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Brothers Affleck Bring Their Baby To Britain

PopSugarUK — Thu, 29 May 2008 03:00:00 -0700

Hello boys! Ben and Casey Affleck are over in the UK right now to promote their new collaboration. I really enjoyed Gone Baby Gone when I had the chance to see it a few months ago, and was even more impressed as it's the directorial debut of Ben Affleck! Starring his brother Casey Affleck (who's rather tasty and officially good thanks to that Oscar nomination) and Morgan Freeman among others, it's a mysterious drama and the plot involves a little girl going missing.

It came out in the US last October, but due to sensitivity to the Madeleine McCann news story the release date was pushed back over here. I'd highly recommend you see the movie, Amy Ryan was oscar-nominated for her role in the film and puts in a great performance, and Ben's directing ain't half bad either! For more detail on the plot, check out newlywed Molly's review over on Buzz. It's out here on June 6.

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The Affleck Boys Are Back, Baby, Back

PopSugar — Wed, 28 May 2008 08:57:29 -0700

Ben Affleck and his brother Casey headed to London today to pose together for a photocall for Gone Baby Gone. The movie came out in the states last year, but the release was held in the UK after the tragic disappearance of Madeleine McCann last May. While the subject matter is definitely heavy, we're hoping that audiences will still check out the film overseas, since those Affleck boys do pretty great things when they combine their talents.

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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 read more.

No Reservations
It's often the charming, warmhearted little films like No Reservations that slip off peoples' radars in the summer movie season due to the noise that giant big-name mega-blockbusters make that time of year. If you missed this sweet romance starring Catherine Zeta Jones and Aaron Eckhart I highly recommend warming up some delicious treats and settling in for the night with this movie that I really enjoyed.

Based on the the German film Mostly Martha, the movie follows a hard-hearted top chef, Kate (Zeta Jones) whose sister dies suddenly, leaving Kate's little niece (an adorable Abigail Breslin) now resting in her care. As Kate struggles to adapt to parenthood, she also soon finds herself involved with the new chef in her kitchen (Eckhart). Special features include a Marc Summers visit to the set to talk to the film's stars for an episode on his Food Network Series.

Why Did I Get Married
Tyler Perry sets aside his alter-ego Madea, but preserves his keen ability to create relatable characters in this drama exploring the ins and outs of married life. The movie stars Perry himself, along with Malik Yoba, Sharon Leal, Michael Jai White, Denise Boutte, Lamman Rucker and music hit-makers Janet Jackson and Jill Scott.

Based on one of Perry's plays, Why Did I Get Married? follows a group of married friends that gather in a mountaintop resort to confront their various marital issues. Perry's trademark melodrama and preachiness combined with a more serious subject matter proved to be a very potent mix that really hit home with audiences.

Ben Affleck in Spain, Not About to Leave LA

PopSugar — Tue, 30 Oct 2007 17:00:00 -0700

Ben Affleck looked more exhausted than ever jetting from France to Spain to keep promoting his Gone Baby Gone overseas. While he's been spending time abroad, his reps have been working to sort out a media mishap from Ben's interview with Details magazine. Apparently the writer misquoted Ben as saying that he'll leave LA if his movie isn't a success and that his movie is "really f-ing good." We thought it sounded a little odd for Ben to say that he would leave the business, but we're glad that he was able to clear that up. Considering the reviews for Gone Baby Gone are positive, it's nothing he has to worry about anyway.

More of Ben posing all by his lonesome so just read more

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Ben Brings One Baby to Germany, Another Plays On

Molly — Sat, 27 Oct 2007 09:16:07 -0700

Here's some commitment - as Ben's boys the Red Sox are on their World Series run he is off in Germany continuing to showcase his other baby, Gone Baby Gone. Ben's been pretty tireless with the premieres, it's no question why he's looking so exhausted here alongside one of his movie's stars, Amy Ryan. Unless this European trip is a short one, it looks like Ben might miss his chance to watch this series live in person. Though, there's no doubt that he'll find a way to watch the games and support the team, even continents away.

To see more of Ben and Amy Ryan in Germany just read more

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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 read more

Time and time again, Ben has asserted that he gave the role to the best actor, who just happened to be his brother. But he was also in the unique (and fortuitous) position for Casey to be one of the first actors to come to mind for the lead character. Casey's crackling voice and boyishly handsome face are perfect for the role. He plays Patrick Kenzie, a private detective hired by the aunt of a missing 4-year-old girl, whose quest to bring the child back home uncovers sides of his city and its people that anyone would be loathe to admit exist.

Smaller roles taken on by greats like Morgan Freeman and Ed Harris, embattled police chief and detective respectively, are stand-out performances in the movie, but the ladies hold their own, too. Relative newcomers like Michelle Monaghan, who plays Patrick's girlfriend/partner and Amy Ryan, who plays the drug addict mother of the missing girl, each bring their own well-constructed intricacies to the story.

The acting carries the movie, but the script provides an excellent vehicle for the complicated and multi-dimensional characters to shine. Or, as the case may be, not shine at all. As with Lehane's other book, this movie deals with the lengths that people will go to do what they feel is right and the vast, gaping gray areas of morality it can create. Bringing children into the mix takes a depressing look at society and makes it utterly heart wrenching. And at times, completely sickening. Honestly, parents of young kids be warned - it may be hard to watch.

The only real downfall of the movie is that the story is sometimes too complicated for its own good. After leaving the theater if I were asked to repeat the whole plot, I would surely get a bit muddled somewhere in the middle. It's not enough to ruin the movie, thankfully, and considering the film's strong points, it's easily forgivable.

Walking out of the theater, you will feel like the wind got knocked out of you. Just like in life, there are no real answers of right vs. wrong and morality changes depending on who you ask. Thankfully (and I will say that I've been rooting for Ben the whole time), Gone Baby Gone takes this difficult subject matter and manages to succeed, above and beyond my wildest expectations.

Photos Courtesy Miramax

Ben and Casey Keep Gone Baby Going Strong

Molly — Wed, 17 Oct 2007 00:35:45 -0700

After Monday night's cute friend-fest at the Boston premiere of Gone Baby Gone, Ben and Casey sent Matt on his way to Japan and brought their movie to a NYC screening hosted by Details. Another GBG premiere night and another loss for the Red Sox; it's probably best for the boys not to be watching the games if they want to keep those smiles on their faces. The Brothers Affleck were joined on the red carpet by Amy Ryan, who stars in the film, Patricia Heaton and Sheryl Crow. Jen, on the other hand, was back to preview performances of Cyrano de Bergerac. Casey stopped by Letterman last night to talk about both GBG and Jesse James. Though the highlight was really when Casey told that story about his brother making him jump into that treacherous quarry...twice. Love brothers, especially these ones.

To see more pictures from the premiere including Ben, Casey, Amy, Patricia, Beth Ostrosky, Maggie Rizer, Milena Govich just read more

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Ben Affleck, Casey Affleck, Sheryl Crow, Amy Ryan, Beth Ostrosky, Maggie Rizer, Patricia Clarkson, Milena Govich

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Ben, Matt & Casey Return to Boston, Baby, Boston

Molly — Tue, 16 Oct 2007 11:45:04 -0700

It was a triumphant homecoming for the Affleck brothers alongside Matt Damon and their wives at the Boston premiere of Gone Baby Gone last night. Even while the boys' beloved Red Sox lost game 3 of the ACLS to the Indians in Cleveland (sad), there was nothing but happy in the house. There's every reason for the Affleck boys to be in good spirits - the movie is getting great reviews (check back at the end of the week to read mine on Buzz). It's extra fun to see that Matt made sure to be there for his friend. He told the press last night that he wasn't supposed to be able to make his friends' big night. He said:

"I was supposed to be in Japan, and I was about the leave and just said 'I can't do it. I have to go to Boston to support this movie and these guys.' It's such a huge night for them… So, I'm going to Japan tomorrow morning."

Awwww. All their kiddies sat this one out, but I'm sure that the happy couples just had a blast back in Boston celebrating Ben's directorial debut together. Seeing the boys together just warms the heart, not to mention that they're all pretty easy on the eyes.

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Ben & Casey's Gone Baby Goes to LA

Molly — Tue, 09 Oct 2007 00:17:35 -0700

The beautiful Affleck brothers were wifeless but happy for the red carpet premiere of their Gone Baby Gone in LA last night. We know the pressure of this movie has given Ben some some stress, but it looks like he's finally maybe relaxed a little bit. He certainly deserves it, too, the movie is still getting great reviews - yay. Ben and Casey were joined by Neve Campbell and a gorgeously pregnant Garcelle Beauvais. After Jen's whirlwind trip through Europe last week, she and Ben must have done a Violet hand off in NYC while she is back to Broadway rehearsals and he does his west coast promotional stint. Hopefully Ben and Casey will be back to their respective babies soon.

To see a whole lot more from the premiere including Ben, Casey, Neve, Rachael Leigh Cook, Michelle Monaghan, Garcelle Beauvais, Kevin Smith and did I mention the Affleck boys just read more

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Images include Ben Affleck, Casey Affleck, Neve Campbell, Rachael Leigh Cook, Michelle Monaghan, Garcelle Beauvais, Amy Ryan, Ashley Benson, Amy Madigan, Daniel Gillies, Scott Caan, Alan Ladd, Michael K. Williams, Kevin Smith.

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