Entertainment - AFP

MADRID (AFP) - "The Argentine", a new movie by Oscar-winning US director Steven Soderbergh based on the life of Latin American revolutionary Ernesto "Che" Guevara, had its world premier Friday in Spain to mixed reviews.

LOS ANGELES (AFP) - Oscar-winning film-maker Michael Moore is to release his new film via the Internet for free as a gesture to fans, the film-maker said in a statement on Friday.

ROME (AFP) - One year after his death, a slew of concerts and programmes commemorating Luciano Pavarotti will be held across Italy and the world, starting Saturday in the tenor's hometown of Modena.

DEAUVILLE, France (AFP) - US stars were set to descend on the posh French resort of Deauville Friday for the Festival of American Cinema which this year pays tribute to maverick African-American director Spike Lee.

SHANGHAI (AFP) - China's Shaolin Temple, famous as the birthplace of kung fu, is planning to roll out classes across the country to teach martial arts once reserved for just a few, state media said Friday.

MUMBAI (AFP) - Major Bollywood stars have donated nearly a quarter of a million dollars to help victims of flood-hit northern India and are planning a special charity concert, a politician said here Friday.

BERLIN (AFP) - That butterflies and goose bumps can take anyone at any age by surprise is the simple message of the startling new German film "Cloud 9", an explicit look at a love triangle among seniors.

LOS ANGELES (AFP) - Hollywood studio Columbia is planning to revive its hit 1980s franchise "Ghostbusters" with a third film that will reunite stars Bill Murray and Dan Aykroyd, it was reported Thursday.

VIENNA (AFP) - An exhibition that opens Thursday at Vienna's Albertina Museum sheds new light on the influence the drawings by Vincent van Gogh had on his unique style of painting.

VENICE, Italy (AFP) - Mickey Rourke scored a knock-out blow on Friday in his title role as "The Wrestler" in US director Darren Aronofsky's offering at the Venice film festival.

VENICE, Italy (AFP) - The war in Iraq blasted onto the screen at the Venice film festival on Thursday with a stunning portrayal by US director Kathryn Bigelow of the harrowing work of a bomb disposal team in "The Hurt Locker".

TORONTO (AFP) - The 33rd Toronto International Film Festival opens Thursday, with a string of comedies marking a departure from the more earnest films of recent years about the war in Iraq, terrorism and US politics.

PARIS (AFP) - The new album by French first lady Carla Bruni has sold around 80,000 copies in France, her record company said Thursday, after last month claiming it had sold more than twice that number.

LONDON (AFP) - The first guitar that rock legend Jimi Hendrix burned on stage fetched 280,000 pounds (345,000 euros, 495,000 dollars) at an auction in London on Thursday.

VENICE, Italy (AFP) - A love triangle involving a teenager, his mother and a gay teacher was tipped Thursday to clinch this year's Queer Lion award at the Venice film festival for the best movie with a homosexual theme.

MUMBAI (AFP) - Low-budget productions featuring unknown actors are becoming box-office successes in the Indian film industry, as making blockbusters with big-name stars becomes increasingly expensive.

MEXICO CITY (AFP) - From the fear-struck eyes of a Senegalese man waiting to scale a wire fence into Europe to the blank stare of a Russian housewife in Panama, a provocative exhibition setting off from Mexico explores the many faces of one of the world's pressing issues -- immigration.

LONDON (AFP) - A tour of Britain by the North Korean state symphony orchestra has been postponed until next year because one of the planned concert venues is too small, an organiser said Thursday.

MADRID (AFP) - British director Richard Eyre's "The Other Man" starring Liam Neeson will open the San Sebastian Film Festival later this month, organisers said Wednesday.

DEAUVILLE, France (AFP) - US stars were set to descend on the posh French resort of Deauville Friday for the Festival of American Cinema which this year pays tribute to maverick African-American director Spike Lee.

LONDON (AFP) - A novel about the Prophet Mohammed and his child bride, which has already caused controversy in the United States and Serbia, will be released in Britain next month, its publisher said Wednesday.

VENICE (AFP) - Jurors at the Venice film festival on Wednesday had only three days left to make their pick for the coveted Golden Lion after many of the 21 movies in competition failed to live up to expectations.

VENICE, Italy (AFP) - US "Silence of the Lambs" director Jonathan Demme jolted Venice film critics Wednesday with a stirring new family drama that tightens the race for the festival's Golden Lion prize.

ABU DHABI (AFP) - The oil-rich emirate of Abu Dhabi announced on Wednesday it would pump more than one billion dollars into film production in tandem with Hollywood and other movie hubs.

BERLIN (AFP) - German soprano Annette Dasch is to sing the role of Elsa in the Bayreuth Festival's new production of "Lohengrin" in 2010, the festival's newly-appointed chief, Katharina Wagner, revealed in a newspaper interview Wednesday.

ATHENS (AFP) - Two ancient artefacts illegally removed from Greece decades ago went on display in Athens on Wednesday after a US-based collector was persuaded to repatriate them, the Greek culture ministry said.

JERUSALEM (AFP) - A controversial Dutch film linking Islam to terrorism received a rare public airing in the Middle East on Wednesday when a right-wing Israeli MP showed clips of it at a press conference in Jerusalem.

LONDON (AFP) - The first guitar that rock legend Jimi Hendrix burned on stage, the only remaining fingerprints of Elvis Presley and the first contract signed by The Beatles all go on sale Thursday in a major auction of music memorabilia.