Ed McMahon: 1923-2009
Ed McMahon, longtime sidekick to Johnny Carson on The Tonight Show, died early this morning in the Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center. He was 86 years old.... read more
Thank God, Troll 2 is Finally on Hulu!
In recent years, almost anyone who's seen the movie Troll 2 has probably done so via battered VHS or DVD copies loaned to them by friends eager to share the festering green trainwreck of a cinematic masterpiece with everyone they know. This has made for a huge, decades-late upswell of enthusiasm for the film, documented by its former-child-star Michael Stephenson in Best Worst Movie, which we've told you about before. That's all well and good, but there's a darker side to the Troll 2 phenomenon that no one seems to want to talk about.... read more
Focus Features Just Nabbed Sam Mendes for a Two-Year Pact. Is Their Confidence Misplaced?
For a guy who won an Oscar for his first feature, Sam Mendes is difficult to pin down. Since that auspicious debut, American Beauty, he’s made a series of more-or-less respected movies that never quite took off: Road to Perdition, Jarhead, Revolutionary Road. By the time Away We Go opened earlier this month to the harshest reviews of his career (Hey, our guy liked it!), some observers wondered aloud how much longer he could really be considered an elite name in prestige moviemaking. ... read more
Filmmaker Brothers Discuss Search for The Best Bar in America
When fledgling filmmakers Damon and Eric Ristau put together their first feature, The Best Bar in America, they had their priorities more or less in order. “We set out to make a move about one man’s journey—a very simple story that we think everyone can relate to on a certain level,” one brother offers. ... read more
David Lynch Preps Dave Jarequi Tribute Album
Nothing gets the kids dancing provocatively in diners quite like those eerie '50s-style scene-setters found in David Lynch projects. And while it's approaching 20 years since he put forth the postmodern supernatural-soap-opera-murder-mystery, Twin Peaks, Lynch will be channeling its memorable tunes on an upcoming project. Marking another foray into the music world, Lynch has announced the release of Fox Bat Strategy: A Tribute to Dave Jarequi, which he produced.... read more
Where Will Emile Hirsch's Hamlet Fall Within the Canon of Modern-Day Shakespeare Films?
When we heard Emile Hirsch would play Hamlet in a modern-times Shakespeare remake directed by Twilight's Catherine Hardwicke, flashbacks of teen flicks (most of which involved Julia Stiles) adapting 16th-and-17th-century masterpieces flooded our collective memory. It's always been interesting to watch what develops in these modernizations, as directors and writers throw purist interpretation to the wind with the belief that Shakespeare's storylines transcend all time periods. Heartthrobby leads try to give Kenneth Branagh and Laurence Olivier a run for their money, jeans-and-tees replace frilly frocks, and major turns of plot transpire in gas stations, high-school stadiums and Blockbuster video stores. Although some past adaptations have recontexualized... read more
Hey, Did You Know They Spent a Lot of Money on Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen?
There is only one word on the minds of the people tasked with marketing Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen: huge. ... read more
NeverEnding Story Movie Reboot Tentatively Planned
For fans of the book, 1984 movie The NeverEnding Story (and its sequels) was disappointingly dissimilar from the source material. With characters changed and endings altered, many bibliophiles left theaters feeling a little let down.... read more
House Named Most Popular Fictional TV Show in the World
As Iran's disputed elections have reiterated, the world often appears to be disconnected and in utter disarray. So it is somehow comforting to hear that there is at least one small thing many of us can agree upon. We love House. A lot.... read more
Dave Eggers' Where the Wild Things Are Novelization to Include Special Edition Furry Cover
By now you might have heard about the film adaptation of Maurice Sendak's Where the Wild Things Are... read more
Homer Simpson and GPS: Together at Last
Regardless of whether the idea of hearing Homer Simpson's voice directing you on the road sounds like a fantasy or a nightmare, TomTom has made it a reality. The cartoon father figure's voice skin is now a $12.95 accessory to the manufacturer's GPS units. And make no mistake, according to TomTom's website, this is the original Homer voice. No impersonators here.... read more
True Blood Premiere Scores Big Ratings for HBO
After an omnipresent ad campaign over the past several weeks, HBO’s True Blood delivered better-than-expected ratings for its second-season premiere on Sunday, with viewership up 157 percent over the premiere episode last year. ... read more
Sean Penn Takes Sabbatical, Possibly Dropping Stooges
In a sudden and largely unexplained move, actor Sean Penn has announced that he is taking time off, a decision that alters the plans of his latest projects Cartel and The Three Stooges.... read more
Iraq in Fragments Director Detained in Iran
James Longley, the American director of Iraq in Fragments, was detained in Iran by security forces after he taped an Iranian citizen criticizing the government’s handling of anti-election protests. ... read more
It Might Get Loud Trailer Premieres, Featuring Jimmy Page, The Edge and Jack White
The official trailer for It Might Get Loud, Davis Guggenheim's documentary about guitarists Jimmy Page, The Edge and Jack White, has hit the web. The film premiered at festivals earlier this year and was named an Official Selection at Sundance, the Berlin International Film Festival and the Toronto International Film Festival. It was picked up by Sony Pictures Classics, and is scheduled for release on Aug. 14.... read more
Love and Other Drugs to Star Gyllenhaal, Hathaway
Viagra. Parkinson's. The pharmaceutical industry. Not the usual plot details found in a classic love story, but Jake Gyllenhaal and Anne Hathaway's latest movie revolves around these rather unromantic issues. Like Brokeback Mountain, the last film the two were paired in, Love and Other Drugs is based on a book, but true-love skeptics take heed: This film isn't a work of fiction.... read more
Vodka Company Asks Cat Power, David Lynch, James Franco, 39 Others to Share Dreams
Few things seem as personal as being allowed a peek into someone's subconscious, even if it's only for 42 seconds. But ONEDREAMRUSH, a promotional project from the New Zealand-based 42Below vodka, will let you do just that. Forty-two directors have signed on to create super-short films based on dreams they've had.... read more
Michael Moore Sends Volunteers into Movie Aisles During Interactive Trailer for New Documentary
This past weekend, Michael Moore's publicity stunt for his new economic documentary had volunteers panhandling for change in theater aisles to "save our CEOs." We hope you weren't planning on saving those extra dollars for some Sour Patch Kids.... read more
She & Him, Black Lips, The Smiths Featured on (500) Days of Summer Soundtrack
It's OK if you've started counting down the days until... read more
Pixar Planning Monsters, Inc., Cars and Toy Story Sequels
Sequels are tricky things. With a few notable exceptions, news of a sequel is often met with snide laughs and low expectations (especially when it comes to anything animated). But we're not so quick to laugh at Pixar's latest announcement: a slew of upcoming sequels to Cars, Toy Story and Monsters, Inc.... read more
