YouTube

Richard Pryor’s Most Fascinating Movie Is a 13-Minute YouTube Video

By Jason Bailey on Feb 8, 2013 1:00pm

Tonight, BAMcinématek kicks off A Pryor Engagement, a two-week, 18-film tribute to the film work of the late, great comic genius Richard Pryor. The program is expansive, including his three sublime concert films, two of his pairings with Gene Wilder, his astonishing dramatic turns in Blue Collar and Lady Sings the Blues, and oddities like Some Call It Loving and Dynamite Chicken. All are presented in glorious 35mm, and all are worth seeing. But my favorite Richard Pryor movie (if you can call it that) is not part of the program; it’s not available on 35mm, or on DVD, and it runs only 13 minutes. … Read More

Music

“Somebody That I Used to Know” Played By A YouTube Orchestra

By Emily Temple on Aug 12, 2012 3:00pm

We’ve all seen a million and one parodies and covers of Gotye’s “Somebody That I Used to Know” — and turns out, so has Gotye. Inspired by Kutiman’s Thru-You project, Gotye (aka Wally De Backer) put together a master remix of his hit track, and surprisingly, it’s actually pretty interesting to watch. ”Reluctant as I am to add to the mountain of interpretations of “Somebody That I Used To Know” seemingly taking over their own area of the internet,” he writes, “I couldn’t resist the massive remixability that such a large, varied yet connected bundle of source material offered.” We’re not sure what it says about the artist that he created a master cover of his own song based on fan YouTube videos — it could probably be viewed in a more cynical way, but we’re going with appreciation for his fans and a general love of playing with music. Click through to watch the video, and let us know what you think in the comments. … Read More

Comedy

Watch Julie Klausner and Other Comedians Reveal the History of “That’s What She Said”

By Judy Berman on Jun 29, 2012 12:00pm

“That’s what she said,” that favorite quip of opportunistic amateur comedians the world over, seems like it’s been around since the dawn of time. But did you know it actually began as a statement of solidarity with the nascent women’s movement? Or that Nora Banks, the first woman to use the joke back in the late 19th century, is considered the Rosa Parks of “That’s what she said”? Or that Eleanor Roosevelt bullied her husband into entering World War II with a string of particularly brutal “That’s what she said” rejoinders? No, none of these things are true, but they are all discussed to hilarious effect in the debut episode of Jokes Through the Ages, a series on YouTube’s new Official Comedy channel, which features both original programming and classic clips of famous comedians. Allow Julie Klausner, Dave Hill, Ilana Glazer, Max Silvestri, and Dan Soder to relate the entirely untrue history of “That’s what she said,” after the jump. … Read More

Web

Twitter’s New Office Has Skee Ball

By Caroline Stanley on Jun 13, 2012 5:30pm

A few years ago we took a look at the impressive offices of some of your favorite websites. The highlights? Google had a fun looking slide and an entire wall of free snacks; YouTube dedicated a room to Star Wars and placed a mini golf course right in the middle of things; and… Read More

Film

Flavorpill’s Guide to Movies You Need to Stream This Week

By Jason Bailey on May 30, 2012 4:30pm

Welcome to Flavorpill’s streaming movie guide, in which we help you sift through the scores of movies streaming on Netflix, Hulu, and other services to find the best of the recently available, freshly relevant, or soon to expire. This week, we find Netflix purging a bunch of good titles for a giant batch of new ones in early June (must be some sort of mid-year end-of-contract period or something), so our list is mostly — but not entirely — comprised of stuff you’ll have to get on quick, featuring stars like Johnny Depp, Jack Nicholson, Meryl Streep, Tommy Lee Jones, Michael Douglas, Billy Bob Thornton, Parker Posey, Matthew McConaughey, Kevin Spacey, Woody Harrelson, Tom Cruise, Winona Ryder, and Sylvester Stallone. Check them all out after the jump, and follow the title links to watch them right now. … Read More

Web

Will You Watch Felicia Day's New "Indie Geek Culture" Channel?

By Emily Temple on Mar 18, 2012 3:30pm

If you’re a fan of The Guild, variety shows, or fantasy role playing games, have we got news for you. Geek & Sundry, produced by Felicia Day, Kim Evey and Sheri Bryant, promises to be all your little nerdy heart desires in one “indie geek” YouTube channel. The channel, premiering April 2nd, will feature shows like “Written by a Kid,” where kids tell fantastical tales, and “Tabletop,” which appears to be Wil Wheaton playing board games with his friends, sounds like it could either be really fun or kind of spastic and all over the place. We have high hopes, though, considering we love almost every project that Felicia Day is involved in. Watch the charming trailer for the channel below, and let us know if you’ll be tuning in in the comments! … Read More

News

The Morning’s Top 5 Pop Culture Stories

By Caroline Stanley on Jan 19, 2012 10:01am

1. In the wake of its recent success at the Golden Globes, Downton Abbey creator Julian Fellows is said to be mulling over the idea of doing a feature film version of the TV series. Yes, please — provided that Maggie Smith is on board with the idea. [via The Mirror]

2. YouTube… Read More

Film

10 Great Movies Streaming Free on YouTube

By Jason Bailey on Jan 5, 2012 12:30pm

Hey there, film lover. How’s your January? I know, I know, not much in the way of new movies worth seeing this month, what with January being the Hollywood dumping ground and all. How’s about just staying in and streaming some Netflix? What’s that? You dropped your subscription because they raised the price by five bucks? Way to take a stand! Okay, so, go hit the Redbox. Yeah, you’re right, it’s pretty cold out. No need to bundle up and head all the way over to the Walgreens, only to go find that they’re all out of Fast Five. So what now?

Well, come to find out, your old pal YouTube has a surprisingly excellent collection of feature-length flicks streaming for the bargain price of zero dollars. I know, right? And, sure, a lot of them are junk, or the same public-domain titles that have been turning up on bargain DVDs at the Dollar Tree for years now. But there are some gems in there, and (being a service-oriented organization), we’ve sifted through their offerings to find the best of the bunch. Check ‘em out after the jump. … Read More

Pop Culture

What YouTube’s Most Watched Videos of 2011 Say About Us

By Alison Nastasi on Dec 22, 2011 6:00pm

Always offering a slice of life, YouTube has revealed their top ten viral videos of the year. The most-watched clips include talking animals, babies, creeps, and Michael Bolton (not to be confused with “creeps”). Check out the list past the break where we try to figure out what each ranking says about us as a society. Leave your theories below. … Read More