The Greatest Pick Up Line in Movie History

Mic drop. No really. 

Imagine you're Therese. It's 1952, you look like Rooney Mara, you're wearing a Santa hat, you're hawking a pile of terrifying looking but also freakishly gender-normative dolls, there's a sign behind you that says "Mommy's Baby," and you've got the span of one sale to signal your romantic viability to customer and apparent goddess Carol.

What's your move? Coquettishly mention that her daughter's chosen doll, Bright Betsy, has a capacity for secretion? No? And that's why Cate Blanchett's not your girlfriend.

Flung Out of Tweet Space

Before we get to the past week in contemporary cinema tweeting, let's take a moment to check in with the Tilly sisters, Jennifer and Meg who were visiting their mom in Canada...

My sister Meg made these pies! pic.twitter.com/lR7vg0LvWk

— Jennifer Tilly (@Jtillathekilla2) December 27, 2015

This tweet made me so happy. I think because I had just randomly scene The Fabulous Baker Boys again on Cinemax and Jennifer is so funny in it as "Blanche/Monica". I like to fantasize that in private Jennifer and Meg call each other by their full titles, like...

Jennifer: Yum. What kind of pies are we having tonight Oscar Nominated Actress Meg Tilly? 
Meg: Well Oscar Nominated Actress Jennifer Tilly I made a bunch. Pecan, Apple...

Tweet Randomness starring The Revenant, Carol, Star Wars, and more after the jump

Click to read more ...

Merry Carol-mas Everyone!

may you give or receive thoughtful gifts...

Click to read more ...

While We Wait for Carol...

The natives are growing restless.

Greetings friends. Chris here, the newest member of Team Experience. Like I'm assuming many of you, I live far away from the lucky 16 theatres currently housing Todd Haynes' return to the big screen. So I'm happy with even the slightest shift that brings Carol's glacial release to my local screens. Non-US readers have an even longer wait. We've all become the human embodiment of that inescapable Rooney Mara image.

It's worth noting amid all our impatience the cautionary tale told this year by the likes of Steve Jobs and The Diary of a Teenage Girl: going too wide too soon can result in a quick crash and burn in this increasingly crowded marketplace. So let's take a breather and feel grateful that Carol has a distributor like The Weinstein Co. focused on reaching a passionate audience, even if it means waiting longer than we want. After all, the film is still the film no matter when we see it.

Meanwhile, I've got 10 fun homework assignments to keep you occupied while you wait...

 1. Read Patricia Highsmith's novel (also published as The Price of Salt). The film is not a page-to-page adaptation, so some surprises will still be ahead - including more of our titular love interest!

2. Rewatch the Todd Haynes filmography! I'll do the leg work for you: Velvet Goldmine is availble on Netflix Instant, Poison and I'm Not There on Amazon Prime...

Click to read more ...

"Carol" Week: An Evening with Cinematographer Ed Lachman

Kieran, here wishing everyone a very happy Carol week.  If ever there was a film that truly deserved an entire week dedicated to celebrating it, it’s Todd Haynes’ sumptuous cinematic buffet. The film is a rare animal in the landscape in that it truly feels like every element of its filmmaking works cohesively in service of the overall vision. That was apparent on a re-watch last Friday evening in Los Angeles and even more so afterwards listening to cinematographer Edward Lachman talk to the audience about the process of finding the appropriate look for it after the screening.

“Todd always does great research before every film,” one of the many moments of him singing his director’s praises.  “One of the greatest mandates was making sure it didn’t resemble Far From Heaven,” Lachman stated.  [More...]

Click to read more ...