Archive: April 2011 (191-200 of 473)

Apr 20 2011 12:40 PM ET

'Seinfeld' and 'Bad Boys' for no charge? Sony's Crackle launches as iTunes' No. 1 free entertainment app

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Categories: iPhone/iPad apps, Movies, Tech, Television

The fight for controlling what you watch on your mobile devices just landed a new big contender. Sony Pictures Entertainment’s iPad and iPhone app Crackle launched on Monday as a free download, and it pretty much immediately landed at the top of the iTunes chart, ranking as the top overall free download for the iPad (and No. 3 for the iPhone). It’s not exactly hard to understand why; Netflix, Hulu, Time Warner Cable, and many others have been fighting to win over your eyeballs in the mobile/tablet/gizmo space/realm/dominion; while Crackle’s offerings are limited just to what falls under Sony’s corporate umbrella, that’s not a skimpy buffet: The app features movies like The Da Vinci Code, Pineapple Express, Big Daddy, and Ghostbusters, and TV shows like Seinfeld, Married with Children, and NewsRadio. (You can also watch all of this via Crackle’s website.)

Anyone who remembers the early days of Hulu, however, also knows that Sony hopes those aforementioned crown jewels will help you overlook its otherwise not-quite-as-exciting lineup: READ FULL STORY »

Apr 20 2011 12:15 PM ET

What should Pia Toscano sing on 'Dancing With the Stars' next week?

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Categories: American Idol, Dancing With the Stars, Reality TV, Television
Pia-Toscano-Idol

Image Credit: Ray Mickshaw/Fox

Where is ousted Idol contestant Pia Toscano’s broken heart set to go? Why, as we learned last night, right over to ABC’s studios to perform for next Tuesday’s Dancing With the Stars. Idol rejection doesn’t look so bad on the girl, huh? So, now, the key question is: What should the former Idol contestant sing? READ FULL STORY »

Apr 20 2011 11:07 AM ET

The British ladies pity Kate Middleton. I call BS.

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Categories: British Things
20-20-Kate-Middleton

Image Credit: Alastair Grant/AFP/Getty Images

Books have been written, a Lifetime movie was thrown together, and billions will watch on April 29 as Kate Middleton, a modest British commoner, will walk down the aisle at Westminster Abbey and become a princess. Her life will change in every way, her privacy will evaporate forever, but at the end of the day, she’ll be a princess whose eventual offspring will one day wear the crown! Yet 86 percent of British women wouldn’t swap places with Middleton, according to a British news poll.

And I’m calling bulls—. Nearly nine out of 10 British women wouldn’t swap spots with the future queen of England. Five out of 10? I’d accept that. Even 60 percent wouldn’t draw my ire. But we live in a world now where fame in itself is perceived to be a realistic career ambition, and average people will do just about anything — anything! — to be famous or infamous. READ FULL STORY »

Apr 20 2011 12:23 AM ET

'Portal 2' videogame review: Physics is phunny

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Categories: My Head Hurts, Things That Are Awesome!, Videogames
Portal-2-game

Much will be written about how smartly designed Portal 2 is, and that’s not to be disputed. But what particularly stands out about the game is its nonstop humor. Portal 2 is the most hilarious form of entertainment I’ve encountered so far this year. There’s a delectably British sensibility to the jokes, even though developer Valve Corporation is based in the decidedly non-British city of Bellevue, Wash. For instance, one of my favorite gags is a sign that points to two nearby destinations: the Employee Daycare Center and Neurotoxin Production Center. But let’s not get ahead of ourselves. After all, Portal 2 is, first and foremost, a physics-based puzzle game. READ FULL STORY »

Apr 19 2011 09:59 PM ET

'Dancing With the Stars': Eliminated contestant is...

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Categories: Dancing With the Stars, Reality TV

Update: Annie’s recap is live. Don’t click through if you don’t want to know! After an hour of the usual filler jazz, Toby Keith, Jonathan & Anna (!), and a Macy’s tightrope walk, the contestant twirling off the planks and heading home tonight is….  READ FULL STORY »

Apr 19 2011 09:14 PM ET

'Hunger Games': Why Elizabeth Banks would make the perfect Effie

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Categories: Casting, The Hunger Games
Elizabeth-Banks

Image Credit: George Pimentel/Getty Images

It’s got to be hard work casting a character when fans are nearly unanimous in their choice of actor. I imagine that when the folks behind Game of Thrones approached Peter Dinklage, they were feeling the pressure of the thousands of fans positive that he was the only possible person to play the sarcastic, silver-tongued dwarf, Tyrion Lannister. In that case, Dinklage was offered and accepted the role, but the producers of Hunger Games seem poised to neglect the public’s clamoring for Kristin Chenoweth in the role of the bubbly, bushy-tailed Effie Trinket. Instead, they are in talks with Elizabeth Banks.

Now, I’ve long been rooting for Banks to get the role, so naturally I think this news is great. I know there’s plenty of disagreement from Chenoweth fans, as well as certain people at EW who shall remain nameless — let’s just refer to them as Varen Kalby – but here’s my reasoning: READ FULL STORY »

Apr 19 2011 08:16 PM ET

'Dancing With the Stars': Hidden Gems of Week 5!

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Categories: Dancing With the Stars, DVR Screengrab of the Day, Heavage, Hidden Gems, Reality TV, Ridiculata, Sexytimes

Studies have shown that Hidden Gems of the Week, EW.com’s collection of reader-submitted ridiculata, is the best way to enjoy Dancing With the Stars without ever having to turn it on. It’s a visual feast of sparkles, fringe, and multiple grabs of “Little Maks.” Ready to go down the rabbit hole? Behold this bountiful smattering of Visible Gems!

MOST VALUABLE GEM (MVG): ‘I CAN’T BELIEVE IT’S NOT MAKS!’ EDITION

“ATTN: Annie Barrett. Amazing Hidden Gem Alert! Louis Van Intensité’s outfit was almost identical to Michelle Tanner’s toolbag friend Derek’s Yankee Doodle outfit from their school play. If you are a true pop culture fan, you will get this Full House reference immediately.” –JS, endorsed by CoolWhipLite, SunBlitz42 READ FULL STORY »

Apr 19 2011 07:20 PM ET

Elisabeth Sladen: An appreciation of the 'Doctor Who' actress

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Categories: Doctor Who, In Memoriam, Sci-Fi, Television, Things That Are Sad
Elisabeth-Sladen

Image Credit: Dave M. Benett/Getty Images

Whenever Doctor Who fans gather together, it usually doesn’t take long before the question arises over the identity of the best “Doctor” of all-time. Far less often do followers of the BBC sci-fi show debate the identity of the best Doctor’s “companion.” Why? Largely because — with all due respect to Billie Piper, Karen Gillan, Nicola Bryant, Katy Manning et. al. — it is widely agreed that the best ever actor to play Watson to the Doctor’s Holmes was Elisabeth Sladen, who portrayed investigative reporter Sarah Jane Smith on the show, and who died earlier today.

READ FULL STORY »

Apr 19 2011 06:50 PM ET

'The Dark Knight Rises': Marion Cotillard and Joseph Gordon-Levitt are in. But who are they REALLY playing?

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Categories: Comic Books, Geekery, The Dark Knight Rises
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Image Credit: Toby Canham/Getty Images; Kevin Winter/Getty Images

As EW reported earlier today, we now know for sure that Marion Cotillard and Joseph Gordon-Levitt have been cast in The Dark Knight Rises, next year’s cosmically anticipated Batman film. Warner Bros. reported that Cotillard was playing Miranda Tate, “a Wayne Industries board member,” while Levitt is onboard as John Blake, “a Gotham City beat cop.” But given director Christopher Nolan’s history of misdirection with the franchise — remember how he scrambled two separate villains together for the big twist in Batman Begins? — it’s worth asking just who, exactly, the two actors are really going to play in the film. READ FULL STORY »

Apr 19 2011 06:32 PM ET

'American Idol' product placement: Does it distract from the show anymore?

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Categories: Advertising, American Idol, Made Us Think, Reality TV, Television
american-idol-nj

Image Credit: Michael Becker/Fox

Hey, PopWatchers, the sky is blue. And American Idol is the program with the most product placement on TV. Shocking, right? According to Ad Age, the competitive reality series has had 208 in-show appearances of products like Coca-Cola, Ford, and AT&T throughout the month of March. That makes Idol the “largest venue for product placement,” finishing ahead of runner-up Celebrity Apprentice, which clocked in with 127 product mentions. (The other surprise? America’s Next Top Model boasts just as many instances of product placement as The Biggest Loser: 88. Who would have thought one hour on The CW show would tie the two-hour product-a-thon that is NBC’s weight loss reality program?)

Reading this news made me wonder, simply: Do you even notice Idol‘s product placement anymore? READ FULL STORY »

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