Phoebe in Wonderland News

The Women Film Critics Circle has announced their 2009 nominations for the best movies this year by and about women, and outstanding achievements by women, who get to be rarely honored historically, in the film world.

Fanning in frames: Elle gives a stellar performance in Phoebe in Wonderland. Alexandra Alexander Sokurov takes time off from odd historical biopics and feature-length visual experiments to go to Chechnya.

Bill Pullman has been busy with a couple of projects but is mainly working on the Broadway debut of David Mamet's "Oleanna." The production is being staged at the Golden Theatre for previews starting Sept.

Vanessa Hudgens stars as Lindy Taylor in CBS Films' Beastly, a modern-day adaptation of Beauty and the Beast that was shot in Montreal.

Conflicted kids with much-too-busy-for-proper-parenting mothers in movies like Phoebe In Wonderland and Coraline, seem to be increasingly slipping into unhealthy fantasy worlds in search of ideal mommies.

Here are some of the new DVDs landing on shelves this week. "Waltz With Bashir" . Ari Folman's animated documentary - yes, animated documentary - is quite an accomplishment, as the filmmaker looks back on his time in the Israeli army more than 25 years ago.

"Confessions of a Shopaholic" -- How amazingly timely: a comedy about the pitfalls of conspicuous consumption.

Phoebe in Wonderland tells the tale of a young girl's struggle with OCD, rules, and not being able to fit in, through the escape of the freeing world of Alice in Wonderland.

When one of the best films of 2008 opened in theaters, it was widely ignored. Maybe it was the subject matter: post-traumatic stress syndrome among former Israeli soldiers and a 1982 massacre of Lebanese civilians that remains a hot-button issue in Israel.

The phrase, "It's like nothing audiences have ever seen before," certainly is overused, but it's one that definitely fits with the unique "Waltz with Bashir." Best described as an animated documentary, this extraordinary film traces the remarkable journey of Ari Folman, the writer and director.

Tuesday, June 23, DVD releases include "Phoebe in Wonderland" and "Waltz With Bashir" New DVDs Today's new DVD releases go from war obsessions to shopaholic confessions.

There's something for everyone this week on DVD, starting with an Oscar-nominated animated documentary , a Jerry Bruckheimer-produced chick flick , and a disappointing adaptation of a bestselling family fantasy .

Confessions of a Shopaholic Touchstone, $29.99/$32.99; Blu-ray, $39.99 The first novel in Sophie Kinsella's "Shopaholic" series was published in 2001, when the economy was booming and consumption was more happily conspicuous.