By Drew Grant 5/21 4:41pm

Mad Men

Video

Next week on 'Mad Men': Roger sits in a chair. (AMC)

Man Men Advertising Not Even Trying to Appeal to New Viewers (Video)

The biggest complaint about the newest season of Mad Men is that it’s not interesting to people who haven’t seen the entire series. Actually, the biggest complaint is probably Megan…not that she’s terrible or anything, but Don Draper has definitely taken a backseat this year to his wife’s story lines about wanting to be an actress, being very French, and singing “Zou Bisou Bisou.” (The real sign that the times are a-changing? New York Magazine running with a cover of Jessica Pare to promote the show.)

But we can see how Mad Men‘s fifth season–which is very good–is a little inaccessible to first-time viewers. We’re surprised that no one has made a parody of the Mad Men promos this year, because they are essentially designed to contain no information about the upcoming episode, and make the show look very, very boring. Read More

By Drew Grant 5/09 5:47pm

Comedy

Video

Jon Hamm, the man (RookieMag.com)

Jon Hamm Gives Girls Love Advice for Tavi Gevinson’s Rookie Mag; Is Like A Real Life, Messy Don Draper (Video)

Jon Hamm is a curious leading man. After the success of Mad Men, Mr. Hamm made a conscious effort to differentiate himself from Don Draper by appearing almost exclusively in funny roles–everything from multiple SNL appearances to Bridesmaids to 30 Rock to the alt-comedy of Comedy Bang Bang! and Between Two Ferns.

But being a funny dude is taking its toll on Mr. Hamm, as evidenced by his recent appearance on RookieMag.com– that teen girl blog edited by Tavi Gevinson–where he just phoned (vlogged?) in the answers to relationship questions written by high school-aged girls. Read More

By Daniel D'Addario 3/23 9:00am

television

8 Photos

The youngest two Draper children

Nine Characters Mad Men Could Have Cut In Its Premiere

Mad Men has been off the air since October 2010–a lengthy absence prolonged in part due to protracted negotiations between creator Matthew Weiner and AMC over the show’s budget. Perhaps Mr. Weiner could have cut a few characters to save money, after all? If there happens to be another struggle before season six, we have a few suggestions! Read More

By Rex Reed 3/07 12:04pm

movies

Friends-With-Kids-3

Friends With Kids: Do-It-All Jennifer Westfeldt Paints a (Modern) Family Portrait

They say if the hope for a distinguished movie career becomes a steep climb in this age of hack directors, lousy scripts and formulaic trash, then do it all yourself. A lovely triple threat named Jennifer Westfeldt is putting this theory into fast-lane action. The cowriter and star of the independent film Kissing Jessica Stein now returns as producer, sole scriptwriter, director and star of Friends With Kids, a snappy and warmly observed film about the contemporary mores of dating hell, marriage and parenthood. She’s obviously been influenced by the candid, full-frontal assault on decency by people like Judd Apatow and the Farrelly Brothers, because the film sometimes borders on pornography, but it has more heart and is more intelligent and mature in every way. And Ms. Westfeldt gets a lot more than show-off obscenity from her actors. The tightly knit ensemble of friends and supporters she has drafted is committed and talented, and the camaraderie pays off. Read More

By Drew Grant 2/27 3:26pm

Mad Men

Video

What Would Don Draper Do? (AMC)

What Can We Predict for Mad Men’s Fifth Season Based on Teasers? (Video)

The long-awaited fifth season of Mad Men is just beginning to tease us with its marketing campaign, and so far are driving us crazy with their ambiguity. (For the love of god, someone release a photo of Draper in a wedding tux!)

Now that we have some video footage of Betty and some photos of Don Draper looking longingly at store mannequins, we are ready to make some guesses about next season. Read More

By Drew Grant 1/19 2:58pm

Jon Hamm

A real Hamm's Hamm

Don Draper Now Selling Cartoon Vocabulary Calendars on PBS (Video)

While we’re anxiously awaiting the March return of Mad Men after its year-long hiatus, we have to admit that the time off has given Jon Hamm the opportunity to show off his comedic side. 30 Rock, Bridesmaids, that time he did a reading for Jon Glaser about The Butthole Surfers, The Increasingly Poor Decisions of Todd Margaret, Between Two Ferns, and the upcoming Friends with Kids directed by (and starring) Mr. Hamm’s long-time girlfriend Jennifer Westfeldt are just a few examples.

Of course, you’ll never know where Jon Hamm might pop up next…like on a PBS Kid’s cartoon, perhaps? Read More

By Daisy Prince 2/13/11 3:35am

Fashion Week 2011

It was Hipster Heaven at Rag and Bone

The Rag and Bone show was so oversubscribed that the organizers needed a separate room for the overflow.  The people seated in the wallflower room had the forlorn air of a bunch of teenagers who hadn’t been asked to the prom so, instead of taking our seat in there, we opted to stand and watch the action Read More

By Rex Reed 9/22/10 1:47am

Need a Franco Fix? Skip Howl and Wait for His Next Movie

Howl is a quasi-documentary with an impressive group of actors centering on Allen Ginsberg and the four-part poem of social protest the Beat Generation guru published in 1955, which led to a celebrated obscenity trial in 1957. Now there’s a subject destined to draw millions to the cineplex. I wanted to see it for all Read More