#GreatestShowFan Contest

by Nathaniel R

Since a huge chunk of our readership has feelings about movie musicals, I though TFE should share this contest about The Greatest Showman. [Full disclosure: I do freelance work for Show-Score, the company running the contest but I'm not working on this particular thing]

To enter you just tweet or instagram or facebook out a selfie when you're at the movie or on your way to it or whatnot (anything celebratory to show your enthusiasm) and double hashtag it #Sweepstakes and #GreatestShowFan (yes ShowFan not ShowMan). Each day until January 2nd they'll choose 10 winners who'll receive $100 Amazon gift cards. 

P.S. If you do enter make sure to watch your social media as...

Sponsor will attempt to notify the potential winner(s) via social media commenting, social media messaging... If the potential winner does not respond before January 7, 2018 at 11:59pm, the entrant will be disqualified and the prize will go unclaimed.

A "Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again" Trailer Leaked. What Did We Learn?

by Jorge Molina

On Saturday night, a descendant of Aphrodite herself decided to manifest amongst us mortals in the form of a Twitter user who leaked the first trailer for Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again, the upcoming sequel to the hit musical (and yes, my most anticipated movie of 2018). 

The trailer was only up for around twelve hours (a blissful twelve hours!) before it was taken down. Expect a formal release of it soon, but until then, let’s put into use incognito screenshots and see what the trailer revealed about the movie. [Potential spoilers for the plot of Mamma Mia! 2 after the jump!]

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Stage Door: The Hilarious Cast of "Desperate Measures"

by Nathaniel R

Before we plunge into the deep end of movie awards season, which tends to consume our every waking moment from right now through Oscar night each year, a wee theater break.

Though we love movies with all our hearts, the one thing live-action movies don't really have an equivalent of is the grand theatrical tradition of the musical comedy. I'm talking inspired silliness as goddamn raison d'etre. I recently fell hard for Desperate Measures, a hilarious wild west riff on Shakespeare's Measure for Measure. The show has now been extended three times at the York Theatre in Manhattan and will close on New Year's Eve so get to it! (The York specializes in helping develop new musicals and I'm happy to call attention to this noble cause as a bonafide fanatic of the genre.)

I sat down recently to talk to with two of the musical's stars, strapping Peter Saide and rockstar feisty Lauren Molina, who both really "outta be in pictures" as they say though we're happy they're killing it on stage, don't misunderstand! The interviews are after the jump... 

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Crazy Ex-Girlfriend Won't Be Ignored, Dan

by Dancin' Dan

The posters for Crazy Ex-Girlfriend's third season warned us. In them, Rachel Bloom spoofed iconic imagery from Mad Men, Breaking Bad, and Basic Instinct, sending a clear message: Bloom's Rebecca Bunch is one of our great anti-heroes, and she's about to go full-tilt crazy. And those posters didn't even tell the half of it. We're only four episodes into the new season, and already Rebecca's life in West Covina appears to have reached the end of the line. Things are moving so fast that each episode so far has left me breathless, perpetually on the edge of my seat wating for the next installment.

It's the best, most daring show on air right now, and it's even more jam-packed with film references than before. BUT BE WARNED. Lots of spoilers after the jump...

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120 days til Oscar. "Best Dance Direction," anyone?

by Nathaniel R

It's your useless morning trivia! Guess what the 120th Oscar handed out was? If my calculations are correct -- I carefully counted through "Inside Oscar"'s brilliant year-by-year history to determine the order -- it was Best Dance Direction 1936 which went to Seymour Felix for "A Pretty Girl is Like a Melody" from The Great Ziegfeld. The famous number led up to the film's intermission. The film also won Best Picture. 

"Best Dance Direction" only lasted three years at the Oscars from 1935 through 1937.

Rather hilariously, the genius Busby Berkeley never won it though he was nominated all three years running and is the only man among the 11 nominated for that award that has any name recognition in the 21st century. Remember when Ryan Gosling was going to star as him in a biopic ? Too bad that never materialized! 

Here's Felix's winning number: