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- “If I don’t feel it, I can’t play it.” — James Cotton
- “I don’t have to be an imitation of a white woman that Hollywood sort of hoped I’d become. I’m me, and I’m like nobody else.” — Lena Horne
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Category Archives: Actors
Dynamic Duo #19
Linda Manz, Dennis Hopper, Cannes premiere of “Out of the Blue”, 1980 Very exciting news in re: Out of the Blue (which I featured in a recent column on Film Comment): When I wrote the essay, I had come across … Continue reading
Posted in Actors, Directors
Tagged Dennis Hopper, dynamic duo, Linda Manz, Out of the Blue
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Present Tense: Matthias Schoenaerts
I’ve written a lot about Matthias Schoenaerts over the years. From Bullhead to Rust and Bone (which I went really long on here), to 2016’s Disorder (which I reviewed for Ebert). I decided to discuss Schoenaerts’ work – especially his … Continue reading
For Tuesday Weld’s Birthday: An Electric Pairing
Tuesday Weld, Elvis Presley Tuesday Weld, Elvis Presley’s sometimes girl, was also his costar in the wonderful Wild in the Country (1961), where they play two individuals who, at first, circle warily around each other, like cats who either want … Continue reading
Present Tense: Female Comedians
For my next column at Film Comment, I wrote about actresses who come from a comedy/improv background, and the special gifts they bring to bear in dramatic material. Featuring a couple of interviews I did with circus people, and also … Continue reading
Posted in Actors, Movies
Tagged Catherine O'Hara, Kristen Wiig, Lily Tomlin, Lon Chaney, Meryl Streep, Present Tense, Robert Altman
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Present Tense: On that thing we call “back-ting”
For my latest “Present Tense” column at Film Comment, I wrote about something that’s been percolating for decades. In college, my friend Mitchell coined the phrase “back-ting” – moments where actors perform scenes with their backs to the camera (or … Continue reading
Posted in Actors, Movies
Tagged Alfred Hitchcock, backting, Bette Davis, Cary Grant, Jafar Panahi, John Wayne, Kristen Wiig, Present Tense, William Wyler
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For Film Comment: On Marlon Brando’s Body
For my new “Present Tense” column at Film Comment, I wrote about Marlon Brando and David Foster Wallace’s Infinite Jest. Because one led me to think in a new way about the other. This was a fun one. Present Tense: … Continue reading
R.I.P. Doris Day
Ranked one of the greatest female stars of all time, Doris Day has died at the age of 97. I “got into it” (in a very mild way) with a guy on Twitter who said she was symbolic of “1950s … Continue reading
Red-carpet-by-proxy
Tilda Swinton holding the May-June issue of Film Comment, with my cover story on Joanna Hogg’s “The Souvenir”, starring Tilda Swinton’s daughter, Honor Swinton Byrne, and Tilda herself. Honor Swinton Byrne – whose face graces the cover – and Tilda … Continue reading
Stuff I’ve Been Reading
It’s been a while since I’ve done one of these. Here are some of the things I’ve read recently – or am in the process of reading. — I love Imogen Sara Smith’s writing, and I’m not just saying that … Continue reading
Posted in Actors, Books, Movies
Tagged Belfast, Ireland, Nicolas Roeg, Nureyev, stuff I've been reading
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R.I.P. Bibi Andersson
From David Thomson’s The New Biographical Dictionary of Film : Expanded and Updated , the entry on Bibi Andersson: “She needed such a holiday to prepare for one of the most harrowing female roles the screen has presented: Nurse Alma … Continue reading
Posted in Actors, Movies, RIP
Tagged Bibi Andersson, Ingmar Bergman, Liv Ullmann, Persona
4 Comments