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NATO Blamed for Deadly Attack; "Curiosity" Mission to Mars; Egypt's Pro-Government Protests; One Touch Music Anthology; Shoppers Behaving Badly; Developing Nerves of Steel; No Child Should Be Hungry; Actor Reflects on Offensive Remark; NATO Blamed for Deadly Attack; American Students Headed Home; Grandfather Bloodied During Arrest

Aired November 26, 2011 - 15:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.


FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: All right, now to the fury and fallout in Pakistan. After a deadly border attack, Pakistan has called for a review of its relationship with the U.S. and NATO. The government says NATO's helicopters killed 24 Pakistan soldiers at two military checkpoints during a raid. NATO officials admit it is highly likely they did.

Our Nick Paton Walsh is live from Kabul with more on this - Nick.

NICK PATON WALSH, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Absolutely.

They also have statements, interesting, but that it accepts it was highly likely that they - what they refer to as close air support caused this Pakistani deaths. There are some things that they wouldn't admit.

It does say there was an operation going on by Afghan and NATO forces on the Afghan side of the border hunting down insurgents. They called in air support and that's when this incident occurred. They wouldn't say whether it happened inside Pakistan or talk about numbers of dead Pakistanis.

But clearly an effort by NATO to try and begin the reconciliation process here as the Pakistanis come up with some exceptionally angry rhetoric towards Washington - Fredricka.

WHITFIELD: So, Nick, if Pakistan decides it's going to cut off some of the cooperation it has extended to the U.S. and NATO, where does Afghanistan play in this? How will it choose sides?

PATON WALSH: Well, the Afghans have their bed made really here with ISAF. I mean however much they talk about a future or they want to have a good relationship with Pakistan, there is still a way in excess of 100,000 NATO troops here. Huge amounts of money being poured into by the coalition into the economy here.

So there's not really much of a choice for Afghanistan in the short term future. I think also we need to bear in mind what really is happening in terms of Pakistani moves. They're cutting off supply routes. That's happened before. So NATO do have reservoirs here they can fall back upon where it to go on for weeks or months that could be damaging. And some of the other measures we heard of, too, are pretty much from the arsenal we're familiar with over this poor relationship in the last year or so. Things they've done before.

So while the rhetoric is bad and while the casualties are large, large numbers, we haven't really seen the Pakistanis take this to a new level because I think many observers consider the Americans and the Pakistanis kind of need each other at the end of the day when it comes to policing this border despite the enormous animosity that occasionally flares up between them that kind of have a relationship with, but they sometimes find they just can't go without each other - Fredricka.

WHITFIELD: Nick Paton Walsh, thanks so much from Kabul.

The U.S. and Pakistan have been trying to stabilize their relationship after more than a year of mishaps. In April, supplies to NATO forces in Afghanistan were halted for three days in protest over drone attacks.

In May, the U.S. announced Osama Bin Laden's death. Pakistan was not warned in advance of the raid.

In June, top U.S. Military Chief Admiral Mike Mullen admits significant cuts in U.S. troops in Pakistan.

And then in July, the U.S. suspended $800 million of military aid to Pakistan.

September, outgoing U.S. Admiral Mike Mullen accused Pakistan of supporting the Haqqani militant group in Afghanistan. Pakistan denied that.

A body found buried in a shallow grave in Ohio may be linked to the so-called "Craigslist Killer" there. The FBI is working under the assumption that it belongs to a man who has been missing for more than a week. He answered a fake Craigslist job ad. Authorities say one man who responded to the same ad was found dead, another escaped after being shot.

A judge in Aruba rejected prosecutor's request to hold U.S. citizen Gary Giordano in connection with the disappearance of his traveling companion, Robin Gardner. This means Giordano, who has been in custody since August, will be freed on Tuesday. Giordano denies responsibility for the woman's disappearance.

The federal government is investigating the Chevy Volt over fears the electric car's batteries may pose a fire risk. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration says the Volt lithium ion batteries could catch fire after a crash. So far there have been accidents involving fires and there is no recall. GM insists the car is safe.

And a tentative agreement was reached this morning to end the NBA lockout, but the players still have to ratify the deal. The plan is to start the basketball season on Christmas Day with a triple heard. There would be 66 games this season.

A tradition in baseball is coming to an end. The league announced this week that chewing tobacco will no longer be allowed around fans. Officials say if you've got it you got to conceal it like these players have in their back pockets.

And it weighs a ton and is about the size of a compact car and today NASA launched it into space. We're talking about the "Curiosity" rover that's on its way to search for life on Mars.

Our John Zarrella has more on the mission to the Red Planet.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JOHN ZARRELLA, CNN CORRESPONDENT (on camera): The Atlas 5 Rocket carrying the Curiosity rover lifted off right on time 10:02 A.M. from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station. After about 44 minutes, finally separation of the booster from the spacecraft and now at 22,000 miles per hour, Curiosity is on its way to the Red Planet and scientists hoping for some incredible insights in to life existing there.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The countdown went very smoothly. We worked a couple of minor issues, but none really on the launch vehicle or spacecraft. We're dealing with communications, and really threatened the weather or the clouds coming in because it was one of the constraints for this one.

ZARRELLA: We've talked a lot about the size of this rover. Now, the very first ones like Sojourner was about this big. Take a look at this. This is a mock up of a wheel off of Curiosity. The wheel is as big as the Sojourner rover was. And there's six of these on Curiosity.

So, this really is the Cadillac of rovers and scientists believe it's going to help them answer those age old questions, was life possible on Mars then and perhaps even now.

John Zarrella, CNN of Kennedy Space Center in Florida.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: And two separate protests in Egypt, one group wants the other to stay off the streets so life can return to normal.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: Checking other international stories now.

In Syria, clashes continue in spite of a government crackdown, an activist who's monitoring the situation in Syria claims at least 11 civilians including three children have been killed by Syrian forces today.

A man suspected in the disappearance of American high school student, Natalee Holloway, in Aruba will stand trial for the murder of another woman in Peru. Jordan van Der Sloot's Peruvian murder trial is set to begin in six weeks.

And in New Zealand, Christchurch residents are being allowed to return to Cathedral Square for the firs time since the devastating earthquake hit the country nine months ago. Christchurch officials say they hope residents can see firsthand what's being done to bring their city back.

And in Egypt, another protester has been killed in Cairo. Police say he was struck earlier today by a police truck as it was trying to flee the chaos. At least 42 people have died in Egyptian clashes in the past week.

While the anti-government protests get most of the headlines, CNN's Ben Wedeman reports not all Egyptian protests are against the government.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BEN WEDEMAN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): They called themselves Egypt's silent majority. It's hard to say if those who support the ruling military council are actually a majority but silent they are not.

Thousands of people cram Cairo's Abbassia Square to denounce more than 100,000 occupying Tahrir Square and demanding the army get out of the business of ruling this unruly country.

(on camera): It may not be as big as Tahrir. They may not be quite as many people as Tahrir, but this is the other side of the coin. Not everybody in this country is a revolutionary.

(voice-over): Running on next Monday's parliamentary election as an independent is Houssam Mansour.

HOUSSAM MANSOUR, PARLIAMENTARY CANDIDATE: For Tahrir is being supported for many reasons, many, many reasons. A lot of thugs, yes, yes.

You know, put yourself in the authority position. Put yourself. Yes, OK. Put yourself in the authority position, OK. I don't know who's the - who's the real revolutionist. I don't know who's the thug, you know? But in the chaos, everybody speaks. Everybody throws stones. Every - it just takes one stone to ignite it.

WEDEMAN: This neighborhood is home to many members of the police and the army and government officials. They still chant the army and the people are one.

It never happened in the history of Egypt that the army betrayed the people, says Retired Senior Police Officer Ragab Al-Saidi. From the time of Gamal Abdel Nasser until today, the army never let the people down.

Since the revolution the economy is way down, crime is way up. Beyond the world of Tahrir, for many Egyptians the revolution has lost its shine.

University Professor Kareem Kamel took part in the Tahrir demonstrations that toppled Hosni Mubarak, but he feels the country is going out of control.

KAREEM KAMEL, UNIVERSITY PROFESSOR: Our police is the last remaining institution along with the army. If these two institutions fall, anarchy is going to prevail in Egypt.

The only way - the only way to say whether the people in Tahrir or the people here represent Egypt is through elections.

WEDEMAN: The two competing narratives are heading for a showdown, whether at the ballot box or in the streets.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: And Ben Wedeman is joining us live now from Cairo. So it's night fall right now. What kind of activity if anything happening right now?

WEDEMAN: Well, there's still a fair number - number of people in Tahrir, more than 10,000. And of course, they are planning yet another million man march there tomorrow, just a day before the polls open for the parliamentary elections - Fredricka.

WHITFIELD: And are people excited as a whole about these parliamentary elections on Monday? Are they torn on that as well?

WEDEMAN: Well, everybody is talking about it. I wouldn't describe it as excited. The mood, however - in fact there's a good deal of worry that given all the commotion that's going on in this country, in Tahrir Square, up in Alexandria and other parts of Egypt, there's worry that there could be violence, a matter of fact - Fredricka.

WHITFIELD: Oh, my God. Sorry (ph). Ben Wedeman, keep us posted on that. Thanks so much.

Imagine finding all the music, video, the interviews and articles about your favorite musician all in one place. Sting is making that happen and others are following in his footsteps.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

STING, MUSICIAN: I would like to think that the best work is yet to come. I know that's a pretty big statement to make. But I'm serious about my craft. I've studied my craft. And so as you get older and wiser, you're supposed to get better. Even though it's pop music, I definitely think you can get better. That's my hope. That's my dream. I'd like to create something that people go wow.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: Oh, wow. People are always saying wow. It's Sting. He's turning 60 and he's talking about how he hopes his music, his best music is still to come.

All right, time for our gaming and gadget segment where we keep you up to date with ever-changing technology.

So you have albums. You have eight tracks maybe, cassettes and CDs of your favorite musicians and bands. Well now you can have all of this in one place, thanks to Sting.

Our technology analyst, syndicated writer, Marc Saltzman, joining us now via Skype from Toronto. Oh, my gosh this is so intriguing. Well, he really is an enterprising man from the very start, right, and he just keeps going.

MARC SALTZMAN, SYNDICATED TECHNOLOGY WRITER: Oh, absolutely. So, you know, not only is he an activist and of course a singer, songwriter, but, you know, the ex-front man for The Police has had a solo career so far.

WHITFIELD: Yes.

SALTZMAN: And now coining the term "Appumentary" with the folks that created this app for iPads and this is - here it's called Sting25. And an appumentary just as it sounds is a documentary that is an app. It's a downloadable application that you can run on your tablet and flick and tap your way through all of Sting's content over the last 25 years.

There's behind-the-scenes footage of him in a recording studio. There's - you can stream all of the music and have the option to purchase it from all of his solo albums. There's rare photos that are amazing. And my favorite feature is 60th birthday concert that you alluded to with the likes of Bruce Springsteen and even Lady Gaga singing "King of Pain" with Prince - sorry - not Prince - Sting. Prince has been in Toronto this weekend. He should do an app. He should do an app. WHITFIELD: Yes. He's got enough material.

SALTZMAN: Yes. He's got enough, of course.

So this is the Sting25 app. It's free and I think it's great. It's setting the bar very high for what artist can do.

WHITFIELD: Yes. Oh, my goodness. So I imagine other artists are thinking, hey, that's an inventive great idea. I want to do the same. Who else is on board?

SALTZMAN: Right. So there are other apps that you can download. You know, Katie Perry has one. It's not really documentary.

But there's a great one from the band Pink Floyd that is not an official app, but it is called "This Day in Pink Floyd." So it's modeled after this day in history approach where you've got facts by date, 365 facts per year. But there's so much more to it. This one it looks like, here I think we've got some pictures as well.

So this is based on Pink Floyd's long and illustrious career. It's got notes for all 167 studio tracks, plus it's got lots of rare photos. It's got an exclusive video performance from the late '60s. It's got lots of great info if you're a fan of the band, and I am, I love Pink Floyd.

So this one is 2.99. This one isn't free. And, again, it's not an official app, but it's got more - you know, it's got thousands of facts on the band and interactive quizzes. And even ringtones and wall paper to customize the smartphone or tablet.

WHITFIELD: Wow. So, now, is this is about revenue or is this about these artists saying I, you know, want to make money off my history as opposed to somebody else documenting my history?

SALTZMAN: Well, it's both. Yes, great question. And it's no surprise that the music industry has seen a decline in CD sales over the last decade or more. So, they are looking to other things, merchandise even more, you know, product placement in music videos. There's of course live concerts, endorsements.

So apps are the next thing. I mean digital distribution is here to stay. Buying and renting a piece of plastic for a documentary, those days are slowly coming to an end. And, you know, apps are just so easy to acquire. You can buy it just, you know, with a couple of finger taps.

And it's not just smartphones and tablets. We're now seeing computers and even smart TVs, which we talked about last weekend, Fredricka -

WHITFIELD: Yes. Wow.

SALTZMAN: -- how you can download apps to your TV. And it's got rich multimedia capabilities. So it's not just about information and photos, but videos and interactive elements like games and quizzes.

So definitely this is a revenue stream. The Sting app, while it's free, is sponsored by Chevrolet and American Express. You see that, it's not, you know - it's not all over the place but when you launch the app you see that. Then you have like earlier an option to buy the music that you're streaming. So you do need an Internet connection if you're streaming it and hear the whole song -

WHITFIELD: Oh, good.

SALTZMAN: -- that you can buy it. So this is a revenue stream.

WHITFIELD: Yes, sure. They want to make some money but the appumentary is free. That's remarkable.

So might this be the future perhaps of music releases, that this is the way some of the artists they kind of want to go?

SALTZMAN: Well, I think you have to offer more bang for your buck. If you are a music fan, you are probably reluctant to shell out $10 to $20 for just an album of music. So you'll even see on iTunes that they're now throwing in a digital booklet. They're throwing in multimedia like music videos and interviews and alternate versions of the tracks. You have to offer more.

The music industry wants to survive. Multimedia is the key. And making it easy and inexpensive to download an app for your favorite digital device is certainly a great start.

WHITFIELD: All right. Marc Saltzman, always good to see you. Thanks so much coming to us from Toronto. SALTZMAN: Thanks, Fred.

WHITFIELD: All right. Take care.

For more high tech ideas and reviews, just go to CNN.com/Tech and look for the Gaming and Gadget tab.

And stay tuned. It's movie time. We'll look again at some other movies. This time limited releases including George Clooney in "The Descendants."

And Consumer Reports is out with its naughty and nice holiday list. It's a breakdown of companies with good and not so good shopping policies. Here are some of the nice ones. Amazon.com made the list for taking a stand against hard to open product packaging. Costco for automatically extending the manufacturer's warranties on TVs and computers. And REI for accepting returns or exchanges at any time for any reason.

Can you guess the companies that made Consumer Reports' naughty list? They are up next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: All right. Want to have a pleasant shopping experience for the holidays? Consumer Reports say shop at these places right here, this list. Went over it a little bit earlier, part of the nice companies list.

Well now for the naughty ones. Airtran made the list for charging extra for selecting a seat online. Verizon Wireless is called naughty for notifying customers they've gone over their minutes after the fact instead of giving them heads-up. And Radioshack, Consumer Reports says the company sometimes charges different prices for the same item.

So what about customers who have been naughty? One psychologist tells why they do it right after these top stories.

Pakistan will reassess its relationship with the U.S. and NATO in the wake of a deadly border raid. Twenty-four Pakistan soldiers were killed at two military checkpoints. NATO admits it is highly likely their choppers were involved. Pakistan's decision to re-evaluate its arrangements with the U.S. does not surprise an expert on the region.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PETER BERGEN, CNN NATIONAL SECURITY ANALYST (via telephone): The Pakistanis have done it before when - I mean, they have every reason to be quite angered by this incident. It's not the first time it's happened. And this is one of the ways that they can put pressure on the United States to, you know, to make sure it doesn't happen again or to investigate what happened.

But, you know, typically shutdowns have happened for, you know, a day or two. You know, we'll see pictures of hundreds of (INAUDIBLE) backing up at the border because hundreds go over everyday as this thing continues.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: And it looks like we'll have an NBA season after all. Basketball Commissioner David Stern said a tentative agreement was reached this morning to end the lockout. The plan is to start the season on Christmas Day with a triple header. But players still have to ratify the deal.

And NASA launches a mission to Mars this morning. The rocket carrying the rover named "Curiosity" will take 8-1/2 months to get there. It's about the size of a compact car. "Curiosity" will look for life in Martian rock and soil samples for about two years.

And this Alabama sky diver is taking this jump then taking it again until he has jumped 100 times in a single day. He's doing it to remember Mike Spann, the first American killed in combat in Afghanistan back in November of 2001. Money raised in the event will go towards a trust fund for Spann's children.

And these Santas hit the streets to remind New Yorkers of the homeless this holiday season. Along with the standard ho, ho, ho, the Santas also chanted feed the homeless. After marching from Rockefeller Plaza to East 59th Street, the Santas set up their trademark chimney boxes and solicited donations.

Black Friday frenzy was in full force yesterday with incidents of violence reported across the country. From Los Angeles to Fayetteville, North Carolina and Kissimmee, Florida, a Walmart employee in Rome, New York said she was trampled by a crowd of shoppers.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

LAURIE UNDERWOOD, INJURED WALMART EMPLOYEE: ... shoved down and in the process hurt my back, my hips, my ribs and my - I got kicked in the face.

It was just like a stampede, yes. All you heard was just - just as if there was a whole herd of animals coming through there. People everywhere.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: So in this season of good cheer, why do so many people turn into monsters at the mall?

I spoke with Clinical Psychologist Dr. Jeff Gardere to get some insight on shoppers who behave badly.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: What's happening? What's the explanation behind this kind of behavior?

DR. JEFF GARDERE, CLINICAL PSYCHOLOGIST: Well, I think part of it is you look at the economy, people are really desperate and now you throw in this mix of Black Friday and all of the hype and the brainwashing, and I think people are whipped into a frenzy psychologically, physically it's a major event. It's an opportunity to hoard perhaps some products that they really don't actually need and some that they have to have and it becomes really a deadly mix and then you have that mob mentality with the anonymity and lack of - of conscious.

WHITFIELD: So this mob mentality or even this kind of competitive nature, is it in all of us?

GARDERE: It is in all of us, but we're also civilized human beings and we know when it's time to turn it on and when to turn it off.

But what happens is when we have this kind of advertising and these retailers use these incredible sales, 40 percent, 50 percent, 60 percent, 70 percent off, people at times can't help themselves.

And you're right, it is this whole competitive nature. People get together because they are with other people and they are fighting to get these products.

They become even more competitive and then they actually begin to become inappropriate, very rude or even some criminal very aggressive behaviors.

WHITFIELD: And no one can forget what happened back in 2008 when at a Wal-Mart a worker was trampled to death by people who rushed through the doors and were just so anxious, you know, to get to those sales and it took a long time before anyone realized that there was somebody on the ground injured, which ultimately led to his death.

So, when you see examples like this, and even examples that we talked about earlier that have happened today since midnight, for example, do you feel that it's time for the retailers to take more responsibility and say, you know what?

Maybe people can't behave responsibly and we shouldn't have these sort of Black Friday or midnight or 6:00 a.m. rush for a bargain or you only have two hours to take advantage of a particular bargain?

GARDERE: Fredricka, I think you're absolutely right. The retailers do have to take responsibility. They really do need to understand that in this particular economy people are very, very desperate.

They still can make the money, maybe not as much as they want to make but you also have to be responsible for your fellow human beings, especially in a society where people have a lot of desperation.

Therefore, they shouldn't be pushing them so much and using psychological tactics to get them to feed into this desperation and competitive spirit. They should actually work with them, have better crowd control and if they need to teach them better ways to shop where at the same time they can be kind to their fellow shoppers.

(END VIDEOTAPE) WHITFIELD: All right, Jeff Gadere, thank you. Millions of people are traveling this holiday weekend as well. The men and women who make sure those planes take off safely have a big job.

Air traffic controllers have to undergo hundreds of hours of training. Our Sandra Endo finds out how tough that job is.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SANDRA ENDO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: We're here in a simulation lab where air traffic controllers train. We're here to train at LAX airport and you're going to show me how to land a plane, right?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We're going depart a couple of airplanes.

ENDO: OK, send some off.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: OK, here we go. What you see out the window is exactly what you see when you're in the tower. There's no conflictions, scan your runway. Make sure no traffic, issue take off clearance.

ENDO: Southwest 416 cleared for takeoff. It is normal your hands are sweaty?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes, at the beginning it is.

ENDO: This is stressful.

ROLAN MOREL, SUPPORT MANAGER, AIR TRAFFIC CONTROL: Each strip represents an aircraft and a flight plan. It's like a road map in the sky. We need move to these airplanes here across this runway because the guy on short final right here will not be able to land. So better make transmission now Southwest 725 go around.

ENDO: Southwest 725 go around. So the poor people on that plane are circling the airport.

MOREL: The runways are these lines here. There are two lines there and then you'll also notice two lines here. The white are the actual aircraft that are coming in.

This is a ground radar display. This shows a controller exactly what you see as you're looking out the window. Did you watch him land? You should have made sure the runway was clear when he landed.

ENDO: This is very hard.

MOREL: It's extreme concentration. It's a mental game. It does get a little tiring.

ENDO: Redwood 865 cross runway two for left.

MOREL: Now you're getting it. We can introduce rain with lightning. You also have the capability to show snow. Working in the dark, it adds a tremendous amount of complexity because you can't see as well. ENDO: Taka 531 cleared for takeoff. Those people are happy.

MOREL: Yes, they're happy.

ENDO: Cactus 297 runway two for left, cleared for takeoff.

MOREL: We're out of airplanes.

ENDO: That is a great feeling. Thank you.

MOREL: You're welcome.

ENDO: Sandra Endo, CNN, Los Angeles.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: OK, maybe she could get that job if there's an opening. Many of us here said no. We wouldn't be able to survive in that. All right, movie reviews coming up next.

All right, we'll look at some of the limited releases including "My Week with Marilyn."

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: All right. This holiday weekend, there are several films that are in limited release. Movie critic, Matt Atchity with rottentomatoes.com is joining us again from Los Angeles.

OK, so let's start with the movie that is getting a whole lot of attention, which is why I'm very surprised it has a limited release. We're talking about "My Week with Marilyn."

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Marilyn, darling, Larry tells me that you are quite, quite superb. I'm wild with jealousy.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: OK, Matt, was she a convincing Marilyn?

MATT ATCHITY, EDITOR-IN-CHIEF, ROTTENTOMATOES.COM: She absolutely is. About halfway through movie you're forgetting you're watching Michele Williams playing Marilyn Monroe. You think you're just watching Marilyn Monroe. It's a great performance and great performances all around in this particular film.

Kenneth Branagh as Sir Laurence Olivier, that was Julie Ormond playing Olivier's wife, Vivien Leigh. Judi Dench shows up in this as actress, Sybil Thorndike.

This is about the production of a movie called "The Princess and the Show Girl," the movie that Marilyn Monroe shot before "Some Like It Hot." It's the story of Colin Clark's experience with her. He's played by a gentleman named Eddie Redmayne in this. It's a good little movie. I really enjoyed it. It's a fascinating look at how movies were made back then and the trouble that people had working with Marilyn Monroe.

You know, the movie gets predictable at times, but for the most part I think it's really worth seeing especially to watch this transcended performance by Michele Williams.

WHITFIELD: OK, so what was your rate on this one?

ATCHITY: I would give at it "B." I think it's really solid. I think that we're going to see at the very least some Oscar nominations for the cast come Oscar season.

WHITFIELD: So what is the premise of these limited releases when you have a movie like this with this kind of star power, why is it movie houses would say we'll only send to it a few cities?

ATCHITY: In a weekend like this where you have three really big wide releases of opening up, part of it is trying to find the theater space. One of the strategies with a movie like this is that you release it in the major cities only and create kind of a big buzz.

So that way the studio can then get the word out and expand into wide release. Typically, they start in a few cities and then takes a couple of weeks to get out. That way people can hear from their friends, I saw this. I've seen it. Buzz from your friends is the best kind of marketing.

WHITFIELD: Right, OK, another movie getting that same kind of treatment, "A Dangerous Method." This was Kara Knightly.

ATCHITY: Kara Knightly, Michael Fassbender, another great cast. This is about Carl Young and Sigmund Freud.

WHITFIELD: Let's take a peek.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I thought I should take the initiative.

UNDENTIFIED FEMALE: Don't you think there's something male in every woman and something female in every man or should be.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: Interesting. OK, not a lot of dialogue in that clip, but we get the message. OK, what do you think?

ATCHITY: I like this movie a lot. This is another really interesting movie. This is, you know, another historical drama. It's the story of Carl Young and his relationship with Sigmund Freud.

And Kara Knightly plays the patient. Sabina who comes between them. This has got some great performances in it. I actually think that Kara Knightly is the standout actress here. It's a very bold, daring performance that she turns in here.

The movie gets a little slow in spots, but for the most part I think it's good. I think Kara Knightly will definitely get an Oscar nomination for this film.

It is and it's directed by David Cronenberg. If you remember the history of violence he transformed himself. He's not in horror movies anymore. He's got a bit more dramatic.

WHITFIELD: So real quick your grade on that one?

ATCHITY: I give at it "B." I think this is another one definitely worth seeing.

WHITFIELD: Another one that's already getting Oscar buzz, George Clooney starring in "The Descendants." There are other people in the movie too, but he's the one who's getting, you know, the most buzz on this. Let's take a quick peek at it.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: OK. What's going on this week is really a family matter. Do you understand? Sid is not going to be interested in meeting your grandparents.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Dad, I told you he was going to be with me. I'll be a lot more civil with him around.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: OK, so this one, this is a case of George Clooney's character, his wife dies and is reunited with his kids. And the kids reveal to him, guess, what, mom wasn't that faithful --

ATCHITY: This is family drama. It's relatively heavy. It's a family drama. It's got a lot of comedy in it. It's directed by Alexander Paine who brought us "Sideways."

So it's got that same kind of feeling to it. It definitely mixes comedy and drama. This is a really sweet movie. It's really anchored by two fantastic performances one by George Clooney.

You know, he's looking a little doughy in here. He's not the suave, debonair George Clooney although, you know, it's still George Clooney.

He still looks great and then the woman, the girl playing his daughter is fantastic in this. We see some great performances. This is a very moving film. George Clooney is the favorite for an Oscar nomination this year.

WHITFIELD: So your grade on this?

ATCHITY: And I give this an "A." This is a must see movie. It's really good.

WHITFIELD: OK, you brought us a lot of great movies, wide release, limited release all weekend long. So we've got a lot to choose from.

ATCHITY: Yes, you can spend your whole weekend. Avoid that Black Friday craziness.

WHITFIELD: That's right instead just go to a movie. All right, Matt, thanks so much. Always good to see you. Check out all of Matt's grades and reviews by going to rottentomatoes.com.

In Asian that focuses on super size meals, millions of people are still hungry. One chef is making sure kids in his neighborhood have at least one good meal a day. Our top Ten CNN Hero is next.

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WHITFIELD: The Thanksgiving holiday focuses a lot on food, but millions of children in this country are hungry. Bruno Serato is a chef in Los Angeles.

When his mother came to visit him from Italy in 2005, they noticed a small boy eating a bag of potato chips. Serato began serving pasta to children who live in motels and hotels.

He serves the food seven days a week. Bruno Serato is a top Ten CNN Hero. He joins me from Los Angeles. Good to see you again.

BRUNO SERATO, CNN TOP 10 HERO: Nice to see you again.

WHITFIELD: So this must feel really incredible because you were taking a lot of joy in seeing how your food has been changing children's lives and now you're a Top Ten Hero, which means you may potentially able to help even more kids.

SERATO: I know. I would love to help every boys and girls clubs in America, which are 4,000 clubs to follow Anaheim Boys and Girl Club leader. With my restaurant here, we serve 300 every night.

Imagine 4,000 clubs in the United States of America, chefs in their own cities, we could feed millions of kids in America. The kids we're feeding are American kids. We should have no kids going to bed hungry at night time. It is my goal to get other clubs of boys and girls to follow our steps.

WHITFIELD: So, what happened that first time when you served a meal to these young kids after your mom convinced you that this would be a great idea? What did you see in these children's faces and eyes when you handed out those first servings?

SERATO: I mean, you can see they were starving. In fact, when I go there, especially in the summer time, they don't go school. Summer time, they don't even eat lunch at school. At night time, they are starving more in the summer time.

The first time when I went there and I see them the way they react when I give them my spaghetti or ravioli, they open their eyes like this. It's food for them. Remember if you don't eat tonight, we're starving. Remember children running along they are really hungry. I would love to see them when I feed them because I can see their face with a big smile and this food is dinner for them also. That shouldn't be happening in our own country, which is getting worse.

WHITFIELD: Have you always had enough for the kids or did you -- were you surprised at all that the need was much greater than you initially anticipated?

SERATO: What surprised me -- surprised me during the summer time. Winter, I feed them every night. We have over 300 kids, but not too long ago, this weekend, Thanksgiving night, day before Thanksgiving there were not a school day.

I realized I didn't have enough pasta. I called the restaurant. I said prepare me another 10 pound. We don't have enough. The children are asking can I take some home. I can take some home. That really surprised me.

When you see a kid asking if he can take pasta home, this is for your brother, for your sister. I have a younger brother at home, for my mom. That means there's an adult starving. As you know my goal is to feed the children first. That's what I concentrate on every single day. We have a lot of them. They are year by year, they add more.

We're up to 350 today, which is a big difference. I hope it stops, because if it doesn't stop, we won't feed all of them. It won't stop because we have children in America who are starving.

WHITFIELD: You're helping them fill their tummies in a very big way.

SERATO: They come for dinner and we feed them all. We say "ciao."

WHITFIELD: Ciao. Good luck to you on the big night when we honor all the Top 10 CNN Heroes. Bruno Serato, thanks so much. Congratulations.

The 2011 Top 10 Heroes will be honored Sunday, December 11th right here on CNN hosted by our own Anderson Cooper. You don't want to miss that. It is an incredible, moving evening. You will be inspired by these heroes.

Of course, you can cast your votes on your tablet, on your mobile phone or you can just go to cnnheroes.com right now.

It has been more than four years since actor Isaiah Washington and his hit television show "Grey's Anatomy" parted ways since he made his controversial remark. He shares his thoughts on the controversy now, face-to-face coming up.

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WHITFIELD: People still call him Dr. Burke from the hit TV show "Grey's Anatomy." Actor, Isaiah Washington tells me face-to-face four years after his controversial departure from "Grey's" that was one of the most powerful roles he's ever played.

He left the show after a highly publicized war of words. An argument Washington maintains it was taken out of context. In his book, "A Man from Another Land," Washington explains briefly that seismic speed bump was not career ending. Instead, it shifted his focus.

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UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You be the one to tell Hershey's going to be a widow.

WHITFIELD: So it was never about you calling T.R. Knight the "f" word in reference to his sexual orientation.

ISAIAH WASHINGTON, ACTOR: Never. Never. It's about people who have agendas. It's about the people who are insecure. It's about people listening with filtered ears. It's about people who want to hear what they wanted to hear. You know, with all the words that was said at that time, I probably have a lot of women organizations coming at me, too.

WHITFIELD: You feel like you've recovered? You are back in that point in your career where you were?

WASHINGTON: I don't think about it. You have to remember, I became an actor to change the world, to change a perception what I thought was negative for an African-American male. In the last four years, I get offers on Facebook. I don't have a manager, a PR person, an agent --

WHITFIELD: Because you let them go.

WASHINGTON: I let them all go.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: However, Isaiah Washington remains busy. He continues his book tour promoting "A Man from Another Land," and over the last few months, Washington has produced two movies and one documentary.

And you also see him on the big screen soon in the movie called "The Suspect" and "Area Q" and coming up at 4:00 Eastern today, Isaiah Washington face-to-face on his favorite movie roles dating back to the 1990s.

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