The Secret in Julia & Nicole's Eyes

Manuel here, still giddy about all the Julia press blitz given the 25th Anniversary of Pretty Woman and thus unable to think about much else.

Oh how I hate watermarked stills; maybe it's to distract from Julia's ugly sweater?

Thankfully, we can begin salivating over her next project, the English-language adaptation of Academy Award winning film, The Secret in Their Eyes (remember how it beat The White Ribbon and The Prophet for the Best Foreign Language Film prize in 2010?). Thanks to Stan for bringing the above pic to our attention which confirms the fact that the film will feature scenes between Julia and fellow Best Actress winner Nicole Kidman. I for one, cannot wait. Their acting styles are so far apart I’m curious what they’ll bring out in each other. The film also stars Chiwetel Ejiofor who is allegedly joining the Marvel family for their upcoming Doctor Strange (though really, until that film starts shooting I won’t believe any “rumored casting”).

The plot, for those of us who haven’t seen the original film centers on “a retired legal counselor who writes a novel hoping to find closure for one of his past unresolved homicide cases and for his unreciprocated love with his superior - both of which still haunt him decades later.” The film will be released in October, following, it seems, the same release pattern as Billy Ray’s last scripted film, Captain Phillips. May this one strike gold as well?

Oh, I almost forgot to share these on-set pics. Look at those bangs! and those ill-fitting pants! and that basket!

Are you as excited about continuing to see what Julia can do with these darker dramatic parts? Might this bring her coveted nomination number 5, nudging her up Nathaniel’s Oscar’s most beloved ladies list? (it really is silly to think Julia has one more nomination than Nicole, isn't it?)

"Yesterday Today and Tomorrow" - Best Shot Visual Index

This week's Hit Me With Your Best Shot subject is Vittorio de Sica's gorgeous comic love song, three of them, to Italy and super-sized movie star charisma. Sophia Loren and Marcello Mastroianni are special on their own but together it's something else again. Vittorio de Sica is one of Italy's great directors but usually when people reference him they're talking about neo realism and his classic The Bicycle Thief. That's nothing at all like this colorful playful romantic comedy. The film was shot by Giuseppe Rotunno who also lensed Rocco & His Brothers (previously covered in this very series) and later went on to an Oscar nomination for the Bob Fosse masterpiece All That Jazz (1979). Yesterday Today and Tomorrrow was a hit, another feather in both stars caps (they were already international superstars) and won the Oscar for Best Foreign Film and a BAFTA for "Foreign Actor" for Mastroianni but today it's underdiscussed.

It remains most famous for one scene in particular, Sophia's modest but ultra sexy little striptease pulling a stocking down to the horny delight of childlike Marcello. The stars later riffed on that scene together in Robert Atlman's fashion comedy Pret a Porter. Since there are so many images in this post (one from each short film from most of the participants) they'll have to go after the jump. And if these images and great articles don't convince you to see this Oscar winner, all hope is lost!  

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Open Thread

Apologies but we're not doing so well at TFE headquarters today (after a particularly nasty bout of insomnia). Nathaniel is an inadvertent zombie and not the beautifully smoky-eyed high-functioning Nicolas Hoult kind. 

Talk amongst yourselves. What's on your cinematic mind? Best Shot roundup late tonight -- have you watched Yesterday Today and Tomorrow yet on Netflix? -- and more goodies tomorrow

Q&A Part 2: Guilty Pleasures, Boytoys, and Best Animated Feature

Yesterday I  answered reader questions about film sets worth living in and all time favorite actors and I hope that conversation keeps going because I haven't heard from too many of you what your choices are. There were so many good question this week let's keep the party going for an extra day. Here's the next six questions featuring Guilty Pleasures, Oscar's Best Animated Feature and Unseen Classics. One question will be answered in a forthcoming theme week that's already been planned and one final question is getting its own post. 

You can't say we've been slacking here at TFE.

LADY EDITH: Do you have a favorite Altman? 

I do. And it's no contest. I just shout Nashville (1975) as enthusiastically and loudly as I can when asked. Which is not to dismiss the rest of Robert Altman's always at least interesting filmography. My other two favorites are Three Women (1977) for its psychosexual actressing and Gosford Park (2001) for the sheer pleasure of it but I love his movies... well, maybe not Dr T and the Women but I love quite a few of his movies.

JEFF: What's your biggest guilty pleasure movie? Or a movie that most of the readers would be surprised that you happen to love.

After so many years writing online about movies I fear I have no secrets left. I love the usual guilty pleasures and probably talk about them too much (Xanadu and Showgirls chief among them). I suppose in terms of things I rarely write about the #1 guilty pleasure would be that I do kind of have a (small) thing for B grade action movies and affection for the sometimes limited actors that star in them like Jean Claude Van Damme, Jason Statham, and Schwarzenegger of course. This is not a blanket genre appreciation; I never was interested if the movie starred Steven Seagal or Sylvester Stallone. I've seen Highlander (1986) with Christopher Lambert several times because my brother and his friends loved it. I loved Universal Soldier (1992) for some reason. One truly terrible movie that I used to enjoy with an old friend was Showdown in Little Tokyo (1991) starring Dolph Lundgren and Brandon Lee. This actually happens in it...

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Curio: Black Sheep White Sheep Designs

Alexa here with your weekly art appreciation. I am a real lover of collage as an art form. Anyone who picks up this tome on my coffee table is likely to hear an earful from me as to why I think it is the perfect medium for our age.  So I'm always seeking out artists that do it well for inspiration.  I recently stumbled upon the etsy shop Black Sheep White Sheep and bookmarked it immediately.  Designer Maria Simeonova has created some particularly lovely film posters using collage and illustration that would look gorgeous in any room; she's also done wonderful portrait illustrations of her favorite directors. Best of all, her prints are affordable, at around $30-$50 each.  

You can see all her prints here. After the jump, more of my favorites...

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