Final Season of "Ugly Betty" Now on DVD

Press release:

Complete Your Collection with The Hilarious


ABC’s UGLY BETTY: THE COMPLETE FOURTH AND FINAL SEASON

Available on DVD August 17, 2010

BURBANK, CA, July 2010 – The world of high fashion takes on a whole new, hilarious meaning in Ugly Betty: The Complete Fourth and Final Season, available on DVD August 17, 2010 from Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment. There are underdogs and then there is Betty Suarez, the ultimate “fish-out-of-water.” Her efforts to fit in with her colleagues at a glossy magazine may bring unintentionally hysterical results, but they also have audiences rooting for their favorite fashionista.

The collectible four-disc release allows viewers to complete their collection and relive every endearing moment of this heartwarming and irreverent comedy with all 20 final-season episodes uninterrupted, with never-before-seen bonus features.

Betty sure has come a long way! She is finally coming into her own and getting what she’s worked so hard for. But what she doesn’t realize is that she’s starting over in so many ways, and if she wants to play in the big leagues she needs to keep up. Ugly Betty: The Complete Fourth and Final Season focuses on her transformation – both personally and professionally – and how she will navigate these new waters as only she can. If Betty wants to succeed, she will once again have to rely on her heart, perseverance and intelligence – along with some help from her family, friends and a few unlikely allies.

“Ugly Betty” stars America Ferrera as Betty Suarez, Eric Mabius as Daniel Meade, Tony Plana as Ignacio, Ana Ortiz as Hilda, Judith Light as Claire Meade, Becki Newton as Amanda, Michael Urie as Marc, Mark Indelicato as Justin, Daniel Eric Gold as Matt Hartley and Vanessa Williams as Wilhelmina Slater.

Ugly Betty: The Complete Fourth and Final Season is priced at $39.99 SRP (US) and $44.99 SRP (CAN).

Ugly Betty: The Complete Fourth and Final Season – DVD Bonus Features:
• Betty Bloops
• Deleted Scenes
• Betty Goes Bahamas
• Mode After Hours
• Webisodes

Street Date: August 17, 2010

DVD
Suggested Retail Price: $39.99 US; $44.99 Canada
Feature Run Time: Approx. 860 minutes (20 1-hour episodes)
Rating: TV-PG DLSV (US)
Aspect Ratio: Widescreen (1.78:1)
Languages: English
Subtitles: Spanish, French

Based on “Yo Soy Betty La Fea,” the groundbreaking Colombian telenovela that became an international phenomenon, “Ugly Betty” is from ABC Studios. The series has been awarded Emmy®, Golden Globe, Peabody, NAACP, ALMA and Imagen awards and earned 19 Emmy nominations. Executive producers are Silvio Horta (“Urban Legend”), Academy Award®-nominee (Best Actress in a Leading Role, Frida 2002) and Emmy® Award winner (Outstanding Guest Actress in a Comedy Series and Outstanding Comedy Series, Ugly Betty 2006) Salma Hayek, Jose Tamez, Richard Heus, Victor Nelli Jr., Jon Kinnally, Tracy Poust, Henry Alonso Myers and Sheila Lawrence. Co-executive producers are Chris Black, Gail Lerner and Abraham Higgenbotham.

"Our Family Wedding" Unites Black and Brown

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 67 (of 2010) by Leroy Douresseaux


Our Family Wedding (2010)
Running time: 106 minutes (1 hour, 43 minutes)
MPAA – PG-13 for some sexual content and brief strong language
DIRECTOR: Rick Famuyiwa
WRITERS: Wayne Conley, Malcolm Spellman, and Rick Famuyiwa; from a story by Wayne Conley
PRODUCERS: Edward Saxon and Steven J. Wolfe
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Julio Macat
EDITOR: Dirk Westervelt

COMEDY/DRAMA/FAMILY

Starring: Forest Whitaker, America Ferrera, Carlos Mencia, Regina King, Lance Gross, Diana Maria Riva, Lipa Ontiverso, Anjelah Johnson, Charlie Murphy, Shannyn Sossamon, Anna Maria Horsford, and Warren Sapp

Our Family Wedding is a family drama and ethnic comedy about an African-American family and a large Mexican-American clan forced to unite when two of their brood decide to unite in holy matrimony. The families’ respective patriarchs, two overbearing dads, must put aside their differences in order to plan the wedding of a son and a daughter in less than two weeks.

Marcus Boyd (Lance Gross), a young African-American doctor, and his Mexican-American girlfriend, Lucia Ramirez (America Ferrera), a former law school student, have arrived in Los Angeles to tell their families that there are engaged to be married in two weeks. Lucia suspects that her father, Miguel Ramirez (Carlos Mencia), may not be crazy about her being engaged to a Black man. Marcus also suspects that his father, Bradford “Brad” Boyd (Forest Whitaker), a popular L.A. radio personality, won’t be crazy about him being engaged to a Latino woman. Neither has any idea just how much havoc their fathers’ over-the-top egos will wreak their special day.

Meanwhile, Lucia’s mother, Sonia (Diana Maria Riva), is busy planning the wedding of her own dreams – a huge, traditional Mexican-American affair. As insults fly and tempers flare, Marcus and Lucia will find their relationship tested, unless they can convince themselves that it may be their marriage, but it is their family’s wedding.

The best thing about Our Family Wedding is how awkward it seems, but this is not because the narrative is awkward. The film deals honestly with the animosity, prejudice, dislike, etc that actually exists (to some extent) between the African-American and Latino communities. In this movie, it is fun to watch the elders and older adults of both families squirm as they are forced to deal with each other because of their children’s impending nuptials.

Director Rick Famuyiwa does a fine job of channeling the actors’ performances to capture prejudice and bigotry in a way that is appalling, but also appealing in the context of a comic film. Forest Whitaker as Brad and Carlos Mencia as Miguel, the battling dads, deliver performances that feel quite real as self-centered, comically bigoted jerks who are not at all harmless. Their antics are really endangering their children’s marriage.

One glaring fault of the movie is that the screenplay really never decides if the movie is about Marcus and Lucia or Brad and Miguel. Brad and Miguel’s antics are funny, but they should have been the supporting act. This film’s largely untapped wellspring is in Marcus and Lucia, and the internal workings of their relationship are largely hidden. The script even fails to take advantage of the best supporting character, Lucia’s smart-mouthed sister, Isabel, sharply played by Anjelah Johnson.

Still, Our Family Wedding has a large cast of characters, and there is always someone who will do or say something stupid at which we can laugh. We laugh because we recognize the narrow-mindedness, the bias, the stereotypes, and the intolerance. I can give Our Family Wedding credit for being funny, but also credit for being real about the discrimination that lurks in our hearts and minds.

7 of 10
B+

Tuesday, August 17, 2010

Complete Star Wars Saga on Blu-ray Fall 2011

For the First Time Ever, the Force Will Be with You on Blu-ray! Highly Anticipated Complete Star Wars™ Saga Readied for High Definition Blu-ray Debut

SAN FRANCISCO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Today at Star Wars Celebration V, Lucasfilm Ltd. and Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment announced that the complete Star Wars Saga will come to Blu-ray Disc with a worldwide release in Fall 2011. The Star Wars Blu-ray Box Set will feature all six live-action Star Wars feature films utilizing the highest possible picture and audio presentation, along with extensive special features – including documentaries, vintage behind-the-scenes moments, interviews, retrospectives and never-before-seen footage from the Lucasfilm archives.

“Blu-ray is the absolute best way to experience Star Wars at home – in pristine high definition,” said George Lucas, creator of the Star Wars Saga. “The films have never looked or sounded better.”


ABOUT STAR WARS CELEBRATION V
Featuring celebrities, costumes, live entertainment, screenings, autographs, collectibles, panels and much, much more, Star Wars Celebration V is THE official Lucasfilm convention - and the biggest Star Wars party in the galaxy! Taking place in Orlando, FL from August 12-15, Star Wars Celebration V commemorates the 30th Anniversary of Star Wars: Episode V The Empire Strikes Back and the ongoing, weekly adventures of Star Wars: The Clone Wars.

ABOUT TWENTIETH CENTURY FOX HOME ENTERTANMENT
Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment, LLC (TCFHE) is a recognized global industry leader and a subsidiary of Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation, a News Corporation company. Representing 75 years of innovative and award-winning filmmaking from Twentieth Century Fox, TCFHE is the worldwide marketing, sales and distribution company for all Fox film and television programming, acquisitions and original productions on DVD, Blu-ray Disc Digital Copy, Video On Demand and Digital Download. The company also releases all products globally for MGM Home Entertainment. Each year TCFHE introduces hundreds of new and newly enhanced products, which it services to retail outlets from mass merchants and warehouse clubs to specialty stores and e-commerce throughout the world.

Lucasfilm, STAR WARS™ and related properties are trademarks and/or copyrights, in the United States and other countries, of Lucasfilm Ltd. and/or its affiliates. TM & © Lucasfilm Ltd. All rights reserved. All other trademarks and trade names are properties of their respective owners.

Meet the Barnes in "Death at a Funeral"

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 66 (of 2010) by Leroy Douresseaux


Death at a Funeral (2010)
Running time: 92 minutes (1 hour, 32 minutes)
MPAA – R for language, drug content and some sexual humor
DIRECTOR: Neil LaBute
WRITER: Dean Craig
PRODUCERS: William Horberg, Sidney Kimmel, Laurence Malkin, Chris Rock, and Share Stallings
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Rogier Stoffers
EDITOR: Tracey Wadmore-Smith
COMPOSER: Christophe Beck

COMEDY

Starring: Chris Rock, Martin Lawrence, Keith David, Loretta Devine, Peter Dinklage, Ron Glass, Danny Glover, Regina Hall, Kevin Hart, James Marsden, Tracy Morgan, Zoe Saldana, Columbus Short, and Luke Wilson

The recent Chris Rock-Martin Lawrence film, Death at a Funeral, is a remake of a 2007 British film of the same name. This black comedy (or dark comedy) observes a family as its members come together to mourn a beloved husband and father, even as shocking revelations and festering resentments arise.

The elder son, Aaron Barnes (Chris Rock), is managing the funeral of his recently deceased father. Aaron is also preparing to move on with his life, which includes moving him and his wife, Michelle (Regina King), out of his parents’ house, especially because his mother, Cynthia Barnes (Loretta Devine), keeps reminding them that they haven’t given her any grandchildren. Aaron is hoping that his younger brother, Ryan (Martin Lawrence), a successful author, will help him cover the funeral expenses, but the late-arriving Ryan claims temporary financial hardship.

Meanwhile, relatives are arriving, bringing their baggage and family feuds with them. Oh, and a stranger named Frank (Peter Dinklage), who claims to have been a close friend of the deceased, has come bearing secrets.

So much of Death at a Funeral is in very bad taste, but that is also why the film is so funny. With its missing and abused corpses, fecal humor, nudity, and unabashed raunchiness, Death at a Funeral is only a stylized and slightly-exaggerated depiction of how problematical family get-togethers, even funerals, can be. Director Neil LaBute also does a mostly good job keeping things hopping by unveiling one outrage after another, so that the audience can never really catch its breath before the next indignity comes along.

The main problem with this movie is that I don’t think the headliners for this film, Chris Rock and Martin Lawrence, are really suited for large ensembles. They’ve certainly been part of smaller, star-driven ensembles (Lawrence in Wild Hogs and Rock in the recent Grown Ups), but both are at their best when the entire movie is built around them. Here, they have to share too much screen time.

My quibble isn’t the fault of the writing because screenwriter Dean Craig (who wrote the original film) has done a superb job creating so many engaging, three-dimensional characters. It is simply that they all deserve more screen time than they get. Most of them are such fun that their short time on screen comes across as a shortcoming on the part of the entire movie. Still, this movie is funny, and maybe also useful to the viewers. The next time you need an antidote to a painful family social event, Death at a Funeral is a reminder that there is laughter even in the most trouble-filled family gatherings.

6 of 10
B

Saturday, August 14, 2010

Step Up's Jon M. Chu to Helm Justin Beiber's Film Debut

Press release:

FILMMAKING TEAM IN PLACE FOR JUSTIN BIEBER FEATURE FILM DEBUT FROM

Paramount Pictures, MTV Films, Insurge PiCTURES and Island Def Jam Music Group

HOLLYWOOD, CA (August 11, 2010) –Paramount Pictures, MTV Films, Insurge Pictures and Island Def Jam Music Group have jointly announced that director Jon M. Chu (“Step-Up 2: The Streets,” “Step-Up 3D,” The Legion of Extraordinary Dancers,) and the Magical Elves producing team of Jane Lipsitz and Dan Cutforth (Project Runway, Top Chef) will join forces to direct and produce superstar-recording artist Justin Bieber’s feature film debut.

Scooter Braun, Island Def Jam Music Group Chairman LA Reid, and Grammy winning singer Usher will produce the currently untitled film that will give fans around the world an exclusive VIP backstage pass into the life of Justin Bieber. Paramount Pictures will release the movie in the U.S. on Valentine’s weekend 2011 under the newly created Insurge Pictures label.

“Jon, Jane and Dan are creatively the exact right combination, with each of them bringing a unique and fresh perspective to a movie that will give Justin’s fans an exciting and never-before-seen look into his life and career” said Paramount Film Group President Adam Goodman.

“When I was approached about doing Justin’s film, I jumped at the opportunity to tell a story with honesty and heart. Most people don’t know that his is a true underdog story, and I hope to tell it in a compelling, genuine way, using all source materials available to convey his tale of becoming an icon for this digital age. This is the story of a new voice continuing the tradition of musicians that defined their generation,” said Director Jon M. Chu.

“To be able to tell the story of Justin’s unique and revolutionary path to stardom in our first studio feature is an incredible opportunity for us,” said Magical Elves partners Jane Lipsitz and Dan Cutforth.

USC alum Chu has been at the helm of several hugely successful projects, including the sequel and latest installment of the popular “Step Up” dance franchise, and the #1 ranked original Hulu web-series The Legion of Extraordinary Dancers (The LXD) from Paramount Digital Entertainment.

Since its formation in the summer of 2001, Magical Elves has produced hit shows for NBC, Bravo, HBO, Showtime and Oxygen networks as well as produced the cult documentary “Air Guitar Nation”. Creators of some of the most watched reality TV in the last decade, Jane and Dan currently have four shows on the air including Bravo’s Top Chef and Work of Art, Showtime’s The Real L Word and Oxygen’s Dance Your Ass Off.

An Island Def Jam Music Group artist, Bieber is represented by manager Scooter Braun, Nick Styne at CAA and Aaron Rosenberg and Sean Marks at Myman Greenspan Fineman Fox & Light LLP. His first full studio release, My World 2.0, was released in March 2010 and has since achieved huge success; debuting at number one and certified platinum in less than two months of release in the United States, the album remained number 1 on the charts for four-weeks. He has sold over 5 million albums worldwide to date.


ABOUT PARAMOUNT PICTURES CORPORATION
Paramount Pictures Corporation (PPC), a global producer and distributor of filmed entertainment, is a unit of Viacom (NYSE: VIA, VIA.B), a leading content company with prominent and respected film, television and digital entertainment brands. The company's labels include Paramount Pictures, Paramount Vantage, Paramount Classics, Insurge Pictures, MTV Films, and Nickelodeon Movies. PPC operations also include Paramount Digital Entertainment, Paramount Famous Productions, Paramount Home Entertainment, Paramount Pictures International, Paramount Licensing Inc., Paramount Studio Group, and Worldwide Television Distribution.

About Island Def Jam Music Group
The Island Def Jam Music Group is home to a diverse and unparalleled family of artists - from today's icons to tomorrow's rising stars - and is recognized as one of the most successful labels in the industry. It is comprised of Island Records, Def Jam Recordings, and Mercury Records. The roster boasts an array of talented artists including Justin Bieber, Kanye West, Mariah Carey, Rihanna, The Killers, Bon Jovi, Ne-Yo, Young Jeezy, The–Dream, Fabolous, Melissa Etheridge, NAS, Chrisette Michele, Ludacris, Rick Ross, Duffy and more.

Edgar Wright Did Action in Comic "Hot Fuzz"

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 132 (of 2007) by Leroy Douresseaux


Hot Fuzz (2007)
Running time: 121 minutes (2 hours, 1 minutes)
MPAA - R for violent content including some graphic images, and language
DIRECTOR: Edgar Wright
WRITERS: Edgar Wright and Simon Pegg
PRODUCERS: Nira Park, Tim Bevan, and Eric Fellner
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Jess Hall (DoP)
EDITOR: Chris Dickens

COMEDY/CRIME/ACTION/MYSTERY

Starring: Simon Pegg, Nick Frost, Jim Broadbent, Paddy Considine, Timothy Dalton, Martin Freeman, Paul Freeman, Bill Nighy, Lucy Punch, Anne Reid, Bill Whitelaw, Stuart Wilson, and Edward Woodward

The director/co-writer (Edgar Wright), co-writer/star (Simon Pegg), and co-star/sidekick (Nick Frost) of Shaun of the Dead return in Hot Fuzz, a send up of America cop movies, with a British twist.

Nicholas Angel (Simon Pegg), the finest police officer in London, has an arrest record 400% higher than any other officer on the force. Because that makes everyone else look bad, Angel's superiors transfer him to the sleepy, seemingly crime-free village of Sandford. There, he is partnered with the well-meaning but overeager police officer PC Danny Butterman (Nick Frost), who is also the son of Sandford’s amiable police chief, Inspector Frank Butterman (Jim Broadbent).

Danny is a huge action movie fan and craves the kind of action he sees in his beloved American action movies – two of his favorites being Bad Boys II and Point Break. Danny is hoping that his new big-city partner might just be a real-life “bad boy,” and that Nick Angel will help him experience the life of gunfights and car chases for which he's longed. While Nick is dismissing Danny's childish fantasies, a series of grisly accidents rocks the village, convincing Nick that Sandford is not the peaceful paradise it at first seems. As the mystery deepens, Nick may be able to make Danny's dreams of explosive, high-octane, car-chasing, gun-fighting, all-out action a reality, but it may come at a high cost for both men.

As comedies go, Hot Fuzz is a pretty special movie, primarily because, outside of comic horror movies, this is one of the few instances that a film uses graphic violence and gore in a way that is so clever and hilarious. In fact, Hot Fuzz is a beautiful send up of the American high octane action flick, and the film is so disarming. It’s not just disarmingly funny, but the entire thing is beguiling in the way droll British humor and dry wit can be. Yet, Hot Fuzz is as relentless funny and subtly manic as any joke-a-minute American gross-out comedy.

Simon Pegg is terrific as the tightly wound professional police service officer, and Nick Frost is brilliant as the sweetly naïve Butterman. They are, however, just the tip of the iceberg in a film made of superb and witty supporting performances constructed from a good script and directing that, for the most part, hits the right notes. The film falters here and there and has several noticeable extended dry stretches, but at its heart, Hot Fuzz is delicious lunacy and outrageousness in the service of a good cause – comedy.

7 of 10
A-

Sunday, October 21, 2007

Bleach Movies on Adult Swim Tomorrow Night

VIZ MEDIA ANNOUNCES ENCORE BROADCASTS OF BLEACH FEATURE FILMS ON ADULT SWIM

Two Full Length Movies Based On Popular Anime And Manga Series To Air This Month

VIZ Media has announced special encore presentations of two BLEACH animated feature films – BLEACH THE MOVIE: MEMORIES OF NOBODY and BLEACH THE MOVIE 2: THE DIAMOND DUST REBELLION (both rated ‘T’ for Teens) – on Saturday, August 14th on Adult Swim. Check local times for availability and airtimes (http://www.adultswim.com/shows/bleach/index.html).

Based on the wildly popular animated series and best-selling BLEACH manga series, created by Tite Kubo (both distributed and published in North America by VIZ Media, and rated ‘T’ for Teens), BLEACH THE MOVIE: MEMORIES OF NOBODY begins as unidentified beings known as “Blanks” start popping up. They are soon followed by a Soul Reaper named Senna who makes them disappear. Puzzled by these unknown beings and the even more mysterious girl, Ichigo and Rukia set out to learn more, but uncover an evil plot when a menacing clan tries to kidnap Senna. Banished from the Soul Society long ago, the clan’s leader has sent sending the World of the Living and the Soul Society on a collision course, and Senna seems to be the key to his diabolical plot for revenge. Can Ichigo and his fellow Soul Reapers save the two worlds from annihilation?

BLEACH THE MOVIE 2: THE DIAMOND DUST REBELLION continues the action-packed adventures of Soul Reaper Ichigo Kurosaki. After the treasured Ouin is stolen, Toshiro Hitsugaya disappears and becomes suspected of treason. When the Soul Society calls for his capture and execution, Substitute Soul Reaper Ichigo Kurosaki vows to prove Hitsugaya's innocence. Will the secret of the Ouin and Captain Hitsugaya's motives be revealed before his honor, his life, and the Soul Society are destroyed?

The BLEACH manga and animated series follows the adventures of Ichigo, a 15-year old student with the ability to see ghosts. When his family is attacked by a Hollow — a malevolent lost soul – Ichigo encounters Rukia, a Soul Reaper, and inadvertently absorbs her powers. Now, he’s dedicating his life to protecting the innocent and helping tortured souls find peace.

BLEACH animation can be viewed on Adult Swim and also through a variety of web-based video download and streaming outlets that have partnered with VIZ Media, including iTunes, Xbox Live, PlayStation Network, Amazon, and HULU. To view subtitled BLEACH animated episodes for free online anytime, please visit VIZAnime.com.

More information on BLEACH is available at http://www.bleach.viz.com/.