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Will Smith and Jaden Smith Pair Up For M. Night Shyamalan's Latest Film

Shannon Vestal — Mon, 04 Apr 2011 14:40:38 PDT

Will and Jaden Smith are about to make their next film a family affair: they have signed on to costar in a science fiction action adventure film, which will be directed by M. Night Shyamalan. The father-son pair will play father and son in the film too, which will be set in the future. Jaden's character is that of a young boy exploring an abandoned planet in a spaceship his estranged father (Will) is also on. The last time the Smiths costarred was in 2006's The Pursuit of Happyness.

Who's Going to Be a Bigger Star: Willow or Jaden Smith?

Lauren Bradshaw — Thu, 21 Oct 2010 15:30:00 PDT

It's been a very good week for Will Smith's progeny. On Monday, aspiring singer/fashion plate Willow Smith released a video for her infectious "Whip My Hair," creating Internet buzz (and a Snooki imitation). But not to be outdone by his little sis, Jaden Smith - already a rising star on the big screen with The Pursuit of Happyness and The Karate Kid - is making today's headlines. Jaden will reportedly star in M. Night Shyamalan's next directorial project, the sci-fi One Thousand A.E., in development at Overbrook (a production company partly run by Will and Jada, naturally).

At this rate, Will and Jada are creating their own little Hollywood dynasty! But which of the two kids will have the most successful career? Weigh in!

Link Time - Desperate Housewives Wants Brian Austin Green

BuzzSugar — Tue, 06 Jul 2010 12:45:00 PDT

Brian Austin Green may soon romance the ladies of Wisteria Lane - TV Guide
A brand-new Mad Men teaser, starring your face! - PopWatch
The next Bond film is dunzo - Cinematical
Israeli soldiers dance to Ke$ha's "Tik Tok" - Best Week Ever
James Cameron to rerelease Titanic in 3D in April 2012 - Movieline
Party Down's fake Vanity Fair cover - Vulture
Sounds like Bradley Cooper won't be in M. Night Shyamalan's next movie after all - Moviefone
Cool tech from Back to the Future II (hoverboards!) - GeekSugar
Here's a breakdown of the TV premieres happening this month - TV.com

The Last Airbender: Missing Some Key Elements

Becky Kirsch — Thu, 01 Jul 2010 06:30:00 PDT

The Last Airbender may sadly be remembered as the Summer blockbuster that could have been. On paper, it has all the makings of a perfect popcorn movie: an experienced director in M. Night Shyamalan, a fan base thanks to the cartoon series on which the film is based, and a story that appears to be both intricate and action-packed. Things went awry somewhere along the way, and writer/director/producer Shyamalan is the only one to blame.

It's hard to believe the man behind The Sixth Sense is also guilty of the painful dialogue and lackluster script we're given in Airbender. While the gorgeous scenery and dizzying special effects keep the film from falling apart entirely, it's not a promising start for a franchise. To see what i mean, just

read more. The film takes us to a fantasy world divided into four nations based on the elements of earth, wind, air, and fire. Amongst the "Nomads" are "Benders," a select few who can control their element (though it's unclear why this talent would be useful for anything other than battles). Keeping the peace amongst the four nations is the Avatar, the only person who can bend all four elements and communicate with the spirit world. The Avatar has been missing for 100 years, though, and the Fire Nation has emerged as the dominant power, taking control of the other nations and wiping out the Air nomads entirely. Still with me? The film opens with Sokka (Jackson Rathbone) and Katara (Nicola Peltz), a brother and sister duo who are just trying to survive in the Water nation under the oppressive rule of the Fire nation. They stumble upon Aang (Noah Miller), a child who looks like a monk and is sporting some serious tattoos. It's not long before they realize he's the last known airbender and the Avatar - but he was trapped for a century before he was able to fully develop his power. There are characters and plot lines aplenty in the film, but Shyamalan fails to amalgamate the components into an exciting tale. The movie rushes through its story line, seemingly eager to get us to the film's climax. But without building the right momentum, the crux of the film doesn't pack nearly enough excitement or suspense. The same can be said for the characters: clearly each person has a history, but there's not nearly enough time spent exploring what makes them tick, and the emotional disconnect makes the story even more flimsy. Shyamalan does excel in one area, and that's in the visual effects. The 3D aspect doesn't bring a ton to the table, but the stunning backdrop (most of it is shot in Greenland) and well-choreographed fight scenes kept me entertained in the midst of some seriously wooden performances. The special effects are exactly on point (particularly when the benders are working their magic), keeping the action sequences engrossing and often mesmerizing. The Last Airbender is a very, very good-looking film, but no amount of special effects can mask the gaping hole where a great story should be. Airbender is meant to be the first of three chapters, and though it ends with a semi-interesting cliffhanger, it's not enough to corral audiences in for more.

Photos courtesy of Paramount Pictures

Link Time - Jonny Lee Miller Joins Showtime's Dexter

BuzzSugar — Fri, 25 Jun 2010 13:30:00 PDT

Jonny Lee Miller is joining Dexter to play a "mysterious man." Dun, dun, dun! - HitFix
The Dead Weather's video for "Blue Blood Blues" is dark and artsy - Vulture
The Oscars will not make the move to January after all – 24 Frames
More details leak about M. Night Shyamalan's next project - MTV Movies Blog
Jordana Spiro drops out of NBC's new show Love Bites - Ausiello Files
Ryan Seacrest to produce yet another reality series - TV Squad
Remember him? Lukas Haas joins Red Riding Hood - Cinema Blend
Ben Stiller will create an online news show with his parents - Movieline
Top 10 moments from the Eclipse premiere! - PopSugar
A preview of tonight's Party Down season finale - Gawker.TV

M. Night Shyamalan Recruits Gwyneth and Bradley

BuzzSugar — Mon, 21 Jun 2010 15:30:44 PDT

There are whispers going around in Hollywood that M. Night Shyamalan has another movie in the works. Even though the director has his anticipated film The Last Airbender bowing next week, he's reportedly circulating an all-new hush-hush script to executives, and word is, Gwyneth Paltrow, Bradley Cooper, and Shyamalan regular Bruce Willis are already attached.

Nothing is known about the film's plot at this time - top secret stuff, people! - but Shyamalan hasn't exactly been a critical fave since Signs. Perhaps this is another chance for him to redeem himself? Here's a tip, Night: Bradley Cooper shirtless scenes.

Movie Preview: M. Night Shyamalan's The Last Airbender

BuzzSugar — Thu, 11 Feb 2010 05:30:00 PST

M. Night Shyamalan hasn't exactly been cranking out hit movies in the past few years, but he has a chance to change his luck with the upcoming fantasy The Last Airbender. Adapted from an animated TV series, the film follows a 12-year-old boy named Aang caught in a war of the worlds.

The trailer might be a bit confusing so here's how it works: there are four nations based on the natural elements Earth, Wind, Air, and Fire. The elements can be controlled by chosen ones known as "benders," and Aang (played by newcomer Noah Ringer) is the last known airbender. The rulers of the Fire nation (including Prince Zuko, played by Dev Patel) have been abusing their power, offsetting the elements and causing a war. Now it's all up to Aang to put a stop to the terrorism and harness his power as the last hope for the Air, Water, and Earth nations.

Whew. Ok, now that I'm done geeking out, check out the preview. It's definitely a lot more action/adventure and less horror/mystery than what we're used to seeing from Shyamalan, but that just might be a good thing. Plus, I'm happy to see actors Dev Patel from Slumdog Millionaire and Twilight's Jackson Rathbone in something other than their breakout roles.

See for yourself when you

The Happening: So. . . That Happened

BuzzSugar — Fri, 13 Jun 2008 12:30:53 PDT

The best part of going to see The Happening was getting to watch the X-Files movie trailer - which is way more chilling on the big screen than it is on YouTube. Can't wait for that one! As for M. Night Shyamalan's latest spookfest, well, as Alec Baldwin's character Bob Barrenger remarks after a car crash in State and Main, "So. . . That happened."

The movie has been getting poor reviews, and even Shyamalan himself is calling it "the best B-movie you'll see," so I didn't go into the screening with the assumption that The Happening would be a masterpiece. And it's not that bad; it's no Jumper, say. It just gives us nothing whatsoever to care about. At all. It's empty and kinda silly and the acting is not good. There's a mystery to solve, which is interesting for a short time, but when it gets solved, the explanation for the mystery is pretty freaking lame. For more on this,

read more. The story begins with a series of New York City-set scenes in which people randomly stop what they're doing and slowly, deliberately find ways to kill themselves. The newscasters claim that the mass suicides are a result of a chemical toxin in the air, and soon the same thing starts happening in other parts of the northeast, always starting in parks and other green, leafy areas. The main characters we're following through this ordeal are Alma (Zooey Deschanel) and Elliott (Mark Wahlberg), currently experiencing some marital discord. Elliott and Alma escape Philadelphia along with Elliott's colleague Julian (John Leguizamo) and Julian's young daughter Jess. Then, the majority of the movie consists of watching the many creative ways people find to kill themselves (which is legitimately disturbing), and waiting for the main characters to either A) find a way to escape/outsmart/defy the toxin, or B) get killed by the toxin. Parts of the movie are chilling like a slasher flick, that fun-scary way that innocently tingles the spine because we know it's just spooky entertainment. Overall, though, The Happening leaves this terrible, uneasy feeling because it's not done well enough to take very seriously, and yet, there's nothing "fun-scary" about suicide. It's just bleak and horrifying, and juxtaposed with such a flimsy story, the result is merely frustrating. At the heart of the whole thing is Mark Wahlberg, who should probably not be trusted to carry a movie like this. His one facial expression of perplexity and concern and his but-I'm-so-baffled voice are like cartoon impressions of baffled, concerned people. Especially in scenes with John Leguizamo (who manages to imbue the film with a decent dose of reality), the differences between the two actors are like night and day. Namely, one is good in his role, and the other is not. I like Wahlberg in The Departed, I Heart Huckabees and of course in Boogie Nights, and maybe the problem lies in Shyamalan's script but whatever the reason, Wahlberg is a huge part of why I dislike this movie. You know what M. Night Shyamalan work I really enjoyed (in addition to The Sixth Sense)? That commercial he made for American Express. The full version of that commercial is two minutes long. If you play that about 49 times, it's possible you'll feel more satisfied than you do after sitting through The Happening. To see the trailer and more clips from The Happening, visit movies.iVillage.com. Photos courtesy of 20th Century Fox

New Full-Length Trailer for M. Night Shyamalan's The Happening

BuzzSugar — Mon, 18 Feb 2008 15:30:34 PST

The last bit of info we got about M. Night Shyamalan's next project, The Happening, was a spooky and vague teaser trailer that has since been taken down. In its place we now have the full-length trailer for the movie, which opens June 13, and it's even creepier than the first one was.

"There appears to be an event happening." This is basically all we learn about the plague that hits the US in The Happening, but it's also all we need to know. In fact, the mystery surrounding the event makes whatever's "happening" that much more frightening. To see what I mean, and to catch more of a glimpse of Zooey Deschanel and Mark Wahlberg in the trailer,

Teaser Trailer for M. Night Shyamalan's The Happening

BuzzSugar — Mon, 04 Feb 2008 14:29:39 PST

Admittedly, I've mostly been interested in M. Night Shyamalan's next project The Happening because Zooey Deschanel is in it, and I'll pay attention to most anything Zooey does. Shyamalan, on the other hand, is sometimes great and sometimes one of my least favorite filmmakers in the world. Thus, I've been awaiting more information on The Happening with some degree of wariness.

Today we've gotten a first glimpse at The Happening and it's pretty creepy, though not too descriptive. We find out that something is plaguing the citizens of New York, making them suddenly kill themselves. From the plot description we learn that one family goes on the run from this "natural crisis."

The Happening opens June 13. To watch the teaser trailer,