A look at what people are watching, reading, listening to, and learning about…
Top Five Movies
1. Friday the 13th (R)
2. He's Just Not That Into You (PG-13)
3. Taken (PG-13)
4. Coraline (PG)
5. Confessions of a Shopaholic (PG)
Notables: In case you missed it - and boy, I hope you didn't - last Saturday was Valentine's Day. Considering last weekend's box office returns, I guess that means most Americans think nothing says "I love you" like going to see a movie about a machete-wielding, hockey mask-wearing killer.
After taking the top spot last weekend, He's Just Not That Into You drops to the second spot. Not bad business, really - helped along by the holiday, of course. Though again, is this the kind of Valentine's Day movie we all want to go see?
Taken, the little thriller that could, continues to do well, while children (and their parents) are still enamored with the tales of Coraline.
And then we have Confessions of a Shopaholic. Boy - the timing issues on movies 1, 2, and 5 are baffling. Others are picking up on that fact in their reviews. Consider this little nugget from USA Today: "Not only is [Confessions of a Shopaholic] an unfunny movie shrilly told, it probably is the most ill-timed and appallingly insulting movie in recent memory." Then again, it might very well be closer to the truth than we think.
Top Five Books (according to USA Today research)
1. New Moon, by Stephenie Meyer
2. Twilight, by Stephenie Meyer
3. The Shack, by William P. Young
4. Eclipse, by Stephenie Meyer
5. Breaking Dawn, by Stephenie Meyer
Notables: No! No, no, no! We were getting so close to a list that didn't have vampires or The Shack?but both come back with a vengeance. Look - I don't have anything against Meyer or Young. I just want a new list to play with.
Top Five Albums
1. Fearless, Taylor Swift
2. Raising Sand, Robert Plant and Alison Krauss
3. Testimony: Volume 2, Love and Politics, India.Arie
4. The Fray, The Fray
5. It's Not Me, It's You, Lily Allen
Notables: The music industry recently handed out their annual Grammy awards. Here's a list of the winners. The awards - and the litany of performances - gave quite a bump to some folks. Taylor Swift climbed back up to the top spot (she performed). The odd-on-paper pairing of Led Zeppelin rocker Robert Plant and bluegrass-country singer Alison Krauss won Album of the Year at the ceremonies. As for the rest, I don't really have much to add except that the Allen album seems like it should be cousin to the soundtrack for He's Just Not That Into You.
Top Singles
1. "Right Round," Flo Rida
2. "Dead and Gone," T. I. (featuring Justin Timberlake)
3. "Crack a Bottle," Eminem
4. "Heartless," Kanye West
5. "Just Dance," Lady GaGa (featuring Colby O'Donis)
Notables: Not much to look into here. Maybe next week?
Top Five Web Searches (according to Google Trends)
*Exercise caution when searching; some topics may be inappropriate.
1. young fabulous and broke
2. eddie george
3. tmz rihanna
4. rihanna photo
5. atlantis
Notables: The top item should clearly be filed under "signs of the times." It has to do with an increasingly popular book by Suze Orman. It seems like it also has to do with an increasingly popular clothing line. Though consider the clothing line: if you can spend $145 on a pair of pants, are you really broke? At this rate, next week's top item is going to be Confessions of a Shopaholic.
One of the contestants on the current season of Survivor is married to ex-NFL player (and Heisman winner) Eddie George. Now you tell me: does she need another $1 million?
I'm actually a little relieved that items 3 and 4 are not 1 and 2 - though I have a feeling they might rocket up the list by day's end. Perhaps you've heard about the mess involving rapper Chris Brown attacking his girlfriend, superstar singer Rihanna. Well, it appears photos of her injuries have been leaked. (Don't worry - I'm not linking to the actual photos.) I'm well aware that Brown and Rihanna aren't married, but this might be a good time to stop and ponder the horrors of domestic violence. And I know just the place you ought to go for some guidance. The folks at Today's Christian Woman have named domestic violence their cause of the year. You should take some time to pour over their resources.
And finally, some British dude is convinced he has finally found the lost city of Atlantis.
Brian Lowery is managing editor of PreachingToday.com.Posted by Brian Lowery at 8:47 AM on February 20, 2009

