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What to Netflix: New DVD Tuesday

BuzzSugar — Tue, 04 Aug 2009 08:30:55 -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.

Flight of the Conchords: Season Two
If ever there was a DVD set to bring home and enjoy over and over again it's one for Flight of the Conchords! This show is a neverending source of joy because Jemaine Clement and Bret McKenzie are so very funny. Plus the songs are actually quite catchy.

In the second season of their HBO show, the two guys continue to struggle to make it in the music industry and meet the ladies of Manhattan. Some of the DVD extras include outtakes, deleted scenes, and Dave's Pawn Shop commercials.

Two more up next so read more.

The Soloist
The Soloist is an ambitious little film from Atonement director Joe Wright all about the relationship between a journalist and a homeless, mentally ill man who also happens to be a gifted Julliard-trained musician. The visually slick movie stars heavyweight actors Robert Downey Jr. and Jamie Foxx in the lead roles. Wright tries to pack a ton of stuff into one movie, so watching this one is a substantial - but worthwhile - undertaking.

Special features include audio commentary by Wright, deleted scenes, a making-of featurette, a featurette about homelessness in Los Angeles, and a peek at the real-life men who inspired this remarkable story.

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Obsessed
Interestingly, Obsessed and The Soloist opened over the same weekend. Obsessed was No. 1 at the box office while The Soloist was No. 4.

Though I find the whole catfight thing to be a little tired, I have to admit that the trailers for Obsessed made me chuckle. In one preview, Ali Larter's character is brutally attacking Beyonce's character and Beyonce's husband calls to ask if she's OK. Beyonce responds with something like, "I got this" and hangs up. Ha! It might be worth renting for the camp factor alone.

Here's the plot: "Derek Charles (Idris Elba) seems to have it all - including the perfect job and the perfect wife (Beyonce Knowles). But his charmed life takes on an ugly tarnish when sexy office worker Lisa Sheridan (Ali Larter) sets out to seduce and destroy him. Now, it's much more than a dangerous liaison; it's a full-blown occupational hazard. Christine Lahti and Jerry O'Connell co-star in this Fatal Attraction-style thriller from director Steve Shill."

The DVD extras seem just as entertaining as the movie and include three behind-the-scenes featurettes: "Girl Fight!" (about the stunt coordination and the actresses' thoughts on "the fun of getting to fight each other!"), "Playing Together Nicely" (about the writing of the script and the casting process), and "Dressed to Kill" (featuring costume designer Maya Lieberman).

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A&E's Obsessed Looks at Hair-Pulling OCD

TresSugar — Fri, 26 Jun 2009 13:00:00 -0700

A friend of mine confessed not long ago that, in high school, she had trichotillomania, an obsessive compulsion to pull out hair on your head or body in order to manage anxiety. In her case, it was a small patch of hair on her head underneath her long hair where she hoped no one could see the bald patch she was creating.

This week, A&E's Obsessed follows Todd and his extreme trichotillomania. In addition to this problem, which gets in the way of his relationship with his wife and daughter, he's got a host of other issues: possible bipolar disorder and compulsive rituals involving counting, talking in segments, and writing on the walls of his "den" before he can even leave the house. Although he wants help, his case is so extreme that his cognitive-behavioral therapist ends up recommending that he go to a psychiatrist.

A&E's Obsessed Explores Extreme Hoarding

TresSugar — Wed, 17 Jun 2009 10:35:00 -0700

Do you have a slight problem with being messy? This week's A&E’s Obsessed, in its exploration of the obsessive compulsive disorder extreme hoarding, will have you cleaning up your apartment or desk and feeling for poor Russ, who can't stop buying things and also can't bear to throw anything away. "I get attached to things," he says, "because I don't have people to care about."

As a result, Russ's apartment is packed to the gills with furniture, mattresses, antiques, and tchotchkes that literally keep him from getting past his front door. In fact, he admits he's slept in front of it before because he couldn't get past his junk. He sometimes even sleeps outside, where he says there's at least fresh air and no feeling of claustrophobia. To find about Russ and extreme hoarding, read more

Why would someone accumulate so much stuff that his home becomes uninhabitable and unfit for guests? According to Russ's cognitive behavioral therapist, a hoarder cannot distinguish the level of an object's importance with respect to other objects. Everything is important, everything imbued with sentimental value, everything may be something the hoarder will need in the future.

In Russ's case, losing his mother was the trigger for his hoarding. "When I touch or hold a keepsake," he says, "it's like being held nearby her." But we're not just talking about photos of his mother or things she owned. Russ struggles with his therapist to throw away a dime store Santa figurine because it's wearing a purple scarf - his mother's favorite color.

Lucky for Russ, he has a great therapist and the true desire to let go of these objects and their relation to his losses so that he can clear the way for a new life.

Obsessive Compulsive Disorder Examined on A&E's Obsessed

TresSugar — Fri, 12 Jun 2009 09:48:12 -0700

Trina is afraid she’ll murder someone. Nidia has a phobia about her bowel movements. Rick can’t stop compulsively exercising, adding up the numbers on license plates, or turning clockwise at regular intervals. He wants to stay healthy forever and ward off old age.

Like 3.3 million other Americans, they have obsessive compulsive disorder. A&E’s series Obsessed follows them as they work with cognitive behavioral therapists who try to get them to examine the thinking behind their obsessions so that they can replace those beliefs - and the compulsive acts performed on their behalf - with healthier ones. To find out more about OCD and to watch a clip from Obsessed, read more

Obsessive-compulsive disorder is one of those psychological disorders with an (almost) self-explanatory name. A person with OCD suffers from extreme anxiety based on a phobia about something - germs, a messy room, worry they’ll harm someone. The sufferer, as a result, feels compelled to do something time-consuming and often physically punishing to ward off the fear.

In the case of Nidia in the video here, she had such a fear of her bowel movements that she would shower up to three hours after going to the bathroom, using enemas and toothbrushes with such force that she had to have two blood transfusions from cleaning herself too vigorously. By the end of her CBT treatment, she began to see improvement. Rick, however, did not, making a statement that lends some insight into the disorder: “I have mixed feelings about giving up my compulsions because then I’ll be forced to analyze my compulsions and that person may suck."

Source

Box Office: Angels and Demons Is No. 1

BuzzSugar — Mon, 18 May 2009 07:15:54 -0700

The film adaptation of Dan Brown's bestselling novel, Angels and Demons starring Tom Hanks, is a global sensation after earning an estimated $104.3 million at the international box office over the weekend.

Here in the US the holy thriller swiped the top spot from Star Trek, which still performed strongly, coming in at No. 2 with an estimated $43 million domestically. According to Variety, positive word-of-mouth thanks to stellar reviews is probably the reason Star Trek continues to be quite the box office powerhouse.

X-Men Origins: Wolverine, Ghosts of Girlfriends Past, and Obsessed rounded out the rest of the box office top five coming in third, fourth, and fifth respectively.

Photo courtesy of Sony Pictures

Box Office: Trek Hits No. 1 at Warp Speed

BuzzSugar — Mon, 11 May 2009 06:30:33 -0700

J.J. Abrams' reboot of Star Trek was a smash success this weekend with an estimated $76.5 million (including $4 million Thursday night), taking the top spot at the box office (though not surpassing X-Men Origins: Wolverine's opening weekend take of $85 million, as so many of you thought it would). This was "the biggest Trek opening yet, soaring past the previous high of Star Trek: First Contact, which started at $30.7 million or the equivalent of over $50 million adjusted for ticket price inflation."

Meanwhile Wolverine "wilted to an X-Men franchise low" in the wake of Star Trek, coming in at No. 2 with an estimated $27 million. Ghosts of Girlfriends Past took the third spot, followed by Obsessed and 17 Again in fourth and fifth place.

Sounds like good word of mouth quickly spread about Star Trek. Were you swayed by the stellar (ha, ha) reviews? Did you head out to see it?

Photos courtesy of Paramount Pictures

Box Office: Wolverine Slashes the Competition

BuzzSugar — Mon, 04 May 2009 09:24:17 -0700

Summer movie season has officially arrived, folks, and it looks like American audiences were ready for it. Hugh Jackman's X-Men Origins: Wolverine easily took the No. 1 spot over the weekend and grossed an estimated $87 million. This is good news for X-Men fans because the success of Wolverine is a "key victory for Fox, Marvel Entertainment and star Hugh Jackman, since it likely keeps the franchise alive." Woohoo!

Ghosts of Girlfriends Past also did solid business over the weekend and came in second place with an estimated $15.3 million. The top five was rounded out by Obsessed, 17 Again, and Monsters vs. Aliens in third, fourth, and fifth place respectively.

Were you one of the millions who saw Wolverine? Do you agree with the reviews?

Photo courtesy of Warner Bros.

Will You See or Skip These May Movies?

PopSugarUK — Sun, 03 May 2009 23:00:00 -0700

May sees the release of several big films on the big screens of the UK. From romantic comedies and dramas to action, sci-fi, 3D concerts and tween favourites, check out the cinema releases of the month and let me know whether you plan to see or skip each film.

Source

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Beyonce's Box Office Surprise

BuzzSugar — Mon, 27 Apr 2009 08:15:34 -0700

The Beyonce Knowles thriller Obsessed topped the box office over the weekend earning an estimated $28.5 million-kind of amazing given the critical reaction wasn't pretty. Zac Efron's 17 Again came in at No. 2 followed by Fighting, another movie that debuted much better than expected.

The Soloist, starring Robert Downey Jr. and Jamie Foxx had a somewhat disappointing debut at No. 4. and earned about $9.7 million. According to Variety, "box office observers had expected Soloist to debut in the $10 million-$12 million range. They say the pic could have been dinged by so-so reviews." Interestingly, Disney's Earth rounded out the top five, earning an estimated $8.6 million.

Photo courtesy of Sony Pictures

Beyonce Gets Obsessed and Looks Toward Broadway

PopSugar — Fri, 24 Apr 2009 10:00:00 -0700

Beyonce Knowles showed off her legs in an LBD with a transforming train at her Obsessed premiere in NYC last night. Her costar Ali Larter smiled brightly in white, and Kim Kardashian looked tanned after her bikini vacation in Mexico. Jay-Z slipped in to join his wife for the screening and afterparty. Beyonce's schedule is full right now with her new film and her tour kicking off in Croatia this weekend, but she already has her eye on the future. She recently revealed she's interested in Broadway, saying:

"I'll be able to go to the theater every day and drop my kids off and maybe make some food - maybe I'll know how to cook by then - and then go do what I love and have some normalcy and have a regular schedule. I definitely want to do Broadway."

Sounds like Beyonce is not only thinking of her career but her future family with Jay-Z, though it doesn't sound like she's ready to stay in one place for too long just yet.

To see lots more photos including Jay-Z, Jerry O'Connell and many othersn just read more.

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Images include: Beyonce, Ali Larter, Patricia Field, Jerry O'Connell, Kim Kardashian, Christian Siriano, Tina Knowles, Russell Simmons, Olivia Palermo, Jay-Z, Coco Rocha

Source and INFDaily.com