With this weekend's release of Piranha 3-D, another film joins the ranks of gimmick movie-making that some say is created simply to raise the price of theatre tickets. From Step Up to The Last Airbender, the future of filmmaking has been less than bright.
That could change in the coming year, however, as filmmakers of a more artistic bent bring us their 3-D efforts. At next month's Toronto International Film Festival, German magus Werner Herzog will unveil a new documentary shot using a stereoscopic process. And the revered Martin Scorsese has begun production on his first 3-D film, Hugo Cabret, which is pegged for a 2011 release.
But filmgoers may still have to wait for a movie that will truly justify the higher ticket price and donning those silly polarized shades.
A Canadian doctors' group wants the government to stop subsidizing movie productions that depict smoking in films aimed at children and teens.
Over the past five years, provinces and the federal government granted a quarter of a billion dollars to fund Hollywood productions intended for young audiences that featured smoking, according to a study released Thursday by Physicians for a Smoke-Free Canada.
"Studies worldwide show smoking in movies is one of the most powerful recruiters of young people into lifelong tobacco addiction," said Neil Collishaw, the group's research director.
Every dollar in film subsidies may in the end cost Canada $1.70 in societal tobacco losses, the group said. Read more.
Should movies and television shows intended for young audiences not depict smoking? Take our poll.
(This poll is not scientific. It is based on readers' responses.)
The federal government has pledged $33 million for flood relief efforts in Pakistan. (Mohammad Sajjad/Associated Press)
By CBC News
Foreign Affairs Minister Lawrence Cannon says Canada will continue to help Pakistan recover from massive flooding but that there are no immediate plans to increase the amount of money that has already been pledged.
But Cannon, who was in New York on Thursday for a special meeting of the United Nations General Assembly, said, "We are not closing any options to further assist the people of Pakistan in their hour of need."
Canada has pledged $33 million for flood relief efforts in Pakistan. Cannon said Canada will continue to work with the government of Pakistan and various agencies to ensure humanitarian assistance reaches people as quickly as possible.
The UN has called for roughly $460 million to help meet immediate needs in Pakistan, but response has been slow. Ahead of Thursday's meeting, the UN said it had raised roughly half the amount needed to provide people with emergency shelter, clean water, food and medicine. Read more. Should the Canadian government pledge more money for Pakistan's relief effort? Why or why not?
(This is not a scientific poll. It is based on readers' responses.)
Actress Cameron Diaz poses for photographers at the British premiere of the film 'Knight and Day'. (Alastair Grant/Associated Press)
Putting the name of Hollywood star Cameron Diaz into a search engine can be downright dangerous according to security company McAfee.
According to the company's fourth annual list of risky searches, Diaz delivers a 10 per cent chance of landing on a site that will load threats such as viruses, adware, spam or other malware onto your computer.
Cybercriminals often use the names of celebrities to lure people to sites that are used to deliver malicious software to the unsuspecting searcher's computer.
On Aug. 20, the Canadian National Exhibition kicks off its annual event in Toronto. In Vancouver, Aug. 21 will mark the Pacific National Exhibition's 100th year. Summer's unofficial last hurrah, these fairs and dozens of others across the country often mark the end of the season and usher in the beginning of fall.
The grounds play host to everything from midway rides and parades to international shopping centres and concerts. And then there's the food. Tired of the conventional beaver tails and mini donuts, this year's CNE goers can try unhealthy snacks like chocolate-covered bacon and deep-fried butter.
Are you planning to attend a fall fair in your community? What's your favourite carnival snack?
From the rides to the snacks, we want your photos and video of local fall fairs. Upload them here or email: yournews@cbc.ca.
Canada's salary freeze for many non-union workers last year appears to have thawed as employers say they plan to award base pay increases averaging 2.9 per cent in 2011.
A study by human resource consultancy Mercer, released Thursday, found that after modest planned pay hikes in 2010, more are expected in 2011.
The survey covered 600 of Canada's largest organizations, employing 845,340 non-unionized people across the country. Read more.
Are you seeing pay increases at your workplace? Let us know.
(This poll is not scientific. It is based on readers' responses.)
A customer at the bar in Vancouver's Opus Hotel said she was shocked to discover men could watch her on video monitors placed over the urinals in the hotel's men's washroom.
Elisabeth Everett told CBC News Wednesday that she was in a group at a table in the bar celebrating her sister's birthday, but became alarmed when another patron told her they were being recorded and the video was broadcast in the men's washroom above the urinals.
There are no signs in the bar warning patrons they're on camera, but the bar menu does mention that the restrooms, including the women's, feature "live video feeds to keep an eye on the action."
Opus's website also invites patrons to "indulge your inner voyeurism" while using the facilities.
The bar's general manager said Everett's complaint was the first the hotel has received about the in-house feeds, which he said are not recorded.
If there are more complaints, the hotel might consider changing the video system, he said. Read more.
Is this an invasion of privacy? Is there is a lack of privacy these days? Do you think people are too relaxed about their privacy?
(This poll is not scientific. It is based on readers' responses.)
Consumers need to be protected from home genetic tests that are sold online and make unrealistic claims, doctors say.
Direct-to-consumer genetic tests are marketed and sold to people who want to access their genomic data, in some cases without the involvement of a doctor or insurance company. Medical professionals "must ensure that rapidly evolving and multiplying genomic technologies are responsibly harnessed and that their promise is not oversold to the public," Dr. James Evans of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill School of Medicine and co-authors write in a commentary in Wednesday's New England Journal of Medicine.
In May, Walgreen Co., the largest drugstore chain in the U.S., said it will hold off selling what was to be the first over-the-counter genetic test after the FDA said the kit's effectiveness hasn't been proven.
The kit uses a saliva swab to look for signs of inheritable diseases like Alzheimer's.
The 2010 FIFA World Cup, the global financial crisis and the rise of social networking have all made their mark on the latest edition of the Oxford English Dictionary.
The words vuvuzela (a horn instrument made famous at this year's soccer tournament in South Africa) and toxic debt (a debt with a high risk of default) are among 2,000 new entries in the dictionary's third edition, which was released Thursday.
Other additions include staycation (a vacation spent at one's home instead of travelling abroad), microblogging (the posting of very short blog entries), and defriend (to remove someone from a contact list on a social networking website like Facebook).
The dictionary was first published in 1998.
Time magazine has posted a fuller list of the new phrases here. What do you think of the latest entries? Can you think of a word that should be included? Let us know.
Canadians are behind the rest of the world in using their mobile phones for banking and making purchases, according to a new report from KPMG.
Only about 19 per cent of Canadians surveyed said they felt comfortable using their mobile phone for financial transactions, compared to a global average of 34 per cent, suggests the professional services firm's Consumer & Convergence IV report released Wednesday.
About eight per cent of Canadian respondents said they have made purchases on a retailer's website using their phone, double over last year, KPMG said, but still well behind the world average of 28 per cent.
With this weekend's release of Piranha 3-D, another film joins the ranks of gimmick movie-making that some say is created simply to raise the price of theatre tickets. From Step Up to The Last Airbender, the future of filmmaking has... Continue reading this post
By CBC NewsA Canadian doctors' group wants the government to stop subsidizing movie productions that depict smoking in films aimed at children and teens.Over the past five years, provinces and the federal government granted a quarter of a billion dollars... Continue reading this post
The federal government has pledged $33 million for flood relief efforts in Pakistan. (Mohammad Sajjad/Associated Press)By CBC NewsForeign Affairs Minister Lawrence Cannon says Canada will continue to help Pakistan recover from massive flooding but that there are no immediate plans... Continue reading this post
The federal government has pledged $33 million for flood relief efforts in Pakistan. (Mohammad Sajjad/Associated Press)
All News blogs
Most Commented
Most Recommended