The 23-year-old Korean Han Hee-jun, who was one of the top ten participants of American Idol Season 11, is poised to make his debut in the U.S. music market.

Han made the top 9 of American Idol last year, which was a first in the show’s history for an Asian. Han has made a contract with Korean agency Polaris Entertainment, and is ready to release his first single in the U.S. It has been reported that Han is going to work with famous agent Max Gousse, who used to manage many big stars such as Beyonce, Justin Timberlake, and Usher, making the possibility of Han’s success in the U.S. stronger.

According to the Korean daily newspaper Chosun Ilbo, Han was contacted by at least 100 agents after the show, but he decided to choose a Korean agent because he wanted to stick to his Korean background.

When Han participated in American Idol last year, he was one of the most popular contestants in terms of Internet voting score. He said, “I think using a chest voice made me popular because that was little bit unique compared to other participants who were using either a head voice or a nasal sound.”

Han participated in American Idol to raise awareness about the disabled at a missionary organization in New York, where he is working as a volunteer.

“I used to suffer from severe depression. I was getting vocal training from some agency in Korea for two years to become a professional singer from 2010, but it didn’t work well. I also participated in a Korean singing competition show, but I didn’t make it. These failures put me a depressing situation,” Han told the Chosun Ilbo.

Han added, “I happened to visit a missionary organization in New York and meet about 200 disabled people there. I saw them happy by singing and playing music instruments together. It opened my eyes and made me decide to participate in American Idol because once I make it up to 24 people, I will have a chance to talk about my personal life story, and I thought if I can let people know about these disabled people’s story, they can get more help from here and there.”

His goal has been achieved. After getting exposure on national television, the missionary organization and the disabled received many donations from across the U.S.

Han has an English name, “Dante.” However, he always goes with his Korean name “Hee-jun.” That is because Han’s goal is to be a famous singer in the U.S. as a Korean, just like Psy.

Image Courtesy : Heejun Han Fan Page

The article American Idol Top 9, Han Hee-jun to Make His Debut in the U.S. appeared first on The Toonari Post - News, Powered by the People!.

Many reports surfaced earlier this month that Justin Timberlake was back in the recording studio with Timbaland. The two are reportedly working together for a follow-up to “Future Sex/Love Sounds.” Producer Jim Beanz, who is close with Timbaland, gave the information away in an interview at Digital Spy. Specifically, Jim Beanz said:

“When I get back to the States, I’m going to be helping out on ‘Shock Value III’ with Timbaland and the Justin Timberlake project. It’s still in the early stages, but they have a lot of tracks. While I’ve been here in the UK, they’ve been working, so by the time I get back, they’ll have a whole load of ideas, and I’m going to have to catch up! He has some crazy, crazy stuff.”

This seemed to imply Justin was back, but unfortunately, the singer’s publicist denied it all. At least, the good news is that he is indeed recording some material for Timbaland’s upcoming release. Even though Justin may not record a new album, he is going to be pretty busy, as he stars alongside Clint Easwood and Amy Adams in the baseball drama, ‘Trouble with the Curve.’ The film tells the story of an ailing baseball scout in his twilight years, who takes his daugther with him for one last recruiting trip. The film will be released in September.

Justin will also star in the thriller entitled, ‘Runner, Runner,’ along with Ben Affleck. The film is set in the online poker world and will be directed by Brad Furman, the director of the ‘The Lincoln Lawyer.’ They have already started shooting scenes in Puerto Rico. Stone Village and 20th Century Fox will co-finance and distribute the major motion picture respectively, and Leonardo Dicaprio will have producer credits on it.

Additionally, rumor has it that the “Sexy is Back” singer may be acting in the new movie adaptation of “Baywatch,” a hit show in the ’90s. If Justin is cast in the film, he will play a former Olympic swimmer, who tries to become a lifeguard.

Finally, according to the Hollywood Reporter, the young artist will also compose the soundtrack for the film, ‘The Devil in the Deep Blue Sea,’ and he will serve as the movie’s music supervisor. The production of the film, which is to be directed by Bill Purple, will begin this fall. Set in New Orleans, the movie will present the story of an architect (Jeffrey Dean Morgan), who loses his wife (Jessica Biel) in a car accident.

Trying to deal with his grief, he befriends a young girl (Chloe Moretz) and helps her fulfill her dream of building a raft and sailing across the Atlantic Ocean.  It seems that the young singer-turned-actor is combining his three loves into one project: film, music, and Jessica Biel, to whom he is now engaged.

Timberlake has avoided the music world since 2006′s hit “Future Love/Sex Sounds,” focusing on his acting career with roles in ‘The Social Network,’ ‘Friends with Benefits,’ ‘Bad Teacher,’ and ‘In Time.’ For years now, fans have been hoping for another album, so this is an encouraging step towards music. The important thing is that Justin is going back to the recording studio, and that can only be a good thing, even if it is not for a new album.

Image Courtesy of   vipflash / Shutterstock.com

The article Is Justin Timberlake Back in the Recording Studio? appeared first on The Toonari Post - News, Powered by the People!.

Illinois, U.S.A. — The PGA of America is pleased to announce that Justin Timberlake will serve as the first-ever Team Ambassador for the United States during the 39th Ryder Cup at historic Medinah (Ill.) Country Club. The 39th Ryder Cup, the first to be conducted in Illinois, will take place Sept. 25-30.

In this new Ambassador role, Timberlake will appear at the Ryder Cup Gala on Sept. 26 at the Akoo Theatre in Rosemont, Illinois, as well as Ryder Cup Opening Ceremonies on Sept. 27 at Medinah Country Club.

“The Ryder Cup continues to generate incredible excitement as September approaches, and Justin Timberlake’s involvement is an added bonus for one of the most highly anticipated sporting events in the world,” said PGA of America President Allen Wronowski. “The Ryder Cup is truly a global event, and Justin [Timberlake] is a household name internationally. As someone who is passionate about golf, he’s the perfect fit to be a Team Ambassador, and The PGA of America is proud to have his support for the 2012 Ryder Cup.”

“As Captain, I’m very excited to have Justin [Timberlake] on board as an Ambassador for the U.S. team,” said 2012 U.S. Ryder Cup Captain Davis Love III. “He’s a true champion for our sport, and I’ve been very impressed with his commitment to growing golf and sharing his passion with others. He genuinely loves the game. I know golf fans are going to embrace his participation and share in his excitement for the Ryder Cup.”

Timberlake said he was thrilled to have the opportunity to experience the Ryder Cup firsthand and lend his support to the U.S. team.

“Golf has been a lifelong passion of mine – whether I’m out playing the game, working on the course at Mirimichi or sharing my love for the sport with others,” Timberlake said. “There is no greater stage for the sport than the Ryder Cup, and I’m proud to be an Ambassador for the U.S. Ryder Cup team and take part in such a time-honored event. It’s going to be a special week for golf fans around the world, me the most.”

For more information about the 2012 Ryder Cup activities, visit www.RyderCup.com.

Image Courtesy of  DFree / Shutterstock.com

The article Justin Timberlake Will Be Ryder Cup U.S. Team Ambassador appeared first on The Toonari Post - News, Powered by the People!.

Columbia Records has announced that it has signed the well-known indie band Walk Off The Earth, whose current YouTube video, a five-person, one guitar cover of “Somebody That I Used to Know,” has racked up 50 million views on YouTube in less than a month.

The powerful fan response to the video has turned the five-year-old Canadian group into a media phenomenon and propelled them onto American network television, where a posted video of their appearance on The Ellen Degeneres Show received a half-million views in less than a week.

In fact, Walk Off The Earth’s version of “Somebody That I Used To Know” saw the highest Billboard debut since April 2011, blasting onto the charts at #14 with over 70,000 singles sold to date. The viral effect has been international as well – the song hit #1 on iTunes in Sweden and Germany as well as WOTE’s native Canada, where the track has achieved digital gold status.

The band has already gotten thumbs-up from an impressive roster of show business veterans, including actor Russell Crowe, Coldplay, Mumford and Sons, Wiz Khalifa (they covered his song “Roll Up”), Justin Timberlake, Ryan Seacrest and Adele. Their version of her hit “Someone Like You” has had 3 million YouTube views.

WOTE’s presence on Facebook has grown exponentially as well since the video was first posted on Jan. 5. They now have 300,000 people who “like” them – an 85 percent jump in just three weeks; in addition, their page on Wikipedia has been averaging 10,000 page views a day.

Goyte featuring Kimbra’s original video for “Somebody That I Used to Know” was an internet sensation on its own before Walk Off The Earth’s Gianni Luminati decided it was a perfect song for his band members, known for their creative remakes of current songs. (After seeing the Walk Off The Earth version, Goyte tweeted his approval, calling the new video “hilarious and brilliant.”) In the video, the five play the same guitar simultaneously as Ryan Marshall, Luminati and Sarah Blackwood trade off on vocals. The other band members are Joel Cassady on drums/percussion and Mike Taylor on keyboard.

But the Burlington, Ontario-based Walk Off The Earth, as their loyal fans will attest, is hardly an overnight sensation. Together since 2006, the five accomplished performers have remade dozens of songs and self-released 2 full-length albums of original material, including the first single, “These Times.”

Their ability to take a familiar song and give it an innovative twist has made their YouTube channel a hit, with 280,000 subscribers and 80 million combined views of their videos of both originals and covers. ”It’s been a crazy, dream-come-true moment for us,” said Luminati. “Our fans brought us to where we are now,” said Blackwood. “We will continue to play for them for a long time to come.”

It was Luminati – a musician since childhood who specializes in layering musical sounds and beat-boxing – who first envisioned the five group members playing the same guitar.

Once he heard the Goyte tune, “I knew right away it was the perfect song for the idea,” he recalls. “I started messing around with different parts seeing if it would work.” Once he realized it could be done, he asked his bandmates to learn their individual parts before attempting to make the video.

Once reunited, he admits they had trouble getting all the pieces to fit together: “It was pretty frustrating.” And once they turned on the camera it took 30 takes until they finally succeeded at around 4 a.m., when Luminati uploaded the video to their YouTube channel. (“All of our videos are one cut because I don’t know how to edit,” he admits).

“I went to bed at five or six in the morning, and by the time I woke up around 11 a.m. it was well on its way around the world,” he remembers. “We were already getting talked about on local radio stations.”

Image Courtesy of   https://www.facebook.com/walkofftheearth

The article Columbia Records Signs Walk Off The Earth appeared first on The Toonari Post - News, Powered by the People!.

In the not-so-distant future, people stop aging when they reach the age of 25. Will Salas lives in the poorest region, or time zone, named Dayton. He rarely has more than 24 hours on his body clock, and must work every day at a factory to afford another day of life. For his mother, Rachel, it is the same story, as it is for all in hard-scrabble Dayton.

But far from desolate, Dayton is alive with color, sound, speed, music, urgency — and crime. Gangs called Minute Men are always on the lookout for ways to steal time, and ending a life in exchange for a few hours means nothing to them.

When Will protects the wealthy interloper Henry from a crew of Minute Men intent on timing him out, Henry makes a present to Will of a century of time. But as time is currency and painstakingly tracked as such, the movement of such a large sum within the confines of Dayton alerts the authorities, the Timekeepers.

Moreover, Will is falsely accused of murder, which triggers a veteran Timekeeper named Leon to begin a relentless pursuit of Will. Without an overriding plan, Will decides to spend his time in the richest zone, New Greenwich. In stark contrast to Dayton, nothing moves quickly here; time is a luxury all residents can afford, since most have hundreds, or even thousands of years to live.

But relative immortality comes at a price, and all are fearful of theft and injury – “the poor die and the rich don’t live,” Will observes. It soon becomes apparent to Will that in order for a few to live, many must die, to keep the scales of rich and poor balanced. Maybe he can use his time to do some good?

But New Greenwich does have something that attracts Will – Sylvia Weis, daughter of the super-wealthy Philippe Weis. When the Timekeepers attempt to apprehend Will, he takes Sylvia hostage, and what starts as a flight from the law becomes a high stakes game to change the rules of this not-so-brave new world, with two lovers on the run at its center.

Three young, hot names are headlining this explosive ride which will hit theaters on October 28; Justin Timberlake, Olivia Wilde and Amanda Seyfried. Timberlake and Wilde play the part as mother and son while Seyfried is the hero’s love interest Sylvia Weis.

Image Courtesy of   http://www.facebook.com/InTimeMovie

The article In Time, ‘Live Forever or Die Trying’ appeared first on The Toonari Post - News, Powered by the People!.

One of the most anticipated movies this winter, In Time has fans of the sci-fi genre rubbing their hands for Andrew Niccol’s fast-paced and innovative story concept. With names like Justin Timberlake and Amanda Seyfried taking the leads of Will Salas and Sylvia Weis, cinema goers can expect high-profile performances — but it doesn’t end there.

For the part of Rachel Salas, Will’s mother, the filmmakers turned to Olivia Wilde, who has experienced an explosion in her career with such films as Tron: Legacy and Cowboys & Aliens. “Olivia’s not going to be able to play a 50-year-old woman for another 30 years, and I think there was something challenging about that and something fun for the actors and us,” says producer Eric Newman.

“The part required an actor with a maturity beyond her years to play Rachel, and Olivia has that quality,” adds Niccol. Wilde, who is a few years younger than onscreen son Timberlake, says, “I was very attracted to the idea of playing someone who was a very old soul in a young person’s body.

And I thought, how interesting, to play someone who’s 50-years-old, who’s had this long life in a world where it’s very tough to have a long life. I mean, you wonder what she’s been through in order to survive for 50 years.” Someone at the far opposite end of the spectrum from Will and Rachel is the tycoon Philippe Weis, Sylvia’s father.

The Weis family fortune was built on a chain of time lending stores, which charge exorbitant interest on the time borrowed by poorer people, desperate to stay alive. Vincent Kartheiser plays Philippe and, with less than a decade between his and Seyfried’s actual age, the Mad Men-star met the challenge of playing her father, who is actually, internally, well over 100.

Kartheiser explains “Where you or I might say, ‘Well, you only live once,’ or ‘Live today like it’s the last day of your life,’ Weis and his friends and family don’t believe there will be a last day. Weis and his ilk have centuries to accomplish their goals, leaving them at best unmotivated.”

Weis has no trepidation about his fortune – as long as there are people with less than 24 hours to live, there will be customers. And it’s definitely a fixed game, in Weis’ favor, of course. Kartheiser continues “The interest rates Philippe charges change in accordance with how much the ‘haves’ want to control the ‘have-nots.’

So, when people need to die, to avoid overpopulation, the interest rates will jump, so that they can’t afford to borrow any more time, or even pay the interest on the time they’ve been loaned. And this is one loan you can’t default on, if you want to keep on living.” Will’s best friend, Borel, is a troubled soul unable to deal with these restrictions.

Johnny Galecki, who portrays Borel, notes that his character and Will “share the same political ideologies, but I think Borel’s a little too sensitive for this world. This life clock is his Achilles’ heel; it haunts him.  So he helps himself along by self-medicating, maybe a bit too much. He has a wonderful wife and a beautiful baby and if it weren’t for them, he probably would have been gone a long time ago.”

Henry Hamilton is the enigmatic stranger who wanders into Will and Borel’s local watering hole, flashing more than a century of time on his wrist. In exchange for saving his life, Hamilton not only rewards Will with time, but also with the truth and deepest secrets of their respective zones.

Matt Bomer, of the hit USA series White Collar, plays Hamilton. “Hamilton is sort of like that character in a Dickens novel, who imparts information to the protagonist that sets him on a new course. Henry wants to change things, but he doesn’t know how to. He’s 105 years old, lived a full life, and now he wants to end it.

In Will, he finds somebody who can think outside of himself, who has the courage and the moral fortitude to actually affect change. So he gives him the gift of years, hoping that this brave soul can make a difference.” With such a dynamic cast, it is reasonable to expect a box office hit this October 28.

Image Courtesy of   http://www.facebook.com/InTimeMovie

The article In Time – Will the Strong Supporting Cast Help Rule the Box Office? appeared first on The Toonari Post - News, Powered by the People!.

How would you cast a movie where all characters is or remains 25 years of age on the outside — but could be in their 30s, 50s, 60s, or over 100 years old? The movie In Time had to deal with this very question when looking for actors who could convey the characters of writer and director Andrew Niccol’s script.

The production team elaborated on their choice of heartthrob Justin Timberlake as the main character. “All the actors had to look around age 25 because in the story, that’s when the aging gene switches off,” Niccol explained in the film’s production notes. That specific age was not chosen arbitrarily. “It’s the age we fully mature, when the frontal lobe of the brain fully develops,” the filmmaker continues.

“It is the part of the brain that controls impulse and reckless behavior. Rental car companies know this; they will not rent a car to somebody under age 25. There are characters in the film who are chronologically 100 years old, so I had to search for ‘old souls.’ Only certain young actors have the ability to play a senior citizen in a 25-year-old body.”

One actor who jumped at the chance to play an “old soul” was Justin Timberlake. It was Timberlake’s early rise to stardom that helped convince the filmmakers of his fit for the character of Will. “I love Justin’s work ethic, which is one of the important traits he shares with his character, Will Salas,” says Niccol. “It was actually very fitting that Justin plays Will.”

“Will has to wake up every day and go to work or die, and I don’t think Justin himself has taken a day off since he was 12 years old. There is no reason he won’t be a successful action hero [as Will] because he seems to be great at anything he turns his hand to.”

Producer Eric Newman continues, “Justin has been an adult since he was 17 years old, when he was a superstar. He didn’t have a conventional childhood, and he carries that with him. The character of Will is one who probably never had a childhood either because, in this world, you are born with a clock on your wrist, spending the first 24 years of your life waiting for that clock to start.”

“And when it does, you have less than a year to figure it out; you’re constantly faced with your own mortality. I think Justin has continually worked harder than everybody else, and he brings that to his acting as well. I think Justin and Will both have a similar ‘work or die’ ethic; they’re wired the same way.”

Timberlake, a longtime fan of action films, embraced the opportunity to play a character whose heroics are grounded in reality and a contextual richness. “When I was a kid, some of my favorite movies were action pieces like First Blood, The Fugitive, and Die Hard,” says Timberlake.

“The one thing I loved about those specific movies was that the protagonists were everyday people placed into extraordinary circumstances and doing extraordinary things.” Will’s heroics are triggered by an easily relatable factor. “Will has grown up with essentially nothing,” Timberlake notes.

“He wakes up every day and goes to work to stay alive. Through a series of events, he decides that he’s not going to take it anymore, and takes it upon himself to try and change the way things work in this world.”

“Will grows up in Dayton, which is somewhat of a ghetto. It’s kind of ironic that the word ‘day’ is in its name, because most of the citizens only walk around with a day to live. So the day-to-day life in Dayton is quick. People don’t have time to walk slowly, so they run, almost all of the time, to where they are going, and they’re constantly eating and drinking on the run. They don’t have time to spare or to waste.”

“Everything’s frenetic and alive, in a kind of dangerous yet beautiful way. When your back is up against the wall and you don’t have a choice, you make revisions and you live your life the way that it has to be, to survive.” Timberlake reserves special praise for Amanda Seyfried, who portrays Sylvia, his unwilling partner-in-crime.

“There are people that see the world the same way Will does. At the end of the day, I think he just wants what is fair. I think, through Sylvia, Will discovers that there’s something bigger he could be fighting for. It becomes kind of a Robin Hood tale at that point, once they pair up; like any young people put in high risk situations, they become enamored with each other.”

“And working one-on-one with Amanda has been great. I feel like we’ve really captured something special between those two characters.”

Image Courtesy of   http://www.facebook.com/InTimeMovie

The article Justin Timberlake – An ‘Old Soul’ for New Sci-Fi Movie In Time appeared first on The Toonari Post - News, Powered by the People!.

A new trend in romantic comedy movies has cropped up recently. Friends With Benefits, directed by Will Gluck (Easy A, 2010), is set to come into theaters this July 22, adding to a long list of similarly themed projects. In just the last year alone, No Strings Attached, an independent film titled Friends (With Benefits), and a T.V. series set to launch this fall on NBC have all sported an almost identical premise: boy meets girl. Both boy and girl are too busy to find a meaningful relationship, but not too busy to have desires. Boy and girl become friends… with benefits. Complications arise and hilarity ensues.

If you have already seen any of these other films, it is easy to compare them with Friends With Benefits. A number of sites have published detailed comparisons between No Strings Attached and Friends with Benefits, judging everything from who is the better director, to which actor or actress has been in the most successful films. While there is some value to this type of comparison, there have been many movies with similar or even identical plots that turn out very differently from each other. Friends With Benefits may have a similar plot-line, but it is not the exact same film.

Gluck was very aware of the common plot when he began directing this film, but he felt that this well-known plot could actually add to the film instead of taking away from it. He told cinemablend.com that he wanted to do a “big time Hepburn and Tracy movie […] But [the actors are] conscious they’re going through the same thing. We now have seen so many movies and gone through so much stuff we know the story.” Gluck knows his audience is familiar with the basic plotline, and he is ok with that. He even takes things one step further and gives the characters in his films that awareness. He then combines this dual awareness to create a smart and funny film.

Friends With Benefits stars Justin Timberlake and Mila Kunis, with a number of cameos by actors such as Shaun White, Jason Segel, and Rashida Jones. While the thought of Timberlake becoming an actor as well as a singer seemed unthinkable several years ago, he has begun to establish himself as more than just a singer who was in one or two films. His role in Social Network has added a lot to his credibility, and it seems that Friends With Benefits just might boost his image even more.

Gluck has managed to take an almost tired concept and imbued new life into it in his film. Instead of ignoring the host of other films with this theme, he looked back at the classic Tracy and Hepburn romantic comedies for inspiration to create a hilarious new romantic comedy. He is known for his off-the-wall humor, and his work with Friends With Benefits is no different.  It is this humor that adds something new to the film and makes it more than just another copycat.

The article Is Friends With Benefits Just Another Imitation? appeared first on The Toonari Post - News, Powered by the People!.

Cameron Diaz, one of cinemas favorite girl next door types, is starring in Bad Teacher, a film that would have been an unexpected and possibly welcomed type cast change during her Charlie’s Angels days—and now?

Aiming to redefine Diaz as worth her comedic weight in an age of unapologetic guilty thrills, Bad Teacher throws out her girl next door image and gives her a leading role where she is the modern day epitome of, well, a bad teacher.

Diaz plays Elizabeth, a seventh-grade teacher who is wasting time in class by not teaching, insulting children, fellow staff members and drinking on the job as she waits to marry her rich fiance. However, things accordingly go awry and she is broken up with, setting her on an urgent course to find a new man with money.

Low and behold, he just so happens to be Diaz’ real life ex, Justin Timberlake, as Scott Delacorte, the rich and handsome substitute teacher. Elizabeth’s gold digging senses spot his expensive family watch immediately, prompting her to pursue his affections and win him, along with his money, over.

Now of course there is more to it than that. Elizabeth sees a picture of Scott’s ex-girlfriend and decides that without breast implants; there is no way that she can win him over. Luckily, her trusty academic sidekick Lynn, also known as Phyllis Smith of The Office, informs her that whichever teacher gets their students to score the highest on an annual test gets a bonus.

Thus ensures the race to the finish line, with competition along the way from Lucy Punch as the archenemy “good teacher” who is competing for the bonus and succeeded in nabbing Scott first. Jason Segel also stars as the sarcastic and irreverent gym teacher who is trying to win over the mean pretty girl in class—to no avail.

So, why see Diaz as a foul-mouthed teacher lazing around the schoolyard?

First off, not only is Phyllis from The Office in the movie, a “stand out character” according to Timberlake and dubbed “a genius” by Diaz, but Lee Eisenberg and Gene Stupnitsky, the writers of The Office, also wrote the script. If more convincing is still needed, then know that in addition to Justin Timberlake, fellow Saturday Night Live alum Molly Shannon will also be in the film.

Next of course is the comedy sensation Jason Segel, also known as “the uber charming, incredibly seductive, 6-foot-5 man meat they call The Segel”–or so Diaz says. Even Timberlake, the pop king himself proclaimed, “I am on the Jason Segel Train.”

According to Timberlake in a Trailer Addict interview, the film is “funny on many different levels,” with both physical comedy and excellent writers who created a “fantastically baked cake” that the actors are “just spreading the icing on.” With an all-star cast of comedians, the script itself underwent very few changes from the initial reading to the finished product. During filming there were very few takes and the cast was “hauling ass,” as Diaz put it.

The article Bad Teacher, Cameron Diaz Becomes a Student of Bad Teaching appeared first on The Toonari Post - News, Powered by the People!.

Hear that creak? That’s the old trend wheel cycling around, slow, steady, and predictable? Much like the oddly similar collections from opposing designers in fashion week, we often see parallel trends in film.

In 2005, we saw the Wedding trend: Wedding Crashers and The Wedding Date premier within weeks of each other. Wedding Crashers follows the adventures of two young bachelors (Owen Wilson and Vince Vaughn) as the crash weddings to meet women.  In The Wedding Date, Kat Ellis (Debra Messing) takes a male escort (Delmot Mulroney) to her sister’s wedding to pretend she is not single. Both revolve around weddings and treachery, and, with the ringing of church bells so loud, it would be of little surprise if the number of engagement rings sold that year skyrocketed.

This year, we see a similar, yet opposing trend as two new films explore the concept of ‘friends with benefits’. In the soon-to-be-released like-named film, Friends with Benefits, Justin Timberlake and Mila Kunis’ relationship quickly goes from friendly to complicated when they add sex to the mix. Similarly, in No Strings Attached, two childhood friends, Ashton Kutcher and Natalie Portman, decide to take things to the next level but promise to keep emotions out of it. However, they soon find themselves falling in love, and their arrangement unravels.

What does this mean for 2011? It looks like popular culture is finally catching up with the downward marriage trend of the last few decades, embracing the disassociation with marriage that may be related to the high divorce rates of our parents’ generation. According to the Pew Research Center’s Decennial Census and American Community Survey, 72% of Americas aged 18 and over were married in 1960, compared with just 52% in 2008. On the contrary, the upward trend of those who never married increased from 15% in 1960 to 27% in 2008.

Thankfully this can be seen to mean a loosing in a cultural ideology bound in centuries of tradition where young people do not need to follow the straight in narrow, but in fact have many choices in life. After all, the French translation of the title No Strings Attached is Sex Friends, which, althoug that culture is known to be more open sexually, is a case point. Alas, vive la vie, and have fun kids! There is so much more to life than the American dream.

Please find more information about this subject below:

http://pewsocialtrends.org/2010/11/18/five-decades-of-marriage-trends/

Wedding Crashers: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZeUSo8voIXM

The Wedding Date: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=97EPy5Ky448

Friends with Benefits: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=34xfcoRceeU

No Strings Attached: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ubfcfs98MBw

The article Movie Trend Reflects Societal Shift appeared first on The Toonari Post - News, Powered by the People!.

When sex slavery comes to mind, most people think they cannot relate. What you should relate to is that it is happening a lot closer than you think. Sex slavery is one of the biggest and less noticed issues in the United States; even though it’s a billion a year enterprise and composed of mostly teen girls. Known for occurring overseas, sex trafficking is a commercial form of slavery a person under the age of eighteen is forced into. It is led by fraud and force. Thriving each and every minute, sex slavery is becoming more and more common in the United States, which has grew into over a twenty-eight billion dollar enterprise. Even though the sex industry is one of Americas booming industries, the consequences and downfalls of the industry are ignored. There are over one million slaves worldwide and about 17,000 end up working in the United States. Trapped with no way out, sex slaves have little hope, but is there hope? Celebrities and founders are known for helping charities, organizations, and finally there is someone who took on the war against sex slavery.

Demi Moore and Ashton Kutcher launched their own non profit foundation against child sex slavery in 2007. DNA’s, the Demi and Ashton foundation, purpose is to hopefully abolish sex slavery by raising awareness through award shows, events, and communication with sex slave survivors. Phrases such as “Freedom.. its in our DNA” and “Real Men Don’t Buy Girls” are raising attention to not only the government, but celebrities. Bradley Cooper well known from the Hangover, just recently joined the Real Men Don’t Buy Girls campaign by creating a video on what real men do. Music Superstar Drake, Justin Timberlake, and even Eva Longoria have joined the fight against sex slavery. Sex Predators use social media and the internet on about 77% of deals made within sex trafficking. Demi Moore and Ashton Kutcher hope to use that against them by using Social Media to raise awareness and hopefully prevent it from happening. Getting to the “heart” of sex transactions is where DNA will try to take a stand.

Appearing on Regis and Kelly, CNN, and the Pepsi Research Project, Demi and Ashton’s goal was to reach out to as many people as possible. With Facebook and Twitter created for the organization, DNA hopes to use social media as a backfire to all sex traffickers. They are working and combining forces with other sex slavery projects, such as the Polaris Project in Washington D.C., to help Americans understand the issue of sex slavery and how it can happen to anyone, no matter your location or gender.

Most Sex Slaves are enticed by fake ads and job opportunities, such as housekeeping and dressmakers in papers in countries like Ukraine. Once arriving at there fake job, women are enslaved and forced to have sexual encounters with over twenty men a day. Most of this happens in rural areas where there is nowhere to escape. Most sex slaves are women, but the scary part is most of them are under the age of 18, with the average age for a sex slave in the United States being thirteen years old.

Every ten minutes another sex slave is trafficked into the United States, so what can you do about it? Demi Moore and Ashton Kutcher provided a three step process for people to help take a stand against sex slavery on demiandashton.org. First, join the “Real Men Don’t Buy Girls” campaign by creating a video on what real men do instead. Justin Timberlake showed the men shave instead of buying girls on his video. The Real Men videos can be viewed on the website. Next, reporting any sex slavery seen on the internet or suspicions can help end sex trafficking online. This can be done by reporting to Craigslist, Facebook, and cybertipline.com. Finally, you can help raise money and awareness by doing it in style. The DNA t-shirt can be found online at stevenalan.com and all funds go to the DNA foundation. All of these actions can finally help put an end to sex slavery in the United States. Raising awareness is the first step to stopping the traffickers. So, go out and help put an end to sex slavery by showing that Real Men Don’t Buy Girls.

vipflash / Shutterstock.com

The article “Real Men Don’t Buy Girls’..Demi Moore and Ashton Kutcher Fight Against Sex Slavery” appeared first on The Toonari Post - News, Powered by the People!.

Scarlett Johansson, 26, and Sean Penn, 50, recently suffered a tough break-up, a mere 2 months after moving in together in Malibu, Caifornia. Last weekend, at the Spike Guy’s Choice Awards, they ran into each other backstage, and, surprisingly, acted like mature adults. Scarlett Johansson was present to honor the military with Avengers costar Chris Evans, and Penn was around to for the induction of Fast Times at Ridgemont High into the Guy Movie Hall of Fame. When asked to be photographed together, the quietly obliged, as if nothing had ever happened. How un-Hollywood.

That’s not to say the award show went by without any publicity stunts. Justin Timberlake was slated to present his Friend’s With Benefits costar Mila Kunis the Holy Grail of Hotness award, and took it as a cue to publicize their upcoming film, set to debut next month. After a skit that ended with a crotch grab by Kunis and a breast feel by Timberlake, the award was finally presented, and the audience allowed to return to the real show.

The article 2011 SPIKE’s Guy’s Choice Awards: Scarlett and Sean Together Again, Mila and Justin Get Hot appeared first on The Toonari Post - News, Powered by the People!.