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Nikki and Anna Bring Twilight Sparkle Behind the Camera

PopSugar — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 10:00:45 -0800

Nikki Reed was fresh off her long press weekend supporting New Moon but got dressed up last night to pose with costar Anna Kendrick at MovieLine's Behind the Camera Awards in LA. They joined adorable couple Joshua Jackson and Diane Kruger, who's back to focusing on film after her fashion-related party earlier in the week. Nikki and Anna were on hand to honor their special effects editor Susan MacLeod, and Diane came out on behalf of Inglourious Basterds producer Lawrence Bender. Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Zooey Deschanel, meanwhile, presented their (500) Days of Summer screenwriters with statues. The event was designed to honor those who labor behind the scenes, but the well-dressed ladies couldn't help but take a little bit of the spotlight.

To see more from the event, just read more.

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Images include: Matthias Breschan, Nikki Reed, Anna Kendrick, Zooey Deschanel, Diane Kruger, Joshua Jackson, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Jason Bateman, Dana E. Glauberman

Couples Retreat While Men Stare at Goats at LFF

PopSugarUK — Fri, 16 Oct 2009 07:14:51 -0700

London Film Festival continued apace yesterday, with several American actors on our shores promoting their latest films. Jason Bateman, Kristen Bell, Malin Akerman and Vince Vaughn brought the sun and sand with them for their Couples Retreat press conference during the day, and then once the sun had gone down George Clooney walked the red carpet once more, this time for the premiere of The Men Who Stare At Goats. He was without his costar Ewan McGregor unfortunately, but Elisabetta Canalis was happy to join him for a PDA.

To see more pictures from the press conference and premiere, including Rachel Stevens, John Hurt, Neve Campbell, Hofit Golan and Brian Friedman, just read more.

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Images include: George Clooney, Elisabetta Canalis, Rachel Stevens, John Hurt, Neve Campbell, Hofit Golan, Brian Friedman, Vince Vaughn, Kristen Bell, Jason Bateman, Malin Akerman

Jennifer and Jason Are Still Basting Away in LA Land

Molly — Fri, 09 Oct 2009 07:45:00 -0700

Jennifer Aniston was joined by her costars Jason Bateman and Juliette Lewis on the set of The Baster in LA yesterday. The gang is back together for some reshoots, but they didn't need to make the trek to NYC where they shot the rest of the movie earlier in Summer. Jennifer showed up with a smile yesterday amid the news that she's one of the most bankable actresses. This weekend, however, it's Jason's turn to see how he fares at the box office with Couples Retreat - check out Buzz's lukewarm review here.

To see more photos of Jen, Jason, Juliette, and Jeff Goldblum, just read more.

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Couples Retreat: Not Exactly a Relaxing Getaway

BuzzSugar — Thu, 08 Oct 2009 17:30:11 -0700

Everyone loves a vacation, right? Beautiful scenery, tropical drinks, fun in the sun. Add a few of your closest friends and you could have the trip of a lifetime - or a romantic getaway gone horribly awry.

To be fair, the four pairs in Couples Retreat don't realize what they're agreeing to when they head to Eden East, a swanky resort on a remote island. But once the relationship boot camp begins, the friendships quickly break down, and it's often more depressing than hilarious. To see what I mean, just read more.

The movie's couplings range in age, family size, and personality, with Vince Vaughn and Malin Akerman at the epicenter. As Dave and Ronnie, they are perhaps the most "normal" of the bunch. Between Dave's demanding job making video games (hello, Guitar Hero product placement) and raising two young sons, Dave and Ronnie don't even realize their problems until they are forced into couples skill-building. Vaughn is his typical wise-cracking character, but a touch of sweetness makes his on-screen relationship with Akerman the most enjoyable to watch. You can actually believe that they love each other and aren't using the trip as a band-aid for a bullet hole.

Jason and Cynthia (played by Jason Bateman and Kristen Bell), on the other hand, are a lot harder to relate to as two type-A personalities with an undying love for organization and PowerPoint presentations. Jason and Cynthia present the idea of the group vacation to their friends as a last-ditch effort to save their marriage (promising that the therapy sessions are optional, of course). Bell is her typical adorable self, but Bateman is insufferable. His character is painfully meticulous and overbearing, making the audience feel just as suffocated as Cynthia does.

Joey (Jon Favreau) and Lucy (Kristin Davis) represent the worst of the worst: the couple that's been together so long that they don't even notice each other anymore. The high school sweethearts take the trip not as an opportunity to re-kindle the flame, but to chase skirts (or in this case, bikini bottoms) and muscular yoga instructors. Favreau gets a few laughs with his quest to get to Eden West, the "singles" side of the island, but age-wise, Davis doesn't quite fit in with Bell and Ackerman. It's also hard to laugh at characters that embody one of the biggest fears for young couples, and their ice-cold relationship is almost too realistic to scoff at.

Then there's Shane (Faizon Love), who's newly separated from the wife he still loves, but brings along his 20-year-old girlfriend for the ride instead. As Trudy, Kali Hawk steals a lot of the laughs as she yearns to drink and party all night long while her boyfriend would rather take a nap. One joke that never gets old: Trudy's insistence on calling Shane "Daddy" throughout the entire film.

With such a strong headline cast, it's disappointing that the supporting actors steal the show. I laughed the hardest at Dave and Ronnie's adorable boys (who get very little screen time) and at the motley crew of therapists and other wacky workers at the resort dedicated to making this the trip from hell.

At the end of it all, you'll get a few laughs along with some very beautiful imagery, but you might just want to put your money toward your own vacation instead.

Photos courtesy of Universal Pictures

Stars and Couples Retreat to the Red Carpet For LA Premiere

PopSugar — Tue, 06 Oct 2009 11:30:34 -0700

The stars of Couples Retreat descended on the red carpet in LA last night to promote the ensemble comedy. Kristen Bell and Malin Akerman showed off their legs in short and sweet dresses, but the ladies were minus one since Kristin Davis is back east working on SATC2. It wasn't all about the women, however, as Jason Bateman, Jon Favreau and Vince Vaughn hammed it up for the cameras. Dax Shepard was there to support his girlfriend Kristen and the group all laughed it up during the afterparty. If their friendly demeanor offscreen is any indication, we're in for a hilarious ride when the film hits theaters on Friday.

To see more of the cast, just read more.

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Images include: Kristen Bell, Vince Vaughn, Dax Shepard, Malin Akerman, Heavy D, Jon Favreau, Jason Bateman, Jonna Walsh, Erika Christensen, Helen Mirren, Jean Reno, Kali Hawk, Ralph Macchio, Robert Duvall, Natasha Gregson Wagner, Faizon Love, Dana Fox, Carlos Ponce

Vaughn and Bateman Couple Up Down Under

PopSugar — Thu, 01 Oct 2009 16:30:19 -0700

Jason Bateman and Vince Vaughn hugged it out last night at the Sydney premiere of Couples Retreat. Kristen Bell posed solo on the red carpet without her boyfriend Dax, though the couple has been taking in the sights of the city together during their downtime. Their costar Kristin Davis had to skip out on the Australian press tour, as she's probably occupied with her various Sex and the City 2 duties. Her film with Vince and Jason is a departure from the fashion and girly fun we're used to seeing from Kristen - make sure to check out Buzz's preview before it hits theaters next week.

For more photos from the premiere just read more.

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Buzz News Roundup, 9/11

BuzzSugar — Fri, 11 Sep 2009 13:30:37 -0700

Jeff Bridges is in talks to star in a Coen Brothers remake of True Grit. - Variety
Abigail Breslin will star in Janie Jones, as a girl abandoned by her mother at a rock concert. - The Hollywood Reporter
Will Smith, Charlize Theron, and Jason Bateman will reunite for a Hancock sequel. - Variety
Texts From Last Night will be made into a TV show. - GeekSugar
Edward Norton will guest-star on ABC's Modern Family. - Entertainment Weekly
Barry Manilow's music is being made into a romantic comedy. - Variety
Casey Wilson dispelled the rumors that SNL fired her for being fat. - Zap2it
Members of Nirvana are not pleased with Kurt Cobain's appearance in Guitar Hero 5. - Billboard
Augusten Burroughs's novel, SelleVision, is being adapted into a one-hour comedy for NBC. - The Hollywood Reporter

Sienna Brings Her Wizard to See the Stars of Tennis

PopSugar — Tue, 08 Sep 2009 11:30:00 -0700

Lots of famous faces were out in NYC over the weekend to take in the US Open. Tennis lover Anna Wintour had her eye on her friend and your favorite shirtless player Roger Federer, while others like Gavin Rossdale, Nicole Kidman, and Keith Urban took in matches of their own. The biggest headline of the weekend, however, was 17-year-old Melanie Oudin who entered the tournament unranked and became the youngest American to make the US Open semifinals since Serena Williams in 1999! Sienna Miller brought her guy George Barker, aka DJ Slinky Wizard, along for a game as well. They were partially occupied with their own PDA, which we've come to expect after their loved-up antics on a boat in Italy last month.

For more pics from the US Open, read more.

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Extract: A Few Drops of Humor

BuzzSugar — Fri, 04 Sep 2009 06:30:46 -0700

Director Mike Judge's Office Space didn't do well at the box office, but it enjoyed a popularity and appreciation long after its release that continues to this day, particularly by cube dwellers who find solace in identifying and ridiculing the archetypal office workers. It can be a dark, uncomfortable movie in parts, but there's something almost uplifting about the end of Office Space.

Judge's latest movie Extract has only a few of the elements that make Office Space so great, though, and those elements are dramatically watered down. With the exception of Clifton Collins' character Step, who suffers a distressing injury on the job and whose bumbling good intentions make him hard to resist, there's not much heart to Extract. There are some funny moments for sure - mostly from the supporting cast - but overall it just feels soulless. For more of my thoughts on this, read more.

The story is set in another workplace, but this time we're in a factory and our main character Joel (Jason Bateman) actually likes what he does - owning and running the extract factory. He likes extract, and he has a sort of even mix of fondness and frustration for his employees on the floor. He dreams of selling the place and leaving behind the annoyances of running a business, but mostly his dissatisfaction stems from his home life where he never has sex with his wife Suzie (Kristen Wiig). He never talks to her about it, though, he just whines to his friend Dean (Ben Affleck) who dispenses alcohol, pills and bad advice in equal amounts.

One such piece of advice is to hire a gigolo to seduce Suzie so Joel will have no guilt about sleeping with his new hot temp, Cindy (Mila Kunis). Sure, Joel is heavily drugged when he agrees to the plan, but even when he comes to his senses he doesn't seem all that perturbed about it. Though he goes through a variety of experiences and emotions throughout the movie, Bateman's expression never wavers from basic tired exasperation. It's hard to ever tell what Joel is really going through here, which makes it hard to care.

Up until recently, I was a huge fan and supporter of Jason Bateman. I love it when a movie has just a dash of his specific type of funny (like Smoking Aces and State of Play), but when the side character played by Ben Affleck is funnier than Bateman's leading man (granted, Affleck's character is sillier all around), there's something wrong. Actually nearly every other character in the movie is more appealing and satisfying to watch than Bateman's Joel.

The supporting characters really are fantastic. Judge has a way of creating spot-on replications of the types of coworkers that we've all worked with. Office Space was full of them, from the passive-agressive boss to the overly chipper phone operator to poor old Milton who has focused his whole life on basically one thing (a stapler). Here in Extract, we've got the chatty Cathys who just gossip, complain and shift blame, and the punk kid who can't seem to retain any work-related information in his brain but manages to play in four different bands outside of work. And Joel's clueless, talkative neighbor Nathan (a pitch-perfect David Koechner) is one of the funniest and most painfully realistic portrayals in the film.

This is where I think Judge shines: in crafting characters that people can recognize, at least to some extent. There is a tremendous amount of comedy to be mined from these characters, and they add great flavor to the larger storyline following the average straight man. Problem is, it's pretty tough to like or sympathize with Joel so all we do is keep looking toward the other characters for some fun and relief. They deliver, but it's disappointing that the main storyline is so empty.

Photos courtesy of Miramax

Jason and Mila Screen Extract With Funny People, but No Ben

PopSugar — Tue, 25 Aug 2009 12:30:48 -0700

Jason Bateman and Mila Kunis hit the red carpet last night at the LA premiere of Extract. Their costar Ben Affleck wasn't around due to his work commitments in Boston, but Mila and Jason were joined by Will Arnett, Amy Poehler, and Simon Pegg. 90210's Jessica Stroup skipped out on the Nylon party her castmates were at to attend the screening. The film hits theaters Sept. 4, and after Buzz posted the preview a few months ago we're curious to see more.

To see more from the bash, including Johnathon Schaech and Aziz Anzari, just read more.

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Images include: Simon Pegg, Jason Bateman, Will Arnett, Amy Poehler, Mike Judge, Mila Kunis, Daniel Battsek, Clifton Collins Jr., Johnny Knoxville, Cheech Marin, Dustin Milligan, Jessica Stroup, David Koechner, Johnathon Schaech, Aziz Anzari, Gene Simmons