Day: November 28, 2018

“When You’re A Jet…”

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YouTube guy: “Everyone remembers that scene from The Lion King when Simba is cornered by hyenas, and then Mufasa appears out of nowhere and comes to the rescue. This is almost exactly the same!”

The clip (posted on 11.27.18) has atrocious camerawork, but it’s heartening to see those two or three lions charging in and chasing the hyenas away. More thrilling, I’ll bet, than anything I’m likely to see in Jon Favreau‘s Lion King remake.

“You’re never alone / You’re never disconnected! / You’re home with your own / When company’s expected / You’re well protected!” — from “Jet Song,” music by Leonard Bernstein, lyrics by Stephen Sondheim.

Edelstein Again

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Woman producer friend to HE: “That quote is jaw-dropping-level offensive. If I was at NPR, I would have cut him loose. It’s a ‘no going back’ quote. And if I were Tamara Jenkins, I would have cancelled the q & a unless he was out. Should he be put out to pasture at New York? Minimally a time-out to mull the insensitive fucking idiocy of his quote. Should he be let go permanently? Maybe. Probably won’t save his misogynist soul, but it would make a good point. Rape jokes aren’t funny. I’m not part of the twitter mob, and this is not just about one quote either. It’s about the institutionalization of misogyny. This was a line crossed. Caning is not enough.”

HE to producer friend: “Was there something in what I wrote that suggested people should automatically give rape-jokers a pass? Or that Edelstein wasn’t or isn’t an idiot for having posted what he posted?

Do we really have to kill people when they say something callous or hurtful or grievously misjudged?

Your attitude is exactly that of the ’50s commie haters and the witch-burners of Salem. Fire them, burn them, wipe them out, firing squad, zero tolerance. The Bolsheviks had the same thought about the Czar’s family. Do you honestly think that urban lefty culture is 100% behind the idea of instantly lopping off heads whenever someone says something thoughtless or stupid? The applicable terms are (a) ‘purist political hysteria’ and (b) ‘excess of zeal.'”

Producer friend responds: “You’ve missed the point. Then again I just read a good quote: ‘Maybe getting fired is better with butter.'”

Listening-in friend (also a woman): “Ugh…I just can’t. My eardrums are bleeding from having been shrieked at by people like this. I swear to God. It was a stupid joke. Gross, dumb, icky…but it was on Facebook. If it’s on NPR, sure, it’s a problem. But Facebook? They’re going to police everything people think, say and do in their private time? Really?”

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Partying Is Hard Work

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Hollywood Elsewhere attended two good-time Manhattan soirees last night. First up was the Fox Searchlight holiday party at the Nomad Hotel (B’way and 28th) where I spoke with Can You Ever Forgive Me? director Marielle Heller and “cat killer” Richard E. Grant. The second stage was the Roma after-party at The Pool, or the former location of The Four Seasons (99 East 52nd). Thanks to Fox Searchlight reps and Netflix’s Lisa Taback and Albert Tello for the invites. A splendid time, excellent food and drink, superb coatrooms, etc.


Six or seven old typewriters, dating back to the 20s and 30s, were available for the Fox Searchlight guests at the Nomad. It’s not easy typing on these things.

Gold Derby hotshot and all-around Manhattan gadfly Bill McCuddy (r.) and wife Sue.

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Early Sundance ’19 Preferences

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I’m not going to offer any sweeping judgments about the just-announced 2018 Sundance Film Festival slate, except to suggest that with a competition slate that is 53% female (i.e., nine of the 17 directors eligible for the festival’s top prize are women) it would appear that 2018 Sundance is going to be just as progressive-minded (i.e., “socialist summer camp in the snow”) as last year’s festival, if not more so.

I’m going to take it two or three sections at a time. Today I’m pasting Premieres (feature and documentary), Midnight & Spotlight. I’ve bold-faced the titles that I have a special interest in seeing, but I’d appreciate thoughts about anything I might be unfairly dismissing. I’l consider the other sections tomorrow.

Premieres (18):

After The Wedding (Director and screenwriter: Bart Freundlich, Producers: Joel B. Michaels, Harry Finkel) — Seeking funds for her orphanage in India, Isabelle travels to New York to meet Theresa, a wealthy benefactor. An invitation to attend a wedding ignites a series of events in which the past collides with the present while mysteries unravel. Based on the Academy Award-nominated film by Susanne Bier. Cast: Julianne Moore, Michelle Williams, Billy Crudup, Abby Quinn.

Animals (U.K.-Ireland-Australia – Director: Sophie Hyde, Screenwriter: Emma Jane Unsworth, Producers: Sarah Brocklehurst, Rebecca Summerton, Cormac Fox, Sophie Hyde) — After a decade of partying, Laura and Tyler’s friendship is strained by Laura’s new love and her focus on her novel. A snapshot of a modern woman with competing desires, at once a celebration of female friendship and an examination of the choices we make when facing a crossroads. Cast: Holliday Grainger, Alia Shawkat.

Blinded by the Light (U.K. – Director: Gurinder Chadha, Screenwriters: Sarfraz Manzoor, Gurinder Chadha, Paul Mayeda Berges, Producers: Gurinder Chadha, Jane Barclay, Jamal Daniel) — In 1987 during the austere days of Thatcher’s Britain, a teenager learns to live life, understand his family and find his own voice through the music of Bruce Springsteen. Cast: Viveik Kalra, Hayley Atwell, Rob Brydon, Kulvinder Ghir, Nell Williams, Aaron Phagura.

The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind (United Kingdom – Director and screenwriter: Chiwetel Ejiofor, Producers: Andrea Calderwood, Gail Egan) — Against all the odds, a thirteen year old boy in Malawi invents an unconventional way to save his family and village from famine. Based on the true story of William Kamkwamba. Cast: Chiwetel Ejiofor, Maxwell Simba, Lily Banda, Noma Dumezweni, Aissa Maiga, Joseph Marcell.

Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil and Vile (Director: Joe Berlinger, Screenwriter: Michael Werwie, Producers: Michael Costigan, Nicolas Chartier, Ara Keshishian, Michael Simkin) — A chronicle of the crimes of Ted Bundy from the perspective of Liz, his longtime girlfriend, who refused to believe the truth about him for years. Cast: Zac Efron, Lily Collins, Haley Joel Osment, Kaya Scodelario, John Malkovich, Jim Parsons.

I Am Mother (Australia – Director: Grant Sputore, Screenwriter: Michael Lloyd Green, Producers: Timothy White, Kelvin Munro) — In the wake of humanity’s extinction, a teenage girl is raised by a robot designed to repopulate the earth. But their unique bond is threatened when an inexplicable stranger arrives with alarming news. Cast: Clara Rugaard, Rose Byrne, Hilary Swank.

Late Night (Director: Nisha Ganatra, Screenwriter: Mindy Kaling, Producers: Ben Browning, Howard Klein, Jillian Apfelbaum, Mindy Kaling) — Legendary late-night talk show host’s world is turned upside down when she hires her only female staff writer. Originally intended to smooth over diversity concerns, her decision has unexpectedly hilarious consequences as the two women separated by culture and generation are united by their love of a biting punchline. Cast: Emma Thompson, Mindy Kaling, John Lithgow, Paul Walter Hauser, Reid Scott, Amy Ryan.

The Mustang (Director: Laure de Clermont-Tonnerre, Screenwriters: Laure de Clermont-Tonnerre, Mona Fastvold, Brock Norman Brock, Producer: Alain Goldman) — While participating in a rehabilitation program training wild mustangs, a convict at first struggles to connect with the horses and his fellow inmates, but learns to confront his violent past as he soothes an especially feisty horse. Cast: Matthias Schoenaerts, Connie Britton, Bruce Dern, Jason Mitchell, Gideon Adlon, Josh Stewart.

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New York Film Critics Vote Tomorrow

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No way in hell will the New York Film Critics Circle give Green Book their Best Picture prize. No way. The membership includes too many arch-backed p.c. zealots who believe that a gentle humanistic buddy film that could have been made in 1987…there are too many who feel such a film should be mule-kicked to death.

I’m presuming that Roma will take the top prize, along with Alfonso Cuaron for Best Director. And if not that, possibly The Favourite. They can’t go for A Star Is Born….not the NYFCC. It’s the kind of warm-emotional-bath film that popcorn-eaters like and therefore not a fit. And no Best Actress trophy for Lady Gaga either! I’m thinking it’ll be Olivia Colman or Mellissa McCarthy.

Maybe Bradley Cooper for Best Actor, although it should go to Christian Bale. HE’s personal favorite is Ethan Hawke, of course. I’m saying this under the presumption that the NYFCC won’t touch Viggo Mortensen with a ten-foot pole.

Richard E. Grant (the “cat-killer” from Can You Ever Forgive Me?) for Best Supporting Actor!

I’m also betting on Cold War taking the Best Foreign Language Feature prize, and RBG for the Best Documentary award.

Critic friend #1: “I think this is a Roma group, and that the other film that will figure in the most is First Reformed.” Critic friend #2: “I wouldn’t be surprised if The Favourite does something. Otherwise there’s no way to tell, particularly with the influx of younger members” — i.e., the New NYFCC Kidz. Critic friend #3: “It’s a very unpredictable year.”

Thoughts or notions about any of the NYFCC categories?

Get Real

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My insect antennae are telling me that four Best Actress Oscar nominations are locked down — A Star Is Born‘s Lady Gaga, Can You Ever Forgive Me‘s Melissa McCarthy, The Wife‘s Glenn Close and The Favourite‘s Olivia Colman.

I felt personally rocked only by McCarthy and Close. Colman is always strong and savory no matter the part, but if she’s playing a leading role in The Favourite I’m a monkey’s uncle. I genuinely respect Gaga’s performance and have no quarrel with her being nominated.

As for the THR round-table, Kidman’s gutted-zombie performance in Destroyer is mainly about the makeup, The Favorite‘s Rachel Weisz has been elbowed aside by Colman, and Kathryn Hahn‘s performance in Private Life has, due respect, never really been in the running.

Something Stupid

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In response to the 11.26 death of Bernardo Bertolucci, New York critic David Edelstein shared a coarse and unwise sentiment — a flip joke, if you will — on Facebook. Along with a still of the Marlon Brando-Maria Schneider anal sex scene from Last Tango in Paris, he wrote that “even grief is better with butter.”

In a matter of hours Edelstein, who had quickly deleted and apologized for the post, became Satan’s spawn. Which was no surprise in our ongoing Salem-witch-trials-on-twitter climate. He was going for a tone of casual, hipper-than-thou impudence, I suppose, but in a social-media sense what he wrote was actually quite bone-headed. You don’t spit into the wind.

Actress Martha Plympton tweeted that she’d been avoiding Bertolucci’s passing “precisely because of this moment in which a sexual assault of an actress was intentionally captured on film.” (A dead wrong observation, by the way.) “And this asshole” — Edelstein — “makes it into this joke. Fire him. Immediately.”

Guardian contributor and Women in Hollywood founder Melissa Silverstein wrote that Edelstein “has been a sexist asshole for many years. Why is he still employed?”

Edelstein was soon after fired from his commentator gig on NPR’s “Fresh Air,” and yesterday afternoon, I’m told, he was disinvited from moderating a discussion with Private Life director Tamara Jenkins during a mid-day press luncheon at The East Pole on East 65th Street. (Edelstein didn’t reply when I double-checked with him last night.)

The stupidity factor aside, Edelstein was basically saying that the infamous Tango scene had left the strongest impression as he considered Bertolucci’s career-long imprint, just as when Steven Spielberg passes someone will tweet something about the primal impact of Jaws. But of course, Edelstein was also conveying a cavalier attitude about Schneider’s 2007 claim that the shooting of this scene was traumatic because she hadn’t been consulted by Bertolucci and Brando beforehand, and that she felt “a little bit raped.”

A couple of years ago hair-trigger types (Jessica Chastain among them) took this to mean that Bertolucci and Brando had sprung the rape scene upon Schneider and perhaps had even subjected her to an actual on-camera violation, but Schneider was clear in her ’97 interview that the sex was simulated. She maintained, however, that the anal-sex aspect “wasn’t in the original script,” and that “it was Marlon who came up with the idea,” and that “they only told me about it before we had to film the scene and I was so angry.”

This was strongly denied by Bertolucci two years ago. “I specified…that I decided with Marlon Brando not to inform Maria that we would [be using] butter,” he wrote. “We wanted her spontaneous reaction to that improper use [of the butter]. That is where the misunderstanding lies. Somebody thought, and thinks, that Maria had not been informed about the violence on her. That is false!

“Maria knew everything because she had read the script, where it was all described. The only novelty was the idea of the butter. And that, as I learned many years later, offended Maria. Not the violence that she is subjected to in the scene, which was written in the screenplay.”

In his apology Edelstein claimed he “was not aware of” Schneider’s experience on the film. But how could he have possibly missed that December ’16 twitter brouhaha? It got a lot of play and lasted a good two or three days.

The Edelstein thing is yet another illustration of the present-day fact that if you’re stupid enough to say the wrong thing, the mob will turn on you like that, and even your “friends” will run in fear of your evil aura. This is the ’50s blacklist scare all over again.

I’ve written before that everyone in the public spotlight should be entitled to at least a couple of “get out of jail” cards in the event of a haphazard tweeting of something idiotic. We should acknowledge that the ability to say something wrong and hurtful (as Plympton did when she tweeted that the Tango anal-sex scene was an “intentional capturing” of “a sexual assault of an actress” when in fact the scripted scene was about Brando and Schneider performing simulated sex) is in all of us.

I for one feel that Edelstein, a wise, seasoned and brilliant critic who has paid his dues and proved his critical mettle over decades, should not be seized by guards and taken out behind the building and shot in the head. He should be caned, okay, but also given a chance to speak and atone some more and perhaps share some related truths. But tell that to the twitter mob.