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Buzz Gift Guide: Best of 2008 For Gals

BuzzSugar — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 08:30:45 -0800

Welcome back to my Buzz Gift Guide series for all the entertainment lovers in your life. Yesterday I sifted through the stacks (er, Web pages) of music, DVDs, and books to find some of the best 2008 has to offer dudes. Today I will share with you some 2008 entertainment gift ideas for the ladies.

It's no secret how much I love Jenny Lewis and I will be spreading the gospel this year by handing out her newest album Acid Tongue to my girlfriends (or at least including her songs on the mix CDs I'll make this holiday season). I'll also be giving out Aimee Mann's newest album, as I think it's pretty awesome.

It was a good year for books: I read both The Opposite of Love by Julie Buxbaum and Certain Girls by Jennifer Weiner and would definitely recommend them. In the movies department, might I suggest the hilarious Baby Mama or Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day on DVD?

Since I watch more TV than most people I know, I use the holidays to not-so-subtly suggest to friends what I know they would love, like 30 Rock or Greek. And many of my friends have grown to love Lipstick Jungle, so it would be a treat for them to receive the show's first season on DVD.

A couple more ideas below, so have fun scrolling on through.

Check out HolidaySugar for all of our holiday coverage and gift guides.

What to Netflix: New DVD Tuesday

BuzzSugar — Tue, 09 Sep 2008 09:30:32 -0700

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 my selections below, you can also check out Jackie Chan and Jet Li in The Forbidden Kingdom and Lee Pace in The Fall.

Baby Mama
Hurray for Baby Mama out on DVD! I really enjoyed this good-natured, fun ride when I saw it in theaters and I'm so eager to go back for more now that I can add it to my Netflix queue. The movie stars Tina Fey and Amy Poehler as total opposites who band together in order to make a baby. Basically, Fey's character is a successful woman who wants to have a baby, and Poehler is her wrong-side-of-the-tracks surrogate. Together they make a hilarious comedic team, and while the movie has its faults, it's mostly an all-around good time.

I would love to spend some behind-the-scenes time with Poehler and Fey, and thankfully the special features give me that chance! They include deleted scenes, an alternate ending, and featurettes including "From Conception to Delivery: The Making of Baby Mama" and "Saturday Night Live: Legacy of Laughter" in which Tina Fey and Amy Poehler talk about working with other SNL alums.

Two more titles to chat about this week, so read more.

Grey's Anatomy: Season Four
Even though Grey's struggled through its fourth season a bit, I still love it. And that's how you know it's good television: even in its off years, you still want more. That's why I'm recommending that those of you who skipped season four catch up before the two-hour premiere of season five on Sept. 25. Things are going to get juicy, and you'll want to be in the know to appreciate the juice. You're going to need to know who Rose is, for example.

Special features include extended episodes, audio commentaries, some behind-the-scenes moments with Patrick "McDreamy" Dempsey and Eric "McSteamy" Dane, unaired scenes, and outtakes.

Ugly Betty: Season Two
This ABC hit, which also will premiere its (exciting-sounding) new season on Sept. 25, is one of my favorites on TV right now. Now season two of Ugly Betty is out on DVD, so you can reacquaint yourself with where we left off or check it out for the first time. (As a companion to the DVD, you can always scroll through what we all thought of each of the episodes over here.)

DVD extras include featurettes titled "On Set With The Besties," "The Suarez Tour," and "Wilhelmina Slater: Love to Hate Her" - and don't I ever! - as well as bloopers and deleted scenes.

Box Office: Indiana Whips the Competition

BuzzSugar — Tue, 27 May 2008 07:00:00 -0700

Traditionally, Memorial Day weekend is very kind to Summer blockbusters, and this year was no exception for Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull. According to Variety, the return of the Steven Spielberg franchise was his biggest movie opening ever, hauling in an estimated $126 million over the four-day holiday.

While these results are a career high for Spielberg, the film itself did not break any box office records related to this holiday weekend or any other long weekend openings.

Disney's The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian dropped to second place followed by Iron Man. The fourth spot went to What Happens in Vegas, which continues to perform well, followed by Made of Honor at No. 5 and Baby Mama at No. 6.

John Cusack's War Inc. - also starring Hillary Duff - opened in limited release and did not make the top 10.

Photos courtesy of Paramount

Narnia's Prince Gallops Away With the Box Office

BuzzSugar — Mon, 19 May 2008 08:15:21 -0700

The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian handily won the top stop at the box office over the weekend, though it failed to bring in as much as the first Narnia film did in 2005.

In the "yikes" department, Speed Racer (already struggling at the box office) dropped from third place to fourth, only earning an estimated $7.6 million this weekend. Iron Man continued to set records, holding strong at second place while What Happens in Vegas took third. In fact, Iron Man was the first film to earn over $200 million at the domestic box office this year, according to Variety. Baby Mama closed out the top five.

Photos courtesy of Walt Disney

Box Office: Iron Man Continues to Soar

BuzzSugar — Mon, 12 May 2008 08:30:32 -0700

Update: As of this afternoon, What Happens in Vegas beat out Speed Racer for the No. 2 spot at the box office, Variety reports.

It will come as no surprise to the majority of movie critics who screened Speed Racer that the highly anticipated Wachowski brothers' flick had a disappointing opening weekend.

Not only did Speed Racer fail to knock Iron Man out of the top spot (the Marvel action hero brought in another $50 million over the weekend), but it's still unclear if the film can truly claim second place as What Happens in Vegas is hot on its trail in what Variety is calling a "photo finish." Vegas only earned an estimated $200,000 less than Speed Racer and both films are currently hovering around the $20 million mark.

In addition to poor reviews, another problem Speed Racer had is that it seemed to only appeal to kids, and filmmakers were shooting for a broader audience. An executive for the film told Hollywood Reporter, "What's hurting us is that the picture is playing very young." The Hollywood Reporter article also points out that if this is the case, then they'll have a hard time when even more competition heads to the theaters next weekend in the form of The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian.

Made of Honor fell to fourth place followed by Baby Mama to round out the top five.

Photos courtesy of Paramount Pictures

Box Office: Tina Fey and Amy Poehler Win the Weekend

BuzzSugar — Mon, 28 Apr 2008 05:30:38 -0700

It's always exciting when a comedy that's genuinely funny does well with audiences, and that was the case this weekend with the female buddy comedy Baby Mama starring Tina Fey and Amy Poehler.

The ladies won the top spot with an estimated $18.3 million, handily beating out the other comedy opening over the weekend, Harold and Kumar Escape From Guantanamo Bay. EW reports that while this wasn't the best movie opening for either Fey or Poehler, their film did much better than many box office watchers predicted. In fact, Baby Mama gave Universal Studios its first box office winner of the year.

The Forbidden Kingdom was No. 3 and Forgetting Sarah Marshall was right behind in the fourth spot, with both films earning approximately $11 million their second weekend out - a respectable achievement.

While Fey and company had good reason to pop the champagne, another film didn't post opening-weekend results worthy of celebration. Deception, starring Hugh Jackman, Ewan McGregor, and Michelle Williams, "fared dismally," as Variety put it. The thriller barely beat Street Kings for the No. 10 spot, earning only $2.2 million over the weekend. I thought that the very talented cast did the best they could with poor material, but apparently that wasn't enough of a draw.

So, which movies did you check out this weekend? Did any of you see both Baby Mama and Harold and Kumar?

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Baby Mama: Super Funny, Super Cute

BuzzSugar — Fri, 25 Apr 2008 05:30:43 -0700

As I left the screening for Baby Mama, I tried to equate the warm happy feelings I had to the after-feelings of another film in recent history and I came up blank. Maybe after Juno, I thought, or perhaps Waitress, but both of those films were also tender and heartstringy. Baby Mama is just a feel-good, have-fun, sweet-humored good time. Sure, it's a little on the predictable side and certain jokes fall flat, but it's one of the more positive movie-watching experiences I've had in a while.

For one thing, Amy Poehler and Tina Fey make a great team as the wacky lady (Poehler) and the straight (wo)man (Fey). Plenty of folks will probably compare this story to that of The Odd Couple, and these two opposites often make for hilariously awkward or gross interactions. But what develops between the two women is also totally refreshing: They become girlfriends, and it's really sweet to watch. It's funny to see their two different worlds colliding, though it's possibly more satisfying and equally funny when they come together and find some kind of common ground. To see what I mean, read more.

Fey plays Kate Holbrook, a highly successful VP of an organic foods company. At 37, she's ready to have a baby, but her uterus is apparently a disappointment, and adoption can take years as a single woman. Enter: Angie, the strapped-for-cash surrogate Kate hires to carry her baby. When Angie breaks up with her boyfriend Carl (Dax Shepard), she moves in with Kate and of course, their disparate lifestyles make for awkward misunderstandings, occasionally interrupted by the ladies playing a karaoke video game or going clubbing.

Meanwhile, Kate meets a handsome juice smoothie shop owner and struggles to maintain her strong standing with her eccentric boss (a ponytailed Steve Martin), and Angie grapples with her own secrets. With a fabulous '80s-heavy soundtrack and some excellent supporting actors (particularly Romany Malco, who plays the doorman at Kate's building and frequently manages to provide a sort of bizarre voice of reason), the movie clips along nicely until the ending which is, admittedly, a little cheesy.

Romantic comedies in which the focal point is a male-female relationship are moderately cute enough, but there's something awesome about a funny movie that's not the bland watered-down "comedy" of stuff like Fool's Gold nor is it entirely dude humor and boys bonding. Amidst the scads of comedies about schlubby guys and their inexplicably hot girlfriends, finally here's a fine movie with a refreshing message: Female friendship is great, and it can be funny.

To see the trailer and video clips from Baby Mama, check out movies.ivillage.com.

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Which Upcoming Comedy Are You Most Interested in Seeing?

BuzzSugar — Wed, 23 Apr 2008 07:30:55 -0700

As we ease out of the stark wintertime, which is often a sluggish time for great movie releases, we've got some fun-looking lighthearted fare coming out in the near future. Which comedy do you most want to see?

Note: I'm leaving off the Sex and the City movie because: a) it would win the poll, and b) I don't consider it a straightforward comedy like these, especially what with all the death talk.

Link Time! 4/1

BuzzSugar — Tue, 01 Apr 2008 12:35:29 -0700

Give Me My Remote introduces us to the first resident of the new Beverly Hills, 90210: this guy (Dustin Milligan, pictured at right)!
Cinematical has a heads up on the essential reading list to get everyone brushed up on all things Batman before The Dark Knight comes out this summer.
Vulture lists 10 terrible music slumps, including dark periods from Madonna, Bob Dylan, and the Red Hot Chili Peppers.
The Film Experience also braved a viewing of the atrocity that is Amy Heckerling's I Could Never Be Your Woman, just as I did. I feel validated.
The idea of Chris Cornell as an indie rocker just about blew Idolator's mind.
Stereogum has the latest kooky, colorful music video from Bjork.
On the 45th (!) anniversary of General Hospital, a TV Squad writer lists off six things that keep her tuning in daily.
Want to talk Dancing with the Stars? TV Cocktail is your place.
In light of the upcoming Tina Fey-Amy Poehler comedy Baby Mama, LilSugar wants to know: Would you consider being a surrogate?
If you're feeling paranoid today, Pop Candy has a list of some of the biggest April Fool's pranks on the web. Don't get fooled!

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BuzzSugar's Must Haves for April

BuzzSugar — Tue, 01 Apr 2008 05:30:00 -0700

Happy April! Here in my part of the world, the sun is shining brightly, but I still plan to be inside a good part of this month due to movie releases like Baby Mama and Leatherheads - not to mention the great TV returning this month. In addition to new movies and good TV, this April brings some fabulous new music, an exciting new read and a few Oscar darlings on DVD. To see my picks, just press "Start."

Source and Source

View Slideshow ›

The Opposite of Love: Julie Buxbaum ($16.50)	Break Up the Concrete: The Pretenders ($11.99)
Acid Tongue: Jenny Lewis ($12.49)	Certain Girls: A Novel: Jennifer Weiner ($17.79)
@#%&*! Smilers: Aimee Mann ($13.99)	Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day ($12.99)
Baby Mama ($17.99)	Greek - Chapter One ($19.99)
30 Rock: Season 2 ($25.99)	Lipstick Jungle - Season One ($24.99)