Archive: July 2010 (191-200 of 583)

Jul 22 2010 01:00 PM ET

Could Kristin Cavallari make it as a serious actress?

Categories: Career 911, The Hills

Kristin-CavallariImage Credit: Bob Charlotte/PR PhotosA few days ago, Kristin Cavallari reportedly told OK! that she’d like to take a crack at serious acting. “I am starting to work with an acting coach again and I would love to work with Charlize Theron, Angelina Jolie, Cameron Diaz, and Sean Penn,” she said at the premiere of Salt, which she was invited to because…umm…. Nope. No idea.

Now, before you punch a hole right through your monitor (They’re expensive! You’re at work!), let’s give this a couple seconds of actual, dignified consideration.

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Jul 22 2010 12:35 PM ET

Lunchtime Poll: What's so controversial about gay zombie porn?

gay-zombieAmericans are taught from an early age that Canadians are boringly nice Celine Dion fans and Australians are liberated hippie mer-people. Kids, the stereotypes are false! According to Reuters, the Australian Film Classification Board has banned the Canadian film L.A. Zombie from the Melbourne International Film Festival for the simple crime of featuring, quote, “alien zombies scouring Los Angeles for dead bodies and gay sex.” Prudes!

The film’s director, Bruce LaBruce, defends L.A. Zombie as “a movie that reaffirms life.” And how! According to the press kit available at the L.A. Zombie website, the film follows a blue-skinned alien zombie creature who wanders around Los Angeles, finding corpses from across the socioeconomic spectrum: “a white collar criminal, a gangbanger, a homeless junkie, a group of drug-addicted porn stars.” He resurrects all the dead men by – I’m sensing this is where the Aussies’ brains exploded – having sex with them. Of course, this might all just be the schizophrenic delusions of a buff homeless man. Also, L.A. Zombie will be released as both a softcore independent film and a hardcore porno.

What’s so weird about that? (See the NSFW trailer here.)

Jul 22 2010 12:33 PM ET

Comic-Con: EW's Visionaries Panel with J.J. Abrams and Joss Whedon

abrams-whedonImage Credit: Andrew H. Walker/Getty Images; Albert L. Ortega/PR PhotosOver the 20 years that Entertainment Weekly has been covering movies, television, music, books, comic books, digital entertainment and more, Joss Whedon and J.J. Abrams have produced some of the best, most-beloved, and certainly most-obsessed-about stories that pop culture has given us in any medium. Buffy The Vampire Slayer, Angel, Firefly, Dollhouse, Dr. Horrible’s Sing-Along-Blog –  and that’s just Joss. (And that’s not even including a few other things, like that Oscar nomination he earned for co-writing Toy Story.) The J.J. resume? Felicity, Alias, Lost, Fringe, Cloverfield, Mission: Impossible 3, and Star Trek. (And that’s not counting his screenplays for Regarding Henry and Forever Young.) They are producers, directors, writers, musicians, even actors — remarkable well-rounded artists — but they are also known for being fans who retain a strong link to the stories that fired their imaginations when they were kids.

With the annual summit meeting of wild pop culture fandom (aka Comic-Con) upon us this weekend, we at EW thought it would be kinda cool if we brought Abrams and Whedon together for an hour to talk about the past, present, and future of their creative lives. They agreed, and the whole thing is going down this afternoon at 3:30 p.m. PT, in a room that can hold a few thousand of their most admiring fans at the San Diego Convention Center. Wish you could be there? No worries: We’ll try our best to bring as much of the experience to you via posts and video over the next day or so here at EW.com.

There’s a lot I want to ask J.J. and Joss. READ FULL STORY »

Jul 22 2010 11:59 AM ET

Scandal dents Tiger Woods' wallet, not his popularity

If you ever doubted the cynical maxim that there’s no such thing as bad publicity, look no further than the new Harris Interactive survey that asked Americans, “Who is your favorite sports star?” For the fifth straight year, Tiger Woods ranked No. 1 (tied with NBA star Kobe Bryant). This, despite the ugly sex scandal that sullied the golfer’s previously bulletproof image, cost him $22 million in lost endorsements, and led to the breakup of his marriage. Though he hasn’t won a tournament since last November, he’s still the No. 1 ranked golfer in the world, and America clearly loves a winner. Ask Bryant, who just claimed his fifth NBA title as a member of the Los Angeles Lakers. His popularity seems fully recovered from the 2003 sexual assault allegations that resulted in an out-of-court settlement. These popularity findings can only be good news for Lebron James, who fell to  sixth in the Harris poll. Though he’s recently been vilified for the way that he abandoned the city of Cleveland, he can take comfort in the knowledge that people will forgive (or forget)…as long as he wins.

Jul 22 2010 11:55 AM ET

'America's Got Talent': The suspense is killing us

agt-michael-grimmLast night Sharon Osbourne revealed that her husband Ozzy thinks soulful crooner Michael Grimm has what it takes to go all the way (looks like using an Ozzy song didn’t get you that many brownie points, Antonio Restivo…or did it? Stay tuned.). Well Ozzy (and America) knows best, as Michael Grimm advanced to the semifinals, along with Alice Tan Ridley and Ascen Dance. Singers Grimm and Ridley have been favorites throughout the competition, and Ascen Dance’s unique routine could make an interesting Vegas show. Of course we were told four acts would move on last night, so in a moment of conjured suspense (did they time Nick Cannon to see how slowly he could speak when he auditioned for this job?) the final three contenders (Antonio Restivo, Hannibal Means, and Wreckless) were called to the stage. Hannibal Means had the least amount of votes between the three, which prompted his immediate exit (so…what was the point of bringing him on stage? This could really be half-hour results show.), leaving the judges to decide the fates of the fiery magician and the theatrical dance crew. And…they…chose…Antonio Restivo!? He’s hardly my favorite, but his happy tears and comments about his late father may just have won me over. (Everyone loves a good cry!).

Oh yeah, Train performed “Hey Soul Sister,” you know that song (hey-ey, he-ey-ey-ey-ey) you’re hearing everywhere this summer. Who knew Howie Mandel had time to be in a band!

Did America (and the judges) get it right, PopWatchers? Are you upset that Wreckless didn’t make the cut? What do you think of the 8 semifinalists?

Jul 22 2010 11:52 AM ET

'Buried' trailer: Ryan Reynolds' predicament becoming less creepy?

Categories: Movie Trailers, Movies

The makers of Buried are in a jam: They either keep showing us footage of Ryan Reynolds trapped in a coffin, or they get creative, and show us still shots of Ryan Reynolds in a coffin with some fancy moving graphics and music. The voiceover is still chilling, but somehow, seeing the images tinted in red, blue, green, and yellow put distance between us and Reynolds. It doesn’t feel as real. Now it’s clearly make-believe. (Yet, admittedly, that’s not going to stop us from seeing it.) What do you think? READ FULL STORY »

Jul 22 2010 10:58 AM ET

Shirley Sherrod may not give us the happy ending we expect. Can you blame her?

This morning, Shirley Sherrod, the Georgia-based official with the U.S. Department of Agriculture who was asked to resign after a conservative activist misrepresented remarks she made about her initial hesitance to help a white farmer save his land to make her look racist, sat down with Today‘s Meredith Vieira. At the end of the interview, Sherrod was asked if she would accept the new position Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack is offering her — a place in the USDA’s Office of Outreach to focus on combating discrimination in the agency against black, Hispanic, Native American and female farmers. Sherrod said she would weigh the offer once she saw it in writing, but was inclined to decline. “I would not want to be that individual that the department and everyone is looking to to solve the issue of racism in the USDA,” she said. “It takes a lot more to get that job done.”

I don’t think that’s the answer we expected. READ FULL STORY »

Jul 22 2010 10:00 AM ET

PopWatch Confessional: What's the most embarassing show on your DVR?

kristen-hillsMy cousin visited me a few weekends ago, and we spent the better (and more hot and humid) part of the day, watching TV and basking in the glory of air-conditioning. But when the mini-marathon of Bethenny Getting Married? ended, and we couldn’t handle True Life or The Fabulous Life of…, I turned to my DVR to see what else we could plow through. Enter: The Hills.

My cousin was busy on her Blackberry, so I thought it would go unnoticed that I hit the play button and didn’t just change the channel. But then she asked, “Is this on your DVR?”

Foiled! And, I might add, slightly embarrassed. But yes, I’ll admit it: Among society’s acceptable TV fare of Mad Men, Modern Family, and Parks and Recreation, I also DVR The Hills (that is, when it was still on), The City, and, when it’s on, Keeping Up With the Kardashians. I happen to have liked mulling over the inexplicably interesting relationship between Justin Bobby and Audrina on The Hills. I like to stare at Olivia Palermo’s fake smile on The City. And the Kardashians? Well, I’m not sure what the draw is, but I’m fascinated nonetheless.

I polled some other brave PopWatchers, who shared with me their potentially embarrassing DVR list: READ FULL STORY »

Jul 22 2010 09:21 AM ET

Bill Murray goes dumpster diving on 'Letterman'

Ever gotten so hot and sticky in the summer that you wanted to fill a dumpster with cold water and just dive in? Yeah? You and Bill Murray both, pal! (Note to self: Find ways to use that retort more often.)

The comedian, who’s plugging his new movie Get Low (out next Friday) made a memorable entrance on Letterman last night when he took a dip in a trash dumpster-cum-swimming pool. Before you ask, yes, these things really do exist, at least in NYC. Watch the clip below.
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Jul 22 2010 09:00 AM ET

This week's cover: Leonardo Di Caprio and the secrets of 'Inception'

EW-COVER-1113You’ve seen the commercials filled with surreal, phantasmagorical imagery. You’ve read the reviews full of effusive praise or total confusion. Heck, maybe you’ve even bought a ticket for Inception (the movie, released only last week, is on the verge of grossing $100 million) and have your own opinion about this mind-bending puzzle box about thieves who infiltrate the heads of the rich and powerful and steal precious ideas (or plant new ones) by creating elaborately manipulative dreams.

But if you think that merely pondering the movie requires some serious brain gymnastics, just consider what it was like to star in it. Leonardo DiCaprio explains that shooting the film was both a mental and physical challenge. Nolan, a stickler for naturalism, insisted that his actors and crew bring his vision to life without the use of computer-generated effects as much as possible, from making Joseph Gordon-Levitt perform zero gravity fisticuffs inside elaborate, rotating sets to asking the cast to feign peaceful slumber inside a van during a high-speed chase. “Actually,” says DiCaprio, “the van sequences were much easier than doing five pages of dialogue and the whole set is tilting and we have to hold onto a bar in order to not slide off the stage.”

For more on Inception, pick up the new issue of Entertainment Weekly, on stands July 23rd.

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