I Want My Lost

Naveen Andrews (pictured at right), a.k.a. as Sayid on TV’s Lost, has offered TVGuide.com a preview of the “constantly surprising” episodes of the show’s fourth season, which premieres in less than seven hours.

Photo: E! Online.

State of Disgust

Per the Entertainment Tonight Web site, “Out of respect for Heath Ledger’s family, ET and The Insider have decided not to run the Heath Ledger video which has been circulating in the world media.”

How big of them. I’m sure “respect” played a big part in the shows’ decision-making process.

It’s rather disgusting what has been and is going on in entertainment news these days.

The bar has been lowered so much it’s just a stick on the ground.

Granted, celebrities don’t help the situation any, what with their drunk driving and their flashing of the crotches and their overall disregard for propriety, but journalists have a responsibility when it comes to reporting.

Paparazzi not so much – I get that.

When the ETs and the Insiders of the world media get to run a horrifying promo, though, sensationally touting old footage of a recently deceased actor, only to be granted access later on at, say, the Oscars – you know that’s going to happen – well…there’s just something wrong with that.

Whatever happened to class?

Why is this sordidness happening? Why is an after-the-fact statement saying a show no longer intends to do something that’s just ethically, morally, and socially questionable, even an option? Why can’t Ledger rest in peace?

And by the way, world media, I don’t care about Britney Spears. I stopped caring about her two CDs, 13 meltdowns, and one intervention ago. Let it will be, already.

Photo: TheCinemaSource.com.

Oh Oh Oh Oh Oh – Here They Come

Are the New Kids on the Block getting back together?

The massively successful boy band from the late-1980s and early-90s are said to be planning a reunion to be announced quite soon.

A new untitled ballad already can be heard when you visit the group’s offical Web site, with a video teasing, “Are you ready?”

I say yeah.

And admit it – “Hangin’ Tough” was fun. These guys were everywhere – on TV...on the radio...on lunchboxes. They were It.

Photo: SMH.com.au.

Behold the Power of Green

According to a poll conducted by In Style magazine and SkyMovies, the stunning green dress that Keira Knightley wears in Atonement has been chosen as the best costume in the history of cinema.

The dress, fashioned by costume designer Jacqueline Durran, plays a pivotal role in the Academy Award-nominated film…but I’m not sure it’s No. 1 material.

I mean, it got more votes than the classic black Givenchy Audrey Hepburn wore in Breakfast at Tiffany’s.

That’s just…not right, is it?

Photo: EW.com.

Update: From Feb. 1-March 1, the Clothes Off Our Back Foundation will hold an auction of this dress to benefit Variety - The Children’s Charity of Southern California. Now, that is quite right.

Fierce

I never say “fierce,” but if I did, I certainly would say Kylie Minogue’s new video, for “In My Arms,” is something fierce.

La Minogue, who recently beat breast cancer, is back and better than ever – with a new album, X (due out in the United States in March), and an upcoming tour – following a two-year absence from the music scene.

Welcome back, cutie.

Photo: en.EpochTimes.com.

Get Smart

Before Sarah Jessica Parker serves up the hot, hot dish that is going to be the Sex and the City movie, she will whet our appetites by co-starring alongside Dennis Quaid, Thomas Haden Church, and Ellen Page (Juno) in the Sundance Film Festival entry Smart People (out on limited release on April 11).

Quaid plays a widowed professor who realizes, upon receiving an unexpected visit from his adopted brother (Church), that his self-absorbed ways are getting in the way of a shot at a new love (Parker) and of his daughter’s (Page) happiness.

Alrighty then – a feel-good movie. Count me in.

Photo: Miramax Films.

Beefing Up G.I. Joe

Dennis Quaid and Channing Tatum (pictured at right) have been cast as the leads in G.I. Joe.

Quaid will play team leader Gen. Hawk, and Tatum will play Duke Hauser, the lead soldier who works closely on missions with fellow team member Ripcord (Marlon Wayans).

Also cast Sienna Miller, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Rachel Nichols (TV’s Alias), Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje (TV’s Lost), and Said Taghmaoui.

G.I. Joe is due out in theaters in August 2009.

Photo: MaleModelsCollection.blogspot.com.

Dimming Now

Oh, Mandy Moore,

How did you know that “All good things /

Come to an end.”

Photo: Music.MSN.com.

Madonna’s Going to “Save the World”

Justin Timberlake and Timbaland are in London to shoot Madonna’s new video for the song they co-wrote and co-produced for her, “4 Minutes to Save the World,” the first single off the Queen of Pop’s upcoming new album.

M recently also shot the cover art for the album (said to be called Give It to Me) with frequent collaborator Steven Klein. Her stylist, B. (just B.), has said the singer’s look “is going to be more edgy, more fresh – no more disco.”

The album is due out this spring.

Photo: NYMag.com.

SAG Awards Bring Glamour Back to Hollywood

Yesterday’s 14th Annual Screen Actors Guild Awards celebrated the outstanding performances of 2007.

The show gave Hollywood a shot in the arm in terms of glamour and managed to surprise – something that even in this unusual awards season was quite welcome.

Firstly, though, how cool was it to see the stars all decked out and on the red carpet? Becki Newton (TV’s Ugly Betty), you’re just gorge. And way to fuel the pregnancy rumors, Brangelina.

Secondly, it was nice to see that the night had at least one surprise in store, which came in the Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Supporting Role category when Ruby Dee (American Gangster) pulled an upset over front-runners Cate Blanchett (I’m Not There) and Amy Ryan (Gone Baby Gone).

And thirdly, kudos to the guild for favoring TV couples (i.e., undeniable chemistry): Tina Fey (pictured at right) and Alec Baldwin, both of TV’s 30 Rock, and Edie Falco and James Gandolfini, both of HBO’s The Sopranos, took home trophies for their work on their series.

For a complete list of winners, click here.

Photo: People.com.

Just Because, Pt. 11

Oh dear, I’m sooo rocking out to Lindsay Lohan’s “First,” I’ve got to simma.

Don’t judge me.

Photo: MTV.com.

It’s a Wrap

OMG, y’all – May 30 just got a lot of a heck closer.

Filming on the Sex and the City movie already wrapped, and so, a fresh-from-Sundance Sarah Jessica Parker (pictured at right) shot some print ads for the project in Manhattan this week.

Trend Alert: Oversize puffy everythings are in for spring.

SJP is not the only fashionista rocking the look. Lucy Liu (TV’s Cashmere Mafia) stepped out in an attention-grabbing Valentino in Paris a couple of days ago.

So bigger is better.

Photo: People.com.

Under Construction

Anyone who has seen Cloverfield has seen it – the teaser trailer for J.J. Abrams’ reboot of the Star Trek franchise, due out on Christmas Day.

The movie will follow the early days of James T. Kirk (Chris Pine) and Mr. Spock (Zachary Quinto), their first meeting at Starfleet Academy, and their first outer space mission.

The buzz-maker features steel workers putting the finishing touches on the starship Enterprise – something that has Trekkie tongues wagging.

Now, I don’t know the first thing about Star Trek, so the obvious question is: Are you excited?

Photo: Paramount Pictures.

Lose Yourself

Are you ready to get Lost again?

The hit cult TV show will return a week from today with a new season of questions – just what is the story of that huge four-toed statue of a foot (pictured at right), anyway? – and, I hope, answers.

I can hardly wait…I wish I could flash-forward to 8 p.m. on Jan. 31 now.

Photo: GuideLive.com.

Nostalgia, Pt. 17

Before Wyclef Jean ever sang “Shakira, Shakira” and her hips didn’t lie, Shakira sang gloriously en español.

Just last week, a friend reminded me of this when he hummed a little bit of “Estoy Aqui,” the Colombian pop star’s first hit single.

And this morning, I heard it on the radio – and it stung a little, especially when she sang “Si aún piensas algo en mí / Sabes que sigo esperándote.”

Am I ever.

Photo: WorkShopLive.com.

What a…Cute Name

And the official title of the new James Bond movie is…Quantum of Solace.

Up until recently, the project was known as Bond 22.

Daniel Craig – swoon – will reprise his role as James Bond in the film, which picks up where 2006’s Casino Royale left off, with 007 contemplating revenge after his betrayal by his true love, Vesper Lynd (Eva Green).

Here’s to hoping Quantum of Solace, like Casino Royale, features a smoldering scene or two of Craig on a beach. (I mean...take a look-see at right.)

Photo: MGM/Columbia Pictures.

What a Way to Start a Relationship

In the upcoming romantic comedy What Happens in Vegas (opening on May 16), Cameron Diaz and Ashton Kutcher are going to have to pick a side and stay there when they realize they’ve gone and done the Vegas thing – getting drunk-married, natch – and one of them has hit a $3 million jackpot on the other’s quarter.

What is a couple in a situation such as this one to do?

Undermine each other to try and get all the money? Perhaps.

Fall in love? Definitely.

Check out the trailer for this one here.

Photo: 20th Century Fox.

R.I.P. Heath Ledger

I am saddened and shocked: 28-year-old Heath Ledger was found dead in his New York City apartment this afternoon.

Police say the death may be drug-related.

The Academy Award-nominated Brokeback Mountain actor leaves behind a 2-year-old daughter, Matilda, from his relationship with co-star Michelle Williams, and a much-too-short repertoire.

Ledger will be seen one last time on the big screen as the Joker in July 18’s The Dark Knight, the sequel to Batman Begins.

Photo: Warner Bros. (The Dark Knight).

Attention Academy

Dear Oscar voters,

You have to vote for “Falling Slowly” from Once in the Best Song category.

You just have to.

XOXO

Photo: Fox Searchlight Pictures.

It’s Oscar’s Time

Click here to see who may (or may not – I’m looking at you, writers strike) turn up at the Kodak Theatre at Hollywood & Highland for the 80th Annual Academy Awards on Feb. 24.

Photo: Oscars.org.

Brothers to the Rescue

Daniel Craig, how I love you.

First, I’ll see you in Bond 22 (a day after my birthday – thank you).

Then, I’ll see you in Defiance, the new Edward Zwick film about four Jewish brothers living in Nazi-occupied Poland who escape into the forest, where they join Russian resistance fighters in battling the Nazis and trying to save the lives of other Jews.

The film, “Based on the most incredible true story you have never heard,” co-stars Liev Schreiber and Jamie Bell. It opens on Dec. 26.

Photo: Paramount Vantage (Defiance).

Why VH-1 Rocks

VH-1, the home of I Love New York and Flavor and Rock of Love, has redeemed its lowest-common-denominator-programming bad, bad self by asking Mary J. Blige to tape an episode of Storytellers.

Can it get any better than that?

MJB is said to open the show with current single “Just Fine” and deliver an “out-of-body” “No More Drama.” That’s great, but does she perform “Come to Me (Peace)”? She better do….

I cannot wait to watch this show.

Photo: EW.com.

A Little Bit About Eva

I met Eva Longoria Parker early this morning at the Mandarin Oriental, Miami, to discuss her upcoming movie, Over Her Dead Body, which opens on Feb. 1.

We talked about this, that, and the other (you’re just going to have to wait until opening day for more), and I couldn’t resist asking her what is her dream project.

“Dream project…. I love María Félix. She’s such a classic beauty,” she said. “My makeup artist gave me a book about her, and she’s just stunning and her story is amazing.”

So…do you see the Desperate Housewife as La Doña?

Photo: BartCop.com.

Something’s Coming

Every once in a while, a film comes out, and it just becomes something audiences either love or hate.

Cloverfield is such a film – and people definitely are going to be talking about it.

Produced by J.J. Abrams, directed cinema-verité-style with a handheld camera by Abrams’ Felicity co-creator Matt Reeves, and written by Drew Goddard, a veteran of TV shows such as Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Angel, Alias, and Lost, Cloverfield has enjoyed months of well-deserved fan hype.

The plot is simple.

A group of friends has gotten together in a downtown New York apartment to bid farewell to one of their own, Rob (Michael Stahl-David), who’s leaving for Japan.

“Tonight’s gonna be the best night ever!” one of them says.

Rob sees this as an opportunity tie up loose ends, but something out there sees this as an opportunity to make its presence known.

Everyone’s having fun when all of the sudden, the apartment shakes.

Rob and his friends make their way to the roof and see an explosion in lower Manhattan. As they make their way out onto the street one of them wonders if it’s “another attack.” Shortly after getting out of the building, that something sends the head of the Statue of Liberty rolling down the street in front of them.

Then, it knocks a building down, and massive clouds of debris chase the group into the safety of neighborhood stores (controversial shades of Sept. 11).

As Rob and his friendsfriends – filming-everything Hud (T.J. Miller), Lily (Jessica Lucas), and Marlena (Lizzy Caplan) – begin to wrap their heads around what’s going on, they soon realize they must venture into the middle of the city to save one of their own.

The best part about this Godzilla-meets-The Blair Witch Project is it delivers genuine edge-of-your-seat scares and thrills.

One reason for this is the intimate, albeit not-suited-to-everyone’s-taste feel Reeves achieves by shooting everything with a shaky handheld camera. You’re right there on the action.

Another is the cast is completely unknown, save for Caplan who appeared in Mean Girls and starred in TV’s The Class. (Don’t believe the rumors that say Blake Lively of TV’s Gossip Girl appears in the film. She is to Cloverfield what Jennifer Aniston was to Godzilla: a piece of casting that never was.)

And, for all you who might think Abrams & Co. are going to string you along without showing you the monster (à la, say, Lost), don’t worry: you will so see it.

Now, for a mini-spoiler….

Still with me?

‘Cause there’s a mini-spoiler ahead.

Keep your eyes peeled during the last 30 seconds of the film. If you watch closely you will see how it all began.

My Rating ****

Photo: Paramount Pictures.

A Sex-y Poster

New Line Cinema really knows how to feed one of my current obsessions: the Sex and the City movie.

The studio has unveiled the poster and a series of photos from the production that is scheduled to arrive in theaters on May 30.

“Hello, lover,” indeed.

Photo: New Line Cinema.

28th Time’s the Charm

The heroine of the beyond predictable romantic comedy 27 Dresses is played by Katherine Heigl (TV’s Grey’s Anatomy), an actress Hollywood gladly has dubbed The Next Julia Roberts.

No disrespect to Heigl, but if neither Reese Witherspoon nor Jennifer Garner could usurp the title of America’s Sweetheart from Roberts, no one ever will.

No one.

Heigl plays idealistic, romantic Jane, the most selfless young woman anyone would want to call a sister, an employee, or a bridesmaid – 27 times over, natch.

A yes sort of gal, Jane always was good at taking care of everyone else, but she never took care of herself.

By the time 27 Dresses nears its end, all of this will have changed, though, double-natch.

Saddled with helping her younger sister Tess (Malin Akerman) plan her wedding to George (Edward Burns), the boss with whom she’s secretly in love, Jane begins to reexamine her “always-a-bridesmaid...” lifestyle.

Assisting her on this task is Kevin (James Marsden), a writer for the “Commitments”' column in the Sunday wedding section of the New York Journal she met cute-ish on a night she was pulling double bridesmaid duty.

One romantic comedy fashion montage later, in which we learn of the history of most of the dresses populating dedicated closet space in her New York City apartment, Jane realizes it’s time she put herself first…even though she’s had “some really good times in those dresses.”

Unfortunately, the change brings out some of the most cliché chick-flick trappings imaginable – the good girl goes bitchy! the bad girl just wants to be loved! the boy isn’t who he says he is! – and 27 Dresses soon feels like 24 too many.

I understand that weddings are something special that should be problem-free. But by making this movie so by-the-books, the filmmakers stumble on their slow way to the altar.

Casting Heigl, who’s high on the It List following the success of Knocked Up, was an inspired choice: she’s a likeable talent. But she’s not that memorable…no matter what the industry says. Think twice before you RSVP to this one.

My Rating **

Photo: 20th Century Fox.

Hearting N.Y.

The filmmakers behind last year’s Paris, Je T’aime are set to do for New York what they did for the City of Lights.

A group of 12 directors will create five-minute love stories set in and around the Big Apple for New York, I Love You.

Among those participating in the project are Zach Braff, Mira Nair, and Anthony Minghella, as well as frequent collaborators Woody Allen and Scarlett Johansson (pictured at right), who will make her directorial debut with her own segment.

Photo: PlastikPop.net.

The Diary of Conan O’Brien

My favorite late-night talk show, the one, the only – the best – Mr. Conan O’Brien has authored a hilarious cover story for the new issue Entertainment Weekly.

Inspired by his experiences surviving the nearly three-month-old writers strike, this the true-to-life survival guide of a very brave man.

Here’s a choice sample:

“DAY 5
With no sign on the horizon of fresh scripted television, I decide to read a book. The first few pages go well, but I can’t help wondering if Meredith and McDreamy will ever work things out. They’re so right for each other and yet so wrong. I burn the book for warmth.”

Oh, strike, what have you done?

Not only has O’Brien grown a mighty fine beard in your name, but he’s had to find comfort in the company of a cute chimp, and gorged himself on marathons of Flavor of Love.

End soon, strike.

Photo: EW.com.

The Girl Can’t Help It, Can She

The song has been out for like, three months, but I still sooo light up whenever “No One” comes on.

It just produces a chemical reaction in me.

And now, I’m sooo getting into Alicia Key’s “Like You’ll Never See Me Again.”

Keys and a piano…it’s just magic.

Photo: BeanSoupTimes.com.

The Brits Get In on the Awards Action

Today, the British Academy of Film and Television Arts showered Atonement with no less than 14 nominations, including best film, best British film, best director for Joe Wright, and actor nominations for James McAvoy, Keira Knightley, and Saoirse Ronan.

American front-runners No Country for Old Men and There Will Be Blood both received nine nominations, including best film and best director for the Coen brothers and Paul Thomas Anderson, respectively.

Paul Greengrass was nominated for Best Director for The Bourne Ultimatum. The film also picked up a nod in the best British film category.

For a complete list of BAFTA nominees, click here.

Photo: Focus Features (Atonement).

So Jazzed About Cloverfield

I just saw Cloverfield a couple of hours ago, and I am so jazzed about it.

The film doesn’t open until Friday, so I can’t say much about it other than you must, must, must watch it – and keep your eyes open throughout, especially during like, the last 30 seconds.

I think I was the only one to catch a blink-and-you’ll-miss-it event – I say this because I was told so – and although I’m pretty sure I’m right (because I know my J.J. Abrams, who produced the film), I cannot wait to see it again just to make sure.

So come back in a few days and read all about it.

Photo: Paramount Pictures.

Just “Fine”

Gwyneth Paltrow “is fine and now at home” following a brief stay in a New York hospital yesterday.

I trust it wasn’t serious.

Up next for Paltrow is May 2’s Iron Man, the trailer for which you can watch here.

Photo: 3ayak.org.

A Whisper

Rumor has it Coldplay will release their fourth album, tentatively titled Prospekt, on May 19.

The band is expected to make an official announcement this week.

And I am expected to heart it.

Photo: 100xr.com.

I Knew Keri Russell Was Some Kind of Wonder!

TVGuide.com’s Michael Ausiello reports that Keri “Should’ve Been Nominated for Something for Waitress” Russell is “in advanced talks to voice the title role in Warner Bros.’ straight-to-DVD animated Wonder Woman feature.”

Alright – so it’s not a starring role in a silver screen feature, but when was the last time you voiced a superhero?

The movie, which is expected later this year or early in 2009, is part of a new line of DVD feature adaptations by Warner Bros.

And here’s to hoping Russell’s sure-to-be-amazing work proves to be an audition for an eventual starring role in a live-action adaptation.

Photo: Keri-Russell.info.

There’s Something in It

In The Air I Breathe, a businessman bets his life on a horse race, a gangster sees the future, a pop star falls prey to a crime boss, and a doctor must save the love of his life.

Based on an ancient Chinese proverb, these four overlapping stories dramatize the four emotional cornerstones of life: happiness, pleasure, sorrow, and love.

The movie stars Forest Whitaker, Brendan Fraser, Sarah Michelle Gellar, and Kevin Bacon, and opens, in limited release, on Jan. 25.

Photo: THINKFilm.

Almost Forgot About These Awards

The Directors Guild of America will name on Jan. 26 the winner of the DGA Award for Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Feature Film for 2007.

The nominees are Paul Thomas Anderson (There Will Be Blood), the Coen Brothers (No Country for Old Men), Tony Gilroy (Michael Clayton), Sean Penn (Into the Wild), and Julian Schnabel (The Diving Bell and the Butterfly).

Meanwhile, the embattled Writers Guild of America has nominated Juno, Knocked Up, Lars and the Real Girl, Michael Clayton, and The Savages in the best original screenplay category for its awards.

Making the best adapted screenplay cut are The Diving Bell and the Butterfly, Into the Wild, No Country for Old Men, There Will Be Blood, and Zodiac.

The WGA winners will be announced on Feb. 9.

Photo: Paramount Pictures (Zodiac).

(Not as) Shiny Surprises

Nobody walked into the party like they were walking onto a yacht at last night’s news conference announcing the winners of the 65th Annual Golden Globe Awards – I hope you’re happy, writers strike – but the show still delivered some surprises.

As anticipated, Daniel Day-Lewis (There Will Be Blood) and Julie Christie (Away From Her) walked away the winners of the best actor and best actress in a drama awards.

Marion Cotillard (La Vie en Rose) soared above the competition to nab best actress in a musical or comedy, as did Javier Bardem (No Country for Old Men) and Cate Blanchett (I’m Not There) in the supporting categories.

The first surprise came in the form of Johnny Depp (Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street), who won his first Golden Globe for the movie, which won Best Musical or Comedy, by the way.

Then came the win for Julian Schnabel (The Diving Bell and the Butterfly) in the Best Director category – a win I was sure would go to the Coen brothers for No Country for Old Men.

Schnabel also took home a Best Foreign Language Film honors.

And then came Atonement‘s upset over No Country for Old Men in the Best Drama race.

Too bad the show wasn’t televised….

On the TV front, cable dominated the Golden Globes. All of the awards went to shows on either AMC (Mad Men), FX (Damages), or HBO (Entourage, Extras), with the exception of Best Actress in a Television Series - Musical or Comedy, which went to 30 Rock’s Tina Fey.

Photo: The Weinstein Company (I’m Not There).

Awww

I’d heard and hearted the song, but I’d never seen the video in its entirety.

I’m talking about Maroon 5’s “Won’t Go Home Without You,” in which sexy mofo Adam Levine pines over his beloved, played by Tania Raymonde (TV’s Lost).

Watch it and learn, everyone, ‘cause it can be here today, gone today.

Photo: Starmometer.com.

The Sun Sets on The Hills a Little

Looks like Lauren Conrad (pictured at right) needs a “Pocketful of Sunshine.”

MTV’s The Hills has been exposed as a bit of a fakery machine; Heidi’s looking hot on the cover of Maxim, and now LC and Whitney Port are said to be no longer in vogue.

Teen Vogue, that is.

Even more worrisome – I’ve drank the Kool-Aid.

Ew. I should just...“Quit!” (But then again, I kind of likey.)

Photo: BuddyTV.com.

In Your Eyes

Picture it: A crowded plaza. A stage. The president of the United States is about to make a speech when pow, pow – he’s shot down.

There are eight strangers in this plaza, each with a different vantage point…each with a different piece of the puzzle.

How it all fits is what you’ll find out on Feb. 22 when Vantage Point, starring Dennis Quaid, Matthew Fox (TV’s Lost), William Hurt, Forest Whitaker, and Sigourney Weaver, opens in a theater near you.

Can you believe (what you see)?

Photo: Columbia Pictures.

If I Could Turn Back Time…I Wouldn’t Be Sick

It’s flu season, and boy, don’t I know it.

Thank goodness for sparkling water, soup, and TiVo.

If it weren’t for my good ol’ digital recording device I probably wouldn’t feel as good as I feel today. There’s something about watching an old Will & Grace episode that really makes a fever of more than 100 degrees…tolerable.

By the time I saw Cher perform her first (and best) cameo on the comedy yesterday, I knew I was going to get better fast.

Because, you know, laughter is the best medicine.

Photo: DailyMotion.com.

The Show Won’t Go On

The Hollywood Foreign Press Association announced yesterday that this year’s Golden Globe Awards telecast on NBC has been cancelled.

What will I watch, writers strike?

In lieu of a glitzy ceremony featuring the likes of Brangelina, Clooney, and Roberts, all we will get is an hour-long HFPA press conference covered live by NBC News that will air at 9 p.m. EST.

“We are all very disappointed that our traditional awards ceremony will not take place this year and that millions of viewers worldwide will be deprived of seeing many of their favorite stars celebrating 2007’s outstanding achievements in motion pictures and television,” said Jorge Camara, president of the Hollywood Foreign Press Association.”

Did he really say “deprived”? Jinkees!

“We take some comfort, however, in knowing that this year’s Golden Globe Award recipients will be announced on the date originally scheduled,” Camara added.

Photo: EW.com.

Update 1: About that press conference.... It’s off, too.

Update 2: Actually, the conference is on.

Loverly

At the risk of going on MJB overload like a big silly, I’m still feeling “Come to Me (Peace).”

What can I say – I’m a smiley face over it.

And that’s “just fine…fine, fine, fine, fine, fine, fine (ooooh).”

Photo: AskMen.com.

Blast From the Past

“If you could travel back in time, where would you most like to go?”

This is, of course, one of the quintessential questions everyone asks, a companion to “What person dead or alive would you most like to have dinner with?”

On March 7, we will catch a glimpse of pre-historic times in 10,000 B.C., the latest from Roland Emmerich (Independence Day, The Day After Tomorrow).

I just watched the trailer, which is packed with good-looking CGI renditions of wooly mammoths and saber-toothed tigers, introduces us to stud muffin Steven Strait (pictured at right), and gives co-star Camilla Belle a chance to look like the Next Hot Thing in Hollywood.

This movie’s gonna be fun.

Photo: Warner Bros.

Girl. Bond Girl

Meet Gemma Arterton, your friendly neighborhood new Bond girl.

The newcomer, a British actress soon to be seen in Guy Ritchie’s RocknRolla, will play Fields opposite Daniel Craig’s 007 in the latest James Bond movie.

Opening Nov. 7, Bond 22, the project’s a.k.a., is under the direction of Marc Forster (The Kite Runner).

Photo: DailyMail.co.uk.

Update: Also cast in Bond 22: Olga Kurylenko (Elijah Wood’s segment co-star in Paris, Je T’aime). She will play Bond’s love interest.

Just Because, Pt. 10

Mandy Moore was a vision in pink at The Raleigh Hotel’s New Year’s Eve bash in Miami Beach, and although I didn’t make it to that party, the last couple of days I’ve been thinking about the terrific job she did with ther Coverage album.

Exhibit A: Lead single “Have a Little Faith in Me.”

Exhibits B, C, and D: “Can We Still Be Friends,” “I Feel the Earth Move,” and especially “Moonshadow,” all of which you can sample here.

Photo: InStyle.com.

Because She Really Wants to Direct, You Know…

Madonna is done with the acting thing, and will premiere her directorial debut – a low-budget, 30-minute short film titled Filth and Wisdom – at next month’s Berlin Film Festival.

Go on, laugh her off.

But keep in mind that this is a woman for whom the word “rehab” is but the title of a song. She can do anything.

The movie stars Stephen Graham (Gangs of New York), Richard E. Grant, and singer Eugene Kutz from the band Gogol Bordello, who performed with the Queen of Pop at last summer’s Live Earth concert.

In other M news, I’m told that one of the names tossed around as a possibility to induct Madonna into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in March is…Justin Timberlake’s?

Mmm – I’d had thought Seymour Stein’s to be more appropriate.

Photo: LATimes.com.

Family Affair

For Jon and Wendy Savage, caring after their demented father isn’t just an unexpected job – it’s also a burden, an imposition, and ultimately, a form of salvation.

The last thing the brother and sister main characters of Tamara Jenkins’ The Savages ever wanted to do was confront their difficult family history because, well…that’s just too real. Mom seems never to have a presence in their lives, but their dad, Lenny (Philip Bosco), he was unsupportive, domineering, and abusive.

Jon and Wendy extricated themselves from that situation years ago, and are now living happily in denial…in their own complicated lives.

Wendy (Laura Linney) is a struggling East Village playwright – a temp, really. She spends her days stealing supplies and time from her jobs as she applies for grants she won’t get, and her nights sleeping with her married neighbor with whom she likes to create false intimacy by telling him her doctor says she might be sick when in fact, she’s just fine.

Jon (Philip Seymour Hoffman), a neurotic college theater professor in his 40s living and working in Buffalo, methodically researches books on obscure subjects. He’s in a relationship with a Polish colleague who must go home because her visa has expired, but he won’t marry her (he’s got issues: he cries when she makes him eggs in the morning).

When a call comes informing them the father they have long feared and avoided is slowly being consumed by dementia, they’re forced to accept the fact that they’re the only ones that can help.

As they put their already arrested lives on hold, Jon and Wendy must live together under one roof for the first time since childhood, and get to know each other again – not without lying and trying to outdo each other, though.

Faced with complete upheaval, and battling over how to handle their father’s final days, the two are confronted with what adulthood, family, and, most surprisingly, each other are really about.

The result is a beautifully played and smartly written 113-minute film that, although a bit too long, will make you appreciate who you are and the ups and downs of your own family.

Or, at the very least, that you aren’t a Savage.

My Rating ***

Photo: Fox Searchlight Pictures.

Uh – That’s Not Water

A video showing Lindsay Lohan taking a swig from a bottle of champers totally has bummed me out.

L2 was in Italy over New Year’s to receive an award at the 12th Annual Capri Hollywood International Film Festival.

Judgment aside, staying sober’s a hard thing, so please, Linds, pick yourself up and try, try, try again.

You can do it.

Photo: WordPress.com.

Kill the Bride?

The holiday season brought me much joy, as it would, but it also brought some time to consider whether there ever will be …a third Kill Bill movie.

Oooh – pressing matter, huh.

The thought entered my mind when I saw the poster for Uma Thurman’s upcoming The Accidental Husband.

I got to thinking, “Hey, there’s Uma Thurman. I hope that romantic comedy – another one – does well for her. She sooo should’ve gotten an award for Kill Bill. Hey, weren’t they going to make a third one of those? Focusing on a grown-up Nikki, the daughter of Vivica A. Fox’s Vernita Green (pictured at right), and how she wants to kill the Bride. That’d be awesome. I wonder if and when Quentin Tarantino will get around to it. He sounded serious about it a few years ago. Hey, I smell popcorn. Urgh. I should have some Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups instead. I did walk here....”

Anyway, I got on the Google today, and found a bunch of rumors. Some were pretty cool.

Would you see this sequel? And would it be considered a threequel even though the first two really were one movie split in two?

Photo: Miramax Films.