HEATH LEDGER

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Film

January 22, 2008

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I received a surprising number of emails, calls and IM’s about Heath Ledger’s death immediately after the news broke early this afternoon. I suppose that as someone who writes about the entertainment industry, people might be interested in my response. But I do not usually address celebrity life or gossip, and I try not to fuel general speculation (at least on paper, here in this space). However, tonight I feel compelled to talk about Heath Ledger. Very compelled.

There have been very few public figures in my lifetime whose deaths have affected me to the point of actual tears. River Phoenix and Princess Diana were the only two, until now. Look, we are all strongly influenced by people that we know and don’t know for a variety of reasons and at different stages in our lives.

Rather than discuss the details surrounding Ledger’s death earlier today, as hundreds of other media outlets and pop culture blogs are right now, I have decided to focus on how I’d like to remember him. Just like above. Brokeback Mountain is one of my favorite films of all time, and that photo is perfect. It represents one of the only moments of levity that his character experiences throughout the entire movie, and also captures that time in Ledger’s own life when his star was on the rise.

I haven’t seen the recently released I’m Not There, in which Ledger is one of six actors who represent the stages of Bob Dylan’s life (Cate Blanchett was just nominated for her version). But here are my top Heath Ledger films, in order:

  • The groundbreaking Brokeback Mountain, as Jake Gyllenhaal’s tormented, closeted cowboy
  • The guilty pleasure teen movie 10 Things I Hate About You, with Julia Stiles
  • The 70′s skateboarding docu-drama Lords of Dogtown, with Emile Hirsch
  • The gritty Monster’s Ball, as Billy Bob Thornton’s son

Heath Ledger was a very talented man, and he was also a son, a brother and a father. His death at age 28 was premature and shocking. He seemed to respect his craft and his body work reflects a great career. I will always appreciate his brave choices on the big screen, as well as his desire to retain privacy in a world where uninvited paparazzi inevitably accompany the spotlight.

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FANTASTIC SHENANIGANS! I’D LIKE TO THANK THE ACADEMY…FOR THEIR NOMINATIONS

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Film

January 22, 2008

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Here are the 2008 Oscar nominations in the major categories, followed by my quick (j)opinions.

Actor in a leading role

George Clooney (Michael Clayton)

Daniel Day-Lewis (There Will Be Blood)

Johnny Depp (Sweeney Todd)

Tommy Lee Jones (In the Valley of Elah)

Viggo Mortensen (Eastern Promises)

Actor in a supporting role

Casey Affleck (The Assassination of Jesse James…)

Javier Bardem (No Country for Old Men)

Philip Seymour Hoffman (Charlie Wilson’s War)

Hal Holbrook (Into the Wild)

Tom Wilkinson (Michael Clayton)

Actress in a leading role

Cate Blanchett (Elizabeth: The Golden Age)

Julie Christie (Away from Her)

Marion Cotillard (La Vie en Rose)

Laura Linney (The Savages)

Ellen Page (Juno)

Actress in a supporting role

Cate Blanchett (I’m Not There)

Ruby Dee (American Gangster)

Saoirse Ronan (Atonement)

Amy Ryan (Gone Baby Gone)

Tilda Swinton (Michael Clayton)

Best animated feature film 

Persepolis

Ratatouille

Surf’s Up

Directing

The Diving Bell and the Butterfly (Julian Schnabel)

Juno (Jason Reitman)

Michael Clayton (Tony Gilroy)

No Country for Old Men (Joel and Ethan Coen)

There Will Be Blood (Paul Thomas Anderson)

Original score

Atonement

The Kite Runner

Michael Clayton

Ratatouille

3:10 to Yuma

Original song

“Falling Slowly” (Once)

“Happy Working Song” (Enchanted)

“Raise It Up” (August Rush)

“So Close” (Enchanted)
“That’s How You Know” (Enchanted)

Best Picture

Atonement

Juno

Michael Clayton

No Country for Old Men

There Will Be Blood

Adapted Screenplay

Atonement (Christopher Hampton)

Away from Her (Sarah Polley)

The Diving Bell and the Butterfly (Ronald Harwood)

No Country for Old Men (Joel & Ethan Coen)

There Will Be Blood (Paul Thomas Anderson)

Original Screenplay

Juno (Diablo Cody)

Lars and the Real Girl (Nancy Oliver)

Michael Clayton (Tony Gilroy)

Ratatouille (Brad Bird)

The Savages (Tamara Jenkins)

Usually I am quite grumpy when these are revealed, as personal favorites are oft overlooked. However, I am more than satisfied with the following:

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR CATEGORY
In my humble opinion, this is the toughest category to choose from, and the most deserving group of actors. Though I thought that Philip Seymour-Hoffman was the best part about Charlie Wilson’s War, I don’t think this is the role that will add another golden statue to his collection.  Comic relief isn’t usually rewarded by the Academy. Although…he might win based on his stellar work in two additional films this year (Before The Devil Knows You’re Dead and The Savages).  As I mentioned in my last post, Hal Holbrook was mesmerizing in Into the Wild. I wasn’t emotionally connected to the journey of the lead character until he interacted with Holbrook. Sad, beautiful and very effective. Of course, Javier Bardem might win based on his eyes and that haircut alone; I haven’t seen No Country For Old Men yet, but just watching Bardem in the trailer creeps me out.

CATE BLANCHETT
That I love her is no secret. That she is nominated for both Lead Actress and Supporting Actress is quite impressive, but not shocking. If she wins for either Elizabeth: The Golden Age or I’m Not There, it would be the second time in a row that she is recognized for her interpretation of someone famous (Kathryn Hepburn in The Aviator, Queen Elizabeth in Elizabeth, Bob Dylan in I’m Not There). She is golden…and I can’t wait to see her as the ‘bad guy’ in the new Indiana Jones movie!

FEMALE SCREENWRITERS
It is very encouraging to see that 4 of the 10 nominations for Best Screenplay (both adapted and original) were for women, and that two of them are multi-hyphenates (Sarah Polley and Tamara Jenkins both wrote and directed their films).

JUNO
Holy sh*t, this is fantastic! I totally believe that Diablo Cody deserves the recognition for her refreshing Original Screenplay. Earlier this month in a review of the film I mentioned that Jason Reitman’s work behind the camera should not be overlooked….and voila!  Reitman gets his very first Academy Award nomination and his movie gets a Best Picture nod. So sweet. And then there is Ellen Page for Best Actress in a Leading Role. Amazing. Fitting. I love it.

LAURA LINNEY
Like Blanchett, I enjoy just about everything she does. I’ve been hearing buzz about Linney’s performance in The Savages since I tried to get tickets to it at Sundance a year ago. Good for her. One of these days she’ll join the ranks of the rare few who have actually earned Academy Awards. And I have to say, of all of my predictions from October, I am proud that this one became a reality.

MICHAEL CLAYTON
I liked this film and am pleasantly surprised by the number of nominations. I definitely think that Wilkinson and Swinton deserve their Supporting nods, and writer/director Tony Gilroy was also justly rewarded for his dual roles.

ONCE
Yes! I was worried that because this little indie came out earlier in 2007, it might have gotten lost in the shuffle. Thankfully, I was wrong and it earned a nod for Original Song. And I am thrilled for actors/singers/songwriters Glen Hansard and Marketa Irglova. The soundtrack has earned a place in my Top 5 of all time. Here is my post about Once from last summer.

ORIGINAL SCORE
I don’t usually pay much attention to this category, but composer Michael Giacchino is nominated for scoring Ratatouille. I love his music from The Incredibles and (obviously) Lost.

But of course, there were some disappointments:

AMERICAN GANGSTER
Wow, talk about a shut-out. While Ruby Dee was nominated for Best Supporting Actress (in what must be the annual sentimental vote; I was not particularly stirred by her brief appearance), I am quite surprised that Denzel and director Ridley Scott are not among the nominees this year.

INTO THE WILD
Sean Penn was robbed; he should have earned nods for Best Director and Adapted Screenplay. And frankly, THREE original song nominations for Enchanted seems excessive, especially given that Eddie Vedder was ignored for his original music on the Into the Wild soundtrack.

ANGELINA JOLIE
Not to take anything away from the others in the Best Actress category, but Jolie was absolutely stunning in A Mighty Heart. Hers was one of the more memorable performances from 2007, and she truly deserved a nomination.

VIGGO MORTENSEN
Yes, he wrestled and killed two thugs while completely naked. But one scene does not a movie make, nor does it deserve a Best Actor nod. Eastern Promises was disappointing. End of story.

Thoughts?

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2008 OSCAR NOMINATIONS UNVEILED TOMORROW

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Film

January 21, 2008

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At 5:30am tomorrow morning, the Academy Award nominations will be announced. I thought about setting the alarm to wake up, listen and then blog about the Oscar nods before work, but then I realized – hey, I have a job and I like sleeping.

Back in October, I posted my first annual T.O.P.s (Trailer Oscar Predictions), attempting to prematurely predict Oscar nominees based on trailers alone. I am already laughing at how ridiculous some of them are. The motion picture landscape has since shifted, as various awards have already been doled out and buzz for certain films has ebbed and flowed. Since that time, I have only seen a handful of the movies I mentioned (A Mighty Heart, American Gangster, Juno, Michael Clayton), I’ve yet to see some potentially major contenders in various categories (Atonement, La Vie En Rose, No Country For Old Men, Ratatouille, Sweeney Todd, There Will Be Blood), and have added one to my must-see list (The Diving Bell and the Butterfly).

I have a feeling that There Will Be Blood and No Country For Old Men will garner the most nominations. I’m pretty sure that Marion Cotillard is a lock for a Best Actress nod (La Vie En Rose) and Diablo Cody will be recognized for Best Original Screenplay (Juno), and I’d love to see Hal Holbrook get nominated (Best Supporting Actor) for his brief yet extremely poignant performance in Into the Wild. Other than that, I’m prepared for a few pleasant surprises (Ryan Gosling for Lars and the Real Girl or Zodiac for Best Picture or Fincher for Best Director). It would also be fantastic to see Cate Blanchett continue her Oscar dominance with dual nods for Elizabeth: The Golden Age and I’m Not There.

If the Academy fails to recognize any of the beautiful music from Once, I will be very disappointed. The fact that both Eminem and Three 6 Mafia have Oscars on their mantles as previous winners for Best Original Song, however, leads me to believe that this is a strong possibility.

So I will be back tomorrow evening with a list of the nominations, as well as my $.02 about each. In the meantime, entertain yourselves by watching Newsweek’s Oscar Roundtable, featuring video of Daniel Day-Lewis, Ellen Page, George Clooney, James McAvoy, Angelina Jolie and Marion Cotillard discussing everything from their first movie roles to the price of fame.

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SHAKEN, NOT STIRRED: IMMEDIATE REACTION TO ‘CLOVERFIELD’

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Film, LOST

January 19, 2008

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I just returned from a matinée viewing of Cloverfield. I am going to attempt to write a brief review, while processing why the film had such a strong physical affect on me. It was intense, and I literally fled the theater with a very uncomfortable knot in my stomach.

Cloverfield is an experience more than anything else, a visually violent ride that is not for those who are prone to motion sickness. Filmed entirely by handheld camera from the perspective of a group of friends in New York under attack from an unknown being, it is a tense, psychological adventure. But I certainly wouldn’t classify it as a horror movie; the film is more disturbing than terrifying (and not just because of the eerily familiar 9/11 NYC imagery).

I couldn’t begin to describe the actual ‘monster’ in Cloverfield, and I’m not sure that’s even an accurate word to characterize it. It did not resemble Godzilla or any other movie monster/alien hybrid we’ve ever seen before. When we were finally treated to a close-up of the nameless behemoth, my jaw dropped and I responded with a whispered “Oh, shit! Wow.”

Everyone involved with the creation of Cloverfield is connected to producer J.J. Abrams. The movie was written by Drew Goddard (Lost, Alias, Angel, Buffy) and directed by Matt Reeves (Felicity). I think it was a very bold choice to put Reeves at the helm of what must have been one hell of a production, and quite clever to equip the relatively unknown cast with cameras for most of the footage.

I’d heard rumors that there were a few subtle nods to Lost fans in Cloverfield, but the only one I noticed was the casting of Chris Mulkey (see photo below) in a blink-and-you’ll-miss-it role as a military lieutenant. He is the character actor who played the leader of the pot farmers in last season’s Locke-centric flashback (“Further Instructions”). He also briefly appeared as the jerk who replaced Coach Taylor on Friday Night Lights earlier this season.

Did I love Cloverfield? I’m not sure yet. This one will take a while to absorb. Would I recommend it? Yes. But not for young kids or even early teens. Or for the easily queasy. The Blair Witch Project was NOTHING compared to this. Not even close.

I’d love to hear what others thought of it. Feel free to share after you see it!

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THE RETURN OF MULDER & SCULLY

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Film, Television

January 17, 2008

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I collect things. For the most part, I have accumulated toys from the wonderful world of pop culture (many versions of Yoda, the gay Teletubby with the red purse, a Dwight Schrute bobblehead, a frozen figurine of Neo from The Matrix). But I was never into dolls much. I think I came to that realization when my brother shaved Malibu Barbie’s head and I didn’t cry…although I did wail when he decapitated Wonder Woman and flushed her head down the toilet. That being said, I have a confession to make. I own an official special-edition Mulder & Scully Barbie set, like the one pictured above. However, mine is still sealed in the box in mint condition, and is one of my prized possessions.

That was a long-winded way of letting you in on a poorly-kept secret: I have been and always will be a huge fan The X-Files. Up until recently, I had every single episode of the TV show on VHS. And I am finally about to own the entire series on DVD. That, coupled with the fact that the first production stills from the Untitled X-Files Sequel came out this morning (see example below), is why I am giddy like a schoolgirl right now.



The new film is scheduled to debut in theaters on July 25, 2008, so you know where I’ll be that day. I still vividly remember going to the first movie immediately after work on opening night in 1998 with 20 friends, and openly failing to conceal what a total dork I was. Not much has changed.

The good news for loyal fans is that the sequel is being directed and co-written by X-Files creator Chris Carter (the other screenwriter is X-Files writer/producer Frank Spotnitz). Along with David Duchovny and Gillian Anderson, they have only announced a few of the other ‘name’ cast members: Amanda Peet, Xzibit, and Billy Connolly. There isn’t an official title to the new film, but IMDB lists the possibilities as either The X-Files 2 or The X-Files: Done One.

Not only do I not know what the sequel is about, I am going to do my best to remain spoiler-free. I can’t imagine how my life would have been if blogging and message boards were as widespread back when the television series was at the height of its popularity. I’d probably still be single…

Although you all know how much I love Lost, I’d like to end this post with a visual illustration of my longterm dedication to this particular television series and movie franchise.

Let’s be honest, Sayid & Sawyer are hot, but they aren’t great names for felines. Besides, I specifically chose these cats because of their color and relation to The X-Files characters/actors; Mulder is kind of brooding and wears his dark coat well, Scully is smarter and she knows it – AND she sports the trademark red hair.

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WHAT TO DO UNTIL 1/31/08: SUGGESTIONS FOR THOSE WHO ARE ‘LOST’

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Film, LOST, Television

January 15, 2008

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Season 4 of Lost is fast approaching. Eight brand new episodes in a row, beginning January 31.

The countdown has begun, and the fanboys and girls are restless. So here are some fun suggestions for the Lost masses to entertain themselves in the meantime.

  1. Go see Cloverfield this weekend, and support J.J. Abrams. He’s like our L. Ron Hubbard, except far less creepy. And much more alive. 
  2. Throw a Lost theme party where character costumes are mandatory, and invite your favorite blogger so she can take photos and interview the guests (I’m talking to you, Jaime!).
  3. Channel your inner Martha; make and bake homemade Fish Biscuits and dream about shirtless sweaty Sawyer in the cage. Or dressed up and dirty Kate, who, according to the shirtless sweaty stud, tastes like strawberries.
  4. Rent or buy Season 3 on DVD, and host your very own marathon. The bonus features and commentaries are AWESOME, by the way.
  5. Catch up with Hurley in real life. Read Jorge Garcia’s blog.
  6. Watch a sneak peak of a scene from the new season AND a recap of all 3 seasons in the Hurley-inspired/numbers-cursed time of 8 minutes, 15 seconds here.
  7. Obsess about and overanalyze the new Lost promo (pictured above), which features the reflection of a modern city skyline in the water.
  8. Watch videos, follow clues and play along on Find815.
  9. Google the new Lost cast members: Jeremy Davies (Saving Private Ryan), Jeff Fahey (Lawnmower Man), Ken Leung (X-Men: The Last Stand), Rebecca Mader (The Devil Wears Prada), and Lance Reddick (The Wire).
  10. Create a Lost contest on your blog or at your office, and reward the person who can guess the exact number of times that Michael has yelled “Walt!” in three seasons combined. Bonus points for the person who correctly estimates how many times he wails for his son again after his return this season.

So update your calendars and set your TiVO or DVR, because here are the titles and air dates of all 8 new episodes:

  • Episode 4.1: The Beginning of the End (1/31/08)
  • Episode 4.2: Confirmed Dead (2/7/08)
  • Episode 4.3: The Economist (2/14/08)
  • Episode 4.4: Eggtown (2/21/08)
  • Episode 4.5: The Constant (2/28/08)
  • Episode 4.6: The Other Woman (3/6/08)
  • Episode 4.7: Ji Yeon (3/13/08)
  • Episode 4.8: Untitled/TBD (3/20/08)

Bring. It. On. Are you with me?

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