Take the money and run Woody Allen is a failure -- so says Woody Allen, who has 46 films, including many iconic ones, to his credit. "I've squandered an opportunity that people would kill for," he tells the Times of London. "I have had complete artistic freedom. Other directors don't get that in their lifetime. But I have a very poor record given the opportunities I've had." Compared with his heroes Fellini and Kurosawa, he hasn't done much, he claims. "There are a few [films] better than others, half a dozen, but's a surprising paucity of worthwhile celluloid." Allen's favorites among his oeuvre (hint: not the ones you're thinking of)? "Purple Rose of Cairo," "Match Point," "Bullets Over Broadway," "Zelig," "Husbands and Wives" and "Vicky Cristina Barcelona." Let the arguments begin.

The final reel Meryl Streep and Jeff Bridges are in negotiations to play a long-married couple in "Great Hope Springs." ... Neil Patrick Harris is confirmed for "A Very Harold and Kumar Christmas." ... Phil Lord and Chris Miller, co-directors of "Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs," have won over the makers of Legos to direct a movie based on the iconic building blocks. ... "Stoker" is the story of an eccentric teenager (Carey Mulligan) and her estranged uncle (not Jodie Foster, who's also starring).

CYNTHIA DICKISON