Julianne Moore @ 50

I couldn't let the day pass without an acknowledgement of the great Julianne Moore hitting the big 5-0 milestone.

<--- This is what 50 looks like when you're Her. (Yes, that picture was taken this year.)

Having celebrated Julianne Moore many times over the years (just click the label or read this summer's interview) I thought we shouldn't make too much of a fuss today. But bless bless. Isn't she divine?

Julianne vs. Cate. Plus: What's Wrong With Hugo's Face?

Have you ever seen the movie Vanya on 42nd Street (1994)? It's really quite good. The movie plays something like a fly on the wall rehearsal documentary of a stage production of Anton Chekov's immortal "Uncle Vanya." It marked the first important clue that Julianne Moore was going to be a major screen goddess (unless you count Short Cuts as just that, which some do) and it also gave Brooke Smith her first worthwhile role after achieving a kind of 'who is that she looks so familiar?' fame as "The Girl in the Pit" in Silence of the Lambs.

Two "Yelena"s: Cate (on stage) and Julianne (on film)

It's a worthwhile rental so long as you give it your full attention as it's full of intricacies and performances of quiet but potent dramedic depth.  If you're in Australia, though, you can see more than a rehearsal. You can see the real thing on stage.


VANYA ON 42ND STREET


VANYA ON PIER 4, HICKSON ROAD

Andrew Upton (Mr. Cate Blanchett) has adapted the play for the Sydney Theater Company. The cast is full of familiar Australian movie faces like Cate herself, Hugo Weaving, Richard Roxburgh (Moulin Rouge!) and this year's Best Supporting Actress hopeful Jacki Weaver (Animal Kingdom). I expect a full report from Australian readers who get a chance to see it. Do as I say! The production is currently playing and runs through January 1st, 2011.

Can Cate's "Yelena" measure up to Julianne's sublime take?

And when is Hugo Weaving going to get another worthwhile film role? Lately the movies have reduced him to a disembodied voice or cameo player in noisy "event" movies (V For Vendetta, Lord of the Rings, Transformers). His next big role is the villainous Red Skull in Captain America: The First Avenger. But given the role, we still won't really be looking at his face, will we?

And what's wrong with his face, I ask. It's got real character. Stop hiding him, moviemakers!

Unsung Heroes: The Costumes of The Big Lebowski

Michael C from Serious Film back again, this time with a Little Lebowski Urban Achiever whose work is already iconic even if few know her name.

I'd like to dedicate this one to the costume designers that don't do movies about dead monarchs or glittery musicals.

-Sandy Powell collecting her third Oscar

It's a common refrain among film lovers that flashier work may win the awards, but the subtler, more invisible work is the stuff that really deserves the recognition. But what about the crafts where the flashy stuff is also brilliant as well? Take costume design. In 1998 when the Oscar race came down to Shakespeare in Love vs. Elizabeth I don't think many would deny that those were two very deserving choices. Even though they were the Oscar's favored "Look at me!" more-is-more style nominees, that didn't make the costumes any less superb. And while a lot of people would agree with Powell's statement that contemporary costume design is woefully overlooked, it will still be difficult to skip over Elizabeth to mark your ballot for my choice for that year's best costume design: Mary Zophres for the Coen brothers' The Big Lebowski. 

If you contrast the amount of effort that went into making one of Cate Blanchett's royal gowns against, say, picking out just the right grungy beige cardigan for the Dude, it seems like a pretty indefensible choice on the face of it. But costume design, like any other creative profession, is about making choices. And every choice made about the costumes in Lebowski is a bullseye, right down to getting a T-shirt to properly accentuate the Dude's gut.

Zophres makes every character in the movie instantly recognizable from their attire without ever stretching credibility (at least without stretching it any further than the Coens already did) How many robes did she have to try before she found one that hung off Julianne Moore so perfectly? How many vest and tinted glasses did she go through before she found the perfect combo to give John Goodman that militaristic edge? I could have done a whole post just on John Turturro's legendary hairnet and tight purple bowling outfit alone, to say nothing of all the other bowlers, nihilists, avant garde artists, and young trophy wives who populate the film.

And, hey, if you want traditionally attention grabbing, Zophres and the Coens oblige with a wacked-out Busby Berkeley goes bowling musical showstopper with the most outlandish costumes this side of a Terry Gilliam movie. Sandy Powell was a totally worthy Oscar winner for Shakespeare in Love, but I defy anyone to name me a costume from Shakespeare, or from any other film that year, that has brought more joy to people over the years than Julianne Moore's Viking bowler ensemble.

Crying with Juli M. Laughing with Jamie Lee. Casting of Chloe M.

Go Fug Yourself Jamie Lee Curtis & Sigweavie repeat their You Again joke on the red carpet: same dress.
Hollywood Reporter Speaking of JLC, she has...feeelings about this True Lies reboot for TV.
Coming Soon Chloe Moretz to play Emily Strange. She's the only young girl in Hollywood. The only one you're allowed to see in anything, okay?! Learn to love her. Or else.

...And my latest column at Towleroad covers Buried with Ryan Reynolds and has a lot more linkage too, including that hilarious 'Julianne Moore Loves to Cry' video that several of you have alerted me, too. I love to watch her weep but it's not because I'm a sadist. Find out my self-rationalizing theory over there.

Something else I need to find a rationalization for: I've had Atom Egoyan's Chloe --no, not Moretz! -- sitting on my TV for a week or more now and I still haven't watched it. Damn you time management issues. This is also why posting has been slim while I've been NYFF'ing. Apologies.

P.S. More Foreign Film Oscar Submission have happened and the charts are updated. But you know what's really weird. When I was looking up the info I found this article from the AP which says the craziest thing

"Lula, the Son of Brazil" will be among 95 titles from around the world competing to be chosen for the shortlist at the US Academy Awards ceremony on February 27, the culture ministry said

Apparently the culture ministry hasn't followed the Oscars much. I've been tracking this category extensively since 2001 and I've never seen a year that hit 75 titles, let alone 95!

Here's a music video from Andrius Mamontovas from the  Latvian Oscar submission Hong Kong Confidential. Andrius also co-stars in the romantic dramedy.

I Link to Link

Salon on the "Magical Negro," the offensive movie cliche that just won't die.
pullquote the Cinetrix appreciates the mise-en-scene of a unique triple feature: Pee Wee's Big Adventure, In the Mood for Love and Metropolis. Three great disparate movies. If I lived in Boston I would surely love the Brattle.
IMDB Penélope Cruz' rep makes it official: She's pregnant. The world will get the genetically blessed spawn of Cruz-Bardem in January or Februaryish.
Sina Tony Leung Chiu-Wai snapped leaving a noodleshop. Wait, isn't Maggie Cheung supposed to be the one fetching those? I can't believe he's nearing 50.


Critical Condition "the mysterious case of the disappearing 80s movies". This is a good read but I disagree with the resolution. I don't actually think modern technology will prevent films from becoming lost. I think the constant succession of new technologies will only acerbate the problem. Notice how many thousands and thousands of films that were available on VHS are not on DVD and now Blu-Ray is taking over.
Nicks Flick Picks has a thoughtful reaction to the Venice "scandal" and its weird jury presumptions.
Kenneth in the (212) Madonna: "Most Likely To Direct". Hee.
Vanity Fair Natalie Portman on her role in Black Swan
ticklepickleme has 10 thoughts on those Rabbit Hole clips we were just watching.
Empire James Cameron's True Lies may become a tv series. Can Eliza Dushku reprise her role please?
Hollywood Reporter Toronto's "It Girl" is Brit actress Andrea Riseborough who stars in three films.

Finally, here's Julianne Moore politicking. Good on her.

How I Feel / How I Wish I Felt

...illustrated without restraint by Julianne Moore. (Though in truth I've swung both ways today...even in the same half hour. No mood lasts forever!). How's your weekend been? Seen anything good. Which side of Julianne's coin are you this weekend?
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"Did she just...?"

[Great Moments in Screen Bitchery #993, Julianne Moore in Blindness]

The "unseeing" Doctor's Wife sticks it to the guards.
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DVDs: Brooklyn's Greenberg, A Single Man With the Chloe Tattoo

Recent or brand new offerings from the fine land of DVD and Blu Ray including (whaddya know?) a double feature starring god herself. Which will you make me watch?

• The Bounty Hunter
  In which Gerard Butler allegedly continues his unbroken streak of awful movies. I say allegedly because I have only heard of (most of) the horrors.
  
• Brooklyn's Finest
  In which the likes of Richard Gere, Don Cheadle, Wesley Snipes and Ethan Hawke get caught up in cops & drugs style complications. From the director of Training Day.
  
• Chloe
  In which Julianne Moore hires hooker Amanda Seyfried for her husband but gets more than she paid for. Oopsie. From auteur Atom Egoyan.
  
  
  
• The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo
  In which Swedish actors like Michael Nyqvist (yay!), Lena Endre (yay!) and Noomi Rapace (wait, who?) act out the allegedly misogynistic international best seller.
  
• The Greatest
  In which Susan Sarandon and Pierce Brosnan are grieving the death of their son when they meet a girl (Carey Mulligan) pregnant with his child. Sounds rather like Moonlight Mile, also starring Susan Sarandon as the grieving mom?
  
• Greenberg
  In which Ben Stiller can't deal. From the very talented writer/director Noah Baumbach (Margot at the Wedding, The Squid and the Whale).
  
• A Single Man
  In which Colin Firth grieves his dead lover, considers hitting that (that being Nicholas Hoult) and visits boozy potty mouth Juli.
  

Make your case for what I should write about in the comments and vote.

poll by twiigs.com

Previous write ups from this reader request series (my version of DVD on Demand) include Bad Lieutenant, Fantastic Mr Fox, An Education, The Road and Alice in Wonderland. The latter did not actually win a poll but I didn't hold one that week because I knew it would. Doctor Zhivago, The White Ribbon and True Blood Season 2 (which totally tied The Road in its week) still pending. Shut up, they're all really long! We'll take a break from these polls after this one until I get caught up.

Dreams Come True: Nathaniel's Audience With Julianne Moore.

As some of you know, I had the opportunity to sit down with Julianne Moore last week. The occasion was the release of The Kids Are All Right, Julianne's 48th movie and one of her very best. Julianne plays "Jules" the flighty wife of "Nic" played by Annette Bening. They've raised two children together. Nic had Joni (Mia Wasikowska) and soon thereafter Jules had Laser (Josh Hutcherson). It's one of Julianne's best comic performances in a career that's mostly been noted for her dramatic magic with internally shell shocked women. But it wasn't always accolades. Julianne's big screen career started twenty years ago this summer when the horror flick Tales of the Darkside was released. Inauspicious beginnings but no matter.

My history with Julianne doesn't stretch back quite that far. I first took true notice of Julianne in Benny & Joon (1993) when she was playing a former (bad) actress turned waitress. In one of the movies most endearing scenes, Johnny Depp mimics her horror performance that he's memorized as they watch it together. She nearly dies of embarrassment. Five years later, I did more than notice her. I fell madly in love with her in her next bad actress incarnation as porn star Amber Waves. Ironically, though those two key bad actress roles were the beginning of my major Moore obsession, the woman herself is anything but a bad actress. She's one of the greats.

The first incarnation of The Film Experience (my baby that you're reading right now) was actually a print zine called "FiLM BiTCH" and Julianne Moore was the first iconic (literally) cover girl. I painted her as a religious icon. I met Julianne once before in 2002 on the Oscar campaign trail for Far From Heaven but it was a simple 'hello, good luck' type of public event and my girl friend snapped this dorky photo.

Julianne & Nathaniel in 2002 at the Egyptian Theater in Hollywood.

I knew when I was granted an actual audience with Ms Moore eight years later that I'd have to risk the ridiculous and bring my post collegiate / pre website zine with me to show her. Entering the plush hotel suite, I told Julianne I was nervous. "I'm not scary," she assured warmly and then we discussed what to drink (sparkling water it was) and then she actually poured me a glass. Her serving me... What universe is this?! I told her I wasn't scary either. It was important for her to know that, I joked, before we began since I was about to whip out the truly fannish obsessiveness. Julianne took it all in stride, laughing, and even seemed to enjoy the history as I showed her the zine.

(I've bolded, italicized and explained to give you a sense of my interpretation of what follows)

Nathaniel: You actually inspired my writing career inadvertently, I'm not even joking.

Julianne: No kidding? [Wide eyed look at magazine, squeals] Did you make a magazine?

Nathaniel: I did.

Julianne: Oh my gosh, that's nuts!!! [reading aloud] "Julianne Moore is God" [laughter]. You're so sweet! Holy cow. This is crazy.

Nathaniel: I even brought one for you in case you have a stash of weird fan things.

Julianne: Well, thank you. I'm very touched. [Signed the cover] Can you read this? It says "To Nathaniel, with love and deep appreciation"

Nathaniel: You know what it was? It was Boogie Nights. I had so many feelings about that movie at the time that conversations weren't enough so I had to start writing. I'm being totally serious. You were a big inspiration.

Julianne: That's so cool. I'm very touched.

Nathaniel: So that said --that crazy story said -- how weird is fame for you?

Julianne: [Laughs]

Nathaniel: Strangers giving you gifts. Have you totally acclimated to it?

Julianne: It's funny. We were just talking -- my friend who I've known for a really long time -- he was talking about reality stars. And people just want to be famous. I said, 'I don't understand that. I don't understand fame without content.' Because it's not -- I don't know if fame is anything in particular. I feel like it's an offshoot of something else.

You know I always said to my kids when they were little, especially when they'd see me on a magazine, and like, if somebody said 'Are you there because you're famous?' I'd say to them 'No, I'm there because of this job that I do and this job requires that I do this other public stuff.' I think if it's not rooted in something that you actually do, then it becomes -- then it's not necessarily a comfortable thing.


And also I'm not wildly famous, you know? I'm a person who is sort of moderately famous.

Nathaniel: But your fame, the ascendance of your fame, happened in lockstep when things were getting really crazy for famous people in the late 90s.

Julianne: Actually, that's true. There was never... when you were an actor, there was never any expectations that it was going to come with all this other stuff. Suddenly the whole celebrity culture blossomed around the same time.

That stuff, I think, is unusual. I think you've got to compartmentalize. It has to be a completely different thing.

Nathaniel: So, The Kids Are All Right. I read that you signed on because of High Art. Love that film. You signed on before while Lisa was still writing it? Is that correct?

Julianne: Well, no. What happened was I met Lisa at a Women in Film luncheon. I went over to meet her and I said 'Hey, why didn't I see the script to High Art?' She laughed. And I was like 'No, seriously. I don't understand. I see all these scripts. I never saw your script.' I loved the movie. I just thought it was great. She kind of laughed. I said 'Well, you know...' We agreed that we liked each other and we had a meeting. She said 'I'm going to write something for you one of these days.' Not too long after that she sent me Kids... which she had written with me in mind.

And then it was a period of four or five years before we finally got it off the ground. So, I would have done anything she sent me, probably. And it just happened to be this really terrific script. And then there were many iterations of it: Stuart came on as a co-writer, the script became much more comedic in tone. But it was always something I really responded to.

Nathaniel: Because you were involved early, did you have any input into the character?

Julianne: I don't do that.

Nathaniel: You don't?

Julianne: I actually don't do that. I like the tension between the character and the actor. So I don't want to say things, like, "I wanna make her blah blah blah."

But I will get attached to certain things. There was some stuff in the movie -- remember I had that line when Annette and I walk away and I say that thing about Jose. 'I had to fire him he was a crack addict.'?

Nathaniel: Hilarious.

Julianne: Yeah. That was a line that was left from another scene, another version, where I kept talking about the gardener having a huge drug problem and how I have to do something about it. It was so funny and then it got cut. I was like 'I'm bringing it back!' I didn't care that it was on our backs as we were walking away. I'm just throwing it back in there.

In that sense I will harvest thing from other versions.

Nathaniel: I know you don't talk about your process that much.

Julianne: Right.

Nathaniel: A little nugget? I know the scripts mean a lot to you. Do you just read them a lot and internalize or if someone grabbed your script would it be just covered in notes?

Julianne: Almost nothing in the script. If there are line changes I put them in. My scripts are pretty empty. It's just about internalizing it, actually, like you said. I read it...think about it... think about it. It kind of percolates. The interesting thing is that I might not do a lot of writing on it and that kind of stuff but I get really upset if I don't have the script for a few months. It has to be there for me to be reading and thinking about.

Nathaniel: On the set?

Julianne: Before I'm shooting. If someone says to me 'Hey we're shooting this movie in two weeks.' 'WHAT? WHAT I need...' I like to have the script for a couple of months at least because I have this process of thinking and thinking about it.

Nathaniel: One thing I loved about the performance is the energy with Annette Bening -- I'm sure this is conscious -- there's a little bit of shrinking back like you were almost one of the kids in the family?

Julianne: Right, right.

Nathaniel: I thought it was really interesting. With your peer group of actresses ... you've done The Hours with Kidman and Streep but you didn't have scenes with them.

Julianne: We were all separate.

Nathaniel: I was wondering. What was that like working with someone [Annette Bening] of your stature, so to speak?

Julianne: Great! It was great. It was definitely a partnership, a marriage. It was our job to illuminate that and the dynamics of that marriage. And insomuch as she [Jules] doesn't seem to be the dominant partner, you realize that she has an emotional transparency and fluidity that her wife [Nic] doesn't have.

Nic (The Bening) and Jules (God)

She might not be the one making the decisions or the money or whatever but then you realize, oh, but she's the fun one. It might seem like someone is in charge but then you go 'noooo...' There's all this balance, I think.

Nathaniel: The script is beautiful. You haven't had that many opportunities to be paired with an actress.

Julianne: No, you never get to do that. Who was I just talking to about this? Just to be around women. It's very exciting. You're always with guys. Always, always, always with guys. I was just talking about this to this young actress, this girl, Emma Stone. Most of your career you spend with men.

Nathaniel: Paul Thomas Anderson and Todd Haynes are two of your most famous collaborators. How different are they than Lisa Cholodenko to work with?

Julianne: You know, every person is different. Every director is different by virtue of who they are. But the directors that have interested me and who I've had successful collaborations with are people with very strong visions. That's sort of my job to facilitate that, to be a conduit for their words and imagery. To get it out there. A lot of it with an actor is to figure out, to be somewhat adaptable to whatever their personal, like, vibe is. That's interesting to me, to key into that and avail yourself to that.

Nathaniel: You've played lesbians before even though it's not a famous part of your career like 50s housewives, for example. And you've worked with a lot of gay directors.

Julianne: Yeah.

Nathaniel: Have you always felt that affinity with the gay community?

Julianne: I don't know that... [Considering her words] I always hate to be divisive about gender or sexuality or race or anything like that. I feel like sometimes, even with the best of intentions, when we put ourselves into boxes, it ends up being a less universal thing.

But I will say that I've always worked with filmmakers who are interested in very human, not so much plot driven, stories -- more kind of character and emotionally driven. And a lot of gay filmmakers fall into that category.

[At this point Julianne and I were interrupted. My time was coming to a close. Time is a cruel mistress. Wrap up! For the finale, I couldn't resist swinging way back to the beginning.]

Nathaniel: I have to ask you this because I was giggling to myself outside about your career and how long I've followed it.

Julianne: It's so cute.

Nathaniel: I've seen all of your movies but four.

[At this last confession outburst, Julianne registers a split second of shock, followed by hilariously self-deprecating sympathy.]

Julianne: Really? My god, you've seen some junk then!

Nathaniel: Twenty years ago -- your debut on screen was twenty years ago, in Tales of the Darkside. When you were being killed by the mummy, did you ever imagine this future for yourself?

Julianne's Darkside in 1990

Julianne: No.

Nathaniel: ...Oscar nominations?

Julianne: No way. No way.

The funny thing about that mummy movie is that I didn't even read the end of it. Because I have this tendency not to read the stage directions. I just like dialogue. At the end of the movie there's all this stuff about me being, you know, attacked by the mummy and I thought I was finished. I remember the director says to me you 'You didn't read the end, did you?' I was like 'UH OH!'

So, no, I didn't imagine it at all. I just wanted to work. I just wanted steady work.

Nathaniel: It was so nice to meet you.

Julianne: I'm so flattered. Oh Nathaniel, thank you.

<-- Julianne on the day we met.

As I rose to leave I offered my hand to shake and Julianne threw out her arms for a hug instead.

I'd run out of time. I already knew I was her last interview before her lunch break after a full morning of interviews. It was ending and we hadn't even talked about the sore topic (to fans at least) of her Oscar record! I collected my bag and we said our final goodbyes. I couldn't help a smidgeon of small talk about the Oscars... the good lucks and such. "I'm pissed you haven't won yet," I grumbled. She smiled. She's heard this a million times, though she said nothing of the sort. "Oh," she said, shooing it off sensibly "As long as I keep getting jobs." And then she was off to lunch and I was floating away, having met one of the great screen actresses and a personal inspiration, too.

And for the record, no.

No, I never imagined any of this either when I was painting that oil portrait of her in 1997 and affectionately nicknaming her "god" with other actress-loving friends. No way. No way.
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Streep Nom #13: Adaptation (2002)

Thirteen wasn't exactly an unlucky number for Meryl Streep. Though she didn't win the Oscar, her thirteenth Oscar honor brought her the title of Most Nominated Actor. It's difficult to imagine anyone ever surpassing her since she's widened the gap considerably since (Jack Nicholson is stalled at 12, tied with Katharine Hepburn and the only other living/working rivals for super frequent Oscar honors Al Pacino and Peter O'Toole are much further behind with 8 nominations each).

<-- Splendor in the grass. Spike directs Streep in Adaptation (2002)

This was also the number that coincided with what was arguably her most challenging big screen role in the Aughts in the Spike Jonze/Charlie Kauffman collaboration Adaptation (2002) and the first time she'd competed as a supporting actress since the 1970s.

Each time I watch Adaptation I seem to have a different reaction to it ranging from wild love to 'stop obsessing over yourself!' annoyance but I've never been less than enthralled with what Meryl's doing as the writer Susan Orlean whether she's playing Orlean herself or some projections of Orlean. And that dial tone reverie may well be Meryl's best screen moment from the Aughts.

The 2002 Nominees were...

• Kathy Bates, About Schmidt
• Queen Latifah, Chicago
• Julianne Moore, The Hours
• Meryl Streep, Adaptation
• Catherine Zeta-Jones, Chicago
  

At the time I was rooting for Zeta-Jones and probably still would (I blame her thrilling rendition of "I Can't Do It Alone") but I could just as easily have voted for Streep had I had an Academy ballot.

Other Women For Context
The big snub here, the one that stung, was Michelle Pfeiffer's scary self-generated cult of personality in White Oleander. She had my vote as best of the year and it stands as one of the three crown jewels of her career (a worthy companion to The Fabulous Baker Boys and Batman Returns). She was SAG nominated but couldn't get past the Chicago juggernaut for an nomination. The Golden Globes, who once loved Michelle wildly, killed her momentum by snubbing her rather inexplicably for what may well be Cameron Diaz's weakest performance in Gangs of New York. That Diaz was in the conversation at all is another reminder of how powerful momentum can be (perceived snubs for Being John Malkovich and Vanilla Sky) and how the pre-ordained "buzz" for a Best Picture contender can have a potent affect on other categories.

The only other women who generated anything like "Nominate her!" discussion that year were Toni Collette (BAFTA Nominee for About a Boy), Patricia Clarkson (NYFCC and NSFC winner for Far From Heaven) and arguably Susan Sarandon (Globe nominee for Igby Goes Down). Though the year had other interesting supporting work from the likes of Samantha Morton (Minority Report), Bebe Neuwirth (Tadpole), Edie Falco (Sunshine State), various French divas (8 Women) and Viola Davis (Solaris), it was basically a seven or eight woman race with Pfeiffer's best work in a decade presumably landing in the dread six spot.

Your feelings on 2002's supporting women?

"Streep @ 60"
Previous Nominations Discussed
78, 79, 81, 82, 83, 85, 87, 88, 90, 95, 98 and 99

Let's Link Together, yeahyeahyeah, think of all that we could sha-are.

Tyler Coates shares my favorite personal anecdote post of this past week. Yay, Parent Trap.
Peel Slowly offers up several examples of movies recreating paintings. Neat stuff.

Material Girl Yes, it's true. Madonna's firstborn is now a (fashion) blogger. She loves all things 80s apparently like 4realz. Believe it or not I threw a first birthday party for Lourdes (aka Lola) in 1997 with my roomie at the time who was also a Madonna man. Our apartment was packed -- anything Madonna themed you know -- and we gave all the donations to a local children's hospital. So, see, one can use celebrity obsessive powers for good.
Movie|Line "9 dates that will shape the rest of 2010."
I Need My Fix Megan Fox and Brian Austin Green are now married in case you hadn't heard or cared.
In Contention Tree of Life is Apparition's sole 2010 release now. "And who knows if we'll even see it in 2010," Nathaniel the cynic adds.


Anita Kunz She's one of my favorite illustrators and she drew 100 nude male celebrities for an artshow in Toronto. How funny. This is but a 3% sample. But if you're in Toronto, go see it. Report back.
Eye Scoop Excuse me, how had I not heard that Christophe Honore was doing another musical with Ludivine Sagnier and Louis Garrel (from Love Songs)! So excited. That film just grows on you.
Cinematical Peter Sarsgaard goes Bluegrass.

A Blog Next Door suggests you watch TiMER on Netflix Instant Watch and so do I. Anya!
A BlNYT Wonder Woman has a new look. I'm sure this will be applauded widely but I can't help but worry that it's one more step in completely genericizing all superheroes. Watch it turn into black form fitting armory leather for the movie which all superheroes seem to be wearing ever since they held a mass costume designing conference in 2000 and decreed that The Matrix and The X-Men were the new standards for f/x costuming.
The Awl a conversation about The Twilight Saga: Eclipse that has to be more entertaining than the movie.

Finally, Towleroad alerts us to a rare moment of levity in the Supreme Court confirmation hearing for Elena Kagan. The "Edward vs. Jacob case"



I don't even know what to say...

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P.S. If you've been following me on Twitter, you already know that I met Julianne Moore today. Yes, yes, I'll tell you all about it soon enough. I have to process first. [gulp] I reached out my hand to shake hers and... she hugged me!

In Just Three Days...

... I'll be granted an audience with god (aka Julianne Moore) to talk about The Kids Are All Right.

I hope that I don't pass out. In actuality, I have met the ravishing redhead once before in 2002 (my how time flies) and did not keel over. But I was rather incoherent. The only full sentence I managed was something along the lines of "I hope you win the Oscar". When I meet her again -- this time for an interview -- perhaps I should apologize for jinxing her chances. We all know that when I truly obsess over an actress she never wins (Pfeiffer, Deneuve, Bening). The exceptions to this rule are the actresses who won their Oscars BEFORE I was born or before I became obsessive (Streep, Fonda, La Liz) although sometimes I even curse those women retroactively through my amazing time travel/Oscar jinxing powers (Judy G, Marilyn, Natalie).

What would you ask Julianne Moore?
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Streep Nom #10: The Bridges of Madison County

We've been looking at each Meryl Streep Oscar nod and its competitive field. Previously: 78, 79, 81, 82, 83, 85, 87, 88 and 90.

When The Bridges of Madison County premiered in summer (a rare Eastwood berth, indeed) it seemed like Streep might finally win her 3rd Oscar the following Spring. She'd been away from the awards race in what seemed like forever. Hilariously, that "forever" absence had only been four consecutive years (1991-1994) but for Meryl, that's an eternity. In fact, a four year absence had never happened before and has never happened since all these years later. By the end of the 1995 film year, a really actressy one, the story was a lot different and the race was suddenly all but sewn up for Sarandon with only Streep and Stone as dark horse possibilities.

1995 the nominees were

• Susan Sarandon, Dead Man Walking
• Elisabeth Shue, Leaving Las Vegas *Nathaniel's pick. This performance kills me.*
  
• Sharon Stone, Casino
  
• Meryl Streep, The Bridges of Madison County
• Emma Thompson, Sense & Sensibility
  

Trivia note: With this 10th honor, Streep tied Bette Davis & Jack Nicholson's overall nomination records (at the time -- Jack wasn't done giving Streep a run for #1) making them the collective #2 Oscar favored actor after Katharine Hepburn.

Back to the actual competition. How many times have we heard this almost-win story now? Meryl is flouncing along giddily in the general direction of the podium for her third triumph when suddenly...

But let us not bemoan that elusive third Oscar and instead marvel at how many valid choices Oscar made for 1995 and how good their roster might have been even if it had looked a lot different.

---> Meryl with Tom Cruise at the Oscars in March '96. (Note frosty snubbed Nicole, not yet ascendant, by his side)

Other 1995 women for context: Oscar chose the entire Globe Drama slate which meant that the comedic nominees were snubbed: Nicole Kidman (To Die For), Vanessa Redgrave (A Month by the Lake), Toni Collette (Muriel's Wedding), Annette Bening (The American President) and my fav Sandra Bullock perf (While You Were Sleeping). Two critical darlings Julianne Moore [safe] and the eternally snubbed Jennifer Jason Leigh (Georgia) were ignored due to being ahead of their time and upstaged by their co-star, respectively, though Leigh did win the coveted NYFCC prize. Box office queens Alicia Silverstone (Clueless) and Michelle Pfeiffer (Dangerous Minds) failed to scare up awards attention outside of MTV.

Other female leads that year included: Angela Bassett (Waiting to Exhale), Julie Delpy (Before Sunrise), Lori Petty (Tank Girl), Winona Ryder (How to Make an American Quilt), Elizabeth Berkely (Showgirls) and Sarah Jessica Parker (Miami Rhapsody) getting her first taste of romantic comedy lead stardom to come.

Bassett had a fiery 95 (Strange Days & Waiting to Exhale)

Finally, the year included a few leads who were previous Oscar winners Jessica Lange (Rob Roy), Geena Davis (Cutthroat Island), Holly Hunter (Home for the Holidays) and Kathy Bates (Dolores Claiborne) none of whom were received as warmly as had often previously been the case.

See what I mean about the year being actressy? And so many fine examples of different flavors of it, too.

Nathaniel's List: It's a tasty Oscar vintage for sure -- they done good -- but I'd have to remove Stone's effortful hot mess and Thompson's sensible sister to make room for two redheads who staked their first unmistakable claims to genius: Moore & Kidman. And though I'll always love "Cher" in Clueless, I can't make room for her in such an abundant year. That said, it's utterly shameful that the Globe Comedy nominations excluded her.

AS IF!

Your thoughts on the year, please. It's so rich, don'cha think?
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Deep Link: Aliens, Spidey, La Lohan and More

The Big Picture that Marc Webb Spider-Man reboot has narrowed the candidates down. I'm still not excited about a redo but I'm totally thumbs up on the idea of either Jamie Bell or Andrew Garfield... though it's weird to hear them referred to as "unknowns", you know? Alden Ehrenreich (Tetro), Josh Hutcherson (The Kids Are All Right) and Frank Dillane (Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince) are also being considered.
Cracked "Which awful redhead stereotype are you?" Starring Lindsay Lohan"time bomb", Julianne Moore "sex fiend" and others. Poor gingers!


MTV Movies Logan's Run gets a new director in Erik Rinsch. It's so sad to me that the studio had issues with handing Alien 5 over to him. That's what that entire franchise thrived on... putting fresh visionary directors on the map before they were A list: Scott, Fincher, Cameron. If the Aliens franchise is about anything beyond the Ripley badassery and the acid blood beasties, that's what it's about. It's like the third most important element of that franchise. When you have the same story every time, you have to add the auteurial shakes up or you have nothing.
NY Mag sword and sandal epics and the evolution of Abs within them. Funny stuff
Vanity Fair has 30 portraits and profiles of Tony nominees for this past theater season including familiar faces like Jude Law.
Playbill Bernadette Peters and Elaine Stritch offered the CZJ and Lansbury roles in A Little Night Music on Broadway? ohmygodohmygod. Not that either of them would ever accept a "replacment cast" situation but if this happens a ticket MUST have my name on it.
Mental Floss '9 Copyrights Given to Charity.' Interesting list. I had no idea that Peter Pan was copyright free now. You'd think there'd be a sudden influx of Pan movies.
Just Jared more pics from the set of Mildred Pierce: Kate Winslet and Evan Rachel Wood
Towleroad Madonna gets vampiric to sell sunglasses. It's very Deneuve/Hunger

Finally, the first pics of LL as LL have surfaced. Yes the alliterative Lohan/Lovelace porno biopic Inferno is coming your way... eventually. Oh No They Didn't posted the pics from photographer Tyler Shields who seems to have already removed them from his own website though there's still a lot of fun stuff there including a shoot with Glee's Jayma Mays, Zachary Quinto and plentiful rude portraits of Young Hollywood.

I'd love for Lohan to be able to pull this off but acting is like anything else. If you aren't committed to it, how are you going to get great at it?

When T-Shirts Speak the Truth

Indeed.

And I'm not just talking about my Juli. The Kids Are All Right opens in 55 days. Mark your calendars.
Annette Bening and Julianne Moore

Modern Maestros: Todd Haynes

Robert here, continuing my series on great contemporary directors. This week a director who I knew little about despite loving almost all of his work.  But knowing how popular he is here I knew I'd have to tackle him eventually.  So I gave myself a crash course, not on the films which I already knew, but on the man.  And what a discovery indeed!

Maestro: Todd Haynes
Known For: Art movies about society, identity, music and more masquerading as non-art movies.
Influences: A long list: Jean Genet, Stan Brakhage, Hitchock, Chantal Akerman, Rainer Werner Fassbinder, Douglas Sirk (of course), Oscar Wilde,  Orson Welles and on and on and on.
Masterpieces: Far From Heaven and I'm Not There
Disasters: None.
Better than you remember: I doubt many people who actually saw Velvet Goldmine really disliked it, but it is better known for being a commercial flop than for being a quality film.
Awards: Oscar and Globe nominated for writing Far From Heaven. Spirit Award winner for Directing Far From Heaven (and nominated for just about every other movie he's made.)
Box Office: Over 15 mil for Far From Heaven.  That Oscar recognition helps.
Favorite Actor: Julianne Moore in three films.

Todd Haynes has been fooling us, and he's very good at it.  For a little while now Haynes has been tricking us into thinking he makes conventional prestige appeal films.  It's a good trick for someone who truly makes art films.  Since his debut (as part of the New Queer Movement) he's been masquerading art film as pop film successfully, in the 90's by mixing moods like the horror meets suburban quaintness Safe or the Ziggy Stardust meets Citizen Kane Velvet Goldmine.  But the real slight of hand was Far From Heaven.  A movie that seemed to be and was a big awards player (thanks a lot to Julianne Moore, not to mention Hayne's own talents) and yet no one noticed that it was still an art film at heart.  Homage is one thing, but Far From Heaven could be Haynes attempt to make a film entirely inside the reality of another director (with the benefit of fifty years of cultural perspective).  Just as we thought he'd hit the mainstream, Haynes fooled us again with a film so star-laden it had to be accessible at the least.  Instead we got I'm Not There a confounding enigma that required more audience dedication and participation (though it was worth it) than anyone expected.  Anyone except perhaps lifelong Haynes fans who already knew the trick up his sleeve.

I'm Not There was almost audacious in its suggestion that a musical biopic could be more than an extended dramatized Behind the Music episode.  And we shouldn't be surprised that this breakthrough should come from Haynes, for whom music has been one of his favorite subjects.  Muscians naturally lead him toward his favorite topics: how our environment shapes our identity, and how we conform to or rebel against that force.  For musicians their environments are constantly changing, often antagonistic and usually result in a person becoming self-destructive, retreating from the world or fragmenting their own persona.  Another familiar topic for Haynes: women, and as usual the aggressive ever changing cultures that force them to confront their identities.  As for men... sorry guys, we're really just not that interesting.  Unless of course we're gay, and thus perfect for Haynes' cinematic touch.

 Two identities, shaped by the world.

Stylistically don't be fooled by how much his films are influenced by past cinema.  Haynes is his own man. Even when a film lives in another's reality, Haynes has the talent to make it his own.  Later this year Haynes may fool us again.  He's hard at work on the much anticipated Mildred Pierce miniseries, starring Kate Winslet.  Here's a story that fits in perfectly with the director's consistent exploration of women and their place in the world.  But where is the secret art film hiding inside?  We'll all be waiting to see.  Because we all keep coming back.  We're all fools for Todd Haynes.  Nomatter how many times he keeps fooling us.

We Can't Wait #8: THE KIDS ARE ALL RIGHT

If you're just joining us, Nathaniel and Film Experience team are discussing the movies they're most looking forward to this summer and beyond. We've covered the musical Burlesque, Dustin Lance Black's What's Wrong With Virginia?, the Jake & Anne show Love and Other Drugs, Graham Greene adaptation Brighton Rock, Woody Allen's You Will Meet a Tall Dark Stranger, The Coen Bros' True Grit, the potential sleeper It's Kind of a Funny Story, the glitzy sequel Sex and the City 2, the epically epic Scott Pilgrim vs. The World and Sofia Coppola's Somewhere. Which brings us to this buzzy Sundance hit...

Joni (Mia Wasikowsa) & Laser (Josh Hutcherson) want daddy

The Kids Are All Right
Directed by: Lisa Cholodenko
Starring: Juli, The Bening, Ruff, Ubiquitous Mia and Josh Hutcherson
Synopsis: Laser and Joni have two mommies (Julianne Moore and Annette Bening). They ask to meet their biological father the sperm donor (Mark Ruffalo) and their mothers comply. This requests sets off a chain reaction of drama and comedy as all the family members struggle to redefine their relationships.
Brought to you by: Focus Features who won the bidding war for the film at Sundance
Expected Release Date: July

Nathaniel: This is a strange case for me to include in the We Cant Wait: Summer and Beyond countdown, since I've already seen it. But you two both really want to see it. And in truth, I can't wait to see it again so there you go. We can't wait. The movie is vividly acted, generous to its characters and both funny and dramatic. Y'all are in for a treat though I still fear overhyping something that's the very definition of "small gem". What's the draw for you?

Craig: The main draw for me is Julianne Moore. I'll watch literally anything she's in - I'd willingly crawl the length and breadth of the country to watch her read the dictionary on film! I'd say she fights Jennifer Jason Leigh for top spot of my favourite American actresses working today... Hmmm, Kill Bill 3 with Jules and Jen fighting - I'd willingly crawl the length and breadth of..... you know. Anyway, Moore's not roundly renowned her her comic turns, but I don't think she's actually been that bad in any comedy film, even if the films themselves haven't been, er, quite so good - I'm looking at you Evolution and Laws of Attraction. But thinking back to her performances in The Big Lebowski, Cookie's Fortune and An Ideal Husband, she was really comfortable doing humour - and those three movies varied widely in the funny stakes. I've always thought she should do a Woody Allen film (they should align their schedules one day!) where the comedy would be more observational and based on good one-liners, wit etc - and that feel is what I'm hoping for with The Kids Are All Right, I guess. It's safe to say that both Moore and Annette Bening will have the dramatic elements of Kids covered, too - they can both dash off any number of scenes of intense drama in their sleep. I love the trailer's amiable, easy-going feel, and it's being being sold on a well-balanced comic-tragic dynamic. The "go easy on the wine, hon, it's daytime" - "ok, same goes for the macro-managing," bit, then the teary scene later ("I've just felt so far away from you lately") have my hopes up for a range of varying work from them both.



Jose: I just love that these two goddesses got together. I'd actually refused to see the trailer until yesterday (I obviously loved that it uses Vampire Weekend and Madness) but it kinda confirmed one of my worries: that they will try to sell the movie like another of those so awful "look at how indie and quirky I am" dysfunctional people comedies. I'm sure that this is mostly for marketing reasons and the movie will actually be dark and moody and be more Todd Field then Diablo Cody. Please don't contradict me if I'm wrong Nat. Lie to me...

Nathaniel: You can't handle the truth? Sorry going to give it to ya anyway: The truth is that it's neither of those things. I'm happy to report that I thought not once about Cody or Field while watching it -- both have their place in the world but I really don't need either of them to be their own subgenre of film. This is its own thing. But if you were hoping for dark and moody, er... shift your expectations immediately.


This is much lighter on its feet that Lisa Cholodenko's other commendable efforts (High Art and Laurel Canyon). It's no miserable epic about stifled unhappy women. For that you'll need The Bening's other summer 2010 Oscar pitch (Mother and Child). The Kids... is feel good as in, it feels good to watch it. You smile when you think about it months later as I am doing right now. My cheeks hurt.

Jose: Thank you for ignoring my wishes, that was a pretty truth to handle. You know what I'm talking about, though, right? Indies nowadays are either somber & suicide inducing or falsely clever & annoyingly sarcastic. I'm thrilled this is a horse of a different color and now I'm really dying to see it.

Nathaniel: As some of you may have noticed I wasn't quite as enamored of Julianne Moore's comic turn as I was of The Bening's but I'm happy to report to Fellow Moore Devotee Craig, that some of my critic friends thought Julianne was best in show... so maybe it's just me. For me, Bening just killed in this. And she's super in Mother and Child, too.

The Bening's Oscar Nods: '90 The Grifters, '99 American Beauty,
'04 Being Julia, '10 The Kids Are All Right or Mother & Child ???

I'm not going to be so foolish as to say "it's her year!" because Oscar will undoubtedly find some pretty young thing to obsess over or some "we didn't know you could do it" actress to reward once the time comes. Nevertheless, for the Bening-obsessives out there, this summer will have to rank as the most exciting Bening-specific season since Fall '99 when we first met Carolyn Burnham.

I like to imagine Annette giving herself pep-talks on her way to the promotional circuit for this bipolar summer of hers. "I WILL SELL THIS HOUSE MOVIE TODAY."
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