Between Films... Thoughts on "American Hustle" Promos

We've already done a "yes no maybe so" on American Hustle's A+ teaser. I loved that teaser so much I ended up purchasing Led Zeppelin's "Good Times Bad Times" on iTunes. But recently the full trailer debuted. Due to travels I hadn't commented.

I'm in Los Angeles for a few meetings and the enticing promos for American Hustle (those fab character posters, too) aren't just the talk amongst movie fans but rival Oscar teams, too. It seems like two conversations are running parallel: the ongoing Gravity conversation and the conversation about the films people haven't yet seen American Hustle and Her (which screens tomorrow for press). Are Captain Phillips and Twelve Years a Slave going to be able to find a large enough window between what's hot right now (Gravity) and what's still coming to steal some of that thunder?  

The conversations I've had on the West Coast are a good reminder -- the internet can get so dully negative -- that many people who work on movies, whether its publicity, production, or full fledged movie stardom, started out as die-hard movie fans just like you and I.

So let's talk about the new trailer after the jump

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Yes, No, Maybe So: "American Hustle"

If the movie year has been uninspired thus far -- and what honest assessment of mainstream cinema wouldn't come to that conclusion? -- things will undoubtedly be looking up as we move out of the season of movies with only one thing on their mind (profit) and arrive at movies with at least two things knocking around in their heads (awards and profit) but hopefully more. I haven't been much interested in American Hustle up till now (for various reasons) but it dropped a grabby tease of a commercial yesterday so let's play the Yes No Maybe So game and decide how badly we want to see it now that there's something to get a hold of.

...like any part of Amy Adams, just pick one! The trailer and three-pronged breakdown after the jump...

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The Linkover

Vulture whose butts have we seen on Game of Thrones. Funny interactive even if you don't watch the show
LA Times AMPAS just keeps on changing its rule. That board of governors is the fussiest and most bored ever, right? Always tinkering! Members are now no longer required to see foreign film and shorts at Academy screenings in order to vote on them. I personally liked the more restrictive voting in those categories. If I had my way nobody would be able to vote on anything unless they'd seen all the nominees in the category.
Slate wonders where Jay Gatsby's mythical mansion really is/was (The Great Gatsby) 
Pajiba wonders what Marvel Studios could do to make Daredevil work onscreen 
CHUD it's not every day that a movie spoiler comes by way of costume design (The Amazing Spider-Man 2)
MNPP Which is hotter George Clooney retro edition
Ender's Game website has gone live in anticipation of the trailer. Messages from the crew asking us to "stay informed" It seems to be mostly informative backstory journals at this point. Until Viola Davis is schooling me, I ain't learning this!

it's Bradley's world
Awards Daily Bradley Cooper might not be done with Oscar yet. He's now set to star for Steven Spielberg in American Sniper, a true story about a Navy SEAL who fell victim to another soldier's PTSD
In Contention Bradley will also star in Chef for August Osage County director John Wells

pretty pictures
imgur '50 greatest matte paintings from the movies.' a fine tribute to a lost art now that CGI fills in where set-construction leaves off
/film new images from Hayao Miyazaki's The Wind is Rising which we were just talking about in our
Animated Oscar Predictions (in case you missed them)
Hyung86 cute illustrations of Disney characters as college students. My favorites here are actually Hercules and Pocahontas

Review: "The Place Beyond the Pines"

This review was originally published in my weekly column at Towleroad

Handsome Luke at the Fairgrounds

The opening shot from THE PLACE BEYOND THE PINES, is a stunner. And not only because it starts with a view of a well-muscled and inked masculine torso. The camera follows the man (we don't see his face) as he paces back and forth, plays with a knife and then walks through a fairground where he turns heads and prompts amateur snapshots. Finally the camera catches his face. It's "Handsome Luke" (Ryan Gosling), a daredevil motorcylist about to defy death and gravity in a round metal cage. As soon as we've seen 'Handsome Gosling,' though, Luke throws a motorcyle helmet on depriving us of his Movie Star mug and enters the cage to perform miraculous stunts. As I recall there aren't any edits in this shot and I have no idea how it was filmed unless Ryan Gosling moonlights as a stuntman in addition to his many many other talents (like naming his body parts, and inspiring hilarious fandom and popular internet memes).

This lengthy continuous shot with its 'now you see him, now you don't' movie-star tease is a pretty apt description of the movie to come which is something of a bait-and-switch with a prominent throughline. [more]

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Earth's Mightiest Links

Grantland "look, you didn't hear this from George Lucas..." on the upcoming Star Wars Han/Luke/Leia Reunion
i09 Bad Lip Readings take on The Amazing Spider-Man. And things get skanky
Hollywood January Jones not one of the cool girls but the Zeéeeee is? My world is crumbling. 
Comic Book Resources shows  mashup illustrations: superhero album covers 

Movie|Line ranks the indispensability of the actors in The Avengers for sequels but weirdly states that Scarlett Johansson's part in The Avengers left a lot to be desired. I think that's just Iron Man 2 talking. You can trust Whedon with your female heroes and he gave her a lot to do.
DListed Bradley Cooper didn't want that stupid Oscar anyway
Vine Naomi Watts does an excellent David Lynch impersonation 
Boy Culture Jonathan Groff & Zachary Quinto wedding rumors (we live in a whole new better world now - gossip rags now sharing gay marriage rumors instead of "who is secretly gay?!" stupidity)
Guardian "bottled by Jolie-Pitt and Perrin" 
Ultra Culture advertising Disney isn't doing for Oz: The Great and Powerful 

Today's Must Watch
A home-made Iron Man 3 trailer  (no computer fx) alongside the actual one...

I love when creative people meet endless free time on their hands. [via Core 77 and Cinefix]