'Woman In Black': The Reviews Are In!

Critics praise Daniel Radcliffe for 'sturdy and self-sufficient' performance in his first post-Potter role.
By Kevin P. Sullivan


Daniel Radcliffe in "Woman in Black"
Photo: CBS Films

Daniel Radcliffe makes his post-Potter debut in the new adaptation of Susan Hill's ghost story, "The Woman in Black." It's an old-fashioned horror movie that has earned mild praise from the critics, but a warmer welcome for its star and his prospects of an adult acting character.

We've rounded up a sampling of what the critics are saying about Daniel Radcliffe and "The Woman in Black," which opened Friday (February 3). Check out it below.

The Story
"Anchoring the drama is Arthur Kipps (Radcliffe), a sad-faced solicitor still grieving for his wife who died in childbirth four years earlier. Their son Joseph (Misha Handley) is wise beyond his few years and draws pictures of his dad looking mournful. The gloominess deepens when Kipps' boss threatens to fire him if he doesn't excel at an assignment. The job is to sort out the papers of a recently deceased old lady." — Claudia Puig, USA Today

The Star
"Radcliffe, for his part, carries off the role of Arthur with reasonable aplomb. If the 22-year-old actor seems a little young to be playing a solicitor and single father whose wife died in childbirth four years earlier, his performance is sturdy and self-sufficient enough, at least, to banish thoughts of Hermione and Hogwarts. He's all grown-up." — Michael O'Sullivan, The Washington Post

The Kids?
" 'No Country for Young Kids' would be just as suitable a title for 'The Woman in Black,' a hoot of an old-fashioned British horror film in which being under 10 years old is not a good thing." — Todd McCarthy, The Hollywood Reporter

The Scares
"Schooled in the art of the quiet boo, [Director James] Watkins fills the film with squeaking doors and floorboards, pools of black, long silences and an assortment of moldering toys. Less gore is more here, and what a relief. 'The Woman in Black' isn't especially scary, but it keeps you on edge, and without the usual vivisectionist imagery." — Manohla Dargis, The New York Times

The House
"The house is a masterpiece of production design, crumbling, forlorn, filled with the faded and jumbled Victorian possessions of doomed lifetimes. It has a unique feature audiences will not fail to remark upon: its own sound-effects crew. At every frightening moment, and there are many, the soundtrack paralyzes us with blasts of cacophonous noise. You wouldn't want to be in the theater next to this movie in a multiplex." — Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times

The Final Word
"The work Radcliffe does here is primarily reactive. It's also quite good. I'd say he's on his way as a post-Potter entity, and 'The Woman in Black' deserves a stateside audience. I only wish Watkins had done without the 'WHUUNNNGGGG!!!!' sound effects whenever somebody or something suddenly appears in frame, further racking the nerves of our ectoplasmically beset hero." — Michael Phillips, The Chicago Tribune

Are you planning on seeing "The Woman in Black" this weekend? Let us know in the comments!

Check out everything we've got on "The Woman in Black."

For breaking news, celebrity columns, humor and more — updated around the clock — visit MTVMoviesBlog.com.

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Source: http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1678486/woman-in-black-reviews.jhtml

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WATCH: Michelle Obama Takes on Ellen in a Push-Up Contest

American history is full of exceptional first ladies -- but we bet none of them could do what Michelle Obama did Thursday on The Ellen DeGeneres Show! Obama, 48, showed off her impressive physical fitness skills when Ellen DeGeneres, 54, challenged her to a push-up contest. Watch the clip below to find out who won!

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Los Angeles

I'm here! I'm here! And I saw my first gang-banger get arrested yesterday so I feel like a total Angeleno.

I'm getting ready to go to the gym (again, like a total Angeleno!) so I will update later about my run-ins with Alexander Skarsgard, Pauly Shore, and Jeremy or Jason London (I'm not sure which one it was and seeing if I could force him to do drugs to find out seemed unfair. Besides, as it turned out, he was telling the truth?)

Anyhoo, I've got a lot to tell you about gardening! (Did you know if you get dirt wet it turns into mud? Yuck.)

And bumpers! (They don't bump off anything... they go, "Scraaaaaaaatch!")

And there's probably more but, again, I have to go because I have to get to the gym!

Source: http://www.prettyinthecity.com/blog/2011/6/9/los-angeles.html

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Stranger Danger

My sister recently had a talk with my four-year-old nephew Jack about strangers. Here's how it went:

SISTER: Now, Jack, if a stranger says, "Come here, I want to show you something," what do you do?

JACK: I turn around and run!

SISTER: If a stranger says, "Come here, I want to give you some candy," what do you do?

JACK: I turn around and run!

SISTER: If a stranger says, "Come here, I want to show you my puppy," what do you do?

JACK: Oh, I love puppies...

Source: http://www.prettyinthecity.com/blog/2011/7/26/stranger-danger.html

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'Big Miracle' Is Heartwarming Fun Despite Chilly Temps, Stars Say

Drew Barrymore, John Krasinksi and Kristen Bell discuss their new film, which follows the rescue of three gray whales in Alaska.
By Kara Warner


John Krasinksi and Drew Barrymore in "Big Miracle"
Photo: Universal Pictures

If you're looking for a feel-good film to see this weekend, look no further than "Big Miracle," the story of the real-life rescue of three gray whales trapped in ice near Point Barrow, Alaska, in 1988. Incredibly, the effort became an international issue that involved a rare collaboration between the United States and the Soviet Union and garnered worldwide media attention.

MTV News recently caught up with the three stars of the film, Drew Barrymore, John Krasinski and Kristen Bell, who explained the multi-generational appeal and importance of the story and the cause presented in the film.

"The whales have Twitter accounts," Krasinski joked when asked how the film might specifically appeal to MTV viewers. "So, streamlined information, done deal. Don't ask us, ask them. They'll talk all about it," he said with a smile. "It's a big movie that deals with participation, and with the election coming up and all these different things, and everybody is divided over this, that and the other, and everybody is angry about something. It's one of those moments where you get to say, 'I could just step in and lend my voice to something.' And it really helps, it makes you feel important and special that you're doing something. This movie sort of focuses on that completely, about how when you get a bunch of people together you can kind of do anything."

Barrymore added that the film's setting in the late '80s provides for a unique look back at our media and political cultures at the time.

"It's an interesting look back at how if things were a little different maybe we wouldn't exactly be where we are. But, it's not in a patronizing way, it's in a really interesting way," she said. "And it's amazing historically, like, you know, environmentally and politically. But, I think it's very true to what's going on now, that if people work together, whether it's protesting via Twitter for an important movement to change their country or to do something wonderful and important like saving whales. It's working together, so I think actually in 1987 when this takes place and what's going on right now today, they definitely have a connection."

Kristen Bell also focused on the warm, fuzzy aspects of the film, particularly how its positive message compares to the continually multiplying "train wreck" elements involved in other films and TV.

"I think it's a very positive story as opposed to many of the unendingly interesting train wrecks that are put on television or in films these days, which believe me, I'm not poo-pooing, but there's something very inspiring about a story where a bunch of different people come together for a common goal and actually accomplish it," Bell explained. "It's very, very inspiring, I think. And often times, news headlines or things that are written about in blogs, you know, reality television, it's not as inspiring as you want it to be, at least not for me. And it actually happened. It's historical, so you'll get smarter watching it. You'll also be inspired, so you'll be happier. What's the downfall? See the movie!"

Are you planning on seeing "Big Miracle"? Leave your comment below.

Source: http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1678547/big-miracle-movie.jhtml

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Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/RightCelebrity/~3/SIwp4GrgzDA/

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