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Buzz News Roundup, 10/13

BuzzSugar — Mon, 13 Oct 2008 13:30:18 PDT

Sen. John McCain will again visit the Late Show With David Letterman this Thursday, Oct. 16. - Zap2It
DreamWorks has signed a seven-year distribution pact with Universal Pictures. - Variety
Pink Panther & Pals, a new 26-episode half-hour animated series will air on Cartoon Network channels worldwide starting in Fall 2009. - The Hollywood Reporter
Ridley Scott plans on making a film adaptation of Joe Haldeman's 1974 sci-fi novel The Forever War. - ComingSoon
For a seventh time, Oasis debuted an album at the top of the UK album chart. - Billboard
French actor Guillaume Depardieu, son of Gerard Depardieu, has died of pneumonia at the age of 37. - The Hollywood Reporter
NBC has ordered four more scripts for Knight Rider. Oy. - Zap2It

What We Need to Talk About When We Talk About Sex and Feminism

The Good Men Project — Fri, 13 Apr 2012 08:00:00 PDT

We're happy to present this story from one of our favorite sites, The Good Men Project. Lisa Solod, who came of age during the sexual revolution, explores what feminism means to this generation.

My mother married my father because, she told me in a rare moment of candor, she wanted to have sex with him. She was 25 and tired of pre-sex fumbling and stolen kisses. My father was, of course, far more experienced, having been in the Pacific Theater during World War II; far less discreet about his former life (and life in general) he told his daughters inappropriate tales of the women he had met on shore leave. One I particularly remember had her front teeth filed into points. Well into their marriage, each of them managed to be unfaithful and they finally separated (but not because of infidelity) after twenty years of marriage. Yet, for another dozen years or so they would hook up here and there, travel together, and, of course have sex. In a further revelation, my mother told me that the sex was the best part of her relationship with my father.

I came of age at the tail end but the real beginning of the sexual revolution (1971-1974). At that point, sexual liberation was inextricably tied to the rise of feminism. Having sex like men, i.e., without attachment, was part of our freedom. But too many of us got hurt. We hadn’t yet factored in the biology of mating and how really hard it was to have that much sex without any real commitment. Most of the women I know who grew up during those years had far more sexual encounters than they were ever willing to reveal to their husbands. Those of us who divorced then dived back into the sexual market with the same abandon. I am not sure we were all the wiser. I hear STDs are on the rise in the over 50 group, which doesn’t surprise me. We all were pretty practiced in birth control but we took it into our own hands, with the pill and the diaphragm. This was pre-AIDS. Barrier methods were not our methods of choice then. They are not, apparently, our method now, either.

Should a Man Stand Up For His Woman?

But those of us who grew up in the trenches of the sexual revolution know that feminism was about far more than women having the kind of meaningless sex with men that men had been having with us for eons. Feminism, which is still being parsed in the media as well as our own homes, still being debated and discussed and accepted and dismissed, was about being able to control (to the extent that anyone can) our work lives, our love lives, our lives as a whole. It was about being able to have a career, being paid equally well for that career, and making our own decisions about marriage and childbirth without having to merely capitulate to what society had set out for us. I, for one, was happy not to have to marry to have sex. I was thrilled to be able to go to college and think about a career without worrying that it might make me unmarriageable. I was ecstatic about the notion that I could make decisions for myself.

All those ideas I passed along to my daughter. But, of course, she had no need to wrestle with those notions as the women in my generation had. She lived in a society where (she thought) feminism was taken for granted. Women her age did not talk about marriage, either as an option or something to reject. They saw it as fact that women could do anything.

Read the rest of the story below.

Announcing the 2012 Grammy Award Winners

Shannon Vestal — Mon, 13 Feb 2012 15:20:23 PST

The mood of the Grammy Awards was a bit somber this year in the wake of Whitney Houston's shocking death, but the show went on, and the statues were all handed out to the winners. Adele owned the night, picking up multiple awards, including those for record of the year, album of the year, and song of the year.

Plenty of other folks received Grammys too, including Kanye West, The Foo Fighters, and Taylor Swift, so to see the full list of winners, just keep reading.

Announcing the 2012 Grammy Award Nominations

Rose Curiel — Thu, 01 Dec 2011 07:51:21 PST

For the second year in a row, the Recording Academy has given a hip-hop artist the most Grammy nominations. Last year, it was rapper Eminem with eight, and this year, Kanye West leads the nominees with seven chances at the golden gramophone, including a song of the year nod for "All of the Lights." West is also nominated twice in the rap album of the year category for his collaboration with Jay-Z on Watch the Throne and his own album, My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy. Brit crooner Adele wasn't far behind Kanye, picking up six nominations for her album 21, as well as a shot at song of the year with "Rolling in the Deep."

Bruno Mars also did well, racking up six nominations (that's down one from last year for those keeping track), while newcomers like Nicki Minaj and dubstep artist Skrillex are up for the best new artist category. See what other artists have a chance of walking away with a Grammy during the February 12 award show when you read more

The Tree of Life's Jessica Chastain on Her Breakout Year, First Cannes, and "Normal" Brad Pitt

Lindsay Miller — Wed, 25 May 2011 08:22:00 PDT

Jessica Chastain is a fresh face in Hollywood, but she's already worked with the likes of Helen Mirren, Ben Affleck, and, in The Tree of Life, Brad Pitt. Her and Brad's film, which opens Friday, just won the Palm d'Or award at the Cannes Film Festival. We chatted with Jessica just before The Tree of Life's LA premiere yesterday. Jessica clearly likes to take risks in her life and work - in fact, she arrived for our interview with a leg cast, which she said was the result of a motocross accident! During our interview, she reflected on her first time at Cannes, emotional and unexpected scenes with Brad, and her take on the movie's message. Here are highlights:

PopSugar: So, obviously, the first question is what happened [to your leg]?
Jessica Chastain: This sounds so idiotic. I got in a motocross accident yesterday. I thought it would be fun, and I really liked it, and I went way too fast. I shouldn’t have done it, especially having a premiere today. I spent the afternoon in the emergency room yesterday, because the bike fell on me and twisted my leg. Those things are heavy! It’s funny, because I was lying there, and my knee snapped. I heard this popping noise. . . so the wheels kept going and I’m pinned underneath it, and I thought, oh someone will come get me. It just felt like forever, so finally I just went, "Help! Help!" It was really, really silly.

PS: So now you'll have crutches down the red carpet tonight?
JC: Yes, but not for photos. . . I balance really well, so I’m going to stand still in very high heels and pass off my crutches, and I’ll take my pictures. There won’t be any of that walking, talking, fancy red carpet stuff, or they will have pictures of me on the carpet, lying on it. I hope I don’t fall! Oh god. I was worried about falling down the stairs at Cannes.

PS: Can you talk about what the Cannes experience was like?
JC: Yeah, it was great. I realize it’s never going to be matched. Realistically, I mean . . . it’s not really a good example of a typical time at Cannes, because I’ve got two films that both won the top prize in their category. Tree of Life won the Palm d’Or and Take Shelter won the grand prize in critics’ week. And then I also had a film there, The Wettest County, which there was a bidding war [over] and Harvey Weinstein bought it. So it was like all of this great stuff was happening, and I don’t think that’s a typical Cannes. But it’s OK, because I’m enjoying every second, knowing it will never repeated again.

View 5 Photos ›

To read more from Jessica on getting emotional with Brad Pitt and her hopes for the movie, just

PS: You character is seen almost exclusively from the perspective of her boys. When you were acting, did you think of yourself [from that perspective]?
JC: When I read the script, I realized that she basically is the embodiment of grace and the spirit world. And then I thought, OK, I also have make her a real person. I had to ground her, and the only way I could think of grounding her was her love for her children. And this bond she has with her children is very important, so I had to make that incredibly real. And it actually was very real. The boys and I, to this day, we’re actually still very close. I got a Mother’s Day gift from Hunter last year, I get phone calls. . . . When the film ended, I was more heartbroken than anything that the kids went back to their mothers. I was like, 'I love the kids!'

PS: How was it different with Brad? What kind of conversations did you have about building that familial closeness with your characters?
JC: We didn’t really have those conversations a lot, because the one thing about Brad and my character is that there is this distance, where she’s constantly trying to reach out to him to have him open up to the family and to love. And he’s [like], "No, I’ve gotta always stay on guard, and it's survival of the fittest, and I’ve got to be the strong one." So in a way, if we’d had these bonding experiences like we had with the children, it would have made our jobs harder. But on set, the great thing about him is he could play that character and then soon as the roll was out, he was fun, nice, sweet Brad, throwing the football with the boys out in the yard, and asking me, "What kind of music do you like? That’s one thing I’m out of touch with right now is music." He’s a normal guy.

PS: What about the emotional tussle you have in the house? Did you prepare for that at all?
JC:We didn’t even know that was going to happen, to be honest. It was after we filmed the scene were he attacks the boy. I know for my character, she had to clean up the house, but she’s still vibrating from what happened and trying to contain it. We shot for four minutes, going back and forth, cleaning dishes, doing all this stuff. And at one point, I don’t know why or what on earth possessed me, but I grabbed the pepper and rubbed it in his face and said, "How do you like it?" And then he grabbed me, and all of a sudden, we’re fighting and struggling. So working with Brad, an actor who is open to being spontaneous and emotional and inventive and really listens to the other person, you can have moments like that. When someone comes in and they plan what they’re going to do, you don’t get those accidents.

PS: What do you think the audience reaction will be like to this film?
JC:You know, I think there probably will be a lot of mixed reaction, and I hope that it's going to create a lot of discussion, because a lot of my favorite films are the kind that I go, "Oh, I love that film," and someone else goes, "Really!?" I love those movies and I really hope that's the case. I feel like this film asks more questions than it answers. And a lot of us are used to being given answers and we just want to be entertained. This film really isn't that. It really isn't "I just want to turn off. I've had a hard day at work, I'm just going to go turn off and watch The Tree of Life." [Laughs.] It's not that. So I think you absolutely have to be in the mindset to be open and then to examine your life.

True Blood Bites: "Burning Down the House"

Becky Kirsch — Mon, 29 Aug 2011 08:37:38 PDT

This week's episode of True Blood isn't the most epic of the season, but it sets up (and wraps up) a few final story lines as we head into the home stretch. The war between the vampires and witches is intensifying now that King Bill is no longer interested in keeping the peace, and a significant character passes away after a tumultuous season.

Most of all though, Eric has a major breakthrough that I welcomed with open arms. Let's break down all the major happenings from the episode when you

Best case of seeing the light: Eric finally gets his memory back, thanks to some fierce fairy power. When Martonia sics Eric and the rest of her vampire "slaves" on Bill, Sookie intercedes to save the king, using her power against Eric. Eric's old memories instantly start flooding back to him, but he's retained a little of that sweet side, too. The only problem is that he's none too pleased to hear that Sookie loves both him and Bill. Maybe Sook should try explaining her three-way fantasy to Sheriff Northman? Seriously, though, we're running out of time in this season, and she's going to have to make a decision, so who are you rooting for?
Most dramatic death scene: Well folks, Tommy's finally moved on to that big shifter paradise in the sky. Alcide tries to rush him to safety after sustaining significant injuries courtesy of Marcus, but Tommy insists that it's his time to go and asks to be taken "home" to Merlotte's. There, he and Sam finally make amends before Tommy passes on. It only lasts a minute, but man does that scene seem to go on forever. Sam resolves to avenge his brother's death by taking down Marcus, but Marcus is too busy trying to make wolf pups with Debbie Pelt (ew). Tommy has cheated death more than a few times before, but will you miss him now that he's finally gone?
Least compelling change of heart: I was definitely surprised to see that Marnie is actually the one pushing Antonia along in their little war on vampires, but both women bug me equally, so I can't say it's a game changer. The biggest shock is seeing how scared and guilty Antonia is when she separates from Marnie's body, but I'm just hoping the vampires can make both of these ladies disappear for good. And soon.
Most effective intervention: Terry finally catches on to his cousin's addiction to V and takes him to their old fort in the woods to sort Andy out. Andy tries to explain that he needs his "medicine," but Terry challenges him to a shooting contest to prove that Andy's drugs don't make him the stronger man. What ensues is a tête-à-tête in which both Andy and Terry air their grievances with each other from their entire lives. As it turns out, both men have been envious of one another, and the fight eventually becomes a breakthrough and brings them closer together. I've never been that into this storyline, but it's nice to see how far Terry's come, since the first season when he was battling post-traumatic stress disorder.
Most explosive plan: Bill wants to burn down the Moon Goddess Emporium at any cost, including killing Tara and the rest of the people who are trapped inside. Though Sookie pleads with him to think of Tara, Bill can only think about his fellow vampires. He rounds up Pam, Jessica, and Eric, and the foursome get decked out in black suits and approach the Emporium in a final scene that's so cheesy you can't help but love it.
Best B-team: Sookie decides to try to get to Tara before the vampires can, enlisting help from Jason, Lafayette, and Jesus. Jesus offers to approach Martonia by using his connection with Marnie as bait, but he's brutally rebuffed by a force field that Martonia has put into place to protect the Moon Goddess Emporium. Jesus uses his inner voodoo to transform his face into what looks like a horrible mask (remember Lafayette's vision from last season?) and gets through. Though he speaks with Marnie and learns that she's the one pulling all the strings, before he can make any more progress, Martonia finds his posse and zaps Lafayette and Sookie into oblivion, leaving only Jason behind.

How'd you feel about this week's episode? Do you think Jessica will honor Jason's request and glamour him? Will Alcide finally dump Debbie for good now that she's cheating on him? And who should Sookie choose? Let's discuss in the comments!

Photo courtesy of HBO

True Blood Bites: "Spellbound"

Becky Kirsch — Mon, 15 Aug 2011 07:48:05 PDT

The battle between the vampires and witches reaches fever pitch in this week's episode of True Blood. Both sides lose victims in the first battle of what is now an all-out war, with even major characters finding themselves in the line of fire.

While one big relationship met its downfall, others flourished - including Sookie and Eric's, which has taken on weirdly euphoric levels now that the two have shared each others' blood. If you're ready to break down the breakup, battle scene, and more, just

Saddest ghost story: We finally get the back story on the creepy doll and equally creepy spirit hanging around baby Mikey. It turns out the spirit’s fixation on Arlene’s baby is due to her having tragically lost her own child during her lifetime, and now she wants to claim Mikey as her own. That much is clear after she takes over Lafayette's form and snatches the baby - along with a gun - away from his sleeping parents. Whether she plans to use the gun to simply protect the infant, or for some other, more sinister plot is unknown.
Best first kiss: Once Jason saves Jessica's life, she's hopeless against resisting him, but she's still a little surprised by her actions, cutely covering her mouth after the lip lock.
Funniest Freaky Friday moment: Tommy wastes no time in exploiting his newfound ability to shift into other people, transforming into a disheveled, foul-mouthed version of Maxine in an attempt to profit from the natural gas rights on her property. Even if he is up to no good, it’s still pretty hilarious to see him order two Miller tallboys paired with shots of tequila and hot sauce as the self-righteous matron.
Most psychedelic reaction to drinking blood: Sookie lets Eric feed on her so that he can regain strength after his “silvering,” and Eric, in turn, lets Sookie feed from him, saying, “We will be one.” After feeding on one another, the pair embarks on a hallucinogenic, acid-like trip, seeing snowflakes fall from shower heads and talking about making love forever on a bed they encounter in a forest.
Most drama-ridden pack: Pack leader Marcus orders his werewolves to stay out of the trouble brewing between Bon Temps’s witches and vampires, but it looks like there’s plenty of drama within the pack to keep the group occupied. We find out that Marcus is father to Luna’s daughter, and he’s vowed to cause trouble for Sam for hanging out with his little girl. Meanwhile, a suspicious Debbie follows Alcide to find that he has lied to her about staying away from Sookie. Will the unstable shewolf fall off the wagon or betray Alcide by getting him in trouble with the pack?
Best pint-sized wingwoman: Sam shows up a Luna’s doorstep, explaining that he’s kicked Tommy out of his life, but the lady-shifter is still reluctant to invite him in. Luckily for Sam, Luna’s daughter does it for her, insisting that Sam play Barbies. Playing with dolls may not be the smoothest way for a man to rework his way into a woman’s heart, but it seems to have helped the pair begin to move past the awkward Tommy situation.
Worst breakups (fictional and nonfictional): Who realized that Jessica’s first breakup scene with Hoyt was a dream? There were certainly a lot of clues - the eye-rolling, Hoyt’s over-the-top pleas, and, you know, Jessica killing him - but stranger things have happened on True Blood. Equally painful to watch was the actual breakup, with Hoyt crossing the line by calling out Jessica on her inability to have kids and her eternal virginity. Low blow, Hoyt. Low blow.
Most violent midnight rendezvous: The vampires and the witches battle it out when they meet up in the cemetery for what is initially supposed to be a peaceful discussion. Team vampire takes significant hits with Bill getting a load of silver to the face, Eric falling under Antonia’s trademark puppet-master spell, and Sookie taking a bullet to the abdomen! Alcide shows up just in time to save Sookie, but Eric and Bill seem like they are in some serious trouble.

What do you think will happen to Bill and Eric now that they are under the witches’ control? Can we expect to see the end of the reformed Eric next week now that he's under Antonia's control?

Photo courtesy of HBO

The Vampire Diaries "The Dinner Party": The Good, the Bad, and the Bloody

Shannon Vestal — Fri, 18 Feb 2011 07:50:55 PST

It's flashbacks and fancy parties on this week's episode of The Vampire Diaries. We travel back into Stefan's personal history and learn what he was like (read: very, very bad) before he became the "good" vampire he is today. In Mystic Falls, there's still no sign of Klaus, but the other Original baddie Elijah is invited to a very special dinner hosted by Damon, while Bonnie and Jeremy show up for a brief, devastating moment.

What seems like a pretty calm episode actually has plenty of surprising moments, so if you're ready to recap all the good, bad, and bloody of this week, then

The Good

Still on their weekend trip at the lake, Elena reads from Jonathan Gilbert's journal and discovers that Stefan killed members of her family. Stefan explains to Elena that he and Damon were angry at the founding families for what they had done to Katherine, and then Stefan picks up with his own flashback. As Stefan has bloody playtime with some nubile young things, we see Damon, then more responsible and virtuous, who criticizes Stefan and informs him that he's leaving. When Elena says he sounds like Damon, Stefan corrects her: "I was worse."
With Elijah still lurking around town, Damon's new compelled girlfriend suggests a dinner party. Damon joyfully agrees to host for the opportunity to kill Elijah. Later, Damon visits Katherine in the tomb, and finds out something interesting: if Elijah dies, Katherine will be stuck in the tomb forever. Desperate, she pleads with him and is tricked into confirming how Damon can kill an Original: with the dagger and white oak ash. Damon is ready to strike, but just before dinner, Elijah warns Damon that he'll kill him and the rest of the attendees if he makes a move.
Yay! During Stefan's monstrous stage, we reconnect with an old familiar face: Lexi. While feeding on the wounded soldiers of the Civil War, Stefan meets his old best friend. It's Lexi that fixes what had been missing in Stefan since he'd become a vampire: how important it is to love. Stefan uses this experience to explain to Elena why she should stop trying to be a martyr.
Elena finds Jonathan's notes on the Originals, which include instructions for killing them. It corroborates the facts that the white oak ash and dagger combo will kill an Original, but Jonathan reveals one pesky detail: only a human can use it, and if Damon or any vampire tries, it will kill them too. Elena and Stefan spring to their feet to thwart John's set-up, and reach Alaric, who warns Damon in time. While it seems that Damon just has to deal with frustration of letting Elijah live, Alaric surprises everyone and stabs Elijah with the dagger, ending him (the stupefied look on Damon's face is excellent). Have you been taking badass lessons, Alaric? Because they're working.
Elena's not exactly fast reading the details about how to kill an Original, and there's another technicality she and Stefan find out too late. The Original only stays dead if the dagger stays in place, which it hasn't, so . . . oops. Elijah, still living (sort of), makes a break for it, finds out where Elena is from Jonas, and then shows up to the lake house. She tries to re-negotiate her terms as Elijah waits outside, but he doesn't believe her when she threatens to stab herself and have Stefan save her and turn into a vampire (as Katherine did). Shoot, I was as shocked as Elijah when Elena actually does knife herself in the gut, and doubly shocked when she stabs Elijah, killing him once and for all.
Luka angrily confronts Bonnie about what happened with the spell, and when she plays dumb, he suspects she's lying. Bonnie pays a large price for having used him; on her cute non-date with Jeremy, Jonas crashes, demanding to know what Luka told her. Rather violently, he seizes her and uses a spell to remove her powers. I'm legitimately curious as to how she'll get her witch power back . . . unless she doesn't.
Katherine, you wily little minx. When Damon comes home from his wild night, he finds Katherine out of the tomb and in his shower (and with full smoky eye makeup on, but whatever). She had lied about being stuck in the tomb, and instead, the truth is that the compulsion of the Original wears off if he dies. Therefore, heeeere's Katherine.

The Bad

Tyler's gone because he's run off, so he has an excuse, but where's Caroline? I miss my favorite vampire.
Alaric removes his ring and gives it to John after Jenna dumps him for not being honest with her. To echo what I said last week, I'm so scared for him. Please don't die, Alaric.

The Bloody

Stefan's PYT bloodbath is quite a sight. It's weird enough seeing the goody two-shoes Salvatore brother acting like a monster, but it's quite another thing to see his crisp white shirt and pretty face mucked up with a plasma pattern.

How did you like this episode? Was it uncomfortable or kind of fun to see Stefan out of his nice-guy routine? And are you groaning or excited that Katherine is out of the tomb? Chime in with your thoughts and remember to join the Hooked on Vampire Diaries group in the Buzz Community to chat with other fans!

Photos courtesy of The CW