“I’ll spend months working with an actor, and I think I spent four months with Ashton,” the filmmaker said recently about his time prepping Kutcher for 2005’s Elizabethtown . But the actor, who was still starring in That 70’s Show at the time, refused to devote a few weeks to the ill-fated project co-starring Kirsten Dunst. At the time, Crowe realized, “This is not meant to be,” dropped Kutcher and replaced him with Orlando Bloom. Although the film bombed at the box office, Crowe still remembers it favorably: ” Elizabethtown was a movie made for all the right reasons, and people who connect with the movie really connect to it.” [ THR ]
The Twilight Saga sparkled to another #1 opening, as if you had any doubt; it was just a matter of how many millions Breaking Dawn would rake in, after Friday’s $72 million opening day . But while all the excitement over weddings, butter-colored honeymoons, and monster vampire babies couldn’t quite help BD eclipse New Moon (groan), it still nudged out Pirates of the Caribbean: The One with the Kraken for the #5 biggest opening of all time. That’s forever, baby. Let’s get our imprinting on in today’s Weekend Receipts.
Jason Segel claims he cried when “meeting” Kermit the Frog for the first time, but the self-declared Muppets purist does not sound like a lachrymose superfan when explaining his update of Jim Henson’s brand. As the co-writer and star of The Muppets (out Nov. 23), Segel proves his Muppet mettle with a slick, but classically jovial take on the old troupe. Its swiftness is reminiscent of charming ’90s efforts like A Muppet Christmas Carol while Amy Adams and Chris Cooper’s performances smack of the original Muppet trilogy’s celebrity gusto; the Muppets themselves even conjure the old-school showmanship of the immortal The Muppet Show .
Breaking/shocking update: Not only is the L.A. County Sheriff’s Department re-opening their investigation of Hollywood icon Natalie Wood’s 1981 death, but the boat captain in charge the night she drowned now says that Wood’s husband, Robert Wagner, was to blame.
In this weekend’s Happy Feet Two , Robin Williams voices Ramón, a South American penguin lothario, and Lovelace, a deep-voiced love guru. So how did a self-described quiet child from Chicago transform himself into one of Hollywood’s most energetic Academy Award winners and skilled impressionists, who pulls double duty in Warner Bros.’s latest animated feature?
Hip-hop veteran/actor/author Common was in town for the Soul Train Awards and stopped by Hot 107.9 and the Rickey Smiley Morning Show to talk about his multi-faceted career, the diversity of his fans and the women he has loved. The Chicago MC had some interesting things to say about ex flames Serena Williams , Erykah Badu and Taraji P. Henson . Common also talked about how he inserted hip hop into his role in the animated film Happy Feet 2 , and he also kicked a live version of his classic “I Used to Love H.E.R.” for us! Check it out! Tweet RELATED: Is Common The New King Of All Media? [EXCLUSIVE] Catch Common In Series Premiere of AMC’s “Hell On Wheels” [VIDEO] Taraji Spills On All Dating Rumors: Tyrese, Drake, Common & More [VIDEO] Common Stays Down To Earth In “Blue Sky” [NEW VIDEO] Erykah Badu Broke Up With Common Over The Phone Common Opens Up About The Women He’s Loved Common Confirms Break-Up With Serena Williams Common Discusses New Movies & Music [EXCLUSIVE]
The Descendants may look like a 21st century family drama, but as this exclusive featurette proves, writer/director Alexander Payne and George Clooney can trace its world back to cinema of the ’50s and ’60s. Watch as George Clooney talks about Gregory Peck and his uncle, the late Oscar winner José Ferrer, and Payne recalls wise words from a kooky Czech stage actor.
Pop quiz–Can you name at least two current black action stars, excluding Will Smith and Denzel Washington? Or the last time you saw an interracial couple on the big screen where the storyline didn’t revolve around the color of their skin and/or didn’t end as tragically as a Shakespearean play? Columnist J.F. Sargent at humor site, Cracked.com explores some of the racial and sexist stereotypes Hollywood just can’t seem to let go of. Even with a black man as president, mainstream audiences aren’t comfortable or just don’t care to watch black actor/actresses unless we are in certain supportive roles: the sidekick, the BBF (Best Black Friend), or the domestic ( The Help ). The author states: So how does this play out in real movies? Black characters end up in supporting roles, instead of being well-developed characters. They’re just there so we can “ judge the other (white) characters by how they treat them .” In other words, we certainly don’t root for racist characters, and we’ll boo racist stereotypes. But our open-mindedness usually stops at the point of actually paying to see a black leading man. Other than Will Smith. Read rest of article HERE What say you readers? Which tired racial stereotypes should Hollywood retire? Express your thoughts in comment section below.
It was almost seven months ago, in my preparations for the 2011 Tribeca Film Festival, that I was sent a film called Rid of Me , director James Westby’s curious hybrid of psychological drama and pitch-black comedy that, if there’s any justice, should make actress Katie O’G rady a star. And now that it’s making its way into limited theatrical release, viewers outside the festival circuit can find out why.
Céline Sciamma’s film is titled Tomboy , but the gender issues it delves into are more complex than any supposedly unfeminine preferences for sports and pants-wearing and other associations that linger around that antiquated term.
