Posted on July 3rd, 2009 by Princess Kitty in Movies
Well, OK, that’s not Joel McHale on the poster - but he’s featured pretty prominently in the trailer for “The Informant”. If only he had Lou with him.
“The Informant” is directed by Steven Soderbergh and stars Matt Damon, Scott Bakula, Tony Hale and Melanie Lynskey along with “The Soup’s” McHale. Here’s the official blurb on the plot:
What was Mark Whitacre thinking? A rising star at agri-industry giant Archer Daniels Midland (ADM), Whitacre suddenly turns whistleblower. Even as he exposes his company’s multi-national price-fixing conspiracy to the FBI, Whitacre envisions himself being hailed as a hero of the common man and handed a promotion. But before all that can happen, the FBI needs evidence, so Whitacre eagerly agrees to wear a wire and carry a hidden tape recorder in his briefcase, imagining himself as a kind of de facto secret agent. Unfortunately for the FBI, their lead witness hasn’t been quite so forthcoming about helping himself to the corporate coffers. Whitacre’s ever-changing account frustrates the agents and threatens the case against ADM as it becomes almost impossible to decipher what is real and what is the product of Whitacre’s rambling imagination. Based on the true story of the highest-ranking corporate whistleblower in U.S. history.
It actually looks like a pretty entertaining film:
“The Informant” is set to be released on October 9th.
In this installment of the audition process, judges Piers Morgan, Sharon Osbourne and David Hasselhoff visited Houston and Miami. Host Nick Cannon informed us that it was the first time auditions have been held in Houston and they had a record turnout. So far it doesn’t look like quantity equals quality.
Houston
Divani - Here’s a shock: The first act to lead off the Houston auditions was a hot blonde who couldn’t sing. At all. She was tone-deaf and screechy.
She was followed by a succession of disasters with the main focus being on a pair of hillbilly stereotypes who had Nick throw vegetables into a lawn mower (Jolie & Lester). Their clip was interspersed with clips of singers Rusty Reece (who thought it would be a good idea to cluck like a chicken during “If I Were a Rich Man”) and Stone White (who Sharon thought sang like he was angry). Actually, I think Stone looked more like a guy who’d downed about a dozen espressos right before going on stage.
Lake Houston Performing Arts Center - A group of 8-14 year old dancers. They performed a disco routine while wearing red afro wigs that made them look like time-warped Little Orphan Annies. It was good but wasn’t really different than what is performed in hundreds of dance recitals every spring. The judges, on the other hand, seemed very impressed and sent them on to Vegas.
Viva and her trainer Pam Martin - A dancing dog act. It was cute but not all that extraordinary - even by my standards and I’m a sucker for animal acts. Still, if a mediocre act has to get through, I’m OK with it being this one.
Miami
Marti Brill - Magician. Marty, Marty, Marty. Have you never seen this show before? The first rule for a magician on AGT is to never do a card trick. Piers HATES card tricks. On top of that, the tricks weren’t even done particularly well. David summed it up perfectly saying, “Ya ate a lot of cards, man.”
This was turning out to be a show heavy in bad acts and that continued with a guy who read poetry (Brandon Paxton) and a singer (Diego Baner) who the judges made fun of for sounding like a sheep. The thing is, compared to the evening’s other acts, I was beginning to think that Diego wasn’t all that bad.
Joseph Constantine & KC - Illusionists (pictured above). Joseph and his wife KC did another version of the disappearing box trick. They did it well (and it was a nice twist to have KC emerge from the box wearing different clothes) but we’ve seen it many, many times before. Frankly, it’s the illusionist’s equivalent of the magician’s card trick. What made these two different from the other performers was that we got their full back-story about falling on hard times (they lost their house and car) and their three kids were standing in the wings. David, oddly enough, was the voice of reason this time. He said, “There’s about a hundred million people out there who have the same story right now and it’s not about this. It’s about a talent show and about an act that’s worth a million dollars. And we’ve seen this act, and we have not put the other people through, and it’s not fair.” Unfortunately, Piers and Sharon overruled David. It was a pity pass and that isn’t fair to the other people auditioning. I’m sure they all could have also come up with a story to tug at our heart-strings.
The mediocrity continued as a belly dancer (Fuchsia FoXXX) was put through. The next two acts, Circus R Us and The Hurricane Tricksterz, looked like they might actually be pretty good but we only got to see 5 seconds of their performances. Given how weak a night this turned out to be, it seems criminal that they shortchanged a couple of good acts.
Hairo Torres - A breakdancer who got to be the final performer. Hairo is very good - and frighteningly limber. I thoroughly enjoyed his act and have included the clip of it below - but it’s not an act that can sustain a Vegas show on its own. Hairo needs to be the featured performer in a dance or acrobatic group.
This was an underwhelming night. I’ll be surprised if any of the acts make it to the top 20. Sigh. Here’s hoping next Tuesday is better.
We joined host Nick Cannon and judges Piers Morgan, Sharon Osbourne and David Hasselhoff as the New York and Chicago auditions continued:
New York
Carol Lugo - Goofy 62 year old dancer. Ok, she was entertaining and I did laugh but the reality is that this woman would have been booed off the stage if she’d been 30 years old. She’s agile but the few real steps she did weren’t executed particularly well. The judges sent her on to Vegas but her AGT trip should end there.
Carol was followed by a succession of Vegas bound acts including a dance group lead by four drag queens (The Diva League), and a guy who eats glass and gushes fake blood from his mouth (Chris Allison - and, by the way, YUCK!). The standout of the group was Joseph Harris a.k.a. Yo-Yo Joe. He did a bunch of Yo-Yo stunts that were really flashy.
Jay Mattioli - Magician (pictured above). I agreed with Piers that we’d seen stuff like Jay’s disappearing box trick before but the levitating microphone stand was very, very good. The kid also had a nice bravado about him so he was definitely worth another look in Vegas. I also liked that, while he followed the new tradition of the “rock & roll” magician, it was toned way down from the Criss Angel excess.
Chicago
Franklin Sane - Really? Like the Detroit metro area hasn’t had enough to deal with lately - it now has to claim this guy? Franklin is a juvenile court judge who dressed in a silly suit and sang badly. He probably did it as a joke (I hope) but, if he did, that didn’t work either.
Thankfully this mess was followed by the lovely:
Thia Megia - the 14 year old singer with braces. She is a little girl with a giant voice. Thia performed a Jennifer Holiday song and actually pulled it off. Her final note was amazing. She definitely has a future and I very much look forward to hearing her again. Plus, you gotta love the rhyming name.
Sadly, that little delight was followed by the parade of silliness. It was lead by Jeffrey Johns who did a song and dance number about being short. It also included a group of bikini clad women (Witches in Bikinis) who sang so badly that even David and Piers said no - and you know they always go for that kind of act.
The Fab Five - a dance group comprised of five adult sisters from Utah. This group basically did clog dancing in tap shoes and were much better than I expected. Their costumes didn’t do them any favors but their dancing was very sharp.
The evening’s final act was one that had been completely given away by the show’s promos.
Kevin Skinner - the ultra-countrified singer/guitar player or, as he’s now known, the chicken catcher. He played very well and has a heart-breaking voice. The shots of the crowd listening to him in complete silence were great but I wish the show hadn’t blown it. It would have been much more fun if I could have heard him with the same element of surprise that the audience in the theater had. They should have focused their promos on the 14 year old instead.
And speaking of the 14 year old, here is the clip of Thia Megia singing Jennifer Holiday’s “I’m Changing”:
TV’s first dancing weight loss show is hosted by Marissa Jaret Winokur and began with a cast of 12 contestants who will be dancing and losing weight for a $100,000 prize. Each contestant gets a professional dance partner and will be able to work with a weight loss doctor (Dr. Rob Huizenga from the “Biggest Loser”), a nutritionist (Meg Werner Moreta), a fitness trainer (Lee Wall), a lead choreographer (Lisa Ligon) and costume designers (Lena & Warden). They’ll be living in a building with a gym and dance studios. Their weekly rankings will be determined by adding their average dance scores to their percentage of weight lost for the week. The person with the lowest combined score will be eliminated.
The judges are:
Mayte Garcia - a choreographer and lead dancer for six of Prince’s world tours.
Lisa Ann Walter - a co-star in the movie “Shall We Dance” and the winner of dozens of dance titles.
Danny Teeson - starred in “Fame - the Musical” and choreographed for Kelly Clarkson and Carrie Underwood.
Dr. H. met with the group right after their arrival to discuss all the health problems caused by their weight. It resulted in one contestant, Alicia, dissolving into tears because she was scared. I immediately got the feeling that we’ll be seeing a lot of tears from Alicia. She seems very young, high-strung and emotional. The common room of the residence includes two cupboards. One labeled “eat” that contains healthy snacks and one labeled “cheat” with all the junk food. Dr. H. explained that they did this because the contestants have to learn how to cope with temptation.
For week one, each person got to do the dance style of their choice. They were all weighed ahead of time (without the results being revealed to them) and the two people with the lowest amount of weight lost danced last.
Alicia: 23 years old with a starting weight of 257.6 pounds. She stated that she has battled weight her whole life and has never been thin. Her partner’s name is Italo and they did a Latin style dance. Alicia definitely has confidence and personality to spare. She ended with a full split that was really impressive. Mayte gave her a 6 but said it was a “good” 6. Lisa Ann like the musicality and thought the split deserved an extra point. She gave it a 7. Danny loved that Alicia attacked the routine but thought she needed to control her enthusiasm. He scored it a 6. Judges’ Average: 6.3. Alicia got on the scale and lost 7.5 pounds for a total of 2.91%. Total Score: 9.21
Ruben: 43 years old with a starting weight of 314.3 pounds. Ruben is a former professional dancer. He informed us in an interview that his partner of 17 years, John, is recovering from cancer but still wanted Ruben to participate in the show because it was so important to him. Ruben struggled in rehearsals saying that he knew the steps but had trouble getting his body to do what he wanted. His partner is Hilary and they did something that looked like a Disco/Fosse hybrid. It was fine but, knowing Ruben was a professional dancer, I expected a lot more. It all seemed rather subdued. Mayte thought the timing needed work and gave it a 6. Lisa Ann responded that Mayte was being tough on Ruben because of his experience (which I actually think is fair) and gave it a 7. Danny thought Ruben’s facial expression was deadpan as he was too in his head and not connected to his body. He gave it a “harsh” 5. Judges’ Average: 6.0. On the scale, Ruben lost 13.9 pounds for a total of 4.42%. Total Score: 10.42
Shayla: 27 years old with a starting weight of 206.5 pounds. She is a former cheerleader and homecoming queen. She’s partnered with Mario and quickly found that she can’t do as much as she could when she was just 130 pounds. Shayla did a Tina Turner inspired number and was hot. This girl is truly blessed in the genetics department. She carries all of her weight exactly where every woman wishes she did. Mayte loved that Shayla did the dance in the Tina heels and gave it a 7. Lisa Ann also gave it a 7. Danny told Shayla she moved like she was still 130 pounds and also scored it a 7. Judges’ Average: 7.0. Shayla got on the scale and lost 4.9 pounds for a total of 2.37%. Total Score: 9.37
Warren: 29 years old with a starting weight of 357.6. Warren is a father of two and is afraid of dying and leaving his kids without a dad. He is partnered with Sarah and has no dance experience. His number would best be described as Dom DeLuise doing hip hop. It was very entertaining. Mayte thought he needed to connect more with his partner and gave it a 5. Lisa Ann also gave it a 5 saying that Warren’s face really showed his concentration. Danny was impressed with how Warren kept up with the steps and gave it a 6. Judges’ Average: 5.3. On the scale, Warren lost 11.6 pounds for a total of 3.24%. Total Score: 8.54
Trice: 24 years old with a starting weight of 274.9 pounds. She wants to show that someone can be a size 18 but still move like they’re a 2. She is partnered with Jesus and was in full “fierce” mode with her hip hop number. It was fun but did seem a little disjointed. Mayte thought Trice needed to be sharper with her arm movements and gave it a 6. Lisa Ann liked the flexibility but thought Trice needed to be a little less frenetic. She scored it a 6. Danny said her attack was amazing and also gave it a 6. Judges’ Average: 6.0. Trice got on the scale and lost 11.4 pounds for a total of 4.15%. Total Score: 10.15
Angela: 24 years old with a starting weight of 185.9 pounds. She is a former model who has gained 65 pounds in the last 2 years. She is partnered with Kenny and the poor thing just looked uncomfortable through the whole number. She seemed to have no confidence at all in her steps. Mayte told her to work on her shoulders and gave it a generous 6. Lisa Ann thought Angela needed to relax into the dance and gave it a 5. Danny said he could see her struggling with the rhythm and scored it a 5. Judges’ Average: 5.3. On the scale, Angela lost 3.5 pounds for a total of 1.88%. Total Score: 7.18
Mara: 32 years old with a starting weight of 261.9 pounds. She is a diabetic who lost her brother to the disease. She is partnered with Paul and was very sharp and confident in her hip hop routine. Mayte called it amazing and gave it a 7. Lisa Ann said it was clear Mara was feeling good about herself and also gave it a 7. Danny loved that Mara enjoyed the dance but was still able to remain focused. He scored it an 8. Judges’ Average: 7.3. On the scale, Mara lost 6.6 pounds for a total of 2.52%. Total Score: 9.82
Tara: 32 years old with a starting weight of 237.4 pounds. She wants to show her kids that she is making the choice to be healthy. Her partner is Michael and I thought their routine was light on content. Tara also seemed to be having some problems keeping the beat. Mayte thought Tara forgot she had a partner and needed to acknowledge him more in the dance. She gave it a 6. Lisa Ann told Tara she needed to finish her moves and not just go halfway. She scored it a 5. Danny gave it a 6 and said he could see Tara wearing all the week’s emotions on her sleeve. Judges’ Average: 5.7. Tara got on the scale and lost 4.5 pounds for a total of 1.90%. Total Score: 7.60
Karla: 29 years old with a starting weight of 174.9 pounds. She was surprised to find herself one of the smaller people on the show. She is partnered with Jull and her routine was full of every party dance move you could think of - and she did them quite well. Mayte liked the connection and energy and gave it a 7. Lisa Ann also gave it a 7 and enjoyed the 80’s flashback. Danny said the routine wasn’t technical but was entertaining and gave it a 7. Judges’ Average: 7.0. On the scale, Karla lost 9.5 pounds for a total of 5.43%. Total Score: 12.43
Miles: 28 years old with a starting weight of 260.8 pounds. He is afraid of dying young like his father. Miles is paired with Michelle and already knew how to do partner dancing. They did a Swing number that rocked. There was a lift at the end that was worthy of a “Dancing with the Stars” freestyle routine. Mayte said Miles’ footwork was great and gave it a 7. Lisa Ann gave it an 8 and said that Miles needs to be given more challenging moves because he can handle it. Danny also thought Miles could do more and gave it a 7. Judges’ Average: 7.3. Miles got on the scale and lost 6.9 pounds for a total of 2.65%. Total Score: 9.95
That left Pinky and Brandon in the bottom two for weight loss and Angela in last place among those who had already danced. The show had Pinky and Brandon both dance before revealing their scores from the judges.
Brandon: 20 years old with a starting weight of 230.4 pounds. He is a type 2 diabetic who almost wasn’t allowed to participate in the show. He is paired with Yesenia (pictured above). Brandon could not have been cuter and had a nice, relaxed style to his dancing. Mayte thought he could have been stronger in his movements. Lisa Ann loved it and Danny said Brandon had a natural groove but needed to up the energy level. On the scale, Brandon lost 3.6 pounds for a total of 1.56%.
Pinky: 29 years old with a starting weight of 186.9 pounds. She comes from a family of street dancers and said that she knows her brother would like to give her a shot at being in his dance group but she’s just never been good enough. Her partner is Mr. Lucky (yep, that’s his name) and, as with Ruben, my expectations were high because of Pinky’s experience. She lived up to them. It was a very quick and sharp routine. Mayte loved the energy but wanted her to hit the moves even harder. Lisa Ann said she could see the determination but added that no one had a better smile. Danny was amazed that Pinky was in the bottom two considering what a workout her routine was. Pinky lost 2.4 pounds for a total of 1.28%.
Angela, Brandon and Pinky lined up for the final results: Pinky received a 7 from Mayte, a 7 from Lisa Ann and an 8 from Danny. Judges’ Average: 7.3. Total Score: 8.58. She was safe. Brandon received a 6 from Mayte, a 7 from Lisa Ann and a 7 from Danny. Judges’ Average: 6.7. Total Score: 8.26. He was safe.
Brandon burst into tears and poor Angela, who’d just been eliminated, found herself having to comfort him. She broke my heart by tearfully telling Marissa that she had a lot more to show but now wasn’t going to have the chance. Wow, this is really early to be feeling this bad about an elimination. The truth, though, is that Angela was the weakest dancer and was the right person to go.
Next Week: Alicia has a meltdown and its Disco week!
Bonus footage and additional DYAO videos are available at Oxygen’s website here:
Posted on June 30th, 2009 by Princess Kitty in Comedy
Jeff Goldblum has been making a series of appearances on “The Colbert Report” lately and he didn’t let a little thing like his “death” stand in the way of showing up last night:
MSN.com and US Weekly report that Len Goodman, “Dancing with the Stars” head judge, has undergone surgery for a cancerous tumor on his prostate. Thanks to early detection, the surgery was successful and the prognosis is good, and Goodman should be back at the judges’ table for the next “DWTS” season.
I’ve always enjoyed the frequently cranky Goodman on “DWTS,” probably because his crankiness seems more like an act from a truly joyful man (and maybe because I imagine I’d be cranky in his position. It’s easy for me to relate!) But his critical comments of the stars’ dancing are usually grounded in their technical missteps (a heel lead, bad posture, etc.) which give the impression that he’s REALLY judging their dancing on actual merit. His approach of offering constructive criticism to help them improve is far preferable to Bruno Tonioli’s flying-out-of-his-chair one-liners at the slightest provocation, or worse, Carrie Ann Inaba’s incessantly vague comments (”I just didn’t feel it.”) While those two often talk just to hear themselves, Len actually has something to say. (The fact that the audience often doesn’t want to hear it doesn’t seem to bother him in the slightest!)
Plus, one of the best parts of “DWTS” is when Tom Bergeron (the best host on TV, period) goes after Len with a good-natured barb about his cranky personality, use of unfamiliar British idioms, and the like. The delight on Goodman’s face is obvious. This man enjoys what he does, and it’s good to hear that he’ll be able to keep doing it.
Posted on June 29th, 2009 by Princess Kitty in Television
They’ll be back!!
Entertainment Weekly’s Michael Ausiello is reporting that “Law & Order: SVU” stars Mariska Hargitay and Christopher Meloni have signed on for two more seasons of the show. Even though NBC had threatened to continue the show without its stars, cooler heads and cash prevailed in the end. The second season of their contract is contingent on NBC renewing the show for the 2010-2011 season but, given that “SVU” is consistently NBC’s top rated drama, there’s little reason to think they won’t. Fans should still be flocking to the show given Ausiello’s follow-up announcement that ……
Christine Lahti will be joining the cast as a new ADA. She’ll appear in the first four episodes and then will hand the ADA job back to Stephanie March. It was reported earlier in the month that March was on board for at least 10 episodes. Wow! The casting of female ADAs has been a notorious weak spot for the “Law & Order” franchise but I think Dick Wolf hit a home run this time. I’m already hoping that Lahti will stick around for more than just four episodes. I’d love to have at least one scene between her, March and Judith Light.
This show is being promoted as a combination of “Dancing with the Stars” and the “Biggest Loser” so you know I’ll be there!
I’ve liked what I’ve seen from the teasers because it looks like the 12 contestants actually do have a sense of rhythm and can move. Certainly Mara, the woman in the clip below, knows how to work it. I also love that they picked “Hairspray” and DWTS alum Marissa Jaret Winokur to be the host. Yes, her perkiness can be a bit much at times, but she’s got the credentials in proving that one doesn’t have to be a size 0 to be able to dance.
Posted on June 29th, 2009 by Princess Kitty in Talk Shows
NBC.com posted a video clip of Billy Mays’ appearance last week on “The Tonight Show with Conan O’Brien” on their homepage as a tribute to the fallen pitchman. It’s a delightful little interview with Mays and his Discovery Channel “Pitchman” reality show co-host Anthony Sullivan. He seemed like a very happy man who loved what he did for a living and certainly helped to take the concept of the “infomercial” to a whole new level.
