What a shocker! I went to see the top 100 sexiest stars from Empire Online only to find some of the really really sexy stars languishing in the bottom 50! Monica Belllucci is not in the top 10??? Gael Garcia Bernal, Cillian Murphy, Heath Ledger???

The List: Angelina Jolie takes the number 1 spot as the sexiest star in Empire's latest list. But we're more interested in seeing Natalie Portman at no.2! One of the most talented young actresses today, Portman has both substance and form, talent and charm.

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Says Empire:

Sexy, but in a ladylike ‘doesn’t flash her gusset at the paparazzi’ way, Portman is the pin-up for those who like their women as smart as they are slinky. Plus, she’s beautiful enough to make even baldness hot in V For Vendetta.

Sexiest Moment : There’s no denying the appeal of pole dancing in Closer. But the moment in Attack of the Clones when the Nexu revealed some toned royal midriff was Princess Leia and the gold bikini for a new generation.

"I was a disaffected teenager growing up in New Haven, and I used to rent obscure foreign films. I was a lot of fun (laughs). And Wim’s films always caught my eye. As I realized that I was going to do this nearly impossible thing, I had a short list of directors that satisfied my sensibility- which lies somewhere between “French Lieutenant’s Woman” and “Star Wars.” You figure it out," says Gabriel Mann.

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If you're not yet familiar with the guy, then you might recall seeing him in the first two Jason Bourne movies. Or better yet, if you're into indie films, you might remember him for his role in Wim Wender's Don't Come Knocking. Mann also happens to be a former male fashion model.

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tMF favorite Keira Knightley made it known that she's not interested in another Pirates movie. Says cinematical:

"At the press junket for Atonement in Manhattan on Tuesday, one brave soul piped up during the roundtables to ask Keira Knightley if she was or was not interested in returning for a fourth Pirates of the Caribbean film. You may remember that the third one ended on that rather ambiguous note, but then sort of doubled-back with a pretty definitive, boxed-into-a-corner end-credit teaser. Knightley seemed to be ready for this question and had a very definitive answer. She quickly responded, with a tone of sadness and seriousness in her voice, “I can’t imagine doing another one. That was an amazing experience, really was, totally extraordinary, but I think three for me is probably enough.”

That's good news, actually. The first Pirates really made such an impression and people just loved it. But the next 2 sequels seem to be not at par with the original and Keira's character never really connects with the audience. She is such a terrific actress and to see her look so tired and uninterested, is simply not fair.

Brothers Ben and Casey Affleck are a study of contradiction. There seems to be no striking resemblance between the two, even the way the media looks at them. But they have been working together in various film projects from the start. While Casey seems to be the 'brooding, silent' type, Ben is the exact opposite. Hugging the limelight early on, Ben Affleck is best known not only for his roles in some amazing films, but also for being part of a number of box office failures of recent years. But let's concentrate on the younger Affleck for now...

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Casey began his acting career almost quietly. He was amazing in The Last Kiss with Zach Braff, and in Gerry with Matt Damon. But in two recent features, he was simply outstanding.

If there is any news about Ryan Gosling, expect tMF to be one of the first to put it on the headlines. After the buzz surrounding his exit from the new Peter Jackson film, The Lovely Bones, Gosling is the subject of an interview for GQ Magazine (see photo below) and an awesome article about the young actor was recently launched.

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Says Michael Giltz

"When does an artist begin to matter? When do they become someone you know you'll be following for years to come, someone you're going to watch in any movie (good or bad) to see what they're doing and what they're becoming?

For Ryan Gosling, it happened with his Oscar-nominated turn in "Half Nelson," an indie film in which he played a crack-addicted schoolteacher and did it with such style, such grace and with so much of the performance embedded in his eyes that even a fool (ie Oscar voters) could see this was the start of something wonderful. [ read complete article ]

He has the looks, the charm and a voice that hypnotizes young teenage girls. French rock singer Pierrick Lilliu may have been the runner-up in the French reality show Nouvelle Star (French Idol) in 2005, but he has since out shone the eventual winner in more ways than one. The talented Lilliu is the eldest of three siblings: his younger brother Nicolas has also recently entered the music scene. With a husky rock-and-roll kinda voice, Pierrick proved that he has the talent and the looks to outlast the competition.

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And now he’s also into acting! In LE HEROS DE LA FAMILLE, Lilliu plays one of the lead characters, Fabrice. He joins a star-studded cast which includes Catherine Deneuve, Gérard Lanvin and Emmanuelle Béart.

"Le héros de la famille" is the story of a cabaret in Nice called "Le perroquet bleu" (The blue parrot). The innkeeper, Gabriel(le) dies at the beginning of the movie and leave his business to his godchildren : Nino and Marianne, whose father (the magician played by Gérard Lanvin) had been taken under Gabriel's wing when he was fifteen years old. After the reading of the will, the fate of the Blue Parrot is in their hands.

[ More of Pierrick Lilliu ] [ Official Movie site for Le Heros ]

“You can enjoy the film like a Faust story: an old man gets young, has an
opportunity to finish his great work and fall in love again, but can’t finish the work because of love…that is his ultimate sacrifice. But it can also be an educational opportunity to learn more about Eastern philosophy,” says Francis Ford Coppola.

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He's talking about his new film, Youth Without Youth. Adapted from a novella by Mircea Eliade, it tells the story of Dominic Matei (who is played by Tim Roth) as an aging professor of linguistics who survives a cataclysmic event to find his youth miraculously restored. Dominic's physical rejuvenation is matched by a highly evolved intellect, which attracts the attention of Nazi scientists, forcing him into exile. While on the run, he reunites with his lost love, Laura, and works to complete his research into the origins of human language. When his research threatens Laura’s well being, Dominic is forced to choose between his life’s work and the great love of his life. Youth Without Youth also stars Alexandra Maria Lara, Bruno Ganz, Alexandra Pirici, Marcel Iures and Andre M. Hennicke.

Ever since seeing him in Catch and Release with Jennifer Garner, we're been following his career. Now there is news about an upcoming film featuring the actor alongside another tMF favorite, Joe Anderson.

Ernio Hernandez reports: Timothy Olyphant and Joe Anderson have been cast in the upcoming screen version of Lee MacDougall's play High Life, according to Variety.

Gary Yates (Seven Times Lucky) will direct the adaptation he co-wrote with MacDougall. The trade publication notes that production has already begun on the film from Triptych Media, Shoreline Entertainment and Buffalo Gal Pictures. Based on the original stage play, High Life centers on a bank heist enacted by four junkies.

Olyphant (Deadwood, Hitman, Go), who has appeared on stage in The Santaland Diaries and The Monogamist, will head the cast opposite Anderson (Across the Universe), Stephen Eric McIntyre (The Lookout) and Rossif Sutherland (Poor Boy's Game).

MacDougall's High Life earned the first-time scribe an Outstanding New Play honor at the 1996 Dora Mavor Moore Awards. The work made its American premiere at Primary Stages in 1999.

Olyphant was recently featured in an interview with the NY Post and he was quite frank about his roles and how he is perceived by fans and moviegoers...

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Review by David DiMichele

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"Corruption is why you and I are prancing around here instead of fighting over scraps of meat out in the streets. Corruption is why we win."
- Syriana

"Do the right thing Mookie."
- Do the Right Thing

Here comes an intense, smart, and deep thriller from first time director Tony Gilroy. Though it’s his first time behind the camera, he has been writing for quite some time, most notably the three Bourne films. He knows how to construct an important film. You can probably thank Clooney as well because he has made his fair share of smart and intelligent films such as Syriana, Good Night and Good Luck, and The Good German.