Taking into consideration that "overrated" is overrated. ;) I tried not to rank them in order of how good they were, but rather in order of how overrated they were. Also, yes, I kept it to one Cate Blanchett and one Johnny Depp performance each. ;)
15. Salma Hayek - Frida
I just read in, I think, Glamour magazine, where they were talking about Frida, and they said, of course, "Salma becomes Frida." GOD, I AM SO TIRED OF THIS. Makeup makes a lot of these biopic performances what they are. Salma seems all "oh my God I am in a prestige picture and I need to ACT!!!" throughout the whole movie, and thus loses all the joy and vitality she could possibly have. Not totally overrated because she almost never wins in 2002 due to the combination of The Hours ladies and Julianne Moore. But even a nomination is very very undeserved.
14. Leonardo DiCaprio - The Aviator
Not at all a bad performance. In fact, it's pretty good. But when I hear people calling this the greatest male performance of the new millennium, or even of all time, I do cringe a little. The performance doesn't seem to have a lot of sublety, though Leo has absolutely explosive screen presence and is absolutely natural. Like I said, it's good, it's just drastically overrated. He didn't deserve his nomination... but then again, very few of his fellow nominees did (2004 was such a terrific year for movies, and such a terrible year for the Oscars...).
13. Sean Penn - I Am Sam
Awful. Just awful. Hammy and horrendous and without a note of sublety. He doesn't even look interested to be there. This would be higher, but there are definitely those that agree with me.
12. Adrien Brody - The Pianist
I'm a really big lover of sublety and naturalism, as has probably become clear from this entry where I say "sublety" about 204860486 times. But Adrien was just too subtle. He was boring, and is one of few actors I would say just can't hold a movie in lead. I'm a huge sap and cry over everything (Crash or a movie that can be better-compared to this one, Schindler's List, pretty much destroyed me the first time I saw it), but I hardly cared about this guy.
11. Joan Allen - The Upside of Anger
Should probably be higher on this list. Wow, she was terrible. Like, Razzie-worthy. I thought she was just a horrible shrieking harpy that could not possibly be mistaken for any actual living human being. I didn't find her funny. Her attempts at being sexy are just laughable and bring her performance down even more (and no, I'm not being one of those "OMG WOMEN OVER 40 SHOULD NOT BE PLAYING SEXY" people. She was just laughable at it. Honestly, Helen Mirren was sexier in The Queen. Okay, that's an exaggeration. But still.). I hated every minute of this movie and her performance and I don't understand why people liked it.
10. Emily Blunt - The Devil Wears Prada
I know, frequent readers of this blog (if there are any of you........) are probably shocked! shocked! that she is not #1. But there are performances that are way worse that are way more praised, so I'm not going to overstate my case. Emily was fine. However, she was in no way award-worthy or even close to award-worthy. She was pretty funny, which is nothing a million other actors and actresses haven't done in the past, and she stole scenes from Anne Hathaway, which is really not hard. Her character was badly written and I think she made more of it than was on the page, but I never felt sympathy for her, like I did with Meryl Streep's. Most importantly, I never felt like she was an actual human being, unlike, again, Meryl Streep. She was just a quip machine.
9. Rinko Kikuchi - Babel
I really hate to oversimplify performances like this, but: she showed her vagina a lot and made weird faces. She didn't ever express her pain to me. She has one brilliant second in the club where she sees the guy she likes kissing another girl and her face just falls, but it's literally a second. The rest of her performance is terrible and desperate for attention.
8. Felicity Huffman - Transamerica
Another "wow, terrible, how could anyone like this?" performance. SO HAMMY AND UNREAL AND ACTING!!!!!!. I can't stand Desperate Housewives, but from the little of it I saw, Felicity was just great there. I still find her likeable, but I don't know why she's so terrible in movies. I'm so thrilled Reese got that Oscar!
7. Julianne Moore - The Hours
All the ladies in The Hours are fairly overrated. None of them even deserved a nomination (except for, oddly enough, Toni Collette), and it's nowhere near the best work of any of their careers. But seeing as Julianne Moore was the worst of the three by far, I included her here. It's not a horrible performance; she definitely makes you feel something. But that's probably just her role and all the crying and menstruation (;) I like The Hours, I do) it involves. Moore is always stylized, sometimes a little too much for me. This is one of those times. Her performance just seems like a bunch of weepy scenes with little connective tissue.
6. Joaquin Phoenix - Gladiator
Bad. Hammy. Prancy. Yuck.
5. Naomi Watts - 21 Grams
This is partially her awful movie's fault. By fucking with the time so much, it eliminated any possibility of a real "thread" going through her performance. So...it comes off as a lot of screaming and howling and histrionics, which I despise. It's like she took that breakdown part in Mulholland Dr. and just acted that the whole movie, and it is way too much. Terrible, terrible, terrible. But at least some people agree with me.
4. Cate Blanchett - The Aviator
From the first time I saw this film, I've never seen what anyone else saw in her. I didn't think she was magical or that she lit up the screen at all. What I saw was a well-accented but emotionally dead and somehow creepy performance. Worst of all, I can always, always see the wheels turning when I watch Cate here, something you never saw with Katharine Hepburn. I think that is the biggest insult to Kate of all.
3. Johnny Depp - Pirates of the Caribbean
I'm pretty surprised this isn't #1 myself. But yeah, what can I say, I am running out of steam. I didn't think he was funny, and I didn't think he created any sort of real character. We don't know who Captain Jack is, despite all the hoopla about him. And that's a real crime, and it's purely Johnny's fault. Awful. With stuff like Ed Wood, it's pretty gross that this is what finally got him attention.
2. Marion Cotillard - La vie en rose
My hatred for this film and performance is still so fresh in my mind. She's in the Naomi Watts camp - any way her performance could have been good was destroyed by the filmmakers, making it look like all she does is scream and howl and overemote. She's way worse than Naomi, though. Marion creates a thing of nightmares and does an incredible disservice to Edith Piaf by not playing her, but by creating an empty shell of hysterics and makeup. Just terrible.
1. Jennifer Connelly - A Beautiful Mind
Jennifer Connelly's performance in Requiem for a Dream is the second best performance of the 2000s. Until 2007, it was THE best. Unfortunately, her performance in A Beautiful Mind is one of the worst. Period. She's got my Razzie for it. She literally does nothing. She doesn't play it quiet and bring emotion and sublety and make you feel for her, but I don't really think sublety is Connelly's thing. That's fine. She's not terrifically subtle in Requiem for a Dream and that performance is fucking amazing. And yet, here, she doesn't go over-the-top, yet explode with fire and passion and light up the screen. She just looks bored the entire running time, like she knew she was going to get an Oscar for playing the supportive girlfriend/wife in a prestige movie made to appeal directly to AMPAS. Actors that are natural get a ton of credit for me, and actors that look like they'd rather be doing anything else get major shit points from me. This, my friend, is where shit points might as well originate. Yuck. 7 years later, I'm still complaining about her Oscar win over 4 great performances.
Also overrated (not in any particular order other than the one I remember them in): Bjork - Dancer in the Dark (duh. I just thought of this. I don't feel like writing up a new writeup, but suffice it to say she would be really high.), Cate Blanchett - Notes on a Scandal (would be on the list if not for the "one Cate Blanchett performance" rule), Johnny Depp - Sweeney Todd, Helena Bonham Carter - Sweeney Todd, Audrey Tautou - Amelie, Amy Adams - Junebug (sorry, Jesus), Kate Hudson - Almost Famous, Cate Blanchett - Elizabeth: The Golden Age (a lot of critics loved her), Patricia Clarkson - Dogville, Patricia Clarkson - Far from Heaven, Patricia Clarkson - Pieces of April (Clarkson is soooo notttt the "supporting actress godsend" that most portray her as. She's usually good, but not award-worthy.), Ryan Gosling - Lars and the Real Girl, James McAvoy - Last King of Scotland, Annette Bening - Being Julia (this would be on the list, except nobody online seems to like her here thank God), Judi Dench - Iris (people saying she was better than Julie at the whole Alzheimer's thing makes me crack the shit up), Diane Keaton - Something's Gotta Give, Jim Broadbent - Iris, Matt Dillon - Crash, Thomas Haden Church - Sideways, Jackie Earle Haley - Little Children, Natalie Portman - Closer, Shohreh Aghdashloo - House of Sand and Fog, Thora Birch - Ghost World, Gael Garcia Bernal - kind of everything, Ed Harris - The Hours, Adam Sandler - Punch-Drunk Love, Naomi Watts - King Kong, Ziyi Zhang - Memoirs of a Geisha (this one's not so loved on the internet, though, thank God), Eva Green - The Dreamers, Ellen Page - Hard Candy
Yeah, they're great to spectacular, but calm down people: Nicole Kidman - The Hours, Meryl Streep - The Hours, Julianne Moore - Far from Heaven, Imelda Staunton - Vera Drake, Helen Mirren - The Queen, Isabelle Huppert - The Piano Teacher, Joaquin Phoenix - Walk the Line, Philip Seymour Hoffman - Capote, Penelope Cruz - Volver, Gael Garcia Bernal - Bad Education, Kate Winslet - Little Children (not so much now, but when it came out people were FLIPPING OUT!!!!), Ziyi Zhang - 2046, Mark Wahlberg - The Departed, Jack Nicholson - The Departed, Saoirse Ronan - Atonement, Tilda Swinton - Michael Clayton (the way the blogosphere talks about it, you'd think God got an Oscar), Casey Affleck - The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford, Maggie Gyllenhaal - Sherrybaby, Cate Blanchett - Heaven, Parker Posey - Best in Show, Jake Gyllenhaal - Donnie Darko, Daniel Day-Lewis - Gangs of New York, Bruno Ganz - Downfall
And just to get the warm fuzzies out there, here are tons of sadly underrated performances (I don't nominate nearly all of them, and if they all got a ton of attention a bunch of them would probably be pretty overrated, but most of these get almost no attention, which is sad as they are great): Clive Owen - Croupier, Forest Whitaker - Ghost Dog: Way of the Samurai, Cate Blanchett - The Gift, Jeffrey Wright - Shaft, Philip Seymour Hoffman - Almost Famous, Jack Black - High Fidelity, Gary Lewis - Billy Elliot, Samantha Morton - Jesus' Son, Kirsten Dunst - The Virgin Suicides, Goya Toledo - Amores perros, Anthony LaPaglia - Lantana, William H. Macy - Panic, Ray Winstone - Sexy Beast, Brian Cox - L.I.E., Will Ferrell - Zoolander, Kerry Armstrong - Lantana, Uma Thurman - Tape, Tom Cruise - Minority Report, Sam Rockwell - Confessions of a Dangerous Mind, Greg Kinnear - Auto Focus, Samantha Morton - Morvern Callar, Jodie Foster - Panic Room, Catherine Keener - Lovely and Amazing, Maura Tierney - Scotland, PA, Philip Seymour Hoffman - Punch-Drunk Love, Ray Liotta - Narc, Brian Cox - 25th Hour, Edie Falco - Sunshine State, Emily Mortimer - Lovely and Amazing, Bebe Neuwirth - Tadpole, Kathleen McDermott - Morvern Callar, Hayden Christensen - Shattered Glass (never have I seen a great performance so dismissed by the "he can't act!" belief), Kevin Spacey - The Life of David Gale, Chiwetel Ejiofor - Dirty Pretty Things, Robert Downey Jr. - The Singing Detective, Paul Giamatti - American Splendor, Jack Black - School of Rock, Peter Dinklage - The Station Agent, Patty Considine - In America, Zooey Deschanel - All the Real Girls, Sarah Polley - My Life Without Me, Renee Zellweger - Down with Love, Hugh Grant - Love Actually, Laura Linney - The Life of David Gale, Laura Linney - Love Actually, Sean Penn - The Assassination of Richard Nixon, Tobey Maguire - Spider-Man 2, Will Ferrell - Anchorman, Tom Hanks - The Terminal, Laura Linney - P.S..., Abbie Cornish - Somersault, Jennifer Garner - 13 Going on 30, Lindsay Lohan - Mean Girls, Kim Basinger - The Door in the Floor, Reese Witherspoon - Vanity Fair, Laura Dern - We Don't Live Here Anymore, Steve Carell - Anchorman, Liev Schreiber - The Manchurian Candidate, Topher Grace - In Good Company, Kyra Sedgwick - The Woodsman, Lacey Chabert - Mean Girls, Amanda Seyfried - Mean Girls, Marion Cotillard - A Very Long Engagement, Sandra Oh - Sideways, Tony Leung - 2046, Yeong-ae Lee - Sympathy for Lady Vengeance, Embeth Davidtz - Junebug, Lisa Kudrow - Happy Endings, Joan Allen - Yes, Nathalie Press - My Summer of Love, Vince Vaughn - Mr. and Mrs. Smith, Jeffrey Wright - Broken Flowers, Paul Rudd - The 40-Year-Old Virgin, George Clooney - Good Night, and Good Luck., Edward Norton - Kingdom of Heaven, Liam Neeson - Breakfast on Pluto, Maggie Gyllenhaal - Happy Endings, Isla Fisher - Wedding Crashers, Emily Mortimer - Match Point, Patricia Clarkson - The Dying Gaul, Heath Ledger - Candy, Edward Norton - The Painted Veil, William H. Macy - Edmond, Joe Cross - Running with Scissors, Cate Blanchett - The Good German, Melinda Page Hamilton - Sleeping Dogs Lie, Scarlett Johansson - Scoop, Doug Jones - Pan's Labyrinth, Paul Giamatti - The Illusionist, Ian McKellen - The Da Vinci Code, Kevin Spacey - Superman Returns, Woody Allen - Scoop, Jodie Foster - Inside Man, Jessica Biel - The Illusionist, Edie Falco - Freedomland, Jill Clayburgh - Running with Scissors, Blythe Danner - The Last Kiss, Don Cheadle - Talk to Me, Steve Buscemi - Interview, Gabriel Bryne - Jindabyne, Russell Crowe - American Gangster, Michael Shannon - Bug, Sienna Miller - Interview, Belen Rueda - The Orphanage, Dakota Blue Richards - The Golden Compass, Dylan Freasier - There Will Be Blood, Morgan Freeman - Gone Baby Gone, Kerry Washington - I Think I Love My Wife, Martha MacIssac - Superbad. WHEWWWWWWW.
Of course, I am sure there are many I am forgetting. Ah, bitching. You are wonderful.
Friday, March 21, 2008
Thursday, March 20, 2008
Brill.
Why haven't I seen this before? Also, it's amusing how only like 3 of the films in there had any sort of Oscar success (Atonement, Sweeney, No Country), and the rest flopped like all hell (Things We Lost..., Rendition, Lions for Lambs, Reservation Road, Dan in Real Life).
I don't get it.
Okay, I get that I'm supposed to find him really funny. And I do. And I was supposed to howl over that terrible SNL skit. But really, I'm just like "Bitch, I know 57 people that are like this."
WHAT THE HELL!!!
Now Paul Scofield is dead (love him in A Man for All Seasons) and Anderson "Silver Fox, emphasis on the FOX!!! And I can say that because I watched him on The Mole so there!" Cooper has cancer? SERIOUSLY, WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON.
Wednesday, March 19, 2008
amazing post-strike opening!
So I know multiple sources have said that Angela Kinsey's real-life pregnancy isn't going to be addressed on The Office, but I just think it would be incredible if the episode after "Dinner Party" (since that episode is supposed to take place in the time before the strike, and then it reverts back to real time) opens with a shot of a giant pregnant Angela, with a cut to a talking head: "I DON'T WANT TO TALK ABOUT IT." Uptight judgmental Christian bitch? Pregnancy scandal? On The Office? YES PLEASE.
That, or Ryan sitting back at his Scranton desk. Perfect... or maybe this is why I'm not a writer for this show?
That, or Ryan sitting back at his Scranton desk. Perfect... or maybe this is why I'm not a writer for this show?
Just correcting some wrong opinions ;)
Lately, I've noticed that randomly, there is a lot of bashing of Mystic River and a lot of praising of Ghost World going on.
Oh, no.
Oh, no no.
Mystic River is, so far, Clint Eastwood's masterpiece. I think I'm a big sucker for Boston movies, for whatever reason. Maybe because I love the city, that horrendous baseball team aside ;) Eastwood keeps the direction very subtle but effective, which makes the movie not hysterical, histrionic, or overbearing, all of which it could have been. The screenplay is just great, fully developing characters and their arcs while confronting difficult issues. The ensemble cast is one of the best in years and there isn't a false note among the performances. People say "Tim Robbins sucks in that;" how? He reveals layers upon layers of bottled-up emotion. It's an obvious moment, but that vampires and werewolves monologue's a killer. Sean Penn gets a ton of criticism for being "over-the-top"; why? He's a man, proven to be unstable, that just lost his daughter. Of course he's going to scream and cry. Maybe all the film snobs would prefer that he just sort of stoically nod his head, but that wouldn't be natural for the character at all. Kevin Bacon is also simply spectacular, but he's got the smaller and far less showy part than the other two. People say that Laura Linney's character comes "out of nowhere," but I didn't think that was true at all. It's true, her monologue does come at sort of a strange point in the film. But I wasn't at all like "WHO ARE YOU????" when she was doing it, probably because La Linney can do anything. So you've got a really mature film made for adults, with good direction, and a great screenplay and performances. I don't see what everyone's complaining about.
Ghost World, though. Ugh. For me, Ghost World is the movie for which most of the criticism lobbed at Lost in Translation applies - slight, boring, unfunny, so broad everyone simply projects their own feelings onto it, uninterestingly acted by its lead (though Buscemi is awesome and Johansson is quite good, Birch is just like a giant blank of charisma accompanied by bored-looking acting). The characters that Enid makes fun of are ludicrously one-dimensional with nothing that would justify them being such, and Enid herself is preachy and annoying. Like most people, I always feel like the "cool loner" in high school (yes, that part of the sentence was supposed to be paradoxical/ironic because people are dumb - as seen by the fact that they're praising Ghost World) but if that's what I or anyone I know was like in high school, smack me/them in the fuckin' face, please. Having unsympathetic characters isn't a bad thing, usually, but when she's supposed to be at least sort of sympathetic and when the supporting characters are way more sympathetic, it's a flaw. Ghost World is not a good "coming-of-age" movie because Enid doesn't grow at all. Nothing about the movie is exemplary or even interesting enough to necesitate or encourage viewing. For a comedy, there's one funny line ("we graduated high school. how totally amazing."). High school angst was done by Daria much better. And, yes, the ending is tacked-on and terrible.
I hope you have all seen the light now ;)
Oh, no.
Oh, no no.
Mystic River is, so far, Clint Eastwood's masterpiece. I think I'm a big sucker for Boston movies, for whatever reason. Maybe because I love the city, that horrendous baseball team aside ;) Eastwood keeps the direction very subtle but effective, which makes the movie not hysterical, histrionic, or overbearing, all of which it could have been. The screenplay is just great, fully developing characters and their arcs while confronting difficult issues. The ensemble cast is one of the best in years and there isn't a false note among the performances. People say "Tim Robbins sucks in that;" how? He reveals layers upon layers of bottled-up emotion. It's an obvious moment, but that vampires and werewolves monologue's a killer. Sean Penn gets a ton of criticism for being "over-the-top"; why? He's a man, proven to be unstable, that just lost his daughter. Of course he's going to scream and cry. Maybe all the film snobs would prefer that he just sort of stoically nod his head, but that wouldn't be natural for the character at all. Kevin Bacon is also simply spectacular, but he's got the smaller and far less showy part than the other two. People say that Laura Linney's character comes "out of nowhere," but I didn't think that was true at all. It's true, her monologue does come at sort of a strange point in the film. But I wasn't at all like "WHO ARE YOU????" when she was doing it, probably because La Linney can do anything. So you've got a really mature film made for adults, with good direction, and a great screenplay and performances. I don't see what everyone's complaining about.
Ghost World, though. Ugh. For me, Ghost World is the movie for which most of the criticism lobbed at Lost in Translation applies - slight, boring, unfunny, so broad everyone simply projects their own feelings onto it, uninterestingly acted by its lead (though Buscemi is awesome and Johansson is quite good, Birch is just like a giant blank of charisma accompanied by bored-looking acting). The characters that Enid makes fun of are ludicrously one-dimensional with nothing that would justify them being such, and Enid herself is preachy and annoying. Like most people, I always feel like the "cool loner" in high school (yes, that part of the sentence was supposed to be paradoxical/ironic because people are dumb - as seen by the fact that they're praising Ghost World) but if that's what I or anyone I know was like in high school, smack me/them in the fuckin' face, please. Having unsympathetic characters isn't a bad thing, usually, but when she's supposed to be at least sort of sympathetic and when the supporting characters are way more sympathetic, it's a flaw. Ghost World is not a good "coming-of-age" movie because Enid doesn't grow at all. Nothing about the movie is exemplary or even interesting enough to necesitate or encourage viewing. For a comedy, there's one funny line ("we graduated high school. how totally amazing."). High school angst was done by Daria much better. And, yes, the ending is tacked-on and terrible.
I hope you have all seen the light now ;)
I've got a crush on Obama.
No matter what you think of him, you gotta say: damn, that's one great speech.
Tuesday, March 18, 2008
10 Under 30.
Because 30 WAS really hard. My own personal lists. And yes, I know I said some of these (especially the guys) were overrated, but damn, are there any good male actors under 30? I miss you Heath :( He'd probably be #2. Click the names to celebrate the pretty.
Guys
1. Jake Gyllenhaal
2. John Krasinski
3. James McAvoy
4. Topher Grace (it's too bad he sucked as Venom and that's what he'll probably be remembered for.)
5. Haley Joel Osment (not as of late, but damn, The Sixth Sense and A.I.)
6. Ryan Gosling
7. Seth Rogen
8. Michael Cera
9. Joseph Gordon-Levitt
10. Ben Foster
Girls
1. Scarlett Johansson
2. Kirsten Dunst
3. Christina Ricci
4. America Ferrera
5. Sarah Polley
6. Rosario Dawson
7. Katherine Heigl
8. Michelle Williams
9. Zooey Deschanel
10. Bryce Dallas Howard (actually remarkably talented, and not getting by on just connections. Too bad she's in such awful movies...)
Guys
1. Jake Gyllenhaal
2. John Krasinski
3. James McAvoy
4. Topher Grace (it's too bad he sucked as Venom and that's what he'll probably be remembered for.)
5. Haley Joel Osment (not as of late, but damn, The Sixth Sense and A.I.)
6. Ryan Gosling
7. Seth Rogen
8. Michael Cera
9. Joseph Gordon-Levitt
10. Ben Foster
Girls
1. Scarlett Johansson
2. Kirsten Dunst
3. Christina Ricci
4. America Ferrera
5. Sarah Polley
6. Rosario Dawson
7. Katherine Heigl
8. Michelle Williams
9. Zooey Deschanel
10. Bryce Dallas Howard (actually remarkably talented, and not getting by on just connections. Too bad she's in such awful movies...)
This just in: The movie world is FALLING TO SHIT AAAAHHHHH
Anthony Minghella is dead.
Arthur C. Clarke is dead.
Paul Newman has cancer.
Maggie Smith has cancer.
WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON?!?!??!
Arthur C. Clarke is dead.
Paul Newman has cancer.
Maggie Smith has cancer.
WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON?!?!??!
Rest in peace, Anthony Minghella.
Gah. What's with all these young, talented, Oscar-nominated people dying? It's awful. He was one of my favorite directors. Truly Madly Deeply, The English Patient, Cold Mountain, The Talented Mr. Ripley, Breaking and Entering - there's not a bad or even a mediocre film in there.
Rest in peace, Anthony.
Casey Affleck speaks.
"Okay, whatever magazine you are. I'll show you my stomach in this really awkward picture. But don't think I'm gonna smile when I do it. *glower*"
Monday, March 17, 2008
chalk up another interview for "Brown alumni I love"
From The Advocate. Um...do you think people in the store would look at me weirdly if I bought that? But seriously. Could that boy be more charming or sweet?
Another sort of interview with La Linney.
From Parade Magazine.
Though...
"Why You Know Her
She gave stunning performances in Primal Fear (1996), You Can Count on Me (2000) and Kinsey (2004)."
And The Truman Show. And House of Mirth. And Wild Iris. And Mystic River. And The Life of David Gale. And Love Actually. And P.S. And The Squid and the Whale. And Jindabyne. And Breach. And The Savages. She looks really pretty in the pictures, too. I don't know why people call her a "plain Jane" actress. She just plays characters that are normal, and not supermodels, but not remotely hideous. I think she's way prettier than, say, Cate Blanchett, or Nicole Kidman (the way she's been looking lately, not around her 2001 Moulin Rouge! days, in which she was a goddess I would perhaps have given my soul to look like)
Though...
"Why You Know Her
She gave stunning performances in Primal Fear (1996), You Can Count on Me (2000) and Kinsey (2004)."
And The Truman Show. And House of Mirth. And Wild Iris. And Mystic River. And The Life of David Gale. And Love Actually. And P.S. And The Squid and the Whale. And Jindabyne. And Breach. And The Savages. She looks really pretty in the pictures, too. I don't know why people call her a "plain Jane" actress. She just plays characters that are normal, and not supermodels, but not remotely hideous. I think she's way prettier than, say, Cate Blanchett, or Nicole Kidman (the way she's been looking lately, not around her 2001 Moulin Rouge! days, in which she was a goddess I would perhaps have given my soul to look like)
Sunday, March 16, 2008
An Interview with Miss Laura Linney.
From The New York Times magazine. It's here.
As multiple people have pointed out before, that reviewer is dumb. "WHERE R TEH BOOBIES??? IZ DIS GUNNA GET MORE INTERESTING???? UR NOT AS PERTTYY AS MAREEN COLLITARD!!!!"
And then there's this quote: "Q: What do you think of Marion Cotillard, who just won best actress for her performance as Edith Piaf? A: Of the five of us, that performance was on a whole other level. It just was."
Oh, Laura, honey. When you run to the grocery store to buy some milk and you don't change out of your sweatpants, that's a better performance than Marion Cotillard's in La vie en rose. Laura, please don't slap on seventeen pounds of makeup and play some histrionic real person in a ridiculous performance to get an Oscar. Please?
Also: "There are as many bad independent films as there are bad commercial films." THANK YOU. THIS IS WHY I LOVE YOU. That, and you're a really fucking great actress.
As multiple people have pointed out before, that reviewer is dumb. "WHERE R TEH BOOBIES??? IZ DIS GUNNA GET MORE INTERESTING???? UR NOT AS PERTTYY AS MAREEN COLLITARD!!!!"
And then there's this quote: "Q: What do you think of Marion Cotillard, who just won best actress for her performance as Edith Piaf? A: Of the five of us, that performance was on a whole other level. It just was."
Oh, Laura, honey. When you run to the grocery store to buy some milk and you don't change out of your sweatpants, that's a better performance than Marion Cotillard's in La vie en rose. Laura, please don't slap on seventeen pounds of makeup and play some histrionic real person in a ridiculous performance to get an Oscar. Please?
Also: "There are as many bad independent films as there are bad commercial films." THANK YOU. THIS IS WHY I LOVE YOU. That, and you're a really fucking great actress.
Saturday, March 15, 2008
30 Under 30: The Gentlemen.
Link here. Like I said, in general I'm a lot less opinionated about the under-30 guys than the under-30 girls, so whatev. Though, of course, there are some actors that I'm foaming at the mouth are on here over my brilliant JKras (if they could fill the women's list with TV actresses, why not this one?) and, like, say, Topher Grace. And yes, it's true - we really lost something very special with Heath Ledger.
Michael Cera - He's totally cute and endearing, and I really liked him in Juno, Superbad, and what I've seen of Arrested Development. But what kind of order are these lists in? They're not in age or alphabetical order. Are they in numerical order? There's no way he should be #1. He really needs to stretch himself, and quick. Nick and Nora's Infinite Playlist definitely doesn't look like a film that's going to do that...
Elijah Wood - I've never liked him in anything, not even Eternal Sunshine. Unworthy. And good lord, does he creep me out (and this was before Sin City, thanks).
Chris Evans - Super ridiculously hot? YES. Great or even good actor? NO. Though I guess the fact that he's going to be in The Loss of a Teardrop Diamond is pretty promising.
Channing Tatum - See above.
Paul Dano - He was so great in There Will Be Blood, but so shitty in Little Miss Sunshine. He was good in L.I.E., but I don't remember him from anything else. I'm still trying to make up my mind on him, but There Will Be Blood is a tremendous step forward.
Joseph Gordon Levitt - He's fine. He was quite great in Mysterious Skin and good in Brick, but he doesn't excite me at all. But he is young. He definitely shows promise.
Gael Garcia Bernal - Ugh. Am I the only one that doesn't like him at all? Look at the picture Entertainment Weekly has of him, he looks so friggin' smug and gross. He was great in Bad Education but I can't see his hype otherwise at all - not in Amores perros, not in Y tu mama tambien, not in The Crime of Father Amaro, not in The Motorcycle Diaries, not in The King, not in The Science of Sleep, not in Babel. He's okay in each, but far from great and not anywhere near award-worthy. One of the most overrated working actors today. Oh, and he's ugly. Just had to say it.
Jake Gyllenhaal - Yes, I do think he's overrated at times simply because he's so fucking hot, but that doesn't mean he's not extremely talented. Between Brokeback Mountain, Donnie Darko (he's the only reason to see that mess of a movie), Zodiac, and Jarhead, he's already given four fantastic performances in not terribly many movies, and shown tremendous range. In my mind, he should quite blatantly be #1 on this list. I mean, Michael Cera over him? Just because Cera happens to be the flavor of the moment? Come on. Channing Tatum? CHRIS EVANS? No.
Michael Pitt - I CAN'T STAND HIM. I thought he was so terrible in The Dreamers and Last Days. I don't remember him from his other movies. Though, it must be said that he looks terrifying and fantastic in Funny Games, but quite frankly I'm not planning on seeing that movie until it's out on DVD at least. I have my...major problems with the original. I don't feel the need to revisit that movie. And oh lord, his IMDb picture is funny.
Taylor Kitsch - I don't watch Friday Night Lights, so I have nothing to say about him. Judging from Entertainment Weekly's picture, though, he really needs to cut his hair.
Hayden Christensen - I'm the only one that still likes him, if only because of one performance: Shattered Glass. Dear lord, he is GREAT in that. In fact, I will not see Jumper because I don't want it to destroy my memories of that. I'm the only one still waving the flag of "Hayden Christensen can totally act, no really he can!" Though, yes, he is terrrrrrrible in the Star Wars movies.
Jesse Eisenberg - I only saw him in The Squid and the Whale (and The Village, where I don't remember him), where he was great. He needs to do more work, obviously, but he certainly shows potential.
Jason Schwartzman - He kind of sucks. I really liked him in Rushmore, but that's the last time I did. I Heart Huckabees, Shopgirl, Marie-Antoinette - all awful performances. His performance in The Darjeeling Limited isn't awful, but it isn't any good either and he gets outdone by Brody and Wilson, neither of whom are very good actors. Recently, I gotta say he did crack me up in Walk Hard. But I still don't like him as an actor at all.
Lee Pace - I haven't seen Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day yet and I don't watch Pushing Daisies (I totally should, what with RAUL ESPARZA!!!! being on it apparently, but I don't), so I can't comment on him. Yeah, he's pretty hot, though...
Jim Sturgess - He was fine if not great or award-worthy in any way in Across the Universe and The Other Boleyn Girl. I like how he's being marketed as a "name" for 21; does anyone know who he is besides us weird movie people?
Ben Foster - Yes, like everyone else, he creeps me out. But he appears to be having fun in his roles, and not trying excessively hard (I mean that in a good way!). I want to see what he does next.
Emile Hirsch - Well, I really liked him in Into the Wild, and I was pretty sad he didn't get that Oscar nod. I guess I like him, but I haven't seen him in anything else.
James McAvoy - He's quite overrated, yeah, but he's certainly one of the most talented on this list. He's just the Ryan Gosling of 2007 (as in, "OH MY GOD. HE IS THE MOST AMAZING ACTOR EVER. AND HE IS SOOOOO HOT.")...but Ryan Gosling was the James McAvoy of post-Oscar-nominations 2006, so I suppose that's fitting (let me explain. So everyone freaked out over McAvoy in Last King of Scotland, in a performance that's not much more than "well, he is pretty good, but damn Forest Whitaker takes this movie right out from under him."I actually read some blog that said "James is better than Forest in Last King of Scotland because he is better-looking." Honest to blog. HAHA I MADE A FUNNY JOKE or not. Then, when Ryan Gosling got the Oscar nomination, everyone started being like OH MY GOD I LOVE RYAN GOSLING HE IS SOOOO HOT DID YOU SEE The Believer? ME NEITHER BUT I BET HE IS AMAZING IN IT.)
Jamie Bell - He has Billy Elliot and then...nothing. He needs to do more before I declare him a great actor.
Seth Rogen - I actually like him a lot. I think he's really funny. And I'm gonna admit something embarassing here... he's really cute. I know! I am supposed to think he's a schlub! But I just think he's really cute. Dammit! Look at that Entertainment Weekly picture of him, he's adorable.
Jonah Hill - Wow, he's only a year younger than Seth Rogen? I thought he was like 16. Anyway, I really don't like him. Like I've said multiple times, I think Jonah Hill is who you get when you can't get Seth Rogen or to play backup to Seth Rogen when Seth Rogen is playing lead because he's wayyyy more talented. He's annoying and abrasive and never very funny.
Zachary Levi - Don't watch Chuck (which I always confuse with Dexter. Doesn't Dexter sound like a name for a guy that would download spy secrets, and Chuck sound like a serial killer?). Gosh, he's cute, though...
Ryan Gosling - Haha (considering what I wrote about him with McAvoy). Though, yeah, I do think he is overrated overall, he was stunning in Half Nelson and has my personal Oscar for it. He's never stood out in anything else, though, and I thought he was bad in Fracture (to be fair, his role consisted of pointing finger guns at people and going "heeeeyyy!" in the first half and looking all mopey in the second) and especially in Lars and the Real Girl (I'm thrilled he didn't get the Oscar nomination, as it would have been a mockery of his work the year before). He's definitely amazing in Half Nelson, however. That one performance alone makes him way more worthy than most guys on this list. And yes, look how cute.
Shia LaBeouf - I do think he has a great screen presence and he was way better than Disturbia or Transformers deserved. But he's no great actor (yet, anyway). And his hype last summer was a little strangling.
Justin Long - GROSS. NO. Is there anyone that actually likes Justin Long? Except for like Drew Barrymore.
Zac Efron - Wellllll... I really liked him in Hairspray. And I like that he's trying to get away from the world of High School Musical. But he's just soooo bad in High School Musical, both of them. And yeah, he's majorly overexposed. He's pretty cute, though, I've gotta say, when he's not wearing like 75 pounds of makeup. Like, when I saw Hairspray, I was like "OH MY GOD I'M ATTRACTED TO HIM. WHAT AM I SUPPOSED TO DOOOOO???"
Chris Pine - I don't remember him from Smokin' Aces. So...I guess he's gonna be in Star Trek. Yay?
Justin Timberlake - I think Justin is actually a surprisingly good actor. I loved him in Smokin' Aces and really liked him in Southland Tales. I've never seen him be awful. But he better not dare give up his music career. And I don't think The Love Guru is the way to go. IMDb has some great pictures sometimes...
Daniel Radcliffe - As the Harry Potter movies go on, he definitely gets better and better. I think Equus was simply a fantastic choice to make, and based on what I've heard about his performance in it, he deserved all the hype he got. He's definitely a "shows promise" person. Though, yes, I don't see why all these girls think he's hot.
Elijah Kelly - Well, I really liked him in Hairspray, but has he even been in anything else...?
Oh, JKras. You were so robbed. Quite frankly, I wouldn't mind seeing him take the place of most of these other guys... also, geez, when they do these lists, you start to realize how few really talented actors and actresses under 30 there are. It's a shame, but I understand if actors and actresses want to spend time cultivating their talents. Still, when lists like this have to rely on, like, Miley Cyrus and Justin Long...
Michael Cera - He's totally cute and endearing, and I really liked him in Juno, Superbad, and what I've seen of Arrested Development. But what kind of order are these lists in? They're not in age or alphabetical order. Are they in numerical order? There's no way he should be #1. He really needs to stretch himself, and quick. Nick and Nora's Infinite Playlist definitely doesn't look like a film that's going to do that...
Elijah Wood - I've never liked him in anything, not even Eternal Sunshine. Unworthy. And good lord, does he creep me out (and this was before Sin City, thanks).
Chris Evans - Super ridiculously hot? YES. Great or even good actor? NO. Though I guess the fact that he's going to be in The Loss of a Teardrop Diamond is pretty promising.
Channing Tatum - See above.
Paul Dano - He was so great in There Will Be Blood, but so shitty in Little Miss Sunshine. He was good in L.I.E., but I don't remember him from anything else. I'm still trying to make up my mind on him, but There Will Be Blood is a tremendous step forward.
Joseph Gordon Levitt - He's fine. He was quite great in Mysterious Skin and good in Brick, but he doesn't excite me at all. But he is young. He definitely shows promise.
Gael Garcia Bernal - Ugh. Am I the only one that doesn't like him at all? Look at the picture Entertainment Weekly has of him, he looks so friggin' smug and gross. He was great in Bad Education but I can't see his hype otherwise at all - not in Amores perros, not in Y tu mama tambien, not in The Crime of Father Amaro, not in The Motorcycle Diaries, not in The King, not in The Science of Sleep, not in Babel. He's okay in each, but far from great and not anywhere near award-worthy. One of the most overrated working actors today. Oh, and he's ugly. Just had to say it.
Jake Gyllenhaal - Yes, I do think he's overrated at times simply because he's so fucking hot, but that doesn't mean he's not extremely talented. Between Brokeback Mountain, Donnie Darko (he's the only reason to see that mess of a movie), Zodiac, and Jarhead, he's already given four fantastic performances in not terribly many movies, and shown tremendous range. In my mind, he should quite blatantly be #1 on this list. I mean, Michael Cera over him? Just because Cera happens to be the flavor of the moment? Come on. Channing Tatum? CHRIS EVANS? No.
Michael Pitt - I CAN'T STAND HIM. I thought he was so terrible in The Dreamers and Last Days. I don't remember him from his other movies. Though, it must be said that he looks terrifying and fantastic in Funny Games, but quite frankly I'm not planning on seeing that movie until it's out on DVD at least. I have my...major problems with the original. I don't feel the need to revisit that movie. And oh lord, his IMDb picture is funny.
Taylor Kitsch - I don't watch Friday Night Lights, so I have nothing to say about him. Judging from Entertainment Weekly's picture, though, he really needs to cut his hair.
Hayden Christensen - I'm the only one that still likes him, if only because of one performance: Shattered Glass. Dear lord, he is GREAT in that. In fact, I will not see Jumper because I don't want it to destroy my memories of that. I'm the only one still waving the flag of "Hayden Christensen can totally act, no really he can!" Though, yes, he is terrrrrrrible in the Star Wars movies.
Jesse Eisenberg - I only saw him in The Squid and the Whale (and The Village, where I don't remember him), where he was great. He needs to do more work, obviously, but he certainly shows potential.
Jason Schwartzman - He kind of sucks. I really liked him in Rushmore, but that's the last time I did. I Heart Huckabees, Shopgirl, Marie-Antoinette - all awful performances. His performance in The Darjeeling Limited isn't awful, but it isn't any good either and he gets outdone by Brody and Wilson, neither of whom are very good actors. Recently, I gotta say he did crack me up in Walk Hard. But I still don't like him as an actor at all.
Lee Pace - I haven't seen Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day yet and I don't watch Pushing Daisies (I totally should, what with RAUL ESPARZA!!!! being on it apparently, but I don't), so I can't comment on him. Yeah, he's pretty hot, though...
Jim Sturgess - He was fine if not great or award-worthy in any way in Across the Universe and The Other Boleyn Girl. I like how he's being marketed as a "name" for 21; does anyone know who he is besides us weird movie people?
Ben Foster - Yes, like everyone else, he creeps me out. But he appears to be having fun in his roles, and not trying excessively hard (I mean that in a good way!). I want to see what he does next.
Emile Hirsch - Well, I really liked him in Into the Wild, and I was pretty sad he didn't get that Oscar nod. I guess I like him, but I haven't seen him in anything else.
James McAvoy - He's quite overrated, yeah, but he's certainly one of the most talented on this list. He's just the Ryan Gosling of 2007 (as in, "OH MY GOD. HE IS THE MOST AMAZING ACTOR EVER. AND HE IS SOOOOO HOT.")...but Ryan Gosling was the James McAvoy of post-Oscar-nominations 2006, so I suppose that's fitting (let me explain. So everyone freaked out over McAvoy in Last King of Scotland, in a performance that's not much more than "well, he is pretty good, but damn Forest Whitaker takes this movie right out from under him."I actually read some blog that said "James is better than Forest in Last King of Scotland because he is better-looking." Honest to blog. HAHA I MADE A FUNNY JOKE or not. Then, when Ryan Gosling got the Oscar nomination, everyone started being like OH MY GOD I LOVE RYAN GOSLING HE IS SOOOO HOT DID YOU SEE The Believer? ME NEITHER BUT I BET HE IS AMAZING IN IT.)
Jamie Bell - He has Billy Elliot and then...nothing. He needs to do more before I declare him a great actor.
Seth Rogen - I actually like him a lot. I think he's really funny. And I'm gonna admit something embarassing here... he's really cute. I know! I am supposed to think he's a schlub! But I just think he's really cute. Dammit! Look at that Entertainment Weekly picture of him, he's adorable.
Jonah Hill - Wow, he's only a year younger than Seth Rogen? I thought he was like 16. Anyway, I really don't like him. Like I've said multiple times, I think Jonah Hill is who you get when you can't get Seth Rogen or to play backup to Seth Rogen when Seth Rogen is playing lead because he's wayyyy more talented. He's annoying and abrasive and never very funny.
Zachary Levi - Don't watch Chuck (which I always confuse with Dexter. Doesn't Dexter sound like a name for a guy that would download spy secrets, and Chuck sound like a serial killer?). Gosh, he's cute, though...
Ryan Gosling - Haha (considering what I wrote about him with McAvoy). Though, yeah, I do think he is overrated overall, he was stunning in Half Nelson and has my personal Oscar for it. He's never stood out in anything else, though, and I thought he was bad in Fracture (to be fair, his role consisted of pointing finger guns at people and going "heeeeyyy!" in the first half and looking all mopey in the second) and especially in Lars and the Real Girl (I'm thrilled he didn't get the Oscar nomination, as it would have been a mockery of his work the year before). He's definitely amazing in Half Nelson, however. That one performance alone makes him way more worthy than most guys on this list. And yes, look how cute.
Shia LaBeouf - I do think he has a great screen presence and he was way better than Disturbia or Transformers deserved. But he's no great actor (yet, anyway). And his hype last summer was a little strangling.
Justin Long - GROSS. NO. Is there anyone that actually likes Justin Long? Except for like Drew Barrymore.
Zac Efron - Wellllll... I really liked him in Hairspray. And I like that he's trying to get away from the world of High School Musical. But he's just soooo bad in High School Musical, both of them. And yeah, he's majorly overexposed. He's pretty cute, though, I've gotta say, when he's not wearing like 75 pounds of makeup. Like, when I saw Hairspray, I was like "OH MY GOD I'M ATTRACTED TO HIM. WHAT AM I SUPPOSED TO DOOOOO???"
Chris Pine - I don't remember him from Smokin' Aces. So...I guess he's gonna be in Star Trek. Yay?
Justin Timberlake - I think Justin is actually a surprisingly good actor. I loved him in Smokin' Aces and really liked him in Southland Tales. I've never seen him be awful. But he better not dare give up his music career. And I don't think The Love Guru is the way to go. IMDb has some great pictures sometimes...
Daniel Radcliffe - As the Harry Potter movies go on, he definitely gets better and better. I think Equus was simply a fantastic choice to make, and based on what I've heard about his performance in it, he deserved all the hype he got. He's definitely a "shows promise" person. Though, yes, I don't see why all these girls think he's hot.
Elijah Kelly - Well, I really liked him in Hairspray, but has he even been in anything else...?
Oh, JKras. You were so robbed. Quite frankly, I wouldn't mind seeing him take the place of most of these other guys... also, geez, when they do these lists, you start to realize how few really talented actors and actresses under 30 there are. It's a shame, but I understand if actors and actresses want to spend time cultivating their talents. Still, when lists like this have to rely on, like, Miley Cyrus and Justin Long...
It's Michael Scott's birthday.
Fun fact! He shares his birthday with Eva Longoria. So he has a perfect ice-breaker if he ever meets Teri Hatcher.
30 Under 30: The Women.
Link here. From Entertainment Weekly. Seeing as I tend to be more opinionated on actresses in their 20s and teens than actors in their 20s and teens (it's probably some psychological thing as I am 20sish myself), I figured I'd talk about the girls first. The guys are...whenever I get to it.
Scarlett Johansson - I know I'm the only one left on Earth (besides those attracted to women) that still loves her. But dammit, I do. Some actresses that are undoubtedly better overall have given great great performances (think Naomi Watts in Mulholland Dr., one of very few performances from this millennium that are better than Scarlett's in Lost in Translation), but I don't feel any sort of personal connection to them. I don't feel the need to defend them when they get insulted. To Scarlett, I just...do. I don't know why. Maybe it's because I love Lost in Translation so very much that I just can't help loving its stars too. She's undoubtedly made some bad career choices (The Island - oh, Scarlett, what were you thinking?), and she's often miscast (she's better in quieter roles, which is why she's so good as Charlotte, Griet, and Mary Boleyn. Her voice is obviously fantastic, but it can often sound like she's terribly bored, which is why she isn't as great in "talky" roles... I liked her in Scoop, but I can see why one couldn't...), but I'm not even going to backhandedly compliment her and say "I see a lot of potential." Lately, I despair for the way she's got caught in the hype machine, but when you're not even 20 and you give the performance you gave in Lost in Translation, you're it.
Natalie Portman - I find her unbelievably endearing, and she's so stunningly gorgeous. I just wish she were more consistent. She has both really crazy over-vocal fanboys and really crazy over-vocal detractors, and I can see where they both came from. For an example, take her Oscar nomination for Closer. She gives shattering, brilliant work in some scenes - the strip club, at Anna's art show - and she's completely lost in others - both break-up scenes with Dan were pretty terrible. She was so fantastic when she was younger in both Leon and Beautiful Girls, but those led to... the Star Wars movies. Yiiiikes. And then, just when we'd all probably given up on her in 2003 came Cold Mountain, for which she just...breaks your heart into a million pieces, absolutely. She's probably in the film for not even 10 minutes, but she's the best performance in it (and I actually liked Jude Law and Renee Zellweger, so suck it!). I really liked her in Garden State, too; she was kind of the only good thing about that ridiculously-in-love-with-itself movie. As The Other Boleyn Girl came out a few weeks ago, I gotta say she's terrible in it. She tries to be sexy and sly and manipulative but she doesn't play it well at all. I don't know why, because the scenes where she is sexy and sly in Closer are probably, overall, her best. She's definitely given some really great performances and she's incredibly likeable, but I'm not signing up for her club of fanboys yet. On the other hand, I'm not signing up for her haters either...
Anne Hathaway - Yeah...no. I think she's an awful actress. She just tries so damn hard all the time and it shows, but she still never gives a notable performance. Her screen presence is really boring. Her best performance is absolutely The friggin' Princess Diaries because she slooows down, she breathes, and she feels sort of real. Saying someone feels "sort of real..." is not usually a compliment, but yeah, it's Anne Hathaway. I just think it's really telling that the cast of Brokeback Mountain was showered with awards...with nothing for Anne. Meryl Streep and Emily Blunt got awards notice for The Devil Wears Prada... nothing for Anne. Becoming Jane basically existed to get her an Oscar nomination... nothing for Anne. Some people are like "she doesn't upstage her co-stars! She's great!" Okay, that excuse works for...one movie. But every movie she's ever been in? I just think she's a bad actress, quite frankly. Like, take that phone call scene in Brokeback Mountain. I know some agree with me, and some others raved her in that scene, but I thought she was especially badbadbad there. She just looked like "oh God I don't know what I'm doing so I'm just going to deliver it as flat as possible and people are just gonna think I'm brilliant because of the movie I happen to be in!!!" And as far as the "but she's hot!" excuse that works for some others, I don't see that at all. I think she's freaky-looking. Bah. Go away, Anne. Take your overwillingness to show your boobs and your giant mouth and freakish eyes with you.
Emily Blunt - Oh, I've been over this a gagillion times. She's not without talent. But her talent is being freakishly overexaggerated (she hasn't come close to deserving a nomination) because she delivered some lines well in a pretty funny movie, which is nothing hundreds of less-appreciated actors and actresses haven't done. Plus, it's like I was saying a few weeks ago - it's those dead eyes. They just creep me out. And maybe it's because I associate her with The Devil Wears Prada, but I just find her incredibly abrasive.
Keira Knightley - I'm still weirded out by my sudden lack of dislike for her. But, like I was saying in that post, she still isn't a good actress. She gives Razzie-worthy performances in Pirates of the Caribbean, and like I keep saying: she's only been good three times (Pride and Prejudice, Atonement, Bend It Like Beckham). She is marvelous in Pride and Prejudice and I applaud her nomination, especially considering the sad sad bunch that were the other nominees (except Reese). She's good in Atonement, but is nowhere near worthy of a nomination (she's my #23 of the year and all of the following were better than her: Adams, Wei, Linney x2, Miller x2, Kidman, Marinca, Blanchett [for I'm Not There], Page, Foster, Rueda, Judd, Watts, Richards [the girl in The Golden Compass], Heigl, Ricci, McGowan, Shannon, Russell, and Blonsky. Whew. I just wanted to drive the point home.). And she's good in Bend It Like Beckham, but not worthy of even consideration for a nomination. So. She's basically only ever anywhere approaching great with one director, so I kind of write those performances off as a fluke for better or worse. I want to see her in The Edge of Love and The Duchess. I'm definitely open to liking her now, but she's extremely far away from being any sort of great actress. Oh, and Entertainment Weekly? "Nobody rocks a corset like she does"? Not to be indelicate here, but try someone with boobs.
Jessica Biel - The Illusionist aside, she's not a very good actress. Her movies tend to be badbadbaddd though, so I'd like to see what she can do in an actually good movie. She was really good in The Illusionist...
Evan Rachel Wood - I really liked her in thirteen, but she's done nothing since besides that awful Beatles movie (yes, I know its name is Across the Universe, but I'm demeaning it. Can one demean a movie...?) and become Marilyn Manson's girlfriend. GET CRACKING, EVAN RACHEL.
Ellen Page - I really didn't like her in Hard Candy, but I liked her so much in Juno it actually made me forget about that. Part of that, I'm sure, is the fact that we all discovered she's actually adorable and charming in real life, but I do think she's really talented. To have such a great grip on such a ... well, weird character like Juno makes me think the best is yet to come for her. She's really awesome; best of luck, Ellen, for sure.
America Ferrera - I don't watch Ugly Betty all that often, but America is indeed very good on it. Her role could easily get annoying, but she's just so natural and real. You just want to hug her all the time. I've only caught bits and pieces of Real Women Have Curves (all of which she was very good in as well), so I can't talk about that. Unfortunately, I have also never seen the masterwork of commentary on the female soul, Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants. So...I've got a lot of blanks in my America filmography. But from what I've seen, she is talented indeed.
Jessica Alba - Oh, no. Just no.
Kristen Bell - Never got caught up in the Veronica Mars hype. I like that she's teeny and blonde (I think I had a post about that a while back) and that's about it.
Jennifer Hudson - A great actress? I don't know... I really liked her in Dreamgirls and I totally defend her Oscar, but she hasn't done anything since. And she looks kinda bad in the Sex and the City trailer and I don't know why she's in it anyway. I still like her, but she has wayyyy more to prove before she is considered a great actress.
Evangeline Lilly - I've never watched Lost (well, that's a lie. I watched an episode in the middle of the, like, second season, and I was just so lost and I had no desire to devote my life to figuring out a TV show - at least there are no great mysteries on The Office or Sex and the City, so I can agonize about the relationships on those TV shows instead ;) ), so I couldn't say.
Rosario Dawson - Totally awesome and underrated. She's rocked since Kids, and in truly awful movies she's never given a truly awful performance. Recently, she's been nomination-worthy in Rent and rocked in Death Proof. I adore her.
Abbie Cornish - She was really shockingly good in Somersault and I loved her in Candy, but she was really bad in Elizabeth: The Golden Age. She's definitely willing to take risks, which is always something I admire. I just hope she's good in both indie stuff and more mainstream stuff; the best are those that can balance.
Zoe Saldana - The only things I've seen her in are Center Stage, Crossroads (quiet, you), and The Terminal. I don't remember her in any of those.
Kristen Stewart - She was born in 1990? Damn, I thought she was like five years older than I am. I liked her in Into the Wild, but she wasn't GREAT great and I don't remember her in Panic Room which I guess means she wasn't particularly good. Still, she's 17? I totally thought she was like, 25. Seriously. I don't know if that's a good thing or a bad thing.
Abigail Breslin - I just love her in Little Miss Sunshine. I think she's adorable and charming and she's got a really great career ahead of her. I'm very happy she took over for Dakota Fanning in My Sister's Keeper. I just hope she doesn't get overused in crap and become one of those "LOL, I can't believe she got nominated!" performances.
Dakota and Elle Fanning - Okay, my hate for Dakota Fanning was completely ridiculous, but that doesn't mean she's given any good performances. Neither has Elle. And they both still creep me out.
Katee Sackhoff - WHO? Oh, Battlestar Galactica. Everyone I know seems totally obsessed with that show, but I don't watch it. Maybe I should. Hmm. (I love how these blurbs on the actresses started out long and got really really short. I GOT TIRED, OKAY??!?!!)
Ginnifer Goodwin - I don't watch Big Love, but I've heard she's very good in it. Obscenely annoying in Walk the Line. "Still had us rooting for her"? I was like, "JUNE, PLEASE STEAL THAT MAN." And no, I don't usually condone adultery...
Miley Cyrus - As an actress? What the hell.
Saoirse Ronan - Well, at least she's better than Miley. She's cute, and I liked her in Atonement, but she didn't capture my heart like Abigail Breslin did (though I do think Ronan's is the better performance and...I dunno...I confuse myself. To be fair to Ronan, her character wasn't a billionth as endearing). She undoubtedly comes across as a very wise old soul, as Entertainment Weekly points out. I think that definitely works for her, seeing as Dakota Fanning definitely outlived her "old soul" captivity on the world.
Kirsten Dunst - Why the hell is she so low? Yes, she's had some total clunkers (ouch, Elizabethtown). Yes, her best work is not in the Spider-Man series. Yes, she has a snaggletooth. But she's undoubtedly the best of these actresses since Johansson. I mean, I give her four nominations. That's... like, not normal, right? I'm supposed to hate her, right? Oh, whatever. I just think she's spectacular. I loved her in Interview with the Vampire, Dick, Drop Dead Gorgeous, The Virgin Suicides, crazy/beautiful, Marie-Antoinette, and she's incredible in Eternal Sunshine for the Spotless Mind. Yes, she can be very bad too, but her good work is just so damn good. I am not ashamed to say it: I love Kirsten Dunst. I think she is very talented. Surely someone has to feel the same way... anyone...?
Hayden Panettiere - I think she's adorable, but I don't watch Heroes so I don't really have an opinion. Though I do think she's charming. And I think she was included with that "teeny blonde thing" post along with Kristen Bell (I think. I think. I think. I'M TIRED. I SHOULD GO TO SLEEP PROBABLY.).
Ziyi Zhang - I'd write a whole long thing about her, but like I just said, I'm tired. So: remarkable in some things, crap in others. Makes awful awful mainstream decisions and then is really bad in those movies (Crouching Tiger aside). She really is so pretty, though. I mean, what the hell is this? She still looks gorgeous.
Amanda Bynes - Wow, she is a bad actress. Annoying in Hairspray and made She's the Man worse.
Emma Watson - Yeah, she really is terrible in Harry Potter. And...do people really think she's hot? Is it just that creepy forbidden fruit thing? Because she's not ugly, but she's pretty plain.
Blake Lively - Don't watch Gossip Girl, haven't seen Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants.
Summer Glau - Never watched Firefly or any of the other TV shows she was on, don't remember her from Serenity.
Aaaand we're done. Aaaand holy God, I am off to sleep. Hopefully I can attack the guys' list soon. Because I know I'm gonna forget before I post it: John Krasinski should totally be on it. I mean, Zac Efron? Come on.
ETA, now that I have slept: Where's Christina Ricci? Katherine Heigl? Michelle Williams? Claire Danes? Rose Bryne? SARAH POLLEY??? They're way more talented than, like, Emma Watson or Miley Cyrus (yes I know I just gave Claire Danes a 3/10 on that big list thing I did, but that stands for her work overall. She was outstanding in Shopgirl and that alone should put her over many of these). Or friggin' Jessica Alba/Biel. And not for anything, but Mean Girls alone puts Lindsay Lohan ahead of those four. Sienna Miller deserves to be here for Interview alone, but add Factory Girl to that and she was robbed (even if, yes, she sucks otherwise; oh, come on, Emma Watson sucks all the time). Tang Wei deserves to be here for Lust, Caution alone (I know a bazillion people have said it before me: DAMN, THAT'S A DEBUT PERFORMANCE?!?!). Romola Garai was the superior Briony when compared to her co-star. At least they didn't put Thora Birch on the list! And did you know Rachel McAdams is over 30?! I was like "wow, she got snubbed considering how much people are in friggin' love with her." But no! She is actually 31!
Scarlett Johansson - I know I'm the only one left on Earth (besides those attracted to women) that still loves her. But dammit, I do. Some actresses that are undoubtedly better overall have given great great performances (think Naomi Watts in Mulholland Dr., one of very few performances from this millennium that are better than Scarlett's in Lost in Translation), but I don't feel any sort of personal connection to them. I don't feel the need to defend them when they get insulted. To Scarlett, I just...do. I don't know why. Maybe it's because I love Lost in Translation so very much that I just can't help loving its stars too. She's undoubtedly made some bad career choices (The Island - oh, Scarlett, what were you thinking?), and she's often miscast (she's better in quieter roles, which is why she's so good as Charlotte, Griet, and Mary Boleyn. Her voice is obviously fantastic, but it can often sound like she's terribly bored, which is why she isn't as great in "talky" roles... I liked her in Scoop, but I can see why one couldn't...), but I'm not even going to backhandedly compliment her and say "I see a lot of potential." Lately, I despair for the way she's got caught in the hype machine, but when you're not even 20 and you give the performance you gave in Lost in Translation, you're it.
Natalie Portman - I find her unbelievably endearing, and she's so stunningly gorgeous. I just wish she were more consistent. She has both really crazy over-vocal fanboys and really crazy over-vocal detractors, and I can see where they both came from. For an example, take her Oscar nomination for Closer. She gives shattering, brilliant work in some scenes - the strip club, at Anna's art show - and she's completely lost in others - both break-up scenes with Dan were pretty terrible. She was so fantastic when she was younger in both Leon and Beautiful Girls, but those led to... the Star Wars movies. Yiiiikes. And then, just when we'd all probably given up on her in 2003 came Cold Mountain, for which she just...breaks your heart into a million pieces, absolutely. She's probably in the film for not even 10 minutes, but she's the best performance in it (and I actually liked Jude Law and Renee Zellweger, so suck it!). I really liked her in Garden State, too; she was kind of the only good thing about that ridiculously-in-love-with-itself movie. As The Other Boleyn Girl came out a few weeks ago, I gotta say she's terrible in it. She tries to be sexy and sly and manipulative but she doesn't play it well at all. I don't know why, because the scenes where she is sexy and sly in Closer are probably, overall, her best. She's definitely given some really great performances and she's incredibly likeable, but I'm not signing up for her club of fanboys yet. On the other hand, I'm not signing up for her haters either...
Anne Hathaway - Yeah...no. I think she's an awful actress. She just tries so damn hard all the time and it shows, but she still never gives a notable performance. Her screen presence is really boring. Her best performance is absolutely The friggin' Princess Diaries because she slooows down, she breathes, and she feels sort of real. Saying someone feels "sort of real..." is not usually a compliment, but yeah, it's Anne Hathaway. I just think it's really telling that the cast of Brokeback Mountain was showered with awards...with nothing for Anne. Meryl Streep and Emily Blunt got awards notice for The Devil Wears Prada... nothing for Anne. Becoming Jane basically existed to get her an Oscar nomination... nothing for Anne. Some people are like "she doesn't upstage her co-stars! She's great!" Okay, that excuse works for...one movie. But every movie she's ever been in? I just think she's a bad actress, quite frankly. Like, take that phone call scene in Brokeback Mountain. I know some agree with me, and some others raved her in that scene, but I thought she was especially badbadbad there. She just looked like "oh God I don't know what I'm doing so I'm just going to deliver it as flat as possible and people are just gonna think I'm brilliant because of the movie I happen to be in!!!" And as far as the "but she's hot!" excuse that works for some others, I don't see that at all. I think she's freaky-looking. Bah. Go away, Anne. Take your overwillingness to show your boobs and your giant mouth and freakish eyes with you.
Emily Blunt - Oh, I've been over this a gagillion times. She's not without talent. But her talent is being freakishly overexaggerated (she hasn't come close to deserving a nomination) because she delivered some lines well in a pretty funny movie, which is nothing hundreds of less-appreciated actors and actresses haven't done. Plus, it's like I was saying a few weeks ago - it's those dead eyes. They just creep me out. And maybe it's because I associate her with The Devil Wears Prada, but I just find her incredibly abrasive.
Keira Knightley - I'm still weirded out by my sudden lack of dislike for her. But, like I was saying in that post, she still isn't a good actress. She gives Razzie-worthy performances in Pirates of the Caribbean, and like I keep saying: she's only been good three times (Pride and Prejudice, Atonement, Bend It Like Beckham). She is marvelous in Pride and Prejudice and I applaud her nomination, especially considering the sad sad bunch that were the other nominees (except Reese). She's good in Atonement, but is nowhere near worthy of a nomination (she's my #23 of the year and all of the following were better than her: Adams, Wei, Linney x2, Miller x2, Kidman, Marinca, Blanchett [for I'm Not There], Page, Foster, Rueda, Judd, Watts, Richards [the girl in The Golden Compass], Heigl, Ricci, McGowan, Shannon, Russell, and Blonsky. Whew. I just wanted to drive the point home.). And she's good in Bend It Like Beckham, but not worthy of even consideration for a nomination. So. She's basically only ever anywhere approaching great with one director, so I kind of write those performances off as a fluke for better or worse. I want to see her in The Edge of Love and The Duchess. I'm definitely open to liking her now, but she's extremely far away from being any sort of great actress. Oh, and Entertainment Weekly? "Nobody rocks a corset like she does"? Not to be indelicate here, but try someone with boobs.
Jessica Biel - The Illusionist aside, she's not a very good actress. Her movies tend to be badbadbaddd though, so I'd like to see what she can do in an actually good movie. She was really good in The Illusionist...
Evan Rachel Wood - I really liked her in thirteen, but she's done nothing since besides that awful Beatles movie (yes, I know its name is Across the Universe, but I'm demeaning it. Can one demean a movie...?) and become Marilyn Manson's girlfriend. GET CRACKING, EVAN RACHEL.
Ellen Page - I really didn't like her in Hard Candy, but I liked her so much in Juno it actually made me forget about that. Part of that, I'm sure, is the fact that we all discovered she's actually adorable and charming in real life, but I do think she's really talented. To have such a great grip on such a ... well, weird character like Juno makes me think the best is yet to come for her. She's really awesome; best of luck, Ellen, for sure.
America Ferrera - I don't watch Ugly Betty all that often, but America is indeed very good on it. Her role could easily get annoying, but she's just so natural and real. You just want to hug her all the time. I've only caught bits and pieces of Real Women Have Curves (all of which she was very good in as well), so I can't talk about that. Unfortunately, I have also never seen the masterwork of commentary on the female soul, Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants. So...I've got a lot of blanks in my America filmography. But from what I've seen, she is talented indeed.
Jessica Alba - Oh, no. Just no.
Kristen Bell - Never got caught up in the Veronica Mars hype. I like that she's teeny and blonde (I think I had a post about that a while back) and that's about it.
Jennifer Hudson - A great actress? I don't know... I really liked her in Dreamgirls and I totally defend her Oscar, but she hasn't done anything since. And she looks kinda bad in the Sex and the City trailer and I don't know why she's in it anyway. I still like her, but she has wayyyy more to prove before she is considered a great actress.
Evangeline Lilly - I've never watched Lost (well, that's a lie. I watched an episode in the middle of the, like, second season, and I was just so lost and I had no desire to devote my life to figuring out a TV show - at least there are no great mysteries on The Office or Sex and the City, so I can agonize about the relationships on those TV shows instead ;) ), so I couldn't say.
Rosario Dawson - Totally awesome and underrated. She's rocked since Kids, and in truly awful movies she's never given a truly awful performance. Recently, she's been nomination-worthy in Rent and rocked in Death Proof. I adore her.
Abbie Cornish - She was really shockingly good in Somersault and I loved her in Candy, but she was really bad in Elizabeth: The Golden Age. She's definitely willing to take risks, which is always something I admire. I just hope she's good in both indie stuff and more mainstream stuff; the best are those that can balance.
Zoe Saldana - The only things I've seen her in are Center Stage, Crossroads (quiet, you), and The Terminal. I don't remember her in any of those.
Kristen Stewart - She was born in 1990? Damn, I thought she was like five years older than I am. I liked her in Into the Wild, but she wasn't GREAT great and I don't remember her in Panic Room which I guess means she wasn't particularly good. Still, she's 17? I totally thought she was like, 25. Seriously. I don't know if that's a good thing or a bad thing.
Abigail Breslin - I just love her in Little Miss Sunshine. I think she's adorable and charming and she's got a really great career ahead of her. I'm very happy she took over for Dakota Fanning in My Sister's Keeper. I just hope she doesn't get overused in crap and become one of those "LOL, I can't believe she got nominated!" performances.
Dakota and Elle Fanning - Okay, my hate for Dakota Fanning was completely ridiculous, but that doesn't mean she's given any good performances. Neither has Elle. And they both still creep me out.
Katee Sackhoff - WHO? Oh, Battlestar Galactica. Everyone I know seems totally obsessed with that show, but I don't watch it. Maybe I should. Hmm. (I love how these blurbs on the actresses started out long and got really really short. I GOT TIRED, OKAY??!?!!)
Ginnifer Goodwin - I don't watch Big Love, but I've heard she's very good in it. Obscenely annoying in Walk the Line. "Still had us rooting for her"? I was like, "JUNE, PLEASE STEAL THAT MAN." And no, I don't usually condone adultery...
Miley Cyrus - As an actress? What the hell.
Saoirse Ronan - Well, at least she's better than Miley. She's cute, and I liked her in Atonement, but she didn't capture my heart like Abigail Breslin did (though I do think Ronan's is the better performance and...I dunno...I confuse myself. To be fair to Ronan, her character wasn't a billionth as endearing). She undoubtedly comes across as a very wise old soul, as Entertainment Weekly points out. I think that definitely works for her, seeing as Dakota Fanning definitely outlived her "old soul" captivity on the world.
Kirsten Dunst - Why the hell is she so low? Yes, she's had some total clunkers (ouch, Elizabethtown). Yes, her best work is not in the Spider-Man series. Yes, she has a snaggletooth. But she's undoubtedly the best of these actresses since Johansson. I mean, I give her four nominations. That's... like, not normal, right? I'm supposed to hate her, right? Oh, whatever. I just think she's spectacular. I loved her in Interview with the Vampire, Dick, Drop Dead Gorgeous, The Virgin Suicides, crazy/beautiful, Marie-Antoinette, and she's incredible in Eternal Sunshine for the Spotless Mind. Yes, she can be very bad too, but her good work is just so damn good. I am not ashamed to say it: I love Kirsten Dunst. I think she is very talented. Surely someone has to feel the same way... anyone...?
Hayden Panettiere - I think she's adorable, but I don't watch Heroes so I don't really have an opinion. Though I do think she's charming. And I think she was included with that "teeny blonde thing" post along with Kristen Bell (I think. I think. I think. I'M TIRED. I SHOULD GO TO SLEEP PROBABLY.).
Ziyi Zhang - I'd write a whole long thing about her, but like I just said, I'm tired. So: remarkable in some things, crap in others. Makes awful awful mainstream decisions and then is really bad in those movies (Crouching Tiger aside). She really is so pretty, though. I mean, what the hell is this? She still looks gorgeous.
Amanda Bynes - Wow, she is a bad actress. Annoying in Hairspray and made She's the Man worse.
Emma Watson - Yeah, she really is terrible in Harry Potter. And...do people really think she's hot? Is it just that creepy forbidden fruit thing? Because she's not ugly, but she's pretty plain.
Blake Lively - Don't watch Gossip Girl, haven't seen Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants.
Summer Glau - Never watched Firefly or any of the other TV shows she was on, don't remember her from Serenity.
Aaaand we're done. Aaaand holy God, I am off to sleep. Hopefully I can attack the guys' list soon. Because I know I'm gonna forget before I post it: John Krasinski should totally be on it. I mean, Zac Efron? Come on.
ETA, now that I have slept: Where's Christina Ricci? Katherine Heigl? Michelle Williams? Claire Danes? Rose Bryne? SARAH POLLEY??? They're way more talented than, like, Emma Watson or Miley Cyrus (yes I know I just gave Claire Danes a 3/10 on that big list thing I did, but that stands for her work overall. She was outstanding in Shopgirl and that alone should put her over many of these). Or friggin' Jessica Alba/Biel. And not for anything, but Mean Girls alone puts Lindsay Lohan ahead of those four. Sienna Miller deserves to be here for Interview alone, but add Factory Girl to that and she was robbed (even if, yes, she sucks otherwise; oh, come on, Emma Watson sucks all the time). Tang Wei deserves to be here for Lust, Caution alone (I know a bazillion people have said it before me: DAMN, THAT'S A DEBUT PERFORMANCE?!?!). Romola Garai was the superior Briony when compared to her co-star. At least they didn't put Thora Birch on the list! And did you know Rachel McAdams is over 30?! I was like "wow, she got snubbed considering how much people are in friggin' love with her." But no! She is actually 31!
Friday, March 14, 2008
In honor of Jamie Bell's birthday...
...I have to say that I am weirded out by people who think he is hot. I know there are a lot out there. I think this is so weird. Don't worry guys: it's not you, it's me. But, I know the entire reason why...
He's just so damn good in Billy Elliot that, quite frankly, I can't stop thinking of him as like 12. Which is going to defeat any crush I could develop on him.
On that note, has anyone else seen the Billy Elliot musical that's currently on the West End, being brought to Broadway? OH LORD, IS IT A STINKER. And they're going to have to make major changes to it for American audiences (unfortunate, but that's the way it is) because it will go so far over everyone's heads. Movie's still brilliant, though.
He's just so damn good in Billy Elliot that, quite frankly, I can't stop thinking of him as like 12. Which is going to defeat any crush I could develop on him.
On that note, has anyone else seen the Billy Elliot musical that's currently on the West End, being brought to Broadway? OH LORD, IS IT A STINKER. And they're going to have to make major changes to it for American audiences (unfortunate, but that's the way it is) because it will go so far over everyone's heads. Movie's still brilliant, though.
JENNA FISCHER IS FUCKING AWESOME.
So in an interview with Playboy (don't look at me like that. I read the transcript on a website for The Office), Jenna Fischer talks about something that happened when she had just come to Los Angeles to look for work. She met a no-name screenwriter at a party. He asked her if she would be willing to do a graphic sex scene; she said no. He told her, verbatim: "A real actress would say yes. A real actress would piss herself onstage if that's what it took ... You should just go home. You don't have what it takes." In Playboy, Jenna responds to him belatedly: "I should have told him, 'How about I piss on your face? Does that make me a real actress? Let's try that. I'll do that right here. I'll do that today.' Bring me Shem Bitterman [the screenwriter]."
FANCY NEW BEESLEY IS AMAZING.
FANCY NEW BEESLEY IS AMAZING.
Michael Caine is 75.
AND AWESOME. Seriously, the man is fugging brilliant.
But can anyone explain his 1999 Oscar? And stop all his movies from being remade?
But can anyone explain his 1999 Oscar? And stop all his movies from being remade?
I love IMDb.
"She was also great in 21 Grams, which I haven't seen." -some poster on Naomi Watts. Wha?
A lot of people hate Reese Witherspoon.
I don't know why. Her Oscar win wasn't totally deserved, true, but really there aren't that many totally deserved Oscar wins, and she was handily the best of the nominees. I mean...Huffman? Yeah. No. I think I would have puked. But... okay, Walk the Line aside, have people not seen Election?!
"He should have just accepted things as they are instead of trying to interfere with destiny. You see, you can't interfere with destiny. That's why it's destiny. And if you try to interfere, the same thing's going to happen anyway, and you'll just suffer."
"NO! Didn't bother me at all!"
Brilliant. The amazing screenwriting helps, yeah, but... brilliant.
(In another note, the best thing about that movie that you probably didn't notice before was the fact that they keep zooming out on Tracy's "Pick Flick" pins and they really look like they're saying "Pick Fuck.")
"He should have just accepted things as they are instead of trying to interfere with destiny. You see, you can't interfere with destiny. That's why it's destiny. And if you try to interfere, the same thing's going to happen anyway, and you'll just suffer."
"NO! Didn't bother me at all!"
Brilliant. The amazing screenwriting helps, yeah, but... brilliant.
(In another note, the best thing about that movie that you probably didn't notice before was the fact that they keep zooming out on Tracy's "Pick Flick" pins and they really look like they're saying "Pick Fuck.")
Sex and the City: The Movie
Sex and the City, for all my blabbering about The Office, is still my all-time favorite TV show. And unless you've been under a rock or don't care about movies or that TV show, you know they're making it into a movie this spring! Hooray! Or maybe not... let's look at the trailer...
I am tired just watching that. I mean, there are a lot of plot points to get through. We learn Big's ENTIRE name! Charlotte gets her little Chinese baby! Big leaves Carrie at the altar! Carrie randomly gets a personal assistant! Steve (probably) cheated on Miranda! (GOD, I HOPE NOT.) Charlotte is pregnant! And there appears to be a distressing lack of Smith!
This is definitely one of the trailers that just tells you the entire movie. And it's annoying. Quite frankly, I don't really believe Big and Carrie break up for good. I mean, they put us through all that shit for like six years (I think; can't say I was watching it when it first started, as I'm pretty sure I would have been like 10-12) to just...have them break up IN A MOVIE? That comes 4 years after the fact? Nononononono. Also, I really hope Steve didn't cheat on Miranda. I adore her character, but at times she was always forced into the most absolutely humiliating situations. This is just...another one, I guess.
In conclusion, though, I gotta say I still have hope. After all, the trailer's jokes are pretty darn funny. The friendships - what really kept the show together - still look natural and sweet. And, hey, if this movie sucks, I do always have the glorious end to the series, "An American Girl in Paris." We'll always have Paris...
I am tired just watching that. I mean, there are a lot of plot points to get through. We learn Big's ENTIRE name! Charlotte gets her little Chinese baby! Big leaves Carrie at the altar! Carrie randomly gets a personal assistant! Steve (probably) cheated on Miranda! (GOD, I HOPE NOT.) Charlotte is pregnant! And there appears to be a distressing lack of Smith!
This is definitely one of the trailers that just tells you the entire movie. And it's annoying. Quite frankly, I don't really believe Big and Carrie break up for good. I mean, they put us through all that shit for like six years (I think; can't say I was watching it when it first started, as I'm pretty sure I would have been like 10-12) to just...have them break up IN A MOVIE? That comes 4 years after the fact? Nononononono. Also, I really hope Steve didn't cheat on Miranda. I adore her character, but at times she was always forced into the most absolutely humiliating situations. This is just...another one, I guess.
In conclusion, though, I gotta say I still have hope. After all, the trailer's jokes are pretty darn funny. The friendships - what really kept the show together - still look natural and sweet. And, hey, if this movie sucks, I do always have the glorious end to the series, "An American Girl in Paris." We'll always have Paris...
Thursday, March 13, 2008
FINALLY rewatched Season 4.
I'll get back to those top-five-moments-of-every-episode lists ASAP (I know you all missed them so much...). "Money" is a fucking amazing episode, isn't it? And good lord, "The Deposition" is sad.
I love when celebrities can make fun of themselves.
This is pretty, as the commercial says, awesome. It makes up for...uh...I'll forgive you for Transformers, Michael, because that's not ALL that bad...
I think I hear the king falling down, down, down.
Zooey Deschanel is fucking worship-worthy in this movie. It sucks that she's against two even stronger performances, Scarlett's and Uma's, that year.
DAMN! (in a good way)
http://www.givememyremote.com/remote/the-office-gets-an-upgrade/
I love you, NBC.
Do I talk about anything besides The Office and Laura Linney? Probably not. You know what, other stuff? Give me something worth talking about!
I love you, NBC.
Do I talk about anything besides The Office and Laura Linney? Probably not. You know what, other stuff? Give me something worth talking about!
BRILLIANT IMDb poll today (well, Wednesday).
Can't I just say all of them?
And also, I gotta say: though she is amazing in everything, why the hell are Man of the Year and The Nanny Diaries above Jindabyne, P.S., and The House of Mirth? Why is You Can Count on Me fourth and The Savages seventh? WHY ARE SO MANY PEOPLE "not familiar with [her] work"?!?!?!??!?!! That ain't right. Though, it doesn't matter. She is perfect and all of her performances are perfect. Let us all worship the Linney.
And also, I gotta say: though she is amazing in everything, why the hell are Man of the Year and The Nanny Diaries above Jindabyne, P.S., and The House of Mirth? Why is You Can Count on Me fourth and The Savages seventh? WHY ARE SO MANY PEOPLE "not familiar with [her] work"?!?!?!??!?!! That ain't right. Though, it doesn't matter. She is perfect and all of her performances are perfect. Let us all worship the Linney.
SUDDEN AND AWESOME IDEA.
Predicting my own awards at the end of the year. I really don't want these to suck!
Best Picture
1. Miracle at St. Anna
2. The Dark Knight
3. Wall-E
4. Revolutionary Road
5. The Brothers Bloom
Best Director
1. Spike Lee - Miracle at St. Anna
2. Fernando Meirelles - Blindness
3. Sam Mendes - Revolutionary Road
4. Gus Van Sant - Milk
5. Andrew Stanton - Wall-E
Best Actor
1. Philip Seymour Hoffman - Synecdoche, New York
2. Ralph Fiennes - The Reader
3. Leonardo DiCaprio - Revolutionary Road
4. Brad Pitt - The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
5. Sean Penn - Milk
Best Actress
1. Kate Winslet - Revolutionary Road
2. Sally Hawkins - Happy-Go-Lucky
3. Natalie Portman - Brothers
4. Julianne Moore - Blindness
5. Meryl Streep - Doubt
Best Supporting Actor
1. Robert Downey Jr. - The Soloist
2. Heath Ledger - The Dark Knight
3. Josh Brolin - Milk
Um. Sure.
Best Supporting Actress
1. Amy Ryan - Changeling
2. Samantha Morton - Synecdoche, New York
3. Viola Davis - Doubt
uh, this just feels like my Oscar predictions again.
Best Original Screenplay
1. Synecdoche, New York
2. Wall-E
3. Leatherheads
4. Burn After Reading
5. Milk
Best Adapted Screenplay
1. Revolutionary Road
2. The Reader
3. Miracle at St. Anna
4. The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
5. Blindness
Why am I so not excited for Doubt and Australia? I do not know. I might re-do this in Septemberish when I have heard a little more about these films/know which ones are actually 2008 and stuff.
Best Picture
1. Miracle at St. Anna
2. The Dark Knight
3. Wall-E
4. Revolutionary Road
5. The Brothers Bloom
Best Director
1. Spike Lee - Miracle at St. Anna
2. Fernando Meirelles - Blindness
3. Sam Mendes - Revolutionary Road
4. Gus Van Sant - Milk
5. Andrew Stanton - Wall-E
Best Actor
1. Philip Seymour Hoffman - Synecdoche, New York
2. Ralph Fiennes - The Reader
3. Leonardo DiCaprio - Revolutionary Road
4. Brad Pitt - The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
5. Sean Penn - Milk
Best Actress
1. Kate Winslet - Revolutionary Road
2. Sally Hawkins - Happy-Go-Lucky
3. Natalie Portman - Brothers
4. Julianne Moore - Blindness
5. Meryl Streep - Doubt
Best Supporting Actor
1. Robert Downey Jr. - The Soloist
2. Heath Ledger - The Dark Knight
3. Josh Brolin - Milk
Um. Sure.
Best Supporting Actress
1. Amy Ryan - Changeling
2. Samantha Morton - Synecdoche, New York
3. Viola Davis - Doubt
uh, this just feels like my Oscar predictions again.
Best Original Screenplay
1. Synecdoche, New York
2. Wall-E
3. Leatherheads
4. Burn After Reading
5. Milk
Best Adapted Screenplay
1. Revolutionary Road
2. The Reader
3. Miracle at St. Anna
4. The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
5. Blindness
Why am I so not excited for Doubt and Australia? I do not know. I might re-do this in Septemberish when I have heard a little more about these films/know which ones are actually 2008 and stuff.
Wednesday, March 12, 2008
Justine visits Australia
You'll notice I seem not all that excited for Australia, Baz Luhrmann's latest spectacular, spectacular. After all, I am batshit crazy for Moulin Rouge!. But, here's the thing. I didn't really like Strictly Ballroom. I didn't like Romeo + Juliet that much. Musicals just suit Baz's style. I mean, if your films are going to be insane, why not have them singing U2 and Elton John? Why not have them break into a can-can number and sing atop a giant elephant while the moon sings to them? I totally understand why people (my mom included, who normally has really good taste in movies) can hate Moulin Rouge!. But one of the things I like about it so much is that it's so willing to take chances and explode off the screen with its insanity. Australia...is a historical epic. Baz's films would be epic if they were about fixing toasters. Don't get me wrong; after Moulin Rouge!, I will go see anything Baz Luhrmann tells me to, especially if it stars Nicole Kidman and Hugh Jackman. I just...wish I was more excited, that's all. (when November rolls around, though, I'll probably be screaming in antici...pation.)
Tuesday, March 11, 2008
Don't be fooled by that sweet, innocent look! He's actually FULL OF LUST!
I'm reading Netflix descriptions of shows/movies available for instant watching, and for Season 1 of The Office, it says John Krasinski portrays "the lustful Jim." WHAAAA???
Also, why does Steve Carell not have an Emmy? SERIOUSLY.
Also, why does Steve Carell not have an Emmy? SERIOUSLY.
L.O.L.L.L.L.L.!.!.!.!
I just realized the titular Ugly Betty and Anne Boleyn in The Other Boleyn Girl movie have THE SAME GODDAMN "B" NECKLACE.
ETA: proof!!!!
Natalie
America
It is literally the exact same necklace. Like, The Other Boleyn Girl was shooting on the lot over from Ugly Betty and Sandy Powell decided it just needed a little bit of contemporary flavor, so she went over to the lot next door and stole America Ferrera's necklace. AMAZING.
ETA: proof!!!!
Natalie
America
It is literally the exact same necklace. Like, The Other Boleyn Girl was shooting on the lot over from Ugly Betty and Sandy Powell decided it just needed a little bit of contemporary flavor, so she went over to the lot next door and stole America Ferrera's necklace. AMAZING.
_______ is the cheap, terrible version of ________.
Thora Birch; Christina Ricci
Jonah Hill; Seth Rogen
Anne Hathaway; Rachel McAdams
Annette Bening; Glenn Close
Perhaps I need more examples. But this is a good start.
Jonah Hill; Seth Rogen
Anne Hathaway; Rachel McAdams
Annette Bening; Glenn Close
Perhaps I need more examples. But this is a good start.
Monday, March 10, 2008
I do love popping in to IMDb sometimes...
...not to post, just to see what people are going on about. And I found this thread that asked me to rate contemporary actresses. So, I did, and I threw in quite a few originals of my own. Of course, this is how I feel right now...
Nicole Kidman - 9/10
Keira Knightley - 3/10
Audrey Tautou - 6/10
Anne Hathaway - 1.5/10
Rachel McAdams - 6/10
Kate Winslet - 15/10 *
Cate Blanchett - 7/10
Emily Blunt - 3/10
Ellen Page - 6/10
Angelina Jolie - 6.5/10
Laura Linney - 60/10 **
Renee Zellweger - 7/10
Ziyi Zhang - 5/10
Kirsten Dunst - 7.5/10
Jennifer Connelly - 6.5/10
Samantha Morton - 10/10
Meryl Streep - 10/10
Parker Posey - 3/10
Frances McDormand - 8/10
Catherine Zeta-Jones - 4/10
Naomi Watts - 7/10
Reese Witherspoon - 8/10
Tilda Swinton - 6/10
Gwyneth Paltrow - 8/10
Scarlett Johansson - 7/10
Uma Thurman - 6/10 (lately. Please, Uma, do another Kill Bill........)
Cameron Diaz - 7/10
Maggie Gyllenhaal - 8/10
Jodie Foster - 10/10
Julianne Moore - 8/10
Emily Watson - 8.5/10
Toni Collette - 8.5/10
Amy Adams - 7.5/10 (haven't seen Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day, and I kind of expect this to go up to an 8 afterward.)
Patricia Clarkson - 7/10
Marcia Gay Harden - 7/10
Jennifer Garner - 7/10
Hilary Swank - 4/10
Natalie Portman - 5/10
Claire Danes - 3/10
Christina Ricci - 5/10
* that's not supposed to be a 1.5
** that's not supposed to be a 6
Nicole Kidman - 9/10
Keira Knightley - 3/10
Audrey Tautou - 6/10
Anne Hathaway - 1.5/10
Rachel McAdams - 6/10
Kate Winslet - 15/10 *
Cate Blanchett - 7/10
Emily Blunt - 3/10
Ellen Page - 6/10
Angelina Jolie - 6.5/10
Laura Linney - 60/10 **
Renee Zellweger - 7/10
Ziyi Zhang - 5/10
Kirsten Dunst - 7.5/10
Jennifer Connelly - 6.5/10
Samantha Morton - 10/10
Meryl Streep - 10/10
Parker Posey - 3/10
Frances McDormand - 8/10
Catherine Zeta-Jones - 4/10
Naomi Watts - 7/10
Reese Witherspoon - 8/10
Tilda Swinton - 6/10
Gwyneth Paltrow - 8/10
Scarlett Johansson - 7/10
Uma Thurman - 6/10 (lately. Please, Uma, do another Kill Bill........)
Cameron Diaz - 7/10
Maggie Gyllenhaal - 8/10
Jodie Foster - 10/10
Julianne Moore - 8/10
Emily Watson - 8.5/10
Toni Collette - 8.5/10
Amy Adams - 7.5/10 (haven't seen Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day, and I kind of expect this to go up to an 8 afterward.)
Patricia Clarkson - 7/10
Marcia Gay Harden - 7/10
Jennifer Garner - 7/10
Hilary Swank - 4/10
Natalie Portman - 5/10
Claire Danes - 3/10
Christina Ricci - 5/10
* that's not supposed to be a 1.5
** that's not supposed to be a 6
To be laughed at in January 2009.
Predictions!
Best Picture
Body of Lies
Changeling
Defiance
Milk
The Reader
Alternates: Revolutionary Road; Frost/Nixon; The Curious Case of Benjamin Button; Australia; Wall-E; Miracle at St. Anna (I JUST found out about this, and OH MY GOD. I CANNOT WAIT. It's now my fourth-most anticipated movie of 2008.); Australia; The Soloist; Sunshine Cleaning; Doubt; Appaloosa; Burn After Reading; The Argentine
Reasoning: Body of Lies involves Ridley Scott, Leonardo DiCaprio, Russell Crowe, and William Monahan, a lot of things the Academy likes in general. Changeling is Clint Eastwood - hello??? Defiance is Edward Zwick, and I'm thinking this might be the come-out-of-nowhere-but-why-didn't-we-see-this-coming-because-the-Academy-is-wet-for-you nomination (like Letters from Iwo Jima or Munich). The Academy really seems to like him, regardless of how terrible his movies usually are; Blood Diamond did pretty good for the nominations and kind of came out of nowhere. Milk is the biopic and "oh gee, we're really sorry about Brokeback Mountain (except wait, Crash was totally the better movie!)" award. The Reader is because the Academy really likes Daldry and WWII.
Win prediction at this point (SO dumb, but why not!): Milk
Best Director
Clint Eastwood - Changeling
Spike Lee - Miracle at St. Anna
Ridley Scott - Body of Lies
Gus Van Sant - Milk
Edward Zwick - Defiance
Alternates: Mendes for Revolutionary Road; Howard for Frost/Nixon; Fincher for The Curious Case... (I do think this is his most Oscar-friendly movie, plus it actually has an Oscar-friendly release date); Meirelles for Blindness; Luhrmann for Australia; Harris for Appaloosa; Shanley for Doubt; Wright for The Soloist; Daldry for The Reader; Soderbergh for The Argentine
Reasoning: They NEVER get tired of Eastwood. If Scott can make a good movie again (IE not American Gangster or A Good Year...), I think he'll be back in their good graces. If Milk isn't all weird, Van Sant will get nominated. It's only a matter of time until Zwick does, because they like his movies even when they are crap. And finally, Lee is my wishin' and hopin' and thinkin' and prayin' guess. I'm fully expecting him to be wrong. But if it's right, I'll be overjoyed.
Win prediction at this point: Ridley Scott - Body of Lies
Best Actor
Benicio Del Toro - The Argentine
Leonardo DiCaprio - Revolutionary Road
Jamie Foxx - The Soloist
Frank Langella - Frost/Nixon
Sean Penn - Milk
Alternates: DiCaprio in Body of Lies; Brad Pitt in The Curious Case of Benjamin Button; Philip Seymour Hoffman in Doubt or Synecdoche, New York; Viggo Mortensen in Appaloosa; Ralph Fiennes in The Reader; Hugh Jackman in Australia
Reasoning: Del Toro, Langella, and Penn are all the OMGXPERSONISYPERSON!!!!! performances of the year. I feel like Jamie Foxx will be welcomed back with open arms if he makes another good movie again, especially one so baity that will call back memories of Ray, perhaps. Jamie Foxx, three-time Oscar nominee! DiCaprio has turned into an actor the Academy always pays attention to, and supposedly his role in Revolutionary Road is just fantastic.
Win prediction at this point: Sean Penn - Milk
Best Actress
Cate Blanchett - The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Emily Blunt - The Young Victoria
Angelina Jolie - Changeling
Meryl Streep - Doubt
Kate Winslet - Revolutionary Road
Alternates: Sienna Miller and Keira Knightley in The Edge of Love; Amy Adams and Emily Blunt in Sunshine Cleaning (why does Jesus demean herself so? :( ); Keira Knightley in The Duchess; Julianne Moore in Blindness; Nicole Kidman in Australia; Natalie Portman in Brothers; Anne Hathaway in Dancing with Shiva; Uma Thurman, The Life Before Her Eyes; Rachel McAdams, The Time Traveler's Wife; Sally Hawkins, Happy-Go-Lucky. And can someone fill me in on this Number One Ladies' Detective Agency thing? I've heard it's a mini-series or is ineligible for some reason?
Reasoning: Winslet, Blanchett, and Streep are Winslet, Blanchett, and Streep. They get nominations for everything. Yeah, I know I had that post a few days/weeks? ago decrying the Blanchett fans for calling her a lock. And she's not a lock (no one is a lock at this point, and it is ridiculous to say so), but she is very likely. Jolie will get caught up in Changeling's probably-inevitable Oscar love; this is added to by the fact that she was so close to getting in this year. As far as Emily Blunt goes, yuck. I am being pessimistic and truly hoping this will be one of the ones we laugh at in 2009. But British queens = Oscar bait. Ugh. But anyway...watch this lineup be like, Blanchett, Blunt, Knightley, Hathaway, and Winslet. Winslet will give the best performance of her career, and everyone will want her to win and she'll sweep the critics, and then something stupid and bullshit will happen like BLUNT OR HATHAWAY HAS A COME-OUT-OF-NOWHERE WIN. Oh my God, I think I'd shoot myself on principle. SERIOUSLY.
Win prediction at this point: Kate Winslet - Revolutionary Road (provided the performance is good - which it will be because it's Kate - PLEASEEEEEEEEEE.)
Best Supporting Actor
Jamie Bell - Defiance
Josh Brolin - Milk
Robert Downey Jr. - The Soloist
Heath Ledger - The Dark Knight
Michael Sheen - Frost/Nixon
alternates: Ed Harris in Appaloosa; John Malkovich in Changeling. This category is hard to call, as there isn't really anyone that cares enough about Supporting Actors to make a big list of the Oscar-baity Supporting Actors and their films.
Reasoning: These seem the baitiest. I guess. Like I said, I don't really know what anyone else is predicting, besides Heath Ledger. I don't think he'll win - a year from now, his death won't seem so fresh and thus, so sad - but I'd love to see him get a nomination if his performance is as strong as that in the trailer. But I have heard his part's not as big as some were saying...
Win prediction at this point: Josh Brolin - Milk
Best Supporting Actress
Kathy Bates - Revolutionary Road
Viola Davis - Doubt
Catherine Keener - The Soloist
Laura Linney - The Other Man
Kate Winslet - The Reader
alternates: Amy Adams in Doubt (I would actually be predicting her, but I hear her role isn't very big [I don't remember from the play]); Amy Ryan in Changeling; Taraji P. Henson in The Curious Case of Benjamin Button; the ladies of Synecdoche, New York; Penelope Cruz in Vicky Cristina Barcelona
Reasoning: They all have good parts in Oscar-baity films. Linney is my wish that I don't really think is going to happen (if I'm predicting Blunt, I'm going to predict Lee and Linney too, dammit!!!). People forget that Kate Winslet, especially since the 2000s started, is also very much a default nominee; she just doesn't work nearly as much as Blanchett.
Win prediction at this point: Viola Davis - Doubt
Best Original Screenplay
Changeling
Milk
Synecdoche, New York
Vicky Cristina Barcelona
Wall-E
Alternates: Burn After Reading; Sunshine Cleaning; The Soloist; Australia; The Lucky Ones; Dancing with Shiva
Reasoning: Changeling and Milk are the Best Picture nominees nominees. Synecdoche is the weird artsy nominee. Vicky Christina Barcelona is the Woody Allen nominee (if it's good, it's in, but there's the large possibility that it'll get bad reviews). Wall-E is the Pixar-is-genius nominee.
Win prediction at this point: Wall-E (provided the quality remains high, it's only a matter of time until the Academy starts recognizing Pixar films in other categories than Animated and the techs)
Best Adapted Screenplay
Body of Lies
Defiance
Frost/Nixon
The Reader
Revolutionary Road
Alternates: Appaloosa; Blindness; Doubt; The Curious Case of Benjamin Button; Miracle at St. Anna
Reasoning: The Reader, Defiance, and Body of Lies are the Best Picture nominees nominees. Revolutionary Road is the close-to-Best-Picture-plus-it's-based-on-a-great-novel nominee. Frost/Nixon is the play nominee. For some reason, I see Frost/Nixon getting more Academy attention than Doubt.
Win prediction at this point: The Reader
What will come out of nowhere and be brilliant and loved by the Academy, like Juno this year? What will suck and fail horribly (please, not Miracle at St. Anna or Revolutionary Road...)? Why do I not think Australia will do well, apparently? We shall see.
Best Picture
Body of Lies
Changeling
Defiance
Milk
The Reader
Alternates: Revolutionary Road; Frost/Nixon; The Curious Case of Benjamin Button; Australia; Wall-E; Miracle at St. Anna (I JUST found out about this, and OH MY GOD. I CANNOT WAIT. It's now my fourth-most anticipated movie of 2008.); Australia; The Soloist; Sunshine Cleaning; Doubt; Appaloosa; Burn After Reading; The Argentine
Reasoning: Body of Lies involves Ridley Scott, Leonardo DiCaprio, Russell Crowe, and William Monahan, a lot of things the Academy likes in general. Changeling is Clint Eastwood - hello??? Defiance is Edward Zwick, and I'm thinking this might be the come-out-of-nowhere-but-why-didn't-we-see-this-coming-because-the-Academy-is-wet-for-you nomination (like Letters from Iwo Jima or Munich). The Academy really seems to like him, regardless of how terrible his movies usually are; Blood Diamond did pretty good for the nominations and kind of came out of nowhere. Milk is the biopic and "oh gee, we're really sorry about Brokeback Mountain (except wait, Crash was totally the better movie!)" award. The Reader is because the Academy really likes Daldry and WWII.
Win prediction at this point (SO dumb, but why not!): Milk
Best Director
Clint Eastwood - Changeling
Spike Lee - Miracle at St. Anna
Ridley Scott - Body of Lies
Gus Van Sant - Milk
Edward Zwick - Defiance
Alternates: Mendes for Revolutionary Road; Howard for Frost/Nixon; Fincher for The Curious Case... (I do think this is his most Oscar-friendly movie, plus it actually has an Oscar-friendly release date); Meirelles for Blindness; Luhrmann for Australia; Harris for Appaloosa; Shanley for Doubt; Wright for The Soloist; Daldry for The Reader; Soderbergh for The Argentine
Reasoning: They NEVER get tired of Eastwood. If Scott can make a good movie again (IE not American Gangster or A Good Year...), I think he'll be back in their good graces. If Milk isn't all weird, Van Sant will get nominated. It's only a matter of time until Zwick does, because they like his movies even when they are crap. And finally, Lee is my wishin' and hopin' and thinkin' and prayin' guess. I'm fully expecting him to be wrong. But if it's right, I'll be overjoyed.
Win prediction at this point: Ridley Scott - Body of Lies
Best Actor
Benicio Del Toro - The Argentine
Leonardo DiCaprio - Revolutionary Road
Jamie Foxx - The Soloist
Frank Langella - Frost/Nixon
Sean Penn - Milk
Alternates: DiCaprio in Body of Lies; Brad Pitt in The Curious Case of Benjamin Button; Philip Seymour Hoffman in Doubt or Synecdoche, New York; Viggo Mortensen in Appaloosa; Ralph Fiennes in The Reader; Hugh Jackman in Australia
Reasoning: Del Toro, Langella, and Penn are all the OMGXPERSONISYPERSON!!!!! performances of the year. I feel like Jamie Foxx will be welcomed back with open arms if he makes another good movie again, especially one so baity that will call back memories of Ray, perhaps. Jamie Foxx, three-time Oscar nominee! DiCaprio has turned into an actor the Academy always pays attention to, and supposedly his role in Revolutionary Road is just fantastic.
Win prediction at this point: Sean Penn - Milk
Best Actress
Cate Blanchett - The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Emily Blunt - The Young Victoria
Angelina Jolie - Changeling
Meryl Streep - Doubt
Kate Winslet - Revolutionary Road
Alternates: Sienna Miller and Keira Knightley in The Edge of Love; Amy Adams and Emily Blunt in Sunshine Cleaning (why does Jesus demean herself so? :( ); Keira Knightley in The Duchess; Julianne Moore in Blindness; Nicole Kidman in Australia; Natalie Portman in Brothers; Anne Hathaway in Dancing with Shiva; Uma Thurman, The Life Before Her Eyes; Rachel McAdams, The Time Traveler's Wife; Sally Hawkins, Happy-Go-Lucky. And can someone fill me in on this Number One Ladies' Detective Agency thing? I've heard it's a mini-series or is ineligible for some reason?
Reasoning: Winslet, Blanchett, and Streep are Winslet, Blanchett, and Streep. They get nominations for everything. Yeah, I know I had that post a few days/weeks? ago decrying the Blanchett fans for calling her a lock. And she's not a lock (no one is a lock at this point, and it is ridiculous to say so), but she is very likely. Jolie will get caught up in Changeling's probably-inevitable Oscar love; this is added to by the fact that she was so close to getting in this year. As far as Emily Blunt goes, yuck. I am being pessimistic and truly hoping this will be one of the ones we laugh at in 2009. But British queens = Oscar bait. Ugh. But anyway...watch this lineup be like, Blanchett, Blunt, Knightley, Hathaway, and Winslet. Winslet will give the best performance of her career, and everyone will want her to win and she'll sweep the critics, and then something stupid and bullshit will happen like BLUNT OR HATHAWAY HAS A COME-OUT-OF-NOWHERE WIN. Oh my God, I think I'd shoot myself on principle. SERIOUSLY.
Win prediction at this point: Kate Winslet - Revolutionary Road (provided the performance is good - which it will be because it's Kate - PLEASEEEEEEEEEE.)
Best Supporting Actor
Jamie Bell - Defiance
Josh Brolin - Milk
Robert Downey Jr. - The Soloist
Heath Ledger - The Dark Knight
Michael Sheen - Frost/Nixon
alternates: Ed Harris in Appaloosa; John Malkovich in Changeling. This category is hard to call, as there isn't really anyone that cares enough about Supporting Actors to make a big list of the Oscar-baity Supporting Actors and their films.
Reasoning: These seem the baitiest. I guess. Like I said, I don't really know what anyone else is predicting, besides Heath Ledger. I don't think he'll win - a year from now, his death won't seem so fresh and thus, so sad - but I'd love to see him get a nomination if his performance is as strong as that in the trailer. But I have heard his part's not as big as some were saying...
Win prediction at this point: Josh Brolin - Milk
Best Supporting Actress
Kathy Bates - Revolutionary Road
Viola Davis - Doubt
Catherine Keener - The Soloist
Laura Linney - The Other Man
Kate Winslet - The Reader
alternates: Amy Adams in Doubt (I would actually be predicting her, but I hear her role isn't very big [I don't remember from the play]); Amy Ryan in Changeling; Taraji P. Henson in The Curious Case of Benjamin Button; the ladies of Synecdoche, New York; Penelope Cruz in Vicky Cristina Barcelona
Reasoning: They all have good parts in Oscar-baity films. Linney is my wish that I don't really think is going to happen (if I'm predicting Blunt, I'm going to predict Lee and Linney too, dammit!!!). People forget that Kate Winslet, especially since the 2000s started, is also very much a default nominee; she just doesn't work nearly as much as Blanchett.
Win prediction at this point: Viola Davis - Doubt
Best Original Screenplay
Changeling
Milk
Synecdoche, New York
Vicky Cristina Barcelona
Wall-E
Alternates: Burn After Reading; Sunshine Cleaning; The Soloist; Australia; The Lucky Ones; Dancing with Shiva
Reasoning: Changeling and Milk are the Best Picture nominees nominees. Synecdoche is the weird artsy nominee. Vicky Christina Barcelona is the Woody Allen nominee (if it's good, it's in, but there's the large possibility that it'll get bad reviews). Wall-E is the Pixar-is-genius nominee.
Win prediction at this point: Wall-E (provided the quality remains high, it's only a matter of time until the Academy starts recognizing Pixar films in other categories than Animated and the techs)
Best Adapted Screenplay
Body of Lies
Defiance
Frost/Nixon
The Reader
Revolutionary Road
Alternates: Appaloosa; Blindness; Doubt; The Curious Case of Benjamin Button; Miracle at St. Anna
Reasoning: The Reader, Defiance, and Body of Lies are the Best Picture nominees nominees. Revolutionary Road is the close-to-Best-Picture-plus-it's-based-on-a-great-novel nominee. Frost/Nixon is the play nominee. For some reason, I see Frost/Nixon getting more Academy attention than Doubt.
Win prediction at this point: The Reader
What will come out of nowhere and be brilliant and loved by the Academy, like Juno this year? What will suck and fail horribly (please, not Miracle at St. Anna or Revolutionary Road...)? Why do I not think Australia will do well, apparently? We shall see.
The Office is everywhere!
Sure, they look cute here, but they're actually planning to TAKE OVER THE WORLD!
So tonight I went with my dad to see The Other Boleyn Girl and Juno in theaters (I hadn't actually seen either of them in theaters before, shhh). And it occurred to me. The Office is everywhere!
So, in The Other Boleyn Girl, at the beginning, Natalie Portman's got the hots for some duke or something that is engaged. She says she's got the hots for him to her brother; her brother said "but he's engaged." Natalie says back something along the lines of "it is a long journey from bended knee to altar!" Clearly, this is that century's way of saying "BFD, engaged ain't married!"
Then, there is Juno. Beyond the obvious Rainn Wilson connection, where is Bleeker planning to go before prom? Benihana. BENIHANA!
I rest my case.
So, in The Other Boleyn Girl, at the beginning, Natalie Portman's got the hots for some duke or something that is engaged. She says she's got the hots for him to her brother; her brother said "but he's engaged." Natalie says back something along the lines of "it is a long journey from bended knee to altar!" Clearly, this is that century's way of saying "BFD, engaged ain't married!"
Then, there is Juno. Beyond the obvious Rainn Wilson connection, where is Bleeker planning to go before prom? Benihana. BENIHANA!
I rest my case.
Oh man, I love The Departed.
It's always on TV now, and I'll always watch it. It's an extremely quality movie, but also hugely entertaining. And I gotta say - I LOVE that last scene. The button with the rat got a lot of criticism, but I think it's just the perfect "heh..." ending. Also always on TV? My second-favorite movie of 2006, Marie-Antoinette. Awesome. Makes up for the fact that Babel's always on now too. And won't someone put License to Wed on once so I can watch my John without having to rent it from Netflix and thus feel dirty?
Brotherly love.
Hmm. It would be pretty repulsive to say I have some vaguely prurient thoughts after seeing this picture, so...I won't say that.
Certainly not here, either.
Sorry, boyf. And readers. For being repulsive.
Sunday, March 09, 2008
AHHH. HELP.
Since seeing Atonement I have somehow been under the spell of Keira Knightley. I don't know why. I don't know how. This didn't happen when I saw Pride and Prejudice, undoubtedly the better performance. I used to just roll my eyes and go "ugh, Keira" whenever I saw pictures of her, but now I'm all like, KEIRA!
Totally pretty! Adorable outfit!
Pretty!
Pretty!
YOWZA! The eyes are weird but like, Scarlett-Johansson-level hot!
(Probably because, quite frankly, though I don't think she's anorexic, she does look better with like 10 extra pounds.)
WHAT IS GOING ON???? I don't think she's a good actress; her only good performances were in Pride and Prejudice, Atonement, and Bend It Like Beckham, and two of those were with the same director so I'm calling that a fluke. And she's not anywhere near Oscar-worthy for Bend It Like Beckham. And she still looks like she got hit by a train sometimes. I DON'T KNOW. I'm so scared.
Totally pretty! Adorable outfit!
Pretty!
Pretty!
YOWZA! The eyes are weird but like, Scarlett-Johansson-level hot!(Probably because, quite frankly, though I don't think she's anorexic, she does look better with like 10 extra pounds.)
WHAT IS GOING ON???? I don't think she's a good actress; her only good performances were in Pride and Prejudice, Atonement, and Bend It Like Beckham, and two of those were with the same director so I'm calling that a fluke. And she's not anywhere near Oscar-worthy for Bend It Like Beckham. And she still looks like she got hit by a train sometimes. I DON'T KNOW. I'm so scared.
I wonder if that bastard Giamatti'll be nicer to Goddess Laura this time.
I couldn't find many characters from 2007 I hated like Andy in Devil Wears Prada, Chieko in Babel, and Richard Hart in Notes on a Scandal, but I think Paul Giamatti's Mr. X might take the cake. Don't you dare go cheating on La Linney, you bastard!
That said: psyched for John Adams. HBO generally makes really fucking quality miniseries.
That said: psyched for John Adams. HBO generally makes really fucking quality miniseries.
My top 15 episodes of The Office.
Season 4 excluded, because I've only seen all those episodes once. They were great, though. A few would be in my top 15, I think. This list seems weird... I mean, "Casino Night" at #15? Psht come on. But still, they are all great.
15. "Casino Night" Season 2, Episode 22
Yeah, I think I am...
14. "The Fire" Season 2, Episode 6
Well, I would definitely have sex with Ryan.
13. "Beach Games" Season 3, Episode 22
Pam! That was amazing! But I am still looking for someone with a sales background.
12. "Branch Closing" Season 3, Episode 7
It's over. WE ARE SCREWED.
11. "Diversity Day" Season 1, Episode 2
This is an environment of welcoming and you should just get the hell out.
10. "Sexual Harassment" Season 2, Episode 2
The only thing I'm worried about...is gettin' a boner.
9. "The Injury" Season 2, Episode 12
No, I didn't mention you cooked your foot.
8. "The Convict" Season 3, Episode 9
I am here to SCARE YOU STRAAAAAAAIIIIIIGHTTTT!!!!
7. "Christmas Party" Season 2, Episode 10
Like booze ever killed anybody.
6. "The Merger" Season 3, Episode 8
Wow, you are very exotic-looking. Was your dad a G.I.?
5. "The Job" Season 3, Episode 23
You and I are done.
4. "Booze Cruise" Season 2, Episode 11
Sometimes you just have to be the boss of dancing.
3. "Gay Witch Hunt" Season 3, Episode 1
At least we put this matter to bed. That's what she said. Or he said.
2. "A Benihana Christmas" Season 3, Episode 10
No, orange is whorish.
1. "The Dundies" Season 2, Episode 1
Neighbor's hanged himself due to lack of recognition.
15. "Casino Night" Season 2, Episode 22
Yeah, I think I am...
14. "The Fire" Season 2, Episode 6
Well, I would definitely have sex with Ryan.
13. "Beach Games" Season 3, Episode 22
Pam! That was amazing! But I am still looking for someone with a sales background.
12. "Branch Closing" Season 3, Episode 7
It's over. WE ARE SCREWED.
11. "Diversity Day" Season 1, Episode 2
This is an environment of welcoming and you should just get the hell out.
10. "Sexual Harassment" Season 2, Episode 2
The only thing I'm worried about...is gettin' a boner.
9. "The Injury" Season 2, Episode 12
No, I didn't mention you cooked your foot.
8. "The Convict" Season 3, Episode 9
I am here to SCARE YOU STRAAAAAAAIIIIIIGHTTTT!!!!
7. "Christmas Party" Season 2, Episode 10
Like booze ever killed anybody.
6. "The Merger" Season 3, Episode 8
Wow, you are very exotic-looking. Was your dad a G.I.?
5. "The Job" Season 3, Episode 23
You and I are done.
4. "Booze Cruise" Season 2, Episode 11
Sometimes you just have to be the boss of dancing.
3. "Gay Witch Hunt" Season 3, Episode 1
At least we put this matter to bed. That's what she said. Or he said.
2. "A Benihana Christmas" Season 3, Episode 10
No, orange is whorish.
1. "The Dundies" Season 2, Episode 1
Neighbor's hanged himself due to lack of recognition.
Saturday, March 08, 2008
More celebrity thoughts.
Laura: I love everything. I am the source of all goodness and light. When the evil aliens invade planet Earth, it will inevitably be me that causes the aliens to realize humans aren't so bad and thus leads to interstellar peace. My existence is so wonderful it utterly negates that of Heathers'. It's true.Phil: I agree with all of the above. I need a drink, though. Otherwise I might...smile or something. Or take off this jacket, which I don't think I ever do. Don't I look weirdly like Daniel Day-Lewis in There Will Be Blood in this picture? I don't know why or how. Probably the mustache...
Laura: Teehee. That's so true. I love you, Phil.
Phil: I'm supposed to be all indie and weird and showing love will completely destroy that image, but dammit, Laura, I love you too. Nobody's such a good actor that they can pretend that they don't.
Laura: Somehow, despite being kind of a mess and always playing super-weird characters that make everyone uncomfortable, I find you incredibly charming. I love everything. Weren't we great in The Savages together? Let's cuddle forever.
Phil: Let's.
BTW.
Pulpys for Best Actor, Picture, and Screenplays won't be coming until at least next Sunday, for those of you that care. I know you do, intensely, of course.
Friday, March 07, 2008
The Other Boleyn Girl.
Traaaashtastic. So basically, exactly what I was expecting.Scarlett Johansson fucking rocks.
Excessive "happy birthday celebrities I don't know!!!" posts are so 2006/2007, but...
We must celebrate, as it is the birthday of those who give/gave life to Clyde Martin, Tessa Quayle, and Pam Beesley. LOVE all three - characters, and actors.
Thursday, March 06, 2008
Tell me again about the hash bar.
I didn't know much about Pulp Fiction before I randomly took it out of the library and watched it. But when this scene came on...I KNEW I'd found something utterly special. Such an indescribably great movie.
Wednesday, March 05, 2008
Iron Man doesn't look that good...
...I mean, it's got a MySpace reference in the trailer alone... that said, Robert Downey Jr. looks fucking awesome. As always, really. And I kind of hope they prove me wrong with that whole "not very good" theory.
Tuesday, March 04, 2008
Chances I shoot someone/thing before Spring Break:
1 in 5, currently.
Granted, these chances are decreasing, but STILL.
Granted, these chances are decreasing, but STILL.
Just in case you were wondering...
Yes, I wanna do Clive Owen something fierce. But...but...I'm a little scared of him. I mean, take this picture. I can't look at it for very long. o_O
Monday, March 03, 2008
The worst thing about August Rush...
...and trust me, there are many, many, many things to choose from, but the absolute worst thing about that movie is the fact that it is near-unbearably cheesy, sentimental, and cliche-ridden, and then it denies you what the entire movie has been leading up to: Evan's reunion with his parents. The movie is clogged with syrup, but it doesn't even give you the catharsis that syrup demands. It's like...it's like...it's like having sex with someone really hot but that you hate and then it turns out he or she is terrible in bed or something like that. Yeah. Great metaphor...
Keri Russell and Jonathan Rhys-Myers sure are a pretty couple to look at, but it doesn't even begin to make up for the sheer suckiness of August Rush. Blarrrrghhhhh. Awful.
Keri Russell and Jonathan Rhys-Myers sure are a pretty couple to look at, but it doesn't even begin to make up for the sheer suckiness of August Rush. Blarrrrghhhhh. Awful.
I saw Talk to Me
Don Cheadle just might give the "I'm underrated because nobody saw me" performance of the year (or maybe that's Sarah Michelle Gellar). LOVE. Best Actor this year is ludicrously strong. Chiwetel Ejiofor would also certainly make my Best Supporting Actor -Musical/Comedy lineup, and as far as Cheadle making my Best Actor - Musical/Comedy lineup, you'll just have to see........ (hint: he makes it.)
The Pulpys 2007 - Best Actress.
Best Actress :: Musical or Comedy
and the nominees are
Amy Adams as Giselle in Enchanted
(yeah, she gets the super-large picture...BUT SHE DESERVES IT!)
Katherine Heigl as Alison Scott in Knocked Up
Nicole Kidman as Margot in Margot at the Wedding
Laura Linney as Wendy Savage in The Savages
Ellen Page as Juno MacGuff in Juno
Molly Shannon as Peggy in Year of the Dog
and the winner is
AMY ADAMS, BITCHES!!!
Best Actress :: Drama
and the nominees are
Cate Blanchett as Jude Quinn in I'm Not There
(this should probably count as a musical/comedy. Oh well)
Julie Christie as Fiona Anderson in Away from Her
Laura Linney as Claire in Jindabyne
Anamaria Marinca as Otilia in 4 Months, 3 Weeks, and 2 Days
Sienna Miller as Katya in Interview
Tang Wei as Wong Chia Chi in Lust, Caution
and the winner is
Tang Wei
and the nominees are
Amy Adams as Giselle in Enchanted
(yeah, she gets the super-large picture...BUT SHE DESERVES IT!)
Katherine Heigl as Alison Scott in Knocked Up
Nicole Kidman as Margot in Margot at the Wedding
Laura Linney as Wendy Savage in The Savages
Ellen Page as Juno MacGuff in Juno
Molly Shannon as Peggy in Year of the Dog
and the winner is
AMY ADAMS, BITCHES!!!
Best Actress :: Drama
and the nominees are
Cate Blanchett as Jude Quinn in I'm Not There
(this should probably count as a musical/comedy. Oh well)
Julie Christie as Fiona Anderson in Away from Her
Laura Linney as Claire in Jindabyne
Anamaria Marinca as Otilia in 4 Months, 3 Weeks, and 2 Days
Sienna Miller as Katya in Interview
Tang Wei as Wong Chia Chi in Lust, Caution
and the winner is
Tang Wei
If I had to combine all the nominees into one:
* Amy Adams *
Nicole Kidman
Laura Linney (The Savages)
Sienna Miller
Tang Wei
With apologies to Sienna Miller in Factory Girl, Ashley Judd in Bug, Belen Rueda in The Orphanage, Jodie Foster in The Brave One, Naomi Watts in Eastern Promises, Dakota Blue Richards in The Golden Compass, Christina Ricci in Black Snake Moan, Rose McGowan in Planet Terror, Keri Russell in Waitress, and Marketa Irglova in Once. Great year for actresses, again.
My Top 15 Most Anticipated Films of 2008.
I think I already did a post like this, but whatever. Now I put numbers on 'em. Whoooo.
15. Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince
14. Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull
13. Doubt
12. Leatherheads
11. Frost/Nixon
10. The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
9. Blindness
8. Australia
7. Sex and the City: The Movie (HAVE YOU GUYS SEEN THE TRAILER????? BIG AND CARRIE BREAK UP. STEVE CHEATS ON MIRANDA. NOOOO!!!!!)
6. Get Smart
5. My Blueberry Nights
4. Synecdoche, New York
3. Wall-E
2. Revolutionary Road
1. The Dark Knight
15. Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince
14. Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull
13. Doubt
12. Leatherheads
11. Frost/Nixon
10. The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
9. Blindness
8. Australia
7. Sex and the City: The Movie (HAVE YOU GUYS SEEN THE TRAILER????? BIG AND CARRIE BREAK UP. STEVE CHEATS ON MIRANDA. NOOOO!!!!!)
6. Get Smart
5. My Blueberry Nights
4. Synecdoche, New York
3. Wall-E
2. Revolutionary Road
1. The Dark Knight
Sunday, March 02, 2008
I love Oscar year-in-advance predictions...
...cuz seriously, the Cate Blanchett fanatics are reminding me why I don't like her. "She's totally winning in lead for The Curious Case of Benjamin Button!!!! It's right up Oscar's alley!" I can't say I've read the book? short story? but...it's David Fincher. Let's look at his films' track record with Oscar.
Alien 3 - Best Visual Effects nomination.
Se7en - Best Editing nomination.
The Game - nothing.
Fight Club - Best Sound Effects nomination.
Panic Room - nothing.
Zodiac - nothing.
Now, obviously, I'm not a psychic. The Curious Case... may be the first film that gets Fincher Oscar success, I don't know. But at this point, it's stupid to say that it's "right up Oscar's alley." Likewise, it's equally stupid to say Meryl Streep is a lock for a nomination or Kate Winslet will certainly get a double nod. We just don't know. And that's half the fun of the thing, not being like "OMG X MUST WIN!!!!!"
Alien 3 - Best Visual Effects nomination.
Se7en - Best Editing nomination.
The Game - nothing.
Fight Club - Best Sound Effects nomination.
Panic Room - nothing.
Zodiac - nothing.
Now, obviously, I'm not a psychic. The Curious Case... may be the first film that gets Fincher Oscar success, I don't know. But at this point, it's stupid to say that it's "right up Oscar's alley." Likewise, it's equally stupid to say Meryl Streep is a lock for a nomination or Kate Winslet will certainly get a double nod. We just don't know. And that's half the fun of the thing, not being like "OMG X MUST WIN!!!!!"
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