Thanks to everyone who played our little game. Above are the women we featured, as more or less themselves. Will any of them end up as iconic as the legends they portrayed? Discuss.
Showing posts with label Calista Flockhart. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Calista Flockhart. Show all posts
Wednesday, October 22, 2008
Mystery Women Revealed!!!!!!
Posted by Thombeau von Fabulon.
Thanks to everyone who played our little game. Above are the women we featured, as more or less themselves. Will any of them end up as iconic as the legends they portrayed? Discuss.
Thanks to everyone who played our little game. Above are the women we featured, as more or less themselves. Will any of them end up as iconic as the legends they portrayed? Discuss.
Wednesday, October 08, 2008
Vanity Fair's Hollywood ~ Episode 9 (2003)
Missed previous episodes? See: 1995 , 1996, 1997, 1998 , 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004 and 2005
In April 2003 Vanity Fair brought us only the second all male lineup in their nine years of this special issue. The idea here was the "Alpha List" and here they were...
Obviously, when VF isn't speculating about who might be hugely famous someday there's less to discuss in terms of what happened to their careers. But it can be thrilling to see so many megawatt stars in the same room together when VF goes "classic". Unlike many group photoshoots these "Hollywood" events rarely seemed to be the product of Adobe Photoshop. In other words, the oxygen is believably shared.
Tom Hanks, about to hit 47, was fresh off another hit (Catch Me If You Can) but his career was slowing down. His two Oscars and the occasional blockbuster (DaVinci Code) can warm him if he isn't feeling the warmth of mass adoration quite as much anymore. Here's my quibble: for someone who enjoyed favorable comparisons to the great Jimmy Stewart for so long, where are Hanks' late career stretches? Stewart was doing his best work ever in his late 40s and 50s. Has Hanks challenged himself at all since Cast Away which he made when was 44?
Tom Cruise, turning 41, was still Hollywood's Top Gun/Dog. His ex-wife had just barely won the Oscar that had always eluded him despite three nominations. He was readying The Last Samurai (note the longer locks) and dating Penélope Cruz. He was approximately one year away from firing his longtime publicist, setting off a series of bizarre media events which would damage his reputation and possibly his legacy.
Harrison Ford, turning 61, a longtime powerhouse draw, was slowing down and had famously turned down a role in the Oscar hit Traffic (2000) indicating to some that he wasn't really eager to stretch as he entered his golden years. He had moved to a one film every two years schedule. Michelle Pfeiffer had rightfully gotten much of the credit for his last big hit What Lies Beneath (2000) and when this cover debuted his only recent film K-19: The Widowmaker (2002) had been an uncharacteristic flop. Like Cruise -- only to a much smaller degree -- he was starting to have publicity problems. In 1998 he had added that solitary earring that people like to joke about, his second marriage began to dissolve in 2000 and his engagement to Calista Flockhart, who was just entering her difficult post-Ally McBeal period, was fresh at the time of this shoot. They haven't yet married.
Jack Nicholson, 66, who has been in pictures since '58 had just lost the Oscar Best Actor race for About Schmidt (his 12th and last Oscar nom to date) to upstart Adrien Brody for The Pianist. But with three Oscars already, what more could he want? How about two more huge hits this very year (Anger Management and Something's Gotta Give). '03 was the last the screen would see of Jack until The Departed (2006). That's an uncharacteristically long break for this prolific actor but he's now in his 70s so we'll let it slide.
Brad Pitt, 39, was still married to Jennifer Aniston and had just put a brief period of media swiping about his bankability behind him. The Oceans franchise and his resultant enormous payday ($30 million -- just for the first one) settled that one. More hits would soon follow and then... Angelina Jolie.
Edward Norton's career was going up up up at the age of 33. The previous year had brought ubiquity (four movies and Salma Hayek as girlfriend) and he was about to help deliver The Italian Job. Things got strangely quiet thereafter and he continues to have problems with a "difficult" reputation. Recent highlights include the underappreciated The Painted Veil and another hit, The Incredible Hulk.
Jude Law, 30, had officially and unarguably arrived in his late 20s with his portrayal of a callow golden boy in The Talented Mr Ripley (1999). Ever afterwards he was expected to become a major lead star even though he'd continued with the riveting supporting parts rather than going straight for the franchises or headlining work. Unfortunately the box office didn't cooperate so much on the intermittent lead gigs that he did take. Cold Mountain, hyped to be an Oscar frontrunner long before its debut (it failed to get a Best Picture nom), was on the way. Unfortunately the latter remains his last true hit, grossing nearly $100 million.
Samuel L Jackson, 54, often in enormous hits even if he's not exactly responsible for their success, had just added another billion dollar franchise to his resume with his turn as Mace Windu in the Star Wars Episode 2: Attack of the Clones. Is he a household name more for his ubiquity than for his performances? His career is rather like that of Michael Caine and Gene Hackman before him: a sprinkling of blazingly good work here and there keeps the reputation intact despite the filmography also containing huge swaths of disposable filler. He can't say no! Jackson began to find steady employment as an actor in 1987. He's amassed a frankly astounding number of credits since then in everything from features, tv, to DVD fare, 108 of them in fact. Seven more films coming our way in the next two years. He's not going to be ignored. He's stalking us.
Don Cheadle, 38, was at this point a highly valued supporting actor, beloved by other thesps. He hadn't yet been rubber stamped with an Oscar nod or a lot of fame but he'd turned in vivid work in many good films: Oceans 11, Boogie Nights, and The Devil in a Blue Dress among them. He was soon to graduate to lead roles. Hotel Rwanda and his first Oscar nom would soon follow.
Hugh Grant on his way to 43, had recently delivered another semi-hit (Two Weeks Notice) and a critical success featuring his best work (About a Boy). The king of romantic comedy was beginning to threaten retirement in interviews but he didn't quit. Instead he made the Bridget Jones sequel for 2004. Oops! He doesn't work too often now but his next film is, you guessed it, another romantic comedy with a much younger woman.
Dennis Quaid, 49, was suddenly experiencing a real comeback -- not just the hyped kind. The late 90s had been bumpy for his star status and the breakup with Meg Ryan at the turn of the decade had been messy for both, public relations-wise. But in 2002 he had carried the crowd pleaser The Rookie with a winning star turn and almost won an Oscar nomination for his performance stretch in Far From Heaven. By the time of this cover, he was suddenly in demand again though it would take a couple of years before new movies started hitting theaters.
Ewan McGregor, 32, was soaring. The success of Moulin Rouge! (2001) and the Star Wars prequels had lifted him from well regarded daring British thespian to star. He had two movies coming out: Down with Love was a welcome change of pace as far as romantic comedies go but not something the public was interested in, Big Fish another serio-comic fantasy for Tim Burton performed reasonably well but seemed to fade quickly from public consciousness. It's been semi-rough since, with flops for which he was unjustly blamed (The Island) and strange choices (second fiddle to Renee Zellweger for Miss Potter?) piling up and a distinct lack of the edgier roles that made him a rising star in the first place. It's easy to imagine a resurgence, though: Eight new films coming your way in the next two years.
Matt Damon, 32, had just struck gold with The Bourne Identity (2002) and that franchise, together with smart choices for follow-ups (goofy cameos for friends, stretching for auteurs, working on smarter-than-usual mainstream projects) has served him exceedingly well. Until the Bourne franchise he was always connected to his best friend Ben Affleck, a bigger star (at the time). Nobody would argue that he's not a movie star on his own now. Five movies are on their way including a fourth trip into Bourne territory.
PLEASE NOTE: If you'd like to read more about any of these stars, click the names on the labels below.
*
median age: 43. Jude was the baby boy @ 30 and Jack the papa @ 66.
noticeably absent: Since VF tagged this the "alpha list" it's hard not to notice missing heavy hitters like Denzel, Johnny, Clint, Russell or Leo (see, you didn't even need their last names) ... though obviously you can't fit all A listers on one cover.
collective Oscar noms before this cover: 26 nominations and 5 wins for acting (Hanks & Nicholson share that trophy count. Damon has an Oscar but it's for screenwriting Good Will Hunting)
collective Oscar noms after this cover: Only two nominations followed: Jude Law for Cold Mountain (2003) and Don Cheadle for Hotel Rwanda (2004). Both of them lost. Grant, Quaid and McGregor have all been snubbed by Oscar voters on more than one occasion. What a shame.
fame levels in 2008, according to famousr, from most to least: Cruise, Pitt, Hanks, Nicholson, Ford, Damon, Grant, Law, Quaid, Norton and Cheadle. Neither Samuel L Jackson nor Ewan McGregor are listed on the famousr site.
previous episodes of 'VFH': 1995 ,1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004 and 2005.
*
In April 2003 Vanity Fair brought us only the second all male lineup in their nine years of this special issue. The idea here was the "Alpha List" and here they were...
Obviously, when VF isn't speculating about who might be hugely famous someday there's less to discuss in terms of what happened to their careers. But it can be thrilling to see so many megawatt stars in the same room together when VF goes "classic". Unlike many group photoshoots these "Hollywood" events rarely seemed to be the product of Adobe Photoshop. In other words, the oxygen is believably shared.
Tom Hanks, about to hit 47, was fresh off another hit (Catch Me If You Can) but his career was slowing down. His two Oscars and the occasional blockbuster (DaVinci Code) can warm him if he isn't feeling the warmth of mass adoration quite as much anymore. Here's my quibble: for someone who enjoyed favorable comparisons to the great Jimmy Stewart for so long, where are Hanks' late career stretches? Stewart was doing his best work ever in his late 40s and 50s. Has Hanks challenged himself at all since Cast Away which he made when was 44?
Tom Cruise, turning 41, was still Hollywood's Top Gun/Dog. His ex-wife had just barely won the Oscar that had always eluded him despite three nominations. He was readying The Last Samurai (note the longer locks) and dating Penélope Cruz. He was approximately one year away from firing his longtime publicist, setting off a series of bizarre media events which would damage his reputation and possibly his legacy.Harrison Ford, turning 61, a longtime powerhouse draw, was slowing down and had famously turned down a role in the Oscar hit Traffic (2000) indicating to some that he wasn't really eager to stretch as he entered his golden years. He had moved to a one film every two years schedule. Michelle Pfeiffer had rightfully gotten much of the credit for his last big hit What Lies Beneath (2000) and when this cover debuted his only recent film K-19: The Widowmaker (2002) had been an uncharacteristic flop. Like Cruise -- only to a much smaller degree -- he was starting to have publicity problems. In 1998 he had added that solitary earring that people like to joke about, his second marriage began to dissolve in 2000 and his engagement to Calista Flockhart, who was just entering her difficult post-Ally McBeal period, was fresh at the time of this shoot. They haven't yet married.
Jack Nicholson, 66, who has been in pictures since '58 had just lost the Oscar Best Actor race for About Schmidt (his 12th and last Oscar nom to date) to upstart Adrien Brody for The Pianist. But with three Oscars already, what more could he want? How about two more huge hits this very year (Anger Management and Something's Gotta Give). '03 was the last the screen would see of Jack until The Departed (2006). That's an uncharacteristically long break for this prolific actor but he's now in his 70s so we'll let it slide.
Brad Pitt, 39, was still married to Jennifer Aniston and had just put a brief period of media swiping about his bankability behind him. The Oceans franchise and his resultant enormous payday ($30 million -- just for the first one) settled that one. More hits would soon follow and then... Angelina Jolie.Edward Norton's career was going up up up at the age of 33. The previous year had brought ubiquity (four movies and Salma Hayek as girlfriend) and he was about to help deliver The Italian Job. Things got strangely quiet thereafter and he continues to have problems with a "difficult" reputation. Recent highlights include the underappreciated The Painted Veil and another hit, The Incredible Hulk.
Jude Law, 30, had officially and unarguably arrived in his late 20s with his portrayal of a callow golden boy in The Talented Mr Ripley (1999). Ever afterwards he was expected to become a major lead star even though he'd continued with the riveting supporting parts rather than going straight for the franchises or headlining work. Unfortunately the box office didn't cooperate so much on the intermittent lead gigs that he did take. Cold Mountain, hyped to be an Oscar frontrunner long before its debut (it failed to get a Best Picture nom), was on the way. Unfortunately the latter remains his last true hit, grossing nearly $100 million.Samuel L Jackson, 54, often in enormous hits even if he's not exactly responsible for their success, had just added another billion dollar franchise to his resume with his turn as Mace Windu in the Star Wars Episode 2: Attack of the Clones. Is he a household name more for his ubiquity than for his performances? His career is rather like that of Michael Caine and Gene Hackman before him: a sprinkling of blazingly good work here and there keeps the reputation intact despite the filmography also containing huge swaths of disposable filler. He can't say no! Jackson began to find steady employment as an actor in 1987. He's amassed a frankly astounding number of credits since then in everything from features, tv, to DVD fare, 108 of them in fact. Seven more films coming our way in the next two years. He's not going to be ignored. He's stalking us.
Don Cheadle, 38, was at this point a highly valued supporting actor, beloved by other thesps. He hadn't yet been rubber stamped with an Oscar nod or a lot of fame but he'd turned in vivid work in many good films: Oceans 11, Boogie Nights, and The Devil in a Blue Dress among them. He was soon to graduate to lead roles. Hotel Rwanda and his first Oscar nom would soon follow.Hugh Grant on his way to 43, had recently delivered another semi-hit (Two Weeks Notice) and a critical success featuring his best work (About a Boy). The king of romantic comedy was beginning to threaten retirement in interviews but he didn't quit. Instead he made the Bridget Jones sequel for 2004. Oops! He doesn't work too often now but his next film is, you guessed it, another romantic comedy with a much younger woman.
Dennis Quaid, 49, was suddenly experiencing a real comeback -- not just the hyped kind. The late 90s had been bumpy for his star status and the breakup with Meg Ryan at the turn of the decade had been messy for both, public relations-wise. But in 2002 he had carried the crowd pleaser The Rookie with a winning star turn and almost won an Oscar nomination for his performance stretch in Far From Heaven. By the time of this cover, he was suddenly in demand again though it would take a couple of years before new movies started hitting theaters.Ewan McGregor, 32, was soaring. The success of Moulin Rouge! (2001) and the Star Wars prequels had lifted him from well regarded daring British thespian to star. He had two movies coming out: Down with Love was a welcome change of pace as far as romantic comedies go but not something the public was interested in, Big Fish another serio-comic fantasy for Tim Burton performed reasonably well but seemed to fade quickly from public consciousness. It's been semi-rough since, with flops for which he was unjustly blamed (The Island) and strange choices (second fiddle to Renee Zellweger for Miss Potter?) piling up and a distinct lack of the edgier roles that made him a rising star in the first place. It's easy to imagine a resurgence, though: Eight new films coming your way in the next two years.
Matt Damon, 32, had just struck gold with The Bourne Identity (2002) and that franchise, together with smart choices for follow-ups (goofy cameos for friends, stretching for auteurs, working on smarter-than-usual mainstream projects) has served him exceedingly well. Until the Bourne franchise he was always connected to his best friend Ben Affleck, a bigger star (at the time). Nobody would argue that he's not a movie star on his own now. Five movies are on their way including a fourth trip into Bourne territory.
PLEASE NOTE: If you'd like to read more about any of these stars, click the names on the labels below.
*
median age: 43. Jude was the baby boy @ 30 and Jack the papa @ 66.
noticeably absent: Since VF tagged this the "alpha list" it's hard not to notice missing heavy hitters like Denzel, Johnny, Clint, Russell or Leo (see, you didn't even need their last names) ... though obviously you can't fit all A listers on one cover.
collective Oscar noms before this cover: 26 nominations and 5 wins for acting (Hanks & Nicholson share that trophy count. Damon has an Oscar but it's for screenwriting Good Will Hunting)
collective Oscar noms after this cover: Only two nominations followed: Jude Law for Cold Mountain (2003) and Don Cheadle for Hotel Rwanda (2004). Both of them lost. Grant, Quaid and McGregor have all been snubbed by Oscar voters on more than one occasion. What a shame.
fame levels in 2008, according to famousr, from most to least: Cruise, Pitt, Hanks, Nicholson, Ford, Damon, Grant, Law, Quaid, Norton and Cheadle. Neither Samuel L Jackson nor Ewan McGregor are listed on the famousr site.
previous episodes of 'VFH': 1995 ,1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004 and 2005.
*
Tuesday, May 06, 2008
Ten TV Shows I'm Watching
Tuesday Top Ten: For the listmaker in me and the listlover in youThe days of Tivo / DVR have finally defeated me and I now find myself regularly watching television... even if I'm not really writing about it yet. No longer dependent on air times, I actually enjoy it --occasionally. Let's not get crazy! These are the (still running) shows I'm into...
10 (ok 12) Shows
I can sometimes be found watching Desperate Housewives.
Not by choice!
I can sometimes be found watching Desperate Housewives.
Not by choice!
12 Top Chef (Bravo)
My hesitation with this show was always: you can't taste the food. That's still a problem. You can hear the singing and watch the dancing and consider the clothing on various other game shows. You can't taste food if it's on your TV. Licking the screen
11 Make Me a SuperModel (BBC/Bravo)I was stunned to discover that America actually did this show better than Britain (we usually mess up transfers) not that it isn't still stoopid. That said: pretty people being very pretty (and often naked) is good disposable TV ... with less of the rampant delusion and repetition that ANTM's 209th cycle will bring you. Plus: it's unisex. I'm for that (see also: #1)
10 Moonlight (CBS)
This is my guilty pleasure. Only there's little pleasure and lots of guilt. It's really terrible. It's so terribly written I've considered writing down the names and... um... doing something with the names. Voodoo dolls maybe? Gift baskets full of garlic?
You don't really need sunglasses to watch this show. You need earplugs.But you're aware of my soft spot for the vampiric. And bad acting aside, I like both leads for some reason. I even hate the bad '80s inspired set design. Why am I watching this? What's wrong with me???
09 Step it Up & Dance (Bravo)
As a big fan of Showgirls, dance heavy musicals and "body flight" (thanks Strictly Ballroom), this was a natural fit for me. However... I'm considering dropping it from my DVR. For a show on Bravo it sure does feel homophobic. Every f'ing week the judges bitch that certain male dancers are too feminine and praise the"masculine" ones for just that even as they acknowledge their bad technique. We get it. You're the type of fags who write "straight acting" in their 'what are you looking for?' dating profiles. Issues!!! Please keep those between you and your therapists, judges. Please and thanks.
08 Big Love (HBO)I don't have HBO so I have to wait for the DVDs but I think it's a strong show and definitely a unique one. I'm especially fond of Jeanne Tripplehorne's work (who'd have thunk it back in the Basic Instinct bad-acting days?) It's disappointing that she's not nominated for Best Actress @ the Emmys. But then Emmys and disappointment go hand in hand. It's the law.
07 Weeds (Showtime)
Mary Louise Parker forever! Billy Crudup's life choices confuse me.
06 Torchwood (BBC)
It appeals to the same geek pieces of me that Buffy bulls-eyed, only its not as strong thematically or as consistent in its quality. That said, it's fun, weird, genre-loving and unapologetically queer... a thrilling combo that nothing else on TV can claim.
The team (sniffle) as it was. Two of them died in the season finale. 05 Brothers & Sisters (ABC)
All of its weaknesses are still present (hysterical drama and overdone comedy even at times it should pull back, so many characters that not all of them get interesting stories, boring business deals, Calista Flockhart's story lines if not Calista Flockhart) but the most important selling point of any scripted show is characters the audience falls in love & comfort with and wants to spend time with every week. And on that count it's grade "A"
04 Project Runway (Bravo)
This used to be the best thing on television but there were times during this past season that I just wanted to scream. Couldn't they have just one episode where they just make pretty dresses instead of fulfilling some random stupid gimmicky corporate-sponsored "challenge" So maybe it's jumped the shark. I'm definitely worried about the move to Lifetime. We'll see. It's "on notice"
03 30 Rock (NBC)The only show on television that makes me laugh so hard that I have to hit pause once or twice to recover. I am a Krak addict. They don't use Ms. Jane Krakowski enough... but the rest of the show is hilarious enough to compensate.
02 Pushing Daisies (ABC)
When is this coming back on? I'm dying here. I need its whimsy and its anti-depressent pies in my tiny unmusical life.
01 Battlestar Galactica (Sci-Fi)
One of the greatest shows of all time. Why? Oh I don't know... endlessly fascinating characters, brilliant rug-pull plotting, intellectual and emotional rigor. Take your pick. Even when it errs or tries too hard you can always be sure that it's trying. More movies and TV shows should. Not for this show any coasting. It wants to be great. It often is.
If you're still not watching, I may never be able to convince you. Your loss. Do you happen to vote on the Emmys? You'll start with the miniseries on DVD if you're finally ready to be sucked into its intergalactic maelstrom.And you?
Do you watch any of these shows? Would you like to see a weekly television column here? Which shows are you faithful to week in and week out? And which are you running out of patience with? I'm full of questions.
*
Monday, May 21, 2007
Swinging Sally Field
Last night Brothers & Sisters, ABC's series about a liberal California family who are always up in each other's business, wrapped up its inaugural season. I tried to resist it all year. It's always trying too hard: pushing its jokes, pushing its drama. Everything falls just that side of the line I draw between a grand yarn well told and manipulative storytelling. But more and more I can't push back against its agressive "love me!" behavior. I just do what it tells me to do. I could still do without Balthazar Getty (playing the dullest sibling). I could definitely do without Rob Lowe's Republican Senator character, who has somehow defanged the once sharp counterpoint drama involving the conservative black sheep of the family: Kitty (Calista Flockhart). But minor annoyances aside, the rest of the show is like a drug. It's a perfect Sunday night hit.
I give a huge portion of the credit to Sally Field. She plays Nora, the matriach and widow of the huge Walker clan. She holds all the show's disparate tones together with fluid emotional glue. Remember the climactic funeral scene in Steel Magnolias when this two time Academy Award winner broadly marched through so many notes in quick succession: staccato sobbing, hysterical confusion, slapstick anger, cry-for-help earnestness? Well, Nora gets a little of that action, too. OK a lot. Brothers & Sisters is hyperactively emotional and it swings, often without a net, from laughs to tears. Brothers & Sisters is a real circus and Sally Field is one incredible trapeze artist.
I give a huge portion of the credit to Sally Field. She plays Nora, the matriach and widow of the huge Walker clan. She holds all the show's disparate tones together with fluid emotional glue. Remember the climactic funeral scene in Steel Magnolias when this two time Academy Award winner broadly marched through so many notes in quick succession: staccato sobbing, hysterical confusion, slapstick anger, cry-for-help earnestness? Well, Nora gets a little of that action, too. OK a lot. Brothers & Sisters is hyperactively emotional and it swings, often without a net, from laughs to tears. Brothers & Sisters is a real circus and Sally Field is one incredible trapeze artist.
Monday, September 25, 2006
TV and Me
Many of you know that I am suspicious of the small screen. It is true that I don't watch much of it and far prefer heading to the multiplex. But I've been sick again. (My nurse friend thinks I have asthma! yikes. Meanwhile, my best friend thinks I have indoor allergies but he is a skin-cancer-be-damned sun worshipper so that probably plays into his "you spend too much time in your apartment" advice.) This has been like "summer of sick" for me. Never been so frequently sick in my life. So I'm super glad it's Fall. Oh but the point: Sick = TV for me. Very brief thoughts on a few things I've watched this past week:
Grey's Anatomy
Other than the undebatable talents and charm of the ex Mrs. Alexander Payne (Sandra Oh) I can't understand why anybody watches this show. I am forced to "listen" to it regularly and its writing grates on my very last nerve. Perhaps its the delivery by the extremely annoying "sad blonde girl" --that's what my friends call her (they watch it religiously). I think they mean Ellen Pompeo who is just like Renee Zellweger minus the comic gift (so...you can imagine my loathing). I am also sick to death of TV shows that rely on overly precious life lessons learned narration. These shows are not difficult to understand. Do they really need to tell us their obvious metaphors and lessons while showing them?
Six Degrees
I watched this out of curiousity at what they'd do with the concept but I'm not sure they even understand the concept. For instance: Jay Hernandez (me love) meets Erika Christensen (me hate) and falls instantly in love. He spends the rest of the episode trying to find her and at the end he does --they see each other on the subway. That's no degrees of separation. Both times they meet they are face to face and nobody they're connected to is serving as a connection between them. It would have been smarter to call this Six People because essentially all of the characters are connected but in different ways. But that's not what the concept of six degrees of separation is. Plus: boring and obvious. I love about half the actors but I probably wouldn't watch this again.
Desperate Housewives
So. Um. I guess they listened to all the complaints about the second season. The Housewives did slapstick, ate lunch together, had sex (not together. sorry), and seemed a lot more like the season one girls. I "get" the appeal of this show but I'm not a regular viewer and I thought what I saw of last season was almost unforgiveably shoddy in terms of writing. I love Alfre Woodard but that Emmy nomination she received had to be among the worst choices they've made recently (which is saying a lot given that the Emmys are often the most laughable of the big ticket awards shows)
Survivor and The Amazing Race
Other than Project Runway (excellent. genius. addictive) and America's Next Top Model (hilarious, carcrash fascinating) I generally have to wear crosses and cloves of garlic when approaching reality television as it always saps my will to live. I hate the constant redundancy. Scene A: we show you something Scene B: We talk about what we just showed you, Scene C:(after commercial) we talk about what we were just talking about. Scene D: we show you something (and repeat). All the while the editing is so frantic that if you are anything like a discerning viewer you realize that you should never ever ever ever view this genre as anything other than a fascinating case study in film editing as mind control. No conclusion you could ever draw is your own. You haven't seen enough. You've been shown a tiny snippet. Then you've heard several minutes of commentary on that tiny snippet.
But all that said: Yul (on Survivor) is my new imaginary boyfriend. And every single person on Amazing Race I hate because this show somehow beats Runway to the Emmy every year even though it sucks by comparison.
Design Star
An interior design contest. I watched a marathon and I only mention it because it stars my other new imaginary boyfriend (pictured right). Yum.
Brothers & Sisters
I watched this primarily for the return of Calista Flockhart, freed from both Ally McBeal and Harrison Ford apparently. I was surprised to find a whole boatload of watchable actors including double Oscar winner Sally Field and Tom Skerritt, reprising their Steel Magnolias marital act which was somewhat fitting since the other characters called theirs an "iconic romance." I was super happy to see a glimpse of the great Patricia Wettig (of thirtysomething fame) back on television. Sadly, Rachel Griffiths (Six Feet Under, Hilary & Jackie), another superb talent was saddled with the clunkiest exposition heavy subplot. B&S is basically a family drama. We haven't seen much of that genre on television lately given the ubiquity of hospitals, crime scenes, and reality programming. It's about a large wealthy and politically split family (half liberal blue / half right-wing red) and it was pretty intense. Some of it felt a bit forced but I was left with the overall feeling that this has a lot of potential as a dramatic series if it finds its groove quickly enough. I'll definitely give it a few weeks to find out.
Grey's Anatomy
Other than the undebatable talents and charm of the ex Mrs. Alexander Payne (Sandra Oh) I can't understand why anybody watches this show. I am forced to "listen" to it regularly and its writing grates on my very last nerve. Perhaps its the delivery by the extremely annoying "sad blonde girl" --that's what my friends call her (they watch it religiously). I think they mean Ellen Pompeo who is just like Renee Zellweger minus the comic gift (so...you can imagine my loathing). I am also sick to death of TV shows that rely on overly precious life lessons learned narration. These shows are not difficult to understand. Do they really need to tell us their obvious metaphors and lessons while showing them?
Six Degrees I watched this out of curiousity at what they'd do with the concept but I'm not sure they even understand the concept. For instance: Jay Hernandez (me love) meets Erika Christensen (me hate) and falls instantly in love. He spends the rest of the episode trying to find her and at the end he does --they see each other on the subway. That's no degrees of separation. Both times they meet they are face to face and nobody they're connected to is serving as a connection between them. It would have been smarter to call this Six People because essentially all of the characters are connected but in different ways. But that's not what the concept of six degrees of separation is. Plus: boring and obvious. I love about half the actors but I probably wouldn't watch this again.
Desperate Housewives
So. Um. I guess they listened to all the complaints about the second season. The Housewives did slapstick, ate lunch together, had sex (not together. sorry), and seemed a lot more like the season one girls. I "get" the appeal of this show but I'm not a regular viewer and I thought what I saw of last season was almost unforgiveably shoddy in terms of writing. I love Alfre Woodard but that Emmy nomination she received had to be among the worst choices they've made recently (which is saying a lot given that the Emmys are often the most laughable of the big ticket awards shows)
Survivor and The Amazing Race
Other than Project Runway (excellent. genius. addictive) and America's Next Top Model (hilarious, carcrash fascinating) I generally have to wear crosses and cloves of garlic when approaching reality television as it always saps my will to live. I hate the constant redundancy. Scene A: we show you something Scene B: We talk about what we just showed you, Scene C:(after commercial) we talk about what we were just talking about. Scene D: we show you something (and repeat). All the while the editing is so frantic that if you are anything like a discerning viewer you realize that you should never ever ever ever view this genre as anything other than a fascinating case study in film editing as mind control. No conclusion you could ever draw is your own. You haven't seen enough. You've been shown a tiny snippet. Then you've heard several minutes of commentary on that tiny snippet.
But all that said: Yul (on Survivor) is my new imaginary boyfriend. And every single person on Amazing Race I hate because this show somehow beats Runway to the Emmy every year even though it sucks by comparison.Design Star
An interior design contest. I watched a marathon and I only mention it because it stars my other new imaginary boyfriend (pictured right). Yum.
Brothers & Sisters
I watched this primarily for the return of Calista Flockhart, freed from both Ally McBeal and Harrison Ford apparently. I was surprised to find a whole boatload of watchable actors including double Oscar winner Sally Field and Tom Skerritt, reprising their Steel Magnolias marital act which was somewhat fitting since the other characters called theirs an "iconic romance." I was super happy to see a glimpse of the great Patricia Wettig (of thirtysomething fame) back on television. Sadly, Rachel Griffiths (Six Feet Under, Hilary & Jackie), another superb talent was saddled with the clunkiest exposition heavy subplot. B&S is basically a family drama. We haven't seen much of that genre on television lately given the ubiquity of hospitals, crime scenes, and reality programming. It's about a large wealthy and politically split family (half liberal blue / half right-wing red) and it was pretty intense. Some of it felt a bit forced but I was left with the overall feeling that this has a lot of potential as a dramatic series if it finds its groove quickly enough. I'll definitely give it a few weeks to find out.
Tuesday, April 18, 2006
A History Of... Dakota Fanning
It's Tuesday. Time for a new episode of the History series...
Oh unsuspecting reader. I do apologize in advance. First Bunnies and now this? Will the "cute" ever end? I was spurred on by yesterday's request and a strange finding on which web google searches were leading people to this site. OK I'll share: It was a search quote "Dakota Fanning mysteriously dies" I don't know why this would lead people to the Film Experience. I'm frightened that it would. But it did. Google is a strange and endless labyrinth.
Let the history begin...
1994 Hannah Dakota Fanning is born to unsuspecting parents in Conyers, Georgia. No... not --I mean, they knew they were pregnant. That's not what I meant...never mind.
2000 At the age of six, Dakota is unleashed upon the nation's living rooms without parental supervision in no less than six hit TV series. One of the roles is as the young Calista Flockhart in an Ally McBeal episode.
2001 Her next role: The young Ellen Degeneres in the comic's eponymous TV show. In her first major role, wee Dakota steals I am Sam from its intended stars Pfeiffer and Penn. For the sad scenes Dakota tells reporters she thought about her pet goldfish dying. The studio spends a fortune in hush money to prevent the quotes about 'kicking Tatum O'Neal's ass at the Oscars' from emerging. In the end, Dakota settles for a SAG nomination.
2002Dakota plays a young Reese Witherspoon in Sweet Home Alabama.
2003 She throws her first professional tantrum when she is denied the role of a young Colin Farrell in Alexander and a young Jim Caviezel in The Passion of the Christ. "Can't these Hollywood dimwits see my range? I can play everything from the young version of a post-feminist punching bag to the young version of the world's most famous lesbian to the young version of the world's second most ambitious type A blonde in Hollywood!"
To punish Dakota for her outburst, her management places her in Uptown Girls to spend time with fidgety Brittany Murphy.
2005 In her first major blockbuster, the child star steals War of the Worlds from its intended star Tom Cruise. For the frightened scenes Fanning tells no reporters she thought of the nightly visitations from Tom Cruise in a mask 'Xenu' on set, or the relentless Scientology recruitment drive at the craft services table: "Am I stressed?!? Of course I'm stressed you idiots. Elle is hot on my tail and I'm not getting any younger!"
In this year Dakota also turns 11 years-old. Tatum O' Neal and Anna Paquin's Oscar records are safe. Temporarily defeated, the young dynamo shifts her sights to defeating Jodie Foster's 'two Oscars by the time she's 30' record. For her tireless determination (and, perhaps, from blood curdling fear) Barbara Walters names her one of the 10 most intriguing people of the year.
2006 Awkward adolescence be damned, Dakota plans a full out multiplex assault with four new films, commencing with Charlotte's Web in December.
* If you're new to this blog, please give it a good looksie.-- there's more than just the histories.
Previous Histories...
Bunny Rabbits * Sharon Stone * Jodie Foster *Gender Bending * Bald Women * Sarah Jessica Parker * Gay Cowboys * Julianne Moore's Screen Kids * Gyllenhaal
tags: Dakota Fanning, Elle Fanning, Tom Cruise, movies, celebrities, Oscars, gossip, Scientology
Oh unsuspecting reader. I do apologize in advance. First Bunnies and now this? Will the "cute" ever end? I was spurred on by yesterday's request and a strange finding on which web google searches were leading people to this site. OK I'll share: It was a search quote "Dakota Fanning mysteriously dies" I don't know why this would lead people to the Film Experience. I'm frightened that it would. But it did. Google is a strange and endless labyrinth.
Let the history begin...
1994 Hannah Dakota Fanning is born to unsuspecting parents in Conyers, Georgia. No... not --I mean, they knew they were pregnant. That's not what I meant...never mind.2000 At the age of six, Dakota is unleashed upon the nation's living rooms without parental supervision in no less than six hit TV series. One of the roles is as the young Calista Flockhart in an Ally McBeal episode.
2001 Her next role: The young Ellen Degeneres in the comic's eponymous TV show. In her first major role, wee Dakota steals I am Sam from its intended stars Pfeiffer and Penn. For the sad scenes Dakota tells reporters she thought about her pet goldfish dying. The studio spends a fortune in hush money to prevent the quotes about 'kicking Tatum O'Neal's ass at the Oscars' from emerging. In the end, Dakota settles for a SAG nomination.2002Dakota plays a young Reese Witherspoon in Sweet Home Alabama.
2003 She throws her first professional tantrum when she is denied the role of a young Colin Farrell in Alexander and a young Jim Caviezel in The Passion of the Christ. "Can't these Hollywood dimwits see my range? I can play everything from the young version of a post-feminist punching bag to the young version of the world's most famous lesbian to the young version of the world's second most ambitious type A blonde in Hollywood!" To punish Dakota for her outburst, her management places her in Uptown Girls to spend time with fidgety Brittany Murphy.
2005 In her first major blockbuster, the child star steals War of the Worlds from its intended star Tom Cruise. For the frightened scenes Fanning tells no reporters she thought of the nightly visitations from In this year Dakota also turns 11 years-old. Tatum O' Neal and Anna Paquin's Oscar records are safe. Temporarily defeated, the young dynamo shifts her sights to defeating Jodie Foster's 'two Oscars by the time she's 30' record. For her tireless determination (and, perhaps, from blood curdling fear) Barbara Walters names her one of the 10 most intriguing people of the year.
2006 Awkward adolescence be damned, Dakota plans a full out multiplex assault with four new films, commencing with Charlotte's Web in December.* If you're new to this blog, please give it a good looksie.-- there's more than just the histories.
Previous Histories...
Bunny Rabbits * Sharon Stone * Jodie Foster *Gender Bending * Bald Women * Sarah Jessica Parker * Gay Cowboys * Julianne Moore's Screen Kids * Gyllenhaal
tags: Dakota Fanning, Elle Fanning, Tom Cruise, movies, celebrities, Oscars, gossip, Scientology
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