January has traditionally been a month for dumping films for which studios have little hope. This January is proving to be no exception. This weekend sees the debut of The Pirates Who Don't Do Anything: A VeggieTales Movie. Its main characters are vegetables. Still, Gene Seymour writes in Newsday, "after the garish excessiveness of the last pair of live-action "Pirates of the Caribbean" installments, the pokey charms of The Pirates Who Don't Do Anything provides a mildly soothing tonic." Several critics remark that while children are likely to love it, parents who take them to see it may find their minds wandering. Kevin Crust in the Los Angeles Times, for example, found himself wondering, "If there was a VeggieTales version of The Silence of the Lambs -- which, arguably, is pretty unlikely -- would Hannibal Lecter be a vegetarian or would the fava beans simply become the main dish with a side of kidney?" Lou Lumenick in the New York Post writes that the film deserves praise for one thing only, it's title -- "for truth in advertising. I've seen more exciting no-smoking announcements in theaters."

Also opening today is First Sunday, starring Ice Cube and Katt Williams, which Claudia Puig in USA Today says, ought "to go last on anyone's list of movie options." Kyle Smith in the New York Post describes it as "a heist comedy in which the audience gets robbed." Steven Rea in the Philadelphia Inquirer calls it a clichéd, moralistic comedy [during which] a parade of African-American stereotypes go marching by.

In the Name of the King is based on the video game Dungeon Siege and is directed by Uwe Boll, who is making a career out of turning video games into movies. It was not reviewed by critics.

The Weinstein Co. is expected to become the second Hollywood studio -- after United Artists -- to sign an interim deal with the Writers Guild of America. Co-chairman Harvey Weinstein told today's (Friday) New York Times that he had decided to break ranks with his fellow producers because "We need to get people back to work." His deal with the writers, he said, essentially mirrors that reached last week with UA and includes provisions allowing it to be superseded by any future deal negotiated between the writers and the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers.

Universal has followed Paramount/DreamWorks in announcing that it will continue to release high-definition video disks in the HD DVD format. Ken Graffeo, head of Universal's Home Entertainment HD unit, denied trade reports that the studio was planning to abandon the format in the wake of Warner Bros.' decision to release high-definition video versions of its movies in the Blu-ray format exclusively. "Contrary to unsubstantiated rumors from unnamed sources, Universal's current plan is to continue to support the HD DVD format," Graffeo said in a statement.

Apple is expected to release a new version of its iTunes software next week that will allow users to download movies to "rent" -- that is, to be viewed during a limited time period. The software release is expected to coincide with an announcement by Apple Chairman Steve Jobs that his company has signed deals with Warner Bros. and Paramount allowing movie rentals on Apple's iTunes online store. Apple had previously indicated that it had signed deals with Disney and 20th Century Fox. NBC Universal, which previously withdrew its product from iTunes, is not expected to return. Sony, which supports its own PSP player, is also not expected to come aboard. Apple is expected to price rentals at $3.99.

CBS chief Les Moonves has suggested that the deadlock in contract talks between the Writers Guild of America and the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers may soon be broken. Speaking to a Citigroup conference in Phoenix, Moonves indicated that he is trying to get negotiations between the two sides restarted. He assured the conference, however that the strike is not currently having a negative impact on the network. "We can finish this television season just fine," Moonves said. "The television season ends at the end of May, obviously revenue will be down somewhat because ratings will be down. ... Our revenue will be down somewhat, but the cost of producing original programming will be down more." In any case, he said, he felt "guardedly optimistic that [the strike] will be over in the next few months."

CNN led Fox News Channel in coverage of the New Hampshire election Tuesday night, attracting an average of 3.29 million viewers in primetime, while Fox News drew 3.06 million. Among viewers 18-49, CNN also had a significant lead, drawing 1.35 million to FNC's 901,000. MSNBC placed third with 1.64 million viewers, with 701,000 in the younger demo. "On nights where there are these big events, there's no question where America tunes to get the information," Jon Klein, president of CNN/U.S, told the New York Times.

Sharon Waxman, a Hollywood journalist who was lured away from the Los Angeles Times by the New York Times in 2003, has quit the New York newspaper. She had received six months leave to write a book about the global antiquities trade but had been reassigned to a New York beat while she was away. On her blog Thursday she indicated that she is pulling out of the newspaper game altogether after watching the continuing decline of the business. She said that she is gathering a team to create an interactive website aimed at creating "communities who engage in dialogue with writers, readers and with the people we cover." Meanwhile, the Los Angeles Times today (Friday) published an opinion piece by Waxman lambasting the just-canceled Golden Globe awards as a "con" and the members of the Hollywood Foreign Press Assn., which stages the awards show, as a group mostly of freelancers and freeloaders. Waxman concluded her article by urging NBC Universal chief Jeff Zucker to step in to "fix the Golden Globes or take them off the air for good."

Procter and Gamble's Tide, a major advertiser that ordinarily targets women, has bought an ad during Fox Broadcasting's telecast of the Super Bowl on Feb. 3, the New York Times reported today (Friday). The newspaper said that the 30-second spot will run during the game's second quarter. "The Super Bowl is the one time you watch a show and don't want to miss the commercial breaks," Suzanne Watson, Tide brand manager for North America at Procter in Cincinnati, told the newspaper. Meanwhile, it said, Fox has sold all but one of the 63 commercial availabilities during the game at an average of $2.7 million compared to $2.6 million per spot last year. Fox Sports spokesman Lou D'Ermilio told the Times that demand for ads on sports programs has been especially high this year.

A political controversy has reared in Britain over plans by the BBC to actively recruit minorities to take over senior staff positions at the network. The decision by the publicly supported broadcaster came after a study indicated that the number of minority executives has dropped to a level lower than it was four years ago when former BBC Director General Greg Dykes remarked that the corporation was "hideously white." However, the BBC reported today (Friday) that the plan has run into opposition from some Conservative politicians. Conservative MP Philip Davies was quoted by the BBC News website as saying, "This kind of approach is absolutely typical of the politically correct culture that dominates the BBC. Jobs should be given on merit, irrespective of ethnic background."