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Thursday, November 30, 2006
The (Mostly) Unseen Contenders of '06: The Painted Veil
THE PAINTED VEIL
Release Date: December 20th (limited); December 29th (wider)
MPAA Rating: PG-13 for some mature sexual situations, partial nudity, disturbing images and brief drug content
Ten Words Or Less: My husband's so distant...maybe I'll go fight cholera.
Reason For Existence: It's like Merchant Ivory never left...
Mathematical Equation: Howard's End + The Constant Gardener - social relevance
Take A Look: Naomi Watts...as a brunette!
Early Buzz (Good): "Their conflicted interaction set against such an exotic locale (sensuously filmed by Stuart Dryburgh) will invite easy comparisons to David Lean (Doctor Zhivago, Ryan's Daughter) and Anthony Minghella (The English Patient). It certainly is as classic—and effective—a romance as any of those." - Michael Guillén, Twitch
Early Buzz (Bad): "If a drama across sweeping romantic vistas set against the backdrop of a 1920s cholera-ridden China is your cup'o'tea, do check it out.'" - JoBlo.com (seriously, that's as bad as it gets at the moment)
Oscar Locks: None
In The Running: Best Actor (Edward Norton), Best Actress (Naomi Watts), Original Score (Alexandre Desplat)
Long Shots: Cinematography (Stuart Dryburgh), Adapted Screenplay (Ron Nyswaner)
Completely Irrelevant Best Picture Odds: 12-1
Why It's Essential: Increasing buzz and its elegant stars make it the must-see movie for The English Patient set.
The Achilles Heel: Somerset Maugham novels have rarely made Oscar-winning movies. Even with Garbo.
The Verdict: The critics' awards will tell the tale...if it picks up momentum, it'll have no trouble leveraging its tony pedigree into multiple nominations. [Modern Fabulousity]
The (Mostly) Unseen Contenders of '06: The Painted Veil
THE PAINTED VEIL
Release Date: December 20th (limited); December 29th (wider)
MPAA Rating: PG-13 for some mature sexual situations, partial nudity, disturbing images and brief drug content
Ten Words Or Less: My husband's so distant...maybe I'll go fight cholera.
Reason For Existence: It's like Merchant Ivory never left...
Mathematical Equation: Howard's End + The Constant Gardener - social relevance
Take A Look: Naomi Watts...as a brunette!
Early Buzz (Good): "Their conflicted interaction set against such an exotic locale (sensuously filmed by Stuart Dryburgh) will invite easy comparisons to David Lean (Doctor Zhivago, Ryan's Daughter) and Anthony Minghella (The English Patient). It certainly is as classic—and effective—a romance as any of those." - Michael Guillén, Twitch
Early Buzz (Bad): "If a drama across sweeping romantic vistas set against the backdrop of a 1920s cholera-ridden China is your cup'o'tea, do check it out.'" - JoBlo.com (seriously, that's as bad as it gets at the moment)
Oscar Locks: None
In The Running: Best Actor (Edward Norton), Best Actress (Naomi Watts), Original Score (Alexandre Desplat)
Long Shots: Cinematography (Stuart Dryburgh), Adapted Screenplay (Ron Nyswaner)
Completely Irrelevant Best Picture Odds: 12-1
Why It's Essential: Increasing buzz and its elegant stars make it the must-see movie for The English Patient set.
The Achilles Heel: Somerset Maugham novels have rarely made Oscar-winning movies. Even with Garbo.
The Verdict: The critics' awards will tell the tale...if it picks up momentum, it'll have no trouble leveraging its tony pedigree into multiple nominations. [Modern Fabulousity]
A Day To Remember
World Aids Day....the struggle is not over. Since this is a film blog, may we suggest the following as a great way to reconnect with your own thoughts:
And The Band Played On (Spottiswoode)
Angels in America (Nichols)
Before Night Falls (Schnabel)
Edward II (Jarman)
The Hours (Daldry)
I Shall Not Be Removed: The Life of Marlon Riggs (Everett)
Jefferey (Ashley)
The Living End (Araki)
Longtime Companion (Rene)
Parting Glances (Sherwood)
Silverlake Life: The View From Here (Friedman/Joslin)
(And yes, we left it off on purpose.)
And please, make a donation if you can.
And The Band Played On (Spottiswoode)
Angels in America (Nichols)
Before Night Falls (Schnabel)
Edward II (Jarman)
The Hours (Daldry)
I Shall Not Be Removed: The Life of Marlon Riggs (Everett)
Jefferey (Ashley)
The Living End (Araki)
Longtime Companion (Rene)
Parting Glances (Sherwood)
Silverlake Life: The View From Here (Friedman/Joslin)
(And yes, we left it off on purpose.)
And please, make a donation if you can.
A Day To Remember
World Aids Day....the struggle is not over. Since this is a film blog, may we suggest the following as a great way to reconnect with your own thoughts:
And The Band Played On (Spottiswoode)
Angels in America (Nichols)
Before Night Falls (Schnabel)
Edward II (Jarman)
The Hours (Daldry)
I Shall Not Be Removed: The Life of Marlon Riggs (Everett)
Jefferey (Ashley)
The Living End (Araki)
Longtime Companion (Rene)
Parting Glances (Sherwood)
Silverlake Life: The View From Here (Friedman/Joslin)
(And yes, we left it off on purpose.)
And please, make a donation if you can.
And The Band Played On (Spottiswoode)
Angels in America (Nichols)
Before Night Falls (Schnabel)
Edward II (Jarman)
The Hours (Daldry)
I Shall Not Be Removed: The Life of Marlon Riggs (Everett)
Jefferey (Ashley)
The Living End (Araki)
Longtime Companion (Rene)
Parting Glances (Sherwood)
Silverlake Life: The View From Here (Friedman/Joslin)
(And yes, we left it off on purpose.)
And please, make a donation if you can.
Shout-out! Gael Garcia Bernal turns 28 today.
Bernal came in at #2 on Nat's Top 100 Actors of the Aughts countdown, and is a previous Hump Day Hottie, so I know Nat would want to spread some love for Mr. Bernal if he were here. Bernal could be seen this Fall in The Science of Sleep and Babel (but don't get me started on the latter). Anyway, he's pretty. Ogle-time!
.
Bernal came in at #2 on Nat's Top 100 Actors of the Aughts countdown, and is a previous Hump Day Hottie, so I know Nat would want to spread some love for Mr. Bernal if he were here. Bernal could be seen this Fall in The Science of Sleep and Babel (but don't get me started on the latter). Anyway, he's pretty. Ogle-time!
.
Shout-out! Gael Garcia Bernal turns 28 today.
Bernal came in at #2 on Nat's Top 100 Actors of the Aughts countdown, and is a previous Hump Day Hottie, so I know Nat would want to spread some love for Mr. Bernal if he were here. Bernal could be seen this Fall in The Science of Sleep and Babel (but don't get me started on the latter). Anyway, he's pretty. Ogle-time!
.
Bernal came in at #2 on Nat's Top 100 Actors of the Aughts countdown, and is a previous Hump Day Hottie, so I know Nat would want to spread some love for Mr. Bernal if he were here. Bernal could be seen this Fall in The Science of Sleep and Babel (but don't get me started on the latter). Anyway, he's pretty. Ogle-time!
.
The Chicken Of The Sea (Is Me)
JA of My New Plaid Pants here, wishing a very merry vacation to Nathaniel, along with much thanks for allowing me to spread my nonsense even further across this crazy world wide web.
Perhaps it’s just because I finally watched An Inconvenient Truth this week, but news of Shamu* trying to drown his trainer this morning is making me feel antsy. Crocodile Hunter Steve Irwin gets stabbed in the heart by a stingray, there are giant jellyfish swarming off of the coast of Japan… well, is anyone else feeling a bit 20,000 Leagues Under The Sea these days?
Perhaps it’s just because I finally watched An Inconvenient Truth this week, but news of Shamu* trying to drown his trainer this morning is making me feel antsy. Crocodile Hunter Steve Irwin gets stabbed in the heart by a stingray, there are giant jellyfish swarming off of the coast of Japan… well, is anyone else feeling a bit 20,000 Leagues Under The Sea these days?
Homer was really on to something making Odysseus & friends have to pass between Scylla and Charybdis way back when – is there anything creepier than the sensation of something slimy slithering past your foot when you’re submerged in water? And the movies have fully embraced exploiting the terror of what’s just beneath that glimmering water’s surface. From that giant squid piling onto the sub during the climactic scene of 20,000 Leagues, to its multi-million dollar CG brother, The Kraken, in this past summer’s blockbuster Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest, we just need to face it: the sea monster is coming to get us all.
(*Okay, it wasn’t Shamu, it was another trained killer whale, named Kasatka, but it was in "Shamu Stadium" so close enough; if Shamu's lawyers contact me I'll make the necessary changes)
Here are some highlights from the sea monster’s many cinematic appearances through the years:
1933 – King Kong – The brontosaurus attacking the raft was always my favorite scene in the original, so I was pissed it got cut from Peter Jackson’s 12-hour remake. I guess something had to go so we could get more Jack Black mugging (the scene is apparently restored in the new, 47-hour DVD director's cut, though).
1954 – 20,000 Leagues Under The Sea – From IMDb: “Peter Lorre claimed that the giant squid got the role that was usually reserved for him.”
1955 - Bride of the Monster - Bela Lugosi wrestles with a plastic octopus in a mud puddle. (ETA - thanks to Steven @ The Horror Blog for the correction here - closet Wood fan no more!)
1966 – Godzilla Versus The Sea Monster – This is the one with the giant crab, right? All those Saturday matinee viewings have blended together. Godzilla giving the water-logged smack-down to a man in a crab costume was one of the more memorable moments, though.
1975 – Jaws – The shark, nicknamed Bruce, had three sequels written into his contract, so blame him!
1977 – Orca - A terrible Jaws rip-off, sure, but I think I must’ve seen it 20 times on HBO as a kid. Meaning that a key image of my development was a dying whale aborting its enormous fetus onto the deck of a ship. Hmm.
1981 – Piranha Part Two: The Spawning – Okay, the first movie’s actually a lot of cheesy fun, and I’ve never even seen the sequel - directed by JAMES CAMERON! sort of – but come on, the piranhas can fly! I vividly remember staring at the cover art for this movie in the video store as a kid, with the piranhas flapping their little fins and attacking people on the beach, and being mesmerized. I have to see this immediately.
1989 – The Abyss – James Cameron’s triumphant return to underwater thingamajigs!
1993 – Free Willy – Not exactly a monster movie, unless you felt your tear ducts were wrongly assaulted, but I know I'm not alone in having wished that damn fish would've ended up devouring that "lovable" little boy, right?
1997 – Anaconda – Jon Voight is REGURGITATED ALIVE. For this and this reason alone, this film will always hold a dear place in my (and probably Angelina Jolie’s) heart.
1999 – Deep Blue Sea – Thomas Jane. A pair of flimsy swimming trunks. A wet suit. Movie gold, people, movie gold.
2001 – Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring – Hobbits flung all akimbo by the Watcher in the Water. If that sentence is nothing but gobbledygook to you, you need to step up your geek-cred, my friend.
2003 – Finding Nemo – I still have nightmares about that mommy-eating barracuda in the opening scene.
2005 - The Squid and The Whale - Oh wait, nevermind.
2006 – Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest – The Kraken snaps ships into bits with his enormous tentacled arms… but is it capable of love?
January, 2007 – The Host – The Korean blockbuster gets released here in the States, and I’m already ready to buy my ticket. Have you seen the trailer? Jinkies!
I’m surely missing important ones here (say, Harry Hamlin in a mini-skirt, or Betty White feeding a cow to a mutant crocodile, for starters); leave your favorite sea monster moment in the comments!
The Chicken Of The Sea (Is Me)
JA of My New Plaid Pants here, wishing a very merry vacation to Nathaniel, along with much thanks for allowing me to spread my nonsense even further across this crazy world wide web.
Perhaps it’s just because I finally watched An Inconvenient Truth this week, but news of Shamu* trying to drown his trainer this morning is making me feel antsy. Crocodile Hunter Steve Irwin gets stabbed in the heart by a stingray, there are giant jellyfish swarming off of the coast of Japan… well, is anyone else feeling a bit 20,000 Leagues Under The Sea these days?
Perhaps it’s just because I finally watched An Inconvenient Truth this week, but news of Shamu* trying to drown his trainer this morning is making me feel antsy. Crocodile Hunter Steve Irwin gets stabbed in the heart by a stingray, there are giant jellyfish swarming off of the coast of Japan… well, is anyone else feeling a bit 20,000 Leagues Under The Sea these days?
Homer was really on to something making Odysseus & friends have to pass between Scylla and Charybdis way back when – is there anything creepier than the sensation of something slimy slithering past your foot when you’re submerged in water? And the movies have fully embraced exploiting the terror of what’s just beneath that glimmering water’s surface. From that giant squid piling onto the sub during the climactic scene of 20,000 Leagues, to its multi-million dollar CG brother, The Kraken, in this past summer’s blockbuster Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest, we just need to face it: the sea monster is coming to get us all.
(*Okay, it wasn’t Shamu, it was another trained killer whale, named Kasatka, but it was in "Shamu Stadium" so close enough; if Shamu's lawyers contact me I'll make the necessary changes)
Here are some highlights from the sea monster’s many cinematic appearances through the years:
1933 – King Kong – The brontosaurus attacking the raft was always my favorite scene in the original, so I was pissed it got cut from Peter Jackson’s 12-hour remake. I guess something had to go so we could get more Jack Black mugging (the scene is apparently restored in the new, 47-hour DVD director's cut, though).
1954 – 20,000 Leagues Under The Sea – From IMDb: “Peter Lorre claimed that the giant squid got the role that was usually reserved for him.”
1955 - Bride of the Monster - Bela Lugosi wrestles with a plastic octopus in a mud puddle. (ETA - thanks to Steven @ The Horror Blog for the correction here - closet Wood fan no more!)
1966 – Godzilla Versus The Sea Monster – This is the one with the giant crab, right? All those Saturday matinee viewings have blended together. Godzilla giving the water-logged smack-down to a man in a crab costume was one of the more memorable moments, though.
1975 – Jaws – The shark, nicknamed Bruce, had three sequels written into his contract, so blame him!
1977 – Orca - A terrible Jaws rip-off, sure, but I think I must’ve seen it 20 times on HBO as a kid. Meaning that a key image of my development was a dying whale aborting its enormous fetus onto the deck of a ship. Hmm.
1981 – Piranha Part Two: The Spawning – Okay, the first movie’s actually a lot of cheesy fun, and I’ve never even seen the sequel - directed by JAMES CAMERON! sort of – but come on, the piranhas can fly! I vividly remember staring at the cover art for this movie in the video store as a kid, with the piranhas flapping their little fins and attacking people on the beach, and being mesmerized. I have to see this immediately.
1989 – The Abyss – James Cameron’s triumphant return to underwater thingamajigs!
1993 – Free Willy – Not exactly a monster movie, unless you felt your tear ducts were wrongly assaulted, but I know I'm not alone in having wished that damn fish would've ended up devouring that "lovable" little boy, right?
1997 – Anaconda – Jon Voight is REGURGITATED ALIVE. For this and this reason alone, this film will always hold a dear place in my (and probably Angelina Jolie’s) heart.
1999 – Deep Blue Sea – Thomas Jane. A pair of flimsy swimming trunks. A wet suit. Movie gold, people, movie gold.
2001 – Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring – Hobbits flung all akimbo by the Watcher in the Water. If that sentence is nothing but gobbledygook to you, you need to step up your geek-cred, my friend.
2003 – Finding Nemo – I still have nightmares about that mommy-eating barracuda in the opening scene.
2005 - The Squid and The Whale - Oh wait, nevermind.
2006 – Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest – The Kraken snaps ships into bits with his enormous tentacled arms… but is it capable of love?
January, 2007 – The Host – The Korean blockbuster gets released here in the States, and I’m already ready to buy my ticket. Have you seen the trailer? Jinkies!
I’m surely missing important ones here (say, Harry Hamlin in a mini-skirt, or Betty White feeding a cow to a mutant crocodile, for starters); leave your favorite sea monster moment in the comments!
Wednesday, November 29, 2006
The (Mostly) Unseen Contenders of '06: Dreamgirls
While Nathaniel's relaxing at an undisclosed vacation location (soaking in a warm cucumber bath at a spa somewhere, we're guessing), he's asked us to fill in. And how could we say no to such a talented, sexy, and mildly OCD blogfriend? We love him, we love this site, and we're pleased as punch to be playing in the Film Experience sandbox.
Plus: it's an exciting time for Oscar freaks like us, isn't it? With the National Board of Review merely a week away, we thought we'd highlight the major Oscar contenders that have not yet opened to the public. We begin with the 5000-pound gorilla of the season; stay tuned for daily installments where we'll distill the buzz, squeeze out the juice, mix it with vodka and serve it as an Oscartini. [Modern Fabulousity]
DREAMGIRLS
Release Date: December 15th (NY/LA); December 25th (nationwide)
MPAA Rating: PG-13 for language, some sexuality and drug content
Ten Words Or Less: It's the Supremes, but no Diana Ross...show queen heaven.
Reason For Existence: Because Hollywood owes gays an apology after screwing Brokeback Mountain last year. And nothing says you're sorry like a big Broadway musical!
Mathematical Equation: X=Mahogany + (The Color Purple - American Idol) + (Little Shop of Horrors - actual horrors) divided by 1/3 (Destiny's Child)
Take A Look: The Rockin' Trailer
Early Buzz (Good): "Dreamgirls is a movie that has everything: a blazing new star in Jennifer Hudson, a riveting, revitalized Eddie Murphy, a hot-lick score by Henry Krieger and the late Tom Eyen, a timely story about how music can sell its soul to greed and compromise, and a dynamo of a director and screenwriter in Bill Condon." - Peter Travers, Rolling Stone
Early Buzz (Bad): "While being left breathless can be riveting in the cinematic environment, it is never as much when it comes at the expense of narrative cohesion." - Kris Tapley, In Contention
Oscar Locks: Best Film, Supporting Actor (Murphy), Supporting Actress (Hudson)
In The Running: Director and Adapted Screenplay (Condon); Costume Design (Shared Davis)
Long Shots: Best Song ("Listen"); Best Actor (Jamie Foxx); Best Actress (Beyonce Knowles)
Best Picture Odds: 2-1
Why It's Essential: Do you really want to be the only one at your office who hasn't seen it?
The Achilles Heel: The tense-smile appearance on Oprah last week made it clear that Beyonce's not happy playing second fiddle to Hudson. Internal squabbling, if it goes public, could hurt the film's momentum. And then there's the issue of living up to expectations, which may be Dreamgirls' biggest battle...call it the Jennifer Holliday Factor.
The Verdict: It would take a mighty big roadblock to derail at this point...but pre-emptive favorites have a way of fading at the end. Brokeback, anyone? [Modern Fabulousity]
Plus: it's an exciting time for Oscar freaks like us, isn't it? With the National Board of Review merely a week away, we thought we'd highlight the major Oscar contenders that have not yet opened to the public. We begin with the 5000-pound gorilla of the season; stay tuned for daily installments where we'll distill the buzz, squeeze out the juice, mix it with vodka and serve it as an Oscartini. [Modern Fabulousity]
DREAMGIRLS
Release Date: December 15th (NY/LA); December 25th (nationwide)
MPAA Rating: PG-13 for language, some sexuality and drug content
Ten Words Or Less: It's the Supremes, but no Diana Ross...show queen heaven.
Reason For Existence: Because Hollywood owes gays an apology after screwing Brokeback Mountain last year. And nothing says you're sorry like a big Broadway musical!
Mathematical Equation: X=Mahogany + (The Color Purple - American Idol) + (Little Shop of Horrors - actual horrors) divided by 1/3 (Destiny's Child)
Take A Look: The Rockin' Trailer
Early Buzz (Good): "Dreamgirls is a movie that has everything: a blazing new star in Jennifer Hudson, a riveting, revitalized Eddie Murphy, a hot-lick score by Henry Krieger and the late Tom Eyen, a timely story about how music can sell its soul to greed and compromise, and a dynamo of a director and screenwriter in Bill Condon." - Peter Travers, Rolling Stone
Early Buzz (Bad): "While being left breathless can be riveting in the cinematic environment, it is never as much when it comes at the expense of narrative cohesion." - Kris Tapley, In Contention
Oscar Locks: Best Film, Supporting Actor (Murphy), Supporting Actress (Hudson)
In The Running: Director and Adapted Screenplay (Condon); Costume Design (Shared Davis)
Long Shots: Best Song ("Listen"); Best Actor (Jamie Foxx); Best Actress (Beyonce Knowles)
Best Picture Odds: 2-1
Why It's Essential: Do you really want to be the only one at your office who hasn't seen it?
The Achilles Heel: The tense-smile appearance on Oprah last week made it clear that Beyonce's not happy playing second fiddle to Hudson. Internal squabbling, if it goes public, could hurt the film's momentum. And then there's the issue of living up to expectations, which may be Dreamgirls' biggest battle...call it the Jennifer Holliday Factor.
The Verdict: It would take a mighty big roadblock to derail at this point...but pre-emptive favorites have a way of fading at the end. Brokeback, anyone? [Modern Fabulousity]
The (Mostly) Unseen Contenders of '06: Dreamgirls
While Nathaniel's relaxing at an undisclosed vacation location (soaking in a warm cucumber bath at a spa somewhere, we're guessing), he's asked us to fill in. And how could we say no to such a talented, sexy, and mildly OCD blogfriend? We love him, we love this site, and we're pleased as punch to be playing in the Film Experience sandbox.
Plus: it's an exciting time for Oscar freaks like us, isn't it? With the National Board of Review merely a week away, we thought we'd highlight the major Oscar contenders that have not yet opened to the public. We begin with the 5000-pound gorilla of the season; stay tuned for daily installments where we'll distill the buzz, squeeze out the juice, mix it with vodka and serve it as an Oscartini. [Modern Fabulousity]
DREAMGIRLS
Release Date: December 15th (NY/LA); December 25th (nationwide)
MPAA Rating: PG-13 for language, some sexuality and drug content
Ten Words Or Less: It's the Supremes, but no Diana Ross...show queen heaven.
Reason For Existence: Because Hollywood owes gays an apology after screwing Brokeback Mountain last year. And nothing says you're sorry like a big Broadway musical!
Mathematical Equation: X=Mahogany + (The Color Purple - American Idol) + (Little Shop of Horrors - actual horrors) divided by 1/3 (Destiny's Child)
Take A Look: The Rockin' Trailer
Early Buzz (Good): "Dreamgirls is a movie that has everything: a blazing new star in Jennifer Hudson, a riveting, revitalized Eddie Murphy, a hot-lick score by Henry Krieger and the late Tom Eyen, a timely story about how music can sell its soul to greed and compromise, and a dynamo of a director and screenwriter in Bill Condon." - Peter Travers, Rolling Stone
Early Buzz (Bad): "While being left breathless can be riveting in the cinematic environment, it is never as much when it comes at the expense of narrative cohesion." - Kris Tapley, In Contention
Oscar Locks: Best Film, Supporting Actor (Murphy), Supporting Actress (Hudson)
In The Running: Director and Adapted Screenplay (Condon); Costume Design (Shared Davis)
Long Shots: Best Song ("Listen"); Best Actor (Jamie Foxx); Best Actress (Beyonce Knowles)
Best Picture Odds: 2-1
Why It's Essential: Do you really want to be the only one at your office who hasn't seen it?
The Achilles Heel: The tense-smile appearance on Oprah last week made it clear that Beyonce's not happy playing second fiddle to Hudson. Internal squabbling, if it goes public, could hurt the film's momentum. And then there's the issue of living up to expectations, which may be Dreamgirls' biggest battle...call it the Jennifer Holliday Factor.
The Verdict: It would take a mighty big roadblock to derail at this point...but pre-emptive favorites have a way of fading at the end. Brokeback, anyone? [Modern Fabulousity]
Plus: it's an exciting time for Oscar freaks like us, isn't it? With the National Board of Review merely a week away, we thought we'd highlight the major Oscar contenders that have not yet opened to the public. We begin with the 5000-pound gorilla of the season; stay tuned for daily installments where we'll distill the buzz, squeeze out the juice, mix it with vodka and serve it as an Oscartini. [Modern Fabulousity]
DREAMGIRLS
Release Date: December 15th (NY/LA); December 25th (nationwide)
MPAA Rating: PG-13 for language, some sexuality and drug content
Ten Words Or Less: It's the Supremes, but no Diana Ross...show queen heaven.
Reason For Existence: Because Hollywood owes gays an apology after screwing Brokeback Mountain last year. And nothing says you're sorry like a big Broadway musical!
Mathematical Equation: X=Mahogany + (The Color Purple - American Idol) + (Little Shop of Horrors - actual horrors) divided by 1/3 (Destiny's Child)
Take A Look: The Rockin' Trailer
Early Buzz (Good): "Dreamgirls is a movie that has everything: a blazing new star in Jennifer Hudson, a riveting, revitalized Eddie Murphy, a hot-lick score by Henry Krieger and the late Tom Eyen, a timely story about how music can sell its soul to greed and compromise, and a dynamo of a director and screenwriter in Bill Condon." - Peter Travers, Rolling Stone
Early Buzz (Bad): "While being left breathless can be riveting in the cinematic environment, it is never as much when it comes at the expense of narrative cohesion." - Kris Tapley, In Contention
Oscar Locks: Best Film, Supporting Actor (Murphy), Supporting Actress (Hudson)
In The Running: Director and Adapted Screenplay (Condon); Costume Design (Shared Davis)
Long Shots: Best Song ("Listen"); Best Actor (Jamie Foxx); Best Actress (Beyonce Knowles)
Best Picture Odds: 2-1
Why It's Essential: Do you really want to be the only one at your office who hasn't seen it?
The Achilles Heel: The tense-smile appearance on Oprah last week made it clear that Beyonce's not happy playing second fiddle to Hudson. Internal squabbling, if it goes public, could hurt the film's momentum. And then there's the issue of living up to expectations, which may be Dreamgirls' biggest battle...call it the Jennifer Holliday Factor.
The Verdict: It would take a mighty big roadblock to derail at this point...but pre-emptive favorites have a way of fading at the end. Brokeback, anyone? [Modern Fabulousity]
"It's the Deep Breath Before the Plunge"
When it comes to the pre-Oscar awards season, the National Board of Review want their "first!" status back after last year's fumble. They'll kick off 'Christmas for the Studios' on December 6th with their annual spread - the - wealth gift basket. No studio should live in fear of coal in their stocking. They'll all get one or two specially wrapped gifts. 'Round about the same time (if not sooner) Peter "blurbwhore" Travers of Rolling Stone and a smattering of other long lead critics will begin announcing their "Top Ten Movies of the Year" And then --da-dum! -- on December 14th, the Hollywood Foreign Press Association throws the snowball that becomes the avalanche of Awards Season: The Golden Globe Nominations.
For three months thereafter we're buried in it.
It's an exciting, draining, maddening time of year: full of "hooray !!!"s, "ARGH"s, and "huh ?!?"s for all of us playing at home. So, before Awards Season hits I need a wee break to psyche myself up for that three month orgy of AWARDS! LISTS! OSCARS! When I come back it'll be awards season plus more of the usual and the unusual: Moulin Rouge! recap, conflicted notes on Notes on a Scandal, and more on the personal canon.
To tide you over during my break you'll be hearing from three fine bloggers: my pals Gabriel (of ModFab infamy), JA (of My New Plaid Pants obsessing) and Catherine (of I Am Screaming and Punching Myself hilarity).
I'm off for a week. Mwah.
For three months thereafter we're buried in it.
It's an exciting, draining, maddening time of year: full of "hooray !!!"s, "ARGH"s, and "huh ?!?"s for all of us playing at home. So, before Awards Season hits I need a wee break to psyche myself up for that three month orgy of AWARDS! LISTS! OSCARS! When I come back it'll be awards season plus more of the usual and the unusual: Moulin Rouge! recap, conflicted notes on Notes on a Scandal, and more on the personal canon.
To tide you over during my break you'll be hearing from three fine bloggers: my pals Gabriel (of ModFab infamy), JA (of My New Plaid Pants obsessing) and Catherine (of I Am Screaming and Punching Myself hilarity).
I'm off for a week. Mwah.
"It's the Deep Breath Before the Plunge"
When it comes to the pre-Oscar awards season, the National Board of Review want their "first!" status back after last year's fumble. They'll kick off 'Christmas for the Studios' on December 6th with their annual spread - the - wealth gift basket. No studio should live in fear of coal in their stocking. They'll all get one or two specially wrapped gifts. 'Round about the same time (if not sooner) Peter "blurbwhore" Travers of Rolling Stone and a smattering of other long lead critics will begin announcing their "Top Ten Movies of the Year" And then --da-dum! -- on December 14th, the Hollywood Foreign Press Association throws the snowball that becomes the avalanche of Awards Season: The Golden Globe Nominations.
For three months thereafter we're buried in it.
It's an exciting, draining, maddening time of year: full of "hooray !!!"s, "ARGH"s, and "huh ?!?"s for all of us playing at home. So, before Awards Season hits I need a wee break to psyche myself up for that three month orgy of AWARDS! LISTS! OSCARS! When I come back it'll be awards season plus more of the usual and the unusual: Moulin Rouge! recap, conflicted notes on Notes on a Scandal, and more on the personal canon.
To tide you over during my break you'll be hearing from three fine bloggers: my pals Gabriel (of ModFab infamy), JA (of My New Plaid Pants obsessing) and Catherine (of I Am Screaming and Punching Myself hilarity).
I'm off for a week. Mwah.
For three months thereafter we're buried in it.
It's an exciting, draining, maddening time of year: full of "hooray !!!"s, "ARGH"s, and "huh ?!?"s for all of us playing at home. So, before Awards Season hits I need a wee break to psyche myself up for that three month orgy of AWARDS! LISTS! OSCARS! When I come back it'll be awards season plus more of the usual and the unusual: Moulin Rouge! recap, conflicted notes on Notes on a Scandal, and more on the personal canon.
To tide you over during my break you'll be hearing from three fine bloggers: my pals Gabriel (of ModFab infamy), JA (of My New Plaid Pants obsessing) and Catherine (of I Am Screaming and Punching Myself hilarity).
I'm off for a week. Mwah.
sorry haters, got me "indie" cred now
Y'all remember the last time my post dropped. Where I been? Making movies dumbass. Got two next year. Can't stop. Still really really hot. Just came to get my props. I got a Spirit Nomination, you heard? Used to be called an "Indie" Spirit but they aint frontin' no more, they went Hollywood years ago. I'ma fight the new James Bond and that ol' crackhead from Miss Sunshine. Heh.
That big tent in February, should be hot. Jennifer Tilly owwhoo Juliette Lewis: you know all them crazy 90s bitches be there. And that John Waters dude --sick.
Later,
Channing
tags:Channing Tatum, movies, film, Spirit Awards
That big tent in February, should be hot. Jennifer Tilly owwhoo Juliette Lewis: you know all them crazy 90s bitches be there. And that John Waters dude --sick.
Later,
Channing
tags:Channing Tatum, movies, film, Spirit Awards
sorry haters, got me "indie" cred now
Y'all remember the last time my post dropped. Where I been? Making movies dumbass. Got two next year. Can't stop. Still really really hot. Just came to get my props. I got a Spirit Nomination, you heard? Used to be called an "Indie" Spirit but they aint frontin' no more, they went Hollywood years ago. I'ma fight the new James Bond and that ol' crackhead from Miss Sunshine. Heh.
That big tent in February, should be hot. Jennifer Tilly owwhoo Juliette Lewis: you know all them crazy 90s bitches be there. And that John Waters dude --sick.
Later,
Channing
tags:Channing Tatum, movies, film, Spirit Awards
That big tent in February, should be hot. Jennifer Tilly owwhoo Juliette Lewis: you know all them crazy 90s bitches be there. And that John Waters dude --sick.
Later,
Channing
tags:Channing Tatum, movies, film, Spirit Awards
Company
Give or take fears about what whimsy-loving Tim Burton is going to do to the horror/comedy/thriller/musical masterpiece that is Sweeney Todd next year, the past few years have been kind to Stephen Sondheim fanatics like myself. We've had his fun cameo in Camp, that awesome day-long 75th birthday celebration at Symphony Space, and last season brought us John Doyle's revelatory rethink of Sweeney Todd. And now... "phone rings, door chimes, here comes Company"
Company, Sondheim's brilliant exploration of marriage and commitment, was a hit in it's original run in 1970 but today it doesn't enjoy the high profile of a Sweeney Todd or an Into the Woods. But, should you find yourself in the New York area, you should see it. Whatever its flaws (and great Sondheim is, I suspect, as difficult to pull off as great Shakespeare --no production ever seems as brilliant as the piece itself) the revival of Company is a treat.
My Broadway honey Raul Esparza, miscast in Chitty Chitty Bang Bang two seasons back, has the lead role of "Bobby" and milks it, some would say drains it dry, for maximum "worship me!" applause. But it's the female supporting players who have those plum TONY nominatable showstoppers like "Getting Married Today" and "The Ladies Who Lunch"
Company opens tonight at the Ethel Barrymore theater on 47th Street here in NYC.
Company, Sondheim's brilliant exploration of marriage and commitment, was a hit in it's original run in 1970 but today it doesn't enjoy the high profile of a Sweeney Todd or an Into the Woods. But, should you find yourself in the New York area, you should see it. Whatever its flaws (and great Sondheim is, I suspect, as difficult to pull off as great Shakespeare --no production ever seems as brilliant as the piece itself) the revival of Company is a treat.
My Broadway honey Raul Esparza, miscast in Chitty Chitty Bang Bang two seasons back, has the lead role of "Bobby" and milks it, some would say drains it dry, for maximum "worship me!" applause. But it's the female supporting players who have those plum TONY nominatable showstoppers like "Getting Married Today" and "The Ladies Who Lunch"
Company opens tonight at the Ethel Barrymore theater on 47th Street here in NYC.
Company
Give or take fears about what whimsy-loving Tim Burton is going to do to the horror/comedy/thriller/musical masterpiece that is Sweeney Todd next year, the past few years have been kind to Stephen Sondheim fanatics like myself. We've had his fun cameo in Camp, that awesome day-long 75th birthday celebration at Symphony Space, and last season brought us John Doyle's revelatory rethink of Sweeney Todd. And now... "phone rings, door chimes, here comes Company"
Company, Sondheim's brilliant exploration of marriage and commitment, was a hit in it's original run in 1970 but today it doesn't enjoy the high profile of a Sweeney Todd or an Into the Woods. But, should you find yourself in the New York area, you should see it. Whatever its flaws (and great Sondheim is, I suspect, as difficult to pull off as great Shakespeare --no production ever seems as brilliant as the piece itself) the revival of Company is a treat.
My Broadway honey Raul Esparza, miscast in Chitty Chitty Bang Bang two seasons back, has the lead role of "Bobby" and milks it, some would say drains it dry, for maximum "worship me!" applause. But it's the female supporting players who have those plum TONY nominatable showstoppers like "Getting Married Today" and "The Ladies Who Lunch"
Company opens tonight at the Ethel Barrymore theater on 47th Street here in NYC.
Company, Sondheim's brilliant exploration of marriage and commitment, was a hit in it's original run in 1970 but today it doesn't enjoy the high profile of a Sweeney Todd or an Into the Woods. But, should you find yourself in the New York area, you should see it. Whatever its flaws (and great Sondheim is, I suspect, as difficult to pull off as great Shakespeare --no production ever seems as brilliant as the piece itself) the revival of Company is a treat.
My Broadway honey Raul Esparza, miscast in Chitty Chitty Bang Bang two seasons back, has the lead role of "Bobby" and milks it, some would say drains it dry, for maximum "worship me!" applause. But it's the female supporting players who have those plum TONY nominatable showstoppers like "Getting Married Today" and "The Ladies Who Lunch"
Company opens tonight at the Ethel Barrymore theater on 47th Street here in NYC.
Day Job: Toni Collette
The intention of this series is to pick an actor or actress and explore the "careers" within their filmography. It was a whole month ago I covered Kirsten Dunst. Now, it's time for Toni! Toni! Toni!
Toni's 'Day Jobs'
Job(s) Held Prior to Acting Professionally: Anyone know? She made her first movie at 20 years of age so she must've earned a paycheck somewhere.
Number of Films: 25 (excluding TV and voice work)
Most Frequent Onscreen Career: She's logged a lot of time as wives and/or mothers... but when it comes to working girl mode there's no true dominant role. She's been a lawyer twice (Changing Lanes, In Her Shoes) and whether or not it was a "profession" of any discernable sort she's been in four films wherein music played an important role albeit in different forms: lipsynching, rock star entourage, or singing herself (Muriel's Wedding, Velvet Goldmine, Connie & Carla, Cosi). Still, for all of the musical notes swirling about, no film has yet to utilize her appropriately in this way. I've seen her on Broadway. She's a major triple threat --spirited dancing, gorgeous vocals, and --well, you know about the acting chops. (If you've never heard her sing try The Wild Party. Her big ballad is "People Like Us")
Average Salary Working Actor: $23,470 Toni's Salary: Unknown but in seven figures.
My Favorite Career: Toni's greatest lead performance is as a geologist in the underseen Japanese Story. In supporting roles, I think I got the biggest kick from watching her temp in Clockwatchers (it helped that Parker Posey and Lisa Kudrow added to the fun)
Oddest Calling: I'll have to go with the nun who is part of a makeshift harem in Peter Greenaway's 8 1/2 Women.
Latest Profession: She played a social worker in The Night Listener and though they didn't delve into her profession in Little Miss Sunshine it's cute that she absentmindedly wore her work badge for the film's opening scenes.
What would you hire Toni Collette to do?
ANSWER IN THE COMMENTS
Tags:
Toni Collette, movies, film, cinema, australia
Toni's 'Day Jobs'
Job(s) Held Prior to Acting Professionally: Anyone know? She made her first movie at 20 years of age so she must've earned a paycheck somewhere.
Number of Films: 25 (excluding TV and voice work)
Most Frequent Onscreen Career: She's logged a lot of time as wives and/or mothers... but when it comes to working girl mode there's no true dominant role. She's been a lawyer twice (Changing Lanes, In Her Shoes) and whether or not it was a "profession" of any discernable sort she's been in four films wherein music played an important role albeit in different forms: lipsynching, rock star entourage, or singing herself (Muriel's Wedding, Velvet Goldmine, Connie & Carla, Cosi). Still, for all of the musical notes swirling about, no film has yet to utilize her appropriately in this way. I've seen her on Broadway. She's a major triple threat --spirited dancing, gorgeous vocals, and --well, you know about the acting chops. (If you've never heard her sing try The Wild Party. Her big ballad is "People Like Us")
Average Salary Working Actor: $23,470 Toni's Salary: Unknown but in seven figures.
My Favorite Career: Toni's greatest lead performance is as a geologist in the underseen Japanese Story. In supporting roles, I think I got the biggest kick from watching her temp in Clockwatchers (it helped that Parker Posey and Lisa Kudrow added to the fun)
Oddest Calling: I'll have to go with the nun who is part of a makeshift harem in Peter Greenaway's 8 1/2 Women.
Latest Profession: She played a social worker in The Night Listener and though they didn't delve into her profession in Little Miss Sunshine it's cute that she absentmindedly wore her work badge for the film's opening scenes.
What would you hire Toni Collette to do?
ANSWER IN THE COMMENTS
Tags:
Toni Collette, movies, film, cinema, australia
Day Job: Toni Collette
The intention of this series is to pick an actor or actress and explore the "careers" within their filmography. It was a whole month ago I covered Kirsten Dunst. Now, it's time for Toni! Toni! Toni!
Toni's 'Day Jobs'
Job(s) Held Prior to Acting Professionally: Anyone know? She made her first movie at 20 years of age so she must've earned a paycheck somewhere.
Number of Films: 25 (excluding TV and voice work)
Most Frequent Onscreen Career: She's logged a lot of time as wives and/or mothers... but when it comes to working girl mode there's no true dominant role. She's been a lawyer twice (Changing Lanes, In Her Shoes) and whether or not it was a "profession" of any discernable sort she's been in four films wherein music played an important role albeit in different forms: lipsynching, rock star entourage, or singing herself (Muriel's Wedding, Velvet Goldmine, Connie & Carla, Cosi). Still, for all of the musical notes swirling about, no film has yet to utilize her appropriately in this way. I've seen her on Broadway. She's a major triple threat --spirited dancing, gorgeous vocals, and --well, you know about the acting chops. (If you've never heard her sing try The Wild Party. Her big ballad is "People Like Us")
Average Salary Working Actor: $23,470 Toni's Salary: Unknown but in seven figures.
My Favorite Career: Toni's greatest lead performance is as a geologist in the underseen Japanese Story. In supporting roles, I think I got the biggest kick from watching her temp in Clockwatchers (it helped that Parker Posey and Lisa Kudrow added to the fun)
Oddest Calling: I'll have to go with the nun who is part of a makeshift harem in Peter Greenaway's 8 1/2 Women.
Latest Profession: She played a social worker in The Night Listener and though they didn't delve into her profession in Little Miss Sunshine it's cute that she absentmindedly wore her work badge for the film's opening scenes.
What would you hire Toni Collette to do?
ANSWER IN THE COMMENTS
Tags:
Toni Collette, movies, film, cinema, australia
Toni's 'Day Jobs'
Job(s) Held Prior to Acting Professionally: Anyone know? She made her first movie at 20 years of age so she must've earned a paycheck somewhere.
Number of Films: 25 (excluding TV and voice work)
Most Frequent Onscreen Career: She's logged a lot of time as wives and/or mothers... but when it comes to working girl mode there's no true dominant role. She's been a lawyer twice (Changing Lanes, In Her Shoes) and whether or not it was a "profession" of any discernable sort she's been in four films wherein music played an important role albeit in different forms: lipsynching, rock star entourage, or singing herself (Muriel's Wedding, Velvet Goldmine, Connie & Carla, Cosi). Still, for all of the musical notes swirling about, no film has yet to utilize her appropriately in this way. I've seen her on Broadway. She's a major triple threat --spirited dancing, gorgeous vocals, and --well, you know about the acting chops. (If you've never heard her sing try The Wild Party. Her big ballad is "People Like Us")
Average Salary Working Actor: $23,470 Toni's Salary: Unknown but in seven figures.
My Favorite Career: Toni's greatest lead performance is as a geologist in the underseen Japanese Story. In supporting roles, I think I got the biggest kick from watching her temp in Clockwatchers (it helped that Parker Posey and Lisa Kudrow added to the fun)
Oddest Calling: I'll have to go with the nun who is part of a makeshift harem in Peter Greenaway's 8 1/2 Women.
Latest Profession: She played a social worker in The Night Listener and though they didn't delve into her profession in Little Miss Sunshine it's cute that she absentmindedly wore her work badge for the film's opening scenes.
What would you hire Toni Collette to do?
ANSWER IN THE COMMENTS
Tags:
Toni Collette, movies, film, cinema, australia
Tuesday, November 28, 2006
Links, Miscellania
miscellania
Ellen Burstyn One of America's greatest actors now has a website!
Fame Tracker on Ty Burrell's strange casting niche. (Incidentally I think Ty gives the best performance in Fur, albeit a low key one)
Bright Lights After Dark on Criterion's Pandora's Box DVD. (mmm, Louise)
the fountain -still gushing love AND hate
Nicks Flick Picks (very briefly) on The Fountain
ModFab likes its similarities to Solaris.
Cinephilia not so much. Arden and Bro duke it out over the movie o' the week
In Which Our Hero thinks it a train wreck
me, me, me
Lone Star Verve you've got just one or two days left to vote for my blog. Do it!
QTA relives his Thanksgiving week. And I'm like a special guest star. Awww.
kate winslet
Reuters A look at Kate Winslet's fear of playing 'a normal British woman' in The Holiday.
Hot Blog on the possibility of a Little Children "comeback" in the works
OMG Blog gawks at the nude romp of Patrick Wilson & Kate Winslet in Little Children. NSFW (duh)
Ellen Burstyn One of America's greatest actors now has a website!
Fame Tracker on Ty Burrell's strange casting niche. (Incidentally I think Ty gives the best performance in Fur, albeit a low key one)
Bright Lights After Dark on Criterion's Pandora's Box DVD. (mmm, Louise)
the fountain -still gushing love AND hate
Nicks Flick Picks (very briefly) on The Fountain
ModFab likes its similarities to Solaris.
Cinephilia not so much. Arden and Bro duke it out over the movie o' the week
In Which Our Hero thinks it a train wreck
me, me, me
Lone Star Verve you've got just one or two days left to vote for my blog. Do it!
QTA relives his Thanksgiving week. And I'm like a special guest star. Awww.
kate winslet
Reuters A look at Kate Winslet's fear of playing 'a normal British woman' in The Holiday.
Hot Blog on the possibility of a Little Children "comeback" in the works
OMG Blog gawks at the nude romp of Patrick Wilson & Kate Winslet in Little Children. NSFW (duh)
Links, Miscellania
miscellania
Ellen Burstyn One of America's greatest actors now has a website!
Fame Tracker on Ty Burrell's strange casting niche. (Incidentally I think Ty gives the best performance in Fur, albeit a low key one)
Bright Lights After Dark on Criterion's Pandora's Box DVD. (mmm, Louise)
the fountain -still gushing love AND hate
Nicks Flick Picks (very briefly) on The Fountain
ModFab likes its similarities to Solaris.
Cinephilia not so much. Arden and Bro duke it out over the movie o' the week
In Which Our Hero thinks it a train wreck
me, me, me
Lone Star Verve you've got just one or two days left to vote for my blog. Do it!
QTA relives his Thanksgiving week. And I'm like a special guest star. Awww.
kate winslet
Reuters A look at Kate Winslet's fear of playing 'a normal British woman' in The Holiday.
Hot Blog on the possibility of a Little Children "comeback" in the works
OMG Blog gawks at the nude romp of Patrick Wilson & Kate Winslet in Little Children. NSFW (duh)
Ellen Burstyn One of America's greatest actors now has a website!
Fame Tracker on Ty Burrell's strange casting niche. (Incidentally I think Ty gives the best performance in Fur, albeit a low key one)
Bright Lights After Dark on Criterion's Pandora's Box DVD. (mmm, Louise)
the fountain -still gushing love AND hate
Nicks Flick Picks (very briefly) on The Fountain
ModFab likes its similarities to Solaris.
Cinephilia not so much. Arden and Bro duke it out over the movie o' the week
In Which Our Hero thinks it a train wreck
me, me, me
Lone Star Verve you've got just one or two days left to vote for my blog. Do it!
QTA relives his Thanksgiving week. And I'm like a special guest star. Awww.
kate winslet
Reuters A look at Kate Winslet's fear of playing 'a normal British woman' in The Holiday.
Hot Blog on the possibility of a Little Children "comeback" in the works
OMG Blog gawks at the nude romp of Patrick Wilson & Kate Winslet in Little Children. NSFW (duh)
Indie Spirit Nominations
Oscarwatch has them. Check it out. It's a good day for Half Nelson, Pan's Labyrinth, Little Miss Sunshine, and a couple that haven't gotten much ink yet elsewhere: The Dead Girl and The Painted Veil. What's most interesting this year is the lack of similarity to Oscar's presumed shortlists in the acting categories. In the past few years it seems like the ISA nominators have skewed very Oscary but not so this year. Seems like they're actually looking at smaller scale indies --good for them.
BEST FEMALE LEAD
Shareeka Epps Half Nelson
Catherine O'Hara For Your Consideration
Elizabeth Reaser Sweet Land
Michelle Williams Land of Plenty
Robin Wright Penn Sorry, Haters
of these I'd say only O'Hara has any Oscar possibility (unless Epps is pushed hard for supporting and rides on the Gosling hoopla) and even O'Hara is a longshot at best, playing an Oscar-baiting actress and the desperation might hit too close to home.
BEST MALE LEAD
Aaron Eckhart Thank You For Smoking
Ryan Gosling Half Nelson
Edward Norton The Painted Veil
Ahmad Razvi Man Push Cart
Forest Whitaker American Gun
some longshot Oscar hopefuls and Globe probables in Eckhart and Gosling. But obviously Whitaker will be competing with The Last King of Scotland rather than for American Gun.
BEST SUPPORTING FEMALE
Melonie Diaz A Guide to Recognizing Your Saints
Marcia Gay Harden American Gun
Mary Beth Hurt The Dead Girl
Frances McDormand Friends with Money
Amber Tamblyn Stephanie Daley
probably not an Oscar contender in the bunch but an interesting grouping.
BEST SUPPORTING MALE
Alan Arkin Little Miss Sunshine
Raymond J. Barry Steel City
Daniel Craig Infamous
Paul Dano Little Miss Sunshine
Channing Tatum A Guide to Recognizing Your Saints
The Oscar is looking more and more like it is Arkin's to lose, isn't it? Interesting that Dano was the other pic rather than Carrel or Kinnear. I guess it's that L.I.E. indie spirit hangover.
What do you think?
BEST FEMALE LEAD
Shareeka Epps Half Nelson
Catherine O'Hara For Your Consideration
Elizabeth Reaser Sweet Land
Michelle Williams Land of Plenty
Robin Wright Penn Sorry, Haters
of these I'd say only O'Hara has any Oscar possibility (unless Epps is pushed hard for supporting and rides on the Gosling hoopla) and even O'Hara is a longshot at best, playing an Oscar-baiting actress and the desperation might hit too close to home.
BEST MALE LEAD
Aaron Eckhart Thank You For Smoking
Ryan Gosling Half Nelson
Edward Norton The Painted Veil
Ahmad Razvi Man Push Cart
Forest Whitaker American Gun
some longshot Oscar hopefuls and Globe probables in Eckhart and Gosling. But obviously Whitaker will be competing with The Last King of Scotland rather than for American Gun.
BEST SUPPORTING FEMALE
Melonie Diaz A Guide to Recognizing Your Saints
Marcia Gay Harden American Gun
Mary Beth Hurt The Dead Girl
Frances McDormand Friends with Money
Amber Tamblyn Stephanie Daley
probably not an Oscar contender in the bunch but an interesting grouping.
BEST SUPPORTING MALE
Alan Arkin Little Miss Sunshine
Raymond J. Barry Steel City
Daniel Craig Infamous
Paul Dano Little Miss Sunshine
Channing Tatum A Guide to Recognizing Your Saints
The Oscar is looking more and more like it is Arkin's to lose, isn't it? Interesting that Dano was the other pic rather than Carrel or Kinnear. I guess it's that L.I.E. indie spirit hangover.
What do you think?
Indie Spirit Nominations
Oscarwatch has them. Check it out. It's a good day for Half Nelson, Pan's Labyrinth, Little Miss Sunshine, and a couple that haven't gotten much ink yet elsewhere: The Dead Girl and The Painted Veil. What's most interesting this year is the lack of similarity to Oscar's presumed shortlists in the acting categories. In the past few years it seems like the ISA nominators have skewed very Oscary but not so this year. Seems like they're actually looking at smaller scale indies --good for them.
BEST FEMALE LEAD
Shareeka Epps Half Nelson
Catherine O'Hara For Your Consideration
Elizabeth Reaser Sweet Land
Michelle Williams Land of Plenty
Robin Wright Penn Sorry, Haters
of these I'd say only O'Hara has any Oscar possibility (unless Epps is pushed hard for supporting and rides on the Gosling hoopla) and even O'Hara is a longshot at best, playing an Oscar-baiting actress and the desperation might hit too close to home.
BEST MALE LEAD
Aaron Eckhart Thank You For Smoking
Ryan Gosling Half Nelson
Edward Norton The Painted Veil
Ahmad Razvi Man Push Cart
Forest Whitaker American Gun
some longshot Oscar hopefuls and Globe probables in Eckhart and Gosling. But obviously Whitaker will be competing with The Last King of Scotland rather than for American Gun.
BEST SUPPORTING FEMALE
Melonie Diaz A Guide to Recognizing Your Saints
Marcia Gay Harden American Gun
Mary Beth Hurt The Dead Girl
Frances McDormand Friends with Money
Amber Tamblyn Stephanie Daley
probably not an Oscar contender in the bunch but an interesting grouping.
BEST SUPPORTING MALE
Alan Arkin Little Miss Sunshine
Raymond J. Barry Steel City
Daniel Craig Infamous
Paul Dano Little Miss Sunshine
Channing Tatum A Guide to Recognizing Your Saints
The Oscar is looking more and more like it is Arkin's to lose, isn't it? Interesting that Dano was the other pic rather than Carrel or Kinnear. I guess it's that L.I.E. indie spirit hangover.
What do you think?
BEST FEMALE LEAD
Shareeka Epps Half Nelson
Catherine O'Hara For Your Consideration
Elizabeth Reaser Sweet Land
Michelle Williams Land of Plenty
Robin Wright Penn Sorry, Haters
of these I'd say only O'Hara has any Oscar possibility (unless Epps is pushed hard for supporting and rides on the Gosling hoopla) and even O'Hara is a longshot at best, playing an Oscar-baiting actress and the desperation might hit too close to home.
BEST MALE LEAD
Aaron Eckhart Thank You For Smoking
Ryan Gosling Half Nelson
Edward Norton The Painted Veil
Ahmad Razvi Man Push Cart
Forest Whitaker American Gun
some longshot Oscar hopefuls and Globe probables in Eckhart and Gosling. But obviously Whitaker will be competing with The Last King of Scotland rather than for American Gun.
BEST SUPPORTING FEMALE
Melonie Diaz A Guide to Recognizing Your Saints
Marcia Gay Harden American Gun
Mary Beth Hurt The Dead Girl
Frances McDormand Friends with Money
Amber Tamblyn Stephanie Daley
probably not an Oscar contender in the bunch but an interesting grouping.
BEST SUPPORTING MALE
Alan Arkin Little Miss Sunshine
Raymond J. Barry Steel City
Daniel Craig Infamous
Paul Dano Little Miss Sunshine
Channing Tatum A Guide to Recognizing Your Saints
The Oscar is looking more and more like it is Arkin's to lose, isn't it? Interesting that Dano was the other pic rather than Carrel or Kinnear. I guess it's that L.I.E. indie spirit hangover.
What do you think?
The Painted Veil
OK, so here's why I apologize to Naomi Watts for ragging on her so much in the past. For threatening to take away her Mulholland Drive gold medal and give it to BFF Nicole Kidman for Moulin Rouge!, etc...
Because, for her efforts in The Painted Veil, she is back in my good graces. Naomi and I run very hot and cold, see. Hot: King Kong, Mulholland Dr, I Heart "ffffuckabees!" Cold: practically everything else 'cept maybe Tank Girl just for nostalgic 'I saw her first' reasons.
Turns out that The Painted Veil is pretty damn good. It's an adaptation of the W. Somerset Maugham novel of the same name which concerns the (very) unhappy marriage of Walter Fane, a bacterialogist, and his spoiled society wife Kitty Fane in 1920s England. The miserable couple travel to China to fight the cholera epidemic. If you're thinking 'hey, that sounds like a Merchant/Ivory plot where British people are transformed by leaving their country!' you'd be exactly right. It's decidedly of that genre. But, it's also a solid involving movie that doesn't trip itself up as much as The White Countess did last year in its busy third act.
Here's hoping director John Curran stays period because this romantic drama is a far more successful and less facile than his previous exploration of marital dischord, We Dont Live Here Anymore. It helps that Watts is terrific, she makes specific choices about her character work and underplays her character arc, making Kitty's various changes of heart feel more genuine than many a movie transformation. It also helps that her co-star Edward Norton seems far more invested in his character than he has in recent films (added bonus: This is the best he's ever looked onscreen). The movie is gorgeous, too --particularly the Oscar nomination worthy costumes from Ruth Myers and the freeze frameable beauty from The Piano's cinematographer Stuart Dryburgh.
I'd be remiss if I didn't mention that the score by Alexandre Desplat (of Birth reknown) is the best thing about it. I'm hoping this film provides him his first Oscar nomination rather than his less impressive work in the Queen, which is more likely to corral multiple Oscar nods.
I wish that the movie didn't hedge its bets about the audience intelligence in a couple of key sequences (yes, it does employ my least favorite filmic device: the flashback to something you'll remember instantly before the flashback even begins) but overall this is a sensuous well acted success. B+
The Painted Veil opens in NYC and LA on December 20th for Oscar eligibility. The rest of you will have to wait.
Because, for her efforts in The Painted Veil, she is back in my good graces. Naomi and I run very hot and cold, see. Hot: King Kong, Mulholland Dr, I Heart "ffffuckabees!" Cold: practically everything else 'cept maybe Tank Girl just for nostalgic 'I saw her first' reasons.
Turns out that The Painted Veil is pretty damn good. It's an adaptation of the W. Somerset Maugham novel of the same name which concerns the (very) unhappy marriage of Walter Fane, a bacterialogist, and his spoiled society wife Kitty Fane in 1920s England. The miserable couple travel to China to fight the cholera epidemic. If you're thinking 'hey, that sounds like a Merchant/Ivory plot where British people are transformed by leaving their country!' you'd be exactly right. It's decidedly of that genre. But, it's also a solid involving movie that doesn't trip itself up as much as The White Countess did last year in its busy third act.
Here's hoping director John Curran stays period because this romantic drama is a far more successful and less facile than his previous exploration of marital dischord, We Dont Live Here Anymore. It helps that Watts is terrific, she makes specific choices about her character work and underplays her character arc, making Kitty's various changes of heart feel more genuine than many a movie transformation. It also helps that her co-star Edward Norton seems far more invested in his character than he has in recent films (added bonus: This is the best he's ever looked onscreen). The movie is gorgeous, too --particularly the Oscar nomination worthy costumes from Ruth Myers and the freeze frameable beauty from The Piano's cinematographer Stuart Dryburgh.
I'd be remiss if I didn't mention that the score by Alexandre Desplat (of Birth reknown) is the best thing about it. I'm hoping this film provides him his first Oscar nomination rather than his less impressive work in the Queen, which is more likely to corral multiple Oscar nods.
I wish that the movie didn't hedge its bets about the audience intelligence in a couple of key sequences (yes, it does employ my least favorite filmic device: the flashback to something you'll remember instantly before the flashback even begins) but overall this is a sensuous well acted success. B+
The Painted Veil opens in NYC and LA on December 20th for Oscar eligibility. The rest of you will have to wait.
The Painted Veil
OK, so here's why I apologize to Naomi Watts for ragging on her so much in the past. For threatening to take away her Mulholland Drive gold medal and give it to BFF Nicole Kidman for Moulin Rouge!, etc...
Because, for her efforts in The Painted Veil, she is back in my good graces. Naomi and I run very hot and cold, see. Hot: King Kong, Mulholland Dr, I Heart "ffffuckabees!" Cold: practically everything else 'cept maybe Tank Girl just for nostalgic 'I saw her first' reasons.
Turns out that The Painted Veil is pretty damn good. It's an adaptation of the W. Somerset Maugham novel of the same name which concerns the (very) unhappy marriage of Walter Fane, a bacterialogist, and his spoiled society wife Kitty Fane in 1920s England. The miserable couple travel to China to fight the cholera epidemic. If you're thinking 'hey, that sounds like a Merchant/Ivory plot where British people are transformed by leaving their country!' you'd be exactly right. It's decidedly of that genre. But, it's also a solid involving movie that doesn't trip itself up as much as The White Countess did last year in its busy third act.
Here's hoping director John Curran stays period because this romantic drama is a far more successful and less facile than his previous exploration of marital dischord, We Dont Live Here Anymore. It helps that Watts is terrific, she makes specific choices about her character work and underplays her character arc, making Kitty's various changes of heart feel more genuine than many a movie transformation. It also helps that her co-star Edward Norton seems far more invested in his character than he has in recent films (added bonus: This is the best he's ever looked onscreen). The movie is gorgeous, too --particularly the Oscar nomination worthy costumes from Ruth Myers and the freeze frameable beauty from The Piano's cinematographer Stuart Dryburgh.
I'd be remiss if I didn't mention that the score by Alexandre Desplat (of Birth reknown) is the best thing about it. I'm hoping this film provides him his first Oscar nomination rather than his less impressive work in the Queen, which is more likely to corral multiple Oscar nods.
I wish that the movie didn't hedge its bets about the audience intelligence in a couple of key sequences (yes, it does employ my least favorite filmic device: the flashback to something you'll remember instantly before the flashback even begins) but overall this is a sensuous well acted success. B+
The Painted Veil opens in NYC and LA on December 20th for Oscar eligibility. The rest of you will have to wait.
Because, for her efforts in The Painted Veil, she is back in my good graces. Naomi and I run very hot and cold, see. Hot: King Kong, Mulholland Dr, I Heart "ffffuckabees!" Cold: practically everything else 'cept maybe Tank Girl just for nostalgic 'I saw her first' reasons.
Turns out that The Painted Veil is pretty damn good. It's an adaptation of the W. Somerset Maugham novel of the same name which concerns the (very) unhappy marriage of Walter Fane, a bacterialogist, and his spoiled society wife Kitty Fane in 1920s England. The miserable couple travel to China to fight the cholera epidemic. If you're thinking 'hey, that sounds like a Merchant/Ivory plot where British people are transformed by leaving their country!' you'd be exactly right. It's decidedly of that genre. But, it's also a solid involving movie that doesn't trip itself up as much as The White Countess did last year in its busy third act.
Here's hoping director John Curran stays period because this romantic drama is a far more successful and less facile than his previous exploration of marital dischord, We Dont Live Here Anymore. It helps that Watts is terrific, she makes specific choices about her character work and underplays her character arc, making Kitty's various changes of heart feel more genuine than many a movie transformation. It also helps that her co-star Edward Norton seems far more invested in his character than he has in recent films (added bonus: This is the best he's ever looked onscreen). The movie is gorgeous, too --particularly the Oscar nomination worthy costumes from Ruth Myers and the freeze frameable beauty from The Piano's cinematographer Stuart Dryburgh.
I'd be remiss if I didn't mention that the score by Alexandre Desplat (of Birth reknown) is the best thing about it. I'm hoping this film provides him his first Oscar nomination rather than his less impressive work in the Queen, which is more likely to corral multiple Oscar nods.
I wish that the movie didn't hedge its bets about the audience intelligence in a couple of key sequences (yes, it does employ my least favorite filmic device: the flashback to something you'll remember instantly before the flashback even begins) but overall this is a sensuous well acted success. B+
The Painted Veil opens in NYC and LA on December 20th for Oscar eligibility. The rest of you will have to wait.
Monday, November 27, 2006
Blogosphere Multiplex: postmodern barney
I have a soft spot for superheroes. I grew up collecting comics, obsessing on the X-Men long before they were a blockbuster film franchise and eagerly awaiting the next issue of whatever I was into at the moment. I still peek over into the comic soaked portion of the blogosphere from time to time. One of my favorites is definitely Postmodern Barney. Dorian Wright, the mastermind behind "the world's smuggest comics blog!", agreed to be interviewed for this the 12th edition of the Blogosphere Multiplex Series.
Nathaniel:Dorian, how often do you go to the movies?
Dorian: My average these days is about two to three times a month, with frequent rental viewings at home inbetween those trips out. I would like to go more often, but all the theaters in my area are owned by the same company, so high ticket prices and a relative lack of diversity in films shown keep me home more often than I'd like.
Nathaniel: What is the biggest draw for you in making your filmgoing or rental decisions?
Dorian: There's a sort of hierarchy to films that gets my interest. First is the premise. If the idea of the film sounds cool or interesting to me it will usually get me to check it out, or at least want to know more about it. Second is the cast, if the people in the film are people who I've enjoyed in other films. And then I suppose it would be genre. I'm more inclined to go see a comedy than a drama, or a horror film than an action film, for example. And then it would be writers and directors and various other "behind the camera" people like that. But to get me to a point where I really consider seeing the film, you've got to promise me a story that's new or at least told in an interesting and entertaining way. If the story looks good, I'm often willing to overlook actors and directors whose work annoys me. Within limits, of course. I don't think I'm ever going to be willing to pay money to see Tom Hanks or Mel Gibson in something, for example.
Nathaniel: I think those two should pay us personally, given what they've put us through.
What are your favorite and least favorite superhero films and why?
Dorian: I think "favorite superhero film" is a toss up between Batman Begins and the first X-Men movie. Both "get" the genre and do it right in different ways. Though it takes a fair number of liberties with the comic book origin, Batman Begins is as faithful to the look and mood of the comic of any of the films I've seen. It hits all the right emotional notes and balances them with a good deal of action. It has its flaws, notably Katie Holmes, but the cast as a whole is superb and the end result is very satisfying.
The first X-Men, by contrast, is a bit of a mess. The plot, such as it is, really doesn't make any sense, and most of the actors are just sort of...there. But it captures the big, poppy dumb melodramatic fun of most super-hero comics. Most super-heroes are really just soap operas for teenage boys, and X-Men captures that vibe.
Worst film is, without a doubt, Daredevil. Everyone in it just seems sort of embarassed, except for Jennifer Garner, who went with the "Tee-hee! I'm an assassin! Giggle!" characterization for Elektra that was really jarring. It was just a disaster. I even like the Ang Lee Hulk movie more. That being said, I haven't seen Ghost Rider yet, and something tells me it's going to give Daredevil some competition for the title of "worst superhero film."
Nathaniel: I share the suspicion. And I also share the hatred of Daredevil. Any thought on other upcoming titles --like Joss Whedon's Wonder Woman?
Dorian: Whedon's Wonder Woman is not a film I'm especially looking forward to. I've not been impressed with his work in the past. He tries too hard to hit all the right "nerd buttons" which results in a lot of his work coming off as fan fiction, even when he's writing his own creations. Based on his past works, I have this vision of him casting Wonder Woman as this naive, perky, petitie little brunette, and that just doesn't seem right to me.
I'm also just enough of a Wonder Woman fan to be slightly put out that Whedon doesn't think any of her villains are good enough to be in the film. Granted, Wonder Woman has some cheesy villains, but if you can't think of a way to make characters like Cheetah, Circe, Paula Von Gunther or Ares work on film, maybe you shouldn't be in charge of a Wonder Woman movie.
Nathaniel: I'm afraid Marvel is going to ruin it all by their quantity versus quality approach. What's your verdict?
Dorian: I do think that Marvel is going for a little bit of a quantity over quality with their films, but that doesn't surprise me, as that's how Marvel has historically run their comics publishing division. There's never been a bandwagon or trend that they haven't jumped on and run into the ground, and the same is true of super-hero movies. They're going to ride the gravy train for as long as they can, and flood the market with as many things branded with their logo as they can manage. Part of the problem with their films, I think, is that for the most part, Marvel doesn't really have a lot of big name, headlining "star" type characters. You've got Spider-Man and the Hulk, maybe characters like Wolverine, Silver Surfer, Ghost Rider, Captain America, and then a bunch of also rans that people kinda-sorta have heard of. So it often feels like Marvel is in a rush to get these films with their character's names on them out in the market and it ends up having a "throw everything at the wall and let's see what sticks" feel to it.
In contrast, DC has more "big name" characters, but they've been a lot more careful about licensing them out for movies and tv shows and cartoons. They also seem to take a more active role in their properties, for good or bad, than Marvel does. I think this is why, overall, DC's super-hero movies have been a bit better than Marvel's. If the Ghost Rider movie bombs, it doesn't have as big an impact on the popular conception of the character, so it doesn't matter to Marvel if the film is good or not. If the Wonder Woman movie bombs, that could potentially damage a very well known and marketable character, and so DC is going to be very careful about what goes on in the Wonder Woman movie. And that's not a worry without precedent: Doc Savage, Dick Tracy and the Shadow used to have followings, but bad movies featuring those characters pretty much killed them as licensable properties.
Nathaniel: I recently sent a movie meme out into the blogsophere and I've been loving the intriguing responses to this one particular question so I thought I'd throw it your way.
Choose a female bodyguard: Ripley from Aliens. Mystique from X-Men. Sarah Connor from Terminator 2. The Bride from Kill Bill. Mace from Strange Days.
Dorian: I'm going to have to go with Ripley. She can take out legions of nasty, acid-blooded aliens. Mystique is great for sneaking into places and not much else, Sarah needed men to come to her rescue, the Bride can beat up David Carradine and other B-Movie actors, and I never saw Strange Days. Yeah, I'm going to want the woman who committed genocide to save a little girl watching my back.
Nathaniel: Let's play a little game. Like an inkblot thing. I say the names of five actors, you say the first super power that comes to mind when I mention them: Robert Downey Jr. Scarlett Johansson. Meryl Streep. Brad Pitt. Michelle Pfeiffer.
Dorian:
What (quality) comic book do you think should never be made into a movie and why?
Dorian: The one that continually gets rumored is Watchmen. It probably shouldn't ever be made into a film. It's a long story, with a lot of side-plots and rich characterization, and there's simply no way to condense the story down to a two hour runtime and have it bear any relation to the source material at all. The other serious problem is that, for the most part, it's a super-hero comic, and the general public probably isn't really ready for something that challenges their assumptions about what a super-hero film should be like.
Nathaniel: What's the weirdest thing that ever happened to you at the movies?
Dorian: I once went to a screening of The Rocky Horror Picture Show where one guy in the audience apparently had never been clued in to what to expect, and got quite angry about people talking during the movie and standing in front of the screen. I know it sounds like some complicated prank, but no, he was genuinely upset that people were not sitting quietly in their seats and watching the movie.
But other than that, my film-going experiences have been rather prosaic. Apart from the usual hassles of cell phones and people taking little kids to R rated movies, I think the worst I've had to deal with in a theater is a broken reel.
Nathaniel: OK, final question. They make a movie of your life. What's the title? Rating? Who directs? Who plays you?
Dorian: I think I'd want to go with something both pretentious and ridiculous, just to make people feel silly when they go to buy tickets. Hark the Bird Crows at Midnight has a nice ring to it. It would have to be R, because of all the gratuitous male nudity. I think Alan Smithee is probably the only director who'd be willing to do it.
When I was a kid, I used to get the "you look just like Kiefer Sutherland" thing a lot. These days, even though I suspect I probably look more like Donald now, I'm just vain enough to think that Kiefer would still be a good choice.
Nathaniel: Thanks so much, Dorian.
Readers if you enjoyed this interview, please do go and check out postmodern barney! If you're visiting the film experience for the first time just for this, here are some earlier comic related posts if you want to stick around: Lois Lane: Lost in Translation * How Comic Book Films Will Die * A History of... Blue Freaks * Fantastic 1.5 * Catwoman * Spider-Man 2 nominations
Or check out some of the most popular posts from the past: Far From Heaven vs. Brokeback -Whose side are you on? * She's a Bitch (@ the Movies) * Vampires a blog-a-thon * Find Your Inner Kidman * Oscar Predictions -for awards enthusiasts *
Previous Interviews: The Gilded Moose * Jay Lassiter * Dylan Meconis * Martha of Cinematical * ultranow * fourfour * six things * Gallery of the Absurd * How to Learn Swedish in 1000 Difficult Lessons * Ron L'Infirmier * Thomas & Co.
Tags: movies, Marvel, Batman Begins, Ghost Rider, cinema, Daredevil, Wonder Woman, DC,film, Comic Books
10 questions with Dorian Wright of Postmodern Barney
Nathaniel:Dorian, how often do you go to the movies?
Dorian: My average these days is about two to three times a month, with frequent rental viewings at home inbetween those trips out. I would like to go more often, but all the theaters in my area are owned by the same company, so high ticket prices and a relative lack of diversity in films shown keep me home more often than I'd like.
Nathaniel: What is the biggest draw for you in making your filmgoing or rental decisions?
Dorian: There's a sort of hierarchy to films that gets my interest. First is the premise. If the idea of the film sounds cool or interesting to me it will usually get me to check it out, or at least want to know more about it. Second is the cast, if the people in the film are people who I've enjoyed in other films. And then I suppose it would be genre. I'm more inclined to go see a comedy than a drama, or a horror film than an action film, for example. And then it would be writers and directors and various other "behind the camera" people like that. But to get me to a point where I really consider seeing the film, you've got to promise me a story that's new or at least told in an interesting and entertaining way. If the story looks good, I'm often willing to overlook actors and directors whose work annoys me. Within limits, of course. I don't think I'm ever going to be willing to pay money to see Tom Hanks or Mel Gibson in something, for example.
Nathaniel: I think those two should pay us personally, given what they've put us through.
What are your favorite and least favorite superhero films and why?
Dorian: I think "favorite superhero film" is a toss up between Batman Begins and the first X-Men movie. Both "get" the genre and do it right in different ways. Though it takes a fair number of liberties with the comic book origin, Batman Begins is as faithful to the look and mood of the comic of any of the films I've seen. It hits all the right emotional notes and balances them with a good deal of action. It has its flaws, notably Katie Holmes, but the cast as a whole is superb and the end result is very satisfying.
The first X-Men, by contrast, is a bit of a mess. The plot, such as it is, really doesn't make any sense, and most of the actors are just sort of...there. But it captures the big, poppy dumb melodramatic fun of most super-hero comics. Most super-heroes are really just soap operas for teenage boys, and X-Men captures that vibe.
Worst film is, without a doubt, Daredevil. Everyone in it just seems sort of embarassed, except for Jennifer Garner, who went with the "Tee-hee! I'm an assassin! Giggle!" characterization for Elektra that was really jarring. It was just a disaster. I even like the Ang Lee Hulk movie more. That being said, I haven't seen Ghost Rider yet, and something tells me it's going to give Daredevil some competition for the title of "worst superhero film."
Nathaniel: I share the suspicion. And I also share the hatred of Daredevil. Any thought on other upcoming titles --like Joss Whedon's Wonder Woman?
Dorian: Whedon's Wonder Woman is not a film I'm especially looking forward to. I've not been impressed with his work in the past. He tries too hard to hit all the right "nerd buttons" which results in a lot of his work coming off as fan fiction, even when he's writing his own creations. Based on his past works, I have this vision of him casting Wonder Woman as this naive, perky, petitie little brunette, and that just doesn't seem right to me.
I'm also just enough of a Wonder Woman fan to be slightly put out that Whedon doesn't think any of her villains are good enough to be in the film. Granted, Wonder Woman has some cheesy villains, but if you can't think of a way to make characters like Cheetah, Circe, Paula Von Gunther or Ares work on film, maybe you shouldn't be in charge of a Wonder Woman movie.
Nathaniel: I'm afraid Marvel is going to ruin it all by their quantity versus quality approach. What's your verdict?
Dorian: I do think that Marvel is going for a little bit of a quantity over quality with their films, but that doesn't surprise me, as that's how Marvel has historically run their comics publishing division. There's never been a bandwagon or trend that they haven't jumped on and run into the ground, and the same is true of super-hero movies. They're going to ride the gravy train for as long as they can, and flood the market with as many things branded with their logo as they can manage. Part of the problem with their films, I think, is that for the most part, Marvel doesn't really have a lot of big name, headlining "star" type characters. You've got Spider-Man and the Hulk, maybe characters like Wolverine, Silver Surfer, Ghost Rider, Captain America, and then a bunch of also rans that people kinda-sorta have heard of. So it often feels like Marvel is in a rush to get these films with their character's names on them out in the market and it ends up having a "throw everything at the wall and let's see what sticks" feel to it.
In contrast, DC has more "big name" characters, but they've been a lot more careful about licensing them out for movies and tv shows and cartoons. They also seem to take a more active role in their properties, for good or bad, than Marvel does. I think this is why, overall, DC's super-hero movies have been a bit better than Marvel's. If the Ghost Rider movie bombs, it doesn't have as big an impact on the popular conception of the character, so it doesn't matter to Marvel if the film is good or not. If the Wonder Woman movie bombs, that could potentially damage a very well known and marketable character, and so DC is going to be very careful about what goes on in the Wonder Woman movie. And that's not a worry without precedent: Doc Savage, Dick Tracy and the Shadow used to have followings, but bad movies featuring those characters pretty much killed them as licensable properties.
Nathaniel: I recently sent a movie meme out into the blogsophere and I've been loving the intriguing responses to this one particular question so I thought I'd throw it your way.
Choose a female bodyguard: Ripley from Aliens. Mystique from X-Men. Sarah Connor from Terminator 2. The Bride from Kill Bill. Mace from Strange Days.
Dorian: I'm going to have to go with Ripley. She can take out legions of nasty, acid-blooded aliens. Mystique is great for sneaking into places and not much else, Sarah needed men to come to her rescue, the Bride can beat up David Carradine and other B-Movie actors, and I never saw Strange Days. Yeah, I'm going to want the woman who committed genocide to save a little girl watching my back.
Nathaniel: Let's play a little game. Like an inkblot thing. I say the names of five actors, you say the first super power that comes to mind when I mention them: Robert Downey Jr. Scarlett Johansson. Meryl Streep. Brad Pitt. Michelle Pfeiffer.
Dorian:
- Robert Downey Jr. -Drinking. Actually, that's terribly unfair, but that's what I think of when I think of Iron Man, too.
- Scarlett Johansson -Complete invisibilty thanks to her amazing blandness.
- Meryl Streep -Some sort of sonic death-cry.
- Brad Pitt -He has the magical ability to make me hetero. I've just never grasped his appeal.
- Michelle Pfeiffer -The ability to make people forget about her earlier, slightly embarrassing films.
What (quality) comic book do you think should never be made into a movie and why?
Dorian: The one that continually gets rumored is Watchmen. It probably shouldn't ever be made into a film. It's a long story, with a lot of side-plots and rich characterization, and there's simply no way to condense the story down to a two hour runtime and have it bear any relation to the source material at all. The other serious problem is that, for the most part, it's a super-hero comic, and the general public probably isn't really ready for something that challenges their assumptions about what a super-hero film should be like.
Nathaniel: What's the weirdest thing that ever happened to you at the movies?
Dorian: I once went to a screening of The Rocky Horror Picture Show where one guy in the audience apparently had never been clued in to what to expect, and got quite angry about people talking during the movie and standing in front of the screen. I know it sounds like some complicated prank, but no, he was genuinely upset that people were not sitting quietly in their seats and watching the movie.
But other than that, my film-going experiences have been rather prosaic. Apart from the usual hassles of cell phones and people taking little kids to R rated movies, I think the worst I've had to deal with in a theater is a broken reel.
Nathaniel: OK, final question. They make a movie of your life. What's the title? Rating? Who directs? Who plays you?
Dorian: I think I'd want to go with something both pretentious and ridiculous, just to make people feel silly when they go to buy tickets. Hark the Bird Crows at Midnight has a nice ring to it. It would have to be R, because of all the gratuitous male nudity. I think Alan Smithee is probably the only director who'd be willing to do it.
When I was a kid, I used to get the "you look just like Kiefer Sutherland" thing a lot. These days, even though I suspect I probably look more like Donald now, I'm just vain enough to think that Kiefer would still be a good choice.
Nathaniel: Thanks so much, Dorian.
Readers if you enjoyed this interview, please do go and check out postmodern barney! If you're visiting the film experience for the first time just for this, here are some earlier comic related posts if you want to stick around: Lois Lane: Lost in Translation * How Comic Book Films Will Die * A History of... Blue Freaks * Fantastic 1.5 * Catwoman * Spider-Man 2 nominations
Or check out some of the most popular posts from the past: Far From Heaven vs. Brokeback -Whose side are you on? * She's a Bitch (@ the Movies) * Vampires a blog-a-thon * Find Your Inner Kidman * Oscar Predictions -for awards enthusiasts *
Previous Interviews: The Gilded Moose * Jay Lassiter * Dylan Meconis * Martha of Cinematical * ultranow * fourfour * six things * Gallery of the Absurd * How to Learn Swedish in 1000 Difficult Lessons * Ron L'Infirmier * Thomas & Co.
Tags: movies, Marvel, Batman Begins, Ghost Rider, cinema, Daredevil, Wonder Woman, DC,film, Comic Books
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