don't wanna link, don't wanna touch...

♪ ... just smoke one cigarette and hush
don't call my name, don't call my name, Roberto ♫

Stuff No One Told Me Love this. Disney and Porn = eternal human frustration.
MNPP Everything you ever need to know about life... you can learn from Psycho (1960)
Antagony & Ecstasy looks back at the evolution of Warren Beatty's Dick Tracy in a summer blockbuster history series
Cinematical Paul Rudd, soon to be the Idiot Brother, gets four fine funny actresses as co-stars

Emma Frost illustration by Adam Hughes

Movie|Line the angsty drama of 'how will Sandra bullock follow that Oscar?' Methinks her team is thinking too hard. Nobody wants her doing prestige pics.
Socialite's Life Matthew Morrison (Glee) recording a solo CD. I'd be thrilled to buy this (his voice is amazing -- check out the CD of Light in the Piazza for proof) but for the fact that he's gettin JustinTimberlakey with it. Yawn.
What's Good/ What Blows the dismaying punishment of Charlie Sheen.
Cinematical Michael Fassbender has his choice of two supervillain roles. Which will he go with? Either way he ends up opposite a fine actor (James McAvoy in X-Men: First Class or Jamie Bell in Spider-Man)
Empire speaking of X-Men... seems that Rosamund Pike may be up for the part of Emma Frost, the White Queen. Now that is a casting decision I can really get behind. Love both the actress and the character.
I Need My Fix True Blood season premiere brings the stars out. Is there a more attractive cast on television?
The Big Picture looks at the critic vs. audience divide on Splice.
Boing Boing more on recent silent film discoveries. I always get so excited to hear about found films
In Contention could "Shine" be an Original Song hopeful at the Oscars? I'm still struggling to understand what everyone else sees in that highly praised Waiting for Superman documentary (I didn't like it) but I agree that it's probably going to be up for the doc Oscar.

More on Lady Gaga's "Alejandro"
my piece yesterday in case you missed it
Low Resolution "Instantly Dated Thoughts"
The Critical Condition "Theft and/or Borrowing"
The Critical Condition ...and an interesting follow up piece about the cultural awakenings that happen in our youth.
Flavor Pill "Guide to Madonna References"
Rolling Stone director Steven Klein talks about the video, avoids the Madonna question.
popbytes (I do a brief weekly column here now). The video got me thinking about freaky movie nuns.
Guardian rounds up the groups claiming offense.
The Atlantic Katy Perry vs. Lady Gaga "The Battle of the Bras"

Birthday Suit (With Bright Yellow Trench)

Today is the 109th anniversary of one Chester Gould the creator of Dick Tracy. Every time Dick Tracy (1990) comes up, I think "you should watch that movie again!" but I never do. I think I'm still mad that Warren Beatty kept cutting away from Madonna's "More" performance... which should've easily been one of the best movie musical numbers of the 90s (sigh). Otherwise I quite like the movie

Trivia Alert! Dick Tracy is one of Oscar's two favorite comic book movies along with The Dark Knight (2008). Their Oscar track was very similar. Dick Tracy had 7 nominations and 3 wins. The Dark Knight had 8 nominations and 2 wins and in mostly the same categories, too.

• Supporting Actor (both, and the only two comic book performances ever nominated*: Al Pacino and Heath Ledger, winner)
  
• Cinematography (both)
  
• Art Direction (both)
  
• Costume Design (Dick Tracy only)
  
• Sound (both)
• Sound Editing (The Dark Knight only, winner)
  
• Original Song (Dick Tracy only, winner)
  
• Make-Up (both, Dick Tracy winner)
• Visual Effects (The Dark Knight only)

Why was there no sequel to 1990's primary-colored hit? Aside from Beatty's periodic Brigadoon-like vanishing it's because the rights are all tied up in legalese. Boo hoo.

Other birthdays for 11/20
1915 Kon Ichikawa, Japanese film director of Oscar nominee The Burmese Harp (1958) and Golden Globe winner Kagi (1959)
1925 Robert F Kennedy, assassinated hero and frequent movie character. I've still never seen Bobby (2006) though, have you?
1927 Estelle Parsons, Oscar winning actress (Bonnie & Clyde). She's still on the road with August: Osage County -- she's in Connecticut right this very second (5 more shows over the next 3 days. Hurry!), DC next month and hits the southwest in January and the midwest in February. I hope you bought your tickets because the show is so worth it. Our post about the casting of the movie is the 2nd most commented on this year (106 comments!). Everybody's got an opinion.
1928 Aleksey Batalov star of Cannes Winner The Cranes Are Flying (1957) -- rent it immediately if you haven't seen it, it's one of the best romantic war dramas ever -- and Oscar winner Moscow Does Not Believe in Tears (1980).
1936 Don DeLillo, amazing novelist

1956 Bo Derek 80s icon, famous in swimsuit for "10", infamous in birthday suit for Tarzan the Ape Man and Bolero (right)
1959 Sean Young 80s actress, wildcard. Best remembered in pop culture as the desperate creature who wandered around in a catsuit trying to convince Tim Burton to cast her in Batman Returns. What's less remembered, unfortunately for Young, is that Burton had actually cast her... as Vicki Vale for the first film before an injury sidelined her and Kim Basinger got the part. Even less remembered and also to Young's credit: she definitely had screen presence. See: Blade Runner and No Way Out for proof.
1989 Cody Linley of Hannah Montana and Dancing with the Stars fame, busy creating a filmography composed entirely of ridiculous character names: "Spit McGee", "Mullet Fingers", "Brownie" and "Tough Boy"



* I may be wrong there. It depends on how you define 'comic-book performances'. More in the comments

Links Run Amok

Hollywood Reporter I guess turnabout is fair play and Hollywood is always remaking Asian films. Zhang Yimou is going to remake the Coen Bros debut film Blood Simple. Er... good luck
Bright Lights After Dark reminds us that not everyone loves the legendary Pauline Kael as a critic. 'She didn't "get" the 60s' is the claim here.
Socialite Life Harrison Ford and Rachel McAdams to co-star in Morning Glory (not a remake of the Katharine Hepburn Oscar winner
Empire Watchmen getting rereleased... and it's even longer now? (gulp)
Topless Robot remembers the geek side of Farrah Fawcett's career
Twitch Audition, one of the scariest movies I've ever seen, is getting a 10th anniversary DVD edition with extras


Splash Page fan made Spider-Man 4 posters. Eliza Dushku as the Black Cat? Yes, please
Mike Lynch 200 characters from Dick Tracy. Does anyone besides me wish the movie version had had a sequel?
Billy Loves Stu Brad Pitt (Cutting Class) and the vagaries of fame

More takes on the Oscar's Best Picture nominee doubling
AV Club pros & cons
Nick's Flick Picks with charts of what 1999-2008 might have looked like. We should probably do this here at some point. So many projects!
Movies Kick Ass 'Oscar Should Wait'
Risky Business Oscar's Decathlon

Transformers Revenge of the Fallen reviews > Transformers Revenge of the Fallen
Kim Morgan suggests that Bay is an idiot savant surrealist. She thinks he needs to embrace/realize it
James Rocchi "And no, I can't shut my brain off and have fun, anymore than I could rip out my tongue and enjoy a meal, because my brain is where I feel fun."
Peter Bradshaw "like watching paint dry while getting hit over the head with a frying pan"
Timothy Brayton Robots in Disgust
Cinematical absurdities they love

Hounds of Link

"If I only could, I'd make a deal with God. And get him to link our places...."

This Woman's Link
fourfour has a thang for Kate Bush. So many memories are embedded in this post I felt like my heart was going to burst whilst my mind was blown. I l-o-v-e Kate Bush. That is all. Where's her biopic? And who on earth would be gorgeous enough but suitably bonkers to play her?

Wuthering Links
Blog Stage Jane Fonda and Angela Lansbury: "non-divas"
Gawker is Warren Beatty holding up the rights to the Dick Tracy franchise. Did you even remember that this could have been one? Speaking of Dick Tracy...
Boy Culture Madonna as Jeanne Moreau in Bay of Angels. Sorta...
Screengrab inaugurates a new series "Not on DVD" with the bio Patty Hearst (1988) starring Natasha Richardson.
/Film the strange case of the distributorless Jim Carrey/Ewan Macgregor prison love story I Love You Phillip Morris
Victim of the Time the best review of Duplicity ever?
World of Wonder says goodbye to Oscar nominee Betsy Blair (Marty). In the photo with this post she's pictured with Nathaniel's two all time favorite classic male movie stars. How about that?!

The Ninth Link
Nick's Flick Picks on the Best Actresses of 1941

And finally, have to leave you with this pointed bit from Jimmy Kimmel Live. Portia De Rossi apologizing to everyone she hurt by marrying Ellen DeGeneres.



Heh.
*

Madonna Week: Best Film Performances

OK... stop laughing! Though Madonna has a reputation as a bad actress, among her 19 films there are a few vehicles that are worth sitting through. So, without further ado [Your laughter annoys me. Stop. Stop now.]... Madonna's 7 Best Film Performances

"the goods"
7 A League of Their Own (1992) as Mae
Debra Winger famously walked away from this enjoyable hunk of cheesy Americana when they cast Madonna saying she 'didn't approve of stunt-casting'. T'was a silly move. The film's only real acting demands were placed on the lead role (Geena Davis met them beautifully) Like many a comedy, the supporting cast are really only expected to sell one character trait each. Madonna gets big laughs as "All the Way" Mae. Can you guess the character trait?

6 Dangerous Game (1993) as Sarah Jennings
The divisive provocateur-director Abel Ferrara was coming off a career peak (The Bad Lieteunant with Harvey Keitel) when Madonna signed on. The movie doesn't work but Madonna gives a surprisingly unforced turn.

5 Desperately Seeking Susan (1985) as Susan
Many people still consider this to be both her debut film and her best work. It's not either actually... but I think the response was due to the widely held belief that she was basically playing herself in Susan Seidelman's charming punk comedy.

4 Dick Tracy (1990) as Breathless Mahoney
The film which led to that Oscar moment we've already discussed. Warren Beatty's colorful comic adaptation is an eye-popping good time. But I still want to strangle him for barely allowing us to see a killer Madonna performance (the song is "More") with ridiculously trigger happy cross-cutting. Argh.



and finally...the "must-see"s
3 The Hire: Star (2001) as the Star
The famed Hire series of shorts starring Clive Owen as the mysterious Driver is full of gems by major directors. This one, directed by the superstar's husband Guy Ritchie, is hilarious. Madonna is in great comic form as a diva from hell.

2 Evita (1996) as Eva Perón
Madonna fulfills a lifelong dream and earns the best reviews of her film career as well as a Golden Globe for her efforts. No Oscar nomination but she did get to perform "You Must Love Me" at the ceremony.

1 Truth or Dare (1991) as Madonna
What?! You think she wasn't 'performing' this role in the hit documentary? Think again. She's performing this the same way Norma Jean famously 'turned on' Marilyn when the time came. This is the one bonafide classic in her filmography.