Which Actor Is Waging the War on Christmas?

 

 

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Which Actor Is Waging the War on Christmas?

via Gawker: defamer by Brian Moylan on 12/15/09

Hollywood is trying to ruin Jesus' Birthday for America, like this actor who told kids there is no Santa. Not as awesome as a dirty photographer or a rapper trying to patent a sex move, but still a cool move.

1. "If you were at The Mall Of America this weekend in Minneapolis you might have seen this very good looking B-list actor from one of those network initial shows. He was walking through the mall when a woman stopped him and asked our actor for his autograph. No problem. The actor obliged and even took a photo. So, where is the Jackass behavior? Well, the actor asked the woman what she was doing in the mall. What, is this like pick up time? Anyway, she pointed down to her 4 year old twins and said they were about to get in line to see Santa. The actor then bent down to the kids and said, "You should know by now there is no Santa." He then walked away." [CDaN]

2. "This hip-hop 'rapper' is so confident of his moves in bed, he is currently in the process of having one trademarked. We kid you not, the man is trying to put a copyright on a sex move. He bragged to friends that once that is done, he plans to launch a whole marketing scheme around the name. Underwear line, men's cologne, etc. No word yet on the name of the move (the celeb is keeping it super secret) but we're currently trying to track down anyone who has had the pleasure(?) of experiencing the move firsthand so we can see if it is all it is cracked up to be. Not Sean John/Diddy/Puff DaddyCombs." [BuzzFoto]

3. "It's great to have hobbies. This guy loves to sing and he loves to take photos. All of those girls whom he has bedded over the past few years should pay attention to the second part of that statement. If you wondered why he asked you to come home with him for the night, watch out! He's just waiting for you to fall asleep so that he can take some photos of you in your birthday suit. Before you start popping Xanax, though, you should know that he doesn't really have any intention of ever making those photos public. However, the possibility alone is one of the reasons why none of these women badmouth him after dating him." [Blind Gossip]

 

 

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Your Golden Globe Nominations Are Here

 

 

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Your Golden Globe Nominations Are Here

via Gawker: defamer by Gabriel Snyder on 12/15/09

The hacks of the Hollywood Foreign Press Association have taken a pause from endless junketeering to release their list of the year's most excellent movies and TV shows. Up in the Air and Avatar continue their inexorable awards march.

Here's the raw data:

1. BEST MOTION PICTURE – DRAMA

a. AVATAR

Lightstorm Entertainment; Twentieth Century Fox

b. THE HURT LOCKER

Voltage Pictures C/O 42West; Summit Entertainment

c. INGLOURIOUS BASTERDS

The Weinstein Company; The Weinstein Company

d. PRECIOUS: BASED ON THE NOVEL PUSH BY SAPPHIRE

A Lee Daniels Entertainment / Smokewood Entertainment Group Production;

Lionsgate

e. UP IN THE AIR

Paramount Pictures; Paramount Pictures

 

2. BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTRESS IN A MOTION PICTURE – DRAMA

a. EMILY BLUNT THE YOUNG VICTORIA

b. SANDRA BULLOCK THE BLIND SIDE

c. HELEN MIRREN THE LAST STATION

d. CAREY MULLIGAN AN EDUCATION

e. GABOUREY SIDIBE PRECIOUS: BASED ON THE NOVEL

PUSH BY SAPPHIRE

 

3. BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTOR IN A MOTION PICTURE – DRAMA

a. JEFF BRIDGES CRAZY HEART

b. GEORGE CLOONEY UP IN THE AIR

c. COLIN FIRTH A SINGLE MAN

d. MORGAN FREEMAN INVICTUS

e. TOBEY MAGUIRE BROTHERS

 

4. BEST MOTION PICTURE – COMEDY OR MUSICAL

a. (500) DAYS OF SUMMER

Watermark Pictures; Fox Searchlight Pictures

b. THE HANGOVER

Warner Bros. Pictures; Warner Bros. Pictures

c. IT'S COMPLICATED

Relativity Media, Scott Rudin Productions; Universal Pictures

d. JULIE & JULIA

Columbia Pictures; Sony Pictures Releasing

e. NINE

The Weinstein Company; The Weinstein Company

 

5. BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTRESS IN A MOTION PICTURE – COMEDY OR

MUSICAL

a. SANDRA BULLOCK THE PROPOSAL

b. MARION COTILLARD NINE

c. JULIA ROBERTS DUPLICITY

d. MERYL STREEP IT'S COMPLICATED

e. MERYL STREEP JULIE & JULIA

 

6. BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTOR IN A MOTION PICTURE – COMEDY

OR MUSICAL

a. MATT DAMON THE INFORMANT!

b. DANIEL DAY-LEWIS NINE

c. ROBERT DOWNEY JR. SHERLOCK HOLMES

d. JOSEPH GORDON-LEVITT (500) DAYS OF SUMMER

e. MICHAEL STUHLBARG A SERIOUS MAN

 

7. BEST ANIMATED FEATURE FILM

a. CLOUDY WITH A CHANCE OF MEATBALLS

Columbia Pictures and Sony Pictures Animation; Sony Pictures Releasing

b. CORALINE

Laika, Inc.; Focus Features

c. FANTASTIC MR. FOX

American Empirical Picture; Twentieth Century Fox

d. THE PRINCESS AND THE FROG

Walt Disney Pictures/Walt Disney Animation Studios; Walt Disney Studios

Motion Pictures

e. UP

Walt Disney Pictures/PIXAR Animation Studios; Walt Disney Studios Motion

Pictures

 

8. BEST FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILM

a. BAARIA (ITALY)

Medusa Film; Summit Entertainment

b. BROKEN EMBRACES (SPAIN)

El Deseo SA; Sony Pictures Classics

c. THE MAID (CHILE)

(LA NANA)

Forastero; Elephant Eye Films

d. A PROPHET (FRANCE)

Chic Films; Sony Pictures Classics

e. THE WHITE RIBBON (GERMANY)

(DAS WEISSE BAND – EINE DEUTSCHE KINDERGESCHICHTE)

Wega Films; Sony Pictures Classics

 

9. BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTRESS IN A SUPPORTING ROLE IN A

MOTION PICTURE

a. PENÉLOPE CRUZ NINE

b. VERA FARMIGA UP IN THE AIR

c. ANNA KENDRICK UP IN THE AIR

d. MO'NIQUE PRECIOUS: BASED ON THE NOVEL

PUSH BY SAPPHIRE

e. JULIANNE MOORE A SINGLE MAN

 

10. BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTOR IN A SUPPORTING ROLE IN A

MOTION PICTURE

a. MATT DAMON INVICTUS

b. WOODY HARRELSON THE MESSENGER

c. CHRISTOPHER PLUMMER THE LAST STATION

d. STANLEY TUCCI THE LOVELY BONES

e. CHRISTOPH WALTZ INGLOURIOUS BASTERDS

 

11. BEST DIRECTOR – MOTION PICTURE

a. KATHRYN BIGELOW THE HURT LOCKER

b. JAMES CAMERON AVATAR

c. CLINT EASTWOOD INVICTUS

d. JASON REITMAN UP IN THE AIR

e. QUENTIN TARANTINO INGLOURIOUS BASTERDS

 

12. BEST SCREENPLAY – MOTION PICTURE

a. NEILL BLOMKAMP, DISTRICT 9

TERRI TATCHELL

b. MARK BOAL THE HURT LOCKER

c. NANCY MEYERS IT'S COMPLICATED

d. JASON REITMAN, UP IN THE AIR

SHELDON TURNER

e. QUENTIN TARANTINO INGLOURIOUS BASTERDS

 

13. BEST ORIGINAL SCORE – MOTION PICTURE

a. MICHAEL GIACCHINO UP

b. MARVIN HAMLISCH THE INFORMANT!

c. JAMES HORNER AVATAR

d. ABEL KORZENIOWSKI A SINGLE MAN

e. KAREN O,

CARTER BURWELL WHERE THE WILD THINGS ARE

 

14. BEST ORIGINAL SONG – MOTION PICTURE

a. "CINEMA ITALIANO" - NINE

Music & Lyrics by: Maury Yeston

b. "I WANT TO COME HOME" - EVERYBODY'S FINE

Music & Lyrics by: Paul McCartney

c. "I WILL SEE YOU" - AVATAR

Music by: James Horner, Simon Franglen

Lyrics by: James Horner, Simon Franglen, Kuk Harrell

d. "THE WEARY KIND (THEME FROM CRAZY HEART)" - CRAZY

HEART

Music & Lyrics by: Ryan Bingham, T Bone Burnett

e. "WINTER" - BROTHERS

Music by: U2

Lyrics by: Bono

 

15. BEST TELEVISION SERIES – DRAMA

a. BIG LOVE (HBO)

Anima Sola and Playtone in association with HBO Entertainment

b. DEXTER (SHOWTIME)

Showtime Presents, John Goldwyn Productions, The Colleton Company, Clyde

Phillips Productions

c. HOUSE (FOX)

Universal Media Studios in association with Heel and Toe Films, Shore Z

Productions and Bad Hat Harry

d. MAD MEN (AMC)

AMC

e. TRUE BLOOD (HBO)

Your Face Goes Here Entertainment in association with HBO Entertainment

 

16. BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTRESS IN A TELEVISION SERIES –

DRAMA

a. GLENN CLOSE DAMAGES

b. JANUARY JONES MAD MEN

c. JULIANNA MARGULIES THE GOOD WIFE

d. ANNA PAQUIN TRUE BLOOD

e. KYRA SEDGWICK THE CLOSER

 

17. BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTOR IN A TELEVISION SERIES – DRAMA

a. SIMON BAKER THE MENTALIST

b. MICHAEL C. HALL DEXTER

c. JON HAMM MAD MEN

d. HUGH LAURIE HOUSE

e. BILL PAXTON BIG LOVE

 

18. BEST TELEVISION SERIES – COMEDY OR MUSICAL

a. 30 ROCK (NBC)

Universal Media Studios in association with Broadway Video and Little

Stranger Inc.

b. ENTOURAGE (HBO)

Leverage and Closest to the Hole Productions in association with HBO

Entertainment

c. GLEE (FOX)

Twentieth Century Fox Television

d. MODERN FAMILY (ABC)

Twentieth Century Fox Television

e. THE OFFICE (NBC)

Universal Media Studios, Deedle Dee Productions, Reveille LLC

 

19. BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTRESS IN A TELEVISION SERIES –

COMEDY OR MUSICAL

a. TONI COLLETTE UNITED STATES OF TARA

b. COURTENEY COX COUGAR TOWN

c. EDIE FALCO NURSE JACKIE

d. TINA FEY 30 ROCK

e. LEA MICHELE GLEE

 

20. BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTOR IN A TELEVISION SERIES –

COMEDY OR MUSICAL

a. ALEC BALDWIN 30 ROCK

b. STEVE CARELL THE OFFICE

c. DAVID DUCHOVNY CALIFORNICATION

d. THOMAS JANE HUNG

e. MATTHEW MORRISON GLEE

 

21. BEST MINI-SERIES OR MOTION PICTURE MADE FOR TELEVISION

a. GEORGIA O'KEEFFE (LIFETIME TELEVISION)

Sony Pictures Television

b. GREY GARDENS (HBO)

Specialty Films and Locomotive in association with HBO Films

c. INTO THE STORM (HBO)

Scott Free and Rainmark Films Production in association with the BBC and HBO

Films

d. LITTLE DORRIT (PBS)

Masterpiece/BBC Co-production

e. TAKING CHANCE (HBO)

Motion Picture Corporation of America and Civil Dawn Pictures in association

with HBO Films

 

22. BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTRESS IN A MINI-SERIES OR MOTION

PICTURE MADE FOR TELEVISION

a. JOAN ALLEN GEORGIA O'KEEFFE

b. DREW BARRYMORE GREY GARDENS

c. JESSICA LANGE GREY GARDENS

d. ANNA PAQUIN THE COURAGEOUS HEART OF IRENA

SENDLER

e. SIGOURNEY WEAVER PRAYERS FOR BOBBY

 

23. BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTOR IN A MINI-SERIES OR MOTION

PICTURE MADE FOR TELEVISION

a. KEVIN BACON TAKING CHANCE

b. KENNETH BRANAGH WALLANDER: ONE STEP BEHIND

c. CHIWETEL EJIOFOR ENDGAME

d. BRENDAN GLEESON INTO THE STORM

e. JEREMY IRONS GEORGIA O'KEEFFE

 

24. BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTRESS IN A SUPPORTING ROLE IN A

SERIES, MINI-SERIES OR MOTION PICTURE MADE FOR TELEVISION

a. JANE ADAMS HUNG

b. ROSE BYRNE DAMAGES

c. JANE LYNCH GLEE

d. JANET McTEER INTO THE STORM

e. CHLOË SEVIGNY BIG LOVE

 

25. BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTOR IN A SUPPORTING ROLE IN A SERIES,

MINI-SERIES OR MOTION PICTURE MADE FOR TELEVISION

a. MICHAEL EMERSON LOST

b. NEIL PATRICK HARRIS HOW I MET YOUR MOTHER

c. WILLIAM HURT DAMAGES

d. JOHN LITHGOW DEXTER

e. JEREMY PIVEN ENTOURAGE

 

 

WINNERS BY MOTION PICTURE DISTRIBUTOR

AND TELEVISION NETWORK

MOTION PICTURE DISTRIBUTOR

The Weinstein Company 12

Warner Bros. Pictures 9

Paramount Pictures 7

Sony Pictures Classics 6

Lionsgate 5

Twentieth Century Fox 5

Fox Searchlight Pictures 4

Sony Pictures Releasing 4

Summit Entertainment 4

Universal Pictures 4

Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures 4

Focus Features 2

Relativity Media LLC 2

Apparition 1

Elephant Eye Films 1

Miramax Films 1

Oscilloscope Laboratories 1

 

TELEVISION NETWORK

HBO 17

FOX 6

SHOWTIME 6

NBC 5

CBS 4

LIFETIME TELEVISION 4

ABC 3

AMC 3

FX NETWORKS 3

PBS 3

TNT 1

 

And for those of you who like to count things, here's who got the most nominations:

WINNERS BY MOTION PICTURE

AND TELEVISION SERIES OR PROGRAM

MOTION PICTURE

UP IN THE AIR 6

NINE 5

AVATAR 4

INGLOURIOUS BASTERDS 4

THE HURT LOCKER 3

INVICTUS 3

IT'S COMPLICATED 3

PRECIOUS: BASED ON THE NOVEL PUSH BY SAPPHIRE 3

A SINGLE MAN 3

(500) DAYS OF SUMMER 2

BROTHERS 2

CRAZY HEART 2

THE INFORMANT! 2

JULIE & JULIA 2

THE LAST STATION 2

UP 2

BAARIA 1

THE BLIND SIDE 1

BROKEN EMBRACES 1

CLOUDY WITH A CHANCE OF MEATBALLS 1

CORALINE 1

DISTRICT 9 1

DUPLICITY 1

AN EDUCATION 1

EVERYBODY'S FINE 1

FANTASTIC MR. FOX 1

THE HANGOVER 1

THE LOVELY BONES 1

THE MAID 1

THE MESSENGER 1

THE PRINCESS AND THE FROG 1

A PROPHET 1

THE PROPOSAL 1

A SERIOUS MAN 1

SHERLOCK HOLMES 1

WHERE THE WILD THINGS ARE 1

THE WHITE RIBBON 1

THE YOUNG VICTORIA 1

 

WINNERS BY MOTION PICTURE

AND TELEVISION SERIES OR PROGRAM

TELEVISION SERIES OR PROGRAM

GLEE 4

30 ROCK 3

BIG LOVE 3

DAMAGES 3

DEXTER 3

GEORGIA O'KEEFFE 3

GREY GARDENS 3

INTO THE STORM 3

MAD MEN 3

ENTOURAGE 2

HOUSE 2

HUNG 2

THE OFFICE 2

TAKING CHANCE 2

TRUE BLOOD 2

CALIFORNICATION 1

THE CLOSER 1

COUGAR TOWN 1

THE COURAGEOUS HEART OF IRENA SENDLER 1

ENDGAME 1

THE GOOD WIFE 1

HOW I MET YOUR MOTHER 1

LITTLE DORRIT 1

LOST 1

THE MENTALIST 1

MODERN FAMILY 1

NURSE JACKIE 1

PRAYERS FOR BOBBY 1

UNITED STATES OF TARA 1

WALLANDER: ONE STEP BEHIND 1

 

 

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An Apology: Avatar Amazingly Does Not Suck

 

 

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An Apology: Avatar Amazingly Does Not Suck

via Gawker: defamer by Richard Rushfield on 12/15/09

For months, the evidence mounted and mounted that James Cameron's long awaited Titanic follow-up was going to be the biggest let down since Phantom Menace. No one wanted to believe that more than we did.

So imagine our horror, when last night we attended a screening of Avatar — and it was pretty spectacular.

Simply put, although it had been foretold that the film is a stunning visual six-course banquet, we scoffed that a bunch of nice colors could serve as the basis for a film. We doubted the ability of a movie to hold us for nearly three hours with just a bunch of pretty alien nature photography. But it does.

Or it does well enough, with enough action/adventure plotting to keep the damn thing moving mostly. Again, much as we hate to admit it, it is so overwhelmingly cool looking, with a serviceable enough story, that the three hours more or less flew by.

Hollywood goes for epic in just about every tentpole it churns out, but somehow the ginormity of a Transformers 2 or a 2012 production, leave them feeling small — with a shrunken spirit and core that quashes their monstrous pretensions. Avatar, while certainly not without flaws, manages to create a sense of true epic scope in which the journey becomes greater than the sum of its effects.

It is going to become to film that everyone — nerds, families, grandparents — will have to see and it will rake in unbelievable amounts of loot; mountains of cash beyond the imagination.

So now it is time to point fingers — at ourselves. How in the heck did we get this so wrong? How did a movie manage to look so horrible and actually turn out to be great?

Well for starters, all the stuff that we ridiculed in the the trailers and publicity campaign — the laughable dialogue, the cartoonish good versus evil plotting, the clunky character names, the silly looking cougar noses — they are all in there, and they are all ridiculous. But what wasn't clear from the trailers is how small a part of the film those laughable/clunky bits would be.

We were basing much of our dread on memories of Titanic — which we still hold was the worst film ever made; thinking that the sins of Titanic, as they reappeared in the Avatar campaign, meant that the same tedious nightmare awaited us, like an iceberg drifting through the dark Atlantic towards our ship of entertainment.

But in Avatar, Cameron managed to reverse the disastrous Titanic equation, letting him play from his strong suit. Whereas Titanic was a drama with bits of action, Avatar is basically an action/adventure movie with bits of drama stuck in. Yes, there is ridiculous clunky dialogue, eye-rolling Dances With Wolves-like worship of the Earth-loving (or Pandora-loving) native wilderness people, a plot that attempts to be a parable of US foreign adventures written with the subtlety of a 12-year-old.

Yes, the irony of making a film celebrating the sanctity of every living organism which revels in exquisitely slaughtering vast number of characters is completely lost on the filmmaker.

All that is there in Avatar and we were right to mock those elements.

But those pieces, amazingly are small and fairly unobtrusive in plot that is mostly a rollicking, visually spectacular adventure (even if it sags a bit in the middle). They provide guffaw-ready moments but unlike Titanic, where the love story went on hour after hideous hour, here it basically is handled in one fairly brief scene.

Trust us, this gives us no joy to write, but this time the tea leaves were off and we must hereby humbly resign our seat on the board of Avatar-Bashing Incorporated.

To all our comrades in arms on the Avatar Sucks barricades. Our fight was brave. Our cause was noble. In some way, I'll figure out later, we can claim this was a moral victory. But the time has come to lay down our arms and return to our pastures and couches. It has been a honor to serve with you all and history will honor our valor and our sacrifice. But the war has ended. And we are losers.

And by the end, you even get used to the cougar noses.

 

 

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