The Film Experience™ was created by Nathaniel R. All material herein is written by our team. (This site is not for profit but for an expression of love for cinema & adjacent artforms.)
So much to discuss to catch up. Smash is playing up the movie angles with Actors Studio & sequel jokes, Uma guest starring, Bollywood numbers, multiple Monroes, and the general lame practice of stunt casting when movie stars hit the stage. The show feels more than a little keyed up all of a sudden with the unstable presence of Rebecca Duvall (Uma Thurman) in the mix.
1.11 "The Movie Star" The episode begins as the dancers greet Karen (Katharine McPhee) who is uncharacteristically dressed up for a sweaty rehearsal to impress Rebecca (Uma Thurman)
Bobby: Oh you reallly bumped it up a notch, didn't you? Jessica: Ah, she dressed up for the movie star."
This could also double as an introduction to a show that seems to be trying a little harder now that they've got some genuine starlight in the mix with Uma flouncing about being a pain in the ass. Of course the big problem with Smash is not that Uma's character can't sing (we know she'll eventually quit the show, don't we?) but that TV show itself still wants to convince us that Marilyn should be played by Karen within the show. But Katharine McPhee is such a poor excuse for a Marilyn when Megan Hilty is standing right there deserving the part. Argh. McPhee isn't even convincing as Marilyn when she's handed those full makeup fantasies because she feels and looks nothing like her in face, physique or temperament.
Her Day Will Come?Brando & Dean jokes,
Brando and Dean jokes and Bollywood strangeness after the jump...It's the biggest SMASH post ever.
Continuing our coverage of our favorite new show "SMASH" the only musical on television that makes any cohesive sense from epiosde to episode and is tangentially about the movies, too.
Karen and Ivy are slowly becoming frenemies. I'll drink to that
In "Hell on Earth" the long form narrative gets back up on its feet after that episode that felt like it didn't happen: Ivy's sour downward mood continues as we see her phoning it in amusingly and then disastrously in the hit musical comedy "Heaven on Earth" (with special guest star, the awesome Norbert Leo Butz... who recently won the Tony for the Tom Hanks role in the musical adaptation of "Catch Me If You Can"); Eileen continues to push when others would have given up; Ellis continues to scheme and even puts out to get an "in" with a movie star; Debra Messing continues to make a case for an Emmy - holy hell she's great on this show even though her storylines have the least to do with the actual creation of a musical; Tom continues to clash with his Republican boyfriend; Karen continues to prove Ivy's point that everything comes easily to her when she books a national commercial.
Thanks to reader Emmanuel for sending me this photo...
Rose Huntington-Whiteley, Uma Thurman, Michelle Yeoh and Tilda Swinton this week in Milan. What a photo, eh? This was taken at a launch party for the Vertu’s ‘Constellation’ smart phone. I thank the smart phone for requiring this much collective gorgeousity for its debut.
Though she's clearly the odd girl out here, what with three bonafide screen goddesses on the coach, I don't have the heart to photoshop Rose out (but, yes, I was tempted). She got such a severe beating for Transformers: Dark of the Moon and please... we've seen much worse when it comes to models acting! You know I'm right. People were just ready to pounce because she replaced Megan Fox and because it's Transformers which only requires that the girlfriend be fuckable.
Lookie. It's the first poster for The Descendants starring George Clooney in which a man in Hawaii tries to reconnect with his young daughters. Will it be an Oscar player? It sure looks good on paper with Clooney leading and Alexander Payne (Sideways) in the director's chair but time will tell. I'll update the current Oscar predictions this weekend.
Brandon Ney looks at the famous "Hush" episode of Buffy the Vampire Slayer from a Zen Buddhist perspective. Stale Popcorn on the different posters for Friends With Benefits. Australians do do it dirtier. In Contention chooses the top ten performances in Terrence Malick films. The director tends to hog the accolades for his film but that doesn't mean the performances aren't top notch.
Off Cinema Time Out Drawn! "Where do ideas come from?" This is true. They are elusive little buggers. Loldwell.com A true story about coffee (I can't quit!). Critical Condition Lady Gaga and her "Dark Idealism" -good piece on the new record.
Finally... Go Fug Yourself investigates Uma's Blue Period at Cannes. Love this quote on the dress to your right.
It's the type of thing you can't wear unless you are SUPREMELY sure that you are smoking hot, because basically the only design element to the dress is: your boobs, your abs, your bum. Fortunately, Uma appears to be architecturally sound there.
Plus: Uma suddenly has new film projects lined up.... although I'll believe Kill Bill Vol. 3 when I see it.
Jane Fonda. She Knows She Rules.Last time on red carpet lineup Kurt and Nathaniel chatted about the annual Met Gala. This time out, Jose and Nathaniel are discussing the first few days of Cannes international fashion parade. Find out which actress Nathaniel is starting a religion to worship and which audition tape Jose dreams of seeing.
Nathaniel: Hello Jose. I must know. Before I throw dresses at you if you've been following Cannes 64 at all?
Jose: Hi! Well yes, but mostly for the dresses actually, considering most of us mortals never get to see all those movies they talk about over there.
Nathaniel: So though you're a cinephile, for Cannes you're rather like the very casual Oscar watcher then? It being all about the gowns?
Jose: Sadly, yes. I blame distributors!
Nathaniel: The perfect scapegoat.
Jose: At least they can't take fashion away from us.
Nathaniel: True. Or movie stars for that matter. Even when the movies aren't there anymore you're still a legend for the purposes of the red carpet. Like Faye Dunaway...
FAN BINGBING, MAIWENN LE BESCO, FAYE DUNAWAY, SJP, PENELOPE CRUZ
Jose: I love that they're paying tribute to her in Cannes.
Nathaniel: It does feel like a reevaluation is coming. Or at least a revival. Even Mommie Dearest... you don't hear people dissing that performance anymore so much as voicing the theory that gonzo acting ruined her career.
Jose: Absolutely, but I think she'll do more serious work. She's even quoting Meryl Streep in interviews!
Nathaniel: I don't know enough about fashion to know what type of dress this is but gossamer modest flowy light things always make me think of ghosts in Victorian mansions... or Stevie Nicks. Who is also back!
Jose: Faye looks so graceful. Stevie rocks! But I think the new queen of ghost wear is that Florence from the Machine lady.
Nathaniel: This is the part of most celebrity discussions where I would start singing
the dog days are over the dog days are done can you hear the horses because here they come
and then someone would snark about Sarah Jessica Parker.
BUT we both like SJP. So there.
Jose: "Like"? I'm obsessed with her! People can say whatever they want about her face and Sex and the City but the woman is a red carpet visionary! This Elie Saab dress is proof of that. I love how she's been trying to bring back the 70s lately (with her in charge of Halston and everything...)
Nathaniel: I will say that this dress looks MUCH better in motion than it does in a still photograph. Because here it look just... too much. Too much fabric for a tiny diva. But she definitely is a risk-taker. And bringing back the 70s is going well for her if red carpet looks from other women are to be believed.
Jose: Maybe she was paying tribute to Faye. too?
Nathaniel: I hope everyone is with her face plastered on all the posters. Incidentally she wore this dress to the premiere of Peter Chan's Wu Xia and the only unfortunate thing about inviting international fashion icons to your premiere is that your stars get ignored.
Jose: Smart move in case everyone hates the movie, no?
Nathaniel: Well sure but this movie stars Takeshi Kaneshiro, Kara Hui and Tang Wei and I haven't seen one photo of any of them, yet. And they were there as this video proves!!!
Jose: Maybe they were hiding from the cameras under Sarah's ample dress.
Nathaniel: Heh. One thing that happens with celebrity photo feeds is if someone of SJP's fashion stature shows to any "smaller" event, the event is often completely ignored. Even in the headlines. It's weird.
Jose: Shh, don't say that, people will hear you and SJP won't be invited to things anymore! I had no idea Tang Wei was in new movies. I had started to assume she'd pulled off a Falconetti on us and retired after Lust, Caution.
Fan Bingbing at the "The Tree of Life" premiereNathaniel: I always include Fan Bingbing in red carpet lineups because she really wears a deep groove in the Cannes carpet each year. I can't imagine the size of her luggage. How do you ship entire closets?
Jose: I have no idea what this woman does for a living but being beautiful seems to be enough.
Nathaniel: She's an actress, silly. I ignore the models and celebutantes, even when I like what they're wearing.
Jose: She was featured in every option of a "Best Dressed in Cannes" poll, the other day. Maybe entire fleets carry her dresses?
Nathaniel: She never seems to repeat colors styles fabrics. I think maybe mice and birds sew her into custom-made gowns each evening.
Jose: Magic! Must be hard being under so much sartorial pressure. No wonder she rarely smiles...
Nathaniel: I had to include Mäiwenn Le Besco (Crouching Tigress) in the photo above.
Jose: Crouching Tigress, Obvious Drunkard! Girls seems to be enjoying her champagne. Who does that on a red carpet?
Mäiwenn ... actress, director, Diva PlavalagunaNathaniel: Heh. Maybe she's reminding everyone that she wields cameras these days. I saw her last movie The Actress' Ball and it was extremely self-indulgent but also intermittently hilarious and obsessed with actressing so I respect her. When I was interviewing Ludivine Sagnier last month that movie even came up.
I'm always secretly thrilled when Mäiwenn shows anywhere because I love explaning to people that she's the blue opera diva from The Fifth Element and shocking them. Bam! Are you freaked?
Jose: VERY. I always assumed that was a man!
I can't believe you're not letting me talk about Pé yet.
Nathaniel: Your wish is granted.
Jose: Sigh. Nat, I kid you not. I didn't want her to do Cannes because I was afraid she'd disappoint me. Mrs. Bardem has been doing some weird ass red carpet choices, post baby Leo. But I'm actually in love with this.
At first I thought she'd gone all out on Cannes (they love nudity there) and actually had had people paste tiny rocks and fabrics to her body.
Nathaniel: Split opinion here. I think this color is three kinds of wrong on her. I'm not fond of nudity unless it's actually nudity.
Sunday, April 29, 2012 at 6:24PM 
Her Day Will Come?Brando & Dean jokes,
