Oscar Gown Clearance Sale!

All dresses must go!! Low low prices !!!

Today is the official last day of Oscar 2010 posting (but for the mandatory podcast on Sunday) so to wrap things up, some random comments and some fashion highs and lows and why we HATE the ubiquitous fashion term "on trend" even when Tim Gunn says it.

But let's start with INDECISION: Sharon Stone, Jennifer Hudson, Marisa Tomei, Mila Kunis... should we love or hate these looks. Help.

Crazy Lady. Weight Watchers Success Story. "Sex Angel" and Dangerous Mila

Mila is giving the evil (smoky) eye in this photo. Who or what is she so pissed about? When the reporters asked JHud what color her dress was we wanted to shout out "If that's red I wanna know what's orange" but she answered tangerine orange which seems correct.

Unbest and Best after the jump. We already covered the nominees (SUPPORTING and LEAD) so they're not included.

Click to read more ...

March of the (Oscar) Penguins

Oscar binge posting. Let's get it out of our systems. No thought must go unuttered. (Oh dear*) Well, until Sunday's podcast. You get it out of your system, too, in the comments!

Hulk and Puny Humans

I selected 9 men for display. You'll have to tell me who you think is best dresed as there's a dizzying amount of variation in men's formal wear. Would you like black with a blueish tint, black with a grayish tint, bow tie, white tie? Long tie? vest? The possibillites are ENDLESS.

Today Mark Ruffalo tweeted...

Hulk Smash. Hulk Destroy. Hulk Cuddle.

He's the only actor I can think of that would convince me to watch The Hulk again onscreen. But we're poll happy lately so let's convert it to suit (haha) this post.

poll by twiigs.com

Mr Penélope Cruz, Peter Parker, The King, Jude Law

So who do you think was best dressed: the Ruffster, Jakey, Armie Hammer, Hugh Jackman, Robert Downey Jr, Javi, Spider-Man, Jude Law or Colin Firth?

Before you decide try not to let that gold shiny accessory of Colin's sway your vote. That accessory always puts people on best dressed lists. Totally unfair advantage.

Yes, there were more men than this at the Oscars but I had to disqualify a few people right up front: Justin Timberlake because his suit looked too big on him; Jesse Eisenberg because he didn't step it up not one notch from previous awards shows; Christian Bale because of the beard; and Jeff Bridges because he's looking more and more like a muppet version of Jeff Bridges*

* There's almost nothing we love more than Muppets but we don't generally think of them as fashionistas. Also: if there is anything we love more than Muppets it is probably Jeff Bridges. Also and: perhaps Nathaniel is taking too many cold/flu medicines?

Best Posters of Best Pictures?

I visit the IMP Awards pretty often since it's such a great source for movie posters, and because they get posters from different markets, not just the typically lesser American ones.

At the moment they have voting open for you to choose the best movie posters from all 83 Oscar winners. I'm telling you about this because West Side Story (1961) is not in their top ten at this current voting tally and that is yo-yo, schoolboy... KRUP YOU, voters!* You'd think that this would be the one type of voting where the most recent movies wouldn't automatically win from familiarity because it's a visual marketing opinion, not a "which movie is your favorite?" question.

The famous poster conveys two things that you'd think wouldn't go together. It gives us the gritty edge of inner city stories and the transcendent power of the musical genre and it manages both in perfect harmony. It's just Reason #100,721,009 that Saul Bass was a buggin' ever lovin'* genius. I have the West Side Story poster framed on my wall right next to the All About My Mother poster as they're maybe my two favorite posters of all time.

Go vote... and tell us what you selected in the comments.

*Creative profanity courtesy of the immortal West Side Story, the 50th anniversary of which we'll celebrate this coming October.

TCM's 31 Days of Oscar *CONTEST*

March is Reader Appreciation Month!

Have any of you been catching up on past Oscar nominees during Turner Classic Movie's annual marathon of Oscar nominated films? They've been doing it for years. The thing we love most about it now that Oscar has left March for February is that it just bleeds over into March to make up for February's abbreviated obstinance. The festival ends Friday in the early AM but TCM is always showing movies and they pack so many in that we still have 15 Oscar nominated movies to look forward to in this particular program. It's kind of a godsend if you have the flu like me. I might just lay on the couch and watch all of them. I'm watching East of Eden (which JA just wrote about) as I type this.

CHECK OUT THE SCHEDULE AT TCM.COM/31DAYS

For you actressexuals out there, the schedule tomorrow features three major screen divas: Barbra Streisand in The Way We Were (1973) one of the greatest romantic dramas Hollywood ever made; Bette Davis in the Hollywood drama The Star (1952); and Maggie Smith in the Neil Simon comedy California Suite (1978). Three films that Nick, Mike and I have discussed in the Best Picture From the Outside In series are also featured tomorrow: Grand Hotel, The Broadway Melody and Mutiny on the Bounty.

So that's it. Once again please visit TCM, it's a great station for movie lovers like us.

THE CONTEST
Last year when we held this contest Sam in Texas won a 5 DVD pack from TCM of my choosing which were: Double Indemnity (1944), A Star is Born (1954), The Umbrellas of Cherbourgh (1964), The Fabulous Baker Boys (1989) and They Shoot Horses Don't They (1969). I got a note from Sam when he received them so I know he enjoyed.  This year, we'll have TWO winners of 5 DVD packs. TCM handles this contest so it's only open to readers in the U.S. and Canada (sorry international readers. You know I usually include you.)

THIS CONTEST IS NOW CLOSED FOR ENTRIES

1. Send an email to Nathaniel with "TCM CONTEST" in the subject line by [CLOSED]
   
2. Include your name and shipping address.
3. List the 5 DVDs from the following 31 you'd like if you win: Citizen Kane, Easy Rider, A Streetcar Named Desire, Funny Girl, Gandhi, Birdman of Alcatraz, South Pacific, Glory, The Battle of Algiers, Annie Get Your Gun, The Graduate, Gone With The Wind, Miracle on 34th Street, Casablanca, Kiss of the Spiderwoman, Lawrence of Arabia, American Beauty, Network, The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King, 2001: A Space Odyssey, Teh Best Years of Our Lives, Amadeus, Sahara, Doctor Zhivago, On the Waterfront, One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, Annie Hall, Arthur, Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, Around the World in 80 Days and North By Northwest.
   
4. Finally click around on TCM's schedule for March 5th-7th and tell me... which of those movie(s) you'd most like to see written about here on The Film Experience and why -- you don't even have to have seen it. Maybe it's a type of film or a time frame or an actor. It doesn't matter. I'll DVR either the most convincing argument made or the movie that shows up on the most entries and I'll write it up next week.

You must have all 4 of those bullet points to win. The two winners will be chosen at random and announced on Sunday March 6th.

Link Man

Oscar Stuff
NY Post bad press for the lucky Weinsteins. It waited till just after the Oscars to surface. Just like that King's Speech porn set situation happened after voting. Hmmmm.
Your Movie Buddy shows his Oscar night party food. Consider it a sequel to Alexa's Curio on Oscar snacks.
Gold Derby wonders if Hugh Jackman will be back to host Oscar soon. Quotes from Jackman.

Enough about that shiny gold man. Next!
Cinema Blend Is it Jennifer Lawrence vs Hailee Steinfeld for Hunger Games? They're very different choices.
Quiet Earth ranks every Philip K Dick screen adaptation in honor (?) of the opening of The Adjustment Bureau.
Pajiba assesses the career of Michael Biehn (The Terminator) post James Cameron. If you ask me it was super lame of Cameron not to squeeze him into Avatar somehow.
The Ampersand here's one for you TV buffs. "The Ghosts of Sitcoms Past" Can you name these characters?

Finally... Nicks Flick Picks wants your help on a class assignment. He teaches a film criticism course and he wants to know which of these "teasers" would entice you to read a full review and why? So click over and leave your (positive) comments. These are student reviews. They need encouragement. It's a good exercize if you've ever written a review yourself or just to suss out why you respond to the ones you do respond to.