BuzzSugar

Buzz News Roundup, 8/24

BuzzSugar — Mon, 24 Aug 2009 13:30:10 -0700

Stephen Moyer will join Paul Bettany in the vampire thriller Priest. - Variety
NBC has ordered a pilot for the legal comedy Rex Is Not Your Lawyer. - The Hollywood Reporter
Diego Luna will make his directorial debut with a family drama called Abel. - Coming Soon
Glee's Jayma Mays will return to Heroes for one episode. - Entertainment Weekly
Sheryl Crow sold her music catalog to S1 Songs Group for over $10 million. - Variety
Check out the new Dancing With the Stars Pairings. - Zap2it
Gus van Sant is in negotiations to direct Restless. - The Hollywood Reporter
Irving Berlin's White Christmas will be back for a holiday run on Broadway. - Variety

Rudo y Cursi: Soccer, Fame, and Brotherhood

BuzzSugar — Sun, 10 May 2009 13:30:48 -0700

Written and directed by Carlos Cuarón, Rudo y Cursi is a quirky satire with a dark twist. The story follows two brothers named Beto (Diego Luna) and Tato (Gael García Bernal) on a familiar journey that takes them from humble roots on a banana farm all the way to professional soccer super-stardom.

Nearly seven years after Luna and García Bernal went road-tripping together in Y Tu Mamá También (also written by Cuarón and directed by his brother Alfonso) the two stars hardly look like they've aged and it's clear they had a good time reuniting on the set. However, while both actors deliver exuberant and forceful performances, their energy can't quite keep Cuarón's narrative on track. The result is a movie that is a joy to take in, but muddled in tone. To see what I mean, read more.

The boys are discovered by a talent scout named Batuta, who also narrates the film via voiceover. At first he can only take one of the brothers with him to Mexico City and he chooses Tato. Beto begrudgingly stays behind, tending to his wife and family, while Tato endures the brutal hazing practices of the soccer team. Eventually Beto does join his brother in the city and both become famous soccer players known by their nicknames Rudo and Cursi (roughly translated as tough and corny).

The movie has many comedic moments that work well. For example, García Bernal's character is more interested in a singing career than soccer, and the video he shoots for his cover of "I Want You to Want Me" is completely awesome. But when Diego's character gets to the city and grapples with a gambling problem, the brothers' relationship is tested, and the movie starts to drag. This disturbing undertone to the film doesn't quite jibe with the tongue-in-cheek satirical tone of the first half of the movie.

It's clear Cuarón has something to say about fate and love and even consumer culture, but his movie isn't executed quite well enough to figure out what that is. Still, the writing is witty and the tale is told with such vigor that you can't help but get swept away in it all.

Photos courtesy of Sony Picture Classics

Buzz Interview: Gael and Diego Reunite and It Feels So Good

BuzzSugar — Fri, 08 May 2009 05:30:56 -0700

I still remember the first time I saw Y Tu Mamá También and I became just slightly obsessed with the lead actors of the 2001 Mexican film. Since then, actors Diego Luna and Gael Garcia Bernal have become global stars, and both have gone on to work with a variety of talented directors including Jim Jarmusch and Gus Van Sant.

Now the two are reuniting onscreen in Rudo y Cursi (opening today) as brothers from the countryside who are recruited to play professional soccer in the big city. I was lucky enough to sit down with them here in San Francisco to talk about acting together, why we don't actually see either of them play any soccer in a soccer movie, and Gael's singing voice. Here are some highlights:

On reuniting as actors for this movie:
Diego: Reuniting? It's just that it's . . . I mean, we're not reuniting.
Gael: It's not like Menudo . . .
Diego: It's not like Menudo reunited. Like we tried to go single and then we go "Oh man, no one's heard our music. Let's do another hit together." We've been working all those years, we have a company together, we have a film festival. I'm a producer of his films, he's a producer of mine. We've been collaborating a lot. But what's cool was, yeah, to be actors - just actors - again.

Lots more coming up, so read more.

On Y Tu Mamá También helping to start this decade's Mexican movie renaissance:
Gael: There were other films also.
Diego: There were, I think - and [Gael's] not going to say it - I think it was Amores Perros. I remember I was in Cannes the year of Amores Perros and just watching what was happening and just saying, "F*ck this is new. This is different. This has not happened with a Mexican film." And that happened a year before Y Tu Mamá También. I think Amores Perros was really the one that opened the doors for this kind of new talent that was coming out from Mexico.

In the movie, the camera often cuts away from the soccer field and as a result we don't see either Gael or Diego really play. I asked them if they wanted to play soccer onscreen in this movie:
Diego: Look at us? Come on. That is a very smart decision [the director] Carlos [Cuarón] made. We were thinking there is not a single film that is good that shows [soccer] and Carlos has a theory that is because it's not very dramatic you know? It lasts for 90 minutes, there's no pauses, there's no moments like in American football, baseball, where you have the pitcher thinking and changing and making a choice every five seconds, you know? In [soccer] it just happens and it's beautiful as it is so you cannot break it. It would be stupid.
Gael: When you see a film you want to see the emotional journey of the characters. You don't want to see the play strategy that they did.

I asked if they decided which one of them would play Rudo and which would play Cursi based on singing because Gael's character does a lot of singing and even performs in a video:
Diego: Obviously not!
Gael: (Laughs) Carlos decided . . .
Diego: Carlos was very smart. He wanted to change the dynamics of our relation[ship] and the relation[ship] we had in Y Tu Mamá También, so he decided to give me the older brother - I'm younger than Gael - and that did kind of affect the way we approached these characters and their relation[ship] and it made it a very different film.

On making career choices:
Diego: I do see many people in the States making their careers like that, saying, "OK I'll do a film with dogs - with real dogs! - and with kids! That'll get me an agent. That'll get me a publicist and they'll get me closer to the films I want to make." And sometimes that works. The cinema we shoot in Mexico is because the director really wants to tell one story and he's willing to give up everything and he gets his team. And the size of the movie depends a lot in how excited people get by reading the script.
Gael: If you don't have Julie Roberts and you do it in Spanish then it does not take. That's why the stories in Latin America, the good ones, are the ones that don't obey any of these rules. It's an interesting moment when a film like Sin Nombre [a movie on which Gael and Diego were executive producers] with no well-known stars at all can be incredibly successful. There's no formula to Sin Nombre but it's proven to be a commercial success also, so that's fantastic. If we try to do a formula it for sure will fail.

On working together again in the future:
Diego: We talked about it and probably it's not going to happen soon. And if it happens soon might be more in theater.
Gael: Yeah, something that's more easy for us to make with our hands because with films it requires a lot of people, a lot of money -
Diego: - a lot of confidence!

Rudo y Cursi photo courtesy of Sony Picture Classics and Source

Movie Preview: The Limits of Control

BuzzSugar — Sun, 03 May 2009 07:30:54 -0700

Director Jim Jarmusch comes from a fruitful era of independent film in the '80s, when directors including Spike Lee, Steven Soderbergh and Gus Van Sant were young filmmakers just beginning to make their mark in cinema. Where the others have gone on to enjoy some variation of mainstream success, Jarmusch has continued on with business as usual, making art-house films that often attract a cult following.

His newest film, The Limits of Control, is out now in limited release and stars Tilda Swinton, Isaach De Bankolé, Gael García Bernal, and Bill Murray. It's not getting the greatest reviews, but even when Jarmusch goes wrong, it's wrong in an interesting way. This film is described as essentially plot-less and simply follows a lone hit man. Visually, it looks gorgeous. To take a look for yourself, read more.

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Movie Preview: Rudo y Cursi

BuzzSugar — Mon, 27 Apr 2009 14:30:03 -0700

I talked a little bit about director Carlos Cuaron's comedy Rudo y Cursi when I was spotlighting movies to keep an eye on at the Sundance Film Festival, but at the time there was no trailer with English subtitles. Now there is, though, so I'm so excited to be able to share another look at this movie that reunites Gael García Bernal and Diego Luna, the stars of 2001's Y Tu Mamá También.

I love each of these actors individually, and together they have great chemistry. In Rudo y Cursi they're two brothers who leave their small Mexican village to become soccer superstars and deal with all the repercussions that come with fame and fortune. The new trailer captures the touching and funny spirit of the movie (I've seen it - stay tuned for my review). Rudo y Cursi opens May 8, and to see what it's all about, just read more.

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Oscar Nominee: Milk For Best Costume Design

BuzzSugar — Thu, 12 Feb 2009 15:30:21 -0800

As we gear up for the Oscars, I'll be featuring the nominees for Best Costume Design. It's a big year for this category as the films nominated represent vastly different historical periods. Be it 18th-century England or San Francisco in the '70s, these films include some gorgeous threads. I've already presented galleries for four out of the five nominees, so today the final movie is Milk.

People often think of San Francisco's "Summer of Love" as the city's major cultural movement, but Gus Van Sant's biopic Milk features the life of gay activist Harvey Milk during another turbulent time for this town: The 1970s. And nothing helps bring this vision to life more than the detailed costumes worn by each member of the fantastic ensemble cast. From Josh Brolin's traditional suiting to the flashy polyester getups worn by Diego Luna, the '70s never looked so good!

To check out the many photos of good-looking people in high-waisted jeans and such, just read more.

View 18 Photos ›

Photos courtesy of Focus Features

2009 Sundance Spotlight: An Education and Rudo y Cursi

BuzzSugar — Fri, 23 Jan 2009 11:30:35 -0800

While I won't be heading down to the 2009 Sundance Film Festival this year, I will be sorting through the humongous pile of festival entries to share with you some of the films I think look most promising. From quirky documentaries to talented young filmmaker debuts to a potential runaway hit, Sundance is filled with entertainment possibilities. Here are today's selections:

An Education
Actress Carey Mulligan is getting a lot of attention at Sundance this year, as she's promoting not one but two films that both are receiving good buzz. I've already mentioned one of those films, The Greatest, but the other film seems truly destined for big things: An Education. The cast includes Peter Sarsgaard, Alfred Molina, and Emma Thompson and the screenplay comes from About a Boy scribe Nick Hornby. The movie, about a girl coming of age in 1960s London, has already been picked up by Sony Pictures Classics and critics are raving.

A gallery of photos from this hot flick and a rundown of another big Sundance film follow after the jump. Just read more.

View 5 Photos ›

Rudo y Cursi
The silver screen reunion du jour is Kate and Leo in Revolutionary Road but I'm personally giddy about the opportunity to see the stars of Y Tu Mamá También acting together again. Gael García Bernal and Diego Luna are two of my favorite actors, and I find them totally irresistible together. They're starring in a movie about two brothers who leave their small Mexican village to become soccer superstars. It's getting mixed buzz, but most seem to think it's cute. One reviewer said that it "scores from every angle: comic, personal, and cross-cultural."

The following trailer is not subtitled but, no matter: It's a tale that unfolds visually even if you can't understand the words:

Photos courtesy of Sundance

Milk: Deeply Moving, Difficult, and Worthwhile

BuzzSugar — Fri, 28 Nov 2008 12:30:58 -0800

"I know that you cannot live on hope alone, but without it, life is not worth living." - Harvey Milk

The story of gay rights activist and politician Harvey Milk had a huge impact on me a few years ago when I first watched the Oscar-winning documentary about him, The Times of Harvey Milk. His is truly a stranger-than-fiction tale and is so full of inspiration, absurdity, and absolute heartache that it's somewhat surprising it has taken this long to create a feature-length dramatization of his life and death. I respect director Gus Van Sant's decision to memorialize and honor Harvey Milk with his movie Milk, and to my great relief, Van Sant and his exceptional ensemble cast have done Milk's story justice.

Milk picks up Harvey Milk's life when Milk (Sean Penn) meets one of the great loves of his life, Scott Smith (portrayed by James Franco) and decides to move from New York City to San Francisco. There, the two open a camera store in the heart of the Castro, a neighborhood with a rapidly growing gay population, and there Milk begins his life as a leader of the gay rights movement in the 1970s. After trying and failing twice, he is finally elected to San Francisco's Board of Supervisors in 1977, largely due to the support of the gay community. For the first time, it becomes apparent that the gay community could be a powerful one, and Milk often emphasizes this during his time in city hall. As the country's first openly gay man to be elected to public office, Milk brings the gay rights movement to the city's attention as much as possible, earning him admiration and support along with many enemies - including his ultimate enemy, fellow supervisor Dan White (Josh Brolin). For more about this and my thoughts on it all, read more.

Dan White is a good ol' Christian boy who feels threatened by and resentful of Harvey Milk's success. Josh Brolin, who is fast becoming one of the most fascinating actors in Hollywood, simply morphs into this insecure and fearful man who gradually becomes unhinged. His fate and that of Harvey Milk are tragically linked in history forever, and frankly, it's disturbing to see Dan White brought to life on screen, especially after seeing all the actual footage of him in the documentary.

The rest of the cast is equally remarkable: Franco makes for a loving, sympathetic Smith, and Emile Hirsch is captivating as Milk's young activist protégé Cleve Jones. Allison Pill is always an undeniably strong presence on screen and her depiction of Milk's sole female team member, Anne Kronenberg, is no different. Diego Luna plays one of Milk's lovers, Jack Lira, with equal parts bright beauty and troubling instability. Most of all, Penn's portrayal of this charismatic, resilient, and good-humored pioneer will surely earn him some well-deserved accolades and awards.

This project is remarkably ambitious. There are so many intersecting aspects of Milk's career, activism, and personal life, it's enough to make one's head spin. Add to this Van Sant's decision to incorporate actual footage from the '70s into his dramatized story, and you've got yourself a crazy, giant puzzle to put together. But the actual footage is crucial in this case, consistently reminding us that though this seems like fiction at times - especially now, to modern audiences - this is a true story.

Interestingly, one "character" (so to speak), the outspoken fundamentalist Christian singer Anita Bryant, is not played by any actress (though at first glance I thought for sure it was Marcia Gay Harden). Instead, her entire part in Milk's story is shown through real footage - which only makes her behavior that much more staggering. This directorial choice seamlessly blends the reality of Harvey Milk's actual life with the staging of his life by the director and cast. Overall, I can’t express enough how much I applaud and admire Van Sant’s accomplishment here. It's a complicated and deeply emotional story, and the entire production - Van Sant, screenwriter Dustin Lance Black, the whole cast - carried a tremendous responsibility to get this thing right and the result is a dignified homage.

I highly recommend watching the documentary first, as there was an effervescence and a beautiful light to the real Harvey Milk that no actor, not even the great Sean Penn, can capture. Both the documentary and this new film may leave you speechless and/or weepy. But his is a worthwhile story to tell and if this grand-scale production with heavy-hitting actors and a talented director gets his story out there, all the better.

Photos courtesy of Focus Features

Movie Preview: Sean Penn, Emile Hirsch in Milk

BuzzSugar — Wed, 03 Sep 2008 13:30:09 -0700

One of the movies I'm most looking forward to this Fall is Milk, which filmed in my fair city of San Francisco last Winter. Directed by Gus Van Sant, the movie follows the true story of Harvey Milk, the nation's first gay official of any major American city, who was assassinated shortly after his election to office. The story has already been covered by a moving documentary, and in Milk, Sean Penn steps into the title role.

Now, I've said before that I can be a bit of a crybaby, and this trailer got me all teary. Penn seems like a great fit as Milk, letting the right amounts of warmth and passion through. The overall look of the film also seems spot-on, capturing the '70s style without seeming costumey. And the cast - oh, the cast! Some of the most wonderful actors in Hollywood appear alongside Penn in this one, including Josh Brolin, James Franco, Diego Luna, and a totally transformed Emile Hirsch.

Milk premieres at the end of October in San Francisco and will be in wide release starting Dec. 5. To watch the trailer, get your tissues ready and read more.

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