the buzz log

If you can't please 'em, ban 'em! That seems to be the new rule in Hollywood, anyway. Now more than ever, studios are releasing films without giving critics their customary sneak peak.

Bad movie buzz encircles August like a Burmese python. This past week, it was "Material Girls" and "Snakes on a Plane." The week before, critics didn't see "Zoom" or "Pulse" in advance. And that's not mentioning "Benchwarmers," "BloodRayne," "Larry the Cable Guy," "Ultraviolet," "See No Evil," "Doogal," and many more.

It doesn't take a critic to see what these films have in common—with the exception of "Snakes," they're all crap. But keeping crap hidden under a veil of negative buzz in hopes the public might accidentally step in it...well, that's pretty lame, even for the town that gave us "Grandma's Boy."

Of course, studio execs would sooner abolish sequels than give up the right to hide their turkeys. But what say you, the moviegoer? Do you read reviews before plunking down your cash or do you walk into a theater like Samuel L. Jackson walks onto a plane—ready for anything? Leave a comment and let us know.