Friday, May 25, 2012 at 9:58PM It's Nathaniel, typing at you in a rush. A family emergency has taken me out of town for a week. More later. In the meantime, what's on your cinematic mind and what do you most hope to experience during this year's summer movie season (both here on the blog and in the movie theaters)?
Thursday, May 24, 2012 at 8:00AM 
Jose here.
We know you'd been craving more Cannes coverage so we're bringing you a quick look at the red carpet highlights. Before we dive into the awesome world of dresses and leading ladies, let's all admire the beautiful Kylie Minogue who shone at the premiere of Holy Motors, the new film by Leos Carax that's being touted as a hybrid between David Lynch and a joke.
Kylie plays the leading roles (yes, she plays two characters) opposite the extraordinary Denis Lavant and their film has been getting such ecstatic notices that now people assume it's going to be the big winner. Can you imagine a pop superstar headlining another Palme d'Or winner?
Before I let my mind wander off to random places like Kylie playing Grace on the third US of A installment for Lars, let's see what the ladies have been wearing to the movie premieres...
Wednesday, May 23, 2012 at 1:00PM 
Jose here. The summer not only brings us cheesy special effects movies and superhero blockbusters, it also announces the start of something else in movie theaters: the arrival of Oscar season trailers! Yesterday we got our first glimpse at Baz Luhrmann's take on F. Scott Fitzgerald's The Great Gatsby which, no surprise, showed us Baz at his Baziest.
Those of you who were expecting him to show some restraint will be highly disappointed (although didn't you learn your lesson with Australia?) while the rest will rejoice in the way he flahses his unique visual style. Anyway, before you pick a team, let's do our usual Yes, No, Maybe So...
Tuesday, May 22, 2012 at 4:27PM 
The world's number one ranked male tennis player turns a quarter century today so in honor of Novak Djokovic why not celebrate with a list of best tennis moments in the movies?
Because... uh...
Are there any? When I first thought of doing this list I was like YES -- little known fact: I played tennis daily one summer in high school and still love the game -- only to hit a brick wall rather than a low net. You may have heard this complaint before from tennis fans but given the abundance of sports movies of every other stripe it's almost like Hollywood hates the game. Those private tennis courts on celebrity acreage are all going to waste.
I've come up with ten things anyway.
BEST TENNIS SOMETHING OR OTHER IN THE MOVIES
You should know upfront that I've never seen the Chad Lowe boy-in-drag masterpiece Nobody's Perfect (1989) -- no decade ever loved cross-dressing comedies like the 80s -- so I shan't include it.
10 Wimbledon (2004)
Nobody likes this movie but given the abrupt sharp decline in romantic comedy quality over the past ten years, I bet it'd look pretty good if it came out now. At the very least both Paul Bettany and Kirsten Dunst looked fresh and healthy and sun-kissed as the professional athletes in love.
09 The Witches of Eastwick (1987)
We'll be sure to celebrate this movie's 25th anniversary next month but for now, remember that tennis match? Temperatures are flaring as the three best friends Jane (Susan Sarandon) Sukie (Michelle Pfeiffer) and Alex (Cher) all compete for Devil Jack Nicholson's attention. In a game of doubles things get vindicative and then supernatural.
Tuesday, May 22, 2012 at 2:22PM While Gemini is ruling, we're celebrating twins: real, fictional, and other. Double the pleasure! If it's your birthday we'll celebrate both of you in the comments.
Did you know that legendary actor Montgomery Clift had a twin sister? That's him with his twin sister Roberta above. She was born first making Monty the youngest of the Clift's three children. Monty and the family called her "Ethel" which was their mother's name though there mother went by "Sunny". Confusing!
Monty and Ethel in 1933. They were thirteen years old.The kids had a strange upbringing, moving frequently both abroad and in the States and they were privately tutored and well bred as if they had far far more money than they did. Monty theorized without a ton of conviction that his drive toward acting may have had to do with competition with his sister (and older brother), neither of whom pursued acting. Both of his siblings were college educated while Monty never went to high school, beginning his professional acting career at 14 on stage.
In a 1957 profile in McCall's a friend of Monty's is quoted as saying:
He's almost in a state of amnesia about his childhood. He never speaks of it, and if he's asked questions he side-steps."
The Clift kids weren't Geminis but Libras but all twins are honorary Geminis and all Geminis are honorary twins if you ask us.
It's hard to find much info about Roberta/Ethel but she married in 1945 (Monty attended) at which point Monty was already a star on Broadway collecting fans also bound for immortal fame like Marlon Brando. The next year he filmed his first movie role Red River (released later in 1948).
His life was short and tortured but his influential legacy as one of the original brooding mumbling male superstars is long.
Montgomery Clift, Old Hollywood, twins 