"Wake Me Up" video shows young couple torn apart by the conflict in Iraq

Green Day are making their most powerful anti-war statement yet with the riveting video for American Idiot's fourth single, "Wake Me Up When September Ends." Starring Evan Rachel Wood of Thirteen and Jamie Bell of Billy Elliot, the seven-minute clip chronicles a young man's decision to leave his girlfriend and join the Army -- which deploys him to Iraq, where he watches terrified and helpless as his fellow soldiers are wounded in battle.

"I didn't do it to be political," says director Samuel Bayer. "I did it to be emotional. I find it extremely tragic that eighteen-year-old kids with their whole lives ahead of them are joining the military and seeing horrors that, even if they survive this, they may never get over."

MTV premiered the video this month, and it's been airing since in a five-minute edited version (MTV2 plays the uncut original). It's the fourth MTV hit off American Idiot, which came out last September and has sold 3.9 million copies to date, according to Nielsen SoundScan. "It's just a really well-structured, thought-out clip," says Peter Baron, vice president of label relations at MTV.

"There is a message in the video, but I don't think it's really an overt message -- it's about these kids and their relationship. I think that's why it works with our audience. It's just a story that's tugging the heart."

Although singer Billie Joe Armstrong wrote "Wake Me Up" for his father, who died of cancer in 1982, the band had no problem letting Bayer turn the ballad into an anti-war statement. "It's my interpretation," says Bayer, who also directed Nirvana's "Smells Like Teen Spirit" video. "I sent the idea to them, and they loved it. I'm not taking a political stance about whether the war in Iraq is right or wrong, but I'm definitely saying war is a terrible thing."

Crowe Finalizes 'Elizabethtown' Soundtrack

The full track list has been confirmed for the soundtrack to "Elizabethtown," Cameron Crowe's highly anticipated new film. Due Sept. 13 via RCA, the project features exclusive tracks from Tom Petty, Fleetwood Mac guitarist Lindsey Buckingham, and, as previously reported, My Morning Jacket.

Previously released cuts are turned in by Wheat, Ryan Adams, Elton John ("My Father's Gun," which is also used in an extended trailer on the Elizabethtown Web site) and the Hollies, among others.

Another track, "Same in Any Language," was written for the film by Crowe and his wife, Nancy Wilson, who also supplied original music. It is performed here by Atlanta band I Nine, which recently signed to J Records.

Members of My Morning Jacket also appear in "Elizabethtown" as the band Ruckus, which performs the Lynyrd Syknyrd favorite "Freebird" with disastrous results during one scene.

"Elizabethtown" stars Orlando Bloom as a down-on-his-luck shoe designer who turns over a new page when he returns to his Kentucky hometown for his father's funeral. It will open Oct. 14 in U.S. theaters.

Here is the "Elizabethtown" track list:

"60B (etown theme)," Nancy Wilson
"It'll All Work Out," Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers
"My Father's Gun," Elton John
"io (This Time Around)," Helen Stellar
"Come Pick Me Up," Ryan Adams
"Where To Begin," My Morning Jacket
"Long Ride Home," Patti Griffin
"Sugar Blue," Jeff Finlin
"Don't I Hold You," Wheat
"Shut Us Down," Lindsey Buckingham
"Let It Out (Let It All Hang Out)," the Hombres
"Hard Times," eastmountainsouth
"Jesus Was a Crossmaker," the Hollies
"Square One," Tom Petty
"Same in Any Language," I Nine

The MTV Video Music Awards could be minus a certain Hollaback Girl.

Despite six nominations, Gwen Stefani is going to skip this year's awards because, according to the New York Daily News, she is miffed about not getting a performance slot.

Stefani's "Hollaback Girl" is up for Moon Men for Video of the Year, Best Female Video, Best Pop Video and Best Choreography; her clip for "What You Waiting For?" is in contention for Best Art Direction and Best Editing. Her half-dozen nods tie her with Missy Elliott and are second only to Green Day's eight nominations.

Still, Stefani was not among those listed on MTV's latest rundown of performers, a slate that includes Green Day, Coldplay, the Killers, Shakira, Kanye West, Ludacris, Mariah Carey, 50 Cent and Kelly Clarkson; but the Daily News says Stefani and rocker hubby Gavin Rossdale won't be jetting to Miami for the Aug. 28 shindig.

Reps for Stefani's label and management issued no comments on the report Friday. An MTV spokesperson is quoted in the Daily News saying, "We love Gwen, and we hope she will be able to join us, as we know her fans would love to see her on this big night--especially since she's heavily nominated."

Us Weekly music editor Shirley Halperin has a theory on the behind-the-scenes drama.

Halperin reports her sources say Stefani and her band would "love to play the show, but as of now, [they] aren't planning on even being there because they know MTV won't let them play after they performed at the Teen Choice Awards."

Those awards were televised Tuesday on Fox.

"I think that for the last few years there has been some competition between the MTV Awards and the Teen Choice awards," Halperin says. "The MTV Awards obviously has more cachet, and MTV expects its performers not to play a competing broadcast event around the time of the VMAs."

Stefani, whose solo release, Love, Angel, Music, Baby, has gone double platinum, apparently signed on to the Teen Choice Awards months ago and wanted to honor that commitment. She has won five trophies with her band, No Doubt, and shared another with Eve in 2001 for "Let Me Blow Ya Mind."

Even if Stefani does not show, MTV expects around 10,000 fans for the awards, which will take place at Miami's American Airlines Arena with the recently renamed Diddy as host

MPAA Axes "Saw II" Poster

Talk about giving--and taking--the finger.

The Motion Picture Association of America has given a thumbs down to the poster for the upcoming slice-and-dice horror sequel Saw II featuring severed fingers as the Roman numerals.

The film's distributor had already sent out an advance poster, or one-sheet, with the graphic image to online media.

But now the MPAA, a trade group whose decency guidelines not only result in movie ratings but also apply to promotion materials, says the posters and other promotional material with the severed fingers are "unacceptable."

In a statement, the organization said it had not cleared the image and had asked the distributor to recall the artwork.

Marilyn Gordon, director of the MPAA's Advertising Administration, said if her department had been able to review the one-sheets before they were disseminated, it would have deemed the "materials for the film Saw II [that] display dismembered fingers is unacceptable."

If that wasn't bad enough, the MPAA says that some Websites were selling the unauthorized poster and others had begun running an unapproved theatrical trailer. The trailer was accompanied by an R rating, but it had not been vetted by the MPAA's Classification and Rating Administration, or CARA.

"It is essential that film distributors comply with the rules of the Advertising Administration so that parents retain the confidence they have in the ratings certified by CARA and that advertising and publicity material associated with rated films is appropriate for all audiences," says Gordon.

While reps for Lions Gate declined to comment, Gordon says the company has begun to comply with the MPAA's request and contacted Websites asking them to take down the images in question.

"We thank Lions Gate for its actions taken to correct the issues for the advertising for Saw II," Gordon added.

However, as of Tuesday morning, the official movie site, www.saw2.com, still displayed the severed fingers, along with the tag line: "Oh yes, there will be blood." And EBay had more than a dozen auctions featuring Saw II posters and even T-shirts with the offending digits.

The sequel was green-lighted just days after Saw opened last year and became a surprise hit. Directed by James Wan and starring Cary Elwes, Danny Glover, Leigh Wannell and Monica Potter, the indie thriller about a sadistic serial killer known as Jigsaw cost just $1.2 million and raked in more $100 million worldwide.

Saw II picks up with a new detective trying to track down Jigsaw. The sequel stars former New Kid on the Block Donnie Wahlberg, along with Tobin Bell and Shawnee Smith. It hits theaters on Oct. 28, just in time for Halloween.

Meanwhile, in related news, Elwes sued the producers of Saw last week, accusing them of screwing him out of a slice of the movie's back-end profits. The British actor seeks a percentage of grosses "equal to the highest-paid actor" on the production, as well as $500,000 in damages.

Home Video Isn't Just for the Home Anymore

"Home video" or "home entertainment" are quickly being obsolete terms given the proliferation of devices that now allow consumers to watch video on-the-go.

According to Home Media Retailing magazine (whose title may also be heading for obsolescence just months after it was adopted to replace Video Store magazine) portable entertainment has become a major growth area.

The magazine quoted Craig Kornblau, president of Universal Studios Home Entertainment as saying, "Whether it's a business traveler with a laptop or kids in the back of the family minivan, people are creating their own personal entertainment environments wherever they go."

The magazine also cited figures from Autobytel's Automotive Information Center indicating that 22 car models now offer DVD players as standard features and another 20 percent offer them as options.

Sales of portable DVD players, it noted, rose 50 percent in the 12-month period ended June 30 from the same period a year ago.

Jessica Alba To Star In "I Dream Of Jeannie"

Jessica Alba has been cast in the upcoming big screen production of "I Dream of Jeannie." Ananova.com is reporting the 24-year-old former star of TV’s "Dark Angel," will be joined by Saturday Night Live’s Jimmy Fallon, as the new Jeannie and Major Nelson, originally played by Barbara Eden and Larry Hagman during the 1960’s. Other actresses considered for the part of the magical blonde bombshell, were Lindsay Lohan, Kate Hudson and Jessica Simpson, however producers ultimately chose Alba for the role.

Jodie Foster eyes 'Brave' new role

Jodie Foster is in talks for the lead role in the urban thriller "The Brave One," Variety reports.

The movie centres on a woman who struggles to recover from a brutal attack and sets out for revenge and justice.

The role would see Foster in familiar territory -- she played rape victim Sarah Tobias in 1988's "The Accused," for which she won the Best Actress Oscar in 1999.

"The Brave One" is tentatively scheduled to begin shooting this winter.

Foster will next be seen in the airline thriller "Flightplan," and is currently shooting the new Spike Lee film "The Inside Man" with Denzel Washington and Clive Owen.

Summer shows fail to excite viewers

The chill hasn't been for lack of trying. Through June and July, broadcast and cable networks generated a blizzard of premieres. Yet combined, they've created only one true blockbuster: ABC's Dancing with the Stars.

Granted, getting even one hit the size of Dancing is no small accomplishment. But while Dancing was huge while it lasted, it lasted only six weeks, and there's been precious little to sustain viewers' interest since it exited in July. What's missing are longer-running, midlevel hits like Amazing Race and Simple Life, which were top 10 performers last August.

Instead, this year we've been treated to a dismal array of reality shows that either start well and then fade, such as Fox's So You Think You Can Dance, or start badly and vanish, such as Fox's Princes of Malibu and NBC's The Law Firm. And, of course, there's ABC's Welcome to the Neighborhood, which didn't start at all. Who can blame viewers for sitting the summer out? (Related story: Summer of TV's disconnect)

Nor has reality provided the only disappointments. Fox failed with The Inside, a dark drama that went dark after a handful of episodes. ABC flopped with Empire, a huge project that was perceived as a desperate summer dump. And to make matters worse, the network bungled the repeat run of Lost, chasing viewers away by skipping episodes.

In other summers, you could have turned to HBO for relief. But this year, the network crashed with The Comeback. And it lessened whatever momentum it might have gotten out of the final season of Six Feet Under by starting the so-over Under on Monday before moving it back to Sunday.

Things on TV are never all bright or all bleak. TNT's The Closer may not be a blockbuster, but its 6 million viewers have put it on top of the cable ratings. And you have to give FX credit for Over There, a wonderful series that probably was ill-timed.

So what went wrong? For starters, too many networks gave us too much of the same thing, as everyone from ABC to VH1 clogged the airwaves with variations on The Apprentice and The Osbournes. On some nights, it seemed as if every camera that wasn't recording the faux life of some C-list celebrity was helping some fame-seeking contestant compete for a job. Next summer, leave the want ads to newspapers.

To be fair, we all may have been a little bit spoiled by success. In June, we had just come away from a wonderful season, climaxed by the much-discussed finales of 24, Lost, Desperate Housewives and American Idol. Many viewers apparently needed a rest, and those who didn't probably had unfair expectations of what summer could provide.

So we'll make the networks a deal. You don't have to be hot next summer. Just try not to freeze us out.

The Couch Potato Report - August 22nd, 2005

This week The Couch Potato Report features a sequel that isn't very good, a TV show that is, and an extended version of a film that is even better!

Up first is THE RING TWO. The film isn't as good as the original as an unmarked videotape continues its cycle of violence. Naomi Watts is back in the lead role, but the film offers nothing that is worth seeing, Watch the original, skip the sequel.

The sequel to ALF - SEASON ONE is ALF - SEASON TWO! The show remains one of my favourites from the 1980s and this four disc set includes all 25 episodes from the TV series about an Alien Life Form living on earth.

It still makes me laugh!!

I never laughed at Russell Crowe in GLADIATOR, but I did enjoy it!

Now the GLADIATOR - EXTENDED EDITION DVD offers us an all-new, widescreen extended version of the film, including 17 minutes of additional footage, and a three hour and twenty minute documentary that includes some never-before-seen footage.

The film is awesome, and this version is great. It doesn't make the film better, but you have more of it to enjoy.

And enjoy it you will!

The GLADIATOR - EXTENDED EDITION, ALF - SEASON TWO, and THE RING TWO are all available right now.

COMING UP IN THE NEXT COUCH POTATO REPORT

One of my all-time favourite films finally debuts on DVD! So, expect me to gush about QUICK CHANGE.

The classic film THE BLUES BROTHERS is celebrating its 25th Anniversary with a new edition. I suspect I will gush about that as well.

I know I will gush about the HOLY SCHNIKE EDITION of TOMMY BOY. I will also explain the phrase "Holy Schnike."

I'm Dan Reynish and I will have more on those, and some other releases in seven days.

For now, that's this week's COUCH POTATO REPORT.

Enjoy the movies and I'll see you back here next week on The Couch!

Influential synth pioneer Robert Moog dead at 71

Robert A. Moog, the synthesizer pioneer who invented the Moog, has died at the age of 71.

Moog had been diagnosed with brain cancer in April. He received radiation treatment and chemotherapy, but died Sunday at his home in Asheville, N.C.

Moog (which rhymes with vogue) created and marketed the first commercial modular synthesizer in 1964, while studying engineering physics at Cornell University.

The instrument allowed musicians to generate a range of sounds - both naturalistic and otherworldly. It was small, light and versatile, and was quickly embraced by musicians.

The first record to feature a Moog was Cosmic Sounds by the Zodiac. The instrument was quickly picked up by other musicians, such as the Beatles, looking for ways to fuse their psychedelic drug experiences with their music. The Beatles used a Moog on their 1969 album Abbey Road, and a Moog was the source of the eerie sound on the soundtrack to the 1971 movie A Clockwork Orange.

Keyboardist Walter (later Wendy) Carlos, a friend of Bob Moog, demonstrated the range of the synthesizer by using it as his only instrument on the 1968 album Switched-On Bach - one of the best-selling classical music recordings of all time.

"Suddenly, there was a whole group of people in the world looking for a new sound in music, and it picked up very quickly," composer Herb Deutsch said Monday. He is the Hofstra University music professor emeritus who helped develop the Moog prototype back in the 1960s.

"The Moog came at the right time," he said.

Popularity of the Moog surged in the 1970s, being used in extended keyboard solos in songs by groups like Manfred Mann, Yes and Pink Floyd.

"The sound defined progressive music as we know it," said Keith Emerson, keyboardist for the rock band Emerson, Lake and Palmer.

It also heavily influenced the development of 1970s funk, hip-hop, disco, and early techno.

In the 1980s, the Moog was used less, as digital synthesizers took over, but later the instrument experienced a bit of a revival. In 2004, a New York concert promoter staged the first Moogfest, celebrating the 50th anniversary of the Moog, and featuring members of Yes and Parliament/Funkadelic.

In 1973, Robert Moog, who had initially set up shop in suburban Buffalo, N.Y., sold his company. Five years later, he moved to a remote plot outside Asheville N.C. - a scenic Appalachian Mountain city and centre for new-age pursuits that Rolling Stone magazine once dubbed "America's new freak capital."

Despite traveling in circles that included jet-setting rockers, he always considered himself a technician.

"I'm an engineer. I see myself as a toolmaker and the musicians are my customers," he said in 2000. "They use the tools."

Robert Moog is survived by his wife Ileana and five children.

Some influential or memorable albums featuring the Moog:

Cosmic Sounds, the Zodiac
Pisces, Aquarius, Capricorn, & Jones, the Monkees
Switched-On Bach, Walter Carlos
The Well-Tempered Synthesizer, Walter Carlos
Moog Power, Hugo Montenegro
Abbey Road, the Beatles
The In Sound from Way Out, Perrey and Kingsley
Christmas Becomes Electric, the Moog Machine
Popcorn, Hot Butter
A Clockwork Orange (soundtrack), Walter Carlos
Star Wars (soundtrack), Patrick Gleeson
Emerson, Lake & Palmer, Emerson, Lake & Palmer
Ricochet, Tangerine Dream
Innervisions, Stevie Wonder
X, Klaus Schulze
Funkentelechy vs. The Placebo Syndrome, Parliament
Who's Next, the Who
Pet Sounds, Beach Boys
Beggar's Banquet, Rolling Stones
Moving Pictures, Rush