Better with age? Cruise’s latest ‘Impossible’ tops box office

LOS ANGELES, United States – Improbable? Maybe, but “Mission Impossible – Fallout,” the sixth and latest stunt-filled edition of the Tom Cruise action franchise has topped the weekend box office in North America, outperforming the five earlier “Impossibles.”

The Paramount/Skydance production took in an estimated $61.5 million for the three-day weekend, according to industry tracker Exhibitor Relations, more than quadrupling the $15 million earned by second-place “Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again.”

“Impossible” has 56-year-old Cruise, who famously still does his own cliff-hanging, car-rolling stunts, ordered to track down some missing plutonium and find a terror-minded villain. Critics seem to like the film despite its evident weaknesses: Though “often ridiculous,” the Washington Post wrote, the film “works amazingly well.”


Universal’s “Mamma Mia” clung to the second spot for a second straight weekend, though its take was nearly 60 percent below its opening. With a star-studded cast including Meryl Streep, Amanda Seyfried, Colin Firth and Pierce Brosnan, the film uses plentiful flashbacks to fill in the story of Streep’s carefree character on the only Greek island with a built-in ABBA soundtrack.

In third was Sony’s “The Equalizer 2,” with Denzel Washington again playing a former black-ops agent — and now low-profile Lyft driver — drawn into action to avenge a friend’s death. It took in $14 million.

Fourth spot went to another Sony film, “Hotel Transylvania 3: Summer Vacation,” at $12.3 million. The animated comedy, whose voice cast includes Adam Sandler and Selena Gomez, follows Count Dracula and his family as they get away from their hotel for their own vacation.

In fifth was a new release, Warner Bros.’ family-friendly “Teen Titans Go! To the Movies,” at $10.5 million, which Variety called slightly disappointing given the film’s 90 percent rating on Rotten Tomatoes. The first feature film based on a popular animated series, “Titans” has a voice cast including Kristen Bell, Will Arnett and Greg Cipes. /cbb

Rounding out the top 10 were:

“Ant-Man and the Wasp” ($8.4 million)

“Incredibles 2” ($7.2 million)

“Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom” ($6.8 million)

“Skyscraper” ($5.4 million)

“The First Purge” ($2.2 million)

source: entertainment.inquirer.net

9 films advance in Oscars shortlist for best foreign film

LOS ANGELES — The list of contenders for best foreign film got a bit smaller Friday as the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences announced the nine features that will advance to the next round of voting.

Included are Ruben Ostlund’s patriarchy-skewering avalanche film “Force Majeure” from Sweden, Andrey Zvyagintsev’s “Leviathan,” about a property dispute in a small Russian costal town, and Pawel Pawlikowski’s Polish drama “Ida,” about a young woman with dreams of being a nun who discovers some dark secrets in her family’s past. All recently received Golden Globe nominations, too.

Damian Szifron’s black ensemble comedy “Wild Tales,” from Argentina, also made the shortlist, as did Estonia’s “Tangerines,” the Golden Globe-nominated film about a man caring for a wounded soldier.

Other films on the shortlist include Abderrahmane Sissako’s “Timbuktu,” the first Mauritanian film ever submitted, Georgia’s “Corn Island,” the Netherlands’ “Accused,” and Venezuela’s “The Liberator.”

Missing from the list were a few high profile films, such as the drama “Two Days, One Night,” from the Dardennes brothers. Star Marion Cotillard has been singled out for her performance as a young mother in a desperate situation in a number of recent critics’ awards. Eighty three countries submitted films for consideration. Xavier Dolan’s critically beloved coming-of-age drama “Mommy” also failed to make the cut.

Of the 83 countries who submitted entries, six were chosen by a committee of several hundred Academy members based in Los Angeles who were tasked with screening the original submissions. Three additional features were then added by the Academy’s Foreign Language Film Award Executive Committee.

The five final nominees will be selected from this group of films and announced, along with the other Academy Award nominees, live on Jan. 15. Winners will be presented at the 87th Academy Awards on Feb. 22.

source: entertainment.inquirer.net

US porn actors must wear condoms—court

LOS ANGELES – Hollywood porn film actors must wear condoms on set, a federal appeal court said Monday, throwing out their claims that it breaches US First Amendment rights.

The ruling upholding a Los Angeles County law, which was approved by a referendum in November 2012 as so-called Measure B, requires adult film producers to obtain a public health permit, follow all health and safety laws including condom use, and pay a permit fee.

Porn film companies claimed their industry already regulates itself sufficiently to protect actors against AIDS/HIV and other diseases. It also violates the First Amendment right to free expression, they said.

But that argument was rejected by a three-judge panel of the 9th US Circuit Court of Appeals, which upheld a decision taken in August last year.

Measure B “was narrowly tailored to achieve the substantial governmental interest of reducing the rate of sexually transmitted infections, and left open adequate alternative means of expression,” they said.

Porn film makers in California were forced to suspend production temporarily in 2011 after an actor tested positive for HIV, the virus which causes AIDS, in the latest such disruption to the multi-billion-dollar industry.

The industry is primarily based in the San Fernando Valley north of LA.

source: entertainment.inquirer.net

Nominees for British Academy Film Awards

LONDON  — Nominations in the main categories for the British Academy Film Awards, announced Wednesday:

Best Film: “12 Years a Slave”; “American Hustle”; “Captain Phillips”; “Gravity”; “Philomena”

Outstanding British Film: “Gravity”; “Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom”; “Philomena”; “Rush”; “Saving Mr. Banks”: “The Selfish Giant”

Director: Steve McQueen, “12 Years a Slave”; David O. Russell, “American Hustle”; Paul Greengrass, “Captain Phillips”; Alfonso Cuaron, “Gravity”; Martin Scorsese, “The Wolf of Wall Street”

Original Screenplay: “American Hustle”; “Blue Jasmine”; “Gravity”; “Inside Llewyn Davis”; “Nebraska”

Adapted Screenplay: “12 Years a Slave”; “Behind the Candelabra”; “Captain Phillips”; “Philomena”; “The Wolf of Wall Street”

Leading Actor: Bruce Dern, “Nebraska”; Chiwetel Ejiofor, “12 Years a Slave”; Christian Bale, “American Hustle”: Leonardo DiCaprio, “The Wolf of Wall Street”; Tom Hanks, “Captain Phillips”

Leading Actress: Amy Adams, “American Hustle”; Cate Blanchett, “Blue Jasmine”; Emma Thompson, “Saving Mr. Banks”; Judi Dench, “Philomena”; Sandra Bullock, “Gravity”

Supporting Actor: Barkhad Abdi, “Captain Phillips”; Bradley Cooper, “American Hustle”; Daniel Bruhl, “Rush”; Matt Damon, “Behind the Candelabra”; Michael Fassbender, “12 Years a Slave”

Supporting Actress: Jennifer Lawrence, “American Hustle”; Julia Roberts, “August: Osage County”; Lupiuta Nyong’o, “12 Years a Slave”; Oprah Winfrey, “The Butler”; Sally Hawkins, “Blue Jasmine”

Cinematography: Sean Bobbitt, “12 Years a Slave’: Barry Ackroyd, “Captain Phillips”; Emmanuel Lubezki, “Gravity”; Bruno Delbonnel, “Inside Llewyn Davis”; Phedon Papamichael, “Nebraska”

Film Not in the English Language: “The Act of Killing”; Blue is the Warmest Color”; “The Great Beauty”; “Metro Manila”; “Wadjda”

Documentary: “The Act of Killing”; “The Armstrong Lie”; “Blackfish”: “Tim’s Vermeer”; We Steal Secrets: The Story of WikiLeaks”

Animated Film: “Despicable Me 2″; “Frozen”; “Monsters University”

Rising Star: Dane DeHaan; George MacKay; Lupita Nyong’o; Will Poulter; Lea Seydoux

source: entertainment.inquirer.net

Johnny Depp salutes horror icon Christopher Lee at London festival

LONDON — Johnny Depp has made a surprise appearance at the London Film Festival to give a career honor to horror icon Christopher Lee.

Depp called Lee “a national treasure” and “a genuine artist” as he presented the 91-year-old actor with a British Film Institute Fellowship.

Lee’s 250 movie roles include Dracula in a series of Hammer Films thrillers, Bond villain Scaramanga in “The Man With The Golden Gun,” the founder of Pakistan in “Jinnah” and Saruman in “The Lord of the Rings.”



During a ceremony Saturday, the London festival gave its best-picture prize to U.K.-based Polish director Pawel Pawlikowski for “Ida.”

The 12-day festival ends Sunday with a gala screening of “Saving Mr. Banks,” starring Tom Hanks as Walt Disney and Emma Thompson as “Mary Poppins” author P.L. Travers.

source: entertainment.inquirer.net

Asia’s animators draw inspiration from Japan’s Miyazaki

BUSAN – As Oscar-winning animator Hayao Miyazaki heads into retirement, industry watchers say the next generation of Asian filmmakers stepping out of his shadow will struggle to match the Japanese master’s box office domination.

“The view here is that there will be no ‘second Miyazaki,’” Tokyo-based author and film critic Mark Schilling told AFP.

The market for Asian animation is dominated by children’s films, Schilling said, and not the more adult-themed productions Miyazaki became famous for, such as his Oscar-winning “Spirited Away” in 2002.

The 72-year-old director last month shocked the industry – and his legions of fans – by announcing he was walking away from directing.

The decision was made even as Miyazaki’s latest production “The Wind Rises” – a look at the life of the man who invented Japan’s Mitsubishi Zero fighter airplane – continues to dominate the box office in Japan. It has collected an estimated $115 million in takings since its July release.

That success follows impressive global totals from Miyazaki’s “Spirited Away” ($274.9 million), 2004′s “Howl’s Moving Castle” ($235.2 million) and 2008′s “Ponyo” ($201.8 million). “The Wind Rises” is scheduled to begin hitting screens in Europe and the United States from January next year.

Schilling – who translated the Miyazaki-themed book “Princess Mononoke: The Art and Making of Japan’s Most Popular Film of All Time” – said audience figures for many animators working in a similar hand-drawn style would inevitably fade.

“None of their films have scaled the Miyazaki-like box-office heights and it’s hard to see how they can in the future.”

Small market

The small marketplace has not deterred 35-year-old Yeon Sang-Ho, whose second feature “The Fake” was a hit with critics at the Busan International Film Festival held earlier this month.

“Animated films for adults are actually rare,” he told AFP, on the sidelines of the festival. “So even when a film gets money invested in it, it’s still difficult to get it released.

“Animators like me will just have to make people become more familiar with animation by making more films.”

Despite being lauded by critics – and picking up three awards at Busan in 2011 – Yeon’s debut “The King of Pigs” did not recoup its $150,000 budget from box office takings.

Undeterred, Yeon has infused his latest production with a similar brand of savage and profane social comment as he explores the story of a man locked into battle with an unscrupulous church leader.

The director, while acknowledging that the market for more mature-themed animation in Asia was small, said the reaction to his first feature and the inspiration he drew from the likes of Miyazaki and the manga artist Minoru Furuya (“Himizu”) had made him fiercely determined to continue developing his own style.

His films are noted for their ultra-realistic mix of computer-generated and hand-drawn images.

Creative control

Also capturing the attention of both critics and the audience in Busan was 23-year-old Korean Han Yeo-ul, whose “The Child Who Draws an Octopus” was the only piece of animation in the running for the festival’s major prize for Korean short films.

Han’s production uses a very child-like cut-out style which belies the weighty issues it conveys.

“Animation allows me to capture the innocence of childhood,” she said. “You can capture how the world looks through a child’s eyes but still look at serious issues.”

While Han also acknowledged the market was small, she said it gave her freedom to communicate more directly with her audience.

“You can express yourself more [in animation] than in other films. It is a very personal thing.”

source: entertainment.inquirer.net

‘Gravity’ soars to top of N. America box office

LOS ANGELES – Space disaster odyssey “Gravity” soared to the top of the North American box office in its debut weekend with $55.6 million in ticket sales, industry estimates showed Sunday.

The film, directed by Oscar-nominated Alfonso Cuaron and starring Sandra Bullock and George Clooney – both Oscar winners— as astronauts adrift in space after a devastating accident, has already been winning rave reviews and Oscars buzz.

It blew away the second place finisher, animated sequel “Cloudy With A Chance of Meatballs 2,” which took in $21.5 million in its second week in theaters, according to industry tracker Exhibitor Relations.

Another new release opened in the third slot: crime drama “Runner Runner,” starring Justin Timberlake as a Princeton grad student who travels to Costa Rica to confront a tycoon, played by Ben Affleck, he believes has taken him for a ride on an online poker site.

The film earned an estimated $7.6 million.

Crime thriller “Prisoners” fell to fourth place. The film, starring Hugh Jackman as a desperate parent in search of his child and Jake Gyllenhaal as the detective in charge of the investigation, pulled in $5.7 million.

In fifth place was Formula One motorsport drama “Rush,” Ron Howard’s acclaimed account of the famous duel for the 1976 world championship between James Hunt and Niki Lauda, earning $4.4 million.

Joseph Gordon-Levitt’s raunchy comedy-drama “Don Jon,” written and directed by “The Dark Knight Rises” actor, took sixth with $4.2 million in receipts.

The film sees Gordon-Levitt play a porn addict who seeks to change his ways in order to win the woman of his dreams played by Scarlett Johansson.

Not far behind, in seventh place, was “Baggage Claim,” a romantic comedy about a lovelorn flight attendant who traverses America looking for Mr Right. The film took in $4.1 million.

Horror sequel “Insidious: Chapter 2″ slid to eighth place with $3.9 million. The film, starring Rose Byrne and Patrick Wilson as a haunted husband and wife, is a follow-up to the successful 2010 horror flick “Insidious.”

In ninth spot was romantic comedy “Pulling Strings,” which stars Laura Ramsay as a US consular official in Mexico who finds herself mixed up with a mariachi singer, played by Jaime Camil, whose visa she rejected the day before.

The film directed by Pedro Pablo Ibarra debuted in the US and Canada with $2.5 million in ticket sales.

And, rounding out the top 10, another romantic comedy, “Enough Said,” starring James Gandolfini in one of his last roles before his death this year, earned an estimated $2.2 million.

source: entertainment.inquirer.net

“The Fifth Estate” — Timely Thriller Based on Real Events

The First Estate: Clergy/Government. The Second Estate: Nobility/Wealthy Elite. The Third Estate: Commoners/Workers. The Fourth Estate: Press/Media. The Fifth Estate: Those who aim to keep the other estates in check, recently defined as whistleblowers, watchdogs, citizen journalists . . . and WikiLeaks.

In 2010, a website dedicated to protecting whistleblowers released an avalanche of classified US documents that triggered a new age of high-stakes secrecy and explosive news leaks. Now, in a dramatic thriller based on real events, DreamWorks Pictures’ “The Fifth Estate” reveals the quest to expose the deceptions and corruptions of power that turned this Internet upstart into the 21st century’s most fiercely debated organization.

The story begins as WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange (Benedict Cumberbatch) and his colleague Daniel Domscheit-Berg (Daniel Brühl) team up to become underground watchdogs of the privileged and powerful. On a shoestring, they create an online platform that allows whistleblowers to anonymously leak covert data, shining a light on the dark recesses of government secrets and corporate crimes. Soon, they are breaking more hard news than the world’s most legendary media organizations.

But when Assange and Berg gain access to the biggest trove of confidential intelligence documents in U.S. history, they find themselves at odds as they struggle with a defining question of our time: what are the costs of keeping secrets in a free society—and what are the costs of exposing them?


“The Fifth Estate” is presented by DreamWorks Pictures and Reliance Entertainment in association with Participant Media and is produced by Steve Golin and Michael Sugar, with Bill Condon (“Dreamgirls,” “The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn”) directing.

“It may be decades before we understand the full impact of WikiLeaks and how it revolutionized the spread of information,” believes director Bill Condon. “With events still unfolding, this film does not aim to be the conclusive statement on the topic. Instead, we set out to create a drama that explores the challenges of transparency and that, we hope, enlivens and enriches the conversations WikiLeaks has provoked.”

The screenplay is by Josh Singer (“Fringe,” “The West Wing”), based on the book “Inside WikiLeaks” by Daniel Domscheit-Berg, and the Guardian book “WikiLeaks” by David Leigh and Luke Harding.

“The Fifth Estate” also stars Anthony Mackie, David Thewlis, Alicia Vikander, with Stanley Tucci and Laura Linney.

Opening soon across the Philippines, “The Fifth Estate” is a DreamWorks Picture distributed by Walt Disney Studios International.

source: movies.inquirer.net

A different gay story

Joel Lamangan’s  “Lihis,” one of the films to be shown at the Sineng Pambansa All-Masters Series (Sept. 11-17 in all SM Cinemas), is about love in time of war. As gay rebels Jake Cuenca (Cesar) and Joem Bascon (Dominador) struggle against oppression,  they find comfort in each other’s arms. Don’t dismiss it as an off-shoot of “My Husband’s Lover.”  It scratches beneath the surface to find secrets that the hearts of gays have never told. It’s brave and tender in equal parts. “Lihis” explores the road less traveled and shows that it’s the destination that makes the downtrodden’s  journey worthwhile.


JAKE CUENCA

How did you prepare for your gay role?

I’ve had some projects before where I also portrayed a gay man but this is the boldest and most daring. All I did was trust my director  and get into character.

How did Joem Bascon and you manage to feel comfy doing your love scenes?

It helped that  that Joem and I are good friends. We’re both from Star Magic. We just discussed our roles and how to attack them. Naturally, I felt some discomfort when we were given instructions by Direk Joel but when the camera rolled, I just gave it my all.

What did the film teach you about gays?

It’s not just about a gay relationship. The film is also about struggle in all forms—not just gender but social and political struggles as well, which we all encounter till now.

How do you handle gay fans, who are too forward?

I respect them. As long as they don’t offend me then I’m  cool with that.

Why is “Lihis” a must-see?

People should watch our film because it’s about relationships and struggles in a different perspective. Plus, there are some scenes, which Joem and I did here that I think I can no longer do or will take a long time before I do it again.




JOEL LAMANGAN

How did you make Jake and Joem comfortable during their love scenes?

Well, I talked to them to explain the scenes and characters.  I told them how I planned to do their love scenes and both of them agreed to do it. From the very beginning, they knew that they are both gays in the movie.  But this is a different gay story because this is about people who are being erased in history because of their political belief [and] their gender or behavior which might be contradictory to the existing norms of society.

How did “Lihis” come about?

Ricky Lee and I had always wanted to make a story on people’s plight and struggle against the accepted behavior of an oppressive society.  We wanted to show stories of people not being mentioned in history because they behaved and believed differently.  Such is the case of Jake and Joem in the story.

What are your do’s and don’ts on the set?

I hate people coming late on the set. I hate artists making people wait for hours and hours.  They do not have the right to make people wait just because they are actors.

What is your advice to aspiring film makers?

Make films not just for the International audience and for the Festival audience but for the Filipino people.

What would you like to change or improve in the industry?

Attitude towards work.  Working hours should be human in the sense that nobody should be allowed to work for 24 hours or 48 hours without any sleep and be paid only [for work done in] a day or two days.

Why must we watch “Lihis”?

Because “Lihis” is a story of people who did not have any voice before, [those] who were long forgotten.  It is now time for them to be known by the very people to whom they dedicated their lives in pursuit of democracy.  This is a story that has never been told.

source: entertainment.inquirer.net

Harry Potter actor evolves with bold new roles

TORONTO — Daniel Radcliffe continued to evolve from his Harry Potter character with bold new roles, and he’s brought three of them to the Toronto International Film Festival.

While they cover some adult themes like murder and homosexuality, Radcliffe says his current roles are not part of some strategy to abandon his past. Rather they’re about doing what actors do best: “Take chances.”

Radcliffe told The Associated Press on Saturday that he goes by his instincts and makes the kind of films that he would want to see.

The 24-year-old actor spoke candidly about his movie roles during an interview for his new film, “Horns,” where he plays a man suspected of brutally killing his girlfriend and one morning awakens with a pair of horns on his head.

source: entertainment.inquirer.net

Sharlto Copley, a Cold-Blooded Mercenary in “Elysium”

Sharlto Copley (“The A-Team”) – director Neill Blomkamp’s childhood friend and the star of “District 9” – re-teams with the director to take on the pivotal and villainous role of Kruger, in TriStar Pictures’ futuristic action thriller “Elysium.”

“He’s ex-Special Forces, now a gun-for-hire operative, a professional soldier who works on Earth for the elite of Elysium,” explains Blomkamp.

In the film, two classes of people exist: the very wealthy, who live on a pristine man-made space station called Elysium, and the rest, who live on an overpopulated, ruined planet. The people of Earth are desperate to escape the crime and poverty that is now rampant throughout the land. The only man with the chance to bring equality to these worlds is Max (Matt Damon), an ordinary guy in desperate need to get to Elysium. With his life hanging in the balance, he reluctantly takes on a dangerous mission – one that pits him against Elysium’s Secretary Delacourt (Jodie Foster) and her hard-line forces – but if he succeeds, he could save not only his own life, but millions of people on Earth as well.


“Sharlto will always find a way to make things funny – even subconsciously,” says Blomkamp. “Even in the most extreme, dire situation, there’s a natural, sardonic humor that comes out of him. He never, ever plays it straight. I provide the parameters for the character, and he turns it into a magnetic performance, that, to me, is extremely satisfying to watch.”

Copley was able to draw on his unique experiences to create the character. “Kruger wasn’t written as a South African, but I saw a way to play him that way,” he says. “I drew on two South African stereotypes to try and create a unique character that you’ve never seen before. Firstly, for his accent and sarcastic humor I drew on these guys from ‘The South’ – a tough neighborhood south of Johannesburg. Secondly, for the military aspect, there was a unit in the South African Defense Force during the apartheid years called 3-2 Battalion. It was a notorious but highly respected battalion – they fought in Angola during the ‘Bush Wars,’ trying to stop the spread of Communism in Africa. Kruger’s beard, his PT shorts and his utterly lethal military ability was inspired by them.”


Sharlto Copley is a South African actor, producer and director who has produced and co-directed short films which have appeared at the Cannes Film Festival, as well as commercials and music videos. He made his on screen debut as Wikus van de Merwe in the Oscar®-nominated science fiction film “District 9.” He is best known for his role of H.M. Murdock in the 2010 adaptation of Fox’s “The A-Team” for director Joe Carnahan.

Poised to have a breakout year, Copley also stars in several other upcoming films including Disney’s “Maleficent” (with Angelina Jolie) as the male lead.


 Opening across the Philippines on Sept. 04, “Elysium” is distributed by Columbia Pictures, local office of Sony Pictures Releasing International. Visit www.columbiapictures.com.ph to see the latest trailers, get free downloads and play free movie games.

source: movies.inquirer.net

“The Simpsons” Director Brings Humor to “Disney’s Planes”

From two-time Emmy® nominated director and aviation enthusiast Klay Hall (“King of the Hill,” “The Simpsons”) comes “Disney’s Planes,” an all-new big-screen adventure that showcases a crop duster’s desire to do more than what he was designed to do.

The action-packed 3D animated comedy features Dusty, a plane with dreams of competing as a high-flying air racer. But Dusty’s not exactly built for racing—and he happens to be afraid of heights. So he turns to a seasoned naval aviator who helps Dusty qualify to take on the defending champ of the race circuit. Dusty’s courage is put to the ultimate test as he aims to reach heights he never dreamed possible, giving a spellbound world the inspiration to soar.

Says Hall, “I think people will really relate to ‘Disney’s Planes’ because it’s a great underdog story. It has a lot of heart and a message we can all use: If we can believe in ourselves, step out of our comfort zones and get past whatever fear is holding us back, we’d be surprised with the results. And that’s exactly what happens to Dusty in this movie. He’s a crop duster who’s never flown above 1,000 feet, but he dreams of being the fastest air racer in the world. He has a lot of obstacles to overcome and needs to dig pretty deep to find the courage to become more than what he was built for.”




According to producer Traci Balthazor-Flynn, the global setting of the film invites audiences along for the ride. “Dusty has never been far from home, so he’s experiencing the world for the first time,” she says. “The film visits places many of us—like Dusty—have never seen. It features characters from all over the world—diverse personalities we can get behind and root for. It’s a real adventure—a road movie in the sky.”

Hall, who attended Cal Arts with fellow animation vets Rich Moore (“Wreck-It Ralph”) and Andrew Stanton (“Finding Nemo,” “WALL•E”), came to Disney in 2005. “My background has always been primetime comedy,” says Hall. “I spent 10 years at ‘The Simpsons’ and then ‘King of the Hill.’”

So when it came time to build the story for “Disney’s Planes,” humor was a key ingredient—along with the kind of action a film about airplanes called for and—of course—authenticity and heart.

Hall credits the story team with finding the right blend. “What’s really cool about making an animated film is—hands down—the collaboration. I think animation is the most collaborative art form there is. It takes an army of talented people to do one of these films.”



Hall, executive producer John Lasseter and co-screenwriter Jeff Howard came together early in the process to hammer out the story. “We sat in a little room for five or six hours,” says Howard, who welcomed the opportunity to brainstorm with Lasseter. “We all respect him so much, creatively—and we were invited to hang out and spitball with him. That’s when we came up with the idea of a crop duster who wants to be a racer. We named him Dusty that first day and talked about a race around the world where he’d meet racers from different countries.”

“It just felt right,” says Lasseter. “There’s a great group of new characters who fly throughout different parts of the world—Iceland, Germany, India, Mexico. We knew from the start that it had to be better than good. It had to be great. And it is. It’s beautiful. To say that I’m excited about this movie is an understatement.”

Distributed by Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures International, “Planes” takes off in Philippine theaters in 3D on Aug. 21, and will be presented in Disney Digital 3D™ in select cinemas.

source: movies.inquirer.net

Armie Hammer excited to work with Henry Cavill

LOS ANGELES—If “Man of Steel” and “The Lone Ranger” work together, what do you get? “The Man from U.N.C.L.E.” Henry Cavill and Armie Hammer, two of the hottest Hollywood male stars today, are teaming up in Guy Ritchie’s movie version of the classic 1960s spy TV series that starred Robert Vaughn and David McCallum as evil-fighting agents.

Armie plays David’s character, Illya Kuryakin, a Russian spy. Henry landed Robert’s role, Napoleon Solo, after Tom Cruise gave up the part due to a shooting-schedule conflict.

“I would have loved to work with Tom, but at the same time, I’m also excited to do it with Henry, because it adds a different twist to the movie,” Armie said in a recent interview in Santa Fe, New Mexico.

At the time of our interview, Armie said he has not met Henry or David. “I’m excited about meeting both of them,” said the great grandson of the late oil tycoon and art collector, Armand Hammer. “Hopefully, I’ll get to meet David while making the movie. We start shooting in August.”

“I’m also very excited about playing a Russian,” Armie added. “I’m in the middle of my research phase now. I’m studying the political climate during the Cold War between the United States and the Soviet Union. It was a fascinating time globally. It’s such a great script (by Scott Z. Burns), and it’s so funny! Guy Ritchie has such a great take on it.”

Title character

In director Gore Verbinski’s very entertaining “The Lone Ranger,” Armie emerges as a full-fledged movie star. In a movie that taps his charisma and humor, the tall, beaming Armie is man of the law John Reid who becomes the masked title character. He’s a good match to Johnny’s Native American warrior, Tonto. It’s tough to share screen time with the always-appealing Johnny, but Armie holds his own against the screen icon.

According to Armie, it was just as tough to match the talents and charm of his other co-star, the dazzling white horse who plays his trusted Silver. “This movie wouldn’t have been possible without Bobby Lovgren, who trained all the horses,” Armie acknowledged. “Bobby has a way with horses that’s unlike anything I’ve seen.”

Armie shared an unusual thing that one of Bobby’s horses does. “Bobby was able to train a horse to walk up to a six-pack of beer, and drink the entire six-pack,” he said. (Later, Armie clarified that the six-pack contained water, not beer.)

Armie was also amazed at how Bobby trained his horses to hit their marks in a scene. “Bobby has a piece of wood with rubber on it. The director (Gore) will go, ‘I need the horse right over there.’ Bobby will just throw this piece of wood. He’ll just go, ‘Silver, get on your mark.’ The horse will go, clomp, clomp, clomp and put two feet right on that piece of wood—and hit it!”

Milestone

Of Johnny’s recent 5-0 birthday milestone and career, Armie enthused, “Yeah, it’s incredible. If you go look at his IMDb page and look at all of his movie titles, each one of them is amazing! But, the most encouraging thing about it is that, through it all, he’s been able to stay normal. He walks in, knows everybody’s name, is super friendly, hits his marks, knows his lines—he’s a pro.”

Given Armie’s string of big breaks lately, he will likely become even busier in front of the cameras. That prospect has not deterred Armie and his wife, Elizabeth, from starting a business venture. “We opened a bakery in San Antonio (Texas) called Bird Bakery,” he revealed. “It’s a made-from-scratch patisserie. We use local ingredients—no preservatives, artificial ingredients, shortening. Just as healthy as you can get while eating baked sugar.”

The food subject led to a question about what was the strangest meat he has ever eaten. “I ate a turtle heart once,” he replied. Later, when we asked Armie if he has tasted “balut,” a delicacy in the Philippines, he said he knew it was an unhatched duck egg, but he probably couldn’t eat one.

Looking into the near future, Armie said he did not think of “The Lone Ranger” as his shot at a franchise while shooting the film and doing various stunts in New Mexico. “I tried not to think about it,” he said. “You look at the involved parties—Jerry Bruckheimer, Disney, Gore, Johnny. Obviously, none of them are strangers to franchises, so part of you wants to be optimistic.

“But, at the same time, it all depends on how the movie is received. If Gore, Johnny and Jerry come back, then yeah, I would definitely consider it. But, at the moment, I’m still too sore from the first one to even think about a franchise!”

source: entertainment.inquirer.net

Tony Stark Strikes Back in Marvel’s “Iron Man 3″

From Marvel Studios comes “Iron Man 3,” which continues the epic, big-screen adventures of the world’s favorite billionaire-inventor-Super Hero, Tony Stark aka Iron Man.

Marvel’s “Iron Man 3” pits brash-but-brilliant industrialist Tony Stark/Iron Man against an enemy whose reach knows no bounds. When Stark finds his personal world destroyed at his enemy’s hands, he embarks on a harrowing quest to find those responsible. This journey, at every turn, will test his mettle. With his back against the wall, Stark is left to survive by his own devices, relying on his ingenuity and instincts to protect those closest to him. As he fights his way back, Stark discovers the answer to the question that has secretly haunted him: does the man make the suit or does the suit make the man?

Based on the ever-popular Marvel comic book Super Hero Iron Man, who first appeared on the pages of “Tales of Suspense” (#39) in 1963 and had his solo comic book debut with “The Invincible Iron Man” (#1) in May of 1968, “Iron Man 3” returns Robert Downey Jr. as Tony Stark, the iconic Super Hero, along with Gwyneth Paltrow as Pepper Potts, Don Cheadle as James “Rhodey” Rhodes, Guy Pearce as Aldrich Killian, Rebecca Hall as Maya Hansen, Jon Favreau as Happy Hogan and Ben Kingsley as The Mandarin.

Shane Black directs Marvel’s “Iron Man 3” and the screenplay is by Drew Pearce & Shane Black.

After the “Iron Man” and “Iron Man 2” box-office successes, the Iron Man character, once again reprised by Robert Downey Jr., was last seen in Marvel Studios critically acclaimed “Marvel’s The Avengers,” which set the all-time, domestic 3-day weekend box office record at $207.4 million. The film went on to gross over $1.6 billion worldwide, becoming Disney’s highest-grossing global and domestic release of all time and marks the studio’s fifth film to gross more than $1 billion worldwide.



“The exciting thing about ‘Iron Man 3,’ is that it’s not only the culmination of the first two films, but it’s also a follow up to ‘Marvel’s The Avengers,’” says producer Kevin Feige. “It’s one of the first situations where you have a movie that is the sequel to two different films and in a way that liberates it to be more unique than anything that has come before it, which is what we’re most excited about.”

In the Marvel cinematic universe, all events that happen within each film have a direct influence and consequence in future films and franchises. For Tony Stark the events and encounters he faced in “Marvel’s The Avengers” may be behind him, but he is still working hard to balance the demands of his own personal life.

For the storyline of Marvel’s “Iron Man 3,” the filmmakers decided on a “back-to-basics” tone where they could explore what Tony Stark would do if all of his money and toys were stripped away from him and he was forced to find a way back to being a Super Hero.

“Early on in the development, we talked about this notion of taking Tony Stark back to basics because we wanted to see him just use his brain,” explains executive producer Louis D’ Esposito.  “You want to see what he can do when the odds are against him and it makes you wonder, ‘How is he going to get out of this one?’”


Executive producer Stephen Broussard explains the filmmakers’ decision to blend two different storylines together for the film. “There are two classic stories that have appeared in the ‘Iron Man’ comics—one is older and the other is more modern,” explains Broussard.  “The older is the character called The Mandarin, and he is one of the most famous villains in the franchise. The character dates back to the 1960s and we wanted Shane [Black] and Drew [Pearce] to take that idea and contemporize it for present-day audiences.”

Broussard adds, “We also wanted to combine that with another storyline in the comic called Extremis, which came out not too long before the first ‘Iron Man’ film in 2008.  It deals with the biological enhancement of humans and Tony must face super-powered humans in that. So we just thought, wouldn’t that be interesting if we tried to combine these two stories into one for ‘Iron Man 3’?”

An early believer in the Extremis story line, Downey Jr. says, “I remember when we were getting ready to shoot ‘Iron Man,’ I started reading ‘Iron Man’ comics and there was this one called ‘Extremis,’ and I thought it was really interesting and cool.”

“The thing about the Extremis storyline that always interested me in the comic books was that you had a sense that Tony Stark puts on an iron suit and hides inside it in a way,” says director Shane Black. “The character wouldn’t call it that, but that’s kind of the case. With the Extremis people, you always got a sense that they’re burning up from the inside. So one of them could actually say to Tony for instance, ‘you drive a car, I am the car.’”

There is plenty of angst from “Marvel’s The Avengers” to fuel Tony Stark’s arc too. Before “Marvel’s The Avengers,” Tony Stark thought he was the only Super Hero in the world, and in “Iron Man 3” he must deal with the revelation that he is not the only one out there. As Kevin Feige explains, “In ‘Marvel’s The Avengers’ he faces a world-changing event that not only includes seeing the powers of other Super Heroes, but also having a portal to another world opened above his head.”

For Robert Downey Jr. the journey of Tony Stark in the “Iron Man” franchise is one that is very relatable to audiences. “The great thing about ‘Iron Man 3’ is that we really are going back to kind of an extension and continuation of some of the things that made the franchise fly to begin with,” says Downey. “With the execution and incredible success of ‘Marvel’s The Avengers,’ we’re afforded the opportunity to not have to set up another film and can really explore the character of Tony Stark in ways that are very organic and connectable and play to the strength of the franchise.”

(Opening across the Philippines on April 24 in IMAX 3D, Digital 3D and regular theatres, “Iron Man 3” is presented by Marvel Studios in association with Paramount Pictures and DMG Entertainment. Marvel Studios’ President Kevin Feige is producing and Jon Favreau, Louis D’Esposito, Charles Newirth, Victoria Alonso, Stephen Broussard, Alan Fine, Stan Lee and Dan Mintz are executive producers. The film is distributed by Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures.)

source: movies.inquirer.net

And the Oscar goes to . . .

While the Razzies are still mulling over who among Katherine Heigl, Milla Jovovich, Kristen Stewart, Barbra Streisand, Tyler Perry, Nicolas Cage, Eddie Murphy, Adam Sandler and Robert Pattinson “deserve” to take home Golden Raspberry trophies for Worst Performances last year, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences is getting ready to hand over Hollywood’s most coveted golden statuettes for the industry’s over-achievers at the glitzy Oscar Awards on Feb. 24 (morning of Feb. 25 in the Philippines).

After watching all the nominees for this year’s derby (thanks for “Amour” and “The Master,” Tcel), we polled 40 of Tinseltown’s award-giving bodies to see who’s ahead in the race. Unfortunately, one of the most crucial matches will not even be seen at the Oscars on Monday!

So far, the Best Director race has been a two-way duel between Ben Affleck (“Argo,”  our pick) and Kathryn Bigelow (“Zero Dark Thirty”), with eight wins each. Ironically, neither of them made it to the Academy’s five-nominees list! Their films have won 13 awards to date, while Steven Spielberg’s “Lincoln” could only muster three nods.

Tom Hooper, who helmed the screen version of the celebrated stage musical, “Les Miserables,” was also snubbed. If any of Affleck, Bigelow and Hooper’s movies would snag the top prize, it’ll go down in history as the Best Picture winner that directed itself!

Spielberg has one win, while Ang Lee (“Life of Pi”) and David O. Russell (“Silver Linings Playbook”) have two each. Behn Zeitlin (“The Beasts of Southern Wild”) and Michael Haneke (“Amour”) complete the nominees’ circle.

Closest competitor

For Best Actor, Daniel Day-Lewis is unbeatable as the 16th president of the United States. For his crackerjack portrayal, the actor has won almost every accolade there is, amassing 30 awards so far!

His closest competitors are “The Master’s” Joaquin Phoenix (four wins) and “Silver Linings Playbook’s” Bradley Cooper (three). Denzel Washington (“Flight”) and Hugh Jackman (“Les Miserables”) have one award each.

Anne Hathaway is also set to grab her first Oscar (for Best Supporting Actress) for her stirring turn as the tragic Fantine in “Les Miserables.” With “only” five wins, it’ll be hard for Sally Field (as Lincoln’s disturbed wife, Mary Todd, in Spielberg’s historical drama) to keep up with the younger actress’ 21-trophy haul.

The category’s other nominees are Jacki Weaver (“Silver Linings Playbook”), Amy Adams (“The Master”) and Helen Hunt (“The Sessions”).

The race for Best Supporting Actor is a three-way fight between Phillip Seymour Hoffman of “The Master” (11 wins), Tommy Lee Jones of “Lincoln” (10), and “Django Unchained’s” Christoph Waltz (seven), who should have been nominated in the Best Actor category.

We’d be happy if either Hoffman, who’s as charming as he is menacing as an L. Ron Hubbard-type cult leader, or the riveting Waltz, as a bounty-hunting dentist, goes home with the coveted prize. Completing the list are Alan Arkin (“Argo”) and Robert De Niro (“Silver Linings Playbook”), in his first Academy nomination in 21 years!

The Best Actress derby is even more exciting: Jessica Chastain (“Zero Dark Thirty”) has won 17 awards to date, but among Jennifer Lawrence’s 14 accolades are crucial wins from the Screen Actors Guild, the LA Film Critics and the Golden Globes!

Naomi Watts is just as moving in “The Impossible,” Juan Antonio Bayona’s true-to-life drama about the 2004 Asian tsunami— but, Chastain deserves a hearty pat on the back, and the Oscar, for her pitch-perfect portrayal as a relentless CIA agent who tracks down Osama Bin Laden. Her formidable body of work also deserves a trophy!

If the Academy wants some novelty, it just might let its youngest (9-year-old Quvenzhane Wallis of “The Beasts of Southern Wild”) or oldest nominee (85-year-old Emmanuelle Riva of “Amour”) pull a surprise!

source: entertainment.inquirer.net

Pixar Co-Founder Ralph Guggenheim Lauds Filipino Talent

MANILA, Philippines - Marking the maiden staging of the Film, Animation and Gaming Congress of the Department of Tourism on July 26 and 27 was the participation of acclaimed international film and animation professionals, among them Nickelodeon’s Eli Noyes, Cartoon Network Online creator Doug Barry and Pixar co-founder Ralph Guggenheim.

Guggenheim, who has served as the Vice President of Feature Animation for Pixar Studios and as lead producer for the 1997 animated hit “Toy Story,” and who has been executive producer for Electronic Arts, now runs Alligator Planet LLC. His current company is involved in projects that put him in business with various offshore production studios. While he is yet to work with a Filipino studio, he does know our rich history in the creative field.

“Philippines has a long history of animation that I know goes back at least… it’s 20 years that I’ve been involved in this sort of thing and I know that it goes further than that,” Guggenheim tells Bulletin Entertainment on the last day of the Congress. “And there’s a number of great studios that are here and a number of great young artists whose work we’ve seen over the last few days [that we’ve been in the country]. So we think there’s huge potential here.”

The Congress, with the theme “Made in the Philippines: From Storytelling to Storyselling,” coincided with the Cinemalaya Film Festival. It aimed to help filmmakers (producers/directors), original content creators, and various other people in Philippine Creative Industries to identify issues and challenges that face them, as well as the various opportunities open to them.

It had also planted the seed in the development of a globally competitive Creative Services in the country. In fact, according to a DTI press release, the Creative Services sector reported revenues in 2011 of about US$142 million for animation and US$7 million for game development. It employs almost 10,000 creative workers and support workers as well.

Of bigger and perhaps more worldwide opportunities for local artists, Guggenheim notes, “All of the studios that I know have started because a few artists came together and built something and it became larger and larger and they did better and better work as time went on. They weren’t all experts when they started but their expertise grew and their knowledge grew as they worked together. And it’s an industry where young talent is always appreciated and always desired, so there’s no question that this could happen.”

Perhaps his visit would become beneficial to both him and our local artists. “We always do a lot of projects with overseas companies and we’re always looking for a new, young talent and companies that are capable of creating stuff and that can work together with us in ah… projects. So yeah, we are always in search for that and we think the Philippines will be a great place to work.”

Guggenheim and some fellow speakers planned to wrap up their second day of the Congress on the 27th by staying a few more hours at the CCP. “I will see my first film at Cinemalaya this afternoon. We’ve been busy with the conference,” he smiles. “We love independent films and I’ve heard Cinemalaya has great filmmakers and great films so I’m ready to relax and enjoy some films.”

As advice to young creators, Guggenheim closes the interview by offering, “I was once so young [boy] who had an interest in animation, got together with some people I knew and liked, and things grew and changed and our company became successful. But we didn’t start with anything more than a dream and an idea of what we wanted to do.”

Indeed, big dreams come true not just in the make-believe world of movies and animation but, as Guggenheim proves, also in real life.

source: mb.com.ph

Report: 'Godzilla' Reboot to Hold Hall H Panel at Comic-Con 2012

Rumor has it, Warner Bros. Pictures and Legendary Pictures are set to deliver a very big surprise at the 2012 San Diego Comic-Con. It was Latino Review which first broke the report that the studios would be hosting a Hall H panel for their long-awaited reboot film "Godzilla".



The site stated that "Godzilla" would be brought to Comic-Con to join Legendary's "Pacific Rim" directed by Guillermo del Toro. According to the site, the anticipated presentation is going to be "sick" because it will "stomp both the audio and video system within Hall H two weeks from this Saturday (June 30)."

Both Warners and Legendary have yet to issue an official confirmation regarding the report. The "Godzilla" reboot has Gareth Edwards serving as the director, while Max Borenstein is currently re-writing the screenplay from David S. Goyer.

While it is still uncertain whether or not the "Godzilla" panel rumor is true, Comic-Con has announced its official movie panel schedule for Day 1. "The Twilight Saga's Breaking Dawn Part II" will be the opening panel at Hall H, while "Frankenweenie", "Oz: The Great and Powerful", "Wreck-It Ralph" and "The Expendables 2" follow later on the day.

source: aceshowbiz.com

Disney composer Sherman dies

Robert B Sherman, who composed classic Disney songs such as Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious and It's a Small World (After All), has died in London at the age of 86.

With his brother Richard, the late musician wrote songs for films such as Mary Poppins, Chitty Chitty Bang Bang and The Jungle Book.

His death, on Monday, was announced by his son Jeffrey Sherman with a message on Facebook and confirmed by his agent Stella Richards.

'I have very sad news to convey,' his son said.

'My Dad, Robert B Sherman, passed away ... in London. He went peacefully after months of truly valiantly fending off death.

'He loved life and his dear heart finally slowed to a stop when he could fight no more.'

The Sherman brothers won two Academy Awards for Mary Poppins, including best song for Chim Chim Cher-ee.

They were nominated for several more Oscars, including for the title song from Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, during their career, which spanned more than 50 years.

They were honoured with a star on the Hollywood Walk Of Fame in 1976.

The brothers enjoyed a 10-year association with Walt Disney in which they composed more than 150 songs for films, TV shows and Disneyland.

Their most famous compositions include A Spoonful Of Sugar in Mary Poppins, Trust In Me and I Wanna Be Like You from The Jungle Book, and Truly Scrumptious and Me Ol' Bamboo from Chitty Chitty Bang Bang.

Their other Disney credits include the Winnie The Pooh series, Bedknobs And Broomsticks, The Sword In The Stone, The Aristocats and The Happiest Millionaire.

Jeffrey wrote on his Facebook page: 'I will write more about this incredible man I love and admire so much when I am better rested and composed. He deserves that.

'In the meantime, please say a prayer for him. As he said, he wanted to bring happiness to the world and, unquestionably, he succeeded.

'His love and his prayers, his philosophy and his poetry will live on forever. Forever his songs and his genius will bring hope, joy and love to this small, small world.

'I love you, Dad. Safe travels.'

source: http://www.skynews.com.au/topstories/article.aspx?id=726163&vId=

Oscar red carpet heats up as stars arrive

LOS ANGELES - Hollywood's biggest fashion parade, the red carpet outside the Oscars, began heating up on Sunday afternoon ahead of the world's top film awards where silent movie "The Artist" is widely seen as the choice for best movie.

Early arrivals included "Artist" actress Berenice Bejo, who is nominated in a supporting role, in a mint green dress, "The Help" star Jessica Chastain in a stunning black gown embroidered in gold and "Descendants" actress Shailene Woodley in white.

Fans who had waited all day lined the red carpet in stadium seats to cheer their favorite stars including George Clooney and his girlfriend, Stacy Keibler. Photographers snapped thousands of pictures and television cameras rolled.

Tim Gunn, co-host of popular fashion TV show "Project Runway," called the Oscars' red carpet, "the runway to end all runways."

But it is later in the evening that the action really begins when comedian Billy Crystal, who returns as Oscar host for the ninth time, takes the stage and the awards begin to flow.

This year, "The Artist," a tale of old Hollywood that sees a fading star find redemption through the love of a woman just as silent movies are being taken over by talkies, is widely picked to take home best film by most industry pundits.

It comes into the night with 10 nominations, second only to Martin Scorsese's "Hugo" with 11. But most of the nods for "Hugo" are in technical categories like cinematography, whereas "The Artist" nominations are spread across several categories.

"It's unbeatable," said Dave Karger, movie writer for Entertainment Weekly magazine.

While it faces keen competition from civil rights drama "The Help," "The Artist" has come out on top in most award shows this year. Still, pundits point out that "The Help" did win best ensemble cast from the Screen Actors Guild, and actors make up the biggest group of Oscar voters.

The third movie that has had Hollywood buzzing this season is family drama "The Descendants," starring George Clooney as a man trying to keep his family together after his cheating wife is hospitalized in a coma. But "Descendants" has failed to spark Oscar voters, and its key win is seen as adapted screenplay.

Actors and actresses

The category of best actress features a too-close-to-call race between Viola Davis playing a maid in "The Help" and Meryl Streep as former British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher in "The Iron Lady." Tom O'Neil of awards website Goldderby.com calls that race "neck and neck."

The best actor category sees American Clooney "Descendants" face Frenchman Jean Dujardin, star of "The Artist." For a long time, Clooney seemed to have the upper hand, but Dujardin has won most every time the two have been pitted against each other.

Supporting actor and actress appear locked for Christopher Plummer, playing an elderly gay man in "Beginners," and Octavia Spencer as one of the black maids in "The Help."

At age 82, Plummer would be the oldest Oscar winner ever, and if both Spencer and Davis are victorious, then it would be the first time two African American women have won those categories in the same year for the same movie.

The race for director is widely tipped to go to "The Artist" maker Michel Hazanavicius, but could see a surprise by "Hugo" and Scorsese, Woody Allen with "Midnight in Paris" or Alexander Payne and "The Descendants."

Finally, Iranian film "A Separation" goes up against Israel's "Footnote" in the category for foreign language film, bringing world politics into the movie industry awards. –Reuters

source: gmanetwork.com

Guide to the 84th Oscars

MANILA, Philippines - Because the 84th edition of the Oscars is set on Sunday night (Monday morning in Manila), film buffs all over the world are in a whirl of excitement and anticipation trying to determine which among the nominated actors and movies will walk away with arguably the most coveted prize in the world after the Nobel Prize.

Per tradition, this writer is giving The STAR readers a quick run-through of which performers and movies could win in the major categories come Sunday. But before that, here’s a quick trivia: Who is the only actress to have received at least one Oscar nomination for every decade since the ’70s? If you answered Meryl Streep, then mark one correct answer for you.

The chameleonic actress, who began her record-setting Oscar haul of 17 nominations during the latter part of the ‘70s in the Vietnam drama The Deer Hunter, ushers in the second decade of the new century with a new nomination for her magnificent portrayal of England’s Margaret Thatcher in the biopic The Iron Lady.

Ironically, Meryl has amassed so many Oscar nominations that many people think she already has a shelf-full of golden statuettes at home. The sad truth is that she has not won an Oscar since winning in 1982. Consider this: She has been nominated 12 times and also lost for 12 consecutive times since then.

On Sunday night, the greatest American actress in history is poised to finally end the drought and make her 13th nomination since winning for Sophie’s Choice her lucky outing. But many Oscar prognosticators aren’t so sure though. Meryl is facing stiff competition from Tony-winner Viola Davis, whose star-making turn in The Help has already earned her a Best Actress trophy from the Screen Actors Guild (SAG), the all-important precursor award seen by many Oscar-watchers as the only accurate predictor of the Academy Awards.

Admittedly, this writer is one of Meryl’s biggest fans and every time she gets a nomination I always predict a win for her. Two years ago, she had the best chance of winning but Sandra Bullock had the best year of her career and that goodwill carried over to the Oscars. Sadly, the story from two years ago rings similar to this year’s race: Viola is enjoying her best year and the Academy may be inclined to crown that year with a Best Actress award for her.

But being a fan, I can always spin a story favorable to Meryl’s cause. Yes, Meryl will win but not because she hasn’t won in 30 years. She will win because she delivered the best performance of the year and because her turn in The Iron Lady is her best ever! Her towering performance offers many would-be actresses a clinical lesson on how to act.

Other actresses competing with Meryl and Viola for Best Actress are Michelle Williams, who was brilliant as the tormented Marilyn Monroe in My Week with Marilyn, Glenn Close, who earned her sixth nomination for her gender-bending role in Albert Nobbs and first-time nominee Rooney Mara for her fierce and brave performance in David Fincher’s The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo.

Best Actress prediction? I am going against the SAG and I predict that Meryl will win her well-deserved third Oscar.

In the hotly contested race for Best Actor, George Clooney and Brad Pitt are undeniably the most popular contenders among the five actors in the race. The Hollywood superstars, who are great friends in real-life, are competing for their masterful turns as fathers-in-crises in The Descendants and Moneyball, respectively. However, the frontrunner in this category is an otherwise unknown French actor named Jean Dujardin whose charming turn as a fading silent film star in the silent movie The Artist has already been recognized by the SAG and the British Academy.

George is tipped by many to win his second Oscar but Hollywood’s most eligible bachelor will most likely spend the evening smiling before the camera while stuck to his seat if the predicted sweep of The Artist materializes and Jean waltzes his way to the stage to collect his Oscar on his very first nomination.

The two other actors nominated in the category are also first-timers: Mexico’s Demian Bichir, who delivered a heartbreaking performance as an illegal immigrant caring for his son in A Better Life, and, surprise, surprise, Gary Oldman! Yes, the actor, considered by many critics as the greatest European actor of his generation, has never received a nomination until this year. The actor was cited for his understated but powerful performance as a master spy in the British adaptation of John Le Carre’s classic novel Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy.

My prediction for Best Actor: Jean Dujardin.

While the Best Actor and Best Actress races are difficult to predict, the race for the supporting performances has been virtually decided months ago. Octogenarian actor Christopher Plummer is set to become the oldest performer ever to receive an acting Oscar for his delightful turn as a widower who came out as a gay man to his son during the last days of his life in the acclaimed movie Beginners.

Chris is competing against Max Von Sydow (Extremely Close/Incredibly Loud), Nick Nolte (Warrior), Jonah Hill (Moneyball) and Kenneth Branagh (My Week with Marilyn).

In the Best Supporting Actress race, character actress Octavia Spencer is also virtually guaranteed to receive an Oscar for her affecting and audience-pleasing performance as a feisty maid in The Help. Octavia is joined in this category by her The Help co-star Jessica Chastain.

Other actresses nominated in this category are former nominee Janet McTeer for Albert Nobbs, Berenice Bejo for The Artist and Melissa McCarthy, whose scene-stealing turn in Bridesmaids is the only comedic performance to receive a nomination this year.

The race for Best Director pits four of Hollywood’s legendary and greatest directors against a Frenchman, whose homage to silent movies could also sweep the Oscars.

French director Michel Hazanavicius, who was declared winner by the Directors Guild of America, is tipped to also win the Oscar for his work in The Artist against Martin Scorsese (Hugo), Woody Allen (Midnight in Paris), Terence Malick (The Tree of Life) and Alexander Payne (The Descendants).

Alexander and Woody are most likely not going home empty-handed because the nominated directors are also nominated and are expected to win for their writing works on their respective movies.

For the nights’ biggest award, the Best Picture race, nine movies are in competition this year: The Artist, Hugo, War Horse, The Help, The Tree of Life, Midnight in Paris, Moneyball, Extremely Close/Incredibly Loud and The Descendants.

My predicted winner for Best Picture is The Artist. But if there will be an upset, look out for either The Help or The Descendants to pull the trick. If Hugo pulls the unlikeliest of upsets and win Best Picture, I will be happiest.

In the animated feature film category, the western Rango is expected to win in a category where the only other mainstream nominees are Kung Fu Panda 2 and Puss in Boots.

Only two movies are expected to duke it out in the other categories. The Artist and Hugo will most likely split the awards haul with the latter taking most of the technical awards.

The Iranian film A Separation will most likely score a historic win for its country in the Best Foreign Language Film category. However, Poland’s entry In Darkness, which is based on a harrowing true story about the Holocaust, is a dark horse contender that could very well be the surprise winner in the category — and I will be disappointed, if that happens.

Final count. Hugo: Six wins. The Artist: Five wins. The Iron Lady: Two wins.

Beloved comedian and veteran Oscar host Billy Crystal will again take over the emceeing job Sunday night.

Article Source: philstar.com