There are so many Mean Girls mashups out there that one could
say it's getting to be excessive (that one would not be me—I love 'em
all!), and now another exceptionally brilliant one has joined the ranks:
Les Mean Girls.
If this isn’t proof that Amanda Seyfried could potentially be the coolest BFF ever, we don’t know what is. Not only can Ms. Amanda wear the hell out of a gown — McQueen,
no less — but she looks like the sort of gal who could kick back a
couple of tequilas and karaoke the hell out of a microphone. What’s not
to love? Oh yeah, this. She may be one of the most gorgeous faces on
screen at the moment, but she isn’t afraid to poke fun of herself. For
example, she thinks nothing of throwing on a frog mask on national
television. How do we know all of this? Not because we’re hanging with
Amanda, sadly, but because that’s exactly what she did on The Ellen DeGeneres Show. Minus the tequila. Or with tequila in her system, who knows. Ellen found out that the whole Les Miserables cast
had gone out for a spot of karaoke while they were in Tokyo, Japan on
promotional duties. Amanda admitted that she had done her bit on the mic
after a couple of rounds of sake, dressed as a frog, natch. And Ellen
isn’t anything if not well-prepared, so out came a frogs head costume
and some sake. Sake, tequila: booze equals booze. This bascially turned
into Amanda rapping California Love by Tupac, dressed in said frogs head. The clip’s above, for your viewing pleasure. It’s the best thing E.V.E.R.
We know we’ve been on the Anne Hathaway tip for awhile now (That hair!
That sweater! Dem teeth!) but we especially felt protective of the lady
when some would-be fans and critics started ragging on her about her vocals from the Les Miserables trailer. (We all saw the featurette! They sing those songs live in order that their voices break with emotion like that!) We especially want to rep Hathaway now that we got a taste of Russell Crowe‘s singing in the new Les Miz trailer that dropped today. It’s noticeably different than say, Hugh Jackman‘s or Amanda Seyfried‘s pipes. It’s not Pierce Brosnan in Mama Mia! bad…but it’s questionable at best. Luckily the new trailer also has some delicious shots of Sacha Baron Cohen and Helen Bonham Carter
as the fabulously greasy Thenadiers, so there’s a lot to love. And
really, we love Russell Crowe too! We’ve had a crush on him since Gladiator,
his beard looks great and we want to make-out with that giant hat he
gets to wear. We just might not love his shout-singing as much as some
other performer’s vocal contributions. Like, say, one Ms. Anne
Hathaway’s, for example. Anne Hathaway is going to blow everyone way as
Fantine! Mark our words!
I was TOTALLY teared up while watching this trailer for the upcoming blockbuster version of Les Miserables--and you'll see why.
There's not exactly a lot of
hearing-the-people-sing triumphant moments in this preview--it's super,
super sad and dark, and backed entirely by Anne Hathaway's vocals on "I Dreamed a Dream."
In fact, Anne, in all her Fantine anti-glory, is pretty much the star
of the trailer. And it's breathtaking how different she looks. We get
to see exactly how she got that short hair:
Here, watch for yourself.
Did you catch the glimpse of Samantha Barks, the newcomer who beat out a bunch of A-listers for the part of Eponine?
Hugh Jackmantweeted this “official” first look as Jean Valjean in the Les Miserables movie musical today.
Here he is in prisoner mode, or, as my ancestors would call it, going to tuck a note into the Wailing Wall mode:
MMM if we’re going to rate the success of the film on how intensely Hugh Jackman can furrow his brows, producers better prep for millions of dirty, TB-ridden francs so start rollin in. The only… only… way we could possibly see Jackman upping the authenticity of the character?
STEP 1: Add Wolverine Claws.
He doesn’t even need to lift the runaway cart, he could just tear that sh*t up with his claws you guys.
5. The Star Wars Attire. Obi-Wan Day More Kenobi over here.
4. The Location Of The Dog Waste Bin.Hugh Jackman is arguably the biggest star this movie has, now that Taylor Swift is out of the picture. (lol?) So excuse me if I seem inappropriately outraged but HOW DARE THEY put the doggie sh*t basket so close to the door of our dear Hugh?
3. Uggs. Now, I’m no Les Mis expert but, if memory serves, I don’t belieeeeve Jean Valjean’s feet have ever know the sheepskin luxury that is the inside of a man’s Ugg boot. Am I wrong? Because if I am, and he does show up on stage to face off with Javert while looking like a University of Arizona sophomore, then by all means, let me know.
2. The Hair. Very Arcade Fire. Not the mangled homeless hay patch it should be.
1. The Coffee. If only the real fictional Jean Valjean could have dipped even just a piece of his stale stolen bread in a Starbucks skim cappu, the story would have been completely different. (“I Creamed A Cream,” “Bring Him Foam,” etc.)
A few weeks ago, I had une dépression nerveuse upon learning that teen pop sensation Taylor Swift had been cast as Eponine in the movie musical version of Les Miserables. To be more specific, I believe my actual reaction went something like this:
Swift is an adorable girl and great at what she does. (See? I’m a nice person.) But to put her in the movie version of the best musical ever seemed disrespectful to not only its fans, but to everyone who fell in love and then died via gunshot wound in the French Revolution. The entire feel just wasn’t right. Would I have still seen the movie?
But now we learn that Swift has been cut from the film’s impressive roster to make room for British actress Samantha Barks, who played Eponine in the 25th Anniversary Concert for Les Miserables. Samantha is a much more appropriate choice for the part, in that she is not Taylor Swift, and also has a nice singing voice.
Ahead, you can check out Samantha singing “On My Own” during the 25th Anniversary Concert. She’s very, very good, though frankly, I don’t think I’ll be satisfied with this casting until someone figures out a way to produce a time machined young Lea Salonga.
Samantha joins the Les Misérables production, directed by Tom Hooper alongside Hugh Jackman as Jean Valjean, Russell Crowe as Javert, Anne Hathaway as Fantine, Sacha Baron Cohen as The Innkeeper, and Helena Bonham Carter as his wife. Amanda Seyfried has been rumored to be playing Cosette, which I’d be OK with. As long as none of the Jonii get cast, I have no complaints.
It’s taken me a few hundred hours to absorb the recent news that Taylor Swifthas been cast Eponine in the movie musical version of Les Miserables.
In this movie musical version of Les Misérables in production, directed by Tom Hooper of The King’s Speech fame, most of the characters have already been cast: Hugh Jackman as JVJ, Russell Crowe as Javert, Anne Hathaway as Fantine, Sacha Baron Cohen as The Innkeeper, and Helena Bonham Carter as his wife have been confirmed, with Amanda Seyfried possibly getting the part of Cosette. Most of these picks seem OK — Hugh and Anne being the most obvious. Taylor Swift was being offered the part of Eponine, she of “On My Own” and “A Little Fall Of Rain” fame. And I was like:
I KNOW WHAT YOU’RE TRYING TO DO, TOM HOOPER.
You think that by putting Taylor in your movie, more young people will sign on to see it. And you may be right. But guess what? She will ruin the greatest work of art of our time.
I secretly wish the movie would have been made up of the lesser known stage performers who have given their lives over to the work.
Now the real question: Who would make a good Eponine? Lea Michele seems the obvious choice, however I don’t think the world would be prepared for how obnoxious she’d be if she landed this role of a lifetime. Can Natalie Portman sing? (God, I hope not.)
Just imagine their little koala voices singing this Les Miserables classic…
Don’t you fret, M’sieur Marius
I don’t feel any pain
A little fall of rain
Can hardly hurt me now
You’re here, that’s all I need to know
And you will keep me safe
And you will keep me close
And rain will make the flowers grow.
This little grey angel is Sydney’s newest baby koala named Boonda, seen clutching to his mother Elle at Sydney’s Wildlife World. The best part? Nobody knows how old he is because he just emerged from his mother’s pouch… How scary would it be if that happened to humans. Like months go by, nobody notices anything weird, and then one day at work, a 9 year old climbs out of you :P
