One of the cutest trends from 2011 was the appearance of four-legged friends playing significant roles in movies--The Hollywood Reporter even did a cover story featuring some of the scene-stealing canines. There's the heroic Uggie from "The Artist" and Cosmo from "Beginners" (who gets some of the film's best "lines" via subtitles), and let's not forget those adorable puppies Melissa McCarthy's character makes off with in "Bridesmaids." Dogs also featured prominently into "Hugo" and "Young Adult."
Recognizing this trend, someone had the good sense to give these pups their own awards show. Tomorrow, Dog News Daily will have Uggie and his "Artist" co-star Penelope Ann Miller will announce the nominations for the 1st Golden Collar Awards, honoring acting achievements by canines in film. Categories include:
Best Dog in a Theatrical Film
Best Dog in a Foreign Film
Best Dog in a Direct-to-DVD Film
In addition, two honorary Golden Collar Awards, The Lifetime Achievement Award and The Humanitarian Award, will, also, be announced during the press conference.
The nominations for this year's Orange British Academy Film Awards were announced today, and "The Artist" led the pack with 12 nods. Presented by the British Academy of Film and Television Arts, the awards will be held on Tue., Feb. 17 at 7:40 a.m. in London and broadcast live on the web.
The nominations look pretty much like the Oscars should, with the exception of the expected best picture nominees "The Artist," "The Descendants," and "The Help" joined by "Drive" and the veddy British "Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy." That Gary Oldman-led drama fared better in its native England than it has in the states thus far, also scoring nods for director Tomas Alfredson, Oldman, and adapted screenplay.
This year's Golden Globe winners were announced tonight, and there weren't too many surprises in the film categories. Probably the biggest one was that "My Week with Marilyn" qualifies as a comedy/musical.
As expected, supporting honors went to Christopher Plummer for "Beginners" and Octavia Spencer for "The Help," both of whom looked wonderful and gave great speeches. In the Comedy/Musical category, "The Artist" took best film, with it's star Jean Dujardin winning lead actor. Michelle Williams took lead actress honors for "Marilyn." In the Drama category, "The Descendants" won top honors with its star George Clooney winning Best Actor over fellow hunks Ryan Gosling, Brad Pitt, Leonardo DiCaprio and Michael Fassbender. Best Actress, a neck in neck race between Viola Davis of "The Help" and Meryl Streep of "The Iron Lady," saw Streep emerge victorious. This time.
In what might have been the only real surprises, "Midnight In Paris" took screenwriting honors and Martin Scorsese won Best Director for "Hugo." This irritated me at first, but I figure Scorsese lost for years when he should have son, so I'm okay with him winning a few now.
So what does all this mean for the Oscars? Not much, really. I suspect that the Globes, in an attempt to look like they can predict the Oscars, go for who they think will win the Academy Awards. That's why early front runners in the past like "Babel" and "The Social Network" have taken the top prize, only to watch it slip away on Oscar night. In other words, Clooney shouldn't rest easy just yet--Pitt's right on his heels.
Other thoughts from the night:
Was everyone else as disturbed by that clip of Cecil B. DeMille Award recipient Morgan Freeman singing "I Love To Take a Bath In A Casket" (above) as I was?
I have trouble looking at TV Drama winner Kelsey Grammer since his appearances on "The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills." I still think this is his best work.
The following people did not look amused by host Ricky Gervais: Tina Fey, Amy Poehler, and especially Elton John.
And finally, for me, the best part of the evening: Melissa McCarthy's tears of joy for Octavia Spencer winning Best Supporting Actress. The two are pitted against each other in this category at the SAG Awards in two weeks, and I think they're both winners.
• The Broadway revival of “On a Clear Day You Can See Forever" will close at the end of the month, reported The New York Times. The new musical “Leap of Faith” will take its place at the St.James Theater and begin performances on April 3.
• Los Angeles Times takes a look at Insurge, Paramount Pictures' experimental label behind 'The Devil Inside.' Paramount is looking for films that use social networks to promote themselves into must-see experiences.
• Starz has greenlit a series about the 13th century explorer Marco Polo. Given its track record of violence and nudity in its "historical" TV shows, like "Spartacus," I'm guessing this series won't be ones to watch with your kids. Read the story at Deadline.
• YouTube executive Robert Kyncl told Los Angeles Times that he thinks about 75 percent of channels will be transmitted by the Internet by 2020. So I suppose I should start saving up for a faster computer.
This Monday, Jan. 16, at 1 p.m. PST (4 p.m. EST) please join us for a very special live Q&A with Brad Pitt and Jonah Hill. Both actors scored deserved SAG Award and Golden Globe nominations for their work in "Moneyball," one of my favorite movies of the year. So check in right here on Monday to watch the pair discuss their roles in the movie, the true story of Oakland A's manager Billy Beane, who took on the system by implementing a new form of statistical analysis of players.
On newsstands today is our new issue, which features a cover story on "Contraband" star Giovanni Ribisi; you can read it here. Ribisi is one of those actors I think I've taken for granted--he always shows up and does such reliable work, you don't think about just how good he is. I began to realize this when I was asked to moderate a career Q&A with him back in December. First of all, it sold out really fast--quite an achievement during the busy awards season. Secondly, Ribisi was a great guest, charming, modest, and with a great sense of humor about himself. As we were talking about some of the movies he'd done, I was struck by just how long and distinguished his career is. The sensitive medic in "Saving Private Ryan." The tortured soul in "The Gift." And, of course, "the world's biggest douchebag" in "Avatar." I could go on--"Boiler Room," "The Other Sister," "SubUrbia"...but you get the idea.
Something else about Ribisi: he's much more handsome in person than he appears onscreen. I'd love to see him in a full-fledged romantic leading role...though I suspect he prefers the character parts, like his slimy drug dealer in "Contraband."
Oh, and in case you didn't know, Ribisi is a Scientologist. This came up in our conversation because he studied withe the late, great Milton Kastelas, who was also a member of the Church of Scientology. I wrongly assumed he knew Kastleas through the controversial church, but it turns out it was just a coincidence, he actually found Kastleas through a friend.
As someone who is geniunely interested in all religions and philosophies, I told him I was curious about Scientology, and asked if he would mind telling me more. He was very open and forthcoming, and in my opinion, gave me the best answer anyone could. He said: "First and foremost, I really believe in values and I like and appreciate individuals respecting others. So for me, Scientology works. It’s a pragmatic philosophy I study and I apply, and I get a result. I was raised as a Scientologist, and when you grow up and people are yelling at you for your religion or people are saying things in the press, yeah, you do start to question things. But it comes down to something so simple, which is that it works for me. It’s that simple."
I didn't include this in the story because I was focusing on his work, but I thought it was an interesting, intelligent response from an interesting, intelligent actor.
• John Logan, Tony-winning playwright, will adapt the Tony-winning Broadway musical "Jersey Boys" for the big screen. Has anyone even heard of this show? It's not like there are productions in New York, London, Las Vegas, Sydney, and two national tours. Read the story at Playbill.
• Emmy-winning actor and singer William Shatner will boldy go where he's gone before, albeit about 50 years ago. Next month, the star of "Star Trek" and "Boston Legal" will begin performing his two-hour one-man show on Broadway. Check it out at The New York Times. Someone please go dressed as a "Star Wars" Stormtrooper.
•TiVo's research unit has reported that watching TV shows on the Internet or through DVR has exceeded live viewership. The research unit is headed by Captain Obvious. Take a look at The Hollywood Reporter.
Last week, I had the pleasure of attending the premiere of "Haywire," the new action flick from Steven Soderbergh starring MMA champion Gina Carano. The plot focuses on Carano's black ops agent Mallory Kane, who finds herself the fall guy (or gal) in a setup when she tries to leave her current employer. It's a bit convoluted honestly, considering we're all just there to watch Carano kick some ass. And does she ever--it's a thrill ride from start to finish, and I always appreciate it when a movie shows me something new. In this case, it's Carano using her thighs as a weapon, climbing up walls, and basically blowing our minds without the help of wires or special effects. Also, I appreciate the man candy: the cast includes Ewan McGregor, Channing Tatum, Antonio Banderas, and the delicious Michael Fassbender.
One person at the after party complained that Carano wasn't "a very good actor." To which I say: Who cares? She's a blast to watch fight and I think she acquits herself nicely in a role not requiring Shakespearean training. Anyway, judge for yourself: you can watch the first five minutes of the film for free online. It will give you a great feel for the tone and what to expect for the rest of the film. Embedding is disabled, so click here to watch it!
Wow. Can't decide what the bigger surprise was at this morning's Directors Guild of America Award announcements: that Steven Spielberg wasn't nominated, or that David Fincher was.
The nominees for feature film directing are: Woody Allen ("Midnight In Paris"), David Fincher ("The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo"), Michel Hazanavicius ("The Artist"), Alexander Payne ("The Descendants"), and Martin Scorsese ("Hugo"). The frontrunner, according to all industry buzz, would appear to be Hazanavicius, but don't count out Allen or Payne just yet.
It's been a good few days for Fincher; after a slow start, "The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo" seems to have legs, making $11.3 million in it's third weekend in release, for a total of $76.8 million. It now looks poised to cross the coveted $100 million mark and should silence those who thought it was underperforming. And the DGA nod shows this "Girl" might have a place in the awards race, after all.
The winner will be announced at a ceremony Jan. 28.
Watch the LIVE Q & A for the Golden Globe nominated film for Best Picture, "The Artist" with Director Michel Hazanavicius, and the cast: Jean Dujardin, Berenice Bejo, James Cromwell, Penelope Ann Miller, and Missi Pyle! It will take place at 9:00 pm PST. View it on Facebook.