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What to Netflix: New DVD Tuesday

BuzzSugar — Tue, 15 Jul 2008 07:30:29 -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 the titles below you can also rent the complete fifth season of Reno 911 as well as the Raven-Symoné comedy (and that's being generous) College Road Trip.

The Bank Job
I wouldn't be surprised if you missed The Bank Job while it was in theaters because it may have been written off as yet another bank heist flick. Now that it's out on DVD I think it deserves your rental/Netflix queue consideration.

Like I said before, it's an entertaining movie that is supposedly based on a true story. It centers around a group of crooks led by Terry Leather (Jason Statham ), who catches wind of a vulnerable vault of safe-deposit boxes. Little does Terry know, however, that the heist will end up having much farther-reaching implications involving several parties with a keen interest in this particular vault. It's not rocket science, sure, but it is a whole lot of fun and smartly directed. I highly recommend you check it out for yourself.

Special features include commentary with director Roger Donaldson, actress Saffron Burrows and composer J. Peter Robinson, and an "Inside The Bank Job" featurette.

Two more fun picks, so read more.

Meet Bill
Even though I didn't hear much buzz surrounding Meet Bill originally, I still hoped to see it. But time flies when you're watching everything else, and here it is, already out on DVD. It's possible that we didn't hear much about it for good reason, though I still want to give it a shot because I really like Aaron Eckhart, not to mention Elizabeth Banks.

Netflix sums up the plot as such: "Beleaguered bank employee Bill (Aaron Eckhart) has his hands full with his wife's (Elizabeth Banks) infidelity with a local television reporter (Timothy Olyphant), his oblivious father-in-law (Holmes Osborne) who runs the bank, and his own frustrated attempts to change careers in this screwball comedy. But when he's persuaded to mentor a teenager known as the Kid (Logan Lerman), things just might turn around for Bill."

Penelope
Me? I wasn't in love with Penelope but that isn't to say it doesn't have its charms and depending on the mood your in, could be just the anecdote to all these summertime superhero blockbusters.

The move stars James McAvoy, Reese Witherspoon, and Christina Ricci and tells the fanciful story of a girl cursed with a pig nose. In order to break the curse she must find "one of her own" (i.e. a "blue blood") to love her just as she is and marry her. What follows is a fanciful story that is visually lovely and sometimes touching.

Special features include "The Making of Modern-Day tale" as well as a Twilight sneak peek.

Box Office: Semi-Pro Semi-Beats Out Competition

BuzzSugar — Mon, 03 Mar 2008 08:30:00 -0800

Despite earning the top spot at the box office, the predictable laughs in Will Ferrell's Semi-Pro only earned $15.3 million over the weekend. This is considered a disappointing sum, especially compared to opening weekends of other Ferrell films like Talladega Nights and Blades of Glory. Variety reports that this underwhelming performance by the basketball comedy may have been due to mediocre reviews and an R-rating.

Vantage Point was only bumped down one spot to No. 2 over the weekend followed by The Spiderwick Chronicles at No. 3. The adaptation of Buzz Book Club's February selection The Other Boleyn Girl took the fourth spot earning an estimated $8.3 million. Penelope starring Reese Witherspoon and Christina Ricci also opened this weekend coming in at No. 8 behind Jumper, Step Up 2 The Streets, and Fool's Gold.

Filling out the top ten were Oscar-nominated films No Country for Old Men and Juno.

Photo courtesy of New Line Cinema

Penelope: Fanciful But Not Fantastic

BuzzSugar — Fri, 29 Feb 2008 10:45:03 -0800

There are some intriguing issues buried within the story of Penelope: what it means for a woman to love and accept herself the way she is, the way beauty ideals are - sometimes cruelly - passed down from mother to daughter, society's eagerness to vilify those who are different and then, just as quickly, to embrace them as "cute" upon discovering that they're harmless. These things are touched on, but mostly with a glazing brush, leaving the pretty film with adorable people lacking anything resembling "oomph."

The story follows Penelope Wilhern who, due to a curse put on her wealthy socialite family long ago, was born with a pig nose. In order to break the curse, she must find "one of her own" (i.e. a "blue blood") to love her just as she is and marry her. Only then will the spell break and her nose take on a normal shape. Desperate to break the curse and have a normal daughter, Penelope's mother (Catherine O'Hara) devotes her life to finding Penelope a husband, but the men who meet Penelope keep jumping out the window at the sight of her. Meanwhile, a one-eyed journalist determined to get a photo of "the pig-faced girl" and a selfish blue-blooded young man pay a down-on-his-luck musician (James McAvoy) to try and woo Penelope. For more about the movie than just this plot - some spoilers ahead - read more.

Visually, the fanciful made-up world providing the backdrop for this modern fairy tale is endearing and at times quite lovely. The performances are mostly great - I especially enjoy Reese Witherspoon in her funny, tough girl role as Penelope's friend, a wonderful departure from Witherspoon's bright and sometimes two-dimensional rom-com stuff. James McAvoy is lovable as always, and Catherine O'Hara as Penelope's hysterical mother sometimes steals the show.

My favorite performance comes from Peter Dinklage who plays the desperate journalist. Not only is he a master of deadpan humor, but he's perhaps the only person in the film who goes on any kind of identifiable emotional arc. We're supposed to be on Penelope's journey, but Ricci has a hard time fluctuating the tone of her performance beyond a steady whine. Thus, the few good performances can't make up for Ricci's low-octane delivery and a disappointing cop-out ending.

This tired, predictable ending features Penelope learning to accept herself and being rewarded with what she's always wanted. The message within this is frustrating. Penelope's final, hard-won self-acceptance, once found, is rendered useless and thrown out the window because that's when she becomes "normal." Phew! Now she no longer needs to like being different. Normal is still best. How refreshing.

Bottom line: It's a modern fairy tale that still supports age-old beauty ideals and doesn't really try anything new or interesting.

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Christina Ricci's All About Puppies and Penelope

PopSugarUK — Wed, 27 Feb 2008 06:00:00 -0800

How adorable is Christina Ricci's new puppy, the wonderfully-named Ramon?! The travel buddies, who arrived at JFK Airport in New York yesterday having flown in from LA, matched their coast-to-coast clothes with a preppy feel. Our girl Pet's got the low-down on plaid for pooches and she's also tracked down the cute pet carrier - result!

You can see Christina right now on the big screen, as her film Penelope is showing in cinemas across the country. The modern day fairy tale flick, which also stars James McAvoy and Reese Witherspoon, hasn't wowed the critics, but it could be worth a watch as a few British favourites pop up in cameo roles including comedians Russell Brand, Lenny Henry and Ronni Ancona.

To see loads more pics of Christina and her cute pooch just read more

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Doug Meszler / WENN

Reese, Christina and James' Little Piggy Goes to LA

Molly — Wed, 20 Feb 2008 23:46:28 -0800

Reese Witherspoon, Christina Ricci and James McAvoy brought their quirky little movie, Penelope to LA last night. Reese had on her best businesswoman pants and a big smile on her face posing for the cameras as both a star and producer of the project. Check out how to get her cute look here. Hell, she even stopped mid-red carpet to take a phone call (too funny). Amanda Bynes who is never one to miss a chance to show off those stems these days was around in yet another LBD. While this movie didn't appeal to me right off the bat, it's hard to deny the great trio of Christina-James-Reese. Maybe I'll have to check out that pig snout for myself after all.

To see more from the premiere including Reese, Christina, James, Amanda and others just read more

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Images include: Christina Ricci, James McAvoy, Reese Witherspoon, Amanda Bynes, Sissy Spacek, Catherine O'Hara

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Movie Preview: Penelope

BuzzSugar — Wed, 12 Dec 2007 07:30:00 -0800

Despite the star power of Reese Witherspoon (and James McAvoy for that matter), it seems like Penelope has been extremely reluctant to come out in theaters, though it has made the festival rounds since the fall of 2006. Even the newest trailer recently came online with as little fanfare as possible. Why, you ask? Perhaps because Penelope is an extremely strange-looking little film.

Christina Ricci stars as Penelope, a girl who was born with a pig snout for a nose. After years of being hidden away in her home by her mother (Catherine O'Hara), she is suddenly expected to find a husband, but all the men she meets run screaming from her. All the men except for Max (McAvoy). After she meets Max, she decides to strike out on her own and experience the world as she has never done before. With all the vibrant colors and the whimsical visual tone, the movie has the look and feel of a sort of dark fairy tale.

If nothing else, the trailer features Reese in the role of a badass and James McAvoy with a funny American accent, so to check it out before Penelope opens February 1, read more.

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"That Girl" Moves Into An Apartment

GiggleSugar — Wed, 11 Jul 2007 13:00:00 -0700

I think we've all met "that girl" at some point in our lives. The hair-stroking, always talking, insecure girl who compulsively lies to one-up everyone on everything. You like cartoons? Well, she was born a cartoon. You have a cat? Yeah, she gave birth to hers. SNL calls her Penelope, but I call her plain annoying. So... (Thanks, i am bored!)

Penelope and Javier Strip Down and Hit the Beach in Bali

Molly — Thu, 29 Oct 2009 13:30:00 -0700

Penelope Cruz and Javier Bardem hit the beach together earlier this week in Bali, where he's been filming Eat, Pray, Love with Julia Roberts. Javier showed off his shirtless chest while filming with Julia last weekend, but his real life love Penelope gets to enjoy those abs as well. The duo haven't had anything to say about the rumors that they are engaged, but no matter the relationship status they look happy as ever taking advantage of his exotic movie location.

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Penelope Cruz Embraces a SATC2 Cameo!

PopSugar — Tue, 13 Oct 2009 17:00:00 -0700

Penelope Cruz headed out to her car yesterday afternoon in NYC. She was fresh off a whirlwind weekend of promoting Broken Embraces, including two parties and multiple press events. Even though Penelope rarely talks about Javier, her BFF Pedro Almodovar had his fair share to say - he opened up at their premiere on Sunday by saying that Penelope has "achieved a very handsome, good boyfriend, two Oscar nominations, one Oscar, and the respect and admiration of her profession." Penelope certainly has a lot going for her, and now she apparently can add a fun guest starring gig to the list - according to Life & Style she'll be making a cameo in Sex and the City 2 where she'll be caught flirting with Mr. Big!

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Penelope Finds Embraces All Around NYC

PopSugar — Mon, 12 Oct 2009 15:30:58 -0700

Penelope Cruz had a whirlwind weekend of promoting Broken Embraces in NYC. The Vogue cover girl stepped out in a black leather jacket on Friday and a striped shirt the next afternoon for errand-running, but by Saturday evening Penlope was decked out in a sparkly white gown to be honored at a dinner hosted by Paper magazine. Her late night didn't slow her down yesterday, when she did press in a plaid dress before switching into a gray gown for a premiere with director Pedro Almodovar. Her BFF Salma Hayek brought her husband Francois-Henri Pinault along to pose on the red carpet, though Penelope's own man Javier was off letting her shine in the spotlight solo as engagement rumors continue to circulate.

To see more of Penelope's weekend, just read more.

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Images include: Penelope Cruz, Pedro Almodovar, Salma Hayek, Francois Henri-Pinault, Albert Maysles, Jeremy Scott, David Hershkovits