BuzzSugar

Buzz News Roundup, 9/14

BuzzSugar — Fri, 14 Sep 2007 13:29:28 -0700

Ben Affleck's directorial debut, the thriller Gone, Baby, Gone, is being pulled from U.K. theaters in light of the kidnapping of British girl Madeleine McCann, Variety reports.
Those nutty "Jericho" fans really made their mark: CBS is using peanuts to market the show's first-season DVDs, Variety reports.
Ricky Gervais will write and star in his own comedic movie titled This Side of Truth, writes Zap2It.
Billboard has the news that Aretha Franklin's next album - releasing Nov. 13 - will include two never-before-heard tracks.
"Queer Eye for the Straight Guy" will start its fifth season in October with a "Straight Guy Pageant," the Futon Critic reports.
The Austin City Limits music festival kicked off today, Pitchfork reports.
Bummer: "The IT Crowd," NBC's midseason nerd comedy, might never make it on the air, Zap2it writes.
TV Guide reports that soap star Morgan Fairchild will play herself on "Men in Trees."

Get a Sneak Peek at NBC's New Shows

BuzzSugar — Mon, 14 May 2007 23:20:36 -0700

We might have to wait till fall to see the full versions of NBC's new shows, but the network is giving you a preview now. Clips of four of the shows, including "Chuck" (photo above), have made their way to YouTube, and NBC has a bunch of goodies on its fall preview site. I also have a ton of photos for the new shows, and I can't wait to hear what you think.

"Journeyman"
Here's a clip of this "Quantum Leap"-ish show that shows Dan explaining to his wife that he's been living 20 years in the past. More videos here.

More videos and dozens of photos from all six new shows if you read more

"Chuck"
This clip doesn't do much to explain what's going on in the show, but for some reason, it had me laughing out loud. More here.

"Bionic Woman"
This clip shows the Bionic Gal herself finding out she's now bionic. More here.

"Life"
This clip sets up the premise: A cop who's been jailed for murder makes a comeback. More here.

"Lipstick Jungle": Check out a ton of videos here.

"The IT Crowd": NBC's put out one video, an interview with star Richard Ayoade.

Now, onto the photos:

"Journeyman"

"Bionic Woman"

"Life"

"Chuck"

"Lipstick Jungle"

View 17 Photos ›

"The IT Crowd"

View 12 Photos ›

Source

A "Heroes" Spinoff Headlines NBC's Fall Plans

BuzzSugar — Mon, 14 May 2007 09:44:34 -0700

NBC was the first network to announce its fall schedule at the 2007 Upfronts this morning, and it started off with a shocker: A spinoff of "Heroes" called "Heroes: Origins" that will air when the original series is on hiatus and introduce characters not yet known to viewers. Take that, "Grey's Anatomy"! Combined, the two shows will air 30 new episodes next year.

Additionally, NBC picked up five dramas ("Journeyman," "Bionic Woman," "Chuck," "Life," "Lipstick Jungle"), one comedy series ("The IT Crowd") and two reality shows - one that will challenge contestants to sing popular song lyrics, the other focusing on dance from around the world.

Among returning shows, here were some of the big announcements:

"The Office" will have 30 half-hour episodes, five of which will air as hour-long episodes (if I'm doing the math right, that means 25 weeks when "The Office" will be new).
"Friday Night Lights" will air (ugh) Fridays at 10 p.m.
"My Name is Earl" will have a longer-than-usual season of 25 episodes.
"Law & Order" will be back, while "Law & Order: Criminal Intent" will air its new episodes on USA (eventually they'll air on NBC, too, but details on how that will work are unclear).

Officially canceled: "Crossing Jordan," "The Black Donnellys," "Studio 60."

Here's NBC's official press release, and to see the full fall schedule and descriptions of the new shows, read more

All caps = new show
** = new time slot

MONDAY
8-9 p.m. "Deal or No Deal"
9-10 p.m. "Heroes"
10-11 p.m. "JOURNEYMAN"

TUESDAY
8-9 p.m. "The Biggest Loser"
9-10 p.m. "CHUCK"
10-11 p.m. "Law & Order: Special Victims Unit"

WEDNESDAY
8-9 p.m. "Deal or No Deal"**
9-10 p.m. "BIONIC WOMAN"
10-11 p.m. "LIFE"

THURSDAY
8-8:30 p.m. "My Name Is Earl"
8:30-9 p.m. "30 Rock"**
9-9:30 p.m. "The Office"**
9:30-10 p.m. "Scrubs"
10-11 p.m. "ER"

FRIDAY
8-9 p.m. "1 vs 100"/"THE SINGING BEE" (rotating)
9-10 p.m. "Las Vegas"
10-11 p.m. "Friday Night Lights"**

SATURDAY
8-9 p.m. "Dateline NBC"
9-11 p.m. Drama Series Encores

SUNDAY (Fall 2007)
7-8 p.m. "Football Night in America"
8-11 p.m. "NBC Sunday Night Football"

SUNDAY (January 2008)
7-8 p.m. "Dateline NBC"
8-9 p.m. "Law & Order"**
9-10 p.m. "Medium"**
10-11 p.m. "LIPSTICK JUNGLE"

"WORLD MOVES" will premiere later in the fall.

Here's how NBC describes the new shows:

"Journeyman"
From Emmy Award-winning writer-producer Kevin Falls ("The West Wing") and Emmy Award-winning director-producer Alex Graves ("The West Wing"), "Journeyman" is a romantic mystery-drama about Dan Vasser (Kevin McKidd, "Rome"), a San Francisco newspaper reporter and family man who inexplicably begins to travel through time and change people's lives. Along the way, he also must deal with the difficulties and strife at work and home brought on by his sudden disappearances. However, his freewheeling travels through the decades reunite him with his long-lost fiance Livia (Moon Bloodgood, "Day Break") - which complicates his present-day life with wife Katie (Gretchen Egolf, "Martial Law") and their son. Reed Diamond ("Homicide: Life on the Street") and Charles Henry Wyson ("The Curious Case of Benjamin Button") also star. "Journeyman" is a production of 20th Century Fox Television. Falls is executive producer and writer; Graves is executive producer and director of the pilot.

"Chuck"
From executive producer, Josh Schwartz ("The O.C.") and executive producer-director McG ("Charlie's Angels," "We Are Marshall") comes a one-hour, comedic spy thriller about Chuck Bartowski (Zachary Levi, "Less Than Perfect") - a computer geek who is catapulted into a new career as the government's most vital secret agent. When Chuck opens an e-mail subliminally encoded with government secrets, he unwittingly downloads an entire server of sensitive data into his brain. Now, the fate of the world lies in the unlikely hands of a guy who works at Buy More. Instead of fighting computer viruses, he must fight assassins and international terrorists. With the government's most precious secrets in Chuck's head, Major John Casey (Adam Baldwin, "My Bodyguard") of the NSA assumes the responsibility of protecting him. His partner is the CIA's top agent (and Chuck's first date in years) Sarah Walker (Yvonne Strzechowski, "Gone"). They'll keep him safe by trading in his pocket protector for a bulletproof vest. Also starring are Joshua Gomez ("Without a Trace") as Chuck's best buddy Morgan and Sarah Lancaster ("What About Brian?") as Chuck's ever-supportive sister Ellie. Josh Schwartz and Chris Fedak wrote "Chuck," which is produced by College Hill Pictures and Wonderland Sound and Vision in association with Warner Bros. Television.

"Bionic Woman"
Struggling as a bartender and surrogate mom to her teenage sister, Jaime Sommers (Michelle Ryan, "EastEnders") didn't think life could get much harder. But when a devastating car accident leaves her at death's door, Jaime's only hope for survival is a cutting-edge, top-secret technology that comes at a hefty price. With a whole new existence and a debt to re-pay, Jaime must figure out how to use her extraordinary abilities for good, while weighing the personal sacrifices she will have to make. Ultimately, it's Jaime's journey of self-discovery and inner strength that will help her embrace her new life as the Bionic Woman. Also starring are: Mae Whitman ("State of Grace") as Becca, Jaime's younger sister; Miguel Ferrer ("Crossing Jordan") as Jonas, the man who employs Jaime's boyfriend; Chris Bowers ("Rescue Me) as Will, Jaime's boyfriend, who performs the operation; Will Yun Lee ("Witchblade") as Jae, the specialized operations leader; and Molly Price ("Third Watch"), as Ruth, Jonas' second-in-command. "Bionic Woman" is produced by NBC Universal Television Studio and executive-produced by David Eick ("Battlestar Galactica"), Glen Morgan ("The X-Files"), Michael Dinner ("Kidnapped") -- who also directed the pilot -- and Jason Smilovic ("Lucky Number Slevin"). Laeta Kalogridis ("Birds of Prey") is also an executive producer on the pilot.

"Life"
From Rand Ravich and Far Shariat, the executive producers of the feature film "The Astronaut's Wife," and David Semel, who directed the pilot of NBC's "Heroes," "Life" is a new drama about a detective who is given a second chance. Damian Lewis ("Band of Brothers") stars as complex, offbeat Detective Charlie Crews, who returns to the force after years in prison, thanks to close friend and attorney Constance Griffiths (Melissa Sagemiller, "Sleeper Cell"), after serving time for a crime he didn't commit. The cast also includes Sarah Shahi ("Rush Hour 3") as Charlie's skeptical, demanding partner, Robin Weigart (HBO's "Deadwood") as their hard-hitting lieutenant, and Adam Arkin ("Chicago Hope") as former cellmate Ted Early. "Life" is an NBC Universal Television Studio production. Rand Ravich is executive producer and writer; Far Shariat is executive producer; David Semel is executive producer and director on the pilot.

"Lipstick Jungle"
Based on the best-selling novel by Candace Bushnell ("Sex and the City"), this fun dramedy follows three high-powered friends as they weather the ups and downs of lives lived at the top of their game. Nico (Kim Raver, "24"), editor-in-chief of a hot fashion magazine, wants to replace her boss as CEO. Movie exec Wendy (Brooke Shields, "Suddenly Susan") finds even her most earnest efforts may not be enough to balance career and family. And free-spirited designer Victory (Lindsay Price, "Beverly Hills, 90210") longs to make her dreams come true, and maybe find Mr. Right along the way. Armed with humor and strength, these three modern New York women support one another through the triumphs and tears that are all part of making it big in the Big Apple. Written by executive producers DeAnn Heline and Eileen Heisler (both for "How I Met Your Mother," "Three Sisters") and based on the book by Bushnell, "Lipstick Jungle" is from NBC Universal Television Studio. The pilot is directed by Gary Winick ("13 Going on 30").

"The IT Crowd"
Ever wonder what's up with those quirky techies who come to fix the office computer when no one's around? "The IT Crowd" is an offbeat series, based on the critically acclaimed British comedy, that offers a humorous behind-the-scenes peek at the people who truly keep the office humming. Roy (Joel McHale, "The Soup") and Moss (Richard Ayoade, "The IT Crowd" - U.K.) are the misunderstood masters of their high-tech domain, but they lack the people skills to befriend anyone but each other. Their company's head is Denholm (Rocky Carrol, "Chicago Hope"), who wants the IT department to stay segregated and forever banished to the basement. Executive producers are Moses Port ("Just Shoot Me"), David Guarascio ("Just Shoot Me"), Joe Port (NBC's "The Office"), Joe Wiseman ("The Office"), Graham Linehan ("The IT Crowd" - UK) and Steve Tao ("Red Doors"). Gail Mancuso ("Scrubs," "30 Rock") directed the pilot. "The IT Crowd" is produced by NBC Universal Television Studio.

"The Singing Bee"
"The Singing Bee" is a variety-competition show that challenges contestants to accurately sing the lyrics to popular songs -- even when the band stops playing. In this karaoke showdown, there's no middle ground for partially correct answers -- contestants must be perfect or they're out. Family-friendly, broad in appeal and conducive to playing (and singing) along at home, "The Singing Bee" features popular, recognizable music that inspires hilarious wrong answers and amazing performances by those rare contestants who somehow manage to get every word right. "The Singing Bee" is produced by the Gurin Company and Juma Entertainment, LLC. The executive producers are Phil Gurin (NBC's "Miss Universe" franchise) and Robert C. Horowitz ("Super Bowl's Greatest Commercials Top 40 Countdown").

"World Moves"
From executive producer Randy Jackson ("American Idol") and the creators of the World Hip Hop Championship comes one of the most visual and captivating performance competition shows ever to hit TV. Thousands of dance teams from around the world will audition for their shot to come to Los Angeles and compete for a global championship and an international touring contract. The live television event features young teams of five to seven members demonstrating their athleticism, creativity and innovative choreography in a presentation that highlights both the competition and the personal drama unfolding within each team. Viewers from across the globe will vote via the Internet, by text message, or by phone to eliminate one team each week. Ultimately, it's not just about winning a competition; "World Moves" involves stories that change lives and bring the world together. From Warner Horizon Television, the series is executive-produced by Jackson ("American Idol," Dream Merchant 21 Entertainment), Rob Lee (President, Bayonne Entertainment, "Blow Out," "House of Carters"), Howard Schwartz ("Hip Hop International, World Hip Hop Championship), Karen Schwartz (Hip Hop International, World Hip Hop Championship) and Harriet Sternberg (Dream Merchant 21 Entertainment).

Source

Fall TV Pilot Trends: British Imports

BuzzSugar — Thu, 26 Apr 2007 06:03:13 -0700

It's TV pilot season, when hopeful writers, directors, and actors give the networks glimpses of what could be their next big hits. Few pilots will ever make it to air, and the odds might be especially long over on ABC, which has already renewed many of its current shows. Over the next few weeks, I'll be looking at the pilots and trying to spot the trends that could be coming soon to a TV near you. I've already told you about shows focusing on tough working women and the supernatural, and today I'm looking at British imports.

Many successful U.S. reality shows originated on the BBC ("Who Wants to be a Millionaire" and "What Not to Wear" among them), but the success of adaptations of British scripted shows has been a little less certain. The American version of "The Office" has evolved into a hit, but NBC's attempt at adapting the quirky "Coupling" tanked after just a few episodes.

This season, networks are shipping over a new load of scripted shows to adapt for U.S. audiences, and some sound like they could be great - if they're done right. Here are a few that caught my eye:

"The IT Crowd": The plot of this NBC pilot sounds like something out of a Douglas Coupland book: A couple of socially awkward IT nerds tucked away deep in the bowels of a large corporation come face-to-face with their technophobic but socially savvy new manager, Jen, who sounds like she could be the first woman these guys have seen in years. It sounds like a show GeekSugar would love: The British series apparently features tons of geeky references. I'm most impressed with the cast of strong comic actors, including "The Soup" host Joel McHale (left) and Best Week Ever alum Jessica St. Clair. If the show gets picked up, Richard Ayoade would reprise his role from the British series. Here are some scenes from the British show, including the awesome title sequence.

"The Thick of It": I'm incredibly hopeful about this show, which is an "Office"-style faux-documentary into the workings of a blundering congressman and his staffers. "Arrested Development" creator Mitchell Hurwitz is writing and producing the show, with Christopher Guest of Best in Show and Waiting for Guffman set to direct the pilot for ABC. John Michael Higgins, an alum of both "Development" and several of Guest's films, stars as the inept congressman, with a supporting cast including Alex Borstein and Oliver Platt. Here's a clip of the first few minutes of the BBC series.

Two more, so read more

"The Minister of Divine": Based on the BBC series "The Vicar of Dibley," this Fox pilot centers on a woman known for her wild past who winds up as the minister of the church in her tiny, conservative hometown. The show was named Britain's third favorite sitcom of all time in a BBC poll, but I'm not sure how well its sensibilities will translate to an American audience - especially with Kirstie Alley (at right) in the starring role. Here's a clip from the BBC show.
"Football Wives": This ABC remake of the "Footballers Wives" will be about the wives of NFL players, not pro soccer stars, but otherwise it sounds just as campy as the BBC original. The network is calling it a cross between "Desperate Housewives" and "The Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous," with the young wife of a new football pro learning the ins and outs of expensive cars, crazy shopping sprees and obsessive fans. Gabrielle Union, James Van Der Beek and Lucy Lawless are among the stars. Here's a promo for the BBC series.

Source

Talking New Moon With Kellan Lutz and Ashley Greene

BuzzSugar — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 09:15:50 -0800

Robert Pattinson, Kristen Stewart, and Taylor Lautner may be dominating the promotional circuit right now, but they're not the only cast members with something to say about New Moon. I had the opportunity to chat with costars Kellan Lutz and Ashley Greene, aka Emmett and Alice Cullen, during their recent stopover in SF. They chatted about their characters, the vampire craze, and what it's like to be a "Twilight celebrity." Here are highlights:

On why so many people are crazy for the Twilight Saga:
Ashley: I think this film in particular is highly relatable. There are a lot of situations that people can relate to. The love story - everyone can relate to being in love or being in lust. You add the vampire, and it adds that next level fantasy. Vampires are mysterious and sensual and dangerous and unattainable. And everyone wants what they can't have. I think on another level that this came together at the perfect time. All the elements just fit, the casting was spot on, and we're in a difficult time right now with our economy. That's why you never have a drop in ticket sales because everyone wants an escape, and this movie is very much an escape from reality.
Kellan: It's a good escape but also it deals with so many situations, on so many positive notes. Just looking at it from the vampire coven to the wolf pack. It just deals with everyday issues just on bigger levels, in a way. And you have Bella as the keystone in many situations. You can just all relate from different countries to issues within the United States. It's easily relatable.

To read a lot more about working with three different directors and why they feel so lucky, just read more.

On how their portrayals of the Cullens are similar or different from the books:
Kellan: We got the jobs because we brought something new to it. You can interpret the characters each their own, but I think it's what we did alongside. Just like Kristen said - she's playing Bella but she's putting her Kristen spin on it, just like all of us are. And I think that's what's making it unique. We're still following the cheat sheets that Stephenie created by making the books, and there's Wikipedia. We have a lot of information to go off of. But I hope it's what I did in my audition that set it apart from the other guys trying out.

Ashley: I think it's mannerisms too. People do fall in love with this book, but I think part of it is that they always want more. You can't write out every human mannerism. You can imagine it, but seeing the emotion in someone's eyes and seeing them be affected it - it was kind of easy to give something to it, because we were just being people. We kinda just got lucky.
On how much more of the Cullens we can expect in the remaining movies:
Kellan: Realistically, we stick pretty close to the books. Obviously us Cullens would love to be in the books a lot more, which would mean we'd be in the movies a lot more. Talking New Moon, the scenes that the Cullens - except for Ashley, playing Alice who gets to go to Italy and be a main lead in the movie - us Cullens, we have to stick really close to the books, and the scenes that we're in are really crucial to the story, as you know - the birthday scene, the voting scene. I don't know, it was kind of a tease. Chris Weitz is such an amazing director, and for us, for myself - I only worked about a week on that movie. And it didn't even seem like I really got a taste for what it was.

Ashley: In the third film, you'll see a lot more of the Cullens because it's all of us collaborating and then getting ready to fight this war that's coming up. In the second one, my character got a much larger role because Alice is the Cullen, other than Edward, that really embraces Bella and they end up becoming best friends. In the beginning, you see her throw this huge party for Bella, and then Alice is the one who does, in fact, come back for Bella when everyone else decides to skip town. Alice is responsible for dragging Bella over to Italy, and she and I the whole time are fighting to save my brother's life. And then of course we get held up by the Volturi and stuff like that. My character got to grow a lot, which is really cool. You get to actually see the relationship develop between Bella and Alice, where in the first one you didn't. The first one was very much about the romance and showing the audience why these two people are willing to die for each other.
On working with a different director on each film:
Ashley: Each director is going to be very different. They're artists as well, and I don't think any of them are quite the same. The books, when you read them, all have very, very, different tones. So I think it's highly appropriate that we switch directors each go. The first one is very much a romance and is a very scenic, beautiful film. And Catherine's really, really great at capturing that. She's very high energy and works well in chaos and stuff like that. And it was fantastic because we didn't quite know what we were getting ourselves into, and so it was nice to have her to guide us when we were freaking out a little bit. She was just so high energy, and it was really contagious. We were sad to lose her and move on to the second film, but then we got Chris Weitz and he's the complete opposite! But great as well. He's so giving and caring and collaborative and created this atmosphere that was kind of a safe haven for us. And it was really nice because we didn't know, switching directors, if they were gonna embrace us or if they had a completely different vision than what we created in the first one. It was nice that he was right there on the same page with us. And the second one is a warmer film, even from the color scheme. The first one is very blue tones, and the second one is much richer and warmer and I think he did a great job at capturing that. And we just finished shooting with David Slade, and I think he's highly appropriate as well. He just finished shooting 30 Days of Night and Hard Candy, and they're both very dark, edgy films. And Eclipse is very much that. It's all centered around the anticipation and us getting ready to fight this huge war. We just finished filming, we haven't gotten to see much of it, but I think it's gonna be fantastic. He is, technically, the most advanced director. The angles that he shot and how he knows that tweaking something can affect a whole scene and the lenses. He was really nice to work with.
On coping with the fan effect and being a "Twilight celebrity"
Kellan: That's what blows my mind, 'cause I feel like it's really unearned in a way. The fans are making our careers. Without them, we wouldn't be working and doing the saga. There's so many times that trilogy books become a movie and the first one bombs, and then that's it. And you're always hopeful that you get to do them all. Especially since we're all in love with our characters. I love Emmett Cullen to death, he's my favorite character I've ever played. It's just so cool to have made it this far, and I think we all hope that we get to finish this series and do Breaking Dawn. This is such a blessing, it's every actor's dream to be part of something like this. It's not terribly hard either. We don't shoot halfway around the world; we don't shoot for a year of our lives. I know a lot of us have homes, we have pets, we have family. And it's really nice to shoot on the West Coast, either Portland or Vancouver, and have the chance to fly down if we need to. But it's definitely amazing to be part of something like this. And I don't think any of us knew how crazy it would be and how exhilarating it would turn out to be. Going to the premiere, really just, wow. I don't even remember it because I was really just starstruck by how many fans and signs and cameras. It felt like I was just walking through a strobe light room. It's amazing.

Ashley: I still think we can't really wrap our heads around what's going on and what's happening. We're still in the midst of filming and kept very busy from one film until the next. It's only these brief moments where you sit back and are actually able to take a breath where you go "Whoa. Wow. This is crazy." I mean, the amount of tickets they've already sold for New Moon - I'm pretty sure I can't even get a ticket if I tried to see my film in Jacksonville and it's mind boggling. We're just very lucky. I went into this film thinking "Oh my gosh, I got a job" and the it turned into the biggest break of my life. I think we all feel very blessed to be a part of this.
On how it feels to be part of Twilight fan fiction:
Kellan: It's an escape, in a way. We do live in a trivial time period right now. There's so much depression that it's kinda cool to be a part of something where people use it to be an escape. In a way that's kinda what Stephenie did -she had a dream and just elaborated on it. It became a huge success and it's really encouraging that people are doing the same and just making up this journey.

Ashley: That's why people love it so much I think. You can take it and make what you want of it. Before the demographic was teenage girls, but now it's women of every age and guys are starting to get into it, too. It's because there is that element of fantasy. If you're 8 years old you look at it one way; if you're 80 years old you look at it another. I think it's fantastic that we can draw such a huge crowd. The other thing is - it blows my mind but people are making connections over this film and over this book. there are mothers and daughters and grandmas who can all sit and talk about the same story and all fantasize about it and I think that's a really cool thing. I think it's rare.

To see all of our Twilight and New Moon coverage, check out TwilightSugar!

Fantastic Mr. Fox: Lives Up to Its Title

BuzzSugar — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 08:30:00 -0800

For the past five years, Wes Anderson's wide fan base has been waiting for his first fully animated film. Would his adaption of Roald Dahl's children's book, Fantastic Mr. Fox appease the same crowd that holds Bottle Rocket and The Royal Tenenbaums near and dear to their hearts? The answer is an emphatic yes, and the best news is that you don't even have to enjoy Anderson's other work to fall in love with this film.

The story follows the wily Mr. Fox, a professional robber turned family man (er, fox) who just isn't satisfied with his quiet life working as a newspaper columnist. Even a move to prime real estate isn't enough to satiate his appetite for a little trouble making, and Mr. Fox (or "Foxy" as his friends call him) decides to take on the biggest adventure of his life. That's just the tip of the iceberg though, so read more.

Mr. Fox isn't your average wild animal; in fact he's just the opposite. He lives a civilized life with his wife Felicity (Meryl Streep) and 12-year-old son, Ash, making an honest living as a newspaper columnist. Like a kid who can't sit still, Mr. Fox has trouble curbing his desires to rebel and go back to his life stealing squab and running into trouble. Against his wife's wishes, Mr. Fox convinces his dim-witted but trusty sidekick Kylie (Wally Wolodarski) to take on one last hurrah. The crime? Ripping off the three biggest (and meanest) farmers around - Boggis, Bunce and Bean. When Mr. Fox starts an all-out war, he is forced to join forces with his family, friends, and neighbors - and that's where the fun begins.

The film's brilliance lies in the fact that Fantastic Mr. Fox is a movie for grown-ups disguised as a kiddie flick. Even with Anderson's name stamped all over it, there's no denying the furry animals dressed as humans. The animation makes the plot play out like a story book come to life; we're taken deep into the fox hole and beyond in a world that looks like a dollhouse made for fuzzy creatures. Kids will love the adventure and the colors, but the witty dialogue and quirky characters are made for the grown-ups.

The movie features a crew of lovable characters who deliver hilarious one-liners when they aren't breaking into impromptu dances. There's nothing new about a movie featuring animals acting like humans, but the actors make the movie the gem that it is. Jason Schwartzman playing a crabby 12-year-old but using his regular deep voice is genius. Clooney and Bill Murray (as badger, Mr. Fox's lawyer) bantering back and forth but replacing swears with the word "cuss" never gets old (as in "This place is a cluster cuss" and "What the cuss is wrong with you?").

Rare is the animated film with this much wit, cleverness, and chemistry between characters, but Fantastic Mr. Fox hits it right on the head. Score one more for Mr. Anderson.

(Don't forget that if you see a movie that you'd like to review, you can post your write-up in the Movie Review Group in Community - I may even post it here on the site!)

Video of Jennifer Lopez's Wind Blown Hair at This Is It Premiere and Ryan Gosling on Stage and NM's Edward and Bella Kiss!

Molly — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 14:35:00 -0700

Jennifer Lopez had a bit of a hair emergency thanks to the wind at last night's This Is It premiere in LA - check out the funny video. Also, we attended Ryan Gosling's SF Dead Man's Bones concert and have some super sexy footage of him up on stage and laughing off some inappropriate girls in the crowd. Plus, new New Moon clips show Edward and Bella's kisses as well as the scoop on Nick Jonas's new solo venture and a peek at Jimmy Choo for H&M. Watch PopSugar Rush now!

Movie Preview: Matt Damon and Morgan Freeman in Invictus

BuzzSugar — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 12:30:12 -0700

Hope you haven't OD'd on Matt Damon yet! Just yesterday I showed you a preview of his upcoming Jason Bourne-esque action flick, Green Zone and today we get a peek at Invictus. In the upcoming film from Clint Eastwood, Damon stars as a Francois Pienaar, real-life member of South Africa's rugby team who's summoned by Nelson Mandela (Morgan Freeman) to rally support in the country and unite the racial divide.

I love Matt Damon, but I'm actually more interested in Freeman's performance in Invictus. It looks like one well-done biopic, and it's obviously Freeman's Oscar film - although I'm sure Damon doing an accent could translate into a nomination for him around awards time, too. (Not to mention that many things Eastwood touches turn to Oscar nods).

Warning: If cheering crowd scenes and African singing often play with your emotions, you may get goose bumps while watching this preview. Check it out, and tell me what you think when you read more.