Say goodbye to Jennifer Aniston: tabloid victim. Say hello to Jennifer Aniston: human punching bag.
Leave it to movie critics to deflate a feel-good celebrity comeback story: They ripped Aniston’s new movie “Rumor Has It …” to shreds.
What the–? Haven’t these critics heard of Team Aniston? Don’t they know Jen (left) needs to be protected from negative vibes after all she has been through this year? Apparently not. Here’s what some of them are saying.
“[The movie] devolves into a bland romance spiced with too little comedy. … [T]his ‘Rumor’ should pass quickly.”
VARIETY
” ‘Rumor Has It …’ is a slight movie in-joke in search of a feature-length reason to exist. It’s never found.”
LOS ANGELES DAILY NEWS
“[I]t’s not quite a comedy, nor can one call it a drama. And the only social satire consists of easy potshots at ‘old money’ Pasadena society.”
THE HOLLYWOOD REPORTER
SHIRLEY SHE CAN’T BE SERIOUS
Not everyone is abandoning Team Aniston. Aniston’s “Rumor” co-star Shirley MacLaine (right) reportedly jumped in to defend her from personal questions at a press junket to promote the movie. “I’d like to confirm that Vince Vaughn prefers older women and that Jennifer is just my beard,” MacLaine joked, according to the Calgary (Canada) Sun.
RIDING WITH THE KING
And you’re … not hired!
As Donald Trump said, last Thursday’s finale of “The Apprentice” certainly made for good TV. If you missed it, The Donald hired Randal Pinkett, then asked him if he should hire fellow contestant Rebecca Jarvis. Randal, to the surprise of most viewers, said no, touching off a controversy of blog-o-rific proportions.
There’s no one better to wade into the middle of a controversy than CNN’s Larry King. He hosted the three of them on his show Monday night. Behold the master interrogator at work. [REDEYE]
DONALD: Well, business is part of the business. This was Randal’s night. Randal wanted to be the apprentice. As he said, the show is “The Apprentice.” It’s not, as he also said, “The Apprenti.” Nobody is sure whether or not that is correct or not, but that’s OK.
RANDAL: That’s not a word.
DONALD: It may very well be correct, actually.
LARRY: Well, he [Randal] is the Rhode Scholar. Is there a word like “apprenti”?
RANDAL: No, the correct is “apprentices.”
DONALD: Yes, but I think there is a word “apprenti” now, Randal. You’ve created a word. It actually works a lot better than “apprentices.”
LARRY: We’ll come back with some questions for Rebecca in all this. Don’t go away.
CATTY CORNER
NO! WE CAN’T JUST GET ALONG!
Branch rants
For her next song, Michelle Branch ought to cover Queen’s “Under Pressure.”
The singer blasted fans in what mtv.com called “a late-night tirade” on the Web site for her band The Wreckers, laying into them for complaining about how long it was taking to release new music.
She also took on her record label for sending her on “a lame-ass tour” and making her record singles with Carlos Santana.
Bandmate Jessica Harp tried to downplay the incident, telling the Nashville Tennessean, “Everyone gets angry sometimes.”
The Wreckers’ album reportedly drops in May.
Using her religion
Does Kelly Clarkson have a problem with drinking? Nope. “Jesus drank,” she told Blender magazine. “It came straight from the Bible that he had a glass of wine. Actually, I don’t know if it says he actually drank it, but what-ever.”
Pay up?
Advisers to Michael Jackson are negotiating to prevent the singer from defaulting on $200 million in loans guaranteed by his stake in the Beatles’ song catalog, the Los Angeles Times reports. People familiar with the negotiations expected Jackson’s representatives to secure a six-month extension to repay the loans that were due Tuesday.
It’s a celebration
Celebrities mobbed a London nightclub for a glitzy bachelor party to toast the upcoming civil union between Elton John and David Furnish. Ozzy and Sharon Osbourne, Elizabeth Hurley and Kid Rock were among those present Monday night. Shirtless waiters wearing black ties and riding boots served guests flutes of champagne.
