01:54 PM EDT 04/13/2013
Martin Scorsese
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Roger Ebert Praised by Filmmakers – and The President
Originally posted 04/05/2013 11:10AM
He sometimes may have roundly criticized them, but actors and filmmakers alike gave high thumbs up to the late Roger Ebert, who died Thursday after a lengthy fight with cancer.
Fellow Chicagoan President Barack Obama spoke for many when he said in a statement, "For a generation of Americans – and especially Chicagoans – Roger was the movies. When he didn't like a film, he was honest; when he did, he was effusive – capturing the unique power of the movie to take us somewhere magical."
Added the Chief Executive: "Even amidst his own battles with cancer, Roger was as productive as he was resilient – continuing to share his passion and perspective with the world. The movies won't be the same without Roger."
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Lois Smith Dies of a Brain Hemorrhage
Originally posted 10/07/2012 08:00PM
Lois Smith, a much-admired veteran movie publicist and the mother of Grey's Anatomy actress Brooke Smith, died Sunday afternoon after suffering a brain hemorrhage due to an accidental fall, Deadline reports. She was 84.
The New York-based industry trailblazer was in Maine, where her husband, Eugene Smith, was set to be recognized for his philanthropic work. Smith fell down the stairs late Saturday night at the bed-and-breakfast where they were staying.
A maternal figure to both stars and journalists who tended to adore her in equal doses, Smith, along with Pat Kingsley and Patricia Newcomb, helped establish the publicity firm of PMK (initially known as Pickwick, it merged with Maslansky/Koenigsberg) as an A-list leader. As a publicist, Smith was as involved in shaping images as she was in promoting specific movies, and always with a personal touch.
Among her clients were Robert Redford (their professional marriage went back to the late '60s, when his star was launched with Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid), as well as Marilyn Monroe, Martin Scorsese, Meryl Streep, Susan Sarandon and Whitney Houston.
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Oscars 2012: Which Should Win Best Picture of the Year?
Originally posted 02/25/2012 05:45PM
Make no mistake: Oscar loves the movies.
Of the nine films in contention to be named Best Picture, the two with the most overall nominations – Hugo, with 11, and The Artist, with 10 – focus on the art form in its infancy and each is a Valentine to the medium – but will one of them snag Oscar's heart?
Having already earned Martin Scorsese a Golden Globe for his direction, Hugo sets its story in Paris, where orphan Hugo Cabret helps the real-life 1900s screen pioneer Georges Melies (played by Ben Kingsley) enjoy renewed appreciation in 1931.
With a number critics' circle awards as best picture of 2011, BAFTA's and the Producers Guild best picture of the year awards and the best musical or comedy motion picture Golden Globe, The Artist, set in 1927, examines of Hollywood's transition from silents to talkies as it affects a successful leading man (Jean Dujardin) who staunchly refuses to adapt to the new process.
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Screen Actors Guild Awards 2012
How to Play the Bridesmaids' Drinking Game
Originally posted 01/29/2012 10:10PM
That's one way to pass time during a two-hour awards ceremony.
The ladies of Bridesmaids enjoyed Sunday night's Screen Actors Guild Awards one sip at a time with a game they invented that honors a filmmaker who's no stranger to winning the top prize: Martin Scorsese.
Taking the stage with beverages in-hand to present their film, which was nominated in the outstanding cast category, Kristen Wiig, Maya Rudolph and Melissa McCarthy explained the rules to their drinking game of choice.
"You have to take a drink every time, and I mean every time, you hear the word 'Scorsese,' " McCarthy explained, a mini bottle of Grey Goose in her hands."You'd be surprised how much that comes up in just casual conversation because people like to throw that thing around."
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Oscar Nominations: PEOPLE Critic's Take
Originally posted 01/24/2012 02:00PM
Nominations are out for the 84th Academy Awards. Here is PEOPLE Magazine critic Alynda Wheat's take on what went down at the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.
Hugo?! Fine, Hugo.
Leading the pack with 11 nominations is Martin Scorsese's kids movie that's not actually for kids. I confess that I still don't get it. Technically, Hugo is a triumph (you'll notice that the vast majority of its nominations are for technical awards), and Scorsese's nod for Best Director is certainly justified. But as a movie-going experience I still think it's remarkably cold (lectures about film history don't really move me). For my money, it's still a race between the French silent film The Artist and The Descendants, starring George Clooney, who did get nominated and Shailene Woodley, who missed the cut. Which brings me to my next point:
Snubs? What snubs?
Okay, sure, Golden Globe nominee Woodley might be a tad disappointed, as might Albert Brooks (Drive), Michael Fassbender (Shame), Tilda Swinton (We Need to Talk About Kevin) and even Steven Spielberg, whose amazing animated The Adventures of Tintin didn't rate a Best Animated Film nod, and who wasn't on the Best Directors list, in spite of the fact that his War Horse is a Best Picture nominee. But are these omissions actually snubs? Not really.
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George Clooney, Michelle Williams Receive Oscar Nominations
Originally posted 01/24/2012 08:45AM
Comedy counts in Hollywood, for once, with two surprise nominations for Bridesmaids, for Supporting Actress Melissa McCarthy and Best Screenplay writer Kristen Wiig, according to this year's Oscar nominations, announced early Tuesday at the Beverly Hills headquarters of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.
As anticipated – given earlier honors from critics' group and the Golden Globes – nominations in the Best Picture category included those for director Alexander Payne's family drama set in Hawaii The Descendants (five nods) and the love letters to early movies, The Artist, with 10 nominations, and Martin Scorsese's Hugo, with 11. In all, nine films received Best Picture nominations.
Acting nods went to, among others, those friendly rivals George Clooney, for The Descendants, and Brad Pitt, for Moneyball.
For Best Actress, Michelle Williams was cited for her turn as Marilyn Monroe in My Week with Marilyn, as was Meryl Streep, who plays former British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher, in The Iron Lady.
Streep's nomination is her 17th – an all-time Academy record. (Both Jack Nicholson and Katharine Hepburn received 12 nominations; he won three times and she won four.) Streep has won twice, as Best Supporting Actress for 1979's Kramer vs. Kramer, and as Best Actress for 1982's Sophie's Choice.
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Carla Bruni-Sarkozy Has a Run-In with Her Ex: Mick Jagger!
Originally posted 12/08/2011 05:55AM
New mom Carla Bruni-Sarkozy had a run-in with an ex – Mick Jagger! – at an event honoring Martin Scorsese at the Elysees Palace in Paris, but it was hardly awkward. "They obviously hadn't seen one another in years," a party guest tells us, "and they talked together very comfortably for a few minutes." Afterward, the rocker, who was there with girlfriend L'Wren Scott, chatted up the guest of honor and mingled with fellow revelers. – Peter Mikelbank
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Who's the Hottie from France, Gaspard Ulliel?
Originally posted 03/23/2010 09:25AM
He manages to combine the smoldering dark looks of Orlando Bloom and a young Johnny Depp, but with a distinct French twist – making it safe to say that Gaspard Ulliel should be as welcome on American shores as that other Gallic gift, the Statue of Liberty.
Featured in a New York Times spring fashion spread, Ulliel, 25, already boasts a César award (France's Oscar) as most promising newcomer – a distinction he won back when he was only 20.
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POLL: Who Should Play Frank Sinatra?
Originally posted 05/15/2009 09:35AM
The race is on in Hollywood to play Ol' Blue Eyes.
Oscar winner Martin Scorsese will be directing and producing a biopic about legendary singer Frank Sinatra, who died in 1998 at age 82. The hot-tempered Sinatra led a famously colorful life: He wed four times (including to movie stars Ava Gardner and Mia Farrow), had early ties to organized crime, and starred in 50-plus movies, including the original Rat Pack extravaganza, Ocean’s Eleven, as well as From Here to Eternity, for which he won an Oscar for Best Supporting Actor.
The role of Sinatra has yet to be cast, but the early favorite is Leonardo DiCaprio, who has made three films with Scorsese, including Shutter Island, which opens this fall. Another possible contender: Johnny Depp. Respected film industry blogger Nikki Finke reports he's the choice of the sponsoring studio, Universal. Neither actor is known for his warbling abilities, but that doesn’t matter because the film, which has the cooperation of the Sinatra estate, will use the crooner’s original recordings.
Other possible contenders? Justin Timberlake, who actually can sing and has the right hungry look. Tween heartthrob Joe Jonas has the pipes and the right look. Or maybe even Twilight’s Robert Pattinson, if he loses the fangs and nails a New Jersey accent. Pick your favorite to portray the crooner below:
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30th Annual Kennedy Center Honorees Sparkle
Originally posted 12/03/2007 04:30PM
This year's recipients of the Kennedy Center Honors, which were handed out in a glittering ceremony last night in the nation's capitol, is quite the list of luminaries. Making up the talented quintet are: Beach Boy Brian Wilson, Academy award-winning director Martin Scorsese, singer supreme Diana Ross, actor-comedian Steve Martin and pianist-conductor Leon Fleisher, whose story of losing the use of his right hand was told in the 2007 Academy Award-nominated short subject documentary, "Two Hands."
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