Mickey Cottrell, the dependable Hollywood publicist who went to bat for independent films for decades while also dabbling in acting and producing, has died. He was 79.
Cottrell died on New Year’s Day at the Motion Picture & Television Country House and Hospital in Woodland Hills, his friend Ian Birnie, former Lacma film curator, told The Hollywood Reporter. He suffered a major stroke in 2016.
Cottrell did PR for three Gus Van Sant-directed films: Drugstore Cowboy (1989), My Own Private Idaho (1991), where he also played the clean freak Daddy Carroll in the movie, and Even Cowgirls Get the Blues (1993).
He also repped Bagdad Cafe (1987), Earth Girls Are Easy (1987), Phillip Noyce’s Dead Calm (1989), Tarnation (2003), Ballets Russes (2005), The Price of Sugar (2007), Skin (2008), Bill Cunningham New York (2010), Salt (2010) and Tab Hunter Confidential (2015), among many other films.
Films and filmmakers he represented were honored with eight Sundance jury prizes and three Oscars, he once noted.
Cottrell died on New Year’s Day at the Motion Picture & Television Country House and Hospital in Woodland Hills, his friend Ian Birnie, former Lacma film curator, told The Hollywood Reporter. He suffered a major stroke in 2016.
Cottrell did PR for three Gus Van Sant-directed films: Drugstore Cowboy (1989), My Own Private Idaho (1991), where he also played the clean freak Daddy Carroll in the movie, and Even Cowgirls Get the Blues (1993).
He also repped Bagdad Cafe (1987), Earth Girls Are Easy (1987), Phillip Noyce’s Dead Calm (1989), Tarnation (2003), Ballets Russes (2005), The Price of Sugar (2007), Skin (2008), Bill Cunningham New York (2010), Salt (2010) and Tab Hunter Confidential (2015), among many other films.
Films and filmmakers he represented were honored with eight Sundance jury prizes and three Oscars, he once noted.
- 1/2/2024
- by Mike Barnes
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
On July 25th, 1990, as Roseanne Barr and Tom Arnold flew high above Jack Murphy Stadium, the San Diego Padres waited to face the Cincinnati Reds in the last of a four-game homestand. But before they would take the field, they would be graced with the presence of one of TV’s biggest stars performing the American National Anthem, “The Star-Spangled Banner.” As the helicopter neared, Arnold looked over the crowd of more than 25,000 and tried to convince his wife that maybe this wasn’t such a good idea. Soon before the first pitch, Roseanne belted her take on Francis Scott Key’s anthem, spit on the field and grabbed her crotch. It would be her most controversial moment…until decades later…
Let’s find out: Wtf Happened to…Roseanne Barr?
But to truly understand what the fuck happened to Roseanne Barr, we go back to the beginning. And the beginning...
Let’s find out: Wtf Happened to…Roseanne Barr?
But to truly understand what the fuck happened to Roseanne Barr, we go back to the beginning. And the beginning...
- 6/16/2023
- by Mathew Plale
- JoBlo.com
There is a scene in Midland: The Sonic Ranch, a new documentary about the unexpected formation and success of the country music trio Midland, in which future bandmates Mark Wystrach and Cameron Duddy argue about the proper emphasis of the word “although” in a song lyric.
“Make ‘although’ two words,” Duddy, from the control room, instructs Wystrach in the vocal booth. “Put a beat in between.”
Wystrach, out of sight, doesn’t quite follow. “Dude, slow down,” he says. “What are the two words?”
“‘All’ and ‘though,'” Duddy replies,...
“Make ‘although’ two words,” Duddy, from the control room, instructs Wystrach in the vocal booth. “Put a beat in between.”
Wystrach, out of sight, doesn’t quite follow. “Dude, slow down,” he says. “What are the two words?”
“‘All’ and ‘though,'” Duddy replies,...
- 3/19/2021
- by Joseph Hudak
- Rollingstone.com
Country trio Midland will return to their beginnings in a new documentary and companion soundtrack album. Midland: The Sonic Ranch reveals the trio of Mark Wystrach, Jess Carson, and Cameron Duddy coming together for the first time and figuring out their signature mix of country that splices together Bakersfield, George Strait, Gary Stewart, and Urban Cowboy.
Before their official formation as a group, Wystrach and Carson reconnected at their mutual friend Duddy’s wedding in Wyoming. They decided to go to Sonic Ranch near El Paso, Texas, and see what...
Before their official formation as a group, Wystrach and Carson reconnected at their mutual friend Duddy’s wedding in Wyoming. They decided to go to Sonic Ranch near El Paso, Texas, and see what...
- 3/3/2021
- by Jon Freeman
- Rollingstone.com
In the span of one year, Toby Emmerich ascended to the chairman role at Warner Bros. Picture Group, shepherded the studio’s record-breaking slate at the worldwide box office, and was selected as the latest recipient of the PGA’s Milestone Award, a kudo that has previously gone to execs including Donna Langley and Robert Iger.
Among the big hits released under Emmerich’s watch last year: “Aquaman,” “A Star Is Born” and “Crazy Rich Asians.” Bradley Cooper’s “A Star Is Born” is racking up awards season recognition, while “Crazy Rich Asians” defied Hollywood expectations for a movie with an all-Asian cast.
“You cannot get too caught up in other people’s perceptions of success or failure,” Emmerich says. “And you shouldn’t allow yourself to be cowed when you do fail. Striking out is part of the game. But you have to play to win, and you rarely...
Among the big hits released under Emmerich’s watch last year: “Aquaman,” “A Star Is Born” and “Crazy Rich Asians.” Bradley Cooper’s “A Star Is Born” is racking up awards season recognition, while “Crazy Rich Asians” defied Hollywood expectations for a movie with an all-Asian cast.
“You cannot get too caught up in other people’s perceptions of success or failure,” Emmerich says. “And you shouldn’t allow yourself to be cowed when you do fail. Striking out is part of the game. But you have to play to win, and you rarely...
- 1/18/2019
- by Todd Gilchrist
- Variety Film + TV
Dakota Johnson looked relaxed Af while on the beach in Miami on Sunday. The Fifty Shades Darker star sported a white one-piece swimsuit and backward cap, cold drink and book in hand, while vacationing with friends; it appears that Dakota is reading the 1976 Tom Robbins novel Even Cowgirls Get the Blues, which was made into a movie of the same name in 1993. Related:Dakota Johnson's Road From Hollywood Offspring to Fifty Shades of Fabulous Dakota is likely enjoying a much-needed break after she and her costar Jamie Dornan swept the globe to promote Fifty Shades Darker in February. The third installment in the series, Fifty Shades Freed, is in postproduction and will be hitting theaters in February 2018, right on schedule for Valentine's Day.
- 4/3/2017
- by Brittney Stephens
- Popsugar.com
Update: The two-time Oscar-nominated British star of The Elephant Man and Midnight Express has died, his publicist confirmed to Screen on Friday night. He was 77.
Hurt was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer in 2015 and continued to work after it appeared he had overcome the disease. However last summer he withdrew from the stage revival of The Entertainer upon the advice of his doctors. According to his publicist Hurt had intestinal issues when he died.
He recently played a priest in the Natalie Portman starrer Jackie and was in the cast of Joe Wright’s upcoming Second World War drama Darkest Hour for Working Title and Focus Features.
His wife Anwen Rees-Myers issued the following statement: “It is with deep sadness that I have to confirm that my husband, John Vincent Hurt, died on Wednesday 25th January 2017 at home in Norfolk.
“John was the most sublime of actors and the most gentlemanly of gentlemen with the greatest of hearts...
Hurt was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer in 2015 and continued to work after it appeared he had overcome the disease. However last summer he withdrew from the stage revival of The Entertainer upon the advice of his doctors. According to his publicist Hurt had intestinal issues when he died.
He recently played a priest in the Natalie Portman starrer Jackie and was in the cast of Joe Wright’s upcoming Second World War drama Darkest Hour for Working Title and Focus Features.
His wife Anwen Rees-Myers issued the following statement: “It is with deep sadness that I have to confirm that my husband, John Vincent Hurt, died on Wednesday 25th January 2017 at home in Norfolk.
“John was the most sublime of actors and the most gentlemanly of gentlemen with the greatest of hearts...
- 1/28/2017
- by jeremykay67@gmail.com (Jeremy Kay)
- ScreenDaily
Ma director Celia Rowlson-Hall with Anne-Katrin Titze, editor Iva Radivojevic and Dp Ian Bloom at IFC Center Photo: Ed Bahlman
A quintet comprised of Lena Dunham, Hailey Benton Gates, Durga Chew-Bose, Siobhan Burke, and myself moderated the post-screening discussions for Celia Rowlson-Hall's American fairy tale Ma on its opening weekend in New York.
Ma stars Rowlson-Hall with a terrific speechless supporting cast including Andrew Pastides, Amy Seimetz, Jason Kittelberger, Neal Bledsoe, Matt Lauria, Kentucker Audley, Peter Vack, William Connell, George McArthur, and Bobbi Jene Smith. In the tradition of Claudette Colbert in Frank Capra's It Happened One Night or Uma Thurman thumbing a ride in Gus Van Sant's Even Cowgirls Get The Blues, a modern-day Virgin Mary hitchhikes across the Southwest, ultimately arriving in Las Vegas where she meets Nevada showgirls and a tiny singing Queen Victoria lookalike.
Celia Rowlson-Hall: "I really wanted to tell an American story.
A quintet comprised of Lena Dunham, Hailey Benton Gates, Durga Chew-Bose, Siobhan Burke, and myself moderated the post-screening discussions for Celia Rowlson-Hall's American fairy tale Ma on its opening weekend in New York.
Ma stars Rowlson-Hall with a terrific speechless supporting cast including Andrew Pastides, Amy Seimetz, Jason Kittelberger, Neal Bledsoe, Matt Lauria, Kentucker Audley, Peter Vack, William Connell, George McArthur, and Bobbi Jene Smith. In the tradition of Claudette Colbert in Frank Capra's It Happened One Night or Uma Thurman thumbing a ride in Gus Van Sant's Even Cowgirls Get The Blues, a modern-day Virgin Mary hitchhikes across the Southwest, ultimately arriving in Las Vegas where she meets Nevada showgirls and a tiny singing Queen Victoria lookalike.
Celia Rowlson-Hall: "I really wanted to tell an American story.
- 1/17/2017
- by Anne-Katrin Titze
- eyeforfilm.co.uk
A film that explores the suicide theme might have become the first Croisette casualty, hara-kiri style. He has had a lengthy, healthy career moving between micro indie and studio projects, Sea of Trees follows in the footsteps of Milk, Restless (Un Certain Regard selection) and Promised Land. Palme d’Or winner back in 2003 for Elephant, Gus Van Sant‘s fourth film to appear in the Main Competition got an early screening the day before, and the response is reminiscent of how Even Cowgirls Get the Blues was critically received. Starring Matthew McConaughey who plays an American who travels to Japan’s “suicide forest” after the death of his wife (Naomi Watts) this also features Ken Watanabe.
Check back with us twice daily for the latest grades and make sure to click on the grid below for a larger version.
Check back with us twice daily for the latest grades and make sure to click on the grid below for a larger version.
- 5/16/2015
- by Eric Lavallee
- IONCINEMA.com
Whoopi Goldberg will have plenty of time to enjoy The View this fall: ABC has passed on her half-hour comedy pilot Delores & Jermaine, TVLine has learned.
RelatedPilot Season ’15: Scoop on This Fall’s (Possible) New Shows, Who’s In Them
The multi-cam project — based on the real-life experiences of comedian Jermaine Fowler — followed a millennial (played by Fowler) with big ideas, but very little drive. He moves in with his estranged grandmother (Goldberg), a strict, football-loving, former D.C. cop who needs his youthful enthusiasm in her life as much as he needs her old-school parenting.
Fowler and Danny Chun (Trophy Wife,...
RelatedPilot Season ’15: Scoop on This Fall’s (Possible) New Shows, Who’s In Them
The multi-cam project — based on the real-life experiences of comedian Jermaine Fowler — followed a millennial (played by Fowler) with big ideas, but very little drive. He moves in with his estranged grandmother (Goldberg), a strict, football-loving, former D.C. cop who needs his youthful enthusiasm in her life as much as he needs her old-school parenting.
Fowler and Danny Chun (Trophy Wife,...
- 5/7/2015
- TVLine.com
Almost a year to the day that Once Upon a Time surpised viewers with a parting glimpse of Queen Elsa, the ABC series this Sunday will uncork another top-secret season-ending scene.
But unlike a year ago, this filmed-in-secrecy twist won’t introduce any familiar fairy tale face but a different kind of surprise element, one that will have repercussions for Season 5.
PhotosMay Sweeps/Finale Preview! Get 100+ Spoilers for Once Upon a Time and Other Shows
“There is a top-secret scene that I’m shocked hasn’t got out — but there’s still time!” Once co-creator Eddy Kitsis tells TVLine with a knowing laugh.
But unlike a year ago, this filmed-in-secrecy twist won’t introduce any familiar fairy tale face but a different kind of surprise element, one that will have repercussions for Season 5.
PhotosMay Sweeps/Finale Preview! Get 100+ Spoilers for Once Upon a Time and Other Shows
“There is a top-secret scene that I’m shocked hasn’t got out — but there’s still time!” Once co-creator Eddy Kitsis tells TVLine with a knowing laugh.
- 5/6/2015
- TVLine.com
It’s time to hit pause on the time jumps and get all hands (including maybe a brand-new one?) on deck, as seen in these exclusive photos from Thursday’s Grey’s Anatomy (ABC, 8/7c).
RelatedGrey’s Anatomy: Patrick Dempsey Leaves ‘Grateful and Humbled'; Ep Shonda Rhimes Talks Unimaginable Loss, Teases ‘New Chapter’ for Show
In this season’s penultimate episode, “Time Stops,” Amelia unloads on Meredith, having kept pent up for nearly a year — due to her sis-in-law’s Awol status — her true feelings about the handling of Derek’s critical, ultimately fatal car crash injuries.
The face-off might be short-lived,...
RelatedGrey’s Anatomy: Patrick Dempsey Leaves ‘Grateful and Humbled'; Ep Shonda Rhimes Talks Unimaginable Loss, Teases ‘New Chapter’ for Show
In this season’s penultimate episode, “Time Stops,” Amelia unloads on Meredith, having kept pent up for nearly a year — due to her sis-in-law’s Awol status — her true feelings about the handling of Derek’s critical, ultimately fatal car crash injuries.
The face-off might be short-lived,...
- 5/6/2015
- TVLine.com
Disney Channel will be very timey-wimey on Friday, June 26, when the original movie Teen Beach 2 and a new time-travel sitcom make their bows.
RelatedDisney Channel’s Jessie Spinoff Gets Title, Camp-y Premise
In the Teen Beach Movie follow-up, Mack and Brady (played by The Fosters‘ Maia Mitchell and Austin & Ally‘s Ross Lynch) find their school year interrupted by the arrival of “Wet Side Story” pals Lela and Tanner (Grace Phipps and Garrett Clayton), accompanied by their circa-1960s biker and surfer friends.
Teen Beach 2 will be available to Watch Disney Channel users on June 19, arrive on DVD June 26, and hit iTunes,...
RelatedDisney Channel’s Jessie Spinoff Gets Title, Camp-y Premise
In the Teen Beach Movie follow-up, Mack and Brady (played by The Fosters‘ Maia Mitchell and Austin & Ally‘s Ross Lynch) find their school year interrupted by the arrival of “Wet Side Story” pals Lela and Tanner (Grace Phipps and Garrett Clayton), accompanied by their circa-1960s biker and surfer friends.
Teen Beach 2 will be available to Watch Disney Channel users on June 19, arrive on DVD June 26, and hit iTunes,...
- 5/6/2015
- TVLine.com
It’s the dramatic showdown four seasons — and two faked deaths — in the making: Amanda Clarke and Victoria Grayson will come to blows for the last time on Sunday’s Revenge finale (ABC, 10/9c).
RelatedRevenge Ep Explains Victoria’s Return, Talks Emily’s Series Finale ‘Reckoning’
But which Hamptonite will be left standing? Based solely on the above clip, in which an emotionally rattled Amanda fires a gun at her arch nemesis from an extremely short distance, most betting men would put their money on good ol’ Mandy.
Then again, this show — especially in its final season — is famous for throwing curveballs at us,...
RelatedRevenge Ep Explains Victoria’s Return, Talks Emily’s Series Finale ‘Reckoning’
But which Hamptonite will be left standing? Based solely on the above clip, in which an emotionally rattled Amanda fires a gun at her arch nemesis from an extremely short distance, most betting men would put their money on good ol’ Mandy.
Then again, this show — especially in its final season — is famous for throwing curveballs at us,...
- 5/6/2015
- TVLine.com
Nearly every night for the last week or so, Nashville‘s Charles Esten has tuned his guitar, stepped into the spotlight and lived the dream.
As part of the ABC series’ second live tour, which kicked off April 29 in New York, the actor performs several of his own compositions — some of which happen also to be Deacon’s. For a longtime songwriter who only recently has had tunes embraced by the public, watching people sing along with his lyrics is a heady thing, he says.
“It’s been one of the highlights this year for me to get to do...
As part of the ABC series’ second live tour, which kicked off April 29 in New York, the actor performs several of his own compositions — some of which happen also to be Deacon’s. For a longtime songwriter who only recently has had tunes embraced by the public, watching people sing along with his lyrics is a heady thing, he says.
“It’s been one of the highlights this year for me to get to do...
- 5/6/2015
- TVLine.com
From a crazy early Nic Cage role to a lesser-known film starring Robert De Niro, here's our pick of 25 underappreciated films from 1989...
Ah, 1989. The year the Berlin Wall came down and Yugoslavia won the Eurovision Song Contest. It was also a big year for film, with Indiana Jones And The Last Crusade topping the box office and Batman dominating the summer with its inescapable marketing blitz.
Outside the top 10 highest-grossing list, which included Back To The Future II, Dead Poets Society and Honey I Shrunk The Kids, 1989 also included a plethora of less commonly-appreciated films. Some were big in their native countries but only received a limited release in the Us and UK. Others were poorly received but have since been reassessed as cult items.
From comedies to thrillers, here's our pick of 25 underappreciated films from the end of the 80s...
25. An Innocent Man
Disney, through its Touchstone banner, had high hopes for this thriller,...
Ah, 1989. The year the Berlin Wall came down and Yugoslavia won the Eurovision Song Contest. It was also a big year for film, with Indiana Jones And The Last Crusade topping the box office and Batman dominating the summer with its inescapable marketing blitz.
Outside the top 10 highest-grossing list, which included Back To The Future II, Dead Poets Society and Honey I Shrunk The Kids, 1989 also included a plethora of less commonly-appreciated films. Some were big in their native countries but only received a limited release in the Us and UK. Others were poorly received but have since been reassessed as cult items.
From comedies to thrillers, here's our pick of 25 underappreciated films from the end of the 80s...
25. An Innocent Man
Disney, through its Touchstone banner, had high hopes for this thriller,...
- 4/28/2015
- by ryanlambie
- Den of Geek
First Brittany Murphy, now River Phoenix. On Halloween 1993, promising young star River Phoenix died at the age of 23, and while most of his devoted fans may have thought that his uncredited appearance in Even Cowgirls Get The Blues would be his final performance, 20 years later we're learning that the long, long delayed Dark Blood is finally getting a theatrical release. THR reports out of Cannes that Lionsgate has bought the rights to Dark Blood, a thriller that had its production halted after River Phoenix's unexpected death. The film, written by Jim Barton and directed by George Sluizer, has Phoenix playing a desperate widower called Boy who lives in the desert on a nuclear testing site. When the Fletchers (Jonathan Pryce and Judy Davis), a married couple on their second honeymoon, show up on his land, he imprisons them to conquer his loneliness and lust. Dark Blood was shot predominantly...
- 5/22/2014
- cinemablend.com
The Rome film Festival (November 8-17) is once again offering on-stage conversations ("Movie Talks") with an impressive list of actors and directors. This year Jonathan Demme, Wes Anderson, Roman Coppola, Spike Jonze, John Hurt, Álex de la Iglesia and Italian comedian Checco Zalone will meet the audience, and get the chance to talk about their relationships with cinema, commenting on their most significant film scenes and answering questions from the audience.Full schedule below.Saturday, November 9 - 4pm Sala PetrassiJohn Hurtmoderated by Sandra Hebron and Mario SestiJohn Hurt, amazing protagonist of four decades of cinema, has been directed by Alan Parker (Midnight Express, 1977), Ridley Scott (Alien, 1979), David Lynch (The Elephant Man, 1980), Michael Cimino (Heaven's Gate, 1980), Sam Peckinpah (Osterman Weekend, 1983), Gus Van Sant (Even Cowgirls Get the Blues, 1993), Robert Zemeckis (Contact, 1997). He also starred in big budget productions such as, Harry...
- 11/5/2013
- by Beth Hanna
- Thompson on Hollywood
Birthday shoutouts go to Ben Foster (above) who is 33, Brendan Fehr is 36, Winona Ryder is 42, and Rufus Sewell is 46.
We’ve had … technical issues … today, so this Briefs will be briefer than usual. But it’s all Gold.
TV Line has spoilers for the next three episodes of Glee, and let’s just say … twerking is involved.
The Jonas Brothers have officially broken up … for now.
Why It’s Wrong to Say It’s Wrong to Say Shepard Smith Is Gay
I know Ed this in Meme yesterday, but in case you haven’t seen it, this is spectacular. The Carver Twins as The Grady Twins from The Shining. Perfection
Come play with us… #incostume #halloweenies #feellikerobbingabank pic.twitter.com/nTqg3WYSp7
— Max Carver (@maxcarver) October 27, 2013
do you know the way to san jose? pic.twitter.com/CVK945XbtR
— Charlie Carver (@Charlie_Carver) October 27, 2013
#redrum pic.twitter.com/BDnC3V...
We’ve had … technical issues … today, so this Briefs will be briefer than usual. But it’s all Gold.
TV Line has spoilers for the next three episodes of Glee, and let’s just say … twerking is involved.
The Jonas Brothers have officially broken up … for now.
Why It’s Wrong to Say It’s Wrong to Say Shepard Smith Is Gay
I know Ed this in Meme yesterday, but in case you haven’t seen it, this is spectacular. The Carver Twins as The Grady Twins from The Shining. Perfection
Come play with us… #incostume #halloweenies #feellikerobbingabank pic.twitter.com/nTqg3WYSp7
— Max Carver (@maxcarver) October 27, 2013
do you know the way to san jose? pic.twitter.com/CVK945XbtR
— Charlie Carver (@Charlie_Carver) October 27, 2013
#redrum pic.twitter.com/BDnC3V...
- 10/30/2013
- by snicks
- The Backlot
Chicago – When a Gus Van Sant picture works well, it can be as rousing as “Milk” or as thrillingly experimental as “Elephant.” Few filmmakers have straddled the mainstream and independent realms with such success (Steven Soderbergh would be another). But when a Van Sant film fails, it often fails spectacularly, as proven by “Even Cowgirls Get the Blues” and that notoriously pointless “Psycho” remake.
Rating: 2.5/5.0
“Promised Land” is far from Van Sant’s worse film, but it’s certainly his blandest since “Finding Forrester.” By tackling the immensely topical issue of fracking, the film promises to stage provocative verbal altercations between an energy company salesman, Steve Butler (Matt Damon), and an environmental activist, Dustin (John Krasinski). At least that’s what the trailers suggest, but the script co-authored by Damon and Krasinski (based on a story by Dave Eggers) turns out to be a groan-inducing bait-and-switch.
Read Matt Fagerholm’s...
Rating: 2.5/5.0
“Promised Land” is far from Van Sant’s worse film, but it’s certainly his blandest since “Finding Forrester.” By tackling the immensely topical issue of fracking, the film promises to stage provocative verbal altercations between an energy company salesman, Steve Butler (Matt Damon), and an environmental activist, Dustin (John Krasinski). At least that’s what the trailers suggest, but the script co-authored by Damon and Krasinski (based on a story by Dave Eggers) turns out to be a groan-inducing bait-and-switch.
Read Matt Fagerholm’s...
- 12/28/2012
- by adam@hollywoodchicago.com (Adam Fendelman)
- HollywoodChicago.com
Craig here with this week's Take Three. Today: Grace Zabriskie
It was Grace Zabriskie’s 71st birthday last week. She’s achieved a lot in her vast career over the 34 years she’s been acting: she had a daughter with oversized thumbs (Even Cowgirls Get the Blues); paid River Phoenix for sex (My Own Private Idaho); been killed by Chuckie (Child’s Play 2); ran on a brothel (The Brothel); evangelized about vampires (Blood Ties); had a asteroid named after her (Armageddon); performed a voodoo sex-killing (Wild at Heart); fought for worker’s rights (Norma Rae); navigated b-movie space horrors (Galaxy of Terror); and turned mourning into a mad maternal art (Twin Peaks). And that's just ten of her 93+ screen roles.
Here are three performances that I feel deserve highlighting.
It was Grace Zabriskie’s 71st birthday last week. She’s achieved a lot in her vast career over the 34 years she’s been acting: she had a daughter with oversized thumbs (Even Cowgirls Get the Blues); paid River Phoenix for sex (My Own Private Idaho); been killed by Chuckie (Child’s Play 2); ran on a brothel (The Brothel); evangelized about vampires (Blood Ties); had a asteroid named after her (Armageddon); performed a voodoo sex-killing (Wild at Heart); fought for worker’s rights (Norma Rae); navigated b-movie space horrors (Galaxy of Terror); and turned mourning into a mad maternal art (Twin Peaks). And that's just ten of her 93+ screen roles.
Here are three performances that I feel deserve highlighting.
- 5/21/2012
- by Craig Bloomfield
- FilmExperience
Dustin Lance Black Funnelled His Cash Into Virginia
Scriptwriter Dustin Lance Black funnelled his own cash into Virginia to pay for re-editing after the Jennifer Connelly movie bombed at its debut.
The Milk writer makes his directorial debut with the drama, which stars Connelly as Virginia, a mentally troubled woman who has an affair with a married sheriff, played by Ed Harris.
The film, originally titled What's Wrong With Virginia, premiered to largely negative reviews at the 2010 Toronto International Film Festival, prompting Black to head back into the editing room.
Now he admits he was forced to cough up his own money to complete the passion project to his liking.
He tells New York Magazine, "We never felt we had enough time in the editing room... We didn't even have time to watch it with an audience. We showed it to friends and family - which I'm now thinking is a terrible idea, because they're always going to say they love it and that's not very helpful. And although the audiences in Toronto were very supportive, just watching the film through their eyes, I felt like I was watching a film that didn't know if it was a drama or a comedy, until maybe about an hour in. For me, that was too late in the film.
"And for the critics, that was definitely too late in the film. And I got beaten up by critics, in some ways deservedly so. So I went to my producer... and I said, 'We have to cut this thing.' It was tough, because we had distribution offers, and people said, 'If you don't take them now, these will go away.' So it was a bit of a fight. I had to pony up some of the money for the re-edit."
But Black reveals he did have some help from celebrated filmmaker Gus Van Sant: "He told me a story about re-cutting a film (Even Cowgirls Get the Blues) that didn't go well, and gave me some advice about what to watch out for."...
The Milk writer makes his directorial debut with the drama, which stars Connelly as Virginia, a mentally troubled woman who has an affair with a married sheriff, played by Ed Harris.
The film, originally titled What's Wrong With Virginia, premiered to largely negative reviews at the 2010 Toronto International Film Festival, prompting Black to head back into the editing room.
Now he admits he was forced to cough up his own money to complete the passion project to his liking.
He tells New York Magazine, "We never felt we had enough time in the editing room... We didn't even have time to watch it with an audience. We showed it to friends and family - which I'm now thinking is a terrible idea, because they're always going to say they love it and that's not very helpful. And although the audiences in Toronto were very supportive, just watching the film through their eyes, I felt like I was watching a film that didn't know if it was a drama or a comedy, until maybe about an hour in. For me, that was too late in the film.
"And for the critics, that was definitely too late in the film. And I got beaten up by critics, in some ways deservedly so. So I went to my producer... and I said, 'We have to cut this thing.' It was tough, because we had distribution offers, and people said, 'If you don't take them now, these will go away.' So it was a bit of a fight. I had to pony up some of the money for the re-edit."
But Black reveals he did have some help from celebrated filmmaker Gus Van Sant: "He told me a story about re-cutting a film (Even Cowgirls Get the Blues) that didn't go well, and gave me some advice about what to watch out for."...
- 5/18/2012
- WENN
With the release of his latest film, Restless, on DVD and Blu-ray today we’ve got an exclusive clip from the film for you as well a look back on the key relationships in Van Sant’s previous films.
Often blossoming from difficult circumstances the love stories in Van Sant’s films hold to a notion of breaking free from a sense of being trapped, be it be society or addiction, external oppression (literal and imagined) or from a lifestyle the characters find themselves in. What always interests me about his films are the instances of love appearing often without being looked for, sometimes unspoken but always naturally occurring and always, crucially, believable.
From the starkness of his early work with My Own Private Idaho and Drugstore Cowboy, through the unfulfilling Even Cowgirls Get the Blues to the darkly funny To Die For Van Sant’s exploration of the impact...
Often blossoming from difficult circumstances the love stories in Van Sant’s films hold to a notion of breaking free from a sense of being trapped, be it be society or addiction, external oppression (literal and imagined) or from a lifestyle the characters find themselves in. What always interests me about his films are the instances of love appearing often without being looked for, sometimes unspoken but always naturally occurring and always, crucially, believable.
From the starkness of his early work with My Own Private Idaho and Drugstore Cowboy, through the unfulfilling Even Cowgirls Get the Blues to the darkly funny To Die For Van Sant’s exploration of the impact...
- 2/13/2012
- by Jon Lyus
- HeyUGuys.co.uk
By Iain Blair
Los Angeles (Reuters) - "Restless," the new film from Oscar-nominated "Milk" director Gus Van Sant tells a simple tale: boy meets girl, girl dies of cancer, boy mourns girl. But in Van Sant's hands, the film is anything but a sentimental four-hankie weeper.
Anchored by strong performances from Mia Wasikowska ("Alice in Wonderland") and newcomer Henry Hopper (son of Dennis Hopper), "Restless" hits theaters on Friday playing more like an intense adolescent romance than a tragedy.
Van Sant, whose credits include "Good Will Hunting," "Drugstore Cowboy," "My Own Private Idaho," "Even Cowgirls Get the Blues," and "To Die For" spoke to Reuters about making the film and why he hates being photographed.
Q: This definitely has a touch of Romeo and Juliet and doomed young lovers about it. Was that the attraction for you?
A: "Yes, although I never thought of it as doomed love. It's more...
Los Angeles (Reuters) - "Restless," the new film from Oscar-nominated "Milk" director Gus Van Sant tells a simple tale: boy meets girl, girl dies of cancer, boy mourns girl. But in Van Sant's hands, the film is anything but a sentimental four-hankie weeper.
Anchored by strong performances from Mia Wasikowska ("Alice in Wonderland") and newcomer Henry Hopper (son of Dennis Hopper), "Restless" hits theaters on Friday playing more like an intense adolescent romance than a tragedy.
Van Sant, whose credits include "Good Will Hunting," "Drugstore Cowboy," "My Own Private Idaho," "Even Cowgirls Get the Blues," and "To Die For" spoke to Reuters about making the film and why he hates being photographed.
Q: This definitely has a touch of Romeo and Juliet and doomed young lovers about it. Was that the attraction for you?
A: "Yes, although I never thought of it as doomed love. It's more...
- 9/15/2011
- by Reuters
- Huffington Post
Updated through 5/17.
So Gus Van Sant has opened Un Certain Regard and Melissa Anderson, dispatching to Artforum, has a quick rundown: "Written by first-time screenwriter Jason Lew, Restless recounts the romance between two teenagers, orphaned, funeral-crashing Enoch (Henry Hopper, son of Dennis), and Annabel (Mia Wasikowska), a naturalist with a brain tumor given three months to live. Wasikowska, who gives one of the best interpretations of roiling adolescent passion in the recent Jane Eyre, helps leaven the emo goo of Restless, a film that droops with its own tender earnestness."
"The most banal and indulgent of Gus Van Sant's periodic studies of troubled kids, this agonizingly treacly tale comes off like an indie version of Love Story except with worse music," grumbles the Hollywood Reporter's Todd McCarthy. "Van Sant can be good at creating private worlds inhabited by sensitive and/or disturbed characters, but here the individuals are simply not very interesting.
So Gus Van Sant has opened Un Certain Regard and Melissa Anderson, dispatching to Artforum, has a quick rundown: "Written by first-time screenwriter Jason Lew, Restless recounts the romance between two teenagers, orphaned, funeral-crashing Enoch (Henry Hopper, son of Dennis), and Annabel (Mia Wasikowska), a naturalist with a brain tumor given three months to live. Wasikowska, who gives one of the best interpretations of roiling adolescent passion in the recent Jane Eyre, helps leaven the emo goo of Restless, a film that droops with its own tender earnestness."
"The most banal and indulgent of Gus Van Sant's periodic studies of troubled kids, this agonizingly treacly tale comes off like an indie version of Love Story except with worse music," grumbles the Hollywood Reporter's Todd McCarthy. "Van Sant can be good at creating private worlds inhabited by sensitive and/or disturbed characters, but here the individuals are simply not very interesting.
- 5/17/2011
- MUBI
Craig here with Take Three.
Today: Anna Faris
Take One: Even cowgirls get the blues
I’m always up for a spot of Brokeback love. I know there's been plenty of attention around these parts in the past but let’s divert the love that-a-way. Let’s ride sidesaddle and gallop slightly away from Jake ‘n’ Heath. And Michelle 'n' Anne. And Ang. Hey, look, it’s Anna Faris as Lashawn Malone in Brokeback Mountain (2005).
I’d just seen Faris in Just Friends when barely a week later (January 2006) Brokeback was released here in the UK. The complete contrast between Faris in the two films caught me off guard. She pops up ninety-minutes in during a couples’ C&W night-out scene with Jake Gyllenhaal & Anne Hathaway. She “talks a blue streak” without much pause for breath – and in doing so fills the gap where a homoerotic attraction is becoming increasingly...
Today: Anna Faris
Take One: Even cowgirls get the blues
I’m always up for a spot of Brokeback love. I know there's been plenty of attention around these parts in the past but let’s divert the love that-a-way. Let’s ride sidesaddle and gallop slightly away from Jake ‘n’ Heath. And Michelle 'n' Anne. And Ang. Hey, look, it’s Anna Faris as Lashawn Malone in Brokeback Mountain (2005).
I’d just seen Faris in Just Friends when barely a week later (January 2006) Brokeback was released here in the UK. The complete contrast between Faris in the two films caught me off guard. She pops up ninety-minutes in during a couples’ C&W night-out scene with Jake Gyllenhaal & Anne Hathaway. She “talks a blue streak” without much pause for breath – and in doing so fills the gap where a homoerotic attraction is becoming increasingly...
- 10/25/2010
- by Craig Bloomfield
- FilmExperience
Craig here, asking you all (on her 40th birthday): where is Uma at?
Ah, Uma. Always the bridesmaid, never the bride. And despite actually being Tarantino's Bride twice last decade. What is it about Uma? She's widely known and adored by many, yet never seems to (quite) make it to the top of the A-list. The likes of Helen Hunt, Gwyneth Paltrow, Charlize Theron, Reese Witherspoon, Renée Zellweger, Jennifer Connelly, Angelina Jolie and Hilary Swank - all peers and contemporaries - have bagged themselves Oscars in the last thirteen-or-so years. The simple question is: where's Uma's gold?
She's one of the most uniquely beautiful actresses working, but nowadays, more so than in the early '90s, she doesn't often tend to get the recognition come awards season, or even appear on any of those Sexiest Hollywood Stars lists that crop up year-on-year anymore (although, is this really a fair...
Ah, Uma. Always the bridesmaid, never the bride. And despite actually being Tarantino's Bride twice last decade. What is it about Uma? She's widely known and adored by many, yet never seems to (quite) make it to the top of the A-list. The likes of Helen Hunt, Gwyneth Paltrow, Charlize Theron, Reese Witherspoon, Renée Zellweger, Jennifer Connelly, Angelina Jolie and Hilary Swank - all peers and contemporaries - have bagged themselves Oscars in the last thirteen-or-so years. The simple question is: where's Uma's gold?
She's one of the most uniquely beautiful actresses working, but nowadays, more so than in the early '90s, she doesn't often tend to get the recognition come awards season, or even appear on any of those Sexiest Hollywood Stars lists that crop up year-on-year anymore (although, is this really a fair...
- 5/1/2010
- by Craig Bloomfield
- FilmExperience
Sandra Bullock has recently given interviews proclaiming her enthusiasm for being nominated twice this year, for both an Oscar and a Razzie: for Best Actress in The Blind Side and for Worst Actress in All About Steve. She called the situation "brilliant" and added that it's "a great leveler." She has even hinted that she plans to attend both ceremonies (though she's not sure what to wear to the Razzies).
Certainly many, many actors and actresses have been nominated for both Oscars and Razzies. Eddie Murphy has been nominated for 13 Razzies, but not in 2006 when he received his Oscar nomination for Dreamgirls. John Travolta and Kevin Costner are also Oscar nominees with multiple Razzie nominations. Faye Dunaway has been nominated -- and has won -- many times on both sides. Kim Basinger is an Oscar winner and a frequent Razzie nominee.
I have combed through the acting nominees for both awards,...
Certainly many, many actors and actresses have been nominated for both Oscars and Razzies. Eddie Murphy has been nominated for 13 Razzies, but not in 2006 when he received his Oscar nomination for Dreamgirls. John Travolta and Kevin Costner are also Oscar nominees with multiple Razzie nominations. Faye Dunaway has been nominated -- and has won -- many times on both sides. Kim Basinger is an Oscar winner and a frequent Razzie nominee.
I have combed through the acting nominees for both awards,...
- 2/13/2010
- by Jeffrey M. Anderson
- Cinematical
It’s hard to believe it’s been 15 years since Pulp Fiction debuted, officially making Quentin Tarantino a household name. I was in my junior year of high school when Tarantino’s opus hit theaters. I hadn’t yet gotten the filmmaking bug at that time, that would plant its seed my senior year, but what this film did was to solidify my status as a movie geek.
I’d already been an avid movie-watcher, going through an average of probably 2-3 movies a week. That doesn’t sound like much, but keep in mind I was in high school and had plenty of that nasty homework stuff to wade through when I wasn’t working for gas money. What Pulp Fiction did was to make concrete my appreciation of and passion for the creative process of making movies.
Pulp Fiction was such a breath of fresh air… well, fresh air with plenty of profanity,...
I’d already been an avid movie-watcher, going through an average of probably 2-3 movies a week. That doesn’t sound like much, but keep in mind I was in high school and had plenty of that nasty homework stuff to wade through when I wasn’t working for gas money. What Pulp Fiction did was to make concrete my appreciation of and passion for the creative process of making movies.
Pulp Fiction was such a breath of fresh air… well, fresh air with plenty of profanity,...
- 8/18/2009
- by Travis
- WeAreMovieGeeks.com
IMDb.com, Inc. takes no responsibility for the content or accuracy of the above news articles, Tweets, or blog posts. This content is published for the entertainment of our users only. The news articles, Tweets, and blog posts do not represent IMDb's opinions nor can we guarantee that the reporting therein is completely factual. Please visit the source responsible for the item in question to report any concerns you may have regarding content or accuracy.