President Barack Obama met with McKayla Maroney and other members of USA’s Fierce Five Olympic gymnastics team – Kyla Ross, Jordyn Wieber, Aly Raisman and Gabby Douglas – yesterday in the Oval Office. But the Leader of the Free World was not impressed. Emulating the look Maroney made famous on the medal stand this summer, Obama folded his arms and curled his lips alongside the gymnast, promoting McKalya to Tweet soon afterward: “Did I just do the Not Impressed face with the President?” Yes, McKayla, you sure did. We wonder how Obama feels about the Kim Kardashian wedding, the Grand Granyon and many other events/monuments the Internet hilariously super-imposed Maroney into a couple months ago.
The fact that I wasn’t invited to the Victoria’s Secret fashion show…after all the good I do for the brand and more importantly the girls in it…from following their every fucking move like some kind of creepy pervert who cares way too much about them….was a bit of a slap in the face…reminding me that blogging…at least this kind of blogging…even if I am 10 years deep into it…is some amateur hour shit… I gotta go mainstream…. Here are some pics of the infomercial I missed the taping off…which is probably a good thing…cuz no one wants a chronic masturbating homeless looking guy front row of any of their events….so I’ll just stick to the spray on hair and food dehydrator infomercials…I have yet to jerk off to…cuz I never got that desperate. Featuring the same half naked cast of characters…Ambrosio, Swanepoel, Lima, Kroes, Rihanna, Kerr, Heatherton, etc….. Here is NY Daily News Backstage…..talking to some of the models…..because they are a real media outlet and I am not…. Here is CBS talking to the girls backstage cuz they are a real media outlet….and I am not… HERE ARE THE REST OF THE PICS – TOO MANY TO POST HERE
Also in Wednesday evening’s round-up of news briefs: MoMA unveils its Awards-centered Contenders series; Under the Bridge heads to U.S. theaters; Ridley Scott teams with Focus on a series of low-budget thrillers; And New York may have cancelled its Halloween Parade in the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy, but the Film Society of Lincoln Center is up and running with Halloween and other events this week. Hey New Yorkers, Halloween Going On at Lincoln Center! The city cancelled the annual Halloween Parade, but if you’re itching to get out of your apartment and leave this Sandy business behind for a few minutes, check out the Film Society of Lincoln Center’s “Scary Movies” including Maniac with Elijah Wood (director Franck Khalfoun will be there for a Q&A Wed. night) and the North American premiere of Stitches , just perfect for all who are scared of clowns. The Film Society will also be hosting more events this week including a screening of Anna Karenina and a post-screening discussion with director Joe Wright. The group is also screening Brooklyn Castle and The Revisionaries in its first-runs at the Film Center. MoMA Presents its Annual Contenders Series NYC’s Museum of Modern Art will host a series of screenings of titles from the past 12 months that will figure in the Awards Season race. The series opens October 31st with the U.S. premiere of the 3-D animated feature A Liar’s Autobiography: The Untrue Story of Monty Python’s Graham Chapman which will be released theatrically November 2nd. Last year’s Contenders at MoMA garnered 64 Oscar nominations. The series continues through January 14. For more information, visit their website . Under the Bed Heads to U.S. Theaters Starring Jonny Weston ( Chasing Mavericks ) and Gattlin Griffith ( Green Lantern the the thriller tells the story of two brothers who team up to battle the monster living under their bed. XLrator Media, which picked up U.S. rights to the film ahead of the American Film Market, which gets underway in Santa Monica, will release the film in theaters next summer. The deal was negotiated by Ehud Bleiberg and Giulia Prenna on behalf of Bleiberg Entertainment and by Gordon on behalf of XLrator Media. Around the ‘net… Sarah Jessica Parker Joins Mixtape The film chronicles a girl who accidentally destroys a mix tape that once belonged to her deceased mother. Tom Vaughn will direct the music-based comedy, Deadline reports . Shirley MacLaine and Christopher Plummer to Star in Elsa & Fred Remake MacLaine and Plummer have signed on to star in the romantic comedy, which Il Postino filmmaker Michael Radford will direct. MacLaine plays a lively retirees in New Orleans who gets an unwanted straight-laced widower as a new neighbor in her apartment, THR reports . Ridley Scott Partners with Focus Features on Low-Budget Genre Pics The Oscar-nominated director and producer will work with Orchard Media and Focus Features International on a slate of six genre low-budget feature films over three years, Deadline reports .
“It’s not just another movie about drugs and gangsters,” British model-turned-actress Agyness Deyn says of Pusher , Luis Prieto’s London-set remake of Nicolas Winding Refn ‘s 1996 Danish crime drama, about a drug dealer named Frank (Richard Coyle) who’s about to have the worst week of his life. In her second feature film credit Deyn plays Frank’s heroin-addicted girlfriend Flo, radiating with a unique combination of sensual maturity and naivete that makes Flo’s devotion, and Frank’s downward spiral, all the more tragic. It’s a bold career move for Deyn, the first and biggest dramatic role in her transition from modeling to acting. The 29-year-old made her feature debut as Aphrodite, goddess of love, in 2010’s Clash of the Titans — a small role in a big film, but an experience that Deyn says “indicated to me that this is exactly what I wanted to do.” How is the onetime runway superstar adjusting to her new life of script readings and auditions? Deyn rang Movieline for a chat about Pusher , how changes to the remake alter Flo’s story — and by extension, the film’s central relationship — and her ongoing pursuit of a second career in acting. The film is set in England rather than Denmark – what do you think bringing it to London adds or changes to the story? It’s really great because Luis [Prieto] the director is Spanish, so that added this really amazing element – it was like having new eyes. Even me living in London for a long time, you view it in a certain way. And when someone else shows it to you it’s like, whoa — it’s so different, you know? I think that was a really great thing about it. Also the way Luis incorporates it, all this nightlife — the clubs, it was like another character, another element. It was the heartbeat of the film and pacing with the music, and altogether it was incredible. Frank’s life changes over the course of just a week; he goes from this fairly glamorous existence as a drug dealer to seeing his entire world come crashing down in a matter of days. But there’s a slight difference between this version and the original in terms of Frank and Flo’s relationship; Flo is a stripper, but not a prostitute, and they’re in a relationship even if that’s shaky at best. Definitely. The biggest difference is in Flo’s involvement, and that was really great as well because I didn’t actually watch the original because Luis asked us not to. But I’m glad that people tell me that she’s more relatable, which is great because it takes it to the next level. Women tell me, ‘I was on Flo’s journey with her,’ and for me it’s not just another movie about drugs and gangsters. Flo is dealing with kind of the worst boyfriend ever. He’s preoccupied with his drug deals gone wrong and these frenemies that will probably try to kill him, but even before that he’s emotionally closed-off to her. I’d imagine there are more than a few women who’d relate to Flo’s arc and the decision she eventually comes to. That’s what I loved about her, you could really relate to her in that way. You just want to pick her up and carry her away, don’t you? We don’t really know Frank and Flo before the events of the film, like how they met, or when. What sort of back story did you folks work out to flesh out the roots of their relationship? Going in the club, being on the scene. I feel like they really do love each other, it’s just that there are barriers, they keep on missing each other. There’s a beautiful shot of you at the end, which I won’t give away, which I feel is slightly more optimistic than the original. What’s your take on that, would you agree? I feel like she’s not going to just stand for it, she feels like she’s been betrayed. I feel like she is like that. She’s a dreamer, she’s a romanticist, she’s a mover — she wants to live life and experience things and push the limit and I think that’s what she’s doing. ‘No, this isn’t okay for me — so I’m out of here,’ you know? Pusher comes along at an interesting point in your acting career, after over a decade spent being very successful in the modeling world. Was acting a longtime goal of yours? I just studied it at college, and I didn’t really know what I wanted to do and I kind of fell into modeling. I had a 12-year job on my plate, which was amazing, but what I did realize while modeling was that I did want to do a job that was creative. I really enjoyed creating a character when I was modeling, and I was like, wow — I can take that to the next level and create a character in a movie. So that was the evolution of what I wanted to do. Has it been difficult to decide on which projects to take, how careful to be in your choice of roles as you carve out your acting career? I’m a young actress, starting a career — I read scripts, I audition, and I get it or I don’t get it. I don’t expect that because I was successful in one field that I will then get a ride of passage into another. I know that I’ve got to work hard and deliver the goods, and I’ve got to do it, and show up. I liked Pusher and I especially liked how English and gritty it is, because I like to watch that. So I auditioned for it, and it was in their hands whether I did it or not. Before Pusher you appeared in Clash of the Titans , which was of course a blockbuster-scale film. How would you compare and contrast your experience on those sets, those being two of your first films? Clash of the Titans , I played such a small role but it was a perfect opportunity to get my foot into acting and in a huge way, because it was a big studio movie. It had incredible actors, like Liam Neeson and Ralph Fiennes, and watching them at work it felt more like an observational job, rather than a hands-on job. It was so great to see actors like that working. It was like, this is how they do it! And the freedom that they had, it was so inspiring to watch. It really indicated to me that this is exactly what I wanted to do. Then with Pusher it was like incredible — it was low budget, and family-oriented. It felt safe and exciting and driven, and creative in so many ways. What did you learn about yourself, or even about yourself as a performer, from your work on Pusher ? I think it was that I was part of a bigger picture, you know? Telling the story, being part of that. And also to have fun; I learned so much from Richard Coyle, who played Frank, about dedication and commitment, pushing the boundaries. From Bronson Webb who plays Tony I learned that you can have so much fun in it; he’s so fun, such a live-wire. All these different elements that work — I learned so much from everyone in that way, my eyes and ears open. Do you feel that there are misconceptions about models who turn actors that you’d like to prove wrong? I don’t really want to prove anyone wrong. I just want to do a job, and do well at that. Personally as well, I want to to a job to the best of my abilities and learn and grow, and I think that if I can do that, I’ll feel happy. But I don’t want to make anyone wrong. I suppose there will be people that have their views, no matter what happens. So if I just do what I’m doing, then that’s the most important thing for me. Pusher is in limited release. Follow Jen Yamato on Twitter . Follow Movieline on Twitter .
You’d think Amy Childs was launching a lingerie clothing line by the way she’s dressed; but you’d be wrong. In fact, she is launching her new jewellery collection. Celebrities take note: this is how you promote a product. Even Victoria’s Secret models don’t show up to their events wearing lingerie (IMO, they should), but here we have Amy perfecting the use of lingerie to showcase a totally unrelated product. Job well done.
Also in Wednesday morning’s round-up of news briefs: IDFA, the world’s biggest documentary film festival picks its opening feature. Tim Burton and Helena Bonham Carter are set for London Film Festival honors. Wes Anderson adds to his next project. And Ryan Reynolds eyes a psychological thriller. AFI Fest Taps Bernardo Bertolucci as Guest Artistic Director The Oscar-winning Italian director and screenwriter has selected four features for his special sidebar program at the festival including 42nd Street (DIR Lloyd Bacon), La Regle du Jeu (DIR Jean Renoir), Sunrise (DIR F.W. Murnau) and Vivre Ca Vie (DIR Jean-Luc Godard). In addition, the festival will present Electric Chair , a behind-the-scenes film about the making of Bertolucci’s new movie, Me and You . Bertolucci has written and directed over 25 films, including The Last Emperor and Last Tango in Paris . The 2012 AFI Fest takes place November 1 – 8 in Los Angeles. Wrong Time Wrong Place to Open 25th International Documentary Film Festival Amsterdam The film is described by the world’s biggest documentary festival as “an essay on the insignificance of life and the role played by chance.” The non-fiction feature directed by John Appel revolves around the events of July 22nd, 2011 in Norway, when 77 people were killed in the bomb attacks in Oslo and the shootings on the island of Utoya. IDFA will take place November 14 – 25 in Amsterdam, The Netherlands. Tim Burton and Helena Bonham Carter to Receive London Film Festival Honors Burton and Bonham Carter will receive the British Film Institute’s highest honor, the BFI Fellowship at the 56th BFI London Film Festival, which opens October 20th, which will open with Burton’s Frankenweenie . Around the ‘net… Uma Thurman Joins Lars von Trier’s Nymphomaniac Thurman has joined the cast in the controversial Danish director’s erotic drama in a role that is unclear. Nymphomaniac stars Charlotte Gainsbourg, Stellan Skarsgard, Shia LaBeouf, Jamie Bell, Stacy Martin, Connie Nielsen and Christian Slater. The film will be released in both soft and hard core versions in 2013, THR reports . Ralph Fiennes to Star in Wes Anderson’s Grand Budapest Hotel The film is Wes Anderson’s follow-up to his successful Moonrise Kingdom . The project also stars Bill Murray, Jude Law and Owen Wilson, Deadline reports . Ryan Reynolds Eyes The Voices Reynolds is in early talks with Mandalay Vision and Vertigo Entertainment to star in the psychological thriller that will be directed by Marjane Satrapi from a script by Paranormal Activity ‘s Michael R. Perry. His possible role revolves around a strange bathtub factory worker who longs for the attention of a co-worker. Their relationship takes a sudden murderous twist, but his evil speaking cat and benevolent talking dog lead him to salvation, Deadline reports .
Also in Thursday morning’s round-up of news briefs, Daniel Day-Lewis will be honored in another awards-season ceremony. An Afghan film that won awards at festivals heads home. And Girls creator Lena Dunham continues on her winning roll. Quentin Tarantino’s Django Unchained to be Honored at Hollywood Film Awards The first awards-season show will honor Tarantino’s Civil War-era spaghetti Western Django Unchained . Tarantino will receive the Hollywood Screenwriter Award at the 16th Hollywood Film Awards October 22nd, THR reports . Smithsonian to Lend Dorothy’s Ruby Slippers to U.K. The ruby slippers from The Wizard of Oz will leave Washington for an international journey to the Victoria and Albert Museum in London. Judy Garland wore the shoes in the 1939 film, A.P. reports . BAFTA to Honor Daniel Day-Lewis with Stanley Kubrick Britannia Award The British Academy of Film and Television Arts Los Angeles will present Daniel Day-Lewis with the Stanley Kubrick Britannia Award for Excellence in Film at the 2012 BAFTA Los Angeles Britannia Awards on November 7 at the Beverly Hilton Hotel, Deadline reports . Afghan Film to Premiere in Kabul After Winning International Awards Buzhashi Boys is the story of two young boys in Kabul who dream of playing buzkashi, the Afghan national sport where horseback riders compete for possession of a headless goat. Before the boys can compete in the sport, they must confront the stifling limitations of life for poor Afghans. The film won best drama at LA Shortfest, making it eligible for an Academy Award, The Guardian reports . Lena Dunham Book Bids Coming at $3.6 Million HBO Girls creator Lena Dunham’s book proposal reached $3.6 million. The Tiny Furniture filmmaker turned premium television sensation should have a final deal soon, Deadline reports .
The act of directing suggests, well, direction — that whether it comes together as planned or not, a filmmaker is pursuing a particular vision he or she wants to put on screen. But this is not the sense you get from The Paperboy , the new film from Precious’ Lee Daniels , a feature that feels like it’s been assembled scene by scene on whatever whims were guiding the director that day. No return to an opening framing sequence with narrator Macy Gray? Zac Efron ‘s face superimposed over the bright Florida sky? The already infamous jellyfish-enabled watersports scene? Another in which Nicole Kidman and John Cusack have mind sex in a prison visiting room in front of an audience? Check, check, check and check. The Paperboy is a nutty movie in terms of content, but it’s also assembled in a demented fashion — there’s a sense that literally anything could happen, and that its raunchy, heat-dazed story could wander down any path without regard to sense or an overall narrative. It resembles the relatively straightforward Precious far less than it does Daniels’ wild-eyed directorial debut Shadowboxer , which offered up Cuba Gooding Jr. and Helen Mirren as stepson and stepmother turned assassin lovers. Like that film, The Paperboy doesn’t seem intended to be taken entirely seriously but also offers few signals as to how it then is meant to be taken — it’s an exploitation pastiche that never seems to be actually referencing anything, a campfest that approaches its most over-the-top scenes with a deadly straightforwardness. For better or worse — mostly worse — Daniels has made one of the most unpredictable movies of the year. Set in 1969, The Paperboy is narrated by Anita (Macy Gray), who works as a housekeeper for the Jansen family, owners of a local newspaper. Anita is being interviewed about a book about the events on screen that was written by Jack (Efron), the younger of the two Jansen sons, but that’s an element that, like the mystery around which the story theoretically revolves, fades away in the face of more fleshly distractions. Jack is definitely one of those, a college drop-out delivering papers for his dad W.W. (Scott Glenn) and spending a lot of time in the pool or lounging around in his tighty-whities. Efron gets ogled by the camera even more than Nicole Kidman, who makes a big entrance in a little dress as Charlotte Bless, a woman with a taste for dangerous men who’s fallen in love via letters with convict Hillary Van Wetter (a laudably greasy John Cusack). Charlotte’s convinced Hillary has been falsely imprisoned for the murder of the town’s sheriff, and has lured Jack’s brother Ward (Matthew McConaughey), a reporter working in Miami, back to town to investigate his story with his partner Yardley (David Oyelowo). But this is just a loose structure to allow Jack to spend time with his object of lust, Charlotte, who as Anita helpfully puts it in voiceover serves as “his mama, his high school sweetheart and an oversexed Barbie doll all in one.” If Jack’s love of Charlotte is pure pop psychology, so is Charlotte’s affection for the beast-like Hillary, sex and death in one white trash package — in a scene that makes the beach urination sequence look tame, the pair bring each other to mutual orgasm without touching in their first in-person meeting at the prison while Jack, Ward and Yardley look on, bemused, horrified and aroused. The Paperboy ‘s approach to sexuality is bold, unabashed and discomforting. The movie has a stupefying physicality to it, particularly when it comes to bodily fluids — the gloss of sweat everyone wears, the semen dampening Hillary’s pant leg, the piss Charlotte lets loose on Jack’s body when he’s stung by jellyfish, the blood that pools around a character’s face onto the plastic tarp he’s spread out to accommodate his particular desires. Everyone is shown to harbor dark animal impulses, and the movie coyly ducks away from its only affection-driven hookup, with Anita scolding in voiceover that we’re seen enough — rich, given what does make it onto the screen. The Paperboy provides a lurid spectacle, but it’s one that leaves you wanting to scrub yourself clean in the shower afterward. While Efron plays a primarily decorative role, Kidman gives it her all as the sultry, crazy Charlotte. It’s a certainly a brave and dedicated performance, if one that comes to no notable end other than to serve as a reminder that she capable of playing more than glacial or regal. It’s Gray’s grounded, rounded-out take on the mammy archetype who stands out as the only relatable, human character amidst all the outsized sleaze, a woman who’s cared for the motherless Jack and has become a friend to him. Like so many of the other elements in the film, racial tensions are raised and then allowed to drift away, but the scenes between Efron and Gray are poignant and funny, and provide a slight counterbalance to all the grotesquery in this otherwise offputting jumble. Follow Alison Willmore on Twitter . Follow Movieline on Twitter .
My name is Lexi and I’m lucky enough to write my second Bieber Expierence! I’m 18 and I live in South Florida. My best friend Jamie and I found out that Justin was gonna be on the Today Show in New York, we’ve always wanted to go. We talked to our parents, and they said if you guys could pay for it yourself, then you can go. Jamie and I already had jobs so we started to save; luckily for us we both have family in New York so we both had places to stay. After working 40 hour weeks and saving, we saved enough to buy our plane tickets and spending money while we were up there! We booked our flights and had a 3 week vacation in NY, the only thing we knew Justin for sure was gonna be at was the Today Show (but it was his album release week so we knew he was going to do other events in NY) . Finally the morning of the Today Show and sleeping outdoors camping out, there were so many VIP people in front of us, that we couldn’t even get to see Justin! We later saw Justin tweet about a book signing. We hoped in a cab, went to pre-order ‘Believe’ and got our wristbands for the signing. The next day Justin had gone to Canada for the MMVA’s. Later we found out that if you bought his perfume set, you got tickets to a private concert at the Apollo Theater! We got to Macy’s to get the perfume sets and tickets and got 3rd row seats! We went back home and got ready! Then on to the concert, it was amazing! As I’m sure you all know about the power going out and all that, it was still probably my favorite concert I went to of Justin’s! To top it off after the concert, I was right on the stage, and Justin came by and grabbed my phone and took a picture of us! The next day was the CD signing which, sadly wasn’t that great. We waited in line for hours, and didn’t get to say a word to Justin. Right as I went to say something this lady grabbed me by my arm pulled me and said I needed to leave, so I was like whatever and left. The next day was 106 & Park, and we had gotten tickets! When we got there, they came out and told us the show was full and we couldn’t get in. I fought and made a big scene with security but nothing, so we went to the back and waited. A little while later, Justin’s car came out. He rolled down his window and talked to us, he was so nice! We knew Justin was going to David Letterman so we went by his hotel. Justin got out and started taking pictures, when it was my turn he put his arm around me and I went to hand another girl my phone. Justin was like, “Wait take it on that girl’s camera, it will come out better for you!” After that we went home, me and Jamie were beyond exhausted! Friday he was filming Fuse at a secret location, and you had to win to get in. But one of the girls I met in NY had won and told me where it was. We decided to go and try to get in. We ended up getting in! The “Justin Bieber: All around the World Special” was on TV at the time, and out of no where my phone blew up! Everyone was telling me we were in it! Once we got home we watched at and we were in the special like 10 times! It definitely topped off our perfect week! It was honestly the best week of my life, it was worth all the money I spent, sleep in the street, waking up super early, getting lost every time I took the train, and almost getting kidnaped and killed! I wouldn’t change anything about the trip and I would do it all over again in a heartbeat! -@LexiRobless @JamieVelasquezz Read more here: My name is Lexi and I’m lucky enough to write my second Bieber…
My name is Kate. I’m from Australia and I’ve been a Belieber since mid-2009 and I’ve supported Justin every second since then. He has inspired me to do so much good with my life. With two other girls, I run Bieber parades/charity events around the city of Melbourne, we’ve raised so much money for Pencils Of Promise and been so successful. We’ve also personally donated Believe albums to sick children in hospital and made so many people smile. I don’t do it to get Justin’s attention, I do it because he’s taught me to always give back, I want to be a fan he’d be proud of. Although I’m from Melbourne, I flew to Sydney and got to see Justin perform on the morning show ‘Sunrise’. After 3 days of trying to meet him, I knew I was running out of time as he was flying to New Zealand later that day, July 18th. I wasn’t sure of the time he was leaving so I went to the airport and I was willing to wait however long I needed to. I spent the day trying to find out as much information as possible about his flight details. I went to McDonalds inside the airport and one of the lady’s working there told me about this back entrance where celebrities go through. I ran there straight away, there was only about 4 girls there but there were police there too so I knew something had to be going on. After hours and hours of waiting, I got a call saying that Kenny had been spotted inside the airport. All the police randomly ran inside and I was worried that Justin had gone in through the front entrance. A lady walked out of the airport and told us that Justin was being driven to Gate 27 which is impossible to get to. All of us girls got up and ran around the airport, trying to find anyway we would be able to see him even if it was just through a fence. After running so much that I thought I was going to throw up we eventually made our way back to our original spot. We waited for about 20 minutes then a black car drove past and a few girls spotted Selena in it. I couldn’t believe it, I didn’t know what to do, I was freaking out. We all jumped up and ran over, then decided it would be best if we stayed back. We tried to stay as calm as possible and all took 3 steps back. Justin and Selena stayed in the car for a while but Moshe got out. We waved politely and started singing one of Selena’s songs to make her smile and eventually Justin and Selena got out. Justin walked over to us and I didn’t even know what to do. The amount of times I have imagined meeting him and planned all the things I would say, but I forgot it all. I was literally speechless. I got a photo with him, then thanked him and gave him a kiss on the cheek. He smirked and smiled at me then pulled me in for a hug. I was holding a Bieber magazine and he was like “Do you want me to sign that for you?” and he signed it. I still can’t believe it. It was so perfect. He is so perfect. He made sure everyone had a photo before he left, it shows how much he really does care about us. He didn’t have to walk over to us and take photos with us but he chose too. He made my biggest dream come true and I could never thank him enough. Justin Drew Bieber is my life, to all the people who said I’d never meet him, just look at us now. -@BieberMelbourne See original here: My name is Kate. I’m from Australia and I’ve been a…
