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What to Netflix: New DVD Tuesday

BuzzSugar — Tue, 02 Dec 2008 08:30:50 PST

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 my picks below, you can also bring home the comedy Step Brothers today.

X-Files: I Want to Believe
Rejoice, X-Files fans: The most recent addition to the beloved sci-fi saga has arrived on DVD. The movie didn't receive stellar reviews but I don't think that will matter to those who are looking forward to seeing Dana Scully (Gillian Anderson) and Fox Mulder (David Duchovny) get back on a case together. This mystery involves a missing FBI agent and a psychic priest (played by Billy Connolly). Amanda Peet also appears in the movie as a young agent.

Special features include audio commentary by show creators/movie collaborators Chris Carter and Frank Spotnitz, a special makeup effects featurette, deleted scenes, and a gag reel.

Two more good ones up next, so

The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian
Is there anything more fun than curling up in a blanket with a Narnia movie and something yummy to sip on? I don't think so. I saw this in the theaters and while I had some nits to pick with it, it's hard not to succumb to the magic and whimsy of this favorite childhood book coming to life on the screen. Another pro for me? That the guy playing Prince Caspian, Ben Barnes, is way cuter than I even imagined the good prince to be.

Special features include audio commentary with director Andrew Adamson, bloopers, deleted scenes, and an in-depth look at the talking animals and walking trees that make up the magical world of Narnia.

Wanted
Wanted stars James McAvoy who plays poor, spineless Wesley, an accountant with major anxiety issues who meets Fox (Angelina Jolie), a hot lady who tells him his recently deceased father was actually a talented member of an assassins circle known as The Fraternity. The Fraternity's leader Sloan (Morgan Freeman) recruits Wesley into the ring to go after his father's murderer. What follows is a movie full of guns, blood, and bullets, all of which is now yours to take home to watch in the comfort of your own home.

Special features include extended scenes and a look at the making of the film's special effects.

Dark Knight Wins Box Office for the Fourth Week in a Row!

BuzzSugar — Mon, 11 Aug 2008 08:30:32 PDT

Interestingly, neither a BFF movie nor a stoner action-comedy could dethrone The Dark Knight in its fourth weekend. Having already surpassed the $400 million mark in domestic ticket sales, the superhero movie pulled in another $26 million over the weekend.

According to Variety, the movie has now taken the place of Shrek 2 to "become the third highest domestic grosser of all time with a cume of $441.5 million. It’s expected to beat Star Wars in the next week before finally settling at No. 2."

Pineapple Express came in second place with $22.4 million (however, it has earned a total of $40.4 million since it opened last Wednesday), followed by The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor in third, The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants 2 in fourth, and Step Brothers in fifth place.

What do you think? Will The Dark Knight score five weeks in a row at No. 1?

Photo courtesy of Warner Bros. Pictures

Box Office: The Batman Still On Top

BuzzSugar — Mon, 04 Aug 2008 09:30:28 PDT

For the third weekend in a row, The Dark Knight was No. 1 at the box office, narrowly beating The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor for the top spot. The Mummy earned about $42.5 million while The Dark Knight earned $43.8 million. Thanks to this win, The Dark Knight has just about crossed the $400 million line in domestic ticket sales.

Variety notes that most box office watchers had predicted this would be the weekend Batman would lose his crown, but I'm not all that surprised. The third addition to the silly action-adventure Mummy franchise failed to meet even the lowest critical expectations earning far worse reviews than the two before it.

Somewhat hilariously, Brendan Fraser now has two movies in the top five box office earners this week, as the 3-D adventure Journey to the Center of the Earth is holding strong at No. 5. So that would make him. . . a fairly hot box office commodity. Wow.

Elsewhere in the top five, Step Brothers came in third place and Mamma Mia! took fourth.

Photos courtesy of Warner Bros.

Caption It: Which Caption Should Win?

BuzzSugar — Tue, 29 Jul 2008 07:30:03 PDT

This week's Caption It came from the new comedy Step Brothers:

You guys just might be funnier than the real thing! Here are the finalists:

"My hair-restoration system is so better than yours!"
"Listen, using the staple gun to pierce your ears is not a good idea. You should try a nail gun."
"I'm not kidding. If you hold it up to your ear like this you can hear a ski slope."
"I think if we get one more sponsor our budget and profit will break even."
"After taking the Pepsi Challenge, Brennan and Dale decided to stick to water."

Time to vote!

Photo courtesy of Sony Pictures

Box Office: The Dark Knight Continues to Reign

BuzzSugar — Mon, 28 Jul 2008 09:30:00 PDT

In its second week in theaters, The Dark Knight continued to trample both the competition and box office records. According to Variety, it brought in $75.6 million from the 4,300 theaters screening it. This means that the Batman sequel brought in $300 million in less than 10 days, and grossed more than any other film has in its second weekend, a record previously held by Shrek 2.

Batman's competition mostly came from Step Brothers. The R-rated comedy took in $30 million which secured it the no. 2 spot. It seems that much of America did not have Will Ferrell fatigue after all.

Mamma Mia! grabbed the third spot with $17.2 million, bringing its total to $62.7 million.

The rest of the top five included The X-Files: I Want to Believe, which brought in $10.2 million, a very small number for what was expected to be a Summer blockbuster. To put that into perspective, the first X-Files film earned just over $30 million its first weekend during June of 1998. Journey to the Center of the Earth took fifth place, earning $9.4 million.

Photos courtesy of Warner Bros.

Do You Have Will Ferrell Fatigue?

BuzzSugar — Fri, 25 Jul 2008 16:30:23 PDT

Ah, Will Ferrell. He - and/or his characters - are incredibly divisive in the sense that you either go to a Will Ferrell movie for him or you avoid a Will Ferrell movie because of him. And while I used to be part of the former camp (I mean, Elf and Stranger Than Fiction are really good), I'm starting to fall into the latter (see: my feelings on Step Brothers). There are only so many times I can watch him portray the same immature, idiotic, yet somehow supposedly endearing role before I throw in the towel. So, as you can tell, I'm starting to feel some Ferrell fatigue. Are you?

Source

Step Brothers: Middle-Aged Men Behaving Badly

BuzzSugar — Fri, 25 Jul 2008 14:30:03 PDT

Step Brothers is yet another entry into the canon of movies that have resulted from the collaboration between director Adam McKay, star Will Ferrell, and (. . . wait for it) producer Judd Apatow. After mining all kinds of scenarios for comedy (anchormen, race car drivers, the '70s in general, etc.), even these funny guys have to hit the bottom of the barrel sometime. I imagine the concept that would result from that rock-bottom brainstorming session would go something like this: "How about instead of making a movie about a guy who has a grownup job but sometimes acts like a childish loser, we literally just make a movie about a childish loser?" In other words, it would look a lot like Step Brothers.

And so it goes, with Ferrell of course taking the overgrown-child role. Add to the mix a crew of esteemed supporting actors including Mary Steenburgen and Richard Jenkins, and you end up with a familiar comedy that explores some unfamiliar territory (Ferrell's private parts - I'm not even joking). The movie had me buckled over in my seat laughing about half the time, but I spent the rest of it horrified and a little bored with how standard it all felt. To see what I loved and what I'm tired of,

Stripped of all the bravado that his moronic characters usually boast, Ferrell's Brennan Huff is actually humble, painfully aware that he is the world's biggest loser (he still lives at home with his mom even though he's 40-something years old). His mom (Steenburgen) speculates that things went wrong for her son after some public humiliation by other kids, led by Brennan's older brother Derek (the pitch-perfect Adam Scott). Then a middle-aged fellow in a similar boat, Dale Doback (John C. Reilly), is forced to move in with Brennan when their parents get married. The two immediately resent each other - and by "resent," I mean Dale tells Brennan how much he hates him, and then they quite literally go at each other's throats.

For the most part, the shtick works, and the two stars have great chemistry together. And when Ferrell whips himself into an angry, manic, f-bomb-laden frenzy full of sex jokes and scatological humor, it's occasionally worth a chuckle. Mostly, though, the act feels tired: The novelty of Ferrell flying off the hook like that has worn off for me by now. It's a little different when Reilly does it; we're not as used to seeing him channel immaturity and comic rage. But even then, the infantile tantrums that resort to third-grade jokes get old fast.

But, when the movie is actually working and thinking at how to make us laugh (rather than resorting to the tried-and-true stuff), it's really, really good. The fellas stay true to their characters, and in a lot of moments the natural humor inherent in their situation comes through. For example, Brennan is believed to be a great singer but is hesitant to perform for anyone. When he finally does sing for his new brother, Dale is so moved that he describes the gorgeousness of Brennan's voice as "a combination between Fergie and Jesus." Later, when we're introduced to the d-bag that is Brennan's tormenting brother Derek, he's driving his family along in a car, demanding they sing a song together and that everyone's harmonies are in key and timed perfectly. It's one of my favorite scenes in the movie.

Ferrell is a talented guy. He's especially great when he puts a little effort into making us laugh and saves the angry meltdowns and the exposing of body parts for when it really counts. Thankfully Step Brothers has more going on than just its star's juvenile proclivities.

Photo courtesy of Sony Pictures

Caption It!

BuzzSugar — Wed, 23 Jul 2008 07:30:37 PDT

Welcome to the Caption It game on BuzzSugar! Every other Wednesday, I'll post a photo still from a TV show or movie here and challenge you to think of the most hilarious caption possible. I'll announce the finalists the following Tuesday, and you'll get to vote for the best caption; the winner will get a fabulous BuzzSugar T-shirt!

Now that you guys chose a winner for the photo from The Bachelorette we can officially put that rose ceremony business behind us (until next Summer. . .). Congratulations to Great Sommelier! I love how she captured DeAnna's inner monologue with the following:

DeAnna knew Darren was out of the running when she realized he couldn't pick up the simple turn, turn, kick, turn, shimmy, shimmy, slap your mamma, side step, kick, turn choreography.

Now on to today's challenge from the upcoming comedy Step Brothers:

Leave your captions in the comment space below before 5 p.m. PDT on Monday, July 28, to be considered for a spot in the voting round. Have fun! To see a photo of the BuzzSugar T-shirt, just

The BuzzSugar t-shirt

Photo courtesy of Sony Pictures

Movie Preview: Will Ferrell and John C. Reilly in Step Brothers

BuzzSugar — Thu, 28 Feb 2008 11:28:41 PST

It's still no Anchorman or Old School, but this next Will Ferrell project Step Brothers looks like it might be at least better than Semi-Pro. For one thing, it's directed and co-written by Adam McKay who wrote Anchorman and who, of course, collaborated with his daughter Pearl to make the viral video "The Landlord." For another thing, it seems like it will be based on these two big kids, Brennan (Ferrell) and Dale (Reilly), and their competitive/loving relationship, as opposed to something a little more gimmicky, like race-car driving or the 1970s in general.

In other news, this is the movie for which Will Ferrell auctioned off a role to support his friend's charity, Cancer for College. The role ultimately went to a 10-year-old boy from Dallas for just over $47,000.

Step Brothers opens July 25. The trailer made me laugh out loud in a few spots, so to check it out and tell me what you think,

Photo courtesy of Sony

Will & John Are Fancy Step Brothers

PopSugar — Wed, 03 Oct 2007 14:59:02 PDT

Will Ferrell and John C. Reilly got all fancied up in their tuxedos on the set of Step Brothers. We're already liking this better than the NASCAR jumpsuits they wore for Talladega Nights. Besides, how could we not be on board with a movie that not only raised money for charity, but will feature a cameo by a lucky little boy? Good stuff all around.

More of John and Will if you just

View 20 Photos ›

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