Thoughts I Had... Whilst Looking at Chris Hemsworth in "Ghostbusters" Uniform

In the order they arrived...

• This would not qualify as a 'Cool Rider' by Stephanie Zinone's standards. No hell in his eyes. No skintight leather.

•mmmmskintightleatheronaHemsworth

• When are jumpsuits coming back in style? They look so comfy.

• He's playing the Annie Potts receptionist role but this is the new Ghostbusters uniform so even when genders are reversed, male privilege guarantees a slice of the action!

• For his next trick: "Mary Jo" in the gender reversed Designing Women reboot. How is this not a new gay network sitcom already? Get me a pitch meeting.

SOURCE

• Hopefully this is a windblown rather than a hairsprayed look since he needs his bangs for Hair Acting (see: Thor, Blackhat, Rush) 

• Is this hunky guy still Chris's go-to stunt double?

• The Avengers all seem to be getting a little slaphappy lately what with press rounds and comic cameos and dubsmashes and what not. Chris is clearly in the mood for comic larks.

• <-- See also: Vacation Dong. Whose job is it to provide actors with fake cocks lately (see also: The Overnight) and exactly how profitable is this niche? 

• Whatever happens in this movie it is bound to make more sense than whatever was going on with Thor in Avengers: Age of Ultron. I just saw that for the third time -- it was my inflight movie over the weekend -- and everything Thor-related, yikes. Not his fault but cut his key scenes and the whole movie plays better. In Related Unpopular Note: I have also come to the opinion that it's a much better movie than people give it credit for... but it is ungainly and it's a miracle that Joss Whedon pulled it off, given the clear presence of a dozen plus agendas outside of Tell This Story.

• If we must have remakes then a Lady Ghostbusters is the best possible outcome on paper. But I hope not to be sick of the movie before it arrives 332 days from now which is always a threat when internet interest is high.

What is "Joy"?

We know of course that Joy, the David O. Russell / Jennifer Lawrence reunion, is a biopic about Joy Mangano, the female entrepeneur who founded the miracle mop. But the advertising thus far, both teaser and poster, aren't selling these details. They're telling the non-film-news obsessed virtually nothing. They're only selling Jennifer Lawrence and a vaguely seasonal vibe. The teaser poster, pleasantly crisp, blue, and straightforward, is ultra simple - the superstar looks up into snowfall.

That may well be enough of a pitch given JLaw's bankability these days. That weird blink and you'll miss the barely released and oft-delayed Serena aside, she's proved golden. Or maybe it's the combination of Jennifer Lawrence with David O. Russell that's golden? You can't credit her for the box office of X-Men -- contrary to salary demands in tinseltown and casting practices, too, it's the franchises not the name actors who are the stars of franchises -- though she certainly helped The Hunger Games toward phenomenon status since she unarguably carried those pictures. But in her two previous pairings with Cooper & De Niro & Russell (Silver Linings Playbook and American Hustle) the grosses have been spectacular given that the films are a) not franchise or high concept b) made for adults without the safety net of "Oscar Importance" even if they end up doing very well with Oscar voters and c) they're fun without being broadly pitched as "COMEDY". All of which make them feel like very rare beasts in the current market. 

But how long can this team keep coming up with winners? David O. Russell has had three consecutive Best Picture nominees (it wouldn't be fair to him to count Nailed/Accidental Love as breaking up this continuum) with the grosses climbing each time out. The two most recent have featured all three of Joy's stars. Is this team's luck about to run out or is this streak still to peak? To continue the hot streak, Joy will need a Best Picture nomination and a gross of over $150 million. What's your prediction on the matter?

ICYMI

Hello all. Nathaniel, returned home, back from vacation. You may not have even noticed that I'd gone but I was almost completely offline for the past 5 days. I was in Austin, TX to visit a friend I hadn't seen in a few years and we had a ton of fun. While travelling I read "The Devil in the White City" and y'all were right -it's absolutely gripping. It's also so dense with information and fascinating details that Leo & Marty may well have a tough time pulling it off. Especially if they make it a star vehicle since the book screams for more of an Altman Ensemble feel. 

On the trip home my friends and I discovered we were sharing the flight with Pearl (from RPDR) so the return to NYC felt even more glamorous than usual. This long weekend vacation was the last movie and computer free moment before The Season which, roughly speaking, consumes my entire life from mid-September to late-February each year. Thank you to Jose and Manuel for keeping the lights on while I was out and to Murtada, David, Kyle, Glenn, Sebastian, Amir, and Margaret who also pitched in.

Why not catch up on anything you missed this morning? I'll be doing the same. 

A Heaping Handful of Highlights
Chris Eigeman talks Metropolitan - This uniquely pleasurable 1990 indie just turned 25
100 Things I Love About Movies - off the top of my head
HBO LGBT: "Normal" - Manuel's great series is revealing that HBO has really been ahead of the curve
Bergman Kisses - a grand swooney journey through Ingrid Bergman's onscreen love life - she may be well be the greatest romantic heroine of the movies
Mr Robot and Humans - we started a new weekly TV discussion series with these two paranoid examples of our current communal disconnection. The series continues tonight with Masters of Sex
Smackdown 1995 - that's how we started the month and Smackdown 1954 is how we'll end it 
Disney's Upcoming Slate - Moana, Zootopia and more 

Meanwhile in Oscar Land
The forthcoming Oscar race is all starting to feel very real what with the releases of Hateful Eight's trailer, Germany's long list, Carol's teaser, and that image of Tom Hiddleston in a big hat...

Reviewed Recently
Fantastic Four (Tim), The Gift (Jose), Man From U.N.C.L.E. (Kyle), M:I - Rogue Nation (Tim), Ricki & The Flash (Nathaniel) and Woman in Gold (Nathaniel) 

Curio: Too Cool For School Supplies

Alexa here. This year was the first year I had to get school supplies for my daughter and it was pretty depressing. She isn't allowed any choice, even in the color of her folders! As a form of rebellion by proxy, I've been searching for the coolest supplies out there to keep things weird at home.  Some for my daughter and, of course, why not choose a few for myself, too?  Here is a selection of film-themed supplies that could help my cause.

After the jump: Werner, Duckie, Cher, and more...

 

Click to read more ...

"Carol" is a tease

Just gorgeous. We'll Yes No Maybe So it with the full trailer but obviously we're all in. It's Todd Haynes. It's actressy. And the cinematography, by Edward Lachman who previously shot Far From Heaven, Mildred Pierce, and I'm Not There for Haynes, is suitably ravishing.

The song, for those who are curious, is Margaret Whiting's rendition of "My Foolish Heart". Add it to your every playlist in anticipation. Whiting was a famous singer in the 40s and 50s and even had her own television series in the 50s with her sister. Margaret provided Susan Hayward's singing voice in Valley of the Dolls (1967) as well.