February 9th, 2010 | 11:31 am by Liz Black

Gabby Sidibe Wants Justin On Her Arm For The Oscars

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Now that she’s been nominated for a Best Actress Oscar for Precious, Gabourey Sidibe has started thinking about what to wear and how, or rather with whom, to accessorize. The actress has clearly stated in the past her love and lust for all things ‘Nsync and during an interview with the Canadian talk show eTalk, she went so far as to ask Justin Timberlake to be her date at the Academy Awards - Jessica Biel be damned!

After explaining that she’d also consider The Hurt Locker star Anthony Mackie as her date, she put the invite out there to JT, saying “Justin, if you’re not doing anything on that night, maybe you could be my date or something. It’s fine. No pressure!”  This might be the greatest coupling ever, so with that in mind let us just say the ball’s in your court, Timberlake!

[Photos: Getty Images]

February 9th, 2010 | 11:10 am by Kate Spencer (@katespencer)

Jessica Alba’s Sloppy Hair Hurts Our Eyes

While we appreciate Jessica Alba‘s attempt to uglify herself as a way to connect with the rest of us mediocre looking Americans, we were still horrified by her hair-tastrophe at the Valentine’s Day premiere last night. Jessica is hot – so she should just be hot at all times. Instead she showed up looking like she had let her hair air dry by hanging her head out the window of a moving car – without any products in it. The horror! Her bangs were all up in her face, her style was flat, and her army of fly-aways will haunt us in our nightmares for years.

So what do you think – do you like Jessica’s shaggy, sloppy style, or do you miss her longer, sleeker look?

February 8th, 2010 | 10:30 am by Liz Black

Sandra Bullock Doesn’t Think She Has A Chance On Oscar Night

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Sandra Bullock made a huge transformation this year from fluff film actress to serious Oscar contender, but even she is skeptical about her chances at taking home an Academy Award next month. “I’m so not winning an Oscar,” Bullock told reporters at the Santa Barbara International Film Festival last Friday. “Nine times out of ten I always pick who’s going to win and I already know who’s going to win. I’m not going to say, but nine times out of ten, I’m right.” Those are some decent odds, Sandy. We bet everyone in your Oscar party pool hates you!

We think Bullock is being a bit humble, not because we think she was that amazing in The Blind Side, but because the academy has a history of awarding beautiful women with a statue and then allowing them to go right back to making crappy movies. Halle Berry made Catwoman and Gothika after she won, and Mira Sorvino‘s best role after her Best Supporting Actress win was a guest appearance on Will and Grace. However, Bullock seems gracious and happy just to be a contender in a field of amazing performances this year and we’re already willing to forgive whatever fish-out-of-water romantic comedy she hands us next.

[Photo: SplashNewsOnline]

February 5th, 2010 | 3:30 pm by Anthony Miccio

Mickey Rourke: “Megan Fox Is The Best Young Actress I’ve Ever Worked With”

Mickey Rourke & Megan Fox

Megan Fox has left quite an impression on Mickey Rourke, her co-star in the upcoming Passion Play, which concerns the love between a winged circus freak and a junkie trumpet player (we’ll let you guess who plays what). “I didn’t know too much about her, except what I read. And I think the pleasant surprise was this girl who’s a world-class beauty turned out to be probably the best young actress I’ve ever worked with,” he told Entertainment Weekly. No small compliment, considering he married Wild Orchid co-star Carre Otis and raised eyebrows by flirting with on-screen daughter Evan Rachel Wood after shooting The Wrestler. And who could forget Lisa Bonet in Crazy Heart? Who didn’t believe it when she dripped chicken blood on her chest?

“I don’t know if a lot of her films have showcased her acting ability more than, say, being action-oriented,” he continued. “But [Megan] really stepped up the plate with this one and was very consistent and professional, beyond her years. At 23, I couldn’t do half of what she’s doing…With Megan and I, there’s a lot of chemistry and a lot of respect.” Will Passion Play reveal there’s more to Megan Fox than her Armani ads? The film has no set release date, but producers hope to have it out by the end of the year. Hmmm, is it too soon to put her in the 2011 Oscar pool?

[Photo: Getty Images]

February 4th, 2010 | 6:33 pm by Matt Muro

The True Inspiration Behind Avatar: Playboy?

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After seeing Avatar, we wondered how James Cameron and his crew of artists dreamed up the lush, gorgeous world of the Na’vi. We thought maybe his inspiration came from imagining the land inhabited by Native Americans before Europeans pillaged and plowed its people, forests and animals. Zoe Saldana‘s character Neytiri had to be based on Pocahontas, right? How naive!

Playboy seems the more likely source. Having been married five times (often to women who’ve starred in his movies), it’s no secret that Cameron has an appetite for ladies. The above picture of German model Veruschka von Lehndorff is from Playboy’s January 1971 issue, when the director would have been at the masturbatory young age of 16. Before Playboy, Veruschka steamed up the silver screen in Antonioni’s 1966 classic Blowup — a film Cameron is sure to have seen.

Sinewy tree-dwelling creatures with painted skin who have little interest in clothing? Ahhh. It’s all coming together now. Veruschka was probably Cameron’s first love and if she were any younger than 70, we bet she’d be his sixth wife. [Source: via our boss via  Paul Di Filippo]

February 2nd, 2010 | 3:00 pm by Anthony Miccio

Stars Left Smiling Over Their Oscar Nominations

This heartwarming clip of underdog Jeremy Renner learning he received a Best Actor Oscar nomination for The Hurt Locker (and getting a bear hug from co-star Anthony Mackie) is just one example of the good vibes flowing forth from those acknowledged today. Here’s a few choice quotes from the actors and actresses who woke this morning to good news—assuming they weren’t up all night.

  • Meryl Streep, on her record-breaking 16th nomination for Julie & Julia: “I am proud and grateful to stand with these women who have given such a range of beautiful, indelible performances this year!!”
  • Carey Mulligan, An Education: “This is beyond anything I’ve ever dreamed of. I’ve definitely never felt such excitement and nausea this early in the morning!”
  • Gabourey Sidibe, Precious: “As soon as I heard, I jumped up and down and for some reason I kept screaming, ‘I’m gonna get a car, I’m gonna get a car.’ I don’t know why.” (Good Morning America)
  • Colin Firth, A Single Man: “I thought I was managing my expectations, but on hearing the news I discovered new and unfamiliar vocal tones. Perhaps I should do another musical.”
  • Sandra Bullock, The Blind Side: “I do believe some liposuction is in order, a very strict diet regime, and I will acquire a very light English accent. I was going to say that I should start wearing glasses, but I already wear glasses, so I am already sort of there.” (Us Magazine)

Hurt Locker director Kathryn Bigelow, while “overwhelmed with joy,” did have something to say about being only the fourth woman to receive a Best Director nomination. “I do think that I hope someday we can lose the modifier and that becomes a moot point whether the person is male or female and they’re just filmmakers making statements that they believe in.” Meanwhile, Precious director Lee Daniels had his own breakthrough to celebrate: “After 82 years, it’s the first film nominated for best picture directed by an African American. Isn’t that great?”

February 2nd, 2010 | 9:24 am by Kate Spencer (@katespencer)

2010 Oscar Nominations Are Predictable: Sandra, Jeff, Mo’Nique All Get Nods

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Here they are, the 2010 Academy Award nominations! Yay! Yawn! There are few surprises to be found here – Sandra Bullock got her Best Actress nomination, as did Jeff Bridges for Best Actor, but the Best Picture category at least looks kinda interesting, with Up and District 9 snagging nods alongside the films you expected to be recognized. Nominees are below – check out the full list on Oscar.com.

Best Picture: Avatar, The Blind Side, District 9, An Education, The Hurt Locker, Inglourious Baserds, Precious, Up, Up In The Air, A Serious Man

Directing: James Cameron – Avatar, Kathryn Bigelow - The Hurt Locker, Quentin Tarantino – Inglourious Basterds, Lee Daniels – Precious.

Actor In A Leading Role: Jeff Bridges – Crazy Heart, George Clooney – Up In The Air, Morgan Freeman – Invictus, Colin Firth - A Single Man, Jeremy Renner – The Hurt Locker.

Actress In A Leading Role: Sandra Bullock – The Blind Side, Helen Mirren - The Last Station, Gabby Sidibe – Precious, Carey Mulligan – An Education, Meryl Streep - Julie and Julia.

Actor In A Supporting Role: Matt Damon – Invictus, Woody Harrelson – The Messenger, Christopher Plummer – The Last Station, Stanley Tucci – The Lovely Bones, Christoph Waltz - Inglourious Basterds.

Actress In A Supporting Role: Penelope Cruz - Nine, Vera Farmiga – Up In The Air, Anna Kendrick – Up In The Air, Maggie Gyllenhaal – Crazy Heart, Mo’Nique - Precious.

Animated Feature Film: Coraline, Fantastic Mr. Fox, Up, The Secret Of Kells, The Princess And The Frog.

Documentary Feature: The Cove, Food Inc., Which Way Home, Burma VJ.

[Photos: GettyImages

February 2nd, 2010 | 9:00 am by Lauren Olson (Deiman)

FABlife’s DVD Pick Of The Week

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Zombies go with anything. Read Pride and Prejudice and Zombies lately? So this horror comedy will be remembered less for its rotting undead than the funny misadventures of a quartet of misfits in post-apocalyptic America. Jesse Eisenberg fills in as the poor man’s Michael Cera, Woody Harrelson does his funny redneck routine, Abigail Breslin is not annoying and Superbad‘s Emma Stone comes into her own as a sexy loner. They pick off the flesh-eaters on the way to the Pacific Palisades theme park like National Lampoon’s Vacation with a thirty-ought-six. There’s also a surprise appearance by … well, that would be telling. Load up on the popcorn and see for yourself.

Extras: Deleted scenes, FX documentary, making of featurette and commentary from cast and crew.

- By C. Bottomley

Check out the DVD bonus footage above, “Creating The Zombies.”