Curio: Witches Brew

Alexa here, chiming in for The Witches of Eastwick week. The film remains one of my 80s favorites, a strong showing in an especially strong year for women in film (Moonstruck! Broadcast News!). Veronica Cartwright's second-most-famous gross-out scene had me off cherries for 10 years, minimum, so I was surprised that no one has designed a minimalist cherry poster for the film yet. 

Custom poster design by Alex Kittle.

Instead, the climactic voodoo scene seems to inspire artists the most. Here are some of the better voodoo poster designs, and one voodoo curio, in honor of the frizzy-haired trio...

Click to read more ...

Just Say Link

The Guardian Jane Fonda will be playing Nancy Reagan for Lee Daniels' as yet untitled feature about a White House butler. That's the one he'll follow The Paperboy with.
Towleroad first official look at Hugh Jackman as Jean Valjean (though we have already seen pap shots) in Les Misérables.
Movie|Line can you guess what the most rented DVD of 2011?
AMC Film Critic Thelma Adams on what mothers and daughters can learn from The Hunger Games

IFC Fix Actor Toby Kebbell on the troubled adaptation of Akira. He was up for the Tetsuo role but he didn't like what they were doing with the project. I admire his honesty/fandom but I don't like that he's even up for the role. Asian actors please... it's not like Asian American actors don't exist.
Movie|Line can you guess what the most rented DVD of 2011?
AMC Film Critic Thelma Adams on what mothers and daughters can learn from The Hunger Games
In Contention Woody Harrelson's mirror characters in The Hunger Games and Game Change
Rope of Silicon a look at Michael Shannon as a ruthless killer in The Iceman.
After Elton remembers the gayest moments in Mad Men history.
EW five ways to fix Smash which has been renewed for a second season (yay!)

for fun...
Gizmodo Great Simpsons humor. The apps on Mr. Burns' iPad.
world of wonder Atheist Barbie. Hee.

Curio: Dolly Days

Alexa here. With Dolly getting most of the votes in Nathaniel's poll, I felt it necessary to point out that, along with making some Joyful Noise of late, she is also celebrating a birthday this week. While she's had an uneven film presence during her career (Straight Talk was not exactly the vehicle we would hope for her), she can coast on the combined effect of 9 to 5 and Steel Magnolias to qualify as a film star.  So here's a few curios to celebrate the Queen of Country's 66 years. 

9 to 5 Alamo Drafthouse poster by Print Mafia.Sugar Magnolia cupcake toppers, now for sale!Click to see Dolly morph into Kristen Chenoweth...

Click to read more ...

I Dream of Celebrity: Catherine Keener

True story I forgot to share.

While I was away at my cabin in the woods weekend with literally no media (no cel phone service, no tv, nothing) I still couldn't escape the movies. One night I dreamt of a life sized Catherine Keener doll dressed in a wedding gown (lol). Pull her string and she sighs and delivers neurotic monologues! Needless to say I pulled the string several times and woke with a smile! 

Which life-sized celebrity doll would you buy? What would you hear if you pulled their string?

Curio: When Madonna Was Breathless

Alexa here. Madonna turns 53 today. Her profile seems relatively low-key lately; sometimes I feel like I'm reading more about Lourdes than her mom.  But this bit of kitsch I saw for sale on etsy the other day brought me back to the days of the Madonna media juggernaut.

That's right, a set of Dick Tracy and Breathless Mahoney dolls from 1990.  Yes, I am old enough to remember seeing this movie in the theater. A month prior to its release I had tickets to Madonna's Blonde Ambition tour and alas, she canceled because of throat issues (later memorably documented in Truth or Dare).  At the time, Madonna called Dick Tracy the "best movie I've ever been in." After lining up to see it opening night I strongly disagreed, and not just because I was still stung by her concert cancellation.  This was Warren Beatty telling a tale full of sound and fury, signifying nothing. 

Madonna Marble!There are quite a few Dick Tracy curios up for sale now, including an opening night t-shirt (that acted as your admission ticket for midnight screenings), marbles, and a scarf.  

It's hilarious to see this tie-in merchandise so long after a film has come and gone. You can see how strong the studio backing was, how high hopes were for a franchise.  And today, I'd probably rather watch Filth and Wisdom than sit through Dick Tracy again.