The Playlist

Joel Edgerton In Demand: Actor Joins Johnny Depp In 'Black Mass' & Michelle Williams In 'The Double Hour'

By Edward Davis
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May 15, 2013 8:11 PM
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5 Comments

News

Has Aussie actor Joel Edgerton become Hollywood's new it-man? He turned heads with a jerk in 2010's crime thriller, "Animal Kingdom" (we immediately took notice) and gained further acclaim for his toe to toe role with Tom Hardy in the underloved MMA drama "Warrior." Directors of note also took notice. Kathryn Bigelow cast him for a small but important role in "Zero Dark Thirty," and he arguably stole the show from Leonardo DiCaprio, Carey Mulligan and the rest of the cast in Baz Luhrmann's "The Great Gatsby." So what's next for an encore? Two plum roles in two major projects everyone's keeping a close eye on.

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Scarlett Johansson Joins Jon Favreau's 'Chef' As Michelle Williams & Marion Cotillard Circle Rival Bradley Cooper Pic

By Oliver Lyttelton
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May 15, 2013 11:25 AM
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2 Comments

News

The culinary arts and filmmaking don't seem to go together that often. You get the occasional great picture set in the restaurant world -- "Big Night" and "Ratatouille" spring to mind -- but more often than not, you end up with films more like "No Reservations" when you try to put cooks on screen. But now, chefs are suddenly the new, uh, Snow White, with two big names gearing up rival foodie-related pictures, to the extent that legal issues may be brewing over their titles.

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Michelle Williams Offered Lead In Remake Of 'South Pacific'

By Kevin Jagernauth
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May 10, 2013 9:25 AM
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5 Comments

News

So here's some interesting news of the day: Bob Balaban is producing a remake of the musical "South Pacific." It's a bit surprising considering his credits as a producer thus far have been few, with "Gosford Park" the most notable, but yeah, he's hoping to give the Rodgers and Hammerstein stage musical a contemporary big screen redo. And he's found someone to possibly be his new Mitzi Gaynor.

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The Weinstein Company Booking 'Suite Francaise' With Michelle Williams & Matthias Schoenaerts

By Kevin Jagernauth
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April 16, 2013 10:00 AM
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3 Comments

News

The Weinstein Company are carrying an impressive 2013 slate with "Grace Of Monaco," "August: Osage County," "Salinger," "Fruitvale," "The Butler" and "The Grandmaster" all dated, and "Snowpiercer," "Lowlife" and "Mandela: Long Walk To Freedom" (hopefully) expected this year as well. And it seems they are looking ahead to 2014, as they've picked up a movie that already boasts a promising pedigree.

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The Playlist Bares All: 20 Unforgettable Nude Scenes

By The Playlist Staff
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April 12, 2013 10:51 AM
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25 Comments

Features

Not to dick around, but we've got nudity on the boob right now. Mind. On the mind. Thing is, with an intriguing article over at EW exploring the death of the movie sex scene and the rise of the New Prudishness, with waves made over Kristen Stewart's nudity and handjobs in "On the Road," and now with this week's "Trance" under fire from some quarters for Rosario Dawson's (some say plot-driven, others say gratuitous) birthday suit scene, we've been thinking about nakedness in film almost as much as Seth McFarlane was when he wrote his already-infamous Oscars opening song, though largely without, we hope, the sniggering misogyny.

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Review: 'Oz The Great And Powerful' Dresses Up Dull Prequel Story With Special Effects Wizardry

By Kevin Jagernauth
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March 1, 2013 9:00 AM
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15 Comments

Reviews

We’re coming up on 75 years since MGM’s Technicolor wonder “The Wizard Of Oz” first enchanted audiences on screen, and at the time it was already the fourth movie based on the works of L. Frank Baum. Of course, it has become not only the best known version, but an American cinema classic and icon, and so the prospect of a prequel is always one that was greeted with some wariness. There’s not only the pressure of living up to a film that has been beloved by generations of filmgoers, but there's also the often undiscussed issue of whether or not adding backstory and additional mythology is simply answering a question no one asked. As studios continue to mine fables, fairy tales and comics for franchises, it’s a query they will continue to grapple with, but as for the results cooked up in Disney and director Sam Raimi’s “Oz The Great And Powerful,” it’s a lot of smoke and light, without much behind it.

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Watch: Bubbles & Fireballs In 2 New Clips From 'Oz The Great And Powerful'

By Kevin Jagernauth
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February 21, 2013 4:19 PM
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0 Comments

News

Are you ready to go back down the yellow brick road? Sam Raimi's prequel "Oz The Great And Powerful" is on the way, but it's a brand-new story from the magical land, with a new cast of characters having some adventures and trying to ensure that everyone has a happy ending. It's an ambitious project, and two more clips have arrived to tease what you'll encounter in merry old Oz.

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Listen To Mariah Carey's Theme To 'Oz The Great & Powerful,' Plus Clips, A Featurette And Spoiler-y Images From The Film

By Oliver Lyttelton
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February 19, 2013 1:08 PM
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2 Comments

News

After the quietish few months of the year, we're only a few weeks out from the first would-be major blockbuster of the year (if you exclude the underperforming "A Good Day To Die Hard," and the noticeably buzz-free "Jack The Giant Slayer"); Sam Raimi's "Oz The Great & Powerful," the first theatrical film to go back to L. Frank Baum's magical land, featured in the beloved "The Wizard Of Oz," since "Return To Oz" in the 1980s.

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Watch: Super Bowl Spot For 'Oz The Great & Powerful' Waves A Magic Wand

By Kevin Jagernauth
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February 3, 2013 7:19 PM
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3 Comments

News

Does anyone know what's going on in the actual Super Bowl? Because we don't. Continuing tonight's logjam of movie marketing, yet another gameday spot has dropped, this time for "Oz The Great And Powerful," Disney's great spring blockbuster hope.

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What Did They Do To Mila Kunis? 4 Character Posters For 'Oz The Great And Powerful'

By Kevin Jagernauth
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January 25, 2013 2:18 PM
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6 Comments

News

So, in just over a month "Oz The Great And Powerful" will wave a magic wand and drop into theaters, and mostly, Disney is hoping this doesn't "John Carter" on them. But they have a few things that will likely prevent that from happening. First, it's riffing on a beloved movie that everyone has heard of. Next, it features a cast that people know, including James Franco, Rachel Weisz, Michelle Williams and Mila Kunis. Okay, great. But then why on Earth did they airbrush the hell out of the one cast member who has been named the Sexiest Woman Alive?

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