* In case you haven’t heard, the epic speculation about just who will play the Pippi Longstocking-via-the-Velvet-Underground Lisbeth Salender of “The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo” (American style) is over. The part has gone to 25 year-old Rooney Mara. Anne Thompson has the inside dope on this relative unknown.

Still, I find the comparisons with the legendary battle to cast the role of Scarlett O’Hara in “Gone With the Wind” to be slightly much. It’s more like casting Daniel Radcliffe as Harry Potter or Sean Connery as James Bond.

The obvious differences aside, Connery was, by the way, very much like Mara. He was actually the second person to play the role. The first was Gene Barry in a nationality flipped 1954 TV version of “Casino Royale” in which “Jimmy Bond” was American and “Clarence Leiter” was British.

* As if we Angelenos don’t have enough problems with aliens invading our town and the ensuing legal battles therein. The President’s in L.A. raising money from the godless sodomites of H-wood with help from communist money hating writer-producer-director-moguls John Wells and J.J. Abrams. And we know what this means — a new round of liberal criticism of the Obama Administration for, yes, the traffic. Even Hef was bothered.

* I once transcribed and informally partially edited an “as told to” book by the son of the entrepreneurial founder of a major multinational with huge ties to the film industry through his son. Nikki Finke today reminds me of a quip the second-generation captain of industry quoted: “There’s nothing wrong with nepotism, as long as you keep it in the family.”

* It sounds like he’ll be okay, but think good thoughts for Michael Douglas anyway.

* Because of my recent roundtable piece with Kevin Pollak, I’ve been giving his interview program a listen. Ironically, Christopher Walken, like William “the Shat” Shatner before him, is jumping into the interview game, perhaps inspired by Pollak for all anyone knows. Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, I’ve heard.

* Some of my best friends have post-graduate degrees in psychology but, Lord amighty, headline grabbing psychologists and their journalistic/PR enablers can really produce a special kind of stupid and shallow when they go all pop-cultural on us. Get this:

“In today’s media, superheroes and slackers are the only two options boys have,” said Lamb. “Boys are told, if you can’t be a superhero, you can always be a slacker.”

They were writing the same thing when I was kid, only the terms were different. I’d give you a more detailed case on why I consider this complete idiocy, but since I’m clearly not a superhero, I must be a slacker. (H/t Anne Thompson.)

Borgnine, Donen, Rainer

As someone with parents in their eighties and nineties, I’ve become especially interested lately in the way things work for people of a certain age. So it was with some some special interest that I listened to the words of 100 year-old thirties star Luise Rainer, 93 year-old star character actor Ernest Borgnine (“Marty,” “The Wild Bunch”), and 86 year-old directing great and one-time boy genius, Stanley Donen — best known for co-directing “Singin’ in the Rain” and other MGM musical classics with Gene Kelly but also an outstanding director in his own right of both musicals and “straight” films.

Both Donen and Borgnine could have easily passed for ten or even twenty years younger than their actual age and had plenty of interesting comments. Borgnine struck a sympathetic note with me in mourning the lack of movie westerns these days, speaking after a screening of the powerful, unusually emotional 1956 oater, “Jubal.”  For his part, Donen remains a charmingly self-effacing and sharp-witted man and as in-touch with our present day as the man who celebrated and spoofed hipness in films like “Funny Face,” “Charade” and the 1967 “Bedazzled” should be.

The Luise Rainer interview, which was prior to a screening of her key performance in 1937’s “The Good Earth,” was something else again. Organized as a television taping, it started as something of a potential fiasco when the charming but frail Ms. Rainer confessed that she had lost her hearing aid that morning. It quickly became obvious that, no matter how loudly host Robert Osborne might shout in her ear, she couldn’t hear a word. While Osborne outwardly maintained his professional-yet-sympathetic cool, he must have been panicking inwardly just a bit.

It took a shout from the audience to remind Osborne that writing the questions down would probably work. After that, the event went nicely since the actress, whose “inside out” technique marked her as well ahead of her time in terms of technique, has no problem chatting up a storm. Even though I was distracted by the (very temporary) loss of a recording device, I don’t think anywhere there was left unmoved. Ms. Rainer possesses a winning candor along with some genuine sweetness and wisdom and the delicate appeal that made her special as a young woman is still there today. Most amusingly, she discussed how she and co-star Paul Muni, a method actor himself but a far more  temperamental by Rainer’s account, were perhaps “not so much in love.” Something, by the way, not one bit in evidence onscreen.

Last Sunday was, by the way, my first time seeing “The Good Earth.” It’s longish and episodic in the way of many of MGM’s epics, but it’s a remarkable film that is far better and more sensitively made than you would expect from a largely “yellow-face” production. Rainer really is entirely believable and moving in a part that offered little dialogue, but plenty in the way of emotion. Muni was almost as good in the lead.

You may be feel some slight discomfort…

* Speaking of ethnic issues and the movies, another highlight for me was seeing author Donald Bogle’s presentation of Warner Brothers cartoons pulled out of circulation in 1968 due to cartoonish African-American stereotypes. I had seen Bob Clampett’s brilliant, and not quite as offensive as you might think, “Coal Black and de Sebben Dwarfs,” previously, but each cartoon was in it’s own way a revelation — not always a good one, exactly.

Still, it’s fair to say that while the films portrayed offensive stereotypes, these weren’t hateful in the way of, say, “The Birth of a Nation.” Indeed, in a world where the Confederacy whitewashing “Gone With the Wind” remains a very popular classic film staple, it’s perhaps not entirely fair for most of these film to be singled out. Indeed, several of the films celebrated the work of such legitimate black American cultural heroes as Cab Calloway and Fats Waller and were arguably more progressive in their way than the bulk of Hollywood films of the time, which routinely portrayed African-Americans as non-entities.

* On an entirely different note, the British-made New York-set “No Orchids for Miss Blandish” was preceded by an introduction from a borderline apologetic Tim Roth. The English actor, who actually knows how to do a proper American accent, humorously explained that this once controversial crime curio is a kind of love-letter to America, for all its often amusing flaws. Notorious on its release for its combination of sexiness and violence, the first act basically has numerous seemingly major characters introduced, only to be summarily knocked off a few minutes later. The mayhem slows down a bit after the very late introduction of the main character well-played by Muni-esque American actor Jack La Rue.

Still, for Americans today, the obvious issue is that this is an attempt by a British cast and crew at essentially making a gangster film in the classic U.S. style. Now I know how British viewers must have felt seeing any of the innumerable films where thoroughly American actors portrayed thoroughly English characters with little or no believability.

* Re: “The Day of the Triffids.”  This famed bit of early sixties British sci-fi/horror that is still in the midst of a hugely painstaking restoration which has resulted in an oftentimes visually stunning presentation, despite the goofy-by-modern standards monster effects. However, one of the film’s restorers introduced the midnight screening of the film and was equally painstaking and time-consuming in describing his work. This attention to detail lead to some audible discomfort from the audience — and some worry by me because I’d been told the garage I parked in closed promptly at 2:00 a.m. Still, it’s hard for a geek like me to come down too hard on anyone for an excess of film love, and we all got our cars out in time, I believe.

The Big Finish

That would be the final screening of the four day long event, the newest reconstruction of the silent science fiction film, Fritz Lang’s “Metropolis.” As someone who’s been viewing various versions of the silent tale of futuristic class conflict my entire life, I have to admit to never really really loved the film despite it’s undeniably stunning visual brilliance. Though that extra hour might involve a bit of film-watching work for me, at over 2.5 hours some previously very minor scenes and characters are fleshed out in fascinating ways. Visually, it’s more a marvel than ever and totally worth checking out for anyone who cares about movies, science fiction, or sheer spectacle.

This is a strictly digital restoration and, since I’m a believer in the superiority of celluloid, I was skeptical about the digital projection of it in the enormous Grauman’s Chinese Theater. I have to say, however, that I’ve never seen the amazing sets and matte work of Lang’s film look more grand. Similarly, the performance of the original score by the three piece outfit, The Alloy Orchestra, was thrilling and received an entirely deserved standing ovation.

Oh, and there was free food and booze for us lucky pass holders at the party afterward. That always makes for a thrilling conclusion.

As reckoned by the Mojo, “Avatar” is the now the #1 domestic moneymaker for 2009 and the #7 cinematic cash cow of all time, with a very definite bullet considering its signs of considerable ongoing strength. In others words, this is a movie people actually enjoy, not merely tolerate because it offers enough explosions to distract them for a couple of hours.

On the other hand, just to keep things in perspective, adjusted for inflation, “Avatar” is still a 56 steps down from the all-time ticket seller, “Gone With the Wind.” On the other hand, lest James Cameron should be threatened by any momentary bouts of untoward humility, at least in terms of raw cash he really is box office king of the world right now. “Avatar” is already the #2 grosser of all time at $1.331 billion, $500 million and change behind “Titanic” — written and directed by you-know-who. Can I still wish Cameron had brought in a competent wordsmith/dramaturg to smooth out the very rough edges on both films?

As for the second and third place positions, we had another photo-finish in which Warner’s “Sherlock Holmes” narrowly edged out Fox’s “Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Squeakquel” by a rodent hair. The world’s greatest literary detective brought in just a hair more than an estimated $16.6 million and the musically inclined woodland creatures managed an estimated $16.3 million. With the holiday weekends at an end, they both exhibited more typical drops for typical Hollywood product, with “Holmes” dropping by 54.6% and “Chipmunks” by 53.7%.

As predicted, a violent/satiric spin on the peaking monsters of our moment, vampires, “Daybreakers” came in at very decent 4th place showing with an estimated $15 million for Lionsgate. Another newcomer placed #6, after the AARP-friendly rom-com, “It’s Complicated.”  That was “Leap Year,” a movie I’m embarrassed to admit slipped my mind on Friday’s report but apparently not the ever less demanding viewers of romantic comedies.

Expectations were low — single digits said jolly Carl DiOrio — for this critically disliked rom-com with apparently mild “tracking,” despite the presence of the wondrous Amy Adams. By managing a double-digit showing, it will do no harm to either her career or that of costar Matthew Goode, the rather interesting actor best known as Adrian Veidt in “Watchmen” and also Colin Firth’s dead lover in the probable Oscar nominee, “A Single Man.”

Conversely, schadenfreude fans rooting for the non-stardom of Michael Cera got some ammunition with the disappointing numbers for “Youth in Revolt,” which earned an estimated $7 million. That result will not be music to Harvey and Bob Weinstein’s already reputedly fiscally troubled ears, considering the film was supposed to crack double digits.

Also, it’s a bit of an embarrassment to me because I mentioned the possibility of a surprise in the opposite direction. Still, it should be noted that comedy based on a series of books by C.D. Payne was in a relatively modest 1,873 theaters, as opposed to 2,511 for “Leap Year,” and it’s per screen average of $3,737 is not an embarrassment.

Among limited releases, though Box Office Mojo apparently failed to track it, “The Imaginarium of Dr. Parnussus” the Terry Gilliam-directed fantasy film starring the late Heath Ledger, expanded to 550+ theaters last week and appears to have actually been the #12 movie in the country with, as per Nikki Finke and Carl DiOrio an “acceptable” $1.7 million for distributor Sony.

“Mr. Cameron was king of the world but now has dominion over the universe. And he will own the top two slots on the worldwide all-time box office list!

In its third weekend, “Avatar” raised an estimated $68.3 million, with an outlandishly small 9.7% drop from its take of $75.6 million last week, as calculated by Box Office Mojo. The cumulative domestic box office take for the ecological/human rights themed action fable is now roughly $352.1 million, which I suppose might be a complete recoup of the film’s budget and at least some of the marketing expenses.

That also means it’s already the 15th top grossing domestic film of all time, with an awful lot of commercial life left in it, as the film will almost certainly linger in theaters through Oscar time and beyond. It seems that there is every chance it will overtake the $533.3 million of “The Dark Knight” and I certainly wouldn’t rule out it taking the #1 spot from Cameron’s $600.78 million grossing “Titanic.”

Remember, that mega-melodrama was released in 1997, when the most anyone paid to see a movie was, if memory serves, maybe $7 or $8. I saw “Avatar” over the weekend at Hollywood’s top-of-the-line Arclight complex, where the ticket price on Friday night was $18.50. That’s unusually expensive, but only a few bucks more than a lot of folks are paying nationwide, particularly on Imax screens. Adjusted for inflation, no movie has yet to sell more tickets than the periodically re-released “Gone With the Wind, which was shrewdly withheld from TV screens until the mid-seventies.

But let’s also not forget the worldwide take. It’s where things get really exciting with a total just under $1.02 billion. That means “Avatar” is already the fourth top grossing international film of all time. I think it’s fair to say Cameron has not only impressed viewers with his mastery of some very cool technology, he might have hit something in the zeitgeist right about now. It’s just a shame he couldn’t have brought in another writer, like his old Roger Corman cohort, John Sayles, to get rid of some of the truly awful expositional dialogue and sharpen and clarify the conflicts. Of course, to Fox, that’s just one less person to pay.

Lest we forget, the #2 film the weekend was, also for the second week in a row, “Sherlock Holmes.”  This time it racked up just under an estimated $38.4 for a rough total for $157.3 million for the lavish action-flick variation on the venerable Victorian detective. The film had a 38% percent drop from last week, which by most standards is fairly good. It’s another nice payday for Warners, the studio which has earned the most money of any studio, two years running.

About those decreases, however, I should note that the rules are  apparently somewhat different this holiday period and no one’s dropping all that much. Indeed, the strong third place shower, “Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Squeakquel,” dropped only a very modest 25% to earn a very healthy $36.6 million in its second weekend.

At the other end of the age scale, the AARP-leaning rom-com, “It’s Complicated,” held very well, dropping a mere 15.4% to earn an estimated $18.7 million for Universal, which can really use all the help it can bet. Several films lower down the list actually grossed more this week than last.

No such luck, however, for the season’s definitive disappointment, “Nine,” which dropped 22% in its second week to earn roughly $14 million. Ordinarily, that actually wouldn’t be a bad showing at all but, in this climate and considering the film’s $80 million production budget, it’s not looking too good for the musical from The Weinstein Company.

As for limited releases, we have one interesting development to report. It’s not even being tracked by Box Office Mojo, but, according to Nikki Finke, the top grossing limited release film (and I’m guessing actually the #11 movie this week) is India’s “3 Idiots.” The Bollywood collegiate musical-comedy earned an impressive $1.5 million on its second week in only 119 theaters. Considering it’s audience is comprised fairly exclusively of South-Asian Americans (about 2 million people, total) and a few musical-friendly hardcore cinephiles (I think there are fifteen of us), that’s something to sing and dance about.

* The lion of Hollywood has been a bit mangy for a long time now. Peter Bart reports that MGM is about to be sold and the whole thing, 4,000 titles and all, is worth about $1.5 billion, which would be a lot of money to you and me but to a once mighty film studio sure sounds paltray. One factor, even the older titles in the library ain’t what they used to be, either. The studio’s signature titles: “The Wizard of Oz,” “Gone With the Wind,” and “Singin’ in the Rain” are now available on Warner Brother’s DVD along with a good chunk of their best known classics.  The ghosts of Culver City’s glory days are restless tonight.

* Apparently being a movie critic these days is such an unstable, lousy position that some of the best known reviewers are jumping ship and becoming film festival programmers. Yesterday, it was Newsweek’s David Ansen. Today, it’s the L.A. Weekly/Village Voice’s Scott Foundas. Anne Thompson has the depressing news that might nevertheless be creating more opportunities for some of the better known online folks.

* The fruits of my compatriot Will Harris’s London sojourn are appearing in the form of some extremely worth-your-time interviews. First with writer/director Richard Curtis of the criticially underrated “Love, Actually” and the soon to be released “Pirate Radio.” Also roly-poly movie superstud and general all around good guy Nick Frost of “Shaun of the Dead,” etc., as well as “Pirate” newcomers Tom Sturridge and Talulah Riley gets the Harris treatment as well. Bob says collect ’em all.

* Does anyone really want to see the Dave Matthews Band in 3-D? Personally, I’d just find them three times as boring as usual, I’d guess. Anyhow, those who disagree will have their chance.

* And because the world must have it, “Little Fockers” is coming up and Harvey Keitel will be on board this time. Paul Weitz, a director I rather like who badly needs a hit after the failure of “American Dreamz” and “The Vampire’s Assistant,” is on board for this one. So, let me see, Keitel and Robert DeNiro appeared together in “Mean Streets,” and “Taxi Driver” and now, this. Times have changed.

* Since my brief here is more or less strictly movies, I was wondering how I was going to work in the news that Joss Whedon’s uneven but increasingly highly entertaining “Dollhouse” has been canceled. To my rescue came Marti Noxon, who was Whedon’s right hand and more on the later seasons of “Buffy, the Vampire Slayer.” Noxon, whose current writer-producer gig is on “Mad Men” is stepping out of the shadows of show-runner superstars like Whedon and Matthew Weiner and back into the old fang game to write her own movie, a remake of the affectionately recalled 1985 vampire horror comedy “Fright Night.” She’s done fine work on a bunch of different TV shows of different genres, so I have confidence in her. But, if the writing thing peters out for her, she’s got other talents to fall back on.