"Be my angel" (Mazzy Star)

Michael Cera ("Be my angel")

Peter Sarsgaard in "The Seagull"

"Peter Sarsgaard, who steps into Chekhov’s The Seagull this fall as Trigorin, the amoral writer who drives one character to ruin and another to suicide, is talking about his visit to a communal retreat in California not too long ago. He was doing research for “something I’ve been writing for a long time”—something “like a screenplay.” He came across a mission statement for the group’s school that instructed teachers, when breaking up a fight, to ask the victim a question they’d normally put to a bully: “Why you?”

It’s a question, implying that victims share responsibility, that Sarsgaard would like to ask Chekhov’s characters. “Nina, why you?” he asks, referring to the young ingénue corrupted by Trigorin, in a warm but slightly sinister Waspy drawl reminiscent of John Malkovich. “Does everything just happen to you, or do you make things happen in your life?” Trigorin, Sarsgaard insists, is “doing exactly what he wants. Some people pursue things they think they’re interested in, and they’re actually not. They’re living in a dream world.”
In a way, Sarsgaard, 37, is an exemplar of anti-ambitionism. He lives pretty quietly, in Brooklyn, with (as everyone knows) Maggie Gyllenhaal and their nearly 2-year-old daughter. He’s never tried to carry a blockbuster, saying “in order to be the lead in a $100 million movie, you have to want to be.” He concedes that The Dark Knight, in which his wife co-starred, is an exception: “You see Heath Ledger’s performance and you go, well, there’s somebody who shows that it’s possible to be an enormously amazing actor in the middle of a franchise.” Yes, but … “I see that movie and I see a man who is happy acting—it looks like he’s tap-dancing. The part does not destroy the actor, ever, if they’re good. That had absolutely nothing to do with what happened to him.”

Sarsgaard, meanwhile, likes playing his characters off to the side: the gung-ho sniper in Jarhead, the canny editor in Shattered Glass, the gravedigger in Garden State, the charismatic foil in the forthcoming Mysteries of Pittsburgh. He got the part of Trigorin, his first on Broadway, after co-starring in a Nick Hornby movie with Carey Mulligan, who is playing the victimized Nina. Mulligan had asked him to recommend possible Trigorins, which he did—whereupon director Ian Rickson tossed out Sarsgaard’s list and hired the list-maker, who is quick to add that he had not pulled a Cheney and suggested his own name. Rickson says he aimed to cast a younger and more energetic actor than is customary. “The virility of Trigorin, and his attachment to nature, his sexuality, his vibrancy, I feel is a really important thing,” he says. “Young actors who are very masculine and have that soulfulness are very hard to find.”


It’s a good thing Rickson is open to new interpretations, because while Trigorin comes off on the page as alternately oblivious, self-absorbed, and manipulative, Sarsgaard sees him much the way he sees himself: flexible, open, disdainful of convention. “I guess I have a tendency to take on a lot of orphans,” he says. “I feel like I’m protecting people—protecting maybe parts of myself that I think are valid, and that people could judge.”
Source: nymag.com

Too upset to talk

"Jake Gyllenhaal, who had reportedly been worried about best friend Heath Ledger’s bouts with depression, is so upset about Ledger’s death that he is unable to talk to the media.
Jake, who is the godfather of Heath’s two year old daughter Matilda, is currently in New Mexico filimg Brothers with actor Tobey Maguire".
Source: www.popcrunch.com

Songs lists

My iTunes Song List, Open it in iTunes!

Well, these aren't my favourite songs (not all of them) but they are the last ones I've been listening to in iTunes. I think maybe one of the reasons I'm interested in watching the upcoming film "Nick & Norah's Infinite Playlist" is that tells the story of my music-imbued adolescence, I read the book by Rachel Cohn and David Levithan a few times and it's a giddy experience which, from the distance we have as more adult netizens it turns into a time-travel pill we want to swallow again (with straight-edge drinks). I bet almost every girl/woman from Weirdland played her game with a sensitive musician in their teens. I know I did.
I dated a local musician who played the guitar in a band -one of his favourite bands were The Ramones- and he was blonde, too, like Michael Cera. If sometimes I come off slightly obsessed with characters like Juno, Norah, etc. is because I had similar experiences and I was this self-assured, self-destructive,
partially naïve teenager. Who dated a sensitive dorky blonde guitarist in an indie band. And who made mistakes that were abandoned inside an infinite mixtapes dumpster in Alternia.

Nick & Norah's make-out

17. NICK

"I have never, ever felt such desire. She takes off the belt, lets it drop to the floor. Then she unbuttons the top button of my jeans—only the top button. And I reach over to her jeans and unbutton the top button—only the top button. And I ask it again—“Are you okay?” And this time she says yes. She says she’s more than okay. We kiss like it’s a form of clasping. It’s not like it was in the club, when it was like she was proving something. We have nothing to prove now, nothing except that we’re not afraid. That we’re not going to think too much, or stop too much, or go too much. Her hand traces down the zipper line and I say, “Slow.” Because this is not a rush. This is not something insignificant. This is real. This is happening. And this is ours".
18. NORAH

"When did my life get so good? Was it when I agreed with a kiss to be Nick’s five-minute girlfriend, or when I realized frigid was a choice rather than a truth? This ice room is so very cold. Nick is so very hot. His heat—my heat—our heat—almost makes me forget I am still wet from the downpour, seeking refuge in the darkened ice room of a fucking Marriott with the Pepsi sign lit up, and I am without a doubt really into Nick because I am a Coke drinker, I mean I can take the Pepsi Challenge and fucking smell the difference without bothering to distinguish the two tastes in my mouth. Mmmmmm, tastes. His lips taste so good, his moist skin tastes so good, everything about him is just delicious".

Copyright © 2005 by Rachel Cohn and David Levithan.

"Candy" reviews and video

"For all its depiction of a descent into drug addiction, "Candy'' is filled with surprisingly sweet moments and goes down more easily than seems possible given the subject matter.

As in "Leaving Las Vegas,'' there's a love story to divert you.
Dan begins a passionate romance with a painter, Candy (Abbie Cornish, an Australian actress touted as the next Nicole Kidman as much for her talent as her luscious looks). They're kids at heart, a point emphasized in an exhilarating opening scene of the two whirling around and around on an amusement park ride. They look as if they never want to stop.Heath and Cornish bring eye-popping realism to their sex scenes.Eager to help with the family finances, Dan considers becoming a male hooker but decides he would be "hopeless with the gay stuff" -- a line that whether intentionally or not will get a laugh out of anyone who saw "Brokeback Mountain".

Ledger is mesmerizing in a scene where Dan pulls off a white-collar crime by going to a bank with a stolen ID and charming a cashier into giving him more than $2,000. Hyped up, he keeps repeating to himself, "I'm rolling,'' like a mantra". Source: www.sfgate.com
"Cornish, Kidman-esque in her elusive, look-but-don't-touch allure, may have the title role here, but Ledger, long-haired and so soft-looking you'd think he was shot slightly out of focus, is the movie's real eye candy. Armfield's colorful sets keep things on the implausibly cheery side of surreal until the requisite withdrawal scene, which uses nothing more than a room-sized mattress and a pathetically old TV set as props, the quivering junkies left to their own devices. Any drug movie's effectiveness can be measured by the strength of its detox, and Candy doesn't sweeten the cold turkey. Still, it's a downward spiral from there in more ways than one. Never mind the neo-psychedelic-pop soundtrack and occasional double-vision cinematography: Dope just can't account for the film's fried brain cells".
Source: www.villagevoice.com

"CANDY" FINAL SCENE:

Abbie Cornish and Jake?

"Abbie Cornish is already dating Reese Witherspoon’s ex-husband, Ryan Phillippe, but soon may also be spending a lot of time with Reese’s current squeeze, Jake Gyllenhaal.

An insider tells In Touch that producers on Jake’s next movie are considering Abbie as his leading lady. The sci-fi flick is about an expedition to the moon to start a lunar colony and is due out in 2010.

“This is one of those only-in-Hollywood situations,” the insider says. “It could work out as long as Reese doesn’t visit Jake on the set.”

Can we say a-w-k-w-a-r-d?
Souce: JustJared.buzznet.com

Ryan and Rachel

"Ryan Gosling & Rachel McAdams Together Again?
The picture perfect “Notebook” couple is officially back together again!

Ryan Gosling and Rachel McAdams were spotted kissing and hugging in Toronto, Canada on Thursday morning.

The couple couldn’t keep their hands off each another while enjoying breakfast together at a diner near Rachel’s home. Both Ryan, 27, and Rachel, 31, fed each other, cuddled and held hands before and after breakfast. Rachel even spent most of breakfast in Ryan’s lap! Sizzle. Sizzle. Sizzle.

This reunion comes weeks after the couple spent time together at Hollywood’s Green Door".
Source: justjared.buzznet.com

Gwyneth Paltrow in Tod's campaign

Gwyneth Paltrow in Tod's campaign.Watch "Behind the scenes" at www.tods.com

Kissing wattage

"The wattage goes way up as two of the bright lights of contemporary writing for teens come together for an incandescent he said/she said night of storytelling... There's perfectly captured teen music-geek talk and delicious stuff about kissing and what lies beyond. Sensual and full of texture." - Kirkus Reviews.
Source: www.randomhouse.com
Emmy Rossum kissing Jake in "The day after tomorrow" (2004).

One nighters, playlists, Rachel Cohn

"I’ve just decided that the song “After Hours” by We Are Scientists is officially the theme song for Nick and Norah’s Infinite Playlist. It is also the song from which I stole the title. If you’ve read the book, listen to it, it will fit perfectly. If you haven’t read the book, listen to it anyway. The music video has a guy going on a date with a dog. It’s funny.

I’ve already taken my picture today.It’s the dedication of the book I just read today, Boy Proof. It wasn’t very good, but I liked the dedication. It was “to all nerdy girls everywhere”.

For my own enjoyment, here’s how my night was laid out.

* Up until three AM watching YouTube videos and reading Maureen Johnson’s blog.
* Writing in notebook from three until five-ish.
* Listened to The Hush Sound’s album Like Vines in one sitting. It’s really marvelous.
* Got on the computer after the rush from listening to an entire album in one sitting.
* Read some recipes with eggs in them. Did you know that there’s an American Egg Board?
* Learned about NASA, because it’s their fiftieth anniversary. I can’t wait to eat Mars asparagus.
* Read some articles about all-nighters, and how unhealthy they are. I’m resetting my body clock for band camp. It was getting out of hand.
* Read a book.
* Typed up this post.

What a lovely night! I can’t wait to proceed through this day feeling sufficiently zombie-like".
Source: storiesfromahat.wordpress.com

"NICK & NORAH'S INFINITE PLAYLIST has such a pounding and infectious beat that it's as if a mp3-saturated microchip were implanted in the book. From the instant you crack open the cover, screams of loud, moaning guitar come slicing through your synapses, to be followed immediately by a vocalist's machine-gun rapid rant caressing your face. And then, when you succeed in getting your eyes back into focus for a moment, you realize you're hovering slightly above a tightly packed, pulsing crowd and that something's compelling you to focus on the goings-on taking place in one little corner of the evening's virtual insanity.There they are: Two young, complete strangers who in the same moment of desperation and fortuitous fate are attempting to avoid the very same person and are about to send their parallel universes irretrievably crashing into each other.Nick: "Three weeks, two days and twenty-three hours ago and she's already with someone else".Norah: "I answer NoMo's question by putting my hand around his neck and pulling his face down to mine. God, I would do anything to avoid Tris recognizing me and trying to talk to me.""I've just seen a face I can't forget the time or place where we just met She's just the girl for me and I want all the world to see we've met Mm mm mm mm mm mm Had it been another day I might have looked the other way And I'd have never been aware, but as it is I'll dream of her tonight La la la la la la."
-Lennon and McCartney, "I've Just Seen A Face"."I extract my wrist from his grip. But for some reason, instead of walking away, I pause for a moment and return my hand to his face, caressing his cheek, drawing light circles on his jaw with my index finger. "I tell him, 'You poor schmuck.' "

The fact is that I'd been aware for quite a while that these two YA authors whom I've long adored individually had been collaborating on a project together, but only in my dreams could I have imagined that the fruits of that shared labor would morph into the unforgettable evening-long, sensual, thrillingly adventurous, utterly charming and sweet, head-bangingly lyrical story that has our students passing a precious advance copy from one to another to another and begging us to organize a trip down to the City when the David and Rachel tour passes through SF in June.
Tune into NICK & NORAH'S INFINITE PLAYLIST, or be way sorry you missed it". Source: www.amazon.com/review
Kat Dennings with "Nick & Norah's Infinite Playlist" author Rachel Cohn.
Q: What inspired you to write this book?

When people ask me what You Know Where to Find Me is about, I often say that it's a "warm, uplifting book about grief, suicide, depression and DC statehood."

"What was the last part again?" they often reply. [...]

"Cohn once again excels at crafting a multidimensional, in-the-moment teenage world, this time without recourse to her usual witty style. There is a bleakness to her language that superbly suits this sad, somber tale. Her work is heartbreaking, at times excruciating to read, but it rings with authenticity. The tragedy of teen suicide has been the subject of countless novels, yet rarely has it been discussed with such gritty realism."
-Publishers Weekly.

"Miles's own voice is defiantly admirable, full of dark, black venom and determined convictions. She isn't all doom and gloom, though, and her vulnerabilities subtly seep through with Cohn's signature beat: disco, cigarettes, M&Ms and books. The author nails the setting too: Racial lines, socio-economics, politics, war and the sticky, sweltering heat of a summer in D.C. all fuel her descent. What results isn't just a story about overcoming sorrow, but rather one of a girl raging against the world and herself, waiting for someone to help her make sense of it all."
-Kirkus Reviews.
Source: rachelcohn.com
Visit Rachel Cohn's Official website

Nick & Norah's finite soundtrack playlist

The soundtrack CD details of the indie-rock teen romance comedy "Nick & Norah's Infinite Playlist" are out. Well, we've got all the music used in the film, plus the news that Devendra Banhart has a cameo in the film. How do we know? Well, we've seen it with our own two eyes, but we'll hold out a review for now.Devendra Banhart and Natalie Portman.

What does Banhart do in the film? Not alot;
the indie Chewbacca walks out of a New York bodega that lead actress Kat Dennings walks into of while wearing one of his trademark furry Russian hats and he's with his buddies Kevin Barker from Aden and Currituck County. As we already noted Mark Mothersbaugh of Devo fame and almost all Wes Anderson films (minus "The Darjeeling Limited") composed the score and in a way it seems to be a small continuation of the casio-work he did in 'Life Aquatic', or at least it's a jumping off point, as much of the score to 'Infinite Playlist' is electronic-twinged, effervescent and almost reminiscent of the Postal Service's twinkly and emo-tronic sounds.
Performing in the film are Bishop Allen who Michael Cera's queercore band "The Jerk Offs" open up for at New York's Arlene's Grocery and Project Jenny Project Jan who play a fake band (Are You Randy) that pose as the long-lost group in the film (called We're Fluffy) playing a secret show that all the kids in the movie are desperately trying to find.

Music is used all over 'Nick & Nora' obviously, but a few songs get key montage treatment like Richard Hawley's lovely, "Baby Your My Light," the National's "All The Wine," Modest Mouse's "Little Motel"and Banhart's "Lover is also used quite prominently in the beginning of the film. So build your soundtrack now, the soundtrack CD, which is due September 23 on Atlantic, is missing songs featured in the film by Modest Mouse, The National, The Raveonettes, Matt & Kim, Project Jenny Project Jan and Dead 60's. The one new song in the film, is "Ottoman" a track Vampire Weekend recorded with Mothersbaugh.

We noted when the trailer was released, there's a ton of cameos in 'Infinite Playlist,' aside from Banhart, including John Cho (Harold of "Harold & Kumar"), and Seth Meyers of SNL, but "Hot Rod"/SNL cast member Andy Samberg also has a pretty funny brief appearance in the film as well. Jay Baruchel (of the Judd Apatow family players troupe) actually has a full-blown role in the film a tough guy (yeah, wrap your head around that one). "Nick & Nora's Infinite Playlist" comes out October 3rd via Sony and will also premiere at the Toronto Film Festival in September.

The music of "Nick & Norah's Infinite Playlist":

Chris Bell "Speed Of Sound"
Devendra Banhart "Lover"
The Real Tuesday Weld "Last Words"
Takka Takka "Fever"
Band Of Horses "Our Swords"
Richard Hawley "Baby You're My Light"
Modest Mouse "Little Motel"
Project Jenny Project Jan "Negative"
Dead 60's "Riot Radio"
Paul Tiernan "How To Say Goodbye"
Army Navy "Silvery Sleds"
Shout Out Louds "Very Loud"
We Are Scientists "After Hours"
The Submarines "Xavia"
The National "All The Wine"
The Raveonettes "Twilight"
Bishop Allen "Middle Management"
Vampire Weekend "Ottoman"
Matt & Kim "Silver Tiles
Nick & Norah's Infinite Playlist soundtrack CD tracklist:

01 Chris Bell: "Speed of Sound"
02 Devendra Banhart: "Lover"
03 Bishop Allen: "Middle Management"
04 Vampire Weekend: "Ottoman"
05 The Dead 60s: "Riot Radio"
06 Takka Takka: "Fever"
07 The Submarines: "Xavia"
08 We Are Scientists: "After Hours"
09 Band of Horses: "Our Swords"
10 Army Navy: "Silvery Sleds"
11 Richard Hawley: "Baby, You're My Light"
12 Shout Out Louds: "Very Loud"
13 Paul Tiernan: "How to Say Goodbye"
14 The Real Tuesday Weld: "Last Words"

Source: theplaylist.blogsot.com

How to lose favour with Kirsten Dunst

"The shoot was a blast from start to finish. It was hard work and extremely intensive but this was made all the easier by the people involved. Bob and I hit it off back when the we were discussing my involvement in the project, so I had a friend going in, which always helps. I'd been informed of Kirsten Dunst's involvement at the beginning of the year whilst on the Hot Fuzz press tour of the US. We crossed paths in LA a week or so later whilst she was on Webslinger press duties at the Four Seasons Hotel. I liked her immediately. She was friendly and unassuming and got on well with Nick Frost, which is usually my benchmark for judging people.

We became good friends during the shoot. She is the product of that odd collision between wisdom and youth. An actress since she was three years old, she demonstrates experience and professionalism, coupled with a healthy understanding of the nature of the business. She is also one of the most instinctively gifted actresses I have ever had the pleasure of working with. I'm a fan. Does it show?

The cast was filled out with similarly exciting prospects. Jeff Bridges, a legend and an incredibly generous actor had me quivering with excitement every time he walked onto set (look out for a tense game of Pass The Pigs between Jeff, Bob and me in a future installment). Gillian Anderson, so long the object of a huge fanboy crush of mine, is brilliantly icy as New York queen of PR, Eleanor Johnson in the movie but warm and funny and fun off set (I played it cool).

Danny Huston, a man who I don't recall ever seeing not smiling is like me, a giggler, a condition which always causes exquisite anxiety when the cameras are rolling. And of course, Megan Fox, an actress all too easy to underestimate, due to her striking beauty but one who definitely proves her worth as the "so hot right now" ingenue Sophie Maes. This was a group of people who made getting out of bed at 5.45am as easy as falling asleep 16 hours later.
Early in the shoot, Toby approached Kirsten on set and asked if she had fallen in love with him yet, after which he proceeded to give her a performance note. This might have been charming if they had been formally introduced but they hadn't. As it was, I believe her response was an understandable, "Who the fuck's this guy?" Bob told me that he had received an email from Toby that night saying, "It's going to be really difficult for me to come on set and not get involved." Bob sent him a reply saying that there was an easy solution to that problem. We didn't really see Toby on set again after that".
Source: www.guardian.co.uk

Kat Dennings (Love Explosion)

JAY BARUCHEL Age: 26. Hometown: Montreal. Breakthrough role: Jay in Knocked Up. Upcoming film: Tropic Thunder. Chuck Taylors or Nikes? Nikes. Levi’s or J Brand? “I think they’re Levi’s. It’s whatever my mother buys for me because my mother buys all my pants.” BlackBerry or iPhone? BlackBerry. Justin Timberlake or John Mayer? “Oh Jesus, I’d take a cyanide pill.” Rihanna or Carrie Underwood? “Jesus Christ. I’m a big David Archuleta fan.” Inspiration? “If I am ever remotely funny, I credit Rowan Atkinson and Ricky Gervais, and I know you’re not supposed to say this anymore, but, growing up, Michael Richards was pretty important to me.” Favorite snack? “My death-row meal would be shepherd’s pie.” Eli Manning or Tom Brady? “I hate football.” Favorite TV show? “It’s a toss-up between Seinfeld and The Simpsons.” Last book you read? “Book five of the Dark Tower series, by Stephen King, which is called … Hold on, I’m having an absolute brain fart … ” Hybrid or Escalade? “Whatever my employers rent for me.”

KAT DENNINGS Age: 22. Hometown: Philadelphia. Breakthrough role: Catherine Keener’s daughter in The 40-Year-Old Virgin. Upcoming film: The House Bunny. Number of shoes in your closet? “I would say at this moment a conservative number would be 40 pairs because I’ve gotten rid of a lot. I mean, I’m adding to them, though, sadly, so soon it will be 50 pairs.” Jimmy Choo or Christian Louboutin? “I can’t say that I’ve ever worn either of those. I would love to.” Levi’s or J Brand? Miss Sixty. BlackBerry or iPhone? iPhone. Favorite guy’s guy? “Oh, Viggo Mortensen, obviously. I mean, not obviously, but … ” Justin Timberlake or John Mayer? Justin Timberlake. Rihanna or Carrie Underwood? Rihanna. What’s on your iPod? “Oh, good Lord, what isn’t on my iPod? AC/DC, Mariah Carey, tons of David Bowie, Aerosmith. I have Tchaikovsky, and I have some orchestral scores, like the Amélie soundtrack. Diana Krall; the White Stripes and Queen. Yeah, everything.” Eli Manning or Tom Brady? “I only know who Tom Brady is. I only know that because he’s dating Gisele Bündchen.” Favorite movie? “Videodrome. It’s a David Cronenberg movie with James Woods in it and Blondie [Deborah Harry], and it’s bananas.” Source: www.theirlife.net

KAT DENNINGS (LOVE EXPLOSION) VIDEO: