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Wednesday
Apr082015

Hit Me With Your Best Shot: "Johnny Guitar" 

Tru-Color meets True Star-Mojo in this fever dream of a gender-bending Western, this week's "Best Shot" topic. Herewith some shot choices around the web (click on the pics for the articles) and a few of my thoughts as well, as your host. 

Director Nicholas Ray, too little known today, was on a real roll in the 1950s, and between his best loved films, noir classic In a Lonely Place (1950) and ur teen angst drama Rebel Without a Cause (1955) came this divisive oddity Johnny Guitar (1954).

We'd call Johnny Guitar a feminist Western except that the women have basically switched roles with the men rather than proven their equals. Sterling Hayden and Scott Brady as "Johnny Guitar" and "The Dancin' Kid" are, despite their considerable masculine attractiveness, essentially the passive "girls" of the picture, romantic objects or helpful companions who would rather not get caught up in bloody showdowns. Joan Crawford, at her butchest, definitely wears the pants in this movie literally and figuratively. Further complicating the highly discussable gender dynamics (the secret to why the movie had a second life if you ask me) is the inimitable Mercedes McCambridge as Emma Small. She's styled not unlike Joan's twin and she may or may not be in love/lust with The Dancin' Kid or Johnny Guitar or Vienna but she's definitely harboring repressed passions! 

BEST SHOT CHOICES FROM OUR LITTLE AWESOME CLUB
(which you may join at any time - Martin Scorsese's Taxi Driver is next Wednesday!) 
8 shots chosen by 11 blogs 

Crawford strikes her movie star pose every single chance she gets."
-A Fistful of Films

I wasn’t completely sold on Johnny Guitar as a movie. I am sold, however, on Joan Crawford as a movie star."
-Coco Hits New York 

Sterling Hayden, epitome of masculinity, holding a dainty, PERFECTLY CLEAN, bright blue & white teacup."
-Dancin' Dan 


An image of things that shouldn't go together being forcibly wedged into one place...
-Antagony & Ecstacy 

Hilariously takes her enemies to task seemingly without a care in the world...
-Sorta That Guy 


A quick glimpse of the frame could be easily mistaken for a shot from, say, a Quentin Tarantino film, or perhaps a Russ Meyer film."
- The Entertainment Junkie

As if having her rival be dragged out and hanged wasn't enough, Emma's gotta be all small about it and make sure that everything is destroyed..."
-The Film's The Thing 


 It's a rare Western where two women are given the meatiest roles... and I loved how the central conflict boiled down to a showdown between them."
- Film Actually

[Paul Outlaw actually chose the piano shot but his runner up is this - love his comment on it!]

 There's no time for three costume changes like that time when you're running for your life...
-The Film Experience 


'It' their fight. Has been all along.' "
-The Spy in the Sandwich 

 

NEXT WEEK:
Taxi Driver (1976) which you have no excuse not to join in on. It's easy to find!
 [Amazon Instant | Netflix Instant | iTunes]

 

Wednesday
Apr082015

Linktown

NY Times Juliette Binoche & Kristen Stewart make beautiful movie together in Clouds of Sils Maria (more on this film tomorrow)
Awards Daily talks to Kristen Stewart about the movie
The Dissolve says goodbye to character actor Geoffrey Lewis, daddy to our beloved Juliette
Comic Alliance all the EW Avengers covers - featuring your first look at The Vision (there really not leaving ANYTHING for a surprise in movie theaters are they?)
Lainey Gossip John Travolta responds to that Going Clear documentary on HBO

FIAF Important news for fashion-loving movie buffs in NYC. The French institute has an amazing lineup of movies on Tuesday nights for the next two months from Bay of Angels through Gloria and on to Belle de Jour
IndieWire explains what's going on with Twin Peaks Season 3 via recent David Lynch and cast comments
imgur cat with paper drawn expressions (aka the reason the internet -- hell, cameras even -- was invented) 
I Want to Believe 'Gillian Anderson and Jamie Dornan's Banana' 
Towleroad George Takei's new reality show 
In Contention thinks you should believe the hype about Sundance winner Me and Earl and the Dying Girl which now has a trailer... but I'm hearing a lot of negativity from critics at the moment. We'll see what happens when it actually opens in June 

RuPaul's Drag Race Doldrums
Previously TV has good recap - hi Mark!
Regan Write is a hoot as per usual recasting the drag contestants as scream queens from famous horror flicks
Unicorn Booty shares an uncomfortable truth about RuPaul's Drag Race. We agree word for word. They've really made terrible decisions this season both in casting and who keeps getting sent home... though we're finally rid of Kandy Ho. My favorite is still Katya and the shark leg costume this week was to die for. 

Manly Men and the Film Buffs Who Love Them
Movie Mezzanine looks at the parallels and divergence in the careers of Burt Reynolds and Clint Eastwood 
MNPP Jason and Jai Courtney's muscles alert us to an important cause 
Fistful of Film will celebrate Russell Crowe even if no one else will 

The Perfect Response to the Grace of Monaco Premiering on Lifetime News
Courtesy of our friend and fellow Oscar obsessive Erik Anderson...  

Hey, at least we'll get to see it now in the US since it was never actually released. I remain convinced that it can't possibly be as bad as people say. And this wise article which you absolutely should read if you haven't suggest that maybe it isn't.

Oh my...
This should please some of you. Seems that Ryan Murphy has picked his future Jessica Lange, with an internal promotion on American Horror Story

 

 

This will be the one season that doesn't unravel as it goes along!

 

Wednesday
Apr082015

"Ghosttown"

Today's watch is directed by Jonas Åkerlund of "Ray of Light" fame who also helmed a couple of movies in the Aughts.

 

Madonna gets her Stevie on in this apocalyptic moody new video for "Ghosttown" which is her best single in forevs. Oscar nominated Empire patriarch Terrence Howard co-stars because it takes two to tango. You will be relieved to know that after the apocalypse, able cinematographers and stylists are still gainfully employed.

Finally, I can't beat this quip from Louis Virtel at HitFix

The apocalypse is, apparently, a lot like Madonna's recent Billboard fight with the "Empire" soundtrack. (The "Empire" soundtrack beat Madonna's "Rebel Heart" for the #1 spot on the Billboard 200.) Seriously, it's just Madonna and Terrence Howard after the world ends. The only person alive in the video to appreciate that irony is some little boy, who better be gay. 

 

Related
ICYMI: We suggest auteurs for future Madge collaborations

Wednesday
Apr082015

April Foolish Oscar Discussion: Animated Features

These two specialized categories can be perplexing from the outside, documentaries moreso, as to what is eligible, why it's eligible, and what motivates people to vote as they do. The official eligibility lists don't arrive until later in the year but for now on the new charts we'll add documentary titles as they make some kind of mark and we'll dive right into animated features, which apart from the foreign produced entries, are much easier to track.

Pixar vs Pixar this year?

This upcoming Oscar season, Walt Disney Studios Animation will be out of the mix after two consecutive wins. Their next features Zootopia and Moana, which both look quite promising, aren't due until March and November of 2016. To fill that giant vacuum, Pixar will likely come roaring back after an uncharacteristic absence last year with two titles Inside Out and The Good Dinosaur

But the contest that's most curious might not be a contest... at least in terms of Oscar. We have two features that are trading on collective international nostalgia for 2D classic properties: The Little Prince and Peanuts Movie. But they're both getting the CG or mixed media approach. That's not so odd since contemporary cinema loves to regurgitate and "update" (shudder) but what's unusual is that both films are clearly trying to mix the endearing flat linework and visual style of these beloved gems into newly three dimensional worlds. A safe bet: these films, particularly The Little Prince which looks "schizophrenic", will be divisive. 

Check out the charts! Which of these films are you most curious about and do you agree with the April Foolish guesswork? 

 

Wednesday
Apr082015

Young Hollywood Casting News Roundup

Manuel here trying to not to make a big deal out of that “Grace of Monaco will be premiering on Lifetime” news. The Emmy campaign begins now, yes, but gosh, there really is no wrath like a Weinstein scorned, is there? And so, rather than try and come up with a witty headline (maybe something like “DisGrace”?), I figured we’d look onward by checking out some casting news about some of our favorite up and coming (read: young) actresses. In other words, imagine we here at TFE brought all of these talented gals together, shot our very own Vanity Fair-style cover, and this is just a helpful guide as to where to see them next:

Mia Wasikowska
She’s been tormented by Nicole Kidman in Stoker, she’s tormented Julianne Moore in Maps to the Stars, and while I wish I could announce she’ll finish collecting all The Hours ladies with an upcoming Meryl Streep film (we know Meryl loved her in Jane Eyre) she’ll actually be tormented and persecuted by her Lawless co-star, Guy Pearce, in the upcoming Western thriller Brimstone.

Mia is building quite the filmography, no?

Brie Larson
After her head-turning lead role in Short Term 12, Larson has been oddly not busy (let’s not speak of The Gambler). Thankfully, 2015 looks busy enough: we’ll be seeing her next in Trainwreck, while two other films (the claustrophobic sounding Room and the India-set Basmati Blues) feel like fall films. She’s just signed on to Ben Wheatley’s Reservoir Dogs-style flick Free Fire, where she’ll co-star against a trio of hunks: Luke Evans, Armie Hammer and Cillian Murphy.

I really hope Larson has some Trainwreck scenes with Tilda (here pictured with Schumer)

Anna Kendrick
The now ubiquitous triple threat (she can sing! she can act! she can social media!) is poised to have a great summer with Pitch Perfect 2 and while her follow-up projects see her taking more serious looking roles (a hit-man film with Sam Rockwell and a forensic accountant film with Ben Affleck), those of us who enjoy her in full comedy mode should greet her newest casting - in a rom-com titled Mike and Dave Need Wedding Dates alongside Zac Efron! - with open arms.

Keke Palmer
Akeelah and the Bee was clearly just a beginning. Since, Palmer has been making a name for herself, both on Broadway (where she was the first African-American Cinderella) and on TV (with recurring roles in 90210, Masters of Sex and starring roles in Lifetime’s A Trip to Bountiful and VH1’s CrazySexyCool: The TLC Story). Now she’s joined the merry band of Ryan Murphy players in Scream Queens:

Kristen Stewart
Hot off being the first American actress to win a Cesar Award (for Clouds of Sils Maria which opens this weekend; go see it!) and chastising the “big, big, big green monster of cash” that fuels the current celebrity news industry, Stewart has been lined up to star with Brendan Gleeson in a Scottish historical film titled The Great Getaway.

Stewart really is amazing in this two-hander with Binoche.

Gabourey Sidibe
I can’t be the only one happy to see Gabourey’s post-Precious career continue to flourish. After parts in The Big C, American Horror Story and Empire, it seems she’s found a footing in television and that’s where we’ll see her next in Billy Eichner and Julie Klausner’s Hulu comedy Difficult People.

Sidibe has a recurring role as the manager of the coffee shop where Eicher's character works

Don't you find it refreshing that none of these actress casting notices mention tentpoles, blockbusters or otherwise multiple-film franchise contracts? Which one of these projects are you most excited about?