Entertaining Posts

Friday, May 6, 2011

Glamour, art, politics collide at classic Cannes

LONDON | Fri May 6, 2011 7:49am EDT

LONDON (Reuters) - The Cannes film festival is gearing up for what critics say should be a vintage year, with Hollywood stars out in force, revered directors there in droves and political controversy thrown into the mix.

The world's biggest cinema showcase has suffered from studio cost-cutting and lackluster lineups in recent years, but news that Terrence Malick's eagerly awaited "The Tree of Life" is in the main competition has cinephiles licking their lips.

Brad Pitt, Angelina Jolie, Johnny Depp, Penelope Cruz, Sean Penn, Mel Gibson, French First Lady Carla Bruni and jury president Robert De Niro are among big names expected to walk the red carpet and hit the French Riviera party circuit.

And in addition to Malick, movie lovers can admire the latest works from Pedro Almodovar, two-time Cannes winners the Dardenne brothers, previous Palme d'Or laureates Lars Von Trier and Nanni Moretti and Japan's prolific director Takashi Miike.

"It's the strongest lineup in ages," said Mark Cousins, a film critic and regular Cannes attendee.

"It's the Malick that most excites. Some film makers make films about their home town, or their country, but Terrence Malick makes films about what it's like to be alive."

The Tree of Life stars Pitt and Penn in a family saga set in the Midwest during the 1950s. The long wait for its arrival, and a trailer featuring mysterious cosmic scenes, have raised expectations for what is only Malick's fifth feature.

Penn also appears in Italian director Paolo Sorrentino's in-competition "This Must Be The Place," in which he portrays a retired rock star who sets out to find his father's executioner, an ex-Nazi war criminal living in the United States.

SARKOZY, WIFE IN THE FRAME

Kicking off the May 11-22 marathon of screenings, press interviews, deal-making and late night revelry in the palm-lined Mediterranean resort will be Woody Allen's romantic comedy "Midnight in Paris," starring Owen Wilson and Rachel McAdams.

Much of the media's focus is likely to be on former model Bruni, who has a small role in the film and is at the center of intense speculation in France over whether she is pregnant.

By coincidence, Cannes also includes biopic "La Conquete" (The Conquest), which portrays Bruni's husband, French President Nicolas Sarkozy, during the 2007 election and the collapse of his previous marriage to Cecilia.

Women feature more prominently in the main competition than usual, although they still only account for four of 20 entries.

Scotland's Lynne Ramsay presents "We Need To Talk About Kevin," based on Lionel Shriver's bestselling novel and Australian Julia Leigh directs "Sleeping Beauty," described as a "haunting erotic fairy tale."

French actress/director Maiwenn Le Besco has directed "Polisse" about a photographer who begins an affair with a cop, and Japan's Naomi Kawase brings "Hanezu No Tsuki," four years after her "The Mourning Forest" won the runner-up Grand Prix award in 2007.

Belgium's Dardenne brothers have a chance to become the first directors to scoop the coveted Palme d'Or three times with "The Kid With A Bike" and festival favorite Almodovar will aim to lift his first Golden Palm with "The Skin I Live In."

Denmark's Von Trier is back two years after his "Antichrist" became the most talked-about film at Cannes for years for its graphic violence and sexual content.

This time he is in competition with "Melancholia," starring Kirsten Dunst as a bride celebrating her marriage as a planet threatens to collide with Earth.

Rubbing shoulders with the "auteurs" of high art will be Hollywood's big guns -- blockbuster sequels "Kung Fu Panda 2" starring Jolie and Jack Black and "Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides" with Depp and Cruz will boost the star power.

And economic recovery following the global financial crisis may also breath life into the giant Cannes market place where film rights are bought and sold and which acts as an engine room propelling the famous festival.

(Reporting by Mike Collett-White)

Thursday, May 5, 2011

Jacob Lusk booted from "Idol" as four remain

By Chris Michaud

NEW YORK | Thu May 5, 2011 10:14pm EDT

NEW YORK (Reuters) - "American Idol"'s final four was set at two guys and two girls on Thursday when Jacob Lusk was given the boot during the TV talent show's now-and-then themed week.

Of the finalists, only Lusk and Haley Reinhart had ever landed in the bottom three. For Lusk it was the third -- and final -- strike.

Lusk, 23, from the gritty Los Angeles suburb of Compton, was composed in defeat, saying, "I think Americans fell in love with me," and that he would now have a chance to put out more of the great R&B music that most inspires him.

Accordingly, he went out with a stirring rendition of "A House is Not a Home," a Bacharach/David hit for the likes of Dionne Warwick and Luther Vandross.

The judges, bloggers and mentor Jimmy Iovine all had some issues with Lusk's performances on Wednesday, when he sang "No Air" and "Love Hurts." Contestants each had to choose a new song and an older one this week.

Joining him in the bottom two was an emotional Lauren Alaina, who had tears streaming down her face long before she was spared elimination.

A pack of women singers went home in the finals' early weeks, but with four men going home in the last four weeks, the final four was down to two men and two women.

Decked out in glittery, midriff-exposing outfit and backed by a pack of muscular bare-chested men, judge Jennifer Lopez brought the audience to its feet with a performance of her hit single "On the Floor" from her newly released album "Love."

Lopez' new gig as a judge on the nation's top-rated show has injected new life into her career. Last month People magazine named her the most beautiful woman in the world.

Her performance was also followed by a video clip of her new single, "I'm Into You."

Grammy-winning country combo Lady Antebellum also returned to the "Idol" stage, with "Just a Kiss."

The four remaining finalists are 17-year-old country crooner Scotty McCreery, rocker James Durbin, Alaina and Reinhart, who had a good week after several times near the bottom.

"Idol" has recovered from several years of flagging ratings this season with new judges Lopez and Aerosmith rocker Steven Tyler. The finale airs on the Fox network May 24 and 25, when viewers will choose the next winner and he or she lands a recording contract.

Past winners Kelly Clarkson and Carrie Underwood have gone on to major singing careers, while eliminated finalist Jennifer Hudson won an Oscar for her supporting role in the big-screen adaptation of the "Dreamgirls" musical.

(Editing by Dean Gooodman)

Country music stars to stage tornado fundraiser

LOS ANGELES | Thu May 5, 2011 3:54pm EDT

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Country music stars Hank Williams Jr., Keith Urban, Tim McGraw and the band Lady Antebellum are to hold a concert to raise funds for victims of storms and tornadoes that struck Alabama and nearby states, organizers said on Thursday.

Country Music Television, which will air the live special next week, and organizers said they felt the devastation was overshadowed by media coverage of the British royal wedding of Prince William and Kate Middleton, and news that a U.S. strike team killed Osama bin Laden in Pakistan.

"The other seismic news events of the past few days have had the unintended effect of limiting media coverage of this massive, historic American disaster," CMT President Brian Philips said in a statement.

"Simply put, CMT and our artists will not allow this to happen. We will raise money, and we will shine the brightest possible light on the urgent needs of our courageous neighbors," he said.

CMT will air the benefit concert live from Nashville, Tennessee, on May 12. All money raised will benefit American Red Cross disaster relief efforts.

About 350 people were killed last week by tornadoes and flooding in the southern United States. More than 230 people died in Alabama alone.

Williams, the 61 year-old son of late country music legend Hank Williams, took the first steps to organizing the benefit concert when he reached out to CMT executives.

"Alabama is home -- I am really pumped about helping," Williams said in a statement.

The 90-minute concert will also feature Ronnie Dunn, formerly of the duo Brooks & Dunn, singer Sara Evans, the band Alabama and others.

The storms are estimated to have destroyed or damaged more than 13,000 homes across six U.S. states, according to the American Red Cross.

(Reporting by Alex Dobuzinskis: Editing by Jill Serjeant)

Wednesday, May 4, 2011

Arnold Schwarzenegger picks drama for comeback

By Gregg Kilday

Wed May 4, 2011 11:37pm EDT

LOS ANGELES (Hollywood Reporter) - Arnold Schwarzenegger has zeroed in on the film that will mark his return to the big screen: "Cry Macho," a drama about a down-on-his-luck horse trainer who is hired to kidnap a 9-year-old boy.

Filming is set to begin in September. Brad Furman ("The Lincoln Lawyer") will direct. Producer Al Ruddy, an Oscar winner for both "The Godfather" and "Million Dollar Baby," has been nurturing the project for years.

"I guarantee that you'll get another look at Arnold Schwarzenegger in this movie," Ruddy said. "Arnold always plays these big muscular guys, but there's a sweetness to Arnold in real life, and we want to bring that sweetness to the screen. Now that Brad's met with Arnold, he's convinced there's an accessibility and vulnerability there that he wants to bring out."

The project's financier, QED International, will begin offering it to international buyers at the Cannes Film Festival next week.

Schwarzenegger's deal calls for the actor to receive $12.5 million plus 25% of gross ticket sales from the first dollar. Ruddy and Schwarzenegger also will end up co-owning the negative on the film.

While the former governor also is attached to a "Terminator" package that is being offered to studios, with "Macho," he is opting for a movie that is more a character study than a full-blown action piece -- although some action elements have been added to accommodate the star.

The film is based on the 1975 novel, "Cry Macho," by N. Richard Nash, who also wrote the play The Rainmaker. Nash, who died in 2000, wrote the screenplay, which Ruddy has re-optioned over the years.

"I just would never let go of this one," Ruddy, 81, said. Actors ranging from Burt Lancaster to Pierce Brosnan expressed interest in the lead role. And at one point, it looked as if Clint Eastwood might star in and direct.

Because he didn't want to lose control of the property, Ruddy said, he never took it to a studio but continued to look for ways to package it independently.

Schwarzenegger, 63, will play Mike, a horse trainer whose wife and son have died. His former boss makes him an over he can't refuse: $400,000 to kidnap the boss' trust-fund son, who is living with the man's ex-wife in Mexico. But when Mike locates the boy, a real troublemaker, the ex-wife doesn't want the kid. But as Mike and the boy head back to the states, with the Federales on their trail, they develop a father-son bond.

"If it works, and I think it will," Ruddy said, "this could be a classic. There's an emotional line to the story that really works. At the end of the movie, I'm hoping audiences will be laughing and crying at the same time."

Simon Cowell tops Jagger, Sting in UK music rich list

LONDON | Wed May 4, 2011 7:18pm EDT

LONDON (Reuters) - "The X Factor" and former "American Idol" judge Simon Cowell jumped to number 6 in the British music rich list in 2011 after his fortune hit 200 million pounds ($330 million), Britain's Sunday Times newspaper said on Thursday.

That was a 35 million pound rise on 2010, when he was 11th in the annual rankings published by the newspaper, and took him above Elton John and Mick Jagger whose fortunes were estimated at 195 million and 190 million pounds respectively.

Cowell, also a music producer with an entertainment company called Syco, has signed a new deal with Britain's ITV channel and is preparing to launch "The X Factor" in the United States. But he was still some way behind his arch-rival Simon Fuller, creator of the talent TV "Idol" franchise, who ranked 5th in 2011 with personal wealth of 375 million pounds.

British-based record executive Clive Calder, who sold Zomba Records in 2002, took over at the top of the music rich list with 1.3 billion pounds, unchanged on the amount in 2010.

He regained his position at number one after Warner Music boss Edgar Bronfman moved back to New York from his temporary home in London.

Musical composer and theater owner Andrew Lloyd Webber was second with a fortune of 680 million pounds, musical producer Cameron Mackintosh was third (675 million) and ex-Beatle Paul McCartney fourth (495 million).

In the Irish music rich list, U2 boosted their wealth to 455 million pounds from 429 million in 2010 to remain comfortably on top, followed by dancer Michael Flatley with 214 million pounds.

Following is a list of the top 10 British music millionaires. (all figures in pounds)

1. Clive Calder (1.3 billion)

2. Andrew Lloyd Webber (680 million)

3. Cameron Mackintosh (675 million)

4. Paul McCartney (495 million)

5. Simon Fuller (375 million)

6. Simon Cowell (200 million)

7. Elton John (195 million)

8. Mick Jagger (190 million)

9. Sting (180 million)

10. Keith Richards (175 million)

(Reporting by Mike Collett-White; Editing by Jill Serjeant)