FOLLOW me on my popular Twitter feed. Just click this photo! @hbbtruth - David - Common sense on #Politics #PublicPolicy #Sports #PopCulture in USA, Great Britain, Sweden and France, via my life in #Texas #Memphis #Miami #IU #Chicago #DC #FL 🛫🌍📺📽️🏈. Photo is of Elvis and Joan Blackman in 'Blue Hawaii'
Beautiful Stockholm at night, looking west towards Gamla Stan
So happy to announce my casting in David Fincher's 'Gone Girl' playing opposite Ben Affleck http://t.co/GDKxaMf2gV — Emily Ratajkowski (@emrata) September 16, 2013
Because I know that I've been neglecting my important show biz duties a lot here on the blog of late, I have the following important casting news to share with you that will be ricocheting around the globe all day and be common knowledge by the time all of you wake-up tomorrow. Causing delight for some people and angst in others, and lots of happine$$ in Cape Girardeau, Missouri, where most principal non-LA shooting of Gone Girl will take place.
TheWrap Ben Affleck’s ‘Gone Girl’ Casts ‘Blurred Lines’ Beauty Emily Ratajkowski (Exclusive) By Jeff Sneider on September 16, 2013 @ 7:37 am
In her first major movie role, model-actress Emily Ratajkowski is nearing a deal to play the hotly contested role of Ben Affleck’s mistress in David Fincher’s “Gone Girl,” an individual familiar with the project has told TheWrap.
Ratajkowski is best known as the bombshell beauty at the center of Robin Thicke’s “Blurred Lines” video, which has nearly 174 million views on YouTube.
And now, channeling my best legal defense attorney persona, recalling both Perry Mason and Ben Matlock, I present to the jury the following evidence and ask that the bailiff distribute copies of this photo to them so that they may see the evidence for themselves...
Well, the maxim goes that "a photo speaks a thousand words." But some photos speak much more. I would humbly suggest that this photo on Emily Ratajkowski's Twitter feed does just that. It's only my opinion, but winning the genes lottery and the casting lottery is not a bad way to start off a career.
Columbia Pictures/MGM video: 'The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo' Theatrical Trailer. Starring Daniel Craig, Rooney Mara, Stellan Skarsgård, Christopher Plummer, Joely Richardson and Robin Wright, directed by David Fincher, screenplay by Steven Zaillian, opening December 21st in the U.S.
This new theatrical trailer is certainly very good news for those of us who have been closely following the latest news and developments with the new English-language film adaption of Stieg Larsson'sThe Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, slated to open December 21st.
I say that because while it was very effective, the previous trailer, which I have posted here previously and below, was more atmosphere and question marks than hints for those out there who've never read the book or who seen the Swedish version of the first of the trilogy, Män som hatar kvinnor, ("Men who Hate Women") that starred Noomi Rapace as enigmatic Lisbeth Salanderand Mikael Nyqvist as savvy journalist Mikael Blomkvist, the roles to be assumed by Rooney Mara and Daniel Craig under director David Fincher.
Over the next three months, I'll be posting things I see, read or hear here or overseas about the film to keep you apprised of what's what.
My last post on the film and the trilogy, with lots of videos and some Swedish material you probably haven't seen, was on June 2nd, titled, Trailer & news re David Fincher's version of Stieg Larsson's 'The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo,' starring Daniel Craig & Rooney Mara; opens Dec. 21st.
CBS News Sunday Morning video: Erin Moriarity on the "Millennium" phenomena, inc. the Millennium tour in the Södermalmpart of Stockholm. Stieg Larsson: Behind "The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo". October 10, 2010.
Teaser trailer for David Fincher's version of Stieg Larsson's 'The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo'
Starring Daniel Craig, Rooney Mara, Stellan Skarsgård, Christopher Plummer, Joely Richardson and Robin Wright, directed by David Fincher, screenplay by Steven Zaillian, opening December 21st in the U.S.
I was going to write about the film a week ago but I'm now glad that I was patient and waited.
It's time to get to the heart of the nagging question hanging over this upcoming film, once you've FINALLY accepted the idea that it was inevitable that The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo would be remade for American/English-speaking audiences worldwide.
I know a LOT of holdouts who don't like the idea of the remake one little bit, largely because they're concerned -rightly so in their eyes- that remaking a film/series that Noomi Rapace was positively mesmerizing in as Lisbeth Salander, is insulting to her personally, and the general notion of its uniquely Swedish aspects and pride of place.
I completely understand that line of argument(s) and am not completely unsympathetic to it, but,
a.) the reality is that the second part of show biz is, of course, bu$ine$$, and,
b.) there simply were NOTand are NOT enough people around -like me- who went to see the original films in Swedish directed by, respectively, Niels Arden Oplev and Daniel Alfredson, and,
c.) Director David Fincher has allayed at least some of those concerns by filming a lot in Sweden, starting last September in Stockholm.
He was quoted as saying in Svenska Dagbladet, SvD, that he wants to "find an atmosphere reminiscent of 'Chinatown.'"
I loved the originals, but they were not Gone With The Wind or Casablanca, consequently, I'm not going to be ridiculous about this remake, though I will say that I hope it's ten times better than any recent American remake of any of a number of good French films turned-out.
SVT had this video of journalist Mikael Blomqvist (Daniel Craig) at the train station in Sollefteå last week; may be the least interesting video ever posted here!
Check-out this interesting video by Oskar at discjunkietvwho was up in Uppsala a few months ago when the cast and crew were doing a 1960's flashback sequence involving a parade thru downtown. He was very determined to get an eye on what was doing.
Once you're past that temporary roadblock about the philosophical question of the remake, you confront the large double-edged sword hanging above this production and how it's received by theater-goers, something a well-read person like you no doubt already realizes and understands, is the question of 25-year old Rooney Mara'sperformance on screen.
(Or as a female friend of mine with lots of style has emailed me from Sverige,"WTF's the deal with that hairdo she's wearing?)
It's the consensus opinion of everyone on both sides of the Atlantic that I trust who had already seen the Swedish language versions of the trilogy that this David Fincher adaption will succeed or falter based almost entirely on Mara's performance as Lisbeth Salander, regardless of how great everyone and everything else in the film may be, including the menacing music. Anything too heavy-handed will detract from a story that was serious and stark in tone.
As I mentioned in several emails to friends around the country trying to persuade them to seek out the first film in the series in early 2009, Oplev'sMän som hatar kvinnor("Men who hate women"), which is known here as The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, I loved the scary trailer.
The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo -Swedish release with Danish subtitles, 2009
Here's the latest news from SVT on Monday about director DavidFincher's first public words about the film while appearing last Friday at the Swedish Film Institute, SFI, answering questions from Roger Wilson. It's well-worth reading. http://blogg.svt.se/film/2011/05/fincher-rapport-och-dragon-tattoo-trailer/
By the way, speaking of the film remake, has any current actor you can think of ever transformed more successfully from almost always playing articulate and thoughtful film characters you rooted for, to consistently playing evil, malevolent bad-asses quite like Christopher Plummer, who here in the remale, will play someone both curious and afraid about the answer to a mystery? (And Joely's Richardson's....)
Ever since Plummer'sperformance as Chang in Star Trek VI twenty years ago, he's really gone over to the dark side and played one oleaginous and creepy character after another
And been completely believable.
Auf Wiedersehen, Captain von Trapp!
Ironically, Swedish actor Mikael Nyqvist, someonewhom I first came to appreciate in 2004's Oscar-nominated Så som i himmelen(As It Is in Heaven), a film that I previously mentioned here on July 2, 2009 in a post titled ABBA Geniuses At It Again: Story Of A Heart, featuring Helen Sjöholm, Words & Music by Benny Andersson & Björn Ulvaeus
and who was so excellent in the three Swedish-language versions of the Millennium trilogy as hard-working reporter Mikael Blomkvist, will now be playing a villain opposite Tom Cruise in the next Mission Impossiblerelease, which is nummer fyra -number four- Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol,coming out December 16th
That post of mine also mentioned Gabriella's Song, the great song from the film, and two versions of it as sung by two super-talented singers, Helen Sjöholm in the film and Molly Sandén on the popular SVT singing TV show, Så ska det låta, back when Molly was sixteen -three years ago!
As some of you know, that film, with Nyqvist cast as a man of the world who unexpectedly finds love in a small Swedish town -his childhood hometown- while trying to get away from it all, is one that Swedish women of every age group absolutely love to death.
They positively start tearing-up when they hear the first few bars of it...
Really.
As it is in Heaven (Så Som I Himmelen) - GabriellasSång
Above, cover of New York Observer of October 11th, 2010, "Good Nerd, Bad Nerd" illustration by Viktor Koen.
Aaron Sorkin on misogyny concerns in David Fincher's new critically acclaimed film 'The Social Network' that Sorkin wrote.
"These aren't the cuddly nerds we made movies about in the 80's. They're very angry that the cheerleader still wants to go out with the quarterback..."
Yeah, I know, I know. I'm about a week behind in posting about this excellent piece from Sharon Waxman's TheWrap.com. And second of all, no, I haven't seen the film myself yet, but will likely get to it later this week.
As you read Jeff Sneider's article, be sure to read the informed and opinionated reader comments that area as good as the points that Sorkin makes and refutes.
One thing is clear, no matter how successful you are as a writer, and regardless of where you are on the political spectrum, there are few that have been as consistently successful over the past 20 years as Sorkin, there's always someone you've never heard of who wants to tell you what your real"problem" as a writer is. LOL! But first, a nice coincidental introduction to the theme under discussion in the article courtesy of BBC Radio's5 livefilm critic Mark Kermode.
TheWrap Aaron Sorkin Addresses Claims of Misogyny in 'Social Network', The screenwriter himself defends David Fincher's film in a post on Ken Levine's blog By Jeff Sneider, Published: October 11, 2010 @ 6:33 pm
Many people who have seen Sony's "The Social Network" have taken the filmmakers to task for the movie's "misogynistic" portrayal of women.
Screenwriter Aaron Sorkin responded to one such attack from a commenter named Tarazza on Ken Levine's blog, Sorkin's publicist has confirmed to TheWrap.
Read the rest of the fabulous piece here:http://www.thewrap.com/movies/article/aaron-sorkin-addresses-claims-misogyny-social-network-21628 Continuing with this theme on The Social Network, my new issue of The New York Observer arrived in the mail later than usual last week, but as I was so busy catching up on some things, including some overdue posts here at the blog, it would hardly have mattered if it'd been on time, which is usually Tuesday without fail. http://www.observer.com/ Yesterday, after the Dolphins surprising victory over the Packers, while waiting to meet a friend at a local haunt of mine, I finally cracked it open. I was immediately reminded why I love it so much.
One of those reasons would have to be sheer prescient puckishness, as evidence by a delicious and fictitious 'as-written-by' Mark Zuckerberg piece on page 2 by Christian Lorentzen.
Then I read the three-page cover story, which under the illustration had the following: "In the new Facebook movie, Mark Zuckerberg is a backstabbing, money-grubbing misfit. It works for Hollywood. But the geek stereotype may not apply in New York, where tech excecutives have perfected their own kind of cool." By Leon Neyfakh. Deftly put!
Here's the problem: these two articles are not available online and may only be seen by subscribers, like myself, or by well-informed customers choosing to buyg a copy, so get yourselves to a large Barnes & Noble superstore ASAP, like the one on Biscayne Blvd. in the Loehmann's Fashion Island down in Aventura. 18711 N.E. Biscayne Blvd, Aventura, FL 33180 (305) 935-9770 Here's their online store locator: http://store-locator.barnesandnoble.com/storelocator/stores.aspx?x=y& You won't regret it.
