Where You’ve Seen Them Before: The Revenant

Posted on January 8, 2016 at 3:56 pm

Director Alejandro González Iñárritu and his cast spent months in remote, frozen locations in Ontario, standing in for the frontier of the United States in the early 1800’s. Underneath the beards and fur, you’ve seen many of the actors before.

Leonardo diCaprio is one of the world’s biggest stars, appearing in “The Wolf of Wall Street,” “Titanic,” “The Departed,” and “Inception.” He’s been acting since he was very young, with an Oscar nomination for his first significant film role as a developmentally disabled boy in “What’s Eating Gilbert Grape?” opposite Johnny Depp.

Tom Hardy played Bane (behind an oxygen mask) in “The Dark Knight Rises” and the title character in “Mad Max: Fury Road” (much of it behind a mask in that one, too). He also played both of the Kray brothers in last year’s “Legend” and spent an entire film in the driver’s seat in “Locke.” Be sure to see his neglected gem of a performance in “Warrior,” as an MMA fighter in a winner-take-all battle with his estranged brother (Joel Edgerton).

Domhnall Gleeson has had a busy year. You can currently see him as General Hux in “Star Wars: The Force Awakens,” with his “Ex Machina” co-star Oscar Isaac and in “Brooklyn” with Saoirse Ronan, for once, both of them getting to use their real Irish accents.

Will Poulter played a young filmmaker in “Son of Rambow.”

And he was very funny in “We’re the Millers.”

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Rogerebert.com Round-Up of 2015’s Best Performances

Posted on December 30, 2015 at 8:00 am

A living legend. A lonely shopgirl. A scientist. A spy. Several assassins. The best performances of 2015 came from various corners of the world, from actors who we expect to see in features like this to ones we had never heard of before 2015. Watching a new crop of young actors rise in some of the year’s best films (and click here for our top ten) can be invigorating, and seeing performers who we thought may have given their last great performance deliver the best work of their career can be breathtaking.

I loved reading through the comments of the rogerebert.com critics on their favorite performances of the year, and I was especially glad to get a chance to write about mine: Teyonah Parris in “Chi-Raq.”

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The Oldest Living Movie Stars

Posted on August 2, 2015 at 8:00 am

The Film Experience has a put together a list of the 200 oldest movie stars, from age 82-105. It includes two-time Oscar winner Olivia de Havilland (“Gone With the Wind”), John Wayne c0-star Maureen O’Hara, and century-old Norman Lloyd, who appeared opposite Amy Schumer and Colin Quinn in “Trainwreck.”

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The Famous Families of the Longest Ride Cast

Posted on April 10, 2015 at 3:55 pm

The cast of this week’s big release, the Nicholas Sparks movie “The Longest Ride,” includes three actors with some of Hollywood’s biggest stars in their family trees. It’s a good reminder to check out some of their best films.

Scott Eastwood plays Luke, the rodeo rider. It is obvious from his face as well as his name that his father is Oscar-winning actor/producer/director Clint Eastwood. Here are three samples from Eastwood’s long and varied career.

Jack Huston plays Ira as a young man in the 1940’s. Houston comes from Hollywood royalty. His grandfather, great-grandfather, and aunt have all won Oscars. What’s really nice is that his grandfather, John Huston, was the director of both the Oscar-winning performances of his father, Walter Huston (in “The Treasure of the Sierra Madre”) and his daughter, Anjelica Huston (in “Prizzi’s Honor”).

Walter Huston won his Oscar for “The Treasure of the Sierra Madre.”

But my favorite Walter Huston performance is in “Dodsworth.” The look on his face in the last scene is unforgettable.

John Huston directed some of the greatest films of all time, including “The Maltese Falcon,” “Key Largo,” and “The African Queen.”

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6wjIAM0ixzY

He had some memorable acting roles, too, especially in “Chinatown.”

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UPfrCIKhEoA

Jack’s aunt Anjelica starred in many films including “The Witches,” “The Addams Family” and its sequel, “The Grifters,” “Crimes and Misdemeanors,” and “The Royal Tenenbaums.”

And his uncle Danny starred in television’s “Magic City” and “American Horror Story” and played a key role in Tim Burton’s “Big Eyes.”

Ira’s wife is played by Oona Chaplin, whose grandfather and great-grandfather were two of the greatest talents of the 20th century. Her grandfather was Charlie Chaplin.

She is named for her grandmother, Oona O’Neill, the daughter of playwright Eugene O’Neill.

And her mother is Geraldine Chaplin, who appeared in several films, including “Doctor Zhivago.”

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m2EVab2FgLg

Ira as an old man is played by Alan Alda, who is also the son of a well-known performer, Robert Alda, who originated the role of Skye Masterson in the Broadway musical “Guys and Dolls.” Here he is doing a duet on an old television show.

You can see the progeny of these stars in “The Longest Ride” trailer.

And watch out for more next-generation performers coming soon!

Actress Speaks Up Against Absurd Hollywood Casting Conventions

Posted on March 27, 2015 at 3:57 pm

Cheers to the understandably anonymous “Miss L,” an actress in Hollywood, for her Tumblr posting real-life casting information that shows how limited and misogynistic Hollywood casting is. Casting Call Woe shows actual casting call notices, most of which require actresses to be hot (no matter what the character). Here’s an example: “We need women comfortable dressing in revealing clothes, for the scenery.” And “She might not be the most beautiful woman in the room, like only a 7 on the typical hotness scale.”

A touch of almost Beckett-ian irony in this one: “Single mom desperate to pay her bills. Salary: no pay.”

And these: “Her scene will include being screamed at by a clown and being gagged briefly.” “Involves some leather clothing to attract YouTube fans.”

Of course it is fair to expect that performers will be attractive. But Miss L is absolutely right to call out these demeaning casting notices and I hope the existence of this Tumblr will mean there will be fewer of them.