Catching Up: Depp's Trump, Ladd's Gripe, Amy's Drama

We've been busy busy with interviews, awards pieces, Silence of the Lambs anniversary, and more so we're way behind on film news. So let's get caught up with news, awardage, and random recommended links...

RANDOMNESS
• Pajiba Meryl Streep getting herself into trouble with an African comment when asked about diversity
• LongReads Pregnancy in movies with Mad Max Fury Road as starting point
• Inverse The Rock gleefully warning fans he'll get naked on HBO's Ballers
• Funny or Die! Johnny Depp as Donald Trump. Didn't know they did 50 minute skits!
• Cinematic Corner we need to talk about Harrison Ford in Witness
• Library of America Carrie Rickey on The Age of Innocence
• Unseen Films would like you to consider Toni Collette in Glassland 
• Coming Soon Gal Gadot's career before Wonder Woman
• Regal Cinemas cute teaser poster for Finding Dory

CASTING & PRODUCTION
• Variety Amy Schumer trying her hand at drama. She's joined the cast of the PTSD movie Thank You For Your Service which stars Miles Teller 
• THR Chris Weitz will write the screenplay adaptation of upcoming nonfiction book 21 Years to Midnight which centers on Obergefell v. Hodges, which eventually led to the legalization of same-sex marriage
• AV Club The Bachelors will star JK Simmons as a widower. He and his son (uncast) meet two extraordinary women and their lives are transformed. Julie Delpy will play one of the women. We just hope this isn't yet another movie where women only exist to help the man through their character arc. 
• Tracking Board Goldie Hawn might finally act again... in a new Amy Schumer comedy
• The Film Stage has a lot of info on Claire Denis new project High Life so it's spoilery but the film will star Robert Pattison, Patricia Arquette, and Mia Goth from Nymphomaniac 

AWARDAGE
• Variety Mustang tops the Lumiere Awards in France (precursor to the Césars)
• THR I apologize that TFE forgot to cover the Goya awards. So much happens every week with awardage this time of year. The big winner was Truman starring Ricardo Darin (Secret in Their Eyes) and Javier Camera (Talk to Her). Best Actress had some international superstar nominees in Penelope Cruz and Juliette Binoche but they lost to Natalia de Molina (Techo y Comida)
• AARP "Movies for Grown-Ups Awards" red carpet. Spotlight took Best Picture. Ridley Scott best director. Acting winners: Lily Tomlin (Grandma), Bryan Cranston (Trumbo), Diane Ladd (Joy) and Mark Rylance (Bridge of Spies).  And you should know that Diane took the opportunity to speak out against Category Fraud. God bless her! And FYI, Ladd is NOT the Academy member actress I spoke to earlier this year who was angry and vowed to not for anyone pitched in the category. So people are finally if slowly starting to see this for what it is. Now, if only critics and journalists, who have such opinion-making power would stop promoting it in their own awards and write-ups! 

Here is Queen Ladd on the topic.

I've already seen snippy things on line about "she wouldn't have been nominated regardless," but, FACT: We do not know this. Listen up: if we didn't have Category Fraudsters each year people would be discussing the options among real supporting actresses (because people always discuss possibilities when it comes to the Oscars) and who knows who might have gained traction without Vikander and Mara sucking up all the conversation?

BRIE LARSON WORLD
• In Contention Brie and Saoirse Ronan honored in Santa Barbara
• Elle Magazine more Brie. Lots more.  
• Pajiba ...Elle Magazine has gone a little crazy with the photoshop, though.

THEATER & TV
• Playbill Aaron Sorkin writing a new adaptation of To Kill a Mockingbird for Broadway
• Gothamist Sikh actor Waris Ahluwalia, from Wes Anderson's movies, was banned from a flight since he wouldn't remove his turban!
• MNPP Great news for Bryan Fuller fans. The Hannibal and Pushing Daisies man will be running the new Star Trek series premiering a year from now.
• Slate reviews Samantha Bees political comedy show Full Frontal. (I was really hoping she's get Jon Stewart's seat when he left The Daily Show.)
• Playbill YES! Sutton Foster will be part of the Gilmore Girls reunion. Can they just have her play her character from Bunheads since they take place in the same Sherman-Palladino world?
• Theater Mania Stephen King's 5 reasons you should see Misery on stage.  

Top Ten: "They Are Groot" - Best Cinematic Trees

"Groot" a walking fighting talking (well, sort of) tree is easily the best character within the #1 movie in the world right now. I didn't like Guardians of the Galaxy but I loved Groot. So here's a top ten devoted to his fellow upright leafy green characters. Trees have often played key roles in dramas, fairytales, and horror alike whether as fantastical homes, formidable characters or mysterious passageways to adventure.

So herewith...

TOP TEN: BEST TREES IN MOVIES 

Honorable Mention: That tree Mowgli was hypnotized in in The Jungle Book, spooky 'Tree of the Dead' in Sleepy Hollow, the Christmas tree Gremlins wield like a weapon, the Swiss Family Robinson's main address, any tree that nimbly supports the weight of Crouching Tigers and Hidden Dragons on its delicate green branches, any tree that gives us opportunities to ogle various Tarzans or George of the Jungles from, uh, below (shush. You're no innocent of ogling!), or virtually any colorful tree in Disney's Alice In Wonderland but particularly the one she reads by and dozes on that dumps her into that trippy world of invisible cats, size-altering portions, and rodents having tea parties.

10  Holiday Trees in Nightmare Before Christmas (1993)
Located in The Hinterlands these seven trees lead you into your various Holiday towns. We only get to see Halloween Town and "what's this?" Christmas town. If only Jack Skellington could have tried them all out. Imagine him delivering Easter eggs or cupid's arrow. Imagine the production design and merchandising opportunities! For all I know these other worlds have already been exploited in bad straight to DVD follow ups but if so I am blissfully ignorant.

Nine more barking great characters / symbols after the jump...

Click to read more ...

Offline Travels, Michigan.

Just a heads up that I'm officially on vacation and maybe in an airplane as you read this. It's the mellow kind of vacay as I have no pennies to my name, which is good timing because i think my internet/cable is about to be shut off. Oopsie! (hey it was that or the air conditioning and I was melting!) I'll be (mostly) off line reconnecting with old friends and my siblings who I haven't seen in way way too long. Years.

Incidentally, though I will be in Michigan just as it's happening, it's mere coincidence that this is also the week of the Traverse City Film Festival. (I've never been but maybe they'll invite me as a special guest some year. winkwink.)

The festival was founded by Michael Moore and this year it's having its biggest year ever as it received a $20,000 grant from AMPAS which the board used to fly in various actors and filmmakers for a more robust festival experience. The wonderful French actress Sandrine Bonnaire (Rememeber Est-Ouest or Vagabond?) will be an honored guest, Matthew Modine is coming, and there's also going to be a centennial celebration for western stars Roy Rogers & Dale Evans with grandchildren speaking.

"Scout" will speakAnd get this, little "Scout" Academy Award nominee Mary Badham from To Kill a Mockingbird will speak to the festivalgoers after a special tribute screening of To Kill a Mockingbird. Damn, I wish I had known ahead of time. Have any of you midwestern readers ever been to this festival?

If you're in driving distance, why not check it out this week?

But back at home base...

It might be a quiet week at the blog / It might be a noisy one. I've left the TFE team in charge and a few new guests but I've opted out of the control freak position I normally take when I'm (mostly) offline. Whether there'll be 0 posts a day or 5 I could not say... it'll be a surprise to everyone! You like surprises, right?

I'll be back just as July ends and then we'll start gearing up for prestige film season in September. Whoooooo. We have so many plans. If we don't die of heat exhaustion first, we'll try and make them happen this fall.

xoxo, Nathaniel