Posted on January 24, 2012 at 9:11 pm
Thanks so much to Betty Jo Tucker of Movie Addict Headquarters for inviting me on her radio program to talk about today’s Oscar nominations with movie expert Barry Monush
Posted on January 24, 2012 at 11:39 am
The Oscar race begins with this morning’s announcement of nominations. Biggest surprises: only two nominees for best song, overlooking songs by Lady Gaga, Elton John, Chris Cornell, Sinead O’Connor, and Mary J. Blige, no Pixar film on the Best Animated Feature nominations — instead the little-seen “A Cat in Paris” and “Chico and Rita,” (I wish they had included “Rio”), no make-up nomination for “J. Edgar,” “A Separation” instead of “50/50” for original screenplay, and Nick Nolte as best supporting actor for “Warrior” rather than Albert Brooks (“Drive”). I’m thrilled to see the nomination for Melissa McCarthy (“Bridesmaids”) for supporting actress in what is, as usual, the toughest category. Every actress in it deserves to win.
War Horse
The Artist
Moneyball
The Descendants
The Tree of Life
Midnight in Paris
The Help
Hugo
Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close
Michel Hazavanicius, The Artist
Alexander Payne, The Descendants
Martin Scorsese, Hugo
Woody Allen, Midnight in Paris
Terrence Malick, The Tree of Life
Bérénice Bejo, The Artist
Jessica Chastain, The Help
Melissa McCarthy, Bridesmaids
Janet McTeer, Albert Nobbs
Octavia Spencer, The Help
Kenneth Branagh, My Week with Marilyn
Jonah Hill, Moneyball
Nick Nolte, Warrior
Christopher Plummer, Beginners
Max Von Sydow, Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close
Glenn Close, Albert Nobbs
Viola Davis, The Help
Rooney Mara, The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo
Meryl Streep, The Iron Lady
Michelle Williams, My Week with Marilyn
Demián Bichir, A Better Life
George Clooney, The Descendants
Jean Dujardin, The Artist
Gary Oldman, Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy
Brad Pitt, Moneyball
The Artist
Bridesmaids
Margin Call
Midnight in Paris
A Separation
The Descendants
Hugo
Ides of March
Moneyball
Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy
Bullhead
Footnote
In Darkness
Monsieur Lazhar
A Separation
A Cat in Paris
Chico And Rita
Kung Fu Panda 2
Rango
Puss in Boots
The Artist
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Part 2
Hugo
Midnight in Paris
War Horse
The Artist
The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo
Hugo
The Tree of Life
War Horse
Anonymous
The Artist
Hugo
Jane Eyre
W.E.
Hell and Back Again
If A Tree Falls: A Story of the Earth Liberation Front
Paradise Lost 3: Purgatory
Pina
Undefeated
The Barber of Birmingham: Foot Soldier of the Civil Rights Movement
God is the Bigger Elvis
Incident in New Baghdad
Saving Face
The Tsumani and the Cherry Blossom
The Artist
The Descendants
The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo
Hugo
Moneyball
Drive
The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo
Hugo
Transformers: Dark of the Moon
War Horse
The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo
Hugo
Moneyball
Transformers: Dark of the Moon
War Horse
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Part 2
Hugo
Real Steel
Rise of the Planet of the Apes
Transformers: Dark of the Moon
Albert Nobbs
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Part 2
The Iron Lady
The Adventures of Tintin: The Secret of the Unicorn
The Artist
Hugo
Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy
War Horse
The Muppets “A Man or a Muppet”
Rio “Real in Rio”
Dimanche / Sunday
The Fantastic Flying Books of Mr Morris Lessmore
La Luna
A Morning Stroll
Wild Life
Pentecost
Raju
The Shore
Time Freak
Tuba Atlantic
Posted on January 23, 2012 at 3:52 pm
This week Katherine Heigl stars as detective Stephanie Plum in her new movie, “One for the Money.” How many questions about her previous roles can you answer? 
1. Heigl appeared in a film that reportedly only sold 30 tickets, making it officially the biggest money-loser of all time. What is its title?
2. One of the best-remembered love stories on “Grey’s Anatomy” involved Heigl’s character Izzie? What was the name of the man she loved?
3. Heigl was a teenager when she co-starred with Gerard Depardieu in what film?
4. Name another character Heigl had a romantic relationship with in “Grey’s Anatomy.”
5. Which Heigl movie had her married to a spy?
6. Which Heigl movie had her attending many weddings?
7. Her most famous role had her as a television producer who had what life-changing experience?
8. She appeared in a horror movie series — which one?
9. What is the name of the author who created Stephanie Plum?
10. Where are the Stephanie Plum movies set?
Posted on January 23, 2012 at 3:00 pm
My friend Rebecca Cusey has a very thoughtful piece on the outstanding Patheos website titled, “Christians and Movies: Recognizing the Danger Within, Not Without.” She writes:
In Matthew 15:10, Jesus states, “It is not what enters into the mouth that defiles the man, but what proceeds out of the mouth, this defiles the man.” In the passage, He taking religious people to task about their rigid dietary rules, but I think the words apply more broadly. It applies to all makers of dairy products, as Monty Python would say.
We must each do the hard work of recognizing our own weaknesses. For some, it may be that sexual content does indeed feed a weakness within. Others may revel in the dark side of violence or evilly enjoy gruesome scenes. For many women, the danger is a false depiction of romance, as in ‘Titanic,’ which feeds the selfish dissatisfaction in our hearts with our spouses and families.
It’s not only entertainment media, but all aspects of consumer culture that can light the warning lights in the dashboard of our hearts….We give media too much credit for having power over us, and let ourselves off the hook in the process. It’s much easier to blame media for our strayings and discontentments than to recognize they come from within.
I appreciate this point of view and her emphasis on the importance of taking responsibility for ourselves, our actions, and our responses to what we see. On one hand, we must acknowledge that we are influenced by media and culture. A multi-billion dollar industry is devoted to using the latest and most sophisticated techniques of psychological conditioning to get us to buy things (Cusey acknowledges that she is as or even more likely to be led into temptation by a catalog as a movie). The artistic and commercial focus behind any movie or television show is on engaging our emotions and directing our thinking. And part of responsible, mature behavior is protecting our minds and spirits from toxic influences as we protect our bodies from harmful substances. But Cusey is right that too often religion-based fears about media fixate on the wrong questions.
Posted on January 23, 2012 at 8:00 am
We are very proud to present an exclusive clip from Valerie Donzelli’s “Declaration of War,” the moving true-life tale of two resilient young parents’ (Valerie and her co-writer/star Jeremie Elkaim) struggle with their child’s illness.
The film premiered at the Cannes Film Festival to great acclaim and is playing now at the Sundance Film Festival’s Spotlight program. It will be released in theaters in New York and Los Angeles this Friday, January 27.
