Moviegoers won’t be able to take their eyes off the American actress’ Lisbeth Salander, critics rave. By Eric Ditzian Rooney Mara in “The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo” Photo: Columbia Pictures Rooney Mara owns “The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo.” That is to say, while the film shows off David Fincher at his meticulous, moody best and Daniel Craig delivers yet another stellar performance, but the beating heart of the picture — or, if you will, the exposed pierced nipple — is Mara as the spiky-haired hacker, Lisbeth Salander. For all the shortcomings of “Dragon Tattoo”— and there are a bunch, from a pacing that sometimes drags to Swedish author Stieg Larsson’s deeply unsatisfying ending — you walk away unable to shake what you’ve just seen from Mara. Alternately vulnerable and vicious, her Salander is an entirely different creature from the one presented by Noomi Rapace in the Swedish version of the film and, what’s more, an entirely different creature from anything Mara offered in “The Social Network” and “A Nightmare on Elm Street.” Let’s stop right there, before we go from gushing to outright hero worship. At least we’re not alone. With the “Dragon Tattoo” review embargo officially lifted, critics have been celebrating Mara’s performance. The Transformation “Rooney Mara’s blazing, uncompromising performance is the film’s center, practically its reason to exist. … Eyebrows bleached blond, hair jet black and scowling constantly, Salander has deliberately modeled herself as the opposite of the feminine ideal, and though Mara digs into her humanity and even sensuality, she never lets down Salander’s guard for the sake of the audience sympathy.” — Katey Rich, Cinema Blend The Chemistry “Mara and Craig make an indomitable screen pair, he nominally leading their intense search into decades-old serial killings, she surging ahead, plowing through obstacles with flashes of phenomenal intellect and eruptions of physical fury.” — David Germain, The Associated Press The Sex Scenes “[It’s] Mara’s movie for the taking, and she snatches it up in dramatic fashion. … Fincher’s belief in her is borne out in a dominating performance of submerged rage, confidence and defiance. Baring all in the several sex scenes, both coerced and consensual, she goes all the way in a performance that compares favorably to that of Noomi Rapace in the Swedish version and its two sequels. She comes across here as the real deal.” — Todd McCarthy, The Hollywood Reporter The Awards “Mara, I feel, gives Salander a sadder and more vulnerable aura and a more emotionally readable quality than what Noomi Rapace delivered in the Swedish trilogy. You might compare the two films down the road and say, “Nope, don’t see it…six of one, half-dozen of the other” but I know what I felt from Mara’s eyes, and there’s a lot going on inside her, I swear. Tremors and feints and glances and looks that say “stay away, I don’t want you near….wait, maybe I do.” There’s enough in this performance, I feel, for Mara to be counted among the year’s Best Actress nominees.” — Jeffrey Wells, Hollywood Elsewhere The Final Word “You can’t take your eyes off Rooney Mara as the notorious Lisbeth Salander.” — David Denby, The New Yorker Check out everything we’ve got on “The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo.” For breaking news, celebrity columns, humor and more — updated around the clock — visit MTVMoviesBlog.com . Related Videos ‘The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo:’ A Closer Look
‘It’s hard not to look cool while holding a crossbow,’ Reedus says of Dixon, one of MTV News’ Top 50 TV Characters of 2011. By Josh Wigler Norman Reedus Photo: MTV News Maybe it’s the crossbow. Maybe it’s his prickly disposition towards his fellow survivors, an armor he casts aside when lost little children are dropped into the mix. Or maybe it’s just the simple fact that Norman Reedus is a bit of a badass. Whatever the reason (let’s face it, it’s the crossbow), there’s no question that Daryl Dixon is the coolest character on “The Walking Dead.” In fact, he’s one of the coolest characters on television,evidenced by his #13 position on MTV News’ Top 50 TV Characters of 2011 list. It’s a well-earned victory for the zombie-killing hillbilly: In one and a half seasons, we’ve seen Daryl bash zombie brains with rocks, slash open throats with double axes, and even hallucinate a conversation with his brother while killing even more zombies. Between all that, Daryl has spent much of the current second season searching tirelessly for the missing Sophia — a search that ended tragically during the midseason finale. Whether Sophia’s death will push Daryl back to being the antisocial bully of yesterday or galvanize him even further as a protector of this group of survivors remains to be seen, but we can tell you this much: No matter where Daryl goes next, we’ll be along for the ride. Reedus swung by MTV News headquarters to talk about the awesomeness that is Daryl Dixon, touching upon the character’s damaged past, his coolest kills and his future with the series. MTV News : Fans have been hugely supportive of Daryl Dixon. Even [“Walking Dead” creator] Robert Kirkman has admitted that Daryl is a favorite of his. It just seems to be the general consensus that people love this character. What has the fan reaction been like in your experience? Norman Reedus : Actually, walking across the street [in Times Square] just now, a cop grabbed me by the arm and said, “I love your character on ‘The Walking Dead!’ ” I get it a lot, actually. I [even] have my own Daryl Dixon “Hello Kitty” iPhone case. It’s been really good, you know? The fans really like Daryl, and I’m really appreciative. MTV : What is it about Daryl Dixon that’s just so f—ing cool? Reedus : Well, it’s hard not to look cool while holding a crossbow, first off. But he’s interesting in that he has a different sort of struggle than anyone else. He’s trying to just get along with people for the first time, I think. That one moment where Carol reaches down to kiss him on the forehead and he [recoils], he thinks he’s about to get hit. There’s this damaged thing about him that’s really interesting. And when you have a backdrop like “The Walking Dead,” it’s even more powerful. But you have Rick and Shane fighting for what’s the best thing in this group, and Daryl is just sort of trying to find his footing. He’s not used to people telling him he’s worth a damn. So once people start telling him that, his first reaction is fight or flight. He’s such an interesting person. You could have that personality type in a Wall Street movie and he’d still be interesting. MTV : You touched on it briefly, but this season has been largely about the struggle between Rick and Shane. Is this a world where you can spend multiple days searching for a missing girl — even though chances are good that she’s dead in a barn next door — or is it time to abandon those values and forge ahead? Daryl seems to have come down on a side, with his whole mission this season focused on finding Sophia. What was his motivation there? Why was he so obsessed with finding Sophia? Reedus : A couple of things. First off, in that scene I mentioned with Carol, I’m covered in scars. You couldn’t see them super up close in that scene, but I’m shredded with scars. There’s a backstory with Daryl that he was a beaten child and he was [abandoned], and I’m really trying to play that up. He’s a very damaged person. When Sophia gets lost, he takes it upon himself to look for her, to clear up some of the demons he has. He took it very personally. Besides, he can handle himself in the woods. He doesn’t really need these people for survival — he’s looking at them for a very different kind of survival, for interaction that he’s not used to, which is a new world for him. Looking for Sophia alone in the woods isn’t a scary thing for him; he can go out there himself. But he took it personally because that girl represented something to him that was larger than just this world we’re living in, trying to survive. He went after her with a lot of gusto. MTV : Of course, we got an answer to Sophia’s whereabouts, though it wasn’t the answer Daryl was hoping for. Can you talk about that experience, shooting that scene in the barn and losing [actress Madison Lintz] from the cast? Reedus : That day sucked, because I really like Madison. She’s such a cool little girl. It was really emotional. Jon [Bernthal] had a lot of dialogue and was doing his amped-up thing. Melissa [McBride] was doing her emotional oh-my-god thing, and [Andrew Lincoln] was doing his “no, stop!” thing. [Chandler Riggs] was doing his “no, I can’t believe that’s true!” thing. And Daryl’s just like, “Let’s kill somebody!” Then [Sophia emerges] and there were a few different ways you could go. With Melissa running in, for Daryl to take her on — damaged people gravitate toward damaged people, and he took it upon himself to hold her. I know there are lots of rumors about [Daryl and Carol] having a romantic affair, but I think it’s more than that. I think it’s more of a protection thing, which I find much more interesting than kissy-kissy sexy-sex stuff. That day was big. It was a large day. We shot it for a few days, actually, to get it all down. MTV : Daryl has made a lot of personal progress this season, but will Sophia’s death set him back? How does he react to finding out that she’s gone? Reedus : It’s going to be interesting. It sets him back in certain ways, in that the hope’s gone. That little girl that he’s looking for, if she’s one of them, he doesn’t really give a crap anymore. You can have these so-called leaders of the group saying “do this, do that,” and he doesn’t really need them anymore. So you find out that Daryl sort of separates himself a little bit. He reacts violently to anything emotional revolving around that story line. There’s another side of that in that he’s looked upon more as one of the leaders now, so there’s a new set of responsibilities that Daryl has to deal with. Whether he wants them, whether he wants to take them, [is another story]. But it’s interesting to see him looked upon as a leader. Fireworks fly. It’s not necessarily something he wanted or asked for. He’s not super thrilled about it. MTV : Daryl has had some of the best zombie kills of the series. Which one was your favorite this season? Reedus : Ooh. My best kill of the season? Well, I like last season, the double-ax to the throat. That was fun. [This season], I liked slashing the zombie churchgoer across the face; that was kind of fun. And I liked shooting the well-dressed zombie in the woods [in the season premiere], that was kind of fun too, then cutting his chest open and reaching inside of him, the gut bag. That was cool. That was a lot of fun. That was Andy and me being, “Ooh, gross!” You’d put your hand inside and it goes [makes a balloon deflating noise], and they put tubes of hot air that would blow in your face with gas inside the intestines. It was disgusting. [Co-executive producer and makeup effects designer] Greg Nicotero is completely twisted. MTV : Looking beyond Daryl, this show has taken off in a big way. Ratings are huge, and it’s been getting a lot of attention. Obviously you’re very close to the show, but what’s your take: Why is “Walking Dead” so huge? Reedus : There’s a whole thing about the economy that I’ve heard, that when the economy is bad, for some reason zombies and horror films are huge. Maybe that’s part of something. But also because it’s not really about zombies. It’s about these people trying to get together and working together and making lives for themselves, whether life is even worth living anymore. There’s this desperate smell in the air that people have to come together who won’t normally come together, and I think that’s the appeal, really. It’s like that show “Survivor.” These people try to figure it out, cut each other’s throats, be a–holes here and there and rip each other off — that’s part of it [on “Walking Dead”]. Plus, our special effects are so amazing. Our cinematography is so great. Our writing is really good. There are a lot of elements that have come together. It’s more than just a zombie show. I think that’s a big deal. MTV will reveal the best artists, songs and movies of the year. Come to MTV News each day to see more big reveals and check out more of MTV’s Best of 2011 music, TV, movies and news coverage.
‘It felt sooooo good,’ Minaj tweets after locking lips with Madge on set of ‘Give Me All Your Love’ video. By Jocelyn Vena Nicki Minaj Photo: Getty Images Nicki Minaj took to Twitter on Wednesday to let her fans know she was on set with the one and only Madonna . Minaj and Madonna were busy shooting the video for “Give Me All Your Love,” the first single off Madge’s forthcoming album. The fierce MC wasn’t holding back on the social networking site, giving all her Barbz and Kenz the up-to-the-minute details of the shoot. Minaj gushed about the shoot, even relaying one major detail that she hopes will make the final cut. She tweeted, “OH MY f’ingggg Gahhhh!!!!! MADONNA jus kissed me!!!!! On the lips!!!!!!! It felt sooooo good. Soooo soft!!!! *passes out* aaahhhhh!!!!!!!!!” That news immediately sent her fans on a Twitter spree, peppering the rapper with questions about the smooch. M.I.A. also will appear on the track. The rapper confirmed she recorded with the Queen of Pop late last month in New York, after speculation about a collabo between the three women hit a fevered pitch in November. M.I.A. also tweeted about chilling with Madonna on set. “Madonna killed it! A legend! said she’d have me, i said ill have her too, we had a 3sum M.N.M. MEGAFORCE @TheMegaforce thanku,” she wrote to the video director team. A version of the demo first leaked in early November. It featured Madonna and Nicki , but not M.I.A. The leak may have pleased fans, but it left Madonna and her camp pretty unhappy. Shortly after the track hit the Web, Madonna’s manager, Guy Oseary, took to Twitter to address the leak . “The plan was for new music to come out in the new year,” he said. “I’m very happy with the positive reaction to the demo, but we are very upset with whoever leaked the song!!!!!!!! we are asking that the fans please help us police any more leaks. we have a lot in store for you. but please respect the process.” Madonna, via Oseary, also expressed her feelings about the leak. “Madonna told me this morning ‘my true fans wouldn’t do this,’ ” he wrote. “Whoever is responsible for this leak, we ask that you please stop!” The as-yet-untitled new album is expected to drop in the spring of 2012 and will feature production from Ray of Light producer William Orbit. Madonna will perform at the Super Bowl in February, which coincides with the release of her film “W.E.” Related Artists Nicki Minaj Madonna
First single from Trent Reznor/ Atticus Ross soundtrack is Karen O cover of Led Zeppelin song. By Gil Kaufman Rooney Mara in “Girl With The Dragon Tattoo” Photo: Giles Keyte/Columbia Pictures You kind of can’t go wrong when the soundtrack you’ve put together for one of the most eagerly-anticipated literary adaptations in years kicks off Yeah Yeah Yeahs singer Karen O’s take on Led Zeppelin ‘s “Immigrant Song.” Fans heard the throbbing industrial take on the rock classic cooked up by former Nine Inch Nails mastermind and O did when a trailer for the David Fincher-directed “Girl With the Dragon Tattoo” leaked back in May. And on Thursday, Oscar-winning industrial-rocker-turned-film-composer Reznor and musical partner Atticus Ross unveiled the full track list for their “Tattoo” score album. The follow-up to their award-winning “The Social Network” score was a labor of love, according to a post Reznor put up on the NIN site on Thursday announcing the disc. “For the last fourteen months Atticus and I have been hard at work on David Fincher’s ‘The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo,’ ” he wrote about the American version of the tale of pierced and punished hacker Lisbeth Salander (Rooney Mara) and her muckraking journalist compatriot Mikael Blomkvist (Daniel Craig) . “We laughed, we cried, we lost our minds and in the process made some of the most beautiful and disturbing music of our careers. The result is a sprawling three-hour opus.” The album will be released on iTunes on December 9 in two versions. Right now, you can download the Karen O song on iTunes when you pre-order the 39-track album. That download purchase will also give you a link to the eight-minute “Dragon Tattoo” trailer , for which Reznor and Ross created a unique score. But, if you visit the NIN online store , Reznor is offering the soundtrack in a variety of forms, from a free six-track sampler to a deluxe 3,000-piece limited-edition signed $300 package with your choice of MP3 formats; the full album on six pieces of 180 gram vinyl; a deluxe book package with a metal cover; an exclusive custom 8 GB metal razor blade USB drive pendant containing the full album; and a fold-out poster. The full album score track list is as follows:
Twitter has once again “killed” another celebrity. Too bad for Too $hort-it was him this time. No worries though, the California native took to the social network to reassure us that he is OK! “Thanks for the calls, texts, emails & tweets. Its good to know yall got love for me. Retweet it & facebook post it. #2Short ‘sAlive” and “I’m not dead, I’m just mackin”. Too Short 1990.” Too $ hort Arrested For Battery In Idaho WTF: Too $ hort’s Mom & Daughter Have A Booty
With the Holiday season arriving fast, it’s time to step back and think about others who are less fortunate. With all of the commerce happening online, it’s a perfect time for big companies to start Social Good campaigns to get gifts to those who can’t afford them. Social commerce site eBay has teamed up with Broadcasting platform : YouTube Source : The Next Web Discovery Date : 16/11/2011 04:26 Number of articles : 2
Man, this thing keeps getting uglier: It was an emotional Tuesday night in Happy Valley, and there were lots of developments in the Penn State child sex scandal. Sources tell FOX 29 News that, since a press conference on Monday, the number of potential victims has more than doubled in the case. We’ve learned there may be as many as 17 accusers coming forward against one-time Penn State University defensive coordinator Jerry Sandusky. State officials publicized two phone numbers for potential victims to call, and within a day it seems investigators have new leads. There are eight victims listed in the grand jury presentment, and 40 charges have been leveled against Sandusky, a long-time assistant to Penn State head football coach Joe Paterno. Sandusky allegedly met the boys through The Second Mile, a charity he founded in the late 1970s. Paterno was not named in the grand jury finding as violating any laws, and authorities have said he is not a target of the investigation. Students rallied Tuesday night in support of Paterno, but we heard that university trustees were huddling up, too. FOX 29′s Bruce Gordon reported that university trustees met via teleconference Tuesday night. Around 11 p.m. came word that the trustees will appoint a special committee to investigate the scandal that has rocked the school. Paterno was clearly overcome with emotion. “It’s hard for me to tell you how much this means to me. All right? You guys, I’ve lived for this place, I’ve lived for people like you guys and girls, and I’m just so happy to see that the, you know, that you feel so strongly about us and about your school.” Mindful that the show of support was turning into a pep rally, Paterno asked the students to keep the young victims of this sex scandal in their prayers. “Tough life when people do certain things to you. But, anyway, you guys have been great,” Paterno said. Paterno should have been praying for those victims back when Sandusky’s trifling a$$ was abusing them. Source More On Bossip! Pay Yo Bills!!: Terrell Owens’ Big Money Baby Momma Breakdown Aww You Mad? Drake Goes Off On Social Media! Maybe It Has Something To Do With #TakeCareComesWith The Most Beautiful Black Girls In The World: Miss World Vs. Miss Universe, Which Contestants Looked More Bangin’? Reunited And It Feels So Good: Couples That Wanted (And Got) That Old Thang Back
Heavy D reportedly passed away this afternoon at a Los Angeles hospital. Via TMZ : We’ve learned a 911 call was placed from Heavy’s Beverly Hills home around 11:25 AM to report an unconscious male on the walkway . When help arrived, we’re told Heavy D was conscious and speaking — and was transported to a nearby hospital. He died a short time later. Cops are investigating the death — and so far, there are no obvious signs of foul play. Heavy D had several massive hits — including “Now That We Found Love.” He also wrote and performed the theme song for “In Living Color” … and appeared as an actor in the movie “Life.” Heavy just performed at the BET Awards in October — and appeared to be fine Update: The International Business Times just released comments from the L.A. coroner, but they still provide very little information about the cause of death: A spokesman for the Los Angeles Coroner’s Office spoke to the International Business Times Tuesday evening about Heavy D’s cause of death saying, “All we know is he was taken from a location in Beverly Hills on the 400 block of North Maple Drive to the emergency room at Cedar Sinai Medical Center and declared [dead] there,” Spokesman Craig Harvey said. He said the L.A. Coroner’s Office is looking into the cause of death, and that an investigation is under way. “It’s in its infancy stage right now. We don’t have a lot of other information,” Harvey said. “Our guess is that the examination could occur as early as tomorrow, and any final cause of death would be deferred pending a toxicology test.” This one is hard one for any 80s/90s Hip-Hop kid. More details as they emerge. More On Bossip! Pay Yo Bills!!: Terrell Owens’ Big Money Baby Momma Breakdown Aww You Mad? Drake Goes Off On Social Media! Maybe It Has Something To Do With #TakeCareComesWith The Most Beautiful Black Girls In The World: Miss World Vs. Miss Universe, Which Contestants Looked More Bangin’? Reunited And It Feels So Good: Couples That Wanted (And Got) That Old Thang Back
Weezy-featuring ‘The Motto’ and T.I.’s ‘Headlines’ freestyle unveiled on L.A. radio Monday. By Rob Markman Lil Wayne and Drake Photo: Getty Images With just two weeks until he releases his sophomore album, Take Care, Drake blessed fans in L.A. with new music when he debuted “The Motto” (featuring Lil Wayne) and T.I.’s version of “Headlines” on Power 106 Monday night. “The Motto” is believed to be Take Care ‘s last bonus track , though a track list on Zune’s website has the song as “Untitled.” Regardless of where it will end up and how it will be placed, the Weezy-assisted song is equipped with a deep rolling bass and staccato drums — a real party starter. From the first few bars, Drake throws it up for his YMCMB fam and responds to Luther Campbell’s claim that non-Miami natives Lil Wayne and DJ Khaled should pay tithes of some sort considering that they now live in the city. Drake throws a not-so-subtle nod to the 2 Live Crew legend’s jabs spitting, “Tell Uncle Luke I’m out in Miami too/ Clubbin’ hard, f—in’ women, there ain’t much to do/ Wrist bling, got a condo up on Biscayne … ain’t sh– change.” Drake also pays homage to late Vallejo, California, rapper Mac Dre , who was gunned down seven years ago Tuesday (November 1). “I’m in the building and I’m feeling myself, rest in peace Mac Dre/ I’mma do it for the Bay, OK,” Drizzy respectfully spits. For the final verse, Wayne utilizes his usual free-associative rhyme pattern with lines like “Talk stupid, off with ya head/ N—a money talks and Mister Ed” and “Ain’t sh– sweet, n—as on the streets like hookers.” For his second premiere of the night, Drake unveiled T.I.’s “Headlines” freestyle. As soon as the beat drops, T.I. makes the beat his own, adding an original flow to the popular beat. “I ball all night, go hard all day, fall deep up in your broad all day,” he starts off his verse. “I liked the record and it was spazzin’, and I felt like, ‘Let’s see what I can add to it,” T.I. told MTV News correspondent Sway Calloway about his version of “Headlines” when he visited his “Sway in the Morning” radio show on Shade 45 in October. Since being released from prison in September, T.I. has gotten on a number of high-profile rap songs like Future’s “Magic,” the Throne’s “N—as in Paris” and now Drake’s “Headlines,” and while each freestyle has been well-received, Tip admits that he wasn’t exactly commissioned to jump on the tracks. “None of these people approached me. I did it and got with them [after] and let them know that I did it.” What do you think of Drake’s “The Motto” with Lil Wayne, and T.I.’s “Headlines” freestyle? Tell us in the comments! Related Videos MTV News Extended Play: Drake Related Artists Drake
