According to an early critic quoted in the latest trailer, “The Avengers” is the best superhero movie of all time.

My first thought was that saying anything is the “best of all time” is ridiculous. But then I thought about superhero movies as a genre- they have a spotty and flawed record at best. For every “Batman Begins” and “X-Men,” there’s a “Batman Forever” (also known as the Nippled Batman) or any version of the Hulk not involving Lou Ferrigno. Walking the delicate line between pleasing the masses, most of whom have never picked up a comic book in their lives, while trying not to incur the internet wrath of the fan-boys and girls is not something easily attained. As a result, the genre as a whole winds up having a split-personality: the movies are either candy-colored popcorn fare, flamboyant and silly, or high-brow noir films that end up seeming preachy and on-the-nose.

The more you think about it, the more you realize the bar isn’t all that high. And I say this as a fan.

I don’t know is “The Avengers” is the best superhero movie of all time, if only for the simple fact that I haven’t seen every superhero movie. But God help me if it isn’t the most fun, intricate and expertly executed blockbuster I’ve seen in a long, long time.

For the uninitiated: the Avengers are a selection of superheros from the Marvel canon, designed as a team, led by a spy named Nick Fury (Samuel L. Jackson, being very Samuel L. Jackson-y). This film is the climax of a series of individual superhero movies, including “Iron Man,” (Downey) “Thor” (Chris Hemsworth) and “Captain America,” (Chris Evans) in an oddly endearing parallel to comic book narrative strategies. The movie follows the previously-named heroes, along with Bruce Banner/The Hulk (Mark Ruffalo) and former assassins Hawkeye (Jeremy Renner) and Black Widow (Scarlett Johansson), as they try to rid the world of demigod and megalomaniac with daddy issues Loki (Tom Hiddleston).

Let me count the ways that this could have been a complete disaster. It threatened to simply be a showcase of Robert Downey, Jr.’s considerable talents backed up with…well a bunch of good-looking guys with talents less considerable. It was in 3-D. It’s two-and-a-half hours long. It’s about aliens with giant robot-dragons.

But under the steady hand of Joss Whedon, who wrote and directed this movie with obvious passion and care, everything works together like a well-oiled machine. No, that’s not right. Because unlike a machine, there’s also feeling, and that exclusively Whedon sense of soul. Maybe it runs like a well-oiled machine with a newly discovered sense of humanity and free will. Whedon deftly sidesteps all the pitfalls that would sink others. A major weakness lies with Thor and his nemesis, who according to canon need to speak in stodgy, renaissance fair dialogue. Solution? Tony Stark just makes fun of it every time he speaks. Captain America is kind of old-fashioned; Whedon centers a beautiful speech about how old-fashioned heroism is something everyone could use.

The movie is character-driven, yet lavishes unbelievable detail on major action scenes, as beautiful as they are exhilarating. My personal favorite were the aforementioned robot-dragons, gorgeous masterpieces of steampunk-influenced effect.

Mark Ruffalo and Jeremy Renner are the two newcomers to this party- Renner has a small but well-played role as archer Hawkeye, but Ruffalo pretty much steals the show as Banner. True to what I know of the original character, Banner is a soft-spoken nerd, confident only when he’s in a lab, and even then deferential. And in the most devastating moment in the movie, Banner changes into “the other guy,” and the last thing to leave before the monster takes over is the horrified, heartbroken look in his eyes.

There was perhaps no one better to tread that fine line between mainstream popularity and acolyte pandering than Whedon, an accomplished comic-book writer and fan-boy as well as a cinematic craftsman and master of genre storytelling. As in all his work, there is a beating heart in the middle of what could have been a soulless tent-pole movie, made for an easy buck and the extra two dollars for 3-D glasses. Does that make this the greatest superhero movie of all time? I’m not qualified to answer, but you can be sure I’ll be going to see it again. Maybe that will help me decide.

I have to believe that we are not working in a dying industry. The world will always have a need for professional journalists — edited, ethical, and responsible, etc. etc. etc.

This is an exciting field to work in, and there are actually some great movies out there made about our vocation. Here are my top 10:

10. Citizen Kane

“Citizen Kane” portrays newspaper magnate William Randolph Hearst in the yellow journalism era. This is an oldie, but it is widely considered the best movie ever made. If you haven’t seen it, get off your ass and pick it up. It’s an American treasure.

“You provide the prose. I’ll provide the war.”

9. Thank You for Smoking

OK so this isn’t a movie about journalism. It’s a movie about public relations, but I had to throw a bone to our PR friends.

“Thank You for Smoking” is a raw, sometimes dark comedy, but it is one of the best films I’ve ever seen that deals with public relations head-on. Sure “Wag the Dog” is a better movie, but “Thank You for Smoking” is an effective comedy that deeply delves into the science of selling and spinning.

8. Shattered Glass

Eeep. The true story of the rise and fall of Stephen Glass is the working journalist’s equivalent of a dude watching a real douchebag get kicked in the nuts. It’s hard to watch, but oddly satisfying.

Two reasons: First, we watch this 25-year-old kid make ridiculous sums of money — more money than most of us. Then we see that his stories were lies and fabrications. Cue the hatred.

But seriously, if you’re looking for a movie about journalism, sometimes the best stories are the true ones.

7. The Front Page

A lot of people overlook this 1974 Jack Lemmon/Walter Matthau drama. “The Front Page” chronicles the relationship between editor and reporter, reporter and source, journalist and crook, journalist and family, and journalism and public relations all in one funny/dramatic swoop. Lemmon and Matthau play off each other like … well, like Lemmon and Matthau.

“The Front Page” is as hilarious as it is tragic, as a reporter tries to balance his desire for a normal family life as a lucrative public relations job offer looms. Journalists may be the only ones that get the tragedy.

6. The Year of Living Dangerously

You know Linda Hunt as the diminutive boss on “Law and Order: Los Angeles,” but you should know her from her Oscar-winning, gender-bending performance in “The Year of Living Dangerously.”

This stacked early 80s drama also stars Mel Gibson, Sigourney Weaver, and it will make you want to be a foreign correspondent. Gibson plays an Australian reporter named Guy Hamilton, sent to Jakarta in 1965 during a time of political strife and upheaval.

5. Good Night, and Good Luck

A lot of people are going to say that I ranked “Good Night, and Good Luck” too highly on my list, but the truth is that this film contributed to my wanting to be a journalist. David Strathairn’s amazing portrayal of Edward R. Murrow as he takes on Joe McCarthy during the peak of red fear in this country is brilliant.

The film also demonstrates television’s rise to power in the home. The ensemble cast also features Patricia Clarkson, George Clooney, Jeff Daniels, Robert Downey Jr., and Frank Langella.

4. Deadline U.S.A

This was Caitlin Kelly’s top pick on her J-movie list, and I can’t blame her. “Deadline U.S.A. stars Humphrey Bogart as an editor who tells his newsroom staff that they’ll all be laid off in two weeks. Boy that rings true. In 1952, when the film was released, journalism was in its heyday, but today anyone who works in a newsroom has probably seen people lose their jobs or take a buyout.

Kelly also points out a line from the paper’s star female reporter reflecting on her career: “I’ve got $81 in the bank, two dead husbands and two or three kids I never had.”

3. All the President’s Men

You wanna see some really ballsy journalism? How about the kind of reporting that brought down a president?

“All the President’s Men” stars Robert Redford and Dustin Hoffman who portray Washington Post reporters Carl Bernstein and Bob Woodward as they uncovered the Watergate scandal that ended the presidency of Richard Nixon.

This journalism’s sex tape. “All the President’s Men” shows how awesome it is to be a journalist and how much of an impact we can have on the world. For Christ’s sake — they brought down Nixon!

2. The Paper

“The Paper” is a comedy, but I’ve shown it to journalism students before. It shows the inner-workings of a metropolitan newsroom better than most films, and even though it was made in the mid-90s, the newsrooms still look pretty much the same as they did 15 years ago, except for a few more empty seats.

The film has another ridiculous cast that includes Michael Keaton, Glenn Close, Robert Duvall, Marisa Tomei, Randy Quaid, and a small but memorable appearance by Jason Alexander (George from “Seinfeld”)

“The Paper” deals with the pressures of a New York metro editor trying to get not only a true story, but the best possible story that beats the competition. All the while, he is watching the clock for deadlines — both business and personal, as his pregnant wife and fellow journalist (Tomei) ponders her post-child life.

1. Absence of Malice

This 1981 Paul Newman/Sally Field flick is not necessarily my favorite movie, but it is a dramatic portrayal of what happens when a reporter gets too close to a source and when a publication over-pursues a story.

Newman plays Michael Gallagher, the son of a dead Mafia boss who finds himself on the front page of a Miami newspaper in a story indicating he is under investigation for the murder of a longshoreman.

Field plays the reporter behind the story. I won’t give it all away, but there is some romance, a lot of betrayal, a question of ethics, and a surprise ending.

The film begs the question: What’s the difference between accurate and truthful?

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At a gala in his honor last night, Robert Downey Jr. took a chance to tell the industry to forgive and forget Mel Gibson’s hateful and anti-Semitic rants.

At the American Cinematheque tribute, Downey urged the audience to “let (Gibson) work again.

“Unless you are without sin—and if you are, you are in the wrong f—king industry—you should forgive him and let him work again,” Downey said after Gibson presented him with an award at the Beverly Hilton Hotel, according to E Online.

Gibson holds a special place in Downey’s heart because he hired Downey even after being warned about the actor’s troubled private life.  Downey told the audience that Gibson once told him to “help the next guy.”

“It’s reasonable to assume…he didn’t imagine the next guy would be him,” said Downey.

Among the audience, were celebrities such as Jennifer Aniston, Jodie Foster, and Jack Black.

“Not having done drugs for literally five or six years is a lifetime,” says actor Robert Downey Jr. in Playboy’s November issue (on newsstands and available at www.playboydigital.com Friday, October 15). “I think of myself as someone who has no desire, use for or conscious memory of that life.  And yet I don’t shut the door on it, and I don’t pretend it didn’t happen.”

At the age of 45, Downey has already been through hell and back after a much-talked-about battle with drug addiction, but is now a model of the turnaround success story. His career re-surged with roles in three major films — “Iron Man,” “Sherlock Holmes,” and “Tropic Thunder” — and he now finds himself in the company of such bankable stars as Will Smith, Brad Pitt, Johnny Depp and Leonardo DiCaprio.

Playboy Contributing Editor Michael Fleming — who conducted Downey’s first Playboy Interview in 1997 — sat down with the actor again at his Venice, Calif. office to discuss his upcoming film Due Date with Zach Galifianakis, his biggest fears, overcoming personal challenges, and why he loves prison shows. Following are select quotes from the interview:

On working with co-star Zach Galifianakis and director Todd Phillips on the upcoming comedy Due Date: “Due Date for me was such a return to a felt sense of community with a small, like-minded group of peers. To me it was like big-budget summer stock…My confidence level lately has been so high that I’m happy to go with people who have a preexisting relationship [The Hangover] and who just experienced something together that was unimaginably successful, enjoyable, smart and a little bit different.”

On his love of prison shows: “First of all, I enjoy reenactments that aren’t done so well that I’m buying it. That creates a certain aesthetic distance. Then I like interviews with someone having some catharsis. It always starts with ‘I kind of had a feeling I shouldn’t be doing this.’ [laughs] It’s never ‘I strapped the hashish around my midsection just knowing it was all gonna pan out for me.’ And they never say on Locked Up Abroad, ‘This was the first time I ever tried this.’ They just describe the time they got busted. I guess what I’m trying to say is, I am part of a culture that is equally fascinated, disgusted and soothed by the socialization of the random suffering of others.”

On the struggles of his past: “Sometimes it’s necessary to compartmentalize the different stages of your evolution, both personally and objectively, for the people you have to love and tolerate. And one of those people, for me, is me. I have a very strong sense of that messed-up kid, that devoted theater actor, that ne’er-do-well 20-something nihilistic androgyne and that late-20s married guy with a little kid, lost, lost in narcotics—all aspects of things I don’t regret and am happy to keep a door open on. More than anything I have this sense that I’m a veteran of a war that is difficult to discuss with people who haven’t been there.”

On taking responsibility for one’s actions, including his own: “To me, here’s the only thing: You take responsibility, whether you’re outraged by the results or not, that you in some way participate in and create what you’re experiencing. It’s people who stay stuck—and I relate to this because it’s a card I’m happy to play when I’m tired or overwrought—who think, I’m a victim; I’m being victimized! You’re out of line! Can you believe this? I didn’t do anything wrong! Well, actually you did…when it’s going down, when the bust is on, there’s never a good time to have your house raided. You just think, Man, all those times I was stuck at the window in my underwear, sweating mortar shells and thinking the cops were coming, and they never came. I would think back on those other thousand times and relax. Then they came.”

On his biggest fears: “Infidelity. Losing my sense of true humility. Looking back I think, Oh my God, I could have been done. I could have been so fried and so bad off and, oh my God, such a cautionary tale. [laughs] And I still could be. By fear of infidelity I mean I have a passion for how delicate it is to maintain things that are really pure. And I don’t find myself tempted because I don’t put myself on a frequency that temptation likes to go. I keep myself in overtly pheromone-free interactions with all women, except my wife. She deserves it.”

On his belief in fate, and whether he thinks it played a role in his current success and happiness: “I don’t necessarily believe I’m meant to be anywhere, but I know there are a lot of probabilities…A lot of my peers who have led pretty healthy lives have been dealing with some serious health problems the past couple years. I put myself at risk for a bunch of years and find I’m perfectly healthy…I have known relative happiness—and by happiness I mean having a sense of peace and not just waiting for the other shoe to drop—for only five or six years.”

On the public’s tendency to rush judgment of celebrities, like Mel Gibson: “I feel for the kind of zeitgeist diagnoses that are being applied to certain of my peers lately, and I think it’s unconscionable…If I’m friends with somebody now, I don’t talk about them for public consumption. But remember, I was in jail, and I don’t want to discredit the doctor, but somebody just decided I had some disease in my brain. Sight unseen they needed to publish it and capitalize on this ‘truth.’ More power to them, misguided or not. But the real problem is this: When you’re in the hood, don’t be alarmed by gunfire. That’s as simple as I can put it. For me, the hood was northern Malibu and my own isolation and dependency therein.”

On his devotion to the newfound discipline in his life: “Discipline for me is about respect. It’s not even about self-respect; it’s about respect for life and all it offers. And not indulging. I have happily reconsidered my position on a bunch of things I didn’t want on my ‘no’ list despite all evidence that I couldn’t handle them. At the end of the day, anything I think I’m sacrificing I’m just giving up because it makes me feel better.”

On the sources of his present feelings of confidence: “My age and my recent set of experiences, which have left me feeling I’m in the zone. This is just the sweet spot of my career and my life so far, and strangely, they’ve come at the same time.”

On playing the role of a superhero: “Probably the person resisting it the longest was me. I resisted being open to thinking of myself in that framework, that I could do the superhero thing. But maybe I could look like I was six feet tall, in the right boots. I could get my arms a little bigger and not move my face so much when I talked. I could jump in a jeep with a bunch of military guys cracking jokes and then not look like a b*tch when the bomb goes off. I might even look like the kind of guy who designs those big bombs. By the way, that’s more likely me. He’s not a hero in the beginning and has no intention of becoming a hero. He’s injured by his own creations. I just love that.”

On Stan Lee, creator of Iron Man: “I feel connected to Stan Lee on some trippy level in that I was wearing nappies when he was creating this character who went through all these transitions and was for years considered a second-tier superhero. By the way, if he had been considered anything else, the movie would have already been made. And so every single thing about it was right.”

In 2005, director Christopher Nolan released “Batman Begins,” and a new film-making commandment was born: “Thou shalt not smile.” Whatever that film’s excellent points and gifts to the film canon (and believe me, there are many), it will forever be known as the picture that killed the fun in making a superhero movie. Producers, looking for their next cash cows, mined the DC and Marvel universes for their darkest, most nihilistic tales, and found actors who could deliver the best glower to be their protagonists.

Then came Jon Favreau, a man best known for following Vince Vaughn into a pit of sin in “Swingers.” He wanted to make “Iron Man.” But more than that, he wanted to make “Iron Man” what it should be: a comedy. And what do you know, it turns out American audiences also wanted to have a laugh.

“Iron Man 2″ is more of the same- a lot more. This episode has Tony Stark (Robert Downey, Jr.) fighting on several fronts: he’s battling the U.S. Government for control of his Iron Man suit, a rival businessman (Sam Rockwell) who’s trying to build his own suit and a crazed Russian physicist who’s trying to avenge his father’s ruined career. It’s a crowded docket.

There’s no great changes to film culture, no Oscar-winning performances, or fascinating forays into psychology. Stark is a manic, self-serving and self-destructive billionaire playboy. He has a giant suit that fights evil, usually by blowing shit up. It’s simple. It’s straightforward. And it’s awesome.

It’s major gift, of course, is the cast. Downey, reprising his role as the crusader, puts on all of his performances like a well-tailored suit- he always looks good, but it’s never like he’s trying to hard. He’s there, first and foremost, to have a good time. Don Cheadle makes a good replacement for Terrance Howard as Lt. Col. Rhodes, and even Scarlett Johansson, who I usually barely tolerate, is likable (probably because she’s best in films where all she has to do is look hot and try not to talk too much.) And Mickey Rourke, enjoying an actor’s second summer, is terrific as Ivan Vanko, the Russian who might just be smarter than Stark. Rourke, of course, is best when he’s just playing himself. He may not be a physicist (or Russian, for that matter), but he is a hulking, intimidating form, which belies unexpected intelligence. I simply enjoyed watching Rourke move throughout this film, striding confidently through a laboratory wearing a sleeveless shirt that exposes his many worn tattoos along with a snappy pair of spectacles.

Writer Justin Theroux and Favreau both wanted to create something driven by good styling and a sense of fun. One could read into the plot lines- the private business owner versus Big Government, the nature of war in the modern age, blah, blah, blah. Lame, and done before. But you know what is entertaining? A ten-minute long scene where Col. Rhodes and Stark, both in Iron Man suits, gratuitously destroy Stark’s fabulous home in Malibu.

Favfreau’s not a great director, but he is one who delivers on his promises, which is almost as important. He promised us a spicy, funny action flick with nerdy in-jokes, sexy women in catsuits and tons of Shit Blowing Up. He lets “Iron Man” be what’s it’s supposed to be. These days, that’s an art form in itself.

“Iron Man” was huge in 2008. “Iron Man 2″ is going to be huge in 2010.

And Robert Downey Jr. says you should bank on “Iron Man 3″ coming afterward.

“Iron Man 2,” which comes out this weekend, has a chance to unseat “Dark Knight” for the biggest opening weekend ever. After that, Marvel and its Disney owners have a busy few years with a Captain America movie and “Thor” next year and “The Avengers” in 2012. But Downey Jr. told MTV that Iron Man 3 will definitely be made at some point.

What do you think? Wanna see more “Iron Man?” Drop us come comment love.

And “Up” for Best Animated Feature. It was such a strong year for animated features. “The Fantastic Mr. Fox” showed how magical stop-motion animation can be and “The Princess and the Frog” reminded us of how fun classic Disney hand drawn animation is. But “Up” was in a different league. The film’s emotionally ravaging first seven minutes was award-worthy enough, and when you throw in a talking dog…no contest.

Alec Baldwin and Steve Martin continue to dominate. Their back and forth is fun without feeling overly polished or rehearsed. Loved how they introduced Miley Cyrus and Amanda Seyfried. “Two girls who have no idea who we are.”

And yet another worthy winner, “The Weary Kind” for best song. No brainer as far as I am concerned. Just a gorgeous song.

How bad-ass is Robert Downey Jr.? Even playing the tool, he is always cool. Is it just me or should Hollywood get him and Tina Fey in a romantic comedy, like, right now? And I really liked how they presented the best original screenplay nominees. Letting you see the actors interpret the script…really cool.

What a stacked category. Honestly there is not a weak script in the bunch. Loved them all, though I have to say I am partial to “Inglorious Basterds.” What an ultra-fun script. And, as largely predicted, it is Mark Boal with “The Hurt Locker.” The film has picked up a ton of steam as the awards season has gone on and is now looking like a freight train that wont be stopped. Nice short and sweet acceptance speech for you.

So the biggest surprise at last night’s Golden Globes was that there weren’t really any surprises. Awards were given, champagne was drunk in copious amounts and Robert Downey Jr. proved once and for all that he is a complete bad-ass (seriously, did you see his speech? If not, watch below.)

The Globes are great because they give a pretty good indication of what we can expect to see at the Oscars. Here are the storylines that got a little bit clearer after last night’s fairly tepid telecast.

The Dude vs. Danny Ocean:

Top Oscar prognosticators have been saying since November that the race for Best Actor was going to come down to a battle between Jeff Bridges and George Clooney. Bridges, a four-time nominee, has been receiving rave reviews for his turn as broken-down country singer Bad Blake in "Crazy Heart" and it definitely feels like the long-time Hollywood favorite is due for a win. And while Clooney gives the best performance of his career in "Up In the Air," having already won an Oscar for his work in "Syriana" probably hurts his chances. Bridges’ win last night and the long standing ovation he got once he reached the stage for his acceptance speech makes this definitely feel like Bridges’ year. Expect him to be the heavy favorite going into the March 7th award show.

Will Meryl "T-Bone" Streep grab her Third Oscar?

Not so fast. Sandra Bullock’s win for her turn as Leigh Anne Touhy in "The Blind Side" makes her a very strong contender. Bullock’s work is the kind of crowd-pleasing performance Oscar has rewarded before (Julia Roberts in "Erin Brockovich"). And "The Blind Side’s" big box office doesn’t hurt either. Meryl Streep is beloved and her performance as Julia Child in "Julie and Julia" has garnered her plenty of awards already, but having won two Oscars previously, the never-nominated Bullock may have a slight edge.

"What does a tiger dream of, when he takes a little tiger nap?" Maybe a Best Picture Nomination

Thanks to its surprise win for Best Musical or Comedy, "The Hangover" might just have secured itself a position as one of Oscar’s 10 contenders for Best Picture. By increasing the Best Picture nominations from five to 10, the Academy definitely made room for some surprising picks and Todd Phillips’ raunchy comedy would certainly be the first movie to involve roofies, tigers, Mike Tyson, a lost baby, a grandmother’s holocaust ring and Zack Galifianakis to be nominated for best picture. Sure, it doesn’t have a chance in hell of winning, but a nomination would be a victory in itself for such an unlikely contender.

Can anything stop "Avatar"?

It doesn’t look like it. Its detractors may still think of "Avatar" as "Dances with Smurfs," but it looks like James Cameron has another big-time award winner on his hands. Thanks to another massive box office haul over the holiday weekend, "Avatar" looks set to cruise past "Titanic’s" record-breaking $600 million domestic gross. And not only did Cameron’s sci-fi opus take home Best Picture Drama last night, but Cameron also beat out a strong favorite in ex-wife Katherine Bigelow and dark horse Jason Reitman (who did not look pleased) for Best Director. "Avatar’s" two big wins have to make it the presumptive choice for Best Picture come Oscar time and certainly hurt Bigelow’s chances at being the first female director to be honored with an Academy Award.

Can Alec Baldwin and Steve Martin outdo Ricky Gervais as co-hosts?

God I hope so. Gervais was pretty terrible (besides one killer Mel Gibson joke). Here’s hoping the dynamic duo can give the always-long Oscars a comedic punch that makes things seem to go by just a bit quicker.

Be sure to pick up Entertainment Weekly’s second annual Comic-Con preview issue this Friday which will feature the awesome cast of Iron Man 2 and exclusive photos of Scarlett Johansson as Black Widow, according to EW.com.

The film, which is set to release in May of 2010, includes new stars Scarlett Johansson as Black Widow and Mickey Rourke as Whiplash and is welcoming back Robert Downey Jr. as Tony Stark, along with Gwyneth Paltrow as Pepper Potts.

In addition to some new enemies, there will be a little more sexual tension in this film, Downey told EW. ‚ With Potts’ promotion to CEO of Stark Industries and the introduction of Natasha (Black Widow) as Stark’s sultry new assistant, the audience will be praying for a catfight.

“We’re horny,” said Downey. ‚ ”Not, like, can’t-bring-your-kids horny, but just”¦horny.”

It’s a sad day when the word “journalist” is no longer associated with Woodward and Bernstein and Edward R. Murrow, but rather Matt Drudge and Perez Hilton. Instead of viewing reporters as the defenders of the truth, they see gossip mongers and slime who will do anything for a story. Paramount’s new release, “The Soloist” tells the real-life story of Los Angeles Times columnist Steve Lopez offers the one element journalists need to regain their good name: redemption.

“The Soloist” which is based of Lopez’s novel of the same name, is about a series of columns Lopez wrote in 2005 about a homeless man named Nathaniel Anthony Ayers. Lopez, played in the film by Robert Downey Jr., meets Ayers under a statue of Beethoven in Los Angeles; Ayers is playing a violin with only two strings. As Lopez soon finds out, Ayers was a musical prodigy who attended prestigious New York music academy Julliard before becoming schizophrenic.

Ayers, played by Jamie Foxx at his finest, is at first just a column for Lopez, but then becomes something more: a friend. Through his time spent with Ayers, Lopez continued on to launch a crusade against homelessness in L.A.’s Skid Row.

“The Soloist” is a wonderfully cohesive piece: the acting, cinematography and plot are all there. It’s an unbelievable real-life story brought to the big screen in an unbelievable, real-life way. Robert Downey Jr. is continuing his comeback following “Iron Man” and “Tropic Thunder” in 2008 and Jamie Foxx gave a beautiful performance that is sure to earn him another Oscar nod. The repeated, wide shots of L.A. show that, more than this is a story about Lopez or Ayers, it is a story about the city of Los Angeles.

The movie adaptation could have followed Lopez’s lead and picked up the fight against homelessness, but instead chose to chase after a medley of other causes instead; letting visuals of drug-riddled Skid Row during Lopez’s night spent on the streets with Ayers speak for themselves.

In a curious scene, a television is shown airing news footage of Hurricane Katrina, then the camera zooms back to reveal a woman ignoring the television to read Lopez’s column about Ayers. She proceeds to send her cello to Lopez as a gift for Ayers, but the scene felt like a criticism of the American public for caring more about fluff columns versus actual crises.

The sentiment was made clearer earlier in the film when a fellow L.A. Times reporter shared his aggravation that a deep investigative Page One story he wrote received almost no response, while a column Lopez wrote about a bicycle crash he was in led to worried fan mail about his safety. Lopez’s ex-wife Mary (Catherine Keener) echoed similar sentiments to Lopez when she said a story about him giving blood as a follow-up to his bicycle accident was sure to sell papers.

The criticism seemed to undermine the point of the film. Yes, it is entirely true that it is important for the American public to not ignore the larger issues at hand (i.e. the current economic state, the wars the United States is engaged in, the still struggling survivors of Hurricane Katrina) for the sake of a human interest piece. But the crux of “The Soloist” is the human interest piece and the good that it does for Ayers and the city of L.A., so the filmmaker’s criticism feels hypocritical.

Robert Downey Jr.’s loveable cynicism won him hearts and a comeback in 2008′s “Iron Man” but it works against him here. The Steve Lopez of the film is different than the Steve Lopez in real life. In the film he is a broken man: a divorcee who doesn’t talk to his son. His home is less of a home and more a pile of unpacked boxes. He is heartless and careless; telling his ex-wife he never loved anything the way Ayers loves music. Whoever made the decision to turn the happy, settled-in-his-life husband and father character of real-life Lopez into this unhappy creature did the film a disservice. Downey’s cynicism makes the implied transformation of Lopez through his experiences with Ayers seem too insincere, and the transition is far too insignificant a part of the movie.

One of the most beautiful shots in the film is when Ayers and Lopez are granted access to an orchestra rehearsal at Disney Hall. The orchestra starts playing Beethoven (Ayers’ favorite) and the camera zooms in close to Foxx’s face. His eyes close, and a myriad of colors dance across the screen for the rest of Beethoven’s symphony. The audience is seeing through the eyes of Ayers the way he views music. It is one of the most intimate moments experienced in cinema with a camera because the audience is at once one with the character.

The story of Lopez and Ayers’ relationship is truly beautiful, whether it be told through film, book or newspaper. But Ayers’ line in regards to his music, “Do you think I can be good again?”, resonates on so many levels deeper than the obvious. Do you think journalists can be good again? Do you think America can be good again? The film ends with hope and a simple answer: Yes.

Ben Stiller might not act in the greatest movies, but he sure knows how to write and direct them. With ‘Tropic Thunder’, Stiller creates an explosive new comedy that’s sure to blow anyone’s socks off.

‘Thunder’ starts off right from what its trailer sets up: director Damien Cockburn (Steve Coogan) wants to create the greatest war movie of all time, but his lead actors in his film-based-on-a-book-based-on-a-true-story (but is it?) don’t have the emotional scope needed to understand the complexities behind the Vietnam War.

After some difficult struggles with his prima donna actors: Kirk Lazarus (Robert Downey Jr.), Jeff Portnoy (Jack Black) and Tugg Speedman (Ben Stiller), Cockburn is convinced by the author of the book Four Leaf Tayback (Nick Nolte) to drop the actors in the middle of Vietnam and shoot the movie ‘guerilla-style’. Both the film and the book in the movie are named ‘Tropic Thunder’, which is where the title of the actual film comes from.

It takes about 20 minutes for Lazarus, Portnoy, Speedman, Alpa Chino (Brandon T. Jackson) and Kevin Sandusky (Jay Baruchel) to be stranded in the middle of nowhere in Vietnam, thinking that they are filming a movie that had suddenly become very real. The movie just becomes funnier as it goes along, with the actors never being quite sure whether or not they are actually in a movie or not.

Also, as a slightly-spoilerish warning, the ad you will see for “Booty Sweat” is not the cinema going insane, but rather marks the completely inventive and perfectly hysterical introduction to “Tropic Thunder”. You have been warned.

While not as outlandish as ‘Zoolander’ was, ‘Tropic Thunder’ is set outside our reality in a way that everyone can understand. Ben Stiller has said in previous interviews that he wrote ‘Thunder’ as a parody of the movie business and, even if no one in the audience understood it, it would still be hysterical to him. Well Ben, we get it, and it’s still pretty funny.

Unexpected were the many cameos, both big and small, made by some of Hollywood’s biggest actors. Matthew McConaughey has a surprisingly big role as Speedman’s agent, and Tom Cruise definitely deserves all the buzz he’s been getting as the big-time film executive behind ‘Tropic Thunder’. Danny McBride was hysterical as the pyromaniac effects guy Cody. Also keep an eye out for Bill Hader, Tyra Banks, Maria Menunos, Jason Bateman, Lance Bass, Alicia Silverstone, Jennifer Love Hewitt, Jon Voight, Christine Taylor and an I-can’t-believe-he-did-that Tobey Maguire (don’t be late or you’ll miss that one). Oh yeah, Stiller got them all.

Sure it may not be the most outright intelligent film to make a mockery of Hollywood, but there is plenty of insider humor that can be relished by all. The scene where Lazarus explains to Speedman why he didn’t get an Oscar for his role as the mentally retarded boy Jack in his film ‘Simple Jack’ because he went “full retard” was one of the funniest scenes in the film.

Downey was hysterical as Lazarus who becomes so immersed in his role that he changed his skin color in order to become more in character. Black was very two dimensional and not funny as Portnoy, the heroine-addicted fat guy. And Stiller was, well, Stiller.

The most break-out role in the film was hands-down Jay Baruchel, who many will recognize from “Knocked Up” and “Million Dollar Baby” but who has not landed a leading role since Judd Aptow’s lesser known but just as short-lived TV series, “Undeclared”. Baruchel’s character Kevin Sandusky is very similar to Baruchel in real life: he is an actor who has gotten his first big role and is playing everything by the book, like going to the boot camp training that had been assigned and learning how to read a map, while his fellow actors just brushed everything off. As the only one with a lick of common sense, Baruchel has some definite potential and it seems like we can expect big things from him in the future.

‘Tropic Thunder’ so far has been the best comedy of 2008, and it very much deserves that title. While the movie will keep audiences laughing well into the credits, it brings about two important questions: Why hasn’t Ben Stiller written and directed more movies, and will this be Tom Cruise’s big comeback (in more than one way)?

The not-so-viral stunt that made going to see “Tropic Thunder” a must. This clip is property of MTV Networks, no copyright infringement intended.

Oh yeah, Carl makes a cameo too. See if you can spot him!