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HAYWIRE (Steven Soderbergh)
by Le Anne Lindsay I read that Steven Soderbergh was looking to make a more beautiful, stylistic action film in the vein of the classic James Bond film From Russia With Love or the Michael Caine thriller Funeral in Berlin when he set about to make Haywire. His other inspiration was professional mixed martial arts fighter Gina Carano: Soderbergh was flipping between channels late one night and stumbled onto one of Carano’s fights. “I see Gina coming out. She’s got the cornrows; she’s got the warrior affect. I thought, ‘Wow, that’s interesting.’ She destroyed this woman in a cage, and I just hadn’t seen anything like this before,” he said.…
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Commentary – EVERYTHING MUST GO
Everyone wants to talk about the fact that Will Ferrell has done a film that's such a departure from his comic origins. But I don't really get all the fuss; it's common knowledge that comedy is far more difficult to do than drama and that behind every funny man, lurks a Pagliacci.
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83rd Oscar Wrap Up and Bryn Mawr Film Institute Oscar Party
by Le Anne Lindsay, Editor This excellent Oscar ice sculpture greeted the guests at the 3rd Annual Oscar Party and Simulcast at The Bryn Mawr Film Institute. After which you had the choice of mingling in the lobby or mingling upstairs where the silent auction was taking place, and more importantly where a flat screen TV was set to Academy Awards red carpet! As happy as I was to receive press credentials and to be a part of this gathering of enthusiastic film-goers. I really missed being at home glued to my TV for every fashion moment on the red carpet. I did happen to catch Mila Kunis resplendent in…
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The Philadelphia Story (1940) – PFS Filmadelphia Classic
On Wednesday PFS presented The Philadelphia Story (click link for blog post on this film by legendary director Peter Bogdanovich) as the first Filmadelphia Classic of the new season. The Philadelphia Story used to be one of my very favorite film from the age of 12 to about 16 or so. My younger sister and I used to watched it quite often; thinking on it now, we must have been rather sophisticated kids, as its themes and dialogue would seem to have been over our heads. We never really discussed why we liked the movie so much; yes, we were in love with Cary Grant, but Houseboat or That Touch…
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Commentary – True Grit, The Tourist, How Do You Know
I never liked John Wayne. His tough as nails, “The Duke” appeal never found resonance with me. The only Western I ever liked was Kenny Rogers in The Gambler. Yet, I can honestly say, I was very taken in by The Coen Brother’s remake of True Grit. I don’t know if the original movie had such bombastic and articulate dialogue, or hilarious statements of the obvious, but this artfulness was a good part of this movie’s appeal for me. It’s also less shoot’em up and more road comedy. Jeff Bridges is a hoot as one-eyed Rooster Cogburn and new comer, Hailee Steinfeld, Mattie Ross, puts the truth in True Grit.…
