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Post by hughmanity on Dec 29, 2018 1:32:59 GMT -5
Hi! Just curious...what do you mean when you say, "Don't get me started on THE PRESTIGE?" (I wasn't "following" Hugh back then...) I agree that both TULLY and THE FRONT RUNNER were not given the distribution and screen time they deserved. I think this is because the mindless blockbusters, although entertaining, fill more seats and earn more profit. I'm going to see the RBG ( ON THE BASIS OF SEX) movie today before it disappears from screens. I wonder how many young women will support this story of a Supreme Court Justice who is still courageous and smart in spite of a lifetime of barriers and challenges. THE GREATEST SHOWMAN was a musical miracle in spite of the critics, so more screens were added. Decisions about advertising are perhaps made based upon what is already popular instead of what could be interesting. Also, If Daniel Day Lewis had played Gary Hart, would the after release promotion have been more rigorous? Is Hugh still perceived as an action star an not a serious actor? Don't even get me started on THE PRESTIGE. I'm rambling here, but those are some of my thoughts.
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Post by jo on Dec 29, 2018 2:57:09 GMT -5
The Prestige actually landed as No 1 movie for that opening weekend. Of course the results then would not compare well with the numbers these days. It was released in approx. 2300 screens. But since Nolan was very much in the news then, it did benefit from that as well. It was rated FRESH, at 75 % at Rotten Tomatoes. It scored 92% for its Audience Score. www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=prestige.htmIf I recall right, it was The Fountain which suffered from lack of publicity, after the disastrous reception at the Venice Film Festival. It opened at about 1500 screens but only ranked #10 for the opening weekend... Warner Bros did not do any promotion for its USA release...they wouldn't even allow Aronofsky to do a Director's Cut for the video release ( Aronofsky did one and uploaded it to the internet himself). www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=fountain.htmIt did about $ 3.8 million for Opening weekend. The Front Runner has only recorded about $ 2 million since it opened. The Fountain was rated at 52% (ROTTEN) at Rotten Tomatoes but with an Audience Score of 74%. After 10 years, it has become a cult favorite. The FRONT RUNNER is currently rated at 59% ( still ROTTEN) at Rotten Tomatoes with an Audience Score of 51%.By way of comparison, THE GREATEST SHOWMAN scored 55% at Rotten Tomatoes, but with an Audience Score of 87%. Also, by way of comparison, VICE ( another political movie re Dick Cheney, with Christian Bale) scored 64% (BARELY FRESH) at Rotten Tomatoes while its Audience Score is currently at 57 %. Not sure if we can conclude that political biopics do not sit well with critics as well as audiences -- but seems to be some indication of the current trend. Jo
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Post by njr on Dec 29, 2018 14:17:48 GMT -5
Ramble on, Kathy, I agree with you!
Nancy
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Post by carouselkathy on Dec 29, 2018 19:25:16 GMT -5
With THE PRESTIGE, I was referring to the lack of Oscar recognition. The critics liked it, but it deserved awards. My cousin worked in the hair & makeup dept. They weren't allowed to use wigs. Everything had to be natural. I think that some of the night scenes were filmed on actual streets of Los Angeles where the buildings looked like they dated back to the time period of the film. Hugh's performance deserved a nomination. I can't remember if the adaptation, based on the book, received a nom.
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Post by jo on Dec 29, 2018 20:11:33 GMT -5
It did get 2 Oscar nominations, but in the creative category ( none for direction or acting honors) -- Per IMDB : Nathan Crowley was head of PRODUCTION DESIGN ( which includes Art Direction) for THE GREATEST SHOWMAN. This was the competition ( including winners) that year -- www.theguardian.com/culture/2007/feb/26/awardsandprizes.oscars2007Btw, what many fans decried that year was how Hugh Jackman's portrayal in THE FOUNTAIN, which was released at almost the same time as THE PRESTIGE, was ignored. If I remember right, this was the first time that Hugh's portrayal was very well-lauded. The original score by Clint Mansell ( which drew a lot of fans) was also ignored in the Best Original Score category ( but was nominated by GGlobes for one). Jo
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Post by mamaleh on Dec 30, 2018 9:14:59 GMT -5
THE PRESTIGE was indeed criminally overlooked. HJ’s death scene towards the end was nothing less than renarkable. And while I can understand the mixed reception given THE FOUNTAIN, his performance , especially his outpouring of grief, was one of the best of the year. Business Insider Australia laments the studio’s woefully insufficient marketing of THE FRONT RUNNER, which led to its poor showing at the box office. Same goes for Jason Reitman’s earlier 2018 release, TULLY—a vastly unappreciated gem with an unexpected twist. www.businessinsider.com.au/tully-and-the-front-runner-are-two-of-the-years-best-movies-you-never-saw-2018-12Ellen
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Post by jo on Dec 30, 2018 11:29:32 GMT -5
Sorry, but I have always had some disdain for the Oscar politics that mar the recognition of the supposed talent and artistic accomplishments each year. Even the movie press members disagree about the quality of Oscar choices. The poltiticking has been going on for a very long time, sad to say. Take a look at this column from Jeff Wells, as he expresses very strong opinions about the artistic quality of A STAR IS BORN and against the strong campaign to give it multiple Oscars, to the point of calling the GoldDerby predictors as a herd which follows where the wind blows. It is also interesting to read the reactions on the feedback section - as most of his readers are true film buffs. hollywood-elsewhere.com/2018/12/a-star-is-born-must-be-stopped/#disqus_threadBtw, does anyone ever talk about the award-winning portrayal of Lincoln by Daniel Day Lewis after the year he won the Oscar for that film? Hmm... there is more talk about Hugh's Valjean Soliloquy or Who Am I since that time. And Meryl may be an excellent actress, but isn't it a little absurd to be nominated practically year after year after year? It's good thing she didn't get that accolade for Mamma Mia. Sorry, Meryl - no offense meant, but I am just expressing that the AMPAS do have their favorites and their biases. Jo
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Post by jo on Dec 30, 2018 11:41:18 GMT -5
Too bad that the IMDB forums for specific movies have been eliminated from its online site. I remember reading very articulate expressions of how the film is regarded. And if you look at the Amazon Readers Views on the movie, the same appreciation, pros or cons are expressed. True, the movie can be divisive but what I find interesting is that after 10 years, it has developed a cult following and on its 10th anniversary, there were anniversary screenings as well as revisionist thinking of its critical appraisal.
And I also remember that if there was a strong point of agreement among IMDB readers and Amazon commentators , it was the unanimity of their strong praise and approval of Hugh's acting portrayal(s)! Ditto for Rachel Weisz!
And yet they were completely overlooked for acting honors by the AMPAS! Ironic, too, that after Aronofsky's movie was very negatively received at the Venice Film Festival (which premiered the movie to the world), some years later, Darren was invited to head the panel of judges that awards the Venice Biennale Golden Lion Prizes for the festival!
Jo
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Post by jo on Dec 30, 2018 12:05:39 GMT -5
Re The Front Runner --
My own take is that SONY already paid a hefty amount for the movie and for its distribution rights, which it won at the Cannes Film market. They positioned the movie as a prestige award season bet. Thus, the many film festival participations to create awareness for its award-winning qualities and also to popularize the movie using movie press and entertainment sites coverage, talk show appearances, and social media. Unfortunately, the critics were divided on the movie and the movie did not track well on advance ticket sales. They still opened it wide ( 800 screens is considered a wide opening). Sadly, the initial screenings were already lackluster in terms of box office receipts. And it never picked up.
Presumably, Sony did not want to throw in more good money after bad money, hence no TV advertising. Which made sense from a business viewpoint. And what is even more sad is that of those who have seen the movie and cared to express their opinions on it - it showed as only a 51 % Audience Score at Rotten Tomatoes, although the score on IMDB is much better at 6.6 of 10.0. It was unlike that of THE GREATEST SHOWMAN whose fortunes started to rise when it scored initial Audience scores in the 90%'s at RT ( eventually settling at 87%). As I have observed earlier, it seems there is a parallel regard for the other political movie, VICE. Not exactly high critical praise ( barely fresh at RT at about 64%) and also less than impressive Audience Score of 58%. Maybe movies with a political theme was not a flavor of the month for movie audiences, given also the highly charged political scene these days?
But Hugh Jackman did get very high approval ratings for his portrayal as Gary Hart! And we can be very proud of that!
Jo
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Post by luzie on Dec 30, 2018 13:13:56 GMT -5
Well, the big difference between Front Runner and Vice is, that the latter and especially Christian Bale are nominated everywhere, whereas Hugh's performance (that was quite well-received, but didn't get unanimous praise like Bale's or Cooper's performances) is once again overlooked as usually at awards! He only gets empty praise. His alleged once again "best performance" is still not enough, so that the positive reviews for him are more like a back-handed compliment.
You may bitch about DDL as much as you want, but he IS a three-time Oscar winner (with many other acting awards like the SAG award etc.) and one of the most respected and acclaimed actors, whereas Hugh is obviously still not enough recognized after all this time and different roles and has only one Oscar and SAG award nod that is already 6 years ago. All - indeed annoying - politics, favoritism and campaigns aside, the Oscar and other prestigous awards like SAG, BAFTA, any critics awards etc. are still important and a visible sign for recognition. Presumably every actor - including Hugh - tries to win these awards at least once in a lifetime. If you prefer to downplay all this, fine, but others think differently about it and get annoyed at any further snub.
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Post by njr on Dec 30, 2018 13:48:33 GMT -5
Well, the big difference between Front Runner and Vice is, that the latter and especially Christian Bale are nominated everywhere, whereas Hugh's performance (that was quite well-received, but didn't get unanimous praise like Bale's or Cooper's performances) is once again overlooked as usually at awards! He only gets empty praise. His alleged once again "best performance" is still not enough, so that the positive reviews for him are more like a back-handed compliment. You may bitch about DDL as much as you want, but he IS a three-time Oscar winner (with many other acting awards like the SAG award etc.) and one of the most respected and acclaimed actors, whereas Hugh is obviously still not enough recognized after all this time and different roles and has only one Oscar and SAG award nod that is already 6 years ago. All - indeed annoying - politics, favoritism and campaigns aside, the Oscar and other prestigous awards like SAG, BAFTA, any critics awards etc. are still important and a visible sign for recognition. Presumably every actor - including Hugh - tries to win these awards at least once in a lifetime. If you prefer to downplay all this, fine, but others think differently about it and get annoyed at any further snub. Well said Luzie! 👍 Nancy
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Post by jo on Dec 30, 2018 20:06:47 GMT -5
Well, the big difference between Front Runner and Vice is, that the latter and especially Christian Bale are nominated everywhere, whereas Hugh's performance (that was quite well-received, but didn't get unanimous praise like Bale's or Cooper's performances) is once again overlooked as usually at awards! He only gets empty praise. His alleged once again "best performance" is still not enough, so that the positive reviews for him are more like a back-handed compliment. You may bitch about DDL as much as you want, but he IS a three-time Oscar winner (with many other acting awards like the SAG award etc.) and one of the most respected and acclaimed actors, whereas Hugh is obviously still not enough recognized after all this time and different roles and has only one Oscar and SAG award nod that is already 6 years ago. All - indeed annoying - politics, favoritism and campaigns aside, the Oscar and other prestigous awards like SAG, BAFTA, any critics awards etc. are still important and a visible sign for recognition. Presumably every actor - including Hugh - tries to win these awards at least once in a lifetime. If you prefer to downplay all this, fine, but others think differently about it and get annoyed at any further snub. I agree with you! It is just so frustrating that someone like Hugh who has shown such an unusual level of versatility is not yet recognized to what he has added to the acting community's wealth of talent! No arguing about DDL's level of respect among the acting community but all I was pointing out was that sometimes it is the campaign which helps out the win ( remember the TIME magazine cover which hailed him as the greatest actor ever --the timing of that issue was perfect) or how Spielberg worked out the White House screening of that movie ( or the efforts that well-respected Spielberg had expended in that Oscar campaign). All I am saying is that in any conversation about his acting accomplishments, you hear about No Country for Old Men, or My Left Foot... but not a pip about his Lincoln portrayal. And he did not exactly impress with his NINE portrayal - which was the first time to try a movie musical! The material itself ( with Banderas) was hailed on Broadway but was considered not an artistic accomplishment on film. Hugh did impress in a genre that is hard to be recognized -- there are only a few who have won Oscars or even get nominations for male film musical roles - and Hugh was one of those who got an Oscar nod for his work in Les Miserables. In the words of Russell Crowe, he voted for Hugh at the AMPAS "because of the character arc and the degree of difficulty" ( presumably in delivering the performance). Thereafter there have been so many social media posts or even some articles talking about how Hugh Jackman was robbed of an Oscar for that role...to this day! Let's hope that as he tries to diversify his acting portfolio that the one big chance to convince people that his acting fares well with other recipients of acting honors with the award community will come soon! Will Bad Education give him that chance? We'll see how the film and his acting will be received. Btw, the AMPAS itself has recognized the possible skewed demographic profile of its voters ( a few years back, it was profiled as mostly white men who are over 60 years old) by accepting huge numbers in the last 2 years to join the voting community ( maybe around 1600 + in 2 years time) which number less than 10,000 now. New voters are much younger members of the acting and filmmaking community, including those from other nationalities and borders. But it seems it has resulted also in recognizing in the last votes that there are other social justice issues ( such as inclusivity or diversity or a vote against racism) that deserves to be addressed. Maybe this will eventually broaden the perspective of the AMPAS voting community. Btw, no one could be more or equally disappointed that Hugh is not fully recognized for his acting accomplishments ( triple threat talent even) than me probably. I am just saying that the Oscar politics does not make me less aggrieved about it but that the non-recognition of Hugh's talent ( and other worthy actors, too) is sometimes not much to do with what he has shown the acting community he can do … but that there are other factors that are at work! Jo
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Post by carouselkathy on Dec 30, 2018 21:19:46 GMT -5
Daniel Day Lewis WAS Lincoln and deserved his Oscar. I just wish it had been another year. I am also reminded that Elizabeth Taylor once admitted that her Oscar for BUTTERFIELD 8 should have gone to Deborah Kerr in THE SUNDOWNERS. Liz was of the opinion that she received the Oscar that year because she was very ill. I agree with Liz that Deborah Kerr deserved the Oscar that year ( Deborah never did win the Oscar, but received several nominations.) My point is that the AMPAS voters are unpredictable and have historically failed to honor deserving performances.
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Post by jo on Dec 30, 2018 21:29:20 GMT -5
Yes, the Taylor win for Butterfield Eight was more of the AMPAS recognizing her near-death health issues then. She was good in the movie though especially in the first few scenes. I never saw Deborah's performance in The Sundowners. But my favorite performances of hers would be King and I, An Affair to Remember, & Tea and Sympathy. She does give very refined and incredibly poignant performances. But Elizabeth did impress with Who's Afraid of Virginia Wolf - a far cry from her other portrayals! Although I also liked her portrayal in Raintree County ( maybe because she and Monty Clift were both gorgeous-looking!)... And she deserved an Oscar for that portrayal of foul-mouthed and ill-behaved Martha in "Woolf". Also interesting that her husband at that time and co-star in "Woolf", Richard Burton, has never won an Oscar! He has one of the best speaking voices in the English language! He even made us believe he is an acceptable singer in the original stage version of CAMELOT ![;)](//storage.proboards.com/forum/images/smiley/wink.png) I do have some biased opinions about "Woolf". The first time I came to America and arrived at my school in Amherst, Massachusetts, I was excitedly told by newfound friends that they were filming WHO'S AFRAID OF VIRGINIA WOOLF in the academic community where Amherst College and UMass in Amherst... Smith College in Northhampton are located. I never even saw one bit of the filming but I do remember the excitement at that time ![;)](//storage.proboards.com/forum/images/smiley/wink.png) Jo
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Post by jo on Dec 31, 2018 0:59:47 GMT -5
Interesting comment on the Facebook Page of THE GREATEST SHOWMAN re its lack of recognition --
Could very well apply to THE FRONT RUNNER, too.
Jo
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Post by jo on Dec 31, 2018 4:18:45 GMT -5
Despite the poor box office showing in the USA, there seems to be no changes with the planned overseas release schedule, starting with the UK on January 11, 2019. It receive favorable reviews during the its film festival showing there...so hopefully, the market there will respond more favorably to the movie. It opened for a short period in Sweden and Greece but played only for no more than 2 weeks. www.imdb.com/title/tt7074886/releaseinfo
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Post by jo on Jan 4, 2019 9:02:12 GMT -5
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Post by jo on Jan 7, 2019 23:15:38 GMT -5
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Post by jo on Jan 10, 2019 17:25:22 GMT -5
BBC Radio 4 interviews Hugh Jackman re the release in the UK of THE FRONT RUNNER. The Hugh part in the clip is in the first 13.5 minutes -- www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/m0001ydsHugh is always articulate, eloquent, a deep thinker... but also grounded... and - lol - coy (the host could not ferret out what his next Broadway musical project will be, although he confirms that there is already something in his mind ![;)](//storage.proboards.com/forum/images/smiley/wink.png) ) Jo
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Post by jo on Jan 11, 2019 10:45:06 GMT -5
It's part of the promo for THE FRONT RUNNER on its release in Ireland... and Hugh talks to host Ryan Turbidy ( on whom he pulls off what is called the Irish Goodbye aka French leave to many others). Hugh is very chatty in this interview. soundcloud.com/rte-radio-1/the-ryan-tubridy-show-hugh-JackmanHe shared a little detail on The Greatest Showman, on how he was forbidden to ride on his bike ( on the way to the studios) after the film project was officially greenlit ![:D](//storage.proboards.com/forum/images/smiley/grin.png) … Lol - insurance issues, I suppose! But I do remember how he used to ride his bike to rehearsals at Steiner Studios in Brooklyn... especially on Manhattan Bridge, where a co-rider noticed him and gleefully posted on social media how she could do a better job on her bike than Hugh ![;)](//storage.proboards.com/forum/images/smiley/wink.png) Jo
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Post by jo on Jan 15, 2019 22:50:41 GMT -5
It looks like SONY continues to be impressed with the work of Jason Reitman, as he has been attached to direct and co-write the next sequel to the once-active GHOSTBUSTERS franchise! The first two of the series were directed by his own father Ivan Reitman. www.hollywoodreporter.com/heat-vision/jason-reitman-direct-new-ghostbusters-movie-1176512Horror movies and ghost stories are in vogue again - although GHOSTBUSTERS is more of a humorous take on the subject.
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Post by jo on Jan 16, 2019 2:52:52 GMT -5
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Post by jo on Jan 19, 2019 10:16:45 GMT -5
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Post by jo on Jan 19, 2019 20:43:46 GMT -5
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Post by jo on Jan 19, 2019 20:46:27 GMT -5
LOL!
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