The New Generation of Hollywood

 

While there are some great Hollywood legends that have left behind a wonderful legacy, there is a new generation of actors to be excited about. These new faces are making their mark on Hollywood and if you haven’t heard about them yet, it’s time you did.

Jim Sturgess : He has already starred in 17 movies including Cloud Atlas (2012) and Upside Down (2013) and he has 5 new projects that he is working on now. 

The Fanning Sisters: It seems that great acting is a family affair for these two. While older sister Dakota probably has more Hollywood exposure, Elle is doing quite well for herself starring in more retrospective indie films.

Jonah Hill: All grown up and a little bit slimmer, he is making the transition from comedian to starring in more serious roles. Django Unchained and The Wolf of Wall Street is a pretty good start in our book. 

Emma Stone: Our favorite new funny lady is also showing her range. From romantic comedies, drama thrillers, and big budget action movies. The fact that she got to star in multiple movies with Ryan Gosling just shows what a lucky girl she really is.

 

Abigail Breslin: She has come a long way  from Little Miss Sunshine. Now starring with August: Osage County, you can see that she can hold her own in such a star studded cast.

Garrett Hedlund: His meteoric rise into Hollywood has caught everyone’s attention, the fact that he can sing (as shown in Country Strong) only makes him seem better in our eyes and probably yours. 

Eddie Redmayne: You may not know the name, but probably know the face. He has had the great fortune of costarring with some great actress. He will be playing Stephen Hawking in Theory of Everything, which will premiere in 2015.  

Armie Hammer: Don’t let the fact that the Lone Ranger didn’t do so well deter you from seeing the how talented he is. Watch The Social Network, and you’ll see what we mean. 

Benedict Cumberbatch: This guy is literally everywhere. He has a legion of fans, very passionate fans. He has worked on over 30 movies in his career so far and shows no signs of stopping anytime soon.  

Jennifer Lawrence: Quite possibly Hollywood’s new “It Girl” is refreshing to see that she is still so grounded. She has shown the world that she can rock the bow and arrow in the Hunger Games movies, but can also play very complicated and more adult roles, such as her newly confirmed role in “East of Eden”. 

Hailee Steinfeld : Making your Hollywood debut with Jeff Bridges and getting nominated for an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress is a pretty great way to start. Not many people can boast those credits so early in their career. You can see her in the new Ender’s Game movie this November. 

Art Imitating Life

If you haven’t seen at least one episode of Modern Family, you have been missing out. Besides being extremely funny, it strikes a chord with audiences and shows that families now come in all shapes and sizes. The season has just started and it already promises to be a great one, especially for Mitch and Cam.

 

They are our favorite couple on the show and this moment really solidified their place in our hearts.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1aSzTVrP5FQ

 

Now (spoiler alert!) the couple is officially engaged! As the show takes place in California, the creators decided to tie it to reality as much as possible. They said, “Our goal really was to keep whatever story we were telling very specific to Mitch and Cam and just have the California part of it be the reason, the jumping-off point,”… “As I started writing, I became unexpectedly emotional. I teared up hearing it read. And I completely teared up seeing that moment where they both just say ‘yes’ at the exact same time. That was so moving for me. I felt like, ‘OK, maybe I got it right because I never cry at weddings.’ ”

 

We love this new development and knowing this couple, it may just be the best TV wedding to date.

Passing On The WB Torch

With great shows like Friends, Gilmore Girls, One Tree Hill, Veronica Mars , and Smallville, the WB was THE network for all of your teenage angst and just some good entertainment fun. While the CW tries to follow in those footsteps, it really doesn’t match up. There are some great exceptions like The Vampire Diaries and The Arrow.

 

So who is the new WB? We’re putting our support for ABC Family. They showcase  lot of young and new talent. So all those teenages that you see on the shows are actually close to that age in real life. It really strives to look for new faces and gives the world a new generation of talent to look forward to. The shows are complicated and they don’t shy away from heavy themes. It understands that teenagers crave interesting shows that aren’t simple or sugar coated.

 

ABC Family also understands its audience, predominantly female and gives them lots of eye candy, which really never hurts. It also shows a lot of diversity. There are LGBT characters, characters of different ethnicities, and also those with disabilities and in our head, any network that can make PLT, it pretty great in our book.

Made For A Good Costume Drama

Costume dramas have a very specific appeal because they take us back to the time of extremely good manners and reaffirm our deep appreciation for the technology that we have today. Some actors and actresses are perfect for costume dramas that they are in high demand. Here are some actors and actress that were probably born in the wrong time period.

 

1. Keira Knightley: From pirates of the Caribbean, Atonement, The Duchess, and Anna Karenina, she was made to be put into a corset.

 

2. Holliday Grainger: Although she is relatively new face in the entertainment world, she has already played Lucrezia Borgia, Estalla, Sophia (Merlin)  and now will be starring in the new tv movie Bonnie and Clyde.

3. Jonathan Rhys Meyers: He seems to ooze charm and command your attention, so it comes at no surprise that he has played King Henry (the one with 6 wives), starred in Gormenghast, and now will be playing Dracula.

 

4. Colin Firth: who will forever be known as Mr. Darcy. He has played other roles that take place in the modern day and don’t require the wearing of a top hat, but he will always be known for starring in Pride and Prejudice and making women everywhere swoon.

5. Gillian Anderson: In America she’ll always be associated with the X Files, but she’s also the quintessential Dickens woman, having already tackled roles as Ms. Haversham and Lady Deadlock.

6. Judi Dench: or sometimes simply referred to as the Dame. IT seems almost unfair that she wasn’t born into royalty, so it seems that it’s only fair that she has starred in so many costume dramas depicting such high born women.

Oscar Producer’s Did You Watch The Emmys On Sunday?

Watching the Emmys always seems to be a fun affair for both the audience at home and the one who is sitting front and center. Musical numbers were performed, there were many surprise winners (which always adds the attention getting shock value) and a very touching tribute to stars gone too soon. The Emmys were fast paced and although the Oscars have their own format, small changes can make a pretty big difference.

 

1. Don’t front load you show: Everyone looks forward to the opening monologue of the Oscars and then it’s simply on with the show. The Emmys this year kept people engaged with a musical number in the middle of the show with Nathan Fillion and Sarah Silverman and kept going strong throughout the rest of the show.

 

2. The acceptance speech: Everyone was given one minute to speak and say their thank yous, as opposed to the three minute speeches that you see at the Oscars. It keeps things short and sweet and gives the show a better flow.

 

3. Don’t be afraid to have fun: The host shouldn’t be the only one having fun. Maybe because there are more heavy hitters at the Oscars, everyone is more serious. In the Emmys, Tina Fey and Amy Poehler and Julia Luis Dreyfus all had fun adding their bit of humor to the show, and it really paid off.

 

4. Let Meryl Streep Win!:  The woman has been nominated 17 time overall and the last time she won, she had 12 years for it. Seeing as she is so good she basically gets nominated every year, she deserves a little bit more love from the Oscars.

 

What Do You Mean They Don’t Exist?

Books can give TV and movies a lot of great ideas to work with whether it’s for hit TV shows like “Gossip Girl” (the book came first), “Harry Potter” and the upcoming spinoff, and the upcoming Fall movie “Ender’s Game”. For the purists out there, it can lead to frustration and has spawned this particular beauty:

But sometimes, something magical happens and TV and movies return the favor.

 

Like this biography

 

This book that needs to be in every home

 

The ultimate self help book

 

The perfect bedtime story for the holidays

 

This one may just put Rich Dad Poor Dad to shame

 

And let’s not forget the mystery lovers!

 

The Sassy Butler Is The Reason Why You Watch These Shows/Movies

While great leading characters are all well and good, it’s usually the scene stealing supporting cast that you really love. It’s okay to admit it, because they’re our favorite too. The best kind is the sassy butler and/or help in the show or movie. Sometimes they had dreams of being so much more than just the butler and show that feeling of disappointment through that sass, some are good at their job and are just born that way, but in the end, we love them all.

 

Here are some of our favorites in no particular order and really, because we just can’t choose a favorite.

 

1. Niles from The Nanny: His love/hate relationship with C.C. was pure comedic fodder and he delivers some of the best one liners to date.

Exhibit A:

 

Exhibit B:

 

2. Geoffrey Butler from The Fresh Prince of Bel Air: He bemoaned his fate that seemed to be all but destined from birth, but made sure to keep everyone on their feet

 

And put them in their place.

3. Kato from The Green Hornet: So technically he in the show he was the valet and in the movie was was the mechanic, but his sass just won’t be denied because he has his priorities straight. The Gas Gun is ALWAYS first.

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SYc22LjPmMQ

 

4. Carson from Downton Abbey: This man takes his job very seriously and we would not have it any other way.

You can’t really argue with that logic.

 

5. Agador Spartacus from The Birdcage: He took care of his boys and made sure that the house always calm. You can’t really ask for much more.

6. Alfred Thaddeus Crane Pennywort from The Batman: This guy not only has impeccable taste in high brow culture

He is also not afraid to tell Batman how it really is, as only a best friend can.

And then there’s always this graph that pretty much speaks for itself…

Embracing Your Quirky Side

What one person may consider typecasting, another can see as a career maker. Of course we’re talking about one our favorite actresses of all time: Helena Bonham Carter. You’ve probably heard of the name and you have most likely seen her in at least one movie as the strange and quirky women, often taking on darker roles.

 

It seems that being the wife of Tim Burton, it may be almost a requisite for Helena Bonham Carter to play some of the most interesting and quirky characters, but what we love about her is that she does it with such style and you can tell that she has a fun time doing it. It’s almost jarring to see her go from this:

(Bohnam Carter as Ms. Honeychurch in “A Room With A View” )

 

and being hailed as the “corset queen” for all the period dramas that she starred in,  to go to this:

(Bohnam Carter as Bellatrix Lestrange in the Harry Potter series)

We personally love the transformation and really shows off the fact that Bohnam Carter can go from one end of the spectrum to the other and has the acting chops to be able to play both innocent and demure women and some… not so demure.

 

Whether playing Miss Havisham (Great Expectations)

 

Mrs. Lovett (Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street)

Or the Queen of Hearts (Alice In Wonderland)

it’s probably safe to say that going for more dark and quirky character has been a great choice for her career and audiences everywhere. Mrs. Carter we have only one request from you: don’t ever change.

The Importance of Music

When we first see the trailer to a movie, it has about 1 to 2 ½ minutes to basically give you an idea of what the movie is going to be about, why it’s appealing, and make you wait with a ridiculous amount of anticipation for this movie to come. Music a big part of that process. The right song can make you feel an overwhelming amount of emotion for a short period of time and feel connected to characters you don’t even really know about.

 

Here are our picks for the best music for movie trailers:

 

1. Dirty Paws by Of Monsters and Men

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=syWnuTK8OlU

This song is the perfect because of its timing and gives basically screams film festival/Oscar contender. It’s soft and powerful at the same time. The song has become so popular its starting to catapult the band to a lot more exposure to a much larger market.

 

2. Creep by Scala & Kolnacy Brothers

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lB95KLmpLR4

The version of  this song is so haunting and encapsulates the Facebook experience so perfectly and our desires to show the best of ourselves to the world.

 

3. Moth’s Wings by Passion Pit

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fwavA7RIVpQ

Starting at around the 1 minute 18 second mark, this song makes you truly believe that anything is possible and makes you really want to root for the characters and their quest to help the whales get to the ocean.

 

4. Mind Heist by Zack Hemsey

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=66TuSJo4dZM#t=88

This brass heavy piece basically inspired modern movie trailers, with the what we will now call “The Inception Horn” constantly blaring in the background giving a sense of urgency and it’s something that a lot of trailers had adopted every since.

 

5. Wake Up by Arcade Fire

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=01-PqqifyjA#t=114

The lyrics for this song match the story perfectly and the upbeat tempo just makes you want to go have an adventure of your own.

 

6. Nero by Two Steps From Hell

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rPGLRO3fZnQ

Once again proving that you don’t need lyrics to make music powerful. Much like the Mind Heist, the heavy brass and sweeping orchestra reflects aristocratic Russia as portrayed by Tolstoy’s iconic novel.

Twitter and Tiaras

 

Watching Miss America is a great way to end your Sunday night, and the one we saw at on the 15th was extra special. With Miss New York Nina Davuluri now crowned Miss America, we were excited to see that diversity is appreciated by the Miss America judges as the first woman of Indian heritage to win the title. But it seems not everyone shared this view point. Social media took to arms and made comments about Davuluri’s ethnicity reminiscent of when Vanessa Williams was the first African American woman to be crowned Miss America.

 

With shows like “Toddlers and Tiaras” giving a bad name for the pageant world, and some of the things that you see on that show are questionable, it seems unfair to condemn the practice of pageants completely. The women who participate there say that they have learned  great life skills that have helped them boost their confidence, like this example: http://www.buzzfeed.com/ashleym36/confessions-of-a-former-toddler-in-a-tiara-a-defense-of-the .

 

The women in these pageants, especially this year’s, should serve as an inspiration to young girls everywhere. Miss Kansas is a sergeant in the U.S. Army and these women can win prizes like scholarships to further their education. So whatever the world may say, we say congratulations Miss Davuluri for winning the crown!