Saturday, September 12, 2009

Red Carpet: Venice, Toronto and Tilda x 7

Which stars have been out and about this past week? Whole galaxies of them. I've collected a few randomly for this edition of the red carpet lineup. It's but a tiny fraction of the luminaries since we're now in the thick of festival season. Telluride is behind us, Venice wraps today, and Toronto just kicked off. And that's just the big ones.


Nicholas Hoult
and Julianne Moore hit Venice for the premiere of A Single Man (see previous post). An Education's Carey Mulligan, quickly emerging as the one to beat for Best Actress, is going to be fought over fiercely when it comes to dressing for the Oscars, just watch. She wore this Prada 09 Fall/Winter collection piece for her film's Toronto premiere. Oscar winner Jennifer Connelly and her perpetually Oscar snubbed husband Paul Bettany were also in Toronto promoting the Charles Darwin biography / marital drama Creation.

Finally, Venice had the cast of the sci-fi drama Mr. Nobody starring Jared Leto as a 120 year-old man. And, what do you know, Sarah Polley came. Polley sightings are exciting since she's not exactly a red carpet staple. But --and it feels so weird to say this given my actress predilections -- I'd rather she get back behind the camera very soon as a writer/director. Away From Her was just fine filmmaking.

What else ya got, Sarah?

Little Know Fact: In late May of 1960 all of the world's major film festivals met for a wild orgy at Cannes. Just as La Dolce Vita was handed the Palme D'Or, Tilda Swinton was conceived. Cannes herself, heavy with child, fled to England and gave birth to Tilda not five months later (everything happens quickly at festivals). It's totally true! For Tilda is the film festival anthropomorphized: the rush of celebrity, the discovery of the exotic, the air of the international and the thrill of the avant garde. Festivals just don't feel complete without her, do they?

She was all over Venice last week (I've repurposed the photos from Zimbio). Witness...

Tilda's Venice palette: baggy black (a la 07 Oscars), earth tones, white.

I wonder if she'll show up in Toronto? While in Venice, she was promoting Lo Sono L'Amore, an Italian drama. Longtime Swintonites should note that a reunion with her Teknolust director is currently in development. It's called Gene to the Fourth and the actress would play a woman seeking eternal life through scientific experiments. But first, and as early as April, Swinton is set to go before the cameras as Die Blutgräfin (The Blood Countess). Yes, that's the same vampiric Hungarian role that Julie Delpy played in the unreleased film The Countess, a film I'm starting to feel I'll never have the opportunity to see.
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29 comments:

Anonymous said...

Nathaniel,

I thought Streep was the one to beat for best actress? Do you think Mulligan will win?

NATHANIEL R said...

it's a tossup

Paul Outlaw said...

I am going to see An Education this afternoon, which means that my Oscar season has officially begun. I personally don't think Streep has a chance at winning this year, as much as I loved her in Julie and Julia. First off, the film isn't important enough, and second of all, there will be backlash: Julia Child, Homophobe.

Paul Outlaw said...

Important should be in quotation marks, of course.

Anonymous said...

Paul - I think you are wrong. This is Streep's year. She has all the momentum going into Oscar season. She nailed Julia Child and if there is any backlash it will be with Mulligan and all the hype for her film which hasn't even opened.

Anonymous said...

Paul,

And by the way Oscars are awarded for performances not on the "important" nature of a film. Also, Julia's personal views from 1960 has nothing to do with Meryl's performance and I see no backlash --- you simply don't know what you're talking about.

Anonymous said...

Nat, I'm disappointed with the blog! What's up with the Venice Film Festival AWARDS? They were given 2 hours ago and you don't update the blog!!! I came here to watch my information and there wasn't information, I had to go to another blogs, which I don't like... because i'm faithful to you, but I needed to know who were the winners, I needed the information!!!

Paul Outlaw said...

@ Anonymous 6:05 & 6:14

"She has all the momentum going into Oscar season" = famous last words. (See Sally Hawkins, 2008). And you see no backlash because the nominations are months away. When Streep gets nominated (and I'm sure that she will), the performance and the role will come under intense scrutiny (see A Beautiful Mind) as other studios campaign for their nominees. I love Meryl and I thought she was great as Child and I want her to win that second Best Actress statue, but I'm not at all convinced that this is her year.

And sorry if I wasn't clear with what I meant by "important" in the context of winning Best Actress (as opposed to getting a nomination). I'm talking about a film that is either a "big" biopic (La Vie En Rose, Walk the Line), deals with a "big" theme or event (The Queen, The Reader), is an adaptation of a "big" novel (The Hours) or features what is considered a quantum leap performance by the nominated actress (Monster's Ball, Monster, Boys Don't Cry, The Hours). Some would say that Erin Brockovich fits into two of those categories. I think it was simply Julia Roberts' coronation.

And the Million Dollar Baby Best Actress win is just plain bizarre, given the other nominees that year.

Anonymous said...

Paul,

You can justify your own delusions till the cows come home but Streep will win in March 2010. Bank on it...

YESSI said...

What the hell are you talking about Hilary Swank's 2004 Oscar???

IT WAS DESERVED!!! AS IT WAS "MILLION DOLLAR BABY" TRIUMPH ON DIRECTOR AND PICTURE!!!

Anonymous said...

And by the way I don't see how you can say, Paul, that Julia Child is not a BIG biopic role. Julia was an extremely popular personality as well as an icon. The academy loves this type of performance.

Miss Preyton said...

Personally I don't want to make bad buzz about Meryl Streep, but I had no idea of who was Julia Child.

Also, why it's so hard to accept that maybe Carey Mulligan wins Best Actress? Why couldn't EMILY WATSON win in 1996??? Just WHY???

Anonymous said...

Miss Preyton -

Do you live in Arkansas? Do you know who June Carter was?

Paul Outlaw said...

Never ceases to amaze me how some people love to throw around statements like "you simply don't know what you're talking about" or "you can justify your own delusions..." But that's the internet for you, a bastion of civility and "anonymous" opinion.

adelutza said...

Who was June Carter? And for that matter, who was Julia Child?

Seriously, does it really matter? When Hitler gets killed by the Wizard of Oz in a movie theater in Paris?

NATHANIEL R said...

adelutza... ha!

Paul Outlaw said...

LOL...good point.

Anonymous said...

Sorry if I offended anyone on this blog, I simply asked for an opinion from Nathaniel and next thing I know I am thrown left and right with negativity....

NATHANIEL R said...

anon 6:14 this is not a news blog. sorry to keep you waiting but posts don't write themselves and i won't always be first with news... or even 10th.

i will for sure discuss because it's exciting.

Jorge Rodrigues said...

People... COLIN FIRTH won the Best Actor Award for his performance in A Single Man.

Could we have an Oscar contender right here?

John D. said...

Is The Last Station back in the 09 Oscar race? Apparently, it was screened at Telluride a few days ago.

armando said...

Jennifer Connelly is looking amazing these days, glad she has put on some weight. She's getting very good reviews as well, she could be back in the race if the film finds its US distributor soon

Andrew David said...

Yay for the Tilda fix!

Paul Outlaw said...

Just got back from An Education. What a delightful film...and what a great performance by Carey Mulligan! At this point it really is Streep vs. Mulligan. But "this point" is way early. And somehow neither performance, as enjoyable and skillful as they were, screams "Best Actress" to me... Aren't the fall releases (like Agora, The Lovely Bones, Nine, Bright Star, Coco Before Chanel, Amelia, The Young Victoria, Precious, Pippa Lee, etc.) supposed to be delivering even baitier women's roles?

The Witch who can see future said...

And then... when everybody thinks it's Carey vs. Meryl, they push RABBIT HOLE for 2009 release date and Nicole Kidman wins BEST ACTRESS.

Arkaan said...

These comments are hilarious. Nathaniel, don't you realize that liking Carey Mulligan is tantamount to cheating on Streep?

Anonymous said...

Really looking forward to Precious.....
But didn't anyone notice how sauve and handsome and hot Nicholas Hoult is???????

NATHANIEL R said...

arkaan... i know. I'm TOTALLY polysexual when it comes to movies. I refuse to limit myself to just one paramour.

Natural Makeup said...

Ahh Tilda rocks and yes Cannes film festival or any for that matter wouldn't be the same without her!