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What Is the Best Comedic Movie of 2009?

BuzzSugar — Thu, 10 Dec 2009 16:30:10 PST

As we've already seen with my polls on comedic actors and comedic actresses, this year delivered lots of laughs, thanks to some funny bromances and a rom-com or two (or three). Which one was your favorite in '09?

Don't forget to vote on all of my Best of 2009 polls!

What to Netflix: New DVD Tuesday

BuzzSugar — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 06:30:00 PST

There's a silver lining to TV shows going into reruns, and it's more time to watch movies! Happily, today there are a few highly-anticipated flicks, and I've gone through them to tell you What to Netflix. In addition to the three movies mentioned below, you can also catch Robert Pattinson's pre-Twilight dramedy How to Be.

Star Trek

This year's updated version of Star Trek turned the franchise on its head. With hot young things Chris Pine and Zachary Quinto in the beloved roles of Captain Kirk and Mr. Spock, the film completely changed the series' history so they could start over with a fresh new story.

It worked like gangbusters: the space-set action movie is clever, entertaining, and tons of fun. It manages to make a sex symbol out of a pointy-eared geek, whom I personally drooled over. The movie manages to pay respect to the original, so those fans are still happy, while pleasing folks who weren't fans of the first (like myself).

The DVD's got lots of extras, including deleted scenes, a special feature on casting and a gag reel.
95%

See two more movies releasing today when you

Bruno

Sacha Baron Cohen's mockumentary follow up to 2006's wildly successful Borat, Bruno is more of the same: cringe-worthy setups that make for laughs. This time, though, the envelope that was pushed in the former is torn to pieces in the latter. It's not for the faint of heart or easily offended, but if you like Baron Cohen's humor, you'll appreciate the awkward-beyond-words situations.

I was torn - I wanted to laugh as hard as I did at Borat, but most of the time I was just wincing.

DVD extras include alternate and deleted scenes, as well as enhanced commentary.

67%

My Sister's Keeper

Need a good cry? Rent the tearjerker My Sister's Keeper. The drama stars Cameron Diaz as a mother presiding over her Leukemia-stricken daughter Kate, and the child they had in order to provide a kidney donor for Kate, Anna - who's played wonderfully by Abigail Breslin. When Anna sues her own parents for the rights to decide what to do with her own body, Diaz and her husband Jason Patric try to figure out what's really going with her.

I was definitely moved by the film, but you'd have to be made of stone not to, considering the subject matter. If you read the book, take heed: the ending in the film isn't exactly the same.

47%

Hollywood Halloween: 10 Costumes Inspired by This Year's Movies

BuzzSugar — Wed, 21 Oct 2009 16:30:59 PDT

Still hunting for that perfect Halloween costume? Never fear, for I am willing to share some of my ideas with you, culled from this year's flicks. Everyone loves a good pop culture reference, and the best part is that these are super easy to put together last minute. From spooky to hilarious, there's a little something for everyone, so take a look.

APA: You Can't Pray the Gay Away

TresSugar — Thu, 06 Aug 2009 11:00:43 PDT

One of the funniest parts of Bruno is when Sacha Baron Cohen's flamboyant character tries to undergo gay-therapy, a stunt also attempted in this clip from the original Ali G Show. Well today the American Psychological Association announced that such therapy, typically administered by therapists with a tie to religious groups, does not succeed in making a patient straight. Surprise!

The APA says that instead of trying to change a patient's sexuality, therapists should encourage those who are troubled with their homosexuality for religious reasons to pursue celibacy or change churches. The conclusion that "reparative therapy" is unsuccessful and potentially harmful is no big surprise, but the panel did have some unexpected words for the mental health community. The leader of the panel that conducted the report, Judith Glassgold, said that while religious therapists must understand that therapy cannot change someone's sexuality, secular therapists must be understanding, too. To see what she had to say to these secular therapists,

Glassgold explained:

"Both sides have to educate themselves better. The religious psychotherapists have to open up their eyes to the potential positive aspects of being gay or lesbian. Secular therapists have to recognize that some people will choose their faith over their sexuality."

What do you make of this report?

Harry Potter Works Its Magic on the Box Office

BuzzSugar — Mon, 20 Jul 2009 05:30:25 PDT

It may be darker than ever, but Harry Potter still brings the magic at the box office. Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince worked its wizardry on audiences to the tune of nearly $160 million for its first five days in the theater, with $79.5 million of that coming over the weekend.

That's not quite as strong as the five-day opening for Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen last month (that movie pulled in $201.2 million in its first five days), but it's the best tally yet for a Harry Potter movie.

The other big story of this weekend's box office is the fall of Bruno. Last weekend's box office winner pulled in just $8.4 million this week, finishing in fourth place. That put it behind second-place Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs, which brought in $17.7 million. Transformers kept up the pace with a third-place tally of $13.8 million.

In indie news, 500 Days of Summer had a solid debut with almost $840,000 from just 27 theaters. It'll be interesting to see how that movie holds up when it expands into many more theaters this weekend.

Photo courtesy of Warner Bros.

Box Office: Bruno Has the Last Laugh

BuzzSugar — Mon, 13 Jul 2009 08:15:28 PDT

It was an odd little lineup of possibilities at the box office over the weekend: a racy and squirm-inducing adult comedy, an animated prehistoric adventure for kids', some robot cars, slick gangsters, teens with crushes, some family drama, a proposal, a hangover and more. The racy comedy, Bruno, took in the most in box office sales for the weekend with $30.4 million, though Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs (in its second weekend) was close behind with $28.5 million. Bruno also experienced a 39% drop from Friday to Saturday, "indicating that most fans turned out on opening day."

Still, co-chair/co-CEO of Media Rights Capitol (which financed and produced the film) Modi Wiczyk is pleased with the opening weekend results: "Not bad for a movie that doesn't have talking robots."

Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen continues to transform everything in its path into dollar signs, coming in third place not far behind Ice Age with $24 million. Public Enemies and The Proposal took the fourth and fifth spots respectively.

Photo courtesy of Universal Studios

Bruno: Makes You Squirm More Than Think

BuzzSugar — Fri, 10 Jul 2009 06:30:44 PDT

There are cringe-inducing comedies, and there are grossout shockfests, and then there is Bruno. Sacha Baron Cohen's latest movie brazenly mates both genres while thrusting in a touch of documentary and hardcore porn.

Bruno made me squirm, but not in the way that Borat did. Whereas Borat succeeded in smartly skewering the stupidity of some Americans by putting them in uncomfortable situations, Bruno doesn't live up to its working subtitle: Delicious Journeys Through America for the Purpose of Making Heterosexual Males Visibly Uncomfortable in the Presence of a Gay Foreigner in a Mesh T-Shirt. I wanted this movie to be a nervous-laughter-inducing lampoon of homophobia and Hollywood, to tip my cringe-to-pleasure scale by putting bigoted people in embarrassing situations. Unfortunately, it let me down.

How I'd Wire Brüno

GeekSugar — Fri, 10 Jul 2009 05:47:34 PDT

Sacha Baron Cohen's Borat taught us "iPod minis are for girls," but his next saucy comedy Brüno promises a more androgynous approach to technology. Having recently proposed tech makeovers for the characters of Gossip Girl, I'm ready to offer up gizmo suggestions for the fashionable, fearless and fierce fictional reporter. 'Cause you should never leave home without your iPhone or your murse.

Photo courtesy of Universal Studios

Link Time! 7/9

BuzzSugar — Thu, 09 Jul 2009 13:30:45 PDT

Are Alec Baldwin's huge "Prelude to a Kiss" glasses making a comeback? - Popwatch
Who are the best TV characters of the decade? - From Inside the Box
Awww, cute: A flipbook of pictures of Emma Watson and Hermione Granger through the years. - MTV Movies Blog
Read or heard an interview with Bruno? You probably heard one of these jokes. - Vulture
Sufjan Stevens gets back to the Chinese zodiac. - Pitchfork
Match the famous house with the movie it starred in! - CasaSugar
Who could replace Jane Lynch on Party Down? - Watch With Kristin
Presenting the top 10 princesses of sci-fi and fantasy, including Xena, Princess Buttercup and, of course, Princess Leia. - SciFi Squad

Do You Prefer When Sacha Interviews as Himself or Bruno?

PopSugar — Thu, 09 Jul 2009 12:00:00 PDT

Sacha Baron Cohen has been making the interview rounds to promote Bruno, usually appearing in costume as his over-the-top character. We got to actually see Sacha himself on Tuesday night when he appeared on The Late Show, and it was a big change from Bruno's typical antics. He might be trying to soften the film's image before its release tomorrow by going as himself, but tell us - do you prefer seeing Sacha or Bruno in interviews?

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