The Spokesman-Review from Spokane, Washington • 35

Spokane, Wash. Coeur d'Alene, Idaho Tuesday, December 7, 2004 Page D7 ENTERTAINMENT Moviegoers put high value on Treasure ILas Dei YGilligcm's Island theme 4 song an exception to general demise of tunes matched to programs The movie's box-office reign will end next weekend with the debut of the star-studded heist sequel Ocean's Twelve," whose cast includes George Clooney, Brad Pitt, Matt Damon, Catherine Zeta-Jones and Roberts. Distributor Sony is rolling I Closer out slowly to build buzz through Hollywoods upcoming awards season. Closer" placed third behind Finding Neverland and The Aviator on the National Board of Reviews list of best 2004 films, which was released last and the group honored the movies I cast for best ensemble It is a very adult film, and it does seem that a slower rollout is the appropriate thing to do with it, said Rory Bruer, Sony head of distribution. But according to audience polling firm CinemaScore, the film averaged only a plus with moviegoers who saw it raising questions about both its box office and awards prospects.

Oscar loves uplifting stories, says Tom ONeil of the awards handicapping site GoldDerby.com. This movie has outstanding performances, but its so dark that a best-picture nomination could be a long shot. Sony distribution chief Rory Bruer says the audience grade is only part, of the picture. This is a daring and provocative-movie, and (the grade) is indicative that its evoking different reactions in people, Bruer said, People feel very strongly about it. Closer leads a pack of Oscar-contending movies to arrive in December.

The Aviator, Spanglish, Hotel Rwanda and Million Dollar Baby all hit theaters this month in the hopes of building Academy Awards momentum. (Tuesdays at 10:10 p.m. on TBS), the classic Gllllgan's Island Thanks to the new reality show The Real Gllllgans Island' TV theme song Is again being heard In prime time. l-By Stephen Klehl The Baltimore Sun l-i bout a decade ago, after Ted Harbert had been accused (wrongly, he says) of killing the television theme song, he put together a tape he called Teds All-Time Favorite Theme Songs. He still has a few copies left, with the full-length tracks of such classic themes as Taxi, The Mary Tyler Moore Show and Mission: impossible.

Harbert hasnt updated the cassette in the past 10 years. He hasnt had to. Theme songs are not a top priority for people in television, says Harbert, the former president of -NBC Studios and chairman of ABC Entertainment. It was during his tenure at ABC phat he issued his infamous no more gjheme songs memo. But Harbert Ssays he only intended to get rid of bad theme songs.

Of course, not all shows have given up on themes. On Tuesday nights, in fact, one of the classic (or most nno3ing) theme songs in TV history is again being heard thanks to The fjleal Gilligans Island on TBS. The song -which served to jhntroduce the cast (With Gilligan, 2the skipper too, the millionaire and 3is wife and outline the premise of Ihe original series back in the mid-1960s has been updated for the new reality show by Grammy-nominated recording artists Bowling for Soup. But despite such attempts at revival, in general, the theme song is dying. Sitcoms, in particular, have ditched theme songs in favor of a few bars of music that play while the title flashes on the screen.

The magic is gone, and the shows Mre diminished. Network executives point to several causes of death: There are commercials per half-hour of TV, leaving less time for programs; the first thing to go is often the theme song. Its also costly to hire a good composer to write a song and pay the residuals due with each airing. Viewers have shorter attention pans and wont sit through theme such tunes can seem unsophisticated in this era of savvy But the loss is significant. Anyone who has clapped along to the or Sat through school music class rendition'' The Greatest American Hero -ong can feel it.

Good TV shows are made better iy good theme songs and remembered more fondly for them. Think of Cheers, with its Where Everybody Knows Your Name, Or The Golden Girls and Thank Jfou for Being a Friend. Or the jazzy themes of Hill Street Blues i i By David Germain Associated Press The Founding Fathers keep earning interest on their loot. Nicolas Cages National Treasure, about a race to find a fortune hidden by the signets of the Declaration of Independence, was the top movie for a third straight weekend with $17.1 million in ticket sales, according to studio estimates. The action flick lifted its total to $110.2 million, dominating a quiet post-Thanksgiving weekend with no new movies debuting in wide release.

Mike Nichols caustic sex drama Closer" starring Julia Roberts, Jude Law, Natalie Portman and Clive Owen opened strongly in narrower release, taking in $7.7 million. Playing in 476 theaters, Closer had a healthy average of $16,176 a cinema, compared to a $5,286 average in 3,243 theaters for National Treasure. The overall box office declined after three straight weekends of rising revenue. The top 12 movies grossed $80.3 million, down 10 percent from the same weekend last year and almost 50 percent from the previous weekend. The post-Thanksgiving moviegoing slump is often attributed to last-minute holiday gift buying.

But this year its also due to a lack of highly anticipated holiday films, like a sequel to the Harry Potter or Lord of the Rings series, which has dominated past seasons. National Treasure," a reunion between Cage and producer Jerry Bruckheimer (The Rock), has surprised box-office analysts with its staying power. Nicolas Cage and Jerry Bruckheimer are always a force to be reckoned with, but to have this film at No. 1 for three weeks, I dont think anyone saw that coming, said Paul Dergarabedian, president of box-office tracker Exhibitor Relations. The Princess Diaries 2 (G) 3:45 Shark Tale (PG) 6.05 I Napoleon Dynamite (PG) 8.00 i AVP: Alien Vs.

Predator (PG-13) 9.50 www.garlandtheRtre.com GriarM0t.27'lISOWTM AVAILABLE Entertaining RICHARD ROBRBR mm MINK ALEXANDER FORTUNE FAVORS THE BOLD AOUtrywod Atniwlrt mileufctilMMom JfflBMEBA aif' gg5S I MMiMKrmJMlV SPOKANE Regol Cinemas SPOKANE AMC Northfown MoS Stadium 12 Etvar Park Squan 2D DOHANDANGOk427 509-747-3456 SPOKANERegolCtnemos COEUR D'AlENEBegd Cinema Spokorte Valley Stodlum 12 Showboats 800-FANDANGO x42B 800-FANDANGOX436 CAt I TMFATRF OH CHFCK DIPCPTQRV FHOWTlUf For Morm InformmtiomAboulTM Movio tnttnt RRyMftt KnaniNfaVMriFp Peoples Choice Awards gives more chances to shine mt am Remarkably, it made a real difference in the ratings, Frank said. You could see Wings began to hold the audience better. So it was a much more seamless entry into the show, and that seemed to work, and that became a model for us in working with comedies that were coming on. Now, he says, the network doesnt have a specific policy on theme songs. Some shows have one.

Some dont. It depends on the tone of the show and how the producers choose to use their time. Scrubs, for instance, moved to a longer theme for its second season but quickly abandoned it because the writers found they needed more time for their stories. i i Harbert thinks theme songs could make a comeback if someone writes a great one and it becomes a big hit. Then everyone would try to follow 1 He remains sturig by the accusation, still believed by some in the industry, that hes anti-theme song because of his 1994 memo.

The truth, he says, is that the memo said: No more theme songs unless you really work on it and tome up with something interesting and new and appealing. The unless part, he complains, is never remembered. Tobey Maguire in Spider-Man 2," Ben Stiller and Owen Wilson in Starsky and Hutch. Favorite country group: Alison Krauss Union Station, Brooks Dunn, Lonestar, Rascal Flatts, SheDaisy. Favorite country male singer: Jimmy Buffett, Alan Jackson, Toby Keith, Tim McGraw, Willie Nelson.

Favorite country female singer: Loretta Lynn, Martina McBride, Reba McEntire, LeAnn Rimes, Shania Twain. Favorite smile: Rosario Dawson, Jennifer Lopez, Sarah Jessica Parker, Julia Roberts, Aisha Tyler' HOLIDAY COMEDY- TIM ALIEN HAS NEVER BEEN FUNNIER! AN INSTANT FAMILY CLASSIC!" Oormen VWftn, CBN (THl 700 CLUB) Tim Allen Jamie Lee Curtis tecs p01 NOW PLAYING sworn sroSlxi wfffiv snow It son iamjanuo 4ZI ro ianimhuo ruza amt TirrMRFS ernxiriWMM RtVER PARI IQUARI IS COIIWOMCNt I WRI4IJ4M 1 SOU Mil ft RMMMRMlwrwnwrnlMiiNrt CMM rww Chi-fl-H, I Wwi.iMI and L.A. Law. The best of them really did capture the essence of the show, says Gary Portnoy, who co-wrote and sang the Cheers theme (which can be heard on his Web site, garyportnoy.com). It was a constant, and it was a familiar friend.

I think its sadly missing nowadays. Portnoy was a full-time theme song writer for much of the 80s, writing the title music for Mr. Belvedere and Punky Brewster, among others. Part of the reason he stopped is that the time allotted to the songs kept shrinking. They went from asking for 60 seconds to 40 seconds to 20 seconds, and then Seinfeld came along and it was bada-bip, bada-bip, he says.

Nowadays, I truly believe they are looking to get the TV theme over with so they can sell more advertising. an artfSnfl If you mnt to say it ever was one -1 think it has all but disappeared.11 And yet, as fewer TV shows have signature songs, the nostalgia for them only seems to grow. Portnoy included the Cheers theme on his new album of soft rock music, and fans have complained to him for not including his other themes as well. He said he was once hesitant about process, formerly based on a national poll, this year is being conducted by Entertainment Weekly, the Peoples Choice production team and pop culture fans. The public can choose the winners online at www.pcavote.com.

Voting closes Dec. 13. CBS will broadcast the awards ceremony Jan. 9. Other new nominees: Favorite movie: Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, Fahrenheit 911, The Incredibles, Shrek 2, Spider-Man 2.

Favorite movie drama: The Bourne Supremacy, Collateral, -Finding Neverland, The Passion of the Christ, Ray. Favorite movie comedy: 13 Going on 30, Anchorman, Bridget Jones: The Edge of Reason, Mean Girls, Shrek 2. Favorite movie sequel: Bridget Jones: The Edge of Reason," Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, Kill Bill: Vol. 2, Shrek 2, Spider-Man 2. NATIONAL TREASURE NorthTown Mall: 12:20, 12:50, 3:10, 3:40, 6, 7:05, 9.05, 10.

River Park Square: 3:40, 4:10, 6:30, 7, 9.10. Spokane Valley Mall: 1:10, 3:20, 4:10, 6:35, 7:10, 9:40, 10:10. THE POUR EXPRESS NorthTown Mall: 12:15, 1, 2:30, 3:20, 5, 5:40, 8:05, 10:20. River Park Square: 4, 4:40, 6:30, 7, 9. Spokane Valley Mall: 1:05, 1:40, 3:45, 4:20, 7:15, 9:45.

Imax (Riverfront Park): 11 a.m., 1:40, 4:20, 7, 9.35. THE PRINCESS DIARIES 2: ROYAL ENGAGEMENT Garland: 3:45. RAY River Park Square: 6:05, 9:10. Spokane Valley Mall: 3:30, 10:15. SANTA VS.

THE SNOWMAN Imax (Riverfront Park): 12.55,3:35,6,15,8.50. SAW River Park Square: 6 50, 9:05. SHALL WE DANCE7 River Park Square: 7:10. Spokane Valley Mall: 1, 6:55. SHARK TALE -Garland: 6.05, SIDEWAYS River Park Square: 3:50,6 45, 9:25.

THE SPONGEBOB SQUAREPANTS MOVIE NorthTown Mall: 12:35, 2:46, 5.20, 7:40, 9:55, River Park Square: 4:15, 4:35, 6.40, 9:05, Spokane Valley Mall: 1:35, 3.55, 6:45, 9:20. revealing that he wrote the Punky Brewster song. Now everyone wants to hear it. Theres a genuine affection that I never had communicated to me before," Portnoy says. He still gets a warm, fuzzy feeling when he hears the Mary Tyler Moore theme, he adds.

You watch these shows with your family and friends, and you move on in life and youre not with them anymore, so it hearkens you back to some very warm times, he says. When youre 10 or 15 watching a TV theme with your family, youre not thinking, This is a really warm moment. But many years later, you may, Ted Frank, senior vice president for current programming at NBC, traces the decline of the theme song to 1990, when Wings debuted in the time slot following Cheers on Thursday nights. The Wings theme sequence had beautiful shots of a plane flying over water to Nantucket, set to classical music. But NBC executives were concerned that Wings wasnt holding a large enough share of Cheers lead-in audience.

So the network asked the Wings producers to ditch the theme song and go straight into the action of the show. Favorite film villain: Bill in Kill Bill: Vol. 2, played by David Carradine; Doc Ock in Spider-Man 2, played by Alfred Molina; Elle Driver in Kill Bill: Vol. 2, played by Daryl Hannah; The Fairy Godmother, Shrek 2, voiced by Jennifer Saunders; Sirius Black in "Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, played by Gary Oldman. Favorite animated movie: The Incredibles, The Polar Express, Shrek 2, SpongeBob Squarepants: The Movie, Team America: World Police.

Favorite cartoon star: Donkey in Shrek 2, Elastigirl in The Incredibles, Frozone in The Incredibles, Puss in Boots in Shrek 2, Shrek in Shrek 2. Favorite on-screen chemistry: Drew Barrymore and Adam Sandler in 50 First Dates, Kate Winslet and Jim Carrey in Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, Kate Winslet and Johnny Depp in Finding Neverland, Kirsten Dunst and In Coeur dAlenePost Falls AFTER THE SUNSET Coeur dAlene Discount Cinemas: 1:25, 3:20, 5:15, 7:10, 9:10. ALEXANDER Showboat 4:10, 7:45. BRIDGET JONES: THE EDGE OF REASON Showboat 4:20, 7, 9:30. CHRISTMAS WITH THE KRANKS Coeur d'Alene Cinemas: 4:55, 7:10, 9:30.

THE GRUDGE Coeur d'Alene Discount Cinemas: 1:45,3:40, 5:35, 7:25,9:30. THE INCREDIBLES Coeur d'Alene Cinemas: 4:15, 4:45,6:50,7:30,9:20. UDDER 49 Coeur d'Alene Discount Cinemas: 2, 4:20, 645,905. NAPOLEON DYNAMITE Coeur d'Alene Discount Cinemas: 1:40, 3:35, 5:30, 7:20, 9:20. NATIONAL TREASURE Showboat 4, 6 50, 9:45.

THE POUR EXPRESS Showboat 4 30, 7:10, 9:25. RAY Showboat 440, 8. SHALL WE DANCE7 Coeur d'Alene Clnemes: 4:25, 7,9.35. SHARK TALE Coeur d'Alene Discount Cinemas: 1:30,325, 5:25, 7:30,925. THE SPONGEBOB SQUAREPANTS MOVIE Coeur dAlene Clnemes: 435, 7:20, 9 25.

SURVMNG CHRISTMAS Coeur d'Alene Discount Cinemas: 1:35, 3:30, 5.20,7:15,9.15. Matinee once tor all ehows until 6 pm Advanced Ticketing available at MovleWetchet com. R-Batlng lequuee id Bwfh MMBT I USA Today and Zap2lt.com contributed to this report EbertRoeper TWO THUMBS WAY UP Ebert it Roeper "This film is mesmerizing. ROGER EBERT Ebert 4 Keeper This is a RICHARD ROEPER, Ebert 4 Roeper ORL'- sonveom.Cloner NOW PLAYING AMC THEATRES 1 RIVER PARK SQUARE 20 509-747-3456 Directory for SRowtimee THE POLAR EXPRESS (G) 4:00, 4:40, 6:30, 7:00, 9:00 THE INCREDIBLES (PG) 4:00, 4:30, 6:45, 7:15, 9:30 RAY (PG13) 6:05, 9:10 SAW (R) 6:50, 9:05 SIDEWAYS (R) 3:50, 6:45, 9:25 BEING JULIA (R) 4:40, 7:25, 9:45 SHALL WE DANCE? (PG13) 7:10 LA DOLCE VITA (1960) (NR-NOT RATED) 3:30, 7:20 3X7 720 936 1000 (126338 415)630 705 926 956 (105 140 348 420)716 946 PG) (135 365)646 920 (116600)740 916 BRIDGET JONES EDGE OF REASON (R) ID REG (156460) 730 1005 (100)665 RAV (PG-13) (330)1015 aw ALEXANDER (R)- ID REOD (410)746 BRIDQET JONES. GDQEOF REASON (N) ID REQ 0 (420) 700 030 NATIONAL TREASURE (PO) (400) 50 B4S POLAR EXPRESS (0) (430)710020 RAY (PO1 J) (440)100 RIVER PARKLSQUAREZ2Q Associated Press The Peoples Choice Awards have added new categories to the upcoming ceremony, including favorite movies, favorite smile and favorite cartoon star.

There are 14 new categories in all, also including favorite movie drama, comedy and sequel. Additional new awards include favorite hair (Courtney Cox Arquette, Penelope Cruz, Jennifer Gamer, Kate Hudson and Charlize Theron) and favorite look (Brandy, Cameron Diaz, Hudson, Scarlett Johansson and Natalie Portman.) Previous nominees for the 31st annual Peoples Choice Awards were in October, with Nicole fr Kidman, Julianne Moore, Julia Roberts, Charlize Theron and Reese Witherspoon up for favorite actress and George Clooney, Tom Cruise, Johnny Depp, Tom Hanks and Denzel Washington for favorite male actor. The nomination and awards MOVIES or; in CLOSER (R) 4:15, 4:45, 6:55, 7:25, 9:20 ALEXANDER (R) 3:30, 4:45, 7:30, 8:30 CHRISTMAS WITH THE KRANKS (PG) 3:45, 4:35, 6:40, 7:10, 9:00, 9:40 BRIDGET JONES 2 (R) 4:20, 6:50, 9:10 NATIONAL TREASURE (PG) 3:40, 4:10, 6:30, 7:00, 9:10 SPONGEBOB SQUAREPANTS (PG) 4:15, 4:35, 6:40, 9:05 AFTER THE SUNSET (PG13) 4:50, 9:30 eii wwmw NORTHTOWN STADIUM 12 Spokane AFTER THE SUNSET NorthTown Mall: 12:10, 2:25, 4:55, 7:15, 9:45. River Park Square: 4:50, 9:30. ALEXANDER NorthTown Mall: noon, 4, 8, 9.

River Park Square: 3:30, 4:45, 7:30, 8:30. Spokane Valley Mall: 1:15, 5, 7:40, 9:15. AUEN VS. PREDATOR Garland: 9:50. BEIN0 JULIA River Park Square: 4:40, 7:25, 9:45.

BRIDGET JONES: THE EDGE OF REASON NorthTown Mall: 12:05, 2:40, 5:15, 7:50, 10:25. River Park Square: 4:20, 6:50, 9:10. Spokane Valley Mall: 1:55,4:50,7:30,10:05. CHRISTMAS WITH THE KRANKS NorthTown Mall: 12:25, 12:55, 2:50, 3:15, 5:10, 5:35, 7:30, 7:65, 9:50, 10:15. River Park Square: 3:45, 4:35, 8:40, 7:10, 9, 9:40.

Spokane Valley Mall: 1:30, 1:56,4,4:30,6:50,7:20,9:35,10. CLOSER River Park Square: 4:15, 4:45, 6:55, 7:25, 9:20. THE INCREDIBLES NorthTown Mall: 11:55 a.m., 12:30, 2:35, 3:05, 6:30, 7:10, 9:10, 10:05. River Park Square: 4, 4:30, 6:45, 7:15, 9:30. Spokane Valley Mall: 1:25, 3:35, 4:15, 8.30, 7:05, 9.25, 9.55.

DOLCE VITA River Park Square: 3:30, 7:20. NAPOLEON DYNAMITE Garland: 8. i.