A.J. McNeil

ajmcneil @ 2009-08-17T20:37:00

2009-08-17T19:37:43Z

And a happy belated 37th birthday to Ben!

ajmcneil @ 2009-04-09T12:48:00

2009-04-09T11:48:14Z

Actor Ben Affleck is committed to his craft. Before filming a scene at Gannon Municipal Golf Course in Lynn yesterday, Affleck spent some time practicing his swing Tuesday at McGolf in Dedham. The Cambridge-bred actor, who's in town filming "The Company of Men," hit a bucket of balls with Boston College men's golf coach Trevor Drum. "It was hard to tell it was [Affleck]," McGolf co-owner Marion McInerney told us yesterday. "He had a beard and it looked weird." According to McInerney, Affleck was in no mood to pose when a patron tried to snap a quick photo. "He wasn't too happy about it," McInerney said. "He said he wants to learn the game and he doesn't want to be made fun of." Fair enough. (It's not the first time a member of the Affleck clan called on a Boston coach for help - Ben's bride Jennifer Garner worked with BU trainer Mike Boyle to get in shape for "The Kingdom.") Affleck is in town shooting director John Wells's downsizing drama, which costars Kevin Costner, Tommy Lee Jones, Chris Cooper, and "Rachel Getting Married" actress Rosemarie DeWitt, who plays Ben's better half in the film. The crew got an early start yesterday at Gannon. By 9 a.m., trucks had filled the parking lot. Employees, who'd seen Affleck milling around the course yesterday, told us the crew was filming a "winter scene" and would be back June 2 to film a summer scene. Gannon Municipal Golf Course was also used last year during filming of Mel Gibson's "Edge of Darkness." Four!

ajmcneil @ 2009-03-02T02:34:00

2009-03-02T01:34:38Z

"Ben Affleck fulfills a dying young man’s three-year-old wish" by Robin Leach: Luxe Life | Vegas Deluxe

Actor Ben Affleck has arrived in Las Vegas to fulfill a wish for a terminally ill young man.

Ben checked into a celebrity suite at the Fantasy Tower of George Maloof's Palms. He arrived in time last night to host a dinner party for 15 people in the N9NE Steakhouse there. Other guests dining in the hot celebrity restaurant learned that Ben was in Sin City to fulfill a heart-wrenching celebrity request.

Medical experts had told a young man that he would not likely live long past age 18. His wish was that if he made it to his 21st birthday that he wanted to fly to Vegas and gamble with Ben Affleck. The actor agreed three years ago to grant the wish -- and the dream coming true helped keep the unidentified teenager alive!

Jenna Morton, wife of N9NE owner Peter Morton, who was dining in the restaurant last night, heard the incredible story and sent over complimentary desserts for the 15 people. Ben then took the young man to play blackjack and roll the dice at craps.

No word as to any winnings! Ben, with Amstel Light in hand, then led the group up to The Playboy Club atop the Fantasy Tower, where they won a dance floor VIP table and continued partying there early this morning.

Photographers were requested not to take photos of the young man and the group in order to protect and respect his privacy. Vegas Deluxe has been unable to learn how long Ben and the young man are staying at the Palms on his gaming debut weekend.

It's a GIRL!!!

2009-01-07T12:46:18Z

It's a Girl for Jennifer Garner & Ben Affleck! - Babies, Ben Affleck, Jennifer Garner : People.com

Jennifer Garner and husband Ben Affleck have welcomed their second daughter, PEOPLE confirms exclusively.

The actress's rep says: "Jennifer Garner and Ben Affleck gave birth to a healthy baby girl."

The baby was born Tuesday in Los Angeles. No other details were immediately available.

Arizona/ Don Bolles project

2008-12-16T12:48:47Z

Ben Affleck eyes Miramax's 'Arizona' - Entertainment News, Film News, Media - Variety

Miramax Films has begun development on "Arizona," a fact-based drama that is being shaped as a potential directing vehicle for Ben Affleck.

Pic is based on a true story that began with the death of Don Bolles, an investigative reporter for the Arizona Republic. In 1976, Bolles was killed in a car bomb explosion as he was investigating the infiltration of organized crime into state government.

Bolles was a co-founder of a group called the Investigative Reporters and Editors (IRE), whose members rallied to his cause shortly after his death, completing the work that Bolles had begun.

Operation Gratitude

2008-12-16T12:45:13Z

Ben Affleck Next Operation: Gratitude! | Ben Affleck : Just Jared

Ben Affleck joins thousands of volunteers in putting together 100K+ care packages for overseas troops through Operation Gratitude on Sunday, at the National Guard Armory in Van Nuys, Calif.

People: Ben Affleck on Mercy Mission to Congo

2008-11-20T15:57:51Z

Ben Affleck on Mercy Mission to Congo - Good Deeds, Ben Affleck : People.com

Ben Affleck on Mercy Mission to Congo

By Stephen M. Silverman

Originally posted Thursday November 20, 2008 09:45 AM EST

As Thanksgiving looms, Ben Affleck is on his fourth trip in a year to the war-torn Central African nation of Congo – where at least 250,000 people have been displaced by the violence –. Affleck's aim: to tour refugee camps and consult with aid workers.

"I'm not an expert in international affairs or diplomacy, but it doesn't take that to see the tremendous suffering here," the actor and filmmaker, who has made a documentary about the struggles there, told the Associated Press on Thursday in the regional capital of Goma.

"It's not something that we as human beings can, in good conscience, ignore. … My hope in being here is primarily to bring attention to the fact that there's a real lack of [assistance agencies] here, a real lack of money going to these folks."

Years of intermittent fighting in eastern Congo intensified in August, when violence erupted between the army and those loyal to rebel leader Laurent Nkunda.

Affleck's Awareness
Affleck, 36, first focused his attentions on Congo when he learned of the country's 1998-2002 war that claimed the lives of an estimated 5 million people. "This is a place where I can have a really big impact," he said, noting how other big names had concentrated on equally daunting problems in Darfur.

"I think that, for better or worse, people with some profile in the arts have some currency to spend as celebrities," he said. "And for a time, I didn't spend that in any particularly productive way. And I got to a point where I thought, this is wasteful."

There are fears that the current crisis in Congo could again sill into neighboring countries. The 1998-2002 war divided the vast nation into rival fiefdoms and drew in half a dozen African armies.

The Company Men

2008-09-24T10:49:00Z

Affleck eyeing good Company of real-life drama | Entertainment | Reuters

NEW YORK (Hollywood Reporter) - Ben Affleck is in talks to star in "The Company Men," and John Wells will direct the timely drama about a man whose life is up-ended by a financial downsizing.

Producer Wells is writing the screenplay about a man who is laid off and must cope with the financial consequences and the fallout at home.

ajmcneil @ 2008-09-19T10:06:00

2008-09-19T09:06:01Z

Poker Player :: Articles :: Poker News

Ben Affleck Wins PPA Denver Charity Event:

Ben Affleck, who has disdained poker in recent years as he chose to focus on his family life, proved he still has a little game in him. At the Poker Players Alliance recent poker fundraiser at Coors Field in Denver, one of many events scheduled in conjunction with the ongoing Democratic National Convention, Affleck won the tourney, which generated about $60,000 for the Paralyzed Veterans of America.

ajmcneil @ 2008-09-18T09:28:00

2008-09-18T08:28:36Z

We hear: - BostonHerald.com

That Cambridge homey Ben Affleck, who made his big-budget directorial debut with the made-in-Boston thriller “Gone Baby Gone,” will be back behind the cameras for “The Town,” a big-screen adaptation of the Chuck Hogan novel “The Prince of Thieves.” Affleck will rewrite the script, direct and star in the movie about a career thief from Charlestown who becomes smitten with the manager of a bank. Graham King, who brought “The Departed” and “Edge of Darkness” to Boston, is producing.

Matt to the rescue

2008-06-29T13:56:29Z

DUDE!

So Ben's reply to the break-up rumors? The REAL unmistakable reply to whoever actually understands the guy?

No, it's not that reps for both Garner and Affleck denied it (they've famously denied things in the past that eventually proved very much true).

No, it's not that he went to lunch with the wife and kid.

No, it's not that he went to Nobu with the wife for dinner. Do I need to remind anyone that Nobu was the place chosen for the Bennifer 1.0 for that lunch in 2003? Huge paparazzi message in Nobu. But, no, it's not the outing.

It's that Matt and Lucy went with them. I'm lost in the SplashNews ste, so won't even try to find the original link, but found photos here.

That is the message. That Matt was willing to be photographed with the Afflecks at this time.

This is very clever, and as far as I'm concerned erases all doubts I personally had.

Regarding the rumors, could there have been some doubts on Jen's part, and some discussion with friends, that reached Casablanca's ears? Just as there seemed to have been some "I'm bored" Ben talk that reached other gossip blogs? Hey, marriage is not all sunshine and puppies. Talk is talk, and these rumors may even result much more in both Ben and Jen paying more attention to who they trust with the normal crisis in any relationship.

But Ben brought in Matt, so the overall is positive.

Ben emails people about Congo and the Nightline segment

2008-06-28T09:38:36Z

The world, as we all know, is full of unbelievable poverty, famine and suffering. Busy with our own lives, numbed by millions of hours of footage of dead bodies, mutilated limbs and distended stomachs, we tend to ignore it all--until a celebrity (Bono, George Clooney, Madonna, Angelina Jolie, fill in the blank) comes along to briefly turn a spotlight on the carnage.

We stop, stare, remind ourselves to make a donation to Human Rights Watch and then go about our business. Of course, before we know it, we turn on Fox News or open up the Wall Street Journal editorial page, where some ardent commentator can be found playing the blame game--not blasting all of the governments who've refused to act and have ignored the suffering, but ridiculing the celebrity who took the time to speak out about it.

Ben Affleck is no stranger to this mean little game--he's been bashed all too many times for speaking out on a number of issues. Perhaps that's why I was more than a little surprised to see an e-mail from him today, asking me (and presumably about 800 other people in his Blackberry) to spread the news that "Nightline" is airing a segment tonight (at 11:35 p.m. on ABC) that he put together after making a series of trips to the strife-torn Democratic Republic of Congo. I guess he still hasn't learned to stop sticking his neck out.

As Affleck wrote: "I feel a little foolish emailing everyone I know and asking them to watch a show I worked on, but the point of this effort, in part, is to raise awareness about a part of the world that has endured a great deal, often in relative obscurity. Basically, I think this is important enough to look a little foolish over.... I think the 'Nightline' segment is worth checking out on the merits of the stories of the Congolese people I got to know, the incredible country they live in and how they are fighting to overcome terrible adversity."

If you want to take a little time out of your life to read more about what Affleck learned on his visits, go here--or here--to see a gallery of photos from the Congo. Four million people have died in that country during the past decade and I'm ashamed to say I don't know the name of a single one of them. I'm eager to watch tonight and see what Affleck has to say.

As it turns out, Ben just e-mailed me with a more in-depth explanation of what inspired him to do this. So keep reading:

In short, what led me to Congo was a limited understanding which led to a growing fascination. I was interested in Africa as a whole—but obviously that was too broad to get involved in in any kind of meaningful way. I did a lot of traveling, Kenya, Uganda, Rwanda, Tanzania, Sudan, South Sudan, Rep. Congo, DR Congo, and in the course of that I continued to be drawn to DR Congo—for its tragedy, complexity, beauty, greatness, history—the fact that if it functioned properly, it could carry all of sub-Saharan Africa on its back! One of the things that stunned me was how little was known—and how little I knew—about a place whose recent conflict had killed more people than any war since WWII! The incongruity of that, the idea that all of this suffering was happening without people hearing about it in the west—and that silence might, in some way, be contributing to the problem, was one of the things that motivated me to get involved.

The principle thing for me, over the course of this last year, has been learning. I needed to learn and I’m still learning. It’s not as if I’m some expert or I’m presenting myself as a person with answers—an I’m not an advocate of a particular organization. The idea behind this was to create a media piece along with the learning trip I was taking so that people back home could, ideally, learn with me. In so doing, perhaps a sense of empathy—maybe even solidarity can develop between the viewer and the people in the DRC. Of course, this isn’t likely to happen over the course of sixteen minutes of Nightline programming, no matter how good the ‘hooks’ are (“when we come back, Ben Affleck is eaten by wolves…”) but it is a start. A genuine one, I hope.

You asked about what I saw in terms of what was good and bad—hopeful and tragic. The Africa I saw was a continent of contradictions. There is tremendous growth and achievement in places, terrible inhuman suffering in others. And in some places the two are somehow bound up together. The Democratic Republic of Congo is such a place. On the one hand it is suffering unimaginable misery. There are the oft-repeated statistics (to which one can become numb if one isn’t careful), four million dead over the last ten years, twelve hundred people dying a day (by some counts), in parts of the Kivus in Eastern Congo two of every three women have been raped. All of this is so unspeakably barbaric, inhuman and unacceptable that the mind almost wants to turn off—not absorb the full meaning of those numbers by making each one into an actual person like you or I.

On the other hand, the Congolese I saw were amazing. As I have continued to travel there, I have continued to come across person after person who, though they’ve survived one or another form of terrible suffering, shows incredible strength and resilience—and I believe that is emblematic of the entire country.

There is a small shelter in Kinshasa called “Stand Proud”—it really isn’t much more than a house with a patch of dirt out back. They take in homeless street kids who are paralyzed, most have polio (others were crippled by inexpert nurses injecting quinine into their buttocks when they were infants). Most of these children crawled into the shelter on all fours—many never spent a day off their bellies before they came. Stand Proud teaches the kids to make their own braces and crutches—which the kids do. They learn to use them, to stand and to walk. When I got there it was late at night but every single one of those kids was in the back. I could hear music and I went around into the yard to see what they were doing. Fifty crippled children were outside, dancing. In the pouring rain.

They were just so happy they could stand up—let alone move—that they wanted to dance all night and all day. It was a celebration and an act of defiance by kids who lived on the streets, had no parents, did everything for themselves (including make their own leg brace equipment) and now announced their strength and independence—and joy.

Some of them were seven years old.

If there are people like that in a country, what can’t that country accomplish?

I spent time in the city of Goma, the center of much of the fighting and the area around which much of the gender based violence is taking place. On one side, there was the impunity and lawlessness that allowed rape to become almost a matter of course for many women. Even worse, poverty, war, and dehumanization in Eastern Congo are such that women aren’t just raped but gang raped—and often with sticks, rocks and bottles. This trauma often causes women to suffer a fistula, an internal injury which can lead to being ostracized, the loss of income/family, infection and even death. The ONLY people who can perform surgery on this tragically common injury in Goma are the doctors I visited at Heal Africa Hospital.

The doctors worked tirelessly, often taking bikes miles out into the countryside (fistula can also be caused by giving birth at age 11 or 12, which happens when girls are taken by militia groups as ‘wives’) to treat women who may not have the means practically or politically to come in to the hospital. While I couldn’t help but feel incredible anger and confusion and sadness (and a sense of guilt) I was more amazed by courage than overwhelmed by the darkness.

The hospital administrators told me there was a woman there who had been raped and burned alive by a militia group. Her name was Marta. Marta was insisting on telling her story because she felt it was important for other women to hear what happened and to come forward if they had been raped. We went and met Marta and she was terribly scarred. We asked if she was sure she wanted to be filmed and though I could see she was nervous and self-conscious, she was resolutely certain that she wanted to say what happened to her. So, I talked to her and she forced herself to relive this trauma. I said I could tell that she didn’t like talking about this and that it was very painful for her and asked her why she wanted to do this so badly and she told me she didn’t want other women to be afraid. She wanted women to hear her tell her story and feel the courage to come forward themselves.

This is in a country where less than ten percent of rapes are prosecuted.

With people like Marta, how can there not be hope for the Congo?

http://bestceleb.blogspot.com/2008/06/ben-affleck-is-not-guilty-about-being.html

George Carlin 1937-2008

2008-06-23T09:26:58Z

George Carlin died on Sunday.

He's Just Not That Into You - trailer

2008-05-28T00:29:36Z

Thank you, guys, I'll be singing IT'S FRIDAY I'M IN LOVE for the next two days...

He's Just Not That Into You trailer over at Mediafone (may be US only, I did manage to watch the embeded above...)

ajmcneil @ 2008-05-12T15:31:00

2008-05-12T14:31:05Z

Affleck insists he isn’t blaming Lopez for his career nosedive: "It not only makes me look like a petulant fool (to blame Lopez), but it surely qualifies as ungentlemanly? For the record, did she hurt my career? No."

I forget when he said this. I can't even bother to look it up. Somehow the whole "Affleck regrets filming J-Lo's video clip" bullsh*t is coming up again, and again his words being turned into what looks like the best bombastic headline/ title.

*sigh*

ajmcneil @ 2008-04-29T12:31:00

2008-04-29T11:30:55Z

April 28, 2008 9:09
That Lame Party
Posted by Ana Marie Cox
Favorite moment: Watching Ben Affleck harangue a McCain senior staffer about the press' overly favorable treatment of McCain, then slip seamlessly into an equally passionate rant about the press' overly favorably treatment of Obama. "Sure, I'm gonna vote for the guy," he said, "But they're being way too easy on him." Asked if he was "anti-McCain," he said, "really, I'm more anti-media." Affleck declined a ride on the Straight Talk Express to the Bloomberg party.
(...)
Most sweetly normal moment: Affleck, mid-rant, taking Jennifer Garner's proffered evening bag while she succumbed to the humid night and put her hair in a ponytail. No tough-guy awkwardness about the sequins or anything, in fact he used it to emphasize his (already emphatic) gestures.
(...)

source

ajmcneil @ 2008-04-13T18:02:00

2008-04-13T17:02:30Z

You know, I found the Kimmel video really funny, but when after all this time, either Google Alerts or Bloglines Search is STILL over 50% filled with Hardy Har Har I'm F$%&# Ben... my eyes gaze over, and I have no idea what he's doing now.

Washington, I think, filming State of Play. And there's a new official photo for the He's Not movie (that we got in candids ages ago). Plus some political stuff.

Plus that White House dinner today or something.

Maybe he'll get flashed by an old woman again, and that will replace the Kimmel mentions...

Ben and Bruno

2008-03-29T09:28:31Z

Mike Walker of the National Enquirer reported the following on the Howard Stern Show on Thursday: Ben Affleck called comedian friend Sarah Silverman after completing a sit-down interview with a person he was told was a “very famous openly gay fashion journalist”. Ben called the interview “the weirdest sit-down he has ever had with a reporter” explaining that the interviewer’s (whom he referred to as an “idiot”) first question was “How Do You Like Niggers?” After a stunned silence, Silverman asked Affleck “Was this guy’s name Bruno?” Then and only then did Affleck actually realize that the whole thing was a gag. There is no doubt that this interview will be featured in the final cut, which is currently scheduled to hit theaters in October 2008.

article

Ben, guest of ABC News at the White House Correspondents Association Dinner

2008-03-26T13:17:32Z

Ben Affleck just can’t seem to get enough Washington in his life. The actor, new dad and longtime activist for Democrats has spent weeks here this winter, filming “State of Play.”

Now, Yeas & Nays has learned he’ll be coming to the White House Correspondents Association Dinner next month as a guest of ABC News.(...)

article

The Blade Itself - new production project

2008-03-11T13:30:07Z

Affleck sharpens "Blade" for big screen

By Borys Kit and Carly Mayberry Tue Mar 11, 2:04 AM ET

LOS ANGELES (Hollywood Reporter) - Ben Affleck is reuniting with some of his "Gone Baby Gone" cohorts to bring another gritty crime novel to the big screen.
ADVERTISEMENT

Miramax has acquired the rights to Marcus Sakey's debut novel "The Blade Itself," which Affleck will produce with Sean Bailey. They performed the same duties on Miramax's "Gone Baby Gone," which Affleck also directed.

The adaptation will be written by Aaron Stockard, who co-wrote "Gone Baby Gone" with Affleck.

"Blade" revolves around two Chicago childhood friends who made their reputation committing petty crimes as kids before choosing different paths in life. When they are reunited years later, one is forced to decide how far he will go to protect the secrets of his past. Esquire magazine named the novel one of the five best of 2007.

Affleck is currently filming "State of Play" for Universal.

Reuters/Hollywood Reporter

article

Ben & Jimmy - EOnline

2008-02-26T09:55:16Z

Kimmel Efs Affleck, Apes Damon
By Gina Serpe
Mon, 25 Feb 2008 10:22:36 AM PST

Jimmy Kimmel has let loose the dogs of a YouTube war.

After keeping his silence for an agonizing three-and-a-half weeks in the wake of girlfriend Sarah Silverman's hilarious music video confession that she is, in fact, f---king Matt Damon (if you haven't seen it, congratulations on awakening from your coma), the late-night host has exacted his own musical revenge, one-upping the cozy twosome with the all-star-backed news that he's been stepping out with Damon's BFF.

Or, as he so quotably put it, "I'm f---ing Ben Affleck." (Watch the video here.)

"You take something I love from me and you can damn well bet I'm gonna take something you love from you, too," Kimmel warned in his introduction to the clip. "Matt, Sarah, this is for you."

The video begins with Kimmel strumming gently on his guitar before launching into the big reveal: him and Affleck, bare-chested and latex-clad, respectively, donning the shortest of short-shorts, proclaiming their love—or at least lust—in song.

The duo is alternately featured in a bar, poolside, blow-drying each other's hair, posing for loved-up portraits in front of a fake Eiffel Tower, giving each other pedicures and accepting a package from a deliveryman, portrayed by Brad Pitt.

"Excuse me," Pitt says in full-out "FeX" deliveryman regalia. "Is someone here f---ing Ben Affleck?"

He then hands over a cake to Kimmel, congratulating him on his choice of copulating partner.

While Affleck and Kimmel go on to grope each other and stop short—though, at nose-to-nose, just short—of actually kissing, Pitt isn't the only A-lister to cameo in their ode to man love.

An all-star, "We Are the World"-type tribute proceeds to break out, with Robin Williams, Don Cheadle, Cameron Diaz, Ashlee Simpson, Benji and Joel Madden, Huey Lewis, Joan Jett, Christina Applegate, Macy Gray, Rebecca Romijn, Dominic Monaghan, Lance Bass, Josh Groban and countless others crooning over the state of the two-member boys' club.

"This is not a man-crush," Williams sings, while Cheadle belts out that "we all hope Matt will understand."

A highlight of the video comes shortly after, with Kimmel and Affleck pulling up alongside a convertible driven by Harrison Ford, who blows a kiss to the duo before pulling away in his car, decked out in a "Honk if you're f---ing Ben Affleck" bumpersticker.

Following the conclusion of the song, Affleck joined Kimmel in the flesh as a guest on the show.

"We let it out in a big way," Affleck said, before testing out the waters on a possible name for their supercouple: Benemy, Bemmy or, most disturbingly to the actor, Jen.

"I'm glad we did it this way," Kimmel added, saying, "I didn't want my family to find out in the tabloids...it's not gay when two men are really in love."

While Damon is currently in Spain working on a new film, Affleck said he had no doubt that news of his new love would have no trouble reaching his pal.

"I'm pretty sure he actually is watching this," Affleck said, before adding, "Thank god my daughter is too young."

"Well, she's our daughter now," Kimmel replied.

The video ode to man love, which was dedicated to the loving memory of Norman Mailer, debuted amid much hype on Sunday night's special post-Oscar edition of Jimmy Kimmel Live!

After ABC confirmed last week that Affleck would be a guest on the show, it was all but guaranteed that video retribution would be had for the Silverman-Damon footage, which became an overnight viral sensation and has logged more than 8 million views on ABC and YouTube since its debut on the fifth anniversary show Jan. 31.

article

Rumor buzz

2008-01-22T10:59:39Z

I saw it starting with this one, a blind item "reveal" from July

«#3 This A list actor is already very tired of his fairly new wife. The problem is his fans expect him to be a certain way and getting divorced from the mother of your child(ren) is not something they want to see. So, he puts on a happy face and tries to find other people to act as a buffer. (...)
#3 - Ben Affleck»

and today this one picked it up, with a slight twist.

Last week, iirc, the EntLawyer had an interesting post about how he comes across his blind items, basically the "when you go out with friends, you always end up gossiping about co-workers, well, your Jack is my Jack Nicholson" (he also mentions a Ben and Jen in that post). So, it gives the idea of The Buzz, the things people say at dinner conversations and over drinks.

Well. If The Buzz about Ben is that he's "bored" with his wife... not that he picked up a mistress, or is going back to the Playmates (heh, remember that time he had his friends from Boston and others over, lacked girls, and called Heffner, and had some girls sent over? The things Benji will talk about in interviews...), but just that he's "bored", and "very tired"...

HE-LLO!!!! That's relationships. Ups and downs. You get bored. You go to the same bed with the other person wishing you were sleeping alone just ONCE, and turn your back, and have dark thoughts. You get into fights over stupid things, like burnt dinner that got the fire alarm going, and the baby crying and the firemen at the door. If you can, you use your job to get away for a day or a week, and breathe, and grow to miss the person you married. It's relationships. It's life. It's not sunshine and rainbows every single moment of every single day.

Being "bored" is nothing. Being rumoured to be bored in July is not getting a divorce in February.

Why would that Howard radio guy mention they were living together in his building? He got paid? He was doing Ben a favour?

Yeah, there are almost no photos of Ben and Jen together, compared to the almost daily Jen+Violet photos (and for me those are the product of Jen calling the razzi to keep herself in the magazines as Mommy Of The Year). As far as I remember, Matt and his wife spent some time in New York while Jen was on Broadway. As far as I'm aware, Casey and Summer still live in New York. There were absolutely no photos of Ben and Matt and Casey, over Thanksgiving, and Christmas. There were no photos of Ben's mother in New York, and there was at least one photo of Ben with Jen's father (and at least one, iirc two razzi photoshoots of Jen and her own mother). Is the buzz trying to tell us Chris Affleck didn't spend Christmas with her grandchildren? Ben's mother completely fell of the radar. Would the buzz have us believe she lost interest in her grandchildren?

Or maybe Ben has managed to finally fall into Matt and Casey's territory, and live his life without a camera in his face. Right after the Jennifer Lopez break-up, he proved he knew how to out-run the razzi (even running red lights with journalists in the passenger seat). Maybe he's doing it again.

But "bored"? Or "tired"? Is NOTHING. Come back next time with a juicy "guess which A lister in name, B in talent, actor-director got busted by his wife emailing raunchy poems to one of his lady-friends on the side" or something like that, and then we can talk...

ajmcneil @ 2007-12-24T00:37:00

2007-12-24T00:37:51Z

Retro Cinema: Reindeer Games

Posted Dec 23rd 2007 6:32PM by Ryan Stewart
Filed under: Action, Comedy, Thrillers, Fandom, Home Entertainment, 12 Days of Cinematicalmas, Retro Cinema

Who is Charlize Theron to know which of her movies are good or not? During a recent interview in Esquire magazine, the actress had the following to say about Reindeer Games, one of her early films: "That was a bad, bad, bad movie. But even though the movie might suck, I got to work with John Frankenheimer. I wasn't lying to myself -- that's why I did it. I mean, he directed The Manchurian Candidate, which is like the movie of all movies." Okay, let me stop you right there, Charlize. Have you actually seen The Manchurian Candidate? It's a movie where Janet Leigh plays a Chinese workman. Frankenheimer was an artist of the absurd, and sure, Reindeer Gamesdoesn't work on traditional dramatic levels -- you don't care a lickabout what happens to any of the characters -- but you can't watch thatmovie and not know that the director is completely, deliberately tryingto screw with your head. Frankenheimer knew exactly what genreconventions he was working with in this film, and he decided to explodethem.

In his negative review, Roger Ebert noted that "just anudge and the movie would fall over into self-parody and maybe workbetter. But I fear it is essentially serious." Fear not, Roger. This isnot a serious movie, but yes, it does require the characters to actserious, because they think they're in a Christmas-themed gangster plot-- how else should they act? For those who haven't had the pleasure, Reindeer Games opens in prison as Rudy (Ben Affleck)is about to be released from prison. His cell mate, Nick, has anultra-hot girlfriend on the outside -- yeah, right -- and after Nick isstabbed to death, Rudy upon his release decides to tell the girl he isNick. She won't know the difference. Turns out the girl, played byCharlize, has a crazy criminal brother played by Gary Sinisewho has designs on Nick-Rudy. And that's only the beginning. The movieultimately pulls rug after rug out from under us, becoming moreludicrous in the last thirty minutes than any serious-minded movie incrime picture history.

It wouldn't work without just the right casting, andI'm willing to concede that Frankenheimer just lucked out on thatfront. First of all, he got Theron, who is a naturally gifted actressand needs to be in order to pull off the movie's absurd third-actshenanigans in which she 'reveals' her true identity to the othercharacters about three or four times, always with a straight face. AsEbert put it, "I commend her for not just passing a hand up and down infront of her face: smile, frown, smile, frown." Also, Gary Sinise is onhand to do what he does best: play a villain who is not even half assmart as he thinks he is. Snake Eyes is another good film tosee him play this kind of part -- a guy who has put together anextravagant plan only to have it foiled by a dullard. In ReindeerGames, Sinise is a trucker who got sick of being a trucker and decidedto become a criminal mastermind -- how great is that?

One way that Frankenheimer does back himself into acorner is by having to explain the movie's plot to the audience withseveral long and convoluted 'speeches at gunpoint' type of situations.There's really no way around this, since you're essentially watching adifferent movie with different rules every time a character opens theirmouth and says 'I'm not who you thought I was, ha ha!' These speechesget a little tiresome and I think I'd have rather been left to figureout the insanity on my own. But for every negative like that, there'salso a positive I can point out, like Theron's great swimming pooltopless scene or the ludicrous scene in which we learn the secret ofthe "powwow safe." Reindeer Games is a preposterous movie,and you deserve to know that going in. But if you only approach it inthe right frame of mind, you'll find that there are plenty of thingsworse than a preposterous movie that knows it's preposterous and steersright into that. It's a Christmas movie not to be missed.

Tags: ben affleck, BenAffleck, charize theron, CharizeTheron, holidays2007, john frankenheimer, JohnFrankenheimer, reindeer games, ReindeerGames, roger ebert, RogerEbert

Golden Globes

2007-12-13T15:54:41Z

Congratulation to Amy Ryan for her nomination for a Golden Globe for Best Supporting Actress in Gone Baby Gone! Ben gets some credit because he directed her ;)

Casey got a nomination for Best Supporting Actor for the Jesse James movie.

Note to self: finally update the list of nominations and awards, as Ben has already received a few...

ajmcneil @ 2007-10-31T11:34:00

2007-10-31T11:34:27Z

Could Ben Affleck's beloved Red Sox be taking a bite out of the box office take for his directorial debut, "Gone Baby Gone," which pulled in a lackluster $3.9 million in its second weekend in theaters? The film - starring Casey Affleck and Amy Ryan - cost an estimated $19 million to make and box office numbers available yesterday show it's brought in $11.3 million since opening on Oct. 19. One official from Miramax, which made the Boston-set "Gone," told the Globe that because the film's opening coincided with the Sox's playoff run, that may have contributed to its low box office receipts. "Boston fans are not going to choose going to a Boston movie over watching their team," the official said, requesting anonymity because he was not authorized to speak about the film. "There's a real belief that people will catch up with it once the Sox are done playing." Meanwhile, Affleck and his wife, Jennifer Garner, were the honorary chairs of a fund-raiser Saturday night for the Boston Children's Museum, but were no-shows at the swanky event. (She's performing in "Cyrano de Bergerac" on Broadway and he was in Germany to promote his film.)

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I... am a bit disappointed at this. So, only Bostonians are the target audience for the movie? They're just thinking of it as regional film, not as a film, period?