Author: admin@primenews

Matteo Garrone knew how his movie would end. But the Italian director waited until the last moments of filming to reveal the ending to the actors playing the lead roles. “Io Capitano” tells the “Odyssey”-like story of migrant teens making a dangerous journey from Africa to Europe. It won best director at the Venice International Film Festival last year, and it’s among five films vying for best international feature film at this year’s Academy Awards. It also recently opened in US theaters, earning rave reviews from critics and a 96% score on Rotten Tomatoes. The movie stars Senegalese actors Seydou Sarr and Moustapha Fall, playing…

When I look around this room, I can’t help but wonder,” Academy Awards host Jimmy Kimmel joked at last year’s ceremony. “Is Ozempic right for me?” Celebrities’ use of a type 2 diabetes drug to lose weight had sparked both backlash and fascination by the time of last year’s Oscars. As this year’s ceremony approaches on Sunday night, the maker of a competitor set of medicines in Ozempic’s class has a message for people trying to use the drugs to slim down quickly for cosmetic reasons: These aren’t for you. “Some people have been using medicine never meant for them,” begins one ad from…

A powerful House committee advanced a bill on Thursday that could lead to a nationwide ban against TikTok on all electronic devices, renewing lawmakers’ challenge to one of the world’s most popular social media apps and highlighting unresolved fears that TikTok may pose a Chinese government spying risk. The measure that sailed unanimously through the House Energy and Commerce Committee would prohibit TikTok from US app stores unless the social media platform — used by roughly 170 million Americans — is quickly spun off from its China-linked parent company, ByteDance. If enacted, the bill would give ByteDance 165 days, or a little more than…

Within a year of calling off his last wedding, nonagenarian billionaire Rupert Murdoch has popped the question to another partner, months after they started dating. The former News Corp chairman’s media representative confirmed the news to CNN on Friday, just days before the billionaire’s 93rd birthday next Monday. It’s the second time Murdoch has been engaged in a year. Last March, the media titan announced plans to marry Ann Lesley Smith, a former dental hygienist and conservative radio host. But the wedding was called off weeks later. This time, Murdoch will wed Elena Zhukova, a 67-year-old retired molecular biologist, according to The New York Times,…

Israel will be allowed to compete at the Eurovision Song Contest 2024 after changing the lyrics to its song, organisers have confirmed. Eden Golan will represent the country at the contest in Sweden this May. Her original song, October Rain, was thought to reference the Hamas attacks of 7 October and had been barred for breaking rules on political neutrality. Israel’s public broadcaster agreed to amend the song, now titled Hurricane, and will unveil it this weekend. In a statement, The European Broadcasting Union (EBU) – which organises the contest – said earlier: “The EBU can confirm that the official…

As indie-rock band Gossip prepare to headline the 6 Music Festival, frontwoman Beth Ditto explains their 12-year absence, reveals her shy side, and discusses the “fear” facing America’s LGBTQ community. Any raver worth their glowsticks will, at some point, have lost their breath dancing to Gossip. With indie anthems like Standing In The Way Of Control and Heavy Cross, the trio perfected a mish-mash of punk, dance and soul that kept dancefloors burning throughout the 2000s. Frontwoman Beth Ditto became a cultural icon, too. Outspoken and anti-conformist, she charmed the media while challenging their attitudes to femininity and sexuality. Even…

Baldur’s Gate 3 leads the way in this year’s Bafta Games Awards nominations with a total of 10. As well as being in the running for best game, the actors behind popular characters Karlach and Astarion are among those up for solo awards. Sony’s hit sequel Spider-Man 2 received nine nods, closely followed by Alan Wake 2, with eight. Elsewhere, The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom and Star Wars Jedi: Survivor have six nominations each. This year will be the twentieth anniversary of the awards – one of the most prestigious nights in the calendar for the gaming…

One of the world’s most popular pornography websites, Pornhub, is contesting new EU rules. The adult site is facing new obligations under the Digital Services Act (DSA), including strict requirements on age verification. The new rules apply to what the EU designates a Very large Online Platform (VLOP) – which Pornhub says it is not. “We believe the European Commission erred in its calculation of our user numbers”, the firm said. The challenge was filed to the EU’s General Court in Luxembourg on March 1 for Pornhub by its owner, the Canada-based Aylo. Technius, the parent firm of another adult site, Stripchat,…

Hundreds of millions of farmed salmon have perished in mass die-offs over the past decade, say researchers. The scientists say that large-scale mortalities are now happening more frequently and at a larger scale than ever before. They argue that warmer seas and greater reliance on technology are contributing to the rise in deaths. This global assessment looked at salmon deaths in some leading producers, including Norway, the UK and Canada. Salmon farming has come a long way since the fish were first grown commercially in cages in Norway in the 1960s. The industry has expanded rapidly in recent decades, with…

The creator of Dragon Ball, one of the most influential and best-selling Japanese comics of all time, has died at 68. Akira Toriyama succumbed to acute subdural hematoma, a type of bleeding near the brain, his production team said Friday. Dragon Ball is hugely popular around the world and the comic series has also spawned cartoon and film versions. Mr Toriyama had uncompleted works at the time of his death. The Dragon Ball comic series debuted in 1984. It follows a boy named Son Goku in his quest to collect magical dragon balls to defend Earth against alien humanoids called…