As much fun as it would be to pick on SOPA/PIPA some more and make some jokes about how “SOPA,” when said aloud, is Spanish for soup, this is something entirely different. Oh, it still has to deal with censorship, but this is some self-imposed completely idiotic and maddening censorship. On air, movies and television have to play by a set of rules. These rules aren’t totally set in stone, but basically there are some words you can say and some you can’t say. Then there are some you can sort of say, but mostly only in the right context. An example? Pretty much any show on at any time could say “bitch” meaning female dog, because that’s just the definition of the word. If you want to call someone a bitch, generally that’s kept to after 8pm. Cable gets a bigger break than network, as it’s a paid service, but that doesn’t mean they’re immune to fines and more importantly, advertiser backlash, so everyone kind of plays with kid gloves. Of course, it’s parents who should be responsible for policing the television. If a show wants to say bad words, let them. Put it on after 8pm, put a “Language” notice on it, and parents can set their TVs to block it. Easy cakes. I mean, I still don’t understand why HBO, Showtime, and Cinemax won’t show hardcore porn, because why not, amirite? But I’m getting distracted by the thoughts of boobies. This boiling point is specifically about language. [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]

Let’s face it. If you need to threaten an enemy from a middle range distance, clear a ton of jungle in a hurry or carmelize the top of a crème brûlée, there’s nothing better for the job than a flamethrower. It’s a gun that throws fire. As your head wraps around that awesome concept (just as it does on a daily basis when you daydream about owning one), consider this beautiful instrument of destruction’s place in film. Sure, Bellflower comes out this week (and should energize you to convert daydreaming into action), but there’s a storied history here to uncover, and a future that’s assured to be bright enough to demand protective gear. Here are just a handful of movies that put the flamethrower on the burnt pedestal it deserves to sit upon.

While attending the first-ever Comedy Awards Bill Hader stopped to have a chat with MTV cameras and gave up a few details about the Les Grossman spinoff of Tropic Thunder that has been rumored for a while. As it turns out, the project is not only still going forward, but the script has been completed. Hader says that Michael Bacall, one of the screenwriters on last year’s Scott Pilgrim vs. the World, wrote the script and that, “he’s told me some really funny scenes from it.” When the Grossman film was first reported last June, Neil Miller posited whether or not the character would be rich enough in story to anchor his own film, with the ultimate theory being that Cruise had enough clout to gather together the talent to make it work. I’d say that with the hiring of Bacall to write the script, this scenario is looking very possible. I loved what Bacall and Edgar Wright were able to do with their Scott Pilgrim adaptation, and I’m interested in seeing something of his that’s original. Factor in that Cruise has enough enthusiasm for the Grossman character to have already revisited him for vignettes leading up to the 2010 MTV Movie Awards, and I’m sure they chose very carefully when deciding who they wanted to write the script. Hader, at the very least, seems to already be confident in the project. He has gone on record as saying, “it’s gonna be great.” So, yeah, an actor has told MTV [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]

Spin-off movies are interesting territory. Most often, the concept behind a spin-off film involves a character who got very little, but meaningful screen time getting fleshed out into their own movie. This is where problems arise — sometimes there simply isn’t enough fleshing to be done. Such is the (possible) case with the character of Les Grossman, as played by Tom Cruise in Tropic Thunder.

This Les Grossman stuff never gets old. This time he — and by he, I mean Tom Cruise’s most hilarious character to date — is giving style tips to Twilight stars Robert Pattinson and Taylor Lautner.

Coming soon: Blue Steel vs. Ask Me About My Wiener. All things are possible, if you’re Justin Theroux.

This week, on a very special episode of Reject Radio, we laugh and cry about the state of independent filmmaking while eating leftover Halloween candy.

Casting announcements shoot across the net almost every day, but not every announcement, rumor, or speculation deserves its own post. Of course we’d be remiss in our duties as the web’s premier source of movie news, reviews, and snark if we didn’t cover them in some fashion… so welcome to the Casting Net!

Last year, we got blackface back as a performance art. Now Jay Baruchel seeks to bring another vaudevillian art form back into the mainstream.

We’ve got some first look pictures of Rachel McAdams in Guy Ritchie’s Sherlock Holmes, as well as Robert Downey Jr. talking about his Oscar nomination for Tropic Thunder.

With such a memorable year, it was hard to pick the top ten memorable scenes from all the films. Of course, to be fair, I had to choose only one scene from any given movie (otherwise, The Dark Knight would easily take five or six spots on the list).

As part of our Year in Review, we’ve asked our resident DVDologist Brian Gibson to lay down his 15 favorite releases from 2008.

As is customary this time of year, it is my duty (and honor) to present you my list of the Ten Best Films of 2008. And in the past year we’ve seen an interesting range of films, have we not?

It is time once again for the FSR Year in Review, our annual week of lists and recaps, counting down the very best in film for the year. We begin our quest with the place where most cinematic journeys start, with a great movie poster.

How (puke-colored) green was our valley in 2008? I offer ten instances in film that did not live up to a certain amount of hype, didn’t get the credit they deserved, or just flat-out disappointed the general public.

Are you an awards season junkie? Do you love to be able to sit there and look smart in front of your friends and family, most of whom only make it out to the movies once a year to see the latest Jim Carrey comedy, by being able to talk endlessly about all of the “important” movies of the year? If so, consider this your awards season to-do list.Fr

Its impossible to deny that Tom Cruise’s performance as Les Grossman, the booty dancing, shrewd dealing studio head was anything less than brilliant. And now, Grossman may be making a comeback.

Kevin and Neil are overwhelmed with the impending awards season, feverishly trying to watch all the films at press screenings and on studio-provided DVDs. They know this makes you jealous, but such is the life of illustrious film critics.

The Hollywood Foreign Press Association announced their nominees for the 66th Annual Golden Globe Awards today, laying out what is generally regarded as a relatively accurate precursor to the Academy Awards nominations.

First order of business is to let you know that we did not make the following Oscar advertisements. They are, however, quite funny.