in this clip from the film "won't back down" maggie gyllenhaal and viola davis try to prove that a role can play a big part in the community. >> a lot of the kids can barely add and you want to be teaching them geometry. >> the problem is no one expects them to do well so they don't. >> come on, look around, i'm a cop. there's drugs, there's gangs. >> change a school, change a neighborhood. >> you really think you can turn this around? >> well, i can't say for certain -- >> 100% yes. >> joel klein is former chancellor of the new york city school system. how valid is that assertion? can a good school change a community? >> there's no question it can have a huge impact on it. let's get real, what does every parent, particularly parent who is are struggling, what does that parent want for his or her kids? they want a great education and a life that the kids can have that is successful, productive and engaged. when vanessa says she came out of public housing and went to public schools and we want on to live here, that's my story here in the city of queens. i have no drought those teachers i

just the way it's got viola davis, maggie gyllenhaal- > > two good actresses. > > yeah, but, you know, fox is not, they didn't really put this movie in the film festivals, so they're just kind of quietly releasing it here at the end of september. it has the look and feel of an oscar contender, but i really don't hold a whole lot of hope out for it. > > so september just kind of a month ... > > something we can write off. there's going to be some better stuff next month we can talk about. > > we will see you next month. that's erik childress, he is vice-president of the chicago film critics' association, joins us every thursday. thanks erik. > > thank you. coming up, find out if radioshack stock is sending bad signals to investors. chart talk is next. matt cavanaugh of cmz trading joins us now for chart talk. good morning matt. > > good morning. > > the other shoe has fallen in radioshack's world. the ceo is leaving the electronics company. is there any hope left for this stock? > > you saw a little bounce off of this news, but things aren't going well for radioshack. they suspended th

viola davis said she wasn't aware of all this school choice.at she told us. >> i did, i thought it represented all sides and i think i didn't really know what a hot bed subject education was. i knew that everybody was on fire about education, proeducation, but i didn't know that there was just so many different kind of inner turmoil with charter schools and public schools and unions. >> so, there you have it from viola davis, victor. she talked about the fact that she wasn't aware that education in this form was such a hot button issue. she actually learned something from making this film, too. >> an issue that people on both sides are very passionate about. now, the teachers unions and the teachers, are they planning any type of formal boycott or protest? >> there have been protests already at this film in new york. there were protests by the teachers unions and why this is such a big deal, too, especially with the election coming up, vict victor. usually the democrats and the unions work hand in hand a lot of times. the fact that a lot of dem

. >>> maggie gyllenhaal, viola davis education film. >>> it's a boy for reese witherspoon and her agent husband. tennessee james is named after witherspoon's home state. >>> rapper lil wayne has overtaken elvis presley's record for billboard's top 100 list. that's been stood uncontested since 196. >>> finally, you could have given me ten guesses that this exist. kelly osbourne tweeted an apology to anyone offended by her emmys manicure. it consisted of a $250,000 nail polish made from crushed black diamonds. what? >> she didn't pay for it. >> she didn't. a lot of people are -- that's just unnecessary. >> i wouldn't say no. if they wanted to paint my nails, i'll do it. >> if they want to paint me in black diamonds, i'll be fine with it. >>> this comes from wpbn where in nearby cadillac the tables were turned on a few high school bullies. 16-year-old whitney learned her homecoming queen nomination was an organized prank. after getting wind of the joke, students an community members quickly rallied by the sophomore and supporters donated a gown, gifts, even planned to display a huge banner

. >> prospects for the maggie gyllenhaal, viola davis education drama may only gross in the $5 million range. >>> it is a boy for reese witherspoon and her talent agent husband who married last year. tennessee james is named after witherspoon's home state. >> where is she from? >> tennessee. nashville specifically. rapper lil wayne has overtaken elvis presley's records and it's a record that has stood uncontested since 1958. >>> finally, kelly osborne tweeted an apology to anyone who was offended by herman any cure. that's because it cost $250,000. it was a nail polish made from crushed black diamonds. that is a true story. bill's eyes are popping out of his head. i agree. i know. >>> this comes to us from wpbn 7 and 4 news in michigan. nearby cadillac the tables were turned on a few high school bullies. 16-year-old whitney felt the trade when she learned her homecoming nomination was an organized prank. after getting wind of the cruel joke they quickly rallied behind the sophomore. supporters have donated a gown, gifts, and they plan to display a huge banner in her honor at tonight's

tonight, jay welcomes -- academy award nominee viola davis. from "the vampire diaries"

tonight, jay welcomes -- academy award nominee viola davis. from "the vampire diaries" paul wesley.ic of bonnie raitt.

first we'd like to say hello to oscar nominee viola davis starring in a brand new movie. >> hi, viola her students in "won't back down." so good to see you. >> good seeing you, too sgledcation is so important to you. this must have been a perfect fit when this script came across your desk. >> it was perfect. it was close to my heard because i grew up in such challenging circumstances, in abject poverty, and education is what saved my life, it was, you know. it opened the door to possibilities and choice in my life, so -- and also just a great story, you know. people forget that i'm an actor at the end of the day. really i like the role. >> interesting. not often that we have an actor and actress here and we talk about a movie opening and say yet there were protests. >> yes. >> and there were at the premiere of this movie. some feel it's a bit one-sided, one-dimensional and maybe unfair to some teachers. how do you feel about that? >> well, i feel two things. i welcome protest. i welcome discourse. i think discourse is a good thing. i think it spearheads change. i think that we saw tha

first we'd like to say hello to oscar nominee viola davis starring in a brand new movie. >> hi, viola her students in "won't back down." so good to see you. >> good seeing you, too sgledcation is so important to you. this must have been a perfect fit when this script came across your desk. >> it was perfect. it was close to my heard because i grew up in such challenging circumstances, in abject poverty, and education is what saved my life, it was, you know. it opened the door to possibilities and choice in my life, so -- and also just a great story, you know. people forget that i'm an actor at the end of the day. really i like the role. >> interesting. not often that we have an actor and actress here and we talk about a movie opening and say yet there were protests. >> yes. >> and there were at the premiere of this movie. some feel it's a bit one-sided, one-dimensional and maybe unfair to some teachers. how do you feel about that? >> well, i feel two things. i welcome protest. i welcome discourse. i think discourse is a good thing. i think it spearheads change. i think that we saw tha

she recruits viola davis to start a school of their own but the two run into resistance, road blocks and bureaucracy in their quest to make a difference. anna kendrick has a shower stalker in pitch perfect. she's a rebel recruited into a college choir that performs classical songs with no instruments but she can't stand the old stuff and convinces the choir to change their tune. pitch perfect is rated pg 13. rafael seth, wbal 11 news. >> what would a movie be without dinner? coming up we're cooking up a quick and easy dish for any night, even movie night. first at look at what's coming up ton "today" show. >> coming up on saturday morning on "today" lester is live in afghanistan during a crucial time of transition and reflection. he talks to military personnel about the progress being made after 11 years of war. and the challenges that remain for u.s. troops. plus, new details emerge in the death of actor johnny lewis. what sent the former sons of anarcy star that ended with him allegedly killing his landlord. and this morning new pictures of a bottomless kate middleton are popping u

it has well-known actors like maggie gyllenhaal and viola davis and holly hunter.t does peter guber of mapped today lay entertainment make of all this? peter this, is fox film. fox is owned by news corp which owns fox business. you're totally independent guy guy. what do you think of the film? >> i think, that is david and goliath. simply nice very, very complex issues. same group made waiting for superman in 2010. where they were really anti-charter, relatively for charter schools. i think the real issue is they used actors because they wanted to, if you will, embellish, they did say on the screen inspired by two events. the idea nowhere ever in the united states has anybody taken over the school that this film portrays. you should know that. actually in florida, which is certainly a republican state, they failed to pass these trigger laws. california does have one. so the idea this is david and fwo lie act film. it is a fictional film. they tried to present that it is factual but it is fictional. it shine as light on important issue the it isn't all anti-union, t

. >> viola davis, right? she's so, so brilliant.s from a lower-class neighborhood who's just sick and tired of her kids sort of being the victim of this awful school system, which i'm sure a lot of people watching this can connect to. >> yeah, she's, you know, she's in the position that i think no mother should have to be in in this country where she, you know, her daughter's in a failing school and she's at the end of the line. there's nobody who can help her. her daughter's dyslexic, yeah. even if she weren't, i think it's just, in this case, it's -- in the case of the movie, it's really a school that isn't working. >> a lot of mothers would feel helpless, there's not one thing i can do. what's your game plan with viola? >> it's interesting. my character in the movie, she does end up becoming an activist, but she starts out as someone who doesn't consider herself political or an intellectual or any of those things. and i think what's in her heart, her need activates her and, you know, together with viola's character, you know, the

. >> that's maggie gyllenhaal along with viola davis as a mom who will stop at nothing to fix the ailingrue story called "won't back down." and maggie will be here tomorrow on "today." supposed to be really good. two incredible actresses. >> absolutely. >> i'm savannah gurthrie alongside al roker and natalie morales. and coming up, the five style trends for fall. >> we've got the very latest looks that you should add to your wardrobe that won't bust your budget. >>> and then there's a new film called backwards about a young woman whose dreams of becoming an olympic rower were dashed only to find her true calling. we're going to talk to the woman behind the story. >>> and then famed chef todd english whipping up his heartiest dishes and cocktails with warm flavors of fall. >> butter nut squash, yum. >>> and we want to announce the latest winner of today's home chef challenge. it's amber ford from charleston, south carolina. her delicious side dish was voted the best side dish and you can get that at today.com. >> it does look good. >> okay. next up, we are also looking for the best pasta

. >> that's maggie gyllenhaal along with viola davis as a mom who will stop at nothing to fix the ailingrue story called "won't back down." and maggie will be here tomorrow on "today." supposed to be really good. two incredible actresses. >> absolutely. >> i'm savannah gurthrie alongside al roker and natalie morales. and coming up, the five style trends for fall. >> we've got the very latest looks that you should add to your wardrobe that won't bust your budget. >>> and then there's a new film called backwards about a young woman whose dreams of becoming an olympic rower were dashed only to find her true calling. we're going to talk to the woman behind the story. >>> and then famed chef todd english whipping up his heartiest dishes and cocktails with warm flavors of fall. >> butter nut squash, yum. >>> and we want to announce the latest winner of today's home chef challenge. it's amber ford from charleston, south carolina. her delicious side dish was voted the best side dish and you can get that at today.com. >> it does look good. >> okay. next up, we are also looking for the best pasta

i want to thank my guests, viola davis, paul wesley. and of course, bonnie raitt.fallon, coming up. jimmy! [ cheers and applause ] ♪ >> steve: from studio 6b in rockefeller center, the national broadcasting company presents -- tonight's guests are -- and featuring the legendary roots crew. ♪ and here he is -- jimmy fallon! [ cheers and applause ] captions paid for by nbc-universal television -- captions by vitac -- www.vitac.com [ cheers and applause ] >> jimmy: thank you all very much! i appreciate it. i feel the love. oh, thank you. welcome to "late night with jimmy fallon," everybody. [ cheers ] we're gonna have fun tonight. here's what people are talking about. cbs just announced that mitt romney and president obama are both going to appear on "60 minutes" this sunday in separate interviews. yeah, romney's really excited about this because it will be one of the rare times he actually knows he's being recorded. [ laughter ] so -- [ applause ] "at least i know." speaking of mitt romney, i heard that romney has also agreed to appear on "the view." [ audience chatt

. >> that's viola davis talking about her inspirational new movie, "won't back down," in theaters todayat's classic bonnie raitt. it takes you back. well, this year the nine-time grammy winner is releasing her first album in seven years. >> yes, she took a break. she's been through a lot. tonight, our debbie matenopoulos is back, working hard for us tonight. this time, sitting down with the legendary 62-year-old singer who's revealing why she left rock behind and what it took to bring her back. ♪ >> 19 albums. 9 grammys. you're voted one of "rolling stone's" best singers of all time. >> oh, thank you. >> tell me about why you decided to take a hiatus. when you did. >> my break included the worsening of the illness of my brother who had brain cancer, so, i wanted to take some time to be with him, sadly he passed away in 2009, after the loss of him and one of my good friends and both of my parents, i just said, i need to take a break. ♪ >> i just stayed at home and let a lot of that processing happen. i wanted to wait until i really felt like doing music again. ♪ >> although bonnie was on

she recruits viola davis to start a school of their own but the school run into resistance, road blocksnd bureaucracy in their quest to make a difference. "won't back down" is rated pg. nan kendrick has a shocker in pitch perfect. she's a rebel recruited into a college choir that performs songs with no instruments but she can't stand the old stuff and considers the choir to change their tune. it's rated pg 13. that's a box office preview wbal 11 news. >> something for everybody out there this weekend. >> all right. what do you think? >> i don't know. >> weather wise. >> oh, weather wise? i think it's great, weather wise. as far as what i saw there from the previews, i don't know. weather-wise, rain's out of the picture for awhile. a nice we thr picture coming up. i'll have details and aer the refk weekend forecast. >> you have two choices. the thriller with the guns and the slinging or the pretty lady. >> i'll go with the guns and slinging. >> over the pretty lady? >> yeah. >> not for you, huh? >> no. >> all right. >>> 6:54, 56 degrees at the airport. we're back in just a minute with mo

megyn: apparently, it's viola davis as well as maggie gyllenhaal. >> that's right.ter who tries to buy off and bribe the mother who wallets a better life for her daughter and basically say, look, we'll give you this stuff if you shut up and go away. megyn: they say there's not a dry eye in the house at certain points, but randi weingarten, again, has said it reverts to falsehoods and anti-union stereotypes. will a film like yours make a difference? >> well, i think so. in 2010 waiting for superman and my film, the cartel, came out. i should also point out today is school choice facts day. people all across america are tweeting hashtag school choice facts so people can learn more about the school choice movement. megyn: bob, thanks so much. we'll be right back. busy day, don't go away. whoa, look at all those toys. insuring that stuff must be a pain. nah. he's probably got... [ voice of dennis ] allstate. they can bundle all your policies together. lot of paperwork. [ doug ] actually... [ voice of dennis ] an allstate agent can help do the switching and paperwork for

the movie stars maggie gyllenhaal and viola davis. and they team up to turn around a failing public school. it's a hollywood school inspired by true events. you might ask what's the fuss about? it's about school choice and touches on the controversial parent trigger law. it allows them to fire teachers and start from scratch. this is also a film about teacher unions which do not come off looking very good, actually. and generally speaking, the unions aren't prone to backing parent trigger laws. and the teachers' unions are one of the democratic parties' most biggest and loyal sources of contributions but parent triggers are getting support among high-profile democrats. so that's where the stir comes in. specifically also from los angeles mayor antonio villaraigosa, a former organizer with united teachers. he also happens to be chairman of the democratic convention this year. so right now, this movie is playing for delegates at the convention, and it's highlighting a big divide among democrats when it comes to education reform. so that

. >> a brand-new movie "won't back down" starring maggie gyllenhaal and viola davis based on the real-lifeer daughter's failing school. i sat down with her to hear the true story behind the film. >> she was crying every day because she didn't want to go to school. they were overcrowded. they had 20 plus kids in the class. the kids were fistfighting in there. the teacher had no control. where your school is failing this terribly you're killing their dreams, you're killing their hopes. you're killing their self-esteem. >> reporter: doreen diaz, the mother who inspired the movie says she tried for three years to work within the system to turn her daughter's school around but she was stonewalled. >> the superintendent at the time, i had gone to him with the issues and talked to him and his solution to me was only ever if you don't like the school or you don't like the teachers, you can change schools. >> reporter: she rallied other parents to enact a little known california law called the parent trigger law. if at least 50% of parents at a failing school sign a petition, they can take control

but kind of not halfway through the movie, early on you get to see viola davis, who plays my wife inack stepford wife. there is tension right away. but i play her husband and the film is about two parents, one of whom is a teach and she plays a teach. it's about them trying to start a charter cool together. each one has a child in third grade. so each of us is struggling in different ways with how to best deal with what's best for our children. >> gretchen: what message do you want people to take away from this movie? >> i think more than anything else, i want people to feel it's possible for them to make a difference in their own children's education no matter what their financial or economic circumstances may be. >> steve: just what you did. >> well, as far as my parents go, i was fortunate that my parents were able to send me to private school. as far as my own kids, we just juggled and prayed. we did a lot of things that parents -- we didn't try to start a charter school, with bue did a loft things that the parents in this film did. >> steve: because education is everything. and