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Film

Woody Allen’s Classic Leading Ladies and Their Contemporary Counterparts

By Chloe Pantazi on

When Freud wrote of female sexuality as “a dark continent,” he might as well have been writing about Woody Allen’s murky understanding of women. The director’s female characters invariably have abundant daddy issues, a slew of neuroses, and affairs with artists, professors, married men. They seek advice from therapists and fortune tellers, they’re tempestuous and stubborn; though they’re sometimes incredibly narrow, they’re often appealingly complex. Allen’s female characters are so obviously amalgamations of his fantasy woman – or rather women, plural – that one might contend they’re part of an ongoing, experiment in understanding women. Following this week’s news that Emma Stone is set to star in the next Allen film, we’ve conducted a little experiment of our own, looking back at the ladies of his canon, matching the women of his classic era with their contemporary counterparts. … Read More

Film

Will These 10 Films Be Next Year’s Oscar Nominees?

By Jason Bailey on

After months of hype, after hundreds of thousands of dollars in campaigning, after endless precursor award ceremonies leading to the big night, the Oscars are over. So, what’s next? We took a look at the films slated thus far for release this fall — traditionally the time when Serious Oscar Movies are unleashed — and inventoried their Academy-friendly elements to come up with our picks for next year’s most likely… Read More

Film

10 Bawdy International Sex Comedies

By Alison Nastasi on

Kino Lorber’s Au Pair Girls and Cult Epics’ Cheeky arrive on Blu-ray today. The bawdy sex comedies from Val Guest and Tinto Brass are naughty guilty pleasures with an international spin on the fleshy farces that we recently explored in American territory. Some of the greatest sex comedies emerged from the 1960s and 1970s — a lighthearted healer for times of social, economic, and political unrest abroad. While the female form featured aplenty in these escapist entries, several sexy romps depicted women who had equally erotic intentions — a different kind of emancipation that attempted to explore serious matters with a knowing wink to match the jiggling flesh on display. We examined a variety of international sex comedies below — some wry and bittersweet, and others positively fluffy. Tell us your favorites, won’t you? … Read More

Film

This Week in Trailers: ‘Hansel and Gretel,’ ‘On the Road,’ and Sequels No One Asked For

By Jason Bailey on

Every Friday here at Flavorwire, we like to gather up the week’s new movie trailers, give them a look-see, and rank them from worst to best — while taking a guess or two about what they might tell us (or hide from us) about the movies they’re promoting. We’ve got eight new trailers for you this week, featuring Jeremy Renner, Penelope Cruz, Emile Hirsch, Marion Cotillard, Kristen Stewart, and Peter O’Toole; check ‘em all out after the jump, and share your thoughts in the comments. … Read More

Film

10 Great Supporting Performances by Actors Who Usually Lead

By Jason Bailey on

Out on DVD today is one of our favorite rom-coms in many a moon, Jennifer Westfeldt’s Friends with Kids, which stars the writer/director and… Adam Scott, which seems sort of strange considering that Ms. Wesfeldt’s S.O. for the past decade and a half has been Mr. Jon Hamm, who would seem an obvious choice for the film’s leading role. Instead, as in Bridesmaids, The Day the Earth Stood Still, and The Town (and in sharp contrast to his television work), Hamm plays a secondary supporting role in the picture — and continues to carve out a niche for himself as a leading man who chooses to be a second banana. After the jump, we’ve got ten more name actors who decided to step back and play supporting roles, to great effect. … Read More

Film

Pedro Almodóvar Returns to Comedy with ‘I’m So Excited’

By Judy Berman on

Although he made his name with campy comedies like Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown and Tie Me Up! Tie Me Down!, beloved Spanish filmmaker Pedro Almodóvar has spent the past decade or so making darker, more serious movies. But for the follow up to his relatively unsuccessful 2011 psychological thriller The Skin… Read More

Film

Video Essay: “Threequel: Even More Famous Faces in Their Film Debuts”

By Jason Bailey on

Well, I’m sorry, but we just couldn’t resist. After our first two “Famous Faces in their Film Debut” video essays took the Internet by storm, we found that with a bit more digging, we could unearth enough new goodies to warrant a third (but final, probably) entry in the series. So check out a squeaky-voiced Tom Cruise, a little tiny Angelina Jolie, an even tinier Robert Downey Jr., and a young (but somehow still old-looking) Tommy Lee Jones, among many other oddities, after the jump. … Read More

Film

This Week in Trailers: ‘Ted,’ ‘Total Recall,’ ‘To Rome with Love,’ and More

By Jason Bailey on

Every Friday here at Flavorwire, we like to gather up the week’s new movie trailers, give them a look-see, and rank them from worst to best — while taking a guess or two about what they might tell us (or hide from us) about the movies they’re promoting. We’ve got eleven trailers for you this week, including new films from Woody Allen, Oliver Stone, and Seth McFarlane, plus Whitney Houston’s final role and Katy Perry in 3D. (Seriously.) Check ‘em all out after the jump, and share your thoughts in the comments. … Read More

Film

How to Become a Woody Allen Muse

By Judy Berman on

Without their vibrant, odd, beautiful, and unique women, Woody Allen’s movies would be nothing more the ample angsting of a hyper-articulate nebbish. That is the subject of a piece in June’s W on Allen’s many muses, which includes the auteur’s take on what he looks for in a leading lady, as well as interviews with Allen gals from Mariel Hemingway to Penélope Cruz. What emerges is a fascinating — and, you know, kind of weird — image of what makes a great Woody Allen muse. A guide for those looking to be the next Diane Keaton is after the jump. … Read More

Celebrity

Photo Gallery: Celebrities as Disney Characters

By Emily Temple on

What if Olivia Wilde played the Evil Queen in Snow White? Can you picture Queen Latifah as Ursula? J.Lo as Princess Jasmine? In 2007, Disney launched an ad campaign for their parks, recreating classic animated scenes and characters with living and breathing Hollywood stars. Another group of celebrity ads came out in 2008, but since then we’ve seen nothing from the project – until now! Needless to say, this tickled the imaginations of all who once dreamed of live-action retellings of all their favorite Disney stories. Not that we desperately want to see Beyoncé play Alice in Wonderland or anything. Click through to see the newest batch of these Disney dream portraits shot by Annie Leibovitz, as well as some of the older models (check out even more here), and here’s hoping that one day these will all turn into amazing movies. … Read More