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Oscars 2013: 71 Countries Submit For Best Foreign-Language Consideration

A record 71 countries, including first-time entrant Kenya, have submitted films for consideration in the Foreign Language Film category for the 85th Academy Awards®. Not joining the list this year is Iran which is boycotting this year’s Oscars because of fall out from the anti-Islam video Innocence of Muslims . Last year, Iranian director Asghar Farhadi won the Academy Award for Best Foreign-Language film for A Separation , a first for a filmmaker from that country. The list of contenders follows: The 85th Academy Awards nominations will be announced live on Thursday, January 10, 2013, at 5:30 a.m. PT in the Academy’s Samuel Goldwyn Theater. Academy Awards will be presented on Sunday, February 24, 2013, at The Dolby Theatre at Hollywood & Highland Center, and televised live on the ABC network. The Oscar presentation also will be televised live in more than 225 countries worldwide. The 2012 submissions are : Afghanistan, “The Patience Stone,” Atiq Rahimi, director Albania, “Pharmakon,” Joni Shanaj, director Algeria, “Zabana!” Said Ould Khelifa, director Argentina, “Clandestine Childhood,” Benjamín Ávila, director Armenia, “If Only Everyone,” Natalia Belyauskene, director Australia, “Lore,” Cate Shortland, director Austria, “Amour,” Michael Haneke, director Azerbaijan, “Buta,” Ilgar Najaf, director Bangladesh, “Pleasure Boy Komola,” Humayun Ahmed, director Belgium, “Our Children,” Joachim Lafosse, director Bosnia and Herzegovina, “Children of Sarajevo,” Aida Begic, director Brazil, “The Clown,” Selton Mello, director Bulgaria, “Sneakers,” Valeri Yordanov and Ivan Vladimirov, directors Cambodia, “Lost Loves,” Chhay Bora, director Canada, “War Witch,” Kim Nguyen, director Chile, “No,” Pablo Larraín, director China, “Caught in the Web,” Chen Kaige, director Colombia, “The Snitch Cartel,” Carlos Moreno, director Croatia, “Vegetarian Cannibal,” Branko Schmidt, director Czech Republic, “In the Shadow,” David Ondrícek, director Denmark, “A Royal Affair,” Nikolaj Arcel, director Dominican Republic, “Jaque Mate,” José María Cabral, director Estonia, “Mushrooming,” Toomas Hussar, director Finland, “Purge,” Antti J. Jokinen, director France, “The Intouchables,” Olivier Nakache and Eric Toledano, directors Georgia, “Keep Smiling,” Rusudan Chkonia, director Germany, “Barbara,” Christian Petzold, director Greece, “Unfair World,” Filippos Tsitos, director Greenland, “Inuk,” Mike Magidson, director Hong Kong, “Life without Principle,” Johnnie To, director Hungary, “Just the Wind,” Bence Fliegauf, director Iceland, “The Deep,” Baltasar Kormákur, director India, “Barfi!” Anurag Basu, director Indonesia, “The Dancer,” Ifa Isfansyah, director Israel, “Fill the Void,” Rama Burshtein, director Italy, “Caesar Must Die,” Paolo Taviani and Vittorio Taviani, directors Japan, “Our Homeland,” Yang Yonghi, director Kazakhstan, “Myn Bala: Warriors of the Steppe,” Akan Satayev, director Kenya, “Nairobi Half Life,” David ‘Tosh’ Gitonga, director Kyrgyzstan, “The Empty Home,” Nurbek Egen, director Latvia, “Gulf Stream under the Iceberg,” Yevgeny Pashkevich, director Lithuania, “Ramin,” Audrius Stonys, director Macedonia, “The Third Half,” Darko Mitrevski, director Malaysia, “Bunohan,” Dain Iskandar Said, director Mexico, “After Lucia,” Michel Franco, director Morocco, “Death for Sale,” Faouzi Bensaïdi, director Netherlands, “Kauwboy,” Boudewijn Koole, director Norway, “Kon-Tiki,” Joachim Rønning and Espen Sandberg, directors Palestine, “When I Saw You,” Annemarie Jacir, director Peru, “The Bad Intentions,” Rosario García-Montero, director Philippines, “Bwakaw,” Jun Robles Lana, director Poland, “80 Million,” Waldemar Krzystek, director Portugal, “Blood of My Blood,” João Canijo, director Romania, “Beyond the Hills,” Cristian Mungiu, director Russia, “White Tiger,” Karen Shakhnazarov, director Serbia, “When Day Breaks,” Goran Paskaljevic, director Singapore, “Already Famous,” Michelle Chong, director Slovak Republic, “Made in Ash,” Iveta Grófová, director Slovenia, “A Trip,” Nejc Gazvoda, director South Africa, “Little One,” Darrell James Roodt, director South Korea, “Pieta,” Kim Ki-duk, director Spain, “Blancanieves,” Pablo Berger, director Sweden, “The Hypnotist,” Lasse Hallström, director Switzerland, “Sister,” Ursula Meier, director Taiwan, “Touch of the Light,” Chang Jung-Chi, director Thailand, “Headshot,” Pen-ek Ratanaruang, director Turkey, “Where the Fire Burns,” Ismail Gunes, director Ukraine, “The Firecrosser,” Mykhailo Illienko, director Uruguay, “The Delay,” Rodrigo Plá, director Venezuela, “Rock, Paper, Scissors,” Hernán Jabes, director Vietnam, “The Scent of Burning Grass,” Nguyen Huu Muoi, director.

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Oscars 2013: 71 Countries Submit For Best Foreign-Language Consideration

Barnabas Collins Is Dead (Thank You, Tim Burton) − But The Debate Over Who Created Him Is Alive!

Barnabas Collins has risen from the grave once more via the Blu-Ray and DVD release of Tim Burton’s film adaptation of   Dark Shadows , and so has spirited argument over who created the tortured vampire back in the 1960s.   Johnny Depp’s interpretation of the fanged fan favorite originated by Jonathan Frid may have been D.O.A. at the box office, but, 45 years after Collins debuted on the gothic ABC soap opera and became a cult icon, the squabbling over his invention just won’t die. Alas, one of the writers is not around to make his case.  A 2009  Variety  obituary for Ron Sproat, who wrote for  Dark Shadows  from November 1966 to February 1969, credits him with creating Barnabas, and in a 2008 interview with the blog Strange Paradise, another writer for the show, Joe Caldwell, said that the show’s executive producer Dan Curtis personally asked him and Sproat to develop the character. Enter former Dark Shadows writer Malcolm Marmorstein, who insists that Curtis gave him the task of creating Collins. Marmorstein, who is credited with writing the episode in which Barnabas’ arm first shoots out of his coffin, joined the daytime serial in December 1966 after working as head writer of the successful NBC soap, The Doctors . He says Dark Shadows was in danger of cancellation, and he  recommended that adding a supernatural element to the series would boost ratings. Specifically, he suggested to Curtis that the character of Laura Collins be turned into a phoenix, who every 100 years would die by fire and then be reborn. The phoenix concept debuted on December 21, 1966 and ratings soon improved.  A few months later, Marmorstein says, Curtis asked him to work a vampire into the storyline. “I told Dan, ‘Absolutely, but we need different ground rules. No one in the town of Collinsport has heard of Dracula. They wouldn’t recognize Bela Lugosi. We have to pretend we’re doing a vampire for the very first time. Let’s get a young, blond guy, because our audiences are very young. They’ll fall in love with him.’” Instead, the dark-haired, sad-eyed Frid was hired and Marmorstein says the Shakespearean actor’s resemblance to Lugosi unnerved him. “I told him, ‘Don’t act. Be a nice man, as you are. This is your family in the house, and you’ve got to be charming for them.” (Frid died in April, a month before Burton’s film was released). Caldwell tells a different version of events. “Just as we were leaving this story meeting, Dan said, ‘I want a vampire for the kids, for the summer,’” Caldwell remembers. “Ron and I got on the elevator, and by the time we got down to the street, we decided we would make him a reluctant vampire — that he had a conscience and yearned for love.” “That never happened!”  responds Marmorstein. “That’s what I said to Dan, that Barnabas is reluctant. He doesn’t want to be a vampire.”  Marmorstein also points out that Reluctant Vampire  is actually the title of a play he wrote and then directed for the big screen as the 1993 feature  Love Bites, starring Adam Ant. “Joe Caldwell never contributed to the creation of Barnabas,” Marmorstein says. “And Ron wasn’t a creative person. He was a burnt-out Ivy Leaguer who never did more than soap opera.” Caldwell and another writer on the show remember  Marmorstein as a know-it-all who was more than a little possessive of Barnabas. “He could certainly be overfond of his ideas,” says Caldwell. Sam Hall, who joined the Dark Shadows  writing staff in November 1967 and whose late wife, Grayson Hall, played Dr. Julia Hoffman on the show, says, “Malcolm was interested in vampires and gave the others lectures on how vampires behave. The other writers thought he was a pain in the ass, trying to take over.” “If the other writers said I was stubborn, maybe I was, because I was clinging to the truth and reality of the character,” Marmorstein replies. “If I built this thing up, and these guys come in and start throwing stupid ideas out, then naturally I’ll say no. Dan wanted more violence and that’s not what the show was about. It wasn’t blood and severed throats and slit guts.” Not surprisingly, tensions escalated between Curtis and Marmorstein, who was fired in August 1967 while he was vacationing with his family. (Marmorstein went on to work for  Peyton Place and write screenplays for  S*P*Y*S and Whiffs , which starred Elliott Gould, as well as Pete’s Dragon and Return from Witch Mountain . “I don’t think he contributed more than anyone else,” Dark Shadows producer Bob Costello says of Marmorstein. “He was part of a team and from that team came Barnabas. If he was as good as he seems to think he was, he wouldn’t have been fired.” Costello, Caldwell and Hall have been content to consign Dark Shadows  to their past, Marmorstein felt compelled to offer his services when Burton decided to adapt the series into a feature.  Marmorstein says he contacted producer David Kennedy via e-mail to no avail. (Kennedy declined to be interviewed, but said he had never met Marmorstein.) Marmorstein says he also sought to set up a meeting with Depp and his sister and co-producer Christi Dembrowski. Depp, who Marmorstein explains is a goof friend of his neighbor, initially seemed interested, but the sitdown never happened. (Dembrowski and Depp did not respond to requests for comment.) “ I thought they might be interested in some of the insights behind Barnabas, which they ignored totally,” Marmorstein says. “I was shocked to see, at the beginning of the movie, Barnabas killing seven or eight innocent people, who weren’t even trying to harm him. Barnabas would never do that. And I saw no reason whatsoever for the movie to be set in 1972. For nothing, I would have told them not to do that. It should have been set today.” Follow Movieline on Twitter.

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Barnabas Collins Is Dead (Thank You, Tim Burton) − But The Debate Over Who Created Him Is Alive!

Sopranos Creator David Chase Fulfills A Dream In Not Fade Away

Sopranos writer/director/producer David Chase resisted saying his latest venture, Not Fade Away is autobiographical, but it certainly resembles large swaths of his upbringing. Born in Upstate New York and raised in suburban New Jersey, he used to dream of becoming a successful drummer in a rock band. He is also unabashedly a fan of ’60s-era music and all those elements fit front and center in his first big return to the spotlight since The Sopranos had its final shot in 2007. Fittingly, James Gandolfini stars as the father in Not Fade Away , the title of course being an ode to the 1964 Rolling Stones cover of a song credited to Buddy Holly and Norman Petty. The film will have its Gala World Premiere as the Centerpiece of the New York Film Festival Saturday night. In the film, however, Gandolfini is anything but the underworld kingpin he is in the famous HBO series that made him a household name. The movie celebrates youth and more specifically, youthful angst. The so-called generation gap – a term that was popularized in the era – hits the audience over the head throughout the film. The conflict between accepting life’s conventions and the innate yearning for something different is liberally dished out. “The theme for the movie for me is the conflict between security and freedom,” Chase said at a Lincoln Center pre-gala screening Friday. “Humans are always in that conflict. There’s the desire to be babied and taken care of. And there’s the need to say, ‘go fuck yourself, I want to do what I want, I want to be free to do what I want.’ That’s what initially made me interested in doing this.” In Not Fade Away John Magaro stars as Doug, the nucleus of a pack of suburban Jersey kids who throw off the conservative shackles of their parents and grow their hair out, put on some funky threads, party at each other’s house’s like rock stars and dream of being – well, rock stars. He trades steely glances from his disapproving middle class father (Gandolfini) as he and his pack of spirited friends slowly but assuredly take on the physical and philosophical offshoots of the counter-culture. While it is a rock ‘n’ roll coming-of-age movie, there is no obvious end point. In the kids’ minds, they’re on the threshold of making it, though internal jealousies and conflicting ambitions hold them back. Still, the band gets progressively better and Doug, originally playing drums, eventually takes over lead vocals when it becomes apparent he has the better voice, which of course enrages the guitarist/singer and now competitor he in effect replaces, Eugene (played by Boardwalk Empire ‘s Jack Huston). Musician, songwriter, producer and all around rock legend Steven van Zandt served as executive producer/Music Supervisor on the film and told Chase that it was important to find actors who could ‘play the music.’ Still, Magaro said they were initially very green to music when they came on board. “We were terrible. We’d eek out a song and we were just terrible,” he said. “[At first] we’d look at David and he’d say something like, ‘that’s very encouraging…'” “Part of the authenticity is that most bands are cover bands, or they should be,” said Van Zandt – better known as Little Steven. “But these days, not so much. Most good bands – Rolling Stones, Beatles, E Street Band – they spent a few years covering songs, analyzing them [deconstructing] them and that’s how they learn.” Van Zandt helped create some original music for the movie, but if there’s a soundtrack that comes out – by all means get it. Mostly the band, however, does cover songs and the film is peppered with hits from the era. Just try and not wiggle a bit in your chair while watching this movie. Chase said the film has been an idea of his even before The Sopranos came along and it may be easily interpreted as a nostalgic trip down memory lane. The music and heartfelt performances do carry the film, though it did seem to fall a bit flat ultimately. “I don’t want to get into this thing about bragging about the ’60s. But I think I was lucky to live through that time,” said Chase. “I was living in one of the best musical eras in history. Music at that time was a way into everything. It’s how I learned about art, poetry, fashion, humor , film, politics. Music was everything. And I don’t think that’s the case anymore.”

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Sopranos Creator David Chase Fulfills A Dream In Not Fade Away

Quentin Tarantino To Be Honored By 1st Awards-Season Show; The Ruby Slippers Are Heading To London: Biz Break

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 .

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Quentin Tarantino To Be Honored By 1st Awards-Season Show; The Ruby Slippers Are Heading To London: Biz Break

‘A Good Day To Die Hard’ Teaser: Yippie Ki— Oh, Just Cut To McClane Already

Look, I’m sure this Jai Courtney dude from Spartacus playing John McClane’s beefy son/action heir is great and all, but there’s just one reason to watch any Die Hard movie, and his name is Bruce MF’ing Willis . So check out the first trailer for A Good Day To Die Hard even though it takes a full 30 seconds of overly edited shots of warehouses and ambiguously visible bad men with guns to get to Bruno’s familiar smirk and the explosion-y goodness that follows. A Good Day To Die Hard catches up with Willis’s McClane as he and his estranged son (Courtney) fight terrorists in Russia, or something. John Moore of Behind Enemy Lines and Max Payne fame directs from a script by Skip Woods, of Swordfish and Hitman fame, so we’ll see how this one goes. The film hits theaters February 4, 2013. [via Yahoo ]

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‘A Good Day To Die Hard’ Teaser: Yippie Ki— Oh, Just Cut To McClane Already

The One Thing Nicole Kidman Wouldn’t Do For Lee Daniels’ The Paperboy

All decked out, Nicole Kidman received a gala tribute at the New York Film Festival Wednesday night ahead of the U.S. premiere of her latest starrer, The Paperboy , directed by Lee Daniels . Appearing like audiences have never seen her before, Kidman said she pushed her boundaries in the role in which she plays a sultry vixen who is carrying on with a convicted murderer in prison (played by John Cusack ). Kidman opened up about the role and why she decided to take on the part which required her to — among other things — spread her legs and even pee on fellow co-star Zac Efron ; she also shared why she never spoke to John Cusack on the set outside of their characters. But despite pushing herself into admittedly uncomfortable territory, there was one thing she would not do. Initially, Kidman did not think she could pull off the part. Daniels had her meet with five women who have had relationships with men in prison. Unsure of herself, she said the experience allowed her to find he way to the character with some encouragement from one of the women. “I was kind of freaking out and didn’t think I could be authentic in this role. And then, one of them said to me, ‘No, I think you can do this.’ And she kind of gave me that confidence. And after that, it sort of just flowed out of me. I didn’t want a sense of myself in any way, so I went straight into the character and never stepped out of it.” Based on a novel by Pete Dexter, The Paperboy is set in late ’60s/early ’70s Florida. Kidman plays Charlotte Bless, who sashays with a period-fabulous wardrobe, fake eye-lashes and pillowy lips. She’s the object of young Jack’s (Efron) affections. He’s a young guy who’s aimless and living with his dad and soon-to-be stepmother. His older brother (Matthew McConaughey) is a journalist who comes to town to investigate death-row inmate Hillary Van Wetter’s (Cusack) conviction, who he believes is actually innocent. Meanwhile, love-struck Charlotte is in a tither trying to get her man out of jail — and then things grow very strange… “I never got to know John Cusack through the shoot,” said Kidman. “I never knew John [at all, in fact] and that’s when I [decided] I’m not going to get to know John. I wanted to deal with him as the character and have him deal with me as the character. I never, never spoke to him through the shoot as John, and that was a great way [to do this]. At the very end of the shoot he came to my trailer and he said, ‘Hi, I’m John’ (laughs). It was great!” While playing Charlotte, Kidman was very careful not to judge her. Because of the production’s very tight budget, Kidman — an A-lister who is one of the world’s most photographed actresses — said she went to second-hand stores and picked up $5 frocks and shoes ahead of the shoot in New Orleans and physically and figuratively assembled Charlotte’s persona. After picking her accent and look, she stayed with the character even after the day’s shoot ended. And there was one physical trait filmmaker Lee Daniels wanted from Kidman. “Lee was obsessed with the butt,” said Kidman. “He wanted my butt to be bigger. I said, ‘I can do that…'” Continuing about her character she added, “I don’t see her as crazy because I see very few people as crazy. For me, she’s a woman who’s obviously very damaged. And she’s scared of intimacy, which is the common thread for people who [form] relationships with people in prison. But once they get out, it’s often very different, which was something interesting for me.” Lee Daniels, the Oscar-nominated director of Precious (2009), who is African-American, said he felt racial tension while filming Paperboy in Louisiana’s bayous. The tension prompted him to ask Nicole Kidman to use the n-word in one scene, but she drew the line there. “I didn’t think it was right for the character honestly,” she said. “And I have a son who’s African-American. But the other stuff, I think the whole thing I try to do as an actor is fulfill a director’s vision. I have opinions and I’m there to stimulate and ignite things in the director, hopefully, but I’ve never tried to pull a director off his vision. So, the spreading the legs and all that were fine because I wanted to please Lee.” The Paperboy begins its theatrical run this Friday. Follow Brian Brooks on Twitter . Follow Movieline on Twitter .

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The One Thing Nicole Kidman Wouldn’t Do For Lee Daniels’ The Paperboy

‘Bond, James Bond’: 007’s Top 10 One-Liners

In many ways, James Bond laid the template for what a modern-day action hero would look like: handsome, cool, badass, but most importantly, witty. The tradition of tough-guy one-liners may not have originated with 007, but it certainly had a good run within the franchise, and has continued to thrive across all genres of action today. Here’s some of the best of Bond’s zingers over the years. 1. “That’s a Smith & Wesson…and you’ve had your six. ( Dr. No ) 2. “Shocking… positively shocking. “ ( Goldfinger ) 3. “No more foreplay.”( Goldeneye ) 4. “Bond. James Bond.” ( Dr. No ) 5. “But of course you are.” ( Diamonds are Forever ) Hit the jump for more!

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‘Bond, James Bond’: 007’s Top 10 One-Liners

Ben Affleck Says Republicans ‘Had A Chance’ But Gives Low-Key Obama Support

Not afraid to show off his political side, Ben Affleck is giving his take on the current U.S. Presidential campaign. Hitting the road promoting his political thriller Argo , the director and star of the film compared Republican nominee to past hopefuls who did not make it to the White House. A past ardent supporter of liberal causes and a full-fledged Obama fan four years ago, Affleck only offered tepid support for the incumbent. “I think Republicans really had a chance to win,” Affleck told A.P. during an interview about Argo . And they kind of ended up with like a sort of Mike Dukakis, Al Gore, Bob Dole type – who just couldn’t get people to see him as a real person somehow. Romney just had such trouble coming off as just like the kind of person you see at the grocery store. And I truly believe that has cost him the election.” Affleck went on to add that it looks “quite unlikely” that the Republican hopeful will unseat Obama, saying “negative momentum” can at some point cause a downward spiral for a campaign. “You start making mistakes and then all your advisers tell you, ‘You’ve got to raise your arms more!’ ‘You’ve got to talk deeper.’ So people just get into becoming robotic.” Still, if Affleck shares the same enthusiasm for Obama as in the first go-around, he is clearly holding back, saying that with hindsight his opinions have changed. “”I voted for Obama last time although he got to be all things to all people then,” Affleck said. ”And now he’s got a record which makes it really different … I obviously have more complicated feelings.” Affleck has often thrown his hat in the political sphere, doing lobbying in Washington and traveling abroad for various causes. He’s also said he wouldn’t rule out a future run for an elected office in the future. And his latest film, which debuted last month at the Toronto International Film Festival has already prompted talk of possibly multiple Oscar nominations. The film recalls an international crisis that many attribute for the failed re-election bid of Jimmy Carter in 1980, ushering in the Reagan era. Directed and starring Affleck, along with Bryan Cranston, Alan Arkin and John Goodman, Argo is set as militants take over the U.S. embassy in Tehran in the aftermath of the 1979 Iranian Revolution. While 52 Americans are held, six others escape and hide in the Canadian ambassador’s residence. The film recalls a plan hatched by the C.I.A. and specialist Tony Mendez (played by Affleck) to help the six to escape Iran. [ Source: Associated Press ]

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Ben Affleck Says Republicans ‘Had A Chance’ But Gives Low-Key Obama Support

Faster Than The Dead Bird On Johnny Depp’s Head! New Lone Ranger Teaser Poster & Photos

If you can’t get enough photos of Johnny Depp with a dead bird on his head, well, saunter over here and take a gander.  On Tuesday, Disney released a new batch of stills and the teaser poster to  Pirates of the Caribbean pardners, producer Jerry Bruckheimer and director Gore Verbinski’s take on The Lone Ranger .  Depp plays the masked lawman’s oddly attired Native American sidekick Tonto, and, according to Disney, “recounts the untold tales that transformed John Reid”( Armie Hammer ) into the Lone Ranger.” Disney plans to release the movie on July 3, 2013.  The Lone Ranger cast also includes Helena Bonham Carter, William Fichtner, Tom Wilkinson and Barry Pepper. Follow Frank DiGiacomo on Twitter. Follow Movieline on Twitter. 

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Faster Than The Dead Bird On Johnny Depp’s Head! New Lone Ranger Teaser Poster & Photos

WATCH THIS: Or Don’t If Your Fantasy Of Taken 2 Star Liam Neeson Involves A Ripped Body & Boxer Briefs

I’ll give Liam Neeson this much. He’s even braver in real life than the hard asses he plays in the movies. The New York Daily News  reports that Neeson, 60, raised $20,000 for breast cancer research on The Ellen DeGeneres Show on Monday by stripping down to a pair of pink bikini briefs and entering a dunk tank on the talk show. “If I take this off, does the $10,000 become $20,000?” Neeson asked DeGeneres as he doffed the pink robe he was wearing to reveal the similarly hued Speedo. “We get fined if you take those off,” the talk-show host said pointing to his briefs. After taking the hot seat, he was promptly doused with with a huge tub of water when an audience nailed the tank target. Kudos to Neeson for sucking it up for charity, but, at the risk of sounding like a real a-hole, I’m going to suggest that he didn’t suck it up enough. Judging from the rolls of belly fat visible in the video, I think that Neeson should either adopt a high-protein diet and Hugh Jackman’s personal trainer  or begin employing what I am calling “The Willis Technique” since seeing Looper . Watching Rian Johnson’s impressive but depressing time-travel film, I noticed that Willis, who looks more fat and happy than John McLean  in the film — that’s a Die Hard joke — tended to be well-covered in his bedroom cuddle scenes with Qing Xu. I’m sure there’s a very good reason that Willis favored chaste white t-shirts and other cover-ups while spooning with the love of his life, but I  have to wonder if some bright person on that set, maybe Bruce himself, realized that the simple undergarment would hide a multitude of fleshy sins that could very well have made Johnson’s plausible dystopian future unbearable. Check out the video below and tell me you don’t think the Willis Technique should not become de rigueur among actors of a certain age. Follow Frank DiGiacomo on Twitter. Follow Movieline on Twitter.

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WATCH THIS: Or Don’t If Your Fantasy Of Taken 2 Star Liam Neeson Involves A Ripped Body & Boxer Briefs