Mego's blog

'Les Miserable.' Again! This time with music and a hairless Anne Hathaway.

I was reluctant to watch the preview for the Tom Hooper movie/musical/book adaptation of Les Miserables for a few reasons.

One, the film version of Les Miserables was previously done in 1998 with Uma Thurman, Liam Neeson, Claire Danes, and Geoffrey Rush. Yeah, in "movie years," this film was due for a remake in 1999, but the fact that it royally flopped is still fresh in my mind.

 

Two, I didn't want to see Anne Hathaway's new short do! She cut her beautiful hair for this film! This is where it all went wrong. It's the equivalent of those on Team Aniston subjecting themselves to Mr. and Mrs. Smith. 

But, finally I gave in, and the trailer isn't bad. Hathaway can sing, so it's exciting to see her in an epic musical (the role almost went to *gulp* Taylor Swift!). 

 

Just wondering, though: Why didn't Katie Holmes get a call? Her audition tape is here:

 

10 Things I Took Away from 'Hemingway & Gellhorn'

Last night, HBO premiered Hemingway & Gellhorn, the story of Ernest Hemingway (Clive Owen) and Martha Gellhorn (Nicole Kidman), how the two writers met and romanced. 

Overall, it wasn't quite what I expected (nor what critics expected, either). While Hemingway is often credited with giving Gellhorn her voice as a writer, ultimately, the literary icon as a subject fails to provide a voice to this film, partly because it's more of a historical drama than sweeping romance. According to the ads, the film would depict the war as the background of their romance, but it never quite felt like that while watching it.

 

Here are 10 things I learned from the film:

1. Martha Gellhorn must have had a deep voice, as Kidman seems to don a much deeper timbre to her usually cutesy tone (Bewitched, this is not). 

2. Metallica drummer Lars Ulrich is apparently acting.

3. Metallica drummer Lars Ulrich's is apparently acting because of actress/girlfriend Connie Nielsen, who also appears in this film.

4. Tony Shalhoub doing a Russian accent still sounds like Antonio Scarpacci. 

5. "Old" Martha Gellhorn (a caked-in-makeup Kidman), who's narrating the movie, looks an awful lot like Glenn Close.

6. What would 2004's Closer have been like with Kidman playing the Anna (Julia Roberts) role? 

7. There's never a wrong time to get busy, even when the building you are staying in is exploding, as proven by Hemingway and Gellhorn's dangerous tryst in bed.

8. With glasses and a mustache, Clive Owen looks a little like the original Pink Panther. 

9. Hemingway stood when he typed away on his typewriter. That had to have been exhausting! 

10. My favorite "Hemingway" is still Corey Stoll:

 

 

The National contributes a song to 'Game of Thrones,' may be 'Team Lannister'

To non-"Game of Throne" enthusiasts, "The Rains of Castamere" may sound like a title of a Steely Dan song, but it's actually a song that's frequently referenced in George R. Martin's A Song of Fire and Ice series. 

And now, The National has written music for the haunting lyrics for the "Game of Thrones" Season 2 soundtrack.

 

Noomi Rapace is a cover girl. Will she be the more successful Lisbeth Salander?

To many Americans seeing this New York Times Magazine cover this weekend, Noomi Rapace is probably known as, "that chick from Sherlock Holmes 2."

But she was the first Lisbeth Salander from The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo series (the Swedish version), and it looks like she's finally gonna be getting her due this summer, with a starring role in the Ridley Scott sci-fi film Prometheus. 

The American version of The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo has come and gone now at the box office, and despite a few Oscar nods (including Best Actress nominee Rooney Mara), it wasn't nearly the huge box office smash that everyone thought it would be (except, of course, for David Fincher, who knew it would be the "feel bad movie" of the holiday season).

With Rooney Mara's buzz cooling at the moment (just wait until her Terrance Malick and Steven Soderbergh flicks get released), her Swedish Salander counterpart is gaining momentum. It will be interesting to see how Rapace will be received following her first huge American release this summer. The comparisons will surely ensue, but I believe that Rapace is gonna be a huge star for a few reasons. 

One, she doesn't look like "Lisbeth Salander" in person. After first seeing the Swedish series, I was shocked to look up Rapace on IMDB and discovered she looked like. . . a girl---a beautiful one at that. Maybe Rooney Mara is still gearing up for the American Dragon Tattoo sequels, but I think Hollywood has yet to really embrace her because. . .she always looks like Lisbeth. 

While Rooney Mara did a fine job in the American Dragon Tattoo, and I would say was deserving of the nomination, the Oscar nod should be shared with Noomi Rapace, who paved the way for the role. American audiences may give Mara all of the credit, but the Lisbeth Salander inspiration existed long before Mara came on the scene, when she dumped Jesse Eisenberg in the opening sequence The Social Network. 

Because Rooney Mara is Lisbeth 24/7, she runs the risk of being typecast, whereas Rapace distanced herself from the Dragon Tattoo role, having turned down the chance to reprise the role in the American version. In hindsight, this was probably a good move for Rapace. Six movies of the same role can get exhausting to both actors and audiences. Plus, now that the American version has been released, the fans who did like the film probably don't want to wait for the Fincher sequels; they'll look the Swedish films up on Netflix, the subtitled versions finding a bigger audience. 

Maybe it's because I'm just partial to Rapace that I'm expecting big things, but the one main difference I found in Mara's Lisbeth versus Rapace's Lisbeth was the eyes. Mara looked like a robot, whereas somehow with Rapace, the audience was rooted in the story through her face. Sometimes, she wouldn't even say anything, but give a glance, and she had the audience laughing or reacting in some way. The only other actress I've ever seen with such heartfelt peepers is Kate Winslet---and she has an Oscar and an Emmy. 

Great. Another 'Gatsby'! Let's hope it's more 'Moulin Rouge,' less 'Australia.'

Visually stunning? Yes. A-list cast? Ehh, for the most part (Tobey Maguire? Is this 2002?). The trailer for The Great Gatsby definitely roars with intrigue.

 

I suppose a remake of 1974's Jack Clayton film is in order, what with no one ever saying, "You should watch the movie instead of reading Fitzgerald." But whatever. For some reason, I'm not all that excited about the Baz Luhrmann update, probably because the last time he did a film based on something I read in high school, there were crazy sped-up scenes that made me wonder whether I was tripping balls and John Leguizamo was chewing the scenery (surprise) as Tybalt.

 

I think it's funny that 15-some years later, Leo is still being cast opposite the young ingenue (1996, Claire Danes; 2012, Carey Mulligan). Seems like Leo keeps getting older and his leading ladies stay the same age. All right, alll riggght. 

R.I.P. Maurice Sendak and the end of an era of noncelebrity children's books

Children's book author Maurice Sendak passed away yesterday, ironically on the same day as Stephen Colbert's children's book I Am a Pole (And So Can You) was released. 

Just a few months ago, Sendak and Colbert exchanged a battle of wits in this "Colbert Report" interview:

The Colbert Report
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Sadly, Sendak is one of the last household-name children's authors in which writing children's books was his main claim to fame. He wasn't a pop star. He wasn't a star of a sitcom. He wasn't criminally insane. Nowadays, the children's literature game is filled with as many superfluous celebrity voices as a Pixar film. 

No offense to Stephen Colbert (because frankly, he can do no wrong in my book!), but the irony in his children's book coming out the same day as Sendak dying kind of ushers in the end of an era. Long live, flying roast beef. 

Stephen Colbert's children's book is coming out! (And so can you!)

Stephen Colbert announced this week on "The Colbert Report" that his children's book I Am A Pole (And So Can You) will be published May 8. 

The Colbert Report
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And the audio book will be read by Tom Hanks! Check out an exclusive audio clip here.  

Taylor Swift feels your pain, 30-year-olds. If by 'pain' you mean being a millionaire songstress in your 20s.

Sloane Crosley, hilarious author of I Was Told There'd Be Cake and How Did You Get This Number, recently mentioned on her Facebook page that she has an essay in the new anthology 30 Things Every Woman Should Have and Should Know by the Time She's 30. 

Upon reading this, I immediately clicked on the provided link, as I pretty much love everything Crosley writes. In this Glamour anthology, Crosley is included with other well-known female figures like Maya Angelou, Suze Orman, and. . .Taylor Swift.

Taylor Sa-wift? This is just a little insulting, considering Taylor Swift is 22 years old. She's nowhere near 30. It's kind of like sending Bob Saget back in time to meet King Charlemagne. 

No offense, but when I turn 30, the last thing I want to read about is how much-younger, fair-haired women who once banged Jake Gyllenhaal feel about turning my age. . .someday. I'm surprised Blue Ivy doesn't have an essay to contribute.

Happy Hunger Games! #hungergames

Entertainment Weekly released a series of (im)posters of what The Hunger Games would be like if it were directed by a series of iconic directors. Woody Allen's (im)poster looks interesting, especially with Allen playing Haymitch.

Gee. . .uh. . .I'm paraphrasing. . .but what you want to do. . .is get to some water as soon as possible. 

I really want Stephen Colbert to release 'I Am A Pole (And So Can You)'

Stephen Colbert interviewed legendary children's literature author Maurice Sendak this week, and it was pretty hilarious, with the two icons sniffing markers together.

The Colbert Report
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In the above video, Stephen pitches his I am a Pole (And So Can You) book to Sendak, who comes off a little like Rip Torn (I know who can play Sendak in a biopic!). Stephen's book is so adorable that following the segment, I immediately Googled the title, hoping it was already available. Unfortunately, it isn't, but I doubt that will be for very long.

As long as it's not in e-book form---both Sendak and I will be pretty pissed about that.