MPAA to host 'Bully' screening

The MPAA will host a screening "Bully," the documentary that it is rankings board considered an "R" rating despite protest from producer Harvey Weinstein and activists. Weinstein will be a part of a panel following a March 15 screening in the MPAA's headquarters in Washington. Joining him would be the movie's director Lee Hirsch and Electricity Public Schools chancellor Kaya Henderson. The MPAA's rating triggered a petition drive where a Michigan senior high school student who was simply cajolled shipped some 200,000 signatures towards the trade association's Sherman Trees headquarters. Weinstein yet others have stated the "R" rating prevents them from showing the documentary in schools, and also to get its message to the crowd that it's to help. The "R" rating was handed towards the anti-bullying documentary for language. Contact Ted Manley at ted.manley@variety.com

Will John Carter of Tennessee Watch John Carter of Mars?

"Yes, because everybody's giving me a ration about it. I wish they would have named it something else because I have a weird background and now people keep accusing me of being reincarnated." I see. How about John Carter of Oklahoma? "Why are you calling? Oh. Well, he's been dead for over 10 years." [Moviefone]

Elizabeth Olsen's 'Silent House' Is Uninterrupted Horror

"Silent House" is not the first movie featuring a lone female protagonist fighting unknown horrors, trapped in a house she cant get out of, unable to call for help -- its not necessarily new, we get it. But the way "Silent House" is filmed goes a long way towards altering the type of scare the audience receives from every scene -- something that star Elizabeth Olsen was quick to elaborate on when she talked to MTV News. "I think whats cool is that we cant frame up a shot and then you know somethings going to happen, like the winds going to blow or an open curtain or a window or the curtain will just start blowing," Olsen said when asked how "Silent House" is set apart from its horror peers. "You dont have those moments where you can assume whats going to happen next because everythings discovered in the moment because of the way we dont edit things together." "I think its really cool to figure out how can you still get jumps without actually using editing to your benefit," she continued. "I think it almost creates an immediate tension." Olsen scrunched up her face when saying the last bit, because no one ever wants to seem to considerate about their art. Those artistic considerations werent immediately apparent during filming, which went about in such an unconventional way -- close camera, no editing -- that it took Olsen a moment to realize what a challenge it might be. "The first one was in the lamp room with all the cluttered space, when a carpet falls down and basically I have to fall down in that scene," she said. "Usually when theres a fall in a movie you cut and you put some padding on and put something on the floor. We didnt have that so that was done like 26 times trying to find the right spot to fall on my body." Not that the persistent injuries got her down. " I actually documented my bruises throughout this film," she said. "I took pictures of them because I think bruises are fascinating." "Silent House" is out tomorrow! We cant wait, and neither should you! Tell us what you think in the comments section or hit us up on Twitter!

Summit To Premiere Twilight Trailer In Theaters Before Hunger Games

It’s another instance of the synergy between Summit and Lionsgate following a two increased being one inch The month of the month of january. It merges among Hollywood’s finest teen-centered movie franchises in what Lionsgate hopes is certainly an a good deal bigger deal. Here’s today’s release: Santa Monica, CA, March 8, 2012 – Summit Entertainment’s lengthy looked forward to THE TWILIGHT SAGA: BREAKING Beginning – PART 2 will debut a teaser trailer in theaters with Lionsgate’s THE HUNGER GAMES on March 23, 2012. The next and final chapter inside the TWILIGHT SAGA, THE TWILIGHT SAGA: BREAKING Beginning – PART 2 can get to movie theaters on November 16, 2012. Academy Award champion Bill Condon directed both creation second part of the two-part finale starring Billy Burke, Rachelle Lefervre and Rachelle Lefervre. The project,using the fourth novel in author Stephenie Meyer’s “Twilight” series, was put together by Melissa Rosenberg with Wyck Godfrey, Karen Rosenfelt and Stephenie Meyer creating. Related: The Hunger Games Doing Twilight Saga-Large Online Advance Ticket Sales Sneak Take A Look At ‘Twilight: Breaking Beginning Part 2′

REVIEW: Project X, a Todd Phillips Production, Made for Those Who Find the Hangover Franchise Too Sophisticated

Im pretty sure I ruined the night of a pair teenage boys huddled in the back row of a recent screening of Project X, a party disaster movie targeted at kids who find the Hangover franchise too sophisticated. All I did was sit down beside them, but I may as well have poked my head up into their treehouse. Girls ruin everything, especially the unmitigated enjoyment of a new Todd Phillips movie. A few seconds after the lights when down, as a shrill junior impresario named Costa (Oliver Cooper) started shouting 2 Live Crew lyrics about wanting pussy, the one beside me began twisting in an agony I came to enjoy much more than the movie we were watching. Costa is not a complicated man. 2 Live Crew could actually do much of his speaking for him. This is hilariously ironic because Costa is a schlubby white kid who wears sweater vests and hangs out with two equally mollusk-like pals, JB (Jonathan Daniel Brown) and Thomas (Thomas Mann). The script, by Michael Bacall and Matt Drake, has enough "bitches" and "faggots" and midgets tossed into ovens to scandalize everybody, which seemed to be their best hope. When Project X begins Thomass parents are about to go away for the weekend to celebrate their anniversary, which also happens to be Thomass 17th birthday. Costa is pushing for a party, the big social event that will turn them into big time players at school. Oh, theres also Dax (Dax Flame), the kid who is documenting everything that happens. A note prefacing the movie (Warner Bros. would like to thank everyone who contributed footage) makes it clear that this will be another found footage exercise. After first drawing attention to the conceit, first-time director Nima Nourizadeh (Phillips is the producer and Project X is heavily branded with his name) lets it fade into the background. Especially once the party gets started, the ratio of intrepid, conceit-driven camerawork to slick video montages of booty-shorts bacchanalia is far enough out of whack that you wonder why they bothered with the construct in the first place. Phillips got his start in documentary, notably Frat House, the 1998 expos of fraternity life. Young Dax Flame, whom we glimpse once in a mirror shot, became a YouTube star by documenting his high school life in Texas. But Project X is not interested in showing us what its really like when a high school party goes nuclear. Like The Blair Witch Project and the recent Chronicle, it wants to apply the terms of found footage realism to an established genre. Although it behaves as if its closest antecedent is a John Hughes teen movie, Project X plays more like a blend of music video, College Rules-style porn, and apocalypse-gazing. Its all hyper-sensory flash and amateur titillation, aint it cool party-dogging and an ecstatic taxonomy of all the different ways you can drink a beer. Thomas, long, pale and apprehensive, does have a certain Alan Ruck vibe. And his father is quite protective of his fancy car. But further comparisons to Ferris Buellers Day Off will only make you want to cry. Over a thousand people show up at Thomass very swanky Pasadena house, and at every step his better judgment is overruled by the promise of popularity. A gorgeous neighborhood friend (Kirby Bliss Blanton) seems receptive, but Thomas is steered -- by Costa, who only gets more pointlessly awful as the night goes on -- to think more like a social climber, and go for the girl with the most cachet. Of course that girl, like all of the others, will remove her clothes more or less on command. Project X threatens to become slightly interesting just as the party enters a death spin and Thomas takes his first hit of ecstasy. Anyone who has thrown a bender while mom and dad were away and gotten in over his head knows the consequences really do feel like the end of the world. But the pitch of this amazingly fatuous, tediously low-toned, aggressively sensational movie is too erratic for the Im famous, bitch! nihilism of the finale to touch on anything real. It's just an adjustment of the volume in a movie that manages to look and feel as well as sound like endless noise. Follow Michelle Orange on Twitter. Follow Movieline on Twitter.

Associates: Professional shuffles

Fox News has marketed Irena Briganti to group senior veep of media relations for Fox News and Fox Business Network. She became a member of Fox News four several weeks before its bow in October 1996. NBCUniversal Cable Entertainment and Cable Galleries has upped Rafael Gomez to veep of economic matters. Lori Lynem has became a member of the department as veep and Tehmina Jaffer continues to be drawn on director of economic matters. Gomez continues to be using the Peacock's cable wing since 2005. Tim Bruno continues to be upped to senior Vice president of event production, talent development and studio relations for Viacom Entertainment Group. He'll oversee tentpole occasions for that Comedy Central, TV Land and Spike TV cablers, among other responsibilities. Adam Lewinson continues to be upped to senior veep of programming and production for Fox Movie Funnel and Forex Movie Funnel. He's been with Fox since 2004. Kristy Scanlan has became a member of Technicolor as veep of economic development for that animation group. Scanlan was formerly mind of production at Threshold Entertainment. Laurie Luh continues to be elevated to veep of human assets at Participant Media. Luh became a member of the organization in 2004 and today runs all office procedures and HR. Bravo has marketed Maria Laino Deluca to veep of trade marketing. She'll help lead multiplatform promotions and get the cabler's upfront presentation strategy. Tara Duncan has became a member of Fuse Entertainment as Vice president of development. She was formerly director of script development at AMC. Take advantage of Wussler joins Twentieth Television as Vice president ad sales and integration. He'd been a sales veep at NBCUniversal Television Distribution. Contact Variety Staff at news@variety.com

Disney Pacts With China VOD Service You If Needed

The sale with Disney Media Distribution follows the same one with Lionsgate’s Asian arm Celestial Tiger Entertainment and continues the ramp-in the service, which already includes a deal with Warner Bros. Here’s the release: NY, Feb. 22, 2012 — YOU If Needed Holdings, Corporation.’s (OTCBB: CBBD / CBBDD) PRC partnership, a respected Pay-Per-View (PPV) and Video If Needed (VOD) content company, today introduced it's signed an agreement with Disney Media Distribution, a distribution arm beneath the Wally Disney Company (New you are able to stock market: DIS), to distribute formally approved Disney films for Transactional Video If Needed (TVOD) and Subscription Video If Needed (SVOD) with the People’s Republic of China. Consequently from the deal, YOU If Needed is going to be adding Disney’s extensive library of game game titles, different from current hits like “The Help” and “Cars 2″ to Disney classics for instance “The Lion King,” “Mary Poppins” and “Beauty as well as the Animal” for the wide array of Hollywood hits inside you If Needed’s options. “We are very proud to make use of The Wally Disney Company to get the most effective work from home entertainment to China,” mentioned Shane McMahon, Chairman and Boss people If Needed. “Disney films define quality family entertainment which we’re thrilled that you just If Needed will probably be their showcase all over the world’s greatest television audience.”