Things that happened on Nicole Kidman's Birthday over the years

On this day in history as it relates to the movies...

1893 Lizzie Borden acquitted of the axe murders of her dad and stepmom but everyone still thinks she did it. I still haven't seen that show where Christina Ricci played her. Oops.
1905 Lillian Hellman, playwright and screenwriter is born. 
1909 Swashbuckler supreme Errol Flynn is born
1910 Fanny Brice debuts in "Ziegfeld Follies". The moment was recreated (see photo above from the Academy's archives) and heavily fictionalized of course, in Barbra Streisand's Funny Girl (1968)
1915 Director Terence Young is born. Goes on to kick off the Bond franchise with Dr. No, From Russia With Love, and Thunderball and direct Audrey Hepburn to her last Oscar nomination for Wait Until Dark (1967)
1928 Martin Landau is born. 66 years, 9 months, and 7 days he wins a well-deserved Oscar for Ed Wood (1994)

Click to read more ...

Curio: Czech Film Posters

Alexa here to share my latest movie poster obsession: Czech film poster design. Under the communist regime from 1948-1989, Czech films were distributed by the government without the use of Western advertising. Czech painters and designers were commissioned by the Central Film Distribution Center to create posters, often with little information on the films. In the 60s and 70s, designers such as Zdeněk Ziegler, Karel Vaca and Wolfgang A. Schlosser created a defining Czech style, distinct from other movie posters in Eastern Europe, with an emphasis on typography and photomontage (as it happens, two of my favorite things).  

Here are some highlights...

Click to read more ...

You're Gonna Need a Bigger Link

Super Cafe Batman and Supes argue about the title of their upcoming duo movie (Batman's voice is perfect)
Pajiba 25 celebrities you didn't realize were related by marriage 
Angry Nerd has Pixar's number with the brand debasing. NO PREQUELS
Empire Director Zhang Yimou may helm the umpteenth remake of The Hunchback of Notre Dame with Josh Brolin as Quasimodo. I'll only be satisified if Brolin sings "Out There"
Guardian looks at Nollywood (Nigerian cinema) and its depiction of LGBT people
Cinema Blend Sarah Michelle Gellar on a possible movie version of Buffy the Vampire Slayer (and, essentially, why there won't be one) 

MNPP "we three films of disorient argh" wins my vote for best blogpost title of the month and it's only August 1st! JA pontificates on The Grandmaster, Blue Jasmine, and The Call
Tim Brayton thinks its been a rough summer at the movies and in this August preview it's not looking any better
i09 Frankenstein poster sets new record for movie poster at auction
TV Blend Rob Lowe and Rashida Jones are leaving Parks & Recreation. Time to wrap it up, Pawnee. The 6th season is usually when great television starts a downward slide to ungood anyway. (See: too many examples to mention)
Coming Soon Aaron Taylor Johnson talks Quicksilver. He wants the part in The Avengers: The Age of Ultron 

Today's Watch

Our favorite couple of yesteryear filmmaker/genius Paul Thomas Anderson (The Master, Boogie Nights) and musician/genius Fiona Apple have reunited for this music video "Hot Knife". This is my favorite track on her latest "Idler Wheel" and I'm happy it brought them together again... at least for an afternoon to shoot this. Maya Rudolph is cool with it I'm sure. 

Coda
Finally, as follow up to Michael's piece about the Broken Blockbuster culture in Hollywood, /Film is warning us that the enormous grosses for Despicable Me 2 have convinced Universal that their all franchise all the time credo is the right choice. But mostly I want to suggest that you read this piece in The New York Times Magazine about Jaws (1975).

...from that point forward, the tiniest splash of a minnow could set the audience shrieking.

This is really what “Jaws” was about: Not sharks, but fear. Not action, but suspense. That’s what made it possible for the story of a single shark to scare millions of people into avoiding 71 percent of the earth’s surface.

They're right, you know. We really should stop blaming that excellent character-driven film for the terribleness of today's disappointing character-free blockbusters... even if it did make Hollywood obsessed with gobbling big profits each summer.

Burning Questions: Can a Bad Sequel Diminish a Classic?

Michael C here. When you tune in to the movie chatter frequency one of unavoidable refrains you hear is that such and such sequel has spoiled a classic film. You know the drill. Part III forever tarnished The Godfather, turning a perfect two-part saga into a disappointing, lopsided trilogy. Oliver Stone ruined Gordon Gekko by dragging him out for a belated encore.  “Blah blah Jim Carrey blah blah The Grinch blah blah blah MY CHILDHOOD!”  

And so on.

This chorus was most recently heard lamenting the way Oz the Great and Powerful helped itself to a box office bonanza by trampling the sterling legacy of the Judy Garland classic. Next it will be Evil Dead’s turn to besmirch the memory of a cult classic. Amid all outraged accusations of violence towards film history shouldn’t we stop to consider if the basic idea has merit? Can an inferior sequel actually diminish the standing of a classic? 

Let me state right up front my answer is a firm “No, it can’t.” Except when it can. Let me back up...

Click to read more ...

And the Best Oscar Tweets Go To...

Previously: Fun Arrivals Moments, Full Winner's List , Seth's Hosting Job , Red Carpet Convo - Best Actress,

I tried to stay off the internet as much as possible last night since I feel like I have missed so many Oscar ceremonies in the past few years from multi-tasking while watching. But I'm playing catch up today and I favorited a dozen plus tweets last night so I wouldn't lose them.

I know not all of you have twitter -- nor am I recommending it wholeheartedly. The weeks of my life lost! The damage to my attention span and ability to spell "you're" and "your" since "ur" works best...

But I didn't want you to miss out on these gems which made me lol during the past 24 hours. Please to enjoy after the jump and comment if you'd like to tweet right back at any of them.

People spent so much pre-Oscars time practicing pronouncing "Quvenzhane" and "Haneke," they totally forgot about "Misérables."

— Scott Renshaw (@scottrenshaw) February 25, 2013

I know Ben Affleck is smart & talented & kind & a loyal husband & father but it's very hard to not think of how good he probably is at sex

— Melanie Lynskey (@melanielynskey) February 25, 2013

lots more after the jump... including my favorite from Jennifer Lawrence's stumble

Click to read more ...