RCL: Dancers (Glee), Assassins (and Kick-Ass) and More

Red Carpet Lineup. Once weekly, we check in with random celebs who've been out and about, displaying their beautiful selves.


from left to right: Gillian Anderson is still so beautiful. Just saying. She attended a premiere wearing whatreminded me of a Project Runway gown. As in, I sense a theme. But which one? Uma Thurman, seen her crazythin in black at a benefit dinner has been taking too much flak lately for the box office failure of Motherhood. Her career has always been peaks and valleys; Flops can't kill it. I do wonder why she keeps trying her hand at comedy, though. Either her agent or the goddess herself must like her doing them. I think every auteur that has benefited from her screen presence (Kaufman, Frears, Nair, Niccol, Tarantino) really ought to offer her a good role soon to remind us of her inimitable razzle dazzle. After Kill Bill's assassin Bride you'd think she'd get more action offers at least. I regret to inform that Parker Posey did not become my BFF after we danced together at Sundance ;) She wore a leopard print to the Tribeca Ball. I was going to make a cougar reference but the term doesn't fit her as she seems ageless. I know that Parker had a great run in the 90s and don't wanna be greedy fan but I'd love to see her get another great comedic lead role.

Finally, Chloe Moretz went for the pink baby doll look for another Kick-Ass premiere. This is more girlie-girl than she ever gets in the film. I'm so pleased to report that Roger Ebert hates it. I don't normally worship Ebert the way 97.3% of online critics do but he's so widely read and respected it that I love it when he speaks something eloquently that needs to be spoken if you know what I mean. There's a lot to recommend in Kick-Ass but it's also another depressing reminder of how soulless, proudly violent (just listen to today's politicans) and gleefully sadistic the world is becoming. I hope all things are cyclical and we have another flower power generation around the bend. But I guess it would take catastrophic reality to end this particular en vogue fantasy of blood blood blood so...uh... be careful what you wish for. er... moving on. Anyway, I wrote a little bit about for Towleroad.


from left to right: Patricia Clarkson attended the premiere of the Mary Zimmerman (Metamorphosis) production of the opera Armida and really sells the black and white. I like it so much more than several Oscar dresses this year. Zoe Saldana always seems exuberantly happy, yes? Even when promoting a movie called Death at a Funeral. Was she this smiley before starring in two gargantuan hits back to back last year? Every time I see Ginnifer Goodwin I flash back to Win a Date With Tad Hamilton and Walk the Line. I'm not sure why. I like her on Big Love but since she became ultra thin she reads more generic to me. Are you fond of Ginny? This look seems very casual for the Opera but I'm no expert. I've only been thrice.

We end with Glee's adorable Harry Shum Jr. at one of their promotional events. This is the most obsessed I've been with a mute dancer since Cloud lept around in Madonna's Confessions era videos. Can they please give Harry as "Mike Chang" a storyline already! Spread the wealth. The highlight of Tuesday's return-from-hiatus episode was undoubtedly the new characters. Jonathan Groff and Idina Menzel? Our Broadway cup runneth over with this show and we lick up the spills.

Can you tell that I'm thrilled that Glee is back? Are you? I don't know why I got so very impatient for its return, though. Shoulda just rewatched the older episodes. Basically, I've come to realize, Glee is from the Golden Girls stable of sitcoms. It's essentially the same exact jokes every episode. The joy of watching is in which new ways they spin the old jokes. In what way will Rachel be deemed annoying? which particular crazy tic of Emma's? How will Sue Sylvester insult Will Schuester's hair? what femme or gay joke will spring from Kurt? etcetera.

Like everyone else I love Jane Lynch as the comic villain Sue Sylvester and I am desperate to see next week's Madonna episode (p.s. Madonna likes it). But I think they missed a few great opportunities here in this Vogue spoof/tribute.



Sue totally shoulda been doing the jogging-like part of the Vogue dance in her tracksuit and the extras doing the open shirt strobe lit dancers shoulda totally been the jock stars Finn and Puck.

A Single Man Teases

I realize that if I ran Hollywood, they'd be bankrupt in a year. Oh, the things I'd greenlight! And the way I'd market the beautiful motion pictures I shepherded into being. (sigh) History shows us that moviegoers like to see spoilers and lots of exposition in their trailers but I shudder when a trailer ends and I already know the entire outline, the best three moments and can guess the ending with 90% accuracy. I'd promote nearly every movie like they're promoting A Single Man. Here is the teaser -- thanks to reader Seeking Amy for pointing it out -- which is all intriguing imagery and dropped hints as to the story that awaits you.



The Good News
This is truly beautiful stuff. Julianne Moore looks ravishing and stylish. Colin Firth looks less dumpy than usual and the cinematography by Eduard Grau (a DP I'm not familiar with) looks promising, indeed. It should come as no surprise that the first feature from a reknowned image maker, fashion golden boy Tom Ford, would look good. But this looks great. The delicious cast also includes the superhumanly beautiful Ozymandias Matthew Goode, Pushing Daisies' Lee Pace, Nicholas "About a Boy Man" Hoult, model Jon Kortajarena, Teddy Sears (Dollhouse) and the always welcome Ginnifer Goodwin.


The Bad News
The movie is still for sale which means that you can't count on it showing up in your cinema any time soon. Here's to hoping that something magic occurs at Toronto and this movie can enter the upcoming Oscar fray. Which will only be a scuffle, methinks, given the barren awards landscape that 2009 seems to be turning into.
*

Carol Beadle, Runaways Style

Revised Post

More and more photos of Kristen Stewart and lil' Dakota Fanning in their Joan Jett / Cherie Currie garb will now be surfacing since The Runaways filming is underway. Just Jared has lots of new snaps of these two costumes pictured left. Most film sites won't tell you this when they get costume shots -- because they don't care? I care. Oh how I care. I have love for you Behind the Scenes People o' Hollywood! -- but the costumes here are by Carol Beadle. She has a very short film resume (most recently, stylist work on Max Payne) but these costumes look great, don't they? Yay.

Obviously trendsetting will occur. Late 70s girl rocker chic coming at'cha on city streets soon. Or at least by the film's release date in 2010, TBA.

Here's a photo of the band below [via]. The cast also features Scout Taylor-Compton as Lita "Kiss Me Deadly" Ford (she has five movies nearly ready for release. Eeep. I guess she's counting on a big year), Stella Maeve as Sandy West, Alessandra Torresani as Jackie Fox (Maybe. There seems to be some confusion. She's not listed on IMDb and was originally rumored to be playing Lita Ford) and Alia Shawkat (Maeby from Arrested Development!) as Micki Steele who went on to become one of The Bangles. I haven't heard any confirmation on whether less major members of the band like Peggy Foster, Vickie Blue or Laura McAllister are in the movie.

If I were a somebody in Hollywood I'd be thinking about this movie very carefully and I'd be pitching an epic GO-GOs biopic as a chaser for 2012. They were HUGE and their story has a surplus of drama and all the stuff that Hollywood requires for a musical biopic (aka hit songs and cocaine).

Ginnifer Goodwin for Belinda Carlisle? Get up and go Hollywood. She's nearly too old and svelte for it now.

Ginnifer might've made a perfect Belinda in her more cherubic days

Oops. Off topic. Where were we?

You can read more about Carol Beadle at her site. She's worked with Runaways director Floria Sigismondi several times on music videos as well as Sophie Muller, Annie Lennox's bestie, who has made some of the best videos ever. I'll leave you with a famous Sigismondi/Beadle collaboration, Xtina's "Fighter", and a reel of Beadle's work from 2007. Enjoy.

Now Playing: Kristen Bell in Bikini, Chris Evans Fully Clothed

The Oscar films expanded last week (and in some cases -- *cough* Milk ??? -- they're already constricting again. Hope you caught them during those seven days you were allowed to see them!) so it's strictly new releases for February. Links go to trailers...

L I M I T E D
Fanboys Odd that this comedy, about a group of Star Wars fanboys (and fangirl Veronica Mars Kristen Bell, left) storming George Lucas's Skywalker Ranch would come out the day it's target audience is hitting the Comic Con. (Methinks the target audience will be too busy wearing their own Princess Leia costumes or gawking at real live ones to go see Kristen don hers!) Like many a film before it Harvey Weinstein bought this and locked it up tight never to see the light of day until, suddenly, on a whim he decided to dump it in a theater or three.

The Objective One of the directors of The Blair Witch Project tries the 'filming our demise' thing again only with military men in Afghanistan this time.

Chocolate The director of Ong Bak: Thai Warrior returns with another one of his "no wires. no stunt doubles" action films. This one is about a special needs girl who loves chocolate. She has some magical gift for muy thai fighting. I think it's kind of like that superpower on Heroes where if you see an action performed you can duplicate it. I also love chocolate and have special needs. Where's my movie? Alas, I lack that nifty fighting gift and my special needs primarily revolve around Tony Jaa. Where is he?

Chocolate and Coraline. Curious young girls are trouble!

W I D E
Coraline If you suffer from koumpounophobia you should skip this one. If you don't, you should run to the theater because the buzz for this 3D stop motion adventure makes it sound delicious and the source material is superb. If you haven't been reading Neil Gaiman's books, when are you going to start? Try American Gods.

He's Just Not That Into You Looks like the kind of movie you'll l-o-v-e if Men Are From Mars, Women Are From Venus strikes you as a landmark academic tome. Initially I wanted to see it (Ginnifer Goodwin plus the parade of stars) but early reports from critic friends are grim and the episode of Sex & the City about that catchphrase is unbeatable anyway. Plus, you know how they often put the best jokes from movies in trailers?

_______...those are the best jokes?

Push In which Chris Evans keeps his clothes on (just a hunch -- it's that damn new manager's fault) to play a rogue psychic leading a battle against a secret government agency. Or something. Dakota Fanning (the voice of Coraline. Dakota is a workaholic) and Djimon Hounsou also have clairvoyant powers. My own telepathic abilities tell me you're confused. "Isn't Push the movie about the obese black teenager? Didn't it win the top prize at Sundance last month?" Yes, yes, that's the one. Only it's not this one. The Sundance Push is the one that's winning Mo'Nique raves and Oscar style buzz. But this is the other Push, now playing in thousands of theaters starring Chris Evans and it's not going to get any Oscar nominations.

It would be better if Mo'Nique was in it.



Much better.

Oooh, baby, baby Baby
Yo, yo, yo, yo, Evans, Chris / Yeah, you come here, gimme a kiss /
Better make it fast or else I'm gonna get pissed

P.S. I don't know why everyone is surprised that Mo'Nique can act. Duh.

The Pink Panther 2 A non-rhetorical question for the comments: What the hell is Steve Martin doing with his career?

Women on the Verge of a Hyperbolic Breakdown

At the annual "Women in Film Awards" which took place a week ago today, they give awards to movies that nobody has seen yet. Australia's cinematographer Mandy Walker was honored with the "Kodak Vision Award". The Women (2008 remake) was honored. It's like that stupid MTV 'best summer movie' prize. Why not just call it "best hype!". Other honorees: Sherry Lansing, Jeffrey Katzenberg, Sydney Pollack, and Salma Hayek. Finally, Ginnifer Goodwin (yay!) won "Face of the Future" accompanied by Chris Klein who looks a little drunk in this photo (I'm just sayin').

Speaking of drunk I'm not saying Jada Pinkett Smith is drunk at this event's press rounds featuring The Women (2008 remake) but if she's not tossing a few back she's definitely tossing a few out... adjectives and blurb whore quotes that is. Debra Messing is "insanely funny", The Bening is "outrageous" the entire cast is "very specific".


Hmmm... that last one probably won't go on posters, Jada. But to be fair, Debra Messing has more trouble going the earnest route for her sound byte.
*