Thompson on Hollywood

Oscar Watch: The Pitt Debate

Some see Pitt's performance in The Curious Case of Benjamin Button as a transformative role of a lifetime, while others see it as a mix of Pitt and genius visual effects. The question is, how did the Academy actors who will nominate the top five actors of the year see it? At various Golden Globes parties over the weekend, I heard both sides of the argument. Did Paramount, which has done a yeoman job of getting the movie open and turning it into a hit, reveal too much of the process? And how do Academy voters feel about the animation involved in Pitt's performance?

By Anne Thompson
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January 11, 2009 3:57 AM
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The Curious Case of Benjamin Button: Review

I saw The Curious Case of Benjamin Button on Saturday (following the aborted Thursday screening), and have been trying to sort it out ever since.

By Anne Thompson
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November 23, 2008 8:08 AM
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Oscar Watch: Early Benjamin Button Review

EDITED TO READ: So, to be clear: THIS IS NOT A REVIEW. Not a Variety review or a review at all. What it is: Notes from a viewer's responses to a screening of David Fincher's The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, starring Brad Pitt as the man who ages backwards. Get annoyed, growl, sneer, be jealous... whatever you like, just don't call it a review. The person is neither a reviewer nor associated with the film in any way.

By Anne Thompson
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November 12, 2008 5:40 AM
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Brad Pitt Shoots Angelina Jolie, Up Close, for W

Brad Pitt makes his photography debut at W Magazine this month, which assigned him to take up-close-and-personal shots of mama Jolie with her kids. It was a brilliant idea and will be hugely successful. The intimacy of the shots is something that would be difficult for any outsider to achieve.

By Anne Thompson
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October 14, 2008 4:26 AM
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Telluride Watch 3: Benjamin Button, Slumdog Millionaire, and Awards Buzz

One of the tricks of the fall film fest trade is to launch a few movies that will gain awards season traction. Telluride has often done well picking some of these pics in advance, such as Brokeback Mountain, Walk the Line and last year's Juno. So given this year's short supply of completed specialty division fare, as many distribs have opted to take the late-year approach to chasing Oscar, Telluride dug up its own indie and foreign gems to help them get some attention.

By Anne Thompson
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September 1, 2008 6:25 AM
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Telluride Watch 2: Fincher's Button Preview, Prodigal Sons

The first day of the 35th Telluride Film Festival started off hot and dry at the annual patron's brunch up the mountain. Tributee Jean Simmons sat under a melon-colored hat and blue umbrella, charming eager listeners, still beautiful. She remembered her then-husband, director Richard Brooks, telling Burt Lancaster during the filming of Elmer Gantry, "More teeth!" "Burt worked out on a trapeze every morning," Simmons said.

By Anne Thompson
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August 30, 2008 6:23 AM
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Coens' Burn After Reading, Starring Pitt and Clooney, Goes Wide

While speculation runs rampant on whether or not the Coens will take their next movie, the CIA pic Burn After Reading, starring Brad Pitt and George Clooney, to Cannes--obviously Thierry Fremaux will want it, but he hasn't screened it yet; UPDATE: Working Title says it probably won't be finished in time--in the meantime Focus Features has booked the Working Title movie to go wide on September 12. This suggests that after the Oscar-winning No Country for Old Men (which soared 67% this weekend) the Coens have jumped out of art-film territory and boast more commercial appeal; this pic's stars are certainly big enough to warrant a wide opening.

By Anne Thompson
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March 3, 2008 7:50 AM
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Oceans Gang Hits Croisette

Raucous laughter hit the Palais during the morning screening of Oceans Thirteen, which was followed by an equally entertaining press conference as Steven Soderbergh and his Oceans Thirteen gang goofed on themselves and the assembled press corps.