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Neil La Bute's Possession involves 19th century love letters that spawn a 21st century romance. The modern tale is carefully blended with the past through flashbacks brought to life by the letters to create a vision so charming and heartfelt, that it's hard to believe it was helmed by the creative force behind the bitter Nurse Betty and In the Company of Men.

"The new breed of secret agent" flexed more box office muscle out of the gate than the old breed ever did. Vin DieselRob CohenDwayne JohnsonArnold Schwarzenegger

Shortly after The World is Not Enough came out, a friend handed me an essay about the future of James Bond. The author of this essay basically felt that it was time for the James Bond series to end or be reinvigorated into something different. Apparently director Rob Cohen, executive producer/star Vin Diesel, and scriptwriter Rich Wilkes took this essay as their jumping off point for XXX, since it's essentially a Bond picture punked up for the 21st century.

Bring a tub of popcorn and keep a defibrillator handy. You might be in need of resuscitation after viewing Blood Work. Clint Eastwood's new movie will pull your strings with its attempt at morality and captivate you with its crafty surprises, but in the end the portrayal of its geriatric protagonist as a sex symbol is likely to send you into cardiac arrest.

Lightning has struck twice for writer-director M. Night Shyamalan. Mel GibsonAngelina JolieAntonio Banderas

It's difficult to imagine any comedy using a joke like "Who's your daddy?" as a recurring gag, but I guess when a movie is as forlorn as The Master of Disguise, anything can happen. Indeed, "Who's your daddy?" is drawn like a gun on its audience whenever things become awkward and uncomfortable, which happens too often unfortunately. Directed by Perry Andelin Blake, this messy attempt at ANYTHING funny was the longest 67 minutes of my life.

Austin Powers' box office mojo is still at peak potency. Mike Myers

What do Britney Spears, Tom Cruise and Godzilla have in common? They all make brief appearances in the highly anticipated third installment of the Austin Powers franchise. Again directed by Jay Roach, Austin Powers in Goldmember has more celebrity cameos than Fat Bastard has chins. So many in fact that if you blink you might miss them. Look really hard, and you'll even see Katie Couric. I assure you, she's there.

A little talking mouse squished giant spiders and sank a Russian submarine, but was unable to defeat some damnation-bound gangsters to claim the top spot for the weekend ending July 21, according to actual numbers issued Monday. Tom HanksHarrison Ford

Eight Legged Freaks looks like it will have trouble hitting eight figures by Sunday.

The Academy of Television Arts & Sciences really dug the funeral drama Six Feet Under, bestowing it with more nominations than any other show for the 54th annual Emmy Awards.

Extending star Denzel Washington's winning streak to five in a row by grossing $71,062,935 earlier this year, John Q. is poised to take the DVD chart hostage with New Line's Infinifilm Edition of the health care drama. The discs is replete with the usual special edition fare, including director's commentary, deleted scenes and behind-the-scenes features. Val KilmerJohn CusackMike Myers

Though they took a sizable hit, the Men in Black were able to protect the top spot from gangsters, dragons, slashers and crocodiles for the weekend ending July 14, according to actuals released by the studios on Monday. Tom HanksTom CruiseHarrison FordAdam SandlerGeorge Lucas

Holly and Marina form the center of Me Without You, a stream-of-consciousness tale of two young British women whose trajectory takes their friendship from the 1970s through the present day. In director/screenwriter Sandra Goldbacher's dark world (Goldbacher directed the overwrought film, The Governess, starring Minnie Driver), no one escapes a lifetime of suffering.

Shallow Hal made a big splash atop the VHS and DVD rentals chart for the week ending July 7, according to the Video Software Dealers Association. Jack BlackGwyneth PaltrowRon HowardRidley ScottBilly Bob ThorntonHalle Berry

"Nellyville" continued to heat up the charts for the week ending July 7, though there have been no reports of ladies getting undressed to the album as the hit single "Hot in Herre" commands.

Minority Report continues to capture moviegoers in its third week of release. On Tuesday, it brought in $1,575,213, propelling its total to $100,158,794 in just 19 days. Tom CruiseHarrison Ford

Star Wars: Episode II - Attack of the Clones trailblazed a new day to release a movie—Thursday—straying from the Friday or Wednesday norm. Going up against the height of TV's May sweeps, it blasted off with a new weekday record—$30,141,417 at 3,161 venues.

Men in Black II may have set a new opening record and Spider-Man may have crossed the $400 million mark, but the Fourth of July weekend saw another milestone as the middle of the new Star Wars trilogy surpassed the middle of the original Star Wars trilogy.

The three most popular superheroes are poised to duke it out for the box office crown of 2004. Sam RaimiTobey MaguireKevin SmithTim BurtonNicolas Cage