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News Roundup, 9/4

BuzzSugar — Fri, 04 Sep 2009 13:30:00 -0700

U2 will join Megan Fox on the season premiere of Saturday Night Live. - Rolling Stone
Bella Thorne will have a recurring role on the next season of Big Love. - The Hollywood Reporter
Tron: Legacy will be released on Dec. 17, 2010. - Coming Soon
Tyler Perry will write, direct, and produce an adaptation of the 1975 play For Colored Girls Who Have Considered Suicide When the Rainbow Is Enuf. - Variety
Up in the Air, Bright Star, and Life During Wartime are among the films that will be screened at the Telluride Film Festival this weekend. - Variety
Michael Jackson was laid to rest in a private ceremony last night. - The Hollywood Reporter
Susan Boyle is already topping charts thanks to preorders for her upcoming album. - People
Big Brother brought in big ratings for CBS last night. - Zap2it

Box Office: Who's Watching the Watchmen? Everyone

BuzzSugar — Mon, 09 Mar 2009 08:30:46 -0700

Zack Snyder's long-awaited screen adaptation of Watchmen finally hit theaters over the weekend and scored the best opening of the year with an estimated $55.7 million. Apparently that's actually a bit of a disappointment to the studio which, according to Variety, "had hoped Watchmen would match, or even best, the $70.9 million domestic opening of Zack Snyder's previous film, 300, which bowed on the same weekend in 2007."

The rest of the top five at the box office was all mixed up with Tyler Perry's Madea Goes to Jail coming in second place, followed by Taken in third, Slumdog Millionaire in fourth, and Paul Blart: Mall Cop in the fifth spot. Oh, Paul Blart. America just can't seem to quit you.

So what did you see over the weekend? Did you venture out into the world of Watchmen?

Photos courtesy of Warner Bros.

Madea's Box Office Reign Continues Despite the Jonas Threat

BuzzSugar — Mon, 02 Mar 2009 08:15:45 -0800

Even when competing with a Jonas Brothers 3-D extravaganza thingy, Tyler Perry's Madea Goes to Jail did not falter during its second weekend in theaters and scored the top spot at the box office again.

Disney's Jonas Brothers: The 3D Concert Experience was expected to win the weekend partly because of the extraordinary success of last year's Hannah Montana/Miley Cyrus: Best of Both Worlds Concert Tour. The Jonas Brothers' movie earned an estimated $12.7 million and is considered a disappointment in comparison to the estimated $29 million that Miley's movie debut earned.

Meanwhile, Variety reports that Slumdog Millionaire "enjoyed the biggest post-Oscar bounce since Titanic at the domestic box office, grossing an estimated $12.2 million as it boldly expanded to 2,943 runs in its 16th sesh."

Photo courtesy of Lionsgate

What to Netflix: New DVD Tuesday

BuzzSugar — Tue, 13 Jan 2009 08:30:35 -0800

Brideshead Revisited
Here's a movie I never got around to seeing in '08, which makes it my favorite kind of new DVD release! This lavishly costumed period drama starring the wonderful Emma Thompson sort of gives me an Atonement vibe except it didn't get nearly as much critical or box office attention.

Based on the bestselling novel, the movie follows "the memoirs of Captain Charles Ryder who is stationed at Brideshead Castle during WWII and remembers his involvement with the owners of the Brideshead estate: The aristocratic yet Catholic Flyte family and in particular brother and sister Sebastian and Julia."

Special features include deleted scenes, filmmakers' audio commentary, and a segment titled "The World of Brideshead."

Two more up next, so read more.

Appaloosa
I enjoy a Western every now and again and Appaloosa, directed by and starring Ed Harris, is a good one. Harris plays Virgil Cole, a man who, along with his partner Everett Hitch (Viggo Mortensen), makes a living off the lawless frontier by helping out towns overrun with criminal activity. Things get complicated when a gal (Renee Zellweger) appears right as they're in the middle of sweeping the bad guys out of town.

It's a good-looking, sometimes funny movie with some great acting and, of course, shoot-em-ups. I recommend bringing this one home.

Special features include additional scenes and commentary by Harris and screenwriter/producer Robert Knott.

Tyler Perry's The Family That Preys
This recent Tyler Perry flick has a large and impressive ensemble cast that includes Kathy Bates, Sanaa Lathan, Alfre Woodard, Rockmond Dunbar and Benjamin Button's Taraji P. Henson. Like other Perry movies, The Family That Preys looks to be heavy on the familial melodrama that, according to Netflix, centers on "a pair of friends - wealthy socialite Charlotte (Academy Award winner Kathy Bates) and working-class Alice (Alfre Woodard) - whose families stand to be ripped apart by greed and scandal."

DVD extras include special featurettes titled "Two Families, Two Legends," "Preying in the Big Easy," "Casting the Family," and "Delving Into the Diner."

Buzz News Roundup, 10/3

BuzzSugar — Fri, 03 Oct 2008 13:32:35 -0700

Frasier's John Mahoney is joining the cast of Burn Notice. - Entertainment Weekly
Liev Schreiber and Helen Hunt will play a couple in a troubled marriage in the upcoming drama Every Day. - Variety
David Strathairn and Catherine O'Hara are among the new additions to HBO's Temple Grandin film, which already stars Claire Danes. - Hollywood Reporter
Feist is turning her Fall tour into a charity drive. - Pitchfork
AMC is developing a TV series about a human colony on Mars. - TV Guide
Salma Hayek will reportedly guest-star on 30 Rock. - New York Post
Tyler Perry's in trouble with the Writers' Guild for firing four writers. - Variety
Live tracks from Ben Folds' tour will be available almost immediately on iTunes. - Billboard

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Buzz News Roundup, 8/27

BuzzSugar — Wed, 27 Aug 2008 13:31:32 -0700

Tyler Perry's Meet the Browns is becoming a TV series for TBS. - Hollywood Reporter
The cop drama Pride and Glory will open the Woodstock Film Festival on Oct. 2. - Variety
After some controversy, the Mad Men Twitter accounts have been restored. - Silicon Alley Insider
The Jonas Brothers can celebrate their second week at No. 1. - Billboard
Cuba Gooding Jr. is coming to TV (briefly) for a TNT TV movie. - Zap2it
Woody Harrelson has signed on for the lead in a horror movie, Zombieland. - ComingSoon
Morgan Fairchild and Alias's Carl Lumbly are among the latest guest stars for Chuck. - Entertainment Weekly
Two writers of The Office, Gene Stupinsky and Lee Eisenberg, have sold a feature film script called Bad Teacher. - Variety

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Movie Preview: The Family That Preys

BuzzSugar — Thu, 14 Aug 2008 09:30:47 -0700

The first thing that struck me about this trailer for Tyler Perry's new movie The Family That Preys was the stellar cast. First off, Academy darlings Kathy Bates and Alfre Woodard on the same screen together is awesome. Plus, after watching Something New, I'm really excited to see more of Sanaa Lathan. Add to that Cole Hauser, Rockmond Dunbar, and Robin Givens, and you've got a darn compelling cast.

The movie looks like an emotionally complicated tale of two families navigating issues of love, marriage, class, race, and history. There's a lot going on and a lot of characters, but I'm interested to see how Perry explores these themes. The plot is described by IMDB thusly:

Wealthy socialite Charlotte Cartwright (Bates) and her dear friend Alice Pratt (Woodard), a working class woman of high ideals, have enjoyed a lasting friendship throughout many years. Suddenly, their lives become mired in turmoil as their adult children's extramarital affairs, unethical business practices and a dark paternity secret threaten to derail family fortunes and unravel the lives of all involved.

Intrigued? The movie opens Sept. 12 and you can check out the trailer, just read more.

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Box Office: Horton Hears a Lot of Ka-Ching

BuzzSugar — Mon, 24 Mar 2008 09:30:41 -0700

After shattering 2008 box office records last week, Horton Hears a Who once again took the top spot over this Easter holiday weekend. Variety reports that Good Friday was the strongest day for Dr. Seuss' Horton which took in $25.1 million over the weekend in addition to the movie's opening weekend earnings of $45 million.

Tyler Perry’s Meet the Browns also performed well, coming in second place with a respectable $20 million.

Plagued by poor reviews and a lack of promotion for the film, the Judd Apatow-produced Drillbit Taylor earned a disappointing $10.2 million, putting the movie at No. 4 behind the thriller Shutter. Compared to how Apatow's comedies like Knocked Up performed last year, this kind of opening indicates that Apatow's attachment to a project doesn't guarantee box office gold. The top five was rounded out by 10,000 B.C. which dropped several spots from the No. 2 spot it held last week.

This weekend will bring several openings that will likely shake up the box office including Kevin Spacey's 21 and the war drama Stop-Loss.

Photos courtesy of 20th Century Fox

What to Netflix: New DVD Tuesday

BuzzSugar — Tue, 12 Feb 2008 09:30:00 -0800

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 the titles below you can view the thriller We Own the Night starring Joaquin Phoenix and Mark Wahlberg. Also on DVD today is Romance and Cigarettes, a musical that's definitely not for the High School Musical set.

Gone Baby Gone
For his directorial debut, Ben Affleck brings together a talented ensemble cast that includes his brother Casey Affleck, Morgan Freeman, Ed Harris and Amy Ryan. The film is set in the Affleck brothers' hometown of Boston and is adapted from a novel by the author of another dark Boston tale, Mystic River.

Casey plays Patrick Kenzie, a private detective hired to help bring home a missing 4-year-old girl. In the process, he discovers a complex and disturbing underworld based on the broken dreams of families living in one of the country's toughest neighborhoods.

Relative newcomer Amy Ryan earned herself an Oscar nomination for her portrayal as the little girl's drug addict mother, and our very own Boston native Molly really enjoyed this heart wrenching flick so it's a pretty safe bet for your Netflix queue.

A little depressing? Two more lovey titles are next so read more.

No Reservations
It's often the charming, warmhearted little films like No Reservations that slip off peoples' radars in the summer movie season due to the noise that giant big-name mega-blockbusters make that time of year. If you missed this sweet romance starring Catherine Zeta Jones and Aaron Eckhart I highly recommend warming up some delicious treats and settling in for the night with this movie that I really enjoyed.

Based on the the German film Mostly Martha, the movie follows a hard-hearted top chef, Kate (Zeta Jones) whose sister dies suddenly, leaving Kate's little niece (an adorable Abigail Breslin) now resting in her care. As Kate struggles to adapt to parenthood, she also soon finds herself involved with the new chef in her kitchen (Eckhart). Special features include a Marc Summers visit to the set to talk to the film's stars for an episode on his Food Network Series.

Why Did I Get Married
Tyler Perry sets aside his alter-ego Madea, but preserves his keen ability to create relatable characters in this drama exploring the ins and outs of married life. The movie stars Perry himself, along with Malik Yoba, Sharon Leal, Michael Jai White, Denise Boutte, Lamman Rucker and music hit-makers Janet Jackson and Jill Scott.

Based on one of Perry's plays, Why Did I Get Married? follows a group of married friends that gather in a mountaintop resort to confront their various marital issues. Perry's trademark melodrama and preachiness combined with a more serious subject matter proved to be a very potent mix that really hit home with audiences.

Buzz News Roundup, 1/18

BuzzSugar — Fri, 18 Jan 2008 14:30:09 -0800

A 30-minute live acoustic set by John Legend - aboard a Delta flight - will be the prize of a Grammys sweepstakes, Billboard reports.
Sci Fi Wire is reporting that Jericho has shot two endings this time, just in case it's canceled again.
ComingSoon has news that Jennifer Hudson will join the cast of the drama Tyler Perry's the Family That Preys.
NBC is auctioning off items from its shows to benefit the United Way, including one of Pam Beesley's cardigans from The Office; details are at The Futon Critic.
Mark Wahlberg will star in an untitled drama about international drug dealer Jon Roberts, whose life was chronicled in the documentary Cocaine Cowboys, writes Variety.
Jerry Seinfeld has sent Seinfeld DVDs to New York Giants quarterback Eli Manning after a TV station in Green Bay pulled the show - Manning's favorite - off the air because his team is playing the rival Packers, the New York Post reports.
Nashville Star will air on NBC this summer, along with a second season of American Gladiators, Broadcasting & Cable reports.
Instead of another 100 movies list, AFI will present 10 top 10 lists for different movie genres this summer, writes Zap2it.

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