OMG, there's a Nat'l Txting Chmpship! Itz sorta ridic, ryt? But w'r fst txters n cnt bleev we cn win $$ 4 it! Wd u guyz enta? Or r u ashmd dis cntst evn exists? W'r 1drin: wen wil it b on tv? MayB on Fuse or Spike ntwrk?

plz give ur thawts b-low.

A friend of mine made an astute observation the other day. He told me that whenever he attends a film festival, he realizes that nearly all of the movies that sounded promising end at first end up being duds. Instead, it's the films with the most pedestrian of plots that end up delighting audiences and making a real impact.

Phoebe in Wonderland, which screened at the Los Angeles Film Festival last Saturday, falls into the latter category. In the movie, Bill Pullman and Felicity Huffman play the parents of the highly imaginative Phoebe (Elle Fanning, Dakota's younger sister), who is showing symptoms of Tourette syndrome and obsessive-compulsive disorder. They seek the help of a psychiatrist, who wants to put Phoebe on medication -- but, her parents ask, will doing so stifle Phoebe's creative spirit? After all, couldn't her eccentricities just be childhood quirks that'll pass with time?



"In this age of pharmacology, there are a lot of doctors who say children should be on medicine," said Pullman, who attended the screening, along with Fanning and Daniel Barnz, the film's writer and director. "An incredible number of families are facing this question, and without a lot of preparation. They weren't raised in an era in which, if you have a child who's a little jumpy, you got a pill for it."



This is the issue at the heart of Phoebe in Wonderland, a surprisingly assured directing/writing debut from Daniel Barnz, who has crafted a complex but never manipulative story about the difficulties of parenting and the insecurities of childhood. And the audience appeared to eat it right up. I should mention, though, that this was not your ordinary group of festival-goers. The theater was filled with the winners of Nabisco's "Celebrating 100 Extraordinary Women," contest, which was co-sponsored by Time Inc. (EW's parent company). The contest allowed people to nominate women whose everyday actions made "an extraordinary impact on the lives of those around them," and the 100 winners were flown out to L.A. to participate in the film festival and other events. Here's hoping wider audiences are similarly enthusiastic about this little drama with an unwieldy title and atypical storyline when it hits theaters in September. And check out a short clip of the film, embedded after the jump!

The Emmys shortlists keep trickling in over at the swashbuckling Gold Derby -- here are the 10 baked hams in the running for America's Next Top Comedy Actress:

Christina Applegate, Samantha Who? ("The Restraining Order")

Marcia Cross, Desperate Housewives ("Now You Know")

America Ferrera, Ugly Betty ("Odor in the Court")

Tina Fey, 30 Rock ("Sandwich Day")

Anna Friel, Pushing Daisies ("Bitter Sweets")

Felicity Huffman, Desperate Housewives ("Now I Know, Don't Be Scared")

Eva Longoria Parker, Desperate Housewives ("In Buddy's Eyes")

Julia Louis-Dreyfus, New Adventures of Old Christine ("One and a Half Men")

Mary-Louise Parker, Weeds ("Bill Sussman")

Sarah Silverman, The Sarah Silverman Program ("Bored of the Rings")

Our selected image suggests we care that OMG TERI HATCHER WAS SNUBBED THIS YEAR. Not really. I'm of the opinion that to expect four actresses from the same not-always-hilarious series to get noms just because they're equally overexposed off-screen and get relatively equal time on-screen, is ludicrous. (And anyhow, isn't series newcomer Dana Delany's omission the real shocker?) Anyhow, I'll be surprised if Huffman, Longoria, and Cross all get nods in lieu of first-time potential nominees Applegate or Silverman, who carry their own shows. Rejoice or disapprove in the comments below, or if you just don't know what to think about the shortlist and airport security simply refuses let you through with that attitude, follow the fine example in the clip below!

Before we break down last night's performances, we need to discuss next week's double elimination: It couldn't come at a better time. Despite what NBC seems to think, it's not fun to watch the judges rip into contestants for not being "country." It actually undermines the judges, who had a say in choosing the finalists. If you think Coffey (pictured) is faking it, that means he fooled you, John Rich - assuming you put him on the show because you thought he'd actually be a great country artist and not because he'd be good TV. Just like I hope y'all weren't so desperate to cast someone from the USS Kitty Hawk that you welcomed likable Tommy Stanley to the show, even though you could tell from Day One he had to work too hard to sound country.

Ashlee Hewitt: Mini-Jewel opened the show on family night so we could see her tearful reunion with her mega-clan, including her father who returned from Iraq for the occasion. Ashlee chose Journey's "Don't Stop Believin'" and did a decent job countryfying it (though that's not hard with her accent and the phrase small town girl in the lyrics). She was worried about playing the piano to start the song, and I'm not sure why. Those notes are pretty repetitive, no? I thought the judges were too kind when critiquing her vocals. She made me cringe on the long notes because you could see in her face that she was praying she'd hit them. John acknowledged that she needs to start a song as well she finishes it, while Jeffrey Steele told her that she needs to stay focused and not let boys distract her (what does he know that we don't?). Her second song, more like a snippet, really, was the Kris Kristofferson-penned ballad "Help Me Make it Through the Night." John said she sounded like a modern-day Tammy Wynette. Hmmm. I don't think there's anything extraordinary about Ashlee's voice, but I do think it's commercial. I can see why she'd excite him as a producer.

Coffey: Am I the only one who thinks there's a place for this Texan's smooth runs in country music? I know some of you remembered him auditioning for American Idol - and I guess someone finally told John about that, because after Coffey's performance of Hank Williams' "Hey Good Lookin'," John told him that's the show he should be on. A cowboy hat doesn't make you country, he said. You can't fake it. It's not entirely fair to criticize Coffey for doing pop song after pop song in previous weeks, especially when one of those weeks was branded "Pop Goes Country" night. But yes, it is suspicious that he chose "Hey Good Lookin'" and John Denver's "Take Me Home, Country Roads," when those are two songs that 9 out of 10 non-country fans could hum. Coffey defended himself, saying the population of his hometown is 1,100 including sheep, that he cleaned rabbits with his dad, and that he knows hurt (having lost his mother and being a single dad). Jewel was right: We need to hear him sing a ballad that makes us feel that. I actually thought "Country Roads" had some conviction and rewound to hear it again. It took guts to sing that song right after being told you weren't country. (It also took cojones for poor Katie Cook to talk to Coffey's family in the audience after hearing the judges' initial comments. Awkward!) Again, I wonder what the judges see during the week that doesn't make it into the pre-performance montages.

Tommy Stanley: The Navy man won the award for the sweetest reunion. Not for his shocked face when three of his fellow crewmen walked out onstage, having traveled halfway around the world to watch Jeffrey find one semi-nice thing to say about their friend (he compensated for hitting a bum note). That's a close second. He hadn't seen his parents in a year and a half, and his adorable father couldn't control the tears - or the offering of advice. Dad hammered home what Jewel said: He had to make Elton John's "Tiny Dancer" sound country. It did. More so than his first number, Rascal Flatts' "God Bless the Broken Road," which was his weakest performance to date. (Couldn't Jewel have told him that a ballad was all wrong for him? She told us she missed his swagger - did she tell him that when he chose the song?)

Pearl Heart: Okay, so Jeffrey is choosing songs for his groups? Is that because they're the youngest in the competition or because he's a control freak? He picked Restless Heart's "I"ll Still Be Loving You," an emotional ballad that he saw as a defining moment - if they pulled it off. Jeffrey broke down while presenting the song to the trio - he was thinking of the son he's lost - but he held it together during the performance. The sisters hit most of the harmonies, which left me pondering their sleek makeovers more than their voices. (They're definitely working the legs now.) Lead singer Courtney looked less awkward this week - starting on a stool for the ballad helped, so did standing behind a six-string on LeAnn Rimes' "One Way Ticket (Because I Can)." Just give her time.

Melissa Lawson: I liked seeing her rock a guitar on Martina McBride's "This One's For the Girls," but the staged facial expressions still get to me. She'll be in the recording studio with John whether or not she wins this contest (the man was out of his seat). He said this is her title to lose, and that she needs to keep her nerves under control. He thought they got the better of her on the second song, Fleetwood Mac's "Landslide," but I actually liked it better.

Shawn Mayer: I'm pullin' for my girl Shawn, but she's got me nervous. She wanted to show her soft, feminine side, and opted for Faith Hill's "Breathe." I didn't buy it. She should have gone with something pleading like Gretchen Wilson's "Come to Bed" (cowritten by Rich). John was "shocked" by how well she pulled off "Breathe," but said she needed to be consistent if she had any hope of hanging around in this competition. Proving his point, he thought she blew her second song, Randy Travis' "Forever And Ever, Amen." It wasn't memorable, but it wasn't offensive. I'd love to see John pick her song next week and give her a fighting chance. If it's not too late.

Gabe Garcia: Gabe's goal was to show that he actually has a personality. He almost succeeded. He tackled Bon Jovi's "Wanted Dead or Alive." He sounded fine, but he still looked stiff to me. And not in a hot George Strait way. He's still too nervous. Jewel told him he needs to flirt with the crowd, so after his second song, Strait's "The Fireman" (predictable), which had John and Jeffrey air-fiddling and air-guitaring, he muttered something about adding another flame to Jewel's fire. She laughed at him. Maybe he's not ready to be a lothario. Just relax and sing. You'll also be in the studio with John whether or not you win, son.

Alyson Gilbert: Just when I started to like Alyson - because she flipped John off during her mentoring session - she leaves. Jewel absolutely tee'd off on Alyson after she tackled Trisha Yearwood's "She's in Love With the Boy," noting the return of her beauty-pageant poppin' eyes. "I need you to go away for a little while. I need you to find some soul and some heart. I need you to stand up here for a reason and sing, 'cause I don't feel anything...." I don't feel anything, but unlike Jewel, I don't take it as a personal insult. Sheesh. I think Jewel was trying to express the judges' frustration with Alyson, but for once, John was the clear one: Alyson has moments of brilliance, but moments aren't enough; she needs to be brilliant from beginning to end and it's shame that she hasn't figured out how to do that yet. One final observation: Jewel said Alyson doesn't take advice, but I do believe she took Jewel's tip about watching how Reba McEntire works the stage. Anyone else see a little Reba in her posturing last night?

Laura & Sophie: I don't know what performance Jewel was watching, but I did not see Sophie, the taller, younger one without braces, almost unravel and cry mid-song! Seriously, I rewound. She looked fine. Jeffrey wanted them to do something young, so he chose Katrina and the Waves' "Walkin' on Sunshine" for them and had them start in an almost trudging Donnas style before picking up the beat. The first half of the song was definitely better, but it wasn't the disaster some of the judges thought it was. Or even as bad as the second song, Kelly Clarkson's "Because of You," which definitely was... off. John said the girls are too young and sweet for the business, that the worst thing that could happen to them now would be winning the show. I don't think it's fair for him to compare them to Taylor Swift. If I'm remembering correctly, she had some shaky live TV performances when she started out. But I do think he's ultimately right: Their sugar and spice routine needs time to bake. The talent is there.

So, who's got your vote now? What footage do you think NBC is hiding from us? (Laura and Sophie fighting?) And what is your position on Coffey?

Today, I'm a bit partial to The Soup -- because speaking of art imitating life, at 0:39 Joel McHale apes Kiefer Sutherland's mugshot expression almost exactly. Then again, in the Weeds clip, it looks like the three guys could be sitting in a bag of weed. This is a tough call. Vote here!

Like Mandi, I spent the last week with family, cruising around an area decidedly more "wooded" than NYC. But while she avoided the Internet in Vermont with one relative (click here for her report), I slurped my way through California wine country with three. This is just one way in which Annie Barrett is a little cooler than Mandi Bierly (WHOA: We should have an ongoing tug-of-war in this vein! But digitally, on PopWatch...ix-nay on any sort of physical effort, obviously.)

Anyway, on our flight back east, the noise level was so intense that my dad needed to use my mom's iPod Nano to avoid having a breakdown. But like a frazzled PopWatch editor trying to dissuade Slezak from writing another post about Fantasia, it just wasn't that easy. Enter...this:

HANDWRITTEN NOTE

It's the HANDWRITTEN NOTE my mom passed to my dad across the expansive, two-foot aisle of row 16. I just thought it was amazing and had to post it on my first day back.

What's the most basic technological instruction you've had to explain to the tragically unhip? Quick, scribble your story down on a scrap of looseleaf paper and pass it on!

On the fourth and final night of her multi-city sold-out Exile in Guyville performances, Liz Phair exuded cool effervescence through her skintight vest and tousled hair. Quietly confident, amid reactions from critics that her recent string of shows were anti-climactic and stiff, Phair casually breezed through all eighteen songs from the album and few other precious gems during a short encore.

Admittedly, after reading a few less-than-stellar reviews of Phair's show in Chicago, I had lowered expectations stepping into the Hiro Ballroom a few minutes before she took the stage. But as the first few chords of "6'1" rang out, a huge smile stretched across my face, one I saw plastered across every other person in the crowd. At times out of tune or mired in lyrical fogginess, the hour and a half long set was fun yet surprisingly bittersweet. Was it really 15 years ago that Exile came out? (I feel old. And I'm not even 30 yet!)

Singing along to every single song, I couldn't care less about whatever her motivations were: whether she was there to cash in on the recent wave of early '90s nostalgia, revive her trying-to-stay-relevant career, or merely market copies of her new reissue. To hear one of your all-time favorite albums performed live in its entirety is a once in a lifetime opportunity, one especially personal to me since Exile has retained significance in my life, contributing to my sexual development in awkward teenage years and even now providing perspective on the recent dissolution of a relationship. Its timeless lyrics and themes make me wonder how young women react hearing it for the first time in this day and age, or if they react at all. Is a song like "Flower" still provocative in the age of Tila Tequila and Pussycat Dolls? And where have all the brutally honest, whip-smart female singer-songwriters gone?

For those who missed the show, here's a short clip from "Divorce Song," one of many crowd favorites from last night. (Warning: Some NSFW language.)

Mickey Rourke. It would explain a lot, no?

And with that, you've got my complete list of candidates: The Olsen Twins, Oprah Winfrey, Alf, Dakota Fanning, and Mickey Rourke. Anyone else you'd like to nominate? (Of course, if you want to know who I really think is gonna complete the Final Five, simply click here.)

It's time for an animated trailer blazer throwdown! Let's break down the competition: Bolt is a non-Pixar film from Disney due to hit theaters in November. The Tale of Despereaux comes from Universal in December. Both have talking animals as the title characters; the former features a heroic dog who doesn't know that he's on a hit TV show, while Despereaux concerns a heroic mouse (pictured) who doesn't know how to be scared. John Travolta, Miley Cyrus, and Malcolm McDowell lend their voices for Bolt, and Despereaux has Matthew Broderick, Dustin Hoffman, and Emma Watson.

If one of these films is going to get my 11 dollars this winter, it will be Despereaux. The animation has a hand-drawn look, and I can't resist any movie about marching to the beat of your own drum. As for Bolt, I may check it out on DVD, but I'm just not interested in seeing another animated movie with hammy sidekicks and jokes that try to hard to wink at adults.

Watch the clips (embedded after the jump) and tell us: Which movie would you rather see?

Few comedies anymore know how to build a gag over an entire episode, much less an entire season. The "MILF Island" episode of 30 Rock, which you can watch in full below, takes a throwaway gag from last fall's season 2 premiere and develops it into an entire episode. (Viva DeBorah!) The delightfully absurd result is one reason why 30 Rock landed at No. 47 on our list of the Top 100 TV Series of the last 25 years in the current EW 1000 issue.

This is the eighth installment in EW.com's selection of 10 great episodes of programs on our top 100 list. We're streaming an episode from a different show every day, or you can watch the entire slate in one sitting at Hulu. The first half of the list is here; Part 2 is here.