Actress Shannon Richardson (The Walking Dead) has been arrested on charges that she sent ricin-laced threats to President Obama and New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg. Richardson had initially contacted authorities to say that she'd found "suspicious materials" in her fridge and claiming that her husband had sent the letters (“You will have to kill me and my family before you get my guns”; "Anyone who wants to come to my house will get shot in the face"). Well, that's one way to get your StarMeter to shoot up 6,453% in a week. Probably not the best way, but definitely a way. Stop it, you guys! STOP IT!
Just in time for Election Day, here's your chance to watch the Will Ferrell–Zach Galifianakis satire The Campaign in the comfort of your home — the very place where you may have already planned to spend the weekend pondering your political options! To be honest, "satire" is a pretty strong word for The Campaign: Though there is some pretty savage stuff in there about the Koch brothers (extremely thinly veiled versions of whom are played here by Dan Aykroyd and John Lithgow, using their money to influence the titular campaign), most of what happens is pure silliness.
Though I wouldn't put The Campaign in the top tier of Will Ferrell movies, it's a serviceable entry at the level of, let's say, Talladega Nights. What put it over for me was Galifianakis's performance as Marty Huggins, a local boob thrown into the political arena by the wealthy, connected father he's pitifully desperate to please. Marty is basically a sweet idiot who's woefully ill-equipped to handle the effects that a brutal campaign will have on his personal life; if we didn't have the naive Marty to root for, The Campaign might be unwatchable for being too depressingly real.
As the ancient Knight Templar once told Indiana Jones, "You must choose, but choose wisely." With our new weekly trailer roundup, we aim to help you sift through the noise and set realistic expectations for upcoming films, so this doesn't happen to you. Headed to the movie theater this weekend? Here are the new trailers you might miss while waiting in line for popcorn.
Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy
Based on John le Carré's novel, TTSS comes off in this new trailer as a twisty, Pakula-esque espionage thriller and a “Who’s Who” of male British thespians. Pre-release buzz points to the film being a contender for end-of-year awards (it’s pretty much guaranteed a bunch of BAFTA nominations). But what’s most exciting is the return of the brooding and slightly twisted Gary Oldman. And for those who can’t wait until next spring for more of the BBC’s brilliant series Sherlock, Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy also stars Sherlock himself, Benedict Cumberbatch.
