Where are her parents? Wait, where is her fiance!?!? Miley Cyrus is attracting attention for all the wrong reasons as usual. This week the teen singer/actress has tongues wagging about her doing a little same-sex kissing, and of course everyone is talking about how the timing is perfect because of her new platinum short “boy” haircut. The former “Hannah Montana” star, who recently became engaged to longtime boyfriend Liam Hemsworth of “Hunger Games” fame, is sowing her wild oats before the wedding – by smooching other women. “Miley decided to live a little before she ties the knot,” an insider told The ENQUIRER. “She wants to have some fun and laughs before she gets bogged down with wedding plans.” Miley, 19, was spotted sharing an intimate kiss with an unidentified woman at New York’s trendy club The Darby on Aug. 23 while her 22-year-old fiance was hard at work shooting his new film, “Paranoia,” in Philadelphia. “Miley has always been outspoken over her support of gay rights,” the source continued. “She even sports a small equal sign tattoo on her ring finger to signify her belief that all love is equal. “So it’s certainly not surprising that she’s experimenting with girls before she walks down the aisle.” This isn’t the first time the onetime Disney darling has locked lips with another young lovely. In 2010, she puckered up with a cutie onstage during a performance of “Can’t Be Tamed” at London’s legendary G-A-Y nightclub. At the time, the “Party in the USA” singer defended the kiss by claiming “nothing happened” and there are “more important things in the world” than two girls kissing onstage. But Miley’s behavior was enough for self-professed bi actress Evan Rachel Wood to take notice! After seeing Miley’s new do, Wood tweeted: “I called it! Miley Cyrus is leaning toward gay!” Meanwhile, Miley’s career remains red-hot as she recently inked a deal to appear in a two-part episode of the hit sitcom “Two and a Half Men.” “Miley’s having the time of her life right now,” added the source. “She knows she’ll have to settle down once she and Liam get hitched, but for now she seems to be living by the motto, ‘Girls just want to have fun!’” SMH. If Miley is “having the time of her life right now” and feels the need to “live a little before tying the knot,” what is even the point of getting married? She’s only 19 anyway! What’s the rush? And what gives with the making out with girls? Is she really attracted to women or is this just about how much she can get away with without Liam walking away? Source
Brad Pitt assured fans Thursday that he is planning on marrying Angelina Jolie … even while offering no details on when and where it will take place. In London to promote his new film Killing Them Softly , the 48-year-old star gamely fielded questions about wedding plans with his gorgeous fiancee. “No plans yet, other than we are going to do it ,” Pitt said, adding that despite his steadfast desire to marry her, “I plan very little as I get older.” Insiders say Pitt and Jolie’s nuptials will be a “simple, joyous gathering” with a tiny guest list, and that means no celebrities overshadowing the affair. While Pitt and Jolie, 37, live at France’s Chateau Miraval, the wedding rumors followed them to England this summer as she shoots Maleficent . “It’s been a great summer here,” Pitt said of life in the UK at Thursday’s event. “It’s just been a great spirited summer with all the sporting events.” “It’s one of the most pleasurable times I’ve ever had here. We’ve been hanging out just having a normal life while Mama works,” he added. [Photo: WENN.com]
Tell ya one thing, that hospital is about to get fried in the impending lawsuit. The family of a Muslim grandmother was distraught to discover that her body had been desecrated while it lay in the morgue of the hospital where she died. Touching or eating pork was forbidden for the woman during her life, but a vandal draped her remains in bacon! A £5,000 reward is being offered by police after the body of a Muslim woman was found in a hospital mortuary, covered with rashers of bacon. The desecration was discovered when the family of the grandmother, aged 65, was waiting to see her body after she lost her fight with cancer. The Metropolitan Police’s racial crime task force was called in to investigate the incident, at Hillingdon Hospital in west London, and an extensive inquiry was launched. It is strictly against the Muslim religion to touch or eat pork and the woman’s family, who do not want to be identified, have been left deeply traumatized. Detective Chief Inspector Tony Hester, of Hillingdon police, said: “This is a particularly grotesque act which has outraged the family as well as the whole community. “Because of the nature of the incident a criminal investigation was immediately initiated and is still ongoing. DCC4 – Racial and Violent Crime Task Force – was involved in the initial investigation and officers from the Community Safety Unit are in constant liaison with them. “We are also, of course, keeping the family and local community informed of developments.” The crime was discovered as staff arranged for the body to be viewed by family members. Police have viewed CCTV footage and speaking to staff and others captured on video outside the mortuary. Forensic experts have also examined the bacon and the gown the woman was wearing. A member of the woman’s family told BBC London News the incident made them feel “physically sick. It was like a horrible nightmare. I get flashbacks, my brain goes numb.” “I witnessed her passing away and then for me to witness that again, it’s traumatic. I feel emotionally raped.” The woman’s daughter said it was like a nightmare that was still deeply affecting the family. “I thought someone who did this hated Muslims especially. I don’t know why they chose my mum. “In life you expect a lot of things, but something so shocking, you couldn’t even think it up in the worst horror movie. Evil, evil, people.” David McVittie, chief executive of Hillingdon Hospital NHS Trust, expressed sympathy for the family and said everything would be done to find out who was responsible. “I am extremely sorry for the distress that the family of the lady concerned suffered as a result of this despicable incident and for any distress it has caused to the Muslim community. “I am shocked and outraged that such a thing has happened and will not rest until we have found the perpetrators of this crime.” The £5,000 reward has been offered by Scotland Yard and the hospital. The family is being represented by human rights solicitor Imran Khan. SMH this is horrible. Who would do such a thing to an older woman who died after losing her battle with CANCER? What the hell?!? It sounds like discrimination is just as bad in the UK as over here, if not worse! Source
Tell ya one thing, that hospital is about to get fried in the impending lawsuit. The family of a Muslim grandmother was distraught to discover that her body had been desecrated while it lay in the morgue of the hospital where she died. Touching or eating pork was forbidden for the woman during her life, but a vandal draped her remains in bacon! A £5,000 reward is being offered by police after the body of a Muslim woman was found in a hospital mortuary, covered with rashers of bacon. The desecration was discovered when the family of the grandmother, aged 65, was waiting to see her body after she lost her fight with cancer. The Metropolitan Police’s racial crime task force was called in to investigate the incident, at Hillingdon Hospital in west London, and an extensive inquiry was launched. It is strictly against the Muslim religion to touch or eat pork and the woman’s family, who do not want to be identified, have been left deeply traumatized. Detective Chief Inspector Tony Hester, of Hillingdon police, said: “This is a particularly grotesque act which has outraged the family as well as the whole community. “Because of the nature of the incident a criminal investigation was immediately initiated and is still ongoing. DCC4 – Racial and Violent Crime Task Force – was involved in the initial investigation and officers from the Community Safety Unit are in constant liaison with them. “We are also, of course, keeping the family and local community informed of developments.” The crime was discovered as staff arranged for the body to be viewed by family members. Police have viewed CCTV footage and speaking to staff and others captured on video outside the mortuary. Forensic experts have also examined the bacon and the gown the woman was wearing. A member of the woman’s family told BBC London News the incident made them feel “physically sick. It was like a horrible nightmare. I get flashbacks, my brain goes numb.” “I witnessed her passing away and then for me to witness that again, it’s traumatic. I feel emotionally raped.” The woman’s daughter said it was like a nightmare that was still deeply affecting the family. “I thought someone who did this hated Muslims especially. I don’t know why they chose my mum. “In life you expect a lot of things, but something so shocking, you couldn’t even think it up in the worst horror movie. Evil, evil, people.” David McVittie, chief executive of Hillingdon Hospital NHS Trust, expressed sympathy for the family and said everything would be done to find out who was responsible. “I am extremely sorry for the distress that the family of the lady concerned suffered as a result of this despicable incident and for any distress it has caused to the Muslim community. “I am shocked and outraged that such a thing has happened and will not rest until we have found the perpetrators of this crime.” The £5,000 reward has been offered by Scotland Yard and the hospital. The family is being represented by human rights solicitor Imran Khan. SMH this is horrible. Who would do such a thing to an older woman who died after losing her battle with CANCER? What the hell?!? It sounds like discrimination is just as bad in the UK as over here, if not worse! Source
The Master , the latest from Paul Thomas Anderson starring Philip Seymour Hoffman and Joaquin Phoenix , have captured the zeitgeist of Venice Film Festival talk in the first half of the festival, but perhaps more quietly, director Haifaa Al Mansour is making celluloid history with her film Wadjda . Al Mansour is Saudi Arabia’s first female director, in a country that forbids movie theaters. The film follows the story of a determined 10 year-old girl living in the country’s capital, Riyadh. Shot entirely in Saudi Arabia, according to the director, the film follows young Wadjda as she lives her life trying to dodge the strict rules of Saudi society both at home and school. According to a profile of the film in Reuters , she is disciplined for not wearing her veil, listening to pop music and not “hiding in front of men.” But her sites set on a green bicycle that she decides to raise money to get it. Her plan is to learn Koranic verses and take part in a religious competition at school. If she can raise the money, she will buy the bike. And in the meantime, she will – at least temporarily – show herself as a renewed pious girl. “It’s easy to say it’s a difficult, conservative place for a woman and do nothing about it, but we need to push forward and hope we can help make it a more relaxed and tolerant society,” she said after her film premiered in Venice, speaking to reporters in English, according to Reuters. She added that the restrictive kingdom has started to open up for women, noting that female athletes traveled to London for the recent Olympics and that its monarch, King Abdullah has opened up better educational opportunities for women and they now can vote in municipal elections. “”It is not like before, although I can’t say it’s like heaven,” she said. “Society won’t just accept it, people will put pressure on women to stay home, but we have to fight.” Still she did encounter some social-stigma while filming in the country’s capital despite having received permission. Locals in some more conservative areas of the city did not like seeing a female filmmaker directing with men on the set and at times used a walkie-talkie in order to give instruction to her male actors. Wadjda is playing out of competition at the Venice Film Festival. [ Source: Reuters ]
With just under 300 features, the upcoming Toronto International Film Festival is a yearly behemoth that regularly churns out a number of films that will head to U.S. theaters and vie for the year-end awards race. In fact, Toronto is considered a launch pad for the long, long awards season that will culminate in the Oscar ceremony February 24th. Some recent Oscar winners that played TIFF before heading out to audiences in North America include The King’s Speech and Slumdog Millionaire . Over the next several days, ML will preview some of the titles we believe will be catching attention either with audiences, the awards race (or of course both). The ten titles that follow range from returning auteurs like Terrence Malick and Noah Baumbach to Toronto veterans that have managed to surprise audiences with their unique vision and will likely do so again. And there are some newcomers we just found interesting. This week, ML will profile some of the top “high profile” titles we’ll be watching closely. Docs, Midnight/Genre and Foreign-Language titles will follow this week. Take a look and by all means, add your opinions. To The Wonder , directed by Terrence Malick Famously reclusive, Terrence Malick nevertheless shows his work ethic with many projects on tap. He received an Oscar nomination for Best Director for his last film, The Tree of Life as well as Best Picture and Best Cinematography. His latest film, To the Wonder is a romantic drama who reconnects with a woman from his hometown after his marriage to a European woman falls apart. The film stars Rachel McAdams, Ben Affleck (who directed Argo , which is also screening at the festival) and Javier Bardem. Yellow , directed by Nick Cassavetes Nick Cassavetes added director to his resume back in 1996 with Unhook the Stars starring Gena Rowlands, Marisa Tomei and Gérard Depardieu. The next year, he took She’s So Lovely to Cannes. Known for his acting, including The Hangover Part II last year, he directed Sienna Miller and Lucy Punch in his latest project Yellow , which is TIFF-bound. The “dramedy” revolves around Mary Holmes, a young woman with a drug habit and that’s just the beginning of her problems. Inescapable , directed by Ruba Nadda Canadian director Ruba Nadda is no stranger to the Toronto International Film Festival. Her 2009 feature Cairo Time , starring Oscar-nominee Patricia Clarkson and Alexander Siddig won Best Canadian Feature at the event. Her latest film, Inescapable , which also stars Alexander Siddig along with Joshua Jackson, has been dubbed a “Syrian-flavored Taken “. In the film, Siddig plays a father who is forced to return to Damascus after 30 year after his vacationing daughter goes missing. Ginger and Rosa , directed by Sally Potter British-born director Sally Potter made a splash in 1992 with Orlando starring Tilda Swinton and Billy Zane. It won a prize at the European Film Awards as well as a string of nods at film festivals worldwide. Her follow-ups include The Tango Lesson (1997) and Yes (2004). Her latest film screening in Toronto’s Special Presentations section revolves around two teenage girls in London around 1962. They are inseparable friends and dream of lives beyond the domestic work their mothers had. As the Cold War and the sexual revolution heat up, however, their friendship is threatened. Disconnect , directed by Henry Alex Rubin Filmmaker Henry Alex Rubin received an Oscar nomination for his second film, Murderball back in 2005 (shared with Dana Adam Shapiro). The documentary debuted at the Sundance Film Festival that year and continued to gain notoriety throughout the festival circuit. His new dramatic thriller Stars Alexander Skarsgard, Max Thieriot and Jason Bateman about a group of people searching for human connections in today’s wired world. Frances Ha , directed by Noah Baumbach Noah Baumbach received a Best Original Screenplay Oscar-nomination for The Squid and the Whale back in 2005 and has won fans and nods for penning other popular films including this summer’s Madagascar 3: Europe’s Most Wanted and Fantastic Mr. Fox . His latest film stars Greta Gerwig as New Yorker Frances. She has no apartment and is an apprentice at a dance company, though she’s not really a dancer. She plunges straight into fulfilling her dreams even as their reality dwindles. Much Ado About Nothing , directed by Joss Whedon Joss Whedon has had quite a year so far and he will be heading to Toronto on the heels of directing the year’s biggest box office draw, The Avengers . But his latest film may not quite have the same mass appeal as his super-hero movie, but Shakespeare fans will likely be interested in his Toronto offering. Whedon’s latest is a modern re-telling of Shakespeare’s classic comedy about two paris of lovers with different takes on romance and a way with words. Spring Breakers , Harmony Korine Harmony Korine made a splash on the filmmaking scene as the co-writer of Kids in 1995 (along with director Larry Clark) and he moved into the director’s chair with Gummo in 1997, receiving a critics-centered FIPRESCI Prize at the Venice Film Festival. Korine is courageous in his story-telling, his long list of features and shorts include 2007’s comedy Mister Lonely about a Michael Jackson and Marilyn Monroe lookalikes living on a Scottish commune, while 2009’s Trash Humpers , which played in Toronto that year, is well…pretty much as the title suggests. His latest, Spring Breakers , follows four teens in a spring break that goes awry. After landing in jail, they are bailed out by a drug and arms dealer who wants them to do more dirty work. Peaches Does Herself , directed by Peaches Peaches fans will undoubtedly flock to see their idol in her first film in which she stars as herself. In the film, she makes sexually forthright music and then decides to do what her fans want – a transsexual. And if things aren’t complicated enough, she falls for a she-male and gets her heart broken. Laurence Anyways , directed by Xavier Dolan The Quebecois wunderkind returns to Toronto with his third feature, not bad for a filmmaker in his early 20s. He won festival accolades for his debut I Killed My Mother and followed it up with Heartbeats , which Dolan said he wrote on a train to Toronto from his home town, Montreal. Dolan starred in his previous films, but stayed behind the camera for Laurence Anyways which centers on the challenge a couple face when the man decides to have a sex change. The Toronto Film Festival runs September 6-16. Stay tuned for more from TIFF here at Movieline. Follow Brian Brooks on Twitter . Follow Movieline on Twitter .
Robert Zemeckis’ Flight starring Denzel Washington will screen as the Centerpiece of the Austin Film Festival & Conference . The 2012 event, taking place October 18 – 25 revealed some details of its upcoming event Tuesday including 10 films that will join this year’s lineup. AFF annually hosts over 180 film screenings and events, while the Conference welcomes over 100 speakers in its panels and roundtables. Among the films screened during the festival are numerous world and US premieres in a wide range of genres, from comedy to documentary, horror to drama. Also on tap for this year, X-Files creator Chris Carter will receive the event’s Outstanding Television Writer Award at AFF’s annual Awards Luncheon on Saturday, October 22nd. Carter will join Paul Feig and Brian Helgeland as part of AFF’s new “Guest Programmer” section of the festival, giving “highly regarded filmmakers” the chance to screen and discuss films they found influential. Carter will also participate in – fittingly – “A Conversation with Chris Carter,” where he will share stories from his long career in television and film. Carter will also present special retrospective screenings of The X-Files and Millennium episodes. There are also plans to screen an X-Files marathon at the Alamo Drafthouse. AFF will release the rest of its lineup in September. Details of AFF’s early 10 films follow with details provided by the festival : Flight – Centerpiece Film Writer: John Gatins Director: Robert Zemeckis In this action-packed mystery thriller, Academy Award winner Denzel Washington stars as Whip Whitaker, a seasoned airline pilot who miraculously crash-lands his plane after a mid-air catastrophe, saving nearly every soul on board. After the crash, Whip is hailed as a hero, but as more is learned, more questions than answers arise as to who or what was really at fault, and what really happened on that plane? Directed by Robert Zemeckis, the highly anticipated new film also stars John Goodman, Don Cheadle, and Melissa Leo. Free Samples Writer: Jim Beggarly Director: Jay Gammill A Stanford law school dropout named Jillian escapes to the anonymity of Los Angeles to figure out what she wants to do with her life, and on the day of her college boyfriend’s birthday, she finds herself stuck running an ice cream truck fending off locals and oddball friends alike. This one day spent in a truck on the streets of LA will wake Jillian from her aimless daze and make her see that life doesn’t stop just because you want it to. Starring Jess Weixler, Jesse Eisenberg, Halley Feiffer, Jason Ritter, this great new comedy is directed by Baylor University film school grad Jay Gammill. It’s A Disaster Writer/Director: Todd Berger Four couples meet for Sunday brunch only to discover they are stuck in a house together as the world may be about to end. StarringJulia Stiles, America Ferrera and David Cross. Julia Stiles and America Ferrera will present the screening at AFF. Last Will & Testament Directors: Laura Wilson, Lisa Wilson US Premiere This documentary explores the ongoing debate about the authorship of the works attributed to Shakespeare. Writers and critics, actors and scholars, including Mark Twain, Sigmund Freud, Charlie Chaplin, and many others have struggled to reconcile England’s “Star of Poets” with the grain dealer from Stratford. Why? – Featuring interviews with Vanessa Redgrave, Derek Jacobi, Mark Rylance, and other highly regarded Shakespearean actors. Pictures of Superheroes World Premiere Writer/Director: Don Swaynos A young maid is asked by her employer to pretend to be his wife as part of a highly questionable business scheme. Meanwhile, she meets the comic book superhero artist living in her employer’s home (seemingly without the employer’s knowledge or permission), and she begins to wonder if there is something more to life than fake marriages and carpet cleaners. Produced by Kelly Williams, and starring Kerri Lendo, John Merriman, Byron Brown and Chris Doubek. Rising From Ashes Director: T.C. Johnstone Two worlds collide when cycling legend Jock Boyer (first American to compete in the Tour de France) moves to Rwanda and teams with Tom Ritchey (inventor of the mountain bike) to help a group of struggling genocide survivors pursue their dream of a national team. As they set out against impossible odds, both Jock and the team find new purpose as they rise from the ashes of their past. Narrated by Forest Whitaker and directed by Austin native T.C. Johnstone, this remarkable story culminated at the 2012 Olympics in London when one of the subjects of the film, Adrien Niyonshuti, competed in the Games and became Rwanda’s first Olympic cyclist. Shadow Dancer Writer: Tom Bradby Director: James March Single mother Collette McVeigh is a Republican living in Belfast with her mother and hardliner IRA brothers. When she is arrested for her part in an aborted IRA bomb plot in London, an MI5 officer (Mac, played by Clive Owen) offers her a choice: lose everything and go to prison for 25 years or return to Belfast to spy on her own family. With her son’s life in her hands, Collette chooses to place her trust in Mac and return home, but when her brothers’ secret operation is ambushed, suspicions of an informant are raised and Collette finds both herself and her family in grave danger. Starring Clive Owen, Andrea Riseborough, and Gillian Anderson. Spinning Plates World Premiere Writer/Director: Joseph Levy Spinning Plates is a feature documentary film about three restaurants, extraordinary for what they are today as well as the challenges they have overcome. A cutting-edge restaurant named the seventh best in the world whose chef must battle a life-threatening obstacle to pursue his passion… a 150-year-old family restaurant still standing only because of the unbreakable bond with its community… a fledgling Mexican restaurant whose owners are putting everything they have on the line just to make enough to survive and provide for their young daughter. Features Chef Grant Achatz of Chicago’s Alinea and Chef Thomas Keller of California’s The French Laundry. To Kill A Memory World Premiere Writers: Dustin Rikert, William Shockley, Philip Tiboni Director: Dustin Rikert A respected US Marshal is imprisoned after being suspiciously involved in a bank robbery gone wrong. When he learns that the other bank robbers may be going after his wife, the Marshal must escape prison and catch them before it’s too late. This low budget indie Western features an astonishing lead performance from country western singer Kix Brooks of Brooks and Dunn. Kix Brooks will present the screening at AFF. Paul Feig Presents: The Human Tornado and Bringing Up Baby This year, AFF is excited to introduce an all new Guest Programmer section, which invites some of our highly regarded panelists and guest filmmakers to program and present films that inspired them. Paul Feig (director of Bridesmaids , creator of “Freaks and Geeks,” also directed episodes of “Arrested Development,” “The Office,” “Mad Men,” “30 Rock” and more) has chosen two very different films: the blaxsploitation Dolemite adventure The Human Tornado and Howard Hawks’ immortal screwball comedy Bringing Up Baby . Don’t miss an opportunity to hear how these two wildly diverse films influenced one of the most in-demand directors in Hollywood today.
Forget playing the Game of Thrones . Kit Harington and Rose Leslie are reportedly engaged in some tonsil hockey! The HBO costars – Harington appears on the epic drama as Jon Snow, while Leslie debuted last season as Ygritte – were photographed at London’s Rossopomodoro restaurant earlier this month, according to TMZ, engaging in a few public displays of affection . We’re talking hand holding and smiling, readers! Filming has already commenced on Game of Thrones Season 3 , with HBO announced a March 31 return date. We’ll most definitely be watching. [Photos: WENN.com]
New details surrounding the death of Joey Kovar have been released. The corpse of this 29-year old former Real World cast member was found inside a Chicago home yesterday morning, and law enforcement officials are now telling TMZ he passed away from a dangerous mixture of Viagra, cocaine and alcohol . Insiders allege that Kovar went over to a friend’s house around midnight on Thursday and told her he had been taking cocaine. He then asked her to help him find more of the drug. The woman, identified by TMZ as Stacey Achterhof, turned Kovar down and asked him to crash at her place instead. He obeyed, popped some Viagra and messed around a bit with his pal. The next morning, Stacey woke up and found Kovar’s body, with blood streaming out of the blood and nose. Authorities – who took note of Joey’s “blackened” eyes – believe Kovar technically died from an aneurysm brought on by his ingestion of these substances. We’ll know more for certain when toxicology results are released in a few weeks.
