Writers were back on the picket lines Wednesday after their strike forced at least eight prime-time shows, including the popular NBC sitcom "The Office," to halt production.

As the strike entered its third day, no new negotiations were scheduled on the main sticking point between writers and producers: payments from DVDs and shows offered on the Internet.

"Lions for Lambs," the preachy, star-driven first release of United Artists under Tom Cruise and producing partner Paula Wagner's management, seems to ask every question imaginable about the war on terrorism while offering not a hint of answers.

No one will ever look back decades from now and say "Lions for Lambs" was even remotely a definitive film about the war on terror.

Cormac McCarthy and the Coen brothers. If you stop to think about it, it's a wonder they've never teamed up before.

The revered writer and the acclaimed moviemakers share so much in common: a love of language, a drive to develop rich characters, an appreciation for the importance of a vivid sense of place and an innate ability to tell stories that take you in directions you'd never have expected from the outset.