BuzzSugar

Sundance Review: Death in Love

BuzzSugar — Sun, 27 Jan 2008 13:00:22 PST

Ugh. Where to begin with the list of atrocities the Sundance film Death in Love manages to accomplish? Preposterously wooden dialog? Check. Gratuitously violent sexuality? Check. Quick cuts to the grotesque torturing and dismembering of concentration camp detainees meant to "shock" the audience? Check. A collection of gratingly obnoxious characters, none of whom gives us any reason whatsoever to sympathize with them? Check, check, check.

This film may as well be titled Psychopathic Murderers, Mating. About a third of the way into the movie I was mentally pleading for it to have something - anything - redeeming about it. Then the sole redeeming factor entered the film, and that factor's name is Adam Brody. And sure, I like him well enough, but when Adam Brody is the one thing about a movie that doesn't entirely make you want to vomit, it's a bad sign. It's time to walk away.

The movie starts and ends with shrill, anguished screaming. Not just a few shrieks but the kind of prolonged screaming that makes you want to kill someone, just to make it stop. There's then a way-too-long montage set to music that alternates between images of various women having sex with a man and these same women's bodies being ripped apart or otherwise mangled in experiments. Awesome, right? Yeah,

read more. The plot is structured around the story of the Mother (Jacqueline Bisset), a woman who saves her own life by seducing the Nazi doctor performing experiments on concentration camp detainees. After becoming his pet, she generally turns into a bad person, eventually marries an American and moves to New York where she raises two boys and terrorizes them into having supremely messed up issues with women. The story then mainly follows one of the sons (played with a lot of whining by Josh Lucas) - his struggle to come to terms with being 40, his work problems, his relationship issues, his hatred toward his mother, and so on and on. None of it matters, though. There's little point to this steaming pile of mess. It's bleak, it's violent, it's gratuitously disgusting, and for what? There's no real moral. We hate each and every one of these cruel, self-absorbed characters (with the possible exception of the other son, an emotionally stunted yet gifted pianist played by Lukas Haas), and when there's no reason to care about the characters in a movie, it feels a lot like a waste of time. The story's heart is coldly and apathetically cut out, and we're forced to watch and call it "art." Bottom line: There is no need to ever see this movie. Source

Live From Sundance, Part III

BuzzSugar — Wed, 23 Jan 2008 05:30:51 PST

Yesterday I proved to myself that I really could spend an entire day watching movies and not get tired of it. In fact, it started to work like a drug - the more films I took in, the more I wanted to watch. So, maybe it's a good thing that I leave Park City today! Check out my third collection of thoughts on this year's Sundance Film Festival:

Watching four movies in a row on Tuesday, I really got to see the good (The Last Word), the bad (Sleepwalking) and the very, very ugly (Death in Love) - along with the kinda pretty good (The Deal). More to come on all of these soon, but just know that I haven't ever wanted to walk out of a movie so much as I wanted to leave Death in Love. On a brighter note, I got to see The Last Word starring Wes Bentley, Winona Ryder, and Ray Romano, which will likely prove one of the success stories from this year's festival.
Saw Charlize Theron at the premiere of Sleepwalking, and she is a beautiful giantess. She gave a few speeches about the film (which she produced and stars in) and she seemed so down-to-earth, I almost felt badly for disliking her movie so much.

More thoughts if you

The Vampire Diaries "Bringing Out the Dead": The Good, The Bad, and The Bloody

Marisa Tom — Fri, 03 Feb 2012 07:46:39 PST

After a week's worth of TVD reprieve, it's about time we got some answers - specifically, ones that have everything to do with our favorite Original vamp Elijah and then some. From the tragic twisted fate of Bill Forbes to the shocking discovery Elena makes at home, we're still trying to wrap our heads around everything that goes down. Meanwhile, Bonnie and her estranged mother Abby are tasked with opening the mysteriously sealed fifth coffin, and Damon and Stefan head to Klaus's sweet new pad for the ultimate dinner party showdown.

Like all things based in Mystic Falls, nothing is as it seems and nothing ever goes according to plan. Ready to review the good, the bad, and the bloody? Just keep reading.

50 Geeky Date Ideas For Valentine's Day (and Beyond)

GeekSugar — Wed, 01 Feb 2012 06:30:10 PST

Coming up short for Valentine's Day date ideas? If you and your sweetheart are more of the geeky persuasion, simply hitting up an overpriced restaurant just won't cut it. We brainstormed 50 date ideas that incorporate science, tech, and video games, for a special Valentine's eve. But don't limit yourself - tackle these date ideas all year!

Bundle up, pack a dinner picnic, and head to the park for some stargazing.
Watch Contact (for the millionth time).
Go to a science museum.
Hit the natural history museum and check out your favorite dino bones.
Go retro - grab a roll of quarters, a slice or two, and hit the pizza parlor arcade.
Build your own planetarium with glow-in-the-dark stickers.
Catch up with the Doctor Who craze by watching the series from the beginning.
Throw a Star Wars party for two.
Whip up a batch of Cloud 9 mojitos (complete with mason jar glasses) and have a Battlestar Galactica marathon.
Visit Nerdy Day Trips and find geeky stuff to do near you.
Go to the planetarium.
Take a dream vacay to the Hobbit Hotel in New Zealand.
Spend a few romantic nights in the Hobbit House of Montana.
Visit the actual Lord of the Rings movie set.
Travel to the Chott el Djerid salt lakes in Tunisia, which were transformed into Luke Skywalker's home on Tatooine.

See the rest of the list after the break!

The Oscar Nominations: Snap Judgments

Shannon Vestal — Tue, 24 Jan 2012 13:24:33 PST

The Oscar nominations were announced this morning, and now that we've had time to digest the news, we have a few reactions to share. From the positive and excited to the slightly disappointed, check out our thoughts on the 2012 Academy Award nominations, and be sure to share yours too.

It's rare for a comedy to be able to compete with all of the heavy dramas of award season, especially an R-rated comedy, but Bridesmaids impressed us by not just nabbing a supporting actress nomination for Melissa McCarthy, but for best original screenplay for Kristen Wiig and Annie Mumolo. Nice work, ladies!
We were happy to see acting nominations for Nick Nolte in Warrior and Gary Oldman for Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy. Both men have been left off a lot of lists (like the Golden Globes), but we're so glad that they pulled in Oscar nominations since these were two performances we felt strongly about.
The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo may have been passed over in most major categories, but its lead actress, Rooney Mara, was still recognized. The Academy seems to love its ingénues, and we're glad they chose Rooney for her brave breakout role.
Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close has suffered from some bad reviews, but not from the Academy: it scored a best picture nomination and a nod for supporting actor Max von Sydow. We liked him in the role, but it's still a surprise to see the movie come up so strongly.
The Tree of Life was a similar surprise, since the Summer release had polarized reviewers and audiences and didn't seem to have much award season steam. But the movie still managed to join the race with nods for best picture and best director for Terrence Malick.

To read some more of my Oscar snap judgments, just keep reading.

Announcing the 2012 Oscar Nominations!

Shannon Vestal — Tue, 24 Jan 2012 11:21:53 PST

The 2012 Oscar nominations have been announced! Lots of award season regulars, like The Artist and The Descendants, got some love, but there were also a handful of surprises, like nominations for Nick Nolte, Gary Oldman, and Terrence Malick. Bridesmaids also scored big, with noms for best original screenplay and best supporting actress for Melissa McCarthy.

The Academy chose nine films for best picture, with lots of familiar titles in there, plus a couple that had early awards buzz but haven't necessarily had consistent attention, like Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close and The Tree of Life. The films that racked up the most nominations were Hugo with 11 and The Artist with 10.

To see the full list of nominations, just keep reading.

Jennifer Morrison Talks About the Fairy Tale She Wants on Once Upon a Time and Emma's New Love Interest

Shannon Vestal — Fri, 20 Jan 2012 14:34:19 PST

Jennifer Morrison plays Emma on Once Upon a Time, the show's reluctant heroine who has been chosen to break the curse of a town full of fairy-tale characters. I chatted with Morrison about the series, and I had to know how she felt about Graham's shocking death and whether we'll ever see him again. We also discussed the upcoming tales we'll get to see on the show, including the story Morrison would love to see play out. Read my interview below, and if you want to catch up with the show, you can watch episodes online here.

BuzzSugar: We were really upset when Graham died; were you sad when you found out it was going to happen?
Jennifer Morrison: Well, we knew what was coming in the story line since the beginning of the season. But all of us were upset because we love Jamie Dornan, and I thought he was just absolutely fabulous in the show. We all were very close, you know? So it felt like a huge loss, not just on the show, but just personally. We were all really close friends, and we still feel that loss. It feels weird with him not being in Vancouver with us.

Buzz: Is there any way that Dornan might return?
JM: The thing is, just because he died in reality doesn't mean that he can't return as the huntsman, because those are flashbacks. So, depending on the structure of the show, and the story we decide to tell, as far as I understand, there's room for him to exist still in fairy-tale land.

Buzz: With him gone, is Emma getting another love interest?
JM: Well, this last episode that aired, there's a stranger that comes to town, played by Eion Bailey, who is in that very last scene in that last episode that aired. I don't know for sure where they're cutting this at, but I know that there is a possibility that this stranger in town could somehow be connected to Emma at some point. Beyond that, I don't really know.

To find out what else Morrison said about the show, including the fairy tale she hopes to see on Once Upon a Time, just keep reading.

Link Time - Michael C. Hall Teams Up With Vera Farmiga

BuzzSugar — Fri, 15 Apr 2011 13:30:40 PDT

Get the details on Michael C. Hall and Vera Farmiga's new movie - /Film
Go behind the scenes on the set of The Hobbit - Moviefone
Nick Frost's five favorite films - Rotten Tomatoes
Get prepped for Game of Thrones with this handy guide - Pajiba
Get a preview of all the songs on next week's Glee - TV Squad
The Harry Potter cast talks about their favorite scenes - PopWatch
The 10 most unnecessary film sequels of all time - Flavorwire
Celebs who danced off the weight on Dancing With the Stars - FitSugar
Condoleezza Rice will appear on 30 Rock - Vulture

Video: Anthony Mackie Talks Arachnophobia, Ledges, and Who He Recently Punched

Molly Goodson — Tue, 17 Jan 2012 16:25:00 PST

Anthony Mackie is staying busy in 2012, and first up for him is Man on a Ledge. Anthony costars with Elizabeth Banks and Sam Worthington in the film, which comes out at the end of the month on Jan. 27. We sat down to chat with the cast, including Anthony, at their recent press day in Beverly Hills. Anthony revealed what he's deathly afraid of in real life as well as some dream projects he would love to make into movies. Check out our interview, and see Man on a Ledge when it comes out in a couple weeks.

The Vampire Diaries "Our Town": The Good, The Bad, and The Bloody

Shannon Vestal — Fri, 13 Jan 2012 08:15:48 PST

After last week's epic kiss, this week's episode of The Vampire Diaries is almost a little disappointing, except that so many other crazy non-Elena/Damon things happen. It's Caroline's birthday, but it's not all cake and tequila shots with her friends, and Stefan tries his hardest to be a baddie but just ends up looking like a jerk.

On the Damon and Elena front, she's still feeling bad for having Jeremy sent away, and Bonnie has some harsh words for the already guilty-feeling Elena. I'm ready to get down into it, so if you are too, let's deconstruct it into the good, the bad, and the bloody after the break.