New Trailer: Quantum of Solace

There are three films debuting this winter that I already have on my calendar. Twilight (Dec. 12), Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (Nov. 21), and Quantum of Solace (Nov. 7), the latest James Bond installment.

The new trailer for Quantum of Solace doesn't disappoint. The action sequences look as tight as they were in Casino Royale, the story still seems grittier and more realistic than past incarnations of Bond, and Daniel Craig is still...well, hot.

It's difficult to tell what the plot of Solace is from this trailer, but themes of revenge and rebellion are good meaty territory for any action film to mine.

New Trailer: Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog

Today's new trailer is not for a movie, but still has the potential to rescue us from the doldrums of summer TV. It's for a web-only series by Buffy creator Joss Whedon, and looks fantastically awesome for many reasons.

First, you have Neil Patrick Harris. Even when you don't count Doogie Howser, the guy is just pretty cool. One of the most self-mocking, fun-loving celebrities out there. And, he's playing a super villain. Yeah, I'm sold.

The goodness doesn't end there, since Nathan Fillion is also on board. If you haven't seen Fillion in the movie Waitress yet, I strongly recommend you do so immediately. He's just the sort of charming actor who can bump up the credibility of any project.

These two fantastic actors, combined with Joss Whedon's trademark snappy dialogue and self-aware humor, have me ready and waiting for the debut. I can't seem to pin down a date, but keep your eyes on the show's MySpace page if you're interested.


Teaser from Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog on Vimeo.

Did everyone notice that the green screen at the start of the trailer said "Approved by the Motion Picture Association of My House"? Priceless!

Hat-tip to Pop Watch!

Need a laugh? Heidi Montag has a new single...

If you're in need of a chuckle, or at least an affirmation that you're taste in music is not complete crap, take a listen to this little gem from Heidi Montag. The star of The Hills, and one-half of Speidi, outdoes herself with "Fashion." It is awful in so many ways that I can't list them. Do try to pay special attention to the lyrics, they're the best part.

I should probably apologize for posting this, but I'm willing to temporarily lower my standards to spread laughter.

New Rules for Oscar

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences has decided to limit the number of original songs from a single film that can be nominated for an Oscar to two.

The decision should come as a complete relief to anyone who watched the telecast this year. The cheese-factor of the ceremony was exponentially increased by the fact that three of the five nominated songs being performed were from Enchanted. I loved Enchanted, and the music was cute and catchy, but, no matter how much I love Kristen Chenoweth, the Oscars is not the place for this.

McAvoy Making the Rounds

Wanted comes out next Friday, which means that James McAvoy is busy making the publicity rounds. I hope that my love for him does not equate bias, but I must say he gives some of the best interviews in Tinseltown. Here he is on last night's Leno.

Too Much Valderrama?

Wilmer Valderrama, best known as quirky foreign-exchange student Fez on That 70's Show, may be returning to Fox in the fall. The network has acquired the script for a new hour-long comedy, The Emancipation of Ernesto, with Valderrama attached as star and co-executive producer.

The show will follow Valderrama, as Ernesto, as he avoids the temptations of L.A. and searches for his father.

I love That 70's Show, and still watch the reruns all the time in syndication, but I don't know if I see Valderrama as someone you can take in hour-long doses. Especially when he's the focus of the entire show and not part of a larger ensemble. Time will tell.

The Hollywood Minutiae Summer Playlist

The most observant of my small readership may have noticed the playlist hanging around at the bottom of the site. I decided to have some fun and put up a sort of summer mixed CD of all the songs I can't stop listening to right now.

I swear I could have easily put every song from the Vampire Weekend CD on the list, the whole album just sounds like summer, but I resisted. There's a mix here, some mainstream, some less so, and maybe you'll find something new. I'd recommend heading over to Playlist.com yourself. If you want to listen to songs on your computer you can build your own list of all your favorite songs and listen while you do your thing.

Here's the playlist again, and it'll be at the bottom of the site at least through the end of August.

New Trailer: Religulous

Wow. This one's going to be good. I don't really know what to say about Religulous, a new documentary coming out on October 3. I'm sure it's going to offend a lot of people. Probably many of those offended people won't even waste time seeing it before judging it, but that's life.

I like that this film looks at all sorts of religions, not simply Judaism or Christianity. I like that Bill Maher brings his trademark irreverence to the table. I like that Gnarls Barkley got some play in the trailer. Most of all, I'm fascinated by stuff like this and I don't think I'll be able to resist.

Side-by-Side: Daniel Day-Lewis

Summer has finally given me the opportunity to watch There Will Be Blood (for shame that it took me so long!). As my mind continues to wrap around that fantastic 2.5 hours of film, I thought I'd do a post, possibly the first of a recurring segment, comparing two of an actor's roles side-by-side.

Daniel Day-Lewis is the perfect guy to start with. He just lives his parts. As I watched him play Daniel Plainview, I couldn't help but think of his work in The Age of Innocence. The two characters are completely dissimilar, but he has no problem selling either role. His work as the somewhat effete Newland Archer is only a reminder that he's one of those rare and greatest actors who can make you forget he is acting.

Here are two Day-Lewis trailers, the first for Age of Innocence, the second for There Will Be Blood. It doesn't even seem like the same person, does it?

Katherine Heigl: Selfishly Yappy or Refreshingly Honest?

Last year, Katherine Heigl was on top of the world when she took 2007's Emmy award for Best Supporting Actress in a Drama.

This year? She's made the following statement to explain why she her name is not on the list of Emmy submissions:

I did not feel that I was given the material this season to warrant an Emmy nomination and in an effort to maintain the integrity of the academy organization decided against competing.

Her press release goes on to say that she did not want to take away from other actresses who were given the type of material deserving an Emmy this season.

Heigl is known for her tendency to speak out, even if it means saying something less-than-nice about her show's writers or the director of her star-making movie, Knocked Up. The web debates have loved this week's statement. There are those who think she's trying to get out of her contract at Grey's to pursue films full time. There are those who think she's simply ungrateful and bratty. Then there are those who think she's taking a stand against the typical Hollywood press machine that insists upon niceties and BS.

I'm closest to those applauding her honesty. I really do like that Heigl seems to tell it like it is. She's not saying anything about the writing on Grey's Anatomy this season that many others, including showrunner Shonda Rhimes, haven't already said. I'll even forgive her the seeming arrogance of implying that leaving her name in the running might take away from those who deserve it. It's true that one less big name actress from a big name show could really help an actress from a show on (gasp!) cable, with smaller numbers, pull in a much-deserved nom.

In Case You Missed It

I'm doing a summer installation of my campus newspaper column this week, so I thought I'd go ahead and post all the little news tidbits I dug up but didn't devote prior posts to. Here's lots of info-tainment nuggets to get you through your Thursday afternoon! Bonus for online readers? Links!

• Watch for yet another superhero movie to find a multiplex near you in 2010. Seth Rogen (Knocked Up) has been given the go ahead to write and star in The Green Hornet. He’s an unlikely choice for the role, but Sony sees potential.
• Pamela Anderson will be joining E!’s lineup of reality stars in August when she premiers her new show Pam: Girl on the Loose. The blonde bombshell is insisting that it is a documentary show about all aspects of her life, not just a reality show. What’s the difference?
• On June 1, a major fire broke out on the Universal Studios lot in Los Angeles. The fire consumed several famous film sets, including the famous courthouse square from the Back to the Future films, and jeopardized a vault containing rare film footage.
• Tori Spelling and Jennie Garth are both ready to head back to the old zip code. The Beverly Hills: 90210 alums have both signed on to reprise their original roles in the CW’s new spinoff. Spelling’s Donna Martin will now own a clothing store frequented by the new teenage cast, and Garth’s Kelly Taylor will now be a guidance counselor at West Beverly Hills High, her alma mater.
• In case you, like most people, didn’t hear, Scarlett Johannson released a CD (Anywhere I Lay My Head) of Tom Waits covers in May. Much to no one’s surprise, the wonderful actress couldn’t muster much buzz for her singing, and only managed to sell 5,000 copies in the first week.
• Production delays have stalled Coldplay’s North American tour. The shows will be pushed back two weeks, now starting on July 14th. The band’s free concerts in London, Barcelona, and New York will still be held on their original dates.
• On the set of the newest James Bond film, Quantum of Solace, Daniel Craig (Bond himself) suffered a slight mishap. While filming an action sequence, the star sliced off the tip of one of his fingers. Craig is such a determined Bond that he was back on the set the same day, ready to finish the scene.
• Charlie Sheen has vowed—via Ok! Magazine—to never publicly speak the name of his ex-wife Denise Richards again. The two have been trading barbs in the tabloids since their split in 2006. Here’s hoping Sheen stays true to his word.
• Bored? Surf over to Hulu.com and check out their “Hulu Days of Summer” extravaganza. The site offers full-length films and television shows, and during their days of summer promotion will be introducing new content daily. The fun starts June 16th, and in the meantime the site boasts everything from Arrested Development to Bewitched. During my Hulu surfing I stumbled across this little gem from SNL.

New Trailer: Babylon A.D.

Vin Diesel is back! I'm not sure that deserved an exclamation point, but I have fond memories of seeing brainless Vin Diesel action movies like The Fast and the Furious and xXx back when my friends and I were finally old enough to drive ourselves to movies, so there's some nostalgia attached to Diesel for me. After some interesting (Find Me Guilty) and just plain silly (The Pacifier) film choices over the past couple of years, it's kind of cool to see him get back to basics.



Babylon A.D. looks just as slick and sweaty as those Vin classics. I have no clue what the plot is. There is some sort of mysterious woman, possibly with special powers, that has to be transported to America by Diesel. Beyond that, I have no idea what the shootings and explosions are about.

Look for more nostalgia from Vin in '09 when he reunites with Paul Walker (both of them need the career boost I guess) for a Fast and the Furious sequel.

Stereogum Previews New Coldplay

The forthcoming new release from Coldplay, "Viva la Vida," leaked on the internet last week. Stereogum did a fantastic job of giving the album a full rundown on Friday.

A highlight:

Over three albums, Chris Martin found a simple and relatively understated formula for successful songwriting: melodically, he hit it on Parachutes -- verse, verse up an octave, falsetto hook -- expanded it on Rush Of Blood, and made an overblown parody of it on that last one. If nothing else, this album shows the band is thinking, and is self aware: say hello to less falsetto, different song structures, and a legendary producer. Already we're off to a good start.

I've never been a die hard fan of Coldplay, but I've downloaded a fair number of their singles through the past several years. Title track "Viva la Vida" and first single "Violet Hill" have been on heavy rotation on my iPod for weeks, and for the first time I'm genuinely considering buying the whole album instead of just the singles that catch my attention.

Watch for the album to drop next Tuesday, and if you're on the fence take a look at the whole Stereogum review for an idea of what you're in for.

Great Wedding Scenes

Since I'm acting as bridesmaid in a wedding this weekend (and love making lists), I thought I'd post five great wedding scenes from TV or films.

The Princess Bride: The wedding in this one is technically unofficial (she didn't say "I do"), but since the officiant is the best in film history, that's ok.

Love Actually: It's just such a great use of "All You Need is Love."

In Her Shoes: A great laid back wedding with a poem that gets me every time. (sorry about the subtitles, it was hard to pin down a good clip for this one!)

The Office: Toby may be really proud of himself in this scene from Phyllis's Wedding (his date catches the bouquet), but we all know the real MVP is Ryan. He is so desperate to keep Kelly from the flowers that he runs interference.

And, unfortunately, my grand finale clip cannot be found. I planned to end with a great Sex and the City wedding moment. The four girls are gathered at a wedding, the bouquet is tossed, and they all simply watch it hit the floor. Carrie simply says, "Ok girls, see you tomorrow." Check out the link for a picture to help you visualize.

OT: Blogging to Break Free

It's always interesting to see the ways that technology, and blogging in particular, is impacting real people. For American student James Karl Buck, blogging helped spring him from an Egyptian jail.

Pretty amazing, right? Buck was in Egypt working on his masters thesis in photography. Snapping pics of a protest that turned ugly, he was thrown in jail with the anti-government protestors. From his cell phone he sent a one-word blog post, "Arrested," to his page on the Twitter networking site.

Now, Buck's trying to get his translator, only at the protest to help Buck, out of prison as well. Read more if you get a chance. It's pretty interesting stuff.

My You Tube Obsession

You Tube and I have a tenuous relationship, for sure. More often than not, when I give into my complete weakness for random videos, it can throw off even the best-intentioned study session. It's not You Tube's fault, I know. I'm the one that can't stop searching for favorite shows from my childhood, my favorites clips from current shows, and plain ole' funny shiz.

The thing is, sometimes it really comes through for me. I know I'm still wasting time when I search Jim + Pam, or Ephram + Amy, etc., but You Tube has introduced me to some kind of kick-ass music this way. It's a pleasant by-product of my time-wastage.

Without it, Mat Kearney may have taken me a lot longer to find. And the latest song I can't stop listening to, "So Contaigious" by Acceptance? Totally You Tube! There have been dozens of other songs or artists, too many to give credit where credit is due.

I'm at the point now where I'll search the TV couple videos just hoping for a song title or artist I've never heard before, eager to be wowed. The point? Even something that drives me nuts and may be causing the downfall of humanity has it's advantages...

Deepak Chopra defends The Love Guru; I still won't shell out $10 to see it

Deepak Chopra, uber-famous spiritual leader and author, has come to the aid of Mike Myers latest "comedy," The Love Guru. Based on the trailer, many members of the Hindu community were angry that Myers and the film were mocking the Hindu faith and using their sacred terms "frivolously."

In his essay defending the film, Chopra criticizes those members of the Hindu community critiquing the film based on a short trailer. Apparently the film makes more fun of Chopra himself than of Hinduism. Chopra and Myers have been friends for some time, and the real-life guru even has a cameo in the film.

While Chopra says that the film's message is one of "love being the ultimate truth," it still won't tempt me into the theater in three weeks. While I found nothing in the trailer offensive, I found nothing funny either. And when you're talking about the trailer for a supposed comedy film, that's an unforgivable failure.