Posts in the category "Movies":

A little bit of this ‘n that today.

(No one is walking off with this bag!)

The story out of Phoenix about a couple who managed to steal more than 1,000 pieces of luggage from the baggage claim carousels at Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport is alarming, for sure.

But we shouldn’t be surprised.  While many airports have some sort of security in the bag claim area, the job of making sure passengers walk off with only their bags is the responsility of each airline. And in most airports, airlines haven’t been actively monitoring bag match-ups for years.

I’m working on a story about this for my column next week on MSNBC.com, and would love to hear from you if you have any first hand experience to share.

In the meantime, here are some other travel tidbits you might find useful:

Through November, the folks at 3M are once again hosting “privacy havens” at several busy airports around the country.

This year, you’ll find these quiet spots at Chicago’s O’Hare International Airport, the Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport and in Terminal 8 at New York’s JFK International Airport. (Exact locations here).

On the busy days right before and after Thanksgiving, these “privacy havens” will also be offering free massages and free Wi-Fi.

And two sweepstakes you may want to enter:

To coincide with the new movie “Up in the Air,” with George Clooney, American Airlines is having an auction and a sweepstakes.  You’ll need to use AAdvantage miles to bid on travel, movie and “experience-” related items in the auction, but entering the contest, which has prizes that include a trip to Los Angeles and 260,000 AAdvantage miles, is free. You’ll just need to watch the trailer and then enter your details.  (Auction bids and sweepstakes entries must be in by Jan 5, 2010.)

And Hilton (which seems to have a part in the Up in the Air movie) is also having an Up in the Air sweepstakes.  You can enter by booking a Hilton stay, but if you’re not heading out on the road before January 18, 2010 you can enter for free by “sending your hand-printed name, address and phone number on 3” x 5” paper to Hilton “Up In The Air” Sweepstakes Alternate Entry, P.O. Box 8600, Westport, CT 06888”

Good luck!

Categories: Air Travel, Airlines, Baggage, Contests, Lounges, Massages, Movies
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During May, the Air France in-flight entertainment system (my favorite channel: language lessons) is showing films chosen as past winners of the Cannes Film Festival.

Through August 15^th, 2009, the airline is also having a photography competition and is asking people to send in photographs on the theme “Air France livery: Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow“.

I know the contest is open to everyone, but I can’t tell you much more than that because so far I’ve only found instructions written in French. I can tell you, though, that the top prize is a Breitling watch worth €3,800 (about US $5,100) and that other prizes include Air France flights and Airbus A380 simulator experiences.

Categories: Free Stuff, Fun Stuff, Movies
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It would be great if we could watch movies – cartoons, short subjects, mini-docs, etc. – at the airport.  For free (of course).  Given how long we all spend at airports these days, there’s often time to watch full-length features as well.

Instead, we often watch films in-flight.  And as I wrote here a while back, Delta Air Lines is joining with the 2009 Tribeca Film Festival and showing five short films that have been chose as finalists in the airline’s Fly-In Movies competition. The videos weren’t up yet when I first wrote about, but now they are.  You can watch the films on-board or on-line and vote on your favorite by April 12.

Categories: Festivals, Movies
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Have a little Oscar fever?

Then check out the possible Academy Award-winners of the future on an airplane – or on-line – courtesy of Delta’s Fly-In Movies.

Five short film finalists were selected by programmers of the upcoming 2009 Tribeca Film Festival and will be shown, for free, from March 1 through April 12 on Delta Air Lines flights with personal, seatback in-flight entertainment systems (Delta on Demand).

Not flying anywhere between March 1 and April 12?

The films will also be on-line.

You can even vote your favorite film.

The five films include:

* “Cold Calls” by Jack Daniel Stanley: In this 80’s spoof, a woman receives increasingly bizarre phone solicitations from an obsessive telemarketer.
* “Eight Percent” by Alexander Poe: Two high school exes meet up ten years later on an awkward date.
* “Gerald’s Last Day” by Justin Rasch and Shel Rasch: Gerald the dog has been scheduled for his termination by the dog pound at 5 p.m. Can he seduce a potential adopter before his time runs out?
* “The Green Film” by Andrew Williamson: It’s not easy being green-especially when you’re a filmmaker. So how do you make the greenest movie of all time? Watch and learn.
* “Locks” by Ryan Coogler: Dante wears his hair in dreadlocks. When he goes to the local barbershop, we see into his heartbreaking home life and learn how big his heart is.

Categories: Contests, Movies
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Yup, that WAS a pink panther at the airport.

Travelers no doubt did a double-take this afternoon when they spotted a pink-panther in the atrium at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport (ATL) this afternoon.

But never fear: it was just a promotion for The Pink Panther 2, the sequel to the movie that starred Steve Martin as the bumbling French police detective, Inspector Jacques Clouseau.

Categories: Movies
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