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Sopranos Creator David Chase Returns to HBO for Miniseries

BuzzSugar — Mon, 16 Mar 2009 12:30:10 PDT

The man who made Tony Soprano a household name will be returning to HBO. David Chase, creator of The Sopranos, is developing A Ribbon of Dreams, a miniseries about the invention of cinema and rise of Hollywood.

According to HBO, "the miniseries will begin in 1913 and follow two men, one a college-educated mechanical engineer, the other a cowboy with a violent past, who form an unlikely producing partnership and together become pioneers and then powers for a time in motion pictures." Here's more:

The miniseries will follow the two main characters as they begin as employees of D.W. Griffith, and then cross career paths with John Ford, John Wayne, Raoul Walsh, Bette Davis, Billy Wilder and others who gave shape to Hollywood as it grew from the age of rough-hewn silent Westerns, to the golden era of talkies and the studio system, to the auteur movement, to television, and finally to the present day.

Chase will write the miniseries and serve as executive producer, and he'll also direct the first episodes. Personally, I'm a fan of old Hollywood stories, so I'm curious to learn more about this project. I wonder who will end up playing some of those famous first stars! What do you make of this news?

Photo courtesy of HBO

Here's How the Sopranos Might Have Ended

BuzzSugar — Tue, 02 Dec 2008 07:30:07 PST

The massive complete series collection of The Sopranos is now in stores, and along with it comes tons of special features that go in-depth about the show and its legacy - including that baffling ending.

In one of the special features, creator David Chase and the cast talk about one of the alternate endings: Tony raking leaves in his yard. The scene's actually in the episode, and when the script was distributed to the crew, it was the final scene - just in case something got leaked or left behind on a train where some eager fan or reporter might snap it up. In talking about it, Chase also shares a bit of his thinking behind the real final scene, including that he'd had the idea in mind for three years!

After the jump, you can check out the video, and I'm curious to know - would you have preferred this fake ending? Or do you think the real one worked better? Would you have been satisfied either way? To watch the clip, just

Buzz News Roundup, 5/9

BuzzSugar — Fri, 09 May 2008 13:39:48 PDT

More Arrested Development alum casting news: Portia de Rossi has been cast in an ABC comedy pilot, Reuters reports.
Sopranos creator David Chase will write and direct his first feature film, E! reports.
Justin Timberlake will produce a reality show styled like "a real-life Bourne Identity," TV Week reports; excited yet?
According to Variety, specialty studios Picturehouse and Warner Independent Pictures are shutting down.
Writers' strike be dammed - we're still going to get all 48 promised episodes of Lost, with 17 more to come in each of the next two years, Zap2it reports.
Jason Sudeikis, Will Forte, and Leslie Bibb will star together in a comedy called A Good Old Fashioned Orgy, reports ComingSoon.
So much for that idea: Natalie Portman has dropped out of the big-screen Wuthering Heights adaptation, Variety reports.
According to Zap2It, Oliver Stone's W movie has a release date - and it's soon! The George W. Bush movie will hit theaters October 17, 2008.

Source

David Chase Speaks Out about "The Sopranos" Finale

BuzzSugar — Tue, 12 Jun 2007 12:17:49 PDT

"The Sopranos" creator David Chase wasn't trying to mess with viewers when he put together Sunday's controversial ending to the series. That's what he told New Jersey Star-Ledger columnist Alan Sepinwall in an exclusive interview, the only one Chase intends to do for a while. Here's what he said about the final moments of the episode (which, incidentally, was the highest-rated installment of the series since 2004):

"No one was trying to be audacious, honest to God. We did what we thought we had to do. No one was trying to blow people's minds, or thinking, 'Wow, this'll (tick) them off.'"

As for explanations, well, you won't be getting them from Chase, who told Sepinwall he had "no interest in explaining, defending, reinterpreting, or adding to what is there" and said "it's all there" for viewers of the show to figure it out.

Chase also said that while he's not ruling out a "Sopranos" movie, he's not feeling any urge to make one:

"If something appeared that really made a good 'Sopranos' movie and you could invest in it and everybody else wanted to do it, I would do it. But I think we've kind of said it and done it."

Meanwhile, Stephen Colbert has his own ideas of how the series should have ended. To watch him tell Jon Stewart about his concept for the finale,

Momofuku-Style Cherry Tomato Salad With Soft Tofu and Shiso

OnSugar Blog — Mon, 12 Dec 2011 13:30:27 PST

Even in the dark, Yoo Eatz's recipe for a cherry tomato, soft tofu, and shiso salad looks pretty incredible.

When I was about 2 years old, my best friend in the whole world was Jon. He was 6 months younger, but a whole head taller than me, and while I was very quiet and shy, he could wail loud enough for the both of us (or so my mom says). Where I would scamper, he would lumber. One of the only things we seemed to agree upon was that pigeons were meant for chasing (we're city kids), but despite our differences, we were practically inseparable: JonJon and SaSa. Then his family moved down the Peninsula, and our paths wouldn't again cross until much later.

My apologies for the blurry, dark photo. It was late, and I was hungry.

In college, my Jon was my buddy Kevin. Again, he was the outgoing one, and quiet little me always seemed to be tagging along to his parties. His social sphere was only slightly smaller than the campus population, whereas I tended to stick to a very small circle of friends. So it was a strange twist of fate when I found out that Kevin and Jon were close friends, having met through the university's crew team.

Fast-forward about 15 years to last weekend when we hosted Jon, Kevin, and their awesome wives for a little dinner party conceived through my Momofuku cookbook. We enjoyed an upscale ssam dinner (Korean barbecue served as make-your-own lettuce wraps) with kalbi-style New York strip and grilled pork belly and an insalata Caprese-inspired cherry tomato salad that I was dying to try. Rather than nesting the tomatoes on soft disks of mozzarella, Chang substitutes silken tofu and replaces zesty strips of basil with equally pungent Japanese shiso.

Keep reading for a wintry take on the Caprese salad.

Bank of America Drops $5 Monthly Debit Card Fee

Emily Co — Tue, 01 Nov 2011 11:18:46 PDT

Consumers, your voices were heard! Bank of America announced today that it is dropping its plan to charge debit users $5 a month for usage. This comes after a surge of public disapproval about the fees. Thousands of customers flocked online to sign petitions - one by change.org received over 300,000 signatures. Politicians like President Obama and Vice President Joe Biden have also spoken against the fees.

David Darnell, the bank's co-chief operating officer, says, "We have listened to our customers very closely over the last few weeks and recognize their concern with our proposed debit usage fee . . . Our customers' voices are most important to us. As a result, we are not currently charging the fee and will not be moving forward with any additional plans to do so."

Two other banks, Chase and Wells Fargo, also announced last week that they decided not to charge customers debit usage fees after testing the $3-a-month fee with pilot programs in several markets.

What to Rent: New DVDs This Week

BuzzSugar — Tue, 04 Oct 2011 09:14:20 PDT

Fast Five

Brian (Paul Walker) and Dom (Vin Diesel) team up for one last job in the fifth installment of the Fast & Furious franchise. This time the two find themselves in Rio de Janeiro and on the run from a corrupt drug lord as well as a relentless cop (Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson). The film kicks off with a high-energy action scene and doesn't slow down, providing plenty of chase scenes and explosions until the film's end. Fans of the franchise will be happy to see Ludacris, Jordana Brewster, and Tyrese Gibson reprising their original roles. DVD extras include a gag reel and a segment of Tyrese Gibson interviewing his castmates.

78%

Scream 4

When Sidney Prescott (Neve Campbell) returns to Woodsboro during a book tour for her new self-help book, she must protect herself and her cousin (Emma Roberts) from the Ghostface killer 10 years after her first ordeal. Courteney Cox and David Arquette are back as Gale and Dewey and are joined by a series of newcomers, including Alison Brie and Hayden Panettiere. The reboot captures the humor of the original, and Campbell and Cox are just as fresh as they were the first time around. DVD extras include commentary from director Wes Craven and deleted scenes.

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One more DVD when you read more

Fright Night: A Pump of Fresh Blood

Rose Curiel — Thu, 18 Aug 2011 18:32:16 PDT

Move over Edward Cullen - an old-school breed of vampire has returned to the big screen and his style is much more exhilarating than your PG take on bloodsucking. Rather than pine after a high school love, he’s interested in doing what vampires do best: kill. In Fright Night, Colin Farrell stars as Jerry Dandridge, a charismatic vampire who has recently moved into a suburban neighborhood in Las Vegas and begun victimizing the locals. Anton Yelchin plays Charley Brewster, a high school senior who lives next door to Jerry and suspects he might be responsible for the recent bout of disappearances in the neighborhood.

The film is a remake of a 1985 horror-comedy by the same name, and it does a great job of sinking its fangs into each genre, providing a movie that is equals parts funny and frightening. Farrell pulls off his role so well that it's easy for moviegoers to fall under his spell just as easily as his victims. To find out what else makes the film work just

read more. Farrell nails the role of a super-seductive bloodsucker. When his eyes aren’t turned black in preparation for attack, he’s using them to flirtatiously stare at every woman on the block - the neighborhood hottie, Charley’s mom Jane (Toni Collette), and even Charley's teenage girlfriend Amy (Imogen Poots), whom Jerry unabashedly calls “ripe.” He flip flops back and forth between charmer and murderous monster, but his scenes in attack mode don’t necessarily incite huge amounts of fear. That's partly because Jerry is more of a pathological, methodical killer, who tends to lure his victims with sex appeal and relish the kill with controlled calmness. However, the special effects, which transform Farrell’s face into a terrifying creature, carrying out the task of making you jump in your seat, a feat that Jerry's hunting style lacks. Yelchin is adequate, but overshadowed by supporting cast members, like Christopher Mintz-Plasse. He plays Charley’s former nerdy best friend, and delivers some of the film’s funniest moments, including poking fun at Twilight. David Tennant also emerges as one of the funniest characters in his role as a magician whose act revolves around pretending to be a vampire slayer. With his heavy eye-liner and leather pants, he comes off as a cross between Jack Sparrow and Russell Brand, with also provides extra laughs. The intense chase and fight scenes between Charley and Jerry fulfill the horror side of things. Tension-filled exchanges, like when Jerry tries to determine if Charley knows he’s a vampire, and when Charley breaks into Jerry’s home to save a victim, had me biting my nails. Regardless of how you like your vampires, Fright Night will entertain you with a steady stream of laughs and plenty of moments that are creepy (but won't give you nightmares).

Photo courtesy of Paramount Pictures

The Adjustment Bureau: Needs Fixing

Lauren Bradshaw — Fri, 04 Mar 2011 03:05:00 PST

Fate versus freewill. Religious theorists and philosophers have contemplated the idea for centuries, and this weekend The Adjustment Bureau tries to tackle the debate. What would you do if you found out your entire life were planned for you? And what if the plan wasn't what you wanted? The weighty subject matter should give you plenty to chew on, but The Adjustment Bureau isn't adept enough to handle the issue. Instead, we get a generic story.

Based on a short story by Philip K. Dick (the sci-fi writer also behind Blade Runner and Minority Report), The Adjustment Bureau stars Matt Damon as David Norris, a politician who crosses paths with a ballerina named Elise (Emily Blunt) in a men's bathroom. Instant sparks ignite, so when they bump into each other again on a bus, David is convinced that fate is intervening. But really, it's a mistake of chance - and it must be corrected. In come suited agents led by Richardson (John Slattery). They're men in charge of monitoring the world (the film suggests they're angels) to make sure everyone proceeds on the path predetermined for them. Since David has fallen off course, they must make sure he forgets about Elise for the sake of his political career. But unfortunately for them, David is quite the smitten schoolboy and isn't willing to let her go.

For my thoughts on the film's problems and Damon's performance,

read more. As the chase begins, David bolts through Manhattan streets to steer clear of Richardson and his men. But how can you outrun or outsmart fate? Especially considering the head of the agency is - as implied in the film - God. There literally is nowhere for David to escape, so you start to wonder where exactly the film can go. Given the story's inventiveness, I kept waiting for a clever twist or unexpected outcome, but the ending is flat and dumbed down. The Adjustment Bureau wants to be a sci-fi film, thriller, and romance all in one, and by trying to do too much, it ultimately runs into problems. It glosses over many of the sci-fi plot components through quick verbal explanation, and the relationship between David and Elise feels rushed. When David first meets the agents, he doesn't seem nearly as concerned with the bizarre group as he is with holding onto Elise's phone number. Not only is it realistic, but it's a little too cheesy. The agents themselves don't help matters; Slattery does the best he can with his role, as does Anthony Mackie (The Hurt Locker) who plays David's personal watcher. But on the whole, they come across as campy and deliver the script's most cliched lines. Damon and Blunt are what ultimately make the film worth watching. Damon was born to play a politician with his charisma, and Blunt's sarcasm makes for fun banter. They have great chemistry, and when the script does allow their relationship to grow, it makes for some of the movie's most gratifying scenes. If only the rest of the film was just as satisfying.

David Netto Tells Us How Preppy Rebellion Inspired Him, How He Relates to Ralph Lauren, and Why He Hates Blogging!

Julia Walsh — Mon, 14 Mar 2011 05:00:17 PDT

LilSugar associate editor Rebecca Gruber recently had the chance to chat with interior and furniture designer David Netto about his new bedding and textile collection for children's lifestyle company Maclaren. Since I've long been a fan - I featured him as a Designer Spotlight back in '08 - I sent her some prying questions for Netto in advance. The first segment of Lil's interview is already up, so be sure to check that out. But first, read below to hear how preppy rebellion inspired David's design career, two reasons why he's like Ralph Lauren, and why he hates blogging.

CasaSugar: You're a terrific writer; in fact, you recently wrote an article for WSJ magazine. Do you have plans to write more, or have you thought about keeping a blog?

David Netto: I hate keeping a blog, and so far I have evaded keeping a blog. I like contributing to blogs, but it's so hard to keep it fresh and to commit to doing that every day. I don’t know how Gwyneth Paltrow finds the time. She really puts her back into that.

I contribute to Giggle.com’s blog. I mean they don’t chase after me that often, but the WSJ is a great job. I’ll do anything for anyone who’s nice to me. Deborah Needleman, the editor, was a great friend to me at Domino. I admired that magazine, so when she asked me to come on board that team this Summer, I was very excited. And that’s been great. I need jobs that I can do in my pajamas from California. I’m there with my kids now.

CS: What’s your favorite kind of client? Do you prefer a really hands-on client who has a lot of input, one who says just do whatever you want, or somewhere in between?

DN: There is no such thing as someone that says do whatever you want. That’s a myth. I don’t think that ever really happens, and if it does, it's even more scary, because then you’re completely on your own. Because what if they don’t like that? It’s risk-reducing to work with someone that has opinions and knows something about what they want. What I find very helpful when working on a project is if somebody has a collection. I love it when there’s a book collection, a photography collection, something that has to be accommodated so that there’s a jumping off point for ideas. It’s pretty lonely when there isn’t one.

Continue reading for the rest of the interview!