BBC - Films - High Noon - 31st December 2003

		Gamgee Going For Gags Sean Astin is putting Samwise Gamgee behind him in upcoming comedy 50 First Dates. He plays Drew Barrymore's fitness-obsessed brother in the movie, which also stars Adam Sandler and Rob Schneider. The Return Of The King star tells TV Guide that playing for laughs was, well, hilarious. "My character's doing splits all the time and push-ups and jumping jacks and lifting things," Astin reveals. "He's supposed to be this incredibly muscle-bound guy but I'm not really that muscle-bound, so it is a joke on that level, too." Hold on to your sides, there's more. "[My character] wears workout clothes with silly parachute pants and the tan that I have in the movie makes George Hamilton look like an albino. And I speak with a lisp for sort of shameless comedic purposes. I loved that I was given the opportunity to be so outrageously comedic. I hadn't really had that opportunity in my life before." 50 First Dates opens in the UK on 30th April 2004.

		Mostow Gets Seconds Terminator 3: Rise Of The Machines director Jonathan Mostow has signed up to helm and write a remake of John Frankenheimer's 1966 pic Seconds. The original movie starred John Randolph as an old guy who literally gets a new look when he's given a new face and identity. The new guy, played by Rock Hudson (who frequently felt like a new man himself), has his own problems to face. The Seconds remake has been on the drawing board for a few years now, with Mostow himself initially set to direct it after making U-571 in 2000. When he was drawn to the third Terminator movie, however, The Core director Jon Amiel was drafted in. Now things have come full circle and Mostow's back in the director's chair. The film's the second Frankenheimer remake in the works: Jonathan Demme's Manchurian Candidate redo stars Denzel Washington and Meryl Streep, and will be released next autumn.

		American Pie: The Wedding Dawson's Creeker Katie Holmes and American Pieer Chris Klein are tying the knot. The 25-year-old Holmes is no doubt boring her galpals silly by showing off her diamond engagement ring after Klein, 24, popped the question before Christmas. The couple have been dating for five years. At this point, we feel duty-bound to add that, as with all other Hollywood weddings, we give it six months.

		Oscar Race Begins There are no fewer than 254 movies chasing the Best Picture Oscar at the 2004 Academy Awards. Of course, most of these are complete trash (For Your Consideration - Lara Croft Tomb Raider: The Cradle Of Life), meaning that when the nominations are announced on 27th January, the following films should be there or thereabouts: Big Fish, Cold Mountain, Lost In Translation, Master And Commander, Mystic River, Seabiscuit, The Last Samurai, and The Lord Of The Rings: The Return Of The King. If you're looking for a rank outsider, Oscar often favours a plucky Brit pic so Bend It Like Beckham, Calendar Girls or Love Actually may also get the nod. That's the last High Noon of 2003 (control yourselves, we'll be back on Friday), so all that's left is to wish you a happy new year. Happy new year!