Can you name the movie?
Highlight for the answer:
This is the Best Picture nominee and blockbuster THE FUGITIVE (1993) with Oscar nominated cinematography by Michael Chapman
for more quizzes, click the "first and last" label below
Thursday, June 25, 2009
F&L
First and Last: the first image after the opening credits (I think) and the last image prior to the closing credits (I think... this movie is mainstream traditional but the credits are oddly stretched out... Not that that will help with your guessing)
Can you name the movie?
Highlight for the answer:
This is the Best Picture nominee and blockbuster THE FUGITIVE (1993) with Oscar nominated cinematography by Michael Chapman
for more quizzes, click the "first and last" label below
Can you name the movie?
Highlight for the answer:
This is the Best Picture nominee and blockbuster THE FUGITIVE (1993) with Oscar nominated cinematography by Michael Chapman
for more quizzes, click the "first and last" label below
Wednesday, June 24, 2009
10 Best Pictures? Reactions and the Star Trek / Up Situation
Like presumably many of you I talked to a lot of people today about the new Oscar rule which will bring us 10 Best Picture nominees instead of 5. Reaction seems to be divided between "yes! it'll be more inclusive and exciting" and "yikes. it'll still suck only now it will signify less".
Take this Academy voter from the member at large branch reacting to the news today (I trust the source who asked and then conveyed her response):
series movies.
Another Academy member (from the technical branches) that I contacted myself was not at all pleased. He said:
I bring all this up because I'm a little bewildered as to why people think this will mean a great deal of popcorn in the Best Picture field. Take E! Online mentioning Star Trek (2009) (and The Hangover as Best Picture possibilities. Sid Ganis didn't announce 100 nominees for Best Picture, he announced 10. Comedies and light sci-fi are still not going to be towards the top of Oscar's wish list. Why would they start loving genres they've never loved if they double their nominees? If you double your nominees you might see one or two universally acclaimed hits nominated along with December's limited releases that were greenlit with gold statuary in mind but those popcorn pictures will still have to feel prestigious in some way to make the cut. Therefore, Star Trek is out. It's from a franchise that has been around for 40 years. It's silly and fun. Up is also silly and fun but it's got that undeniably moving opening and a resonant contemporary theme and Pixar itself IS a prestige element. So Up is probably in.
My killjoy point is this: don't get your hopes up for the blockbusters. No matter how many websites start becoming convinced that The Hangover and Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince will be competing on March 7th for the industry's top prize, they won't. Mostly the expanded competitive field will just mean more slots for the type of movies Oscar likes to nominate i.e. serious dramas, message movies, period pieces, war films and films that smell of prestige in some way (lauded source material, famous auteurs, you know the type). Look at what the NBR and the BFCA put in their top ten lists whilst hoping to predict the Oscars. Yes, occassionally a blockbuster or "fun" movie will pop up in there but it's still the anomaly. They announced a doubling of the nomination slots, not a transfusion of their own tastes.
P.S. I'll be updating my Oscar predictions Sunday since we clearly all need to rethink this year's competition.
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Take this Academy voter from the member at large branch reacting to the news today (I trust the source who asked and then conveyed her response):
I personally like it when it’s more open to people. That’s going to be terrific. But the only problem is that they should increase the nominees of Best Actor and Best Actress only to make it fairerYikes. She wants more nominees elsewhere, too? How will we be able to make fun of the Globe and BFCA excesses if AMPAS does the same thing? And if the Academy keeps adding won't it turn into the EMMYs with so many categories that winning them seems an inevitability if you just keep at it and work the right type of
Another Academy member (from the technical branches) that I contacted myself was not at all pleased. He said:
These days it is difficult to find 5 films, much less 10, that are worthy of an Academy nomination. A cynical person might deduce that having 10 nominations is the only way the studios can garner a few nominations. Don't we already have the People's Choice Awards?
My line of thought falls closer to this more cynical thought. Box office has always been its own reward. Why are people always so adamant that blockbusters need statues too? I agree that they sometimes deserve them but I also believe with all my heart that the only reason that people are so adamant that they deserve so many and so angry at their annual snubs is that these are the films that have been seen. It's not necessarily because they're the best. It's because they're available to have opinions about. If you expand anyone's film viewing to include not just the 10 biggest hits of the year, chances are you expand the idiosyncracies as to what each person considers "best". I don't think the problem with the Oscars has been their love for smaller movies. The problem is their (collective) general lack of imagination in what constitutes quality. Quality can be found anywhere: small movies, big movies, medium sized movies and within any genre. Choosing a good subject for a movie can give you a leg up towards quality but subject matter and tone (seriousness) ≠ Quality.
Star Trek is not a contender. There's at least 20 more typically Oscar
viable features on the way. Up on the other hand probably is.
Star Trek is not a contender. There's at least 20 more typically Oscar I bring all this up because I'm a little bewildered as to why people think this will mean a great deal of popcorn in the Best Picture field. Take E! Online mentioning Star Trek (2009) (and The Hangover as Best Picture possibilities. Sid Ganis didn't announce 100 nominees for Best Picture, he announced 10. Comedies and light sci-fi are still not going to be towards the top of Oscar's wish list. Why would they start loving genres they've never loved if they double their nominees? If you double your nominees you might see one or two universally acclaimed hits nominated along with December's limited releases that were greenlit with gold statuary in mind but those popcorn pictures will still have to feel prestigious in some way to make the cut. Therefore, Star Trek is out. It's from a franchise that has been around for 40 years. It's silly and fun. Up is also silly and fun but it's got that undeniably moving opening and a resonant contemporary theme and Pixar itself IS a prestige element. So Up is probably in.
My killjoy point is this: don't get your hopes up for the blockbusters. No matter how many websites start becoming convinced that The Hangover and Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince will be competing on March 7th for the industry's top prize, they won't. Mostly the expanded competitive field will just mean more slots for the type of movies Oscar likes to nominate i.e. serious dramas, message movies, period pieces, war films and films that smell of prestige in some way (lauded source material, famous auteurs, you know the type). Look at what the NBR and the BFCA put in their top ten lists whilst hoping to predict the Oscars. Yes, occassionally a blockbuster or "fun" movie will pop up in there but it's still the anomaly. They announced a doubling of the nomination slots, not a transfusion of their own tastes.
P.S. I'll be updating my Oscar predictions Sunday since we clearly all need to rethink this year's competition.
*
Shocking Oscar News: And Then There Were Ten
In one of the strangest developments in decades of Oscar watching, AMPAS has suddenly decided to change the number of Best Picture nominees back to 10, stating
We haven't seen 10 Best Pictures nominess since 1943 (Casablanca won... definitely one of Oscar's smartest moments). They settled on the traditional five for the 1944 film year and it's stayed that way ever since.
This could mean that anything remotely "baity" will get nominated each year. We're in for whole lineups consisting of the Frost/Nixons, Seabiscuits, and Finding Neverlands of the world, whole lineups populated with Doubts: films that inexplicably win favor over superior films or films which aren't really good enough to be in the running but all the prestige elements are in place.
I can only assume the recent snubs for critically beloved and audience supported films like WALL•E and The Dark Knight have finally started embarrassing the Academy. But widening the field doesn't necessarily mean that the quality or box office tallies rise with it. What a pessimist I am.
Last year for example, who knows what it would have looked like. It seems like these eight would have made it...
We don't know for sure. The anti-genre voters are still anti-genre (i.e. they can't take animation, comedy, superheros, horror and sci-fi seriously, always equating "message" and traditional drama with quality) no matter how wide the ballot gets.
But perhaps this does mean that less traditional genre leaning films that got some awards traction like Dancer in the Dark (better than any nominated film in 2000), Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (better than any nominated film in 2004), A History of Violence (better than most of the nominated films of 2005) or WALL•E (better than any nominated film in 2008) have a better shot at the big honor? Maybe it does. Maybe it doesn't. We'll see.
It sure makes predicting things this year suddenly more challenging. We've never seen the outcome of the shotgun approach to Best Picture nominating in our lifetimes. Will this change last longer than their sudden new category for "original comedy score" -- one of their more bizarre decisions -- which lasted from 1995 through 1998?
*
After more than six decades, the Academy is returning to some of its earlier roots, when a wider field competed for the top award of the year,” said Ganis. “The final outcome, of course, will be the same – one Best Picture winner – but the race to the finish line will feature 10, not just five, great movies from 2009.”Ganis assumes that all ten nominees will be great. What an optimist, he is!
We haven't seen 10 Best Pictures nominess since 1943 (Casablanca won... definitely one of Oscar's smartest moments). They settled on the traditional five for the 1944 film year and it's stayed that way ever since.
This could mean that anything remotely "baity" will get nominated each year. We're in for whole lineups consisting of the Frost/Nixons, Seabiscuits, and Finding Neverlands of the world, whole lineups populated with Doubts: films that inexplicably win favor over superior films or films which aren't really good enough to be in the running but all the prestige elements are in place.
I can only assume the recent snubs for critically beloved and audience supported films like WALL•E and The Dark Knight have finally started embarrassing the Academy. But widening the field doesn't necessarily mean that the quality or box office tallies rise with it. What a pessimist I am.
Last year for example, who knows what it would have looked like. It seems like these eight would have made it...
We don't know for sure. The anti-genre voters are still anti-genre (i.e. they can't take animation, comedy, superheros, horror and sci-fi seriously, always equating "message" and traditional drama with quality) no matter how wide the ballot gets.
But perhaps this does mean that less traditional genre leaning films that got some awards traction like Dancer in the Dark (better than any nominated film in 2000), Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (better than any nominated film in 2004), A History of Violence (better than most of the nominated films of 2005) or WALL•E (better than any nominated film in 2008) have a better shot at the big honor? Maybe it does. Maybe it doesn't. We'll see.
It sure makes predicting things this year suddenly more challenging. We've never seen the outcome of the shotgun approach to Best Picture nominating in our lifetimes. Will this change last longer than their sudden new category for "original comedy score" -- one of their more bizarre decisions -- which lasted from 1995 through 1998?
*
Halfway House: Donkey
When a movie doesn't work for my first and last series -- sometimes the movie star's mug will be the first thing you see or the last (or both) -- I'm gonna use it elsewhere when it's amusing. SPINOFF SERIES ALERT!
Screenshots from halfway through the movie in question. We're about sixty-six minutes in for this one.
Subtle!
Richard Burton and Jean Simmons ascending
Screenshots from halfway through the movie in question. We're about sixty-six minutes in for this one.
Look, he's my donkey!This made me guffaw when I jumped to the halfway point of the DVD. See, Jesus cured this little crippled boy but he seems more excited about that ass than his newly working legs. Regardless, Richard Burton is so impressed you can totally tell he's going to convert to Christianity even though it will cost him his life. At the end of The Robe [*SPOILER*] Burton will walk up into heaven while a chorus sings "Hallelujah".
Subtle!
Richard Burton and Jean Simmons ascendingF&L
First and Last: the first image following the opening credits and the last image before the credits roll.
Can you name the picture?
Highlight for the answer: It's the German film DAS EXPERIMENT. You may have recognized Moritz Bleibtreu in the first frame.
for previous first and last quizzes, click the label below
*
Can you name the picture?
Highlight for the answer: It's the German film DAS EXPERIMENT. You may have recognized Moritz Bleibtreu in the first frame.
for previous first and last quizzes, click the label below
*
Tuesday, June 23, 2009
Tuesday Top Ten: Robots in Disguise
Tuesday Top Ten Returns
My friend txt critic sent me this note yesterday:
Plus, apart from Megan Fox, I can't tell the robots apart.
Honorable Mention: The Buffy Bot
I always want to include Buffy the Vampire Slayer in every list. But it's a tv show damnit. Buffy always confuses me because it's better than much cinema. The Buffy Bot was another reminder, as if we needed one, that Sarah Michelle Gellar was shamefully robbed of Emmy nominations for 7 (give or take) years. My god, she could barely get arrested at the Globes. Only one nomination there? and that was right at the start.
10 Herbie the Love Bug
That's a robot, right? Artificial intelligence, moving parts, etcetera. Or is he magical like Frosty the Snowman? Either way he survived Monte Carlo, a failed spinoff tv series, continual underestimation of his gifts, injuries, numerous drivers and Lindsay Lohan. Plus, he's totally cute and wins extra points for nostalgia since they (literally) don't make them like they used to. Volkswagen Beetle RIP (1938-2003)
09 R2-D2
If you had asked me as a kid "what is your favorite sound?" I probably would have started beeping like R2-D2 but after the childhood apocalypse that was Star Wars: Episode I, all things Star Wars have since been downgraded. Hence, #09.
08 HAL 9000 & Gertie
HAL (voiced by Douglas Rain) is of course super smooth and insinuatingly creepy but I wanted to include Gertie (voiced by Kevin Spacey) for memorably riffing on the collective memory of HAL in the new movie Moon, reviewed here in case you have finally had the chance to see it.
07 Gigolo Joe & Pris
Mmmm, pleasure models. It helps that one of them looks like Jude Law and the other has the endless legs and Amazonian kink of primo Daryl Hannah. I still think there's a classic sci-fi film waiting to be made that's ABOUT a pleasure model rather than expecting them to vivify the sidelines like they do in A.I. Artifial Intelligence and Blade Runner. But who would finance erotic sci-fi these days? Eroticism is a no no. Think of all the trouble Robert Rodriguez had trying to remake Barbarella.
Ian Holm, Lance Henriksen and Winona Ryder in the long dead Alien franchise
06 Ash & Bishop
Because they elevate Alien and Aliens... not that either film particularly needs the elevation being spectacular in dozens of other ways as well. Please note that I didn't include "Call" from Alien Ressurection as I still have no idea how that fell so flat. I mean other than that the role was played by Noni in that phase of her career when she suddenly seemed entirely lost. That said, Alien 4 gets a bad rap but it's hard to argue with Sigourney Weaver's slightly twisted star turn as "Ripley 8". Even after four films she never once phoned it in.
05 The Iron Giant
I really need to watch this animated gem again. I've seen it but once and every time I have thought about since (many many times) I whisper "Superman" in my brain and, voila, instant lump in throat.
04 T-1000
I think I gave him short shift in my Judgment Day retrospective. I love everything about him from his mean, lean and naked entrance to Robert Patrick's otoplasty-free ears to the way he chases the heroes with cheetah speed (yikes) to the way that the only barely expressed "emotions" are negative ones: annoyance, dishonesty, condescencion, anger.
03 Roy Batty
If only some new sci-fi picture would ever be as good as Blade Runner. I guess that only happens once every quarter century or so. Hey, it's been 27 years! Hurry up cinema. [More on Batty]
02 WALL•E & EVE
I know I'm supposed to be moving on to Up... but really. How will Pixar ever top WALL•E ? Too much loveliness, creativity, control and exquisite characterizations for one animated film. Plus, EVE rocks.
01 False Maria
I'm giving Brigitte Helms immortal rendition of The Maschinenmensch the top spot not just because I've seen Metropolis more than any other silent film (it's not my all time favorite silent: get in line behind The Passion of Joan of Arc and Pandora's Box, Fritz) but because you can still feel Maria reverberating in pop culture. Or at least I can. But maybe that's because I ♥ Madonna too much? Plus Maria's dance sequence is all kinds of "!!!" including the most gloriously overstated reaction shots of lust the cinema ever came up with: lip licking, eyebrow acrobatics, arm grabbing... it's all win.
Which robot things excite you or are you strictly flesh and blood oriented?
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My friend txt critic sent me this note yesterday: Any interest in coming with me to tues midnight Transformers 2 on IMAX? Only drawbacks:After I recovered from the LOL'ing following #3, I said no. No way am I giving $20 to Michael Bay. I assume Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen will beat Up to steal that #2 box office hit of the year position and I weep for the (safely assumed) qualitative drop in that switcheroo. I don't understand the Transformers phenom. A lot of movies are good at blowing shit up and some of them actually have narrative and visual coherency to go with the pretty fireballs and lovely dust clouds. Why not line up for those? And as I bitched when the first Transformers picture rolled around, the only reason I ever enjoyed the robots in disguise was watching them transform out of their disguises. If I want liquid metal, I'm totally just watching Terminator 2: Judgment Day. When anything can become anything with high speed morphing, the joy is lost. There's no reveal to stun you with the hot joy of brilliantly designed internal architecture... "That came from that. OHMYGOD it did!"
1. It's $20
2. We'd have to get there early
3. It's Transformers 2
Plus, apart from Megan Fox, I can't tell the robots apart.
10 Favorite Movie Robots
(not always in disguise)
I went with mostly the android'ish since I like people better than things. Strangely, I couldn't think of any cool animal robots from the movie (apart from the reliably creepy mechnical spider device that filmmakers from Michael Crichton to Steven Spielberg are fond of) but I'm sure they exist. The only ones that came to mind were incredibly stupid... like that mechanical owl in Clash of the Titans (1981). I only pray that the remake is sensible enough to ditch the owls. At least any owls that require batteries.
(not always in disguise)
I went with mostly the android'ish since I like people better than things. Strangely, I couldn't think of any cool animal robots from the movie (apart from the reliably creepy mechnical spider device that filmmakers from Michael Crichton to Steven Spielberg are fond of) but I'm sure they exist. The only ones that came to mind were incredibly stupid... like that mechanical owl in Clash of the Titans (1981). I only pray that the remake is sensible enough to ditch the owls. At least any owls that require batteries.Honorable Mention: The Buffy Bot
I always want to include Buffy the Vampire Slayer in every list. But it's a tv show damnit. Buffy always confuses me because it's better than much cinema. The Buffy Bot was another reminder, as if we needed one, that Sarah Michelle Gellar was shamefully robbed of Emmy nominations for 7 (give or take) years. My god, she could barely get arrested at the Globes. Only one nomination there? and that was right at the start.
10 Herbie the Love BugThat's a robot, right? Artificial intelligence, moving parts, etcetera. Or is he magical like Frosty the Snowman? Either way he survived Monte Carlo, a failed spinoff tv series, continual underestimation of his gifts, injuries, numerous drivers and Lindsay Lohan. Plus, he's totally cute and wins extra points for nostalgia since they (literally) don't make them like they used to. Volkswagen Beetle RIP (1938-2003)
09 R2-D2
If you had asked me as a kid "what is your favorite sound?" I probably would have started beeping like R2-D2 but after the childhood apocalypse that was Star Wars: Episode I, all things Star Wars have since been downgraded. Hence, #09.
08 HAL 9000 & GertieHAL (voiced by Douglas Rain) is of course super smooth and insinuatingly creepy but I wanted to include Gertie (voiced by Kevin Spacey) for memorably riffing on the collective memory of HAL in the new movie Moon, reviewed here in case you have finally had the chance to see it.
07 Gigolo Joe & Pris
Mmmm, pleasure models. It helps that one of them looks like Jude Law and the other has the endless legs and Amazonian kink of primo Daryl Hannah. I still think there's a classic sci-fi film waiting to be made that's ABOUT a pleasure model rather than expecting them to vivify the sidelines like they do in A.I. Artifial Intelligence and Blade Runner. But who would finance erotic sci-fi these days? Eroticism is a no no. Think of all the trouble Robert Rodriguez had trying to remake Barbarella.
Ian Holm, Lance Henriksen and Winona Ryder in the long dead Alien franchise06 Ash & Bishop
Because they elevate Alien and Aliens... not that either film particularly needs the elevation being spectacular in dozens of other ways as well. Please note that I didn't include "Call" from Alien Ressurection as I still have no idea how that fell so flat. I mean other than that the role was played by Noni in that phase of her career when she suddenly seemed entirely lost. That said, Alien 4 gets a bad rap but it's hard to argue with Sigourney Weaver's slightly twisted star turn as "Ripley 8". Even after four films she never once phoned it in.
05 The Iron Giant
I really need to watch this animated gem again. I've seen it but once and every time I have thought about since (many many times) I whisper "Superman" in my brain and, voila, instant lump in throat.
04 T-1000I think I gave him short shift in my Judgment Day retrospective. I love everything about him from his mean, lean and naked entrance to Robert Patrick's otoplasty-free ears to the way he chases the heroes with cheetah speed (yikes) to the way that the only barely expressed "emotions" are negative ones: annoyance, dishonesty, condescencion, anger.
03 Roy Batty
If only some new sci-fi picture would ever be as good as Blade Runner. I guess that only happens once every quarter century or so. Hey, it's been 27 years! Hurry up cinema. [More on Batty]
02 WALL•E & EVE
I know I'm supposed to be moving on to Up... but really. How will Pixar ever top WALL•E ? Too much loveliness, creativity, control and exquisite characterizations for one animated film. Plus, EVE rocks.
01 False MariaI'm giving Brigitte Helms immortal rendition of The Maschinenmensch the top spot not just because I've seen Metropolis more than any other silent film (it's not my all time favorite silent: get in line behind The Passion of Joan of Arc and Pandora's Box, Fritz) but because you can still feel Maria reverberating in pop culture. Or at least I can. But maybe that's because I ♥ Madonna too much? Plus Maria's dance sequence is all kinds of "!!!" including the most gloriously overstated reaction shots of lust the cinema ever came up with: lip licking, eyebrow acrobatics, arm grabbing... it's all win.
Which robot things excite you or are you strictly flesh and blood oriented?
*
Which movie soundtrack
...do you listen to frequently? Or score if you're more orchestral minded.
*
update: Some of the beloved soundtracks mentioned and seconded already include the following gems. Do you listen to them?
y
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update: Some of the beloved soundtracks mentioned and seconded already include the following gems. Do you listen to them?
y
The Mad(onna) Hatter
A friend of mine kept saying that the new photos of Johnny Depp as The Mad Hatter reminded him of none other than Madonna. So, he followed up with morphthinged evidence to prove his theory...
Hmmm, musta been that endearing gap tooth that tipped him off. Tim Burton'sAlice in Wonderland Madonna in Wonderland coming to theaters... never.
Come to think of it... maybe this was Madonna's problem with the acting side career in the the late 80s and early 90s. She needed to be doing small bits in weirdo movies like Alice... She kept trying to play characters that any actress might essay when an outsized offscreen celebrity persona actually requires a larger-than-life / fantastical character to contain it -- in the absence of a true acting gift, that is, which only rare pop stars (Cher and, hmmm, Sting? Dolly?) turn out to have. The roles that fit best were thinly-veiled-Madonna (Desperately Seeking Susan, Star), Madonna (Truth or Dare... and yes, I consider that a performance and her best one), Breathless Mahoney in Dick Tracy (cartoon) and Evita (larger than life!)
Hmmm, musta been that endearing gap tooth that tipped him off. Tim Burton's
Come to think of it... maybe this was Madonna's problem with the acting side career in the the late 80s and early 90s. She needed to be doing small bits in weirdo movies like Alice... She kept trying to play characters that any actress might essay when an outsized offscreen celebrity persona actually requires a larger-than-life / fantastical character to contain it -- in the absence of a true acting gift, that is, which only rare pop stars (Cher and, hmmm, Sting? Dolly?) turn out to have. The roles that fit best were thinly-veiled-Madonna (Desperately Seeking Susan, Star), Madonna (Truth or Dare... and yes, I consider that a performance and her best one), Breathless Mahoney in Dick Tracy (cartoon) and Evita (larger than life!)
F&L: Starry Starry Night
First and Last: the first image you see after the opening credits and the final image before the closing credits (well actually it's just the starry sky but we're slow zooming towards that.
Can you name the movie?
Highlight for the answer: It's the clean sci-fi lines of GATTACA (1997) with cinematography by Slawomir Idziak
for more quizzes, click the "first and last" label below
Can you name the movie?
Highlight for the answer: It's the clean sci-fi lines of GATTACA (1997) with cinematography by Slawomir Idziak
for more quizzes, click the "first and last" label below
Monday, June 22, 2009
LinkyDee LinkyDum
le cinemaStinkyLulu investigates Cher's work in Silkwood. I just watched this again and I love this performance. In fact, I love every turn in the film including Kurt Russell's. I wish Mike Nichols would make something this humble but stirring and potent again.
New Yorker Evan Rachel Wood takes trapeze lessons. Fun piece... though I'll believe Jodie Foster's decades-delayed Flora Plum circus project -- not mentioned but why else the trapeze lessons -- when I see it.
In Contention A Christmas Carol sneaks.
Score Enthusiast on Alexandre Desplat's work on Chéri
Nick's Flick Picks a beautiful even handed tribute to Meryl Streep's career and its foibles, triumphs and unique pleasures
It's gay pride week in NYC
FourFour has a great post on the documentary Ask Not on gays in the military and Brüno's comedic use of homophobia
Boy Culture takes justifiable aim at Will & Grace creator Max Mutchnick who has been dredging up the ol lame chestnut 'these people don't represent me'. When will people learn that wedge politics are not helpful for minorities?
miscellaniaToys R Evil Marilyn's Mickies - a cheesecake mashup [not really SFW]
Blog Stage Sarah Jessica Parker is making a reality show American Artists. There's a reality competition for just about everything now 'cept blogging. It's hard to dramatize typing, isn't it?
i challenge you...
to beat my score on Cryptic Canvas. It's a really hard but fun movie naming painted puzzle (all films from the past 20 years). Thanks to In Contention for pointing it out. I only got 27/50 answers in 20 minutes. Challenging stuff. I'm still so confused by the three pony-tailed girls in the graveyard.
USB
I've never thought of Rocky Balboa and David Cronenberg in the same sentence before but I think Cronenberg would appreciate these Rocky style USB ports (pictured left) which Loyal K*N*G points us to. I get that this is supposed to be geeky fun but I'm alarmed that we're plugging these boxers into the ports by their crotches!?! What will they think of next? It feels kinda dirty/twisted "long live the new flesh" to me.I almost mistook this one to your left for Bruce Lee since Sly Stallone's sporting that Kill Bill / Enter the Dragon color scheme. Which movie character would you like to plug into your USB port?
Jennifer Connelly from Requiem for a Dream literally just popped into my brain while typing that last sentence. That's so w-r-o-n-g. My deepest apologies. I shan't photoshop it up for you. That would be even wronger [sic].
Ooh, I know what I want...
The Happiest Ending of All Time?
Alice in Teaserland
Maybe "Tweedle Dee!" should be the new "Squeeeee!" for excited exclamations. You've probably seen the new images via USA Today and the info on Tim Burton's Alice in Wonderland? But I'd like to talk about the cast and the polish. One of the only pluses of mainstays like 'Wonderland' being retold each decade over original work is to see how the different eras and visual artists interpret them.
Tweedle Dee and Tweedle Dum
Mia Wasikowska as Alice (the oldest Alice since Meryl Streep?) and
Matt Lucas as Tweedledee and Tweedleydum
Helena & Anne Hathaway as Red & White Queens. Depp as Mad Hatter.
I love what My New Plaid Pants says about the latter: "if Elijah Wood
and Carrot Top had a baby" Ha!
The look is certainly eye-popping and I will be there on day one (March 5th, 2010 to be exact) but maybe the saturation (will it be garish onscreen?) and practically-an-animated-movie CGI smoothness is worrisome. Is Burton moving too far into George Lucas 'make it up on the computer later!' green screen terrain as a filmmaker? And given that we're seeing a batch of teasing photos a full 270 days before this is opening is this going to be one of those movies (like Terminator Salvation or Spider-Man 3) that shows and tells all prior to its release?
What, me? Worry???
I'm thinking about Burton's oeuvre today because i09 is remembering the game changing public mania that surrounded the release of Tim Burton's Batman 20 years ago tomorrow (June 23rd, 1989). Yes, long before Nolan made that crazy successful The Dark Knight, Burton was largely creating our current movie culture. Supermans I-IV beat him to the superhero game but their very rapidly diminishing returns didn't make the superhero franchise idea all that viable. It was Burton and that yellow and black symbol, plastered on everything, that did it.
Remarkably that particular Batman starred neither Johnny Depp (the star of literally 50% of Burton's filmography) nor Helena Bonham-Carter (who appears in 6 of Burton's 14 features). If the film were remade today they'd be your Batman Joker and Vicki Vale replacing Jack Nicholson and Kim Basinger.
<-- You know they would!
I'm exaggerating a little since their absence was a given. Burton probably hadn't even met them. In 1989 Depp was still on 21 Jump Street and Helena Bonham Carter was that tiny corseted Merchant/Ivory dress-up doll.
6+ collaborations
Johnny Depp & Helena Bonham Carter
5 collaborations
Lisa Marie (Burton's ex) - Ed Wood, Mars Attacks!, Planet of the Apes, Sleepy Hollow and the short Stainboy
4 collaborations
Christopher Lee - Sleepy Hollow, Corpse Bride, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Alice
Deep Roy -Planet, Big Fish, Charlie, Corpse Bride
3 collaborations
Danny DeVito -Batman Returns, Mars, Big Fish
Jeffrey Jones -Beetlejuice, Ed Wood, Sleepy
Michael Keaton - Beetlejuice, Batman, Batman Returns
Glenn Shadix - Beetlejuice, Planet plus Stainboy
2 collaborations
Albert Finney -Corpse Bride, Big Fish
O-Lan Jones -Edward Scissorhands, Mars
Martin Landau -Ed Wood, Sleepy Hollow
Jack Nicholson -Batman, Mars
Sarah Jessica Parker -Ed Wood, Mars
Vincent Price -Edward Scissorhands and the short Vincent
Paul Reubens -Pee Wee's Big Adventure, Batman Returns
Alan Rickman -Sweeney, Alice
Winona Ryder -Beetlejuice, Edward Scissorhands
Timothy Spall -Sweeney Todd, Alice
Missi Pyle -Big Fish, Charlie
Sylvia Sidney -Beetlejuice, Mars Attacks!
Who are your favorite Burton players? Share in the comments. Do you think he should keep reusing people or move on like Paul Thomas Anderson when he left all his regulars behind for There Will Be Blood?
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previous post: "60 Appropriate Ways to Celebrate Meryl Streep Today"
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Tweedle Dee and Tweedle Dum
Wonderland. If you click over to USA Today you can move
around in the gardens with your mouse. For what it's worth it looks like
Edward Scissorhands has been hired as Wonderland's landscape artist.
around in the gardens with your mouse. For what it's worth it looks like
Edward Scissorhands has been hired as Wonderland's landscape artist.
Mia Wasikowska as Alice (the oldest Alice since Meryl Streep?) andMatt Lucas as Tweedledee and Tweedleydum
Helena & Anne Hathaway as Red & White Queens. Depp as Mad Hatter.I love what My New Plaid Pants says about the latter: "if Elijah Wood
and Carrot Top had a baby" Ha!
The look is certainly eye-popping and I will be there on day one (March 5th, 2010 to be exact) but maybe the saturation (will it be garish onscreen?) and practically-an-animated-movie CGI smoothness is worrisome. Is Burton moving too far into George Lucas 'make it up on the computer later!' green screen terrain as a filmmaker? And given that we're seeing a batch of teasing photos a full 270 days before this is opening is this going to be one of those movies (like Terminator Salvation or Spider-Man 3) that shows and tells all prior to its release?
What, me? Worry???
I'm thinking about Burton's oeuvre today because i09 is remembering the game changing public mania that surrounded the release of Tim Burton's Batman 20 years ago tomorrow (June 23rd, 1989). Yes, long before Nolan made that crazy successful The Dark Knight, Burton was largely creating our current movie culture. Supermans I-IV beat him to the superhero game but their very rapidly diminishing returns didn't make the superhero franchise idea all that viable. It was Burton and that yellow and black symbol, plastered on everything, that did it.
Remarkably that particular Batman starred neither Johnny Depp (the star of literally 50% of Burton's filmography) nor Helena Bonham-Carter (who appears in 6 of Burton's 14 features). If the film were remade today they'd be your <-- You know they would!
I'm exaggerating a little since their absence was a given. Burton probably hadn't even met them. In 1989 Depp was still on 21 Jump Street and Helena Bonham Carter was that tiny corseted Merchant/Ivory dress-up doll.
Burton's Troupe O' Players
Johnny & Helena aren't the wild haired auteur's only favored thespians. He isn't quite Woody Allen or Scorsese in the steady faces game, but here's a list of his other pets. I personally think he's underused Sarah Jessica Parker who aced both of her Burton roles, totally understanding his peculiar comic tone.
6+ collaborationsJohnny Depp & Helena Bonham Carter
5 collaborations
Lisa Marie (Burton's ex) - Ed Wood, Mars Attacks!, Planet of the Apes, Sleepy Hollow and the short Stainboy
4 collaborations
Christopher Lee - Sleepy Hollow, Corpse Bride, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Alice
Deep Roy -Planet, Big Fish, Charlie, Corpse Bride
3 collaborationsDanny DeVito -Batman Returns, Mars, Big Fish
Jeffrey Jones -Beetlejuice, Ed Wood, Sleepy
Michael Keaton - Beetlejuice, Batman, Batman Returns
Glenn Shadix - Beetlejuice, Planet plus Stainboy
2 collaborations
Albert Finney -Corpse Bride, Big Fish
O-Lan Jones -Edward Scissorhands, Mars
Martin Landau -Ed Wood, Sleepy Hollow
Jack Nicholson -Batman, Mars
Sarah Jessica Parker -Ed Wood, MarsVincent Price -Edward Scissorhands and the short Vincent
Paul Reubens -Pee Wee's Big Adventure, Batman Returns
Alan Rickman -Sweeney, Alice
Winona Ryder -Beetlejuice, Edward Scissorhands
Timothy Spall -Sweeney Todd, Alice
Missi Pyle -Big Fish, Charlie
Sylvia Sidney -Beetlejuice, Mars Attacks!
Who are your favorite Burton players? Share in the comments. Do you think he should keep reusing people or move on like Paul Thomas Anderson when he left all his regulars behind for There Will Be Blood?
Click here for main page
previous post: "60 Appropriate Ways to Celebrate Meryl Streep Today"
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60 Appropriate Ways to Celebrate Meryl Streep Month
Happy 60th Birthday to Meryl Streep
THAT'S ALL.
Click here for full blog / fresh posts
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- Be your very best
- Be dramatically potent.
- ... then unexpectedly hilarious.
- Fake a new accent every hour.
- Imitate the dial tone on your phone.
- Run around like a joyful madwoman with your hands in the air, stopping only to kiss people.
- Run around like a joyful madwoman whilst singing your favorite ABBA song.
- Accentuate your WASPiness... (or fake it).
- Stay married to the same person for decades, confounding Hollywood protocol.
- Pretend your significant other is a sculptor, make them use their hands.
- Befriend Cher.
- Watch Kramer vs. Kramer again.
- Watch Angels in America again.
- Consider yourself overrated... "but not today!"
- Be highly quotable.
- Memorize the entire Miranda Priestley "Cerulean" monologue.
- Ask your best friends to call you "Mary Louise" for the remainder of the week.
- Stweep!
- Give to charities.
- Sing more spectacularly than is humanly fair considering all of your other talents.
- Watch Julia to see how it all began.
- Say "That's ridiculous" with a Polish accent all day.
- Visit Simply Streep and Meryl Streep Online.
- Idolize your mama.
- Make out with someone who looks like Robert Redford, Bobby DeNiro, Kevin Kline, Kurt Russell or Alison Janney
- Send mixed messages to someone who looks like Jeremy Irons
- Enjoy Silkwood all over again.
- Flash your left tit and laugh about it.
- Appreciate one of her rare underappreciated performances like the one in A Prairie Home Companion.
- Stare off into space while dreaming of that farm in Africa, the French Resistance, your life as a singer, Virginia Woolf, the drugs you wish you were on or that French Lieutenant who will never return.
- Wear a Vassar t-shirt.
- ...or Yale paraphernalia
- Pretend you've won an Oscar.
- ...and another.
- Pretend you've won a third since you deserve it.
- Polish Meryl's star at 7018 Hollywood Blvd.
- Stare at the sea provocatively whilst practicing "Obscure Melancholia"
- Speak highly of New Jersey
- Take your family white water rafting.
- Watch Out of Africa again (you haven't seen it since the 80s).
- Lighten the room when you walk in.
- End your conversations with a dismissive "that's all".
- Work towards making lots of "All Time Great" lists in whatever it is that you do.
- ...actually deserve the honor.
- Don't take yourself too seriously.
- Proclaim "the dingoes got my baby!"
- Have some cream of watercress.
- Mix a drink for your friends (or frenemies) and pretend it's an immortality potion.
- Be a legendary household name whilst avoiding any personal drama.
- ...stop to consider and then appreciate how truly difficult that is to do.
- Read up a little on the amazing Julia Child before Meryl's next picture Julie & Julia arrives.
- Take a hot bath and fantasize about Clint Eastwood.
- Make your significant other wash your hair outdoors.
- Play dress up like Sophie or Kate Gulden
- Be proudly liberal and politically active.
- Make the world a better place.
- Inspire future generations in your field.
- Raise talented children
- Age more spectacularly than a good wine.
- Share this tribute post & video with Meryl-loving friends!
THAT'S ALL.
Click here for full blog / fresh posts
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Sunday, June 21, 2009
Signatures: Laura Dern
Adam of Club Silencio here with another look at my favorite actresses and their distinguishing claims to fame.
She's always drawn to characters in the midst of significant grey areas: the abortion argument, the peak of adolescent sexuality and nosedive of innocence, the perils of monogamy, and cloning prehistoric species on remote islands for tourism. Her characters always seem to hold the crux between right and wrong, naivete and danger, hope and tragedy. As good with smooth talk as she is a rambling rose, Laura's greatest gift is playing to both sides of the spectrum and finding a harmonious balance.
Sweetly asking, "When will the robins come?" or theorizing that "the whole world's wild at heart and weird and top," Laura's characters ground her films with an enchanting idealism that undercuts much of the darkness surrounding them. "It's a strange world," indeed. Take it from David Lynch, her frequent collaborator who uses this dual dynamic best. In describing some of her essential roles he says, "'If you wanted to buy a bottle of innocence as a shampoo, you'd buy Sandy in Blue Velvet.' Lula, I guess, is a bottle of passion-flavored bubble gum." Laura always walks this idyllic fine line with an elegance that often dips into dangerous territory as her films progress. Whether she's snapping bubble gum in Wild at Heart, or snapping her fingers to the tune of prostitution in Inland Empire, Laura's beauty and grace can easily transform in situations of devastating circumstance.
It's a strange world, wild at heart and weird on top, but we can depend on Laura to light the way. As we hold out for the robins, let us bask in our ever blinding love for Laura Dern.
I had a dream. In fact, it was the night I met you. In the dream there was our world, and the world was dark because there weren't any robins... and the robins represented love. And for the longest time there was just this darkness. And all of a sudden, thousands of robins were set free and they flew down and brought this blinding light of love! And it seemed like that love would be the only thing that would make any difference... And it did. So I guess it means there is trouble till the robins come.Martin Luther King Jr. and Laura Dern; civil rights or robins of love. Both valid dreams from inspirational dreamers. Laura Dern is one of our most bright, inspiring and expressive actresses -- an angelic beauty with an edge. Expressive not only because she's lovingly referred to as "The Face" 'round these parts, but because she has the rare ability to capture the internal conflicts in some of cinema's most ambiguous dilemmas.
She's always drawn to characters in the midst of significant grey areas: the abortion argument, the peak of adolescent sexuality and nosedive of innocence, the perils of monogamy, and cloning prehistoric species on remote islands for tourism. Her characters always seem to hold the crux between right and wrong, naivete and danger, hope and tragedy. As good with smooth talk as she is a rambling rose, Laura's greatest gift is playing to both sides of the spectrum and finding a harmonious balance.
Sweetly asking, "When will the robins come?" or theorizing that "the whole world's wild at heart and weird and top," Laura's characters ground her films with an enchanting idealism that undercuts much of the darkness surrounding them. "It's a strange world," indeed. Take it from David Lynch, her frequent collaborator who uses this dual dynamic best. In describing some of her essential roles he says, "'If you wanted to buy a bottle of innocence as a shampoo, you'd buy Sandy in Blue Velvet.' Lula, I guess, is a bottle of passion-flavored bubble gum." Laura always walks this idyllic fine line with an elegance that often dips into dangerous territory as her films progress. Whether she's snapping bubble gum in Wild at Heart, or snapping her fingers to the tune of prostitution in Inland Empire, Laura's beauty and grace can easily transform in situations of devastating circumstance.
...Whether a movie part comes to me or I seek it out, there's always this journey to darkness through light, or vice versa; that element has been in almost everything I've done.Laura often acts as the guiding light through her film's bleakest depths. Even as Ruth Stoops, a hopeless huffer and propaganda-piece in Citizen Ruth, she manages to highlight the moral divide while giving birth to the sixth or seventh child she can't support. With a character seemingly devoid of conscience or concern, Laura manages to shed light on the controversy and still give this woman a purpose as potent as paint fumes. So many of her films (We Don't Live Here Anymore, Rambling Rose, Smooth Talk) paint her as this glowing figure whose inner light dims, flickers and fades (and seizure strobes in the case of Inland Empire) as the films progress, but usually in the end Laura's light is back and burning brighter than ever.
It's a strange world, wild at heart and weird on top, but we can depend on Laura to light the way. As we hold out for the robins, let us bask in our ever blinding love for Laura Dern.
The Father Link (plus Sherlock Holmes)
<-- Jude Law with his daughter.Anne Thompson Father's Day Favorites
A Socialite's Life "Hollywood's Hottest Dads"
By Ken Levine entertainments to avoid on father's day
Pop Hangover Dad Awards (television related)
In Contention Top 10 Movies I Watched With My Dad
previous post What movie reminds you of your Dad? Join in the comment sharing.
And more Jude Law because I'm in the mood. Not that that particular mood is infrequent... quite the contrary. Here's the new character posters for Sherlock Holmes. I realize I've put them in reverse billing order but in my world Jude Law goes before Robert Downey Jr (not a knock on the always entertaining RDJ, just a preference) so it's elementary that Dear Watson goes first.
Billing is often so weird. Did you know, for example that Debra Winger had top billing in Terms of Endearment over Maclaine and Nicholson? (That's on my brain because of the 1982/1983 Oscar rundown).
I'm sure it made sense at the time...
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related article: Jude Law #1 Actor of the Aughts 2000-2005. Please note: this list will be revised in January 2010 to reflect the entire decade.
Stweeps #3
More Meryl Streep Tweets. Yay, Sunday filler!
I love the variety of emotions Meryl brings out in people: reverence (wallpaper) awestruck fear (brain eating!), overrated annoyance (poopy), respect (badass)
Meryl Streep @ 600! Hee. It's a retrospective that only Methusaleh could write.
Agnes Moorehead???? No one ever speaks of her but I smile on the rare occasions that people do. If you've never seen The Magnificent Ambersons (1942) you must. I know it's hard to find (every time I search for it I get the blasphemous remake) but Moorehead gives one of the best performances of all time -- it's more than worth seeking out.
frannylovesfigs was right. It looks like Meryl really is on the cover of is Mastering the Art of French Cooking but please tell me that's a removal paper wrap? I love Meryl but if that's an actual cover that's so wrong. Julia Child... RESPECT.
Tomorrow (June 22nd) is Meryl's actual 60th birthday. We'll have a celebratory post and video and then a couple days break from Streep -- there's current cinema to discuss -- before we wrap up Meryl Month (June 11th ~ July 10th). I got off to a late start, so we're extending through July 10th.
I love the variety of emotions Meryl brings out in people: reverence (wallpaper) awestruck fear (brain eating!), overrated annoyance (poopy), respect (badass)
Meryl Streep @ 600! Hee. It's a retrospective that only Methusaleh could write.
Agnes Moorehead???? No one ever speaks of her but I smile on the rare occasions that people do. If you've never seen The Magnificent Ambersons (1942) you must. I know it's hard to find (every time I search for it I get the blasphemous remake) but Moorehead gives one of the best performances of all time -- it's more than worth seeking out.
frannylovesfigs was right. It looks like Meryl really is on the cover of is Mastering the Art of French Cooking but please tell me that's a removal paper wrap? I love Meryl but if that's an actual cover that's so wrong. Julia Child... RESPECT.Tomorrow (June 22nd) is Meryl's actual 60th birthday. We'll have a celebratory post and video and then a couple days break from Streep -- there's current cinema to discuss -- before we wrap up Meryl Month (June 11th ~ July 10th). I got off to a late start, so we're extending through July 10th.
Which movie...
...reminds you most of your dad?Also, do you know what your father's favorite movie is? My dad isn't much for movies (weird, right?) but maybe yours is. If you get your movie passion from a film buff dad, do brag in the comments!
Happy Father's Day!
Saturday, June 20, 2009
Streep Noms #4-5 and Oscar Trivia
Streep at 60: More movie discussions to follow but today we're discussing Oscar competitive fields again
(the winner links take you to their acceptance speech)
The Best Actress races of 1982 and 1983 hold special meaning for me as they were my inaugural Oscar years. On April 11th of 1983 I saw my first Oscar ceremony. My only point of reference for the glitzy tradition was that my parents and my older siblings didn't like it -- something about Star Wars being way better than Woody Allen??? --and even though my parents didn't take me to that many movies, I had somehow seen and liked 3 of the 5 Best Picture nominees (Gandhi and the two blockbusters Tootsie & E.T.) For the first two years of my Oscar watching I saw a total of ZERO Best Actress nominees. My how life has changed.
1982...
Streep Stats: With this win Meryl became the 4th actress to win an Oscar for a Nazi/Holocaust related drama. It didn't happen again until Winslet won this past February for The Reader. Meryl was not, at 33 then, the youngest actress to win a second Oscar. Luise Rainer still holds that title winning her second Oscar in 1938 when she was only 28. Even Jodie Foster couldn't top that (her Silence of the Lambs win came at 29 years of age).
1983...
Streep Stats: Despite being only 34 years old when her 5th nomination rolled around, Meryl doesn't hold the record for fastest to get there: Bette Davis held the record for 65 years (accomplishing it by the age of 33) until Kate Winslet took over earning her fifth nomination (Little Children) at 31. I'm guessing that record holds for as long as Bette's did.
Give or take Norma Shearer who is either tied for 3rd place or in 5th
place depending on how you count her nominations
What are your ideal Oscar shortlists / wins in 1982 and 1983?
If you haven't seen very many early 80s movies, which are you most eager to finally get to?
(the winner links take you to their acceptance speech)
The Best Actress races of 1982 and 1983 hold special meaning for me as they were my inaugural Oscar years. On April 11th of 1983 I saw my first Oscar ceremony. My only point of reference for the glitzy tradition was that my parents and my older siblings didn't like it -- something about Star Wars being way better than Woody Allen??? --and even though my parents didn't take me to that many movies, I had somehow seen and liked 3 of the 5 Best Picture nominees (Gandhi and the two blockbusters Tootsie & E.T.) For the first two years of my Oscar watching I saw a total of ZERO Best Actress nominees. My how life has changed.
1982...
- Julie Andrews, Victor/Victoria -this is the one I desperately wanted to see, being in love with both Mary Poppins and Maria Von Trapp. My parents refused to take me, muttering something about Julie Andrews appearing in a porno ... I was very confused.
- Jessica Lange, Frances
- Sissy Spacek, Missing
- Meryl Streep, Sophie's Choice
- Debra Winger, An Officer and a Gentleman
Streep Stats: With this win Meryl became the 4th actress to win an Oscar for a Nazi/Holocaust related drama. It didn't happen again until Winslet won this past February for The Reader. Meryl was not, at 33 then, the youngest actress to win a second Oscar. Luise Rainer still holds that title winning her second Oscar in 1938 when she was only 28. Even Jodie Foster couldn't top that (her Silence of the Lambs win came at 29 years of age).
1983...
- Jane Alexander, Testament
- Shirley Maclaine, Terms of Endearment
- Meryl Streep, Silkwood
- Julie Walters, Educating Rita
- Debra Winger, Terms of Endearment
Streep Stats: Despite being only 34 years old when her 5th nomination rolled around, Meryl doesn't hold the record for fastest to get there: Bette Davis held the record for 65 years (accomplishing it by the age of 33) until Kate Winslet took over earning her fifth nomination (Little Children) at 31. I'm guessing that record holds for as long as Bette's did.
Give or take Norma Shearer who is either tied for 3rd place or in 5thplace depending on how you count her nominations
What are your ideal Oscar shortlists / wins in 1982 and 1983?
If you haven't seen very many early 80s movies, which are you most eager to finally get to?
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