I haven't seen A Complete Unknown, but based on production stills I think Monica Barbaro was recognized for convincingly playing Not Hot while being Actually Hot in real life.
I defend that nomination. Cinema would not survive if actors were not willing to make that sacrifice.
Fairly new reader: Any reason Interstellar isn't mentioned in the Nolan rankings? That's become his most popular film.
I'm so behind on Oscar movies this year. Having seen none of their movies, I declare that Guy Pearce deserves to win over Kieran Culkin. (Let's be honest, Jeremy Strong is an afterthought in the race.) Culkin is too much of a young whippersnapper and he just won all the TV awards for Succession. Pearce is the kind of always-reliable, unsung veteran that supporting actor likes to recognize.
So, my initial reaction was "YOU HAVEN'T SEEN LA CONFIDENTIAL YET?!?!?". But then realized that I'm much older than you both and you probably weren't even born yet when it came out.
This was his first Big American Studio role. He shared the lead with Russell Crowe, and if I understand your definitions (this is the first article of yours I'm reading), Guy Pearce is definitely a girl actor in LA Confidential and Russell Crowe is definitely a boy actor. Highly recommended
I would apply the same adjective "interesting" to the whole movie, not just Pearce. Is has a lot going on, looks great, and it certainly presents itself as the Great American film (vista vision, runtime, intermission etc) But leaving a packed auditorium I got the distinct feeling that this film was less than the some of its parts.
Firstly, thank you for the thoughts on John David Washington, what a tragic non-entity in movies. I remember he was one of the three leads in "Amsterdam" (a movie I am DESPERATE to monologue about for days, though the occasion will NEVER come up), and next to Christian Bale and Margot Robbie, he was a complete non-entity. I kept forgetting he was supposed to be just as important as those other two, nevermind the rest of that ridiculously loaded superstar cast.
Secondly, Guy Pearce is DEFINITELY one of my all-time favorites, and I am psyched to soon see The Brutalist now that it's playing in my neck of the woods. To that end, my five favorite unsung Guy Pearce performances:
-Ravenous -- He's the lead in this darkly comic cannibal western. I was psyched because it looked like an action/horror hybrid, which it is, and then I found a delightful wrinkle within... the lead character, Guy Pearce, is meant to be a total cowardly wimp! Unusual choice. Obviously he has to step up and choose to survive and all that (and this is a GREAT movie -- score by Blur's Damon Albarn!) but a good 98% of his screentime is spent shrieking, running and hiding!
-Lawless -- Tom Hardy, Shia LaBeouf and Jason Clarke (and I think Dane DeHaan?) are playing moonshine brothers during Prohibition but mostly trying to outact each other in a movie that has a ton of other familiar faces. Guy Pearce and Gary Oldman are a Villain Double Act (can't get better than that) but Pearce gets to overact, sneering and wearing what looks like light Kabuki makeup. Maybe I'm remembering this movie really wrong, not sure.
-Lockout -- Delightful forgotten genre trash with Pearce playing a sexy Snake Plissken-type outlaw sent on a suicide mission in a space prison where the President's daughter has been taken hostage. Written by Luc Besson with that Luc Besson Euro flavor. Pearce never gets to fire guns, swivel his hips and flirt like this, and he's a natural.
-The Count Of Monte Cristo -- Extra satisfying today because not only is Pearce disgusting as the villain (he has sunshine-yellow teeth the entire time and it's REPULSIVE) but because he gleefully outacts his costars. Firstly, the lead, Jim Caviezel, who thought this was a star vehicle but was just a chance to remind people how wooden he is. And secondly, the count's son, a whiny young Henry Cavill.
-Results-- That rarity, a personal trainer romcom. Cobie Smulders is the lead, and she's stuck between her supportive, amorous, physically-perfect boss (Pearce) and a charming, overweight, non-perfectionist new client (Kevin Corrigan). Pearce is technically the bad guy, but he's playing him as kind of a good guy! A nice-time movie! I hope to discuss it on my site at some point.
Also, Pearce was cast as an old man in Prometheus so they could film a TED Talk to promote the movie, one that takes place decades earlier. Which is hilariously dumb to me, but whatever. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a1E_mxgqngI
(P.S. The Prestige is my favorite Nolan movie, and maybe the most Boy Movie of all Nolans? Wolverine and Batman trying to out-magick each other with the help of Black Widow, Alfred and Gollum?)
The sort-of payoff for the old man makeup in Prometheus is that Pearce gets to have *one* scene looking like himself, no makeup, in Alien: Covenant.
I begged my one friend to see Amsterdam because I could also talk about it…not for days, exactly, but maybe an hour. Mostly about Margot Robbie (brown-haired here), who has never looked more beautiful on screen. It’s hypnotic. I’ve rewatched it for that reason alone. Lubezki knows what the hell he is doing with that camera! The cinematography in general is the highlight. Zoe Saldana might also be looking her all-time best.
On the other hand, you’d think Anya Taylor Joy’s unique face would be a canvas for Lubezki to work on…but she just looks like regular ATJ.
I wouldn’t call Taylor Swift a great beauty, per se, but she’s pretty. Lubezki must not have cared at all (she’s a minor character), because she looks SO PLAIN. It’s kind of funny.
Obviously I’m biased because I’m involved but WHAT INCREDIBLE STUFF! I laughed, out loud, in public which is the Boy Movies guarantee. I agree with almost everything except the little Challengers dig (I know not ill intentioned)—if the academy insists on being ridiculous and giving Monica Barbaro’s fake tooth a nomination, they can recognize Josh O’Connor being a cunty bisexual and they can recognize Jonathan Anderson trying to make designer clothing look like something from the mall. In FACT, if Wicked can be nominated for best picture for its “box office success”, Challengers can be nominated for making people consider buying a $300 grey tshirt. (This rant is not about you—I just don’t have twitter.) I LOVE YOU SO MUCH! THANK YOU FOR INCLUDING ME IN THIS!
> “Omggggg I can’t believe Challengers didn’t get any nominations oh my goddddd it was SNUBBED!!!!” So this is the Academy Awards, not the Twitter Awards, hope that helps
Also, people on Instagram don't watch movies, they watch Instagram. Whoever came up with putting Selena Gomez in Emilia Perez, you learned that the hard way.
I haven't seen A Complete Unknown, but based on production stills I think Monica Barbaro was recognized for convincingly playing Not Hot while being Actually Hot in real life.
I defend that nomination. Cinema would not survive if actors were not willing to make that sacrifice.
Fairly new reader: Any reason Interstellar isn't mentioned in the Nolan rankings? That's become his most popular film.
I'm so behind on Oscar movies this year. Having seen none of their movies, I declare that Guy Pearce deserves to win over Kieran Culkin. (Let's be honest, Jeremy Strong is an afterthought in the race.) Culkin is too much of a young whippersnapper and he just won all the TV awards for Succession. Pearce is the kind of always-reliable, unsung veteran that supporting actor likes to recognize.
This was such a fun read. I need you to know I was about 1 hr 35 mins into The Brutalist and went "oh wait that's Guy Pearce!"
So, my initial reaction was "YOU HAVEN'T SEEN LA CONFIDENTIAL YET?!?!?". But then realized that I'm much older than you both and you probably weren't even born yet when it came out.
This was his first Big American Studio role. He shared the lead with Russell Crowe, and if I understand your definitions (this is the first article of yours I'm reading), Guy Pearce is definitely a girl actor in LA Confidential and Russell Crowe is definitely a boy actor. Highly recommended
I would apply the same adjective "interesting" to the whole movie, not just Pearce. Is has a lot going on, looks great, and it certainly presents itself as the Great American film (vista vision, runtime, intermission etc) But leaving a packed auditorium I got the distinct feeling that this film was less than the some of its parts.
Re: Guy Pearce, "love of my life" -- https://ew.com/carice-van-houten-clarifies-guy-pearce-split-after-he-calls-ex-wife-greatest-love-8779154
Firstly, thank you for the thoughts on John David Washington, what a tragic non-entity in movies. I remember he was one of the three leads in "Amsterdam" (a movie I am DESPERATE to monologue about for days, though the occasion will NEVER come up), and next to Christian Bale and Margot Robbie, he was a complete non-entity. I kept forgetting he was supposed to be just as important as those other two, nevermind the rest of that ridiculously loaded superstar cast.
Secondly, Guy Pearce is DEFINITELY one of my all-time favorites, and I am psyched to soon see The Brutalist now that it's playing in my neck of the woods. To that end, my five favorite unsung Guy Pearce performances:
-Ravenous -- He's the lead in this darkly comic cannibal western. I was psyched because it looked like an action/horror hybrid, which it is, and then I found a delightful wrinkle within... the lead character, Guy Pearce, is meant to be a total cowardly wimp! Unusual choice. Obviously he has to step up and choose to survive and all that (and this is a GREAT movie -- score by Blur's Damon Albarn!) but a good 98% of his screentime is spent shrieking, running and hiding!
-Lawless -- Tom Hardy, Shia LaBeouf and Jason Clarke (and I think Dane DeHaan?) are playing moonshine brothers during Prohibition but mostly trying to outact each other in a movie that has a ton of other familiar faces. Guy Pearce and Gary Oldman are a Villain Double Act (can't get better than that) but Pearce gets to overact, sneering and wearing what looks like light Kabuki makeup. Maybe I'm remembering this movie really wrong, not sure.
-Lockout -- Delightful forgotten genre trash with Pearce playing a sexy Snake Plissken-type outlaw sent on a suicide mission in a space prison where the President's daughter has been taken hostage. Written by Luc Besson with that Luc Besson Euro flavor. Pearce never gets to fire guns, swivel his hips and flirt like this, and he's a natural.
-The Count Of Monte Cristo -- Extra satisfying today because not only is Pearce disgusting as the villain (he has sunshine-yellow teeth the entire time and it's REPULSIVE) but because he gleefully outacts his costars. Firstly, the lead, Jim Caviezel, who thought this was a star vehicle but was just a chance to remind people how wooden he is. And secondly, the count's son, a whiny young Henry Cavill.
-Results-- That rarity, a personal trainer romcom. Cobie Smulders is the lead, and she's stuck between her supportive, amorous, physically-perfect boss (Pearce) and a charming, overweight, non-perfectionist new client (Kevin Corrigan). Pearce is technically the bad guy, but he's playing him as kind of a good guy! A nice-time movie! I hope to discuss it on my site at some point.
Also, Pearce was cast as an old man in Prometheus so they could film a TED Talk to promote the movie, one that takes place decades earlier. Which is hilariously dumb to me, but whatever. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a1E_mxgqngI
(P.S. The Prestige is my favorite Nolan movie, and maybe the most Boy Movie of all Nolans? Wolverine and Batman trying to out-magick each other with the help of Black Widow, Alfred and Gollum?)
Fromtheyardtothearthouse.substack.com
The sort-of payoff for the old man makeup in Prometheus is that Pearce gets to have *one* scene looking like himself, no makeup, in Alien: Covenant.
I begged my one friend to see Amsterdam because I could also talk about it…not for days, exactly, but maybe an hour. Mostly about Margot Robbie (brown-haired here), who has never looked more beautiful on screen. It’s hypnotic. I’ve rewatched it for that reason alone. Lubezki knows what the hell he is doing with that camera! The cinematography in general is the highlight. Zoe Saldana might also be looking her all-time best.
On the other hand, you’d think Anya Taylor Joy’s unique face would be a canvas for Lubezki to work on…but she just looks like regular ATJ.
I wouldn’t call Taylor Swift a great beauty, per se, but she’s pretty. Lubezki must not have cared at all (she’s a minor character), because she looks SO PLAIN. It’s kind of funny.
Obviously I’m biased because I’m involved but WHAT INCREDIBLE STUFF! I laughed, out loud, in public which is the Boy Movies guarantee. I agree with almost everything except the little Challengers dig (I know not ill intentioned)—if the academy insists on being ridiculous and giving Monica Barbaro’s fake tooth a nomination, they can recognize Josh O’Connor being a cunty bisexual and they can recognize Jonathan Anderson trying to make designer clothing look like something from the mall. In FACT, if Wicked can be nominated for best picture for its “box office success”, Challengers can be nominated for making people consider buying a $300 grey tshirt. (This rant is not about you—I just don’t have twitter.) I LOVE YOU SO MUCH! THANK YOU FOR INCLUDING ME IN THIS!
> “Omggggg I can’t believe Challengers didn’t get any nominations oh my goddddd it was SNUBBED!!!!” So this is the Academy Awards, not the Twitter Awards, hope that helps
Also, people on Instagram don't watch movies, they watch Instagram. Whoever came up with putting Selena Gomez in Emilia Perez, you learned that the hard way.