Celebrity Gossip: November 2008

Neha minds wearing a two piece

Beckhams, Cruise spend time together

Wake up to Aamir and Shah Rukh threat Salman!

Aishwarya makes up with Sanjay Leela Bhansali

Nicole's ipod doesn't have hubby's songs

Naomi sparks engagement rumours

Director feared Brandon's gay role

The meteoric rise of Daniel Craig as Bond star

When Daniel Craig first heard from the Bond producers that he had got the part of the super spy, he was in a store buying dishwashing tablets. After the call, he dropped them and bought a bottle of vodka instead. This perfectly sums up Craig.Without the James Bond role, Craig would have very likely ended his career in anonymity, toiling in critically acclaimed but unacknowledged roles. He never cared for fame, reluctantly took up the Bond role, but is now positioned to be one of the biggest stars of his generation.The two recent releases starring him - "Quantum Of Solace" and "Flashbacks of a Fool" - perfectly point out the ambiguity of Craig."Quantum Of Solace" is a big- budget 22nd instalment of the Bond franchise and "Flashbacks Of A Fool" is a small independent movie, which he took on mainly because a good friend (Baillie Walsh) of his directed the movie with him in mind for the lead role.When Craig was announced as the new Bond, almost everyone was surprised, but not pleasantly. There was severe backlash and the nasty criticism carried on well into the filming of his debut in "Casino Royale".But after the smashing success of the movie and Craig's brilliant performance of a more raw, muscular, gritty, darker Bond, the actor has been flying high and is well on his way to becoming one of the most popular Bonds.The beauty in the meteoric rise of Craig's stardom is the absolute obscurity from which he rose. He did not have a major hit. He did star in the hit "Elizabeth", but even there he played a monk featured in very few scenes, who is only remembered for bashing someone's head with a rock.He also starred in the critically acclaimed "Munich" directed by Steven Spielberg, but played second fiddle to Eric Bana. Hardly anybody would have heard of the movies that Craig starred in before he became famous. There was "The Mother" (2003) where he played an unhappily married building contractor having an affair with a woman and her old mother. That same year he starred in the forgettable "Sylvia" co-starring Gwyneth Paltrow.In "Infamous", he played a killer involved in a torrid homosexual relationship with the complicated author Truman Capote. The only role that looked somewhat similar to the Bond role he would take on in the future was in "Layer Cake" where he played a violent drug dealer. Though Craig appeared in numerous below the radar roles, there was one aspect of his acting that he has effortlessly transplanted into the Bond role - intensity. Craig's Bond is not only muscular but also more dangerous. Even his sexuality is more primordial.In one scene in "Casino Royale", he emerges from the sea in just his swimming trunks, his well-toned body glistening. Later he is captured by the villain, tied up naked and tortured. In both, his body is on display but used to relay contrasting messages.Craig clearly had to shoulder one of the weightiest burdens of any actor in recent memory when he took on the Bond role. He was a virtual unknown, the first blonde Bond to be born after the franchise began and clearly the most gifted of all Bond actors.He has more than fulfilled all expectations and is a bona fide superstar. He is here to stay.

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Hollywood is set for a counter-cyclical boost to its fortunes after strong early box office sales for two high profile films.The latest proof that people flock to cinemas in tough times is a record North American opening weekend for the new James Bond film, Quantum of Solace.The movie earned $US70million ($107million) in four days, making it the best opening for a Bond film and the highest-grossing opening for any spy drama.The movie, estimated to have cost $US200million, had already racked up $US250million worldwide."It could really, genuinely be a time to start relaxing, yes," the film's relieved star, Daniel Craig, said in Sydney yesterday."It's been about nine months of my life, and we're at that stage where we can kind of breathe a little. I haven't sucked in breath for eight-nine months now, because it's just been so intense working to get this film out."Ben Stiller was a little more relaxed. He is in Australia to promote his latest film, the animated sequel, Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa, with co-star Chris Rock and producer Jeffrey Katzenberg.That film has already banked a $US60million opening weekend in North America before it unspools around the world, including a December 11 release here.The star of There's Something About Mary is a little wary of Hollywood's future as the global financial meltdown dries up the financing options."Everybody's affected, but it seems to me, even in the past few weeks, we've seen these big movies come out and open big," he said."People seem to want that -- to go to the movies to get a little bit of relief or escapism, which always seems to be the case."Two films might not validate a theory, but Hollywood studios hope they may ride out the recession, just as Hollywood films, particularly gangster movies, boomed during the Great Depression of the early 1930s.Stiller believes the effect of businesses and consumers tightening their belts around the world will have some effect on the movie industry."I just hope it doesn't affect things in a way where the direction of movies becomes what has happened lately -- where these bigger films drive everything, and the independent film world is trying to find its way," he said."It doesn't seem like it's going to be positive for the film industry in that way, in the same way it's not going to be positive for anybody until we get through this time."However, "this time" doesn't feel very different for the major film distributors.In the space of four days, the premieres of three films expected to earn more than $20million each at Australian cinemas will take place: Quantum of Solace last Saturday, Madagascar 2 at Sydney's State Theatre last night, and Australia at Sydney's Greater Union George Street cinema tonight.They're targeted marketing opportunities, though. In a sign of the times, only one of the premieres will hold a post-show party -- Baz Luhrmann's splashy Australia.

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At Least Daniel Craig Is Still Hot

In 2006, James Bond was reborn for the first time in the person of Daniel Craig, a slightly dingy hunk whose eyes are the color of blue Otter Pops. Craig—who, I will throw my cards down now, is to my mind the best Bond by far (and no trouble to look at, let's be honest)—was new to the role, but he was also playing a new role. After Pierce Brosnan exhausted every winking reference to the facile character's shopworn charm in four movies from 1995 to 2002, the franchise needed a reboot. It futurized by reaching into the past: 2006's Casino Royale told the story of how Bond became Bond, opening with the two kills that earned him his 007 status. It moved on to one of the best on-foot chases in action-movie history, a geniusly choreographed performance of physically witty parkour between a real parkour star and Craig (content to portray himself by contrast as a doltish fighter who smashes through walls rather than scaling them).Revolutionarily, the movie then became a love story. Bond fell in love. There was a marvelous scene involving scrotum torture and before long, Bond was e-mailing his resignation to MI6. Bond was getting a life! He was also getting, about 100 years after Freud, a psychology. And none of the cartoonish fun of Bond was lost—the villain wept blood! Bond rocketed into the sky on a construction crane!—even when his soul was first glimpsed (it began not with a kiss but with a hug), and even when this newborn soul was predictably trampled at the end.

Bond immediately set out for vengeance, and the new movie, Quantum of Solace, picks up right where Casino Royale left off. Quantum's plot was hatched and scripted by a team of producers and writers who began their work while Casino Royale was still shooting, and frankly, it is a mess by comparison. (Its title comes from a short story in Ian Fleming's For Your Eyes Only, but the plot is made up from whole cloth.) The psychology is more heavy-handed and simple. (Reportedly, Paul Haggis's idea to complicate it by giving Bond's early girlfriend a child was rejected.) The fun is less fun. (The villain is just a pretend environmentalist.) Also—and don't accuse me of action-mental-midgetry because I understood every move Jason Bourne made—the plot's turns are occasionally confusing, and worse, you don't care why. The end, especially, just hangs there, limp. It's a wishy-washy film, like the word "quantum" is wishy-washy. It can mean "large, significant" or "very small increments": This is not a word; it is an antiword.Quantum of Solace, the 22nd Bond film, then, has only two built-in audiences: those who follow Daniel Craig, and those who follow James Bond. Those audiences will have to go to this film, and for them there are a few perks. The fact that Bond conducts high-speed chases using a stick shift rather than an automatic transmission appears to great effect at the start. The fact that the contemporary Bond prefers murder to torture provides something to think about. The ravishing staging of Puccini's Tosca as a production-within-a-production—and the use of the opera audience as a United Nations–style gathering place for the global underworld—offers a delicious opening to continue the age-old argument about the supremacy of opera among all art forms.

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All’s ‘gay’ in Bollywood?

It wasn’t just Kantaben who was left gathering her wits. The entire country sat up and took notice of two Bollywood hotties teaming up for the gay act. While the moral police was ready to forgive it as a one-off instance, muttering Kal Ho Na Ho under its breath, John flaunted his derriere and did a simmering tango with good friend AB junior in Tarun Mansukhani’s latest. Why, they even engaged in an onscreen kiss! So, is sexuality finally coming out of the Bollywood closet with Fashion and Dostana, films dealing with the gay theme, being churned out back-to-back? Gone are the Fire days, when effigies were burnt and screenings disrupted. Though a comparatively low-key My Brother Nikhil dealt with homosexuality, the Bollywood scene had never seemed more ‘gay’ before. And the fact that producers are laughing their way to the bank, only goes on to prove that the audience has been acceptable like never before. Mansukhani says that the success of his film can only be credited to its being real. I wanted to deal with real problems. Dostana is a very straightforward film dealing with a sensitive issue. But at the same time, I didn’t want to sound preachy and added dollops of entertainment to the film. That people are coming out of multiplexes discussing the film, is indicative of the film’s success.” The director adds that the scene where Kirron Kher is seen in a dilemma over whether to address John as her son-in-law or daughter-in-law, is his favourite. “Parental opposition is one of the common problems in this context. I wanted to keep the scene simple yet meaningful.”And it’s not just directors who are all set to break away from formulaic films, actors too are becoming more forthcoming when it comes to playing offbeat characters. Harsh Chhaya, who plays a gay designer in Fashion, elaborates how he approached director Madhur Bhandarkar for the role. “I shot a five-minute DVD of myself as an effeminate character. I met Madhur again and requested him to watch the DVD. Within four days, I got the news that I had bagged the part.” Ask him whether he was apprehensive about the role and the actor says that he was “bored to death playing an America-returned MBA or a doctor and wanted to take a chance”. Actor Irrfan feels that it’s a positive trend to have emerged. “It’s good that the society is shedding its hypocrisy.” Ask him to put forward a possible reason behind this trend and the actor explains, “Being exposed to Internet and the TV, the yuppie crowd is updated on everything going around them. Though Mills & Boons will always rule the roost, sentimentality has most definitely taken a backseat. They want a slice of life.” Talk of the depiction of sexuality in Bollywood and author and film critic Anupama Chopra endorses Karan Johar’s views of this being a ‘baby step’. “Fire is a serious film, where Shabana Azmi and Nandita Das are lovers. But in Dostana, John and Abhishek are only pretending to be homosexuals. It’s an irreverent tongue-in-cheek way of dealing with a serious issue. Dostana is not a Brokeback Mountain. The Indian audience has no reason to get agitated as it’s not even based in India!”However, a step has been taken in a positive direction. And we have every reason to be ‘gay’!

Moore's word is his Bond

Hundreds of shoppers queued out of the door of an Auckland book store on Friday to catch a glimpse of iconic British film star Sir Roger Moore.Sir Roger is in the city to launch his autobiography, My Word is My Bond.Whitcoulls store supervisor Jeremy Eyles told NZPA that just before 4.30pm more than 300 people were lining up to get up close to the James Bond star."We've had good sales of his autobiography today and it's great to see so many people have turned out to meet him."The last time we had this many people in the store was when Terry Pratchett and Jamie Oliver were here about two years ago," Eyles said.At 81, Moore is certainly one of the more elderly celebrities to visit New Zealand in support of their autobiography, but his fans were clearly eager to snap up a copy.Earlier he was a guest at a literary lunch at Auckland's Hyatt Regency Hotel.On Saturday he will be at Borders in Sylvia Park from 12pm until 1pm.Suave and sophisticated, Moore has starred in some of the most popular films and television series of the past half century - from his roles in The Saint and The Persuaders to Agent 007.He has also become heavily involved in the United Nations children's organisation Unicef.My Word is My Bond looks back on his life and career - from his early childhood in wartime London to life as a struggling actor and his early Hollywood days, to his battle with prostate cancer.The book goes behind the scenes of playing some of the world's most famous roles - and playing alongside the world's most legendary stars.Born in London, Moore started out as a trainee animator. After studying at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art and a stint in the British Army, he worked in theatre and radio, then as a model and salesman before a contract with MGM in 1953 led to Hollywood and roles in TV series Ivanhoe and Maverick.But it was the hit series The Saint that brought international stardom. He went on to play James Bond on the big screen in seven films, more than any other 007. And in 2003, he was awarded a knighthood for his work for Unicef.

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MOVIE REVIEW

The Secret of The Grain (drama)

Cast: Habib Boufares, Hafsia Herzi

Direction: Abdellatif Kechiche

The film has been a winner at several international film festivals and has won the Best Film award in France. Rightly so, for The Secrets of The Grain is both cinematically and thematically mesmerising. On the one hand is its camera work which captures the highs and lows of an immigrant French family with riveting intimacy. And on the other hand is the heartwarming story which serenades the institution of family like never before. No homilies, no fake goodness; on the contrary, there are loads of internecine rivalries, bitching, breaking apart until the final coming together, when the head of the family actually ends up bringing the disparate members of his extended family together, even in his absence. Sixty-year-old Silimane is a Tunisian immigrant who has been laid off from his work and decides to use his severance pay to set a restaurant that serves couscous made by his ex-wife. Currently, he is living with his mistress and his step daughter who run a seedy hotel. Naturally, they are treated as outsiders by the rest of the family that gets together every Sunday for a family lunch, excluding them. It's a quaint ritual, meant to preserve the traditions of a family that may have become quintessentially French, yet it hasn't lost it's traditional culture. It takes many a hurdles before Silimane's dream actually comes true. But more importantly, his couscous eatery ends up bringing the feuding Tunisian family together, despite the bitterness, the rivalries. Watch out for some excellent performances and a refreshing new look at 'family dramas.'

Mirrors (horror)

Cast: Kiefer Sutherland, Paula Patton

Direction: Alexandra Aja

THE horror factory in Hollywood relentlessly keeps churning out Asian remakes, after the success of The Ring series. This time, the devil manifests itself through malevolent mirrors, which suddenly turn murderous. Ordinary people begin to die when their reflection turns assassin and pulls jaws, cuts veins, slashes necks, or what you will. Enter Kiefer Sutherland, a dysfunctional cop whose punishment posting now entails guarding a burnt-out building. Nothing wrong with that, except that the spooky house has a larger-than-life mirror that begins to show him strange things. His wife dismisses it as musings of a stressed mind, but goes on high alert, when her six-year-old son too starts staring into mirrors and conversing with them. Time to go back in history and find the cause behind the mysterious apparitions. But that doesn't matter really. What matters is the spook quotient of the film. How many times do you jump out of your seats or cover your eyes with fear? Just two or three times, to be precise, when a reflection stares at you long after the person has moved or maybe, when it tears it's face apart with its bare hands. The rest is mostly a hunt for the missing link between illusion and reality, with lots of half-lit sequences of bloody body parts and gutturals moans. Strictly for diehard horror buffs, Mirrors doesn't really have anything new to offer.

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I want to have six children

It’s Mahima Chaudhry in a new avatar. The actress, who hasn’t been making headlines for some time, is now going to scorch the screens in the reality show Jalwa 4 2 Ka One. The actress wooed the audience with her breakthrough performance in Pardes and proved her mettle in Dil Kya Kare, Om Jai Jagdish and Dil Hai Tumhara. So, how does the svelte actress feel about her new avatar? “Being a judge on a reality show is very challenging as you have to put yourself in the audience’s shoes. Besides that, one has to concentrate on the entertainment factor rather than the talent of the performers,” she says. People had written her off after the brief lull in her career. Did she miss the limelight? “Not at all! I have been doing a lot of endorsements. After becoming a mother, life has become demanding. I don’t care about being in the limelight. I am enjoying motherhood. After the short hiatus in my film career, I have now started looking for scripts and if I come across good ones, I will be back in movies.” How has the journey from modelling to acting to motherhood been for this ex-model? “I feel that nothing can match motherhood. Spending time with the family is more satisfying than doing films. I want to have six children,” she says. Not sticking to selective glamorous roles alone, Mahima has even played the second heroine in many of her movies. “I personally believe that it is a challenge to do double heroine subjects. I learnt a lot from Kajol in Dil Kya Kare and from Raveena in Sandwich. I had great fun on the sets of Om Jai Jagdish and was glad to be a part of the film. I never had any problem playing the second heroine as every role of mine had a certain impact on me.” So, what is Mahima’s opinion on some actresses packing their bags and moving to Hollywood? “Hollywood has produced excellent movies but I don’t think Indian actresses have much to do there. The working style is completely different and our artistes cannot work on projects round the year.” Does Mahima still cherish her sensational debut with King Khan in Subhash Ghai’s Pardes? “It was fabulous and a dream come true. I remember every shot in the film and cherish those memories,” she reminisces. So, is the Mumbai model game for south Indian films as well? “Definitely! I am not against acting in south Indian films. In fact, I did a Telugu movie long back. I would love to do more films in the south as the scripts are very appealing, the technicians are extremely talented and the music is breathtaking. If I get a contemporary script with a good meaty role, I would love to do it. Moreover, I am a fan of Rajinikanth,” exclaims the charming actress.

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James Bond rules worldwide box office

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) – The latest James Bond thriller dominated the box office in much of the world during the weekend, boosted by a record opening in North America, distributor Columbia Pictures said on Sunday."Quantum of Solace" sold $70.4 million worth of tickets in its first three days of release across the United States and Canada. Industry pundits had forecast an opening in the $60 million range.The record for a Bond opening in North America was held by "Die Another Day," which earned $47.1 million during its first weekend in November 2002. That film was the last one starring Pierce Brosnan."Quantum of Solace" and its 2006 predecessor "Casino Royale," which opened to $40.8 million, starred Daniel Craig. The laconic English actor has invested the famed agent with a darker, more complicated personality.The new film also earned $56.1 million in 73 countries during the weekend. Having begun its international run two weeks ago, the foreign total now stands at $251.6 million. With a worldwide haul of $322 million, the film is fast approaching the $594 million tally of "Casino Royale."BOND RULES BRITAIN, FRANCEBritain was the top foreign market with sales to date of $64.1 million, while Germany and France have each kicked in about $26 million. "Quantum" has already earned more in France than "Casino Royale" did during its entire run there, Columbia said.The $200 million film was directed by Swiss-German filmmaker Marc Forster, who made his name with smaller pieces such as the Oscar-winning domestic-abuse saga "Monster's Ball" and the James Barrie melodrama "Neverland."While critics have approved of Bond's less-campy demeanor, they were less than enthused about the plot of new film. Bond travels the world battling a villain (French actor Mathieu Amalric) looking to control natural resources. Along the way, the vengeful hero earns the enmity of the British and U.S. spy agencies.The Wall Street Journal described the film as "a model of mediocrity," while the Washington Post said it was an "often visually incoherent travelogue of revenge and trumped-up angst."The film is billed as a 50/50 partnership with closely held Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Inc. Columbia, a unit of Sony Corp, oversaw production, marketing and distribution and funded most of the $200 million production budget. MGM has ancillary rights, such as DVD distribution.Elsewhere in North America, last weekend's champion "Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa" slipped to No. 2 with $36.1 million. After 10 days, DreamWorks Animation SKG Inc's cartoon sequel has already earned $118 million -- 18 percent ahead of the pace of its 2005 predecessor, which finished its run with $193.6 million.There were no other major new releases. But in the art-house world, "Slumdog Millionaire" earned $350,434 from 10 theaters in six cities. On a per-theater basis, it earned 72 percent more than "Quantum of Solace." British filmmaker Danny Boyle directed the film about an Indian slum-dweller who competes on a "Who Wants to Be a Millionaire"-type game show.The film, which has generated some Oscar buzz, was released by Fox Searchlight Pictures, a unit of News Corp.

Pamela Anderson shocks everyone!

Former Baywatch star Pamela Anderson refuses to acknowledge her shocking two-month marriage to Rick Salomon by saying it "never happened". Contactmusic.com reports Salomon is a professional poker player and was most famous for starring in a sex tape with his former girlfriend Paris Hilton. He and Anderson wed in October last year only to quickly end it in December. Anderson seems to have put the whole ordeal behind her. She said in a TV interview, "It never happened... It was an annulment so..." When the interviewer pressed further, saying, "An annulment means it never happened". She then replied, "Yes, it never happened." Anderson has also been married to rockers Tommy Lee with whom she has two sons, and Kid Rock whom she was married for less than six months.The former Baywatch” star who recently attended the White House Correspondents Dinner as a guest of New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg, shocked all with her inappropriate dress.Pagesix.com reports that though the event is formal, Anderson attended wearing a revealing outfit.

Michael Jackson dating Pamela Anderson?

Pop legend Michael Jackson has been on a string of dates with Hollywood actress Pamela Anderson and the two have been secretly meeting in Malibu, according to a report."It was all arranged by their people in total secrecy, very cloak and dagger. Michael is such a private person. He gets nervous when he thinks people are following him around, so he chose somewhere neutral for their first date,” a source was quoted in the report on themirror.co.uk."They were very chatty. Pamela was being her usual flirty self and Michael seemed to be responding. They are such a strange couple but they seemed to really hit it off," the source added.According to the source, Michael also plucked up the courage to ask Pamela out on a second date, which she was more than happy to accept."They went for a coffee at Country Mart in Malibu and looked very comfortable with each other. They chatted about Michael turning 50, his new album, their kids. He seemed genuinely interested in Pamela," the source said.Michael turned 50 on Aug 29 and has three children while Pamela is 41 and has two children.

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Kate Beckinsale reveals her best physical asset

British actress Kate Beckinsale reveals that her best physical asset lies below the belt, and that she even has a special name for it. The 'Serendipity' star reveals to Allure magazine that she calls her lady treasure as "Pharaoh's Tomb", and that she's been told it's 'spectacular'."My best feature is unfortunately a private matter, although I'm told it is spectacular. But you can't really walk it down the red carpet. What can I say?" the New York Post quoted her, as telling the magazine. However, she is vehement that there's nothing sluttish about her, for contrary to popular opinion, there are very few people who she's slept with."I was called a slut when I split up with Michael [Sheen] and began seeing Len [Wiseman], but I've only ever had about three boyfriends. Only a handful of people have seen into the Pharaoh's Tomb!" she said.

Sex is the secret of blissful marriage

The British beauty, who is married to director Len Wiseman for the past three years, disclosed that she shares a very sensual relationship with her husband."I'm very blessed to have a husband who appreciates me,” Hollywoodrag quoted Beckinsale, as telling the She magazine.The 33-year-old actress added that the trick lay in realising that women feel sexy, when they feel beautiful and sought-after, men on the other hand felt sexy, when they indulge in lots of sex."Women feel sexy from feeling attractive and desired. Men feel sexy from having sex. If you can strike a balance where the man is having sex a lot and the woman is feeling desired enough to have sex, then you've figured out the secret to a marriage that's alive,” she said.Beckinsale, who has a seven-year-old daughter with long-term partner Welsh actor Michael Sheen, tries her best to balance all her relationships."Just because you're a mother doesn't mean you can't feel sexy! We've worked extremely hard to make it comfortable for Lily and I'm quite proud of that,” the ‘Pearl Harbour’ star said."When we're in town the three of us, and Lily, often all go out together. Or Michael will babysit so Len and I can go out,” she added.

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