This was the preview issue of Missbehave. In hindsight it was a piece of shit. We had a budget of fuck-all and a half-bag of Skittles and we ended up printing two versions of the cover because the brass thought this shot was too controversial. Little did they know we’d later egg girls on to get Facials and do an Eating Disorder Boardgame. Anyway, the alt cover was just a head and shoulders portrait. Sorta like if Juliette Lewis was one of those Barbie Beauty heads where you could screw up the hair permanently except in almost life-size. Despite how much better the subsequent issues would get and despite how bootleg the interior of this book was, there are exactly 4 things that I love about this Preview Issue. 1) We got to use Clay Patrick McBride’s cover shot for almost NOTHING because he rules. 2) This OG version of the cover actually PERFECTLY encapsulates the Missbehave attitude. Like, perfectly. 3) We had physical, tangible, SOMETHING to rifle through after months of planning with our AWESOME logo and 4) THIS IS THE ISSUE WHERE WE MET BROOKE NIPAR. She became our Photo Director and when she came on, the content crew was complete. She is presently one of my most hardcore besties and is a wicked good cook.

The Griswold’s attempt at an at home family Christmas delivers the usual trouble that seems to follow the family everywhere.

Directed by – Jeremiah S. Chechik

Written by – John Hughes

Starring – Chevy Chase, Beverly D’Angelo, Juliette Lewis, Johnny Galecki, John Randolph, Diane Ladd, E.G. Marshall, Doris Roberts, Randy Quaid, Miriam Flynn, Cody Burger, Ellen Hamilton Latzen, William Hickey, Mae Questel, Sam McMurray, Nicholas Guest, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Nicolette Scorsese, Brian Doyle-Murray

I’m not sure how many times I’ve actually watched this movie now but it still makes me laugh. That’s no small feat for a comedy in my house. I love the Vacation series of films, although Vegas Vacation didn’t seem to work to well for me, but Christmas Vacation has always been my favorite of the bunch.

Chevy Chase has always done physical comedy well and he gets smacked up and down in this one. Whether it’s their tree that’s too big for the living room, his attempt at putting up Christmas lights or trying to hide presents in the attic the result is always the same. Sure the job gets done, but not before Clark Griswold has gotten his lumps. The Griswold’s are basically the definition of Murphy’s Law. If it can go wrong, it will for this family and we get to laugh the whole time.

Even picking up the tree has it's problems for the Griswold family.

By this time, I’m pretty sure everyone has seen Christmas Vacation at least once and the plot is pretty simple. Clark Griswold just wants to have a nice family Christmas at home. The problem is he has to have the family with him. The in-laws can’t stand each other, his brother-in-law shows up in his RV flat broke and his Aunt Bethany comes to dinner with her cat wrapped up in a box. Every moment of this movie has me laughing. I couldn’t even begin to list all the funny moments in this one, although my particular favorite is the cat wrapped in the box, with the cat’s untimely demise in a burst of flame and fur while chewing on Christmas lights a close second.

If A Christmas Story is how I’d like my holidays to be then Christmas Vacation is how they usually turn out! I can see alot of myself in Clark Griswold. He just wants all his family together and he’s full of holiday joy, much like myself. Many years of Christmas have taught me that it never works out right, from fighting kids to my Dad being grumpy over this or that. Somehow, just like Christmas Vacation, everything always turns out just right.

Eddie and Clark sharing some egg nog.

While much of the movie is spent going over the many troubles that Clark has with the different holiday traditions, tree trimming, Christmas dinner and gift shopping (who can forget his nipply encounter!) there’s the ongoing problem of his Christmas bonus which he needs to pay for the swimming pool he’s already put a down payment on. That plotline takes us to the end of the film where all the things that have gone wrong come together to make for the perfect family Christmas. It’s a great movie full of laughs and is always one of my favorites to watch during the holidays.

Under the mistletoe – Will

Creativity helps in many situations of life. Creativity for the artist means popularity and more people in the concert.

Moby took to the stage almost one month ago at the Hard Rock Café to play and exclusive set made up of tracks chosen by fans. Young singer Ben Montague is doing tour through the Airports (I’m afraid I did not fly somewhere when he was singing). This idea is quite innovative (read more: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/manchester/8391041.stm). Other music stars found interesting idea of charity. Stars including Editors, VV Brown, Basement Jaxx, Fatboy Slim, Just Jack, Nitin Sawhney and legendary drummer Tony Allen launched the month-long Oxjam music festival on 28 September with a series of exclusive, intimate performances in a specially-converted Oxfam shop in London.

The magazine ‘Elle’ declare the latest trend of unusual gigs. The hottest venue to play gig in these days is library. Juliette Lewis sang at  Morecambe Library, Florence+The Machine at Lancaster Library and MPHO at Ingol Library in Preston. She says, “You can reach people who may not go to mainstream venues”. I shoud agree. Playing in anusual venues helps to reach more fans. Just use your creativity:).

For future gigs in libraries see: myspace.com/getitloudinlibraries

Enjoy:)

Juliette Lewis
27/11/2009
Sala Apolo (Barcelona)

Jordi Teixidó

Aquest són alguns adjectius que hem venen al cap després d’estar una estona al concert de la Juliette el passat divendres: Pasarel·la, postura, superficialitat. Adjectius dignes d’una desfilada de models, però tot ben revestit de tòpics del món del rock ‘n’ roll.

Juliette Lewis, que fa temps va dir que deixava el cinema per dedicar-se exclusivament a la música, ha visitat 3 cops la ciutat comtal els últims anys, passant gradualment a aforaments cada cop més petits i sense omplir-los. I és que ja s’ha perdut l’efecte sorpresa d’aquesta carismàtica actriu.

Aquest cop acompanyada per uns músics diferents (Altre cop…), la Juliette va venir ataviada amb un model ben curiós, i es va dedicar a fer el que sempre fa: Salts, crits, suor, melena al vent, balls calcats als d’Iggy Pop… No para, la noia està en un estat físic envejable. A nivell de cançons, ha afegit a al seu repertori de punk-rock i garatge, un toc de Janis Joplin, alguna cançó que beu del blues, i inclús, una canço disco a l’estil de Blondie.

Així “funciona”, el seu show, anar afusellant a grans personatges de la història del rock, barrejar-ho i intentar que surti algo que agradi. Però oblida bones cançons, composicions que ens facin disfrutar. I és que, si veus que del grup que l’acompanya, el guitarra solista s’està avorrint, imagineu-vos el públic…

Juliette torna al cinema sisplau, ens agradava el que feiés… Que els tel·loners et van passar la ma per la cara… Per cert, un grup de “riot girrrls” moooooolt recomanable, s’anomenaven “Scanners”, i tenien una “front-woman” realment… interessant.

Alternando su reciente faceta de documentalista con la de productor de cine y realizador de TV, el maestro del costumbrismo contémporaneo, el futuro ganador del Cecil B. DeMille en los próximos Golden Globes, el gran Martin Scorsese, se prepara para una grata sorpresa. Y la sorpresa es su regreso al género del terror y el suspenso.

Para los que no recuerden Cape Fear y su magnífico DeNiro, Martin Scorsese en 1991 adaptó la novela de John D. MacDonald y junto a él, Nick Nolte, Jessica Lange y la jovencita Juliette Lewis armaron lo que para mi es un claro ejemplo de suspenso donde el cruento enfrentamiento entre DeNiro y su abogado defensor, Nolte, nos dejó petrificados en nuestras sillas. Para ese entonces Juliette Lewis caracterizaba a una jovencita casi de la misma edad mía; en ese entonces no concebía muy bien la diferencia de edades y pues me parecía un acto de seducción medianamente normal. Vista uno o dos veces después, el acto pedófilo se hizo más evidente y alimentó mi morbo en esta peli en particular. No hay cabida para ser tan macabro como lo fue DeNiro y tan genialmente malvado como Scorsese para lograr esta factura. La maldición de Scorsese, y de paso la de DeNiro, era la de arrasar en nominaciones y no ganar absolutamente nada (una gran injusticia con este par de monstruos), esta no fue la excepción. Qué buen guión, qué buena factura, qué actuaciones, etc… Y nada. Al final la revelación de Lewis y su virginal papel, le conllevaron dos premios y una nominación a nivel independiente.

Scorsese se prepara para un nuevo atardecer, de la mano de un reparto sencillamente impresionante, de Robert Richardson veterano de mil batallas en cinematografía al lado de Oliver Stone, el mismo Scorsese y recientemente visto en los basterdos de Tarantino, y de Thelma Shoonmaker editora que no sólo es una ganadora impresionante de óscares sino casi la mano derecha de Scorsese en todo su portafolio de largometrajes.

Apunta a ser escalofriante, impresionante, tenebrosa, ojalá muy gore y de una factura impecable. Que se lleve sus buenos premios y que Scorsese como es caballero repita Oscar como es debido.

Leonardo DiCaprio (Teddy Daniels)
Mark Ruffalo (Chuck Aule)
Ben Kingsley (Dr. John Cawley)
Michelle Williams (Dolores Chanal)
Max von Sydow (Dr. Jeremiah Naehring)
Jackie Earle Haley (George Noyce)
Elias Koteas (Andrew Laeddis)
John Carroll Lynch (Deputado Warden McPherson)

*No encontré el papel de Patricia Clarkson en IMDb y no lo he podido encontrar en ningún otro lado :-S

Ogni anno me ne vengo fuori con una compilation estiva per i miei conoscenti, una sorta di tradizione che continua dai tempi del liceo. Le compilation sono piccole creature d’amore, veri e propri omaggi a quegli artisti la cui musica diventa, giorno dopo giorno, ascolto dopo ascolto, la colonna sonora delle nostre vite.

Grazie a queta pratica (fare compilation, cassette, cd o anche semplici playlist) attraverso gli anni ho fatto conoscere moltissimi artisti a svariate persone, che poi si sono trovate anche a comprare dischi o ad andare ai concerti di questi musicisti. Di nuovo la domanda sorge spontanea; quanto realmente danneggia un musicista la cultura del file-sharing?

E comunque bisogna sempre guardare avanti, come ci dice Chris in questo brillante intervento su youtube. La grande opportunitá per gli artisti di slegarsi dalle logiche di mercato e dalle regole imposte dall’industria discografica sta proprio nel trovare alternative alla vendita del prodotto/disco.

Anche i Radiohead, che in una recente intervista affermavano che non avrebbero piú rilasciato un disco, non hanno annunciato la loro fine ma un nuovo inizio, come poi ha spiegato Colin Greenwood in un susseguente intervento. Gli artisti devono pensare le loro opere all’interno delle nuove culture tecnologiche e sociali. Il formato cd é ormai obsoleto. Un musicista oggi ha l’opportunitá di presentare i propri lavori sotto moltissime nuove forme, grazie soprattutto a internet.

Questa qui sotto é la mia compilation proposta per l’inverno. La tracklist é un semplice consiglio d’ascolto, ma guarda caso sono riuscito a trovarla da qualche parte in rete, perció se vi va di scaricarla, accomodatevi: http://is.gd/52rS9

Buon ascolto a tutti!!

THE COLONY COMPILATION
Winter 2010

01 – BIG ELF – Money is pure evil
02 – WOLFMOTHER – New Moon Rising
03 – PORCUPINE TREE – Time Flies
04 – DIABLO SWING ORCHESTRA – Balrog Boogie
05 – JOHN ZORN – Miller’s Crake
06 – THE MARS VOLTA – Copernicus
07 – PINK MARTINI – And Then You’re Gone
08 – THE DEAR HUNTER – The Poison Woman
09 – NORAH JONES – Even Though
10 – TRANSATLANTIC – The wind blew them all away
11 – JULLIETTE LEWIS – Fantasy Bar
12 – TORI AMOS – Snow Angel
13 – BEARDFISH – Destined_solitaire
14 – ALICE – Island

Picture by Willoclick

FONTE: http://colonyofslippermen.wordpress.com/

This is just a great, great movie.

- Som en godispåse, konstaterar syrran.
- En god godispåse, svarar jag
Drew Barrymores regidebut har känts lite läskig, framförallt eftersomd et är en stor utmaning att göra en film om slagsmålsbenägna rollergirls i nätstrumpor utan att få den att kännas unket sexistisk. Men nej. Kasslerstrumpan lyser med sin närvaro och sexismen med sin frånvaro. För även om storyn är enkel, och berättarknepen kända så undviker Drew många av de klassiska fällorna- mer än så vill jag inte berätta för att slippa förstöra spänningen.

Och vilken skådislista sen: Ellen Page, Drew Barrymore, Juliette Lewis!!, sångerskan Eve och stuntkvinnan Zoe Bell. Nu är bara frågan; kommer den på bio? Och annars; i vilket visningsfönster kommer vi kunna se den?

É com pesar que admito que precisaremos nos acostumar com o calor agora, afinal de contas, o frio só volta no ano que vem. Ah! O verão… Como eu odeio esta estação.

Acredito que não há mulher que aguente cabelo caindo no rosto neste calor, não adianta. A boa notícia é que a moda que está fazendo a cabeça da mulherada está a favor, viu?

Coques, tiaras, coroas, arquinhos, lenços, penas, tachinhas, tranças, enfim, dá para usar e abusar de tudo o que “tira a franja da testa” e ser feliz. Excluindo as flores de crochê e os brigadeiros de pelúcia, vale tudo na cabeça, ok?

Outra notícia boa é que há acessórios que podem ser usados no trabalho, na balada, em casamentos e até no tapete vermelho de uma premiação do Oscar, querem ver?

Vale usar tiara de plástico também

Tiara de "nó" que deu o que falar...

As meninas do "Gossip Girl" não dispensam um bom assessório na cabeça

Alinne Moraes abusou das tiaras enquanto Silvia

Paris Hilton e sua fita de cetim, não dá pra ser mais patricinha

Mais faixas de "Gossip Girl"

Tiara de pedras de Rihanna

Mischa Barton usa tiara de tachinhas - a gente adora

Fergie

Nicole Richie usa tranças e coques

Drew Barrymore prova que dá pra usar coque e não parecer "fofa"

Carol Dieckmann

O hippie-chic de Cicarelli

Galisteu na balada

Eva Mendes

Lilian Pacce

Orgulho fashion: Cassinha - integrante do blog

A roqueira Juliette Lewis e seu característico penacho

Gostou das fotos? Isso é só um gostinho. É só pra servir de inspiração! Ousem mais!

Quer saber como fazer a tiara de “nó” da Blair do “Gossip Girl”? A Julia Petit ensina como.

Quer saber como fazer o coque com tranças da Nicole e mais outros penteados fresquinhos? Clique aqui.

Juliette & The New Romantiques.

• Data: Divendres, 27 de novembre
• Lloc: Sala Apolo
• Adreça: Nou de la Rambla, 113
• Horari: 20:30h
• Preu: 24€

Myspace: http://www.myspace.com/juliettelewis

In an interview with the Guardian Juliette Lewis says about Scientology:

Scientology is so common-sense orientated. I’m in the know because I did courses. I like to be known as me, first of all – that’s the problem with being associated with any religion. Different things in Scientology have helped me become even more of an individual, not a blind follower. People are like: “What? I thought they steal your money.” Nobody’s stealing my money.

Here is what she is talking about:

In Scientology no one is asked to accept anything as belief or on faith. That which is true for you is what you have observed to be true. An individual discovers for himself that Scientology works by personally applying its principles and observing or experiencing results.

Through Scientology, people all over the world are achieving the long-sought goal of true spiritual release and freedom. (http://scientology.org/home.html)

მას შემდეგ, რაც გერმანია-თურქეთის ვოიაჟიდან დაბრუნებულს, საბოლოოდ მეღირსა ღვთისმშობლის წილხვედრი ქვეყნის მიწაზე ფეხის დადგმა, რამაც საბოლოო ჯამში, ჩემი, ადრე თუ გვიან, სახლში მისვლა განაპირობა, ვცდილობ შთაბეჭდილებების შესახებ პოსტის დაწერას.

არა იმიტომ, რომ გერმანიაში გამგზავრება აზერბაიჯანს და სომხეთს ჯობია; და არც იმიტომ, რომ ემ-ტი-ვის დაჯილდოებაზე მოხვედრა “მეგა”-ს დაჯილდოებაზე კაი პონტია და მე ამის მეამაყება ან /სიტყვა ”მარიაჟობის” ალტერნატივა ვერ ვიპოვე/. უბრალოდ, როგორც ყოველთვის დავიღალე ყველასთვის სათითაოდ იმის ახსნით, რომ კარგი იყო. თითქოსდა, თავად ვერ ხვდებოდნენ, რომ ცუდი, მოვლენათა განვითარების ვერცერთ ვარიანტში, ვერ იქნებოდა.

და ამ ყველაფრის გათვალისწინებით, კითხვაზე ”როგორ მოაირეთ?”, რაიმე ნეგატიური მუხტით დატვირთულ პასუხს: ა-ლა ”ვაიმე, გზაში საშინლად გავწვალდით” მხოლოდ და მხოლოდ იმიტომ ვერ მიიღეებენ, რომ ბერლინური გარემოებები და იქ განცდილი, ყველაფერი ცუდის კომპენსირებას ახდენდნენ და ყველაფერი კარგად რო იქნებოდა, ისედაც გასაგები უნდა ყოფილიყო. თუმცა, ამის შესახებ მხოლოდ მე ვიცი:)

ამიტომ, კითხვაზე ”გიგა, ჩამოხვედი?”–ზე დადებითი პასუხის მიღების შემდეგ (მით უფრო, როცა ფაქტი აშკარად სახეზეა და მათ წინაშე თბილისის რომელიმე ქუჩაზე ვდგავარ), შემდეგ კითხვას, რომელიც, როგორც წესი, „როგორი იყო?“-ს გულისხმობს, პასუხად „ციოდას“ ვპასუხობდი. არა იმიტომ, რომ ვცდილობდი ორიგინალური ვყოფილიყავი ან მათი კითხვები რამენაირად მაღიზიანებდეს (მივეჩვიე უკვე), არამედ იმიტომ, რომ ეს ერთადერთია, რამაც მთელი ამ მოგზაურობის მანძილზე, ყველაზე ძლიერი შთაბეჭდილება დატოვა.

ციოდა და წვიმდა თბილისში, როცა მივდიოდით; ციოდა, წვიმდა და თოვდა თურქეთის ტერიტორიაზე; ციოდა ბერლნშიც: სულ წვიმდა და ერთხელ მოთოვა. ციოდა ისე, რომ ბოლო სამი დღის განმავლობაში, გაციებული დიდ დროს ლოგინში ვატარებდი და ჩინურ რესტორანში წასულმა, რაც გეგმაში გაწერილი იყო, რაღაცეები ისე დავაგემოვნე, რომ ვერაფერი ვიგრძენი. ესეც დაუვიწყარი იყო:)

კიდევ, ბევრს ვფიქრობდი ღორის გრიპზე. არა მხოლოდ იმიტომ, რომ მე მჭირდა რაღაც გაურკვეველი, არამედ იმიტომ, რომ ბევრი ნიღბიანი ადამიანი მიმოიარებოდა აეროპორტებში, მედიაც სულ მასზე ლაპარაკობდა და მეც მქონდა რამდენიმე სიმპტომი. თუმცა, გამომდინარე იქიდან, რომ სიცხე არ მქონდა და ახლაც ცოცხალი ვარ, ღორის გრიპი გამოვრიცხე. თუმცა, აქ მხოლოდ თვითდიაგნოსტიკას აქვს ადგილი.

ბერლინის მონახულებას რამდენიმე დადებითი მხარეც ქონდა, რა თქმა უნდა. მე და გაგას მუზეუმების მონახულება გვინდოდა და თან, მარის და მარიამის სახლი, რომელშიც გავჩერდით, მუზეუმების კუნძულიდან (გერმ.: Museumsinsel) სულ რამდენიმე მეტრში მდებარეობდა. გავყევით კოტეს, ხელელოვნებათმცოდნეს, რომელიც ასევე მარებთან იყო სტუმრად. შევედით Pergamon Museum-ში, სადაც ბევრი ძველბერძნული ქანდაკება იყო. გარდა იმისა რომ მუზეუმებში შესვლა ჟურნალისტის მოწმობით უფასო ყოფილა გერმანიაში, ისიც შევიტყვე, რომ ყველა ამ ბერძნულ ქანდაკებებს კუტუები თავიდან ქონიათ მიმაგრებული (?). ბევრი ვიბოდიალეთ, ასე 1-2 საათი, შეიძლება მეტიც. სულ ცოტა დაგვრჩა სანახავი, მაგრამ უგიდო ტურის გაგრძელების თავი არცერთს აღარ გვქონდა. კოტე იმ საღამოსვე წავიდა, სადღაც შორს. არ მახსოვს. მე და გაგა კი მეორე დღეს ”ახალი მუზეუმის” მონახულებას ვაპირებდით, სადაც ნეფერტიტის ყველასათვის ცნობილი ბიუსტი ინახებოდა და საერთოდაც, ეგვიპტის თემატიკით იყო დატვირთული და გაცილებით უფრო საინტერესო იქნებოდა ჩემთვის. მარა არ წავედით. ალბათ იმიტომ რომ უფასო იყო:) ისევე, როგორც არ ვნახეთ ზოოპარკი და კიდევ რაღაც რაც უნდა გვენახა და არ მახსოვს.

სამაგიეროდ ვნახეთ ბიონსე:) /ქართველი დიზაინერის – დევიდ კომას კაბაში/, შაკირა ვნახეთ, ”გრინ დეი”, ”ფუ ფაიტერსი”, ”იუ თუ”, ჯულეეტ ლუისი და ასია არჯენტო, კეტი პერი, ბექთსთრით ბოისი და ლილ კიმი, გიორგი ქორქია და გეგა ფალავანდიშვილი. მაჯაზე SHOW VIP წარწერიანი ლენტები გვეკეთა, რიგში არ ვიდექით და ბევრი უფასო ალკოჰოლური სასმელი ვშთანთქეთ, რამაც გაგას დეივ გროლის ფეხებზე ”კონვერსის” კედები შეამჩნევინა, მე კიდევ ამა თუ იმ ნომინაციებში გამარჯვებულების წინასწარ გამოცნობისკენ მიბიძგა. ერთი სიტყვით, კარგი იყო. ინცინდენტიც კი მოყვა.

თუმცა, ყველაფერი კარგად დამთავრდა და facebook-ზე თუ სხვა სოციალურ სისტემებზე სურათის გამოცვლის საშუალება მომეცა.

Arrancamos esta sección con un plato potente. Llega a Madrid una de las mejores asesinas de la música, como sus películas, Juliette Lewis da todo en el escenario. Muchos consideran a Juliette la Iggy Pop femenina, aunque viendo sus conciertos y más en rock, de femenina no tiene nada. Atrás queda ya su última banda, los Licks, que abandonaron a la cantante. Juliette Lewiss viene a Madrid a presentarnos su album en solitario, “Terra Incognita”, que como la propia cantante describe es un nuevo camino y una nueva época, pero conservando las raíces y la fuerza que siempre lleva consigo encima del escenario. Quizás el hecho de haber pasado primero por las alfonbras de Hollywood no le esté ayudando demasiado en su carrer musical,  pero ésta nueva Juliette quiere dejar atrás todo eso.  Bob Dylan también fue azotado por esa varillaque igual que te pone en lo más alto desde la industria del cine busca aplastarte hasta caer en lo más profundo. Si Bob lo ha hecho, el empeño de Juliette no va a ser menos.

Juliette Lewis

          Esta chica de miranda dulce, que se transforma en cuanto comienzan los sonidos de su música no va a escatimar en esfuerzo por asombrar una vez más a su público en Madrid. El concierto tendrá lugar el miércoles 25 de Noviembre en la Sala Heineken, en la calle Princiesa. El precio por entrada es de 24 euros y el espectáculova a comenzar a las nueve y media de la noche. No viene mucho a Madrid y por eso invitamos a aquellos amantes del punk-rock a caer en el poder de seducción de Juliette Lewis

Martin Marcantonio Luciano Scorsese (born November 17, 1942) is an American film director, screenwriter, producer, actor, and film historian. He is the founder of the World Cinema Foundation, a recipient of the AFI Life Achievement Award for his contributions to the cinema and has won awards from the Oscars, Golden Globe, BAFTA, and Directors Guild of America. Scorsese is president of the Film Foundation, a non-profit organization dedicated to film preservation and the prevention of the decaying of motion picture film stock.

Scorsese’s body of work addresses such themes as Italian American identity, Roman Catholic concepts of guilt and redemption, machismo, and violence. Scorsese is widely considered to be one of the most significant and influential American filmmakers of his era, directing landmark films such as Taxi Driver, Raging Bull and Goodfellas; all of which he collaborated on with actor Robert De Niro. He won the Academy Award for Best Director for The Departed and earned an MFA in film directing from the New York University Tisch School of the Arts.

Trivia:

Listed as one of 50 people barred from entering Tibet. Disney clashed with Chinese officials over the film Kundun (1997), which Scorsese directed. [19 December 1996]

Awarded third annual John Huston Award for Artists Rights by the Artists Rights Foundation. [1995]

Presented with a special tribute at the 1976 Telluride Film Festival. It was presented by Michael Powell. [1976]

He is a longtime friend and was once a housemate of The Band’s Robbie Robertson. He directed The Last Waltz (1978), the documentary of their supposedly last gig which Robertson produced. Robertson later produced the soundtrack for Scorsese’s The Color of Money (1986).

Good friends with editor Thelma Schoonmaker & cinematographer Michael Ballhaus. Scorsese introduced Thelma to her husband Michael Powell and he often quotes Powell as an influence.

His name is pronounced “Scor-sez-see”.

He directed Michael Jackson’s Bad (1987) (V) music video. The full length video runs 16 minutes and is in both black & white and color. It is usually shortened down to just the color segment for television.

He appears as attached to his pet white Bichon Frise Zoe as he was to his beloved parents – except Zoe is right beside Marty every day in the office.

Daughter Francesca Scorsese born. [16 November 1999]

John Woo dedicated his action film Dip huet seung hung (1989) (“The Killer”) to Scorsese on a commentary he did for the movie’s DVD.

Daughter Domenica Cameron-Scorsese with Julia Cameron.

Taught both Oliver Stone and Spike Lee at NYU.

Was at one point going to make a movie about the life of comedian Richard Pryor.

He was an altar boy at Old St. Patrick’s Cathedral, which was used in his early films I Call First (1967) and Mean Streets (1973). Old St. Patrick’s is also where the baptism scene in The Godfather (1972) took place.

Was at one point slated to direct Clockers (1995), but for reasons that are not entirely clear, handed the directing chores to his onetime NYU student Spike Lee, while staying on as producer. He was also at one point going to direct Little Shop of Horrors (1986) for David Geffen, with Steven Spielberg as the executive producer. He was ultimately uninvolved, but claims that he wanted to shoot the movie in 3-D. It no doubt would have been a loving homage to Roger Corman, for whom he directed Boxcar Bertha (1972).

He took a cameo in his film Taxi Driver (1976) (as a man about to kill his wife) only because the actor who was supposed to play the role was sick on the day the scene was to be shot. Says he is generally uncomfortable in front of the camera.

Has a dog named Silas.

Is the subject of the song “Martin Scorsese” by alternative band King Missile.

Father of actress Cathy Scorsese from his first marriage.

Is of Italian-Sicilian descent.

Has asthma.

Of the three films he’s been trying to make since the mid-1970s, he has done two: The Last Temptation of Christ (1988) and Gangs of New York (2002). The third film, a biopic of Dean Martin called “Dino”, has been on hiatus at Warner Brothers since the late 1990s. Scorsese has a very specific all A-list cast in mind, probably why it has yet to be produced. He wants Tom Hanks to star as Martin, Jim Carrey to play Jerry Lewis, John Travolta to play Frank Sinatra, Hugh Grant to play Peter Lawford, and Adam Sandler to play Joey Bishop.

Was voted the 4th greatest director of all time by Entertainment Weekly, making him the only living person in the top 5 and the only working film director in the top 10 (Ingmar Bergman being retired as a filmmaker).

Appeared on “Curb Your Enthusiasm” (2000) as a shrill version of himself who comes to regret his decision to cast Larry David as a violent gangster in a movie after David repeatedly ruins the suit he needs to wear as the character.

Several characters in his films refer to the legendary (noir) actor John Garfield, star of the original The Postman Always Rings Twice (1946), which is also mentioned.

He was one of three major directors to have been offered the opportunity to direct Schindler’s List (1993) by producer Steven Spielberg, the other two being Roman Polanski and Billy Wilder. Scorsese thought a Jewish filmmaker should direct it; Polanski wasn’t yet ready to deal with the painful subject (having lost his mother in the Holocaust); and Wilder (who was retired and who lost his mother and grandmother in the Holocaust) finally told Spielberg that he should do it himself.

Because so many of his actors win or are nominated for awards, actors are dying to work with him. The film With Friends Like These… (1998) pokes fun at this very real desire.

Both The Last Temptation of Christ (1988) and Gangs of New York (2002) were personal passions of his that he had wanted to make since the 1970s. When he first starting considering them, Robert De Niro was in his mind to play the lead characters in both (Jesus Christ in “Temptation” and Bill Cutting in “Gangs”). De Niro ultimately turned down the part in “Temptation” and it was decided he was too old to play Cutting by the time that “Gangs” finally went into production.

He has famously collaborated with Robert De Niro in 8 films. Scorsese has said that his creative collaboration with De Niro is very deep and that they can often understand each other without even talking. Their collaboration has had many dry spells (including recently), but Scorsese says he shows almost every script he writes or considers directing to De Niro to see what the actor’s thoughts on them are even when De Niro ultimately has no involvement the film.

Appeared in an “American Express” ad where he goes to pick up photos of his nephew’s birthday party at a drug store, and then proceeds to nervously pick through what’s wrong with each picture while trying to get the clueless photo-lab clerk’s opinion on them. He proceeds to buy more film with an American Express card and calls the people on the pictures saying they need to reshoot. Scorsese says this funny ad is probably the closest he’s come to accurately “playing” himself.

Apart from his legendary work as a filmmaker, he has been a vocal supporter of film preservation for almost three decades. His efforts to create a strong public awareness for the work of film archives include The Film Foundation, a non-profit organisation which he started together with other filmmakers. The Film Foundation regularly partners with the American film archives on the restoration of “lost” or endangered films. With this background he has agreed to serve as Honorary President of the Austrian Film Museum in Vienna.

Personally spurns the notion of the “director’s cut” feeling that once a film has been completed, it should not be further altered in any way.

He lost three best director – and best picture – Oscars to leading-man actors turned directors: Robert Redford, Kevin Costner, and Clint Eastwood (Raging Bull (1980) lost to Redford’s Ordinary People (1980); Goodfellas (1990) to Costner’s Dances with Wolves (1990); The Aviator (2004) to Eastwood’s Million Dollar Baby (2004)). On the only two occasions when he was Oscar-nominated as Best Director in years ending in zero, he was beaten by actors making their directorial debuts (Redford and Costner).

In 1975, he accepted the Oscar for “Best Actress in a Leading Role” on behalf of Ellen Burstyn, who wasn’t present at the awards ceremony. She won for her performance in Scorsese’s Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore (1974)

President of jury at the Cannes Film Festival in 1998.

Has mentioned that he thought Robert De Niro’s best performance under his direction was as Rupert Pupkin in The King of Comedy (1982).

Ranked #3 in Empire (UK) magazine’s “The Greatest directors ever!” [2005]

His favorite films include: Citizen Kane (1941), The Red Shoes (1948) and Il gattopardo (1963) (“The Leopard”).

Was friend, protégé, and employee of actor-director John Cassavetes.

When asked where audiences would find the next Martin Scorsese, he said to look to Wes Anderson, the young director of Rushmore (1998).

Has directed, as of 2008, 6 biopics: Raging Bull (1980), The Last Temptation of Christ (1988), Goodfellas (1990), Casino (1995), Kundun (1997) and The Aviator (2004).

He received a Degree ad honorem in “Cinema, TV and Multimedia Production” from the University of Bologna on 26 November 2005.

Served as mentor to Georgia Lee and invited her to apprentice for Gangs of New York (2002) in Europe.

The 1912 American Mutoscope & Biograph Company short The Musketeers of Pig Alley (1912) heavily influenced Scorsese in the making of his own gangster films Goodfellas (1990), and Gangs of New York (2002). The film was picked by Scorcese for his 2005 tribute at Beaubourg, centre d’art et de culture Georges Pompidou (1977) in Paris, France. Biograph is the oldest movie company in America and in existence today, headed by producer/director Thomas R. Bond II.

Scorsese and Taxi Driver (1976) are, among others, named as inspiration for the Massive Attack debut “Blue Lines”.

He signed a four-year, first-look deal to develop projects with studio executives of Paramount. [November 2006]

The Departed (2006) is the highest-grossing movie of his 40-year career ($132,373,442 (USA)).

The Aviator (2004) was his first movie to gross over $100 million in the U.S.

He has worked with big names of music business: Elvis Presley, Bob Dylan, Jimi Hendrix, The Rolling Stones, ‘Michael Jackson (I)’ and David Bowie.

Directed 17 different actors in Oscar nominated performances: Jodie Foster, Robert De Niro, Joe Pesci, Leonardo DiCaprio, Daniel Day-Lewis , Cate Blanchett, Winona Ryder, Ellen Burstyn, Sharon Stone, Diane Ladd,Cathy Moriarty, Juliette Lewis, Lorraine Bracco, Paul Newman, Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio, Alan Alda and Mark Wahlberg. (Burstyn, De Niro, Newman, Pesci and Blanchett won Oscars for their roles in one of Scorsese’s movies).

When he won his Best Director Oscar for The Departed (2006), he received the award from legendary directors, George Lucas, Francis Ford Coppola, and Steven Spielberg. The four were part of the “New Hollywood” movement of the 1970s and combined have 9 Academy Awards and 38 Nominations.

As a teenager in the Bronx, Scorsese frequently rented Michael Powell’s The Tales of Hoffmann (1951) from a store that only had one copy of the reels. When it wasn’t available the owner told him, “that Romero kid has it,” referring to George A. Romero who was also a big fan of the film. Today, both directors cite the film as a major influence.

Says he was happy with the fact that it took so long for him to win Best Director, because if he had won it earlier, it would have affected his directing and films.

Recipient of the 2007 Kennedy Center Honors. Other recipients that year were Leon Fleisher, Steve Martin, Diana Ross, and Brian Wilson.

Says the only thing he regrets in his career is that he was only able to make The Last Temptation of Christ (1988) on a small budget although he imagined it to be a grand version.

Was originally going to direct The Honeymoon Killers (1969), but was replaced after a week of shooting.

Served as a guest critic on “Siskel & Ebert & the Movies” (1986) following the death of ‘Gene Siskel’. The episode was “The Best Films of the 90s” in which Roger Ebert cited Scorsese’s Goodfellas (1990) as one of the best films of the 90s (#3). Scorsese’s full list of his favorite films of the 1990s: 10.) Tie: Malcolm X (1992) and Heat (1995), 9.) Fargo (1996), 8.) Crash (1996), 7.) Bottle Rocket (1994), 6.) Breaking the Waves (1996), 5.) Bad Lieutenant (1992), 4.) Eyes Wide Shut (1999), 3.) Duo sang (1994) (“A Borrowed Life”), 2.) The Thin Red Line (1998), 1.) Dao ma zei (1986) (“Horse Thief”).

He was made a Fellow of the British Film Institute in recognition of his outstanding contribution to film culture.

Resides in New York City. His production offices are located on W. 57th Street in Manhattan.

Attended Cardinal Hayes high school in the Bronx as a young man. Fellow alumni included George Carlin, George Dzundza, Regis Philbin and Jamal Mashburn.

Is a fan of the British Hammer Films series.

A huge fan of Fawlty Towers (1975). He describes the episode “The Germans” as “so tasteless, its hilarious.”.

In the 5th edition of 1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die (edited by Steven Jay Schneider), 7 of Scorsese’s films are listed: Mean Streets (1973), Taxi Driver (1976), Raging Bull (1980), The King of Comedy (1982), Goodfellas (1990), Casino (1995) and The Departed (2006).

Haig Manoogian was Scorsese’s mentor at NYU. He eventually produced Scorsese’s first film (I Call First (1967)) and when he died in 1980, Scorsese dedicated Raging Bull (1980) to Manoogian.

Roger Ebert is a great admirer of Scorsese’s work. 14 of Scorsese’s films were given four stars by Ebert (Mean Streets (1973), Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore (1974), Taxi Driver (1976), Raging Bull (1980), After Hours (1985), The Last Temptation of Christ (1988), Goodfellas (1990), The Age of Innocence (1993), Casino (1995), Kundun (1997), Bringing Out the Dead (1999), The Aviator (2004), The Departed (2006), Shine a Light (2008)), seven of his films are in Ebert’s Great Movies list (“Mean Streets”, “Taxi Driver”, “Raging Bull”, “After Hours”, “The Last Temptation Of Christ”, “Goodfellas”, and “The Age of Innocence”), and Ebert has written an entire book of his reviews, interviews and essays on Scorsese’s work simply titled “Scorsese By Ebert”.

As of November 10th 2009, five of his films are on the IMDb’s Top 250 Films list: Goodfellas (1990), Taxi Driver (1976), Raging Bull (1980), The Departed (2006), and Casino (1995).

Amazon Specials!

She never looked so good. Full stop.

By projectrungay & Photos from WireImage/Style.com

First and foremost… Halloween 2009 was basically Me and DeWitt’s one year ‘kissing anniversary’. Our first kiss was on October 27th, 2008. Likewise, Halloween is a very favorite Holiday for both of us!!!

Last year we didn’t really have time to plan an amazing outfit… yet as you can see we seemed to go together pretty nicely. Me as some chick from Chicago, as in the broadway play, and DeWitt as his favorite Western, Zorro character…

Photo Cred: Heidi.la ...thanks Ms. Heidi, this photo is HILARIOUS!!!

This photo kills me… can you tell we just started kissing, or what! Hahaha. Now, a year later we have had much more time to prepare in advance and to plan for that perfect Halloween Costume… especially to show off our couple-dom & one year of kissing anniversary.

A good portion of my life, when I introduce myself to people there seems to either be a reference to the 80’s TV show Family Ties or the movie Natural Born Killers. I have definitely seen my share of Family Ties, yet NEVER had seen even a snippit of Natural Born Killers. I didn’t even realize it was Woody Harrelson and Juliette Lewis (whom I kinda love). Needless to say, I finally see the movie this year… and to top it off their names are Mickey & Mallory Knox, obviously I expected the Mallory portion, yet Knox is not only from Natural Born Killers… its also a family name on DeWitt’s paternal side of the family. We kinda had to be these two characters for Halloween!

As people, we are be far from the literal ‘Natural Born Killers’… yet besides the names, we also share the LOVE! Mickey and Mallory Knox are definitely an in-love duo… its an amazing movie and I’m thinking we did a pretty great representation… what do you think???

The first scene of the movie... "You tell them, Mickey & Mallory Knox did it!"

Me & D a.k.a. Mickey & Mallory Knox!

...and with the jackets!!!

Now… you go watch Natural Born Killers… and compare!!!

On another Halloween note and in reference to a totally different characters… of a different era even. My girlie gal, Erin, and I had a ton o’ fun dressing up as Stepford, Desperate, Mad Men, 50’s HouseWifes!!! Erin a.k.a. January Jones as Betty Draper… and myself, well… I’m just one of her sidekicks.

Halloween HouseWifes!

Happy Halloween 2009… and Happy New Year of Kissing to Me and D!!! <3

Demorei o máximo que pude para ver esse filme. Para falar a verdade, eu nem queria ver esse filme. A razão? Medo. Meu maior medo era o hype imenso que esse filme carregava em cima dele. A fita nem tinha começado sua vida nos cinemas e todos já diziam que seria “o melhor filme de todos”. Confesso que sou um pouco (pouco é muito e muito é pouco) chato. Principalmente quando gosto de algo. E sempre gostei dos filmes do Tarantino. Não, eu não acho o cara um gênio. Acho um ótimo e divertido diretor. O maior triunfo do Tarantino é saber lidar bem com o clichê. Algo que todos tentam e a maioria fede ao fazer tentar fazer isso. Tarantino trabalhava numa locadora. Ou seja, estava rodeado pelo clichê o dia inteiro. Afinal, os filmes que costumam passar nas televisões das locadoras são, em sua maioria, algo que se tornou clichê com o tempo. Junte se a isso o seu talento e ironia referente à violência e você têm um ótimo diretor. Seu primeiro roteiro foi “Assassinos por Natureza”/ “Natural Born Killers” (com Juliette Lewis, Robert Downey Jr. e Tommy Lee Jones no elenco) o qual Oliver Stone dirigiu. Talvez seu maior roteiro, mesmo sendo bastante revisado pelo próprio Stone.

O primeiro roteiro de Tarantino já mostra o quanto ele é light.

Também não vi Burn After Reading/Queime Depois de Ler pelo mesmo motivo. Muito é falado antes de o filme ser lançado. E também é de um dos meus cineastas favoritos. O fato dos irmãos Cohen terem entrado no mainstream me assusta até hoje.

Assustado com os Irmão Cohen no mainstream!

Quem já acompanha as peripécias deste blog sabe que costumo mais descer o pau do que elogiar: tirando Y: The Last Man, Ren & Stimpy e Billy & Mandy eu fui só reclamações e maldições. Mas de qualquer forma, não fiz tantas resenhas assim…

Então já deve ter alguém pensando: lá vai esse chato descer o pau no filme. Mas…

…o filme é muito bom! É melhor que Pulp Fiction? Não! É melhor que Kill Bill? É igual e diferente do mesmo modo. Ver um filme do Tarantino tem sempre uma sensação parecida, mais ou menos como ver Kubrick pós-Lolita. A sensação é parecida e os filmes não. Tarantino já conseguiu deixar sua marca no seu modo de fazer filmes. Não sei como explicar, mas quem conhece o trabalho dele já sacou o que eu quis dizer. Assim como Kubrick tinha aquele modo de sempre valorizar aqueles sorrisos aterrorizantes, cenas no banheiro e outras coisas. Não me entendam mal. Não estou comparando um com o outro. Kubrick era um gênio. Um dos maiores da história do cinema. Tarantino ainda não o é. É ótimo e divertido. Mas não sei. Ainda falta algo e tive a impressão de que com Bastardos Inglórios ele deu mostras de que está à procura desse algo mais.

Bastardos Inglórios é o chamado Historical Fiction (ficção histórica). A fita se passa na Segunda Guerra Mundial (entendam que esse era mais um dos meus medos: Nazistas de novo?!). Mas Tarantino não esgotou ainda mais o assunto. O nazismo e a guerra podem passar apenas como coisas secundárias.

Agora, para não falar só de Tarantino, o elenco foi muito bem escolhido. Começando com Christoph Waltz (“Ordinary Decent Criminal” / “Um Criminoso Decente” – vejam esse filme também!) no papel de Hans Landa. Waltz é o melhor no filme. Sua atuação é bárbara e mereceu o Cannes de melhor ator. Michael Fassbender (“Bando of Brothers” e “300”) como Lt. Archie Hicox (o inglês que troca tiros na virilha no pub) muito bem também. Eli Roth (demorei a lembrar quem era esse doidão. Ele faz parte do grupo Splat Pack, que é um grupo de cineastas de filmes de terror que decidiram voltar a fazer filmes de terror mesmo – pesados, “Saw”/ “Jogos Mortais” é de um diretor desse grupo. Eli Roth é o diretor de “O Albergue” que, confesso, não sou fã) é Donny Donowitz / O Urso Judeu, impecável sua ultima aparição na qual ele atira em Hitler até o rosto dele virar pedaços de carne moída no liquidificador. Diane Kruger (a Helena em “Troy” / “Tróia” e Abigail Chase em “A Lenda do Tesouro Perdido”) interpreta Bridget von Hammersmark. Diane Kruger já foi uma modelo de sucesso na década de 90, se não estou enganado. Que bom que deixou de ser modelo, parece que sob a correta direção e em um filme bom (diferente dos citados na qual ele atuou) ela tem talento. Daniel Brühl (“Adeus Lênin” e “The Edukators”) é Fredrick Zoller, ou o herói de guerra alemão. O cara é realmente bom. É só ver os filmes que o cara fez. Til Schweiger (“Tomb Raider” e “Rei Arthur”) é  o alemão que muda de lado. O cara no filme é hilário. Não sabia que o cara era bom (afinal olha os filmes que eu citei que ele fez), mas ele o é. Mélanie Laurent faz Shoshana. Essa eu não conhecia, mas também é muito boa. Omar Doom é Omar Ulmer. Gedeon Burkhard é o tradutor dos Bastardos. B.J. Novak (“The Office”) é o Little Man (não lembro bem como ficou em português, se foi Pequenino ou algo do tipo). Mike Myers (o Austin Powers) é o general inglês que comanda a idéia do assassinato de Hitler. Rod Taylor (“A Máquina do Tempo” de 1960, baseado no livro de H.G. Wells) faz o Wiston Churchil. Denis Menochet (“Hannibal Rising”) faz o fazendeiro francês do inicio do filme. Christian Berkel (“Operação Valquíria”) é o barman do pub onde rola aqueles tiros na virilha. Jacky Ido (esse eu não conheço) faz Marcel. August Diehl (“The Counterfeiters” e “The Ninth Day”, ambos alemães) é o oficial da Gestapo, especialista em sotaques, que troca tiros na virilha. Alexander Fehling (“And Along Come Tourists”, também alemão) é o cara que está comemorando o nascimento do filho onde dão tiros na virilha. Sylvester Groth é Josef Goebbels, ministro da propaganda de Hitler. Groth também interpretou Goebbels na comédia My Leader – The Truly Truest Truth about Adolf Hitler (também alemã). Quem também interpretou Goebbels foi Martin Wuttke – que é Hitler no filme de Tarantino – no filme Rosenstrasse (alemão também, mas se tiverem tempo – e paciência para achar – vejam). Julie Dreyfus (Sofie Fatale em “Kill Bill”) é a interprete francesa de Goebbels. O curioso é que parte do elenco desse filme são também diretores. Um exemplo disso é Enzo G. Castellari que no filme é um general nazista. Castellari é um diretor italiano, conhecido pelos seus Spaghetti Western como Any Gun Can Play, Kill Them All and Come Back Alone, Seven Wichesters For a Massacre e,…, The Inglorious Bastards – Quel maledetto treno blindato. Os bastardos de Castellari e de Tarantino são parecidos. Com certeza o filme de Castellari inspirou Tarantino. Os Bastardos no filme de Castellari são soldados americanos que estão sendo levados para uma prisão militar quando um ataque aéreo alemão acaba os “soltando” ao matar todos os guardas. Os soldados decidem fugir e acabam fazendo parte de um plano que consiste em roubar o giroscópio de um foguete V-2 nazista que se encontra em um trem extremamente protegido por nazistas.

The Ingloriou Bastards de Castellari.

Ué, e o Brad Pitt? Bom, Brad Pitt é um grande ator. Quando ele não faz papéis de heróis entediados ou de galã supersexy (como Aquiles em “Tróia” ou Sr. e Sra. Smith) ele manda muito. É só ver filmes como Thelma & Louise, Across the Tracks, Kalifornia (acho que foi aí onde ele aprendeu esse sotaque que ele tem em Bastardos Inglórios), Interview with the Vampire, Lendas da Paixão, Seven (Sete Pecados Capitais), Os Doze Macacos, Fight Club (Clube da Luta), Snatch (mais uma vez ele faz um sotaque genial), Babel, …, deu para entender, né? Ou seja, quando o papel e o filme é bom, ele arrebenta. Por isso não vou ficar falando o quanto ele foi bem nos Bastardos. Tentei falar mais dos outros que, para a grande maioria, são desconhecidos.

Como não poderia deixar de ser…

Pausa para um lanchinho...

…em filme de tarantino nunca falta sangue e nem Samuel L. Jackson. Ele não atua, mas é o narrador. Poucas vezes narra, é verdade, mas ele está lá.

Minha conclusão é: se não viu, veja por você mesmo. Se já viu, sabe do que estou falando.

Cape Fear is a 1991 thriller film, directed by Martin Scorsese. It is a remake of the 1962 film of the same name and tells the story of a family man, a former public defender, whose family is threatened by a convicted rapist who wants vengeance for having been imprisoned for 14 years because of the lawyer’s purposefully faulty defense tactics, prejudicing the accused. It received Academy Award nominations for Best Actor (Robert De Niro) and Best Supporting Actress (Juliette Lewis). The two were also nominated for Golden Globe Awards.

Trivia: 

• Robert De Niro paid a dentist $5,000 to make his teeth look suitably bad for the role of Max Cady. After filming, he paid $20,000 to have them fixed.
• De Niro was tattooed with vegetable dyes, which fade after a few months.
• Gregory Peck, who starred in Cape Fear (1962), appears as Cady’s lawyer. Robert Mitchum played Max Cady in the 1962 version, and appears as Lieutenant Elgart. Martin Balsam played Mark Dutton in the 1962 version and the judge in this version.
• De Niro researched sexual predator crimes for the part and suggested the scene where his character bites the victim.
• The scene in the high school auditorium was totally ad-libbed by Robert De Niro and Juliette Lewis, and done on the first take.
• Director Trademark: [Martin Scorsese] [mother] fruit stand customer.
• For the first time in Scorsese’s career, he allowed the screenwriter, Wesley Strick, on the set during filming.
• Steven Spielberg was originally set to direct. He later recommended Martin Scorsese for the job and personally called the director, letting him know that this was a commercial film that had potential to be a hit, which would exercise more power for Scorcese to make his films.
• De Niro did a lot of working out several months before the movie and during the shoot to make him the
  

  Robert DeNiro

  muscular Max Cady, reportedly taking his body fat down to only 3%.

• The auditorium scene was originally scripted as a chase scene, but Scorsese wanted it to be a seduction.
• The climactic scene out in the swamp was filmed in John U. Lloyd State Park, in the middle of a mangrove swamp. A tropical depression set over the set for four days, so the film crew had to wait for the storm to stop, so that they could make their own rain.
• Director Martin Scorsese’s first choice for the role of Bowden was Harrison Ford. He had Robert De Niro call Ford to try convincing him to take the part.
• Robert Redford was also considered for the role of Sam Bowden.
• This was Gregory Peck’s final appearance in a theatrical film release.
• This was Scorsese’s first picture to be shot in 2.35 : 1 aspect ratio.
• Amblin Entertainment’s first “R” rated motion picture.
• Drew Barrymore tested for the role of Danielle Bowden but failed the audition. She later said she had “acted all over the place and it was just the biggest disaster of my life”.
• Reese Witherspoon auditioned for the role of Danielle Bowden.
• Both Robert De Niro and Nick Nolte had to alter their physiques for the film because the 6′1″, bulky, Nolte is clearly larger than the 5′10″, slimmer De Niro. Nolte lost a good deal of weight while shooting the film and De Niro bulked up his muscles considerably until De Niro was clearly Nolte’s physical superior. Interestingly the original Sam Bowden (Gregory Peck) was also slightly taller than the original Max Cady (Robert Mitchum).
• When Steven Spielberg was attached to direct he had plans on casting Bill Murray as Max Cady.
• This is the first film that Martin Scorsese uses optical FX.
• The ice cream parlor scene was shot in the first week of production where the owners complained for the first three days that they were losing business.
• The scene where Robert De Niro sits on the brick wall, he actually sits behind a blue screen where the fireworks were added later in production.
• Robert De Niro helped costume designer Rita Ryack chose Cady’s clothing.
• Robert Mitchum feared in comparing his character of Max Cady to Robert De Niro’s portrayal in the film. He had never seen either movies.
• The script went through 24 drafts.
• Director Martin Scorsese read the original script three times while making GoodFellas (1990) and hated it each time because of how the Bowdens were a happy family and wanted them to be miserable.
• Juliette Lewis developed a crush on Robert De Niro during the scene in the drama class.
  

  Juliette Lewis

• It took a year to convince Martin Scorsese to make this movie.
• The scene between Robert De Niro and Juliette Lewis in the school was shot in three takes, but the first one was used in final productions.
• George C. Scott was originally supposed to play the Lieutenant role. But because of health problems he dropped out a few days before filming and Robert Mitchum was brought in.
• The score by Elmer Bernstein is not only an arrangement of ‘Bernard Herrmann’’s original “Cape Fear” score, but also includes parts of Herrmann’s unused score for Torn Curtain (1966).
• A picture of James Dean is shown when Danielle (Juliette Lewis) slams the door while her parents argue.
• Gregory Peck completed filming his cameo scenes in one day.
• De Niro played scenes with Kevin Kline and Phoebe Cates in the Sam and Danielle roles for Martin Scorsese when De Niro was trying to interest him in directing the film.
• Robert De Niro’s thick Max Cady accent reportedly gave Scorsese the creeps, and as a joke, De Niro would call the director’s house, leaving messages as Cady.
• De Niro’s Cady accent came from an earlier role where he played a southerner. To prepare for the role, De Niro took excerpts of the script and a tape recorder into southern towns and would ask locals to read the lines into the tape.
• Robert Richardson auditioned for the position of cinematographer but lost out to Britain’s Freddie Francis. Martin Scorsese, a staunch admirer of Richardson’s work with his former NYU student Oliver Stone, remembered Richardson when he was preparing to direct Casino (1995).
• Illeana Douglas based her performance as Lori Davis on Jennifer Levin, who was murdered in 1986 in Central Park by Robert Chambers (whom the press dubbed the “Preppy Murderer”).
• Jennifer Connelly reportedly turned down the role of Danielle.
• Christina Applegate did an audition for the role of Danielle, but had to turn down the part due to conflicts from “Married with Children” (1987) producer Ron Leavitt.
• Winona Ryder turned down the role of Danielle.
• Alyssa Milano was offered the role of Danielle but had to turn down the role, due to pressure from fellow “Who’s the Boss?” (1984) cast member Tony Danza.
• Nicole Eggert auditioned for the role of Danielle but turned it down.
• Sarah Jessica Parker was originally cast as Danielle.
• Meg Ryan, Jennifer Jason Leigh, Demi Moore, Jodie Foster, Helen Hunt, Bridget Fonda, Diane Lane, Brooke Shields, Nicole Kidman, Molly Ringwald and Shannen Doherty all were considered for the role of Danielle.
• Tiffani Thiessen was offered the role of Danielle, but turned down the choice to play the part, in order to stay with “Saved by the Bell” (1989).
• The music video Danielle watches to avoid her parent’s argument is Jane’s Addiction’s “Been Caught Stealing.”

Amazon Specials!

This is our third guest blog from Revolution, although now she’s better known as K-Y La Jelly. (Check out 1 and 2)

Whip It was not only a directorial debut for Drew Barrymore, it was a debut of women’s roller derby resurgence that began merely at the turn of this millennium.  Hollywood’s spotlighting of lesser known athletics has led to their subsequent national and international growth before.  Documentary Planet B-boy attributes the international exposure to breakdancing simply after 1983 Flashdance’s introductory clip of kids dancing in the streets.  About’s skateboard guide, Steve Cave, lists the 1989 release of Gleaming the Cube, a movie that first featured Tony Hawk among other future professionals, as a major event that boosted skateboarding popularity.  Has the passion of Barrymore’s pet project impacted roller derby in the same way?

Despite the novelty of roller derby in Hollywood, Whip It’s financial and artistic grade achieved a big fat mediocre.  Box Office Mojo ranks Whip It #6 behind Zombieland (#1) and Toy Story I & II (#2) according to gross profits made that opening weekend.  Kyle Buchanan gives a more historical perspective on the film’s monetary losses in “A Dispiriting List of Girl-Targeted Movies that Opened Better than Whip It” on movieline.com.  To summarize, the list includes several movies that star Hillary Duff and Lindsay Lohan, and dramatize the following topics:  boyfriends, princesses/drama queens, animals (horses and mermaids), and gymnastics (not to belittle the athleticism of this sport).  Film critics from New York Times, Washington Post and USA Today grant Whip It one thumb up for an eccentric cast and one thumb down for a predictable plot.

A quick read through roller derby team websites and blogs, however, show a very different story.  Ivanna S. Pankin, founder of Las Vegas’ Neanderdolls and owner of the online derby store Sin City Skates, states that even if the movie had sucked it is a free marketing tool that educates people about the sport’s existence.  For the past year she has prepped her business to respond to sales booms after the film’s release.  Sojourney Beaver, Las Vegas’ general league manager and new recruits coach, says that for every person who asks, “There’s derby in Las Vegas?” another person asks “What’s roller derby?”  After Whip It’s release, Beaver found 22 more women at the next beginner’s practice, about four times the normal 1-5 newbies who show up at the start of the season.  Although most of these new recruits denied the film had anything to do with their choice to start derby, a few admitted they had no clue a derby team existed in Las Vegas until they saw flyers posted at theaters.  Similarly, LV member Bootsi Call quotes 380 tickets sold at the following bout compared with the average 100-200 fans.

Luckily, Ivanna says, Whip It didn’t suck because it was written by roller derby skater, Shauna Cross, who shows the reality of skating culture in the film that members and fans love most.  As LV member Shawna the Dead puts it:

“Oh fuck.  2 things.  The camaraderie and the challenge…it [the challenge] is ever-evolving.  There’s always something new to learn and ways to improve your game…  It’s pretty amazing that we have an almost global alliance of women who kick each other’s asses, then hang out talking about how fun it was.  I love that about derby.  It’s a global sisterhood.  Or at least it will be.”

That’s the face of it, but roller derby skaters often share a life-changing story like the characters of Ellen Page and Juliette Lewis experienced in Whip It.  Take Shawna the Dead, the first and only, meaning one, member of LV Neanderdolls.  A mutual friend introduced her to Ivanna S. Pankin and Trish the Dish, the coaches of a memberless derby team.  The coaches had played with Arizona Roller Derby (AZRD) and finding no team in Las Vegas, they started one in 2005.  Shawna felt awkward having undivided attention while she fell and sputtered over the rink, but each practice she returned out of guilt as the sole member and from the coaches’ strong encouragement.  At this time Shawna felt her “life was a mess” with serious involvement with drugs.  The team grew until October, 2009 when it beat AZRD in its first bout by 10 points.  Neanderdolls soon developed into a top-ten nationally-ranked travel team.  Because of this crucial experience Shawna cannot emphasize enough her gratitude to the coaches for turning her life around.

Beaver also started when Neanderdolls was a travel-only team.  The way she describes her personality before roller derby is similar to Alia Shawkat’s character in Whip It.  She never played sports in high school or college, considering herself rather bookish, but after moving to Las Vegas, she found out about the team at a bar.  She is still surprised that after a year of watching bouts she talked herself into attending practice, which just like the film showed, involved painful lessons.  As the sport helped her become more assertive, she stepped into the team’s current leadership roles and is proud to call herself a “weiner” to this day.

As a recruit-in-training for Las Vegas’ 2009 teams, The Notorious V.I.Ps and Tommy Gun Terrors, I hear more stories.  Roller derby really is a mix of professional women including waitresses, marketers, engineers, architects, artists, technicians, and therapists ranging in age from 20 to 50.  They basically run a small business, each member contributing her skills at least 4 hours per month to a committee, if not three.  A board of directors runs the committees and carries out financial decisions.  Despite the bruises and the broken bones, some have quit smoking, some have started exercising for the first time in many years, and they share tips on healthy eating, stretching, and strength conditioning.  And to show how serious they are, at their bouts they intimidate each other with tutus, skirts, capes, long socks, and fish nets.  Oh, and hips, hits, and fists.

Whip It may already be off Hollywood’s radar, but for roller derby participants and fans, it is sure to become a cult following.

More than 80 teams have officially joined the standardized national Women’s Flat Track Derby Association (WFTDA).  Former figure skaters, hockey players, and speed skaters are raising the athletic bar, but anyone can join after passing a skill’s test.  Google roller derby in your city to find teams.  If a team does not exist, visit WFTDA.com to learn how to start your own and find official rules.  Roller Derby can help you “be your own hero”.

[image via Wired]
[image via Sin City Rollergirls]

It’s fall – almost winter by now, no wonder that the best known ladies took their new boots out of their wardrobe and appeared on the red carpet wearing them.

What might be new this season is that it seems to be okay to wear boots with LBDs – just like Balmain encouraged the fashionistas in their shows. You might remember the premiere of “This is it”: almost everyone showed up wearing boots. In my opinion, JLo totally rocked that evening:

—

—

Of course the trend didn’t stop there, we could see plenty of boots at the MTV EMA in Berlin. I’d say the boots of Asia are the most amazing, but one thing is for sure: it’s okay again to wear sexy boots on the red carpet!

—

Last but surely not least, my favorite item this season so far:

How amazing does it look?! I had the opportunity to see these ankle boots worn in person, they do wonders to the owner’s appearance!

More boots coming up in my next post, which is supposed to appear on Thursday. I hope to see you again then!

OMG…I am so totally high from seeing “Whip It” ,this movie rocks and I am totally in love with it!Drew Barrymore totally hit it out of the park with her directorial debut.This movie is Girl Power done right.I love how there was ample time taken to develop the characters and that they were not one dimensional.The roller derby scenes were so exhilarating!!I do not want to ruin the movie by giving too much away all I can say is SEE IT!!!!!