‘The School for Good and Evil’ Review: Ever Afters and Never Afters
Two best friends, Sophie (Sophia Anne Caruso) and Agatha (Sofia Wylie), are the adolescent outcasts of a quaint Arthurian-style town named Gavaldon: Sophie dreams of a glamorous life as a princess and Agatha seems to channel Sabrina the teenage witch. When Sophie makes a desperate wish to escape her provincial surroundings, she and Agatha are transported to a school for storybook heroes and villains. The problem is that they’re sorted into opposite houses: Despite her fantasies of ball gowns and princes, Sophie is cast in the gloomy halls of the evildoers, and Agatha, with her witchy name and affinity for black clothes, is stuck in the cotton-candy-pink halls of the princesses.
Sophie aims to prove that she’s really meant to be a princess, but in the process is seduced by a greater evil; and Agatha, seeing the maniacal plots afoot, tries to save Sophie and return them home.
In many ways “The School for Good and Evil” is cringe-worthy: cheesy special effects; blatant telegraphing of plot points; crude world-building and scant character development; cloyingly oversaturated, superficially glossy cinematography and precious direction; ridiculous action (fireballs kicked like soccer balls, weaponized hot chocolate), set to a soundtrack of teenage-girl angst (Billie Eilish, Olivia Rodrigo).
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Packers fall to Giants in London, 27-22
Green Bay lets 17-3 lead in second quarter get away
LONDON – The Packers played a strong first half but couldn't score offensively in the second half and let a lead get away in losing a very disappointing game to the Giants, 27-22, on Sunday at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.
With the loss, the Packers fell to 3-2. The Giants improved to 4-1.
Green Bay led 17-3 in the second quarter on two Aaron Rodgers TD passes to TE Marcedes Lewis and WR Allen Lazard, and the Packers led 20-10 at the half when K Mason Crosby was good from 48 yards on the final play of the first half.
But the Giants put together methodical scoring drives in the second half to score 17 unanswered points for a 27-20 lead, and the Packers last chance died inside the New York 10-yard line. Facing third-and-2 from the 7, Rodgers had back-to-back passes batted away at the line of scrimmage to turn the ball over on downs with just over a minute left.
The Giants ran as much time as possible before taking a safety out of punt formation, and then after the free kick the Packers couldn't get the Hail Mary off as Rodgers' arm was hit while trying to heave it.
News Source: Wes Hodkiewicz & Mike Spofford, www.packers.com
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England beat USWNT 2-1 in thrilling Wembley friendly
European champions England scored a rare 2-1 win over the World Cup holders United States women's national team in a pulsating friendly at London's Wembley Stadium on Friday.
In front of a sellout crowd of almost 77,000, the entertainment on the field more than lived up to the hype, particularly in a thrilling first half that saw three goals. Lauren Hemp and a Georgia Stanway penalty gave England the goals they needed, either side of a goal from Sophia Smith that briefly drew the U.S. level.
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Trump's Truth Social barred from Google Play
Former US President Donald Trump's social media platform has been barred from Google Play.
Google says the platform violates its policies on prohibiting content like physical threats and incitement to violence.
The move makes it difficult for users with Android phones to download the app.
Devin Nunes, the CEO of Truth Social, has previously called Google a "monopoly".
Truth Social launched on Apple's App Store in February, though the roll-out was beset by problems.
However, the app isn't available on Google Play, where the vast majority of apps are downloaded on Android phones.
Last week Truth Social's CEO said the decision on whether the app would be available was "up to the Google Play Store".
But Google says it's down to Truth Social to comply with its rules.
A Google spokesperson told the BBC: "On August 19 we notified Truth Social of several violations of standard policies.
"Having effective systems for moderating user-generated content is a condition of our terms of service for any app to go live on Google Play," they added.
Google says it has offered Truth Social advice on how to fix the problems. Truth Social did not respond to the BBC's request for comment.
Truth Social is often described as a "free speech" platform.
However, for the app to be downloadable on the vast majority of the world's phones it needs to be approved by Apple and Google.
Far from Truth Social being a place of unfettered free speech, the platform in fact has many rules on what you can and cannot say.
In fact, Truth Social has a long list, in its Terms of Service, of things that can and cannot be posted.
The platform was founded by Mr Trump, and is where the former president chooses to post on social media. Mr Trump was banned from Twitter and Facebook after last year's US Capitol riot.
Critics argue that Truth Social has a problem with disinformation and hate speech.
A report released on Monday found 47 verified accounts that promoted QAnon conspiracy theories on the platform.
NEWS SOURCE: James Clayton, BBC NEWS
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Deadpool actor T.J. Miller says he'll never work with Ryan Reynolds again
"I love him as a comedian, but I think after he got super, super famous from the first Deadpool, then things kinda changed. I think he was like, 'See? You guys see?'"
Controversial actor and comedian T.J. Miller says he's not interested in returning for Deadpool 3 — or working with Ryan Reynolds ever again — even if he were asked to after the pair had a "weird moment" together on set.
Miller, who played blunt bartender Weasel in the franchise's first two films and has been embroiled in multiple controversies over the years, says he thinks his former costar hates him and recalled a time when Reynolds allegedly requested another take to belittle Miller in front of the cast and crew.
"As the character, he was, like, horrifically mean to me. But to me. As if I'm Weasel," Miller explained on The Adam Carolla Show. "He was like, 'You know what's great about you, Weasel? You're not the star, but you do just enough exposition that it's funny, and then we can leave and get back to the real movie.'"
Miller said the jab took him by surprise. "I just kind of listened and thought it was weird, and then I got off stage because they were like, 'Cut…?,'" he said, adding that the crew seemed uncomfortable after the scene, too.
Miller also suggested the interaction went deeper than just an onscreen dynamic. "That's exactly why he said that," he deadpanned. "Because I'm not funnier than he is at all, right? And I haven't been in more movies than him."
Miller said the moment told him all he needed to know about Reynolds. "Would I work with him again? No. I would not work with him again," he said, adding, "I sorta wish him well because he's so good at Deadpool, and I think it's weird that he hates me."
The actor-comedian has courted controversy throughout his career. He was accused of sexual assault by a woman in 2017, an allegation he denied. A year later, he was accused of bullying a fellow actor on the set of his HBO series Silicon Valley, which he also denied but was written off the show. He was also arrested in 2018 for allegedly making a fake bomb threat while on board an Amtrak train, but the federal charges were later dropped, citing Miller's past brain surgery as a factor.
Throughout the Carolla Show interview, Miller maintained that he genuinely enjoys Reynolds' performance as the Merc with a Mouth — even if he sees him as an "insecure dude" in real life. "He's such a good comedian that, when you cover his face, he's so quick, he's so funny," he said. "I love him as a comedian, but I think after he got super, super famous from the first Deadpool, then things kinda changed. I think he was like, 'See? You guys see?'"
Despite his comments, Miller admitted that his stance on working with Reynolds could change. "I've said that about Michael Bay, and now we're friends, and I would work with him again," he said, before adding that Bay similarly has a "very specific opinion" of Reynolds after they worked together on the 2019 film 6 Underground.
Still, don't expect Weasel to pop up in future Deadpool installments. "I don't really think you should do something for more than five years," he said. "I think it's weird to just go back and play Weasel 10 years later."
But, he added, "I don't wish them any ill will. I think [Reynolds] should make a Deadpool 3 and continue to make movies. I just think he doesn't like me, and I thought it was weird how he expressed that."
A representative for Reynolds did not immediately respond to EW's request for comment.
Deadpool 3, which will also feature Hugh Jackman's return as Wolverine, is set to hit theaters Sept. 6, 2024.
NEWS SOURCE: Emlyn Travis, www.ew.com
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At least 2 dead after stabbing rampage on Las Vegas Strip
At least two people were killed and half a dozen injured after a man went on a stabbing rampage Thursday near a casino in Las Vegas, police said.
Las Vegas police received a report of a stabbing at 11:42 a.m. Officers arriving at the scene “quickly identified the suspect” and took him into custody “without further incident,” law enforcement said in a statement. The arrest occurred within a “matter of minutes” after the stabbings at 3100 block of South Las Vegas Boulevard, Clark County Sheriff Joseph Lombardo said at an afternoon news conference.
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Max Scherzer’s one loss away from elimination in a best-of-three wild-card series.
Over the winter, Mets made ace Max Scherzer the highest paid player, on an annual basis, in baseball history by giving him a three-year $130 million contract. He was the biggest signing in the second year of owner Steven A. Cohen’s overhaul of a franchise that had endured more than its fair share of headaches and losses over the years.
It worked — to an extent. Despite missing nine weeks of the regular season with injuries, Scherzer, 38, was stellar on the mound. And in the clubhouse, he helped change the Mets’ culture and became one of the key leaders that guided them to their first playoff appearance since 2016.
Tabbed with the Game 1 assignment on Friday in the Mets’ best-of-three wild-card series against the San Diego Padres, Scherzer failed to deliver in his role. In fact, he produced the worst postseason start of his decorated 15-year career in the Mets’ 7-1 loss.
In his 27th career postseason appearance, Scherzer coughed up seven runs and four home runs.
And as he trudged off the mound in the fifth inning, Scherzer was showered with boos from the sellout crowd of 41,621 fans at Citi Field. In the span of a few innings, the vibe in Flushing went from deafeningly loud to eerily quiet as the Padres repeatedly rocketed balls into the stands.
“I’m disappointed,” Scherzer said. “Baseball can take you to the highest of highs and the lowest of lows, and this is one of the lowest of lows.”
The 101-win Mets are now on the verge of elimination. By losing their division, the National League East, to the Atlanta Braves in the closing days of the regular season, the Mets earned the top wild-card spot (of three) in the playoffs. And in this year’s new postseason format, that meant hosting the second wild-card team, the 89-win Padres.
NEWS SOURCE: James Wagner, www.nytimes.com
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