Angelina Jolie has a pretty big interview in The Independent UK today. Jolie talks about lots of stuff where… if someone else said it, I’m sure it would be a non-story. Because it’s Angelina, though, I’m sure this is going to be a really long day. I kind of thought that possibly made-up interview in The Telegraph was uncontroversial too, but then people started talking about how Brad Pitt is abusive and such. I just don’t get it. Anyway, you can read Jolie’s interview in two parts, here and here. Here are some hightlights:

Jolie on how the American education system doesn’t work for her kids: “”I wish there was a book every parent could read that tells you how to navigate through the school system, and how to tailor the education system for your children and their interests. I’m personally getting a lot more involved with their different tutors and teachers…. I do think we live in a different age and the education system hasn’t caught up with our children and our way of life. But we travel and I’m the first person to say, ‘get the schoolwork done as quickly as possible because let’s go out and explore’. I’d rather them go to a museum and learn to play guitar and read and pick a book they love. I feel that there’s got to be a new way to tailor things more directly to our children. Considering the amount of information we have today, the internet and online books… we as parents need to think about how we can shake it up and make it better.”

On Kung Fu Panda 2‘s adoption story line: “It’s about a search for self. I think that who we are and who we decide to be in life is not defined by our parents, our past, the way we look or where we’re from. We make the choice.”

She‘s low-maintenance: “In my life, I hardly brush my hair very often. I try to be as low-maintenance as possible because of my kids, so I can just get up and get ready and do things and not take too much time.”

Has she found peace? “I don’t know if I have found it. But, especially when you have children, you wake up every morning and, if they are happy and they are healthy, then you have peace. You know that that’s all that you should be worried about. Then from there you work on all these other things that bother you and you try to fix injustices and the bigger issues in the world. But you kind of start from one simple thing to be grateful for.”

On adopting again: “We’re always open if it feels right, but we have a full house and, at the moment, nothing has become clear to us. It’s the same, I suppose, as when somebody decides to get pregnant, there’s just a moment where something becomes clear to you and, at the moment, that’s not what we’re discussing.”

She can sell the crap out of KFP 2: “I brought my kids, aged from two to nine, and after I had to call Jeffrey [Katzenberg] and say: ‘We’re good. This gauge range is two to nine. It’s working!’ My children loved it. I was very curious about how they’d react to the family themes and how my character was raised in an orphanage and then was adopted by Shifu, and in this one Po discovers that he’s adopted. It’s one of the more complex stories and films I’ve ever been involved in, with characters and themes that I stand by and believe in.”

On Tigress: “She is certainly a character that shows a lot of emotional restraint. She’s not relaxed. She’s the opposite of Po. She is somebody that is very good physically but emotionally is very uncomfortable. Part of her voice and part of her personality is closed in that way. You could imagine she doesn’t let herself cry. She doesn’t let herself be hurt. She doesn’t talk about how she feels. She’s quite hardcore. That’s part of her personality. It was an interesting voice to play with but it wasn’t intended to sound a certain way, it just came out, I think, that way because she is repressed.”

On traveling: “I do enjoy traveling, especially to any place we haven’t been where we can stay for a very long time. We love safari adventures and living in tents, we love to go to Asia. Really any place new, something beautiful that’s also physical. We have so many kids that it’s nice to have an adventure.”

She doesn’t take photos: China and South America are next on the list. “I never take pictures, though, and that drives Brad a bit crazy because he’s not on any family photos as he always takes them. I often see all these people taking pictures to capture the moment and I think you miss the moment because you are trying too hard to capture it. I want to live it.”

On what kind of hero is needed today: “That’s a complicated one. Unfortunately, I don’t know if there is one hero. Maybe it’s quite the opposite – we need to find a collective. We need to come together more and find central things between our countries, and between our religions: to try to individually, one person at a time, start working together better.”

[From The Independent UK - two articles]

I guess the stuff about the education system is going to be controversial…? I can never tell with the loonies on either side. My thoughts on Angelina’s education comments: while I appreciate that she was trying to be diplomatic about it, and that she blamed the structure and the machine rather than individual schools and teachers who are struggling, I still don’t think Angelina is in the best position to complain. Yes, I’ve read Jonathan Kozol and I keep meaning to watch that documentary about the DC schools. I get that there are huge problems in the American public school system. But have any of the Jolie-Pitt kids ever tried public school? No! She’s always done the tutor thing or sent them to the Lycee schools (which are private). I feel like she’s blaming the education system for her own vagabond parenting style.

Photos courtesy of WENN.

Star Magazine’s cover story this week is all about Angelina Jolie and how she’s down to 99 pounds, because of heroin, I guess. I don’t know… um, the cover is Photoshopped? Like, to a ridiculous level. Now, you guys have been bitching about Angelina Jolie’s weight for… well, for years. But more specifically, many have been complaining about her thin appearances surrounding her publicity tour for Kung Fu Panda 2. Now, while I’ll admit that I winced a little when seeing Angelina’s bony legs a few times, I think her top half looks okay-ish. She’s not crazy emaciated, like she was after her mom died. Her upper arms have some flesh, her cheeks don’t look hallow, and in a few photos, it even looks like she has a small tummy. Could it be possible that after two pregnancies, Angelina just gains weight in certain parts of her body and not others?

What’s going on with Angelina Jolie‘s shocking weight loss? At the Cannes Film Festival, jaws dropped when she appeared looking gaunt, bony, and terrifyingly thin. We’re worried for you, Angelina, you’re looking emaciated!

In fact, Star is reporting that the five-foot-seven tall actress’ weight has plummeted to 99 pounds!

“Angie has gotten so skinny and frail, Brad thinks she needs professional help,” a source tells Star, which adds that Brad staged an “intervention,” begging Angelina to get help. “Her face looks sunken. On the red carpet, her arms look like twigs.”

And while the stress of juggling an acting career and motherhood may take its toll on her, it’s her diet that’s the main culprit, according to Star. “Brad is really concerned with her eating habits,” says the source. “She’s existing on cereal bars and fruit smoothies and has slipped to just 99 pounds. She is so thin yet will still go on a carrot-juice fast for days.”

It’s gotten so severe that Brad is “leaving food out all over the place hoping she’ll snack,” and wishing that she’ll gain at least 10 pounds.

[From Hollywood Life]

If she’s really five foot seven (I think she might be an inch shorter, maybe), I doubt that she’s down to 99 pounds. My guesstimate is… 115-ish. With those hips and boobs, my guess is that she’s probably a dress size 4 (in the traditional size system, not The Kristie Alley Size System). And I don’t buy that Angelina does “carrot juice fasts” and junk. She’s not that woman. I will buy that she “forgets to eat” because she’s so busy though.

Star cover courtesy of CoverAwards, additional pics by WENN.

Angelina Jolie allegedly has a new interview with The Telegraph (UK). I say “allegedly” because even though some of the quotes seem new to me, many of the Brangeloonie commenters on Telegraph’s site are claiming that they were pulled from other sources. Perhaps we can agree that even if Angelina didn’t technically say this stuff to The Telegraph, she said it to somebody, and thus, it’s newsworthy? You can read the full Telegraph piece here – I found it to be an interesting, although exhaustive and sycophantic read. Here are some highlights:

Angelina on being told that Johnny Depp considers she and Brad the “Taylor-Burton” couple currently: Jolie smiles when I pass on Depp’s observation. ‘Did he really say that?’ I can’t tell if she’s pleased or not. ‘Well, I’ll take it as a compliment. When we made The Tourist we hung out constantly, although we were boring and just had play dates with the kids. [Depp’s boy] Jack and Maddox played the computer the whole time.’

Jolie on her attatchment to the now David Fincher-helmed Cleopatra project: ‘[Cleopatra] has been very misunderstood,’ Jolie tells me. ‘I thought it was all about the glamour, but then I read about her and she was a very strong mother, she spoke five languages and she was a leader.’ The producer, Scott Rudin, conceived the film with Jolie in mind. Taylor herself was reportedly not pleased. Insiders have said that she rebuffed Jolie’s attempts to get her blessing for the project and hated the idea of the film being remade. ‘My performance will never be as lovely as Elizabeth’s,’ Jolie says. ‘We are trying to get into a different truth about her as a pharaoh in history and not as a sex symbol, because she really wasn’t. Even this idea of her having many lovers – it was possible that it was only two. She is very interesting, but she wasn’t a great beauty.’

On the subject of marriage: ‘We are obviously extremely committed to the children and as parents together,’ is all she will say on the subject. That and that she ‘loves France. I can’t move about Paris as much as I’d like to but the children go out with other people sometimes so that they can have the experience.’

On child-rearing: ‘When Brad and I decided to have a large family we decided we’d only do it if we could be really hands-on and take the kids with us, seeing them every day,’ says Jolie. ‘I am always there on weekends, I only ever work a five-day week, and I am often there for breakfast or dinner. When I’m working they come up at lunch. It’s a special time for Daddy when Mom works for a few months. And Brad is such a great dad. When I’m working he’s putting in the extra dad time, and that’s special for their relationship, too.’

On motorcycles: ‘I have an MV Augusta,’ she says. ‘But Brad is the real rider. He’s really good.’ She also flies a plane. ‘But that said, I love being a woman. I love that I can have children. I love feeling soft, I love being with Brad, I love all the sensitivity and natural emotion.’

On her full-length feature directorial debut, In the Land of Blood and Honey: It was originally being filmed in Bosnia itself but had to move to Hungary when protests broke out over a rumoured inter-ethnic rape scene, which Jolie denies. ‘That was a misunderstanding,’ she tells me. ‘I sat down and decided I would write one day,’ continues Jolie. ‘I didn’t intend on writing anything or directing anything but I wrote a piece and Brad read it and said, “You know what, honey, it’s not too bad. It’s pretty good.” We joked about it, but then the next thing I knew I didn’t trust anyone else with the material and I was directing the movie. I had such a great experience and Brad was so supportive.’

More on Brad: ‘I am very lucky with Brad,’ she goes on. ‘He is a real gentleman, but he is also a real man’s man. He’s got the wonderful balance of being an extraordinary, great, loving father, a very, very intelligent man and physically he’s a real man,’ she says, blushing slightly, ‘in all things that it means.’

On her mother’s death: ‘That will never heal,’ she says, softly. ‘But somebody gave me great advice. They said to me: “You’ll never get over it and you’ll never want to.” My mum was my role model. People called her Marshmallow because she was so soft. But also she was so strong of heart and fiercely protective of her kids. Her integrity was unbreakable. The world couldn’t darken her. And now my daughters are very strong, too.’

The future: Once Kung Fu Panda 2 is released she’ll work on the distribution of her Bosnian War love story and begin developing a film about Churchill and Roosevelt (Sir Anthony Hopkins may take on the role of Churchill). This summer she’ll also star in the new Louis Vuitton advertising campaign, at about the same time as beginning pre-production on Cleopatra. ‘I love my job and I love my family,’ she concludes. ‘But I’m not 20 anymore and I’m going to want to do a lot of other things with my life. At some point I will slow down.’ Just not yet.

[From The Telegraph]

I found the stuff about the Cleopatra movie interesting, because I’m so, so worried about it. I worry that David Fincher will cast Brad Pitt in a role. I worry that Fincher will hire Trent Reznor for the Cleopatra score. I worry that although the film is supposedly based on a book which uses the historical record on Cleopatra, that this will become a cesspool of historical revisionism. That being said, I like the idea of Angelina as Cleopatra. I just wish Clive Owen and Ian McKellan’s names were being bandied about (as Marc Anthony and Caesar, obviously).

As for the rumors about Brad and Angelina finally getting hitched – Brad talked about it in his interview over the weekend. I think it could happen, honestly. And I would pay a lot of money to see Empress Zahara’s flower girl outfit.

Photos courtesy of WENN.

It was a weekend of sequels (which is quite indicative of what is to come during this summer’s movie season record number of franchise follow-ups) at the box office. This holiday weekend’s two new wide releases opened on Thursday instead of the usual Friday. In the end, The Hangover Part II landed an estimated $118.1 million for the four-day holiday weekend (not counting Memorial Day), which is significantly higher than the $80.5 million predicted by Box Office Mojo’s derby game, which also predicted a second-place opening for the Bradley Cooper movie. In the end, Kung Fu Panda 2 summarily landed in second place with a $53.8 million four-day weekend cumulative take.

Naturally, these two sequels shall be compared to their respective predecessors. Kung Fu Panda opened in June 2008 to the tune of $60 million (with cumulative $215,434,591 domestic and $632 worldwide grosses) whereas The Hangover opened in June 2009 with an opening weekend of $45 million. However, positive word of mouth boosted Hangover’s subsequent weekends to a fairly unprecedented hold that led to $277,322,503 domestic and $467,483,912 worldwide totals. So anticipation for this sequel was much higher than for the opening weekend of the first movie, and Memorial Day weekend did nothing but extend the party for The Hangover 2. Meanwhile, releasing on this particular holiday weekend probably caused Kung Fu Panda 2 to not live up to previous expectations because the vast majority of schools are still in session (unlike the home-schooled Jolie-Pitt clan), so a Thursday release didn’t mean much in terms of kiddle-related ticket sales.

Also, Angelina Jolie as The Tigress mattered very little, since one can barely recognize her voice at all. She might very well be gorgeous and a talented actress, but Jolie’s voice isn’t very distinctive at all.

However, The Hangover Part II has not only won the weekend but also landed the weekend record as far as comedies go, which is sort of amazing considering that even the trailer revealed the film to be just like The Hangover itself. Indeed, the negative critical reception — 35% approval for the sequel vs. 79% for the first movie — reflects the near-universal consensus that the second film is a virtual carbon copy of the first one. Here’s a particularly apt take from Dustin Rowles at Pajiba:

Movies can reshape our imagination, bring us to tears, render us lovesick, break our psyches, shock and horrify us, or draw out an emotional catharsis. The great power of film is its ability to inspire, to elicit laughter, to provoke thought, or to enable us to appreciate what we have or what’s been lost. The great power of The Hangover II, on the other hand, is its immense ability to make us feel as though we’ve been robbed, ripped off, stolen from, sold a bill of goods, knocked out, anally violated and left for dead. It’s not even that The Hangover II is a bad film; it’s that it’s a film we’ve already f&#*ing seen. Maybe you remember it. It was called The Hangover.

Sequels suggest continuations of stories; The Hangover II is not a sequel. It’s a remake set in a different g**d*mn city. It’s the same band singing the same song. All they did was add someone to play the wood block and tickle Brad Cooper’s balls. The lyrics are slightly different, but no one even had the goddamn decency to change the chorus. It’s not a new movie; they just repackaged the old one. It’s like paying to replace your laptop with the exact same one, only the screensaver is an Asian tranny instead of a stripper Mom. It’s like The Next Karade Kid starring Ralph Machio in the Hilary Swank role. You know what that’s called? The Karate Kid.

What I don’t get it, where is the outrage? People paid $13 to see something they’d already seen. Why weren’t there reports from midnight screenings of audience members ripping out their seats, beating up old women, looting Rite Aids, and throwing batteries at movie theater managers? Have we grown so complacent that we will now idly accept a re-gifted movie? We’re just going to shrug? That’s what we’re doing now? “Hey, why are you getting so worked up? Whaddya expect? It’s Hollywood.” You know what: Go f&@k yourself. Just because you’re a f&@king [redacted] doesn’t give that doucher Todd Phillips the right to treat us all like one.

If you’ve seen the first movie, then you know what’s going to happen in the second film. The chief “difference” here is that it’s Stu (Ed Helms) who is getting married, and the wedding takes place in Thailand instead of Vegas. And you know what they say about Bangkok? “What Happens in Bangkok, shut the f&@k up, douche.”

[From Pajiba]

So far, it’s only the critics who are complaining about the carbon-copy factor, so perhaps The Hangover fans just really wanted to rewatch the original? This would account for the lack of outrage coming from social media sites like Twitter. My suspicion is that The Hangover movies are such a departure from real life that they merely function as a stress-relieving two hours of comedy, and perhaps people don’t care if they’ve heard all the jokes already. Then again, we’ll really have to wait and see what happens with The Hangover 2 next weekend; if the drop off is steep, we’ll know that (for the sequel, at least) word of mouth is negative rather than positive.

Meanwhile, Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides landed in third place with $39.3 million for a two week domestic total of $152.9 million and $624 million globally, thanks to the worldwide appeal of one Johnny Depp. Bridesmaids $16.4 million for a three-week total of $85.0 million and Thor $9.4 millionfor a four-week total of $159.7 million.

Movie stills courtesy of AllMoviePhoto

Brad Pitt has a new interview in USA Today’s Weekend section, and they’re claiming that this is his first big interview since 2009. Which can’t be right…? Let me think… the only film he had out last year was Megamind, and I guess he didn’t do that much press for it. So… maybe, sure. He’s done press for Make It Right NOLA though, and it feels like he gives a handful of interviews a year for whatever reason. Anyway, the full USA Weekend piece is here – it’s a nice read, with Brad mostly talking about family life, being a father, etc. Here are some highlights:

Brad on his kids: “Kids hold up a mirror to you. You can’t make excuses. You’ve got to make sure they’ve brushed their teeth and eaten a good breakfast. You want to be present if they wake up with a bad dream.”

Brad on danger & the paparazzi: The responsibility weighs heavily on the now-middle-aged actor. In a display of emotion any parent would relate to, Pitt says fears about his kids’ safety “keep me up at night.” But unlike in most families, Pitt’s worries have an added dimension. “We’re hunted,” he says, flexing his tattooed, muscular forearm as if contemplating retaliation. “Our kids have to live behind a gate. Outside, there are people with cameras. “But I’ll take the trade-off. I never knew I was capable of experiencing so much love.”

How is family has changed him: Parenthood is increasingly central to Pitt’s sense of self, influencing everything from the movies he chooses to make — “I want to leave some work behind that my kids will be proud of” — to his vision of the future with Jolie. Though he has said the couple would wait to wed until gay people could do so legally, he now acknowledges that the timetable may change. “The kids ask about marriage,” he says, sinking wearily into a sofa. He takes a sip of cappuccino. “It’s meaning more and more to them. So it’s something we’ve got to look at.”

His kids aren’t growing up like he did: “On the road, we’re a military mobile unit,” he says. “The kids have got their stuff down to one backpack, and they’re each responsible for their own bag. Mom does the packing; she’s quite gifted at that. Puts in just what we need — nothing extra.” The family migrates between the multi-house Los Angeles compound he calls “our base camp” and film sets around the globe, spending downtime at a 1,000-acre estate in southern France. “We’re pretty nomadic,” he says. “We go where the crops are.”

More on their lifestyle: Pitt concedes that his family life “seems a bit extreme.” But “I like extremes. I guess I’ve always operated that way.” Still, he says, “Angie and I do everything we can to carve out some semblance of normalcy for them, to re-create the kinds of moments that were special for us. It’s not unusual for the kids to be covered in paint. We have mud fights. It’s chaos from morning until the lights go out, and sometimes after that.”

Education? The older kids are home-schooled, but their parents try to create opportunities to socialize. The family sometimes sneaks past the paparazzi to an undisclosed location for a football game with friends.

Brad on private time with Angelina: Pitt and Jolie carve out time to nurture their own relationship as well. “There are no secrets at our house,” Pitt says, his blue eyes crinkling in a slightly wicked smile. “We tell the kids, ‘Mom and Dad are going off to kiss.’ They go, ‘Eww, gross!’ But we demand it.”

On aging: As he navigates his fifth decade, Pitt has begun to ponder the long term. “Will I be acting when I’m 80?” he asks rhetorically. “Definitely not.”

Goals for the future: A passionate amateur photographer and architect (whose Make It Right foundation is building environmentally sustainable homes in New Orleans for low-income residents displaced by Hurricane Katrina), he aims to explore those vocations more deeply in the coming years. He also wants to improve his French and his cooking skills — now limited to bacon, eggs and flapjacks. But Pitt won’t be trading in biker boots for house slippers anytime soon. “I hope to keep riding motorcycles,” he says with that devilish grin, “until I can’t stand up anymore.”

[From USA Weekend]

I guess the biggest news is that Brad and Angelina announce to their kids when they’re going to go off and have some private time. I think it’s cute. I’m sure there are people who will hate it, but meh. As for Brad’s continuing insistence that he’s going to stop acting at some point… he just needs to stop talking about it. So does Angelina. I’m tired of both of them “announcing” that they’re going to “stop at some point.” It feels like they’re doing a fake-threat to see how much love they get.

Photos courtesy of Fame & WENN.

In the end, it was just too much color for her. Her system got overloaded by red-orange-coral sacky goodness and she ordered the gerbils to prepare a very special all-black ensemble for yet another outing, this one designed specifically to make us forget that she ever, EVER wore a color. So the gerbils arranged this outing – Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie, exiting Ozzie Dots yesterday in LA. Apparently the store is some kind of party supply place, and they got what seems to be birthday party decorations. Probably for Shiloh’s fifth birthday, which is this Friday (tomorrow!)? For some reason, though, I doubt Shiloh wanted a birthday theme of anything you could find at a party supply store. She probably wanted a samurai theme and Angelina was like “How about ponies? How about a horse theme, babe?”

Also, notice that in every photo, Angelina isn’t putting that lollipop to her mouth. It’s a prop! I want to see her eat a lollipop. I suspect she doesn’t know how to. She’s probably just holding it for Brad. Oh, and she’s carrying a Louis Vuitton bag. Of course!

Meanwhile, Brad has been talking about the Missouri floods and all of the terrible tornados in the Midwest: “I spent a lot of time in Joppa Joplin*, MO. My grandparents are from there and it is about 50 or 60 miles from where I grew up, so we’re looking into it now… My thoughts are certainly with (the victims) and of course a lot of them will be coming out in the next few days, they have a big mountain ahead of them. I wish them the best.”

*Note by Celebitchy: The quoted text on the source incorrectly names the city devastated by tornadoes as Joppa. Thanks to those of you who pointed out that it’s Joplin, MO.

Photos courtesy of Fame.

I put a link to some of these interview excerpts in the links yesterday, but the quotes were too good to pass up. Brad Pitt is knee-deep in Tree of Life promotion, and many outlets are using the same quotes for whatever reason. In the film, Brad plays a father who is either “hard” and abrasive or out-right abusive to his sons. Obviously, the subject matter of the film has caused Brad to discuss his own parenting style for his kids, and how he worked with the child actors he had to mean to (in character).

For the Jolie-Pitts, life doesn’t always imitate art. In director Terrence Malick’s new film The Tree of Life, which received Cannes Film Fest’s top honor despite receiving mixed reviews early on, Brad Pitt plays a strict disciplinarian and sometimes abusive father to three young boys.

“I certainly don’t raise my kids the same was [as my character does],” he told Us Weekly Tuesday night at The Tree of Life’s premiere in L.A. ” I am painfully aware that my actions leave an indelible mark on them in these formidable years. So I make sure I don’t bring my crap home. I want to keep it free.”

Asked if he’s ever felt that all-too-common sinking feeling like he’s just made a terrible dad error, Pitt tells PEOPLE, “Not [like I'm] a horrible parent, but I’ve certainly made mistakes and had to make up for it.”

Pitt, 47, and longtime love Angelina Jolie, 35, have six children together: Maddox, 9, Zahara, 6, Pax, 7, Shiloh, 4, and twins Vivienne and Knox, 2.

“I want to keep them able to explore that innocence as long as possible and find out what’s really interesting to them,” he added. “I just don’t want to encumber them in any way.”

Was it tough for Pitt to be so tough on the child actors in the film? “We had to be careful, because hey are young boys, and you don’t want a scar them in the process. So it was explained to them ahead of time who I was playing and they knew it was coming and they knew when it was coming,” he said. “And in between [takes], we made sure we had a lot of time like everyday life, throwing the ball around and riding bikes, and I think everyone got through it unscathed.”

But just in case, Pitt made sure to win the boys’ hearts off-screen – by buying them motorcycles. “They are great,” he said. “We come from the same neck of the woods.”

Back at home, Pitt says neither he nor Jolie is nudging their kids to follow in their acting footsteps. “Listen, I just want them to follow their bliss. Whatever makes them happy,” he says.

And right now, making his family happy includes his next role, recording a voice for the animated sequel Happy Feet 2. “I mean Happy Feet is on heavy rotation in our house,” he says with a laugh, “so it was a must!”

[From Us Weekly & People Magazine]

I like the part where he talks about working with the child actors. I would imagine it would be difficult to try to act opposite those young kids, especially given that Terrence Malick was barely working with a script and so there probably weren’t actual scenes that Brad and the kids could “rehearse” together. Do you think he actually got them motorcycles? I bet he got them something like dirt bikes or go-carts or something.

In other Brangelina news, In Touch Weekly (via Hollywood Life) has a story this week about one of the “nastiest” fights in the history of their relationship. Apparently, their fight this week is all about where they’re going be for the summer. Brad wants to go to Missouri. Angelina wants to go to France. ZOMG FIGHT. A “friend” tells In Touch, “Brad wanted his kids to experience a summer like he has as a boy in Missouri. That involves dirt bikes, tubing in the lake, camping under the stars — just some good old-fashioned American fun.” But, “Missouri is not Angelina’s idea of a vacation… she told Brad to make other plans.” You can read more of the story here, at Hollywood Life. The rest of it is just some psychological talk about why Angelina is a she-devil.

Photos courtesy of WENN, Reporters Magazine, and a promotional image from Tree of Life.

Last night was the LA premiere of Tree of Life, and Angelina Jolie found one of her beloved sacks to wear, this time in an interesting bright red. I generally like Jolie in red, but on the rare occasions when she does wear red, she often goes for a shade that I find too orange. I’d like to see her try a darker ruby, like a blue-red or burgundy/maroon. Anyway, Angelina’s dress is Jenny Packham, a designer I don’t think Jolie has ever worn before. The fit is loose and sacky and there’s a ribbon belt. It’s all… not good. But I like that she’s trying something different, I guess. As for Brad, he walked most of the red carpet with his sunglasses on, life he’s been doing for much too long, but then at some point he took them off and showed us his eyes. SHOCK.

There were some other people at the premiere, but surprisingly Sean Penn didn’t show up…? I didn’t see any photos of him if he did come. Here’s Brad’s costar Jessica Chastain. Her dress is Roland Mouret. If you wait two seasons, Victoria Beckham will be passing this dress off as her own.

Here’s Garret Hedlund! Gwyneth Paltrow said Garrett reminded her of a young Brad Pitt. Do you see it?

Brad’s friend Guy Richie and his pregnant girlfriend showed up for the premiere too. His girlfriend’s name is Jacqui, and I still can’t put my finger on who she reminds me of. Any help? She looks like somebody.

Photos courtesy of WENN.

Since it’s super-slow in the gossip world today, I thought I would play catch up on some backburner Angelina Jolie stories. I’ve been surprised by how few interviews Angelina has given for promotion for Kung Fu Panda 2 – she did a press conference in Cannes, with some outlet interviews, but there hasn’t been anything in the way of print media. Usually, Jolie is good about doing at least one big print media interview for each of her films. Anyway, in some new quotes, Jolie discusses how awesome it was to do voice work. It does sound like a really, really easy gig:

Actress Angelina Jolie said Kung Fu Panda 2 was the ‘cushiest job in the world’ as she got to eat pizza with her kids while recording her voice. She admitted that lending her voice to the character of Tigress was easy as she was able to bring her kids into the recording studio.

Speaking to MTV News, she said: ‘It’s the cushiest job in the world. You can bring your kids, you can go in your pyjamas, [director] Jennifer [Yuh]‘s really good about whatever you want to order for lunch, so you end up ordering pizza with your kids, snacking – it’s great.’

However she admitted there are some challenges involved in voice acting.

She added: ‘What’s challenging is that you’re not with the other actors, and you have to come back sometime to respond to each other. You don’t know exactly what they’re doing with your voice, but when it’s a great time like this, you can relax.’

[From Contact Music]

Blah blah. Yeah, those quotes aren’t very interesting. You know what is interesting though? Some week-old tabloid reports indicating that Angelina Jolie has “adopted” a new little friend. That friend? KRISTEN STEWART!!!! The Jolie and the Lip-Biter, together at last.

Well this is an unlikely friendship, but according to reports Angelina Jolie and Kristen Stewart are new best friends. A source told More magazine that it was the vision of a poor frightened Kristen that tugged at Angelina’s heartstrings.

“Kristen and Angelina talk all the time. They’ve crossed paths at various red carpet events and I think something about Kristen’s apparent vulnerability called to Angelina’s motherly instincts. She’s really taken Kristen under her wing and seems to think of her as the little sister she never had.”

“Angelina’s counseled Kristen on how to work the red carpet and deal with mobs of fans. She’s also been giving Kristen tips on negotiating her career and what projects she should consider next.”

[From Showbiz Spy & Sugerscape]

Ha! I would love if it were true. I think Angelina would be a great influence on Kristen Stewart, but not even Jolie is powerful enough to make K-Stew any less awkward and trollish. Unfortunately, even if Angelina tried to extend a hand of friendship or mentorship to little K-Stew, I doubt Kristen would accept it. Back in 2009, Kristen told a reporter, “I don’t want to be a movie star like Angelina Jolie…I’m an actor.”

Photos courtesy of Fame.

In case you missed it yesterday, Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie walked the red carpet for the morning premiere of Kung Fu Panda 2 in Los Angeles. Jolie wore black Michael Kors, Brad wore head-to-toe SAND. It was all lovely. But not as lovely as these photos – apparently, Brangelina brought their older kids to the premiere! Shiloh got done up in a little vest, tie and pants, and she was more dressed up than her dad. I love this little girl. I love that Brad and Angelina are like, “You want to wear a vest and tie to the premiere? Awesome!” Sidenote: Angelina slipped on a comfortable black SACK/poncho!!! Huzzah!

Meanwhile, Maddox is starting to get tall! He’s starting to be a big kid now. Pax is just kind of there (I know he’s a favorite of some commenters, but his style never really impresses me). And my favorite, The Empress, was shooting the stink-eye at everyone. And she was rocking the hell out of some awesome pink booties. I guess all of the kids at the premiere got those little drinks, it was probably some marketing tie-in with the film soon to be seen at Burger King or whatever.

All of the kids were in France with their parents at the Cannes Film Festival, but they weren’t photographed once. Angelina had to confirm her kids’ presences at the KFP 2 press conference: “Yes, we’re all in France. Our whole family is in France, and we’re very happy. They’re running around the hotel now, playing games and making a giant mess! I’m sure they’re having a great time. They love it here.” At the LA premiere, Jolie told Us Weekly that she is able to balance her work and her family life “Like every woman does in life. I think we just take time to do all the things we love. If you love what you do, and I’m very blessed that I love my job, and I love to do charity work and I love to be with my kids, so you find time. You’re not exhausted by it if you’re passionate.” Here’s video from the premiere:

Photos courtesy of Fame & WENN.