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Protests at Climate Summit; Heated Debate on Climate Change; At a Theater Near You; Coming Out on DVD; Daily Bloodshed in Juarez
Aired December 12, 2009 - 16:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
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FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: Hello again, everyone. I'm Fredricka Whitfield at the CNN Center in Atlanta. New trouble for Tiger Woods. Advertisers back away.
President Obama takes on the banks. How much regulation is necessary?
And "A Single Man," one of the new movies out this weekend. All right.
He's one of the best known athletes in the world. Tiger Woods seemed to turn up everywhere, from personal appearances to magazine ads, to television commercials. Well, now even that appears to be changing.
In a statement released yesterday, Woods admitted that he has cheated on his wife and said, "after much soul searching, I have decided to take an indefinite break from professional golf. I need to focus my attention on being a better husband, father, and person."
Meanwhile, Gillette, which has featured Woods in ads since 2007, says it's changing its marketing plans. Gillette's statement reads in part, "we fully support him stepping back from his professional career and taking the time he needs to do what matters most. We wish him and his family the best. As Tiger takes a break from the public eye, we will support his desire for privacy by limiting his role in our marketing programs." The developments follow widespread reports of Woods' marital infidelity.
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STEPHEN A. SMITH, JOURNALIST: These come across as a bit phony, to say the least. That's just being kind about it. It come out with the cockamie (ph) story that he came out originally as opposed to telling the world that it was a personal issue, mind your business, and leaving it at that. I think that made him look relatively weak.
And then he tried to talk about his wife being a hero and tried to deflect the attention away from her. That was admirable because she probably in my estimation anyway - she probably was beating him down which is why he ultimately got in the accident because he was a bit woozy before he jumped in the Escalade. That's just my opinion.
But time after time again whether it was him or his P.R. machine, clearly, he was given some bad advice or he decided to follow some things that were just simply unwise and he came across as a bit phony and then every day it seemed a different woman was coming out. That just made him look that much more worse.
So, clearly, his image has taken a major, major hit. It'll be a long time, if ever, before he recovers in that regard. But he's still the best golfer in the world and as long as he wins, he will continue to make money.
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WHITFIELD: And much more on the Tiger Woods' scandal. In just a few minutes, I'll speak live with (Connell Barrett) of "Golf" magazine about the impact Woods' latest move may have on the sport.
President Barack Obama says the sharp decline in job losses last month is a positive sign the economy is recovering. But in his weekly radio and internet address, the president said the recovery process is just beginning and he urged Congress to pass reform measures to ensure irresponsible financial practices are not repeated.
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BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: The special interests and their agents in Congress claim that reforms like the Consumer Financial Protection Agency will stifle consumer choice, that updated rules and oversight will frustrate innovation in the financial markets. But Americans don't choose to be victimized by mysterious fees and changing terms and pages and pages of fine print.
And while innovation should be encouraged, risky schemes that threaten our entire economy should not. We can't afford to let the same phony arguments and bad habits of Washington kill financial reform and leave American consumers and our economy vulnerable to another meltdown.
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WHITFIELD: Those tough words come as the president gets ready to meet with banking executives on Monday. Kate Bolduan reports they should expect to get an earful about tight lending practices.
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UNIDENTIFIED MALE: See you soon. Take care. Bye.
KATE BOLDUAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Andy Shalal (ph) has a rare story in tough economic times. His businesses, Bookstore Restaurants around Washington, are thriving.
ANDY SHALAL: Washington is a political town. It's a literary town. It's a town that really needs this kind of place. And I think it's been very successful because of that.
BOLDUAN: Shalal is looking to expand and add about 40 employees, but despite good business, the economy is still holding him back. He can't get a loan.
SHALAL: I am a growing business. I have a track record. I've been in this business for a long time. I have good assets, great cash flow, great credit, and yet I still have a hard time trying to get enough money to be able to grow my business.
BOLDUAN: The harsh reality many small businesses face and something President Obama is now promising to tackle. White House officials tell CNN Mr. Obama will meet Monday with chief executives of some of the nation's biggest banks including Citigroup, Wells Fargo, and the Bank of America. His message?
OBAMA: Look, you have a responsibility now, now that we have pulled you back from the brink, to help make sure that Main Street is actually getting the kinds of loans that it needs.
BOLDUAN: But the banks say it's much more complicated than that at a time when Congress is considering sweeping changes to the banking regulatory system. Scott Talbot represents some of the country's largest financial firms.
SCOTT TALBOT: Banks are lending to small businesses. There are two challenges here. One is that small businesses aren't borrowing as much as they used to. They're holding back. Second of all, you've seen an increase or tightening of the credit standards. So banks are cautious about lending in terms of who the borrower is. We're looking to make good, solid loans that can be repaid.
BOLDUAN: The Obama administration has also proposed redirecting unused TARP funds to help increase lending to small businesses. Andy Shalal says whatever the solution he just hopes to start feeling the ripple effect soon.
SHALAL: You need to really give that money back to that source that's going to provide the most amount of jobs, the most amount of economic stimulus for the economy, which is small businesses.
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WHITFIELD: And Kate Bolduan joins us now from the White House. Kate, what else is the president expected to discuss in Monday's meeting?
BOLDUAN: Hey, there, Fredricka. Well, when the president meets with bank executives Monday, the official White House schedule says that they will discuss their shared interest in economic recovery, the need to increase lending to small businesses and financial regulatory reform.
White House officials though are a little more blunt telling CNN that the president will pretty much lay it out. That he will say that the banks were saved for the greater good, not their own profit margins and it's time for them to pitch in.
WHITFIELD: All right. Kate Bolduan at the White House, thank you.
BOLDUAN: Of course.
WHITFIELD: So after the president meets with banking executives on Monday, he'll welcome the president of Lebanon to the White House mid week. Then the president holds meetings at the White House. And then on Thursday, he is due to leave for Copenhagen to attend the climate change summit. The president is scheduled to return to Washington on Friday. Very quick trip.
All right. Protests in Copenhagen, by the way. What's heating up? The global warming debate.
And Houston holds an election. Will its next mayor be a lesbian? We'll take a look.
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WHITFIELD: All right. He is one of the best known athletes in the world. Tiger Woods seemed to turn up everywhere, from personal appearances to magazine ads to television commercials. Things appear to be changing.
Joining us from New York the "Golf" magazine editor at large, Connell Barrett. Good to see you. So Gillette has said, OK. We're going to phase Tiger Woods out. Kellogg's is saying, we're actually not going to use him for now. Have you ever seen such a fall from grace so quickly? It seems like there was a meteoric rise over the years, Tiger Woods, Tiger Woods, Tiger Woods, and now in just a week this has happened.
CONNELL BARRETT, EDITOR AT LARGE, "GOLF MAGAZINE": I feel like we're in the middle of a long, surreal golf dream, a very bad dream, a nightmare for Tiger woods. I've never seen anything like this in the history of golf, and if - have you to go back to, say, the scandalous stories involving much more serious crimes - O.J. Simpson, Pete rose betting scandals, to see an athlete who's fallen so far so quickly. However, I will say -
WHITFIELD: Go ahead. We're talking about extra marital affairs though now and it is taking a giant impact on his image.
BARRETT: It is. His image is forever changed. However, he still has a time and steps he can take to repair it. I think we saw the first step yesterday when he made the announcement that he's indefinitely leaving the PGA tour and golf. I think that's his first move is to get off of the golf course and get things right with his wife.
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WHITFIELD: First move. Wait a minute. This is like the third statement, though. The first one was, you know, it's all my fault. It won't happen again. The second one was, OK, there were transgressions. And now it's, here's the word. You know, an affair, cheated on my wife, and so I have to concentrate on my family and, you know, my wife, my home life. It just seems as though he or people around him were trying to figure out, what do we say? What do we do? Maybe it will go away. By the way, it's not going away. It seems like it's worsening.
BARRETT: He had his head in the sand for the last two weeks. You're absolutely right. However, now he's taking action or he's saying he's taking action. He's quitting golf for the time being, and that's huge. It's something I'd never thought I'd see for any reason other than injury such as last year when his left knee forced him out of golf. He seems to be finally taking this seriously. However, he's got a lot of work to do before he repairs his image.
WHITFIELD: Yes, it's huge for him but in a much bigger way golf has really profited from him. Every time he plays, ratings for the networks go up. Sales for products go up. What might his absence do? I mean, might it cause like a major dearth in all those things that I mentioned?
BARRETT: It's absolutely going to have a huge effect on the PGA tour. In golf terminology, it's a triple bogey. It's for the PGA tour, it's hitting it into the lake. You know, pick your term. It's going to be really ugly in terms of fan attendance which will plummet. Viewership will drop by the millions. Last year when Tiger played the PGA championship, a year after missing it, viewership was up 83 percent.
WHITFIELD: Wow.
BARRETT: So for 2010, without Tiger Woods, only the most die-hard fans are going to be watching golf. Casual fans, people who want to see Tiger, aren't going to go anywhere near it because they don't have the interest.
WHITFIELD: So Gillette for now. Kellogg's for now. What do you suppose might happen next in terms of all of those endorsements?
BARRETT: Well, I think the fact that Tiger has made a statement that he's going to take some action and get serious about this problem is going to help him in the long run with the sponsors. They can now take a hands off approach and say, well, because Tiger is not playing we're not necessarily going to severe our relationship or rip up our contracts.
However, we're not going to run his commercials. He's given them a get out clause in a sense because he's not going to be on the golf course.
WHITFIELD: Yes.
BARRETT: It's when he comes back to the golf course where they're going to have the opportunity to say whether or not they're going to stay with Tiger Woods. By then I think they will have spoken about this.
WHITFIELD: Sorry, you say when he comes back, it's not an if he comes back you do believe that he is coming back -
BARRETT: Oh.
WHITFIELD: Even though he says indefinitely.
BARRETT: He'll be back. Tiger Woods was meant to play golf. He's like a shark. He was meant to just devour golf courses, devour opponents. It's what he was meant to do. So he will be back. Whether or not it's in three months, six months, or a year, that we don't know. But we'll see Tiger again and he will dominate, I believe.
WHITFIELD: Connell Barrett, thanks so much, editor at large for "Golf" magazine. Appreciate it. And we'll be talking again about this because it really is kind in the beginning stages of what next for Tiger Woods, what next for golf, all that. All right. Thanks, Connell.
BARRETT: My pleasure.
WHITFIELD: All right. We're going to talk politics. And one major city for the U.S., is Houston ready for an openly gay mayor? That is the big questions in today's run-off election. As our Ed Lavandera reports voters must decide if they're still willing to support the gay city hall insider this time as mayor.
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ED LAVANDERA, CNN CORRESPONDET (voice-over): Annise Parker is a veteran of Houston's big city politics. She served on the city council, spent the last five years as the comptroller in charge of the budget. Before politics, she worked in Houston's oil and gas industry. That's what gets the most attention. The footnote is that Parker is openly gay. She's been with her partner for 19 years and they have two adopted children.
ANNISE PARKER, HOUSTON MAYORAL CANDIDATE: I have always stood up for the fact that I am gay and as part of the resume that I bring to the table, but it's just a piece of the package.
LAVANDERA: For months leading up to Saturday's run-off election, many Houston voters considered this campaign boring. That was until it became a two-way race between Annise Parker and Gene Loch, an attorney and civil rights activist.
(on camera): In the last few weeks, conservative groups and anti-gay activists have mounted an intense campaign against Annise Parker. They've thrown their support behind Gene Loch. Parker's sexual orientation had never really been an issue in this race but now many are wondering if this last-minute effort will hurt Parker's chances to making Houston the largest city in the country with an openly gay mayor.
(voice-over): Houston voters haven't always been that accepting of gay political issues. Just a few years ago Houston voters rejected a plan to offer benefits to same sex partners of city workers. And 24 years ago, anti-gay candidates ran what was called the straight slate in an unsuccessful effort to unseat a mayor who backed job rights for homosexuals.
Annise Parker was a young, political activist then. She says the experience made her want to work harder. She became president of Houston's Gay and Lesbian Political Caucus.
PARKER: Houston is a multiracial, multicultural, international city, and I think my election will send a message to the world that just kind of, Houston is a city that might surprise a lot of folks.
LAVANDERA: Parker and Loch share virtually the same positions on the issues. Houston political blogger Charles Kuffner says that makes the election a personality contest.
CHARLES KUFFNER, HOUSTON POLITICAL BLOGGER: It's kind of a matter of, you know, who do you really want in the driver's seat? You know, I as a voter believe that any of the top three candidates would do a decent job. It's a question of which one do I think, you know, will do the best job?
LAVANDERA: The latest poll shows Annise Parker with a lead in the race but with low voter turnout expected it's a question of which candidate's voters are the most passionate.
Ed Lavandera, CNN, Houston.
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WHITFIELD: Listen to this story from Indianapolis. A husband in need of medication for his sick wife walks into a pharmacy that is being robbed but he doesn't realize that. So here is his story.
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"TYLER," CUSTOMER: I didn't realize they even had a gun until later. It was silly because he had his hoodie up and over his head.
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WHITFIELD: There was even more confusion at the pharmacy. Before this event actually played out, the customer police referred to simply as "Tyler" says he thought he was being robbed, not the store.
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"TYLER": Just took his arms and shoulders and with force pushed him into the door, made sure he wouldn't swing at me, and he said to me, he's robbing the place.
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WHITFIELD: So then "Tyler" told police he ran to his car, called 911 as he actually drove away. Indianapolis police have not yet made any arrests in the very confusing case.
Rain, snow, cold? All of it. Lousy weather in so much of the country. But Jacqui Jeras is going to bring us sunshine right now because of your optimistic view, right?
JACQUI JERAS, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Yes. A lot of people have been having fun in the snow though. But you know, the southwest is really getting the brunt of the snow for today. The last couple days there were so many areas that got it so even the midwest, the northeast, are still kind of reeling and dealing with some very slick roadways. So that's something to keep in mind. And much of the country is just, you know, downright cold, too.
Take a look at these current temperatures. I mean, they're not a whole lot of places where the temperature is above freezing. Even New Orleans only 57. You know, that's chilly. My husband just called me by the way from the suburb of Atlanta telling me that it's sleeting. Yes.
WHITFIELD: Really.
JERAS: Yes. Well, over 35 degrees. There's a lot of cold air aloft.
WHITFIELD: I know he's a pilot. He was somewhere where there are snow drifts and all that. You know, giving us a more typical view of a cold place. But sleet in Atlanta?
JERAS: Yes. He saw them today.
WHITFIELD: Cold.
JERAS: Yes. I know. It is. You know, if that's not enough to give you a little chill, check out this video. This is from Thursday from one of our i-reporters, Brandon Sparks. This is from the Buffalo area. Check out the visibility or lack thereof. Just some incredible video. And take a listen to the wind, too.
JERAS: Isn't that brutal? Brandon says there's about 12 to 18 inches at his place, snow drifts over five feet tall and blizzard conditions for hours and hours. The roads were very unsafe. And he says they're still trying to clean up from this system. You know, take a look at some of the snowfall totals now, which are coming in off of the lakes.
Look at that. Almost 40 inches in High Market, New York. 30 inches in Middlebury. Redfield, big lake effect city snow there 28 inches and 23 inches there in Arcade. The good news is that the lake effects snow machines are starting to turn off a little bit right now. So we're watching that begin to move away.
But as I mentioned, a little sleet starting to move in. This rain across the deep south is going to start to turn into a freezing rain in the mix especially as you head into the higher elevations up toward the Appalachians. Out west, this is where the real money maker is in terms of snow. Boy, those skiers are probably loving this. Fresh powder. We could see as much as four feet in the higher elevations by tomorrow morning.
So winter storm warnings and advisories are posted all across the west for today and that system will be on the move towards the east. This is what tomorrow's forecast then looks like. More snow in the west. We'll see the rain into the valley areas. A little concern about flooding and mud flows in the burn areas outside of Los Angeles.
The nation's mid section staying mostly dry. You can see a little bit of flurry activity but probably not much more than just clouds along with this front but very cold conditions. So it's going to keep those roadways on the slick side. You know, even though the salt trucks get out there, Fredricka, and the plows clear things off, you get a little melting during the day sometimes and then the things freeze up once again at night. So you have to use a lot of caution traveling throughout the nation this weekend.
WHITFIELD: Just stay off those roads. You know? Stay inside with the heater cranking or a fireplace going. That's good stuff.
JERAS: Sounds like a plan.
WHITFIELD: All right. Thanks so much, Jacqui. Appreciate it.
All right. The cold, hard facts about getting money back from Bernie Madoff. It's been one year since his arrest. Investors are divided on a payback plan. And who should have access to Madoff's assets?
CNN's Michael Ware spends 24 hours in one of the world's most dangerous cities, as well.
And this killing field is a short walk from a U.S. border town.
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WHITFIELD: A look at our top stories right now. Tiger Woods says he is taking a break from golf to concentrate on family issues. The move comes after he admitted that he has cheated on his wife. One of Woods' major sponsors, Gillette says it is phasing the world's most valuable athlete out of its advertising.
An effort to put annual benefit caps in the Senate health plan is getting a second look. The White House on Friday said it is now looking to close a loophole that would allow benefit caps on insurance benefits in the Senate bill. The caps are strongly opposed by cancer advocates.
And President Obama says the nation's financial meltdown could have been avoided with clear rules for Wall Street that were actually enforced. In his weekly radio and internet address Obama praised Friday's House passage of financial reform legislation. The president says reforms are common sense but added, "common sense doesn't always prevail in Washington."
It was one year ago today that Bernie Madoff was arrested. In the end he got 150 years in prison for running a multi-billion dollar scam. Meanwhile, people who trusted him with their life's savings are still fighting to get even a little bit back.
CNN's Allan Chernoff has the story of two of those investors.
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ALLAN CHERNOFF, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Bennett Goldworth thought he was set for life when he retired three years ago at age 50. He bought a waterfront condo in Ft. Lauderdale and said goodbye to New York and his job selling real estate.
BENNETT GOLDWORTH, MADOFF VICTIM: I felt like I had everything I wanted in life. It was great. CHERNOFF: A decade of investing with Bernard Madoff gave Goldworth the financial security to enjoy the good life in Florida. Until Madoff's arrest.
GOLDWORTH: Hi, Scott. It's Bennett.
CHERNOFF: Today, Goldworth is back at the Corkran(ph) Group in Manhattan, grateful to be selling homes again. He is grateful also to be among the first to receive a full $500,000 insurance settlement from the Securities Investor Protection Corporation, which insured direct accounts of Madoff.
GOLDWORTH: I'm one of the fortunate ones. I was very happy. I really was very pleased.
CHERNOFF: But other Madoff victims like Judy and Don Rafferty, senior citizens who had to come out of retirement, have gotten nothing.
JUDY RAFFERTY, DENIED COMPENSATION: I felt as though we were cheated. I felt violated.
CHERNOFF: The Raffertys for years had withdrawn what they believed were earnings from their Madoff account. The trustee overseeing restitution Irving Picard said the Raffertys withdrew more than they invested and, therefore, are entitled to nothing.
RAFFERTY: They changed the rules in the middle of the game, which I don't think is fair at all.
GOLDWORTH: The net winners should be at the back of the line, you know. The first thing that should be addressed is that everyone get back everything they invested.
RAFFERTY: Because he got his money back. Why wouldn't he feel comfortable? It's the people who haven't gotten their money back that are not happy.
CHERNOFF: What bonded Bernard Madoff clients, victimization, now divides some of them. Investors like the Raffertys feel once again they're victims while other Madoff investors like Bennett Goldworth have received compensation to get back on their feet.
(on camera): So far the trustee has reviewed more than 11,000 Madoff victim claims and approved only about 1,600. That's less than 15 percent.
Allan Chernoff, CNN, New York.
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WHITFIELD: And it's not just world leaders converging on Copenhagen. Thousands of demonstrators are there as well. We'll take a look.
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WHITFIELD: Hundreds of protesters were arrested in Copenhagen today as they tried to turn up the heat in the battle against global warming. They were among the thousands who marched to the site of the Climate Change Summit demanding lawmakers turn their words into action.
Our Phil Black is there.
PHIL BLACK, CNN CORRESPONDENT: This is an impressive sight. Take a look. Tens of thousands of people have marched here through Copenhagen to the outskirts of the Bella Center where climate negotiations have been going on for a week. They've come here to try and send a message to negotiating teams inside to flesh out a deal by the end of next week.
This rally has heard rousing speeches, there has been candlelight, music, and dancing, and, overall, a very positive, optimistic, but urgent atmosphere.
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UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We know that the future of the world is being decided in these coming days, and the leaders have to understand (ph) how urgent it is and how important it is, and we have to remind them.
BLACK: Do you think that it can achieve something?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I really hope so. I think that all the good vibrations from the people here gathered must reach the people inside the building. I think it must.
BLACK: It took several hours for this crowd to march to this location, and there was some trouble. Danish police say they arrested hundreds of people, but it was, overwhelmingly, a large, peaceful event designed to send a powerful message to the world's leaders.
Phil Black, CNN, Copenhagen.
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WHITFIELD: If the US takes part in an international agreement on climate change, a Republican congresswoman says energy prices will soar.
During the GOP's radio and internet address, Marsha Blackburn of Tennessee said Democrats' cap and trade proposals to reduce greenhouse gases would hurt America's competitiveness in the global economy.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
REP. MARSHA BLACKBURN (R), TENNESSEE: Republicans are all for clean water, clean air, and clean energy. We just don't think we have to tax people out of their house and home to get there.
That's why we have proposed in all of the above energy strategy that says let's put every clean, responsible energy option on the table so we can create jobs, ease the strain on family budgets, and clean up our environment. (END VIDEO CLIP)
WHITFIELD: President Obama will make a cameo at the summit next week. He had planned to attend the start of the conference but changed his schedule. He is now scheduled to leave for the summit on Thursday, leaving from Washington and heading to the summit on Thursday and returning back to DC on Friday.
And just in time for the holidays, a new Disney animated movie. We'll take a look at "The Princess and the Frog" and other new releases.
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WHITFIELD: All right. Time now to see what's new at the movies this weekend. You know what happens at the holiday season, they all come out - pouring out.
Film critic and host of 'Turner Classic Movies," Ben Mankiewicz, joins us from Los Angeles. Good to see you, Ben. Lots of fun movies to talk about.
BEN MANKIEWICZ, FILM CRITIC: Yes. Good to see you, too, Fredricka. There are a lot of fun movies and more coming down the pike in the last couple weeks of the year.
WHITFIELD: All right, cool! Well, let's talk about this "Princess and the Frog" because all the little girls and little guys, too, are very excited about it this weekend and parents, too, because they're happy about a "G" movie they - they can actually take their kids to.
So let's talk about this cute little movie and hear a little taste of it as well. Let's listen in.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
PRINCE NAVEEN, THE PRINCESS AND THE FROG: This is exactly the answer! You must kiss me.
TIANA, THE PRINCESS AND THE FROG: Excuse me?
NAVEEN: You will enjoy it. I guarantee. All women enjoy the kiss of Prince Naveen. Come, we pucker.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
WHITFIELD: Ah, look at - you're looking at it adoringly. So, I think you were smitten as well by this movie. You like it?
MANKIEWICZ: I - I did like it and, of course, this is a historic piece of filmmaking from Disney. This is the first Disney animated feature to have a black princess, which has been long overdue. It is set in New Orleans during the jazz age. It is a multicultural setting. By the way, Oprah Winfrey voices the princess' mother.
It's a very simple fairy tale story. It's a young girl who accidentally - who kisses a frog, thinking she'll turn the frog back into a prince, but she turns into a frog, and...
WHITFIELD: Of course, everyone believes (ph) that.
MANKIEWICZ: Of course! It's the most - it's the most normal thing in the world. And then for 85 minutes there's some singing and dancing and crawling around the bayou as they try to become human again.
But it is long overdue, the fact that - that she's African-American isn't actually central to the story. It's just something you accept while watching it and, again, long overdue. It is sweet. No question that the kids are going to like it and the parents can tolerate it. It's nice and it looks really nice, too.
WHITFIELD: Is my little boy going to like it, or is it mostly a little girl kind of flick?
MANKIEWICZ: There's a lot of frogs talking, which I think boys will go for.
WHITFIELD: Oh, you think that?
MANKIEWICZ: So I think your little boy is safe watching it. I gave this movie a "B" and it - it's certainly worth seeing for kids.
WHITFIELD: OK, cool. So something you don't necessarily want to take your kids to, but it is about a little girl. "Lovely Bones", a fascinating book. I - I read it and - and loved it, and so now it's going to be on the silver screen.
MANKIEWICZ: Yes.
WHITFIELD: What were your thoughts?
MANKIEWICZ: Well, this is Peter Jackson's adaptation of Alice Sebold's 2002 book. A lot of people read it. A of people loved it.
The movie is very different from the book, and I think the changes that Peter Jackson makes to the film from the book really lessened the drama here. This is the sort of - the story is a bit all over the place.
It's a very heavy story about the murder of a 14-year-old girl. She's killed right at the beginning. In the book there's a sexual assault that's only implied in the film. But then we spend half the movie in sort of her fantasy world, which seems fit for like 12-year-old kids in an after-school special.
There are a couple powerful scenes, mainly those come from Stanley Tucci, such a good actor who plays the killer. But it's disjointed. It doesn't fit together. It's contrived. I think it's a real significant...
WHITFIELD: Oh! You are not seeing (ph) this. You don't like it.
MANKIEWICZ: I think it's a significant - significant failure. I gave it an "F". I think it's terrible. WHITFIELD: Oh my gosh! Well, you know I saw an interview with Susan Sarandon because she's in it as well and she - she actually encouraged - if you haven't read the book, you need to see the movie first. It will make the book make more - make sense to her, or is she just kind of plugging the book? I mean, plugging the movie?
MANKIEWICZ: I think they're grasping at straws. I think they're - she's good. She's always good. Stanley Tucci's good. Mark Wahlberg, Rachel Weisz - they're all fine. As a film, it's a failure.
WHITFIELD: Oh, dang!
OK. Well, "A Single Man." Did you like that? Was that a failure or is that an "A"?
MANKIEWICZ: That was not a failure. It was not an "A," although - and I don't like predicting Oscar nominations because I'm horrible at it. I would be surprised if Colin Firth, the star of "A Single Man," did not get nominated. He is terrific at playing a - a gay college professor in Southern California in 1962 during the Cuban missile crisis.
This movie is directed by fashion designer Tom Ford. It's his first film, and it really looks like it was directed by a fashion designer who knows how things should look and how people should look. It's a little too self-conscious in that sense, but it is good. Colin Firth is - is terrific.
I definitely think it's worth seeing. A real - if you liked "Mad Men", if you watched that show, it looks - the same set designers. It looks exactly the same. And for a directorial debut from Tom Ford, I - I call it a success. I gave this one a "B" too. Colin Firth gets an "A+".
WHITFIELD: Yes. Tom Ford getting lots of props on this one.
MANKIEWICZ: Yes. I mean, for a rookie director, it's - I'll say it, I've never directed anything, but he should be proud of himself and I'd be very interested to see what he does next. He's got a real visual sense.
WHITFIELD: Yes. And some say he's really - he's really kind of - he fits in that realm because, you know, you think of fashion. I mean, the directing of the fashion shows, so to speak, of, you know, the image, of Gucci and how he kind of helped, you know, bring that along and reinvigorated it, et cetera. So a lot of folks are giving him props...
MANKIEWICZ: It's a very image-conscious movie. Yes.
WHITFIELD: Yes. "Invictus." Let's listen to this one. We're talking about apartheid and we've got Clint Eastwood, who's directing it. You've got Morgan Freeman who plays Mandela. Let's listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: ... from the yard. It's right across the floor, and I could hear the wardens coming (ph).
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Oh, wow.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Can we see the president, sir?
MORGAN FREEMAN, PLAYING NELSON MANDELA IN "INVICTUS": Things got very bad. I found inspiration in a poem.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
WHITFIELD: OK. Do you like? Matt Damon, I hear his accent is just on point. Fantastic. Do you agree?
MANKIEWICZ: Yes, it is. I mean, you know, they both sound great. They're both - look, it's - it's Morgan Freeman playing Nelson Mandela, who may be the greatest man alive, and so it is inspiring. It's a little boilerplate as a sports movie. The - when I read the - when I read up on the - on the story itself about the 1995 Rugby World Cup in South Africa, which really helped unite the country.
And Nelson Mandela, there was enormous pressure on him to change the colors of the national rugby team, to change the name of the team, because the Afrikaners - the whites in South Africa - they loved this team, but, as a general rule, blacks hated it. They saw it as the team of their oppressors.
So, when he came to power, when finally blacks could vote in South Africa, the pressure was change the team, but he thought, no, I will not take that. I need the Afrikaners. I need their support if I'm going to bring this country together, and it is a true story and they win the World Cup, and it is a sort of, that part of it's inspiring.
It's good. It's Clint Eastwood. I mean, he's done better work as - this is a - this is a grander film. Most of his films are small. This is a big picture.
But it's good. I gave it a "B". I think it's definitely worth seeing.
WHITFIELD: OK. You've sold me on now 3 out of the 4 that we just reviewed.
MANKIEWICZ: (INAUDIBLE) are worth seeing. Yes.
WHITFIELD: And then there's more. In the form of DVDs, we're going to have you back. We'll talk about the DVDs and which to look for, which ones must you put in that stocking come the holidays.
MANKIEWICZ: Yes.
WHITFIELD: Ben Mankiewicz, thank you.
MANKIEWICZ: Talk to you soon.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK) WHITFIELD: All right. Just before the break, we talked about the movies you must see this holiday season. Now how about those DVDs that you must put in that holiday stocking?
Back with us right now, Ben Mankiewicz. Here are the DVD releases. Sorry, I just mixed up the order there. "Inglourious Basterds," "Hangover" and "G-Force."
First, "Inglourious Basterds" - must have?
MANKIEWICZ: I think better than not bad. I think just flat out outstanding.
This is Quentin Tarantino's sort of re-imagination of World War II with a band of Jewish Nazi hunters and it is - actually it's a very serious movie. I mean, it's fun in a sense. I mean - well, obviously, you know, when you're talking about the holocaust and Nazis, it's not generally a lot of fun. But, I mean, it's Tarantino, so it has that camp feel to it.
But he really sort of challenges us on our notions of what is terrorism and what - who is a terrorist and when is it appropriate to engage in these kind of acts? I - I just thought Christopher Waltz, who plays a Nazi in it who is terrifying and French, German, English and Italian. I'd be amazed if he didn't get an Oscar nomination.
I loved this movie. I think it's outstanding. It is vintage Tarantino and - and with a little extra twist. It's very talky, but it is engaging conversation and - and I love it more the more often I've seen it. I've seen it twice now and I'm looking...
WHITFIELD: And that comes with Quentin...
MANKIEWICZ: I'm looking forward to number three. Yes.
WHITFIELD: Yes. That comes with Quentin Tarantino, kind of that uncomfortable laugh. You know, you're not supposed to laugh at some of that stuff in "Pulp Fiction" but you do, kind of - and that one as well.
MANKIEWIC: Yes. Definitely.
WHITFIELD: All right. Well, how about "Hangover"? I mean, laugh out loud, just crazy, funny, stupid in a good way kind of movie - my opinion.
MANKIEWICZ: Definitely. I - I loved - I loved "The Hangover." I think everyone loved "The Hangover" by and large, and I - you're right. I mean, it is stupid, but funny but - but it's not sophomoric, "The Hangover," this story of four guys who go to Vegas for a bachelor party and - and have no recollection of their wild night and then they try to piece the night together with us. Directed by Todd Phillips who did "Old School".
You know, this movie could easily have been sort of sophomoric in design for frat boys and 17-year-olds, but it's a grownup comedy. It's very funny and - and it works on repeated viewings and I - I definitely recommend it.
WHITFIELD: And so, Ben, we're out of time, but real quick, thumbs up, thumbs down. "G-Force 3D". Like it or no?
MANKIEWICZ: Nope. How's that?
WHITFIELD: OK. Thumbs down. Ben Mankiewicz, thanks so much. Appreciate it. Talk next time.
MANKIEWICZ: Thanks, Fredricka.
WHITFIELD: Happy movie going.
A look at the top stories right now, the Annual Holiday Wreath Ceremony was held today at Arlington National Cemetery. Veterans spoke at the somber service commemorating their fallen comrades, and after the service volunteers placed wreaths on thousands of headstones. The final wreath was laid at the tomb of the unknowns.
The coffee shop where four police officers were ambushed in Parkland, Washington is now open for business. The store reopened at 8:14 AM, the exact time when the shootings took place nearly two weeks ago.
The place was packed with customers who said they wanted to show support for the officers and demonstrate that hate wouldn't win. The suspect was shot and killed by police two days after that attack.
And the battle to supply illicit drugs to the US has taken no bigger toll than on the city of Jaurez, Mexico. Warring drug cartels kill each other and innocent bystanders daily in this town.
CNN's Michael Ware spent 24 hours there as police responded to killing after killing.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
MICHAEL WARE, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): This footage is difficult to watch, these anguished cries impossible to forget, relatives entering this building, seeking the bodies of their loved ones, executed by a Mexican drug cartel.
You're witnessing the pain of the Mexican border town of Juarez, the frontline in the war on drugs. And this, a crime scene I just had to see for myself.
WARE (on camera): There's so much violence that occurs here in Juarez that the world just does not hear about, and now disconcerting to see this fresh paint here on these walls as an old woman makes her home in this building, for just two months ago, this literally was a corridor of blood.
This building had been a drug rehabilitation center, and one of the major cartels suspected that its rivals were recruiting foot soldiers from among the patients, so they came in this door and down this corridor, moving from room to room to room, executing everyone they found. While they're now trying to build a home, this is where 17 people died in yet another day of Juarez violence.
WARE (voice-over): Within two days of this attack, the death toll rose even higher when two survivors died in the hospital. And there is no discrimination to the slaughter. Under these clothes lies a 7- year-old American boy, his father the target, but the hitman chose not to let the child live.
On this day we're in Juarez to see the horrors for ourselves. It's just before dusk as I approach a fresh crime scene.
WARE (on camera): In Juarez, 1,600 people died from drug-related violence last year. This year, the total is already well over 2,000. And today's total is already at 12.
The man in that car was hit by cartel gunmen, riddled with eight bullets. His passenger tried to flee, but only made it that far.
WARE (voice-over): This was yet another afternoon of killing in Juarez, with a night of murder yet to follow.
WARE (on camera): It's only 9:00. We're now going and joining this police patrol.
Since the killings this afternoon that we saw, there's already been another homicide, bringing today's total to 13.
WARE (voice-over): Every night, joint patrols like this one between local and federal police and Mexican soldiers crisscross the city, trying desperately to stem the flow of blood.
WARE (on camera): Things were so bad that earlier in the year the Mexican president had to call in the military to help protect the city. For a short time, there was a lull in the violence, but it quickly returned.
Now it's worse than it's ever been before.
WARE (voice-over): By now, it's close to 10:00 PM, and the reports of violence are streaming in over the police radio.
WARE (on camera): The patrol has just received another call on the radio to some kind of incident. But those lights there, that's America - the US border. This reminds me just how close this war on drugs is being fought to American soil.
WARE (voice-over): But before the night is over, there is even more carnage to come. All this in our one afternoon and evening visit to this deadly city.
WARE (on camera): This time it's almost too much to bear. It's just after 11:00, and where you see those policemen gathered at that door, there's just been four more slayings, this time, all women.
The early reports are that a gunman walked in that door and executed all of them, one of them a 12-year-old girl, another one 14. And, in a gut-wrenching irony, all of this done with the American border crossing just here, 18 yards away.
There can be no more pertinent reminder of the Mexican blood that's being spilt in this war for the right to supply America's demand for illicit drugs.
Michael Ware, CNN, Juarez, Mexico.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
JACQUI JERAS, AMS METEOROLOGIST: And welcome back to CNN. I'm Meteorologist Jacqui Jeras.
A great opportunity for you star gazers out there is that the Geminid meteor showers are going to be taking place over the next couple of nights. The big peak for this is going to be tomorrow night. So Sunday night into Monday morning, where you could see as many as one to two per minute. So this is going to be the best display that we're expecting of the year, even better than the Leonid, which, by the way, was kind of a dud, last month.
So, if you love this, the optimal time is going to be 2:00 AM Monday morning, so it might be worth it to get out in the middle of the night. But make sure you bundle up.
Where you're going to be able to see it? Well, we think you're going to have some trouble across parts of the west with our storm system here, as well as into the northeast, but places like New Orleans, Dallas, over toward St. Louis, Minneapolis, Chicago, you should be able to have a great show.
So Fredricka, I know you're getting up in the middle of the night to watch this tomorrow night.
WHITFIELD: Oh, my! Really? OK. Why not? OK, why not?
JERAS: Show will (ph) be on - you know? It'll be good.
WHITFIELD: I like it. I like it. Will do. All right, thanks, Jacqui.
Coming up at the top of the hour, health care reform and a closer look at what has become of the public option. And does the bill stand a chance of passing?
Also, President Obama and the rift between him and the Congressional Black Caucus. Is his support among the black community changing? Don Lemon has those stories in today's headlines right here in the NEWSROOM.
I'm Fredricka Whitfield. Have a great evening.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
