, Stand By Me and Ghostbusters while on the subway or in the dentist's waiting room. Whether or not they will want to is an open question.

To their credit, the honchos behind this seem to recognize that people aren't going to sit there and stare into a tiny cell phone screen for two hours. According to a Sony exec, the objective isn't to get people to watch the whole movie, and they don't expect too many customers to watch Ghostbusters for the first time on a two-inch display. Rather, this is intended for those who've already seen the films and want to rewatch certain scenes on a whim.

Sony, of course, was responsible for the fleeting phenomenon of watching movies on your PSP (portable Playstation), and they don't seem to be giving up on "mobile entertainment." I guess there's been some traction; I have friends who keep up with their favorite TV shows on their commutes. My mind still boggles at the concept of this actually being a viable business model -- Don't your arms get tired? What do you even see in there? -- but I suppose people are starting to embrace anything they can carry with them on their gadgets. I'll leave you with David Lynch's immortal -- and entirely correct -- words on the subject, after the jump.

Just when you thought there were no mid-'80s slasher flicks left to be remade, we're reminded (by The Hollywood Reporter) that Fred Walton's 1986 horror flick April Fool's Day is still being "re-imagined." The remake is being directed (at this moment!) in North Carolina by Mitch Altieri and Phil Flores -- also known as The Butcher Brothers. (Their first effort was last year's The Hamiltons.) Sony's new "Stage 6" division will be releasing the remake some time next year -- possibly theatrically, but most likely ... not.

We've also got a little casting news: Among the new "Fools" we have Josh Henderson, Scout-Taylor Compton and Taylor Cole. The IMDb page also offers a bunch of actors' names, none of whom I'm all that familiar with -- which is kind of a shame because the original April Fool's Day was like a who's who of '80s almost-stars. (Clayton Rohner, Amy Steel, Thomas F. Wilson, Ken Olandt, Deborah Foreman, etc.) The new producers could have at least snagged a bunch of horror actors, just to keep in step with the original ... but that's just the nerd in me talking. (That, and I just can't seem to get enough of Erica Leerhsen!)

For those who care to remember more important things: April Fool's Day was about a bunch of WASPy college kids who throw a party at a deserted mansion, but guess what? There's a killer out there! Said the co-directors to THR: "It's kind of more a twisting and turning story ... There's some really good scares in there ... It's pretty much contemporized, with off-beat humor, different settings -- something that would jell with today's audience."

Obviously the old-school horror fans will all be checking in to see what Altieri and Flores do with that ending. Heh.

Sony Pictures has just launched Stage 6 Films, "a label that will acquire and produce films for theatrical and straight-to-DVD release." The Variety announcement reports that Stage 6 will focus mostly on the DVD market, and on films budgeted at $1 to $10 million dollars. They've got a lot of movies on the horizon, with some pretty big stars involved. Conspiracy is an action flick starring Val "Iceman" Kilmer, Gary "Lumbergh" Cole, and Jennifer "Hot" Esposito. Thomas Jane is acting in and directing Dark Country (hope it's not a punisher!). The Stone House is a horror film starring Shane West and JK "Schillinger" Simmons. The Lodger stars Alfred Molina, whom I always picture in his underwear singing "Sister Christian." And Felon brings us even more Kilmer thrills, with Stephen Dorff and Harold Perrineau in tow.

And you know when you're talking direct-to-DVD, you're talking about some really random sequels. Stage 6 has announced a prequel (a prequel?) to this year's pretty cool horror flick Vacancy. There will also be a second Starship Troopers sequel -- Starship Troopers: Marauder, with Casper "Van Dien" Van Dien, Boris Kodjoe, and Jolene Blalock. Wesley Snipes will star in a sequel to the absolutely terrible action movie The Art of War, which I will refer to as The Art of War 2: Seriously? And Center Stage 2 will capitalize on the public's love of melodramatic teen dance dramas. I must confess a special place in my heart for the original Stage, because it led to a memorable high school back seat rendezvous. Put that quote on your poster, Sony! "Stage 6 will also continue to leverage our vast library of studio films, as we have done with Daddy Day Camp and the I Know What You Did Last Summer franchise," threatens a Stage 6 executive.

Columnist turned author Mitch Albom is about to add another title to his resumé: that of screenwriter. (OK, he adapted a few of his books for television but I'm talking about screenwriting) According to Variety, Adam Sandler's Happy Madison shingle has bought a baseball-related pitch from the author ... and yes, the project is being set up by Sony as a vehicle for Mr. Sandler. Because he hasn't done enough sports comedies yet. (Nothing against Sandler, but he hasn't made a funny movie since The Wedding Singer, if it's me you're asking.)

Described as a "comedy with emotional elements set in the world of baseball," the as-yet-untitled film will mark the very first collaboration between the author of The Five People You Meet in Heaven and Tuesdays with Morrie and the star of Big Daddy, Little Nicky and Anger Management. Can't wait for those "emotional elements." If Click taught us anything, it's that Sandler and "emotional elements" are a really effective combination. For torture.

So let's take some bets: Who thinks the movie will be about an aging bench-player who gets one last shot at stardom? Or maybe it's about a harried dad who begrudgingly takes a job as his son's little league coach ... only to learn several valuable lessons. Oh, I know! A selfish superstar gets bopped on the head during batting practice and starts being really nice to everyone. Sandler + Albom + Baseball = This stuff writes itself.

I generally try to avoid reading reviews before I see a film, but since I won't be reviewing Spider-Man 3 and I know Todd McCarthy doesn't deal in spoilers, I clicked in to see what the Variety film critic had to say about the most recent chapter in Sam Raimi's arachno-tastic action series -- and the guy had some pretty rough things to say about the movie. His main complaint seems to be that the flick is too broad, too comic-booky, and perhaps beholden to a rather underwhelming screenplay. Praise for Topher Grace and Thomas Haden Church, but an unsatisfactory grade for screenwriter Alvin Sargent -- and when discussing the scenes between Peter Parker and the female leads, the critic uses the words "dull" and "unimaginative." Yikes.

"After the significant improvement of the second installment over the first, new entry reps a roughly equivalent dip in quality and enjoyment, with Spidey now giving off the faint odor of running on fumes," says Mr. McCarthy. He also feels the SM3 plot "would have proven more satisfactory for a late '60s cartoon-hero TV show than for a new-century blockbuster." He praises the action scenes and the special effects, but feels the whole crew is just sort of going through the motions at this point. Just one guy's opinion, of course, but McC seems to make some pretty valid points in his review. I just don't know if I'll agree with those points until after I see the flick for myself.

Expect Mr. McCarthy's rather negative review to get a lot of angry comments over on the Spider-Man 3 Rotten Tomatoes page. (He already has 23!) AP film critic Christy Lemire got a whole bunch of nasty comments (172!) after having the audacity to express an early (and negative) opinion of that crazy 300 flick, which just goes to show you how "important" critics are when it comes to the inevitable blockbusters. Then again, McCarthy didn't like Pirates 2, which I loved, and therefore Spider-Man 3 could still rock.

It's official: Spider-Man 3 will be taking over New York City for one full week of movie marketing, before premiering -- as we expected -- at the Tribeca Film Festival. "Spider-Man Week in NYC" will run from April 30 through May 6, and will feature all kinds of different Spidey-related activities. From -- I kid you not -- Spider-Man inspired raps at the Apollo Theater in Harlem (I wonder how many of those raps will include a number of different definitions for the word 'Mary Jane') to Spidey Chats at the Central Park and Bronx Zoos -- The Big Apple will turn, well, webbed later this month.

The actual Spider-Man 3 premiere will most likely take place mid-week and, according to reports, will take place in Queens -- home to Peter Parker. Now, I could be wrong (and correct me if I am), but isn't Peter Parker from Forest Hills? Or did they just shoot scenes in Forest Hills? Either way, I live in Forest Hills -- and so it would be a real fun treat to be able to catch the flick in Spidey's hometown, and not have to spend two hours on a train commuting back home. If you're not able to catch the premiere in Queens, apparently there will be several different screenings taking place throughout the city. Some other stuff taking place that week: You've got a street festival and cast appearance at Rockefeller Center on April 30, original Spidey comic books will be on display at the New York Public Library, and there will be some Green Goblin mask-making at the Children's Museum of Manhattan, as well as lots more. So put in for time off now folks, cause Spidey is coming to town.

You'd be hard-pressed to find a person who's not excited about Spider-Man 3. In the five years since director Sam Raimi first introduced us to Tobey Maguire as the webbed crusader, we've experienced what is, perhaps, one of the greatest comic-related superhero trilogies of all time. And, if what we've seen so far of the third film is any indication, it's going to positively knock our socks off. In preparation of the film's release, we've collected a slew of information from Cinematical, AOL Movies and Moviefone and decided to provide you with a Spidey 3 FAQ ... featuring an all new character guide. Not sure what the story is about? Wait, a black Spider-Man? Who is he? And what about this blonde girl Gwen Stacy? Does she really think she's going to steal Mary Jane's man?

For you Spidey fanatics, consider this FAQ just another reason to get pumped up about the film. And, for those who don't know much about the superhero -- and may have missed one or two of the other films -- but still want to make it appear as if you're "in the know" (oh, you know who you are), then feel free to use us as your primary Spidey resource. Spider-Man 3 officially swings into theaters on May 4.

So, what's the film about?

From the official Spider-Man 3 website: In Spider-Man 3, based on the legendary Marvel Comics series, Peter Parker has finally managed to strike a balance between his devotion to M.J. and his duties as a superhero. But there is a storm brewing on the horizon. When his suit suddenly changes, turning jet-black and enhancing his powers, it transforms Peter as well, bringing out the dark, vengeful side of his personality that he is struggling to control. Under the influence of the suit, Peter becomes overconfident and starts to neglect the people who care about him most. Forced to choose between the seductive power of the new suit and the compassionate hero he used to be, Peter must overcome his personal demons as two of the most-feared villains yet, Sandman and Venom, gather unparalleled power and a thirst for retribution to threaten Peter and everyone he loves.