Song & Dance: Oscar's Men

A couple of weeks ago on Friday's song & dance, I shared the best actress nominated ladies singing their hearts out. Now it's time for the men from the Supporting and Lead Actor categories. It's a special edition of Song & Dance w/ six clips.

We begin with Ryan Gosling on the Mickey Mouse Club. He's the fourth guy to sing in this pre-N'Sync quartet (Justin Timberlake and JC Chavez warble away before him). It's Ryan freaking Gosling !!! all baby like. I just. I have no words. I can't imagine him in N'Sync. Thank god he found out he was a brilliant actor and didn't go that route. But there you go... To his right is Peter O'Toole singing the classic "Impossible Dream" from Man of La Mancha. Below them are Eddie Murphy doing his best Elvis & James Brown in his hit concert film Delirious. Mark Wahlberg then gets down with the Funky Bunch and shamelessly sells those pecs in MTV staple "Good Vibrations".





The last two bonus clips are kinda stretchin the point but whatevs, enjoy. First up is Djimon Hounsou doing that big smiley body waving dance he did in Janet Jackon's "Love Will Never Do Without You" (which was already featured here) only this time he's grinning wide for a Gap ad. And, finally, there's Alan Arkin playing musical chairs with the Little Miss Sunshine cast on Ellen Degeneres. Steve Carell cracks me up.

Song & Dance: Oscar's Men

A couple of weeks ago on Friday's song & dance, I shared the best actress nominated ladies singing their hearts out. Now it's time for the men from the Supporting and Lead Actor categories. It's a special edition of Song & Dance w/ six clips.

We begin with Ryan Gosling on the Mickey Mouse Club. He's the fourth guy to sing in this pre-N'Sync quartet (Justin Timberlake and JC Chavez warble away before him). It's Ryan freaking Gosling !!! all baby like. I just. I have no words. I can't imagine him in N'Sync. Thank god he found out he was a brilliant actor and didn't go that route. But there you go... To his right is Peter O'Toole singing the classic "Impossible Dream" from Man of La Mancha. Below them are Eddie Murphy doing his best Elvis & James Brown in his hit concert film Delirious. Mark Wahlberg then gets down with the Funky Bunch and shamelessly sells those pecs in MTV staple "Good Vibrations".





The last two bonus clips are kinda stretchin the point but whatevs, enjoy. First up is Djimon Hounsou doing that big smiley body waving dance he did in Janet Jackon's "Love Will Never Do Without You" (which was already featured here) only this time he's grinning wide for a Gap ad. And, finally, there's Alan Arkin playing musical chairs with the Little Miss Sunshine cast on Ellen Degeneres. Steve Carell cracks me up.

We Can't Wait #6 I'm Not There

Iconoclast auteur Todd Haynes already has a couple of masterpieces under his belt. He returns this year, 5 years after his last (Far From Heaven) for a film ruminating on the life of Bob Dylan. You may recall that Haynes first found infamy with a biopic on Karen Carpenter (played by Barbie Dolls) that is now a bootleg hot item --he didn't have the music rights. This time, music rights secured, the film will not be banished from existence. Bob Dylan himself approves and will be played --or rather "aspects" of him will be played -- by seven actors including Christian Bale, Heath Ledger, Cate Blanchett and Richard Gere. Can this film make more than $11.00 at the box office? i.e. will the heavy duty Dylan star-package plus movie stars help audiences connect with Haynes's experimental filmmaking?

My blog friends, do you have any idea how much I quiver with anticipation when a new Haynes film drops into view?

Gabriel: I'll admit that I don't totally get the high concept here...but I would follow Todd Haynes anywhere. Heck, even when he's bad, he's still great. Arguably the smartest American filmmaker of his generation. (As to Nathaniel's other question -- will it make money? -- the answer is probably not, unless the Oscar race picks it up and runs with it.)

JA: Haynes really is the ringer here. He's built up enough good credit to last him the rest of his career. Add this oddball mix of actors to this bizarre concept and how could anyone not be at least curious?

That said, by "anyone" I mean "anyone who's seen/enjoyed a Todd Haynes film before" which answers your box office question quite thoroughly, I think.

Joe: Yeah, I’m taking a lot on faith here, seeing as it’s Todd Haynes. One of my favorite aspect of Haynes as a director is how he’s able to pull really great performances out of his actors (Julianne Moore, Toni Collette, Patricia Clarkson, Julianne Moore, Julianne Moore). I wonder if the different-actors-playing-Dylan gimmick will help or hinder that.

Lulu: Haynes makes me twitterpated. Solondz' Palindromes proved that the device of a multiply cast role can be an enthralling exercise; Haynes clarity and deftness with actors could make the exercise into art.

I'm so there.

Nathaniel: We'll all be there. Will the readers be?

Ruminate or let an aspect of yourself ruminate in the comments...

previously on "we can't wait"
#7 Margot at the Wedding, #8 moved to 2008, #9 The Golden Compass,#10 Grindhouse, #11 Bug, #12, Sunshine, #13 Southland Tales, #14 300, #15 Hot Fuzz, #16 Stardust, #17 The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford, #18 Spider-Man 3, #19 Rendition, #20 The Bourne Ultimatum
Intro -films that didn't make the list

Todd Haynes related stuff
Happy Birthday Todd -on his 46th * National Coming Out Day proud queer trailblazers in movies & television * Far From Heaven wins the gold lots of loot at the 2002 Film Bitch Awards * The Whitakers vs. The del-Mar-Twists Far From Heaven vs. Brokeback Mountain

tags: Bob Dylan, Todd Haynes, Julianne Moore, movies, Cate Blanchett, oscars, Karen Carpenter, Christian Bale, Heath Ledger

We Can't Wait #6 I'm Not There

Iconoclast auteur Todd Haynes already has a couple of masterpieces under his belt. He returns this year, 5 years after his last (Far From Heaven) for a film ruminating on the life of Bob Dylan. You may recall that Haynes first found infamy with a biopic on Karen Carpenter (played by Barbie Dolls) that is now a bootleg hot item --he didn't have the music rights. This time, music rights secured, the film will not be banished from existence. Bob Dylan himself approves and will be played --or rather "aspects" of him will be played -- by seven actors including Christian Bale, Heath Ledger, Cate Blanchett and Richard Gere. Can this film make more than $11.00 at the box office? i.e. will the heavy duty Dylan star-package plus movie stars help audiences connect with Haynes's experimental filmmaking?

My blog friends, do you have any idea how much I quiver with anticipation when a new Haynes film drops into view?

Gabriel: I'll admit that I don't totally get the high concept here...but I would follow Todd Haynes anywhere. Heck, even when he's bad, he's still great. Arguably the smartest American filmmaker of his generation. (As to Nathaniel's other question -- will it make money? -- the answer is probably not, unless the Oscar race picks it up and runs with it.)

JA: Haynes really is the ringer here. He's built up enough good credit to last him the rest of his career. Add this oddball mix of actors to this bizarre concept and how could anyone not be at least curious?

That said, by "anyone" I mean "anyone who's seen/enjoyed a Todd Haynes film before" which answers your box office question quite thoroughly, I think.

Joe: Yeah, I’m taking a lot on faith here, seeing as it’s Todd Haynes. One of my favorite aspect of Haynes as a director is how he’s able to pull really great performances out of his actors (Julianne Moore, Toni Collette, Patricia Clarkson, Julianne Moore, Julianne Moore). I wonder if the different-actors-playing-Dylan gimmick will help or hinder that.

Lulu: Haynes makes me twitterpated. Solondz' Palindromes proved that the device of a multiply cast role can be an enthralling exercise; Haynes clarity and deftness with actors could make the exercise into art.

I'm so there.

Nathaniel: We'll all be there. Will the readers be?

Ruminate or let an aspect of yourself ruminate in the comments...

previously on "we can't wait"
#7 Margot at the Wedding, #8 moved to 2008, #9 The Golden Compass,#10 Grindhouse, #11 Bug, #12, Sunshine, #13 Southland Tales, #14 300, #15 Hot Fuzz, #16 Stardust, #17 The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford, #18 Spider-Man 3, #19 Rendition, #20 The Bourne Ultimatum
Intro -films that didn't make the list

Todd Haynes related stuff
Happy Birthday Todd -on his 46th * National Coming Out Day proud queer trailblazers in movies & television * Far From Heaven wins the gold lots of loot at the 2002 Film Bitch Awards * The Whitakers vs. The del-Mar-Twists Far From Heaven vs. Brokeback Mountain

tags: Bob Dylan, Todd Haynes, Julianne Moore, movies, Cate Blanchett, oscars, Karen Carpenter, Christian Bale, Heath Ledger

Linkers Dozen

Glenn Gaslin his weekend at the end of the world (Children of Men and Idiocracy)
Culture Snob giving credit where it's due: Prairie Home Companion
Coming Soon Wahlberg on Departed 2
Scanners "How not to blow your Oscar speech"
The Guardian on Mexican filmmakers and Oscar. Good quote from Cuarón [src]
Trading Faces the mysteries of Dakota Fanning's eeriness revealed
Victim of the Time on "things I just don't understand" re: Little Miss Sunshine and fact-based films
WOW Notes on a Scandal's evening w/ AMPAS
Cinematical, inspired by Norbit, investigates other bad timing /post-nom moves by actors
film ick news to make the omnibus/auteurist over drool
Cinevistaramascope unveils their top ten. So does...
Nick Davis has begun his as well. Of course, he plans to make us beg, or at least hit refresh frequently, to see the whole thing that #@*% so & so

Linkers Dozen

Glenn Gaslin his weekend at the end of the world (Children of Men and Idiocracy)
Culture Snob giving credit where it's due: Prairie Home Companion
Coming Soon Wahlberg on Departed 2
Scanners "How not to blow your Oscar speech"
The Guardian on Mexican filmmakers and Oscar. Good quote from Cuarón [src]
Trading Faces the mysteries of Dakota Fanning's eeriness revealed
Victim of the Time on "things I just don't understand" re: Little Miss Sunshine and fact-based films
WOW Notes on a Scandal's evening w/ AMPAS
Cinematical, inspired by Norbit, investigates other bad timing /post-nom moves by actors
film ick news to make the omnibus/auteurist over drool
Cinevistaramascope unveils their top ten. So does...
Nick Davis has begun his as well. Of course, he plans to make us beg, or at least hit refresh frequently, to see the whole thing that #@*% so & so

We Can't Wait #7 Margot at the Wedding

Nicole Kidman worries she's too botoxed young to play the mother of a teen

From the IMDB's description of Margot at the Wedding

Academy Award nominated writer/director Noah Baumbach brings to life a sharply observed portrait of a family in distress. His latest project is an unflinchingly honest story about coming to terms with one's family and oneself, a journey that is both funny and heartbreaking.

That sounds EXACTLY like The Squid and the Whale so I'm in. Can this measure up to the heartbreaking incisiveness of that film? Can you believe that the Squid screenplay lost the Oscar to f**ing Crash? More importantly (back on topic) has Noah Baumbach given his wife Jennifer Jason Leigh a chance for a real comeback with what we presume is the second most prominent role here --it's been quiet for years and years in her career. And Nicole Kidman? She plays Margot and if she's half as good as Jeff Daniels was in The Squid and the Whale won't she be up for an Oscar again?


JA: I'm a lonely little person, not having really liked The Squid and the Whale, ain't I? I thought Daniels and Linney were both terrific, but something about the movie (cough Eisenberg cough) annoyed me. Not that I wouldn't have awarded it any and everything before Crash, mind you.

I'm a big enough Kidman fan to be curious about this one, but that's almost cancelled out by the presence of Jack Black. Shudder. Well, consider me flummoxed.

Gabriel: I agree with almost every word, JA. I recognize that The Squid and the Whale was a good film, but it hasn't really lasted in my memory. There's something arch and constructed about the way Baumbach writes...prose that draws a lot of attention to itself. But Leigh and Kidman are enough to get me to into the theater for this one.

Joe: I also appreciated Squid more than I loved it. With me, I think it was more a function of seeing it so long after everyone else had – expectations were too high. Daniels and Linney were still all-stars, though. I’m really banking on this to be Jennifer Jason Leigh’s big splashy re-introduction to mainstream cinema. Of course, the last time she teamed up with a name director and a blonde A-list co-star, we got In the Cut, so...

Kidman gives me great pause, much as I like her. This is a stylistic departure for her. When was the last time Her Alabaster Luminescence® went for a talky picture?

Nathaniel: I hadn't thought of that but you're spot on. Even in her contemporary dramas like Birth or Birthday Girl she's not exactly a chatterbox.

Lulu: For me it's enough that Noah Baumbach is (a) interested in writing complex female characters and (b) is drawn to actresses with really smart instincts. (Plus, JJL usedta be my favorite actress of her generation -- and I'm still always game for the risk of her...)

Nathaniel: Well said.

Margot won't be at that damn wedding until October though so hold your horses, Kidman and Squid fans. Potentially good news: Paramount Vantage is releasing it and they worked hard on their Oscar baby this past year. Potentially bad news: Paramount Vantage has a really full "prestige" slate this year so there's internal competition for any possible Oscar push.

If you'd like to really dive into your inner Kidmania, I'd suggest Nicole Kidman United where I got these set photos.

previously on "we can't wait"
#8 moved to 2008, #9 The Golden Compass,#10 Grindhouse, #11 Bug, #12, Sunshine, #13 Southland Tales, #14 300, #15 Hot Fuzz, #16 Stardust, #17 The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford, #18 Spider-Man 3, #19 Rendition, #20 The Bourne Ultimatum
Intro -films that didn't make the list

related Nicole Kidman
Moulin Rouge! -details of my neverending obsession * Actress of the Aughts -she's #1 * "We Are All Nicole Kidman" -a quiz * Nicole Kidman she's (almost) back *

tags: Jennifer Jason Leigh, Jeff Daniels, Nicole Kidman, movies, academy awards, oscars, screenplay

We Can't Wait #7 Margot at the Wedding

Nicole Kidman worries she's too botoxed young to play the mother of a teen

From the IMDB's description of Margot at the Wedding

Academy Award nominated writer/director Noah Baumbach brings to life a sharply observed portrait of a family in distress. His latest project is an unflinchingly honest story about coming to terms with one's family and oneself, a journey that is both funny and heartbreaking.

That sounds EXACTLY like The Squid and the Whale so I'm in. Can this measure up to the heartbreaking incisiveness of that film? Can you believe that the Squid screenplay lost the Oscar to f**ing Crash? More importantly (back on topic) has Noah Baumbach given his wife Jennifer Jason Leigh a chance for a real comeback with what we presume is the second most prominent role here --it's been quiet for years and years in her career. And Nicole Kidman? She plays Margot and if she's half as good as Jeff Daniels was in The Squid and the Whale won't she be up for an Oscar again?


JA: I'm a lonely little person, not having really liked The Squid and the Whale, ain't I? I thought Daniels and Linney were both terrific, but something about the movie (cough Eisenberg cough) annoyed me. Not that I wouldn't have awarded it any and everything before Crash, mind you.

I'm a big enough Kidman fan to be curious about this one, but that's almost cancelled out by the presence of Jack Black. Shudder. Well, consider me flummoxed.

Gabriel: I agree with almost every word, JA. I recognize that The Squid and the Whale was a good film, but it hasn't really lasted in my memory. There's something arch and constructed about the way Baumbach writes...prose that draws a lot of attention to itself. But Leigh and Kidman are enough to get me to into the theater for this one.

Joe: I also appreciated Squid more than I loved it. With me, I think it was more a function of seeing it so long after everyone else had – expectations were too high. Daniels and Linney were still all-stars, though. I’m really banking on this to be Jennifer Jason Leigh’s big splashy re-introduction to mainstream cinema. Of course, the last time she teamed up with a name director and a blonde A-list co-star, we got In the Cut, so...

Kidman gives me great pause, much as I like her. This is a stylistic departure for her. When was the last time Her Alabaster Luminescence® went for a talky picture?

Nathaniel: I hadn't thought of that but you're spot on. Even in her contemporary dramas like Birth or Birthday Girl she's not exactly a chatterbox.

Lulu: For me it's enough that Noah Baumbach is (a) interested in writing complex female characters and (b) is drawn to actresses with really smart instincts. (Plus, JJL usedta be my favorite actress of her generation -- and I'm still always game for the risk of her...)

Nathaniel: Well said.

Margot won't be at that damn wedding until October though so hold your horses, Kidman and Squid fans. Potentially good news: Paramount Vantage is releasing it and they worked hard on their Oscar baby this past year. Potentially bad news: Paramount Vantage has a really full "prestige" slate this year so there's internal competition for any possible Oscar push.

If you'd like to really dive into your inner Kidmania, I'd suggest Nicole Kidman United where I got these set photos.

previously on "we can't wait"
#8 moved to 2008, #9 The Golden Compass,#10 Grindhouse, #11 Bug, #12, Sunshine, #13 Southland Tales, #14 300, #15 Hot Fuzz, #16 Stardust, #17 The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford, #18 Spider-Man 3, #19 Rendition, #20 The Bourne Ultimatum
Intro -films that didn't make the list

related Nicole Kidman
Moulin Rouge! -details of my neverending obsession * Actress of the Aughts -she's #1 * "We Are All Nicole Kidman" -a quiz * Nicole Kidman she's (almost) back *

tags: Jennifer Jason Leigh, Jeff Daniels, Nicole Kidman, movies, academy awards, oscars, screenplay

We Can't Wait #8 The Darjeeling Limited

It's like this: 20 films was probably way too many to count down. What was I thinking --are y'all enjoying this or have your eyes gotten very very droopy? Are you glad/angry about the break from that naked sword holding gold fella? [crickets chirping] But my blogbuddies Gabriel, Joe, JA and Lulu are being good sports about it so a big round of applause to them.

This is the post wherein we were going to be all excited about the new film from the inimitable Wes Anderson (Bottle Rocket, Rushmore, Royal Tenenbaums and The Life Aquatic) but it's already not a 2007 movie but a 2008 spectacular. So... next!

If you need an Anderson fix may I suggest this classic post from The Gilded Moose which just never ever ever gets old.

previously on "we can't wait"
#9 The Golden Compass,#10 Grindhouse, #11 Bug, #12, Sunshine, #13 Southland Tales, #14 300, #15 Hot Fuzz, #16 Stardust, #17 The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford, #18 Spider-Man 3, #19 Rendition, #20 The Bourne Ultimatum, Intro -films that didn't make the list

We Can't Wait #8 The Darjeeling Limited

It's like this: 20 films was probably way too many to count down. What was I thinking --are y'all enjoying this or have your eyes gotten very very droopy? Are you glad/angry about the break from that naked sword holding gold fella? [crickets chirping] But my blogbuddies Gabriel, Joe, JA and Lulu are being good sports about it so a big round of applause to them.

This is the post wherein we were going to be all excited about the new film from the inimitable Wes Anderson (Bottle Rocket, Rushmore, Royal Tenenbaums and The Life Aquatic) but it's already not a 2007 movie but a 2008 spectacular. So... next!

If you need an Anderson fix may I suggest this classic post from The Gilded Moose which just never ever ever gets old.

previously on "we can't wait"
#9 The Golden Compass,#10 Grindhouse, #11 Bug, #12, Sunshine, #13 Southland Tales, #14 300, #15 Hot Fuzz, #16 Stardust, #17 The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford, #18 Spider-Man 3, #19 Rendition, #20 The Bourne Ultimatum, Intro -films that didn't make the list

We Can't Wait #9 His Dark Materials: The Golden Compass

Dakota Richards asks the compass a life-altering question: "Will I be as famous as Dakota Fanning?"

My friends are mostly voracious readers. Me, not so much. It sometimes takes me months to slog through a book. That's partially because I am easily distracted but mostly because I like pictures - pretty pretty pictures. Nevertheless I read through all three books in the pictureless His Dark Materials trilogy so fast I was breathless from the journey and shocked at my stamina. What's more there were some incredible pictures bursting in my mind's eye. Philip Pullman's fantasy epic is too difficult to summarize (good luck marketing team) but the extreme basic is this: In an alternate version of our world, A young girl Lyra (Dakota Blue Richards) who lives among academics in Oxford is torn between two extremely powerful and mysterious adults (Nicole Kidman & Daniel Craig) with no idea how to navigate the world's political/religious tensions. Lyra discovers she's in great danger. Unsure of who to trust she embarks on an incredible journey involving witches, child thieves, magical compasses, armored polar bears, witches, and gypsies.

It's an enormous fantasy trilogy both in theme, story, amount of characters and breadth of vision. Like Lord of the Rings, which became a phenomenon all over again six years back, these books almost seem too gargantuan for the screen. I wouldn't be surprised if the budget set new records. The Golden Compass is being directed by Chris Weitz (About a Boy) and is due in theaters everywhere on December 7th.

So I'm asking my blog friends the questions this time. Joe, the production crew for The Golden Compass includes Alexandre Desplat (Composer), Dennis Gassner (Art Direction) and Ruth Myers (Costumes) all of whom are completely capable of delivering the 'wow'. Will this be the best looking / sounding movie of 2007?

Joe: It’s in the running with Sweeney Todd (Darius Wolski, Dante Ferretti, Colleen Atwood, Sondheim) and There Will Be Blood (Jon Brion, Robert Elswit), but yes, this has got some stellar below-the-line talent.

Nathaniel: The book is famously anti-religion... or, at the very least, adamantly anti organized religion. This ain't Narnia. Discuss.

Lulu: I'm dying for some fantasy flick to do the hero thing w/o Jesus imagery (Narna, LotR, Pan's Labyrinth). But I's gots a funny feeling that this'll either bomb harder than we can fathom or go all cultural phenom on us. 'Twill be innersting.

Nathaniel: How the hell will they pull off an armored talking polar bear without making the audience erupt into giggles?

JA: I would've asked the same question about a walking and talking tree or an armored giant elephant or a tiny person fighting with an invisible tiny person on his back for a piece of jewelry pre- LoTR, and Peter Jackson managed those without inciting giggles, but rather awe (well, the invisible Gollum fight is a little silly still), so if Weitsz can manage to get Iorek's fearsomeness across, I think we'll be okay.

We need all the violence of that bear-on-bear battle intact, in other words.

Nathaniel: Finish this mathematical equation. Nicole Kidman + Daniel Craig =

Gabriel: Gabriel exploding with hormonal happiness

Nathaniel: Finally, this perplexes me. Why are all child actors named Dakota?

Joe: Because that generation of parents didn’t want their child to grow up with a name so drab and common that, say, they were the fifth “Joe” in their classroom and thus reduced to ridiculous additions of their last initial in order to maintain any semblance of identity. Uh...probably. And, because irony’s a bitch, now there are five Dakotas and six Austins per classroom now.

previously on "we can't wait"
#10 Grindhouse, #11 Bug, #12, Sunshine, #13 Southland Tales, #14 300, #15 Hot Fuzz, #16 Stardust, #17 The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford, #18 Spider-Man 3, #19 Rendition, #20 The Bourne Ultimatum
Intro -films that didn't make the list

related articles for new readers
"reel diversons/reel despair" -my worries about religious pressures neutering the adaptation of His Dark Materials * Daniel Wroughton Craig -one of my favorite actors well before Casino Royale brought him a new legion of fans * "We Are All Nicole Kidman" -a quiz * Nicole Kidman She's (Almost) Back *

tags: Daniel Craig, Golden Compass, Nicole Kidman, movies, polar bears, Dakota Blue Richards, fantasy, books, trilogy

We Can't Wait #9 His Dark Materials: The Golden Compass

Dakota Richards asks the compass a life-altering question: "Will I be as famous as Dakota Fanning?"

My friends are mostly voracious readers. Me, not so much. It sometimes takes me months to slog through a book. That's partially because I am easily distracted but mostly because I like pictures - pretty pretty pictures. Nevertheless I read through all three books in the pictureless His Dark Materials trilogy so fast I was breathless from the journey and shocked at my stamina. What's more there were some incredible pictures bursting in my mind's eye. Philip Pullman's fantasy epic is too difficult to summarize (good luck marketing team) but the extreme basic is this: In an alternate version of our world, A young girl Lyra (Dakota Blue Richards) who lives among academics in Oxford is torn between two extremely powerful and mysterious adults (Nicole Kidman & Daniel Craig) with no idea how to navigate the world's political/religious tensions. Lyra discovers she's in great danger. Unsure of who to trust she embarks on an incredible journey involving witches, child thieves, magical compasses, armored polar bears, witches, and gypsies.

It's an enormous fantasy trilogy both in theme, story, amount of characters and breadth of vision. Like Lord of the Rings, which became a phenomenon all over again six years back, these books almost seem too gargantuan for the screen. I wouldn't be surprised if the budget set new records. The Golden Compass is being directed by Chris Weitz (About a Boy) and is due in theaters everywhere on December 7th.

So I'm asking my blog friends the questions this time. Joe, the production crew for The Golden Compass includes Alexandre Desplat (Composer), Dennis Gassner (Art Direction) and Ruth Myers (Costumes) all of whom are completely capable of delivering the 'wow'. Will this be the best looking / sounding movie of 2007?

Joe: It’s in the running with Sweeney Todd (Darius Wolski, Dante Ferretti, Colleen Atwood, Sondheim) and There Will Be Blood (Jon Brion, Robert Elswit), but yes, this has got some stellar below-the-line talent.

Nathaniel: The book is famously anti-religion... or, at the very least, adamantly anti organized religion. This ain't Narnia. Discuss.

Lulu: I'm dying for some fantasy flick to do the hero thing w/o Jesus imagery (Narna, LotR, Pan's Labyrinth). But I's gots a funny feeling that this'll either bomb harder than we can fathom or go all cultural phenom on us. 'Twill be innersting.

Nathaniel: How the hell will they pull off an armored talking polar bear without making the audience erupt into giggles?

JA: I would've asked the same question about a walking and talking tree or an armored giant elephant or a tiny person fighting with an invisible tiny person on his back for a piece of jewelry pre- LoTR, and Peter Jackson managed those without inciting giggles, but rather awe (well, the invisible Gollum fight is a little silly still), so if Weitsz can manage to get Iorek's fearsomeness across, I think we'll be okay.

We need all the violence of that bear-on-bear battle intact, in other words.

Nathaniel: Finish this mathematical equation. Nicole Kidman + Daniel Craig =

Gabriel: Gabriel exploding with hormonal happiness

Nathaniel: Finally, this perplexes me. Why are all child actors named Dakota?

Joe: Because that generation of parents didn’t want their child to grow up with a name so drab and common that, say, they were the fifth “Joe” in their classroom and thus reduced to ridiculous additions of their last initial in order to maintain any semblance of identity. Uh...probably. And, because irony’s a bitch, now there are five Dakotas and six Austins per classroom now.

previously on "we can't wait"
#10 Grindhouse, #11 Bug, #12, Sunshine, #13 Southland Tales, #14 300, #15 Hot Fuzz, #16 Stardust, #17 The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford, #18 Spider-Man 3, #19 Rendition, #20 The Bourne Ultimatum
Intro -films that didn't make the list

related articles for new readers
"reel diversons/reel despair" -my worries about religious pressures neutering the adaptation of His Dark Materials * Daniel Wroughton Craig -one of my favorite actors well before Casino Royale brought him a new legion of fans * "We Are All Nicole Kidman" -a quiz * Nicole Kidman She's (Almost) Back *

tags: Daniel Craig, Golden Compass, Nicole Kidman, movies, polar bears, Dakota Blue Richards, fantasy, books, trilogy

Gosling is a Baby. Murphy is a Loser?

I've updated the BEST ACTOR page with various tidbits. You know how we're always hearing that Leonardo DiCaprio is a tall actor? Well, this is a competition among giants because he's actually the shortest nominee @ 5'11" Everyone else is over six foot --Peter O'Toole is even taller than Forest Whitaker if you can imagine it. So Leo is the shortest but he's not the youngest. That honor goes to Ryan Gosling who nabs his first nomination at 26.

You may recall that Heath Ledger was a wee babe as far as Oscar statistics go when he was nominated last year, also at 26. So now Gosling joins Ledger (plus Orson Welles & Marlon Brando, esteemed company, huh?) as the collective 5th youngest Best Actor nominee. ever. Only Jackie Cooper (9), Mickey Rooney (19,23), John Travolta (23) and James Dean (24) were under the quarter-century mark when they received their leading actor nominations. Adrien Brody is the youngest actual winner. He was 29 when he won for The Pianist.

WEIRDNESS: We've also got a situation this year where 60% of our Best Actor lineup started in family television. Growing Pains, The Mickey Mouse Club, and the Fresh Prince of Bel Air are all in the house.

More on the Best Actor race here. As far as the other men go, I'm beginning to doubt my feeling that Alan Arkin would pick up steam for the Supporting Oscar. Slant Magazine makes a strong case for Djimon Hounsou. People are obviously starting to feel like Eddie Murphy will lose ... but unless buzz coalesces around a single challenger, maybe he won't.

ALSO: Please vote on the Best Actor Poll @ the main site

Gosling is a Baby. Murphy is a Loser?

I've updated the BEST ACTOR page with various tidbits. You know how we're always hearing that Leonardo DiCaprio is a tall actor? Well, this is a competition among giants because he's actually the shortest nominee @ 5'11" Everyone else is over six foot --Peter O'Toole is even taller than Forest Whitaker if you can imagine it. So Leo is the shortest but he's not the youngest. That honor goes to Ryan Gosling who nabs his first nomination at 26.

You may recall that Heath Ledger was a wee babe as far as Oscar statistics go when he was nominated last year, also at 26. So now Gosling joins Ledger (plus Orson Welles & Marlon Brando, esteemed company, huh?) as the collective 5th youngest Best Actor nominee. ever. Only Jackie Cooper (9), Mickey Rooney (19,23), John Travolta (23) and James Dean (24) were under the quarter-century mark when they received their leading actor nominations. Adrien Brody is the youngest actual winner. He was 29 when he won for The Pianist.

WEIRDNESS: We've also got a situation this year where 60% of our Best Actor lineup started in family television. Growing Pains, The Mickey Mouse Club, and the Fresh Prince of Bel Air are all in the house.

More on the Best Actor race here. As far as the other men go, I'm beginning to doubt my feeling that Alan Arkin would pick up steam for the Supporting Oscar. Slant Magazine makes a strong case for Djimon Hounsou. People are obviously starting to feel like Eddie Murphy will lose ... but unless buzz coalesces around a single challenger, maybe he won't.

ALSO: Please vote on the Best Actor Poll @ the main site

We Can't Wait #10 Grindhouse

Rose & Marley team up with guys from the mortuary and a deserted island

There's recently been an announcement that both "Death Proof" and "Planet Terror", the two halves that make up Quentin Tarantino and Robert Rodriguez's exploitation Grindhouse feature, will have 'reels missing'. The last time I saw a movie with a reel missing was on the DVD of Judy Garland's A Star is Born (1954). So, uh, maybe I'm the wrong audience for this? This was high on three lists but absent on mine and Stinky Lulu's. Sell us on it guys. Or am I just being 'withholding' because I want lazy QT to make full movies and not dick around so much inbetween the masterpieces...

JA: The "missing reel" thing strikes me as maybe a little too gimmicky, too, but I get what they're going for and if it isn't completely distracting to the point of annoyance then I can deal with it. And you wanna know why I can deal with it? ROSE MCGOWAN HAS A MACHINE GUN FOR A LEG. That is a sentence that was formed by climbing into the Mt. Doom of my imagination and taking the molten essence of coolness and solidifying it into a pure and golden perfectness.

Lulu: A machine gun for a leg!?! Well, then...

Gabriel: Ja, you are my soul sister. Rodriguez and Tarantino are ideally suited for this kind of reimagined exploitation flick, and it's sure to be a lot of fun, but the important thing to remember is that ROSE MCGOWAN HAS A MACHINE GUN FOR A LEG. Can this be what heaven feels like?

Joe: Does that machine gun shoot vitafirm serum? Because have you seen her face lately?

No matter, this is my kind of movie. I am completely in love with the enthusiasm Rodriguez and Tarantino bring to the screen. And when they team up? Even when it’s bad, it’s so, so good. Has anyone seen the stand-up display for Grindhouse at your local theatre? Even the marketing is coked-up. Coked-up with a love of making movies, I mean!



Nathaniel: I haven't seen the stand-up yet --I'm on my annual one month break from moviegoing -- but I concur on the enthusiasm factor. I imagine a lot of directors, if they're feeling self-aware, are probably a little embarassed watching Tarantino flicks, just for the sheer verve of them. So many films feel sleepy (as droopy eyed as Rose?) in comparison.

That said, Grindhouse might be a little violence for violence sake for me to enjoy. Like Sin City Redux only hopefully more inventive since it doesn't have to adhere to source material.

* NEW FOOTAGE is up at Yahoo Movies


previously on "we can't wait"
#11 Bug, #12 Sunshine, #13 Southland Tales, #14 300, #15 Hot Fuzz, #16 Stardust, #17 The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford, #18 Spider-Man 3, #19 Rendition, #20 The Bourne Ultimatum, Intro -films that didn't make it

tags: Quentin Tarantino, grindhouse, Rose McGowan, movie, cinema, Robert Rodriguez

We Can't Wait #10 Grindhouse

Rose & Marley team up with guys from the mortuary and a deserted island

There's recently been an announcement that both "Death Proof" and "Planet Terror", the two halves that make up Quentin Tarantino and Robert Rodriguez's exploitation Grindhouse feature, will have 'reels missing'. The last time I saw a movie with a reel missing was on the DVD of Judy Garland's A Star is Born (1954). So, uh, maybe I'm the wrong audience for this? This was high on three lists but absent on mine and Stinky Lulu's. Sell us on it guys. Or am I just being 'withholding' because I want lazy QT to make full movies and not dick around so much inbetween the masterpieces...

JA: The "missing reel" thing strikes me as maybe a little too gimmicky, too, but I get what they're going for and if it isn't completely distracting to the point of annoyance then I can deal with it. And you wanna know why I can deal with it? ROSE MCGOWAN HAS A MACHINE GUN FOR A LEG. That is a sentence that was formed by climbing into the Mt. Doom of my imagination and taking the molten essence of coolness and solidifying it into a pure and golden perfectness.

Lulu: A machine gun for a leg!?! Well, then...

Gabriel: Ja, you are my soul sister. Rodriguez and Tarantino are ideally suited for this kind of reimagined exploitation flick, and it's sure to be a lot of fun, but the important thing to remember is that ROSE MCGOWAN HAS A MACHINE GUN FOR A LEG. Can this be what heaven feels like?

Joe: Does that machine gun shoot vitafirm serum? Because have you seen her face lately?

No matter, this is my kind of movie. I am completely in love with the enthusiasm Rodriguez and Tarantino bring to the screen. And when they team up? Even when it’s bad, it’s so, so good. Has anyone seen the stand-up display for Grindhouse at your local theatre? Even the marketing is coked-up. Coked-up with a love of making movies, I mean!



Nathaniel: I haven't seen the stand-up yet --I'm on my annual one month break from moviegoing -- but I concur on the enthusiasm factor. I imagine a lot of directors, if they're feeling self-aware, are probably a little embarassed watching Tarantino flicks, just for the sheer verve of them. So many films feel sleepy (as droopy eyed as Rose?) in comparison.

That said, Grindhouse might be a little violence for violence sake for me to enjoy. Like Sin City Redux only hopefully more inventive since it doesn't have to adhere to source material.

* NEW FOOTAGE is up at Yahoo Movies


previously on "we can't wait"
#11 Bug, #12 Sunshine, #13 Southland Tales, #14 300, #15 Hot Fuzz, #16 Stardust, #17 The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford, #18 Spider-Man 3, #19 Rendition, #20 The Bourne Ultimatum, Intro -films that didn't make it

tags: Quentin Tarantino, grindhouse, Rose McGowan, movie, cinema, Robert Rodriguez

We Can't Wait #11 Bug

Some of you will remember pieces of this post from last year. Bug played at Cannes in May '06, winning an international critics prize, and was scheduled to arrive stateside in December. Lions Gate mixed up a trailer and then *poof* it was gone from the schedule. But Bug still exists. It's now just marked as "coming soon."

The cropped Avedon photo to your left [NSFW version] ran in the New Yorker back when Bug was a word-of-mouth sensation Off Broadway. What I love about this photo is the way it catches so much of Bug the play; the exposed actors (not just physically, mind you) and the paranoid hostility projected from its insular love affair.

The story of Bug involves a down on her luck woman (Ashley Judd in de-glam mode --calling all AMPAS voters --taking on the role originated by Shannon Cochran, in the photo here) hiding out from her estranged ex-con husband (Harry Connick Jr) and falling in with a sweet stranger (Michael Shannon) who she hopes will protect her. The play starts off grounded and gritty but lifts off into the surreal in the second act. Bug's memorable narrative force might have indeed made for a corker of a film but the intense lunatic vibe of its second half was so rooted in theatricality (and close quarters with the audience) that I scratch my head wondering how William Friedkin transferred it to the screen. I hope he got his 70s Exorcist powers back. Certainly he'll have to go without the nudity the play used effectively. The central duo will have to give extremely naked performances to do full justice to the unraveling souls of Bug.

So what I wanted to ask my blogbuddies is this: If you've seen the play how do you imagine it faring without the nudity? Ashley Judd: true actor or washed up celebrity?

Gabriel: I can comment on the play, which was one of my top ten of the year in 2004. It'll be fine without the nudity...the play is a psychological torment, so what's most important is the sense of claustrophic fear. I love the play, and love that they kept Michael Shannon for the movie...he was amazing on stage. My biggest fear: that Ashley Judd screwed it all up.

Joe: I think Ashley Judd has shown us before that she’s a real actress capable of serious and impressive work. It’s just been a matter, lately, of her not seeking (actively avoiding) quality material. Well, okay, Ash. You’ve made your money. Now it’s back to making movies. I like that this looks like something she can dive right into, creatively.

Lulu: Oooh. Gosh. Golly. What's that scent? Eau de Trainwreque? But I will eat a bug if I turn out to be wrong. (Heard it here first)

Nathaniel: Bon appetit. I doubt we're talking trainwreque ;) the source material is very strong. I'm just worried they didn't do it full justice.

JA: All of my excitement about Bug comes from Nathaniel, and what he's said about the play, so Nat, this one lay totally on you! You better not let me down!

Nathaniel: the pressure. the pressure.

JA: Ashley Judd I have no opinions on, good or bad. The only film I've ever seen her in is Heat and she was in that for maybe 10 minutes of screentime. Then she went and made a 12-hour miniseries where she was a drunk cop tangled up with a murderer and Morgan Freeman, right?

Nathaniel: Something like that, yes. How about the readers: any interest in the psychological horrors of Bug? And your verdict on Ashley Judd as an actor?

previously on "we can't wait"
#12 Sunshine
#13 Southland Tales
#14 300
#15 Hot Fuzz
#16 Stardust
#17 The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford
#18 Spider-Man 3
#19 Rendition
#20 The Bourne Ultimatum
Intro -films that didn't make the list

tags: Michael Shannon, Bug, Ashley Judd, theater, theatre, Harry Connick Jr