andPOP » Maya Rudolph

Beastie Boys’ Star-Studded ‘Fight For Your Right Revisited’ Released

@coltondaniel — Sat, 23 Apr 2011 15:09:09 +0000

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The legendary Beastie Boys fought for their right to party nearly thirty years ago, yesterday they revisited their roots with more cameos than a season of “Entourage” would supply.

Short snippets of the video have been circulating around on TV and online, and the short-film does not disappoint. Featuring a battle-royale of sorts between the 1986 Beasties (Danny McBridge, Seth Rogan and Elijah Wood) dueling the future Beasties (John C. Reilly, Jack Black and Will Ferrell) and their acid-tripping rampage. Along the way, run in’s with various famous faces: Stanley Tucci, Jason Schwartzman, Susan Sarandon, Ted Danson, Mary Steenburgen, Jason Bateman, Amy Poehler, David Cross, Kirsten Dunst, Steve Buscemi, Rashida Jones, Rainn Wilson, Maya Rudolph and Chloe Sevigny. Oh yes, Orlando Bloom drops in for the shenanigans also.

Adam Yauch wrote and directed the footage of the trio’s short film and music video, in connection with his indie film company Oscilloscope Laboratories.

“Normally the song is king and the footage has to kind of bow down to it. With this I flipped it,” he said, explaining how he used sound effects and toyed with the track’s tempo to fit the narrative, such as it is.

The group’s ninth album, “Hot Sauce Committee Part Two,” is due May 3.

Movie Review: Away We Go

Eric Emin Wood — Fri, 05 Jun 2009 06:00:50 +0000

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“There are times when a critic truly risks something, and that is in the discovery and defense of the new.”
- Anton Ego, Ratatouille

Here is the pitch for Away We Go that arrived in my inbox, and which put me to sleep before the second paragraph:

Longtime (and now thirtysomething) couple Burt (John Krasinski) and Verona (Maya Rudolph) are going to have a baby. The pregnancy progresses smoothly, but six months in, the pair is put off and put out by the news from Burt’s parents Jerry and Gloria (Jeff Daniels and Catherine O’Hara), that the eccentric elder Farlanders are moving away from Colorado – thereby eliminating the expectant couple’s main reason for living there.

So, where, and among whom of those closest to them, might Burt and Verona best put down roots to raise their impending bundle of joy? The couple embarks on an ambitious itinerary to visit friends and family, and to evaluate cities, eventually realizing that they must define home on their own terms.

If that sounds riveting, skip my review and see the movie – the less you know walking in, the better.

If, like me, you’d rather see a film about watching paint dry (an idea my friends and I once came up with a surprisingly credible pitch for), continue reading as I put on my critic’s hat and attempt to dissuade you from skipping the movie.

Away We Go was directed by Sam Mendes (American Beauty, Road to Perdition, Revolutionary Road), and while it doesn’t sound like a Mendes production – neither lead has a lousy job or is chronically depressed – it contains the same world-weary eye for exact, offbeat details, not to mention it was written by McSweeney’s cofounder Dave Eggers and his wife, Vendela Vida, which alone would have made me excited had I known in advance.

What the pitch doesn’t tell you is that unlike every other couple in every other “romance” the studios have cranked out over the years, Krasinski and Rudolph never fight. They don’t argue. That isn’t to say they never disagree about anything, but it never turns into shouting. They’re not drunk on each other either, making out every chance they get and having wild, passionate sex every night. Their relationship is as credible as Jim Carrey and Kate Winslet’s in Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, a movie which hammered home just how fantastic (literally) most Hollywood romances are. Away We Go shows the reality, and it’s a lot more pleasant-looking than other movies would have you think.

Krasinski and Rudolph do indeed embark on a road trip, visiting a range of quirky characters such as her former boss (Alison Janney) in Tuscon, Arizona; his childhood friend (Maggie Gyllenhaal) in Minnesota; and their old university friends in Montreal. Some, such as Rudolph’s sister (Carmen Ejogo) are fully rounded; others (especially Gyllenhaal’s neo-hippie, who still breastfeeds her seven-year-old and claims to have sex in front of her children) are two-dimensional caricatures, but still embody traits you’ve probably seen.

The ending, of course, is disappointing: how could it not be? There is no destination in North America that could live up to Krasinski and Rudolph’s expectations, and the place where they settle seems as good as any. They certainly stay for the right reasons, and while they may not know what’s coming next, during the credits I was left with a feeling I’ve rarely experienced watching a Hollywood romance: that whatever happens, they were going to be okay.

Maya Rudolph Leaves SNL Five Days Before Season Premiere

andPOP Staff — Tue, 25 Sep 2007 13:08:50 +0000

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EW is reporting that, contrary to published reports, funny lady Maya Rudolph will not be returning to Saturday Night Live.

Rudolph told NBC execs just yesterday that she is dropping out of her eight season on the show. No official reason for her departure has been given, but a spokesperson for NBC says, “We wish Maya nothing but the best.”

Rudolph was also absent for a large part of last season while she was on maternity leave.

She will be best remembered for her impeccable impressions of Donatella Versace, Whitney Houston, and Beyonce.

Amy Poehler and Kristen Wiig are now the show’s only remaining female cast members. However, new players may join the show, which will feature the rest of the ’06-’07 cast.

SNL’s Maya Rudolph Sues Over Bedbugs

andPOP Staff — Fri, 03 Nov 2006 16:09:47 +0000

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Turns out even celebrity actresses can’t avoid bad landlords and bedbug-infested apartments.

“Saturday Night Live” star Maya Rudolph and her husband, movie director Paul Anderson, have launched a $450,000 lawsuit apartment broker Halstead Property LLC and owner Francis Feeney after being attacked by bedbugs in their new SoHo apartment, which they and their year-old baby moved into last month.

“The plaintiffs were bitten over portions of their bodies by bedbugs,” the court papers say. “Apparently unbeknown to plaintiffs, the premises were infested with bedbugs.”

The papers, filed Wednesday in Manhattan’s state Supreme Court, continue to say that Rudolph and Anderson had been told the apartment was “perfect” and was in a “first-class luxury” building. They were renting the third-floor condominium for $13,500 a month, and had already paid two months rent and a month’s security, plus another month’s rent as broker’s commission.

On top of that, the elevator in the building was out of order for at least six of the family’s first 11 days living there.

The family were advised to leave the apartment by an exterminator on Oct. 17.

The lawsuit seeks $450,500 in compensatory and punitive damages, repayment of rent and broker’s fees and legal fees.