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Movie Preview: State of Play

BuzzSugar — Mon, 29 Dec 2008 10:30:37 -0800

Based on the BBC series of the same title, the film State of Play stars Russell Crowe, Helen Mirren, Ben Affleck, and Rachel McAdams. Crowe and McAdams are reporters who get wrapped up in the case of a congressman's (Affleck) murdered mistress.

From the trailer, it looks like a compelling crime thriller, though I'm not sure how it'll stack up against the acclaimed original series. The fact that it's directed by The Last King of Scotland's Kevin Macdonald is promising, however. State of Play opens April 17. To check out the trailer,

Ben Affleck Tries Comedy Again

BuzzSugar — Thu, 21 Aug 2008 10:37:21 -0700

At least he's in good company for this one: Ben Affleck is in talks to join the cast of Extract, a comedy by Mike Judge (director of Office Space, creator of Beavis and Butthead). He'll be working alongside Jason Bateman, Kristen Wiig, Mila Kunis and Clifton Collins, Jr.
Variety has more details:

Actor is in negotiations to play an ambulance-chasing lawyer in the pic, which centers on a flower extract factory owner (Jason Bateman) who's dealing with workplace problems and a streak of bad luck, including his wife's affair with a gigolo.

Clifton Collins Jr. is also joining the cast as a factory worker who loses a body part in a freak accident and is now due for a huge settlement.

Granted, I'm more excited to see more Jason Bateman up on the big screen, but I'm also curious to find out how Affleck does with this kind of comedic material. And after seeing Bateman paired with Will Smith this summer in Hancock, I think I'm liking it when he's paired up with "bigger" names and the two can play off one another.

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The Man Behind the Kimmel vs Silverman Videos Gets a Movie

BuzzSugar — Thu, 05 Jun 2008 11:30:57 -0700

Someone once told me that to make it in Hollywood, one needs persistence, talent and a lot of luck.

Well, these days, add to that a hit viral video because the director of the "comedy shorts" known to most as the F***king Matt Damon and Ben Affleck videos is getting a shot at directing a feature film.

It never occurred to me that there might be an honest-to-goodness aspiring movie director behind those dueling videos. Turns out there was, and his name is Wayne McClammy (even his name is funny) who has worked as a writer and director on Jimmy Kimmel Live and The Sarah Silverman Program.

The film he's set to direct is called Cool School and is about "ad executives in their early thirties who are sent back to high school to learn how to be cool again." What do you think? Is it wise to trust an entire film to a guy known mostly for short viral videos?

Movie Preview: He's Just Not That Into You

BuzzSugar — Tue, 27 May 2008 22:12:46 -0700

So far, the pros for this movie include all the members of a stellar and adorable cast which, as I've reported before, includes just about everyone. Seriously. Based on the preview alone, though, Ginnifer Goodwin looks like she might steal a lot of scenes from the bigger named stars.

The movie is based on the bestselling book that was based on a Sex and the City episode about women overanalyzing men too much when things are sometimes as simple as, "He's just not into you." It's supposed to be liberating. . . or something. I guess the con for me is that I'm not quite clear on how this constitutes a cohesive plot and the trailer is no help with that. At first I thought it was a movie about how men play games and sidestep issues, but then Scarlett Johansson's character plays games, too, so. . . maybe it's just about game-playing.

Anyway, just seeing these familiar faces with The Cure's "Friday I'm in Love," blasting in the background is pretty fun. The movie was originally supposed to come out this summer but has now been pushed back to October 24. I like a good romcom in the fall, so I'm not complaining. To watch the trailer for yourself and tell me what you think,

Jimmy Kimmel Live Celebrates 1,000 Episodes

BuzzSugar — Wed, 02 Apr 2008 16:31:53 -0700

It's time for Jimmy Kimmel to pop the champagne and start celebrating because his late-night show Jimmy Kimmel Live will hit the 1,000th episode mark tomorrow night.

The late-night talk show landscape is competitive, and breaking in as a newbie without inheriting a throne (see: Jay Leno taking over for Johnny Carson) is no small task. Audiences and A-listers alike usually flock toward a name they know and trust, which makes Kimmel's milestone that much more significant.

It sounds like the show had more than a few obstacles when they first started out, as described by Kimmel to The Hollywood Reporter:

Every interview turned out to be my last with almost everyone. I'm still cleaning up a lot of that mess from the first three months of the show. We forced the Rock, Dwayne Johnson, to ride a dogsled out onto the stage. He didn't want to. My producer didn't want to hear that. It became an unpleasant thing. We were overly aggressive with people. You can't do that and build any kind of goodwill. Fortunately, I think we've turned it around.

He's certainly come a long way from his shlubby, smirky sidekick persona on Comedy Central's The Man Show, and he recognizes that at first he "didn't understand the niceties of being a talk show host." But now, as the Reporter points out, Jimmy Kimmel Live has "clearly struck a chord with younger adults, who respond to the host's low-key hip approach." I myself never thought I'd be able to take Kimmel that seriously but I have to say, I'm warming up to him.

Of course, hilarious skits starring Ben Affleck and Matt Damon have recently helped earn him some fans and secure his credibility among Hollywood's elite. Are you won over? Where does Jimmy Kimmel rank in your mind among late-night giants like Leno and Letterman? Do you think he'll be around for another 1,000 episodes?

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Sam Raimi Is Bringing Back Jack Ryan

BuzzSugar — Wed, 19 Mar 2008 12:30:14 -0700

Earlier this week I called Sam Raimi a busy guy which is, it turns out, an understatement because now there's news of yet another ambitious Raimi project: the return of Tom Clancy's CIA hero Jack Ryan. Previously, the role of Jack Ryan has been played by Alec Baldwin (The Hunt for Red October), Harrison Ford (Patriot Games, Clear and Present Danger) and Ben Affleck (The Sum of All Fears).

Jack Ryan is not dashing like James Bond, nor is he a highly trained killing machine like Jason Bourne. He is a "thinker" who usually relies on his CIA analyst skill set to save the U.S. from evil. These new films reportedly might focus on a younger, less established Ryan, and casting rumors have been swirling around Ryan Gosling for several months.

I'm happy to hear that someone as capable as Raimi is working to bring this character back. While Clancy can get slightly heavy-handed with his patriotism, I'm a sucker for suspenseful spy thrillers and plots that include the piecing together of CIA intelligence. What do you think? Are you excited to see more of Jack Ryan (not to be confused with Jake Ryan)?

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Gone Baby Gone Team Gears Up for Next Drama: The Blade Itself

BuzzSugar — Tue, 11 Mar 2008 12:30:27 -0700

Ben Affleck and Co. will again team up to produce another crime thriller, though this time they're abandoning the Afflecks' beloved Boston and relocating to Chicago. Like Affleck's last project Gone Baby Gone, this one's based on a gritty crime novel, Marcus Sakey's debut tome The Blade Itself.

The story follows "two Chicago childhood friends who made their reputation committing petty crimes as kids before choosing different paths in life. When they are reunited years later, one is forced to decide how far he will go to protect the secrets of his past."

Esquire named Sakey's novel one of the five best reads of 2007. So, whaddya say, readers? Shall I put The Blade Itself on the list of future titles to read for the Buzz Book Club?

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What to Netflix: New DVD Tuesday

BuzzSugar — Tue, 12 Feb 2008 09:30:00 -0800

All of the new DVD releases hit stores (and Netflix) on Tuesdays. So each week in What to Netflix: New DVD Tuesday, I sort through the best of the batch and tell you what to add to your queue. In addition to the titles below you can view the thriller We Own the Night starring Joaquin Phoenix and Mark Wahlberg. Also on DVD today is Romance and Cigarettes, a musical that's definitely not for the High School Musical set.

Gone Baby Gone
For his directorial debut, Ben Affleck brings together a talented ensemble cast that includes his brother Casey Affleck, Morgan Freeman, Ed Harris and Amy Ryan. The film is set in the Affleck brothers' hometown of Boston and is adapted from a novel by the author of another dark Boston tale, Mystic River.

Casey plays Patrick Kenzie, a private detective hired to help bring home a missing 4-year-old girl. In the process, he discovers a complex and disturbing underworld based on the broken dreams of families living in one of the country's toughest neighborhoods.

Relative newcomer Amy Ryan earned herself an Oscar nomination for her portrayal as the little girl's drug addict mother, and our very own Boston native Molly really enjoyed this heart wrenching flick so it's a pretty safe bet for your Netflix queue.

A little depressing? Two more lovey titles are next so

Edward Norton Leaves State of Play, Ben Affleck May Join

BuzzSugar — Tue, 18 Dec 2007 15:30:24 -0800

Well, my original excitement over a Fight Club reunion with Edward Norton and Brad Pitt starring in State of Play has been dashed. First Pitt dropped out of the project and was replaced by Russell Crowe. Now Norton has decided to leave as well, with Ben Affleck in negotiations to replace him.

Though while Pitt's departure had to do with issues he had with the script, Norton's problems had to do with a conflicting schedule, as Norton committed to starring in the indie comedy Leaves of Grass. Variety continues:

Now it will be Affleck who plays a fast-rising politician who is caught up in a murder conspiracy. Crowe will play a journalist who leads a newspaper’s investigation into the killing. He’s conflicted in that he once ran the pol’s campaigns, and he is now romancing his estranged wife. Still in the cast are Helen Mirren, Rachel McAdams, Robin Wright Penn and Jason Bateman.

All this shifting around does not inspire a lot of confidence in this project. Then again, maybe Crowe and Affleck will be a fantastic duo in this situation. I just hope this cast stays put!

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Gone Baby Gone: Good Baby Great

Molly — Fri, 19 Oct 2007 10:34:32 -0700

Note: After much pleading, Buzz let me go see this movie to review. Thanks, Buzz!

As a Boston area native, movies about the city usually fall within two distinct categories. There are movies about the city’s academia — Good Will Hunting. And there are movies about the gritty parts of the town — a la Mystic River or even Boondock Saints. At this point, Ben and Casey Affleck have seen, lived and made movies on both side of this off Boston dichotomy (most famously in the first example), but I’m happy to say that their foray into the serious, Gone Baby Gone, is more than a success. From the first five minutes on, GBG is a movie wrought with moral dilemmas, seedy characters, and lies told for questionable reasons. None of these are easy to put into film without being heavy handed, but thanks to an excellent cast, script, and in Ben’s able hands, they created a gut wrenching and, ultimately, great movie.

Being that the movie is based on another of Dennis Lehane’s novels (with a vaguely similar story line, and a punch-in-the-gut ending), it will suffer from the constant comparisons to Clint Eastwood's Mystic River. Luckily, Ben's first effort at directing can withstand those criticisms, even if he's not yet Eastwood. Or, to be fair, dealing with a cast of Eastwood proportions. That being said, one of the best things that Ben had going for him was his actors, especially his brother Casey.

To read the rest of my review just

Buzz News Roundup, 9/14

BuzzSugar — Fri, 14 Sep 2007 13:29:28 -0700

Ben Affleck's directorial debut, the thriller Gone, Baby, Gone, is being pulled from U.K. theaters in light of the kidnapping of British girl Madeleine McCann, Variety reports.
Those nutty "Jericho" fans really made their mark: CBS is using peanuts to market the show's first-season DVDs, Variety reports.
Ricky Gervais will write and star in his own comedic movie titled This Side of Truth, writes Zap2It.
Billboard has the news that Aretha Franklin's next album — releasing Nov. 13 — will include two never-before-heard tracks.
"Queer Eye for the Straight Guy" will start its fifth season in October with a "Straight Guy Pageant," the Futon Critic reports.
The Austin City Limits music festival kicked off today, Pitchfork reports.
Bummer: "The IT Crowd," NBC's midseason nerd comedy, might never make it on the air, Zap2it writes.
TV Guide reports that soap star Morgan Fairchild will play herself on "Men in Trees."

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No One in Hollywood Is Into Me

BuzzSugar — Tue, 28 Aug 2007 23:43:05 -0700

This is getting ridiculous.
It seems like every few days there's another bit of casting news for the Drew Barrymore movie based on the self-help book He's Just Not That Into You. The latest? Ben Affleck has joined the already crowded cast.

A quick reminder of who else has already signed on:
Along with Barrymore, Affleck is joining Jennifer Aniston, Jennifer Connelly, Kevin Connolly, Bradley Cooper, Ginnifer Goodwin, Scarlett Johansson and Justin Long. No word on exactly what Affleck's part will be.

Are you sick of hearing about this movie before it's even begun production?
According to Variety, shooting starts September 10 in Los Angeles, so hopefully they will lay off all the castings once that date arrives. How is your saturation level for hearing about this movie that isn't even being made yet?

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Movie Preview: Smokin' Aces

BuzzSugar — Mon, 22 Jan 2007 08:37:32 -0800

In addition to Catch and Release, this Friday, Jan. 26, marks the opening of Smokin' Aces, starring Jason Bateman, Ben Affleck, Jeremy Piven, and Alicia Keys. A bit of plot: When Vegas performer Buddy "Aces" Israel (Piven) agrees to testify against a dying mob boss, the mobster offers $1 million to whoever manages to silence him. As an array of assassins flock to Buddy's Lake Tahoe hideout, the FBI scrambles to protect its key witness.

I'm looking forward to this crime/action/comedy, so watch for my review later this week. Will you go see it? To watch the trailer,