What's Italian for 'Over-the-Top Method Acting'?

But if you like the style and the stars, then just eat the ice cream

(NEWSER) - Critics agree: Nine is no 8½. Some enjoy a star-studded song-and-dance, but most don't like the song part, and they find the stars misused at best. Some opinions:

• "Step right up, pay $10, and you can see eight superstars, six of whom have won Oscars, singing songs in sparkly costumes." If that sounds good, cautions Dana Stevens of Slate , know that "the songs range from mediocre to actively unlistenable and that few of these actors know how to put over a song."

Brad Pitt, Julia Roberts, 'The Hangover' failed to score today

(NEWSER) - Sure, we all could have predicted Avatar would clean up and Sandra Bullock's ascendance would continue come Oscar nomination time. But who were today's notable snubs? Us offers a list:

• Brad Pitt: Failed to score a Best Actor nomination for his critically acclaimed, SAG-nominated role in Inglourious Basterds.
• Daniel Day-Lewis: Also missing from the Best Actor category, though he was nominated for a Golden Globe for his turn in Nine.

Please, Hollywood, stop cramming A-listers into movies

(NEWSER) - In addition to its lack of critical love, Nine is “gargantuanally over-cast, the latest in a long tradition of jam-packed ensemble films”—and it’s not a good trend. The upcoming Valentine’s Day is even worse, looking to be “only slightly less crowded than a SAG buffet bruncheon,” writes Brian Raftery in New York . Yet Ocean’s 11, with its seven A-list stars, was “zippy and charming.” So what’s the magic number when it comes to ensemble pieces? More»

(NEWSER) - The high-school comedy/murder cult film Heathers is set to be reborn—as a Broadway musical, the Hollywood Reporter notes. Readings have already happened with the likes of Kristen Bell, and much of the original production team is on board. “‘I love my dead gay son,’” the producer quoted from the 1988 original. “If you can get that into a song, then that is just perfect.” More»

(NEWSER) - Even for a seasoned actress like Kate Winslet, the role of Nazi guard Hannah Schmitz in The Reader was a game-changer, writes Brad Balfour in the Huffington Post. “I sort of walked away like some car crash victim who somehow hadn't been hurt on the outside,” Winslet said. Her character is an illiterate, unrepentant German who seduces a 15-year-old, and her preparation ranged from a study of the Holocaust to a reading class in New York. More»