Did the folks at Disney even watch “Brave?” One of the great strengths of Pixar’s first movie starring a female character (and its first originally written by a woman, Brenda Chapman, though she was replaced by a male director) was that its feisty heroine, Merida, looked like a real girl and not a wasp-waisted “princess.” But Disney released art showing that she had been given what she would never have put up with in the film — a makeover. The drawing on the Disney Princess website had a Merida who was more slender, bustier, and had eye make-up.
After protests by Chapman, bloggers, and a Change.org petition, Disney has backed down and Merida is back to the way we love her.
Want to Know What James Franco Thinks of “The Great Gatsby?”
Posted on May 17, 2013 at 8:00 am
I’m interested in James Franco’s take on “The Great Gatsby” because of what this polymath who attended two grad schools at once has to say about the challenges of adapting great writing to the screen and the differing goals and audience expectations of a book now viewed as a classic and a movie.
The critics who’ve ravaged the film for not being loyal to the book are hypocrites. These people make their living doing readings and critiques of texts in order to generate theories of varying levels of competency, or simply to make a living. Luhrmann’s film is his reading and adaptation of a text—his critique, if you will. Would anyone object to a production of Hamlet in outer space? Not as much as they object to the Gatsby adaptation, apparently. Maybe that’s because Gatsby is so much about a time and a place, while Shakespeare, in my mind, is more about universal ideas, ideals, and feelings. Luhrmann needed to breathe life into the ephemera and aura of the 20s and that’s just what he succeeded at.
A film, of course, relies on an immediate tension in a fundamentally different way than a book. And barring the most cinematic of texts, films developed from literary sources must run along a tighter thread. Once Gatsby’s mission of wooing Daisy back is accomplished, some of the wind is taken out of the story. We don’t really care about their relationship as much as we care about Gatsby’s overblown efforts to rise in social and economic status to get her back. And this is a universal and rarely accomplished goal that is still relevant today, made even more so by the director’s use of modern window dressing. Gatsby’s desire is revealed to be that of a 16-year-old boy: not only does he want to win Daisy, he wants to control her affections. It reminds me of my high school relationships, where I tortured girlfriends for getting fingered by other boys when they were freshmen. Just move on, dude. We are obsessed by his obsession but aren’t significantly moved by his accomplishment of the goal.
Interview: Directors/Writer/Star of “Desperate Acts of Magic”
Posted on May 17, 2013 at 8:00 am
Magic is in the air. And on the screen. Two big-budget films with some of Hollywood’s biggest stars playing magicians are being released within a few months of each other. In March, we had the silly comedy The Incredible Burt Wonderstone, with Steve Carell and Jim Carrey. Coming up is the enormously entertaining “Now You See Me,” with Jesse Eisenberg, Woody Harrelson, Morgan Freeman, and Isla Fisher.
And there is also a very nice little indie romantic comedy, with magicians played by real-life magicians, called Desperate Acts of Magic. I enjoyed it very much, and was very glad to get a chance to speak with Joe Tyler Gold, who wrote, produced, and stars in the film, and his co-director, Tammy Caplan.
Tell me how this movie came about.
Joe: I was a magician for many years and I did tons of kids’ birthday parties and entered lots of magic competitions. We were looking for something we could produce on a low budget. I had a lot of magician friends and there was a magic convention in San Diego happening in 2010 that we knew was coming up, so we went at it and put a script together and there you go.
Tammy: Joe was trying to figure out what we should work on next, what he should write next. I said to him, and this is based on an acting exercise that we know, “If you were to write about something that was deep and personal to you, very meaningful, what would you write about?” And he talked about this one event that happened at this magic convention that he did and the impact of that event always stayed with him and so I said, “That’s what you should write about, that’s what you should go with.”
Joe: Back in 1998 I competed in a magic competition actually with that very act, the act that I do in the movie. We didn’t get into the finals. They said there wasn’t enough magic but that they liked the act a lot and they asked us to perform on the evening show. The girl that I was doing the act with at the time was an actress and she wasn’t my girlfriend and she went off with a new boyfriend to a bed & breakfast. And so the performance actually never happened. And so that was always something that was kind of a regret of mine…
Tammy: Because at the time in Los Angeles at this convention it really was full of the cream of the crop of the magic community and he kind of regrets that this could have made Joe’s career really go along better. So we decided the film should have a happier ending.
Well that’s the beauty of fiction, isn’t it, that you can give yourself a happy ending.
Tammy: Yes and this is sort of life imitating art because the movie itself is a happy ending. I do think it’s kind of interesting the way we shot it because we shot it on such a low budget and because Tammy and I took on so many of the roles of the crew. We shot a day or two a month over 18 months. We kept our day jobs and each month we would save up the money to pay for the next shoot day. And that also allowed us to very carefully craft each shoot day and figure out how the magic was going to be done. And teach Valerie Dillman the magic since Valerie, who plays the role of Stacy Dietz is not an actual magician. She learned magic for the role.
What do you think people will be surprised by, when they see it? What will they learn about the magic community?
Tammy: I think one thing is the way we portray female magicians because there never has really been a magic movie with a character, a fictional magic movie, with a character of a female magician. And you know when you see characters on TV, women playing doctors, lawyers, teachers, musicians, then it feels natural in the real world, to see these types of people. You don’t think twice these days when a doctor is a man or a woman. But when you think of a magician, you think of a stereotype that comes up and it’s always a guy, sometimes very stereotypically, in the tuxedo with the rabbit in the hat. But magic is a really beautiful art form. It takes as much skill as playing an instrument or dance. There is a great way of telling stories through magic. Once there are more women in magic, I think you’ll see more interesting stories and I think it’s really going to help the art of magic as a whole.
Do you think there are still a lot of barriers to women in the world of magic?
Joe: Yeah, I do. I mean, it’s opening up and there are a lot of women in magic. There really are. But one of the difficulties is it is still very much a man’s profession. And you know I mean the Magic Circle in London only recently started to allow women into their organization. I just think that it’s more difficult to gain respect in the world of magic as a woman. And that there is an assumption when you see a woman involved in a magic act, that she’s an assistant. They always have to work a little bit harder to convince anybody that they are actually a magician. I almost think that the word “assistant” is kind of ridiculous. When you have a play and you have a couple people in that play who might have smaller roles you would never call them something else. You know, if they have ten lines in the play they’re still an actor in the play and they are in the program and they get a bow at the end. It’s strange to me that if two people are performing an illusion, and one is sawing the other in half, that one is automatically in some sort of a superior position than the other. And even stranger, and I mention this in the movie, is that when you do have the woman sawing the man in half, they still call it “the Assistant’s Revenge.” She’s sawing the magician in half and she’s still the assistant.
Tammy: I mean it’s just weird that …the fact that you even have to call a female magician, “a female magician.” You know, you don’t call a painter, “a female painter” or “a male painter”. It’s just “a painter.” And oftentimes, what’s so strange is that a magician will have a female assistant and maybe the magician is doing some act where, I don’t know, let’s say he’s making fun of the fact that, you know that he’s this middle-aged balding guy, let’s just say. But then there’s the assistant comes on and she’s this 19 year old in a skimpy dress and that has absolutely nothing to do with his act. It’s almost as if there is some disconnect story-wise, between what the magician is doing and what the assistant is doing.
One of the things that I really enjoyed about the movie is the way that there was a story to the act. The audience in the movie and the audience at the movie both wonder if the magicians are really fighting.
Joe: I always like telling stories with my magic and many magicians do this. That’s one of the reasons I really enjoyed making the movie is that it really allowed me to tell a longer story through magic. Because I tried to use the magic to advance the story and incorporate it into the story as much as I could. And it can sometimes be difficult to do that in a 6-minute act.
One of the things that I thought about as I was watching the film is that you had a very big challenge in that difference between a film and a live performance. We’re very used to “Bewitched” with Samantha Stevens twitching her nose and something appearing or disappearing on screen. You had to really do all those tricks and persuade the audience that you were really doing all those tricks. How did you stage the tricks so that we know they were really being performed and were not special effects?
Joe: It’s a challenge for sure, because and Harry Potter and all the special effects movies, people just assume that it is effects. And we contemplated putting something at the beginning of the movie, you know, “There are no camera tricks involved.” One thing that we did was, we tried not to cut away in the middle of the effects as much as possible except for story. And we tried to keep people’s faces and hands in the shot at the same time.
Tammy: There’s very few places where you are just seeing hands alone and not the person. It was always important to us and sometimes it’s a bit of a challenge to be able to get the person’s face and the trick because you need to be able to see what’s going on with the trick. So we really want to be able to see what the actor was doing at the same time.
Joe: We also populated the movie with a lot of real magicians. Most of the cast were actual magicians. Now, not everybody is going to know that, but you know, those who do, will know that those are real magicians and hopefully they’ll understand that they are really doing legitimate magic. There’s a lot of slight of hand in the movie. When you see a movie and Harry Potter is flying around on a broomstick you know it is special effect. But when you see slight of hand, you frequently will go, “That must be dexterity.” Once you know that, you kind of prove to the audience that you are doing slight of hand. Then later when you do other types of magic, hopefully they go for the ride and assume that it’s also legitimate magic.
Tammy: And also because we are a lower budget, independent movie you know that we’re doing the magic for real. We didn’t have the money to do the Harry Potter special effects.
What got you interested in magic to begin with?
Joe: I was interested since I was 8 years old, but I started performing probably about 13. And you know, “Burt Wonderstone” has it right. A lot of guys get into magic to, you know, to meet girls, you know. I don’t know that that was the motivation. But you know, it’s a fun thing to do. When you’re a teenager, it’s nice to kind of feel empowered and maybe that you know something that other people don’t know. That eventually evolved into being at a party and not knowing what to say and having an icebreaker. I would stand around in college just riffling a deck of cards.
Tammy: Well, you meet people in the magic community. Joe met people at magic camp that are in the movie that he’s known for years, practically his whole life.
Joe: It’s true, it’s true. I attended Cannon’s Magic Camp which is actually where I met Jonathan Levitt who played the role of Steve and where I met several other cast members, as well. And these are friendships that have lasted my whole life. And so that was something that really fed the interest for me. As a teenager I was the editor of a magic magazine and I would go to magic conventions and I would go to Magic Club meetings. So you know, certainly I wasn’t meeting girls at a lot of these places. It must have been something else. When I sent out my college applications, my essay statement was, “I like to make people laugh.” And that’s what I always really enjoyed is making people laugh. And I continue to try to put a lot of humor into my magic and into movies that I’m making.
Who are your magic idols?
Joe: I’d say Penn & Teller, for sure. What they do is so unique and also they always have a strong point of view and a statement that they make. Female magicians, I love Tina Leonert. Oh my gosh! Google her and take a look at her act. It’s so beautiful. She always tells a story.
Rated PG-13 for intense sequences of sci-fi action and violence
Profanity:
A few s-words and a couple of other bad words
Alcohol/ Drugs:
Drinking, bar
Violence/ Scariness:
Extensive sci-fi/action violence including acts of terrorism, characters injured and killed
Diversity Issues:
Diverse characters
Date Released to Theaters:
May 16, 2013
Date Released to DVD:
September 9, 2013
Amazon.com ASIN:
B00AZMFJYA
This time, there’s crying in “Star Trek.” And some very significant time on Earth as well. This story is in the most literal sense, close to home.
Writer-director J.J. Abrams, who rebooted Gene Roddenberry’s original “Star Trek” saga with a rousing 2009 origin story prequel now takes us closer to the place where the original series began. There’s just a touch of the famous soaring theme song and some references the old-school Trekkers (don’t call them Trekkies) will love. A tribble plays a key role, and there’s a mention of a certain Ms. Chapel, who is studying to be a nurse. A character from the original series appears to give us some more of his backstory. And we get to hear Uhura speak Klingon.
But the primary focus is on the relationship between the main characters, Uhura (Zoe Saldana), Scotty (Simon Pegg), Bones (Karl Urban), and especially the cerebral half-Vulcan Spock (Zachary Quinto) and the impetuous Kirk (Chris Pine). We rejoin the story mid-chase on a remote planet with a massive volcano about to explode and the Prime Directive (the Federation observes and reports but does not interfere with other civilizations or alter their destiny, even by being seen by them) is about to be jettisoned once again.
As in the original series and its sequels, “Star Trek: Into Darkness” takes on moral dilemmas and geopolitical allegories with the same full-on gusto with which the characters engage with the adventures of the universe. The issue of the few weighed against the many and the personal connections weighed against the larger world (or galaxy) comes up several times, in increasingly complex variations. And, of course, there’s a ton of action.
It is impossible to say much more — including some minor quibbles — without some serious spoilers, though I will object to the under-use of the talented Alice Eve, who is playing a brilliant scientist but for no reason whatsoever has to appear in her underwear. As for plot, I will just say that a terrorist-style attack in London leads to an interplanetary chase into Klingon territory. But as so often happens in the allegorical Roddenberry universe that gives all of “Star Trek” its resonance, the real enemy may be ourselves. The performances are all superb, including Benedict Cumberbatch of the PBS series “Sherlock” bringing terrifying power and ferocity to the role of the villain with the English accent. They go where many, many men and women have gone before, but they do it right.
Parents should know that this film includes constant sci-fi/action violence including chases, explosions, fights, guns, terrorist-style attacks, characters injured and killed, brief disturbing images, some non-explicit sexual references and situation, drinking, and some strong language (s-words, etc.).
Family discussion: Several characters have to make choices about who is more important — the people they know or the larger group of strangers. What are some real-life situations where people have to make similar decisions? What factors should they consider? Why does Pike think that Kirk deserves a second chance? How do you know when to break the rules? Is it because there are other rules that are more important?
If you like this, try: the “Star Trek” movies and television series, the comedy “Galaxy Quest,” and the documentary “Trekkies”
Interview: Candace Cameron Bure of “Finding Normal”
Posted on May 16, 2013 at 8:00 am
It was great to catch up with Candace Cameron Bure to hear about her new film, “Finding Normal,” premiering this week on GMC-TV. She plays a brilliant type-A surgeon who is completely focused on status and her career until she gets stuck in a small town and sees a different way of life.
What is the definition of normal?
Is there one. I don’t know. Normal is different for everyone. For me finding my normal I think it really is about finding balance in life because I’ve lived in a lot of places and the truth is I know who I am and where I like to live. I am a city girl and I do love staying busy. And I love working and I love my family and my children and my husband and all those things. I don’t think that for everyone that it doesn’t necessarily mean that you have to go out and move to the country and live rural life to find what’s important to you. but it’s about being able to stop and smell the roses or make sure that whatever you are doing, whether you are working or you’re with your family or you’re spending time on your own that you’re really connected in those moments. And just enjoying them. Every moment of what you’re doing.
Tell me a little bit about your character and about the story.
I play Lisa Leland, an LA doctor who is moving to the Hamptons with her doctor boyfriend. And she just cares about herself, her life, and her own happiness. And all the stuff that she can have. After driving to the Hamptons she gets stuck in this little town with real people who are doing real life in a hardworking kind of way. And that’s where she ends up finding herself and finding that there is more to life than just her own selfish desires.
So in a way you were experiencing some of what your character experienced in exposure to small-town life.
I totally was. We all were.
I understand it was shot in Louisiana.
Yes, and we had a blast. It was in this little town of Columbia. The population was just over 300 people. The first time we drove through it even I was like, “Is this a real working town?” Because it was like a half a block. The whole town. It was so tiny and just in the middle of nowhere. I stayed at someone’s house. It was like there weren’t even hotels around. But the town was so excited to have us and to have a film crew in there.
How long were you there?
We shot this movie very fast. We shot it in 12 days. Which was insane. I have never done a movie that quickly. We basically shot two six-day weeks and just produced a great little movie.
Did you think about what your characters background might have been? What her family might have been? To make her think that the things were important that she thought were important?
I did. I thought a lot about that because certainly your family has an influence on you and in what you believe to be important. And so I figured that this woman is so driven in her career so that she could have major luxuries in life. You know probably she had or could have had parents that had the same type of motivation that maybe didn’t give her the love that she needed but just pushed to drive her to be competitive and maybe she was just bossy her whole life. Maybe that’s how her parents expressed love to her. Or it could be the very opposite where she didn’t come from much and maybe it pushed her into overdrive to be able to accomplish things. Maybe she had lazy parents and there was something in here that went “I don’t want to be this way.” So yes, as an actress I certainly had to put in a backstory. I chose the first on for her. I certainly gave it thought.
What do you do to teach your children, based on what you just said, to not be like those parents and to teach your children who they are?
Well you know we live in LA. I know that my children have so many luxuries that so many children around the world do not have. What I do to balance that is to make sure that we are serving, volunteering and doing charitable work and just helping wherever we can. And take all of those opportunities. So whether it’s at school or whether it’s through our church. I mean even this Saturday we are going with our church and we are putting on a carnival for union rescue mission which houses homeless families. So I take every opportunity I can to bring my children and go serve places. And I think that certainly shows them a perspective of their life and how other people live and builds compassion in their hearts. And gives them the tools to be able to love others and serve others. And that’s a really great feeling.
The last time I talked to you I asked you for a bible verse and you gave me a beautiful one Philippians 1:6. I wondered if you wanted to share a different one this time.
Well one that has kind of been on my heart has kind of been my life verse. Its Esther 4:14. And that it probably the most known verse from Esther. And it says “for if you remain silent at this time, relief and deliverance for the Jews will arise from another place, but you and your father’s family will perish. And who knows but that you have come to your royal position for such a time as this?” And that verse has stood out to me in terms of where I have been put in this industry right now. And if I don’t speak up or if I remain silent then God would not be able to use the things, the tools or the gifts that he has given me to use it for his purposes. So I feel like I kind of cling to that verse in terms of being outspoken about my faith and to be a proponent in family programming. To just keep good things out there on television for families to be able to watch and it encourages me to continue to just pick and choose the right projects that are positive and have good messages.
“Finding Normal” premieres on GMC TV Saturday, May 18th at 7pm, 9pm and 11pmET.
