Channing Tatum

After countless ads featuring stripping, stripping and more stripping, you probably drooled all over your seat/armrest/entire theater after seeing the two-hour naked-dude-extravaganza at last night's midnight screening of “Magic Mike.” What? That's not what the movie is? No kidding. If you've already seen it, or just read my or anyone else's review , you know that, despite a marketing campaign featuring virtually nothing but Channing Tatum and his back-up dancers taking it off onstage, “Magic Mike” is actually a thoughtful, level-headed movie--that examines Mike's (Tatum)

***1/2 (out of four) I tell my wife that I really liked “Magic Mike,” and she laughs. This does not surprise me. For months, women and men who rarely see the skin they're interested in onscreen have hooted and hollered for a movie about male strippers, expecting ladies'-night-out debauchery after a trailer showcasing as many thongs as a “Piranha” sequel. At the movies, men are not usually the objects of ogling; they're the conquerors having all the fun. At the MTV Movie Awards earlier this month, a montage collected cult classic party movies like “Road Trip,” “The Hangover” and “Animal House.” Guess how many of those movies featured prominent, complex women who don't get topless?

Even in small roles, Elizabeth Banks often has a major impact on her movies. Consider her memorable, unbridled scene in “The 40-Year-Old Virgin,” in which she teaches Steve Carell's character about the, uh, talents of a handheld showerhead, or the fact that the romantic trajectory of “Wet Hot American Summer” results largely from Banks' character tasting like a burger. “It's true,” the 38-year-old actress says with a laugh. “I think that Paul [Rudd]'s character just wanted a little side strange.” Now, of course, Banks takes up far more screen time, showcasing killer comedy skills (“Zack and Miri Make a Porno,” “What to Expect When You're Expecting,” “30 Rock”)

Though he was five years removed from an Oscar nomination, in 2011 Ryan Gosling was everywhere, skyrocketing into A-list territory thanks to "Crazy Stupid Love," "Drive" and "The Ides of March. " In 2012 it was Channing Tatum, who scored three hits ("The Vow," "21 Jump Street," "Magic Mike") and delivered the best work of his career in "Mike," a movie that was much better than anyone expected. (Sorry to those who just wanted the film suggested by the ads, which was pretty much two hours of stripping.)

You've always wanted to be on "Wheel of Fortune" or "Legends of the Hidden Temple," right? Here's your chance to make it big (among your group of friends -- we have no real power or cash prizes happening). Gather up your buds and see who scores best on our celeb trivia challenge this week. We're sure you can come up with some manner of creepy trophy to make it all worthwhile. damoran@tribune.com | @redeyedana 1. Which of these dudes does Channing Tatum have a man-crush on?

For its 2013 movie awards, MTV has added two new categories to help measure true excellence in filmmaking: Best Shirtless Performance and Best Musical Moment. What do you expect from an awards ceremony that honors Best Kiss, Best WTF Moment and Best Scared-As-S**t Performance? And more to the point, only Channing Tatum from "Magic Mike" was nominated for Best Shirtless Performance?! Although I have no complaint about most of the other nominees save Ted, what about Matt Bomer, Joe Manganiello, Matthew McConaughey, Adam Rodriguez and Alex Pettyfer?

 *1/2 (out of four)   At least once as kids, we all gave an action figure's head the ol' 360-degree spin. Watching the confusing 3-D sequel "G.I. Joe: Retaliation," you know how that toy felt.   I get that a bad guy posing as the president (Jonathan Pryce) sells out the Joes, and before you can say "ghost protocol" the military operation has been discontinued--with survivors Roadblock (Dwayne Johnson), Lady Jaye (Adrienne Palicki) and Flint (D.J. Cotrona, vanilla) left to take back the free world from a guy who says things like, "They call it a waterboard, but they never get bored" and, "They say this is a thankless job, but yesterday I hung out with Bono.

*** (out of four) Part action movie spoof, part coming-of-age comedy and mostly hilarious, “21 Jump Street” gives the genre of “unexpected remakes of not especially significant '80s TV shows” a good name. The cop drama that helped turn Johnny Depp into a heartthrob returns as a lightweight buddy movie, in which Channing Tatum's Jenko is the street smart partner to Jonah Hill's book smart Schmidt. Those specialties don't get them very far when the young cops return to high school and accidentally mix up their new identities.

You've probably heard Ryeisha Berrain's voice on tracks before -- she dropped her verses on DJ Blaqstarr's "Shake It To The Ground" when she was just 15 -- but with the Tuesday release of her first album, "Go! Pop! Bang!" the Baltimore-based rapper is about to make it huge. Here's five things to know about Rye Rye before she's the name on everyone's tongue. damoran@tribune.com | @redeyedana 1 -- She's got a pretty cool mentor Rye Rye was discovered about 5 years ago by M.I.A., who signed the Baltimore rapper as the first artist on her N.E.E.T.

They can afford the most exclusive clubs and the priciest bottle service, but celebrities still can't avoid the scene when fists fly during their nights out. Sometimes they get stuck in the middle of a brawl, and other times, they totally start them. Here's a roundup of some high-profile players who've gotten caught up in the chaos. > > Way back in December 1999 - when Jay Z had just dropped "The Life and Times of S. Carter" - the rapper pleaded guilty to a third-degree assault charge after a stabbing at a Manhattan club.