Tag: Country Y'all! (61-70 of 176)

Feb 11 2010 04:50 PM ET

'The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas' remake: Cast Mona and Ed Earl!

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Tags: , , , , Movies

The Best Little Whorehouse is Texas is headed back to the big screen, Variety reports. Universal has tapped writers Karen McCullah Lutz and Kirsten Smith to update the story, which originated on Broadway. The duo specializes in women’s tales: Their credits include The Ugly Truth, The House Bunny, She’s the Man, Ella Enchanted, Legally Blonde, and 10 Things I Hate About You. There will be musical numbers, but the studio hasn’t said if they’ll be familiar or original songs. Thoughts?

I’m okay with this. The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas (1982) is one of the movies I watched on loop as a child, even though it was rated R, but if they screw it up, I’ll just pop in Dolly Parton and Burt Reynolds and be fine. I do have two conditions:

1. Do not cast Jessica Simpson. In any role. She’s from Dallas, she sings, she’s “sexual napalm,” and I know you’ll be tempted. But she’s not an actress.

2. Keep it rated R. I’m not sure how the NCAA will respond today to the winners of a college football rivalry scoring at a brothel, but I’m gonna need some kind of a locker room production number. Nudity alert!

Who do you see starring in the remake? I wish I could imagine Faith Hill and Tim McGraw carrying a film, because how cute would that be? But I don’t see either of them having the personality to pull off the roles. Slezak suggested Carrie Underwood and Vince Vaughn for Miss Mona and Ed Earl, but Carrie feels too green. (I’d definitely hire her and her “Cowboy Casanova” video wardrobe to work at the Chicken Ranch.) Other pairings bandied about at PopWatch HQ include: Renée Zellweger and George Clooney or Sandra Bullock and George Clooney (though I think Clooney might be fun as the Governor of Texas, a role that earned Charles Durning an Oscar nod). You could also throw Reese Witherspoon and Matthew McConaughey into the mix. Or Anna Faris and Ryan Reynolds.

Your turn. Mix and match from our list or come up with your own picks.

Jan 25 2010 03:00 PM ET

'Crazy Heart': Music is just as great as Jeff Bridges!

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Awards season buzz finally convinced me to see Crazy Heart this weekend, and judging by the packed theater, plenty of other people are seeking out this film before the Oscars. My EW colleagues gave both the movie and the soundtrack grades of B+, but for some reason, I’d been thinking that Jeff Bridges was the only reason to see it (and, hey, that should be reason enough.) For me, it turned out to be a great movie all around, and some of the movie’s songs sounded like instant classics (just like Bridges’ character Bad Blake said about how a great new song sounds like one you’ve heard many times). “The Weary Kind” is the theme song that’s winning the awards, but I loved “Fallin’ & Flyin’,” “Hold On You,” and “I Don’t Know” even more.

Here is a fan-made video of Bridges and Colin Farrell (who was great as the pretty-boy, new-country heartthrob) taping “Fallin’ & Flyin’” at a Toby Keith concert. Awesome, right? I want tickets to a Jeff Bridges-Colin Farrell concert now! Only if they are accompanied by one of the film’s songwriters, Ryan Bingham –- who played the singer in Bad’s first opening band shown in the film.

So, who else has seen Crazy Heart and were you also blown away by the music as much as by Jeff Bridges’ performance?

More ‘Crazy Heart’:
Music Mix: ‘Crazy Heart’: T Bone Burnett and Ryan Bingham talk about the movie’s music
Movie review: ‘Crazy Heart’
Music review: ‘Crazy Heart’ soundtrack
Dave Karger: Jeff Bridges’ ‘Crazy Heart’ to shake up the Oscar season

Jan 6 2010 03:30 PM ET

Carrie Underwood on 'How I Met Your Mother': Verdict?

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Tags: , , , , , Television

Carrie Underwood joins the ranks of Rachel Bilson and Stacy Keibler with a guest appearance on How I Met Your Mother later this year, according to People. She’s set to play “an enigmatic pharmaceutical sales rep and love interest for Ted.”

I’m neutral on Carrie Underwood, and HIMYM has been pretty good at figuring out what to do with its guest stars, so I’ll give them the benefit of the doubt. But man, this show does not need a storyline that pulls Ted away from the rest of the group. The best episodes of HIMYM always involve everyone, though Marshall or Barney sidestories can support themselves once in a while. Ted-only plots, on the other hand – his teaching, Stella, the repeat blind date, etc. — don’t work as well, plus they tend to make our ostensible hero into a total herb.

What do you think, PopWatchers? Is the American Idol a natural fit for MacLaren’s?

Image credit: Michael Williams/startraksphoto.com

Dec 25 2009 10:00 AM ET

Lance Smith hosts his last 'CMT Top 20 Countdown'

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Tags: , , , Television

Nashville native Lance Smith joined CMT as its first VJ in 2001, and has now hosted more than 400 episodes of CMT Top 20 Countdown. We phoned Smith last Friday, the morning after he taped his final Countdown — which premieres today at 11: 30 a.m. ET and includes multiple trips down memory lane and a blooper reel  — to chat about his favorite moments, the interviews he wishes he could have back, the one clip we never got to see, and what’s next (a sitcom with Reba?).

ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY: How are you feeling?
LANCE SMITH: You’ll have to excuse my voice this morning. I’m a little hung over from last night.

Nice. Let’s start there. How did you celebrate your last show?
I was just so overwhelmed by everyone’s support. It took me an hour to write my goodbye, two minutes of copy, because it was just really tough. Everyone at CMT came in the studio and started applauding and cheering, and I really wish they hadn’t done that right before I did it. READ FULL STORY »

Dec 7 2009 03:15 PM ET

Carrie Underwood's holiday special: Costume changes, guest stars, a video starring her dog...

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Tonight, Fox premieres the two-hour Carrie Underwood: An All-Star Holiday Special at 8 p.m. ET. Having watched a teaser reel of select performances — and a video imagining what her dog, Ace, is thinking as Carrie pays attention to men who are not him and tries to dress him in clothing — I can tell you what to expect: For starters, many, many costume changes. Sadly, the bit this photo was taken from was not on the screener, so we will all have to wait to see if it’s hilarious or horrifying. (Pretty sure I’ll prefer Underwood and Parton in their color- and sequin- coordinated dresses dueting on “I Will Always Love You.” Carrie is the only country singer who shows her legs as often as Dolly does. And she’s sitting on a stool. I’m still not 100 percent sure she should be interacting with backup dancers, which she does on various numbers.)

There are more guests. Included in the preview was Underwood ’60s Trio Medley with Kristin Chenoweth and Christina Applegate. They don hot pink dresses and wigs to sing “Will You Love Me Tomorrow,” “Then He Kissed Me,” “Leader of the Pack,” and “Be My Baby.” Brad Paisley and David Cook also perform. What are you most excited to see: Carrie’s performances (which includes songs from her upcoming album, old hits and holiday classics), the mystery of that photo solved, the aforementioned video starring Ace, whatever Christmas cheer Paisley spreads, or Cook?

For a recap of the special, visit Ken Tucker’s Watching TV blog after the telecast.

Photo credit: Michael Becker/Fox

Nov 9 2009 04:13 PM ET

Kenny Chesney concert film: Check those moviegoers for bottles!

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kenny-chesney_lTwo months ago, Kenny Chesney broke it to EW that he would not be touring in the summer of 2010. Which makes the news that he’ll be releasing a concert film, Summer in 3-D, in select theaters in April, happy news for his fans. A rep for Chesney tells EW’s Whitney Pastorek, who’s taking in today’s rehearsal for Wednesday’s CMA Awards, that the four-time Entertainer of the Year shot the film in five cities over six nights, and that he was going to go watch a cut of the film right after his run-through (which is why he had no time to answer the question I’d given Whitney: How many spilled drinks will we be seeing?). Pastorek saw some footage when she was backstage with Chesney for an EW feature last summer, and confirms it looks “awesome.”

Even if you prefer Keith Urban’s live show, you know this is a great idea. Chesney’s fans are loyal. He defines summer, and this movie will get them in the mood for it. He’s so energetic, he routinely sweats through his sleeveless shirt by the end of the first song. And in this economy, when you can’t drop serious cash on concert tickets or justify spending dough on a man you’ve seen every summer for five years, a movie ticket is doable. (Plus, you can smuggle in your beverages — not that we’re endorsing that — instead of paying stadium prices.)

Will the Chesney concert experience be the same in the movie theater? (Drive-ins would be ideal, in my opinion, if designated drivers were also provided.) Which part of Chesney’s act do you most look forward to seeing in 3-D?

Nov 7 2009 02:52 PM ET

Readers' suggestions: 'SNL' sketches for Taylor Swift

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Taylor-Swift_lYesterday, provoked by Taylor Swift and Kristen Wiig’s Penelope-esque promo, we asked for your sketch ideas for Swift. I’m with NatAttack, who wrote: “I feel it’s time for SNL to parody one of the greatest online parodies of our time: Stuff White People Like. Surely Taylor Swift belongs near the top of that list. (Love her/music but it’s true!) Some kind of pageant that pits the things white people love against each other would be grand in my book. Put Andy Sandburg in charge — I’m pretty sure he belongs on that list too.” Nic‘s idea could definitely work, too: “They should confront her and ask if she’s ever even seen Romeo and Juliet (since they obviously don’t end happily ever after). Then she can get all sorts of other plays/movies wrong. She could sing about Old Yeller living forever!” More of your good suggestions, below! It’s a good thing Kanye West won’t be there tonight, because none of you wanna see it… READ FULL STORY »

Oct 15 2009 01:46 PM ET

Taylor Swift to host 'Saturday Night Live': Sketch ideas?

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Taylor Swift will host Saturday Night Live on Nov. 7, and it doesn’t take a comic genius to guess that her opening monologue will be interrupted. The question is: After a few of the cast members — or perhaps popular recurring hosts like Steve Martin and Alec Baldwin? — take their shots at her, will Kanye West actually pop up? Good PR move if they’ve kissed and made up. Or like press.

Swift’s said producers asked her over the summer if she’d like to host, and she’s been thinking of sketches ever since. I’m looking forward to seeing what she and the writers come up with: If you follow her on Twitter (“Getting photobombed by Daniel Craig = Priceless”), watch her MySpace videos (sample below), or remember her acting on SNL last January, or that “Thug Story” rap video from June’s CMT Music Awards, you know she’s got a good sense of humor and a willingness to “go there.”

Any sketch ideas you’d like to pitch her? I’d love to see a Celebrity Rehab-like sketch for headbangers. The girl is a big fan of the hair toss, and it’s got to stop. I’m also gonna need a Kellie Pickler cameo (they’re BFFs).

Oct 14 2009 11:41 AM ET

Carrie Underwood's holiday special: I vote for more duets, fewer skits. You?

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Tags: , , , American Idol

Happy holidays, PopWatchers, and don’t tell me it’s too early for dropping yule bombs, yo! You can already smell the imminent death of Halloween — and the chemical scent of fauxflakes — at my local Duane Reade, which means that Santa’s on his way. (He’s loaded lots of toys and goodies on his sleigh.) (Sorry. Had to go there.)

Anyway, since you’re going to be waking up Saturday morning to find your next-door neighbor out on her front lawn setting up her Nativity scene, we might as well discuss Fox’s announcement this week that Carrie Underwood: An All-Star Holiday Special is coming to the network on Monday, Dec. 7, featuring living legend Dolly Parton, Brad Paisley, and (yes, yes, y’all!) David Cook. Generally, I’m pretty excited by this news: Much like garlic, the addition of Dolly Parton makes almost every dish a little tastier, and of course, anyone who’s seen the epic duet of “Go Your Own Way” embedded below knows the kind of magic Carrie and Cookie can generate when they pass the mic.

That said, there was one phrase in the Hollywood Reporter’s writeup of the special that, to me, was the written equivalent of a finding a hair in your salad: “Underwood will perform previous hits, holiday classics and songs from her upcoming album and participate in comedy bits.” Not for nothing, but for my holiday Hess truck, I’d prefer two full hours of music — especially if it involves awesome duets with A-list music acts — rather than a weird variety-concert hybrid where Carrie gets to test out her comic chops in a melange of Mrs. Claus-Harried Shopper-Toymaking Elf skits. Shouldn’t genuine musical chills always trump tepid chuckles and/or unnecessary snack breaks? So here’s a note to directors Nigel Lythgoe and Adam Shankman: READ FULL STORY »

Aug 25 2009 02:15 PM ET

Jack Ingram goes for Guinness radio interview record, takes The EW Pop Culture Personality Test

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Jack-Ingram_lCountry singer Jack Ingram is promoting his new album, Big Dreams & High Hopes, out today, by attempting to break the Guinness World Record for the most radio interviews in 24 hours. CMT is currently live-streaming his quest — approximately 225 five-minute chats. It’s not the craziest thing he’s ever done: That, he says, would be riding a steer in a celebrity event hosted by bullriding champion Tuff Hedeman. “Three seconds later, I couldn’t breathe for, like, literally two weeks. The next morning I could not get out of bed. Not because I was sore but because something was definitely wrong. It turns out I cracked a couple of ribs. I called Tuff, and he said, ‘You know what you do for a cracked rib, right? You say Ouch.’” Ingram shot the video for his current single, “Barefoot and Crazy,” the next day.

Nervous for his Guinness run, but realizing that when he got to New York he was “gonna have a beer with somebody,” he met PopWatch for a couple Bud Lights last night and warmed up with The EW Pop Culture Personality Test. (He left the bar at 9:30 p.m. — because he had a phoner to do.) READ FULL STORY »

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