It happened last year for Cate Blanchett. The actress starred in a biopic that critics ripped to shreds, a film that basically bombed at the (American) box office, and yet she managed to score a Best Actress nomination for her reprised performance as the titular monarch of Elizabeth: The Golden Age. Additionally, Blanchett earned another nomination for Best Supporting Actress the same year, for her portrayal of Bob Dylan in I’m Not There. Now Josh Brolin could achieve a similar feat this year, not just by earning separate nominations for playing the titular president of W. and portraying politician-turned-assassin Dan White in Milk, but also by overcoming the difficulty of earning recognition in a lead category for a film that otherwise is not very well regarded. Are Brolin’s hurdles higher than Blanchett’s, though? With all the praise he’s received for W., he’s still far from being considered a sure thing candidate, regardless of his worthiness or the Academy’s history of oftentimes ignoring the critics and the grosses when nominating dependable, standout actors.
And boy, does Brolin stand out. …Read more
io9 has confirmed an earlier report that Ridley Scott will direct an adaptation of Brave New World, Aldous Huxley’s classic dystopian future novel. Scott says that Leonardo DiCaprio approached him about adapting the book, and it looks like he will star in the film as well. This is exciting news; not only does it herald the return to science fiction for the director of Blade Runner and Alien, it also means that Leo, who is working on a live action adaptation of Akira, has two dystopian future projects in progress.
Brave New World is one of my favorite books, and Blade Runner is one of my favorite movies, for many of the same reasons, but I’m still having trouble getting excited about this news. Scott’s work on Blade Runner was amazing, but that was 26 years ago, and he hasn’t made a science fiction film since. I’d like to believe he can jump back in the saddle, but considering what he’s been up to for the past two and a half decades, I have my doubts. While the quality of Scott’s filmography is admittedly debatable, it’s safe to say he’s made some pretty terrible movies, Kingdom of Heaven and A Good Year come to mind. Even his films that have some potential end up falling short. American Gangster, while not a bad movie, felt like only like a sufficient execution of a script Scorsese would have passed over in the nineties.
Even if Scott can get his Blade Runner mojo working again for Brave New World, it could still be really bad. …Read more
The mayor of a remote town in Chile interrupted the filming of the new 007 film, Quantum of Solace, yesterday and was detained by police as a result. Carlos Lopez, of Sierra Gorda, literally came between cameras and Bond star Daniel Craig when he drove onto the set, an act of protest against two separate points.
His first issue was with the size of the production, which apparently brought in special forces and a water cannon and prohibited people from walking around freely in their own town. He claims the scene was reminiscent of the worst of times during the harsh junta dictatorship of Augusto Pinochet. Boo hoo to his having flashbacks, and maybe I’m just used to film shoots hindering my walk around NYC, but that is no reason to mess with Bond.
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Good thing Veruca Salt (the girl, not the band) doesn’t have a movie up for Best Picture this year. She’d probably shout at her daddy, “Hey, Denzel’s got two! I want another one!” And hopefully Grandpa Joe (Here that would be Joe Wright, whose Atonement received seven nominations) would turn around and mumble that she needs a good kick in the pants.
But really, looking at the Golden Globe nominees this morning, I’m wondering why the Hollywood Foreign Press Association couldn’t just pick one of Denzel Washington’s films, so that one category wouldn’t make the rest of the list seem so lopsided. Surely there were two more comedy/musical contenders that could have been added on, too. Heck, let’s just nominate everybody and call it a year, shall we?
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Fame. Money. Success. These are the accolades reserved for only the Hollywood elite, the great artists of the silver screen. Or not. Some adored filmmakers leave us scratching our heads. Paul and Kevin look at Ridley Scott’s latest, American Gangster, in light of his yet-again re-released classic Blade Runner. Does he belong in the pantheon of great gangster-epic directors or is he just an imitator? Karina questions whether the Coen brothers are anything more than competent genre directors. She calls Erica Rowell, author of The Brothers Grim: The Films of Ethan and Joel Coen, to discuss No Country for Old Men and other their other “masterpieces.”
FilmCouch 46
American Gangster
