comment #1

Craig Kennedy says ...

So the guy breathlessly speculating about the status of Diablo Cody's marriage a couple weeks back now has her written off as a publicity whore?

Interesting.

comment #2

Walter Sobchak says ...

I don't blame her for trying to milk it for what she can get... I do have to laff at all those people who fall for it...

"She's so edgy! She's got the pulse of young, hip, youth hipsters! Her name is Diablo! How unusual! Unusually COOL! Maybe her coolness will rub off on me. I hope I can get a picture of her at the Vanity Fair party! If not I'll just die!"

comment #3

Breedlove says ...

I just thought of another idea for a writer-less Academy Awards: get Diablo back on the pole.

comment #4

Unison says ...

Endlessly begging for an Oscar nomination when the rest of your guild is striking is somewhat off-putting, I'd say.

comment #5

vansmith says ...

hey she's where alot of people at the starbucks in LA want to be. she could go up in age and be another joe estarhauz...

comment #6

thevisceral says ...

Even for a stripper, she looks pretty beat-up.

comment #7

rock powers says ...

you could judge her character by determining whether or not those tits are real.

comment #8

Howlingman says ...

I can't fault her for publicizinh herself. Most people only get one kick at the can in the biz so you make the most of the opportunity given. It's why you see a lot of first time films but not a lot of second timers.

comment #9

Aguirre says ...

i talked to her a few weeks ago and she certainly doesn't look "beat up" in person. not exactly my cup of tea, but for what it's worth i think it can be safely said that she escaped the stripping arena unscathed.

comment #10

JD says ...

Jeff clearly likes her for primarily stripper reasons. I wonder if James Mangold has nude photos of her. Oh wait, those are already all over the net (cue Jeff searching or said photos).

Of course, there's always the Joe Leydon argument that female screenwriters need all the props they can get. So why doesn't anyone take the time to write up the infinitely more talented Kelly Masterson. Before the Devil Knows You're Dead is 10 times the movie Juno ever even aspired to be.

comment #11

goodvibe61 says ...

I am so tired of this story. I am way beyond exhausted reading about Diablo Cody, seeing pictures of diablo Cody, it's endless. Stop already.

For all the media saturation you'd think she's surpassed Robert Towne's achievement in film or something. By the time I finally got around to seeing Juno I must admit it was hard for me to innocently enjoy it, it was as though I had a wall built up protecting me from all the Diablo Cody hype that's being thrown around.

This "sudden rise" is just so calculated that it's turned me off. The fake name. The career "decided on a whim" to be a pole dancer. Yeah, that was decided on a whim, give me a break. And now Juno, a nice little film that Cody (forget that, from now on I'm calling her by her NAME, Brooke Busey Hunt)has used to market herself literally EVERYWHERE.

She's clever about the marketing you gotta give her that. But give it a rest already...

comment #12

Brian O says ...

You guys seem pretty certain her stripper story was true.

I'm not so sure.

comment #13

actionman says ...

I liked the film but it's too smug and self-satisfied. And it's asinine that the mere mention of the word CONDOM was never brought up by Cera and Page's characters.

comment #14

vansmith says ...

"she's got a great ass..."

comment #15

mutinyco says ...

JD...

Kelly Masterson is a man...

comment #16

Craig Kennedy says ...

Alas JD, Kelly Masterson is a man. Not sure if he ever stripped though.

comment #17

corey3rd says ...

she's just angling to be a judge on Iron Chef.

comment #18

Joe Leydon says ...

Er, JD.... that really wasn't my argument. Rather, I raised pretty much the same question Jeff has: Why is a woman catching so much grief for promoting herself in a manner not at all unlike QT?

comment #19

christian says ...

I think I saw Cody at the amazing double bill of BEYOND THE VALLEY OF THE DOLLS and HEAD at Edgar Wright's New Beverly fest. I hope it was her, cos she smiled at me. She was the meow of the crowd. And obviously cool to be supporting the New Bev, which she has in the past.

Tarantino also had his moment in the media sun.

comment #20

Brian O says ...

"Why is a woman catching so much grief for promoting herself in a manner not at all unlike QT?"

Joe, you're no spring chicken, have you forgotten already? People HATED Tarantino back when he was red hot. The 94-96 years were not kind. Then he made JACKIE BROWN, and all was well.

I doubt Cody will ever have a JACKIE BROWN during her *fingers crossed* short career.

comment #21

Rich S. says ...

I thought it got to be a bit much when she became the latest back-page columnist for Entertainment Weekly.

comment #22

mutinyco says ...

This is all pretty simple really. I'd be willing to bet that a decent majority of film geeks are men (I may be wrong).

Tarantino's movies appealed to MEN: lots of action, violence, rude humor, etc.

Cody's movie is about a pregnant teenage girl.

comment #23

Joe Leydon says ...

Brian O: Speaking as one of the first people to interview QT -- well, OK, one of the first 100 or so -- I don't remember his receiving anything like the sniping DC has received. Indeed, if anything, I remember almost nothing but enthusiasm in the MSM. Of course, I will grant you this: QT burst upon the scene in a pre-blogger era. If there had been sites like this around the time QT was promoting Reservoir Dogs....

And, Christ, can you imagine what Peter Bogdanovich would have had to put up with for doing What's Up Doc? right after Last Picture Show?

comment #24

Sean says ...

"There is nothing in the least bit inappropriate or off-putting in the way Juno screenwriter Diablo Cody has promoted herself. She's not doing anything Quentin Tarantino didn't do (or try to do) 13, 14, 15 years ago."

I was under the impression that it was off-putting when Tarantino was on every single talk show back in '94 pushing himself for the 'Pulp Fiction' Oscars too. I seem to remember most people got pretty sick of seeing his face and hearing his voice pretty fast, so much so that even 'The Simpsons' made fun of him.

I do agree, though, that if the Internet had been around when 'Pulp Fiction' came out, the advance buzz would've been huge, and it would've opened in 3000 screens, and died IMMEDIATELY and then Travolta and Tarantino all would've had significantly different careers (where I think Jackson would've gotten noticed and still gotten parts, though he may not have been a star as quickly).

comment #25

T. S. Idiot says ...

If her name was Mary Jones, would any of this overkill be happening? I think I'll change mine to Hugh G. Phallus.

comment #26

Howlingman says ...

"If her name was Mary Jones, would any of this overkill be happening? I think I'll change mine to Hugh G. Phallus."

I call dibs on "Harrison Testiclees."

comment #27

Joe Leydon says ...

I really don't remember much in the way of QT self-hype backlash until Pulp Fiction and beyond, but never mind: Sean, you raise an interesting point. What other movies released BI (Before Internet) might have been damaged if they'd been released AI? Obviously, the trick endings of Sleuth, The Usual Suspects, The Crying Game and The Sixth Sense likely would have been spoiled. But what others?

comment #28

RoyBatty says ...

I think the key point here is that it has been 15 or so years since Tarantino and perhaps its time to make the filmmakers' works speak for themselves.

Considering the debacle that was Troy Duffy, is it any wonder that when some hipster, livin' on the razor's edge type persona comes along they're gonna get scrutinized like this - as they should. The whole name change thing bespeaks a certain level of shallowness and surface bullshit. It's bad enough when parents give their children pretentious monikers like "Cody."

And she should remember the lesson of Greg Kinear, who made the almost fatal mistake of allowing his handlers to so over-sell that overnight sensation, talk show host to Harrison Ford co-star thing that it has taken him years to show that he is a damn good serious actor.

comment #29

malibugigolo says ...

The "backlash is more of an ant-writer bias, as in writers are supposed to be nebbish and dressed in tweed. A friend of mine is a good looking, really funny, smart writer and when he tells people he's a writer. They say no you're not. Writers are also not supposed to make money(IE Shane Black) and if they do apologize for it (Peter Morgan) The bias stems from philistines who think anything "intelligent" must be boring and dull. Just look at PBS. They talk slow, are ugly, and wear bad clothes, their level of their of intelligence in their broadcasts is the same as CNN or FOX but people buy the shtick (at least the pseudo- intellectuals do). However, the dull and ugly do have a greater chance of being "book smart" and well read, because they are less likely to be occupied by sex and thus have much more time on their hands for intellectual pursuits.

comment #30

Howlingman says ...

Thing is, the success of Juno (and Ms. Cody) is because of the screenplay. You can call it what you want -- a sitcom-story with smart-arsed blogo-speak in place of dialog, if that's your bag -- but it doesn't change the fact that her voice is unique, at least for movies these days. It's the real reason she's getting the attention above Ellen Page and Jason Reitman -- she's a great story and the entertainment media loves those.

Same with QT in his day -- despite what DZ will inevitably say once his Tarantino radar goes off and he shows up here -- his ear for dialog set him apart from the 92-94 pack and he flourished, until the Tarantino-lite imitators rendered that originality moot and he vanished up his own ass.

Diablo's career from here on in will live or die by the words she writes, until the Juno imitators worm their way out of the woodwork. Good on her to make her bank now because in a year she could already be a footnote.

comment #31

Sean says ...

"It's the real reason she's getting the attention above Ellen Page and Jason Reitman"

I'm not disagreeing with you, but at least part of it is that the whole "pulling yourself up by your bootstraps" (or, you know, thigh-boots and pasties) success story is generally considered a more interesting one than "my father was the biggest producer of the decade" one.

The former speaks a little bit more to the Great American Inspiration Story.

comment #32

Howlingman says ...

And I'm not disagreeing with you, Sean, as they (the writing and her story) are one and the same. If JUNO (the screenplay) hadn't attracted the attention it did, and if the movie hadn't been made, Diablo would still be blogging and trying to break into the industry.

comment #33

corey3rd says ...

Tarantino would have been eaten alive in the blog-era. Think he would have been nailed fast by his Ringo lift for Dogs? After QT was forced to the kiddie table during his Jackie Brown interview on Charlie Rose.

Diablo Cody has stumbled onto the publicity machine that was eagerly awaiting the arrival of Anka Radakovich. Remember when people swore Anka would take the Wild Girls Club to the big screen?

comment #34

Jesse Perry says ...

I haven't seen Juno, and have avoided a lot of the Cody hype so far. The real question for me is this: Does Cody's new EW gig mean that Stephen King is no longer writing that shit column of his? If so, then I consider Diablo Cody an American hero.

comment #35

Edward Havens says ...

I have no problem with whatever her name is. My problem is with the fucking writers who have deemed her The Next Great American Screenwriter before she has shown she is anything other than a one-trick pony.

Chances are, she'll get her worthless Oscar and become a hack rewrite specialist for hire (only $500,000 per week) and we'll never see her name in any credits ever again.

comment #36

Terry McCarty says ...

Sean wrote:
was under the impression that it was off-putting when Tarantino was on every single talk show back in '94 pushing himself for the 'Pulp Fiction' Oscars too. I seem to remember most people got pretty sick of seeing his face and hearing his voice pretty fast, so much so that even 'The Simpsons' made fun of him.

Don't forget PINKY AND THE BRAIN did too:
"Imagine a world without Quentin Tarantino."

comment #37

DavidF says ...

In answer to Joe Leydon's Q, I have four words:
"I am your father."

I managed to stay relatively "spoiler free" for Revenge of the Sith but if you are a Star Wars fan it required effort to dodge the Internet hype.

Who knows if the net would have made a difference like something Gilliam's fight to get Brazil out (aided by the LA Film Critics)...

As for Juno, I haven't seen it but want to as soon as I can. I'll judge it on its merits and not Diablo's name or backstory. The problem isn't the hype around her. As this board shows, the problem is the backlash about they hype about the hype...

comment #38

Aris P says ...

Jesus, enough with this chick already. Let's not endlessly debate and discuss how she wants us to endlessly debate and discuss her.

And we had this QT talk a few weeks ago no?

comment #39

JD says ...

Damn, Kelly Masterson's a man! I had no idea. I blame the reviews that keep calling him a her. Just goes to show that the writer of Before the Devil Knows You're Dead is being unfairly side-swiped for the much more appealing old-director-still-going-strong story. Meanwhile, Diablo Cody gets a new feature written about her every time she takes off her socks... or more.

comment #40

PerfectTommy says ...

Jesse,
EW has been rotating the writers for the back page column so I'm afraid that crushes hope for Kingfreelessness there. But maybe his turns will be a little farther apart.

comment #41

Rich S. says ...

The Empire Strikes Back plot twist was blown by the novelization, which hit stores a few weeks before the film. An idiot friend of mine promptly read the novel and spoiled it for me.

As I recall, another carefully guarded secret from that film was what Yoda was going to look like (even though that was released prior to the film opening as well).

comment #42

D.Z. says ...

I really don't know anyone who hated QT back then, even after Jackie Brown. They made the usual parodies, but he was considered a sacred cow, and questioning his "homages" was viewed as not "getting" it, which is how those Blair Witch fucks were able to hoodwink moviegoers as well. I'm not really impressed with the clips I've seen of Juno, but I don't feel any antipathy towards her like I did with QT, because she doesn't come off as full of it like he did.

Joe: "If there had been sites like this around the time QT was promoting Reservoir Dogs..."

Ringo Lam would be able to successfully sue Quentin and win.

Sean: "I do agree, though, that if the Internet had been around when 'Pulp Fiction' came out, the advance buzz would've been huge, and it would've opened in 3000 screens, and died IMMEDIATELY and then Travolta and Tarantino all would've had significantly different careers"

And that's bad because...?

Roy: "Considering the debacle that was Troy Duffy, is it any wonder that when some hipster, livin' on the razor's edge type persona comes along they're gonna get scrutinized like this - as they should."

The difference is that Troy actually made a cult classic which didn't feel like it recycled from other films.

"And she should remember the lesson of Greg Kinear, who made the almost fatal mistake of allowing his handlers to so over-sell that overnight sensation, talk show host to Harrison Ford co-star thing that it has taken him years to show that he is a damn good serious actor."

More like a damn unnoticeable actor.

Howlingman: "Same with QT in his day -- despite what DZ will inevitably say once his Tarantino radar goes off and he shows up here -- his ear for dialog set him apart from the 92-94 pack and he flourished,"

You mean ability to swipe dialogue from other movies including that of his best friend, Roger.

comment #43

Craig Kennedy says ...

I assumed the exact same thing JD until I stumbled across the truth.

comment #44

Edward Havens says ...

The internet wasn't around in 1994? Crap. What the hell was I doing with my computer and my 300 baud dial-up modem those days?

comment #45

Howlingman says ...

"The internet wasn't around in 1994? Crap. What the hell was I doing with my computer and my 300 baud dial-up modem those days?"

Downloading porn very_slowly like me?

comment #46

dangovich says ...

I still say Tarantino has bigger tits.

comment #47

corey3rd says ...

i used to hate waiting five minutes to go from the neck to the breasts....such a teasing time back in '94.

Why aren't we putting the "rise" of Diablo Cody in context with Judd Apatow. He's a guy who has completely overshadowed his directors in the hype machine - I didn't realize Jake Kasden directed Walk Hard based on all the "From the maker of....." crap. It's all about branding your genius

comment #48

Edward Havens says ...

Probably because Judd Apatow has already proven to be more than a one-hit wonder. Right now, Juno's not even technically a hit.

comment #49

Joe Leydon says ...

Yeah, I can remember the days when I had my reliable Kaypro 2X, with a 300 baud dial-up modem, and I could send free-lance stories to out-of-town papers, and reviews to the Houston Post, from my home office. I also had a dot-matrix printer. I thought I was on the freakin' cutting edge of technology. Now I'm still trying to find a way to transfer about a decade's worth of WordStar files (on those big-ass floppy discs) to Microsoft Word. Sigh.

comment #50

Zimmergirl says ...

Diablo Cody is doing what you have to do if you're a woman breaking into a man's profession - she's doing it backwards and in heels.

Look at someone like Susannah Grant who wrote and was nominated for an Oscar for Erin Brockovich. Hell, she's even one of the more successful ones. Do you suppose she's even close having any sort of name recognition? DC is smart about her career -- take out the fake name, the stripper past and the tats and you still have a good writer but you don't have the topic of a very heated blog posting now do you? Does anyone even talk about the other female writers this year? And there have been plenty.

They are not up for discussion because no one gets an erection thinking about them. Seriously, DC is one of the few who knows that in a man's world women have power in one key area: sex.

Beyond that, though, beyond all of the nonsense and the hype, she wrote a good script and it is one of the few original scripts being celebrated. First half of it is almost unbearable. Second half, perfection.

comment #51

RoyBatty says ...

As usual, oblivious to actual point - Troy Duffy's fantastic follow up project was called what D.Z.?

AS GOOD AS IT GETS, THE MATADOR and LITTLE MISS SUNSHINE is all the proof you need that Kinear is a fine actor. But your Tarantino obsession pretty much calls into question anything you might weigh in on in my eyes.

comment #52

Devin Faraci says ...

Having seen Cody in social situations for the last couple of weeks during the Wright Stuff festival, I can say that she seems like a very genuine, funny and nice person. Jeff would love her if he had a drink with her. Having read her next film, JENNIFER'S BODY, I can say that she's not a one hit wonder but she could be a limited tricks pony. We'll see. I like her plenty, but the sheer amount of hype will wear anyone down.

comment #53

thezipper says ...

Don't forget Auto Focus.

comment #54

Arran says ...

Boondock Saints DIDN'T feel like it was recycled from other movies? Utter bollocks. It's recycled Tarantino, who recycled from countless others. It's a photocopy of a photocopy of a photocopy of a photocopy.

comment #55

RoyBatty says ...

Thanks zip - I had indeed forgotten about AUTO FOCUS which is one of his best.

But it shows you just how much I hated the approach Schrader took with that story, letting his extremely prudish, Calvinist views about sex turn what could have been an interesting commentary about being a man just little too ahead of the times in regards to sexual expression (the the nature of obsession) into yet another "He had to die because he let sex take over his life" bullshit.

comment #56

jeffmcm says ...

DZ, shut up.

comment #57

D.Z. says ...

Joe: "Now I'm still trying to find a way to transfer about a decade's worth of WordStar files (on those big-ass floppy discs)"

I feel for ya.

Roy: "As usual, oblivious to actual point - Troy Duffy's fantastic follow up project was called what D.Z.?"

Who cares?

"AS GOOD AS IT GETS, THE MATADOR and LITTLE MISS SUNSHINE is all the proof you need that Kinear is a fine actor."

Um, no one saw those films for Kinear. In fact, if you ask the average person on the street, they'd probably confuse him for Bill Pullman or Ed Burns.

Arran: "Boondock Saints DIDN'T feel like it was recycled from other movies? Utter bollocks. It's recycled Tarantino,"

"Recycled Tarantino" is a redundant term, since that pretty much defines his entire career. When Quentin can shoot a gunfight as well as Duffy, or when he can actually recreate a realistic crime scene which isn't simply based on his favorite grindhouse film he played in his basement, then we'll talk.

comment #58

The Hoyk says ...

I have also met Diablo numerous times during the Wright Stuff festival, and she's one of the most polite and unpretentious people I've ever met, especially in the wake of having such a successful film in the marketplace. Has it occurred to anyone that maybe her media saturation is because when outlets speak to her, they like her and want more? Quentin didn't get to be all over talk shows and print media just because he wanted to "whore" himself out for promotion, he got it because he is an entertaining personality who makes for good television and fun light reading.

All the hatred here and would-be funny sarcastic digs at Diablo and Quentin inspires me to paraphrase Barry Gordon from A THOUSAND CLOWNS: My simple child reaction of what you say is that you are not funny. What is mostly not funny is how sad you all are, and I'd feel sorry for you if it wasn't for how dull you all are...And that's my opinion from the blue, blue sky.

comment #59

jeffmcm says ...

DZ, shut the fuck up.

comment #60

D.Z. says ...

"Quentin didn't get to be all over talk shows and print media just because he wanted to "whore" himself out for promotion, he got it because he is an entertaining personality who makes for good television and fun light reading."

No, he's just an asshole who managed to have a hit film with a subsidiary of a major company which wanted to promote him.

comment #61

jeffmcm says ...

Mother of God, will you shut the fuck up. You're the asshole. You, Daniel Zelter.
S
H
U
T

U
P
.

comment #62

Craig Kennedy says ...

Though there is a huge overlap between the two groups, if you add together all the men who aren't getting laid in this town and all of the failed writers, I think you'll account for a pretty large chunk of the anti-Cody bandwagon.

comment #63

BurmaShave says ...

This is, by far, the classiest thread ever. I am proud of all of you and glad to be a part of it.

comment #64

Brian O says ...

"I have also met Diablo numerous times during the Wright Stuff festival, and she's one of the most polite and unpretentious people I've ever met."

Gee, that's great.

She still can't write.

comment #65

T. S. Idiot says ...

"Though there is a huge overlap between the two groups, if you add together all the men who aren't getting laid in this town and all of the failed writers, I think you'll account for a pretty large chunk of the anti-Cody bandwagon." And I thought it was only those not getting laid who find her attractive.

comment #66

Beaucoul says ...

"Though there is a huge overlap between the two groups, if you add together all the men who aren't getting laid in this town and all of the failed writers, I think you'll account for a pretty large chunk of the anti-Cody bandwagon."

First of all, how can you not get laid in Hollywood? The women here are man-eaters! They're all bimbos or cougars! Even if you're some dumbass writer, you should be able to score on a regular basis! C'mon people. Give me something I can use!

comment #67

Beaucoul says ...

Wouldn't it be so much better if her name was Cody Diablo?

comment #68

christian says ...

The weird thang is, Cody is actually a good writer. Go figger.

comment #69

D.Z. says ...

Beau: "First of all, how can you not get laid in Hollywood? The women here are man-eaters!"

The reason is that many of them aren't women...

comment #70

christian says ...

"First of all, how can you not get laid in Hollywood? The women here are man-eaters!"

Yes, if you're a Star Man.

LA is undoubtedly the worst dating town I've ever lived in. The best? Austin.

comment #71

D.Z. says ...

christian: "LA is undoubtedly the worst dating town I've ever lived in."

It really is, though. No places to pick up people; no places to meet; and no places to get away from the rat race. Hell, the rats are trying to get away from this shithole, too, hence the reason you see so many of their carcasses on the sidewalks.

comment #72

Brian O says ...

"The weird thang is, Cody is actually a good writer. Go figger."

Honest to blog?

comment #73

christian says ...

O Brian. Honest.

comment #74

guermaxl says ...

Tribute to Diablo

"She was working as a stripper in a cocktail bar, that much is true...."

comment #75

Lisha says ...

she is so beautiful. every time i signed in "RichLoving.com" and there were always
many men talking about her how sexy and pretty ... you know it is a site
where rich women can seek young cute men .

comment #76

Myanmara says ...

For the person saying you can judge her character by whether "her tits are real." They're not, by her own admission. She wrote about her implants several times on her blog (she's the queen of too-much-information). So, her "Juno" money went somewhere, at least part of it. Right on her chest. And yes, I can blame her for participating in the publicity whore-fest. It's already costing her crediblity. Her act is also pretty adolescent. Once she gets past 30, which is drawing near, it's going to look silly. She is smart and funny, so maybe she will have the wisdom to be willing to change and grow. At least if she's going to be part of the public arena, she can prove herself and make herself more welcome. Hopefully by doing work that will be worthy of the attention.

comment #77

NeuralNet says ...

I have yet to hear what's witty about the script.

The backlash seems to be mostly based on a very natural reaction - hype and astroturfing elevated a 6 to a 9, and people are a little bit miffed that they've been herded into mediocrity posing as brilliance.

If you're told that you're going to hear a whole new voice - and that voice appears to belong a Wired writer from the 90s who wants to screech Honest to Blog! and Cybertastic! in your ear - you're going to feel kind of had. Most cinephiles feel ripped off, and dread a world in which a hamburger phone substitutes for wit.

Characterization should probably transcend a Myspace profile, and Juno reads more or less like an interacting set of profiles. That's not hip or clever - it sucks.

comment #78

tinnitus cure says ...

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