2010 Scenes From a Year in Film

Out of all of the End of the Year 2010 movie montages, this video essay from L Magazine is my favorite....so great.

(Can't embed because it starts right away)

http://www.thelmagazine.com/newyork/2010-scenes-from-a-year-in-film/Content?oid=1883284

SAG Awards Reaction

SAG nominations (full)

After another insomnia-ridden night (goddamn it, I can't have this, finals are coming!) I delayed sleep for another half hour or so to watch the SAG award nominations be announced on TV. Thoughts....

1) Man, Angie Harmon is annoying (and I don't really know who she is...). Please, stop trying to be all host-y! As of now it doesn't matter if you're beautiful or successful or whatnot, as of now you are a vessel to serve the purpose of conveying some crucial awards information!

2) Yay! John Hawkes (Winter's Bone) got a nomination

3) So did Jeremy Renner (The Town)! Yikes. They're both supposed to be the fifth alternative......so that means Andrew Garfield The Social Network didn't get in. Oh, that is sad. Ooooh, that hurts me.

4) Jeff Bridges (True Grit) AND Robert Duvall (Get Low)? So much for the "young Oscars takeover". They are definitely rooting for the veterans. Eisenberg and Franco in, wheww....wait, who does that mean they left out? Oh. No Ryan Gosling :(

5) Mila Kunis (Black Swan) gets a nom for Supporting Actress! Nathaniel R of "The Film Experience" is not going to be pleased about this, though I'm happy for her.

6) Hailee Steinfeld! They have some real love for True Grit. (still need to see it)

7) Ok, so Jacki Weaver (Animal Kingdom) doesn't get a nomination, despite having gained the support of thousands (ok, maybe not thousands, but pretty much all) of critics who have keeled before her and sung hymns of praise and poetic blurbs for her. Stupid SAG.

8) Bening, Nicole Kidman (Rabbit Hole), who's definitely a lock by now....going well so far.

9) What the what! Hillary Swank for Conviction instead of Lesley Manville or Michelle Williams? As Emma Watson would say charmingly, "oh, this is controver-see-ul!" The hissing of movie bloggers around the net is almost audible.

Verdict: Who'da thought the SAG component would be the most unexpected set of nominations yet. Pleased with John Hawkes, NOT pleased with Andrew Garfield, Blue Valentine, Jacki Weaver omissions.

Well, they have time to change their minds before the Oscars roll around.

Malick's "Tree of Life" Trailer is Here

Finally, a legit trailer. Beyond the obvious swooning effect of the visuals, three thoughts: I need to find out what the music starting at 1:23 is, who IS this Jessica Chastain? From the looks of it, another worthy addition to Malick's cache of ethereal leading ladies. And also, Sean Penn kind of feels out of place. Back to finals studying!

Malick has no Eves in his studies of the human condition. His female personifications of Nature are all enigmatic loveliness and native grace.

The Capitulations of Time and Memory

“M. de Nemours thought he would die of sorrow in the presence of the woman who brought him this message. He begged her twenty times to go back to Mme de Cleves and contrive for him to see her, but the woman told him that Mme de Cleves had no only forbidden her to bring any message from him, but even to report their conversation. So, at last, the prince had to depart, as overwhelmed with grief as any man can be when he has lost all hope of seeing again a person whom he loves with the strongest, most natural, and legitimate passion that has ever been. Yet he was still not finally discouraged, and did all that might persuade her to alter her mind. At length, when many years had passed, time and absence assuaged his pain and extinguished his feelings. Mme de Cleves lived in a manner suggesting that she would never relent. For a part of the year she stayed in the convent, and the remainder at home; but in seclusion and in holier occupations than those of the strictest religious order; her and life, which was somewhat brief, left inimitable examples of virtuous conduct.”

- ending of The Princess De Cleves

Warming up to Malick's "Tree of Life"

I have to watch this about six times a year. So, so, so beautiful.

Movie Schedule and Oscar Thoughts! (Updated)

My god, I am simply dying to write my Oscar spreadsheet, but I'm going to try and actually base it on legitimate critique as opposed to wishy-washy cyber hype. So I'm gonna have to watch

- Another Year

- Black Swan

- The King's Speech

- True Grit (*so excited*)

- Blue Valentine (ditto. Ok, I am still susceptible to hype and I just want to see what all the bloggers are going on about)

- Another Year

- Winter's Bone (is that available on DVD?)

- Animal Kingdom

- How To Train Your Dragon

- The Fighter

- Made in Dagenham

- Somewhere

That's twelve movies to watch before Oscar nominations come in. Bring it!

But GOD they should just really spread the wealth when it comes to December releases. I firmly believe that part of the Academy's low-ratings problem stems from the fact that most people just haven't had a chance to watch half of the nominated movies before the Oscars come. All of the big contenders come out within a span of six weeks - True Grit, Black Swan, The Fighter, Somewhere, Blue Valentine, King's Speech - and most people go to the theaters about once a month. That's just ridiculous. Especially when there was that latent September-November period when, with the exception of The Social Network, everyone around me was complaining that "there are no interesting movies out right now". It would have been so much better if you had options like The King's Speech or True Grit around then, instead of cramming half a dozen movies into a rushed holiday season where they end up simultaneously fighting for (and ultimately splitting) the attention. Most people DON'T watch a movie on its opening weekend, and then hey - by the next weekend, some more interesting movie has come out. And then the next one, and the next one, until the original movie is relegated to future-DVD status.

And apparently this is AMPAS' new publicity technique - for a host, put up the most bizarre pairing as possible so that people will be enticed to tune in out of sheer curiosity. This is not going to go well. Really. Just because James Franco gives sexy and occasionally appealing performances does not mean that he translates to proper host material. He just lacks that common touch. I mean, have you seen that man on talk shows? Awwwkward. Screw "thinking out of the box", that doesn't mean crap if the decision is ultimately misguided.

That aside, I have't been able to resist my own bout of Oscar predictions:

*= locks

Best Actor:

*Jesse Eisenberg - The Social Network

*Colin Firth - The King's Speech

*James Franco - 127 Hours

Robert Duvall - Get Low

Ryan Gosling - Blue Valentine

Best Actress:

*Annette Bening - The Kids Are All Right

*Natalie Portman - Black Swan

Nicole Kidman - Rabbit Hole

Lesley Manville - Another Year

Michelle Williams - Blue Valentine

Best Supporting Actor:

*Christian Bale - The Fighter ****

*Geoffrey Rush - The King's Speech

*Mark Ruffalo - The Kids Are All Right

Andrew Garfield - The Social Network

The last slot is truly a tossup. A small, but extremely insistent regiment of fans for John Hawkes in Winter's Bone has been steadily growing louder, and though these kind of performances don't usually get much leeway til much later during awards season, Oscars has noticed in the past (examples: Michael Shannon in Revolutionary Road and Hal Holbrook for Into the Wild). Especially when that kind of buzz is so loud for an unknown actor. Great kudos. Then there's the oft-shunned Sam Rockwell, who got fantastic reviews for "Conviction" and surely will earn sympathy notice after being shut out for "Moon" last year. Then there's Guy Pearce, who despite Rush getting all the preconceived worship, was singled out in nearly every review I've read of "The King's Speech". The poor guy's like Gary Oldman 2.0. There's also rising support for Matt Damon in "True Grit", though we'll have to see how it goes. He'll have to be a real charismatic sonuvabitch to steal the buzz from others.

This is truly the year of the paid-dues-actor: Nearly all the contenders for Supporting Actor, with the exception of Geoffrey Rush and Andrew Garfield, have been hailed as "underrated", solid, consistently interesting actors who have held a mix of lead-supporting roles and never gotten any recognition from any of the major award tents.

**** Out of all of the nominees, Bale's is probably the one whose nomination locked was guaranteed from hype levels of epic proportions. I mean, not that many people have even seen it yet. But just about everyone, including the lousy Oscar bloggers, have been chiming about "how he's going to win fo sho" and that he will definitely knock it out of the park based on this little random review from back in March, despite the fact that more mixed reviews came out later. Not be nominated - win. And unbelievably, he did win the NBR award a few days ago, which probably means that he's a lock. I don't believe he'll win, though. Ok, ok, right now it looks as if it's his to lose.

Best Supporting Actress:

*Helena-Bonham Carter - The King's Speech (finalllllly!)

*Jacki Weaver - Animal Kingdom

*Amy Adams - The Fighter

*Melissa Leo - The Fighter

????

This is probably the weakest field yet. All four are locks by default. There are rumors that Lesley Manville may be campaigned for Best Supporting Actress, which would probably succeed, especially since the Best Actress field is getting so crowded. Also: the year of the preteen actress. All the fanboys want Chloe Moretz to be nominated for Kick-Ass (not happening, dudes), and Elle Fanning for Somewhere and Hailee Steinfeld for True Grit shouldn't be ruled out. Peter Travers called Hailee Steinfeld "a star" in his True Grit Twitter rave but obviously, the last thing you want to do is take Peter "Hallelujah" Travers' word for granted. I swear studios should start paying him publicity fees for the amount of buzz he generates from his reviews (which somehow manages to come out weeks before everybody else's).

Updates: Jacki Weaver is definitely a lock, and possibly the frontrunner. Jennifer Lawrence's buzz for Best Actress is getting louder.

FYC: Single-Character Frames!

For Your Consideration ads now coming full max. Man, The Social Network FYC ad is just so cool. Who knew Jesse Eisenberg could be such an effective poster boy? It's just smacks of.....21st century-Michael Corleone-enfant terrible.

The Social Network FYC

The Town FYC

Inception FYC

Black Swan FYC

Web Hit Du Jour: Nicholas Cage Losing His Shit

It's all over the web but I simply have to preserve it in my little cyber-diary here. Behold the sidesplitting glory of Nicholas Cage losing his shit. I nearly lost MY shit after watching this and nearly dying from convulsions of laughter. "KILLING ME WON'T BRING BACK YOUR GODDAMN HONEYYY" It's officially a classic in my family now, having spent the latter part of Thanksgiving reciting this line with my siblings and cousins, though "Imma vampire! Imma vampire!" is a close second.

I want the youtube maker, hh1edits, to make a series out of this. There can be Tom Cruise Freaking Out, Leonardo Dicaprio Crying (to showcase the interchangeability of his emotions), Rebecca Hall Crying, (because she is moving as hell. I have never stayed dry whenever that woman started crying), Natalie Portman Crying (see Dicaprio) Julia Roberts Cackling, and so on and so forth.

Deathly Hallows Part I Thoughts, aka "Petition to Remake The Entire Harry Potter Series, Stat"

It was magical. It was epic, and at times reminded me of Lord of the Rings, but that's a good thing. It's by the most entertaining, alluring, strangely eerie and original of the bunch. They could have done it the easy way out and cut out 3/4 of the time spent in the woods in a desperate attempt to retain our attention, the movie kept my friends and I aware and tuned into the frustration and ennui felt by Harry, Ron, and Hermione during their time in foresty exile. (Btw, did shout-outs to the splendiferous scenery all around. The scene with the stunning cracked-rock cliffs? The camera-work and cinematography? Amazing.) The action scenes were taut, intense, and scared the crap out of the audiences. I definitely jumped a few times. The final scene left us emotional and anticipatory. You could practically hear one long, collective exhale in the theater when it ended.

And yet the one of this movie was SO different. It was just made in an entirely different vein than the other movies. Every Harry Potter movie has its unique stamp from the series' 30943285 different directors, but this version is in a different league, entirely. After watching the last movie, I predicted that the mischievous tone of The Half-Blood Prince's rabble-rousing antics was only to set up for the long, dark journey ahead for the seventh book, and I was right, but this just....rocked me. It was just so personal and strange and quietly sad, in some ways.

In this age where all movies either move at an ADHD "Transformers"-style speed or at an arthouse-style, glacial pace, enchanted with its own languidness, I simply cannot recall the last time the audience sat so absorbed for every little frame, every breath, movement, and tilt of expression. The filmmakers let the movie progress at a pace that felt organic, occasionally slow or jolting, depending on what was happening, but never boring. It took time in carving out its identity, and I seriously applaud David Yates for that kind of ballsiness. My friends and I were pleasantly surprised by the occasional injections of originality and artistic innovation (SPOILERS: the animation sequence used for the Tale of the Three Brothers, the art design for the Ministry, etc.)

There were indeed a couple of weird moments (what's a fantasy movie without one?), but at least they were a bit daring and imaginative, unlike the past weird moments when it was just plain embarrassing. I remember watching the first movie as an excited kid and cringing at the campy cliches, even as a 9-year-old. The first few were just awkward and factory assembled, like these shitty McDonald's Happy Meal plastic trinkets that you liked to toss around for five minutes but acknowledged was complete crap and in time became utterly indifferent to. It took them five movies to get the pacing right, to grow a soul (and a pair of nads) and get the tone of the books correct, but god was it worth it.

They outdid themselves. They made a crowd-pleasing movie that managed to retain its own soul and unique signature at the same time. All of the other movies should have been made this way. In my alternate universe all seven of the movies insofar are as funny, touching, and exciting in its faithfulness to the books, and lovely, strange, and artistically breathtaking in a cinematic form as this adaptation has been. Thank you David Yates and Co. Thankkkkk you for making this Potterphile very happy on Thanksgiving Day.

One of These Days

She should have died hereafter;

There would have been a time for such a word.
To-morrow, and to-morrow, and to-morrow,
Creeps in this petty pace from day to day
To the last syllable of recorded time,
And all our yesterdays have lighted fools
The way to dusty death. Out, out, brief candle!
Life's but a walking shadow, a poor player
That struts and frets his hour upon the stage
And then is heard no more: it is a tale
Told by an idiot, full of sound and fury,
Signifying nothing.

- So trite to have a Shakespeare quote as a post, I know. But I just love this passage and I was thinking about it today.....

For instance, I thought I *was* Hermione Granger.....

It's impossible for me to think of much else while Potter-craze is dominating our lives. I keep thinking over its influence on my generation with such pride - I started reading the books when I was about 7 or 8, and the last book came out when I was 15 - so there you go, a series of books that literally spanned my childhood as I knew it, and I couldn't be grateful for better role models. Who didn't want to be brainy like Hermione, witty and irreverent like Ron, everlastingly kind and sensitive like Harry, with the occasional rivalry or loss of temper (especially when it was in the name of defending your loved ones)? I mean, I see a gang of girls at a movie theater (for 127 hours, unfortunately, not for Harry Potter), and before I can dismiss them as shallow as evidenced by their overly processed appearances, I see a dorky Gryffindor scarf or a drawn-on scar or their shining, eager eyes and I can't help but beam after them like proud parents.

Um, really what I meant to say is, I really love this elegant New York Times review of the seventh movie written by A.O Scott, the first review I've read that's incorporated what Harry Potter has meant to us into the movies' longstanding value, unlike other reviews that's just blathered on about its cinematic merits and production values.

The Cyber Fashion Ecosystem

For the past few years, it's felt like a lot of my fashion whims have received immediate gratification from the mass seasonal trends. I remember once around four years ago, I made a list of certain clothes I wanted and was prepared to hunt down in flea markets, since I was certain they certainly wouldn't be available at the typical shopping mall. A few weeks later, I started looking at the new fall products in Piperlime, and - lo and behold, my coveted items were all over their new fall fashion styles.

I had about a five-minute delusion attack where I fancied myself very prescient about upcoming fashion trends - perhaps all the leaders of the fashion industry and I simultaneously shared the same sparks of inspiration this year! - until reality settled in and it occurred to me that the ever-growing prominence of the grassroots, fashion blog community meant that more and more people were collectively soaking in the cyber-vat of ideas, influences, and inspirations. Undoubtedly, the inspiration I had for a certain style dress, or whimsical vintage object must have been distilled from a selection of fashion/style/couture blogs I read on a weekly basis, which in turn were based on the influences of a thousand other blogs. Osmosis is a wonderful process.

Whether it's two women loving the same outfit from "The Sartorialist", or girl-wunderkind Tavi Gevinson or even a low-profile teenage blogger capturing the attention of a single fashion powerhouse, it's no wonder that it feels like nowadays we're reading each other's minds.

A few influences from this summer that, much to my pleasure, seemed to take to the forefront this fall season:

The Equestrian Look

I was slightly obsessed with equestrian-chic this summer, thanks to Elaine Stritch and a certain movie about Coco Chanel....

And this fall I saw the preponderance of crisp'n'clean equestrian all over the market, including a spread in Vanity Fair that heavily featured the equestrian look in their holiday wish lists. Then there was

The Loose, Sensual, Dreamy-Romantic Look

I watched one of my favorites, The Virgin Suicides on a repeat this summer and was continually struck by the clothes, which were schoolgirlish but also had a touch of the ahem, virginal, and coyly erotic. Looking around my college campus and the pages of The Sartorialist, it seems like we've moved from the minimalist, straight-cut lines of the early 2000s to a more whimsical desire to play with movement and form.

American Apparel seems to be playing heavily off this theme in their campaigns, anyways, albeit a bit more heavily suggestive:

Dad's Oversized/80's Patterned Sweater

This trend has definitely been percolating for a few years but I feel like it's hit full blast this year. My dad's oversized green sweater gained notice in my school's hallways last year, and my friend raided the male closets in her own house and emerged with an oversized rugby shirt and a sweater vest that somehow looked appealingly charming when paired with more feminine clothes.

This summer, I just fell in love with Anna Kendrick's strawberry sweater in "Rocket Science". I think it was the combination of its dorkiness, her severely cut hair, strict collar, and a contradictory accessory that changed the entire image - a cigarette.

Not that I condone smoking, but as one of my favorite film bloggers pointed out, smoking will look eternally cool onscreen. Her look is so very Margot Tenenbaum-ish.

And of course, particular sweaters have been making a comeback - chunky ones, Fair Isle, dorky. Below: A divine sweater from Emma Watson's People Tree collection - chunky AND Fair Isle! Want it so much, but lately I've been trying to avoid products that require shipping as a personal eco-friendly initiative.

Overall, I'd observe that this season has really New England-heavy - not faux-preppy, like the burst of Gossip-Girl inspired plaid and horrible bowties we saw a few years ago, and not obnoxious Lacoste preppy either - true New England, with bean boots and hunting/equestrian related clothes - both practical and strangely chic and charming if done right.

JANE EYRE TRAILER OUT!

Stunning trailer, and I have a feeling that this will be the long-awaited definitive version of Jane Eyre. It's directed by Cary Fukunaga, his second feature after the critically acclaimed debut "Sin Nombre" (which just entered my Netflix queue). Observations after the jump...

1:52: I love that wide-shot angle of Jane being restrained. In-tense. 1:44 A hint of the supernatural! Love it. The novel continually references ghosts and goblins, elves and corpses, so I'm glad they included it in the film's tone. 1:40 Sally Hawkins is too gentle-looking for Mrs. Reed but I'm sure she will kick ass. She is ubiquitous nowadays, btw. 1:18 Mr. Rochester!!!! 1:11 His manner is very brusque. Excellent. I never liked Toby Stephen's oily delivery in the 2006 miniseries. :56 Sexual tension, um, yes. Pause to fan myself. :49 Blanche Ingram admittedly does not look like a statuesque goddess. She looks like a brunette Taylor Momsen. :38 Jane gets all feisty at Mr. Rochester. I hope it will be a continuous theme throughout the movie instead of that one obligatory explosion as all past adaptations have seen it. Don't forget her sauciness! :31 Michael Fassbender has a nicer ass than I do and I resent him for it. :21 Jamie Bell!!! :20 More kissing, yay. The novel has always been absolutely sexy despite its demureness. :19 Love, love Mia's gaze flickering upwards. It would have been criminal to under-use those expansive eyes. Also at :19 Bertha, ouch. :16 That shot of the fire is very dream-like... :11 What is with his eyes??

The first moments of the trailer featuring Jane's childhood is really quite intense and creepy-psychological isn't it? It could have been made into a separate movie about children at a mental institution.

The trailer is a bit jarring because it jumps awkwardly between the scary-action scenes ("I know what I saw!" "It must have been half-dream, half-reality") to romantic premise ("Miss Ingram is a great favorite of his!"). Nevertheless, I'm so happy that the desires I expressed in my other Jane Eyre blog post for the adaptation came true. The trailer made it clear that this is first and foremost a portrait of Jane, NOT Mr. Rochester, and promises to amp up the gothic tone/intensity of the novel as well. While reading other blogs' take on the trailer, I saw titles like Bright Star and the 2006 Keira Knightley version of Pride and Prejudice being mentioned, and I'm sure both were influential. Each individual shot is a stunner and will definitely service the story in its own way. The shot of the beetle crawling over the book page was particularly creepy. Mia Wasikowska and Michael Fassbender seem perfect together and she is almost exactly how I pictured Jane.

SO excited.

Stare at the screencaps of these lovely shots over at My New Plaid Pants.

Everything Harry Potter

Ok, it's only six days until the release of part 1 of "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows", and even though I won't be able to attend the midnight release :(, I am so, so gratified that so many people I know are planning to. I even saw someone on Facebook wondering on his status if anyone would be willing to see a 3:20 AM showing with him (they have 3 AM showings??).

The last few weeks have really seen a revival of Harry Potter-related culture re-saturation, and of course, I could not be happier. To celebrate Harry Potter is to celebrate all things magical, real or not, to celebrate sincerity, geekiness, humor, and friendship.

It seems to me that the Harry Potter fanbase differs from every other pop culture phenomenon, namely Twilight and Star Wars, because being even the most hardcore Harry Potter fan doesn't imply detachment from normal life. I may just be tooting my own horn here, but I believe it. Twi-hards and Star Wars are generally viewed as introverts who are out of touch with reality and deal with the outside world by retreating into an imaginary one. They're usually bunched into constituencies of overweight teenage girls, sad-sack housewives, and nerdy sex-deprived males (of all ages). But you'll find a Harry Potter fan anywhere. It probably has the most evenly distributed demographic of fans in the world. Boys and girls, readers and non-readers, cool kids and nerds.

The smartest girl I know is a Harry Potter devotee, as is another friend, this one a hipster socialite. Ironically, the most pathetic people I know have never had any interest in the series or "understand" it. That kind of says it all.

So in celebration of all things Harry Potter, I've embedded videos of everything Harry Potter-related going on right now. I could also post a picture of myself dressed as a Gryffindor (albeit a bit on the skanky side) from Halloween, but I'll desist for now.

The Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows World Premiere in London

We've all seen the trailer, so here's the premiere video. First time I've seen Ralph Fiennes show up at one of these things, and eloquent in his brevity as always when observing the crowd: "It's the power of a good story". Heart. My friend at Princeton skipped studying for a chem test just to watch videos of Tom Felton.

Darren Criss performing "Teenage Dream" on Glee

Youtube catapults another worthy viral performer into actual stardom after Darren Criss, who got famous from writing, singing, and performing the jaw-droppingly awesome and hilarious "A Very Potter Musical" at the University of Michigan landed a guest spot on Glee. Two things happened: The world realized that Darren Criss was a charming and talented mofo, and "Teenage Dream" became Glee's best-selling song in history within a week. And hopefully, the woefully under-watched musical gained more exposure.

The Quidditch World Cup Promo

Coming to New York soon! How far will two Seekers go in order to capture the Snitch and win a Quidditch match.....through the entire city with a broomstick between their legs. I love how ripped the Slytherin seeker is, how nobody in Grand Central seems to notice the person wearing a gold lame bodysuit and wings, and I love the sequence of them in Central Park. It's amazingly funny.

The news that JK Rowling is open to writing more books set in the Wizarding world, as long as it doesn't feature Harry Potter and the old gang, which I completely agree with. Their youth was essential to the series' magic and I know how jarring it was for many people to witness Harry and his friends all grown-up in the epilogue. But why lay the beautifully-constructed world to rest?

http://shelf-life.ew.com/2010/11/12/j-k-rowling-more-harry-potter-books-on-the-way/

And finally, an HP-related Facebook status trend...

Put this as your status if someone you knew was killed by Lord Voldemort. As everyone knows, being killed by Avada Kedavra, having your soul sucked out by a dementor, or getting petrified by a basilisk is a truly tragic fate for anyone, muggle or wizard. 93% of people won't copy and paste this. Will you make this your status to spread awareness of this growing threat?

Love forever. Literally. My descendants will read the books and cherish them (I don't really care what happens to the movies) until the end of this world as we know it.

The Problem

It's so easy for young cynical teenagers fresh off World History class or rock metal or Neitzsche or whatever hip groovy materials they're absorbing to claim that Christianity is the root of all problems. The problem is certainly not Christianity per se. The problem is people's bewildering need to inflexibly, unreasonably, and infallibly adhere to a single source that they view as transcendent and/or worthy of reverence. It can be the Bible, or it can be the Founding Fathers of our country. It can be the power of our scientific technology or our still-limited knowledge of the universe. Either way, I think such unyielding belief in anything man-made is silly at best and an obstruction to adaptability and open thinking.

Casting Case: The Great Gatsby

Baz Luhrmann is supposedly arranging workshops for his possible future project, "The Great Gatsby", the news of which just made me roll my eyes skeptically because he's someone who's obviously more visually gifted than he is in terms of telling an effective or nuanced story. His movies, "Moulin Rouge", "Australia", "Romeo + Juliet" are all about the razzle-dazzle and elaborate screensets. I'm really afraid that he's drawn to "The Great Gatsby" for the allure of rollicking 20's decadence and operatic mansion parties, instead of the magnificent quiet power of its literary genius. I'd really prefer someone like Stephen Daldry behind this, one with a dab hand for acting and dialogue.

To add further insult, Luhrmann has supposedly workshopped the movie with Tobey Maguire, Leonardo Dicaprio, and Rebecca Hall. Ok. Ok. Ok. I just have so many issues with each individual choice, I don't even know where to begin. Firstly, at least kudos to the producers for considering a brunette actress for Daisy. Most people forget that Daisy, like all of Fitzgerald's muses, is a brunette, not a blonde. But if he's casting Rebecca Hall for her trademark traits - shy, English-rose loveliness and inner refinement - then he doesn't get the character at all. A wide misconception that's far worse than Daisy's hair color is who the character is supposed to be. Despite her elegance, easy manners, and captivating charisma that makes her such a prize for men like Tom Buchanan and Gatsby, Daisy is not a fundamentally refined person. That's what Nick Carraway has always known about it, and what Gatsby finally, fatally realizes. "He must have found what a grotesque thing a rose is." Daisy is a china teapot - just as pretty and effervescent, and just as empty. When you look at Rebecca Hall, she's the epitome of everything Daisy isn't - soulful and serene, a total class act through and through. Daisy isn't any of these qualities. She's fickle, disloyal, vain, shallow, and careless. A callous flirt. The source of her magnetic power stems from the false confidence she feeds from her loveliness and a lifetime of privilege and wealth. Think about how easily she breaks when Tom and Gatsby finally demand that she choose one of them. Like I said, just like a teapot.

So no. The idea that Daisy is much more than a charming, pretty girl is one of the most repetitive fails in movie history. Mia Farrow? Mira Sorvino? So gentle and sweet! So wrong for Daisy. They need to cast Daisy essentially in the same mode as Zelda Fitzgerald - that's who Daisy is based off, after all. I think Keira Knightley is a good choice, not just because her career has stemmed mostly from her ability to look good in period-wear, but because aside from actually playing Zelda in a future adaptation of The Beautiful and the Damned, I think Keira Knightley's onscreen persona closely resembles what I think of Daisy - they're both stunning and precocious women, with that je ne se quais casual air of entitlement that's natural for someone who's practically aristocratic - but with a hint of vulgarity underneath. Whenever I watch a character of hers, like the Duchess of Devonshire or Cecilia Tallis, I never come away with a admirable impression. There's always a languidness to her movements that suggests a flexibility in moral character, something about her infamously pursed lips that suggest flirtation or smugness, etc. End line, I think whoever they consider for the role of Daisy should be more Keira and less Rebecca Hall. Keira Knightley is so indisputably beautiful to look at, but she would also be able to arouse the audience's disdain for her, as Daisy does in the book.

Daisy: Rachel McAdams

I think Rachel McAdams would be appropriate - she's just so good at portraying indecisiveness. A lot of her characters are always fluctuating; soulful or shallow, love or hate, and she always does it so beautifully. The scene that comes to mind is when she tries to leave Ryan Gosling in "The Notebook" after their seven-years-later reunion, and she's crying in the car as she drives away. You hate her for leaving and yet you feel her anguish and conflict of feelings. Also, she managed to convince us that infidelity is true love in that movie.

She has an incredible ability to bring sympathy and understanding to the most selfish and superficial of characters (Regina George of "Mean Girls" is another great example). She would totally get my vote - these qualities would be essential for a convincing Daisy.

**My theory is that she's one of the greatest criers in recent acting history. She does all this bitchy and shallow stuff, but then a single tear of pathos and longing fills her eye, and then you're hers for the rest of eternity.

Jordan: Michelle Williams

And for some weird reason, I feel like Michelle Williams would do a really good Daisy as well. I'm thinking of a cross between her glamour puss Edie Sedgewick-proxy in "I'm Not There" and every other heartbreakingly vulnerable character she does...my only problem with her as an actress is this quality of detachment and dourness she always has. But for the next best role she could be Jordan. Michelle Williams just needs to be in bigger movies, period, and that little fashionista would probably rock 20's wear to pieces. But is she capable of frothy and fun?

As for Tobey Maguire, do I even need to say anything? Nick Carraway is already notoriously tricky to cast since he's basically a narrative vehicle for the audience - and Luhrmann wants to compensate for that by casting a complete charisma vacuum like Maguire? He seriously thinks it's a good idea to subject the audience to Maguire's dead eyes and dead droning voice for two hours? Tsk tsk.

Nick: Andrew Garfield

Someone on an IMDB thread mentioned Andrew Garfield, and I thought it was an excellent suggestion. For once, Garfield is actually more of the right age than Maguire, even more so when they get around to shooting. It is important to note that everyone in "The Great Gatsby" is under 30 - I think the extreme youth of the characters is very underrated element. It's part of an emerging American theme, most recently manifested in "The Social Network" - kids who got rich too fast too soon; smart enough to make money but lacking in the necessary qualities to manage it. Nick is 29 in the book, as is Tom, and Gatsby is presumably the same age. Daisy is 23, as I recall, and Jordan 21. Andrew Garfield is 27 right now, so he's totally the appropriate age, and would handle his character's job well, which is to arouse natural sympathy and be a nonjudgemental moral ballast for the rest of characters. He's someone you can easily imagine being everyone's confidante because he's so easily likeable and upstanding. *Ha! The irony of replacing Tobey Maguire with his Spiderman successor just hit me.

And Leonardo Dicaprio. Well obviously I hate him and all that. He specializes in artificial loud-mouth intensity, so I don't know how that's more wrong for Gatsby. He's a dreamer, and Dicaprio is just too....solid and practical for Gatsby, I suppose. In fact, I'd say Dicaprio would make a better Tom Buchanan - he's actually too confident for Gatsby. Gatsby's like the opposite of Daisy in some ways - at heart he's actually a very good, meek guy who has both insecurity and optimism in spades - but he tries way too hard to acquire that sort of effortless elegance and ease that Tom and Daisy both have. Gatsby is only mysterious because he deliberately shrouds himself in isolation and hearsay, but as a individual, he fails to have any real influence over anyone who actually matters. No one ends up being convinced by his flashy persona, not Nick or Tom or any of the partygoers who can't even be bothered to show up to his funeral. Back in his hometown he'd be the shizzle fo sho, but standing upright next to the ultimate blue-blood Tom Buchanan, Gatsby just wilts.

Gatsby is basically F Scott Fitzgerald Fitzgerald incarnate. So the conclusion is, if the producers should cast for Daisy like they're casting for Zelda, they should cast for Gatsby as if they'd cast for Fitzgerald. So I went to IMDB to see who would be playing Scott in the aforementioned production of "The Beautiful and the Damned" with Keira Knightley - and alas, no one seems to be cast yet. The movie's one piece of trivia did mention that "Leonardo Dicaprio was supposedly rumored for the role of F Scott Fitzgerald." GAHHHHH. The universe is totally against me.

Either way, I really can't think of who could play Gatsby. There's no way they'd go with an unknown actor though; not everyone can be David Fincher and just create three or four new stars within the span of a single movie.

Tom Buchanan: Armie Hammer/Tom Hardy

Actually, I really just want half the cast of "The Social Network" to be in another Great American movie. Rooney Mara can play Jordan, or if she can even play Daisy if she's really harboring that unseen reservoir of edgy talent that Fincher claims she does. Andrew Garfield can be Nick and Armie Hammer can be Tom Buchanan. He'd be perfect for it, too. Tom Hardy would also be a good choice for Buchanan, since being a cocky badass is like a contractual requirement for each of his roles. It would be totally believable that anyone would choose that sturdy mass over even a long-lost childhood love who's pined over you for five years.

Jay Gatsby but not really: Ben Whishaw

After some thought, I realized that this is one of those times when I wish Ben Whishaw was thirty pounds heavier and a bit stockier - i.e. normal-sized, because Whishaw's two trademarks are 1) wistful romantic sincerity and 2) nervous inadequacy, both of which fit Gatsby to a T. There's always something so heartbreaking, valiant, and/or pathetic about the various characters Whishaw portrays. If only he wasn't so slight and fragile-looking....

Ben from "Brideshead Revisited", center. And he looks so dapper in 20's garb, too.....sigh.....