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Elizabeth Banks Joins Russell Crowe in French Film Remake

BuzzSugar — Tue, 25 Aug 2009 10:30:07 -0700

Have you seen the French thriller Pour elle? I haven't, but now I'd like to before the English-language remake comes to theaters, courtesy of Paul Haggis (writer/director of Crash). The remake, titled The Next Three Days, had already nabbed Russell Crowe for the male lead and now it looks like Elizabeth Banks will play his wife.

The plot description for Pour elle reads: "Lisa and Julien are married and lead a happy uneventful life with their son Oscar. But their life radically changes one morning, when the police comes to arrest Lisa on murder charges. She's sentenced to 20 years of prison. Convinced of his wife's innocence, Julien decides to act. How far will he be willing to go for her?" Diane Kruger, currently starring in Inglourious Basterds, plays the wife in the French version.

I find Banks so funny and refreshing in her comedic roles, but she's been going kind of dramatic on us recently, playing a scary stepmother in The Uninvited and portraying Laura Bush in W. Do you like seeing her in more dramatic roles? To check out a French trailer for the original movie Pour elle, read more.

The trailer is in French with no subtitles but it's still chilling, even if you don't understand the language.

James McAvoy, Elizabeth Banks Team Up For Dark Comedy

BuzzSugar — Thu, 07 May 2009 10:30:54 -0700

Aww, this cast is so adorable: James McAvoy, Elizabeth Banks, Anna Friel and Laura Linney have all signed on for the dark comedy The Details. No real details yet on Friel or Linney's roles, but apparently the story centers on a couple, to be played by McAvoy and Banks, "who discover an infestation of raccoons in their back yard. Disagreements over how to deal with the animals lead to an escalating series of events."

There's not too much to say about this project yet besides the fact that I'm so intrigued to see Banks and McAvoy together onscreen. I never would have thought of pairing up these two, but now that I think about it, this seems like it could be really funny (and McAvoy is always very easy to watch, of course). Who else would you want to see teamed up with James McAvoy? Do you think he and Banks will do well together?

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What to Netflix: New DVD Tuesday

BuzzSugar — Tue, 28 Apr 2009 07:30:17 -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 catch Jean-Claude Van Damme in JCVD on DVD.

Nothing But the Truth
I didn't get to see this in the theaters, so I'm curious to check out this political thriller starring Kate Beckinsale, Matt Dillon, Angela Bassett, Vera Farmiga, David Schwimmer, and Alan Alda.

The movie's plot is described as "ripped from the headlines" and centers on a journalist (Beckinsale) who outs an acquaintance of hers as a CIA agent. Things get interesting when the government's prosecutor (Dillon) sends the journalist to jail for contempt. The movie was written and directed by Rod Lurie, the guy behind one of my favorite political movies, The Contender.

Special features include commentary from the director, deleted scenes, and a making-of featurette.

76%

Read about three more movies out this week when you read more.

Bride Wars
Hey, speaking of wedding tips we can learn from movies: Don't . . . destroy a life long friendship over a conflict in wedding scheduling! Which is to say, Bride Wars is out on DVD.

The movie stars Anne Hathaway and Kate Hudson as best friends who spend their lives dreaming of weddings together, and part of that dream is getting married at the Plaza Hotel. After both women get engaged, though, things get nasty when the Plaza books both their weddings on the same day. Instead of graciously working it out as two intelligent, grown women might do, the brides-to-be turn against each other, with each trying to sabotage the other's wedding. Needless to say, their friendship suffers.

Special features include three deleted scenes, including an alternate opening, and a featurette titled - wait for it - "The Perfect White Dress."

12%

What Doesn't Kill You
Here's another movie I am excited to bring home to watch. Netflix has a good description of the plot: "Partners in crime Paulie (Ethan Hawke) and Brian (Mark Ruffalo) find themselves at odds after years of pulling dangerous jobs, surviving turf wars and evading a determined detective (Donnie Wahlberg) in this gritty crime drama set in South Boston. The childhood buddies have gone through the wringer together, but when Brian's relationship with his wife (Amanda Peet) begins to fall apart, their loyal friendship is tested."

The New York Times called it a "a no-nonsense, few-frills crime drama about two losers hustling their way into an early grave" that "says a little something about what it means to look at the American dream from the bottom up." Sounds awesome.

Special features include commentary with writer/director Brian Goodman and writer Donnie Wahlberg; deleted and alternate scenes; and "Makes You Stronger: The Making Of What Doesn't Kill You."

68%

The Uninvited
Elizabeth Banks had a good year in '08 and has been popping up in movies left and right well into '09. The Uninvited was one of them, and it looks pretty darn scary.

Netflix's description of this remake of a Korean film is super-creepy: "Committed to a mental hospital after her mother's tragic death, teenager Anna (Emily Browning) discovers upon her release that her father (David Strathairn) plans to marry his deceased wife's former nurse, Rachael (Elizabeth Banks), a woman who may not have the best intentions. Foreboding warnings from her mother's ghost only cement Anna's suspicions." Yikes! I'm such a wimp about scary movies that I will definitely be recruiting people to watch this with me.

Special features include a behind-the-scenes featurette called "Unlocking the Uninvited," deleted scenes, and an alternate ending.

33%

Buzz News Roundup, 4/24

BuzzSugar — Fri, 24 Apr 2009 13:30:47 -0700

Fox Searchlight is bringing Langston Hughes's gospel musical Black Nativity to the big screen, with Kasi Lemmons writing and directing. - Variety
Joseph Gordon-Levitt is coming on board Christopher Nolan's Inception, taking a role originally intended for James Franco. - The Hollywood Reporter
USA has picked up the series White Collar, starring Matthew Bomer from Chuck and Traveler. - Zap2it
Cameron Diaz is in final negotiations to topline Warner Bros.' legal comedy Bobbie Sue. - ComingSoon
Gossip Girl's Leighton Meester has signed a record deal with Universal Republic. - Billboard
Elizabeth Banks will star in the workplace comedy Forever 21. - Variety
The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles will return to movie theaters for a third live-action film, this time focusing on the heroes' origin stories. - Zap2It
NBC says future seasons of Heroes will be shorter. - TV.com
Robert De Niro and Edward Norton will star in director John Curran's movie Stone. - ComingSoon

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Buzz News Roundup, 4/17

BuzzSugar — Fri, 17 Apr 2009 13:30:45 -0700

Elizabeth Banks and Leslie Mann will topline What Was I Thinking, a comedy that follows four female friends who take a hedonistic ski trip after one of the women gets dumped. - Zap2It
YouTube has a new special section for TV episodes and movies. - LA Times
Fox Searchlight has acquired screen rights to Jen Sacks's darkly humorous book Nice, which will be developed as a potential star vehicle for Reese Witherspoon. - Variety
Melanie Griffith will play Kimber's mom on Nip/Tuck. - TV Guide
Jennifer Jason Leigh will play Nancy's estranged sister on Weeds. - The Hollywood Reporter
Not surprisingly, The Amazing Race has been renewed. - TV.com
Thomas Dekker is reportedly in final negotiations to play the role of Jesse in director Samuel Bayer's A Nightmare on Elm Street. - ComingSoon
Fantasia Barrino and DJ AM both landed reality TV series. - The Hollywood Reporter
The Golden Girls will be remade - in Turkey! - Variety

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Box Office: Audiences Taken With Taken

BuzzSugar — Mon, 02 Feb 2009 07:00:40 -0800

Liam Neeson's thriller Taken scored the top spot at the box office this weekend, which according to Variety, proves that "male-driven pics can open successfully on Super Bowl weekend." Last year Miley Cyrus brought her magic to the big screen over Super Bowl weekend and broke records.

Meanwhile, Paul Blart: Mall Cop continues to do well and dropped to the No. 2 spot after two weeks in first place. People love this movie! Elizabeth Banks's horror flick, The Uninvited, came in No. 3 followed by Hotel for Dogs and Gran Torino.

Finally, New in Town, the romantic comedy starring Renee Zellweger and Harry Connick Jr. had a disappointing (though not unexpected) debut at No. 8, only earning an estimated $6.8 million.

Photo courtesy of Twentieth Century Fox

A Good Year For Elizabeth Banks

BuzzSugar — Tue, 30 Dec 2008 14:00:39 -0800

Among all the great entertainment in 2008, a few people clearly stood out, including the beautiful and funny Elizabeth Banks. Why was this year good for Elizabeth Banks? Because she was everywhere.

The woman was in six - count 'em, six! - movies that were released this year. Some were ridiculous and silly (Meet Dave with Eddie Murphy, Meet Bill with Aaron Eckhart, Role Models with Paul Rudd) while one was ridiculous and raunchy (Zack and Miri Make a Porno alongside Seth Rogen). She got to be in the sweet movie Definitely, Maybe with Ryan Reynolds, and she did a serious Laura Bush impersonation, with Josh Brolin as her George, in Oliver Stone's W. And in just a few weeks we'll see her play a freaky stepmother in the scary movie The Uninvited.

She's got range and beauty and crazy comedic skills, and I wish every year could bring us this much Elizabeth Banks.

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Role Models: Setting a Good Example For Comedic Movies

BuzzSugar — Fri, 07 Nov 2008 06:30:35 -0800

For the second time in recent history, I left an R-rated comedy feeling really happy. First Kevin Smith's crass, dirty film about low-budget porn turns out to be rather sweet, and now Role Models. Though full of crude language and nasty jokes, the movie is really a twisted sort of coming-of-age story - for the adult characters more than the kids - that's ultimately heartwarming.

Danny (Paul Rudd) and Wheeler (Seann William Scott) are two energy drink reps who have been with the company for several years now. Danny has grown frustrated with what he sees as a dead-end career, while Wheeler is something of a frat-boyish slacker who rather enjoys his low-commitment lifestyle. One day, however, Danny's aggravation overwhelms him and he and Wheeler end up getting in trouble with the law. They choose to put in 150 hours of service at a mentoring program rather than go to jail, and they meet their charges: Augie (Christopher Mintz-Plasse) and Ronnie (Bobb'e J. Thompson). For more of the story and my thoughts on it all, read more.

Paul Rudd and Seann William Scott make a great, well-cast team, but my favorite actor in the whole thing is Jane Lynch, who plays the ex-convict director of the mentoring program. She keeps a watchful (if not slightly twitchy) eye on the two men as they attempt to bond with Augie and Ronnie. These relationships are rocky at first (since the big joke here is that these two schlubs are allowed to be role models at all), but in the end, everyone learns a little something about himself.

I have paid attention to director David Wain's career ever since he was a member of MTV's awesome/bizarre sketch show The State, and though I love Wain's Wet Hot American Summer, I understand that it's something of an acquired taste. When his movie The Ten came out last year, though, I was disappointed. Now it seems Wain has struck a good balance: Taking a simple story (two guys who join a mentoring program and struggle to connect with their charges) and infusing it with his weird, sometimes awkward, sometimes crass sense of humor. This way, we're not overloading on the cheesy, mundane stuff of the ordinary mainstream comedy, but it's also not just one long string of bizarre jokes.

The message (if one is wont to look for such things), too, is particularly accessible to the 20- and 30-somethings of America. Danny experiences a specific kind of ennui, a sense of despair at not knowing what makes life meaningful. This idea that the key to happiness is community and helping others can been found in countless movies, but here it's coming all wrapped up in sarcasm and sex jokes and the cute, droll Paul Rudd. But then, of course, as soon as we realize that there might be a goopy central theme to all this, someone punches someone else in the crotch and we're back to just having a good time. It's both funny and satisfying.

Photos courtesy of Universal Pictures

Zack and Miri Make a Porno: Shockingly. . . Sweet

BuzzSugar — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 08:15:08 -0700

Don't get me wrong: Zack and Miri Make a Porno is extremely disgusting at times. But I expected that. I didn't expect it to be quite so sweet or touching (in the emotional way, gutter mind). I'm a huge Kevin Smith fan (as you may have noticed from my Comic-Con coverage of him), and this latest product of his dirty, dirty mind does not disappoint. It's one part sex jokes, one part sweetness and eight parts F-bombs. It's certainly not for everyone and it's not going to go down in history as a cinematic tour de force, but it is hilarious and raunchy and oddly sweet.

Zack (Seth Rogen) and Miri (Elizabeth Banks) have been best friends since childhood, and now they room together in a Pittsburgh apartment. They're not the most ambitious pair, and when they run out of money, they need to come up with some fast cash in order to pay the rent and bills. Thus, they decide to make a porno. Their friend Delaney (Craig Robinson, just as funny as he is on The Office) helps with casting, and soon four more (including real-life ladies from the world of adult entertainment, Traci Lords and Katie Morgan) join the project and the group is on its way to making a pornographic movie. But things get a little complicated (see? I could have used the word "sticky," but I didn't because that would have been gross) when these two just-friends decide to have sex together on camera. The main joke seems to be that pesky things like emotions and love get in the way of great, entertaining porn. For more on why I so enjoyed this movie, read more.

As I said, I like Kevin Smith's stuff in general, but this movie is on a different level, due in large part to the outrageously endearing lead duo. And here is an example of a male-female, lifelong friendship that honestly rings true, as opposed to other attempts like, say, the absurd relationship at the heart of Made of Honor. Seth Rogen seems like a guy you might legitimately be friends with, and it's so easy to relate to the funny and kinda weird Elizabeth Banks. They're just so dang lovable! So it stands to reason that in the movie, they would love each other.

Smith gives a lot of credit to Judd Apatow for having paved the road for mainstream acceptance of this style of comedic movies, films that theoretically could be called romantic comedies, but with humor so raunchy you gag a little sometimes. And it's true: With the success of comedies like 40-Year-Old Virgin and Knocked Up, audiences have been exposed (har-dee-har) to this kind of humor in an appealing way and with likable actors like Steve Carell and Seth Rogen. But I actually think Smith is even better at this than Apatow is. His stories are set in places like New Jersey and Pittsburgh, for Pete's sake. There's just something beautifully unkempt and down-to-earth about these characters, and this somehow makes the funny funnier, the dirty dirtier, and the sweetness that much sweeter.

Photos courtesy of The Weinstein Company

Watch, Pass, TiVo or Rent: Zack and Miri Make a Porno

BuzzSugar — Thu, 30 Oct 2008 05:30:25 -0700

Kevin Smith's upcoming movie Zack and Miri Make a Porno has seen its fair share of controversy. First, Smith had to fight for an R-rating instead of NC-17, and then the movie poster was changed to stick figures after the original one was deemed too racy.

But all this controversy is probably a good thing for this comedy starring Seth Rogan and Elizabeth Banks as friends who try their hand at adult filmmaking when money gets tight.

From what I've seen of the previews, it looks pretty funny. But it will also be crass and likely cringe-inducing and I know Smith's shtick isn't for everyone. So I'm curious if you'll head to theaters over the weekend to see this with a live audience or do you prefer for these kinds of comedies to come out on DVD and watch with friends? Or maybe you have no desire to see Seth Rogen make a porno at all?

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