Horror Actressing: The Women of "American Psycho"

by Jason Adams

I don't think there's any good faith argument to be made that Mary Harron's American Psycho, which turns 20 today, is not Christian Bale's movie. His serial killing investment banker Patrick Bateman, now an icon for the ages for better or for worse, is in very nearly every scene -- Harron cuts away from his perspective only twice (both pointed moments I'll dig into below). We are, terrifyingly, trapped inside this most beautiful madman for every dissection and Whitney Houston diatribe -- it's much like Bret Easton Ellis' book that way.

But Harron, bless her, found ways to make the experience survivable, hell even somehow giddy and a deranged sort of fun, whereas Ellis' book is an undertaking swathed in ugliness and despair I've had no desire to revisit since my one and only traumatic read-through a good 25 years back. Harron navigated a supernaturally exquisite balance between her satire and horror, a vital "looking in from the outside" set of eyes that escaped the burden of Ellis' prose. And I think the key to it, besides Bale's brilliantly sweaty bananas work of course, is the vibrant gallery of women that Harron surrounded Bateman with...

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That Link You Do!

• Jackie Beat "Golden Girls in Quarantine" = good lolz. Jackie Beat continues to do an incredible Dorothy
• Deadline the cast of Tom Hanks 1996's That Thing You Do! is going to reunite this Friday to raise money for COVID-19 Relief
• The Atlantic interesting profile of Sarah Barnett, the TV Executive who keeps taking giant risks that pay off (hi, Killing Eve) 

After the jump Laika's generosity, Schitt's Creek's LGBTQ power, Madonna's 'Blonde Ambition' anniversary, Disney live stream, the new Dune and more...

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Emmy Watch: Best Actor in a Comedy

by Abe Fried-Tanzer

The "what will be nominated at the Emmys?" conversation continues. Today: Best Lead Actor in a Comedy Series.  Looking at last year’s nominees, this field may not be all that different apart from the top. Only one nominee, two-time defending champion Bill Hader won’t be back. Barry hasn’t yet announced its season three premiere date. On the other hand though there’s every reason to expect that the two departing contenders, Ted Danson (The Good Place) and Eugene Levy (Schitt’s Creek), will return for their show’s swan songs. Those two shows seem to have the largest fanbases among TFE readers so we assume you're rooting for them.

Another nominee from last year, Don Cheadle (Black Monday), is a toss-up. But given that he earned four consecutive nominations in this category earlier this decade as pretty much the only representation from House of Lies, scoring yet another solo bid doesn’t feel far-fetched. Anthony Anderson (Black-ish) has been nominated five times in a row, and he survived his show being ousted from the Best Comedy Series race last year, so he may be able to do it again. Michael Douglas (The Kominsky Method) is a good bet to return, but his show’s snub in the top race last year makes his chances less secure than they should be…

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Almost There: Rita Hayworth in "Gilda"

by Cláudio Alves

Few movies define a star so completely as Gilda does Rita Hayworth. It's impossible to overstate the cultural impact that the 1946 noir had, how it made Hayworth an immortal screen legend and how controversial it was. Some countries even tried to block the release of the picture or censor it. Such feeble efforts only made Gilda more popular, its licentiousness transformed into a thing of myth. In America, audiences went wild, but the critics were more miserly in their praise. Overseas, however, among the European tastemakers and film scholars, Gilda was quickly viewed as an object of serious artistry and not merely a box office juggernaut. Beloved by the public, celebrated by the intellectuals, it's no wonder the flick became such a historical landmark. 

It's safe to assume it was also the closest the actress ever came to an Oscar nomination. It would have been a deserved nod, that's for sure. In Gilda, Rita Hayworth is movie magic made flesh…

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First glimpse of "Dune"

by Nathaniel R

If we're already getting the first promotional image of Denis Villeneuve's take on sci-fi literary classic Dune than the movie must still be aiming for its December 18th release date. We find that highly plausible since the movie wrapped its filming in 2019 and movie theaters are going to need some big ticket items when they reopen.  Our friend Boyd Van Hoeij describes Timothée Chalamet's costume like so...

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