Rupert Murdoch is engaged, again.
01.03.2023 - 11:17 / variety.com
Jessica Kiang It was either Nietzsche or Tex Avery — but one of our great philosophers — who asserted that there are two types of people in this world: those who walk through life blithely unbothered by manholes, and those who are destined to fall into them. Now, for curious members of the former class, comes an intimate examination of what it’s like to be one of the latter: “#Manhole,” Japanese director Kazuyoshi Kumakiri’s slick, increasingly deranged survival thriller about a man who will finally learn to know his true nature from a hole in the ground. Popular, successful and possessed of highly covetable good looks, Shunsuke Kawamura (Yuto Nakajima, of Japanese boy band Hey! Say! JUMP) has the world at his feet. It’s the eve of his wedding to the pregnant daughter of his company’s CEO, and his co-workers have organized a surprise party to toast his good fortune. Walking home drunk from the festivities, Shunsuke suddenly stumbles. He comes to at the bottom of a deep concrete shaft with a nasty gash where his thigh interacted with the jagged edge of the broken access ladder. The moon is perfectly framed in the circular opening overhead.
In the manner of many a single-space survival thriller before, Shunsuke must use only those items at his disposal to engineer his escape: his clothing, a lighter and a stapler in his briefcase. Unlike many prior entries in the genre, however, those assets include a fully charged and connected smartphone, though a couple of odd glitches, like a deleted call history and his initial reluctance to simply call the police, suggest there might be something more sinister afoot. Most of his contacts do not pick up his distress call, but eventually he gets through to one, though as luck would
Rupert Murdoch is engaged, again.
LE SSERAFIM have previewed their forthcoming first studio record with a performance of the unreleased track ‘No Return (Into the Unknown)’.On March 18 and 19, the K-pop girl group act held their first-ever fan meeting ‘FEARNADA’ at the Olympic Park Olympic Hall in Seoul, which was also live-streamed to fans worldwide on both days.During the show, LE SSERAFIM performed their entire Korean-language discography from their 2022 mini-albums ‘FEARLESS’ and ‘ANTIFRAGILE’, before wrapping up the show with a brand-new track titled ‘No Return (Into the Unknown)’.The song will be part of the girl group’s upcoming first studio album, which they also announced during the fan meeting. Both LE SSERAFIM and their agency Source Music have yet to share details about the record, aside from its projected release in May.LE SSERAFIM new song "No Return" out of their 1st full-album coming out in May#르세라핌 #FEARNADA https://t.co/ZMMtynuPuM— joe (@elsserafim) March 18, 2023 Last month, American musician Nile Rodgers revealed that he had been working with HYBE founder and producer Bang Si-hyuk (also known as “Hitman” Bang) on new music for LE SSERAFIM.LE SSERAFIM’s upcoming album will be their first domestic release in 2023, following ‘ANTIFRAGILE’ last October.
Pacific Overtures (★★★★☆) sounds doubly refreshing to ears eager to venture somewhere less familiar in Sondheim-land.The score, with music and lyrics by Sondheim, also simply sounds lovely filling the openness of director Ethan Heard’s in-the-round staging, grazing the graceful, watercolor-hued screens set designer Chika Shimizu has wrapped around the Max Theatre. Alexander Tom conducts a nine-piece orchestra — complete with a booming taiko war drum — that breathes vitality into those plunking, repeated quarter notes that so sing of Sondheim.Heard’s talented cast sings with passion, too, caressing the stories inside the songs to find touching notes of humor, pathos, pride, and prejudice.
As a young single mum living in a tiny Cheetham Hill flat, Bridget Lea only ever wanted what was best for her two daughters.
Calling out the nonsense! Shawn Mendes claimed he is not dating Sabrina Carpenter after the pair sparked romance speculation while spotted out together last month.
There’s a promising and even semi-adult comedy at the heart of “Tetris,” an otherwise corny action-adventure based on the real-life story of how the iconic 1980s computer and video game was licensed outside of Russia. Most of the plot of “Tetris” concerns the political maneuvering and corporate espionage required to smuggle “Tetris,” the iconic brick-laying puzzle game, out of Moscow and away from greedy businessmen.The lead protagonist of “Tetris” (the movie) also happens to be its main hero, an uncomplicated leading man whose personal motives don’t matter so much as the vague and never credibly represented virtues of “Tetris” (the game).
Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief Filming has begun on Tom Waller’s true-crime thriller, “Kiss of the Con Queen,” with real-life victim Eoin O’Brien (“The Last Full Measure”) taking the lead role. He plays actor duped by an impersonator to travel to Indonesia on the promise of auditions for a leading role in a DC origins series, only to discover that he had been scammed by the infamous Con Queen of Hollywood. In the real world, the alleged perpetrator, 41-year-old Indonesian food blogger Hargobind Tahilramani, is accused of pretending to be both male and female Hollywood executives and having swindled hundreds of victims of millions of dollars. He was arrested in 2020 after an FBI manhunt and is currently in prison in the U.K. where he is fighting against possible extradition to the U.S. The U.K. court hearings have been dramatic and disturbing.
Tim McGraw and Faith Hill are definitely raising a family of artists, with their three daughters, Gracie, 25, Maggie, 24, and Audrey, 21, all taking up an interest in the arts in some capacity.Their oldest Gracie is the most devoted to the craft, however, having nurtured aspirations of Broadway since a young age and is making waves as a performer once again with her latest news.A post shared by Broadway Sings®️ (@broadway_sings)Gracie is returning to Broadway Sings this yearThe singer was revealed to be one of the many musicians who would be part of this year's Broadway Sings, a concert series which reimagines the music of a specific artist in the style of the selected theatrical performer.This year's slate of shows, taking place in May, will feature the songs of Queen, being posted alongside the tagline: "You will be rocked."RELATED: Tim McGraw and Faith Hill's relationship timelineSEE: Gracie McGraw opts for old-Hollywood glamor as she makes awards show debut with Rita WilsonOne of the major selling points for the series is the elevation of the catalog with the help of orchestral music, with a fourteen-piece orchestra set to score this year's proceedings.The announcement was immediately met with a slew of flame emojis from the show's many fans and friends of the performers, while Gracie, a mini-me of her famous mom, reposted it on her Instagram Stories.
During a wide-ranging interview with “The Daily Show” guest host Kal Penn, President Joe Biden knocked the state of Florida for its “cruel” and “close to sinful” treatment of transgender children.“It’s just terrible what they’re doing. It’s not like a kid wakes up one morning and says, ‘You know, I decided I wanted to become a man,’ or ‘I wanted to become a woman or I want to change,'” Biden said.
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A year after Benjamin Hall was severely injured when his crew vehicle was struck by incoming fire in Ukraine, the Fox News correspondent has published a book, Saved: A War Reporter’s Mission to Make It Home, due to be released Tuesday.
HullLive has reported about the heartbreak of a Mum whose son’s last hours still remain a mystery to her. Following an inquest Charlotte Gamero said how "utterly devastating" her son's death had been. Four hours after being reported missing, Noah is said to have fallen from the top of St Stephen's shopping centre car park in Hull, East Yorkshire.
Dennis Harvey Film Critic The “evil twin” school of psychological metaphor has been a frequent device in horror fiction, and its familiarity does not much benefit the very literal-minded “Appendage.” Writer-director Anna Zlokovic’s first feature centers on a young Manhattanite whose insecurities manifest themselves in the form of a mini-me who becomes a serious usurping threat. This SXSW-launched Hulu Original is sufficiently polished to pass muster as a night’s streaming entertainment for undiscriminating genre fans. But despite the grotesque premise, its attack is a little too blunt to make much impact, whether taken as thinly-veiled satire or straight fantasy thriller. Introduced chafing under the critical control of her waspish mother (Deborah Rennard) during a visit home to the suburbs, Hannah (Hadley Robinson) is a nice, talented, attractive twentysomething nonetheless driven by the sense that she’s got everything to prove. An aspiring fashion designer, she certainly gets negative reinforcement on that front from her employer, a stereotypically vicious style maven named Cristean (Desmin Borges). On the plus side, there is very supportive boyfriend Kaelin (Brandon Mychal Smith), and workmate/best friend Esther (Kausar Mohammed), who introduced the couple to one other. But their reassurances tend to fall on deaf ears, as Hannah stays up late each night slaving over dresses her mean-spirited boss will likely dismiss with a sneer.
A man sparked a huge emergency services response after scaling scaffolding at Trafford Town Hall. Scott Wright, 33, caused a four-hour road closure on December 29 last year.
Mark Schilling Japan Correspondent Ishikawa Kei’s drama “A Man” took eight prizes at the 46th Japan Academy Film Prize ceremony, held on Friday at the Grand Prince Hotel New Takawana in Tokyo. The film, premiered at last year’s Venice Film Festival in the Horizons section, had been nominated for 13 awards in 12 categories. In addition to the best picture award, Ishikawa won best director, while the film’s writer Mukai Kosuke won best screenplay, and its star Tsumabuchi Satoshi won best actor. In “A Man,” Satoshi plays a Korean lawyer who goes on a search for the truth about a man, killed in an accident, who was living under false identity. Best supporting actor went to Kubota Masataka for his portrayal of the mystery man, while Ando Sakura took best supporting actress her performance as his wife. The film also won best sound recording and best editing honors.
Daryl Hall and John Oates are going on tour — just not together.From May 24 through June 9, Daryl Hall and the Daryl’s House Band are taking off on an eight-concert tour that includes stops in Montclair, NJ on May 24, Port Chester, NY on June 7 and Atlantic City, NJ on June 9.His bandmate, John Oates will play five spring shows in California, Nashville and Chicago from April 13 through May 25.At the time of publication, none of Oates’ shows are scheduled to take place in the Northeast.No word on whether either Rock and Roll Hall of Famer will appear at each other’s shows either.With that being said, if you want to see half of Hall and Oates — Hall or Oates — here’s everything you need to know.A complete calendar including all tour dates and venues for Hall’s eight 2023 concerts can be found below.A complete calendar of all John Oates tour dates is listed below.Hall went old school in 2022 and dropped the rare double album.“Before After,” comprised of 30 tracks, features Hall’s signature classic sound — the indefinable center between pop and rock.If you want to hear the double album in its entirety, you can find “Before After” here.Last year, Oates dropped just one song — the sensual single “Pushin’ A Rock” that sounds like it could fit in a playlist next to “She’s Gone,” “Maneater” and “Rich Girl.”In 2023, Oates went a bit more downtempo.
Damon Albarn has recalled his first encounter with The Specials’ Terry Hall in a new interview, calling the late star “the coolest human being on earth”.Hall died in December 2022 after being diagnosed with cancer months earlier. He was 63 years old.Speaking to Radio X, Albarn spoke about the first time he was in Hall’s presence.
We Need To Talk About Kevin and Marvel’s Doctor Strange, revealed her favourite films in a poll for Sight And Sound magazine.Since 1952, the magazine has asked filmmakers every decade for their lists of the greatest films of all time. As part of the Winter 2022-23 issue, directors like Martin Scorsese, Wes Anderson and Barry Jenkins were invited to contribute their favourites.Swinton, who has directing and producing credits over her career, features a mix of Japanese animation and British classics in her list. You can check out the list below.1. A Matter Of Life And Death (1946)2. Vertigo (1958)3. Monsieur Hulot’s Holiday (1953)4. To Be Or Not To Be (1942)5. Walkabout (1971)6. Journey To Italy (1954)7. Pickpocket (1959)8. Jeanne Dielman (1975)9. My Neighbour Totoro (1988)10. La Dolce Vita (1960)The actor’s top pick, A Matter Of Life And Death, is directed by Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger.
EXCLUSIVE: Soji Arai (Dead Ringers) has been tapped for a substantial role in the second season of HBO Max‘s crime drama series Tokyo Vice, which is currently in production in Tokyo.
Chloe Lattanzi shared some heartbreaking words about her late mum, Olivia Newton-John, at the Grease star’s state memorial on Sunday. Chloe, 37, was joined at the star-studded celebration of Olivia’s life by the likes of Dannii Minogue, Premier Daniel Andrews, Paul Hogan and Delta Goodrem, who also offered up some touching words about Olivia. The music icon and actress died in August at the age of 73 in her adopted home of California after a long battle with cancer.