BuzzSugar

Things That Make Me Go Hmm: The Big Boi Ballet

BuzzSugar — Thu, 20 Mar 2008 07:30:00 -0700

I will go ahead and say that while I appreciate the beauty and skill that goes into ballet I'm not exactly a season ticket holder. However, a little news item recently caught my attention and it sounds like the kind of ballet I could really get into.

Billboard.biz is reporting that Outkast's Big Boi is partnering with the Atlanta Ballet for a show called Big that will "fuse the Atlanta Ballet's visual movements with Big Boi's music." Some of Big Boi's songs that will be included in the "collaborative piece" are “Morris Brown” from the Idlewild soundtrack, "Church" and "Bombs Over Baghdad."

Check out the Atlanta Ballet's web site to see a preview of this project and for more information on how to buy tickets. I'm jealous of any of you Atlanta folks who get to see this live, it looks so interesting.

What do you guys think? Does hip-hop and ballet sound like a winning combination?

Source

Semi-Pro: Funny Little Shorts, Same Old Jokes

BuzzSugar — Fri, 29 Feb 2008 07:30:00 -0800

By now the Will Ferrell formula is apparent: Find some job or sport or fashion era that has loads of inherent humor, give the main character some insurmountable challenge to face, and . . . action! This time it's basketball in the 1970s. Not that I’m complaining, really; the movie's predictable laughs are still laughs.

In Semi-Pro we find Will Ferrell shoving his gigantic, blindingly white self into a super tight unflattering outfit - not unlike the gimmicky tight costumes in Blades of Glory, only this time it's a basketball uniform. The movie follows one-hit wonder Jackie Moon's (Ferrell) team, the Flint Michigan Tropics, as they fight for a place in the NBA. Though the Ferrell train sometimes seems to be running out of steam, I still think it's worth jumping on board one more time with this movie. I'll tell you why if you read more.

Jackie Moon scored a major hit with his slow jam "Love Me Sexy" and used the profits from the song's success to give Flint a team in the ABA, a struggling national basketball league known more for publicity stunts rather than athleticism. When the ABA is threatening to fold, the commissioner warns that only the best teams will get to merge into the NBA.

Jackie Moon is better at promoting his team with stunts like bear wrestling than coaching, so he brings on board a former champion Ed Monix (a seriously spray-tanned Woody Harrelson) to help whip them into shape. Moon also relies heavily on his team's star, Clarence "Coffee" Black (played by the excellent André Benjamin from Outkast).

I have to say, this is an interesting addition to Ferrell's canon. I can't believe I'm going to type this, but Semi-Pro stands apart from his other movies because most of the supporting characters are deeply appealing and have a shocking amount of depth. I actually found myself caring about this story. Oddly, I found that Ferrell himself sometimes got in my way of enjoying the movie, his goofball act being more miss than hit this time around.

Ultimately, it's the ensemble cast that makes this movie worthwhile. In particular, Will Arnett and MADtv's Andrew Daly made me laugh much more than any prolonged shot of Ferrell's crotch did. Semi-Pro as a whole is a good ride, but it also signaled to me that it's time for Ferrell to head back to the drawing board and give us something new. Here's hoping this summer's Step Brothers will be just the thing to shake things up.

Photos courtesy of New Line Cinema

Buzz News Roundup, 7/9

BuzzSugar — Mon, 09 Jul 2007 13:27:51 -0700

Forbes confirms that Jane magazine is shutting down.
Rupert Friend has been cast as Prince Albert alongside Emily Blunt in The Young Victoria, says Hollywood Reporter.
Recently ousted NBC entertainment president Kevin Reilly could be hired by Fox, which would reunite the team that developed "Nip/Tuck" and "The Shield," TV Week reports.
MTV News warns that there may not be a new Outkast album for two years, while Andre 3000 and Big Boi pursue solo projects.
Bestselling novel Water for Elephants will be adapted for the big screen, Variety reports.
It sounds like we're in for at least one, if not two, more editions of "The Apprentice," Reuters says.
Billboard says The Cure is working on a double album due in October.
Lance Bass will join the cast of the Broadway musical "Hairspray" on August 14, reports the AP.
The Hollywood Reporter says ABC is retooling "Cavemen," adding a new character, ditching the caveman played by Dash Mihok, and shooting a new first episode to go deeper into the characters' back stories.
This year's ComiCon schedule of events has just been released.
In TV casting news, two Kevins - Alejandro and Pollak - are joining the cast of "Shark" on CBS, while TV Guide says Michael Cassidy of "Hidden Palms" will be the new editor of The Daily Planet on "Smallville."

Song of the Day: Andre 3000, "Class of 3000 Theme Song"

BuzzSugar — Thu, 28 Jun 2007 10:36:45 -0700

Um, did anyone know that Andre 3000 of Outkast has his own show on the Cartoon Network? I consider myself pretty well-versed in all things music- and TV-related, and I honestly had no idea. Perhaps that's because I don't have kids, but if I did, I'd be plopping them down in front of the tube every Thursday night to catch "Class of 3000."

The animated series has Andre voicing a character named Sunny Bridges, "who quits the entertainment business and returns to Atlanta to teach a diverse group of child prodigies at the Westley School for the Performing Arts." New episodes start tonight at 7 p.m. EDT, and Andre is also releasing a 14-song Class of 3000 soundtrack on July 3. Even the theme song is adorable and catchy. It starts with a roll call (I'm partial to Philly Phil) and goes into a playful jam full of Prince-esque guitars, jazzy clarinets, and "la-la-la's." Listen and tell me what you think when you read more