Back in January, MGM/Screen Gems tapped director Kimberly Peirce to helm their remake of Stephen King’s Carrie , updating the supernatural tale after Brian de Palma’s iconic 1976 film adaptation. The current frontrunners to play Carrie White, the sexually repressed telekinetic teen who wreaks bloody revenge on her classmates at the high school prom? Kick-Ass star Chloe Moretz and actress Haley Bennett ( The Haunting of Molly Hartley , Marley & Me ), according to Vulture . Can either fill Sissy Spacek ‘s shoes? Fifteen-year-old Moretz and 24-year-old Bennett reportedly have the edge over other candidates who’ve read for the part, including Lily Collins , Dakota Fanning , and Emily Browning , which might indicate what sort of Carrie they’re going for here — with the exception of Moretz, these are actresses in their early twenties who can play teenage and have already dabbled in more mature material. (Spacek was 26 when De Palma’s Carrie was filmed.) At the same time, Moretz is arguably the hotter name of the bunch. But is the world ready to watch Hit Girl get her period in the showers and go on a menstrual rampage at prom? I mean, I’m sure Moretz could handle the material. I’m just not sure I can believe her playing vulnerable while doused in blood; the strength of her many badass roles to date has been in how assuredly she handles extreme situations despite her young age, not the other way around. Bennett, on the other hand, isn’t as well known to audiences and could probably disappear into the role more easily. Then again, Spacek was great as Carrie because she had that twitchy virginal weirdo thing down, and I’m not sure many up and coming starlets these days possess the ability to flip their freak-out switch on quite like she did. (According to Vulture, Jodie Foster and Julianne Moore are being batted around to play Carrie’s religious fanatic mom.) Are there any other potential Carries out there, or are these the best candidates of the bunch? How about Lindsay Lohan ? Sound off below.
With the MPAA ruling in favor of upholding Bully ‘s R-rating, the Weinstein Co. has announced that they’ll release the documentary as planned on March 30 — in its full, explicit language-laden unrated cut. The question is, will theaters let minors see it? “I know the kids will come, so it’s up to the theaters to let them in,” said director Lee Hirsch in a press release, with TWC marketing head Stephen Bruno adding pressure to the theaters to ” step up and do what’s right .” It’s the latest moral prompt about movies, how we watch them, and whether or not we should let our kids watch them stemming from the tightly executed campaign around the doc, which has become a rallying missive against the widespread epidemic of youth bullying. So fervent is support for Bully that it’s no longer parents or the MPAA who have to get out of the way and let their kids watch it, but now the theater owners who might otherwise bar kids from attending showings of the unrated film. All of which actually raises a good question: Should theater owners and operators step in to help or hinder young audiences from seeing unrated films otherwise deemed rated-R by the MPAA? Perhaps on a case-by-case basis, as opposed to unrated films that contain sexually graphic or violent content, and primarily for younger moviegoers; in this case, Bully ‘s awareness-raising merits seem to outweigh the fact that audiences will hear the f-word uttered a number of times onscreen. When I was a kid, watching R-rated movies on cable TV wasn’t just educational, it was formative. Why not let kids hear a few “fucks” with their civics lessons? In contrast to most theaters’ rules when it comes to R-rated films (No one under 17 admitted without accompanying guardian) or NC-17 films (No one under 17 admitted, period), the unrated label is more ambiguously defined in practice. With a film like Bully — and, more effectively, given the media PR blitz it has going — I can’t imagine any chain operator ticket-taker turning away a group of 12-year-olds that come to watch the film. On the other hand: What if those 12-year-olds then sneak into Project X ?? Full press release follows. March 26, 2012 – New York, NY – After a recent plea to the MPAA by BULLY teen Alex Libby and The Weinstein Company (TWC) Co-Chairman Harvey Weinstein failed – by one vote – to get the film its deserved PG-13 rating, TWC is choosing to move forward with releasing the film unrated by the MPAA on March 30. Furthering proof that the R rating for some language is inappropriate for a film that’s meant to educate and help parents, teachers, school officials and children with what’s become an epidemic in schools around the country, the fight against the rating continues on. The outpour of support by politicians, schools, parents, celebrities and activists for the film’s mission to be seen by those it was made for – children – has been overwhelming. Nearly half a million people have signed Michigan high school student and former bullying victim Katy Butler’s petition on Change.org to urge the MPAA to lower the rating. Said BULLY Director Lee Hirsch, “The small amount of language in the film that’s responsible for the R rating is there because it’s real. It’s what the children who are victims of bullying face on most days. All of our supporters see that, and we’re grateful for the support we’ve received across the board. I know the kids will come, so it’s up to the theaters to let them in.” “The kids and families in this film are true heroes, and we believe theater owners everywhere will step up and do what’s right for the benefit of all of the children out there who have been bullied or may have otherwise become bullies themselves. We’re working to do everything we can to make this film available to as many parents, teachers and students across the country,” said TWC President of Marketing Stephen Bruno. For parents or teachers who are looking for more information or who may have concerns about showing children a movie unrated by the MPAA, please read Common Sense Media’s rating details of the film here: http://www.commonsensemedia.org/movie-reviews/bully. “While it’s often heartbreaking and deals with tough issues like suicide, the movie addresses bullying in a frank and relatable way that is age appropriate for teens and relevant for middle schoolers if an adult is present to guide the discussion,” said James P. Steyer, Founder and CEO, Common Sense Media. “The MPAA’s ratings system is inadequate when it comes looking at a movie’s content through the lens of its larger thematic issues. Common Sense Media provides alternative ratings for parents who are looking for more guidance and context than the MPAA provides.” BULLY will be released in theaters on Friday, March 30th in New York at the Angelika Film Center and AMC Lincoln Square and in Los Angeles at The Landmark, ArcLight Hollywood and AMC Century City. BULLY is a beautifully cinematic, character-driven documentary. At its heart are those with huge stakes in this issue whose stories each represent a different facet of America’s bullying crisis. Filmed over the course of the 2009/2010 school year, BULLY opens a window onto the pained and often endangered lives of bullied kids, revealing a problem that transcends geographic, racial, ethnic and economic borders. It documents the responses of teachers and administrators to aggressive behaviors that defy “kids will be kids” clichés, and it captures a growing movement among parents and youths to change how bullying is handled in schools, in communities and in society as a whole.
As if you didn’t already have enough reason to be afraid of the coming megabudgeted cash-in that is Men in Black 3 , here comes the sequel’s poppy theme song, courtesy of rapper Pitbull and not franchise star/Fresh Prince Will Smith . Oh, it gets worse: “My 19-year-old daughter turned me on to Pitbull,” explained director Barry Sonnenfeld (via NME). “I’m thrilled that he wrote such a great song for our movie that totally gets it.” If this monstrosity “totally gets it,” we’re all screwed. Hit the jump to listen and find out why. Where do I even begin… How about by listing, in no particular order, the 9 worst, most idiotic and insufferable and insulting parts of this future hit single, which already inexplicably has 2,000 likes on Facebook and has virtually nothing to do with the movie itself? 1. The co-opting of Mickey & Sylvia’s “Love is Strange” AKA that song from Dirty Dancing that Jennifer Grey and Patrick Swayze crawled across the floor to which now sounds like that horrid Fatboy Slim “Brimful of Asha” remix. 2. Someone wrote these lyrics: “Excuse me, baby/Yeah, you baby/You’re groovy baby/let’s make a movie baby…” 3. Pitbull’s spoken intro , in which he claims to be “reporting live from Cape Canaveral.” YES OF COURSE YOU ARE. 4. ” Black suits, white shirts, black glasses with a matching tie/like Agent J or Agent K and I wish the whole world would… ” And aliens and dress socks and I wish the whole world would, too. You know. 5. ” I’m trying to make a billion out of fifteen cents. ” Oh, the crass commercialization of perverting an iconic rap line about desperate street hustling into a throwaway lyric in your blockbuster tie-in pop-rap ditty. It is hard to be legit and still pay your rent, isn’t it Pitbull? 6. ” Give credit where credit is due/ Know that I don’t give a number two . ” Worst. Line. Ever. You get credit for that for always. 7. At last, some words of truth: “To understand the future we have to go back in time…” Like to before I ever heard this song? Is that possible?? You see, in the movie Will Smith’s Agent J has to go back to the 1960s to save Agent K and, um, learn things. About the future. Clearly Pitbull was only given the Men in Black 3 synopsis to go off of while writing this. 8. Something something “Ray Charles.” Because why not? 9. ” Let’s save the world/Men in Black/I know y’all understand. ” Nope, I do not. At all. Sigh. Who else needs a palate cleanser? Here, this should suffice: “Back in Time” is credited to songwriters Armando C. Perez (Pitbull), Marc Kinchen, Adrian Trejo and Urales Vargas. Men in Black 3 is in theaters May 25. [via Coming Soon ]
