Hedy Lamarr was a darkly beautiful, iconic star of the 30s and 40s, probably best known for her starring role in Cecil B. DeMille’s Samson and Delilah. She is also, apparently, a great inspiration for Anne Hathaway as she crafted her Catwoman/Selina Kyle character for Chris Nolan’s forthcoming The Dark Knight Rises. “I know this sounds odd, but her breathing is extraordinary,” Hathaway told the LA Times. “She takes these long, deep, languid breaths and exhales slowly. There’s a shot of her in Ecstasy exhaling a cigarette and I took probably five breaths during her one exhale. So I started working on my breathing a lot.” Apparently nothing about Lammarr shockingly going topless for the movie back in 1933 made its way into Catwoman. Hathaway talks more about breathing and delves a bit more into the challenges in the must-read piece from Geoff Boucher, but beware of a mild spoiler for one of the scenes. The most reassuring part of the talk? That the costume is more functional than fantasy. Once again, Nolan seems to be looking out for logic, even in a world that defies it. This is more great information about one of, if not the most, anticipated movies of 2012.

Let it never be said that director Tom Hooper doesn’t make some interesting choices when it comes to filming his projects for maximum veracity. His Oscar-winning hit The King’s Speech was shot on a former porno set (grit!), he used Colonial Williamsburg for a number of sets for his John Adams (gritty, in a different way!), and now it looks like he’s going full-hilt on his first musical feature. Hooper’s next film is a full-scale musical feature version of the done-to-starving-death Les Miserables, and while a new take on Victor Hugo’s classic material doesn’t strike most people as necessary, Hooper is going to give the project its own spin to liven it up. No, no, he’s not going to make it some sort of bizarre “reimagining,” he’s going to make its stars actually sing. No, no, it’s much more interesting than that – he’s going to make them sing live. A “source close to the production” has told the Sun UK that “the director is determined to make the project as authentic as possible.” As such, “the cast will record their vocals live on camera rather than go into a studio first then mime on film to the pre-recorded vocal…First they have to learn the complex songs, then they’ll have to get it right on set in front of the other stars and crew.” This does provide a look inside Hooper’s vision for the film, which may be much more classically theatrical than first suspected. Hooper has already lined up [Due to Content Scraping and Theft, we have been forced to try abbreviated feeds. We apologize for any inconvenience this may cause and woud very much appreciate you clicking through to view the full article on FilmSchoolRejects.com]

Wow. Wow is all there is. With all eyes on Christopher Nolan to find a fitting ending for the massive phenomenon that he’s turned into an even more massive phenomenon, the director and everyone involved seems to have pointed beyond the bleachers and out into the parking lot with this full length trailer for The Dark Knight Rises. It’s got Christian Bale getting existential as Batman, Tom Hardy as Bane looking ominous with a bomb and Anne Hathaway representing the unwashed masses as a masked Selina Kyle. In fact, it’s got enough red meat to make any old fan happy – and to prove that Nolan and company are not shying away from the greatness of their challenge.

Last month, Hugh Jackman and Russell Crowe officially signed on for Tom Hooper’s take on the classic Les Miserables, set to face off as dashing criminal Jean Valjean and Police Inspector Javert, respectively. At the time, we didn’t yet know who would be taking on the female leads in the musical, but it looks like Hooper has rounded out at least one role with that rare beast – a Hollywood starlet with a predilection for belting out tunes. No, not Barbra Streisand. No, not Cher. Oh, guys, no, not Christina Aguilera. It’s Anne Hathaway! Hathaway will play eventual prostitute Fantine, who gives up quite literally everything (including her teeth) to provide for her daughter Cosette (who comes under Valjean’s wing). She also sings her way through a number of big numbers, the most famous of which is unfortunate Glee fodder “I Dreamed a Dream.” Hathaway has sung in a few features (including Rio and Ella Enchanted), and she’s broken out her pipes during her duties as Oscar co-host and two-time Saturday Night Live host, but she’s yet to bring those talents to a full-scale musical. Hathaway has also been long attached to (and quite personally involved with) a Judy Garland biopic. Should her performance in Les Miz establish her as a singing force to be reckoned with (toothless and all), maybe we’ll see that Garland film yet.

This week, Fat Guy Kevin Carr flexes his rippling muscles and sets out to live a warrior lifestyle, just like Jason Momoa in Conan the O’Barbarian. But before he can do that, he has to drive a stake through his neighbor’s heart, since he’s certain he lives next door to a vampire. What else could all those sparkles be about? Meanwhile, he sends his kids off to a dangerous 3D, Aroma-Vision mission, hoping they can make it as real spy kids so they can teach him to put on a fake British accent and woo a not-quite-British Anne Hathaway.

A pretty interesting photo (which gets bigger if you click it) hit the Internet late tonight. It’s a deleted scene from TRON: Legacy, giving us a glimpse of Anne Hathaway playing a small role as a program named Catturra. Okay, that’s a lie. It’s the first official look at Anne Hathaway dressed up as Catwoman for The Dark Knight Rises. As you can see, she’s wearing form-fitting leather from head to toe, she’s got a pair of high tech looking goggles on (which seem to be connected to something via Bluetooth, I hope she doesn’t go into movies wearing those), and her hair is pulled back into a ponytail. That looks like a pretty decent getup for a cat burglar to me. Oh yeah, and seeing as that isn’t actually a light cycle she’s riding, I guess we can only come to one conclusion… she’s stealing Batman’s motorcycle! If I know Batman, he’s not going to take very kindly to that. Most likely he’s going to do whatever it takes to hunt her down, find his motorcycle, and engage in some sexually tense banter with her until she gives it back. And she will give it back. He’s the Goddamn Batman. The picture comes from the film’s official site, with a special nod to /Film for being the first one I saw to discover it.

In the past, I have used this space to examine the cultural implication of sex in cinema, the hotness of naked people, and even exploited some of my own personal going-ons. After last week’s titillating BDSM discussion and the official welcoming of summer, I chose to approach some lighter fare this time around. We all love sex in its many forms (unless for some, I’m sure, reasonable reason you do not), and more importantly we are all fascinated or turned-on by sex on film (for artistic purposes, surely). With summer upon us we have at least a fistful of sexy films whetting our appetite before September 20th. I have done some preliminary dirty work to present to you, fair reader, a double stuffed list of films tailor-made for the erotica lover.

What is Movie News After Dark? It’s usually a rather tame and family friendly nightly column that rounds up all the best and most interesting news and views from the world of film. It’s worth noting, as it doesn’t always lead with headlines about Anne Hathaway’s rear end. It’s usually something Doctor Who or Michael Bay related. Pick your poison, I suppose. This will likely go down as the dumbest lead story I’ve ever run in MNAD, but the Sunday edition works on the conceit that movie news happens over the weekend. Spoiler: movie news doesn’t usually happen over the weekend, so we’re doing our best. Also, do you really have a problem talking about Anne Hathaway’s ass? Apparently the tightness of her costume and aggressiveness of her stunt work on the set of The Dark Knight Rises has given other cast and crew a unique view of her hind-quarters. There’s something news-worthy in that, I’m sure of it.

Stop me if you’ve heard this all before. In the world of big screen animation, there’s Pixar and there’s everybody else. There’s something special about those Toy tale telling animators from Emeryville, something that indicates up front that each of their films has the potential to be a deeply emotional experience for an audience of any age. This review is not about one of those kinds of movies, nor is it about Pixar. It’s about Blue Sky Studios and their new film Rio. But it’s important to note the difference that Pixar films have up front, because the desire to compare and contrast is unavoidable. And it’s that emotional element that could be the only differentiator between this, Blue Sky’s best effort to date, and the industry’s gold standard.

This week, Fat Guy Kevin Carr dresses up in a fabulous blue feather outfit and takes a trip to Carnival in Rio de Janeiro. There, he runs into a couple blue macaws trying to escape exotic bird smuggles, but he’s too busy getting his freak on to help out. Later, he comes back to the states to visit the quaint town of Woodsboro, only this time he’s traded in his fabulous blue feather outfit for a long, black cloak and a “ghost face” mask. After making some calls to random twentysomething girls who are supposed to be teenagers and asking them what their favorite scary movies are, he spent a night in the hospital from a stab wound to the face. Oh, the humanity!

James Franco already seemed to be apologizing for this year’s Academy Awards telecast in a sit down with Vanity Fair’s The Screening Room. When asked about how he and co-host Anne Hathaway came about getting the hosting position Franco explained, “They know we’re not Billy Crystal or Chris Rock. They’re not asking us because they’re expecting that. The show is going to be designed for what we can do.” So if what guys like Billy Crystal and Chris Rock can do is fill up the show with comedy and musical numbers, what is that thing that Franco and Hathaway can do? Will Franco spend most of the ceremony with his arm trapped under a statue while Hathaway romps around on stage in her underwear? If so, I don’t see what the concern is. This is clearly going to be the greatest Oscars ever. But even if it goes in the exact opposite direction, Franco doesn’t seem concerned. He goes on to say, “If it’s the worst Oscars ever, who cares? It’s like; it’s fine. It’s like one night. It doesn’t matter. If I host the worst Oscar show in the history of the Oscars, like, why do I care?” It seems that Franco has studied at the Ricky Gervais school of awards show hosting. Will 2011 go down as the year that everyone stopped buying in to the pomp and circumstance of Hollywood awards shows? Has the egoism of the whole undertaking finally become so much that it’s eating away [Due to Content Scraping and Theft, we have been forced to try abbreviated feeds. We apologize for any inconvenience this may cause and woud very much appreciate you clicking through to view the full article on FilmSchoolRejects.com]

I’m going to share something with you. I have a sick obsession with sex movies. I don’t mean I always watch them with salacious intentions, because I have to draw the line between art and pornography somewhere. Let me be clear, I really enjoy a movie whose sole purpose is to titillate a viewer so much that they question what they are really watching. I’ve spent many nights snuggled up on my couch cringing my way through Catherine Breillat’s many sex shockers. I made a boyfriend attend a viewing party for the highly controversial, yet exceptionally boring, 9 Songs. I’ve even gotten into fights with Netflix over its recommendation of Salo based on my high rating of Irreversible. Those last two movies have nothing in common, by the way. Sex-centric dramas have been a secret, back alley passion of mine. But in all my years devouring these movies, I rarely see comedies that both deal frankly with sex and show it. Sex is usually the butt of a joke in comedies, rather than a catalyst for moving a couple forward.

What is Movie News After Dark? This is a question that I am almost never asked, but I will answer it for you anyway. Movie News After Dark is FSR’s newest late-night secretion, a column dedicated to all of the news stories that slip past our daytime editorial staff and make it into my curiously chubby RSS ‘flagged’ box. It will (but is not guaranteed to) include relevant movie news, links to insightful commentary and other film-related shenanigans. I may also throw in a link to something TV-related here or there. It will also serve as my place of record for being both charming and sharp-witted, but most likely I will be neither of the two. I write this stuff late at night, what do you expect?

Like sands through the hourglass, these are the weeks of our lives. Two points if you know what soap opera that’s from. Minus one point for knowing what soap opera that’s from. As if thematically appropriate, this week was a lot of high drama here at FSR. Big casting news was abound, big editorials were written and one of our biggest yearly events, the Sundance Film Festival, kicked off. If you’re a regular reader of this site, it was a great week to be visiting us. If you’re not a regular reader of this site, here’s a list of all the great stuff you missed.

We come to bury the Dark Knight Rises casting rumors, not to praise them. It’s true, though. They’re dead – killed by the official announcement that Anne Hathaway and Tom Hardy would be playing Selina Kyle and Bane respectively. For those who knew the rumors best, they were a source of comfort in an uncertain time. Although, even though they almost always made us laugh, the rumors were like a madman, cropping up every few months and chaotically cutting through the banal everyday like a breath of fresh hurricane. Now that those casting rumors are dead, let’s fondly and somberly look back at our favorites.

The speculation is over. Eddie Murphy is officially out of the running to play Catwoman for Christopher Nolan’s The Dark Knight Rises because the role has gone to Anne Hathaway (who can be seen looking cat-like to the right). Joining her in the casting news is Tom Hardy (who has long been known to be involved in the movie) who will play Bane. Catwoman is an uninspired choice, and even though Bane was featured in the worst Batman movie of all time, he’s the most interesting piece of the next puzzle. It’s a bit uninteresting to see Selina Kyle again (unless Nolan takes her back to her roots of prostitution and gangster clan heckling), but seeing Tom Hardy play perhaps the most intelligent and most physically formidable villain Batman has faced is definitely a concept worth the price of admission (to a movie everyone on the planet is already planning on seeing). Some odd choices, but by this point, shouldn’t we be placing our faith in Nolan? [Hero Complex]

Quite a fuss has been made of Sunday night’s Golden Globes ceremony. Not the actual awards mind you – everything was safe and predictable in that arena. Not even the obvious drunkenness or awkward attempts at humor with varying degrees of success by the night’s celebrity award winners and presenters are the primary subject of the conversation (De Niro’s bizarre acceptance speech, Robert Downey Jr’s creepy framing of the Best Actress category). All discourse has been centered on the performance by the show’s host, Ricky Gervais. Gervais’s acerbic monologue was met with audible surprise and even aghast by his elite audience. His introductions to awards presenters ranged from tongue-in-cheek playfulness to blatant comic criticism. He later disappeared for more than an hour, prompting speculation on Twitter (the only place where aside observations can immediately morph into conspiracy theory) that he was taken off the show, only to emerge later, without his jacket and appearing vexed, to give quite the backhanded introduction to Tom Hanks and Tim Allen, which all-in-all does suggest at least a firm backstage talking-to. With strangely perfect timing, Gervais ended the show with the line, “And thank you to God for making me an atheist” before the generic end credits music surged. The Buñuelean echo of these final words was a rather appropriate summation of Gervais’s brilliant absurdity and anarchic irreverence peppered throughout this masturbatory rich-ual (get it?). It was, in short, hilarious and the best thing about the show. Here’s his monologue:

Lone Scherfig proved to be a directorial talent with An Education, and, according to Variety, she’ll be tested even harder this time around as her film One Day goes up against Kevin James falling down with the help of talking animals (The Zookeeper), and Katherine Heigl falling in love without the help of talking animals (One For the Money) when it sees its release on July 8th. The movie, starring Anne Hathaway and Jim Sturgess, tells the story of two friends who spend the night of their college graduation together. The focus returns to that day year after year – sometimes seeing the friends together, sometimes seeing them apart. Of course, the true competition comes from being sandwiched in between Transformers: Dark of the Moon and Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part II, but it’s inspired counter-programming for an audience that might not want to see giant robots, zoo creatures voiced by actors or teenage wizards.

If you’re like me, you remember a time when Billy Crystal was the only person that hosted the Oscars, every year, forever and ever. There was something comforting about having a comedian on stage because it meant a hilarious opening bit that mocked Clint Eastwood (in song) and guaranteed that a stuffy evening wouldn’t be taken too seriously. Now, the Academy has chosen James Franco and Anne Hathaway to co-host the next presentation of awards. Not counting Hugh Jackman (who brought his own musical flair to the proceedings), the last time that the show didn’t have a comedian as host was either technically the ’89 broadcast (which had no host) or the ’75 broadcast where Walter Matthau shared the duties with Goldie Hawn, Gene Kelly, Robert Shaw, and George Segal. It’s a modern convention to have someone notable for their hosting (like Jon Stewart) or their stand up comedy (like Jon Stewart) take center stage as emcee. Franco and Hathaway will no doubt bring a different energy, though, and that comes with some good and some bad.

There’s an endless debate raging about whether names alone can be enough to draw someone to a film. It’s something you and your movie friends talk about from time to time whenever a particular project sparks that sort of interest. It’s something that will never end because it’s different for each person. It’s something that gets denied for the most part until the right project emerges. In the interest of science, here’s an experiment to test the question: An Education director Lone Scherfig. Anne Hathaway. Jim Sturgess. One Day. Interested?