Phyllis Diller’s stand up was a staple of nightclubs and television during the 1950s and early 1960s, a time when female comics were extremely rare. She passed away yesterday in her home in Los Angeles, at the age of 95. In adjective-packed obits, journalists described her as “sassy,” “outlandish,” and “tart-tongued.”

In our lifetime, we’re exposed to thousands of images of women in the media. More often than not, these images are tweaked, trimmed, smoothed over, and made to look, well, not quite like women actually look. This week, Seventeen magazine released their “Body Peace Treaty” which promises to “celebrate every kind of beauty” and “never alter the shape of a girl’s face or body.”

The newest George Clooney vehicle, "The American," opened nationwide on Wednesday, and critics expect huge audiences in the coming days. Clooney plays an assassin, holed up in Italy for one last assignment. Given the film's star, one can expect intrigue and romance along the way, but does the newest Clooney film really show Clooney at his best? And what, exactly, is Clooney at his best?  

We look back at Clooney’s films with two people who know his work well, and we’re asking, what's the best version of Clooney, and what makes Clooney's appeal is so broad?

This weekend’s big movie releases include a highly anticipated adaptation of woman's mid-life memoir, and a highly anticipated adaptation of a comic-book about an angsty musician in love. 

But alongside the self-discovery depicted in “Eat, Pray, Love” and the sensitivity of “Scott Pilgrim vs. the World,” theater-goers have one other big option to choose from: "The Expendables," a violent, punching, shooting, yelling testosterone-fest.

But there’s something funny about "The Expendables." Specifically, all the stars are washed-up geriatric '80s action heroes, including Sylvester Stallone, Dolph Lundgren, and a short cameo by California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger.

Last month, prior to Mother’s Day, we did a special movie segment focusing on our favorite movie moms, and the conversation was one of our liveliest. Rafer Guzman of Newsday and Emily Rems of Bust Magazine told us why they loved everyone from Mia Farrow in “Rosemary’s Baby” to Faye Dunaway in “Mommy Dearest,” and many of you wrote in with your own picks. 

With Father's Day coming up on Sunday, we thought it was worth giving all the on-screen dads out there the same honor. Rafer and Emily return with their favorite dads, which range from the heartbreaking (Roberto Benigni in "Life is Beautiful") to horrific (Jack Nicholson in "The Shining")

Carrie and "the girls" are back in 'Sex and the City 2.' There's shopping, there's sex, there's Mr. Big, and there's expensive fashion in the latest chick-flick from the SATC franchise, which women have been patiently awaiting for two years. But, is this movie good or bad for the women who are watching it?

How long has summer been the time for TV networks to just kick up their feet, hit play on the reruns and maybe stage some low budget, easy-to-produce reality TV shows? Looking at the upcoming program schedules, it's clear: this summer you’re going to have more to watch than reruns of "The Simpsons" and "30 Rock" as the networks take a lesson from cable channels like the USA Network and HBO. 

Today, in honor of Mother’s Day, we’re looking back at our favorite on-screen moms, from the fierce to the nurturing to the lullaby-singing. We love them, we hate them, and we’ve enjoyed them on screen for as long as we’ve enjoyed movies.

For this week’s movie segment, we discuss the international film phenomenon, The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo. Already the top grossing film in Scandinavian history, the cold case murder mystery has opened in a handful of theaters across the U.S. over the past several weeks to enthusiastic audiences, stellar reviews, and rumors of a Hollywood adaptation.

Today, the widely anticipated girl-band biopic “The Runaways” hits theatres in limited release. It follows the real-life story of Joan Jett and Cherie Currie’s 1970s rock band.

In honor of the film, we look back on our favorite girl band movies of all time with the help of Emily Rems, managing editor for Bust Magazine and Rafer Guzman, Takeaway contributor and Newsday film critic.