Disney+ Releases First Official Trailer for "Welcome to Earth" Starring Will Smith

First Official Trailer for the Disney+ Original Series, From National Geographic, ‘Welcome to Earth,’ Hosted by Two-Time Academy Award® Nominee Will Smith, Now Available

The Six-Part Series Is Executive Produced by Academy Award-Nominated Filmmaker Darren Aronofsky, Protozoa Pictures, Jane Root’s Nutopia, and Will Smith and Jada Pinkett Smith’s Westbrook Studios

‘Welcome to Earth’ Premieres This December on Disney+

BURBANK, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Disney+ revealed the first official trailer for the six-part original series “Welcome to Earth,” streaming this December. The visually stunning Disney+ series, from National Geographic, follows two-time Academy Award® nominee Will Smith on an extraordinary, once-in-a-lifetime adventure around the world to explore Earth’s greatest wonders and reveal its most hidden secrets. Will Smith debuted the breathtaking trailer this morning on his social media accounts.

Executive produced by visionary Academy Award-nominated filmmaker Darren Aronofsky (“Black Swan,” “Requiem for a Dream”), Protozoa Pictures, Jane Root’s Nutopia and Westbrook Studios, Will is guided by elite explorers on an awe-inspiring journey, getting up close and personal with some of the most thrilling spectacles on the planet — from volcanoes that roar in silence to deserts that move beyond our perception to animal swarms with minds of their own.

The top-of-class adventurers leading Will through these incredible experiences include marine biologist and National Geographic Explorer Diva Amon, polar expeditionist Dwayne Fields, engineer and National Geographic Explorer Albert Lin, National Geographic Photographer Cristina Mittermeier, and mountaineer Erik Weihenmayer. Combining breathtaking cinematography with Will’s boundless curiosity and enthusiasm, the epic series is an exciting, multisensory ride through Earth’s most mind-bending portals.

The trailer for "Welcome to Earth" is here.

“Welcome to Earth” is produced by Nutopia, Protozoa Pictures and Westbrook Studios for National Geographic. For Nutopia, Jane Root and Peter Lovering are executive producers, and Graham Booth co-executive produces and directs the series. For Protozoa, Darren Aronofsky and Ari Handel executive produce. Westbrook executive producers are Will Smith, Terence Carter, James Lassiter and Miguel Melendez. Matt Renner and Chris L. Kugelman serve as executive producers for National Geographic. The series’ music is composed by Daniel Pemberton (“Trial of The Chicago 7,” “Steve Jobs”).

SOCIAL HANDLES AND HASHTAGS:

#WelcomeToEarthSeries

@DisneyPlus

#DisneyPlus

@willsmith (Instagram and Facebook)

@diva_amon (Instagram), @DivaAmon (Twitter)

@exploreralbert (Instagram and Twitter)

@dwaynefields (Instagram and Twitter)

@erikweihenmayer (Instagram and Twitter)

@mitty (Instagram), @cmittermeier (Twitter)

About Disney+:

Disney+ is the dedicated streaming home for movies and shows from Disney, Pixar, Marvel, Star Wars, National Geographic, and more. As part of Disney’s Media and Entertainment Distribution segment, Disney+ is available on most internet-connected devices and offers commercial-free programming with a variety of original feature-length films, documentaries, live-action and animated series and short-form content. Alongside unprecedented access to Disney’s incredible library of film and television entertainment, the service is also the exclusive streaming home for the latest releases from The Walt Disney Studios. Disney+ is available as part of a bundle offer that gives subscribers access to Disney+, Hulu (ad-supported), and ESPN+. Visit DisneyPlus.com to subscribe and/or learn more about the service.

About National Geographic Partners:

National Geographic Partners LLC (NGP), a joint venture between The Walt Disney Company and the National Geographic Society, is committed to bringing the world premium science, adventure and exploration content across an unrivaled portfolio of media assets. NGP combines the global National Geographic television channels (National Geographic Channel, Nat Geo WILD, Nat Geo MUNDO, Nat Geo PEOPLE) with National Geographic’s media and consumer-oriented assets, including National Geographic magazines; National Geographic studios; related digital and social media platforms; books; maps; children’s media; and ancillary activities that include travel, global experiences and events, archival sales, licensing and e-commerce businesses. Furthering knowledge and understanding of our world has been the core purpose of National Geographic for 133 years, and now we are committed to going deeper, pushing boundaries, going further for our consumers … and reaching millions of people around the world in 172 countries and 43 languages every month as we do it. NGP returns 27 percent of our proceeds to the nonprofit National Geographic Society to fund work in the areas of science, exploration, conservation and education. For more information visit natgeotv.com or nationalgeographic.com, or find us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, YouTube, LinkedIn and Pinterest.

About Protozoa Pictures:

Protozoa Pictures, based in Chinatown NYC, is headed by Darren Aronofsky and his partner, Ari Handel. Their credits include Aronofsky’sπ, REQUIEM FOR A DREAM, THE FOUNTAIN, THE WRESTLER, BLACK SWAN, NOAH, mother! and his upcoming film THE WHALE; as well as Pablo Larrain’s JACKIE, Yann Demange’s WHITE BOY RICK, Lance Oppenheim’s documentary SOME KIND OF HEAVEN, Josef Kobuta Wladyka's CATCH THE FAIR ONE and Tobias Lindhoff’s THE GOOD NURSE. Their TV credits include ONE STRANGE ROCK for Nat Geo, the upcoming WELCOME TO EARTH and LIMITLESS for Nat Geo, BLACK GOLD for Paramount+, and KINDRED for FX, directed by Janicza Bravo.

About Nutopia:

Nutopia is known for creating award-winning, factual series on a global scale, and a new genre of television, the “mega-doc,” which combines epic cinematography with action-driven drama or high-end documentary and A-list talent. The company, which was founded in 2008 by Jane Root, former President of Discovery Channel US and Controller of BBC2, and co-founder of Wall to Wall TV, has become synonymous with creating high-quality, notable content for buyers that include Netflix, Disney+, CNN, National Geographic, BBC, PBS, HBO Max, and A+E Networks. Recent projects include “Shark Beach with Chris Hemsworth” for Disney+ and Nat Geo’s Shark Fest; “Extra Life: A Short History of Living Longer” for PBS; “A World of Calm” for HBO Max, “Babies” for Netflix, and Emmy Award-nominated “The World According to Jeff Goldblum.” Nutopia also produced, the much-honored National Geographic series “One Strange Rock” Emmy Award-winning series “How We Got to Now” and “America: The Story of US.” Upcoming projects include “Limitless,” with Chris Hemsworth, and “Welcome to Earth” with Will Smith for Disney+.

About Westbrook Studios:

Westbrook Studios is a subsidiary of Westbrook Inc., the media company launched in 2019 by founders Jada Pinkett Smith, Will Smith, Miguel Melendez and Ko Yada, focused on empowering artists to tell stories that connect the world. Led by Co-Presidents, Terence Carter (Television) and Jon Mone (Film), Westbrook Studios is home to a rapidly expanding footprint in premium motion picture and television projects. In TV, Westbrook Studios recently launched Amend: The Fight for America, a powerful, six-part, Netflix docuseries that uses a groundbreaking, multimedia narrative format to explore the Fourteenth Amendment of the US Constitution. Upcoming TV projects include an unprecedented two-season order from Peacock for Bel-Air, the dramatic reboot of Will Smith’s iconic ‘The Fresh Prince Of Bel-Air’ based on Morgan Cooper’s 2019 viral short film and set to premiere in 2022, the recently announced adventure series Welcome to Earth, set to premiere on Disney+ later this year, and season 4 of the beloved series Cobra Kai set to launch on Netflix in December. In film, upcoming Westbrook Studios projects include the highly anticipated KING RICHARD, based on the life of Richard Williams, father to tennis greats Serena and Venus; EMANCIPATION which sold to Apple in the largest festival acquisition deal in film history; the remake of the 1980s classic PLANES, TRAINS, & AUTOMOBILES, starring Will Smith and Kevin Hart; the upcoming sports drama REDD ZONE, starring Jada Pinkett Smith; and the recently announced live action musical fantasy film, SOUL SUPERHERO.

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Will Smith to Host National Geographic's "One Strange Rock"

NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC TAPS ACADEMY AWARD® NOMINEE WILL SMITH AS HOST OF ONE STRANGE ROCK

Smith to Act as Guide in 10-Part Event Series From Acclaimed Filmmaker Darren Aronofsky and Award-Winning Producer Jane Root

The Nutopia and Protozoa Pictures Series Redefines Natural History and Science Genres With an Epic Journey Filmed Across 45 Countries, Six Continents and Outer Space

Elite Group of Astronauts Recruited to Tell the Extraordinary Story of Earth Through the Unique Perspective of Experiencing the Planet from Outer Space: Chris Hadfield, Jeff Hoffman, Mae Jemison, Jerry Linenger, Mike Massimino, Leland Melvin, Nicole Stott and Peggy Whitson

National Geographic announces Academy Award®-nominated actor Will Smith (“Ali,” “Pursuit of Happyness,” “Men in Black I, II, III”) as host of its new 10-episode global event series ONE STRANGE ROCK (#OSR), from Academy Award®-nominated filmmaker Darren Aronofsky (“mother!,” “Black Swan,” “Requiem for a Dream”) and award-winning producer Jane Root (“America The Story of Us,” “The 80s: The Decade That Made Us”). Smith made the official announcement on his Facebook page with a short teaser video. With Smith guiding viewers on an epic journey across the globe and into outer space, ONE STRANGE ROCK promises to be a thrilling, mind-bending trip within and beyond planet Earth, affirming that there really is no place like home. The Nutopia and Protozoa Pictures series is slated to premiere globally on National Geographic in March 2018 in 172 countries and 43 languages.

See YouTube teaser trailer.

ONE STRANGE ROCK is the extraordinary story of Earth — our curiously calibrated, interconnected planet — and why it is special and uniquely brimming with life among a largely unknown but harsh cosmic arena. Anchoring the series is an elite group of astronauts who see Earth’s bigger picture; they provide unique perspectives and relate personal memoirs of our planet seen from space.

With ONE STRANGE ROCK, Aronofsky is excited to collaborate with one of his favorite talents. “I am thrilled to have Will Smith on board to guide our series. His charisma, intelligence and humanity will add greatly to the project, helping welcome viewers into this unique narrative about the mind-blowing wonders that make life on Earth possible,” he said.

“By pairing the incomparable, out-of-this-world, global appeal of Will Smith with our rock-star astronauts, who literally went out of this world, we tell the incredible story of the complexities of our planet,” says Tim Pastore, president, original programming and production, National Geographic. “With the distinctive storytelling from Aronofsky and Root, ONE STRANGE ROCK will be an incredible visual treat, taking audiences from the microscopic to the cosmic, leaving viewers to see and appreciate our planet as never before.”

“Our goal here is to reimagine factual programming and give viewers a cinematic spectacle like they have never seen before,” says Jane Root. “We’ll unpack the science behind our marvelous planet, and provide stories that are entertaining and provocative; and who better to do that with than the visionary Darren Aronofsky and his partners at Protozoa Pictures, the incomparable Will Smith and our team of legendary astronauts?”

Adding to Smith’s appeal, ONE STRANGE ROCK’s astronauts bring singular insight and emotion to the narrative, weaving dramatic, inspiring sequences and science to reveal the magical twists of fate that allowed life on Earth to emerge, thrive and survive. Their personal experiences are portals to vital themes explored throughout the series, including the genesis of life, death, breath, cosmic violence, human intelligence, sacrifice, terraforming and more.

•     Chris Hadfield – The first Canadian astronaut to command the International Space Station and the only Canadian to have ever boarded the Russian Space Station Mir while in orbit, Hadfield has left Earth three times and spent a total of 166 days in space.
•     Jeff Hoffman – Logging 21.5 million miles in space, Brooklyn-born astronomer and former astronaut Hoffman has flown to space five times, one of which was the first mission to reach the Hubble Space Telescope.
•     Mae Jemison – Former astronaut Jemison just celebrated the 25th anniversary of her mission to space aboard the Endeavour, making history as the first African-American woman to go to space.
•     Jerry Linenger – Former astronaut Linenger, who survived the most severe fire ever aboard an orbiting spacecraft, spent nearly five months on the Russian space station Mir and logged 50 million miles on that mission alone.
•     Mike Massimino – The first person to send a tweet from space, former astronaut Massimino flew on two space shuttle missions to repair the Hubble Space Telescope.
•     Leland Melvin – The only person drafted into the NFL to have flown to space, former astronaut Melvin blasted off to space twice and logged more than 565 hours there.
•     Nicole Stott – Known as the “Artistic Astronaut,” former astronaut and aquanaut Stott, who became the first astronaut to paint in space, logged 104 days in space and nearly three weeks on Aquarius undersea habitat.
•     Peggy Whitson – Astronaut Whitson just completed her third journey to space, setting a NASA record for the most days in space — 665.

About Will Smith
As an actor, producer and musician, two-time Academy Award® nominee and Grammy Award winner Will Smith has enjoyed a diverse career encompassing films, television and multiplatinum records.

Smith’s vast filmography includes transformative portrayals of true-life icons in “Ali,” “The Pursuit of Happyness” and “Concussion.” He has headlined an extraordinary list of films, including “Hitch,” “I am Legend,” “I, Robot,” “Independence Day,” “Men in Black I, II, and III” and “Suicide Squad” and most recently appeared in “Collateral Beauty.” His next project is the upcoming fantasy cop drama film “Bright,” which is scheduled for release on Dec. 22 exclusively for Netflix. Smith is currently in production on Disney’s “Aladdin,” in the role of the Genie, to be released May 24, 2019, and will also star in Ang Lee’s “Gemini Man.”

He began his career as a musician selling millions of records worldwide before crossing over into television with the beloved “Fresh Prince of Bel Air.” In 1998 he and partner James Lassiter founded production and management company Overbrook Entertainment, which has produced numerous top film and television projects.

In addition to his artistic achievements, he founded the Will & Jada Smith Family Foundation with his wife, Jada. WJSFF is a nonprofit, philanthropic organization committed to improving lives and investing in organizations and initiatives that empower traditionally overlooked communities.

Rounding out the ONE STRANGE ROCK production team, Arif Nummohamed (Earth’s Natural Wonders,” “How to Build a Planet”) is co-executive producer and showrunner.

National Geographic Presents:
A Nutopia and Protozoa Pictures and Overbrook Entertainment Production
“ONE STRANGE ROCK”
Hosted by Will Smith
Music by Daniel Pemberton
Co-Executive Producer Arif Nurmohamed, Executive Producers Darren Aronofsky, Jane Root, Ari Handel, Peter Lovering, Scott Franklin, Tim Pastore, and Matt Renner

About National Geographic Partners LLC
National Geographic Partners LLC (NGP), a joint venture between National Geographic and 21st Century Fox, is committed to bringing the world premium science, adventure and exploration content across an unrivaled portfolio of media assets. NGP combines the global National Geographic television channels (National Geographic Channel, Nat Geo WILD, Nat Geo MUNDO, Nat Geo PEOPLE) with National Geographic’s media and consumer-oriented assets, including National Geographic magazines; National Geographic studios; related digital and social media platforms; books; maps; children’s media; and ancillary activities that include travel, global experiences and events, archival sales, licensing and e-commerce businesses. Furthering knowledge and understanding of our world has been the core purpose of National Geographic for 129 years, and now we are committed to going deeper, pushing boundaries, going further for our consumers … and reaching millions of people around the world in 172 countries and 43 languages every month as we do it. NGP returns 27 percent of our proceeds to the nonprofit National Geographic Society to fund work in the areas of science, exploration, conservation and education. For more information visit natgeotv.com or nationalgeographic.com, or find us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Google+, YouTube, LinkedIn and Pinterest.

About Protozoa Pictures
Protozoa Pictures is Academy Award®-nominated director Darren Aronofsky's production company. Founded in 1996, based in Brooklyn and headed by Aronofsky, partners are Ari Handel, and Scott Franklin. The company has first look deals with Paramount Pictures to develop films and Fox Networks Group to develop television. Credits include the critically-acclaimed films: mother!, Jackie, Noah, Black Swan, The Wrestler, The Fountain, Requiem for a Dream, and π. One Strange Rock is Protozoa’s first television project to be aired. The next feature film to be released is White Boy Rick, directed by Yann Demange, starring Matthew McConaughey, Jennifer Jason Leigh, Eddie Marsan, Bruce Dern, Brian Tyree Henry and Jonathan Majors. It will be released by Sony Pictures.

About Nutopia
Nutopia is a leading television production company creating innovative, award-winning, premium content on a global scale. Founded in 2008 by Jane Root, former President of Discovery Channel US, Controller of BBC2 and co-founder of Wall to Wall TV, Nutopia created the ‘mega doc’ model, blending huge scale history series and high-profile talent from the worlds of documentary and drama. In 2017, the company entered into a creative partnership with Academy Award®-nominated feature film producers Roast Beef. Nutopia has become synonymous with creating high quality content that stands out from the crowd, working with some of the most prominent global broadcasters including Netflix, CNN, National Geographic, the BBC, PBS and A+E Networks. Critical successes include the Emmy Award-winning series HOW WE GOT TO NOW; two seasons of ratings smash FINDING JESUS. FAITH. FACT. FORGERY; Emmy Award-winning series AMERICA THE STORY OF US and MANKIND THE STORY OF ALL OF US. Upcoming projects include CIVILISATIONS for the BBC and PBS, and BABIES for Netflix.

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Paramont Reveals "mother" Poster with New James Jean Art

"mother"

They came to see him.

Official trailer coming August 8, 2017. mother! is in theaters September 15, 2017.

Directed by: Darren Aronofsky
Starring: Jennifer Lawrence, Javier Bardem, Ed Harris and Michelle Pfeiffer

A couple's relationship is tested when uninvited guests arrive at their home, disrupting their tranquil existence. From filmmaker Darren Aronofsky (Black Swan, Requiem for a Dream), mother! stars Jennifer Lawrence, Javier Bardem, Ed Harris and Michelle Pfeiffer in this riveting psychological thriller about love, devotion and sacrifice.

mother! Official Channels
Hashtag: #mothermovie
Facebook: /OfficialMotherMovie
Twitter: @MotherMovie
Instagram: @MotherMovie
Website: MotherMovie.com

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Negromancer News Bits and Bites from July 16th to 22th, 2017 - Update #35

Support Leroy on Patreon.

SAN DIEGO COMIC-CON INTERNATIONAL 2017:

From YahooMovies:  "Wonder Woman 2" is official.  Patty Jenkins returning as director is not official.

From CBR:  The 2017 Eisner Awards (for excellence in comics) were announced Friday night, July 21st.

From YahooMovies:  Channing Taturm says his long planned X-Men movie, "Gambit," is getting a bit of a rethink.

From THR:  Dwayne Johnson will play Shazam villain, "Black Adam," but not in the "Shazam" movie, according to DC Entertainment CCO, Geoff Johns.

From IMDb:  Todd McFarlane announces that he is working on a new movie version of his comic book, "Spawn," which was previously adapted as a 1998 film and as an animated TV series which aired on HBO.

From YahooMovies:  Halle Berry declares that she is Wonder Woman star Gal Gadot's biggest fan right now.

From Deadline:  Syfy teases its upcoming Superman prequel TV series, "Krypton," with a teaser trailer.

From TVGuide:  The title of "American Horror Story" Season 7 is "Cult."

From Variety:  During a Comic-Con panel, Noah Hawley, the creator of FX's "Fargo" and "Legion" (based on the X-Men franchise), announced that he is developing a film based on "Doctor Doom," the lead villain in Marvel Comics' "Fantastic Four" franchise.


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MOVIES - From WeGotThisCovered:  Joss Whedon reportedly doing extensive reshoots on "Justice League" after taking over for Zack Snyder.

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MOVIES - From Variety:  New films by George Clooney, Stephen Frears, and Guillermo del Toro, among others, will be screened at the 74th (2017) Venice Film Festival.

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CELEBRITY - From YahooSports:  The "Juice" will be loose.  O.J. Simpson has been granted parole after spending 9 years in a Nevada prison, and he will be released in October of this year.

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TELEVISION - From Variety:  Lena Dunham, creator of HBO's "Girls," is joining the cast of the seventh season of "American Horror Story."

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CELEBRITY - YahooNews:  Actress Jada Pinkett Smith says that she was a drug deal when she met the late rapper/actor, Tupac Shukar.

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TELEVISION - From ShadowandAct:  "Game of Thones" creators David Benioff and D.B. Weiss announce "Confederate."

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BLM - From NYDailyNews:   Is the killing a blonde, white woman (Justine Diamond) by police the point where police brutality jumps the shark?

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COMICS-FILM - From Variety:  Jon Watts is in talks to direct the sequel to his hit film, "Spider-Man: Homecoming."

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MOVIES - From IndieWire:  Darren Aronofsky ("Requiem for a Dream," "Black Swan") has film due in a few months, "mother!"  He is already working on the film after that - an artificial intelligence courtroom drama...

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MOVIES - From YahooMovies:  Stanley Kubrick's "Full Metal Jacket" turns 30, and Matthew Modine wishes his character's ("Joker") deleted sex scene was still in the movie.

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MOVIES - From Variety:  Andy Muschietti, who has directed the highly anticipated film version of Stephen King's "It," is attached to Sony's film version of the 1980s animated series, "Robotech."

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TELEVISION - From Variety:  Alec Baldwin play Col. Nathan Jessup in NBC's live production of "A Few Good Men."

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DISNEY:  From ShadowandAct:  Will Smith will play the genie in Disney's live-action version of its animated classic, Aladdin, in which Robin Williams gave voice to the genie.

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BOX OFFICE - From BoxOfficeMojo:  The winner of the 7/14 to 7/16/2017 weekend box office is "War for the Planet of the Apes" with an estimated take of $56.5 million.

From Variety:  "War for the Planet of the Apes" has a $102.5 million global box office opening.

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From THR:  Why is Hollywood glamorizing binge-drinking for women asks Kareem Abdul-Jabbar?

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ECO - NewYorkDailyNews:  Mark Ruffalo and Fisher Stevens implore Sen. Chuck Schumer and Senate Democrats to fight "dirty energy bill."

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TELEVISION - From YahooTV:  First look at Al Pacino as legendary college football coach, Joe Paterno, in director's Barry Levinson's still-untitled film for HBO.

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DISNEY - From YahooMovies:  Newly minted "Disney Legend" Whoopi Goldberg says bring back "Song of the South," Disney's controversial 1946 live-action/animated film, which has often been called "racially insensitive."  Disney has not released the film on Blu-ray or DVD or the old laser disc.

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TELEVISION - From ScreenDaily:  Actress Jodie Whittaker is the first female to play the lead on the British television series, "Doctor Who."  She is the 13th actor to play "The Doctor" on the iconic BBC series.

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MOVIES - From YahooMusic: The biopic of the iconic rock music group, Queen, is apparently finally happening.  It is currently called "Bohemian Rhapsody" (after an iconic Queen song) and will star Emmy-winner Remi Malek ("Mr. Robot") as the lead singer of Queen, the late Freddie Mercury.

OBITS:

From YahooTV:  The actor John Heard died at the age of 72, Friday, July 21, 2017.  Heard was best known for playing the father of Macauley Culkin's character in "Home Alone" (1990) and "Home Alone 2: Lost in New York" (1992).  He also received a 1999 Emmy nomination for a guest role in "The Sopranos."

From YahooMusic:  Chester Bennington, the front man of the band, Linkin Park, has apparently died by suicide at the age of 41.

From the LATimes:  Legendary horror movie director, George A. Romero, has died at the age of 77, Sunday, July 16, 2017.  He was best known for his film Night of the Living Dead (1968) and its sequels, Dawn of the Dead (1978) and Day of the Dead 1985).

From Variety:  The actor Martin Landau died at the age of 89, Saturday, July 15, 2017.   He won an best supporting actor Oscar for his performance in Tim Burton's "Ed Wood."  Many will remember Landau for his role in the original "Mission: Impossible" TV series.

TRAILERS:

From EW:  A first teaser for "Pacific Rim: Uprising," the sequel to "Pacific Rim."

From ShadowandAct:  First trailer for Guillermo del Toro's Cold War-era "fairy tale," "The Shape of Water."

From YahooMovies:  The "Star Wars: The Last Jedi" behind-the-scenes reel presented at D23 2017.

From EW:  The first teaser for Disney and Ava DuVernay's "A Wrinkle in Time."

Negromancer News Bits and Bites from January 10th to 16th, 2016 - Update #64

Support Leroy on Patreon.

SPORTS - From YahooSports:  Disney is interested in the story of TCU quarterback, Bram Kohlhausen, and his heroics at the recent Alamo Bowl.

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TV - From RollingStone:  Tracy Morgan will return to television in a series written by Jordan Peele of "Key & Peele."

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OSCARS:  From EW:  Will Packer, one of the producers of "Straight Outta Compton," calls this year's Oscar nominations embarrassing.

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OBIT - From YahooTV:  The actor, Dan Haggerty, has died (Friday, January 15, 2016).  Haggerty was best known for his starring role on the television series, "The Life and Times of Grizzly Adams."

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CULTURE - From BET:  Kendrick Lamar met President Barack Obama.

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TRAILER - From YouTube:  Debut trailer of "10 Cloverfield Lane."

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TV - From  MyPinkFriday:  James Corden and Adele in car - rapping Nicki Minaj.

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TV - From TheWrap:  USA picks up Gale Anne Hurd's "Falling Waters."

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TV - From YahooTV:   Adam Lambert added to FOX's "Rocky Horror Picture Show" remake, set to debut Fall 2016.

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POLITICS - From RSN:  Bitter, losing judge strikes back at winning attorney via payment.

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OBIT:  From TheGuardian:  The actor, Alan Rickman, died Thursday, January 14, 2016, at the age of 69.  He was a giant of the British stage and screen.  He was best known for his roles in Die Hard (1988), Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves (1991), and in the Harry Potter films ("Professor Snape").  I offer my condolences to his family.  R.I.P. Alan.  I love you, man.

From IMDb:  An Alan Rickman photo gallery.

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OSCARS - From YahooTV:  2016 Oscar nominations - full list

From Deadline:  Nominees respond to receiving 2016 Oscar nods; my favorite is Ennio Morricone who received a nomination for score for "The Hateful Eight."

From YahooMovies:  Academy President Cheryl Boone Isaacs is frustrated.

From WaPo:  8 great choices... if Oscars-were-so-white.

From YahooMovies:  Ice Cube says he is OK with it (lack of noms for "Straight Outta Compton").

From YahooMovies:  2016 Oscar snubs and surprises.

From EW:  Jennifer Jason Leigh reflects on first Oscar nominations.

From YahooMovies:  Another Oscar record for Jennifer Lawrence.

From Deadline:  More on 2016 Oscar snubs.

From InContention:  Variety's "In Contention" announces its final Oscar nomination predictions.  The nominations will be announced tomorrow morning, Thursday, Jan. 14th.

From GoldDerby:  Their Oscar predictions, both nominations AND wins.

From ThePlaylist:  They offer their Oscar nominations predictions.

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MOVIES:  From ThePlaylist:  "The Chronicles of Narnia" film franchise will be restarted or rebooted.  I look forward to it.  I really like "Prince Caspian" and "Voyage of the Dawn Treader."

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CULTURE - From Deadspin:  Behind the photo that changed the Boston Marathon forever.

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FILMS - From DGA:  2016 Directors Guild Award nominations have been announced.

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COMICS -  From DenofGeek:  Ryan Coogler confirmed by Marvel as helmsman of their "Black Panther" film, scheduled for 2018.

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COMICS -  From ThePlaylist:  67 characters confirmed to appear in the "Avengers: Infinity War" films.

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POLITICS -  From NYT:  Barack Obama: "Guns are our shared responsibility."

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CULTURE - From NYDailyNews:  Teacher fired over her "Central Park Five" lesson plan.

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POLITICS - From EcoWatch:  Ever heard of "welfare ranching?" Seems it is related to the armed occupation at Malheur federal wildlife preserve in Oregon.

From RollingStone:  Matt Taibbi on the Malheur stand-off.

From Gizmodo:  Did you know that Oregon was founded as a white racist utopia?

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TRAILERS - From YouTube:  International trailer for "13 Hours: The Secret Soldiers of Benghazi."

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MOVIES - From Variety:  "Creed" sequel due November 2017.

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CULTURE - From RollingStone:  El Chapo Speaks by Sean Penn.

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MOVIES -  From Variety:  Darren Aronofsky - Jennifer Lawrence film lands at Paramount.

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MOVIES -  From Variety:  There is a shit list... I mean short list for the role of Han Solo in spin-off movie.

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MOVIES - From RSN:  A very bad idea in Oregon.

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POLITICS - From RSN:  Now, there is sympathy from Republicans for drug addicts.

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SPORTS - TheWashPost:   NCAA exploits unpaid labor of Black athletes.

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COMICS -  From CinemaBlend:  New "Batman vs. Superman" TV clip.

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SPORTS -  From NFL:  Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback, Ben Roethlisberger, believed to have a strained AC joint.

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OBIT - From TheWrap: Singer, songwriter, recording artist, actor, artist, and more - David Bowie died on Sunday, January 10, 2016.  He had apparently been battling cancer for 18 months.  I woke up this morning wondering why the network news readers were talking about his new album...  I send condolences to Bowie's family.  R.I.P. Thin White Duke

OBIT - From IMDb:  A David Bowie photo gallery.

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MOVIES -  From BET:  Black stars at the Golden Globes.

MOVIES - From Deadline:  Denzel Washington speechless at receiving the Cecil B. DeMille Award.

MOVIES: From YahooNews:  See Leo's reaction to his "brush" with Lady Gaga.

Golden Globe winners in select categories:

• Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role in a Motion Picture: Kate Winslet for "Steve Jobs"
• Best Original Score - Motion Picture: "The Hateful Eight" - Ennio Morricone
• Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture - Musical or Comedy: Matt Damon for "The Martian"
• Best Animated Film: "Inside Out"
• Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role in a Motion Picture: Sylvester Stallone for "Creed"
• Best Screenplay - Motion Picture: "Steve Jobs" - Aaron Sorkin
• Best Foreign Language Film: Saul fia ("Son of Saul") from Hungary
• Best Original Song - Motion Picture: "Writing's On The Wall" written by Sam Smith and James Napier from the movie "Spectre"
• Best Director - Motion Picture: Alejandro González Iñárritu for "The Revenant"
• Best Performance by an Actress in a Television Series - Drama: Taraji P. Henson for "Empire"
• Best Performance by an Actress in a Motion Picture - Musical or Comedy: Jennifer Lawrence for "Joy"
• Best Motion Picture - Musical or Comedy: "The Martian"
• Best Performance by an Actress in a Motion Picture - Drama: Brie Larson for "Room"
• Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture - Drama: Leonardo DiCaprio for "The Revenant"
• Best Motion Picture - Drama: "The Revenant"

MOVIES - From BoxOfficeMojo:  The winner of the 1/8 to 1/10/2016 weekend box office is "Star Wars: The Force Awakens" with an estimated take of $41.6 million.  "The Revenant" with Leonardo DiCaprio finished second with $38 million.

---------------
From GoldDerby:  A Golden Globe categories and the presenters for each category.

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MOVIES - YahooTV:  Although he is nominated in two categories, Idris Elba has been ordered by his doctor not to attend tonight's Golden Globes.

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COMICS:  From Diamond:  Here are the books and merchandise scheduled to be in comic book shops on Wednesday, Jan. 13th, 2016.

---------------
MOVIES: From Negromancer:  2016 Golden Globe nominations.

---------------
MOVIES: From Variety:  The Revenant and "The Force Awakens" are locked in a battle to be the weekend's #1 film.

---------------
POLITICS - From ThinkProgress:  Poor residents had to have sex with Baltimore public housing officials in order to get basic repairs.

---------------
MOVIES - TheVillageVoice:  An article about IFC's retrospective on the films of Charlotte Rampling.

----------------
POLITICS - TheVillageVoice:  Donald Trump's toy facism.

---------------
BLM - From TheWashPost:  The police officer who arrested Sandra Bland has been indicted on a perjury charge and will be fire.

---------------
POLITICS - From MichaelMoore:  Gov. Rick Snyder should be impeached at the very least.

---------------
BLM:  From TheWashPost:  Cleveland school police officer or resource officer attack Tamir Rice's mother via his Facebook posts and is now the subject of an investigation.

-------------
From TheVillageVoice:  Former Ohio prosecutor talks about her Tamir Rice rant.

---------------
CULTURE - From YahooMusic:  More on the saga of Marie Holmes, the Powerball winner, who has spent millions to keep her drug-dealing baby daddy, Lamar "Hot Sauce" McDow, out of jail.

---------------
TRAILER - From YouTube:  First trailer for new film starring Matthew McConaughey, "Free State of Jones."

Darren Aronofsky Tweets from the Set of "Noah"

Academy Award-nominated director Darren Aronofsky (Black Swan) is working on his next feature film.  Entitled, "Noah," it is set to be released in 2014.  The film is a relling of the Biblical story of "Noah's Ark."  Aronofsky tweeted a photo from the set with the following text, "I dreamt about this since I was 13. And now it's a reality. Genesis 6:14."

Review: Portman and Aronofsky Give "Black Swan" Its Wings

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 42 (of 2011) by Leroy Douresseaux

Black Swan (2010)
Running time: 108 minutes (1 hour, 48 minutes)
MPAA – R for strong sexual content, disturbing violent images, language and some drug use
DIRECTOR: Darren Aronofsky
WRITERS: Mark Heyman, Andrés Heinz, and John McLaughlin; from a story by Andrés Heinz
PRODUCERS: Scott Franklin, Mike Medavoy, Arnold Messer, and Brian Oliver
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Matthew Libatique (D.o.P.)
EDITOR: Andrew Weisblum
COMPOSER: Clint Mansell
Academy Award winner

DRAMA/THRILLER

Starring: Natalie Portman, Mila Kunis, Vincent Cassel, Barbara Hershey, Winona Ryder, and Benjamin Millepied

Black Swan in an Oscar-winning psychological thriller directed by Darren Aronofsky. It is the story of a ballerina descending into delusion and paranoia as opening night nears and the pressure to be perfect builds. Black Swan isn’t entirely satisfying, except for the dark and gleaming magic director Darren Aronofsky and star Natalie Portman make.

Nina Sayers (Natalie Portman) is a ballerina in a prestigious New York City ballet company. Her life is completely consumed with dance, and she lives with her obsessive mother, the former ballerina Erica Sayers (Barbara Hershey), who exerts a suffocating control over her daughter. Thomas Leroy (Vincent Cassel), the artistic director of her ballet company, decides to make Swan Lake the opening production of their new ballet season. Thomas wants to replace prima ballerina, Beth MacIntyre (Winona Ryder), and needs to cast a new principal dancer. But this new lead must be able to portray both the innocent and fragile White Swan and her sensual evil twin, the Black Swan.

Nina is Thomas’ first choice to play the coveted role of the Swan Queen, but Nina has competition. A new dancer named Lily (Mila Kunis) impresses Thomas as well. Swan Lake requires a dancer who can play the White Swan with innocence and grace and also capture the guile and sensuality of the Black Swan. Nina is a perfect fit for the White Swan, but bad girl Lily is the personification of the Black Swan. The two young dancers become friends, but as opening night approaches, that friendship twists into a treacherous rivalry. Nina struggles to access the dark side within her that will allow her to depict the Black Swan with perfection, but her new reckless behavior threatens to destroy her.

Black Swan is indeed a good movie; in fact, it is sometimes riveting, but not because of the writing. The script is shallow, and the screenwriters put the onus on the viewers to accept the great leaps of faith the writers make with the development of Nina Sayers. The depictions of her delusions and paranoia often seem contrived, but the writers handle Nina better than they do the other characters.

Vincent Cassel’s Thomas Leroy is such a stereotype that you can see Cassel fighting onscreen to make his character real or tangible rather than just be a type. Barbara Hershey is more successful in making Erica Sayers a character that electrifies the story every time she appears, but Erica is really a tired stage mother type. Mila Kunis is blood sugar sex magic as Lily, but I get the feeling that the screenwriters were afraid of where this character could take the story. Lily often seems like spicy seasoning overused in some places and woefully underutilized in others.

Black Swan’s success is in Natalie Portman and in the way Darren Aronofsky uses the camera to drink in every bit of Portman’s virtuoso performance. This duo makes Black Swan wonderfully creepy, almost always managing to stop whenever the entire thing seems on the verge of turning campy. Portman is passionate when being passionate is better than being intense. Black Swan looks good under Aronofsky’s bold direction. Watching this film, I believed that I could see him with a handheld camera just outside the picture frame gliding behind Portman.

Perhaps it is Aronofsky chasing Portman that makes this movie feel so wildly melodramatic. Everything that is so attractively lurid, sensational, and bracing about Black Swan is because of this director-star pairing made in heaven.

8 of 10
A

NOTES:
2011 Academy Awards: 1 win: “Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role” (Natalie Portman); 1 nominations: “Best Motion Picture of the Year” (Mike Medavoy, Brian Oliver, and Scott Franklin), “Best Achievement in Cinematography” (Matthew Libatique), “Best Achievement in Directing” (Darren Aronofsky), and “Best Achievement in Editing” (Andrew Weisblum)

2011 BAFTA Awards: 1 win: “Best Actress” (Natalie Portman); 11 nominations: “Best Achievement in Special Visual Effects,” “Best Cinematography” (Matthew Libatique), “Best Costume Design” (Amy Westcott), “Best Editing” (Andrew Weisblum), “Best Film,” “Best Make Up/Hair,” “Best Production Design” (Thérèse DePrez and Tora Peterson), “Best Screenplay-Original” (Mark Heyman, Andres Heinz, and John J. McLaughlin), “Best Sound,” “Best Supporting Actress” (Barbara Hershey), and “David Lean Award for Achievement in Direction” (Darren Aronofsky)

2011 Golden Globes: 1 win “Best Performance by an Actress in a Motion Picture – Drama” (Natalie Portman); 3 nominations: “Best Director - Motion Picture” (Darren Aronofsky), “Best Motion Picture – Drama,” and “Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role in a Motion Picture” (Mila Kunis)

Sunday, May 22, 2011

----------------------

Tom Hooper Wins Best Director Oscar for "The King's Speech"

Directing

“The King's Speech” Tom Hooper WINNER


“Black Swan” Darren Aronofsky

“The Fighter” David O. Russell

“The King's Speech” Tom Hooper

“True Grit” Joel Coen and Ethan Coen
 

Complete List of Independent Spirit Award Winners; "Black Swan" Soars

The Independent Spirit Awards or Film Independent’s Spirit Awards were founded in 1984 and are awards dedicated to independent filmmakers. Film Independent is the non-profit arts organization that produces the Spirit Awards and also the Los Angeles Film Festival.
 
The 2011 winners were announced Sat., Feb. 26, 2011.
 
2011 Film Independent Spirit Award winners:
 
Best Feature
Black Swan; Producers: Scott Franklin, Mike Medavoy, Arnold W. Messer, Brian Oliver;

Best Director
Darren Aronofsky, Black Swan

Best Screenplay
The Kids Are All Right Writers: Stuart Blumberg & Lisa Cholodenko

Best Female
Natalie Portman, Black Swan

Best Male
James Franco, 127 Hours

Best First Feature
Get Low Director: Aaron Schneider
Producers: David Gundlach, Dean Zanuck

Best First Screenplay
Lena Dunham, Tiny Furniture

John Cassavetes Award (For the best feature made under $500,000)
Writers/Directors: Benny Safdie, Josh Safdie
Daddy Longlegs Producers: Casey Neistat, Tom Scott

Best Supporting Female
Dale Dickey, Winter's Bone

Best Supporting Male
John Hawkes, Winter's Bone

Best Cinematography
Matthew Libatique, Black Swan

Best Foreign Film
The King's Speech Director: Tom Hooper

Best Documentary
Exit Through The Gift Shop, Banksy

http://www.filmindependent.org/

David Fincher Wins Best Director BAFTA for "The Social Network"

DIRECTOR

THE SOCIAL NETWORK David Fincher

127 HOURS Danny Boyle

BLACK SWAN Darren Aronofsky

INCEPTION Christopher Nolan

THE KING’S SPEECH Tom Hooper

2011 Oscar Nominations: Best Director

Directing

“Black Swan” Darren Aronofsky

“The Fighter” David O. Russell

“The King's Speech” Tom Hooper

“The Social Network” David Fincher

“True Grit” Joel Coen and Ethan Coen

David Fincher Wins Best Director Golden Globe for "The Social Network"

Best Director - Motion Picture:

David Fincher for The Social Network WINNER

Darren Aronofsky for Black Swan

Tom Hooper for The King's Speech

Christopher Nolan for Inception

David O. Russell for The Fighter

Chris Nolan, David Fincher Among DGA Nominees

A few days ago, the Directors Guild of America announced the five nominees for the organization's best director award:  Darren Aronofsky, David Fincher, Christopher Nolan, Tom Hooper, and and David O. Russell.  The nominee list for the best director Oscar usually sticks pretty close to the DGA selections.  The most obvious names missing from this list are the brothers Joel and Ethan Coen (for True Grit).

I think many movie award watchers believe David O. Russell (The Fighter) may be the odd man out in favor of the Coens when the Oscar nominations are announced later this month.  However, I wouldn't be surprised if Chris Nolan (for Inception) didn't get a best director Oscar nomination, as happened when he got a DGA nomination but not an Oscar nod for The Dark Knight in 2008, and also for Memento in 2001.  Lord knows that Nolan fans want Oscar validation for him, and the Lord also knows that he should have received that validation already (although he did receive a screenplay Oscar nomination for Memento).  Here, is the press release from the DGA:

LOS ANGELES, CA: Directors Guild of America President Taylor Hackford today announced the five nominees for the DGA Award for Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Feature Film for 2010.

"2011 marks the 75th anniversary of the DGA, making the celebration of this year's five nominees especially meaningful," said Hackford. "Their inspired films radiate the passion and unique vision of each of these filmmakers, who are about to become part of our Guild's rich history. My sincerest congratulations to all five nominees."

The winner will be named at the 63rd Annual DGA Awards Dinner on Saturday, January 29, 2011, at the Grand Ballroom of Hollywood and Highland.

DARREN ARONOFSKY
Black Swan
(Fox Searchlight Pictures)

Mr. Aronofsky’s Directorial Team:
Unit Production Manager: Jennifer Roth
First Assistant Director: Joseph Reidy
Second Assistant Director: Amy Lauritsen
Second Second Assistant Director: Travis Rehwaldt
Location Manager: Ronnie Kupferwasser

This is Mr. Aronofsky’s first DGA Feature Film Award Nomination.

DAVID FINCHER
The Social Network
(Columbia Pictures)

Mr. Fincher’s Directorial Team:
Unit Production Manager: JoAnn Perritano
First Assistant Director: Bob Wagner
Second Assistant Director: Allen Kupetsky
Second Second Assistant Director: Maileen Williams

This is Mr. Fincher’s second DGA Feature Film Award nomination. He was previously nominated for The Curious Case of Benjamin Button in 2008. He previously won the DGA Commercial Award for Speed Chain (Nike), Gamebreakers (Nikegridiron.com), and Beauty for Sale (Xelibri Phones) in 2003 and was nominated in that category again in 2008.

TOM HOOPER
The King’s Speech
(The Weinstein Co.)

Mr. Hooper’s Directorial Team:
Production Manager: Erica Bensly
First Assistant Director: Martin Harrison
Second Assistant Director: Chris Stoaling

This is Mr. Hooper’s first DGA Feature Film Award Nomination. He was previously nominated for the DGA Award for Movies for Television/Miniseries for John Adams in 2008.

CHRISTOPHER NOLAN
Inception
(Warner Bros. Pictures)

Mr. Nolan’s Directorial Team:
Unit Production Manager: Jan Foster
First Assistant Director: Nilo Otero
Second Assistant Director: Brandon Lambdin
Second Second Assistant Director: Greg Pawlik
Additional Second Assistant Director: Lauren Pasternack

This is Mr. Nolan’s third DGA Feature Film Award nomination. He was previously nominated for The Dark Knight in 2008 and for Memento in 2001.

DAVID O. RUSSELL
The Fighter
(Paramount Pictures and The Weinstein Co.)

Mr. Russell’s Directorial Team:
Unit Production Manager: Mark Kamine
First Assistant Director: Michele Ziegler
Second Assistant Director: Xanthus Valan
Second Second Assistant Director: Timothy Blockburger

This is Mr. Russell’s first DGA Feature Film Award nomination.

www.dga.org/

"Black Swan," "The Social Network" Lead Online Film Critics Nominations

The Online Film Critics Society describes itself as "the largest, most respected organization for critics whose work appears primarily on the Internet."  The group recently announced its nominations for the best films of 2010.  OFCS members will submit their final votes and winners will be announced Monday, January 3, 2010.

Nominees for the 2010 OFCS Awards:

Best Picture
Black Swan
Inception
The Social Network
Toy Story 3
True Grit
Winter's Bone

Best Director
Darren Aronofsky, Black Swan
Danny Boyle, 127 Hours
Joel Coen and Ethan Coen, True Grit
David Fincher, The Social Network
Christopher Nolan, Inception

Best Lead Actor
Jeff Bridges, True Grit
Jesse Eisenberg, The Social Network
Colin Firth, The King's Speech
James Franco, 127 Hours
Ryan Gosling, Blue Valentine
Edgar Ramírez, Carlos

Best Lead Actress
Annette Bening, The Kids Are All Right
Kim Hye-ja, Mother
Nicole Kidman, Rabbit Hole
Jennifer Lawrence, Winter's Bone
Natalie Portman, Black Swan

Best Supporting Actor
Christian Bale, The Fighter
Andrew Garfield, The Social Network
John Hawkes, Winter's Bone
Mark Ruffalo, The Kids are All Right
Geoffrey Rush, The King's Speech

Best Supporting Actress
Amy Adams, The Fighter
Mila Kunis, Black Swan
Melissa Leo, The Fighter
Hailee Steinfeld, True Grit
Jacki Weaver, Animal Kingdom

Best Original Screenplay
Mark Heyman, Andres Heinz & John McLaughlin, Black Swan
Noah Baumbach, Greenberg
Christopher Nolan, Inception
Lisa Cholodenko & Stuart Blumberg, The Kids Are All Right
David Seidler, The King's Speech

Best Adapted Screenplay
Danny Boyle & Simon Beaufoy, 127 Hours
Michael Bacall & Edgar Wright, Scott Pilgrim vs. the World
Aaron Sorkin, The Social Network
Joel Coen & Ethan Coen, True Grit
Debra Granik & Anne Rosellini, Winter's Bone

Best Cinematography
Anthony Dod Mantle & Enrique Chediak, 127 Hours
Matthew Libatique, Black Swan
Wally Pfister, Inception
Robert Richardson, Shutter Island
Roger Deakins, True Grit

Best Editing
Jon Harris, 127 Hours
Andrew Weisblum, Black Swan
Lee Smith, Inception
Jonathan Amos & Paul Machliss, Scott Pilgrim vs. the World
Kirk Baxter & Angus Wall, The Social Network

Best Animated Feature
Despicable Me
How to Train Your Dragon
The Illusionist
Tangled
Toy Story 3

Best Film Not in the English Language
Carlos
Dogtooth
The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo
Mother
A Prophet

Best Documentary
Catfish
Exit Through the Gift Shop
Inside Job
Joan Rivers: A Piece of Work
Restrepo
Waiting for "Superman"

http://www.ofcs.org/

Black Film Critics Circle "The Social Network," But Spread the Love

There is a new film critics organization, the Black Film Critics Circle.  This is how they describe themselves on their website:

Welcome to the Black Film Critics Circle (BFCC), a new film critic’s organization dedicated to honoring excellence of professionals in the film industry in U.S. and World Cinema.

BFCC is a professional organization of film critics working in all areas of the media to include print publications,broadcast television, radio and on-line outlets.

I'm curious to see how long they last.  Like just about every critics organization, they chose The Social Network as their best picture,while also awarding it "Best Ensemble" and "Best Adapted Screenplay."  They also liked Black Swan with two wins, director and actress (Natalie Portman) and The Fighter, giving supporting acting honors to Christian Bale (actor) and Melissa Leo (actress).

The group also handed out special awards.  One of them is a surprise - a notice for Gareth Edwards, director of science fiction flick, Monsters, "for taking an original and organic approach to cinema that brings the industry back to its roots (visual storytelling) and favors creativity and resourcefulness over contrived storytelling and reliance on big budgets and mindless spectacle. 'Monsters' is a great look at how sci-fi is done right (human stories, not creature-features) by a director who just shot the film and THEN found the story to tell, with good visual effects employed economically to enhance the film - not define it."

THE WINNERS:
Picture: The Social Network

Director: Darren Afronosky, Black Swan

Actor: TIE
Colin Firth (The King's Speech)
James Franco (127 Hours)

Actress: Natalie Portman (Black Swan)

Supporting Actor: Christian Bale (The Fighter)

Supporting Actress: Melissa Leo (The Fighter)

Best Original Screenplay: Christopher Nolan – Inception

Best Adapted Screenplay: Aaron Sorkin – The Social Network

Best Documentary: Waiting For Superman

Best Foreign Film: The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo

Best Animated Film: Toy Story 3

Best Ensemble: The Social Network


BFCC Pioneer Award - Haile Gerima
BFCC Rising Star/Best Newcomer Award - Jaden Smith
BFCC Special mention: Gareth Edwards for "Monsters"

TOP 10 Films:
1. The Social Network
2. Inception
3. Black Swan
4. The Fighter

5. TIE:
The Kids Are All Right
The Town

7. Toy Story 3
8. The King's Speech
9. Winter's Bone
10. The Ghost Writer

http://blackfilmcriticscircle.org/

San Diego Film Critics Not Feeling Sociable; Choose "Winter's Bone"

San Diego Film Critics Society Choose Top Films of 2010

December 14th, the San Diego Film Critics Society announced their film awards for 2010 and surprised everyone by being the first film critics group NOT to choose The Social Network as the best film of the 2010.  The San Diego critics chose hot indie drama, Winter's Bone.

In fact, San Diego was being quite contrary.  Winter's Bone won two acting awards: Best Actress for Jennifer Lawrence and Best Supporting Actor for John Hawkes - both well deserved.  San Diego even went with Colin Farrell as Best Actor for Ondine and not with Colin Firth (The King's Speech) or Jesse Eisenberg (The Social Network), the two names that have dominated film awards thus far.

2010 Awards (Winners in bold and CAPS):

BEST FILM: - WINTER’S BONE
BLACK SWAN
INCEPTION
THE KING’S SPEECH
THE SOCIAL NETWORK

BEST DIRECTOR – Darren Aronofsky, BLACK SWAN
Christopher Nolan, INCEPTION
Danny Boyle, 127 HOURS
David Fincher, THE SOCIAL NETWORK
Debra Granik, WINTER’S BONE

BEST ACTRESS – Jennifer Lawrence, WINTER’S BONE
Carey Mulligan, NEVER LET ME GO
Michelle Williams, BLUE VALENTINE
Natalie Portman, BLACK SWAN
Tilda Swinton, I AM LOVE

BEST ACTOR – Colin Farrell, ONDINE
Aaron Eckhart, RABBIT HOLE
Colin Firth, THE KING’S SPEECH
James Franco, 127 HOURS
Jesse Eisenberg, THE SOCIAL NETWORK

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS – Lesley Manville, ANOTHER YEAR
Blake Lively, THE TOWN
Dale Dickey, WINTER’S BONE
Jacki Weaver, ANIMAL KINGDOM
Melissa Leo, THE FIGHTER

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR – John Hawkes, WINTER’S BONE
Christian Bale, THE FIGHTER
Geoffrey Rush, THE KING’S SPEECH
Jeremy Renner, THE TOWN
John Hurt, 44 INCH CHEST

BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY – Jesse Armstrong, Sam Bain and Chris Morris, FOUR LIONS
Christopher Nolan, INCEPTION
David Seidler, THE KING’S SPEECH
Michael Arndt, TOY STORY 3
Neil Jordan, ONDINE

BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY – Aaron Sorkin, THE SOCIAL NETWORK
Debra Granik & Anne Rosellini, WINTER’S BONE
Laeta Kalogridis, SHUTTER ISLAND
Michael Bacall & Edgar Wright, SCOTT PILGRIM VS THE WORLD
Peter Craig & Ben Affleck & Aaron Stockard, THE TOWN

BEST FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILM – I AM LOVE
BIUTIFUL
MOTHER
NO ONE KNOWS ABOUT PERSIAN CATS
THE GIRL WITH THE DRAGON TATTOO

BEST DOCUMENTARY – EXIT THROUGH THE GIFT SHOP
A FILM UNFINISHED
INSIDE JOB
THE TILLMAN STORY
WAITING FOR ‘SUPERMAN’

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY – Wally Pfister, INCEPTION
Anthony Dod Mantle & Enrique Chediak, 127 HOURS
Eduardo Serra, HARRY POTTER & THE DEATHLY HALLOWS: PART 1
Matthew Libatique, BLACK SWAN
Robert Richardson, SHUTTER ISLAND

BEST ANIMATED FILM – TOY STORY 3
DESPICABLE ME
HOW TO TRAIN YOUR DRAGON
TANGLED
THE ILLUSIONIST

BEST EDITING – Jonathan Amos & Paul Machliss, SCOTT PILGRIM VS THE WORLD
Andrew Weisblum, BLACK SWAN
Angus Wall & Kirk Baxter, THE SOCIAL NETWORK
Jon Harris, 127 HOURS
Lee Smith, INCEPTION

BEST PRODUCTION DESIGN – Dante Ferretti, SHUTTER ISLAND
Guy Hendrix Dyas, INCEPTION
Robert Stromberg, ALICE IN WONDERLAND
Stuart Craig, HARRY POTTER & THE DEATHLY HALLOWS: PART 1
Thérèse DePrez, BLACK SWAN

BEST SCORE – Rachel Portman, NEVER LET ME GO
A. R. Rahman, 127 HOURS
Clint Mansell, BLACK SWAN
Danny Elfman, ALICE IN WONDERLAND
Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross, THE SOCIAL NETWORK

BEST ENSEMBLE PERFORMANCE – 44 INCH CHEST
ANOTHER YEAR
THE FIGHTER
THE SOCIAL NETWORK
WINTER’S BONE

BODY OF WORK FOR 2010
Rebecca Hall, (RED RIDING 1974, PLEASE GIVE, THE TOWN)

KYLE COUNTS AWARD
Duncan Shepherd (San Diego Reader film critic)

http://sdfcs.org/2010/12/14/san-diego-film-critics-choose-top-films-of-2010/

"The Social Network" Leads Chicago Film Critics Nominations

The Chicago Film Critics Association announced their nominations on Friday.  The winners will be named tomorrow (Dec. 20th).  As usual, The Social Network dominates, but the Coen Bros.' True Grit is right behind David Fincher's highly-acclaimed flick:

The nominees are:

BEST PICTURE

Black Swan
Inception
The King’s Speech
The Social Network
Winter’s Bone

BEST DIRECTOR
Darren Aronofsky, Black Swan
David Fincher, The Social Network
Debra Granik, Winter’s Bone
Tom Hooper, The King’s Speech
Christopher Nolan, Inception

BEST ACTOR
Jeff Bridges, True Grit
Jesse Eisenberg, The Social Network
Colin Firth, The King’s Speech
James Franco, 127 Hours
Ryan Gosling, Blue Valentine

BEST ACTRESS
Annette Bening, The Kids Are All Right
Jennifer Lawrence, Winter’s Bone
Lesley Manville, Another Year
Natalie Portman, Black Swan
Michelle Williams, Blue Valentine

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR
Christian Bale, The Fighter
Andrew Garfield, The Social Network
John Hawkes, Winter’s Bone
Mark Ruffalo, The Kids Are All Right
Geoffrey Rush, The King’s Speech

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS
Amy Adams, The Fighter
Helena Bonham Carter, The King’s Speech
Melissa Leo, The Fighter
Hailee Steinfeld, True Grit
Jacki Weaver, Animal Kingdom

BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY
Black Swan, Mark Heyman, Andres Heinz & John McLaughlin
Four Lions, Jesse Armstrong, Sam Bain & Chris Morris
Inception, Christopher Nolan
The Kids Are All Right, Lisa Cholodenko & Stuart Blumberg
The King’s Speech, David Seidler

BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY
Rabbit Hole, David Lindsay Abaire
The Social Network, Aaron Sorkin
Toy Story 3, Michael Arndt
True Grit, Joel & Ethan Coen
Winter’s Bone, Debra Granik & Anne Rosellini

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY
Black Swan, Matthew Libatique
Inception, Wally Pfister
Shutter Island, Robert Richardson
The Social Network, Jeff Cronenweth
True Grit, Roger Deakins

BEST ORIGINAL SCORE
Black Swan, Clint Mansell
I Am Love, John Adams
Inception, Hans Zimmer
The Social Network, Trent Reznor & Atticus Ross
True Grit, Carter Burwell

BEST DOCUMENTARY
Exit Through the Gift Shop
Inside Job
Restrepo
The Tillman Story
Waiting for Superman

BEST FOREIGN-LANGUAGE FILM
Biutiful
The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo
I Am Love
Mother
A Prophet

BEST ANIMATED FEATURE
Despicable Me
How to Train Your Dragon
The Illusionist
Tangled
Toy Story 3

MOST PROMISING PERFORMER
Armie Hammer, The Social Network
Katie Jarvis, Fish Tank
Jennifer Lawrence, Winter’s Bone
Tahar Rahim, A Prophet
Hailee Steinfeld, True Grit

MOST PROMISING FILMMAKER
Bansky, Exit Through the Gift Shop
Derek Cianfrance, Blue Valentine
David Michod, Animal Kingdom
Aaron Schneider, Get Low
John Wells, The Company Men

"Black Swan" Leads Critics' Choice Movie Awards Nominations

Press release:

"BLACK SWAN" LEADS WITH A RECORD 12 NOMINATIONS FOR THE 16th annual Critics' Choice Movie Awards

"THE KING'S SPEECH" & "TRUE GRIT" EACH SCORE 11 NOMINATIONS; "INCEPTION" AND "THE SOCIAL NETWORK" ALSO STAND OUT

AWARDS CEREMONY TO BE BROADCAST LIVE ON VH1, FRIDAY, JANUARY 14 AT 9:00 PM ET/PT

(Los Angeles, CA - December 13, 2010) - The Broadcast Film Critics Association (BFCA) has announced the nominees for the 16th annual Critics' Choice Movie Awards. The winners will be announced at the Critics' Choice Movie Awards ceremony on Friday, January 14, 2011 at 9:00 PM ET/PT. This year's event will again take place at the Hollywood Palladium. This is the fourth year in a row that VH1 will broadcast the gala live on the network and the first year the show will also be broadcast internationally.

NOMINATIONS FOR THE 16th ANNUAL CRITICS' CHOICE MOVIE AWARDS:

BEST PICTURE
127 Hours
Black Swan
The Fighter
Inception
The King's Speech
The Social Network
The Town
Toy Story 3
True Grit
Winter's Bone

BEST ACTOR
Jeff Bridges – "True Grit"
Robert Duvall – "Get Low"
Jesse Eisenberg – "The Social Network"
Colin Firth – "The King's Speech"
James Franco – "127 Hours"
Ryan Gosling – "Blue Valentine"

BEST ACTRESS
Annette Bening – "The Kids Are All Right"
Nicole Kidman – "Rabbit Hole"
Jennifer Lawrence – "Winter's Bone"
Natalie Portman – "Black Swan"
Noomi Rapace – "The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo"
Michelle Williams – "Blue Valentine"

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR
Christian Bale – "The Fighter"
Andrew Garfield – "The Social Network"
Jeremy Renner – "The Town"
Sam Rockwell – "Conviction"
Mark Ruffalo – "The Kids Are All Right"
Geoffrey Rush – "The King's Speech"

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS
Amy Adams – "The Fighter"
Helena Bonham Carter – "The King's Speech"
Mila Kunis – "Black Swan"
Melissa Leo – "The Fighter"
Hailee Steinfeld – "True Grit"
Jacki Weaver – "Animal Kingdom"

BEST YOUNG ACTOR/ACTRESS
Elle Fanning – "Somewhere"
Jennifer Lawrence – "Winter's Bone"
Chloe Grace Moretz – "Let Me In"
Chloe Grace Moretz – "Kick-Ass"
Kodi Smit-McPhee – "Let Me In"
Hailee Steinfeld – "True Grit"

BEST ACTING ENSEMBLE
The Fighter
The Kids Are All Right
The King's Speech
The Social Network
The Town

BEST DIRECTOR
Darren Aronofsky – "Black Swan"
Danny Boyle – "127 Hours"
Joel Coen & Ethan Coen – "True Grit"
David Fincher – "The Social Network"
Tom Hooper – "The King's Speech"
Christopher Nolan – "Inception"

BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY
"Another Year" – Mike Leigh
"Black Swan" – Mark Heyman and Andres Heinz and John McLaughlin
"The Fighter" – Scott Silver and Paul Tamasy & Eric Johnson (Story by Keith Dorrington & Paul Tamasy & Eric Johnson)
"Inception" – Christopher Nolan
"The Kids Are All Right" – Lisa Cholodenko and Stuart Blumberg
"The King's Speech" – David Seidler

BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY
"127 Hours" – Simon Beaufoy and Danny Boyle
"The Social Network" – Aaron Sorkin
"The Town" – Peter Craig and Ben Affleck & Aaron Stockard
"Toy Story 3" – Michael Arndt (Story by John Lasseter, Andrew Stanton and Lee Unkrich)
"True Grit" – Joel Coen & Ethan Coen
"Winter's Bone" – Debra Granik and Anne Rosellini

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY
"127 Hours" – Anthony Dod Mantle and Enrique Chediak
"Black Swan" – Matthew Libatique
"Inception" – Wally Pfister
"The King's Speech" – Danny Cohen
"True Grit" – Roger Deakins

BEST ART DIRECTION
"Alice in Wonderland" – Robert Stromberg
"Black Swan" – Therese DePrez and Tora Peterson
"Inception" – Guy Hendrix Dyas
"The King's Speech" – Eve Stewart
"True Grit" – Jess Gonchor and Nancy Haigh

BEST EDITING
"127 Hours" – Jon Harris
"Black Swan" – Andrew Weisblum
"Inception" – Lee Smith
"The Social Network" – Angus Wall and Kirk Baxter

BEST COSTUME DESIGN
"Alice in Wonderland" – Colleen Atwood
"Black Swan" – Amy Westcott
"The King's Speech" – Jenny Beavan
"True Grit" – Mary Zophres

BEST MAKEUP
Alice in Wonderland
Black Swan
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 1
True Grit

BEST VISUAL EFFECTS
Alice in Wonderland
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 1
Inception
Tron: Legacy

BEST SOUND
127 Hours
Black Swan
Inception
The Social Network
Toy Story 3

BEST ANIMATED FEATURE
Despicable Me
How to Train Your Dragon
The Illusionist
Tangled
Toy Story 3

BEST ACTION MOVIE
Inception
Kick-Ass
Red
The Town
Unstoppable

BEST COMEDY
Cyrus
Date Night
Easy A
Get Him to the Greek
I Love You Phillip Morris
The Other Guys

BEST PICTURE MADE FOR TELEVISION
The Pacific
Temple Grandin
You Don't Know Jack

BEST FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILM
Biutiful
I Am Love
The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo

BEST DOCUMENTARY FEATURE
Exit Through the Gift Shop
Inside Job
Restrepo
Joan Rivers: A Piece of Work
The Tillman Story
Waiting for Superman

BEST SONG
"I See the Light" – performed by Mandy Moore & Zachary Levi/written by Alan Menken & Glenn Slater – Tangled

"If I Rise" – performed by Dido and A.R. Rahman/music by A.R. Rahman/lyrics by Dido Armstrong and Rollo Armstrong – 127 Hours

"Shine" – performed and written by John Legend – Waiting for Superman

"We Belong Together" – performed and written by Randy Newman – Toy Story 3

"You Haven't Seen the Last of Me Yet" – performed by Cher/written by Diane Warren – Burlesque

BEST SCORE
"Black Swan" – Clint Mansell
"Inception" – Hans Zimmer
"The King's Speech" – Alexandre Desplat
"The Social Network" – Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross
"True Grit" – Carter Burwell


About The Broadcast Film Critics Association:
The Broadcast Film Critics Association (BFCA) is the largest film critics organization in the United States and Canada, representing 250 television, radio and online critics. BFCA members are the primary source of information for today's film going public. The very first opinion a moviegoer hears about new releases at the multiplex or the art house usually comes from one of its members.

http://www.bfca.org/

Boston Society of Film Critics Love Them Some "The Social Network"

The 18-member Boston Society of Film Critics includes some oft-quoted critics, including Boston Globe writers, Ty Burr and Wesley Morris.  This year, they beat the L.A. Film Critics in announcing their end-of-year prizes.  Thanks to the blog Film Experience for the following information (because the Bostonians' website has not been updated as of this writing):

Picture: The Social Network
Runner up: Toy Story 3

Director: David Fincher for The Social Network
Runner up: Darren Aronofsky for Black Swan

Actress: Natalie Portman in Black Swan
Runner up: Annette Bening in The Kids Are All Right

Actor: Jesse Eisenberg in The Social Network
Runner up: Colin Firth (The King's Speech)

Supporting Actress: Juliette Lewis in Conviction
Runner Up: Melissa Leo (The Fighter)

Supporting Actor: Christian Bale in The Fighter
Runner Up: Andrew Garfield in The Social Network

Screenplay: Aaron Sorkin for The Social Network
Runner up: Nicole Holocener for Please Give

Cinematography: Roger Deakins for True Grit
Runner up: Matthew Libatique for Black Swan

Editing (in memory of Karen Schmeer) Andrew Weisblum for Black Swan
Runner up: Lee Smith for Inception

New Filmmaker (in memory of David Brudnoy) Jeff Malmberg for Marwencol
Runner up: David Michôd for Animal Kingdom

Best Use of Music in a Film Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross for The Social Network
Runner up: Carter Burwell for True Grit

Ensemble Cast: The Fighter
Runner up: The Kids Are All Right

Documentary: Marwencol
Runner up: Inside Job

Foreign Language: Film Mother (South Korea)
Runner up: I Am Love (Italy)

Animated Film: Toy Story 3
Runner up: The Illusionist

http://www.thebsfc.org/

Review: "Requiem for a Dream" is Perhaps the Best Picture of 2000

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 59 (of 2005) by Leroy Douresseaux

Requiem for a Dream (2000) – NC-17 version
Running time: 102 minutes (1 hour, 42 minutes)
MPAA – R for intense depiction of drug addiction, graphic sexuality, strong language, and some violence (edited version)
DIRECTOR: Darren Aronofsky
WRITERS: Hubert Selby, Jr. and Darren Aronofsky (from the by Hubert Selby, Jr.)
PRODUCERS: Eric Watson and Palmer West
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Matthew Libatique
EDITOR: Jay Rabinowitz
Academy Award nominee

DRAMA/CRIME with elements of horror

Starring: Ellen Burstyn, Jared Leto, Jennifer Connelly, Marlon Wayans, Christopher McDonald, Louise Lasser, Ajay Naidu, Te’ron A. O’Neal, Denise Dowse, and Keith David

With films like Gladiator, Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, and Traffic taking all the attention in 2000, it was easy for a far superior work of cinematic art to get lost, but hopefully serious film watchers will discover Darren Aronofsky’s brilliantly filmed tale, Requiem for a Dream, on home video and DVD. Like Ang Lee’s work in Crouching Tiger, Aronofsky’s effort in his film is a dizzying achievement of directorial achievement, though on a smaller scale.

The film follows four drug addicts living in Brighton Beach, in the shadow of the crumbling Coney Island amusement park. A mother, her son, and his two friends find their drug-induced utopias slowly destroyed, as their addictions grow stronger. Sara Goldfarb (Ellen Burstyn) is a lonely television-obsessed widow, who gets a call that she has a chance to be a game show contestant. Determined to fit in the red dress she wore to her son’s high school graduation (when her husband was still alive and seemingly the last time the family publicly showed a happy face), she sees a doctor about loosing weight in 30 days. He gives her three prescriptions, a mixture of speed and downers. Initially, Sara can’t adjust to what the speed does to her, but she soon adjusts to the jittery feelings it gives her. However, when her body adjusts and starts to crave the high, she begins to take too many of the pills. Before, all her anxieties (growing older, grieving for her late husband, worrying about her son’s life, loneliness, etc.) and her increasing dependency on drugs cause her to go over the edge mentally.

Meanwhile, Harry Goldfarb (Jared Leto), his girlfriend Marion Silver (Jennifer Connelly), and his best pal Tyrone C. Love (Marlon Wayans) are taking heroin and cocaine. Harry and Tyrone also start to make a lot of money dealing drugs, but a gang war dries up the dope supply and drives up the prices, making it difficult for the trio to get their fix. That in turn drives each of them to the depths of their souls and into the bowels of a cruel society that exploits their need.

The four leads are simple incredible; this is career defining work. Ms. Burstyn opens her soul to absorb the text and transforms it into a character that emits truth. Then, even more difficult, she has to bare her soul to the viewer, and her performance is so fierce and the character’s situation so scary that the combination could scorch your soul. Any Caucasian actor that would have given the kind of performance that Marlon Wayans gives here would have had the pick of heavyweight dramatic roles offered to him after Requiem; instead, filmgoers can only see him in lowbrow comedies. Jennifer Connelly also comes into her own here. She’s eventually win an Oscar for her supporting role in A Beautiful Mind, but Requiem was where she showed her ability to deliver in intense dramas. Jared Leto, as usual, shows how passionate he is about acting, especially building a character. He eats up the screen, and his presence is like sunburst on film.

Aronofsky and his collaborators used a number of in-camera effects with digital special effects, special cameras, and editing technique to create a world of drug addiction, hard core criminal activity, and institutional callous cruelty that is real as the flesh on your bones. However, Aronofsky isn’t alone in his talents. There are any number of great directors and skilled filmmakers who use tricks and techniques to make visually appealing, surprising, and shocking films. What makes this work stand out is that Aronofsky went to great limits to make you feel. Thus, you’ll love it or hate because Aronofsky pushes you inside Requiem for a Dream, and you can’t sit back. The viewer has to be involved, and he or she has to care. A viewer has no choice but to have a strong feeling by what he or she experiences via this truly engaging and gripping movie.

10 of 10

NOTES:
2001 Academy Awards: 1 nomination: “Best Actress in a Leading Role” (Ellen Burstyn)

2001 Black Reel Awards: 1 nomination: “Theatrical - Best Supporting Actor” (Marlon Wayans)

2001 Golden Globes: 1 nomination: “Best Performance by an Actress in a Motion Picture – Drama” (Ellen Burstyn)

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