Kevin Smith life almost as funny as his movies

Kevin Smith is a big man in Hollywood these days. Too big, according to Southwest Airlines, which tossed the rotund director/actor/writer off a recent flight from Oakland to Burbank because he was determined to be a safety risk because of his size.

Smith soon started a war of Tweets with Southwest. Smith, best known for his Silent Bob character in a series of movies based in his home state of New Jersey, said he had purchased two seats on a flight but boarded an earlier flight when a seat was available. That's when he was asked to deplane.

Southwest has defended its "customer of size" policy that requires extra big passengers to buy two seats. The airline said other airlines have similar policies for super-sized passengers.

Smith's tirade against Southwest comes just in time to build buzz about his latest directing effort "Cop Out," a cop buddy picture starring Bruce Willis and Tracy Morgan. "Cop Out" is the first film Smith has directed that he did not write himself. It also marks his second collaboration with Willis, with whom Smith worked as an actor on "Live Free or Die Hard."

Smith's filmography as a director includes a couple of documentaries, the pilot episode of "Reaper," which was cancelled after last season, and three movies in production. He also has credits for producing, writing, editing, acting and consulting on projects.

Smith's films are said to be an acquired taste. They tend to be outrageous, oftentimes gross and mostly funny. Here are six of his films available on video and DVD that represent the Hollywood legacy of Kevin Smith.

"Catch and Release" (2006) -- Smith shows off his acting chops in this comedy about a woman (Jennifer Garner) who tries to come to grips with the sudden death of her fiance and the realization he was not the perfect man. Other stars include Timothy Olyphant, Sam Jaeger and Juliette Lewis.

"Dogma" (1999) -- Smith pokes fun at the Catholic Church in this comedy that revolves around a couple of cast out angels (Ben Affleck and Matt Damon) who discover a way back into heaven thanks to a wacky bishop (George Carlin). Along the way Jay (Jason Mewes) and Silent Bob (Smith) encounter a long-lost descendant of Christ, the 13th apostle Rufus, an angel who likes booze, and God, who likes to play skeeball in Atlantic City.  Other stars include Linda Fiorentino, Jason Lee and Alan Rickman.

"Chasing Amy" (1997) -- A comic book artist (Ben Affleck) finds the love of his life (Joey Lauren Adams) only to discover that she's a lesbian. That, of course, doesn't stop him from trying to change her mind. Other stars include Jason Lee.

"Mallrats" (1995) -- A couple of guys head to the mall after being dumped by their girlfriends in this comedy based in Minnesota. Stars include Shannon Doherty, Jeremy London, Claire Forlani, Ben Affleck, Joey Lauren Adams and Stan Lee as himself.

"Clerks II" (2006) -- Smith burst onto the scene in 1994 with "Clerks." Now, it's 10 years later and he catches up with Dante (Brian O'Halloran) and Randal (Jeff Anderson) who have moved on, barely and thanks mostly to a fire that burned down the quicky mart they were working at in the original. Other stars include Rosario Dawson and Jennifer Schwalbach (the real-life Mrs. Kevin Smith).

"Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back" (2001) -- Smith's Silent Bob and Jason Mewes' Jay find out that a movie based on their comic book alter egos is being made in Hollywood. Then they discover they aren't going to see a nickel. Rightfully upset, they decide to visit Hollywood and wreck the movie. Other stars include many Smith regulars incluing Ben Affleck and a couple of newcomers including Will Ferrell.

Movies about Winter Olympics a slippery lot

Although not nearly as spectacular as the Summer Games, the 2010 Winter Olympics kick off Saturday morning when athletes from 80 nations hit the ice and snow in Vancouver, Canada.

For 16 days, Olympians will compete for gold, silver and bronze medals in 15 categories. Some of the events are well known to Americans, such as figure skating. American skaters including Dorothy Hamill, Tara Lipinski, Kristi Yamaguchi and Peggy Fleming have brought home 44 medals since the first Winter Games in 1924.

The top event for Americans has been speed skating with 63 medals over the years. Eric Heiden won five gold medals in speed skating at the Lake Placid Games. Illinois native Bonnie Blair also has five gold medals, including medals won at three consecutive Winter Olympics.

Americans have not fared well in some events including cross-country skiing, curling and the ski jump. Americans have won only one medal in each of those events. The luge is another weak spot for Americans with only four medals over the years.

Americans have never won a medal in the biathlon (cross-country ski and shoot) nor the Nordic combined (ski jumping and cross-country skiing) though there is hope that this may be the year Americans finally win a medal in the latter.

Hollywood traditionally loves sports movies but has only smiled on the Winter Olympics a handful of times, mostly with movies about figure skating and hockey.

Norwegian skating sensation Sonja Henie won medals at three Winter Games and then made a dozen Hollywood movies that somehow always found a way for her to lace up the skates such as “Sun Valley Serenade.” American skater Lynn Holly-Johnson starred as an Olympic hopeful in “Ice Castles,” which was remade last year.

The surprising American hockey team of 1980 has been the focus of two miles: “Miracle on Ice” in 1981 and “Miracle” in 2004.

There have been occasional movies about other winter sports including “Men with Brooms” about curling, which involves throwing a stone down an icy path with teammates armed with brooms sweeping furiously in front of the stone. It looks even sillier, believe me.

Here are six films available on video and DVD that feature the Winter Olympics or its athletes.

“The Cutting Edge” (1992) – D.B. Sweeney is a former hockey player who partners with Moira Kelly in a last-ditch attempt to win the pairs figure skating gold medal. They start out hating each other but eventually … you get the idea. Other stars include Roy Dotrice and Terry O’Quinn.

“Downhill Racer” (1969) – Robert Redford is a cold, calculating skiing machine who doesn’t play nice with others including his Olympic coach (Gene Hackman) in director Michael Ritchie’s film debut. Other stars include Camilla Sparv as the woman who almost gets through to Redford.

“Cool Runnings” (1993) – John Candy stars as a disgraced Olympian hired to coach the first Jamaican bobsled team in this comedy based on a true story. Other stars include Leon, Doug E. Doug, Malik Yoba and Rawle D. Davis.

“Miracle” (2004) – Kurt Russell stars as Herb Brooks, the unheralded coach who took a team of little known college hockey players and upset the Russian juggernaut en route to an unlikely gold medal at the 1980 games in Lake Placid. Other stars include Patricia Clarkson, Sean McCann and Noah Emmerich.

“Blades of Glory” (2007) – Will Ferrell and Jon Heder (pictured above) star as disgraced Olympic figure skaters who despite being banned from the Games find a loophole that allows them to compete as partners in this goofy sports comedy. Other stars include Will Arnett and Amy Poehler as ruthless rival skaters, Jenna Fischer and Craig T. Nelson.

Romance is in the air, but these films prove that sometimes love hurts

Love is in the air as Valentine's Day approaches.

Romantic comedies would have you believe that love is essentially boy meets girl, they overcome some stupid problem and live happily ever after. For example:

Katherine Heigl finds herself pregnant and alone until Seth Rogen mans up and does the right thing in "Knocked Up."

Patrick Dempsey endures all kinds of flack for agreeing to be Michelle Monaghan's maid of honor in "Made of Honor." Then he steals her from Scottish heartthrob Kevin McKidd.

Ashton Kutcher and Cameron Diaz find themselves married and winners of a million-dollar jackpot after a drunken night in Las Vegas in "What Happens in Vegas." They spend the movie trying to destroy each other for the money until they realize they are perfect for one another.

The pattern has been repeated in dozens of movies. Consider that Jane Fonda thinks she may have made a mistake in her sudden marriage to Jim Hutton in 1962's "Period of Adjustment," and Jack Lemmon tries to drive away Virna Lisi after finding himself married in 1965's "How to Murder Your Wife."

But every once in a while, Hollywood churns out a film that doesn't go for the happy ending.

Arnold Schwarzenegger loses his warrior girlfriend in "Conan the Barbarian." She dies so he may live. The ultimate sacrifice. Very sad.

Robert De Niro's wife (Sharon Stone) leaves him for brutal wiseguy Joe Pesci in "Casino." She dies of a drug overdose. Very sad.

Dudley Moore saves a man from drowning in order to bed the man's wife (Bo Derek) in "10." Then he realizes she's about as personable as a cabbage. Very sad. But he does get back together with Julie Andrews in the end.

Emilio Estevez screws up a very good thing he has going with Demi Moore in "About Last Night ..." Very sad.

Julie Roberts does her best to ruin the upcoming wedding of her longtime friend (Dermot Mulroney) to Cameron Diaz in "My Best Friend's Wedding." At least Diaz kicks her butt in one of the women's bathrooms at Sox park.

Poor Elizabeth Perkins is left to pine for a 13-year-old boy after he reverts to his true self in "Big."

Love may be all you need, but it often hurts. Here are six films available on video and DVD that look at relationships gone sour for one reason or another. Happy Valentine's Day.

"500 Days of Summer" (2009) -- Joseph Gordon-Levitt starts dating Zooey Deschanel. He falls in love. She doesn't. That about sums us this romantic comedy that bounces back and forth showing the audience how the two can have such different takes on life and their relationship. Other stars include Chloe Moretz as the boy's younger sister, who may be the most grown up person in the movie.

"Shakespeare In Love" (1998) -- Joseph Fiennes is the Bard in this romantic comedy about his relationship with one of Queen Elizabeth's ladies in waiting (Gwyneth Paltrow), who inspires "Romeo and Juliet" but also happens to be promised to another. Other stars include Judi Dench as the queen, Colin Firth as the other man, Geoffrey Rush, Tom Wilkinson and Rupert Everett as Shakespeare's rival Christopher Marlowe.

"The Way We Were" (1973) -- A Jewish activist (Barbra Streisand) and a politically unmotivated WASP (Robert Redford) fall in love but eventually drift apart in this film that follows their relationship from college days in 1937 through World War II to the Hollywood witchhunts of the 1950s. Other stars include Bradford Dillman, Lois Chiles and Patrick O'Neal.

"Before Sunrise" (1995) -- An American (Ethan Hawke) meets a French woman (Julie Delpy) on a train bound for Vienna. They spend a wild night together knowing that they will probably never see each other again. This was such a complete film that I have refused to see the sequel, "Before Sunset," when they run into each other in Paris 10 years later.

"Annie Hall" (1977) -- Woody Allen breaks up with Diane Keaton and then spends the rest of the movie showing how their relationship started, prospered and eventually disintegrated. Allen's best film ever, thanks in large part to Keaton's performance as the title character. Other stars include Tony Roberts, Carol Kane and Paul Simon.

"The Break-Up" (2006) -- A young couple (Vince Vaughn and Jennifer Aniston) move in together but things don't work out. They remain living together because of their situation but that doesn't stop their relationship from getting nastier and uglier the longer they remain in the same home. Other stars include Joey Lauren Adams, Cole Hauser, Jon Favreau and Justin Long.

New Orleans is a favorite city for filmmakers

New Orleans has made a remarkable recovery since the city was almost wiped out by Hurricane Katrina in 2005.

So, it's fitting that the Crescent City's Saints have made it to this year's Super Bowl against the Indianapolis Colts on Sunday in Miami.

Saints fans are no doubt stocking up on gumbo, jambalaya, crawdads and red beans and rice for their parties. All of those fixin's will be washed down with Abita beer or a Dixie brand such as Blackened Voodoo.

New Orleans has been a favorite of filmmakers over the years. Films about New Orleans range from historical epics such as "The Buccaneer" about Jean Lafitte, Andrew Jackson and the War of 1812 to period pieces such as "Jezebel," which is set in pre-Civil War New Orleans, to the city's notorious side such as "Walk on the Wild Side," which is set in a 1930s bordello.

Movies have focused on the city's darker side in films such as "Hard Times" about Depression-era bare-knuckle fighters, "Tightrope" with Clint Eastwood as a cop hunting a serial killer who is murdering women linked to him, "Panic in the Streets" about a hunt for a criminal carrying the plague, and "No Mercy" about a Chicago cop who travels to New Orleans to find a missing woman.

No list is complete without mentioning movies that cater to the city's musical roots. "Mardi Gras" features Pat Boone and some other 1950s teen crooners heading to the city to ask a movie star to homecoming.

Mardi Gras and the city's voodoo influence is featured in many movies including "Hoodoo for Voodoo."

New Orleans is also featured in some silly movies such as "Abbott and Costello Go to Mars," which finds the hapless duo in New Orleans during Mardi Gras, and drek such as "Mardi Gras Massacre."

Here are six movies available on video or DVD that are sure to get members of the Who Dat Nation revved up before Sunday's big game.

"Hurricane Season" (2009) -- This one actually won't be available until Tuesday, but this is a great film about a basketball coach (Forest Whitaker) who brings together players from five high schools affected by Hurricane Katrina and gets them into the state playoffs a year after the hurricane has ravaged the city. Other stars include Taraji Henson, Bonnie Hunt, Isaiah Washington, Lil Wayne and Bow Wow.

"Pretty Baby" (1978) -- A young girl (Brooke Shield) is being raised by her prostitute mother (Susan Sarandon) in the city's notorious Storyville red-light district in the days before legalized prostitution is about to end in 1917. Other stars include Keith Carradine and Antonio Fargas.

"The Big Easy" (1986) -- The city is well represented in this film about a shady cop (Dennis Quaid) who is investigating murders of mob bosses and then finds himself under investigation for taking bribes by a pretty prosecutor (Ellen Barkin). Other stars include Ned Beatty and John Goodman.

"Angel Heart" (1987) -- Voodoo and such take center stage in this thriller about a private eye (Mickey Rourke) hired by a creepy character (Robert De Niro) to find a missing man following World War II. He finds the man and a lot more before it's all over. Also stars Lisa Bonet and Charlotte Rampling.

"A Streetcar Named Desire" (1951) -- A disturbed woman (Vivien Leigh) moves in with sister and her brutish husband (Marlon Brando) while she slowly loses touch with reality in this Elia Kazan masterpiece. Other stars include Kim Hunter and Karl Malden.

"Hotel" (1967) -- Rod Taylor manages a New Orleans hotel in this film based on Arthur Hailey's novel. Other stars include Melvyn Douglas as the owner who is mulling over an offer for the hotel, Karl Malden as a thief preying on guests and Michael Rennie as as nobleman with a dark secret.