Take Three: Season 2 Wrap-Up

Craig here with a wrap-up of season 2 of ‘Take Three’, the Sunday Film Experience series which looked at three notable performances from a supporting or character actor's career. (Click their names to see the Take Three posts.)

Last Sunday’s ‘Take Three’ on Paul Dano was the last edition for a while. I’ve enjoyed writing season 2 a great deal. I hope they've been interesting to read, too. The series resumed in March with Marisa Tomei, an actress who has been doing some her best work in recent years; similarly, Barbara Hershey has seen a keen resurgence in her career recently, particularly with Black Swan; and Judy Davis, quiet on the big screen over the last few years, will again be a name on everyone’s lips with new movies due soon. Writing about Shelley Duvall and Isabella Rossellini was sheer pleasure. They're two actresses who have uncommon elegance, with quirks and kinks on the side in everything that they do.

Mackie, Duvall, Gugino

It was a joy to finally include Max von Sydow, a character actor master of genre variation, and Burgess Meredith, always dependable and commendable in everything he starred in. A couple of straight-up bona fide classic film acts, Boris Karloff and Gloria Grahame, were covered, too; I ended up unable to tear myself away from repeat viewings of Frankenstein and The Big Heat respectively. The Michael Biehn write-up in three James Cameron sc-fis nicely coincided with the Aliens ‘Hit Me with Your Best Shot’ posts (for which I also wrote this); and I gave Danny Glover, another ‘80s stalwart, his dues with a post on three of his most memorable performances.

Marsan, Karloff, McCarthy

A trio of actresses who are currently making marks on the movie map in a range of genres, and who have been grafting hard in support roles for some time, are Melissa McCarthy, Viola Davis and Alice Braga. These three add that extra vital ingredient to each film they star in and are as fiercely individual as they come. More versed in the art of crucial character acting, but still entirely deserving of attention, are Brooke Smith, Catherine Keener and Carla Gugino. All three have been active on our screens since the late ‘80s and continue to be three of the best performers the movies have.

Renier, Grahame, Davis

Jérémie Renier, Anthony Mackie and Michael Shannon have often played roles that perfectly display their unique talents. Each one proves enthralling to watch and deserve to be heralded as loudly and as frequently as possible. And three more who never cease to surprise with either film choices or strong work are Peter Sarsgaard, Michael Pitt and Eddie Marsan. 

I hope to post up another collection of character actors in the third and final season of ‘Take Three’, which will begin again in February 2012 – with more favourites, more unknowns and more variety. Until then, let’s hear your thoughts on ‘Take Three’ season 2 and who you would like to see featured next year...

Venice: Opposing Views on "Contagion"

Gwynnie expires in the first scenes of Contagion

Ferdi from Italy, reporting from Venice for TFE and, for Italian readers, longer pieces at Loud Vision.

Soderbergh remains one of the most influential and crafty American filmmakers but he has won my love only on one occasion, with Erin Brockovich (perhaps thanks to Julia Roberts). Soderbergh knows how to use star power but how all these stars agreed to make this movie is beyond reason, especially the beautiful Marion Cotillard who seems to be asking what she's even doing there, she's so out of place. (Did the stars infect each other?)

After the first few minutes you realize that this is all very serious stuff which is not always a good thing. If the movie had turned into a sort of "guess who’s going to die next?" thriller, it might have been a smart and fun, if cruel, meta cinematic exercize about killing off your stars.  If you imagine a movie like Contagion without all these flashing names over the title, it would be much more realistic, poignant and affecting.  Blindness, for example, was scarier and more artistically cohesive with a similar subject.

The problem with Contagion is that it tries to be a disaster movie, a thriller, a drama and a documentary; it doesn’t work as any of these genres. From an ideological point of view, too, especially when it comes to the Jude Law character, it's contradictory and stiff. Contagion plays more like a little b-movie or a television series, with a straight narrative line and a visual style that is simple, clear and very very flat. Perhaps this was just a transition project between other movies the director cares much more about. But if you’re looking for a simple message, here you are: Remember to wash your hands carefully every time you touch other people or you could spread a new mortal disease. Thanks, Steven. 

Damon, Paltrow, Fishburne and Soderbergh at the Contagion Photo Op in Venice

[Editor's Note: Manolis, our other Venice correspondent had back to back to back to back screenings yesterday and was unable to write much. But I thought it would interest you to know that he called Contagion a "crowd pleaser" and found it to be "a fully satisfying thriller". So it's a split vote from our Venice team if we imagine them as Siskel & Ebert or Statler & Waldorf. Manolis did send two noteable bits from the press conference. -Nathaniel.]

At the press conference, Soderbergh said that he was happy to have a protagonist (the virus) which has no lines but everyone else in the movie talks about him. He also addressed the ongoing rumors of his retirement: he does intend to take a break from directing, but is not planning to quit entirely. 

Reason #6,391 to Love Viggo Mortensen

He doesn't just wave to his fans or sign autographs, he leans into it with a huge genuine grin. 

Viggo with fans in Venice (you can see they attracted him with that sign... wonder what it says?) at the premiere of A Dangerous Method

I was lamenting on Twitter earlier that I can't imagine TIFF being as exciting as Venice this year. Perhaps it was the mad desire to welcome prestige movie season in but doesn't it feel explosively exciting right about now? So much possibility. So many beloved faces. So many movie stars that aren't wearing spandex in front of a green screen.

Jeremy Renner Would Like You To Stop Staring At Him On the Set of "The Avengers"

So stop it!

more after the jump

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Jessica Chastain Receiving Her First Award...(of Hundreds?)

Though we've been as curious as any cinephile about the overnight sensation* that is Jessica Chastain (see previous post), allow us to register vaguely mild surprise that it took just 109 days in the public eye in a major way (starting with the Cannes premiere of The Tree of Life) before she's already standing at podiums thanking people for giving her shiny things! In this case the Gucci Women in Film prize.

In reality this is Chastain's second award, one click of research indicates that she won a best actress festival prize in 2008 (Seattle International Film Festival) for a film called Jolene though that didn't see the inside of movie theaters until late 2010 (Have any of you seen it?) But what a whirlwind these past few months must have been.

Madonna presents the Gucci Women in Film Award to Jessica Chastain

What a summer. It starts with a Cannes trip alongside Brad Pitt and three months later she's part of a $100 million hit and Madonna (that's right, Madonna) is handing her trophies. From Brad Pitt to Madonna all in the same summer. Hopefully her eyes have adjusted to travelling in these blinding megawatt circles. 

This news hit me courtesy of luxury style expert Jessica Michault who is trying to make us all jealous with her tweet droppings. Consider this one:

And for what it's worth Ms. Michault thinks Keira Knightley is Oscar-worthy in A Dangerous Method. Not that luxury fashion experts vote on Oscars but they do hobnob with those who do.

*"overnight sensation" is nearly always an oxymoron. Obviously Jessica Chastain put in a lot of acting hours prior to this weird explosion of film releases...