The Late Late Show host James Corden’s apparently been planning for the winter holidays all year. Kicking off with Mariah Carey, Corden’s holiday treat for fans is an energetic celebrity-filled special Carpool Karaoke rendition of Carey’s version of “All I Want for Christmas.” Corden and Carey began the video with a little banter, and then slipped into the Christmas song.
Previous Carpool Karaoke passengers who appeared throughout the video and lent their voices to the popular holiday tune included Lady Gaga, Adele, Demi Lovato, Nick Jonas, Elton John, Gwen Stefani, Selena Gomez, Chris Martin, and the Red Hot Chili Peppers. The video first appeared on the December 15, 2016 episode of The Late Late Show with James Corden and then made its way online for those of us who don’t stay up late to enjoy.
The special holiday Carpool Karaoke video came just a few days after James Corden debuted what’s likely to be the final full Carpool Karaoke video of the year. Bruno Mars had the honor of closing out 2016, joining Corden to sing tracks off his new album, 24K. Within two days of the video’s release, the Bruno Mars Carpool Karaoke video had been watched more than 17 million times.
Watch the “All I Want for Christmas” Carpool Karaoke video:
And in case you missed it, here’s the Bruno Mars video:
Lucas Hedges and Casey Affleck in ‘Manchester by the Sea’ (Photo Courtesy of Amazon Studios and Roadside Attractions)
Every year, movie lovers who’ve waded through disappointments and dreck are paid off for their patience with that one film that embeds itself in their psyche, not to be soon forgotten. Manchester by the Sea is that one film. The quiet, nuanced dramatic film from writer/director Kenneth Lonergan (Margaret, You Can Count on Me) is one of the few 2016 theatrical releases that not only lives up to its awards season hype but does so without a single false moment or misstep.
Casey Affleck’s sure to earn an Oscar nomination and quite likely a win for his heartbreaking portrayal of a man who becomes emotionally disconnected from the world after a devastating event. Affleck is brilliant as Lee, an apartment complex handyman who has shut himself off from his family, his friends, and the world. Following yet another traumatic event, Lee is forced out of his self-imposed solitary life and back out into the harsh world he’s tried unsuccessfully to escape.
Lucas Hedges gives a breakthrough performance as Patrick, a 16-year-old hockey-playing high school kid who must deal with something no teenager should experience. Watching Affleck and Hedges in scenes as a detached uncle dealing with his beloved brother’s son feels like eavesdropping on a close friend’s private home movies. We’re given a glimpse of intensely personal moments between these characters who cease to be fictional and have become family as the result of Lonergan’s script and direction, and the work of an outstanding ensemble of actors completely immersed in these characters.
Michelle Williams plays Lee’s ex-wife and although she has maybe a total of 15 minutes of screen time, the Oscar talk surrounding her performance is completely justified. There’s a short heart-wrenching scene in Manchester by the Sea that’s not only one of Williams’ best, but also the single best scene of any feature film released in 2016.
Lonergan’s script is grounded in reality and the film will resonate with anyone who’s felt lost or emotionally adrift, or anyone who’s had to work their way through the grieving process. Despite the film’s somber tone, there’s a truth and honesty in Lonergan’s surprisingly complex story that will weave its way into your heart. And most importantly, it will do so without any need for manipulation or melodrama. Manchester by the Sea is powerful, moving, and one of the year’s best films.
GRADE: A
Cast: Casey Affleck, Michelle Williams, Lucas Hedges, Kyle Chandler, Mary Mallen, C. J. Wilson, Gretchen Mol, and Matthew Broderick
MPAA Rating: R for language throughout and some sexual content
Disney and Lucasfilm delved back into the cash cow that is the Star Wars film franchise with the 2015 release of Star Wars: The Force Awakens. That film made over $2 billion worldwide before exiting theaters, proving beyond any doubt there’s still an appetite for tales from a galaxy far, far away. However, unlike The Force Awakens, 2016’s Star Wars offering – Rogue One: A Star Wars Story – is a standalone film that features only very, very brief appearances by established Star Wars players.
Rogue One travels back in time to tell the story of how the plans for the Death Star wound up in the possession of the Rebels, introducing brand new players to the universe as the previously untold story unfolds. This new Star Wars prequel/standalone film (that’s also a sequel) is easy enough to understand, even for casual fans of Star Wars. The Death Star has been built and the Rebels must find a way to disable it before the Empire begins using it to destroy planets with Rebel bases. Pivotal to the events that play out in Rogue One is yet another strong female fighter, the reluctant hero Jyn Erso, played with ferocity by Felicity Jones.
Jyn Erso’s forcefully, at first, recruited to work with the Rebels because they believe she’s their ticket to finding her father, Galen Erso (Mads Mikkelsen), who’s working on the Death Star for the Empire. Cassian Andor (Diego Luna) and his comic relief sidekick, K-2S0 (Rogue One’s version of C-3PO), are tasked with guiding the mission and convincing Jyn to help out. Chirrut Îmwe (Donnie Yen), a strong believer in the Force, and his best friend/protector Baze Malbus (Jiang Wen), join Jyn and Cassian’s mission, becoming key players in the quest for the Death Star’s plans. Bodhi Rook (The Night Of’s Riz Ahmed) fills out the small group of Rebels responsible for leading the mission to extract the plans that reveal the secret to destroying the Death Star.
Stand-out performances among the supporting players include Ben Mendelsohn as Orson Krennic, the most interesting villain to be introduced in either The Force Awakens or Rogue One. Mendelsohn wears a white cape, that whips around dramatically as he stomps through the sets, and really, all that’s missing to this callback to classic movie villains is a little mustache-twirling and eyebrow-lifting. And Donnie Yen, Jiang Wen, and Riz Ahmed make their supporting characters ones that we not only come to like and root for, but also wish we could spend a little more time getting to know.
As bizarre as it sounds, Peter Cushing also delivers a great performance as Grand Moff Tarkin in Rogue One. Cushing doesn’t actually appear in the film (he passed away in 1994), however, through what was obviously painstaking work by Industrial Light and Magic’s team, Cushing’s Grand Moff Tarkin once again lives on screen.
A gritty, down-and-dirty Star Wars movie that feels like a Vietnam or WWII war film at times, this standalone prequel/sequel takes a few beats to get going but once it does, Star Wars fans are taken on an intense, thrilling ride. There’s infighting among the Rebels and among the Empire’s higher-ups, and cheering in the audience when a familiar heavy-breathing villain appears on screen. (That’s not a spoiler as he’s featured on the poster.) Unlike 2015’s The Force Awakens, Rogue One’s plot isn’t a rehash of any previous Star Wars film and instead is a creative and entertaining introduction to a group of rebels whose actions built the foundation for films in the Star Wars franchise that followed behind it in the timeline (in other words, Episodes IV, V, VI, and The Force Awakens).
Directed by Godzilla’s Gareth Edwards, Rogue One features outstanding CG work and special effects, although surprisingly the battles in space are not quite as dynamic as the war on the ground between the Rebel Alliance troops and the Empire’s Storm Troopers. But, none of the effects would amount to much if it weren’t for the terrific performance delivered by Felicity Jones. Jones delivers a stellar performance as the latest heroine of the Star Wars world, engaging the audience emotionally and proving to be a kick-ass action star as well.
Star Wars: The Force Awakens didn’t impress me as the plot and action were recycled from other films of the franchise, but Rogue One: A Star Wars Story turned out to be proof there is artistic storytelling life still left in this nearly 40-year-old franchise.
GRADE: B+
MPAA Rating: PG-13 for extended sequences of sci-fi violence and action
Poster for ‘Billions’ season 2 (Photo Credit: Showtime)
Showtime’s critically acclaimed dramatic series Billions has just released a new teaser trailer along with the season two poster. The series comes from writers/executive producers Brian Koppelman and David Levien and executive producer Andrew Ross Sorkin, with Koppelman and Levien serving as showrunners. The second season finds Paul Giamatti as U.S. Attorney Chuck Rhoades and Damian Lewis as billionaire Bobby Axelrod squaring off once again, with Maggie Siff returning as Wendy Rhoades and Malin Akerman back as Lara Axelrod.
The season two cast also includes Toby Leonard Moore, David Costabile, Condola Rashad, Rob Morrow, Dan Soder, Kelly AuCoin, Mary-Louise Parker, Danny Strong, James Wolk, Christopher Denham, Glenn Fleshler and Eric Bogosian.
Billions season two premieres on Sunday, February 19, 2017 at 10pm ET/PT.
The Plot: Season two picks up immediately after the season one finale, as hard-charging U.S. Attorney Chuck Rhoades (Giamatti) squares off against billionaire hedge fund king Bobby “Axe” Axelrod (Lewis), scorching the earth in a costly war for personal domination. It’s law versus money, with power, sex, and the soul of New York in the balance. Season two finds the characters vying for control in a changing world that presents an existential threat. For all of them, it’s a choice between evolution and extinction.
A scene from Guillermo del Toro’s ‘Trollhunters.’ (Photo Courtesy of Netflix)
DreamWorks and Netflix have unveiled a behind-the-scenes featurette for Trollhunters, a new animated series from Guillermo del Toro. The short video includes brief interview snippets with the series’ stars Kelsey Grammer, Ron Perlman, Charlie Saxton, and Steven Yeun, as well as del Toro talking about the world created in the series. Netflix will release the 26 episode season of Trollhunters on December 23, 2016.
The Plot: From the limitless imagination of master storyteller Guillermo Del Toro comes a tale of two worlds set to collide in the epic saga DreamWorks Trollhunters. When ordinary teenager Jim Lake Jr. stumbles upon a mystical amulet on his way to school one morning, he inadvertently discovers an extraordinary secret civilization of mighty trolls beneath his small town of Arcadia. Strong-willed and seeking adventure but wholly unprepared for the responsibilities thrust upon him, Jim is forced to take on the exalted mantle of Trollhunter, sworn to protect the good trolls from powerful enemies bent on revenge. The first human ever to hold the honor, Jim abruptly goes from fighting his way through the daily mayhem of high school to joining a war that has raged for centuries, a conflict that now threatens all of mankind and troll-kind alike.
Accompanied by his closest human friends and a few key troll allies, the courageous fifteen-year-old must plunge headlong into a fantastical world of astonishing creatures, glorious cities, and fierce enemies desperate to destroy him. Suddenly destined to play a crucial role in an ancient battle of good and evil with stakes that couldn’t be higher, Jim is determined to save the world — right after gym class. DreamWorks Trollhunters is a heroic tale that uncoils with ambitious, complex storytelling and stunning visuals that raise the bar for animated series, creating an event series that will thrill the entire family.
As Rogue One: A Star Wars Story arrives in theaters, Disney and Lucasfilm have released another trailer for the action epic which focuses on a band of rebels stealing the plans for the Death Star. Directed by Godzilla‘s Gareth Edwards, the Star Wars prequel stars Felicity Jones, Diego Luna, Ben Mendelsohn, Donnie Yen, Mads Mikkelsen, Alan Tudyk, Riz Ahmed, Jiang Wen and Forest Whitaker. Tony Gilroy and Chris Weitz wrote the screenplay from a story by John Knoll and Gary Whitta. John Knoll and Jason McGatlin executive produced, and Kathleen Kennedy, Allison Shearmur, and Simon Emanuel served as producers. Rogue One: A Star Wars Story will be released in theaters beginning December 15, 2016.
And for those confused as to where Rogue One falls in the Star Wars films timeline, here’s an explanation shared by Luke Skywalker himself, Mark Hamill:
The Plot: From Lucasfilm comes the first of the Star Wars standalone films, Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, an all-new epic adventure. In a time of conflict, a group of unlikely heroes band together on a mission to steal the plans to the Death Star, the Empire’s ultimate weapon of destruction. This key event in the Star Wars timeline brings together ordinary people who choose to do extraordinary things, and in doing so, become part of something greater than themselves.
The CW’s debuted a new poster for the dramatic series Riverdale based on the popular Archie comics. The series is set to debut on January 26, 2017 at 9pm ET/PT and stars KJ Apa as Archie, Ashleigh Murray as Josie, Cole Sprouse as Jughead, Lili Reinhart as Betty, and Camila Mendes as Veronica. The cast also includes Madchen Amick as Alice, Madelaine Petsch as Cheryl, Marisol Nicholas as Hermione, and Sarah Habel as Ms. Grundy. Archie Comics’ Jon Goldwater, Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa (Supergirl, Glee), Greg Berlanti (Arrow, The Flash, Supergirl, DC’s Legends of Tomorrow), and Sarah Schechter (Arrow, The Flash, Supergirl, DC’s Legends of Tomorrow) are involved as executive producers.
The Riverdale Plot: As a new school year begins, the town of Riverdale is reeling from the recent, tragic death of high school golden boy Jason Blossom — and nothing feels the same. Archie Andrews (Apa) is still the all-American teen, but the summer’s events made him realize that he wants to pursue a career in music and not follow in his dad’s footsteps despite the sudden end of his forbidden relationship with Riverdale’s young music teacher, Ms. Grundy (Habel). Now Archie has no one to mentor him, certainly not singer Josie McCoy (Ashleigh Murray), who is only focused on her band, the soon-to-be-world-famous Pussycats. It’s all weighing heavily on Archie’s mind — as is his fractured friendship with budding writer and fellow classmate Jughead Jones (Sprouse).
Meanwhile, girl-next-door Betty Cooper (Reinhart) is anxious to see her crush Archie after being away all summer, but she’s not quite ready to reveal her true feelings to him. And Betty’s nerves, which are hardly soothed by her overbearing mother Alice (Amick), aren’t the only thing holding her back. When a new student, Veronica Lodge (Mendes), arrives in town from New York with her mother Hermione (Nichols), there’s an undeniable spark between Veronica and Archie, even though Veronica doesn’t want to risk her new friendship with Betty by making a play for Archie. And then there’s Cheryl Blossom (Petsch)… Riverdale’s Queen Bee is happy to stir up trouble amongst Archie, Betty and Veronica, but Cheryl is keeping secrets of her own. What, exactly, is she hiding about the mysterious death of her twin brother, Jason? Riverdale may look like a quiet, sleepy town, but there are dangers in the shadows.
Maggie Q in ‘Designated Survivor’ episode 10 (Photo by John Medland / ABC) MAGGIE Q
“Emily, I think there’s a traitor here in the White House and I need your help to find him,” says President Kirkman (Kiefer Sutherland) to his special aid, Emily (Italia Ricci), as he begins to work toward finding the inside man involved in the attack on the Capitol in ABC’s new political thriller series, Designated Survivor.
Season one’s midseason finale begins right where it left off last week with Agent Wells (Maggie Q) still in her totaled car, slowly starting to come to as some strange man outside her car is telling her not to move and that she’s been in a bad accident. The man tries to strangle Wells, but thankfully she realizes what he’s doing and hits the gas, throwing him into another car and managing to escape.
At the White House, Kirkman tells his wife (Natascha McElhone) about discovering the blueprints to the Capitol attack and that there is a traitor among them. Needless to say, she’s freaked out and wants Tom to tell someone. He points out he doesn’t know who on his staff to trust besides Secret Service Agent Mike (LaMonica Garrett).
Meanwhile, Seth (Kal Penn), Emily, and Aaron (Adan Canto) are celebrating the soon-to-be confirmation of Peter MacLeish (Ashley Zukerman) as the vice president. When Seth leaves the room, Aaron and Emily start making out.
FBI Agent Wells makes her way to Chuck’s apartment and promptly passes out. When she wakes the next day, she finds that Chuck has tended to her injuries as best he could and put her in his bed to sleep. (Who says chivalry is dead?!) Chuck wants to stop looking into the Capitol attack, pointing out that she almost died. But Wells has a mini heart-to-heart with Chuck about why they joined the Bureau and it was to help people. “They aren’t going to stop until we stop them,” says Wells, and he once again agrees to help her. He’s able to track the burner phone her mysterious caller has used to leave her clues and discovers the convenience store where it was bought. Wells heads out to try to find more clues.
Back at the White House, Kirkman talks to the computer guy who created the simulation of the attack on the Capitol. Scared of just how big the conspiracy might be, the creator of the blueprint tells the president he handed the file over to the general in charge at the time who it just so happens is the general who Kirkman fired earlier. Kirkman has the ex-general secretly brought in for questioning, and at first, he denies knowing about it but then admits it was taken from him before he had a chance to read it by someone at the White House who was part of the former president’s staff. Kirkman makes a list of anyone who was part of the White House before the attack and lived, and needless to say only a few names are on the list. POTUS has Emily brought in and he confides in her what’s going on. He knows he can trust her because she was his righthand person before the attack and had nothing to do with the White House. He shows her the list and her heart sinks when she sees Aaron’s name on it.
Since Wells never arrived to give Congresswoman Kimble (Virginia Madison) her evidence about MacLeish, the vote goes ahead and MacLeish is now to be sworn in as the new vice president. Kirkman has Kimble meet with him to ask her about what she had on MacLeish, and she tells the President about Agent Wells and being a no-show. She asks if everything is okay and Kirkman tells her he’ll let her know as soon as he’s able. Kirkman asks Mike to find Agent Wells.
At the convenience store, Wells gets a license plate after going through the security video and has Chuck run it, which leads her to an old house in the woods. As she’s approaching it, she sees someone running and chases them. After a brief chase, she discovers the man is Langdon who everyone thought was dead. He tells her he doesn’t know how big the conspiracy is and she notices a gunman off in the distance point his weapon at Langdon, so she fires at the would-be killer and puts him down. A black SUV speeds off and Langdon is in the wind. Wells checks the pockets of the gunman and discovers it’s the guy who tried to strangle her. She finds a mysterious card key and with Chuck’s help discovers it’s to a room in a building with a direct line of sight to the steps of the Capitol where MacLeish is going to be sworn in as VP. Wells realizes the conspirators are going to try to assassinate the president.
While handling the press, Seth gets cornered by Lisa, the reporter who used him and is whining about not getting called on. “The president forgave me. Why can’t you?” she asks. The next day Seth calls on her and BOOM she hits him with a question about who they have in custody regarding the murder of Nassar. Seth ends the press conference and tells Aaron who tells the president who in turn tells Seth to inform Lisa that tomorrow they will give her an exclusive about who the FBI has in custody.
The FBI and Mike are comparing notes on Wells and Mike gets the picture that although she was once a good agent, she might now be a loose cannon and unstable. He shares this with Kirkman who recalls that MacLeish said she had become obsessed with him. They get word a little later that someone saw Wells shoot someone and both the FBI and the local police are looking for her.
MacLeish is starting to become unsure and uneasy with being a party to the conspiracy and confides in his wife he’s not sure he can go through with it. His wife tells him he was chosen to survive for a reason. “You’ve been given a tremendous responsibility to restore this nation to the empire it once was and can be again,” says his wife who seems more determined than her husband to make sure everything goes as planned. It’s a disturbing and chilling scene.
At the Capitol, where the ceremony is taking place, a man enters the building across the way using a keycard and heads up the steps. He arrives at the window and begins to put together a sniper rifle. The president and his entourage arrive and Kirkman walks up to the microphone and begins speaking to the crowd and the reporters. Emily gets a call from the person she asked to track down who used Langdon’s phone while he was out of the country and learns it was Aaron. This confirms that it was Aaron and not Langdon who pulled the blueprint attack file from the ex-general, making sure he didn’t see it.
As the president introduces MacLeish, the sniper across the way positions himself and takes aim. MacLeish is taking the oath when Wells pulls up and starts making her way through the large crowd. Mike and a few other security people recognize Wells and begin to make their way to her. Wells looks up at the building where the assassin will be and sees an open window. The sniper has his site locked on President Kirkman just as Wells shoots at the window with her handgun. She misses the sniper but distracts him and causes him to move just a hair when he fires his shot. Screen to black.
Designated Survivor Season 1 Episode 10 Review:
Suspenseful, fast-paced, and action-packed, episode 10 titled “The Oath” brings the first half of the political thriller’s first season to a close with a surprising mid-season cliffhanger. The president’s secret manhunt for the traitor in the White House (and it does seem as though there is more than one) and Agent Wells’ race to stop POTUS from being assassinated are the definite highlights and major driving factors of this episode.
The stand-out performance this time goes to Italia Ricci as Emily who shows wonderfully her character’s shock at being told about the traitor and heartbreak as she learns her friend, colleague, and even maybe something more, Aaron, is part of the conspiracy.
Now the real question is…who was shot and will he or she survive?! Can’t believe we have to wait until March to find out.
Charlotte Rampling and Jim Broadbent in ‘The Sense of an Ending.’
Charlotte Rampling, Michelle Dockery, Jim Broadbent, and Matthew Goode star in The Sense of an Ending, based on Julian Barnes’ critically acclaimed book. CBS Films has just unveiled a new trailer for the dramatic film directed by The Lunchbox‘s Ritesh Batra and adapted by Nick Payne. The cast also includes Harriet Walter, Emily Mortimer, Billy Howle, Joe Alwyn, and Freya Mavor, with CBS Films planning a March 10, 2017 limited theatrical release.
The Plot: Tony Webster (Broadbent) leads a reclusive and quiet existence until long-buried secrets from his past force him to face the flawed recollections of his younger self, the truth about his first love (Rampling) and the devastating consequences of decisions made a lifetime ago.
Adapted for the screen by award-winning playwright Nick Payne and produced by David Thompson and Ed Rubin (Woman In Gold).
The CW’s The 100 season four trailer confirms fans can’t expect their favorite characters to have an easier time surviving in the upcoming season than they did in season three. The fourth season will find Clarke (Eliza Taylor) attempting to get the Sky People and Grounders to work together to save the world. It will also, of course, find the rest of the survivors dealing with their actions and the repercussions of ALIE’s manipulations.
The CW hasn’t released a full synopsis for season four, but the three-minute trailer shows an even more badass Octavia (Marie Avgeropoulos) on a quest for revenge for Lincoln’s death. However, Octavia’s definitely not the only character who’ll be involved in what appear to be brutal fights, as the trailer’s loaded with clips of action scenes.
The cast of season four also includes Bob Morley as Bellamy, Devon Bostick as Jasper, Lindsey Morgan as Raven, Christopher Larkin as Monty, Richard Harmon as Murphy, Isaiah Washington as Jaha, Henry Ian Cusick as Kane, and Paige Turco as Abby. The 100 season four is set to premiere on Wednesday, February 1, 2017 at 9pm ET/PT.
