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Buzz News Roundup, 6/1

BuzzSugar — Mon, 01 Jun 2009 13:30:17 -0700

Better Off Ted will be back with new episodes starting June 23. - The Futon Critic
Natalie Portman will star with Danny McBride and James Franco in the comedy Your Highness. - Variety
Live Nation will eliminate all service fees on its concert tickets for one day only on June 3. - Billboard
Michael Shannon is in negotiations to play one of the lead male roles in The Runaways, the feature take on Joan Jett's 1970s rock band. - The Hollywood Reporter
This year's Emmy Awards are moving up a week to Sept. 13. - TV Week
Halle Berry is in talks to star in director Paul Verhoeven's new thriller The Surrogate. - ComingSoon
"Octomom" Nadya Suleman has signed a reality TV deal, but the show hasn't yet been picked up by a network. - Variety
The creators behind comic strip cat Heathcliff might be bringing the feline to the big screen. - Entertainment Weekly

Dakota Fanning to Rock Out in Joan Jett Movie

BuzzSugar — Thu, 05 Mar 2009 10:30:36 -0800

She's not playing Joan Jett herself - that role has gone to Kristen Stewart - but Dakota Fanning is in talks to join the cast of The Runaways as the lead singer of Jett's all-girl band. Here's more:

At 15, Fanning is the same age [Cherie] Currie was when she made her debut with the Runaways as the lead singer who belted out hard-edged tunes like "Cherry Bomb." Currie became caught up in drugs and a hard-partying lifestyle.

Now, I know Fanning has done dark stuff as she's gotten older and moved away from some of the precious little girl roles, but a hard-partying rocker? I'll be very curious to see how this turns out. In general, I'm fascinated by Fanning's career as she transitions into adulthood as it's a rocky path that not every actor seems to be able to navigate. Do you think Fanning is able to pull off these heavier, tougher roles?

Source

Kristen Stewart to Play Joan Jett in Runaways Biopic

BuzzSugar — Wed, 03 Dec 2008 10:30:47 -0800

In 2009, Kristen Stewart will shift between playing teen vampire lover Bella in the Twilight sequels and portraying influential rocker Joan Jett in The Runaways. Stewart has been cast as Jett for the rock 'n' roll biopic all about the all-girl band from the '70s. The Hollywood Reporter has more details:

The Runaways were hugely influential as the first successful all-girl hard rock band; its members included guitarists Jett and Lita Ford, drummer Sandy West, singer-keyboardist Cherie Currie and bassist Jackie Fox. The band was brought together in late 1975 by impresario Kim Fowley, who thought a novelty act of teenaged girls performing in leather and lace would be an easy sell, but the girls ended up proving to be serious and influential musicians with songs like "Cherry Bomb." The band lasted about four years together, falling apart over management and money issues.

Jett continued her rock career into the '80s, forming the Blackhearts and scoring with such hits as "I Love Rock N' Roll" and "I Hate Myself for Loving You." She continues to record and tour.

The film will revolve around Jett and Currie and follow them from the band's meteoric rise as teenagers to their dissolution and disillusionment.

The real Joan Jett will act as executive producer on the film. Can you see Kristen Stewart rocking out as Joan Jett? Is there anyone else who could have been given this role?

Source

FlashForward Breakdown, "Scary Monsters and Super Creeps"

BuzzSugar — Fri, 30 Oct 2009 11:30:52 -0700

FlashForward gets into the Halloween spirit this week, with a few tricks for the characters and treats for the audience. We get just a bit more info about Simon and see a few costumes as Olivia and Mark's relationship issues come to a head in a big way.

This week's episode is heavy on the revelations (just like Sonya Walger promised), so to get into it, just read more.

Simon says: Within the first few minutes of the episode, one thing is abundantly clear: Simon is not Charlie from Lost. Instead, he's a smooth-talking, self-proclaimed "quantum physicist genius", who actually gets a woman into bed using the line "I know what caused the FlashForward." The scary part is that he actually does - and in his own vision, he's murdering someone. Totally creepy.

Trick or treat: Mark takes Charlie out trick-or-treating, and has an unpleasant surprise waiting when he gets home. He's understandably uncomfortable having Lloyd in his house, and things hit the fan when Olivia gets home and all three realize what's going on at the exact same time. I was so happy when Mark finally tells Olivia the truth about his vision (was totally expecting him to lie again), but then Olivia insinuates that they should break up - which seems a bit random to me. They're finally making progress and now they're going to throw it all away?

Runaway rapper: Lloyd's son Dylan runs away from the hospital in his rapper costume), and heads to the Benford residence. It's baffling when Dylan runs past Nicole and makes himself comfortable, until we finally see the kid's flashforward: he and Charlie are hanging out in the kitchen, eating cookies and having a grand old time. (So much for my kidnapping theory). So here's where I'm confused: Charlie looks perfectly happy to be hanging out with Dylan in her vision, so where did she get the "D. Gibbons is a bad man" idea from?

Janis's body: Janis is admitted to the hospital after last week's shoot-out, and Olivia is her doctor, naturally. My heart jumped for a split second when Janis pretends that she doesn't recognize Olivia (would be an all-too-easy explanation of her vision). Thinking about her flash-forward gets Janis all stressed out, and she has to undergo another surgery - this time, part of her uterus is removed, making it "almost impossible" for her to get pregnant. Almost.

Other major plot points:

Simon brings up the Schrödinger's Cat theory, discussing that it's up to the cat to decide if it wants to live or die. Is this foreshadowing for the flash-forwards? Perhaps each character can decide for him- or herself whether or not to make it happen?

Demetri sets off in search of his attacker, follows a bunch of blue-hand signs to an abandoned warehouse. I'm starting to get a little bored of his storyline.

Lloyd and Simon reunite at the end of the episode, with Lloyd saying, "Our experiment killed 20 million people Simon, what more is there to say?" What's do you think the relationship is here? Brothers? Old buddies? Lab partners?

The kangaroo makes an appearance!

This episode was one of my favorites so far, but what did you guys think about all the new revelations? Tell me your theories in the comments below!

Photos courtesy of ABC, Inc.

What to Netflix: New DVD Tuesday

BuzzSugar — Tue, 27 Oct 2009 06:30:00 -0700

It's Tuesday, which means new DVDs hit shelves to fatten up your entertainment library! Trying to decide which to add to your Netflix queue? Check out these three releases.

Orphan

All right, so it's not the best horror film ever - for that, take a peek at my scary movie bracket - but who doesn't love a good spook just in time for Halloween? In Orphan, Vera Farmiga and Peter Sarsgaard star as parents who adopt a destructive little girl with a huge secret. The movie borders on ridiculous, but if you like to laugh during your fright flicks, it's got a bit of dark humor and over-the-top slasher scenes. Bonus features include deleted scenes and an alternate ending - which should be good for keeping things fresh, seeing as how the big twist has already been spoiled by pretty much anyone who's seen it.

55%

See two more new releases when you read more.

Nothing Like the Holidays

If you're feeling anti-Orphan, then perhaps a Christmas-themed ensemble film is more your speed. Nothing Like the Holidays follows a large, boisterous Puerto Rican-American family as they gather at their parents' home, and the obligatory love-hate relationships ensue. The storyline is a little stale, so I wasn't a fan when the movie first came out - but it may be a solid rental to get into the pre-holiday spirit and for the actors. (Alfred Molina and Freddy Rodriguez are particularly good as father and son.) There's also a bonus blooper real.

49%

Whatever Works

Curb Your Enthusiasm's Larry David stars in Woody Allen's story of a crabby New Yorker who takes in a young Southern runaway named Melodie (Evan Rachel Wood). Putting aside the somewhat unsettling older man and much younger woman relationship, the real joy to be had is from the bit character parts. Patricia Clarkson and Ed Begley Jr. turn in hilarious performances as Melodie's parents, and dreamy Henry Cavill of The Tudors plays a love interest. If you can get beyond David doing his tiring, whiny Allen schtick, they make the film worth checking out.

48%