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Movie reviews

Emma’s HOT List

Emma17 Comments

I have created my own list of hotties.  (Warning: Some are SUPER-HOT!)  Some are rising stars, while others  have been making their mark in TV/film/etc., for years.  Not only are these gents good-looking, they’re good actors!

Aaron Eckhart 

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He’s not just Two Face, but an actor of MANY faces and facets.  Aaron grew up in Cali,  was raised Mormon, and attended BYU (where he met director and close pal, Neil LaBute.)  They both come from a similar background, and have collaborated often.  LaBute operates outside the mainstream, working on topics he likes.   Aaron is  unafraid to take on unusual projects; he’s gained lbs. and changed his hair/looks for many roles.

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This is a screen shot from Possession (one of my fave films of ALL time!)   In it Aaron plays an underappreciated American researcher (post-PhD) in London who happens upon a JUICY secret (at least in the field of Romantic poetry).  He joins up w/ an icy Brit Womens Studies prof (Paltrow) to get more info…   Too bad no REAL poetry experts look like him- LOL!!!

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I smile a lot in public because I tend to look too serious. 
Adrian Lester

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Wow, check out those EYES!!!  Like many performers of the “old days”, Adrian Lester can sing, dance, AND act onstage and onscreen.  He’s a BIG talent (physically, too- he’s around 6’4″) who has a rather soft voice.

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After I saw him in Primary Colors, I wondered why he wasn’t in more (big) films.  Fans of the bard can check him out in Branagh’s musical film Love’s Labour Lost and As You Like It.   His smile is VERY sweet!

Chiwetel Ejiofor 

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With a (Nigerian) name like that- you’re gonna have a nickname (Chewy)!  This young actor (under 35) can pretty much play ANY part, as the song goes.  He’s done Shakespeare (screen/satge), played a transvestite (Kinky Boots), and acted opposite Denzel (Inside Man / American Ganster)!

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He made a HUGE impression w/ Dirty Pretty Things, a smart, sensitive view of immigrant, working-class London.  He played a Nigerian immigrant (and former doc) who worked days driving a cab and nights at a hotel.  Chewy based this character partly on his OWN immigrant father (who was a real-life doc).  Unfortunately, he lost his father in a car accident when he was 11 y.o.  The scars on his forehead are a reminder of that.

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He disappears into roles like few other actors can, which makes him valuable to any film, but it also makes it difficult for him to become a star. 

I enjoy every role that I’ve seen him perform. His acting seems effortless and his interaction with colleagues is a beautifully timed dance.

A superb artist and I believe he will win that Oscar one day. A magnificent actor!

-Fan comments from IMDB

Christian Bale

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Welsh-born Bale has appeared in Shakespeare, dramas and comedies demonstrating a versatility, depth and range that has made him one of the best reviewed actors today and one of the most popular actors on the Internet.

-IMDB 

Though born in Wales, he calls himself British (as he didn’t grow up in Wales).  Christian grew up onscreen; his 1st movie role was at age 14 in Spielberg’s Empire of the Sun.  He trained for 10 weeks in dancing and martial arts for the dance sequences in Newsies (1992) and Swing Kids (1993).   

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Since it’s holiday season, check out Little Women w/ Winona Ryder, Claire Danes, and Kristen Dunst.

An actor should never be larger than the film he’s in.  

–Spin magazine, March 1996
I only sound intelligent when there’s a good scriptwriter around.  

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In American Psycho, Christian tackles a very, very EVIL businessman consumed w/ his own desires.

It’s the actors who are prepared to make fools of themselves who are usually the ones who come to mean something to the audience.

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I don’t think I was particularly in need of superheroes. I never had any fascination with Superman or Spider-Man or a Batman kind of character. If it happened at all, it was imagined characters that I had invented. My dad was a role model for me. He was a fascinating man. There was intrigue and entertainment growing up with him. He gave me an edict that I still pursue: Life should never be boring.
Denzel Washington

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Man gives you the award, but God gives you the reward.
To keep him out of trouble, Denzel’s parents sent him to The Boys and Girls Club; he’s now one of their spokespeople.  A couple of weeks ago, I saw Denzel’s first film, a comedy called Carbon Copy (opposite George Segal).  Not only did he look in FAB shape, he was confident and easy with the lines, actions, etc.  When Denzel is attached to a film, people all over the world take notice.  Some guys just have the “it” factor!   

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Did you know one of Denzel’s twins, Katia, is now at Yale university?

On Oprah, Julia Roberts commented that “working with Denzel (on The Pelican Brief) was like working with The Beatles.”  Dir. Ed Zwick uses a lot of close-ups on him, because “even when he’s not saying anything, the audience is looking at him.”  His wife in Crimson Tide, Vanessa Bell-Calloway, told People that “Denzel has wit, style, and intelligence.”  But the coolest thing about this big Hollywood success is that he’s willing to help young actors!
Dylan McDermott

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My theory about actors is we’re all walking milk cartons.  Expirations dates everywhere.

After a very troubled childhood/family life, Dylan and his lil sis were adopted by his step-mom (actress/writer/feminist icon Eve Ensler).  She encouraged him to go to acting school and Fordham.   She also turned his life around.   He had become a hard drinker and was constantly in fights. At age 23, he quit drinking.  He also changed his name from Mark to Dylan in tribute to Eve.

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This is a shot from The Mistress of Spices– a terrible film I suffered through just to see Dylan.  In order to NOT alienate her Bollywood fans, Aishwarya Rai DID NOT kiss Dylan on the lips in Gurinder Chadha’s rom com film.  Boy, talk about missed opportunity! 

Hugh Dancy 

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In Elizabeth I, a great UK miniseries I previously wrote about, Hugh goes toe-to-toe w/ Jeremy Irons and Helen Mirren.  Not bad for a guy just who’s just 33! 

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Who better to rescue a damsel in distress?  LOL… Daniel Deronda is about a young man- sensitive, caring, and highly intelligent, but haunted by doubts about his identity.  Is he a British gentleman like his adopted father?  And why is he drawn to the Jewish faith?

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Hugh is not just a pretty face; he graduated from Oxford University with a degree in English Literature & Language and speaks French fluently. 

My dad is an academic but there was never any question of me following on that route. I’m thick.

Ioan Gruffudd

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Isn’t he looking sophisticated in this pic?  Ioan starred in Amazing Grace, and had a bit part (as Tony Blair) in Oliver Stone’s W.  He’s done TV, historical stuff, action- you name it!  An interesting fact about Ioan is that his first language was Welsh; he’s a bilingual, multicultural guy.   

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You don’t need blue eyes to be a hottie- warm brown ones can work, too.  Did you know Ioan starred on a TV show (Horatio Hornblower) a few years back?  It’s now sold in the US.  You may have seen him in Wilde opposite Stephen Fry; he had gorgeous long hair then!

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I’m looking forward to seeing one of his (older) films- Solomon and Gaenor.  It’s a youthful love story between a Jewish boy and a Catholic girl in Ireland. 

Jimmy Smits

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Where else can you find cheekbones like that!?  His height and striking looks (his heritage is Puerto Rican) make him a major presence onscreen.  Jimmy Smits has been making his mark since the late 1980s, when he was cast on LA Law.  Too bad he didn’t take the offer to star in CSI: Miami.  (I’d rather watch him than David Caruso ANY day!)  He grew up in one of the toughest neighborhoods of Brooklyn (Bushwick), and can be seen in ads for the charity NY Cares.  

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Here is a pic from The West Wing, where Jimmy played Matt Santos, a serious, sympathetic democratic presidential candidate w/ a young fam.  Hmmm… sounds familiar. 

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Sometimes art imitates life!  Like our future prez, Jimmy is someone who transcends race.  He’s played Latino characters (from many backgrounds), but also characters that weren’t race-specific. 

Toby Stephens

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I like this longer hair A LOT!  Toby is possibly the hottest Bond villain (aside from fellow Brit Sean Bean.)   Speaking of Sean Bean…  He and Sean acted in Sharpe’s Challenge (shot in Rajasthan, India).   Speaking of India…  He’s acted in English AND Hindi (alongside Aamir Khan in The Rising).

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Like mom, Dame Maggie Smith (above w/ bro),  Toby has an unmistakeable (posh) accent, confidant gait, large expressive eyes, and a wide smile.

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In The Tenant of Wildfell Hall, Toby plays a kind country farmer who falls for his new neighbor, and becomes a father figure to her little son.   This character is VERY sweet and gentlemanly!

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Toby took on the challenge of Mr. Rochester- a very “changeable” romantic hero who’s “larger than life.”  Now he has MANY more fans!

Movies I REALLY Want to See!!!

EmmaLeave a comment

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Australia – a big, sweeping drama directed/co-written by the quirky Baz Luhrmann; starring gorgeous Kiwi (person from New Zealand) Nicole Kidman, handsome Aussie Hugh Jackman, and up-and-coming Aussie David Wenham (of LOTR fame).

 

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In northern Australia prior to World War II, an English aristocrat inherits a cattle station the size of Maryland. When English cattle barons plot to take her land, she reluctantly joins forces with a rough-hewn stock-man to drive 2,000 head of cattle across hundreds of miles of the country’s most unforgiving land, only to still face the bombing of Darwin, Australia, by the Japanese forces that had attacked Pearl Harbor only months earlier.  -IMDB synopsis

 

 

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Defiance – a WWII drama directed/co-written by thoughtful Ed Zwick; starring 007 (Daniel Craig), low-key American w/ BIG talent (Liev Shreiber), and all grown up from Billy Eliott (Jamie Bell)!

 

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I LOVE watching Liev!!!

 

Three Jewish brothers escape from Nazi-occupied Poland into the Belarussian forest, where they join Russian resistance fighters and endeavor to build a village in order to protect themselves and others in danger. -IMDB synopsis 

 

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What an adorable young man he’s become!

 

Milk – a drama directed by innovative Gus Van Sant based on the life of politician Harvey Milk (Sean Penn); the multi-layered Penn is joined by Josh Brolin (having a great year!), the gorgeous James Franco, Mexican crossover star Diego Luna, Broadway’s Victor Garber, and many, many others!

 

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After moving to San Francisco, the middle-aged New Yorker, Harvey Milk, became a Gay Rights activist and city politician. On his third attempt, he was elected to San Francisco’s Board of Supervisors in 1977, making him the first openly gay man to be elected to public office in the USA.  -IMDB synopsis

 

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NEW Movie Review: Oliver Stone’s “W”

EmmaLeave a comment

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Josh Brolin stars as George W. Bush in this Oliver Stone biopic that traces the head of state’s rise to power from a privileged alcoholic to a born-again Christian whose belief in religious destiny helped move him to the top ranks of political power.  -IMDB synopsis

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Before I saw Josh Brolin’s (quite respectable) performances in American Gangster and No Country for Old Men, I thought the best thing about him was his wife (the fabulous Diane Lane)!  In W, he gets to stretch his acting repertoire (with help from several veteran actors).  The accent, mannerisms, and mistakes of W are on display here.  But Oliver Stone doesn’t create a (overly) negative picture of the president.  My mom commented that the film made her feel “a little sorry for Bush.”

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The heart of this film is the father-son relationship; W never feels like he measures up to H.W. (played with great ease/conviction by James Cromwell).  The grande dame of the Bush family, Barbara (Ellen Burstyn), gets a couple of good moments in the film.  She’s great- I wanted to see more Barbara!  Jeb and other family members are barely there; I wanted to know more about the siblings.

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Believe it or not, W was called “elitist” and “Eastern” when he first ran for office in Midland, TX (his family’s adopted hometown)!  Laura Welch (Elizabeth Banks; she did a fine job in Seabiscuit) was a registered Democrat when she was introduced to Bush at a barbecue.  Laura is as we’d imagine her to be, but her character is not deeply explored.  She’s your typical sweet, supportive, pretty Southern girl.

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Once Bush enters national politics, he’s supported by “Vice” Cheney (Richard Dreyfuss), Condi Rice (Thandie Newton), Colin Powell (Jeffrey Wright), Donald Rumsfeld (Scott Glenn), and “genius boy” Karl Rove (Toby Jones).  My mom wanted to see more of Condi.  I wanted to see more of Dreyfuss and Glenn; they are solid veteran actors, but under-used here.  That’s just sad!  Dimunitive Brit actor, Toby Jones, gets a few interesting moments with Brolin.  Jones has played sneaky political types many times in his acting career.

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I was surprised that the first 20 minutes of the film were so dull.  It showed Bush as a young man acting the fool.  He drinks too much, can’t keep a job, and so forth.  My mind wandered off to other things.  I really liked the two long-ish scenes Brolin had with Stacy Keach (who played an Evangelical pastor from Midland).  Brolin commented in an interview that quitting drinking was one of the things he admired about W.  Unfortunately, there isn’t much to admire about this film.  We already know a lot of the things this film covers!  This is a different Oliver Stone than the one who made Born on the Fourth of July and JFK.  Those movie stays in your mind, unlike this one.

The Duchess

Emma4 Comments

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A chronicle of the life of 18th century aristocrat Georgiana, Duchess of Devonshire, who reviled for her extravagant political and personal life. She is a vibrant beauty and celebrity of her time. But she is trapped in an unhappy triangle with her husband and his live-in mistress. She falls passionately in love with an ambitious young politician, and the affair causes a bitter conflict with her husband and threatens to erupt into a scandal.  -IMDB synopsis

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Is it me, or are the movies (in general) becoming too simple, predictable, and just plain dull?  I’m not feeling strongly about most of the (mainstream) movies these days.  Many people I know feel the same, too.  However, I went last weekend to see two new films: The Duchess (with a group of ladies from NYBAP) and W (by myself; my mom saw it before me, and said it was interesting).  Though I wasn’t “wowed” by either of these movies, I recommend you see them (when they come out on DVD).  Below is a review of The Duchess; I will soon write about W as well. 

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There is no denying that Keira Knightley has a strikingly beautiful face; she reminds you of Brooke Shields as a very young woman.  She has gotten a lot of exposure, and grown as an actress since making a big splash as a teen tomboy in the Bend it like Beckham.  Not all the projects she’s chosen haven been hits, but I’m sure she’s learned a lot from them.  In The Duchess (based on actual events), Keira plays Georgiana, an independent-minded young lady who becomes the Duchess of Devonshire in 18th century England.  Her husband, the Duke, is played by Ralph Fiennes (his family is distantly related to British royalty).  He is always interesting to watch, both as a hero and villain.  Unfortunately, in the first half of the movie, he comes across as a rather cartoonish villain.  Subtlety is one of the main things missing from modern pictures!         

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G (as she is called by family and friends) goes from being a bubbly teen girl to a troubled married woman before you can say “corset.”  Her husband is nothing like a girl expects- he’s distant, uncommunicative, and has many affairs.  He becomes even colder when G fails to provide a (male) heir.  Her mother, played very well by Charlotte Rampling, says that women must bear many burdens.  (Divorce was very rare at that time.)

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G’s closest friend, Lady Elizabeth Eshton, is one of the bright spots in her life.  Hayley Atwell, who plays Lady Elizabeth, is a well-developed character who brings (much-needed) depth to this film.  She’s a “woman of the world” who has lived through many trials; she cares deeply for her friend.  While Keira is thin and light on her feet, Hayley is very curvaceous and earthy.  G is a wide-eyed “people-pleaser”; Lady Elizabeth is tougher.  She observes others closely with her small, dark, curious eyes.

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G, though unloved by her husband, becomes a popular fashion icon.  The hairdos, costumes, and (especially) jewels in this film are gorgeous.  She also gets involved in politics, supporting men like Lord Fox (who spoke against slavery, among other injustices).  A young lawyer, played by Dominic West, from G’s girlhood is Fox’s right-hand man.  He has strong feelings for G, even after several years apart.  G is torn between her duty (as wife, mother, high society figurehead, etc.) and desire to experience real love. 

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This film does a good job of re-creating 18th century high society and laying down the (often unspoken) rules of the day.  If you are familiar with that stuff (like me), then it won’t be a biggie to you.  (You’ll be bored, honestly!)  I felt sorry for Ralph Fiennes because he’s (obviously) capable of more subtle acting.  He was too much of a baddie in The Duchess; I don’t think many husbands of that day acted like the Duke.  (I won’t give it away, but he does some heinous stuff.)   There was an (obvious) lack of chemistry between Keira and Dominic; if you want to see real sparks of young love, check out Atonement.  Keira looks great with James McAvoy in that film; they feel like a real couple.  There are some bright moments here and there, like the (unusual) friendship between G and Lady Elizabeth.  The sets and scenery are fabulous, and there is a great moment of drama involving G and one of her children.  It wasn’t a great film, but it wasn’t a bad way to spend two hours.  

Movie Review: “Enemy at the Gates”

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Action, friendship, romance- this film has it all!  This war/suspense drama (unfortunately) didn’t do well at the box office in 2001.  When you see it you’ll wonder:  Why the heck not!?  It has an all-star international cast, great cinematography, and a very compelling story (based on true events).  The setting is Stalingrad in Fall/Winter 1942.  Stalin and Hitler are no longer buddies.  The German army has been mounting a large scale attack on Stalingrad, but the Red Army will not give up so easily! 

The film opens with the arrival of a group of rag-tag soldiers from all over Russia, including wide-eyed Vassili Zaitsev (Jude Law) to the big city.  We learn later that he is a shepherd from the Ural Mountains.  The soldiers traveling with Vassili are not all men- a young woman reading a book is in the same car as him.  He is struck by her beauty.

The action of this film comes at you from the start- huge crowds, gunshots, explosions, etc.   Many men fall around the newcomer, but when Vassili gets his hands on a rifle, he takes down 5 German officers!  Danilov (Joseph Fiennes), a political officer, is amazed by the young soldier’s skill.  They become fast friends.

The educated, idealistic Danilov makes Vassili into a larger-than-life war hero; he writes about his deeds in the army newspaper.  Soon, the quiet, simple man is promoted to the sniper division, meeting politicians like Krushchev (Bob Hoskins), and a legend in his own time.  

Danilov: “Here, the men’s only choice is between German bullets and ours. But there’s another way. The way of courage. The way of love of the Motherland. We must publish the army newspaper again. We must tell magnificent stories, stories that extol sacrifice, bravery. We must make them believe in the victory. We must give them hope, pride, a desire to fight. Yes… we need to make examples. But examples to follow. What we need… are heroes.”

Khrushchev: “Do you know any heroes around here?”

Danilov: “Yes, comrade. I know one.”

 

People write him letters, greet him warmly in the streets, and a local shoeshine boy, Sacha, invites Vassili home for dinner.  There he meets the boy’s mother and their close friend/neighbor, Tania (Rachel Weisz), the woman who captivated him on the train.  She was at university in Moscow recently; she volunteered to be part of the militia.  Danilov can’t keep his eyes off her.  But Tania is interested in Vassili; a love triangle is formed!

 

Vassili becomes so famous that the Germans send for their best sniper, the cool, aristocratic Major Konig (Ed Harris) to kill him.  This is the heart of Enemy at the Gates– a duel between two men (both with intense blue eyes) who are the best in their field.  The large-scale war is brought down to these two snipers- to the human level.  Vassili tells the adoring Sacha that you have to face a man to kill him, and that stays with you.

A battle between two nations became a conflict between two men.

Vassili: He [Konig] shot him [another expert sniper] on the run. It was an impossible shot.”

Danilov: “Vassili… ”

Vassili: “You’ve promised people a victory I can’t deliver. I don’t stand a chance against this man.” 

Will Vassili conquer his doubts and defeat Konig?  Which man will get the girl?  Find out for yourself!