Who knew the 1973 horror classic The Exorcist would come in so much handy 37 years after its theatrical release? Watch Linda Blair perform Willow’s smash hit!
And on a related note, in case you missed it, check out Bruce Springsteen and Jimmy Fallon as Neil Young perform a unique rendition of the catchy song after the break. Continue reading Watch The Exorcist’s Linda Blair whip her hair back and forth in this unlikely mashup
Today it was announced that actors James Franco and Anne Hathaway will serve as co-hosts of the 83rd Academy Awards. They follow last year’s hosting duo Steve Martin and Alec Baldwin. Says Oscar telecast producers Bruce Cohen and Don Mischer: “James Franco and Anne Hathaway personify the next generation of Hollywood icons— fresh, exciting and multi-talented. We hope to create an Oscar broadcast that will both showcase their incredible talents and entertain the world on February 27. We are completely thrilled that James and Anne will be joining forces with our brilliant creative team to do just that.”
Injecting some fresh, young blood into the prestigious award show is a nice way to switch things up, but will Franco and Hathaway’s comedic experience (or lack thereof) prove to be entertaining enough to draw in viewers? At 32 and 28 years old, respectively, Franco and Hathaway have only dabbled in comedic roles. Franco is best know for his role as Harry Osborn in the Spider-Man films, but he also has Pineapple Express under his belt; and there’s this. Hathaway’s career hit its stride when she starred in The Princess Diaries and she recently shined as SNL host last weekend. When you think about it these two might just make a hilarious Oscar duo, or it might all go up in flames. What’s interesting is the Franco is a likely contender for Best Actor for his work in the critically acclaimed film 127 Hours and Hathaway has a shot at a Best Actress nom for Love and Other Drugs. It’ll be fun to see how they handle that situation if it arises.
The Oscars air February 27, 2011 on ABC.
[Via Deadline]
BEP’s frontman will.i.am confirmed to Rolling Stone that rock-and-roll/future-flow group will perform live at Super Bowl XLV during the halftime show. “They could have picked anybody…but it says something that they picked us,” will told the magazine. Not only is this good promotion for the group (The Beginning releases November 30 and a worldwide tour is planned), but it also means I’ll have a reason to tune into the halftime show this year! Super Bowl XLV will be played in Dallas, Texas on February 6, 2011.
[Via RollingStone]
Now that Peter Jackson is the official helmer of The Hobbit, production is ready to begin. Jackson and the creative team have decided to opt for the RED EPIC digital camera to shoot the Lord of the Rings prequel in 3D. The EPIC is the successor to the RED ONE camera, and it boasts 5K resolution, the highest dynamic range of any digital cinema camera ever made, and can shoot up to 120 frames per second. According to RED founder Jim Jannard, Jackson will have “at least” 30 EPIC cameras on hand during production. Jannard says, “The EPIC’s small size and relatively low weight makes it perfect for 3-D – where two cameras have to be mounted on each 3D rig.” Jackson happens to be a big fan of RED cameras, and you can bet he’s stoked to have 30 EPICs when production on The Hobbit starts in New Zealand early next year.
Have an itch to shoot your own footage using the EPIC? A whopping $58,000 will get you an EPIC rig consisting of an EPIC-M body, titanium PL mount, Bomb EVF and 5-inch touchscreen LCD, a REDmote, a four-pack of batteries, a charger, and a solid state storage module with a four-pack of 128GB SSDs. A limited run of EPICs will be made available in December or January for the early adopter filmmakers. Everyone else who’s interested (and miraculously not affected by the economy) will have to wait until at least April to nab a rig.
[Via Engadget]
The official music video for the first single off The Black Eyed Peas’ next album is now available for our viewing pleasure. The video for “The Time (Dirty Bit)” continues the 8-bit theme streak by featuring will.i.am, apl.de.ap, Taboo, and Fergie morphing in and out of pixelated form. If you’re a fellow technologically savvy nerd like me (admit it and be proud!), I’m sure you will catch the BlackBerry Playbook make a number of brief appearences in the video. Each member of the Peas holds up the unreleased tablet and focuses it on their respective pixelated doppelgangers to reveal animated versions of themselves roaming in the real world–much like a QR code-assisted augmented reality app would accomplish. Anyway, enjoy the music video to this thumping single. The Beginning drops November 30.
[Via Dipdive]
Community series creator Dan Harmon spilled the beans that this season’s Christmas episode is going to be “wall-to-wall stop motion animat[ed]” back in late September. And here’s proof that the man was not lying! In the episode preview above you can clearly see that the entire Greendale gang has received the Rudolph the Red-nosed Reindeer treatment just in time for the Christmas special. According to Harmon the episode will deal with “Abed’s search for the meaning of Christmas.” The episode “looks into what makes him different from other people.” He says, “Everything that happens on this episode is part of the actual show and will change the characters, and yet there are wonderful, fantastic holiday things happening in it.” Can’t wait! Thus far Community‘s holiday episodes have been the most memorable; there’s no denying that “Epidemiology” (the Halloween zombie episode) kicked major ass. The stop motion Christmas ep will surely impress. Speaking of which… be sure to look in the gallery below to get a closer look at Shirley, Jeff, Britta, Abed, and the rest of the gang in animated form. Senior student Chang is an Asian snowman!
Community airs Thursday nights at 8PM on NBC. “Abed’s Uncontrollable Christmas” is penned in for a 12/9 air date.
Update: Head over to EW if you want to see some more Community stop motion goodness. In addition to some sneak peeks you’ll also find a couple behind-the-scenes videos that show how much effort goes into making a claymation special. It’s intensive work!
NTSF:SD:SUV. That stands for National Terrorism Strikeforce: San Diego: Sport Utility Vehicle, and it’s an action parody series coming to Adult Swim. If you happen to a fan of Rob Corddry’s Childrens Hospital there’s no way you can forget the totally insane mock commercial for NTSF:SD:SUV that aired during a season 2 episode a few months back. The commercial, directed by Eric Appel, was strong enough by itself to sway the network past the pilot stage and directly to a 12 episode season order. The show’s mastermind is Paul Sheer (Human Giant) and it follows in the footsteps of Childrens Hospital. While the Corddry web series turned TV show is an over-the-top self-referential parody of medical dramas like Grey’s Anatomy and many others, Sheer’s NTSF:SD:SUV promises to play the same game spoofing all the crime procedurals. Sheer will serve as creator, writer, and star and will executive produce with Jon Stern (Childrens Hospital). The trailer embedded above features actors Rob Riggle, Brandon Johnson, and June Raphael but they are not confirmed as series regulars. Expect NTSF:SD:SUV to air on Adult Swim sometime in 2011. NTSF:SD:SUV. Sorry, it’s so much fun to say.
[Via Deadline]
At long last, Kanye West’s latest and greatest album has released. My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy has been lauded as Ye’s best album to date; in fact, prestigious music review site Pitchfork awarded it a perfect 10 score. Ryan Dombal’s review in which he makes intelligible comparisons between Michael Jackson and Mr. West makes for a great read after you’ve listened to the album in full. Snag a copy of the album at the links provided below:
iTunes: standard / deluxe // Amazon: standard / deluxe (“See Me Now” is an iTunes bonus track available on both versions. The deluxe version comes with the Runaway film. And I recommend the physical copy; the packaging is aesthetically superb. If you want to learn more about the five interchangeable album covers read this insightful NYMag interview with artist George Condo.)
Upon listening to Twisted Fantasy all the way through without interruption I experienced a natural high; it’s hard to explain but you’ll see for yourself. It’s easy to be a Kanye West hater since the rapper producer often provides a basis from which things like this will grow. But in the end, it all comes down to the music. And I am happy to say with Twisted Fantasy Kanye West delivers on an unbelievably high level. The man is a perfectionist, and this album reflects that statement. From top to bottom, it’s a perfect record.
The young MC is back at it again. Diggy Simmons has collaborated with director Phil the god once more to fashion out this far too short music video. Watch Diggy freestyle over a Mobb Deep instrument. I’m telling you, this kid’s got game, look out. His second mixtape released in early September; download Airborne here. It features the Lupe Fiasco & Pharrell assisted track “Oh Yeah!” Been slacking? Download his first mixtape The First Flight here.
[Via RapUp]
“Do It Like This” follows “The Time (The Dirty Bit)” to become the second single off The Black Eyed Peas’ forthcoming album The Beginning. It’s another thumping dance anthem you should enjoy. I’m sorta bummed that the Peas have failed to produce a radio smash single this time around; in my opinion the two released singles do not live up to the catchy chart-topping hits “Boom Boom Pow” and “I Gotta Feeling” of yesteryear. At least we can look forward to the album releasing soon, so we should wait before making any rash judgments. There’s bound to be a money-maker somewhere on the album. The Beginning drops November 30. Look after the break to watch a fun music video preview of “Do It Like This”; it features the Peas in 8-bit style, the rad theme of the album.
[Via Dipdive] Continue reading Single: The Black Eyed Peas – “Do It Like This”
Today Kanye West’s fifth studio album released. My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy has been a long time in the making. After being shunned by controversy (read: the Swift incident), Kanye left the public spotlight and eventually made his back into the studio to create new content. Complex editor-in-chief Noah Callahan-Bever gained access into Avex Honolulu Studios in Oahu, Hawaii during Kanye’s peak of creativty as the master rapper and producer worked day and night on Twisted Fantasy. ‘Ye covers the December 2010/January 2011 cover of Complex, and in it Callahan-Bever takes the reader through the life and times of Kanye working on the album. The article has been posted and it’s an intriguing look into the way Kanye handles his business when he means business. The first half of the article follows Kanye in the studio and sheds light on his extremely high level of dedication towards his music. The second half features block quotes from Twisted Fantasy collaborators and guest artists such as Justin Vernon (of Bon Iver), Pusha T, Kid Cudi, Nicki Minaj, and Q-Tip. Read the article here. Also, be sure to look in the gallery below to browse through some stills from the story; click here to view the full Complex gallery.
[Via Complex]
Counting down the days until Tron: Legacy hits theatres on December 17? That’s less than a month away people! Well I’ve got a treat for you. Embedded above is a video that will take you on the set of the upcoming sci-fi flick. In the 15 minute behind the scenes look you can expect to witness the following:
Guess I should have mentioned this earlier, but beware of spoilers. So go ahead, mash play, and let the soothing sounds of Daft Punk provide a rocking backdrop to some fantastic BTS action.
[Via Collider]