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Why TV is (Sometimes) Better Than The Movies
Filed under: Comedy », Drama », Sci-Fi & Fantasy », Awards », Fandom », Home Entertainment »
OK, take a deep breath -- I know what I'm about to say is heresy on a movie site, but have you noticed that TV has gotten pretty damn good lately? So good that sometimes it's better than going to the movies ...almost. The Emmys may be long over, and those golden totems to ad revenue are already being displayed in the trophy cases of the winners. But if you were watching the show, you might have noticed a running theme throughout the telecast: the death of broadcast television. Well I'm going to have to respectfully disagree, because while I totally get that the TV landscape is changing, and the networks may not know how to milk this whole newfangled Internet thing for every dollar its worth, audiences are still tuning in (whether its on cable or broadcast TV) for some of the most innovative entertainment in history.
Not since the days of Seinfeld has talk about TV dominated water cooler chat and flooded the Internet forums and chat rooms. When you arrive to work in the morning, are you talking about last weekend's blockbuster, or are you and your co-workers talking about last night's LOST, Mad Men, or True Blood? Now don't get me wrong: I always have, and always will love going to the movies. There will always be something about sitting in the dark alongside strangers with state of the art sound and images that makes it my favorite pastime. But, I still have to hand it to the small screen for managing to finally make TV cool again. So in honor of our friends at TV Squad, I'm going to throw a little love at the small screen - here are just a couple of reasons why I think TV is (sometimes) better than the movies.
After the jump: in defense of the boob tube...
Amanda Seyfried Drops Out of Zack Snyder's 'Sucker Punch'
Filed under: Action », Horror », Sci-Fi & Fantasy », Thrillers », Casting », Warner Brothers », Newsstand »
Zack Snyder's Sucker Punch just lost its Baby Doll, according to Entertainment Weekly. Amanda Seyfried had been tapped to play Baby, the unlucky girl whose sleazy stepfather locks her up in a mental institution and schedules her for a lobotomy.
The reason is one that seems to be damning a few actresses this spring -- schedule conflicts. Sucker Punch was scheduled to shoot in the fall, the same time as the fourth season of HBO's Big Love. HBO won't release her from her commitment, and apparently doesn't want to work around it. (There's a joke about fundamentalist Mormons and compounds here, but I'm not going to make it.)
It's a shame, as Seyfried really fits the "Alice in Wonderland with machine guns" theme Snyder's film is aiming for, and she's one of the most promising young actresses around. She's been picking smart scripts lately, and the idea of seeing her dabble in action was a pretty cool one.
There's no word on who might step up to replace her. Just about every other young up-and-comer (Evan Rachel Wood, Vanessa Hudgens, Abbie Cornish, and Emma Stone) were negotiating to join, so the pickings are slim. One of them might be able to angle for the lead now that Seyfried is gone. Or maybe Snyder should look to someone even younger -- is Emma Watson free?
New On DVD - The Producers, The Ringer, When A Stranger Calls
Filed under: New Releases », DVD Reviews », New on DVD », Home Entertainment », Columns »
• Doogal - A saccharine, cheap-looking CGI import from Britain about a lazy, cowardly, sugar-addicted pooch (with a mullet cut) who must find a way to save the world from an icy death is not the follow-up to Hoodwinked that Disney escapees Bob and Harvey Weinstein hoped for...or we asked for. At least they've got the swell Over The Hedge in theaters this week. Formerly titled The Magic Roundabout and re-dubbed (Doogal, that is. Not Over The Hedge.)
• Duma - With most arthouse films rated "R", it is always a pleasure when one comes along that culture mavens can take their kids to, and The Black Stallion director Carroll Ballard's latest nature trek -- a visually lovely adventure -- certainly does fit that bill. It is about a 12-year-old South African boy (Alexander Michaletos) who must return his pet cheetah to the wild, encountering and overcoming a number of obstacles along the way, the biggest one being our initial reluctance to accept its premise.
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