Rumors are flying today about a new “Buffy the Vampire Slayer” movie. If it indeed gets made, who should play Buffy? I’m thinking Emma Watson could do a kick-ass job, or maybe Anne Hathaway. Vote in the poll below! n

Image: INF

My friend, Rachel Dickinson, has a wonderful new book out called "Falconer on the Edge: A Man, His Birds, and the Vanishing Landscape of the American West." Check it out on Amazon.com.

The book tells the story of falconer Steve Chindgren, as well as the fascinating subculture of falconry and the people who participate in it. Rachel also goes into the forces that threaten this ancient sport: mining, gas industries, and agriculture.

Of course, all this has me thinking of movies about birds. Here are five that spring to mind. Tell me YOUR favorite bird movies in the comments below.

1. The Wild Parrots of Telegraph Hill (2003). This award-winning documentary features Mark Bittner, the self appointed caretaker of San Francisco’s flock of wild Cherry-Headed Conures. It tells the story of his journey to preserve the flock and its home. Buy it on Amazon.

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If you were so-so on "X-Files: I Want to Believe" and are hoping for a third movie to restore your faith in aliens and weird goings-on, join the campaign to make it happen.

Just click to XFilesNews.com and scroll down for the campaigns. There’s a number of things you can do, including send a postcard (which will then be mounted onto a 10′ x 13" banner; hardly seems big enough, though!), participate in a Skype marathon, and purchase a single disc DVD of "I Want to Believe" during July 18-5, 2009.

And that’s just the beginning! Check it out, and maybe collectively, we can make "X-Files 3" a reality.

Photo Credit: TM and © Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation. All Rights Reserved.

Last year at this time, my blogger buddy Michelle Rafter organized a May Blogathon, and everyone who participated had a blast posting to their blogs every day for a month. (That’s me in the photo, happy to be posting every day for a month.)

Well, it’s that time again! Michelle has organized the Second Annual WordCount Blogathon, so we’re off and running again. After the jump, check out the list of bloggers who’ve taken a solemn vow to post every day during the month of May, 2009. 

Shameless Plug for My Class: If you’re thinking about starting a blog, or want to kick your blogging to the next level, consider signing up for my blogging class. The next session begins in two days, Monday, May 4, 2009, so it’s perfect timing! Just think, YOU could be a participant in the next blogathon.

More info and sign-up is at the class site, Blogging For Passion & Profit, and feel free to email me if you have any questions.

Ok, check out the May Blogathon Bloggers after the jump (and some of them are my students! Sniff … I’m so proud …)

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Ok, so here’s a question I’ve been mulling over. I’m a big fan of the “Harry Potter” series, but let’s face facts. It’s coming to an end soon. We’ll have to move on. And I don’t know about you, but I need a new series to follow and “Twilight” just might be it.

But “Harry Potter” is SUCH a good series with great characters, an interesting story, and awesome effects. We’ve got both “New Moon” and “Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince” coming up this year. It’ll be interesting to see how they compare at the box office. Will “Twilight” measure up in the long run?

Vote in my poll and tell me your reasoning in the comments below! n

Photo Credits: TM and (c) 2008 Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc; TM and © 2009 Summit Entertainment, LLC. All Rights Reserved

Today is National Pot Smoking Day! Aren’t you glad you know that now? I can just imagine a bunch of potheads sitting around deciding that we all need an annual day to celebrate the magical madness of pot.

Anyway, it’s a perfect opportunity for me to expound on my favorite pot-smoking movies. Read on, and tell me YOUR favorite pot-smoking movies in the comments below. Or perhaps, favorite movies to watch WHILE smoking pot…?

1. Cheech and Chong’s Up in Smoke. Obviously, the granddaddy of all pot-smoking movies, the one that made it cool to smoke pot. Ok, maybe not cool. Ok, maybe cool. Anyhoo, watch it again, but not before you read my interview with professional pot-smoker himself, Tommy Chong.

2. Reefer Madness. Oh, the evils of the weed. How it destroyed lives, wreaked havoc, caused people to murder and go insane, especially in 1936 when this movie was made. Women cry for it! Men die for it! Watch it with drug-crazed abandon! It’s even a musical now!

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With the filming of “New Moon” in full swing in Vancouver, British Columbia – and on track for a Nov. 20, 2009 release - Twilight fans’ thoughts are turning to the next two movies.

“Eclipse,” the third movie in the “Twilight” saga, has already been confirmed by Summit Entertainment for release in North America on June 20, 2010. The fourth movie, “Breaking Dawn,” has been taken by Summit as an “optioned property,” which means that while they have the option to make the film, they haven’t given it the green light yet.

Obviously, there would be no problem with fans seeing the movie. That’s a given. But TwilightMania is speculating on a rumor that the issue would be with the character of Renesmee and the difficulty of casting a baby with a full set of teeth who grows at a rapid rate and can perform impossible feats.

I’m with TwilightMania in that this could be done well using CGI effects. Consider any of the “Harry Potter” or “Lord of the Rings” films, and you’ve got great examples of how it could work.

What say you, Film Gecko readers and Twilight fans? Could Summit create a believable film in “Breaking Dawn”? Should the movie be made, and if so, how? Vote in the poll and let your voice be heard in the comments below!

Image Credit: Amazon.com

Chocolate bunnies, colorful eggs, frilly dresses, and happy kids scampering through the house looking for hidden baskets of treats. Nothing rivals the pure joy of Easter, as shown in my top five movies celebrating Easter and Passover. Check out my list, and feel free to add your own in the comments:

1. IT’S THE EASTER BEAGLE, CHARLIE BROWN. Easter is coming, and the gang is preparing for the spring holiday in their usual catastrophic way. Charlie Brown is frustrated over the Christmas pre-sales at the local department stores.

Sally wants a new pair of platform shoes (this movie was made in 1974!). Peppermint Patty is trying to teach a clueless Marcy how to color eggs. Snoopy is shopping for a new bachelor pad for Woodstock. And Linus is busy telling everyone about the Easter Beagle, who rises up on Easter morning to give eggs to all the children (sound familiar?). Buy it on Amazon.

2. YOGI, THE EASTER BEAR. When Yogi accidentally ruins the big Easter Jamboree at Jellystone Park right before hundreds of kids are set to arrive, he and Boo Boo go in search of the Easter Bunny to save the day, only to discover that he’s been kidnapped by a gang of criminals! The pair must work fast when they learn that Ranger Smith has arranged for them to join a circus in Siberia. Buy it on Amazon.

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The official site for "Imagine That" is up and includes lots of games, downloads and other fun stuff. I love the Eddie Murphy movies where he’s paired with kids, like "Daddy Daycare," so I’m hoping this one will be fun, too. Something about his goofiness works well in that genre.

In "Imagine That," he stars as a successful financial exec who spend more time with his Blackberry than his 7-year-old daughter (Yara Shahidi). But when his career starts circling the drain, there just might be a way out in his daughter’s imaginary world. Hmmm … sounds similar to "Bedtime Stories."

Directed by Karey Kirkpatrick, "Imagine That" is rated PG for some mild language and brief questionable behavior and also stars Thomas Haden Church and Vanessa Williams. It hits theaters June 12, 2009. 

I just posted about a poll conducted by Sky Movies on the top action movie stars of all time. Sigourney Weaver took the number one spot, which is very cool, considering she was the only female on the list!

So I thought we’d do our own poll here on Film Gecko. Be sure to vote, and tell me your reasoning and/or favorite action movie in the comments below. And if your favorite star isn’t there, feel free to add him or her to the list!

Photo Credit: © Universal Studios