Everyone Wants To Be The Social Network

Simplistic yet edgy, the poster for The Social Network is iconic. 

And when one movie's poster gets it right, everyone else seems to well, do the same thing.

At least it's better than this.

They went all out with the unpunctuated sentence thing

Come on, Thor, at least get the font right!

And then there's Rio, using Jesse Eisenburg's character's face.

These days you can even make your own Social Network poster. 

And speaking of Social Network humor, I've been quite the fan of The Kitchn's Oscar 2011 party food suggestions, but Urlesque takes the Mark Zuckerburger to a whole new level.

REVIEW: Stupid and Sometimes Uncomfortable, Your Highness Still Entertains

Your Highness seems to be one of those polarizing movies that critics despise and audiences enjoy. Okay, enjoy might be too strong of a word - it received a 57% on Rotten Tomatoes for audience choice and a paltry 25% for critics choice. But doesn't this unusually high gap between audience and critic enjoyment suggest that for those who the movie was really intended for, it was actually a success? The target audience, which Bill O'Reily fondly coined the term Stoner-Slackers, was probably too lazy to make a strong showing at a movie primarily made for them. Medieval enthusiasts and men with a very immature sense of humor also probably enjoyed this film. For everyone else though, it's no surprise that it wasn't a hit.

James Franco stars as Fabious, a pretty-boy knight who must quest with his incompetent, jealous brother Thadeus (Danny McBride) to save his bride-to-be Belladonna (Zooey Deschanel). Natalie Portman comes in to support the cast as Isabel, the warrior-hottie love interest of Thadeus. The plot, while nothing spectacular, is certainly coherent and straightforward enough to deserve less criticism than it has been getting.

What is especially being picked apart in recent reviews, however, seems to be the humor. Your Highness marketed itself as a stupid but entertaining movie (how can a tagline like "Best. Quest. Ever" suggest otherwise?), and that was exactly what it was. Yes, there were maybe too many uncomfortably sexual jokes, especially the ones about molestation (although honestly, it's hard to take seriously when the perpetrator is a purple, weed-smoking jellyfish). And for those of you a bit more sensitive, the image of a minotaur's penis dangling from Danny McBride's neck may take a while to revert back into the subconscious. But I digress, being a part of the movie's target audience, I found it hilarious. Yes, the jokes were incredibly immature and there was no substantial theme to back the story up - this is probably why Your Highness failed where Pineapple Express (also directed by David Gordon Green) succeeded - but it was still an entertaining movie that succeeded in exactly what it set out to be.

Why did such a lowly but entertaining film like The Fast and Furious gain a 52% approval rating from critics on Rotten Tomatoes, while Your Highness gained just half of that? My theory is that people were expecting too much from recently lauded actors James Franco and Natalie Portman, and that given the surprisingly deep and emotional tone of the other Green-directed stoner movie Pineapple Express, Your Highness would be just as profound. Maybe Danny McBride (who wrote Your Highness with Ben Best) just isn't as insightful into emotional connections as Judd Apatow, Evan Goldberg, and Seth Rogen, who collectively wrote Pineapple Express. But that shouldn't stop you from enjoying Your Highness, in all its uncomfortable glory. Sometimes films come along that don't really have a great story but still succeed as comedic experiences (I would cite a personal favorite of mine, Dazed and Confused, as a prime example). And while many of the jokes in Your Highness are uncomfortable and downright weird, it still keeps you laughing the whole way. McBride, Franco, and Justin Theroux (who plays the sexually-awkward villain Leezar) give strong comedic performances with the lines they're given, and despite all the bad press, I still recommend Your Highness for anyone who is looking to simply relax and laugh at good, old-fashioned disgusting humor.

Hunger Games Trio Officially Cast: Lawrence, Hutcherson, Hemsworth

Suzanne Collins' Hunger Games trilogy is set to hit theatres next spring. The wildly popular young adult book series about a deadly reality TV competition in a post-apocalyptic world has fans predicting who will be cast and picking favorites. Lionsgate has now confirmed three of the film's stars: Jennifer Lawrence, Josh Hutcherson, and Liam Hemsworth.

Jennifer Lawrence stars as Katniss Everdeen, "Girl on Fire." Lawrence was relatively unknown until her role in Winter's Bone last year, which earned her an Oscar nomination for Best Actress (she was the second youngest actress to be nominated, ever).  Lawrence's role as Ree Dolly in Winter's Bone is not unlike the role of Katniss: both leading ladies are stubbornly loyal and take on the responsibility of their families. Additionally, Katniss becomes the rallying point for the revolution that could save her country (a post-apocalyptic North America). Director Gary Ross said that in Lawrence's audition "You glimpsed every aspect of the role and the potential of the whole movie." Author Suzanne Collins assured fans that she "watched Jennifer embody every essential quality necessary to play Katniss."

Josh Hutcherson first appeared on television at age ten. Last year he starred in The Kids Are All Right, and other notable credits include Bridge to Terebithia, Journey to the Center of the Earth, and the adorable romance Little Manhattan (he also voiced "Hero Boy" in The Polar Express. Cool.). Hutcherson will play Peeta, the eloquent artistic romantic with an unsuspecting tough side. Hutcherson, a huge fan of the book series, has been lobbying for the role for a while, and his passion for the character seems to have paid off. Collins said: "Josh totally captured Peeta's temperament, his sense of humor and his facility for language. I'm thrilled to have him aboard." Some fans are upset that Hutcherson has brown hair and brown eyes rather than Peeta's described blond hair blue eyes combo, but hopefully they'll calm down when they see him act the part as suitably as I have complete confidence he will.

Lawrence was cast before I began to read the books, and as soon as I heard that Hutcherson wanted to play Peeta I supported him 100%. However, I had never heard of Liam Hemsworth until he was mentioned on a list of possible Gales. Since his character is the most important one in the film (well...according to me. To be fair he probably won't be in this one as much as the other two, and certainly not as much as Katniss or Peeta.), hopefully he will take this immense responsibility seriously. Gale is Katniss's intelligent and fiercely brave hunting partner-in-crime. He does not compete in the Hunger Games, but plays a key role in the revolution. Producer Nina Jacobsen said: "Gale's journey across the three books transforms him, and Liam's performance left no doubt that he would take us there." (So that's good.). Hemsworth is most known for his role opposite Miley Cyrus in The Lost Song, which, to be fair, I haven't seen. Maybe it was awesome. That doesn't matter, as long as he is awesome.