'Amelia' Runs Into More Than A Little Rough Air

Netflix revenue surges 24%; subscriber additions nearly double

It used to be Hollywood that was recession-proof. Now it's Netflix.

Continuing its huge growth in the midst of a brutal recession, the DVD-by-mail subscription company increased its revenue by 24% last quarter and added a net 510,000 subscribers, 95% more than it did in the same three months last year.

Netflix's big gains underscore that it is one of the key drivers, along with $1-a-night DVD kiosk company Redbox, in the 9.9% growth in total rental revenue for the home entertainment industry in the third quarter.

The Los Gatos, Calif., company reported net income of $30.1 million, up 48% from a year earlier, on revenue of $423.1 million. The total number of subscribers as of Sept. 30 was 11.1 million, up from 8.7 million a year earlier.

All three numbers were on the upper edge or slightly over the guidance Netflix provided to its investors three months ago.

Most significant for those who own Netflix stock, the company modestly increased its financial projections for the end of the year from those it provided in its last earnings report. The company expects to have 12 million to 12.3 million subscribers, up from previous guidance of 11.6 million to 12 million. Revenue is projected to be $1.666 billion to $1.672 billion, up from $1.65 billion to $1.67 billion, and net income guidance is $106 million to $111 million, compared with its previous prediction of $99 million to $109 million.

Netflix stock was up 4% before earnings were announced but is down slightly in after-hours trading.

-- Ben Fritz

Photo: Netflix Chief Executive Reed Hastings. Credit: Randi Lynn Beach / For The Times.

Charming 'White Collar' just loose enough to be comfortable

There are several good reasons to watch “White Collar” (9 p.m. Central Friday, USA; three stars). Two of them reside on either side of Matthew Bomer’s nose, just below his forehead.

USA apparently thinks so much of Bomer’s arresting blue eyes that it has designed this likable cop-caper’s ad campaign â€" and maybe even the show’s palette â€" around his peepers. “White Collar’s” visuals are full of cool blues, grays, whites and blacks, and the director of photography never wastes a chance to focus on those cornflower-blue orbs.

The good news is that there are more than two reasons to like “White Collar,” a crime-caper show with a “Catch Me If You Can” vibe. Bomer, who played a similarly resourceful character on NBC’s “Chuck,” supplies suave charm as Neal Caffrey, a counterfeiter who has the skills and the dazzling smile to get away with almost every scam he attempts.

Tim DeKay (“Tell Me You Love Me,” “Carnivale”) plays by-the-book FBI agent Peter Burke, who investigates white-collar crimes and finds himself in need of Caffrey’s specialized knowledge. In DeKay’s hands, Burke’s hangdog perseverance is entertaining, and the square FBI agent’s intelligence is quietly convincing. After all, Burke is the only man to have sent the slippery Caffrey to prison.

The uptight cop with the loosey-goosey partner â€" it’s a familiar mismatch not only in the TV realm but in countless action movies. But cable networks â€" and USA in particular â€" have been adept at churning out capable variations on classic television genres. “White Collar” should be no exception to USA’s successful string of original series, which are mildly quirky but aimed squarely at the mainstream.

The best thing about “White Collar” is DeKay and Bomer’s chemistry; DeKay in particular is able to wring subtle comedy from Burke’s irritation at Caffrey’s ability to get something for nothing. Caffrey’s apparently effortless approach to life could be grating, but Bomer imbues him with an element of a sweetness and even longing (a missing girlfriend will be an ongoing story thread). And the lessons Caffrey teaches the slightly nervous Burke about enjoying life may be more or less expected, but they’re delivered with a relatively light touch.

Much of Caffrey’s advice for Burke concerns Burke’s marriage, and that’s where the show falters. Tiffani Thiessen is miscast as Burke’s wife; the actors have a distracting lack of chemistry, and those two just don’t seem like a believable couple.

But the rest of the supporting cast is extremely capable. Natalie Morales ("The Middleman") turns up in the second episode as a junior FBI agent assisting Burke, and she fits right into the show's unforced vibe. Willie Garson ("Sex and the City") does his usual great work as Mozzie, a skittish fellow scammer Caffrey knows.

For now, “White Collar” can skate by on charm and humor, but so far the show’s stories tend to rely on the characters’ good luck and Caffrey having just the right underworld contacts. Perhaps over time, the slight but enjoyable “White Collar” will develop the deeper appeal of USA’s “Burn Notice,” which at its best has both tight plotting and an undeniable emotional pull.

And by the way...

A couple of notes about “Monk,” which airs immediately before “White Collar”: Fans of Adrian Monk’s original companion should tune in to Friday’s episode, which features the return of Sharona (Bitty Schram). Also, USA has announced that the long-running “Monk” will end its run Dec. 4. Virginia Madsen and Melora Harden (“The Office”) will guest star in the series finale.

Photos: Bomer; Morales and DeKay.

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'Amelia' Runs Into More Than A Little Rough Air

The story of a pioneering, iconoclastic aviator is presented predictably and without risk in Mira Nair's biographical drama — a handsome studio picture that keeps insisting its heroine is a boundary pusher, even as it curls up cozily within the familiar limits of big-budget Hollywood hagiography.