Ghost Town

Usually the new DVD releases hit stores (and Netflix) on Tuesdays, but there are a handful of big releases out today so I thought I'd alert you. Today, just like I do each week in What to Netflix: New DVD Tuesday, I'm sorting through the best of the batch to suggest some additions for your queue.

The Duchess
I'm glad this sumptuous movie is out on DVD because it's so beautiful to look at. The costumes in this period drama starring Keira Knightley and Ralph Fiennes are gorgeous and the rest of the movie is pretty good too.

Knightley plays Georgiana, wife of William Cavendish (Fiennes), the Duke of Devonshire. While their relationship grows bitter in private, Georgiana starts to become quite popular in public and immerses herself in the world of politics and high society. As her husband puts other women between them, Georgiana finds herself falling in love with a young politician, Charles Grey (Dominic Cooper). However, the threat of scandal proves too great for the Duke and Duchess, and a relationship with Charles is forbidden.

Special features include a featurette titled, "Georgiana in Her Own Words," the making of the movie, and a costume diary.

Two more up next so read more

Lakeview Terrace, a thriller starring Samuel L. Jackson, came in at No. 1 at the box office over the weekend and performed relatively well with an estimated $15.6 million. Second place went to the Coen brothers' comedy Burn After Reading which continues to also do well at the box office, earning an estimated $36.4 million over its first ten days.

Around the No. 3 spot on this weekend's box office report things start to look a little gloomy, starting with the Dane Cook-Kate Hudson comedy My Best Friend's Girl. The movie only earned about $8.3 million, perhaps a result of some harsh reviews (or maybe it was just the poster, as Cook whined, that drove audiences away).

The animated family film, Igor, came in fourth place followed by Righteous Kill in fifth. Tyler Perry's The Family That Preys and The Women rounded out the sixth and seventh place respectively, and a movie I enjoyed, Ghost Town, opened at No. 8.

Photo courtesy of Sony Pictures

One of the things I like best about Ghost Town is that it doesn't ask anything of you. There's no brain power required, though it's not insultingly stupid or empty. It's not hysterically funny, but it's also not crude or painfully immature. For my money, it's certainly the most easygoing — easy to enjoy, easy to forget afterward — of all the movies out in theaters right now.

It's hard to categorize this movie, since it's not a romantic comedy, necessarily. There's not a lot of romance, and while there is comedy, it's often bittersweet, due to all the dead people. Ricky Gervais plays dentist Bertram Pincus, an ornery, solitary man who comes out of a medical procedure to discover that he died briefly during it. His momentary death gives him the ability to see people who have died but who are still hanging out on Earth because they have unfinished business. And now they implore Bertram to finish it for them. One such restless soul is Frank (Greg Kinnear) who needs Bertram to prevent Frank's widow, Gwen (Tea Leoni), from remarrying. The ghosts torment Bertram until he agrees to Frank's request, but as he goes about breaking up Gwen and her fiance, Bertram starts to fall for Gwen. To find out my take on it all, read more

Welcome to the Caption It game on BuzzSugar! Every other Wednesday, I'll post a photo still from a TV show or movie here and challenge you to think of the most hilarious caption possible. I'll announce the finalists the following Tuesday, and you'll get to vote for the best caption; the winner will get a fabulous BuzzSugar t-shirt!

The votes are in and the winning caption for last week's 90210 challenge has been selected:

"Hey, how do you spell 'LOL'?"

Congrats to Phil!

This week's challenge comes from the upcoming Ricky Gervais comedy, Ghost Town:

Leave your captions in the comment space below before 5 p.m. PDT on Monday, Sept. 22, to be considered for a spot in the voting round. Have fun! To see a photo of the BuzzSugar t-shirt, just read more

In the comedy Ghost Town, Bertram Pincus (Ricky Gervais) is "a man whose people skills leave much to be desired. When Pincus dies unexpectedly, but is miraculously revived after seven minutes, he wakes up to discover that he now has the annoying ability to see ghosts. Even worse, they all want something from him, particularly Frank Herlihy (Greg Kinnear) who pesters him into breaking up the impending marriage of his widow Gwen (Téa Leoni)."

From the new trailer, it seems silly and surreal, and not necessarily in a good way. Man, I wish I thought this looked awesome and funny. I love Gervais and he's pretty entertaining no matter what, but I only kinda-chuckled twice watching this trailer: once because of Kristen Wiig, once from a bit about shoes. Ghost Town opens September 19. To see the trailer for yourself, read more

David Duchovny stopped by to visit his wife Tea Leoni all bundled up in her big coat on the set of her new movie Ghost Town in NYC. I was never a big fan of The X Files but having fallen in love with Californication I am now fully on the Duchovny bandwagon. Especially after last night's season finale, which I loved, maybe I'll have to start brushing up on my 90s sci-fi.

Bauer-Griffin

Recently I wondered where the great comedic parts were for all the great comedic ladies in Hollywood, and many of you said you'd love to see more of the hilarious Kristen Wiig. A regular on "Saturday Night Live," Wiig was also seen in Knocked Up playing Alison's (Katherine Heigl) catty and insecure coworker. Now she has a couple more opportunities to do her hilarious thing.

In Ghost Town, Wiig will star opposite Ricky Gervais and Greg Kinnear. She'll play "the surgeon of Gervais' character in the David Koepp-directed comedy, which centers on a dentist (Gervais) who has a near-death experience during routine surgery and gains the ability to see dead people who ask him for help in contacting the living."

Then she'll go on to play the female lead in Pretty Bird, an indie comedy that also stars Billy Crudup and Paul Giamatti. Soon, however, we can find her in The Brothers Solomon this September, and this December's Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story (which also has Jenna Fischer!). I'm glad we don't have to wait too long to see this funny lady in more roles.

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