<<
profiles/bios:********[also
see painting / visual art below]
~ ~ ~
Jane
Alexander "An accomplished stage actress who's also been
nominated
for four Academy Awards, Jane Alexander's best-known role has probably
been her real-life stint as chairwoman of the National Endowment for
the
Arts under President Clinton. This Lifetime Intimate Portrait takes a
look
at her controversial six years heading the NEA during the Republican
battle
to eliminate arts funding, as well as her acting career and the early
life
that led to both these vocations. On hand to pay tribute to Alexander
are
Hillary Clinton, James Earl Jones, playwright Wendy Wasserstein, her
son,
second husband, and four friends the 61-year-old has kept from her days
at Sarah Lawrence college. Actress and friend Marsha Mason narrates
this
43-minute biography, which features a clip from the film version of The
Great White Hope, in which she played the white mistress of a black
boxer
(Jones)--the part won her a Tony for her stage role as well as hate
mail
from '60s-era whites. Her personal trials (including divorce and
blended
family issues) and solaces (a happy second marriage, nature) are
discussed
as well as the still-unfolding career of this respected actress.
--Kimberly
Heinrichs
Maya
Angelou "...one of the most prominent literary figures
of the 20th century, grew up during--and became a vital part of--one of
the most volatile periods of American history. The inspiring, tragic,
outrageous
life of Maya Angelou could be the subject of an entire college course,
but this video serves as a terrific first primer. This Intimate
Portrait
provides an overview of her life and accomplishments; interviews and
video
clips show Anglou's rise from a difficult childhood to her development
into a world-renowned poet, author, and teacher. The paramount value of
this production lies in the interviews with her brother and son, and,
of
course, with Angelou herself. Actress and talk-show host Oprah Winfrey
provides reverent narration. --Brendan J. LaSalle
Christie
Brinkley "..narrated by Brinkley's good friend Jill
Rappaport,
takes viewers from the supermodel's girlhood... through her four
marriages
and astonishing career. ... neither Brinkley nor the producers shy from
discussing her trials: a near-fatal helicopter crash, the death of a
cherished
boyfriend, and three failed marriages... still has managed a life as a
mother, wife and entrepreneur."
Louise
Brooks: Looking For Lulu "As self-destructive as she
was
brilliant, Brooks rose to international stardom, only to tumble into an
abyss of dead-end jobs and alcoholism before re-emerging as a film
scholar
and cult icon. Narrated by Shirley Macline, this critically acclaimed
documentary
combines rare film footage and photographs with interviews with Brooks'
friends, relatives and colleagues such as Francis Lederer, Brook's
co-star
from Pandora's Box, and actors Roddy McDowall and Dana Delany.
Particularly
fascinating is a rare, previously unseen interview with Louise Brooks,
filmed in 1976."
Mary
Cassatt - American Impressionist
Starring: Amy Brenneman.
"...
docudrama about the life of Mary Cassatt, an American impressionist
painter who honed her
artistic
talents in Paris."
Tyne
Daly "... so believed in the magic of the theater
that she broke her wrist after seeing Peter Pan as a child, believing
she
could fly. As an adult, her career became airborne, reaching a pinnacle
when she played Mary Beth Lacey in one of the biggest TV shows of the
1980s,
Cagney & Lacey. This Intimate Portrait.. recounts the politics
behind
the hit show as well as the careers of Tyne Daly and her ex- husband,
George
Stanford Brown. It also examines how show business can strain a
marriage;
her divorce is her "greatest regret." The child of actor parents had
planned
to "become a nun to the theater," but instead made an interracial
marriage
at a time when it was still illegal in some states. Always juggling
family
and career, she nabbed a breakthrough role with Clint Eastwood in The
Enforcer
and followed her TV success with the Tony-winning lead role as Gypsy on
Broadway. At 50, she shaved her head to signify rebirth for the second
half of her life. At the end of this portrait, she recites her favorite
poem, about love, for the cameras--and she's not acting. --Valerie J.
Nelson
Sally
Field The
video
shows off her big-time film career, from Norma Rae to Absence of
Malice,
Steel Magnolias, and Places in the Heart, which earned her an Oscar and
a place in Hollywood history for her much-parodied "you really like me"
speech. She defends those words and discusses how Hollywood doesn't
allow
women to grow old on screen. [the film] relies a little too heavily on
Field's words, but it's an informative trip through modern Hollywood
with
a woman who "is able to make ordinary life look heroic." --Valerie J.
Nelson
Anjelica
Huston "Anjelica Huston says she decided to become an
actress
at age 16.. She proved to be good enough at acting to win an Oscar for
Prizzi's Honor, a film directed by her father, John Huston. That award
was especially appropriate, because, like the character she portrayed
in
the film, Huston desperately wanted to earn her father's approval. This
hour-long video produced by the Lifetime Channel focuses on Huston's
relationships
with the men in her life: her father; actor Jack Nicholson, with whom
she
lived for 17 years until his infidelity prompted her to leave; and her
current husband, sculptor Robert Graham. Like others in the Intimate
Portrait
series, this video takes a personal rather than career-based approach
and
includes Huston's memories of playing dress-up as a little girl and
photos
of her recent wedding. The program is narrated by Lauren Bacall..."
Lauren
Hutton "Hutton's early life has
elements
of fine fiction--a father she never knew, a childhood of extremes in
which
she raised her siblings on the edge of a Florida swamp. The former
"Mary"
becomes "Lauren" as an ode to Lauren Bacall, then quickly makes it big
in New York. She lives for decades with a man who becomes her manager,
but the relationship goes sour as she learns he's lost most of her
earnings.
There's modeling, too, but in the context of a life lived off the
runway.
Hutton is credited with cutting the first million-dollar deal given a
model,
with Revlon, in 1973. Women love Hutton, who's well into her 50s and
still
a force in American culture..." [amazon.com review by Valerie J. Nelson]
Margot
Kidder
'What
Margot Kidder calls "the most public flip-out in human history" is
fully
documented through an in-depth interview with the actress... After
years
of manic-depression, the actress best known for playing Lois Lane in
Superman
had a psychotic episode. She credits L.A.'s homeless, a Buddhist
acupuncturist,
and her family with saving her life. This biography is packed with so
many
juicy tidbits it almost seems like a spoof of the genre. Frenzied
writing
from her journals shows how she thought she was crazy. A handful of
friends
and colleagues weigh in, including Superman director Richard Donner,
actor
John Heard... Christopher Reeve (post-accident), who recalls the
high-wire
act that made the pair "fly" on-screen.'
Christine
Lahti "The third of six children, actress Christine Lahti
grew
up seeking attention. And now she has it in spades: first a famously
delayed
Oscar speech due to a bathroom visit, then a high-profile role on TV's
Chicago Hope, and now her own Intimate Portrait from the folks at
Lifetime.
This 44- minute biography, narrated by friend and actress Mary Kay
Place,
traces Lahti's Midwestern roots, New York theater career, and respected
movie roles. A substantial portion of this portrait focuses on her
early
struggles to start a career with a less-than-glamorous image, as well
as
her effort to restart her career after age 40. Her marriage to director
Thomas Schlamme and their family life is also featured in interviews by
their director and screenwriter friends, her brother Jim, and
performers
including Goldie Hawn and Ted Danson. Old home movies and clips of her
film and television roles make for an entertaining look at one of
America's
more serious actresses. --Kimberly Heinrichs
Bird
by Bird with Annie: A Film Portrait of Writer Anne Lamott
"This
hour-long video follows Lamott around for a year as she gives readings,
raises her son, and participates in church. Topics great and small are
covered, from the difficulty in doing anything with her kinky hair and
how she became the class clown to her nightly drinking and the decision
whether to have her baby or terminate the pregnancy. Along the way she
dispenses writing tips, and if you're struggling with your own work,
she
is immensely comforting.."
Vanessa
Redgrave "When Vanessa Redgrave was born, as her
actress
mother tells it, Sir Laurence Olivier announced prophetically from a
British
stage, "Tonight a great actress has been born." So begins this
biography
of the renowned actress from a dynasty that includes her father Michael
Redgrave, her sister Lynn, and daughters Natasha and Joely Richardson.
Redgrave's mother, brother, and a few old friends join the actress in
telling
her story of the stage and screen, political activism, and family, with
narration from Meryl Streep. ... her story is riveting, from a
childhood
spent apart from her parents during the World War II bombing of Great
Britain
to her precipitous rise in British theater and simultaneous marriage to
director Tony Richardson, through his subsequent desertion of her (and
his eventual death from AIDS) and her affairs with other actors. This
portrait
doesn't shy away from portraying the pro-Palestinian politics that
damaged
her career, and includes tape of her famous "Zionist hoodlums" Oscar
acceptance
speech. Plentiful photos and clips from stage and movie performances
round
out this candid profile of a straightforward lady. --Kimberly Heinrichs
Ayn
Rand: A Sense of Life "Examination of the popular author,
screenwriter,
and philosopher, tracing her historic roots in the Soviet Union, her
years
in Hollywood, her talk show appearances expounding her controversial
theories
of Objectivism and individual rights, and her testimony before the
House
Un-American Activities Committee. Also incorporates dramatizations of
her
works and sequences illustrating her life."
Intimate
Portrait - Sally
Ride "Sally Kristen Ride was born on May 26, 1951 in
Encino,
California (near Los Angeles). At 27, with B.A., B.S., and masters'
degrees,
she was a Ph.D. candidate looking for postdoctoral work in astrophysics
when she read about NASA's call for astronauts in the Stanford
University
paper. More than 8,000 men and women applied to the space program that
year. 35 were accepted, six of whom were women. One was Sally Ride.
After
joining NASA in 1977 Ride underwent extensive training that included
parachute
jumping, water survival, gravity and weightlessness training, radio
communications
and navigation. She enjoyed flight training so much that flying became
a favorite hobby. During the second and third flights of the space
shuttle
Columbia (November 1981 and March 1982), Ride served as communications
officer, relaying radio messages from mission control to the shuttle
crews.
Dr. Ride was also assigned to the team that designed the remote
mechanical
arm, used by shuttle crews to deploy and retrieve satellites." [image
&
profile from site]
Jane
Seymour
"In this in-depth look at Jane Seymour's professional and personal
life,
Seymour's mother speaks candidly about Joyce Penelope Wilhelmina
Frankenberg
(Seymour's given name) and her incredible drive, which included her
desire
to become a ballerina. Seymour reminisces about dancing with the Kirov
Ballet and her devastation when a knee injury ended her ballet career.
The resilient Seymour soon received public recognition as an actress in
Oh! What a Lovely War and Live and Let Die, and her Emmy-nominated
performance
in the miniseries Captains and the Kings earned her the nickname "Queen
of the Miniseries." Seymour's accolades include an Emmy for The Woman
He
Loved and Golden Globes for East of Eden and Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman.
Stars such as Tom Selleck and family friends offer glowing tributes and
insights into the real Jane Seymour. Especially moving are the warm
remembrances
from Christopher Reeve, who was both a colleague and a personal friend.
Also fascinating is the insightful look at Seymour's mother's
internment
during World War II and its profound influence on the actress's
portrayal
of Natalie in War and Remembrance. Equally absorbing is Seymour's
candid
discussion of her personal life, which briefly touches on her three
previous
marriages and focuses on her current marriage to James Keach."
Gloria
Steinem "This Lifetime
Intimate
Portrait takes viewers back to Steinem's decidedly unglamorous Ohio
childhood,
during which she was forced to care for her mentally ill mother after
her
father left them. That early responsibility, coupled with grinding
poverty,
prepared her for her lifetime battle to improve the lives of women. The
never-married Steinem, now in her 60s, gamely tells much in this
43-minute
documentary, narrated by actress Goldie Hawn. She is aided in the
recounting
of her story by her older sister and sister feminists--including Marlo
Thomas, as well as former beaus. Her abortion, prefeminist sojourn in
India
as a Mahatma Gandhi follower, short stint as an undercover
journalist/Playboy
bunny, and long battle to keep Ms. magazine solvent all get fair play
as
this biography explores the makings of one of feminism's most important
figures."
video series: Potentials
"Guests include: Barbara
Marx
Hubbard, Gene Roddenberry, Brugh Joy, Sen. John Vasconcellos, Timothy
Leary,
Toni & John Lilly, Jerry Pournelle, Alexandra Morton, Ray Bradbury,
Marilyn Ferguson, Rev. James Lawson, Lt. Col. Jim Channon, Norman
Cousins,
Buckminster Fuller, & Willis Harman.
Body
Mind Exercises
Synopsis (amazon.com):
Intended
as a companion tape to "Passion for the Possible," this program
features
a series of exercises designed to assist viewers in expanding awareness
and intellect by improving memory and physical and psychological
powers.
By Dr. Jean Houston.
Lilith
Fair - A Celebration of Women in Music [Amazon.com:]
"If
you assumed that this video of Lilith Fair... was for women only, well,
you wouldn't be far wrong. Not that there's anything wrong with that.
The
80-minute video mixes interview clips and backstage footage with
concert
performances by such performers as Sarah McLachlan (Lilith Fair's
founder),
the Indigo Girls, Sheryl Crow, Jewel, Meredith Brooks, and Shawn
Colvin.
Individually and together, they talk about the industry pressures on
women
in popular music and the sense of community that developed between the
performers, as they shared the collective experience of Lilith Fair.
And
if you guessed that this is a lengthy collection of gently lilting folk
songs, guess again. While there is plenty of ultra-sensitive warbling,
these women can also rock, including the Indigo Girls (on "Shame on
You")
and Meredith Brooks (on "Bitch"). --Marshall Fine
Masters
of Illusion "This documentary hosted by James Burke is a
fascinating
examination of the concept of how we see things, specifically how
images
that appear to our eyes to be three-dimensional are rendered
convincingly
on flat surfaces. Starting out in a movie studio special effects lab,
Burke
explains how visual illusions practiced today actually began during the
Renaissance, when painters first mastered the skills of incorporating
the
idea of depth into paintings. ... Quotes from Leonardo da Vinci's
writings,
in which he talked about perspective and the effects of light, are
offered
along with examples of his paintings that illustrate beautifully how a
master used a scientific principle to create great art." -- Robert J.
McNamara
Passion
for the Possible
Description (amazon.com):
Noted
philosopher and author Dr. Jean Houston hosts this program intended to
help viewers improve their lives by locating and activating four key
inner
realms: the sensory or physical, the psychological, the mythical or
symbolic,
and the spiritual. Particular attention is paid to the connection
between
universal myths, life experiences, and spirituality. Intended for use
in
conjunction with companion tape, Body
Mind Exercises
The
Primal Mind
Synopsis (amazon.com): All
cultures
have different conceptions of existence, of art and of the environment.
"Primal Mind" explores the belief systems of various Native American
tribes,
and compares them to the European world view. In particular, the
documentary
focuses on dance, drawing and sculpture, and sees how Southwestern
tribal
rituals, Navajo sand paintings and pre-Columbian stone carvings have
influenced
some of the most important artists of the 20th century... including
Martha
Graham and Pablo Picasso.
"The revered
actress holds
forth on all the salient points of her approach to character, probing
the
text, testing technique, and challenging her students to act and think;
act and reflect; act and choose.
Above all, the
viewer will
learn that in Uta Hagen's classes, acting is doing. Not thinking or
feeling,
but in action.
Clear and
practical, her
teaching is behavior based. 'It's in the doing that we believe.' The
videos,
90 Minutes each, provide illuminating examples of her teaching points
selected
from two hundred hours of recorded classes over a two year period.
All ten of her
famous 'Object
Exercises' are performed and critiqued. We watch as the actors/students
present their scene and Uta gives her comments. As the student re-works
the scene, we actually see her guide the student to be better." [publisher
summary]
Artemisia
"Italian Baroque painter Artemisia Gentileschi... is
two
distinctly different entities. One is a gorgeous early-17th-century
Lolita.
The other is a fearlessly ambitious teen-age prodigy who is so sure of
her talent that she breaks the rules of female decorum and dares go
where
no "nice" woman of her time and station has gone before."
Henri
Cartier-Bresson "... Filmed in color to resemble
black and white, like the photographs for which French photographer
Henri
Cartier-Bresson is so famous.."
Mary
Cassatt - American Impressionist
Starring: Amy Brenneman.
"...
docudrama about the life of Mary Cassatt, an American impressionist
painter who honed her
artistic
talents in Paris."
Chuck
Close: A Portrait in Progress [reviewer:]
"This is a fantastic video. I use it regularly for teaching. It gives a
wonderful & sophisticated view of Chuck Close as an individual and
an artist, as well as a glimpse of the other artist's work who are
interviewed
in the video. It is filmed in a very immediate and personal style..."
The
Life and Works of M.C. Escher [Amazon.com
review:] "..follows the man from his childhood in the Netherlands
through
his extended stay in southern Italy, and finally northward to
Switzerland
and back home, where he produced some of his most challenging work.
Including
beautiful footage of the Mediterranean landscapes, interviews with
Escher,
and many of his works (both famous and obscure), this video presents a
classic portrait of a man obsessed with his work."
The
Masters of Comic Book Art [Amazon.com
review:] "Meet the heroes behind the superheroes as host Harlan Ellison
introduces ten of the world's best comic book artists. Discover the
philosophy
and creative process behind many landmark characters. Artists include
Frank
Miller, Jack Kirby, Steve Ditko, Dave Sim..."
Georgia
O'Keeffe "This 1977
documentary
was produced toward the end of O'Keefe's life, at a time when the
artist
was at one with her art and her life. The hour-long film plays mainly
off
of O'Keefe's own words; there is no narrator's voice, there is barely
an
interviewer's voice. O'Keefe speaks alone..."
Painters
Painting - The New
York Art
Scene: 1940-70 [Amazon.com review:] "...features artists Willem De
Kooning,
Jasper Johns, Andy Warhol, Robert Rauschenberg, Helen Frankenthaler,
Frank
Stella, Barnett Newman, Hans Hoffman, Jules Olitski, Philip Pavia,
Larry
Poons, Robert Motherwell and Kenneth Noland informally in their
studios."
Jackson
Pollock [not actually the movie
Pollock
- a 40 minute biography/precursor to the movie
with
several
interviews with friends, fellow artists and other misc. aquaintences]
Susan Scheewe - Watercolor
Techniques for Everyone [reviewer:] "Susan Scheewe is
an
outstanding instructor who presents watercolor techniques in an easy to
follow and understand manner and format. With no formal art training
and
no prior experience with painting, I have learned and am able to apply
the principles and techniques taught by the author."
Sister
Wendy in Conversation with Bill Moyers "...Britain's
self-taught
art nun turned international celebrity... shares her views on looking
at
art, living in seclusion.. an inspiring sojourn through the world of
art
and ideas, from Sister Wendy's passionate involvement in art and
spirituality
to her thoughts on sex, sensuality, television and contemplation."
28
Days "No one in this world should not go to rehab. It's
a place of honesty
where you deal with what
happened
in life...on a day to day basis. I've never met anyone who handles
everything, chemically,
emotionally,
biologically, mentally - we're human beings, bound to crack. ...
We don't teach people how to
survive, to be honest, to [take time to] take care of ourselves
emotionally.
That's the last thing we're
taught to do." Sandra Bullock [who stars in the film]
Angels
and Insects Kristin Scott Thomas
plays a
gifted writer and naturalist in Victorian England
Anne
of Green Gables
ANNE: Red. That's why
I can't ever be perfectly happy. I know I'm skinny and a little
freckled
and my eyes are green.
I can imagine I have a
beautiful
rose-leaf complexion and lovely, starry violet eyes, but I cannot
imagine
my red hair
away. It'll be my life-long
sorrow. I read of a girl in a novel once who was divinely beautiful.
Have
you ever imagined
what it must be like to be
divinely
beautiful? Oh, I have often. Which would you rather be? Divinely
beautiful,
or
dazzlingly clever, or
angelically
good?
MATTHEW: Well, I don't know.
ANNE: Neither do I. I know
I'll
never be angelically good; Mrs. Spencer says I talk so much that...
As
Good As It Gets "Do you have any control over how
creepy
you allow yourself to get?"
Waitress Carol Connelly (Helen Hunt) to her obsessive-compulsive
customer,
writer Melvin Udall (Jack Nicholson).
Barton
Fink
"... gleefully attacks the
Hollywood
system and those who seek to sell out to it, portraying the writer's
suffering
as a loony vision of hell. John Turturro plays.. a pretentious
left-wing
writer from New York City who is brought to 1930s Hollywood to write a
script for a wrestling movie... He thinks the job is beneath him, but
his
desire for acceptance gets the better of him, and he suddenly finds
himself
holed up in a fleabag hotel in Los Angeles, where he is almost
immediately
afflicted with writer's block..." [amazon.com
review]
Broadcast
News (1987) Holly Hunter plays a driven and brilliant TV news
producer. A classic scene: she's asked "What does it feel like to know
the answer all the time? and replies, "Awful." Also stars William Hurt.
Contact
One of the appealing things about her character in "Contact" was the
intense
involvement of astronomer Dr. Ellie Arroway with her work, says Jodie
Foster:
"The foremost thing about Ellie's character, that's true in the book,
in
the screenplay, and definitely on screen, is that she is completely and
totally passionate. And that's something that I was dying to play:
somebody
that is very involved and very focused on an intellectual process, and
that that process allows her to fly in ways that feels very loving and
emotional. And feels very human. I think too often, intellectual
processes
are portrayed as some kind of dry, scientific thing that doesn't have a
connection to the soul. And when you're obsessed by something, when
something
fascinates you, it's wondrous. And in fact, if anything, I think she's
a zealot, so it's actually kind of a movie about a zealot who learns to
have tolerance for other people's zeal." <<
from interview with Jodie Foster
Cradle
Will Rock 'The art and theater world of 1930's New York
City... As labor strikes break out throughout the country, New York
City
is alive with a burgeoning cultural revolution... Nelson Rockefeller
(John
Cusack) commissions Mexican artist Diego Rivera (Ruben Blades) to paint
the lobby of Rockefeller Center, while Italian propagandist Margherita
Sarfatti (Susan Sarandon) sells Da Vincis to millionaires to fund the
Mussolini
war effort. A paranoid ventriloquist (Bill Murray) tries to rid his
vaudeville
troupe of communists, and a 22-year-old Orson Welles (Angus MacFadyen)
directs his Federal Theater group in an infamous stage production of
"The
Cradle Will Rock," closed down on the eve of its opening by U.S.
soldiers.
Based on true events, "Cradle Will Rock" relives an exciting and
dangerous
time in American history, when individual courage prevailed over
censorship,
and artists risked their livelihood by continuing to perform and paint
according to conscience. Filmed in the raucous, screwball spirit of
1930's
films, "Cradle Will Rock" also stars Hank Azaria, Joan Cusack, Cary
Elwes,
Philip Baker Hall, Cherry Jones, Vanessa Redgrave, John Turturro, and
Emily
Watson." [Amazon.com summary]
Dead
Poets Society "... about
teacher John
Keating's [Robin Williams] influence on a crop of impressionable young
lads at Vermont's "Welton Academy" ... When professor Keating, a Welton
alumnus, brings in his subversive modus operandi (he starts by
insisting
his class tear out the club-headed introduction to a poetry book), it's
academic liberation from then on. He has them march in circles, stand
up
on their desks (to see things from another perspective) and generally
question
conventional thinking. Little by little, his pupils (a fine
classroomful
of young performers -- Robert Sean Leonard, Ethan Hawke, Josh Charles,
Gale Hansen and others) spread their wings." [from Washington Post
review]
Erin
Brockovich
"Why are women who possess a
firm round butt and full breasts considered unintelligent? The thought
crossed my mind while I was watching "Erin Brochovich," a film based on
a true story of a single mother's fight with a corporation that is
poisoning
a town's water supply. Erin Brochovich [pictured], convincingly
portrayed
by Julia Roberts, is a woman with a trashy mouth and a trashy sense of
clothing style that includes form fitting skirts and cleavage popping
blouses.
She was a former beauty queen whose life didn't turn out the way she
had
planned. With undependable babysitters, mounting bills, and no job
skills,
she finally does land a job at a law firm that lost her injury case.
There,
she is left to fend for herself, as the other women in the office treat
her as an outsider. There is no question, why the women in the firm
keep
Erin at arms length and do nothing to help acclimate her to the office
environment. They are fully aware of the power a woman has when she is
attractive and bold." from article My Take on Brochovich by Yvette
Plummer
[Womenfilms.com]
Fly
Away Home Anna Paquin plays a girl who realizes a number of
her
talents through flying an ultralight plane to help a flock of geese
survive.
Georgia
[Reel.com Snapshot:] "Intimate, character-driven, downbeat drama
chronicles
rivalry between two musician sisters. Critics praised the strong
performances
in this challenging, talky, deliberately paced film. Not light fare;
requires
full viewer attention. Stars: Jennifer Jason Leigh, Mare Winningham
Girl,
Interrupted (Winona
Ryder; Angelina
Jolie; Whoopi Goldberg; etc) based
on
book: Susanna Kaysen. Girl,
Interrupted // from the book:
"The
more I thought about it, the more absurd it became. I couldn't take all
those rules seriously... I was the one person who had trouble with the
rules. Everybody else accepted them. Was this a mark of my madness?...
Was I crazy or was I right? In 1967, this was a hard question to
answer.
Even twenty-five years later, it's a hard question to answer."
Good
Will Hunting stars Matt
Damon
as a "blue-collar math genius trying to overcome his troubled past" -
helped
by a sympathetic and thoughtful psychotherapist, played by Robin
Williams
Henry
& June [Amazon.com
summary:] "Anaïs
Nin (Maria de Medeiros) is a young woman in 1930s Paris whose husband
is
slowly defecting from art to working in a bank, leaving her very bored.
When the then-unpublished Brooklyn writer Henry Miller (Fred Ward)
enters
her life, she embarks on a journey of seduction and sexual exploration
that eventually leads from the writer to his wife, June (Uma Thurman),
who finances her husband's life in Paris so he may praise her beauty in
his writing. Unhappy with her husband's writing and her lovers' affair,
June enters a jealous rage, forcing Henry into suffering-artist mode
and
Nin back to her husband. ... The strength of the original material and
Medeiros's decidedly unflawed performance.. make it worth viewing."
"Lisa Cholodenko... makes
her
film's main character a once-celebrated photographer
named Lucy Berliner, who is
played by Ally Sheedy in a fierce, tricky performance
that is the film's strongest
element. Spooked by fame, Lucy long ago retreated from
the art world to live a
reclusive,
druggy life in an apartment that has become a louche
mecca for her lesbian
friends.
... [Art magazine assistant] Syd (Radha Mitchell) ..
fastens on the idea of
drawing
Lucy out of seclusion.. ... Guarded, bony, startlingly
intense, Lucy finds herself
intrigued by Syd and the opportunity she offers: to shake off
the heroin haze and dare to
start life anew." [from NY Times review by Janet Maslin]
Illuminata
"Mostly set in a teeming warren of private and performance spaces
within
a turn-of-the-century theater, the film follows the fluctuating
fortunes
of playwright Tuccio (John Turturro), his lover-muse-leading lady
(Katherine
Borowitz, Turturro's offscreen wife), and their colorful company: Rufus
Sewell and Georgina Cates, youthful, less wise projections of
playwright
and muse; Ben Gazzara as a grizzled old thespian forgetful of the line
between reality and performance; Bill Irwin as the naive bit player who
catches the hungry eye of Christopher Walken's deliciously
over-the-top,
acid-tongued critic; Susan Sarandon as a calculatingly seductive diva
fighting
her age; and commedia dell'arte types Aida Turturro and Leo Bassi.
Tuccio's
dying to get his play on the boards, but as theater owners Beverly
D'Angelo
and Donal McCann... reasonably point out, his delicate fantasy about
love
and illusion lacks an ending. ... In Mac, his directorial debut,
Turturro
paid heartfelt tribute to his own blue-collar dad; this sophomore
effort
(cowritten with friend and fellow director Brandon Cole) glows with
warm
affection for audiences, actors, and those who dream their plays. --
Kathleen
Murphy
Jane
Eyre To portray Jane as an adult, who grows to
realize
her powers of intellect and self-respect, and her capacities to love
and
transform, director Zeffirelli cast French Academy Award winner
Charlotte
Gainsbourg. Her complex authenticity brings to life a portrait of an
extraordinary
woman, passionate, intelligent and fiercely independent and principled.
Little
Man Tate [Reel.com Snapshot:]
Acclaimed
drama about evolving relationships between child genius, protective
mom,
ambitious teacher. Critics praised its performances, script. Stars:
Jodie
Foster, Dianne Wiest, Adam Hann-Byrd
Little
Women Winona Ryder stars as Jo in the
classic
story of a young writer in the 1860s finding ways to realize her
talents
as a writer. Also stars Susan Sarandon and other gifted actresses.
Director:
Gillian Armstrong.
MollyElisabeth
Shue stars as a retarded / developmentally disabled woman
who undergoes an
experimental
neurosurgical procedure, resulting in her becoming - temporarily -
intellectually
gifted.
Mr.
Holland's Opus The struggles of
a
composer (Richard Dreyfuss) who changes his dreams of writing a
symphony,
to help his students [including one played by Alicia Witt] realize
their
own musical talents.
The
Muse James
Cameron
[director, writer, producer: "Titanic" etc.] getting
advice about his next film from his Muse,
Sarah (Sharon Stone): "Stay
away from water."
The
Nasty Girl the title character is a young woman with an
intellectual passion for uncovering her town's true WWII activities,
despite
the negative responses of others. Stars: Lena Stolze, Monika Baumgartner
Oscar
and Lucinda [Leonard Maltin's Movie & Video
Guide:]
"Odd romance of two Australian misfits in the mid 1800s: scarred and
tormented
clergyman's son [Ralph] Fiennes and independent Victorian heiress
[Cate]
Blanchett, both of whom are gambling fanatics. The wager of their lives
becomes surreal, as an iron-and-glass church is transported by sea and
overland into the wilderness."
Phenomenon"What's
the matter with everyone? They look at me like I'm a green bug."
ordinary
guy
turned genius 'George
Malley'
(John Travolta).
Pollock
starring Ed Harris, Marcia Gay Harden, et al. Director: Ed Harris
"Harris's fascination
with Pollock matched his physical similarity; the actor chose to direct
and star in this impressive film biography. And his devotion assured a
work of singular integrity, honoring the artist's achievement in
abstract
expressionism while acknowledging that Pollock was a tormented,
manic-depressive
alcoholic whose death at 44 (in a possibly suicidal car crash) also
claimed
the life of an innocent woman. The film also suggests that Pollock's
success
was largely attributable to the devotion of his wife, artist Lee
Krasner,
played with matching ferocity by Marcia Gay Harden in an Oscar-winning
performance. [Amazon.com review:]
Searching
for Bobby Fischer [from
Leonard
Maltin's Movie & Video Guide:] "Compelling, surefooted drama,
based on a true story: A father discovers that his 7-year-old son has a
genius for chess, and enters him in competition, losing sight of what
this
does to the boy's psyche--and his pure enjoyment of the game. Poignant,
heart-rending at times (especially for any parent) and exceptionally
well
done. Screenplay by first-time director Zaillian, from the book by Fred
Waitzkin, who's the real-life chess whiz's father."
Shine
"..about real-life classical pianist David Helfgott, an Australian who
rose to international prominence at a very young age in the 1950s and
'60s,
and suffered a psychological collapse after enduring years of abuse
from
his father (Armin Mueller-Stahl). Hicks has three very fine actors
portraying
Helfgott at different stages of his life, including the adorably wry
and
goofy Noah Taylor (Flirting), who takes up the character's teen years,
and Oscar winner Geoffrey Rush, giving a great performance playing the
musician as a schizophrenic adult. Despite the Helfgotts' compromised
psychological
health, Shine is hardly a depressing experience. If anything, the story
is really about how long one person's life can take to make glorious
sense
of itself. Sir John Gielgud, in golden form, plays Helfgott's teacher.
The DVD release presents the film in its widescreen format, and also
includes
a Q&A with director Hicks and Rush's Golden Globes acceptance
speech.
--Tom Keogh
Smilla's
Sense of Snow "Inuit/Greenlander
Smilla
Jaspersen [Julia Ormond] is a world-class expert on ice and snow who,
since
emigrating to Denmark, has gone on nine scientific expeditions to her
homeland
and published half a dozen highly regarded papers in scholarly
journals--but
she still can't hold a steady job. ... She attempts to understand the
death
of a small boy who falls from the roof of her apartment building...
uncovers
a series of conspiracies and cover-ups... faces up to the disdain of
male
cops etc."
Spellbound
Alfred Hitchcock's classic romantic thriller/mystery about a
psychiatrist
(Ingrid Bergman) encountering danger and romance while helping a male
colleague
(Gregory Peck)
Topsy-Turvy
"This delightful and thoroughly entertaining drama set in London during
the1880s depicts the rescue of the troubled artistic partnership
between
William S. Gilbert and Arthur Sullivan with the creation "The Mikado."
Mike Leigh ("Secrets and Lies") is the writer and director of this
detailed
biodrama that will appeal to all serious students of the creative
process
and the play of the imagination. After years of cranking out the music
for comic operas, composer Arthur Sullivan (Allan Corduner) is
burned-out
and sickly. He decides to recover on the continent in what turns out to
be a hedonistic trip. He also tells Richard D'Oyly Carte (Ron Cook) of
the Savoy Theatre and Helen Lenoir (Wendy Nottingham), its business
manager,
that he will no longer be writing operettas
with lyricist
William Gilbert (Jim Broadbent in a tour de force performance.) He
remains
determined to keep to his decision when his hears his
partner's ideas for a new work. Sullivan soundly criticizes
the"topsy-turvy"
elements of magic in it. ... Although "Topsy-Turvy" runs a tad too
long,
this is a first-class biodrama filled with a variety of captivating
selections
from "The Mikado." [review: Frederic Brussat, Values & Visions
Reviews
www.spiritualrx.com]
Unstrung
Heroes Stars: Andie MacDowell, John
Turturro
as her eccentric inventor husband; Director: Diane Keaton
Vanya
On 42nd Street "This brilliant, entertaining update of
Chekhov's 'Uncle Vanya' was directed by the late, great Louis Malle,
who
set the play within the context of actors rehearsing for a modern
version
of 'Vanya' - literally, a play within a play. Wallace Shawn stars as
the
title character, a lead actor vainly pursuing a verboten relationship
with
a costar named Yelena (Julianne Moore of Safe and Short Cuts), who's
married
to his own brother-in-law. Life, love, passion and pain get a vigorous
workout in this excellent production that will live on as Malle's great
final work. Brooke Smith, Larry Pine and Andre Gregory costar. [review
by sundancechannel.com]
Welcome
Home Roxy Carmichael [A viewer:] "This is
the
typical teen movie, but with the psychological twist most Winona Ryder
movies have. By psychological, i mean there are times when the
characters
have traumas in their lives-normal people problems. This
character-Dinky-has
self esteem problems, and so do her parents(not with self esteem).
Everyone
in this movie has a problem and that's what I like. This movie mixes
real
life with a Cinderella twist (teen outsider gets popular cute guy). I
reccomend
this to any teen girl and maybe her boyfriend." // [Leonard Maltin's
Movie
& Video Guide:] "Small Ohio town goes berserk anticipating return
of
sexy and mysterious hometown girl Roxy Carmichael, who's been away in
Hollywood
living a life of luxury. Teenage beatnik Ryder--moody, brilliant,
alienated,
intuitive, and adopted--starts fantasizing that Roxy is actually her
mother."
The
Whole Wide World**
[from Leonard Maltin's Movie
& Video Guide:] "Poignant, based-on-fact drama,
set in Texas during the
1930s
and charting the complex relationship between two
independent-minded souls:
pulp
novelist Robert E. Howard [Vincent D'Onofrio],
the obsessive, overbearing
creator
of Conan the Barbarian, and schoolteacher/aspiring
writer Novalyne Price [Rene
Zelwegger], upon whose memoir this is based. Their
dreams and realities are
vividly
etched in this extremely well acted film."
Wonder
Boys***
Pushing 50, Grady Tripp
(Michael
Douglas), an English professor
who was once the wonder boy
and darling of the literati, is unable
to finish his new novel,
which
has grown to humongous proportions.
Consumed with fear that it
will
fail to live up to his masterpiece,
published seven years
earlier,
he toys with various endings while
the new book sits, waiting
to
be rescued.
[from Variety review
by Emanuel Levy, Feb 21, 2000]
X-Men
In a time when race and religion don't separate people, but extra
powers
and mutated characteristics do, two longtime friends, Professor Charles
Xavier (Patrick Stewart) and Magneto (Ian McKellen) part ways, only to
become rivals over the issue of how much patience they should have with
"normal" people. Living lives that scare most humans lacking the
"X-factor"
(a special power such as telekinesis), they fight over changing the
general
population into mutants. Xavier decides to help mutants in a special
school
while waiting for humanity to be more accepting, while Magneto opts to
change all "normal" people into mutants in order to create a
mutant-only
world. Leading a group of four powerful X Men (and women) to rescue one
lost girl (the mutant Rogue, played by Anna Paquin)--and the entire
population
of New York--Xavier recruits a new member to their group: Logan (Hugh
Jackman),
better known as Wolverine, joins the team with much reluctance, only to
prove very valuable to the rescue effort. Each member of the X Men has
mastered their special gift--the ability to create a storm (Storm,
played
by Halle Berry), telekinesis (Dr. Jean Grey, played by Famke Janssen),
eyesight carrying laserlike destructive power (Cyclops, played by James
Marsden), or sharp blades that extend from your hands (Wolverine, also
capable of healing nearly any wound he sustains). -- Sandra Levin
![[Image]](bluline2.gif){kind=small}
gifted
characters in film / TV : a few suggestions
Helen Baxendale as Cordelia : TV series An
Unsuitable Job For A Woman 
Rob
Brown in Finding
Forrester 
Intimate
Portrait - 
more
documentary / instructional: 
--home
page..::
Talent Development Resources....**site contents
/ search****
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etc
*sections
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