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Bully's Director Tells Us Why the Movie Should Be on Every Parent's Must-See List

Rebecca M Gruber — Fri, 30 Mar 2012 07:46:25 PDT

Bully just may be the most important movie of the year. The documentary weaves together the stories of five families dealing with the long-term effects of school bullying - two that have recently lost their children to suicide and three that are experiencing it day in and day out. While the film has received significant media attention for receiving an R rating from the Motion Picture Association of America's ratings board due to the inclusion of six curse words (it is now being distributed without a rating through many theater chains beginning today), it is the honest, heartfelt look at how 13 million kids are treated each year that should make it required viewing for every parent and school-aged child.

I spoke with the film's director, Lee Hirsch, about the bullying epidemic, the ratings controversy, and why even parents of kindergartners need to see Bully.

LilSugar: You've really started a national dialogue with this film - was that your goal?
Lee Hirsch: In a way, it was my goal. We were busy thinking, what could our movement look like, how could we do this, how do we engage, and how do we amplify? I don’t think I ever imagined that we would have this level of support and that we would grow to be this high. It just feels like just a wonderful blessing to have so much support.

I knew that there were so many people that had this narrative, and I remember when I was first talking about this film, I would say, "God, everybody has a story when it comes to bullying." But I didn’t really feel the way that I do now. Now I really feel like there are hundreds of thousands of people speaking out, [and] you start to see the impact of all these generations of people who’ve had this experience, who never really had a place to process them. It’s really exciting.

LS: With the R rating, Bully’s getting more attention than anyone probably ever expected. Why did you decide not to bleep out the six curse words and get the PG-13 rating? Was it worth fighting to keep them in there if it means that the film might not be seen by everybody who needs to see it?
LH: I think it’s worth fighting, because what we are saying is that this is a movie about what happens. It's what really happens when it comes to bullying. In this bullying and situations of bullying, language is critical. Language matters - it's a weapon. It's such a ridiculous argument that the MPAA says that they will allow one F word, but what if you see the film four times? It makes no sense! On the flip side, we are saying we are talking about bullying, we are talking about violence, we are talking about people being numb to violence, and so the MPAA has put a rule on that, they have stamped movies that have sexified and glorified violence all the time with a PG-13 and PG ratings. So I think the stamp matters - it matters for the people that are bullied.

LS: You spent a year in three Iowa schools. How did you convince the boards of education to let you film in their schools?
LH: We had rigorous conversations with the schools; it took many conversations and days of flying out there. We presented them honestly what we were trying to do with this movie - what our hopes were. We wanted to show what it looks like from the perspective of being able to just really see what goes on at a school. They were very brave. The school district is taking a lot of heat from this film, and at the same time, most school districts would never agree to this - they wouldn’t open their doors, wouldn’t admit they have a problem.

Keep reading to see what surprised Lee the most during filming and what parents of younger children can do to stop the bullying epidemic.

Weinstein Company's Bully Documentary Receives "R" Rating

Rebecca M Gruber — Tue, 06 Mar 2012 11:16:37 PST

It all comes down to six lil curse words. One of the biggest issues facing school children today is bullying, with some statistics showing that as many as half of all kids are bullied at one point during their school years. Following the tragic deaths of kids who just couldn't face the torture anymore, movie bigwig Harvey Weinstein is preparing to premiere Bully, a documentary about the consequences of bullying, later this month. The film has already earned accolades at various film festivals and 10-minute long standing ovations at screenings around the country.

So what's wrong? Because the film includes six four-letter words, it has earned an "R" rating from the Motion Picture Association of America - meaning no one under the age of 17 is allowed to see it without adult supervision. That means no screenings at school assemblies and no groups of kids heading to the theater to see it on a Friday night. The onus will be placed on parents to take their kids to see it. The Weinstein Company is appealing the rating and petitions are currently circulating throughout the country.

Link Time - First Poster For The Kennedys With Katie Holmes

BuzzSugar — Thu, 18 Nov 2010 13:30:46 PST

Katie Holmes channels Jackie in this poster for The Kennedys miniseries – Vulture
Find out which Michael Jackson song Glee will cover after Super Bowl! - TV Squad
Comics for Harry Potter fans - Moviefone
Lord Voldemort's aka Ralph Fiennes's best movies - Rotten Tomatoes
CBS officially cancels Medium – Zap2it
Harry Shum Jr. aka Mike Chang becomes a Glee regular! - PopWatch
Denis Leary to play Emma Stone's dad in Spider-Man - MTV Movies Blog
The 10 best-dressed artists of the past 100 years - Flavorwire
Weinstein fights ratings for Blue Valentine and The King's Speech - Screen Crave
Get an exclusive first look at Jessica Simpson's TV holiday special - PopSugar TV

Project Runway Gets Another Spinoff; Santino Gets a Job

BuzzSugar — Fri, 20 Jun 2008 15:30:40 PDT

Apparently, the two Project Runway spinoffs that the Weinstein Company announced it had up its sleeve for Lifetime just aren't enough. The Weinsteins are pitching another Project-titled project, this one called Project Triple Threat.

The show will be a quest for the nation's best actor/singer/dancer, according to Variety. Just like the rest of the Project shows, the 16 contestants will share a house together while competing for a grand prize, this time a shot at a record contract and a role in a musical. That's in addition to the newly named Models of the Runway, the show about Project Runway's models, and Project Pygmalion, a society-themed competition that will turn its winner into a high-class socialite.

I think at some point, all these Project _______ shows are just going to lead to diminishing returns, just like how Bravo's Top ______ series fizzled a bit with Top Design last year. A lot depends on the contestants' personalities and the challenges they're given, of course, but at some point, the formula's just not interesting anymore. Do you think you'd watch Project Triple Threat?

In other Runway related news, second-season runner-up Santino Rice will be competing on a Fox Reality Channel show called Gimme My Reality Show, in which "D-list celebs who have appeared on reality shows but never starred in their own" will "battle for star recognition in a variety of challenges." I kind of want to cry now. Meanwhile, the lawsuit over Runway's move to Lifetime will be heard in court on July 17 - one day after the fifth season premieres on Bravo. Good timing, universe!

Source and Source

Weinstein Co. to Make Live-Action Fraggle Rock Movie

BuzzSugar — Tue, 13 May 2008 11:29:44 PDT

Guess what? It's time to "Dance your cares away/ Worry's for another day/ Let the music play/ Down at Fraggle Rock!" The Fraggles are back! According to Variety, the Weinsteins are teaming up with Lisa Henson of the Jim Henson Company to bring a live-action, half-human half-puppet Fraggle Rock extravaganza to the big screen. Check it out:

Just like the series, the film will be populated by a mix of human characters and Fraggle Rock puppets. . .Pic will take the core characters Gobo, Wembley, Mokey, Boober and Red outside of their home in Fraggle Rock, where they interact with humans, which they think are aliens. The show premiered on HBO in 1983, ran five seasons and was broadcast in more than 80 countries. It posted strong sales recently when the first three seasons were released on DVD.

Awww! I'm excited about this news for so many reasons, but first and foremost: Hooray for no CGI! It'll be so great to get some good old-fashioned puppets, just like we'll get with Jason Segel's Muppet project. Plus, I can't wait to see some Fraggle musical production numbers choreographed for the big screen - and hopefully accompanied by Gobo on his gourd guitar.

Want to take a sweet little trip down Memory Lane? After the jump, relive the adorableness that is the opening sequence to Fraggle Rock. You can enjoy when you

Source

Project Runway Gets Two Spinoffs on Lifetime

BuzzSugar — Mon, 14 Apr 2008 14:30:26 PDT

Though the whole Project Runway vs. NBC lawsuit is yet to be settled, Lifetime is moving forward as though it will be airing the show in the Fall for sure. And that's not all: At a presentation on Monday, Harvey Weinstein - whose company produces Project Runway - told reporters that Lifetime will be airing not one but two spinoffs of the show around the same time as the show's November premiere.

The first of them doesn't have a title yet, but Weinstein said it will look at the Project Runway world through the eyes of the show's models. The second, dubbed Project Pygmalion, is a makeover series that will turn its winner into a high-society socialite.

Now, I do love a good reality show, but doesn't that seem like a bit . . . much? Especially if both shows and Runway are airing around the same time? I would think that Lifetime would want to be very careful about Runway-related overkill, especially because there will be another season of the show airing on Bravo sometime between now and November.

Also of note: Michael Kors is for sure on board for the move to Lifetime, but Nina Garcia isn't yet - though he noted that everyone would like for her to continue on the show. It sounds like her recent departure from Elle, which was a Runway sponsor, is an issue. Meanwhile, Bravo has its own programming presentation scheduled for Tuesday, which should be interesting to say the least!

Source and Bravo

Weekend Box Office: 21 Wins the Pot

BuzzSugar — Mon, 31 Mar 2008 08:15:05 PDT

Well, it looks like 21, the film about MIT students who take Vegas by storm, was a safe bet as it easily won the top spot at the box office. However, the overall weekend box office total was down 17 percent compared to last year, Variety reports. 21 earned an estimated $23 million, beating Horton Hears a Who and firmly establishing Jim Sturgess as a viable leading man.

Compare these results to another new release this weekend: Stop-Loss, starring Ryan Phillippe, who is a household name. Another box office casualty in a long line of Iraq War-related film flops, Stop-Loss only earned $4.5 million, coming in at No. 8.

Which brings me to the other box office disappointment this weekend, Superhero Movie. Could it be that Round One of Harvey Weinstein vs. Fanboys' fanboys goes to the geeks (more on the feud here)? Protesters gathered on both coasts where Superhero was playing, though in LA it appears Weinstein was prepared with guards. One protester told the Hollywood Reporter:

Guards were everywhere. At one point, I counted nine, no joke. They hired a whole force and whenever someone showed up looking around for the protest, they were surrounded by guards and told to leave instantly or be arrested. I guess you can't really hold a protest on private property.

Ultimately the film came in the third spot with a measly $9.5 million. Is this a little bit hilarious to anyone else?

Finally, Run Fat Boy Run starring Simon Pegg came in 13th and only earned an estimated $2.3 million here in the US. The movie grossed $22.6 million in the UK last Fall.

Photos courtesy of Sony Pictures

Fanboys Battle "Darth Weinstein" Over Fanboys

BuzzSugar — Wed, 26 Mar 2008 08:30:29 PDT

Fanboys angrily defending Fanboys . . . This stuff writes itself.
So, there's this movie Fanboys, starring a brunette Kristen Bell and a dorky Seth Rogen, in which "a group of young, passionate Star Wars fans . . . drive cross-country to raid George Lucas' Skywalker Ranch, and watch Star Wars: Episode 1- The Phantom Menace." In the original version of the movie, which was finished long ago, the trip is motivated by the fact that one of the characters has cancer.

To cancer, or not to cancer . . .
Apparently, real-life "passionate Star Wars fans" have been eagerly awaiting this film's release, have seen parts of the film at Comic-Con and the such, and loved it the way it was. Yet producer Harvey Weinstein was not pleased with the sad plotline and reshoots were ordered to, well, remove the cancerous parts for the theatrical release (though there's still no actual release date, and I bet they're regretting their initial tag line for the movie: "Coming to our galaxy in 2007"). Outraged, the fanboys of Fanboys have dubbed Harvey "Darth Weinstein" and declared a boycott of all things Weinstein until they are certain that the original version will go to theaters.

Honestly, the movie probably won't even make it that far.
In a press release issued this week, the Weinstein Co. tried to find some compromise with the fans, promising to issue both cuts of the film when it comes out on DVD, but still don't have a date for when this movie will make it to the big screen.

Having recently watched the trailer, I'm not sure it should be released theatrically at all. I'd love to hear your thoughts on the matter, though, so to watch the trailer,

Fanboys Trailer
by Adamavich

Do You Want to See A Modern Retelling of Pygmalion?

BuzzSugar — Sat, 01 Dec 2007 13:00:00 PST

Recently the Weinstein Company bought the rights to a book that hasn't even been published, titled I Think She's Got It, by Birdie Clark. The story is said to be a modern-day Pygmalion, set in Manhattan and focusing on "a shy Midwesterner who is transformed into a sophisticated socialite by a man-about-town who insists he can turn anyone into the latest 'it' girl."

The title of course refers to Eliza Doolittle "getting it" in My Fair Lady, which was itself a retelling of Pygmalion.

What do you think about this project? Do you think it could be really cute, or has Pygmalion been rehashed enough?

Cannes Minireview: The Sapphires

Allie Merriam — Thu, 24 May 2012 03:05:00 PDT

The Sapphires has turned out to be one of the sleeper hits to emerge from Cannes, thanks to The Weinstein Company, which has already acquired rights to the film. I caught a screening of the funny film from Down Under during the festival, so read on to find out what I thought.

Who's behind it? Director Wayne Blair was behind the lens of the picture, which is based on a play by Tony Briggs. Briggs's mother and her family actually inspired the story. Chris O'Dowd of Bridesmaids fame is the leading man. The movie's four leading ladies all have varying degrees of fame in Australia: Jessica Mauboy is a musical star after a turn on Australian Idol, and Deborah Mailman was the first Aboriginal actress to win the country's prestigious Australian Film Institute award for best actress. Relative newcomers Miranda Tapsell and Shari Sebbens round out the cast.
What's it about? It's a story about a group of Aboriginal women who overcome significant obstacles in Australia to pursue their dreams of singing in 1968. When the ladies run into Dave (O'Dowd) at a local singing contest, he agrees to be their manager and help them get a gig touring Vietnam to entertain US troops. There are subplots about racism and Australia's "lost generation" (until the 1970s, the government stole light-skinned Aboriginal children to be raised by whites elsewhere). Mainly, though, there is a lot of singing, dancing, and '60s-era costumes.

To read what I thought, just read more