Yes, No, Maybe So : The Huntsman Winters War

Here's Murtada deconstructing the trailer for the ridiculously titled The Huntsman Winters War.

YES

- The actresses of course. Emily Blunt, Jessica Chastain, Charlize Theron = a formidable trio.
- Chastain as a the Warrior. Yes!
- Blunt and Theron as dueling evil sisters. Yes again! May campiness rule the day.
- The oversize gestures of Blunt and Theron as they wreak havoc. Give me more!
- So it’s obviously all about the actresses. Oh and the possibility of a shirtless Chris Hemsworth.

NO

- From the producer of Maleficent and Alice in Wonderland….. NOOOOOOO.
- Hemsworth gets top billing?? I guess he's The Hunstman.
- The CGI doesn't look very convincing.
- “Men have forgotten what it means to be afraid. We will bring fear”. Hmmm cheesy line. It could be fun if the tone is over the top campy. The trailer is playing it straight so we are dubious.

MAYBE SO

- Does Blunt’s ice crown look odd above her face? It certainly is not as fierce as Theron’s crown. Is Colleen Atwood showing favorites?
- No enough Shirtless Chris. Will it be just the one scene like in Thor?
- Chastain is almost mute in the trailer. Only one line. More Warrior Jessica!
- Will we get enough of the British supporting cast of Nick Frost, Rob Brydon and Alexandra Roach as supposedly the dwarfs. They are hardly in the trailer.

It's a maybe so despite the fabulous trio of actresses. What’s your verdict?

Morning Truth Tell: Jane Fonda is...

...still a movie star.

photo by Steven Meisel via W Magazine

She just needs the movies to star in.

See also: Youth. Opening in select cities on December 4th

Top Dozen List: Saoirse Ronan & The Youngest Best Actress Nominees

Saoirse Ronan, who does such a beautiful job carrying Brooklyn, the film about falling in love with and in a new world, is only 21 years old. Should she be Oscar-nominated in two months time she'll be among the 10 youngest ever so honored in that category. She's the same age now as Marlee Matlin was when she competed for Children of a Lesser God; Matlin won and still holds the title of Youngest Best Actress Winner of all time.

Most 21 year-old Oscar nominees are newbies but not Saoirse. She was nominated at 13 for her role as the tattle-tale sister in Atonement. "I saw it with my own eyes!" But should Saoirse be nominated again, she won't break a record of first to two nominations. That record has belonged to Angela Lansbury for over 70 years when she accomplished it by the age of 20. 

For fun and movie-history purposes let's look at the...

YOUNGEST BEST ACTRESS NOMINEES OF ALL TIME

The immediate reveal of note is that 70% of the top ten have emerged in just the past twenty years. How much younger can this list get? 

01 Quvenzhane Wallis, Beasts of the Southern Wild (2012) was 9 (though years younger than that when she filmed it)

02 Keisha Castle Hughes, Whale Rider (2003) was 13.

Several more young starlets after the jump...

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Happy Birthday, Chloë Sevigny

Kieran, here. "It has recently come to our attention" that today is the birthday of one of the cinema's most peculiar, fascinating and gifted actresses. 

Isn't it time for Chloë to get another great film role? Especially since that 1999 Best Supporting Actress Oscar should be hers by rights? 

HBO’s LGBT History: The Celluloid Closet (1995) & Vito (2011)

Manuel is working his way through all the LGBT-themed HBO productions.

Last week we went a bit #NSFW and looked at six gay sex scenes that ranged from violent/sexy (Oz) to just fully sexy (Looking). This week, we go from the sexually explicit to the (homo)sexually implicit as we turn to The Celluloid Closet and the HBO documentary Vito (Netflix) on the iconic queer film historian, Vito Russo.

“In 100 years of movies, homosexuality has only rarely been depicted on the screen. When it did appear, it was as something to laugh at, or something to pity, or even something to fear. These were fleeting images but they were unforgettable. Hollywood, that great maker of myths taught straight people what to think of gay people. And gay people what to think about themselves. No one escaped its influence.” - Lily Tomlin in Rob Epstein and Jeffrey Friedman’s documentary based on Russo’s work.

As soon as you hear Tomlin’s words, you know you’re in good hands.

Click to read more ...