Former Strictly Come Dancing pro Graziano Di Prima has landed himself a role in a movie, less than a year after being axed from the BBC show. The 30 year old was forced to leave Strictly last year following allegations made against him about his treatment of his 2023 celebrity dancer partner Zara McDermott –…
Leonardo DiCaprio and Kate Winslet had a heartwarming reunion 27 years after their iconic roles in Titanic. The pair were spotted at a screening of Kate’s new film, Lee, at Harmony Gold in Los Angeles on Tuesday, November 19. The duo, who played Jack Dawson and Rose DeWitt Bukater in James Cameron’s 1997 blockbuster, looked…
Goa, Nov 24: ‘Rador Pakhi’ (Morning Sunshine), directed by Bobby Sarma Baruah, left viewers deeply moved during its screening at the ongoing 55th International Film Festival of India (IFFI) here in Goa. The film, a story of resilience and inspiration, brought tears to many and motivated many more viewers at Inox Screen 2.“This story is so motivating. It can inspire many as it is based on reality,” said Akash Malhotra, one of the viewers who appreciated the film. ‘Rador Pakhi’ is one of three films from Assam selected for the prestigious Indian Panorama section of IFFI. The 129-minute film is based on the life of Sarmistha Pritam, a young writer from Assam diagnosed with Spinal Muscular Atrophy — a rare degenerative neuromuscular disease. Despite the challenges, she has overcome incredible odds to achieve her dreams. In the film, Sarmistha’s character is renamed Jyoti. The story portrays how Jyoti refuses to let her struggles define her. Despite life’s hostility, she embraces her challenges with courage, balancing her family obligations with her aspirations to become an acclaimed author. Her inspiring journey is one of perseverance and hope, motivating many who face adversities in life.“It’s a fantastic feeling to be selected for the Indian Panorama at IFFI. People who truly understand cinema come here to watch films. The response to our film has been overwhelming. I’m truly glad and honoured,” said director Bobby Sarma Baruah while speaking to The Assam Tribune.Commenting on the motivation behind making the film, Bobby added, “I wanted to tell Jyoti’s story because I believe we often let petty struggles exhaust us. When I came across Jyoti, I was amazed at how she remained optimistic about becoming a writer, despite her physical limitations and the challenges life threw at her. Her journey inspired me deeply.” She further said, “The film conveys an important message — that the fire to fight and overcome obstacles lies within us. It’s a reminder that the only real barrier to achieving our dreams is ourselves, not external challenges.” The film is jointly produced by Bobby Sarma Baruah, Sulakhyana Baruah — who also plays the protagonist — and Basanta Kumar Baruah.Speaking about her role as Jyoti, Sulakhyana said, “It was both challenging and inspiring to portray Jyoti. The struggles the character has endured are immensely powerful. It was physically demanding, but to play such a role has been a blessing for me.”
A holiday film written and directed by Arkansas native Clayton Guiltner makes its streaming debut later this week.”Hope’s Hollywood Christmas,” starring Lisa Fenimore, Charlie Wood and Claire Montgomery, tells the story of a struggling single mom who takes a job with an aging movie star and teams up with the…
Celebrated actor Manisha Koirala (“Bombay,” “1942: A Love Story,” “Khamoshi”) and filmmaker Vikramaditya Motwane (“Udaan,” “Trapped”) discussed the evolving landscape between theatrical and streaming platforms during a session at the International Film Festival of India (IFFI) in Goa, where Koirala also revealed plans to write a comedy book about 1990s and 2000s actresses adapting to Gen Z culture.
“For me as an actor, be it for the big screen or web series, it’s the same amount of work that is needed, sincerity needed. The preparation, mind frame, everything is the same,” said Koirala, who recently starred in Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s hit Netflix series “Heeramandi: The Diamond Bazaar.”
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Motwane, who directed Prime Video’s “Jubilee” and Netflix’s “Sacred Games,” noted that streaming offers more creative flexibility. “The wonderful part of streaming is that you’re not stuck to saying with theatrical that okay, you have to make a movie two to two and a half hours. You have a story, you have a peg – this can be a movie, this can be 10 episode hour-long episodes over five seasons, this can be 20 minute episodes.”
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The filmmaker, whose debut feature “Udaan” screened at Cannes, revealed that “Sacred Games,” an adaptation of Vikram Chandra’s bestselling novel, served as a learning experience in series format. “Netflix said okay, here’s the book. We took the book and broke down the book. It took six months longer than it should have, but we figured it out. Understanding how this format works, what a cliffhanger is, why you need a cliffhanger at the end if you want people to jump to the next episode.”
Both agreed that streaming has opened more opportunities for diverse storytelling and roles for veteran actresses. “Thanks to the OTT [streaming] platforms, plus the audience also, even in cinema, the older actresses are doing meaty roles,” Koirala noted. “The space is there for them because the audience’s mind and heart has expanded.”
The filmmaker revealed that working in streaming has made him more efficient in feature filmmaking. “My learnings from ‘Sacred Games’ and ‘Jubilee’ actually helped me in features, because I can shoot much quicker now. We pulled off five pages a day. All of ‘Jubilee,’ which is 10 episodes, hour-long episodes, was shot in 90 days, including 10 lip sync songs.”
Motwane pointed out that India is still adapting to the showrunner format common in international series. “We still haven’t got used to the showrunner format in this country. We need to gestate this, we need for this to build a little bit more, and that’s how you’ll get a lot more new directors coming.”
The rise of private viewing on mobile devices has also impacted content consumption patterns in India, according to Motwane. “India is a country that adopted internet first through its phones, not through broadband. Most people’s first device of choice is their phone, which makes it private viewing.”
The session was curated by festival director Shekhar Kapur.
LOADINGERROR LOADINGJosh Brolin has opened up about a tense moment between him and Denzel Washington where the two “almost got into a fight” on the set of Ridley Scott’s 2007 movie “American Gangster.”Brolin — in an interview with Graham Bensinger published on Wednesday — noted that the two “get along very well now” before recalling the near dust-up on a day when Washington showed up “a little late” to the set.Advertisement
“There was a whole thing there and then he showed me the lines and he said — he didn’t change any of my lines but he kind of changed the structure of it. He said, ‘I think I’m going to put this down here and I’m going put that up there,’ but he wouldn’t really look at me,” Brolin explained.Brolin added that he was trying to remember the structure and he didn’t have “that many lines” to memorize.“And I’m supposed to be super confident. It’s Denzel Washington, man. It’s like not easy. You’re just this actor who they’re trying out, seeing if he’s the real thing or not,” said Brolin, who is currently on a media tour for his new memoir “From Under the Truck.”He said he forgot a line so he put his hand on Washington’s shoulder in a move that seemingly set the actor off.Advertisement
“I said, ‘What’s the line?’ and he hit my hand off and he said, ‘Don’t ever fucking put your hand on me.’ And I was like, ’Holy shit, I’m gonna scrap with Denzel Washington. This is crazy,” said Brolin, who played Detective Trupo in a film where Washington starred as drug kingpin Frank Lucas.He continued, “We’re not actors anymore, at least in my mind. In his mind, he was just doing his job. He was that guy. He was Frank Lucas. Period. But I didn’t know.”The two would eventually get past the heated moment and asked each other if they were OK before Brolin asked for his line again.“He said, ‘Go for it.’ It’s like he’d said what he needed to say,” Brolin said of Washington, who has since reunited with Scott on the filmmaker’s latest movie “Gladiator II.”Advertisement
Brolin has previously credited “American Gangster,” Washington’s highest-grossing movie, for saving him when he was “totally broke.”The actor, in an appearance on the “Hawk vs Wolf” podcast with Tony Hawk and Jason Ellis, recalled his lawyer calling him and urging him to check his email following the film’s release.“I looked at it and I was like ‘Thank God.’ I thought it was like $60,000 and it literally saved me even though that was going to be taxed and all that, I’d probably end up with 30 grand, 25 grand after commissions and all that. And it turned out that it wasn’t 60,” said Brolin, who confirmed he was off by one zero.We Need Your SupportOther news outlets have retreated behind paywalls. At HuffPost, we believe journalism should be free for everyone.Would you help us provide essential information to our readers during this critical time? We can’t do it without you.Can’t afford to contribute? Support HuffPost by creating a free account and log in while you read.You’ve supported HuffPost before, and we’ll be honest — we could use your help again. We view our mission to provide free, fair news as critically important in this crucial moment, and we can’t do it without you.Whether you give once or many more times, we appreciate your contribution to keeping our journalism free for all.You’ve supported HuffPost before, and we’ll be honest — we could use your help again. We view our mission to provide free, fair news as critically important in this crucial moment, and we can’t do it without you.Whether you give just one more time or sign up again to contribute regularly, we appreciate you playing a part in keeping our journalism free for all.Support HuffPostAlready contributed? Log in to hide these messages.“And I fucking started crying.”Relateddenzel washingtonjosh brolinAmerican Gangster filmAubrey Plaza Wrote Adam Scott A Hilarious Note After He Nabbed ‘Parks And Rec’ RoleTed Danson Says People Kept Mistaking Him For Another Actor — And They Look Nothing AlikeCher Slams Famous ‘A**hole’ Director She Worked With: ‘I Really, Really Disliked Him’
It took just one visit to Danville about two years ago for Nancy Parrish to become smitten with the River City.Parrish, who recently opened her interior design business, HUE by Nancy Parrish Interiors, at 530 Craghead St., Suite 104, decided to move and expand her venture from Charlotte, North Carolina, after working on a project here for a local friend and client in May 2022.“I instantly fell in love with the charm of the city and its people, so much so that my husband and I moved here shortly after,” Parrish, 55, told the Danville Register & Bee. “She opened the business Nov. 12.
Nancy Parrish opened her interior-design business and retail store, HUE by Nancy Parrish Interiors, at 530 Craghead St., Suite 104, on Nov. 12.
John R. Crane, Register & Bee
She was especially taken with the River District, which has been undergoing a a transformation over roughly the last decade.“The River District, in particular, caught my eye because of its vibrant community, unique charm and the opportunity to be part of an up-and-coming area that perfectly aligns with my design style and business goals,” Parrish said. “Once my husband and I made the decision to move to Danville, I knew I had to find the right commercial space to launch HUE and the arts district was the perfect match.”
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During her visit two-and-a-half years ago, she was impressed by the proactive approach businesses were taking to revitalize the downtown’s architecture.“The influx of new businesses and residents highlights the dynamic transformation taking place,” Parrish said.She began providing interior design work in her native Charlotte in 2014 through Nancy Parrish Interiors, after a career working in human resources in the corporate industry.“I made the bold decision to follow my true passion for interior design,” she said.Before coming to Danville, Parrish performed interior design work. But with her new endeavor, she has added a retail store to her business.Parrish offers a range of tailored design services and products at her new location. They include curated store and custom furnishings.Available items and services include custom textiles and wall coverings, artwork, gifts, home accents and decor, jewelry, apparel and accessories, design consultations and full-service design.“I’m thrilled to have a store that goes way beyond retail,” Parrish said. “Customers will discover a curated collection of my favorite finds, handpicked to inspire and elevate any residential or commercial space.”For anyone interested in more extensive interior design work, HUE offers full-service design to refresh a single room or an entire home, she said.Parrish’s services are aimed at customers “in their late 30s-40s — maybe older, but young at heart,” she said.“They love brands that are a bit exclusive, such as Currey & Company, Arteriors, Bernhardt as well as custom furnishings and vintage items — not necessarily because they want to show off or flaunt wealth, but because they like to feel different from the norm,” Parrish said. “They’re drawn to things that are a bit bold, unexpected — statement-makers and showpieces. They love the ‘wow’ factor.”
Nancy Parrish opened her interior-design business and retail store, HUE by Nancy Parrish Interiors, at 530 Craghead St., Suite 104, on Nov. 12.
John R. Crane, Register & Bee
As for the role interior design plays in a person’s life, it’s more than just hanging pictures on walls and filling space. It can express who a person is and reflect their lifestyle.“In today’s fast-paced world, having a home that embodies your individuality is essential for well-being,” Parrish said.The philosophy behind interior design is nothing new for Parrish. She knows the psychological influence it has on individuals. Parrish holds a bachelor’s degree in industrial/organizational psychology from the University of North Carolina at Charlotte.As for her business’s location in the River District, Parrish connected with Rick Barker Properties, which has been redeveloping the 500 block of Craghead Street, and “felt an immediate sense of alignment,” she said.“Everything about this venture feels perfectly timed and completely in sync with the community,” Parrish said.Also, interior-design ventures are all too common in Charlotte, she added.“The market in Charlotte is saturated with designers,” Parrish said, adding that she always wanted to open a retail store. HUE will fill a niche in Danville, she said.She also likes Danville’s central location in relation to other, larger cities nearby — Charlottesville, Greensboro, Raleigh-Durham and, of course, Charlotte.Parrish and her husband have two children and a 6-month-old granddaughter. They also have a dog, a Boston Terrier named Muggsy.She plans to hire a junior designer in the future.“We’ll see how it grows,” she said.Her business’s hours are 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Tuesday, Thursday and Friday, 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Wednesday and 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday. Her store is closed Sunday and Monday.
It’s proving to be a busy period for Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson, sometime WWE professional wrestler and Hollywood film star. Well, another one. Red One, a Christmas-themed action movie (Johnson plays Santa Claus’s bodyguard), was released earlier this month. The Disney animation, Moana 2 (for which he voices the tattooed demigod Maui) is about to be released. He is also in the process of filming the new live-action version of Moana, and embarking on another Disney movie, Monster Jam.If anyone is surprised by Johnson’s repeated donning of the cinematic mouse ears, or by his general presence in children’s films, they shouldn’t be. While he is probably still best known for the Fast & Furious film franchise, and other flexes of his big-screen muscle, he has long been a staple in family movies. With his reputed $50m fee for Red One, and with an estimated net worth of about $800m, he has become one of Hollywood’s highest paid stars. Johnson also made the Time magazine 100 list of influential people – not once but twice, in 2016 and 2019.The Rock should run for US president, you may josh. That very suggestion was tested by a sizeable 2021 poll resulting in 46% of Americans saying they would back him (more of which anon).If, for some of us, Johnson does not register on our radar, leastways not in these rarefied zones, or to such an extent, then we haven’t been paying attention.These days, it’s not just about The Rock’s success, it’s also about the spread of it: films; wrestling; television; sundry business ventures; calls to go into politics.For all that, outside the US Johnson could represent something of a cultural blind spot. As in, you’ll have heard of Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson (probably), but he’s not someone you’d necessarily place in Hollywood’s top starry tier (you’re wrong). Doesn’t he just do fighting-grunting acting, and otherwise mainly stands there like a block of crudely honed wood? (You may be thinking of Jean-Claude Van Damme.)View image in fullscreenJohnson, 52, has a large dedicated female fanbase, with wider reach than you would think. He has talked honestly and regretfully of his troubles with depression, and past personal mistakes. A father of three daughters, his ex-wife is still his friend and business partner. In 2018, on International Women’s Day holding his eight-year-old daughter Jasmine (“Jazzy”) in his arms, he posted a message on then-Twitter: “To every woman out there ‘round the world – all ages and races – I proudly stand by your side to honour, protect and respect.”Saying that, Johnson’s appeal seems not one iota dependent on what women are supposed to like. Certainly not if reports about how macho rugged guys are currently “out” are correct – and modern women prefer prettier, more feminised men, offscreen and on, from Brad Pitt to One Day’s Leo Woodall.By contrast, The Rock represents the kind of male archetype that never truly goes out of fashion, primarily because such a solid unyielding block of men really like him, maybe even need him – viewing the unbridled alpha masculinity of his action movies as a form of rebellion against modern world reprimands and restrictions. Judged by these metrics, Johnson’s brand of masculinity is focus group-proof.If The Rock is now one of the most successful film stars in the world, the product isn’t always so celebrated. His humorous family-friendly film persona is nothing new; it’s an update on the mainstream “gentle giant” trope popularised by Arnold Schwarzenegger in the 1980s and 90s, with films such as Twins (1989) and Kindergarten Cop (1991). There’s nothing wrong with that, but the standard has to remain reasonably high.Despite costing a reputed $200m, some Red One reviews have been un-festively negative. The one-and-a-half star review from the well-read Roger Ebert site ended with the words “a state of unconsciousness might be the best way to enjoy it”.Johnson’s on-set behaviour has also been the subject of unflattering reports – including the Fast & Furious camp, allegedly involving Vin Diesel, Jason Statham, and Johnson (who now stars with Statham in the Fast & Furious Presents: Hobbs & Shaw spin-off series). The rumours mainly involved the alpha-male actors demanding scripts be tweaked so that their characters always won fights, which (oh, the irony) made them all look a little pouty and beta.On the Red One set, there were reports of Johnson arriving late, putting filming behind schedule (Johnson says his timings were pre-arranged), and, when away from his trailer, urinating in water-bottles that were then handed to assistants to dispose of (“Yeah, that happens,” admitted Johnson in a GQ magazine interview).Acting alpha is one thing; behaving like a spoiled boorish A-lister quite another, and damaging to Johnson’s earthy, blue-collar public profile (with parents in the wrestling community, the young Johnson constantly moved around the US so that his late father could wrestle).If The Rock as real-world US presidential material seems far-fetched, the 2021 poll suggests otherwise, as seemingly does Johnson. Posted on Instagram, his response was: “I don’t think our founding fathers EVER envisioned a six-four, bald, tattooed, half-Black, half-Samoan, tequila drinking, pickup truck driving, fanny pack-wearing guy joining their club – but, if it ever happens, it’d be my honour to serve you, the people.”View image in fullscreenThere have been screen-to-politics trajectories before: Ronald Reagan, Schwarzenegger, even Donald Trump. After the poll result, Johnson said he was visited by various political parties but, if he does ever run for office, what are his leanings?Increasingly, Johnson seems to suffer from wandering politics. In 2020, he called himself “centrist”, and declared for Joe Biden and Kamala Harris. Fast-forward to 2024, and Donald Trump was claiming on talkSPORT that when Johnson saw footage of the assassination attempt, he asked for Trump’s contact details, as the film star had been impressed by his bravery (Trump did not say whether Johnson had been in touch).Johnson also told Fox News he would not be endorsing Harris for president, and that he “would keep my politics to myself”.But he has also expressed his frustrations: “Today’s cancel culture, woke culture, division, etcetera – that really bugs me.” Is The Rock suffering from a bad dose of liberal buyer’s regret? Or is it rather his feeling, and of other interested parties, that should he ever run for office, it’s more likely Republicans who would prove supportive?Getting back to the day job, there are signs that Johnson may be chafing against his stereotyping in action films and family comedies. He is producing and starring in (alongside Emily Blunt) a forthcoming film The Smashing Machine, playing a character based on Mark Kerr, a wrestler and mixed martial artist from the 1990s, whose addictions nearly destroyed him.If this news instantly causes an eyebrow to arch (The Rock in a wrestling Raging Bull?), maybe it’s time to wonder if, with Johnson, it’s a case of: it’s not him, it’s us. Are people being snobbish about him trying to stretch himself? Are we just as guilty of buying into macho stereotypes – only in slightly knowing, ironic films such as this year’s Ridley Scott sequel Gladiator II?Perhaps we have not yet learned our lesson about underestimating The Rock. While some of us were not really looking, Dwayne Johnson, cultural outlier, got incredibly big – and in ways beyond his bulked-up physical frame. It could be time to take more notice.
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GOD’S WORD: “The heavens declare the glory of God; and the firmament shows His handiwork.” – Psalm 19:1
By Glenn Miller
We live in a world where science has permitted us to answer many mysteries of the Universe. To some, we have come so far as to think that everything is a product of science and can be explained quantitatively and empirically; that faith in a higher being or a God we cannot see is just a hoax or, as some have said, is a crutch that the “unenlightened” use when they can’t explain things.
But my observation today is that science in no way contradicts a Sovereign and Omnipotent God. In fact, the more we grow in science, the more it points to the existence of God. When you think about it, every piece of scientific evidence and discovery of the universe’s existence is a gift from God. He created every scientist and enabled each of their minds to unveil His handiwork. Science has been able to discover that A happens because of B and B because of C and so on. But as far down that path as we’ve been able to point, science has never been able to explain the very origin of all things. Example: the Big Bang Theory theorizes that it was a bang of masses of gas and matter… but where did those gases and matter come from? The search for the bottom of the barrel is never ending.
The smartest and most prolific scientists since the beginning of time have come to this same conclusion.
Blaise Pascal was a brilliant mathematician in 17th century France. He is credited with discovering principles that would ultimately lead to the creation of the computer. Pascal said, “Faith tells us what science cannot, but it is not contrary to their findings. It simply transcends, without contradicting them.” Pascal also said, “Jesus Christ is the only proof of the living God. We only know God through Jesus Christ.”
Isaac Newton, the discoverer of gravity and one of the greatest scientists who ever lived, wrote more about the Bible and about Christian theology than he did science. Said the great Newton: “I have a foundational belief in the Bible as the Word of God, written by men who were inspired. I study the Bible daily.”
The father of modern chemistry was Oxford professor Robert Boyle, born in 1627. Boyle was not only a diligent student of chemistry, but a diligent student of the Bible. In his will he left a large sum of money to found the “Boyle lectures” for proving the Christian religion.
19th century American Matthew Fontaine Maury is credited as the father of oceanography. He got his idea that the sea has “lanes” and currents from a verse in the Bible. Psalm 8:8 speaks of “the fish of the sea that pass through the paths of the seas.” One time Maury gave a speech at the inauguration for a college in which he said, “I have been blamed by men of science, both in this country and in England, for quoting the Bible in confirmation of the doctrines of physical geography. The Bible, they say, was not written for scientific purposes, and is therefore of no authority in matters of science. I beg your pardon: the Bible is authority for everything it touches.” That includes, he said, “physical geography, the earth, the sea and the air.”
The late Dr. Robert Jastrow was an astronomer and a planetary physicist with NASA, and he wrote a book called, God and the Astronomers. Jastrow noted, “The scientist has scaled the mountains of ignorance; he is about to conquer the highest peak; and as he pulls himself over the final rock, he is greeted by a band of theologians who have been sitting there for centuries.”
Science doesn’t disprove the existence of God… it simply validates it.
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