Teresa Giudice, one of the stars of the reality-TV show, The Real Housewives of New Jersey, is due to be released from prison tomorrow. The 43-year-old pleaded guilty in March last year to bankruptcy fraud charges. They were related to income that was hidden to maintain the lavish lifestyle portrayed on the Bravo channel programme, which showed her living in luxury with her husband. She is due to be released tomorrow from the low-security federal prison in Danbury, Connecticut, where she began serving her sentence in January, The Record newspaper in New Jersey reported on Sunday. Her husband, Giuseppe Giudice, of Towaco, New Jersey, pleaded guilty to similar charges and was sentenced to 41 months in prison, which a judge ordered him to serve after his wife was released, to ensure that their four daughters were properly cared for. The couple appeared in six seasons of Real Housewives. In their plea deals, they admitted that from 2001 through 2008, they submitted fraudulent applications for mortgages and other loans, falsely claiming to have substantial salaries– Reuters
Church hosts service for star wars fans
A Christian church in the German capital Berlin invited Star Wars fans to attend a special service on Sunday themed around the sci-fi blockbuster, as part of an attempt to encourage more young people to attend church. About 500 people – more than double the congregation size – took part in the service at the protestant Zion Church, some carrying lightsabers or wearing Darth Vader masks. "We were very happy to see so many people in the church today," said pastor Lucas Ludewig. "It's great that there are subjects that people are interested in. They trust us to make them part of the church service without making it too Christian or too Star Wars, but to find a good compromise." The 30-year-old said he came up with the idea of the Star Wars service while talking with fellow pastor Ulrike Garve, 29, about how much they were looking forward to the seventh instalment in the franchise The Force Awakens, which was partly filmed in Abu Dhabi and released last week. – AP
Nargis Fakhri advertisement sparks outrage
An advert on the front page of Jang, a leading Pakistani Urdu newspaper, featuring Bollywood actress Nargis Fakhri, has caused a stir on social media. The advert shows Fakhri lying on her stomach, wearing a red dress with a phone in her hand. Some people, including journalists, denounced it as “cheap” and “absurd”. Pakistani investigative journalist Ansar Abbasi was the first one to comment on Twitter: “My strong protest to top Jang group management for this absurd front page ad in today’s Jang.” he wrote. Others joined in the criticism of the phone advert. Matiullah Jan tweeted: “@AnsarAAbbasi you are right, her beautiful body curves have nothing to do with 3G phone and its ‘cheap price’. I fully agree with you dear.” Kadar Khan wrote: “@AnsarAAbbasi Front page ad looks absurd but corruption, loot and plunder of the government is acceptable.” – The National staff
Dilwale and Bajirao Mastani top box office
Bollywood movies Dilwale, starring Shah Rukh Khan and Kajol, and Bajirao Mastani, starring Ranveer Singh, Priyanka Chopra and Deepika Padukone, continued to draw big crowds over the weekend. Dilwale performed well outside of India, too, collecting US$3.4million (Dh12m) overseas on Friday. Bajirao Mastani, the brainchild of filmmaker Sanjay Leela Bhansali, also did well, trade analyst Taran Adarsh wrote on Twitter: "#BajiraoMastani biz witnessed superb growth on Saturday, gaining a strong foothold at multiplexes. Friday Rs 12.80 crore, Saturday Rs 15.52 crore. Total: Rs 28.32 crore." Both films are tipped to remain at the top of the box office chart for a while, with no other big Hindi releases scheduled for the holiday period. – The National staff
Concussion film stirs brain-injury debate
The film Concussion, which was screened during the Dubai Film Festival this month and tells the story of a forensic pathologist's quest to expose the truth about brain injuries in American Fotball, shines a spotlight on an issue that has caused controversy in America's most popular sports league. The film, starring Will Smith, might also cause parents to think twice about letting their children play the sport, according to the filmmakers and some former players. "I love football. It's graceful. We have a lot of beautiful football in this film, purposefully," says Peter Landesman, the director and writer of the film which goes on general release in the United States on Friday and is scheduled for a UAE release on January 28. "We're not trying to wag our finger and say, 'Don't do it.' Sometimes the things that we love in life are the things that kill us. We just have to make difficult decisions about what we do with that." The movie tells the story of Dr. Bennet Omalu (played by Smith), who fought the National Football League's campaign to conceal his research on brain damage suffered by football players who sustain blows to the head. Several dozen of the game's top players were diagnosed posthumusly with chronic traumatic encephalopathy, a progressive degenerative brain disease associated with repeated blows to the head. CTE can currently be diagnosed only through brain examinations after death. – Reuters
