As talks of Wal-Mart moving into New York City become more intense, the people behind the Taiwanese CGI videos decided to give the story an over-the-top treatment. Below, watch as Wal-Mart bigwigs shoot fire at mom and pop shops (and presumably innocent pedestrians/potential customers!) from their Godzilla machine. more ›

This rather mesmerizing little video was made "using a digital stills camera to create a stop motion animation." Most of the images depict NYC from the land, air, or water, but there are some other urban areas mixed in there, too. (Anybody know where they are?) There's not much more to add here, except to caution that what you are about to see has the serious potential to trigger a potent acid flashback, so have a beanbag chair and a copy of Meddle cued up. [Via Kottke] more ›

Henry Selick's new 3D stop-motion animation film Coraline is adapted from a story by Neil Gaiman, who's perhaps best known for his groundbreaking graphic novel series The Sandman. Gaiman began writing the story in the early '90s at the request of his daughter Holly, who desired a narrative about a little girl whose mother gets kidnapped by evil witches resembling her mother. Happy to oblige, Gaiman created an inquisitive girl named Coraline who finds trouble behind a forgotten doorway in her drafty old house that leads into a seemingly better version of her current, dreary home. more ›

The city may be in a fictional hue of black & white in this animated video, but the sights and sounds are all accounted for. Join a tourist as he fights the crowds and experiences many failed attempts at taking the perfect shot of many city attractions. more ›

Indie animator Bill Plympton has just finished his sixth animated feature, for which he hand drew every cell. Called Idiots and Angels, it tells the haunting and humorous story of a dyspeptic working stiff who wakes up one morning and finds, to his horror, angel's wings sprouting out of his back. Try as he may to rid himself of the grotesque mutation, they inevitably take over his life and soon become the wings of desire for a quack doctor and a covetous bartender at the local dive; a riot of scheming and slapstick violence ensues. Like the best of Plympton's distinctive oeuvre, Idiots and Angels bounces merrily along from the profane to the sublime, with a parade of arresting images that have a way of sticking with you for days. It premieres at the Tribeca Film Festival Saturday night; details on screenings here. more ›

THEATER: In November, Tom Stoppard’s latest smash hit Rock ‘n’ Roll will transfer from London to Broadway (delighting Rushmore fans by bringing Brian Cox – AKA Dr. Guggenheim – in tow.) In the meantime, fans of our most intellectually dazzling living playwright can plug into Stoppard Goes Electric, an evening of three short teleplays that Stoppard penned for BBC early in his career. According to the Boomerang Theatre Company, which is producing the program, some have never been seen live on stage before. Ends Sunday.– John Del Signore more ›

FILM: Dutch animator Paul Driessen (who you know even if you don't realize it - he did the Beatles' Yellow Submarine movie), will have films from the last 30 years screened at BAM - as part of their Animation Festival. Step into his socially conscious fantasy world! more ›

Can't you just feel the Oscar buzz in the air? The jangling of borrowed jewels and the buzzing of nominees nerves is like a cacophony even on this coast. Gothamist is excitedly anticipating the telecast like June Carter Cash before a duet with Johnny. In the meantime though, there are movies to be watched. more ›

ART: The NY debut of Guerra de la Paz is this weekend. The collaborative team of Cuban artists Alain Guerra and Neraldo de la Paz creates among larger-than-life Pieta recasting Michelangelo's masterpiece to honor the pathos of the Gulf warrior. Tribute, a 2-ton rainbow pyramid of used clothing and more. more ›

Happy Friday the 13th! Get out there and tempt fate this weekend... more ›

Starting tonight through February 6, the MOMA presents a Pixar (Toy Story, The Incredibles, Finding Nemo) Animation Art retrospective in honor of the studio’s 20th anniversary. The film classics and rarely-seen shorts are to accompany Pixar: 20 Years of Animation – the most extensive animation gallery MOMA ever presented – which will feature interactive kiosks and over 500 works of original art, including early Edna Mode sketches, concept pieces, 35mm prints film prints, sculptures, and digital installations. In addition, the NYTimes reports that a giant zoetrope, roughly eight feet in diameter, will create the illusion of Toy Story characters moving in three-dimensional space and a MOMA curator commented that "there are a lot of references to traditional art, classic art, even recent pop art in the works... we haven't put surrealist pieces of art from the '20s next to 'Monsters, Inc.,' but it has a lot of surrealism in it. 'The Incredibles' has a lot of deco kind of stuff in it." more ›

[above: Tim Burton. From Nightmare Before Christmas: "Jack in the Graveyard", mixed media on paper, 11 x 14”] more ›