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Link Time! 3/25

BuzzSugar — Tue, 25 Mar 2008 14:29:31 PDT

FitSugar wants to know: What are your thoughts on these billboards promoting Forgetting Sarah Marshall?
Popwatch asks about the shows you meant to watch, but never got to see before they were yanked (like the recently canned Jezebel James).
Speaking of which, TV Filter wonders: What killed Jezebel James - the time slot, the concept, something else?
Vulture has the - good? bad? baffling? - news that Scarlett Johansson's album has gotten at least one good review.
Got questions for the cast of the book-to-film adaptation of Twilight? Submit them to the MTV Movies Blog.
TV Squad looks at the magic that can happen when television and real life collide.
TV with MeeVee wonders what a TV series version of Children of Men might look like in the hands of Battlestar Galactica's David Eick.

Why I Love ... Chiwetel Ejiofor

BuzzSugar — Tue, 27 Mar 2007 11:10:13 PDT

While on the topic of Children of Men, which comes out on DVD today, I thought I'd pay homage to an actor I love: Chiwetel Ejiofor, who plays Luke. Though his character is technically a bad guy, Ejiofor's speech toward the end - delivered between rounds of bullets he aimlessly sprays out a window - makes me soften toward Luke, thinking maybe he's just trying to survive like everyone else.

There is something friendly and trustworthy about the British actor, who I first noticed in Love Actually as Peter, the husband of Keira Knightley's character. But it was when I saw Kinky Boots that I really fell in love. In the quirky comedy, Ejiofor plays drag queen Lola, who co-creates a line of supportive yet fabulous drag queen footwear. For more on why I love Ejiofor,

In a role that could have easily crossed over into caricature, Ejiofor keeps it real in Kinky, deftly alternating between Chaka Khan-esque diva and warm, smart businessman.

In addition to these films, Ejiofor's credits include Amistad, Inside Man, and Serenity. His sensitive demeanor might stem from a tragedy he experienced as a child: According to IMDB, the actor was in a car accident at age 11 with his father. He survived, but his father did not. Whatever the reason, I find this man mesmerizing. Thankfully, it looks like I'm not the only one with a Ejiofor crush: He has several more projects in the works. Until I can check those out, I'll watch Kinky Boots a few more times, and I suggest you do the same.

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What to Netflix: New DVD Tuesday

BuzzSugar — Tue, 27 Mar 2007 07:38:02 PDT

All of the new DVD releases hit stores (and Netflix) on Tuesdays. So each week in What to Netflix: New DVD Tuesday, I sort through the best of the batch and tell you what to add to your queue. This week brings us an exciting list of big titles, many of which got Oscar attention this year. In addition to these recommendations, check out Heath Ledger in the gritty drama Candy, as well as the gorgeous-looking Curse of the Golden Flower, which was up for Best Costumes.

Children of Men
Nominated for three Academy Awards, Children of Men is a frightening sci-fi tale of a not-so-distant future when women are unable to have babies, and humans everywhere, facing extinction, have turned to violence and warfare. Miraculously, one woman named Kee (Claire-Hope Ashitey) has managed to conceive and needs help from Theo (Clive Owen) to bring her - and the future of the race - safely to a science center named The Human Project. It's a chilling and dramatic piece of sci-fi that's a far cry from Jar Jar Binks. For more details, check out my full review.

For two more recommendations,

The Pursuit of Happyness
Against Peter O'Toole and Forest Whitaker, Will Smith really didn't have a prayer in this year's Best Actor race. But if his excellent portrayal of Chris Gardner is any indication, Smith should get more chances to win. He is subtle and studious as a salesman who takes an unpaid internship as a stockbroker in hopes of bettering his life and that of his young son (Jaden Smith). Gardner hits such lows that this movie is often painful to watch, but it will also open your eyes. Check out my full review and you'll understand what I mean.

Happy Feet
Sure, this is technically a kids' movie, but this one is so CGI-tastic that it won the Oscar for Best Animated Feature Film. The story follows Mumble, a lovable emperor penguin with a woefully bad singing voice. His peers use their vocal skills to attract mates while Mumble, well, mumbles. Luckily, he was gifted in another way: The penguin can dance! The songs are toe-tappingly happy, and there is a serious message about being environmentally responsible. But really, the bottom line is: Who doesn't love penguins?

Oscar Worthy Gadgets - Watch in Children of Men

GeekSugar — Fri, 23 Feb 2007 15:00:26 PST

Nominated for an Academy Award for cinematography Children of Men features some of my favorite things: Clive Owen, Sci-Fi and awesome gadgets. The movie takes place in 2027, as humankind faces extinction and a government agent agrees to help transport and protect a miraculously pregnant woman to a sanctuary of scientists.

My Buzzsugar spy tells me that in this scene a tech wiz teenager is zoned out and playing with this wild futuristic toy of some sort by just staring at it and flickering his fingers. As far as we can remember, there’s no mention of what it’s called or what the game is or anything. He’s just completely absorbed in it with half-closed eyes and his dad tells him to take his pills. Yes, it's one of those moments and it kind of makes you wonder...what will my world be like in 2027? For more photos, just

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What Movie Deserves the Oscar for Best Cinematography?

BuzzSugar — Fri, 02 Feb 2007 06:00:35 PST

All this week, we've been featuring the Oscar nominees for Best Cinematography, including The Black Dahlia, The Illusionist, Children of Men, Pan's Labyrinth, and The Prestige. Now that you've seen the galleries, what movie do you think deserves to win?

Oscar Nominee: Children of Men for Cinematography

BuzzSugar — Tue, 30 Jan 2007 06:00:41 PST

Every week up until the Oscars, I'll be featuring the nominees in the various visual categories, starting this week with cinematography. Yesterday, I had a gallery of stills from Pan's Labyrinth, and today's nominee is Children of Men.

In this movie, director Alfonso Cuaron strove to capture a grim futuristic world in which the continuation of the human race is threatened. The filmmakers were incredibly thorough and detailed in creating such a dark and hopeless atmosphere where desperate people have resorted to intense violence. The techniques utilized were fascinating and unusual, as you can see from this behind-the-scenes clip. To check out a gallery of images from the film,

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Behind the Scenes: Children of Men

BuzzSugar — Wed, 24 Jan 2007 10:36:32 PST

Yesterday Children of Men received a number of Oscar nominations, including Achievements in Cinematography and Film Editing, both of which I think are fully deserved. Director Alfonso Cuaron has been lauded for the complicated, highly-choreographed scenes in the film that were shot without interruption - particularly a battle scene in which Clive Owen and four others are riding in a car and an angry mob descends upon them.

So I was excited to find a very cool behind-the-scenes clip that explains how they pulled off the remarkable sequence. With the help of a complex device surrounding the vehicle and a pivoting camera inside, the entire scene was filmed without any cuts. The amount of preparation and cooperation required of the cast and crew to time everything just right is tremendous. You'll see what I mean if you watch the video, so

Children of Men: Shattering the Sci-Fi Mold

BuzzSugar — Fri, 12 Jan 2007 06:00:44 PST

Children of Men is a well-formed, visceral experience of a depressing futuristic world. As a work of science fiction, the film is impressive, because the genre often gives filmmakers license to create storylines and characters that are far-fetched to the point of eye-rolling ridiculousness. The creators of Children of Men, however, seem to understand that to make an engrossing film about imaginary circumstances, you need not make the world outrageously different from today’s reality. Thus, the details are so familiar that the “crazy future” is frighteningly believable.

It’s 2027, women are infertile, and a child hasn’t been born in 18 years. Many of the world’s countries have succumbed to warfare and destruction. Britain is the only place that hasn’t crumbled completely, thus the country is flooded with immigrants and refugees. Trying to maintain a “pure” Britain, the rigid government requires all non-British be reported so that they can then be removed from the country. The society has come to resemble Nazi Germany, with soldiers and police officers bullying and murdering immigrants and carting them off to squalid camps.

Details such as these add an all-over believability. TV screens on buses loop with footage of countries falling to despair, followed by the proud statement, “Only Britain soldiers on.” A digital billboard delivers calm and benign variations on the statement “Regular fertility tests are mandatory by law. Avoiding fertility tests is illegal.”

For the rest of my take and plenty more photos,

The storyline is incredibly simplistic: One African woman named Kee is miraculously pregnant, and she needs to be safely escorted to the Human Project, where, with Kee’s help, they can hopefully save the human race. As a non-British citizen, Kee cannot move around easily, and the people she originally trusts to transport her to the Human Project turn out to be the FISHES, a group of revolutionaries railing against the government. When Theo (Clive Owen) discovers this, he takes it upon himself to bring Kee safely to the Human Project’s ship, aptly named the Tomorrow.

Michael Caine gives the only stand-out performance as Jasper, Theo’s good-natured, pot-smoking older friend who lives in a hidden cabin in the woods. In this out-of-control world, he seems like someone we know, a kindly, spirited uncle, perhaps. Julianne Moore is surprisingly flat as the FISHES leader, but her presence in the film is so brief, it’s nearly insignificant. As Kee, Claire-Hope Ashitey is never too precious, which is a relief, while Clive Owen puts forth a solid performance as the protagonist. Yet, none of the performances are outstanding because it’s not really that kind of film.

The visual storytelling is as effective as the written plot lines, with the shaky camera catching the gritty world of war. Shots are filmed through glass much of the time, perhaps indicating how Theo is a part of this society but detached from it as well. There are surprising bits of humor injected into most scenes, too. Jasper offers much of it, though even in the most tense or frightening of moments a visual or verbal joke will bring great relief. In this sense, Children of Men covers all the bases of humanity: humor, pathos, violence, compassion, death, and birth. It isn't a movie I have any need to see again, but it is a deftly told story.

Now for the question: What does the title mean? In my opinion, it has something to do with this: Some people believe the world is balanced because women create while men destroy. Lacking the creation of more beings, the world falls to destruction, and we are all … children of men.

(Click on the photos below for an enlarged view.)

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Fans Rally Behind "Children of Men"

BuzzSugar — Mon, 08 Jan 2007 09:25:52 PST

Children of Men is getting rave reviews from critics, but it's not getting much love from its studio, Universal, which initially released the movie in just 16 theaters on Christmas Day. Now, one devoted fan has made a video promoting the movie, interspersing footage of the film with quotes from critics set to a soundtrack from Jarvis Cocker. I'm already dying to see this movie, but the video makes me want to see it even more.

Movie Preview: Children of Men

BuzzSugar — Fri, 05 Jan 2007 12:45:59 PST

I am deeply intrigued by the trailer for this new movie Children of Men, which stars Clive Owen and Julianne Moore. I'm not usually the biggest science-fiction fan, but the premise is interesting: In a not-too-distant future (20 years from now), women are infertile and the human race looks doomed... until one miraculously pregnant woman is discovered. Disillusioned government agent Theodore Faron (Owen) must protect and escort the woman to a sanctuary, where scientists may be able to save humankind with the world's only baby.

Even more interesting: The movie's getting excellent reviews. I think I'll have to see this one soon. Tune in for my review next week, and in the meantime check out the trailer below.