Ask Nathaniel
Thursday, August 24, 2017 at 12:10AM 
I recently hosted a gay book club where we talked "Call Me By Your Name" (click for the cute pic) and the one guy who'd seen the movie refused to say anything about it. Argh. So that forthcoming adaptation is foremost on my mind. What's on yours? Give me some questions to answer, won'cha? Bonus points if the topics are romantic films and/or book adaptations. I'll select two handfuls to answer in forthcoming posts.
[Convalescence update: as some of you have heard I somehow threw my back out which accounts for the spare posting of late. It's hard to sit and type when you're in pain but I think I'm coming out of it now and dying to get back to movies. You can only watch so much This is Us and Younger and Defend--nah, that's too boring -- and eat so much ice cream and alternate so many heat pads and ice packs before you start to lose your GD mind.]
Ask Nathaniel, Call Me Be Your Name
Reader Comments (39)
Not much on my mind at the moment - Just hope you're feeling better soon! Or at least hope Thelma Ritter comes over soon to offer you some good old fashioned advice (that she steals from Reader's Digest!).
Well, actually, speaking of Romance and book adaptations - have you soon Holding the Man yet?
Nothing much on my mind at the moment, but I hope you feel better soon! Or at least, I hope Thelma Ritter comes over soon to give you a back rub and some good old fashioned advice (that she steals from Reader's Digest!)
Well, actually speaking of romance and book adaptations - have you seen HOLDING THE MAN yet Nathaniel?
I asked you what you think are the 5 best book to film adaptations in one of your old "Ask Nathaniel" posts, so now I'm going to ask you the opposite: "What do you think are the 5 worst book to film adaptations?"
I've recently re-watched the 1956 epic Giant on Blu-ray, and still love it despite it being extremely long and a bit predictable in many ways. I remembered you made a top ten list about movies from 1950s and it wasn't on it. Do you like it? What do you think its chances at the Oscar is if the Oscar back then was like the Oscar now? Would Liz Taylor get nominated (young hot actress in her 20s), would James Dean go the "co-lead goes the supporting category" route, and would a character actress like Mercedes McCambridge even get nominated especially given her screen time runs less than 1/3 of the movie?
Hope you feel better soon. We'll see if we can get (*insert current lusty interest here*) to come over for a body rubdown.
I just picked up "Still Alice" for a read, so that's coming up.
Any of the upcoming TV season's shows intrigue you. The new season is almost here!
And how about a poll. Chrissy or Janet or Terri? Or maybe Cindy? Did you watch any of this revamped "Battle of the Network Stars"?
Seriously feel better. Get that checked out. I work in healthcare. The back can be tricky.
Which romantic screen couple would you have Oscar'ed (and don't say Kidman/McGregor for Moulin Rouge! because that's a no-brainer)?
Since it is the year of Stephen King apparently, what movie adaptations of his do you feel are the best? And who, if any, would you give an Oscar to in their given year?
Get well soon Nathaniel.
I'm really curious and you may have answered this before but I'll ask you just in case..could you please analyse Gwyneth Paltrow career? She should still be up there in the 40 to 50 age group with Nicole Kidman, Kate Winslet, Cate Blanchett or even Chalize Theron all of whom won Best Actress Oscar after her win in 1998 but still stay relevant until now but not Paltrow. What happened? Her career is really puzzles me.
Warm baths and stretching for the back and stay away from inflamatory foods while you convalesce. It will help. Hope you feel better soon.
Question: you usually point out that only women get recognized for leading romantic films, so I'm curious to know if you had to pick three gents for their contribution to the genre (say Lifetime Film Bitch Awards gold, silver and bronze medals for Outstanding Romancer) who would they?
(My picks: Cary Grant, Clark Gable and Richard Gere)
Question 2: when you evaluate adapted work, how do you assess it in comparison to the original material? For example, should Breakfast at Tiffany's be criticized for abandoning the original gay elements of the book or celebrated for the artful way Blake Edwards and co. turned platonic love into delightful romance?
Which book series do you most wish to turn into a TV series? (My pick is of course Harry Potter, but I am curious if you think something like Lord of the Rings will work. Or maybe something non fantasy?)
do you ever stop and wonder what jacob tremblay's hot dad is up to?
Ok, this is not a book related question but I've been dying to know who's your favorite and least favorite Woody Allen's alter ego in a Woody Allen film? My favorite is Jason Biggs in Anything Else. I believe he really nailed it. Any thoughs on him?
I hope you get better soon darling. Back pain are the worst. Enjoy your viewings :)
To piggy back on my comment on the Bodyguard soundtrack post yesterday, which actresses would you cast as the leads in a Waiting to Exhale stage musical adaptation?
What is your favorite celebrity cameo in a movie?
All the best for your back.
Oscar question: Which is the role with the largest amount (or percentage) of screen time that you would consider a supporting role? And which is the role with the smallest amount (or percentage) of screen time that you would consider a leading role? They don't have to be Oscar-nominated performances.
Will we ever have a Gay movie star who is male and out and takes the question and moves it forward..
Feel better Nathaniel! I just read the book too. Can't wait for the movie!
If you were confined to a bed a la Misery, what movie do you think you'd have to review again thanks to a crazed fan to write a more positive review?
With the oncoming release of Gloria Grahame's final years 'Film Stars Don't Die In Liverpool,'
which celebrity book should get a similiar cinematic treatment?
If you coul choose artists and great peoples of all human history to interview each other (like Variety's Actors on Actors') who they be?
Examples:
Madonna and Joan of Arc
Da Vinci and Kubrick
Elizabeth Taylor and Henry VIII
Speedy recovery, Nat.
To date, only four actors have won acting prizes from the trio of European film festivals (Berlin, Cannes, Venice).
Juliette Binoche (France)
Jack Lemmon (USA)
Julianne Moore (USA)
Sean Penn (USA)
Thoughts on these actors, and the performances for which they won? Who could you see joining the ranks?
I was thinking about Best Picture winners. Is A Beautiful Mind the most forgettable BP winner in the last 50 years? It won so much acclaim and everyone fell over themselves giving it awards, but I haven't given it a moments thought in the last 15 years. Has anyone? What makes it so forgettable?
@Tyler
I know the question is for Nathaniel, but yesterday I was thinking in that.
"Who could you see joining the ranks?"
Just need Berlin:
Isabelle Huppert
Helen Mirren
Javier Bardem
Just need Venice:
Meryl Streep
Will have the three in the future:
Cate Blanchett
Kate Winslet
Marion Cotillard
Viola Davis
Shoul already had the three:
Gary Oldman
Glenn Close
Ralph Fiennes
Hi Nathaniel,
as the upcoming movie 'Call me by your name' is on your mind, I am really curious which scene of the book has had the most impact on you? Which scene is still in your memory after reading?
In the book Oliver and Elio recall their most memorable memories at one point, this is, what has lead me to the question.
I for myself can say, it is without a doubt the last paragraph in part 3, the last 3 sentences (especially the 1st longer one of those. Aciman has found wonderful words and now, months after I read the book, this wording, above all, is still on my mind.
I know it might get tricky to answer without giving spoilers, but maybe it's possible.
Best wishes from Germany, Tobi
Hey Nat! Hope you recover soon.
Speaking of Marlee Matlin (on the other article, though), do you think her & Adrien Brody's records at the Oscars will ever be broken? If so, do you think it may happen in a not-too-distant future? And in that case, who do you think has a chance? Right now I'd say only Elle Fanning for Best Actress, but she'd have to win either this year or the following. And in Best Actor, I guess you could think of Lucas Hedges, Jacob Tremblay, Tom Holland, Logan Lerman, Ansel Elgort but given the Academy's typical bias , they'd most likely have to hit it out of the park.
Of course, and as cliché as it may sound, records are meant to be broken, so it might be a silly question after all given there's still a long way to go. But, since Matlin's record has stood for 30 years and Brody is the only Best Actor winner under 30, one might wonder what it'd have to take to break such longtime standards.
Thanks!
A friend of mine with a back problem swears by the Alexander Technique (covered by her government medical plan - so, not in the US). Hope you are feeling better soon.
My question: Pick a costume designer and a cinematographer for the new film "Vita and Virginia" with Elizabeth Debicki as Virginia Woolf and Gemma Arterton as Vita Sackville-West.
Top10 favorite internet boyfriends. You welcome ;)
I read CMBYN at the start of the year after noticing a few Sundance raves and haven't been this gut-punched by a book since Scott Spencer's "Endless Love" in 1980. I even spent my summer vacation in Italy re-reading it in 'B.' the town where its basically set (Bordighera) and finding the cobblestone street in Rome where Elio & Oliver stagger drunkenly (I have pics!).
I think I'm obsessed with this movie because it sounds like one of those rare occasions where the film does the book justice. Can't wait to see it.
Anyway, question - do you often read books that have been adapted but you haven't seen yet? And knowing who the actors are playing the roles of Oliver & Elio, were you visualizing them or were you able to separate that?
Feel better soon! Back pain sucks...have a peach.
I just finished reading a book about Marlene Dietrich by Donald Spotlight and it was fascinating. What is your favorite movie star biography book?
Since you're convalesced, what are some of your favorite cinematic invalids?
If you had your druthers, who would be the top 3 male stars? (In other words, not Chris Pratt).
Which film adaptation of a novel do you feel wasn't done well and true to the source material which needs to be remade? Who would direct, and feel free to offer any casting choices.
What other actresses 65+ do you see continuing the trend of higher profile starring roles (à la Grandma, I'll See You in My Dreams, My Name is Doris)? Which actresses 65+ would you like to see get such treatment?
(I know that three examples do not necessarily a trend make, but we can try to build on that, can't we?)
Is Jamie Foxx a better actor than people give him credit for?
@ Chris - When you say cinematic invalids, do you mean Jon Voight in Coming Home invalid or Tim Burton post Ed Wood invalid?
@ Chris - When you say cinematic invalids, do you mean Jon Voight in Coming Home invalid or Tim Burton post Ed Wood invalid?
What are your thoughts on Terms of Endearment ? Is it one of the great actressexual films?
I know it's schmaltzy but it's always been one of my favourites because I find the performances so rich. Despite its soap opera tendencies I actually think it's an interesting character study. Am I nuts? What are your thoughts? Not sure if you ever talked about that movie here.
Hello Nataniel. hope you feel better. I am not sure if this is a question that has ever been asked but as far as career goes either before or after a nomination who would you say are the 5 most obscure actors or actresses to ever be nominated for an Oscar? I remember reading a similar question years ago and the author said that Chill Wills was the most obscure actor and that Miliza Korjus was the most obscure actress to be nominated.