BuzzSugar

A Good Year For Elizabeth Banks

BuzzSugar — Tue, 30 Dec 2008 14:00:39 PST

Among all the great entertainment in 2008, a few people clearly stood out, including the beautiful and funny Elizabeth Banks. Why was this year good for Elizabeth Banks? Because she was everywhere.

The woman was in six - count 'em, six! - movies that were released this year. Some were ridiculous and silly (Meet Dave with Eddie Murphy, Meet Bill with Aaron Eckhart, Role Models with Paul Rudd) while one was ridiculous and raunchy (Zack and Miri Make a Porno alongside Seth Rogen). She got to be in the sweet movie Definitely, Maybe with Ryan Reynolds, and she did a serious Laura Bush impersonation, with Josh Brolin as her George, in Oliver Stone's W. And in just a few weeks we'll see her play a freaky stepmother in the scary movie The Uninvited.

She's got range and beauty and crazy comedic skills, and I wish every year could bring us this much Elizabeth Banks.

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What to Netflix: New DVD Tuesday

BuzzSugar — Tue, 15 Jul 2008 07:30:29 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. In addition to the titles below you can also rent the complete fifth season of Reno 911 as well as the Raven-Symoné comedy (and that's being generous) College Road Trip.

The Bank Job
I wouldn't be surprised if you missed The Bank Job while it was in theaters because it may have been written off as yet another bank heist flick. Now that it's out on DVD I think it deserves your rental/Netflix queue consideration.

Like I said before, it's an entertaining movie that is supposedly based on a true story. It centers around a group of crooks led by Terry Leather (Jason Statham ), who catches wind of a vulnerable vault of safe-deposit boxes. Little does Terry know, however, that the heist will end up having much farther-reaching implications involving several parties with a keen interest in this particular vault. It's not rocket science, sure, but it is a whole lot of fun and smartly directed. I highly recommend you check it out for yourself.

Special features include commentary with director Roger Donaldson, actress Saffron Burrows and composer J. Peter Robinson, and an "Inside The Bank Job" featurette.

Two more fun picks, so

Meet Bill
Even though I didn't hear much buzz surrounding Meet Bill originally, I still hoped to see it. But time flies when you're watching everything else, and here it is, already out on DVD. It's possible that we didn't hear much about it for good reason, though I still want to give it a shot because I really like Aaron Eckhart, not to mention Elizabeth Banks.

Netflix sums up the plot as such: "Beleaguered bank employee Bill (Aaron Eckhart) has his hands full with his wife's (Elizabeth Banks) infidelity with a local television reporter (Timothy Olyphant), his oblivious father-in-law (Holmes Osborne) who runs the bank, and his own frustrated attempts to change careers in this screwball comedy. But when he's persuaded to mentor a teenager known as the Kid (Logan Lerman), things just might turn around for Bill."

Penelope
Me? I wasn't in love with Penelope but that isn't to say it doesn't have its charms and depending on the mood your in, could be just the anecdote to all these summertime superhero blockbusters.

The move stars James McAvoy, Reese Witherspoon, and Christina Ricci and tells the fanciful story of a girl cursed with a pig nose. In order to break the curse she must find "one of her own" (i.e. a "blue blood") to love her just as she is and marry her. What follows is a fanciful story that is visually lovely and sometimes touching.

Special features include "The Making of Modern-Day tale" as well as a Twilight sneak peek.

Movie Preview: Aaron Eckhart, Jessica Alba in Meet Bill

BuzzSugar — Tue, 01 Apr 2008 07:30:00 PDT

Have you heard anything about this movie? Me neither! I recently stumbled upon the trailer for it and became intrigued, mostly because I have come to adore Aaron Eckhart and would watch him do most anything. The premise for Meet Bill (not to be confused with Eddie Murphy's Meet Dave, mind you, though both these Meet ___ movies star Elizabeth Banks) is also pretty cute: Bill (Eckhart) is your average schmo with a mundane job and, he soon realizes, a cheating wife (Banks). When he mentors a rebellious high school kid, he learns a few things about being proactive. Alba plays a woman enlisted by the kid to help Bill with his love life.

Meet Bill is scheduled to open in limited release this Friday April 4. To check out the trailer and tell me what you think,

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What to TiVo: Friday

Maggie Pehanick — Thu, 24 May 2012 23:59:04 PDT

8:00 Shark Tank (repeat)
9:00 Primetime: What Would You Do? (new)
10:00 20/20 (new)
11:35 Nightline (new)
12:00 Jimmy Kimmel Live (new, with guest Charlize Theron)

8:00 Undercover Boss (repeat)
9:00 CSI: NY (repeat)
10:00 Blue Bloods (repeat)
11:35 Late Show With David Letterman (repeat, with guest Billy Crystal)
12:37 The Late Late Show With Craig Ferguson (new)

8:00 Kitchen Nightmares (repeat)

8:00 Who Do You Think You Are? (repeat)
9:00 Grimm (repeat)
10:00 Dateline NBC (new)
11:34 The Tonight Show With Jay Leno (new, with guest Colin Powell)
12:37 Late Night With Jimmy Fallon (new, with guests Bill Hader and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar)

8:00 Nikita (repeat)
9:00 Supernatural (repeat)

Love It or Leave It: The Flote iPad Stand

Anna Monette Roberts — Sat, 19 May 2012 11:11:01 PDT

Companies know that peering down to play or work on a tablet can cause back and neck strain, so now they're rolling out ergonomic stands for the iPad. Whether your tablet of choice is Android- or iOS-based, Flote Tablet Stand ($270) works as a floor or bed stand and is designed to bend and move to meet your ergonomic needs.

The stand has a sleek design, complementing Apple's simple aesthetic, and is easy to bend and move into different directions and angles. Sure, it has a shocking price tag, but it could save you hundreds in chiropractor bills. What do you think about the Flote?

An Everyday Athlete Is Still an Athlete

espnW — Fri, 18 May 2012 11:59:39 PDT

We are pumped to share one of our fave stories from espnW here on FitSugar!

By Risa Isard

On June 23, 1972, Title IX was signed into law, leveling the playing field for female athletes. To mark the 40th anniversary, espnW explore the impact of this landmark legislation.

You might not know me, but chances are you know someone like me. I'm that girl who grew up playing hoops in the driveway with my dad and brother every night after dinner. The one who played rec soccer for 10 years, starting out on a boys team. The one who persuaded her middle-school gym teacher to let her run the monthly timed mile against boys, then wrote her target time on her arm - in permanent marker. The one who took field day just a little too seriously.

The one who is thankful every day for Title IX.

Counting down the best of the past 40 years

Growing up, I wasn't an elite athlete, but I had passion to spare. I ran, jumped, threw, and kicked on a daily basis and eventually I found my calling in high school track and cross country. I was good (I earned seven varsity letters), but not good enough for the next level.

So when I arrived at Duke nearly four years ago, I found myself wondering something that had never crossed my mind before: was I still an athlete?

Answering that question was no easy task. As I read about various elite athletes, I recognized our shared pasts. Like gymnast Jordyn Wieber, I used to pull old cushions into the middle of the family room and do cartwheels, somersaults, and front handsprings. Like many WNBA stars, I was the only girl in neighborhood basketball games. I lacked their natural ability, but I came to realize that we are connected through dreams and experiences. We all began by thinking of ourselves as athletes and scheduling our lives around sports at a young age. That doesn't just go away.

Read on for more.

Battleship: Needs a Lifesaver

Maggie Pehanick — Fri, 18 May 2012 06:00:00 PDT

I don't remember aliens making an appearance in my own childhood sessions with Battleship, but I suppose when you try to make a toy into a feature-length film, you're afforded a few liberties. Unfortunately, the producers of Battleship may have spent too much time finding creative ways to explode things and not enough time on a plot, ending up with underutilized actors, in a wishy-washy destruction story.

Battleship starts out in 2005, when the US establishes the Beacon Project, an effort to reach out to potential life forms on a planet that has a similar climate as the Earth. The government sets up a powerful signal on Hawaii capable of sending transmissions to the foreign territory. Little do they know the frequencies are being received, and not by friendly folks. Enter brothers Alex (Taylor Kitsch) and Stone (Alexander Skarsgard). Stone is clean-cut and responsible while Alex is generally a mess. We first meet them in a bar scene that turns to Alex breaking into a convenience store to steal a chicken burrito for his future girlfriend, Sam (Brooklyn Decker). Thanks to Kitsch's surprising physical comedy skills, the scene is the highlight of the movie. It all goes to the aliens after that.

Read the rest of my thoughts on Battleship after the break.

Channing Tatum and His Magic Mike Costars Go Shirtless For EW

Becky Kirsch — Thu, 17 May 2012 17:00:18 PDT

The stars of Magic Mike will show the world their strippin' moves when the film hits theaters in June, and a handful of the guys are giving us a sneak peek on this week's cover of Entertainment Weekly. Leading man Channing Tatum is joined by costars Matthew McConaughey, Joe Manganiello, and Matt Bomer for a hot photo shoot, and of course, an interview. Once you're done ogling the eye candy, here are a few highlights from the interview:

Tatum on the vibe on set: "Actors, generally, if we finish our scenes early one day, we go home. It wasn't like that on this set. Especially during the dances - we were there cheering everybody on."
Tatum on McConaughey getting his thong ripped off by rowdy fans: "It was a collection of women being like, 'I have to tip him,' and then the weight of all the dollar bills in their hands just took [his thong] off."
Manganiello on how True Blood prepped him: "When I came in for a meeting with the casting director, she hadn't seen True Blood. So she said, 'Are you going to be comfortable with partial nudity?' And I go, 'Have you seen my show? I'm the poster child for that.'"

How to Establish Financial Independence

Kiplinger — Mon, 14 May 2012 00:15:54 PDT

Becoming completely financially independent can be scary, but it's also very liberating. Kiplinger gives advice on how to establish your financial independence.

Not only is it difficult for us twentysomethings to wholeheartedly embrace adulthood, it's often also a challenge for our parents to let us go. Baby-boomer parents are generally known for mollycoddling their children, even after we move out of the house and into our own adult lives. Some parents have shown up for their kids' job interviews, and others have called up human resource departments at their adult kids' workplaces to complain about bad performance reviews or to negotiate salaries on behalf of their children.

They may mean well, but such extreme helicopter parents are actually hindering their children from growing into independent adults. "If a child is receiving too much help, then they have no incentive to succeed or become independent," says Erin Baehr, of the financial planning firm Baehr Family Financial, in Stroudsburg, Pa. "They may also be setting themselves up for some possible financial trouble down the road."

We certainly don't want that. At the same time, as young adults, we shouldn't be so dead set on finding our independence that we end up punishing ourselves by turning down valuable financial guidance and support from Mom and Dad.

So how about meeting in the middle? You can stay open to your parents' assistance but also set limits on how involved in your life you want them to be. For example, when it comes to parental career advice, Marty Martin, a financial psychologist at Aequus Wealth Management Resources, in Chicago, suggests you say, "Mom and Dad, I would really appreciate any advice you may have before I go to my job interview, and I will contact you after it happens. But I really need to do this on my own."

Read on for more.

What to TiVo: Friday

Maggie Pehanick — Thu, 03 May 2012 23:59:35 PDT

8:00 Shark Tank (new)
9:00 Primetime: What Would You Do? (new)
10:00 20/20 (new)
11:35 Nightline (new)
12:00 Jimmy Kimmel Live (repeat, with guest Julia Louis-Dreyfus)

8:00 Undercover Boss (new)
9:00 CSI: NY (new)
10:00 Blue Bloods (new)
11:35 Late Show With David Letterman (new)
12:37 The Late Late Show With Craig Ferguson (new, with guest Zooey Deschanel)

8:00 The Finder (new)
9:00 Fringe (new)

8:00 Who Do You Think You Are? (new)
9:00 Grimm (new)
10:00 Dateline NBC (new)
11:34 The Tonight Show With Jay Leno (new, with guest Kristen Stewart)
12:37 Late Night With Jimmy Fallon (new, with guest Nathan Fillion)

8:00 Nikita (new)
9:00 Supernatural (new)