Steve Carell

Blu-Ray, TV Review: ‘The Office’ Never Better With Amazing Blu-Ray, Season Premiere

BrianTT — Thu, 17 Sep 2009 10:22:27 -0600

CHICAGO – The Blu-Ray release of the fifth season of “The Office” is a thing of beauty. It is one of the best comedy on Blu-Ray releases to date, not only because the show has arguably never been better but because everything about the season set has been crafted with the fan’s best interests in mind. After you watch the very funny season premiere tonight, go back and pick up a must-own Blu-Ray set.

Television Rating: 4.5/5.0

Blu-Ray Rating: 5.0/5.0

I’m a huge “30 Rock” fan but going back over the best of the fifth season of “The Office” on Blu-Ray and watching the sixth season premiere, it’s definitely a close call as to which one has been more consistent in the last twelve months or so. There were SO many highlights in the fifth season of “The Office” that I don’t think the show has ever been better.

The Office
Photo credit: Universal

With great guest turns by Amy Ryan and Idris Elba book-ending the season, what I truly loved about the fifth season of “The Office” was the effort to turn the show away from being just “The Jim and Pam Story”. Of course, everyone’s favorite workplace love birds were still a major part of the show but Ed Helms, Mindy Kaling, B.J. Novak, and, honestly, the entire ensemble cast worked with better comic chemistry than ever before.

All of the arcs of season five including the Michael & Holly affair, the Angela/Andy/Dwight triangle, and the founding of The Michael Scott Paper Company worked perfectly and stand among the funniest plotlines in the history of the show.

It doesn’t hurt that the Universal Blu-Ray release of “The Office” is perfectly designed for comedy fans. Just the commentary tracks alone make it so. Every single episode includes a commentary track by writers, cast members, and directors, including a great one with Stephen Merchant, who discusses the differences between the original British show and this one on an episode he directed. “One-Liner Soundboard” allows viewers to string together one-liners and quotes from the show in a Soundboard to create their own character audio mix to be shared with friends via BD-Live.

Deleted scenes, a gag reel, promos, webisodes, “100 episodes, 100 moments,” and “Academy of Television Arts & Sciences presents The Office” round out a perfect collection of special features. The episodes themselves look even better than their original HD broadcast. It’s a flawless TV on Blu-Ray release.

The Office
Photo credit: Chris Haston/NBC

“Gossip,” the sixth season premiere of “The Office” does nothing to suggest that the perfection of season five is going to falter any time soon. It’s not as gut-busting as last year’s “Weight Loss” or the best of season five, but it is consistently clever and important to the arc of the show.

Last season ended with the revelation that Pam (Jenna Fischer) is pregnant and the sixth season opens with Jim (John Krasinski) and his baby mama trying to keep it a secret from a gossip-crazy office. Michael (Steve Carell) becomes obsessed with gossip after being the last one to know a few juicy office rumors and so he starts to invent a few of his own to share. In a hilarious twist, a few of the rumors that Michael makes up might even be right, including a tale about a bun in the oven and a guess that Andy (Ed Helms) might struggle with his heterosexuality.

A lot of sitcoms struggle by their sixth season, having pounded the same character tics and jokes for years. You start to get the feeling that even the writers don’t find their characters interesting any more. “The Office” shows no signs of such comedic exhaustion. With pitch-perfect writing and one of the best ensembles in the history of the form, we should consider ourselves lucky that “The Office” is not only as good right now as it’s ever been but arguably better.

The sixth season premiere of ‘The Office,’ which airs on NBC, stars Steve Carell, Ed Helms, Rainn Wilson, John Krasinski, Jenna Fischer, Leslie David Baker, Brian Baumgartner, Kate Flannery, Mindy Kaling, Angela Kinsey, Phyllis Smith, Oscar Nunez, Creed Bratton, Paul Lieberstein, B.J. Novak, and Ellie Kemper. The show was created by Greg Daniels and Michael Schur. The series returns on Thursday, September 17th, 2009 at 8PM CST.

‘The Office: Season Five’ is released by Universal Home Video. It was released on September 8th, 2009. It is not rated.

By BRIAN TALLERICO
Content Director
HollywoodChicago.com
brian@hollywoodchicago.com

Post Super Bowl Edition of ‘The Office’ Scores Comedy Field Goal

BrianTT — Fri, 30 Jan 2009 07:14:25 -0700

Television Rating: 3.5/5.0

CHICAGO – What a network chooses to put in its post-Super Bowl spot says a lot about what they are most commercially and creatively confident about on their schedule. For NBC, the choice was clearly either “30 Rock” or “The Office,” and the brain trust went with the latter, delivering an expanded version of the Steve Carell hit that will thrill fans of the show and probably even satisfy the viewers who were just too lazy to change the channel after the big game.

The episode of “The Office” that follows the Super Bowl at roughly 9:30 CST is called “Stress Relief” and has been written by Paul Lieberstein (who plays Toby on the show) and directed by Jeff Blitz (“Spellbound,” “Rocket Science”). Guest stars include Jack Black, Jessica Alba, and Cloris Leachman.

Steve Carell as Michael Scott
Photo credit: Paul Drinkwater

In one of the most hilarious pre-credits openings in the history of “The Office,” Dwight (Rainn Wilson) decides to test the fire safety awareness of his staff by staging a fake blaze. He puts a lighter under some of the door handles to give the impression that there are flames on the other side and even blocks a few doors. Then he crumples some paper in a garbage can and tosses in a lit cigarette.

Steve Carell as Michael Scott
Photo credit: Paul Drinkwater

Of course, all that results is panic and one of our favorite workers at Dunder-Mifflin Paper ends up having a heart attack. Because of Dwight’s actions, Michael (Carell) is forced to deal with the heightened stress level in the office. He soon realizes that he is the main cause of most of the stress at work and concludes that the best way to relieve it is to stage a no-holds-barred roast. Anyone who’s seen the show can guess how well that goes.

Meanwhile, Andy (Ed Helms), Pam (Jenna Fischer) and Jim (John Krasinski) are watching a pirated version of an unreleased love triangle movie starring Jack Black, Jessica Alba, and Cloris Leachman. (Yes, that says “love triangle” with Jack Black and Cloris Leachman. Prepare yourself.) Pam and Jim are concerned about about the rocky relationship of the former’s parents and their discussion of it while watching the awful online movie convinces Andy that they are film gurus.

“Stress Relief” is clearly divided into two plotlines - the funnier material with Michael and Dwight and the more emotional material about the dissolution of the marriage of Pam’s parents and the concerns that raises within her regarding her union with Jim.

The ‘A plot,’ the material with the roast and stress relief techniques, works significantly better. Carell does some of his best work of the year to date and Michael’s response to the roast is a must-see for even casual fans of the show.

The ‘B plot’ isn’t as effective. The Black and Leachman cameos are amusing but Alba barely registers and the Jim/Pam stuff feels a bit overdone and it takes the audience away from the material in this episode that they are really going to want to see after a day of drinking and watching football.

Finally, I’ve never been a fan of 45-minute (running time without commercials) episodes of “The Office”. This show works significantly better in regular, not supersized, format. It’s an incredibly well-paced show. It’s the comic timing of the cast that makes it work. That’s much harder to maintain at twice the length.

Having said that, nothing is normal-size on Super Bowl day and most fans of “The Office” won’t complain about getting more of their favorite show. It may not be one of the best episodes in the history of one of NBC’s most beloved shows, so we can’t credit “The Office” with a touchdown, but they’re definitely walking away with points.

‘The Office,’ which airs on NBC, stars Steve Carell, Jenna Fischer, John Krasinski, Ed Helms, Leslie David Baker, Brian Baumgartner, Kate Flannery, Mindy Kaling, Angela Kinsey, Phyllis Smith, Oscar Nunez, Creed Bratton, Craig Robinson, and Paul Lieberstein. “Stress Relief” airs on Sunday, February 1st, 2009 at 9:30PM CST.

By BRIAN TALLERICO
Content Director
HollywoodChicago.com
brian@hollywoodchicago.com

Slideshow: 39-Image Gallery For ‘We Are One: The Obama Inaugural Celebration at the Lincoln Memorial’

BrianTT — Mon, 19 Jan 2009 10:09:52 -0700

CHICAGO – This 39-image slideshow contains a selection of official press images from HBO’s “We Are One: The Obama Inaugural Celebration at the Lincoln Memorial,” which took place on Sunday, January 18th, 2009 in Washington, DC.

The presentation included musical performances from Beyonce, Mary J. Blige, Garth Brooks, Sheryl Crow, Renee Fleming, Josh Groban, Herbie Hancock, Heather Headley, Bettye LaVette, John Legend, Jennifer Nettles, John Mellencamp, Usher Raymond IV, Pete Seeger, Shakira, Bruce Springsteen, James Taylor, U2, will.i.am and Stevie Wonder. Celebrities reading historical passages included Jack Black, Steve Carell, Rosario Dawson, Jamie Foxx, Tom Hanks, Martin Luther King III, Queen Latifah, Laura Linney, and Denzel Washington. Rt. Reverend V. Gene Robinson gave the invocation and Rob Mathes was the music director and arranger for the backing bands.

For more information on how you can see the inauguration at a theatre near you, check out this news story and don’t forget to enter our HollywoodChicago.com Hookup. Even if it’s too late to win, you may want to learn more about the DVD “President Barack Obama: The Man and His Journey”.

You can click “Next” and “Previous” to scan through this slideshow or jump directly to individual photos with the captioned links below. All photos credited to Kevin Mazur/Courtesy of HBO unless otherwise noted.

We_Are_One_01: President-Elect Barack Obama and Michelle Obama at We Are One: The Obama Inaugural Celebration At The Lincoln Memorial presented exclusively by HBO on Sunday January 18th 2009.
We_Are_One_02: President-Elect Barack Obama and Michelle Obama at We Are One: The Obama Inaugural Celebration At The Lincoln Memorial presented exclusively by HBO on Sunday January 18th 2009.
We_Are_One_03: Denzel Washington speaks at We Are One: The Obama Inaugural Celebration At The Lincoln Memorial presented exclusively by HBO on Sunday January 18th 2009.
We_Are_One_04: Denzel Washington speaks at We Are One: The Obama Inaugural Celebration At The Lincoln Memorial presented exclusively by HBO on Sunday January 18th 2009.
We_Are_One_05: Bruce Springsteen performs at We Are One: The Obama Inaugural Celebration At The Lincoln Memorial presented exclusively by HBO on Sunday January 18th 2009.
We_Are_One_06: Bruce Springsteen performs at We Are One: The Obama Inaugural Celebration At The Lincoln Memorial presented exclusively by HBO on Sunday January 18th 2009.
We_Are_One_07: Mary J Blige performs at We Are One: The Obama Inaugural Celebration At The Lincoln Memorial presented exclusively by HBO on Sunday January 18th 2009.
We_Are_One_08: Mary J Blige performs at We Are One: The Obama Inaugural Celebration At The Lincoln Memorial presented exclusively by HBO on Sunday January 18th 2009.
We_Are_One_09: Garth Brooks performs at We Are One: The Obama Inaugural Celebration At The Lincoln Memorial presented exclusively by HBO on Sunday January 18th 2009.
We_Are_One_10: Garth Brooks performs at We Are One: The Obama Inaugural Celebration At The Lincoln Memorial presented exclusively by HBO on Sunday January 18th 2009.
We_Are_One_11: President-Elect Barack Obama and Michelle Obama at We Are One: The Obama Inaugural Celebration At The Lincoln Memorial presented exclusively by HBO on Sunday January 18th 2009.
We_Are_One_12: Jill Biden, Vice President-Elect Joe Biden, President-Elect Barack Obama and Michelle Obama at We Are One: The Obama Inaugural Celebration At The Lincoln Memorial presented exclusively by HBO on Sunday January 18th 2009.
We_Are_One_13: Bruce Springsteen performs at We Are One: The Obama Inaugural Celebration At The Lincoln Memorial presented exclusively by HBO on Sunday January 18th 2009.
We_Are_One_14: Bruce Springsteen performs at We Are One: The Obama Inaugural Celebration At The Lincoln Memorial presented exclusively by HBO on Sunday January 18th 2009.
We_Are_One_15: Garth Brooks performs at We Are One: The Obama Inaugural Celebration At The Lincoln Memorial presented exclusively by HBO on Sunday January 18th 2009.
We_Are_One_16: Garth Brooks performs at We Are One: The Obama Inaugural Celebration At The Lincoln Memorial presented exclusively by HBO on Sunday January 18th 2009.
We_Are_One_17: Atmosphere at We Are One: The Obama Inaugural Celebration At The Lincoln Memorial presented exclusively by HBO on Sunday January 18th 2009.
We_Are_One_18: Atmosphere at “We Are One: The Obama Inaugural Celebration At The Lincoln Memorial presented exclusively by HBO on Sunday January 18th 2009.
We_Are_One_19: Bruce Springsteeen and Queen Latifa backstage at We Are One: The Obama Inaugural Celebration At The Lincoln Memorial presented exclusively by HBO on Sunday January 18th 2009.
We_Are_One_20: Jon Bon Jovi backstage at We Are One: The Obama Inaugural Celebration At The Lincoln Memorial presented exclusively by HBO on Sunday January 18th 2009.
We_Are_One_21: will.i.am and Queen Latifah backstage at We Are One: The Obama Inaugural Celebration At The Lincoln Memorial presented exclusively by HBO on Sunday January 18th 2009.
We_Are_One_22: Ron Howard backstage at We Are One: The Obama Inaugural Celebration At The Lincoln MemorialÓpresented exclusively by HBO on Sunday January 18th 2009.
We_Are_One_23: Jamie Foxx and Samuel L Jackson backstage at We Are One: The Obama Inaugural Celebration At The Lincoln Memorial presented exclusively by HBO on Sunday January 18th 2009.
We_Are_One_24: Jack Black backstage at We Are One: The Obama Inaugural Celebration At The Lincoln Memorial presented exclusively by HBO on Sunday January 18th 2009.
We_Are_One_25: Forrest Whitaker and will.i.am backstage at We Are One: The Obama Inaugural Celebration At The Lincoln Memorial presented exclusively by HBO on Sunday January 18th 2009.
We_Are_One_26: Ron Howard, Steve Carrell, Tom Hanks and Rita Wilson backstage at We Are One: The Obama Inaugural Celebration At The Lincoln Memorial presented exclusively by HBO on Sunday January 18th 2009.
We_Are_One_27: will.i.am, Forrest Whitaker, Bruce Springsteen and Jamie Foxx backstage at We Are One: The Obama Inaugural Celebration At The Lincoln Memorial presented exclusively by HBO on Sunday January 18th 2009.
We_Are_One_28: Jack Black backstage at We Are One: The Obama Inaugural Celebration At The Lincoln Memorial presented exclusively by HBO on Sunday January 18th 2009.
We_Are_One_29: Marisa Tomei, Forrest Whitaker and Angela Bassett backstage at We Are One: The Obama Inaugural Celebration At The Lincoln Memorial presented exclusively by HBO on Sunday January 18th 2009.
We_Are_One_30: Marisa Tomei backstage at We Are One: The Obama Inaugural Celebration At The Lincoln Memorial presented exclusively by HBO on Sunday January 18th 2009.
We_Are_One_31: Jon Bon Jovi and Garth Brooks backstage at We Are One: The Obama Inaugural Celebration At The Lincoln Memorial presented exclusively by HBO on Sunday January 18th 2009.
We_Are_One_32: Bruce Springsteen at We Are One: The Obama Inaugural Celebration At The Lincoln Memorial presented exclusively by HBO on Sunday January 18th 2009.
We_Are_One_33: Bruce Springsteen at We Are One: The Obama Inaugural Celebration At The Lincoln Memorial presented exclusively by HBO on Sunday January 18th 2009.
We_Are_One_34: Bruce Springsteen and Martin Luther King Jr. III at We Are One: The Obama Inaugural Celebration At The Lincoln Memorial presented exclusively by HBO on Sunday January 18th 2009.
We_Are_One_35: Martin Luther King Jr. III at We Are One: The Obama Inaugural Celebration At The Lincoln Memorial presented exclusively by HBO on Sunday January 18th 2009.
We_Are_One_36: Atmosphere at We Are One: The Obama Inaugural Celebration At The Lincoln Memorial presented exclusively by HBO on Sunday January 18th 2009.
We_Are_One_37: John Mellencamp and Jack Black backstage at We Are One: The Obama Inaugural Celebration At The Lincoln Memorial presented exclusively by HBO on Sunday January 18th 2009.
We_Are_One_38: President-Elect Barack Obama and Sasha Obama at We Are One: The Obama Inaugural Celebration At The Lincoln Memorial presented exclusively by HBO on Sunday January 18th 2009.
We_Are_One_39: Jill Biden, Vice President-Elect Joe Biden, President-Elect Barack Obama, Sasha Obama, Michelle Obama and Malia Obama at We Are One: The Obama Inaugural Celebration At The Lincoln Memorial presented exclusively by HBO on Sunday January 18th 2009.

By BRIAN TALLERICO
Content Director
HollywoodChicago.com
brian@hollywoodchicago.com

Blu-Ray Review: ‘Horton Hears a Who’ a Playful Movie, Average Blu-Ray

BrianTT — Mon, 15 Dec 2008 11:20:20 -0700

CHICAGO – Fox animation tries to keep pace with DreamWorks and Disney with their high budget, extras-packed release of “Dr. Seuss’ Horton Hears a Who”, an entertaining animated adventure but a Blu-Ray release that does nothing to rise above average.

With a mediocre video and audio transfer, a frustratingly organized collection of special features, and the fact that the highlight of the package is essentially a commercial for another movie, the Blu-Ray release of “Horton Hears a Who” has to be considered a disappointment, even if the film itself is more consistently enjoyable than most adaptations of the legendary author.

Dr. Seuss’ Horton Hears a Who is available on DVD/Blu-Ray on December 9, 2008.

Jim Carrey voices the title character, a playful pachyderm named Horton who happens to hear a sound coming from microscopic speck of dust. Horton discovers an entire community known as Who-ville existing on that floating orb and realizes that he holds their fate in his giant hands. Steve Carell voices the Mayor of Who-Ville, the only Who who knows that the strange changes in his world are due to Horton and the inhabitants of the world above. Horton needs to find a safer home for the Who-ville speck of dust but the Sour Kangaroo (Carol Burnett) stands in his way. Meanwhile, the Mayor has a loving wife named Sally (Amy Poehler), 96 daughters, and one lonely son named JoJo (Jesse McCartney). Can the giant elephant and the creature who lives on a speck of dust work together to save the day?

“Horton Hears a Who” is far from the most clever animated script of the year but it’s well-paced enough to be consistently enjoyable for its brief running time and the voice work helps the film stand out. Carrey and Carell are predictably excellent and expressive but Burnett, Will Arnett, Seth Rogen, and the rest of the cast work together seamlessly and creatively. There’s also a surreal nature to both the character design and script for “Horton Hears a Who” (for example, the movie ends with a cast sing-a-long to REO Speedwagon’s “Can’t Fight This Feeling”) that’s refreshing for a genre that’s typically predictable.

“Horton Hears a Who” was not as critically successful as “Kung Fu Panda” or “Wall-E”, but that doesn’t excuse the sometimes-shabby treatment Fox continues to give their animated features on Blu-Ray. The HD video in 1.85:1 widescreen is certainly not bad, but when it’s compared to “Panda” or “Wall-E” it looks shockingly flat. The colors simply are not as vibrant or three-dimensional. The audio is also below average for animation on Blu-Ray with a 5.1 DTS HD Master Audio track that isn’t bad but isn’t memorable either.

Dr. Seuss’ Horton Hears a Who is available on DVD/Blu-Ray on December 9, 2008.

What’s most frustrating about Fox Blu-Ray is the way they have chosen to organize their special features. While other studios are trying to find new ways to present featurettes and commentaries on the next-gen format, Fox is taking a step back, usually choosing to emphasize quantity over quality or organization.

Looking at the back of the BD case for “Horton Hears a Who” will entice fans of the film to set aside time for the extensive list of special features but a large majority of them run under five minutes long before bouncing viewers back to the menu screen. Why not collect them all into one behind-the-scenes documentary? It’s hard to believe that there’s a single viewer out there who enjoys two-to-three minute featurettes like “Meet Katie” or “The Elephant in the Room: Jim Carrey”. Other featurettes include “Bringing the Characters to Life”, “That’s One Big Elephant: Animating Horton”, “Bringing Seuss to Screen”, “A Person is a Person: A Universal Message”, “Our Speck: Where Do We Fit In?”, and “Elephant Fun: The Facts”. None are memorable.

Far more interesting will be the deleted footage and animation screen tests, the commentary by directors Jimmy Hayward and Steve Martino and an all-new “Ice Age” short called “Surviving Sid”. Featuring John Leguizamo and his character from the first two “Ice Age” movies, “Surviving Sid” is a cute, 8-minute film that all fans of that franchise should enjoy. There’s also a preview for the third “Ice Age” movie, coming out early in 2009. Hopefully, the inevitable Blu-Ray release for that film is more impressive than the one for “Horton Hears a Who”.

‘Horton Hears a Who’ is released by Twentieth Century Fox Home Video on DVD/Blu-Ray and stars Jim Carrey, Steve Carell, Will Arnett, Seth Rogen, Isla Fisher, and Amy Poehler. It was written by Cinco Paul & Ken Daurio and directed by Jimmy Hayward & Steve Martino. It will be released on December 9th, 2008.

By BRIAN TALLERICO
Content Director
HollywoodChicago.com
brian@hollywoodchicago.com

Amy Ryan of ‘Gone Baby Gone,’ ‘The Wire’ Signs Onto New Episodes of NBC Hit TV Show ‘The Office’

HollywoodChicago.com — Mon, 30 Jun 2008 00:22:52 -0600

CHICAGO – Amy Ryan’s star just keeps rising. The breakout actress from HBO’s “The Wire,” who was nominated for a Golden Globe and Academy Award for her role in “Gone Baby Gone,” will be featured in at least five episodes on this coming season of NBC hit TV show “The Office”.

Amy Ryan from “Gone Baby Gone,” “The Wire” and “The Office”.
Photo credit: (source)

In season four’s finale of “The Office” (entitled “Goodbye, Toby”), Amy Ryan’s character (Holly Flax) took over the HR position from Toby Flenderson (played by Paul Lieberstein).

With the 2007 finale being her first episode, Holly was teased as a potential love interest for branch boss Michael Scott (portrayed by Steve Carell). Last week, Carell signed on to do three more seasons of “The Office”. Ryan and Carell appeared together in 2007’s “Dan in Real Life”.

“I don’t know what they’re going to do with the character,” Ryan said in a Sunday Variety report, “but as it was written, there’s certainly a lot of potential. It’s a funny thing to enter a show … you’re a great fan of and it’s nice to tell lighter stories. I love the dark, grittier side of life, but it’s nice to take a break from that, put a skirt on and brush your hair.”

Though the fan-favorite Toby is gone from the screen, Lieberstein – a writer and actor on the show since the first season – will continue on as an executive producer through the fifth season of “The Office”. Lieberstein added in the Variety report: “Amy gave the character of Holly an openness and matured innocence that exposed a new side of Michael. She placed her character right on his level.”

Ryan has more projects set for the big screen including “Imperial Life in the Emerald City: Inside Iraq’s Green Zone” and Clint Eastwood’s “Changeling”.

By DUSTIN LEVELL
Senior Staff Writer
HollywoodChicago.com
dustin@hollywoodchicago.com

In ‘Get Smart’ Lifeless Retread, Steve Carell Can’t Fill Don Adams’ Shoe

HollywoodChicago.com — Fri, 20 Jun 2008 11:37:59 -0600

CHICAGO – Observing the new “Get Smart” film, which is based on the 1960s TV sitcom of the same name, is to note how much has changed since the Cold War ended.

Rating: 2.0/5.0

KAOS and CONTROL – the U.S. and Russian spy agencies that square off in the movie – seem like relics of another era. In this age of homeland security and unlimited government wiretapping, it’s difficult to create fictional comedy that can compete with real-life absurdity.

The film version of “Get Smart” lives up to that truth. Combining dull action-movie elements, badly cast movie stars and an uncomfortable romance, the film has forgotten all about its TV roots and most of the humor.

Read Patrick McDonald’s full review of “Get Smart” in our reviews section.

View our full, high-resolution “Get Smart” image gallery.

Played by Steve Carell, Maxwell Smart is a Russian interpreter and communications administrator in the secret government spy agency CONTROL.

The chief (Alan Arkin) wants Smart to stay in the administration even though he longs to join spies like Agent 23 (Dwayne Johnson) and work in the field.

After KAOS – a rival Russian agency – infiltrates and wrecks the CONTROL offices, Smart is promoted to field agent and partnered with super-spy Agent 99 (Anne Hathaway). Their mission is to find out who’s behind KAOS and identify their evil plans.

“Get Smart,” which stars Steve Carell, Anna Hathaway, Dwayne Johnson, Alan Arkin, Terence Stamp, Bill Murray and Ryan Seacrest, opened everywhere on June 20, 2008.

Steve Carell stars as Maxwell Smart (left) and Anne Hathaway stars as Agent 99 in “Get Smart”.
Photo credit: Warner Bros.

Anne Hathaway (left) stars as Agent 99 and Steve Carell stars as Maxwell Smart in “Get Smart”.
Photo credit: Tracy Bennett

Read Patrick McDonald’s full “Get Smart” review.

Dr. Seuss’ ‘Horton Hears a Who!’ Heard Loudly Into Instant Children’s Classic

HollywoodChicago.com — Thu, 13 Mar 2008 20:37:13 -0600

CHICAGO – One of Dr. Seuss’ most famous storybooks has finally been granted life with its self-titled animated feature “Horton Hears a Who!,” which involves a morally righteous elephant, philosophical timbre and Dr. Seuss’ ingenious lyrical rhymes.

A star-studded cast supports this vibrant tale and Dr. Seuss’ ethical elephant and morally slated advice about equality are well represented in this CG-animated adaptation.

The elephant Horton (Jim Carrey) comes to the rescue of a speck crying for help as it floats by in the colorful jungle of Nool. When Horton decides to help the speck even though he can’t see the Whos who inhabit it, the famous line “a person’s a person no matter how big or how small” comes into the film and sets the Suessian tone of the tale.

Click here to read Allison Pitaccio’s full review
of “Horton Hears a Who!” in our reviews section!

Click here for our full “Horton Hears a Who!” image gallery!

Isla Fisher in “Horton Hears a Who!”.
Photo credit: IMDb

“Horton Hears a Who!”.
Photo credit: IMDb

New ‘Sweeney Todd’ Stills; Movie Posters: Dr. Seuss Film, ‘The Forbidden Kingdom,’ ‘Hottie,’ ‘Zohan’

HollywoodChicago.com — Thu, 20 Dec 2007 12:24:37 -0700

Paramount Pictures on Wednesday evening released new production photos for “Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street,” which opens on Friday.

Johnny Depp and Helena Bonham Carter in “Sweeney
Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street”.
Photo credit: Leah Gallo

Alan Rickman (left) in “Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street”.
Photo credit: Peter Mountain

Johnny Depp in “Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street”.
Photo credit: Leah Gallo

Johnny Depp in “Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street”.
Photo credit: Peter Mountain

Helena Bonham Carter and Johnny Depp in “Sweeney
Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street”.
Photo credit: Leah Gallo
Various new movie posters have just surfaced for films including “Horton Hears a Who!,” which opens on March 14, 2008.

The Dr. Seuss computer-animated adaptation features a star-studded cast that includes Jim Carrey, Steve Carell, Jonah Hill, Seth Rogen, Will Arnett, Isla Fisher, Dane Cook, Jaime Pressly and Carol Burnett.

Next up, we have a new poster for “The Forbidden Kingdom” with Jet Li and Jackie Chan – yes, in the same film. “The Forbidden Kingdom” is slated to open on April 17, 2008.

We also have the new movie poster for – you’ve got to be kidding me! – “The Hottie and the Nottie” with Paris Hilton, which is scheduled to open on Feb. 8, 2008.

Finally, we have the movie poster for “You Don’t Mess With the Zohan” with Adam Sandler, Rob Schneider and Mariah Carey. The film, which is written by Judd Apatow (“Knocked Up,” “The 40-Year-Old Virgin”) and Adam Sandler, is slated to open on June 6, 2008.

First-Look Production Stills: New ‘Harry Potter,’ ‘Get Smart,’ ‘10,000 B.C.’; ‘Speed Racer’ Poster

HollywoodChicago.com — Fri, 14 Dec 2007 14:00:16 -0700

Following our Dec. 11 post, which featured a slew of new production stills from 2008 Warner Bros. films, even more have just been released by the studio. We now see the first stills from “Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince,” “10,000 B.C.” and “Get Smart”.

Steven Strait as D’Leh in the epic adventure “10,000 B.C.”.
Photo credit: Warner Bros.

Daniel Radcliffe as Harry Potter “Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince”.
Photo credit: Jaap Buitendijk

Anne Hathaway stars as Agent 99 and Steve Carell stars
as Maxwell Smart in “Get Smart”.
Photo credit: Tracy Bennett

Steve Carell as Maxwell Smart in “Get Smart”.
Photo credit: Tracy Bennett
Also, I’m adding a sweet “Speed Racer” production still from Dec. 11. Below it, we see a new lenticular “Speed Racer” poster that – in person – is literally in 3D. /Film says: “The helmet under [Speed Racer’s] arms pops out at you and the background is also in 3D.”

Emile Hirsch as Speed Racer in the Mach 5 in the film “Speed Racer”.
Photo credit: Warner Bros.

Lenticular “Speed Racer” poster in 3D.
Image credit: FirstShowing.net