(Courtesy: Movieweb)
Category: Daily
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Gus Van Sant to get the Gotham special treatment
From the press release:In recognition of his pioneering career which has helped break down the barriers between independent and mainstream film, IFP announced today that director Gus Van Sant will be presented with a Gotham Awards Tribute at the 18th Annual Gotham Awards on Tuesday, December 2nd in New York.
Additionally:
In recognition of Van Sant’s fearlessness in using film to explore LGBT issues, IFP announced a new initiative aimed at inspiring the next generation of LGBT filmmakers. IFP is teaming with the The Hetrick-Martin Institute, home of the Harvey Milk High School in New York City. IFP, courtesy of Deloitte Financial Services LLP, is donating 45 video cameras to the school. IFP hopes to work with the producers of NewFest, The New York LGBT Film Festival, to create a series of training and mentoring sessions.
Huge round of congratulatory applause on my end. More on the awards here.
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‘Che’ and ‘Hurt Locker’ find distributors in Toronto
It looks like IFC Films, not Magnolia Pictures (as originally expected), has picked up the much-discussed “Che” at the Toronto International Film Festival. Here’s Anne Thompson on why. Meanwhile, Kathryn Bigelow’s Iraq film “The Hurt Locker,” which is stunning critics all over the place, was scooped up by Summit Entertainment.
How interesting is it that no major stuio grabbed these films and they are staying in the independent mindset of smaller factions? I love it!
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‘Che,’ ‘W.’ among films announced to play London fest
Looking down the list of titles in the newly-revealed lineup for next month’s London Film Festival lineup, my initial reaction was one of mild disappointment. Plenty of exciting titles, for sure, but it doesn’t quite match last year’s feast that included everything from “The Diving Bell and the Butterfly” to “The Assassination of Jesse James” to “Juno” to “4 Months, 3 Weeks, 2 Days.”My second thought, however, was that the lineup reflects more on what a tepid year for film 2008 is shaping up to be, rather than any lack of effort on festival director Sandra Hebron’s part. Tellingly, this morning Hebron herself cited critical opinion that, in the wake of a roundly derided Venice festival, “it wasn’t a vintage year for cinema.”
But enough of the hand-wringing. There’s still much to get excited about, including “Che,” the two parts of which, interestingly, will be screened both together and apart; Oliver Stone’s potentially polarising “W”; “Hunger,” featuring a potential dark horse for Best Actor; “Religulous”; “Rachel Getting Married,” “Nick and Nora’s Infinite Playlist,” “Gonzo: The Life and Work of Hunter S. Thompson” and, to my immense delight, “Synecdoche, New York.”
Not to mention that, as previously announced, the festival will be bookended by the world premiere of “Frost/Nixon” and Danny Boyle’s red-hot Toronto hit “Slumdog Millionaire.”
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9/10 Oscarweb Round-up
• Journos continue to catch up with the two-week-old narrative: Toronto isn’t an Oscar playground this year. [Entertainment Weekly]• Anthony Breznican, thankfully, tries to come at it from a slightly different perspective. [USA Today]
• James Rocchi sits down with Darren Aronofsky for some choice words in Toronto. [Cinematical]
• Jeffrey Wells is in the tank for Kathryn Bigelow’s “The Hurt Locker.” [Hollywood Elsewhere]
• David Poland cranks out a beaming assessment of “The Hurt Locker” as well, with some great words for “Slumdog Millionaire” on the side. [The Hot Button]
• Noah Forrest sits down with Neda Armian, producer of “Rachel Getting Married.” [Movie City News]
• Gill Pringle kicks back with Seth Rogen across the pond. [The Independent]
• Always looking for fresh angles, Michael Cieply comes at Toronto from the perspective of its music showcases this year. [New York Times]
• In a poorly headlined (if you ask me) Oscar forecast, David Germain rounds up awards quotes from heavies such as Christian Bale, Tom Cruise and Leonardo DiCaprio. [Associated Press]
• Spike Lee sets his aimless sights on the Duke, in case you don’t get the point the first time early on in “Miracle at St. Anna.” [New York Post]
• Has James Franco signed on to an Oscar trajectory with the Gus Van Sant-produced “Howl?” [The Hollywood Reporter]
• Who the hell honestly thinks Rod Lurie was attempting to tell the actual Valerie Plame story, and therefore, “distorted” anything? Stupid… [Spout Blog]
• Anne Thompson reports from party central in Toronto. [Thompson on Hollywood]
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‘Quantum’ trailer debuts
Scoff if you must. But from where I’m standing, the new “Quantum of Solace” trailer pretty much ticks all the boxes. Chases. Pretty girls. Explosions. Hot cars. Hot cars exploding. Daniel Craig squinting moodily. Mathieu Amalric hamming it up in a tux. What’s not to like? Count me in.
Or watch it here for a prettier picture.
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“An Oscar-less Toronto” — but not for Searchlight
Anybody who’s kept even half an eye on film news recently knows by now that, compared to previous years, the consecutive Venice and Toronto festivals have done little to illuminate the Oscar race. (Unless, I suppose, you were one of those predicting major glory for “Miracle at St. Anna.”)The Hollywood Reporter adds their verdict to the pile here, quoting an executive as declaring the fest “an Oscar-less Toronto.” There’s little new perspective in the article, but it’s a handy enough precis. They do think one race has benefited from the festival:
But the festival might have helped clarify at least one category: the best actress race. The beneficiaries have been Anne Hathaway in Jonathan Demme’s dysfunctional-family drama “Rachel Getting Married”; Sally Hawkins in “Happy-Go-Lucky,” the Mike Leigh film about a chipper young schoolteacher; and, if Searchlight chooses to make an awards push for her, “The Secret Life of Bees” star Dakota Fanning.
Hmmm. It’s not as if Hathaway and Hawkins weren’t deemed contenders before Toronto. (The Golden Globes may as well drop the other three slots for Best Actress in a Comedy/Musical, right?) And Dakota Fanning? With those reviews? Yeah, right.
In any case, as they acknowledge, Searchlight has other priorities now, having nabbed the two hottest Toronto titles:
The lone film that has emerged as a genuine standout is Darren Aronofsky’s “The Wrestler,” which went in as a question mark and will leave as a contender in pretty much every major awards category. To a lesser extent, Danny Boyle’s “Slumdog Millionaire” also is generating awards talk, though its cast is entirely unknown.
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Fuck that
This Ben Child item at The Guardian has me steaming. The quote, following a recounting of “The Fountain”‘s crash and burn at Venice two years ago, that pushed me over the edge:How would Aronofsky recover? Despite being heralded as one of Hollywood’s most hotly-tipped young film-makers, he was a little early in his career to be making such a horrendous, narcissistic error of judgement. But recover he has. Could it be that the epic failure of The Fountain was just the kick in the teeth Aronofsky needed to get him back on track? There’s nothing like wasting six years of your life on a project, only to see all the doubters that tried to stop you getting it made proved correct, to persuade you to keep it simple the next time.
Ass. There are some of us that actually liked the film, bub. Enough to consider its ambition worth more than the shitstorm that ensued. There’s never anything worse than critics that smell blood, but whatever.
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Thompson on Smith action
You know, I really like that Anne Thompson’s interview skills are enjoying the podcast/video treatment. She always asks the right questions and can get a good quote with the best of them. But this first person stuff is freaking me out. Maybe this is what people want. It gives the whole “Kevin Smith is talking to ME” vibe, which, there’s something to be said for that I guess.
Anyway, I’m actually looking forward to “Zack and Miri Make a Porno” more than I was a few weeks ago. But hearing Smith talk about his films can endear anyone, regardless of how terrible some of them have been.
And hearing Anne say “dildos” and “erect penises” made me spit out my Dr. Pepper:
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TORONTO: Martin Landau and Ellen Burstyn talk ‘Lovely, Still’
When Chris Cooper accepted his Oscar for Best Supporting Actor in 2003, he pointed out that his co-star Meryl Streep had a great deal to do with his victory. “We made great jazz together,” he said.“It’s easier when you like the person,” Martin Landau says, smiling. “I’ve had to work with actors I could not stand, women I was not attracted to, and that is where the craft comes in. But with Ellen, we know each other, we work the same way, we were trained in a similar manner and we both found a connection to the material. It was very easy, very enjoyable coming to work each day.”
The chemistry between Burstyn and Landau in the Nik Fackler’s “Lovely, Still” is quite remarkable as we watch two lonely old souls looking for a connection, someone to love, to be with, to care for. The story veers off in an entirely different direction than the audience expects, however, which only adds to the stunning impact of both their performances and the picture itself.
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Yes, but what about the ladies?
Mickey Rourke is on an unstoppable course toward a Best Actor nomination for his performance in “The Wrestler.” Universal acclaim for the film has yet to hit a speed bump and by and large, folks are on board for this apparent tour de force.But there are at least two other performances in the film that aren’t getting their fair share of a spotlight dominated by Rourke’s comeback story. So I thought I’d go through the reviews and cherry pick the copy that’s been dedicated to Marisa Tomei and Evan Rachel Wood, the former perhaps set up for a supporting actress run if the suits at Fox Searchlight decide to spread the campaign love.
I’ll update this post as reviews land. The ladies need their own space!
Stephen Farber, The Hollywood Reporter:
Tomei delivers one of her most arresting performances, again without any trace of vanity. Wood’s part is smaller, but she captures the scalding anger of a woman neglected for most of her life.
Todd McCarthy, Variety:
As vibrant — and as naked — as she was in last year’s “Before the Devil Knows You’re Dead,” Tomei is in top, emotionally forthright form as she charts a life passage similar to Ram’s, if much less extreme. Once her character stops stonewalling her father and hears him out, Wood provides a fine foil for Rourke in their turbulent scenes together.
John Foote, In Contention:
Tomei is excellent, once again giving a fearless performance in and out of her clothing as she did last year in “Before the Devil Knows You’re Dead” and Evan Rachel Wood is fantastic as Rourke’s estranged daughter who does not know if she’s ready to know her father again.
Peter Sciretta, /Film:
Mickey’s performance is worthy of all the Oscar buzz that has been floating around since the Venice premiere. Also, Tomei and Wood’s performances should not be discounted.
Erin Cullen, Empire Movies:
In her role as Cassidy, a stripper who develops a relationship with Randy, Marissa Tomei also offers a clear reminder of the caliber of acting that earned her two trips to the Oscars.
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‘Lovely, Still’ clips
Variety’s Anne Thompson has scored a few clips from Nik Fackler’s “Lovely, Still,” already generating stellar notices at the Toronto Film Festival. Could Martin Landau and/or Ellen Burstyn become formidable acting contenders int his year’s Oscar race?
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9/9 Oscarweb Round-up
• Jeffrey Wells digs “Nothing But the Truth” (again), but wasn’t so much for the Toronto debut’s after party. [Hollywood Elsewhere]• Lou Lumenick, meanwhile, calls the film “silly” and “an endless mopefest.” [Lumenick on Film]
• Nancy Kriparos catches up with a few more flicks in Toronto, including the awards sneaker “Dean Spanley.” [Awards Daily]
• Peter Bart talks to Bill Maher about the comedians new documentary “Religulous.” [Peter Bart]
• James Rocchi is on board for “The Wrestler,” calling it a reflection of “poisonous” American entertainment culture. [Cinematical]
• Peter Sciretta also reviews the film… [/Film]
• …after fumbling to produce an incoherent initial reaction IMMEDIATELY after seeing the film. [/Film]
• Bob Tourtellotte reports a toned-down, hype-controlled festival. [Reuters]
• Stephanie Zacharek gets some face time with Ed Harris. [Salon]
• Presumably trying to beat Variety’s list of 10 to the punch, Karen Durbin picks five actors to watch (including the overreaching “Miracle at St. Anna” star Omar Benson Miller). [New York Times]
• Anne Thompson hands MTV’s credit over to /Film for yesterday’s Depp/Hoffman/Batman “news.” Nothing confirmed yet on that, of course. [Thompson on Hollywood]
• And about that…Devin Faraci is holier than thou. [CHUD]
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“This town needs an enema!”
Why can’t Hollywood just get along?
Lots of lawsuits dropping in the film and entertainment buisness lately. J.K. Rowling and the “Harry Potter” Lexicon, “Rear Window” vs. “Disturbia,” Watching the “Watchmen” tug of war, No Cash for Old Tommy Lee…and let’s not forget all the SAG drama, as studios fortify their ranks to do battle, be it now or in the future.
Sometimes…I don’t know, it’s weird. It’s like you can just TELL this blessed burg needs to chill out sometimes.
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More LFF titles revealed
The full lineup for next month’s London Film Festival is to be revealed tomorrow — but in the meantime, the latest issue of Sight and Sound reveals a couple more exciting inclusions.
In addition to the already-announced opening and closing films (“Frost/Nixon” and “Slumdog Millionaire,” respectively), S&S confirms that the French Palme d’Or winner “The Class” will appear, with director Laurent Cantet in attendance.
The magazine also reveals that there will be twelve international premieres at the festival, including “Sugar,” the baseball-oriented film from “Half Nelson” creators Ryan Fleck and Anna Boden, which bowed to warm reviews at Sundance in January. (By “international,” they mean outside the US, obviously.)
More signs of a great festival to come. I await tomorrow’s announcement like a kid on Christmas Eve.
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I wonder if Nicolas Cage is kicking himself right now.
After all, he was supposed to take on the role that is making Mickey Rourke a star again. “Bangkok Dangerous” or “The Wrestler” — which film would you rather be your stage at the moment?
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TORONTO: ‘Che,’ ‘The Wrestler’
Two masterpieces, one right after the other. This was the day I had been waiting for. I caught Steven Soderbergh’s “Che” today, all four hours and 20 minutes of it. It’s a glorious achievement from a brilliant mind, one of the few directors who seeks to challenge himself constantly. “Che” is audacious and bold filmmaking because not everyone will like it or even understand it perhaps. Soderbergh digs deep into the mind of a brilliant man and allows us a lucky glimpse.Moments after the film ended, with barely a moment to regroup, I saw Darren Aronofsky’s “The Wrestler” — and now I understand what all the fuss is about. If Mickey Rourke is not nominated for Best Actor for an Academy Award, there really is no justice. But Hollywood can be quite the unforgiving town…
(Reviews after the jump.)
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Attenborough: Oscar got it wrong
As awards geeks, bitching about the Academy’s supposed mistakes is pretty much our favourite sport. The question of who should and shouldn’t have won provides endless material for discussion — frequently on these pages.One of the titles that comes up often in the “shouldn’t have won” category is Richard Attenborough’s “Gandhi,” that well-mounted, well-acted and thoroughly indigestible biopic that managed to beat such more-beloved nominees as “Tootsie” and “E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial.” It was an unpopular choice even at the time. After the ceremony, NYT critic Vincent Canby famously wrote: “”E.T.” and “Tootsie” are films. “Gandhi” is a laboriously illustrated textbook.”
Interestingly, Lord Attenborough, of all people, agrees. In a recent interview with BBC Radio Five, he admits that “E.T.” was robbed, being “an infinitely more creative and fundamental piece of cinema” than his own winning film. Attenborough continues:
[Business partner] Diana and I went to see “E.T.” in Los Angeles shortly before all the awards and we used language, when we came out, to the extent of saying ‘we have no chance – “E.T.” should and will walk away with it’.
Without the initial premise of Mahatma Gandhi, the film (“Gandhi”) would be nothing. Therefore it’s a narrative film but it’s a piece of narration rather than a piece of cinema, as such. “E.T.” depended absolutely on the concept of cinema and I think that Steven Spielberg, who I’m very fond of, is a genius. I think “E.T.” is a quite extraordinary piece of cinema.
I couldn’t have said it any better myself. I’ve never been a fan of Attenborough as a filmmaker (“Shadowlands” excepted), but he sure is a classy guy. There are a lot of undeserving Oscar winners out there who must know they got lucky, but few of them have the guts to come right out and say so.
Anyone else want to come forward? Kevin Costner? Gwyneth Paltrow? John G. Avildsen? Anyone?