Drag Race S9E3: Drag Princesses and Their Sidekicks

by Chris Feil

Try to imagine these characters in a Disney princess movie!After lots of celeb gazing and underwhelming rhythms in the first two episodes, Season 3 of RuPaul’s Drag Race has finally found its sweet spot! This week’s episode was a return to form, hilarious and heartfelt while letting us get to know the queens. The queens were charged to create their own princess (sewing challenge!) and a quirky sidekick to tell her story. Get your fairytale life!

The results were delightful enough that we’ll forgive the continued lack of a mini-challenge - and did the Pit Crew get kidnapped this season??

Right out of the gate, Trinity Taylor is gunning for the win, throwing excess dust all over Valentina’s win last week in the process. Trinity has quickly emerged as the season’s bitch, though funnier and more lovable than we have seen from past season villains, in my perspective. How long will we be waiting until that potential rivalry with Eureka O’Hara to rise again, I wonder? Regardless, Trinity’s profile is rising in this lineup.

Speaking of Valentina...

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And the Link Goes To...

Daily Mail Ewan McGregor and Nicole Kidman reunite... but for an interview series, not a film
The Muse Rich Juzwiak talks to Anne Hathaway about Colossal and the very tired subject of 'Hathahaters'... as I've always said: their loss, she's awesome.
Deadline omg Toni Collette has a lead role again (opposite Thomas Haden Church)
Criterion Director Amy Heckerling (Clueless) visits the Criterion Closet. She loves Federico Fellini, the story of Billy Wilder and Tokyo Story

Coming Soon Director Sam Mendes is considering a movie based on the graphic novel My Favorite Thing is Monsters  about a little girl trying to solve her neighbors murder
Towleroad there's a new documentary about Heath Ledger
This is Not Porn and speaking of... polaroids from the set of Brokeback Mountain
Hollywood Reporter 4 Japanese actresses discuss Ghost in the Shell. This is a fun conversation but I wish they'd engaged more with the central twist of the Scarlett Johansson character because that's something I would love to hear people discuss apart from the white-washing issue. It is a separate thorny issue actually and not entirely unlike Get Out's existential horror about race relations and bodies at odds with souls... or "ghosts" in this film's parlance.

Oscar Dates 
I'm not sure why the internet treated the news that the next Oscars would be held on March 4th, 2018 as "news" today but they did. The Academy announced the date two or three years ago (they normally announce multiple dates at once). For example: in the latest press release they've added the next four Oscar ceremony dates. It's the other dates (nominations, luncheon, etcetera) that we never know until we're in the film year

Next Four Oscar Nights

• 90th Academy Awards - March 4th, 2018 (nominations on January 23rd)
• 91st Academy Awards - February 24th, 2019
• 92nd Academy Awards - February 23rd, 2020
• 93rd Academy Awards - February 28th, 2021  

Off Cinema
MNPP on the subtle importance of Zachary Quinto's public romances
Variety the Lucille Lortel nominations (Off Broadway)
Theater Mania I've been so bored that NYC's free summer theater tradition Shakespeare in the Park has been strictly Shakespeare for a few years now. Despite the name they used to mix in non-Shakespeare stuff which made it less basic. But they get good casts. This summer: A Midsummer Night's Dream with two of Broadway's very best performers (Danny Burstein & Annaleigh Ashford) and Julius Caesar with Corey Stoll, Nikki M James, Elizabeth Marvel and more
Vox interesting piece on Sanrio's most popular character since Hello Kitty
Mic new study suggests cats like humans more than food. Great article punchline.
EW Lots of online furor when Marvel VP suggests that their recent diversity push has hurt comics sales. Oh Marvel. That is not the problem. You have so many of them but that ain't it. 

Power Linkers

Mashable the 8 main excuses Hollywood uses for whitewashing, and why they're all bunk in this day and age
Film Doctor 5 amusing notes on "Evil Disney Hegemony" and Emma Watson as Belle
The Muse Rich Juzwiak on the recent LGBT scraps thrown in mainstream Hollywood movies. Frankly I've been insulted, rather than thankful, by both of them. I just saw Power Rangers and I cannot believe people are crediting this movie with being LGBT inclusive. The Yellow Ranger never even admits she's queer. She just stays literally silent (and you know what silence equals) when someone asks if she has a girlfriend.

 

David Poland distributors are considering shrinking the theatrical release window again. Is this just suicide? (I hate to be an alarmist but I totally agree with David Poland's thinking here
Women in Hollywood interviews The Zookeeper's Wife author Diane Ackerman
Time lists the 50 best podcasts right now. I almost never listen to podcasts. Probably because I have no commute. I should get on that.
Pajiba on the costs of running independent film sites - ugh this hurts to read. It's so hard and we dont even do half as well as they do!
IndieWire Paul Thomas Anderson's fashion drama gets a Christmas day release 
World of Reel the early reactions to the new Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales are actually positive 
Awards Daily talks to composer Trevor Morris (as much as I hated Iron Fist, I liked his work on it!) 
Broadway Blog Bette Midler's super gracious moment with an understudy on Hello Dolly! 

Finally, Two Directing Offers of Note
Joss Whedon might write & direct a Batgirl movie. The deal is supposedly close to happening but he had such a terrible experience with Warner Bros on his Wonder Woman screenplay (and such a difficult time with Marvel on Avengers: Age of Ultron) that this is quite a surprise. The money must be really good but we keep hoping he'll create an original television series again soon rather than reshaping other people's brands. 

Jordan Peele is being considered to direct both Akira and The Flash at Warner Bros thanks to the huge success of his directorial debut Get Out. But both those projects seem so troubled. The first because every iteration Hollywood has dreamt up for Akira includes removing its very Asianness (goddamnit Hollywood, just stop. Asia is an enormous enormous market for movies. You make no sense!) and the second from DC's habitual superhero and filmmaker interference problems. Wouldn't it be better if Peele follows his own muse? That worked pretty damn well for him the first time.

Thoughts I Had... While Rewatching "Grease 2"

Grease 2 gave me such writer's block in the Pfandom series because what to even focus on with such an event? I finally powered through but the focus naturally had to be on LaPfeiff's career. So, herewith a random collections of thoughts and observations from this viewing which I think was my 6th or 7th? The movie is terrible but I'm addicted to early Pfeiffer's lusty bravado in it, hence the multiple revisits.

(This is gif heavy so be warned...)

Dody Goodman & Eve Arden reprising their Grease roles as "Blanche & Miss McGee"

↑ But these are the faces you'll find me making every time I find myself watching it. WHY ARE YOU DOING THIS AGAIN?!?!?

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every guy here'd love to link you, Gaston

Today's Must Read
BuzzFeed good piece by Allison Willmore on the maddening response to absolutely nothing moments proclaimed to be LGBT "firsts!" in movies. Two parts of the problems she doesn't mention though are 1) the internet demands for constant content incentivize journalists to blow everything out of proportion including super stupid things like "LeFou is gay!" and 2) too many pop culture journalists are operating from a place of zero knowledge about pop culture before they were, like, 12. 

more links after the jump including insightful pieces on Feud and an investigation of Logan's family jewels...

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