Thompson on Hollywood

DVD Review: 'The Words' Has A Serious Case of Writer's Block

Reviews

It would be easy to come away from "The Words" with the impression that writing is a stiff, musty line of work — all grand ballrooms, solemn readings, and blue-blooded accents, a veritable Titanic of pretensions. This would be a mistake. The only sinking ship here is the film itself.

By Matt Brennan
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December 26, 2012 6:11 AM
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Best Performances of 2012: A Good Year for the Broken, Disturbed and Driven

Features

A great year in film means a great year in acting. We've celebrated our Top Ten Films of 2012, and now it's time to give thanks for some of the performances that moved us this year.

By Sophia Savage
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December 25, 2012 7:00 AM
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Now and Then: Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas

Reviews

Early in "Meet Me in St. Louis," Esther Smith (Judy Garland) pines for the boy next door. Lent silky grace by Garland's perfect warble, Esther describes love — and, by extension, Vincente Minnelli's 1944 classic. "I want it to be something strange and wonderful," she says. "Something I'll always remember."

By Matt Brennan
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December 24, 2012 2:51 PM
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Forbes' Top-Grossing Actors of 2012: Robert Downey Jr., Kristen Stewart and Christian Bale

News

Forbes names the Top Grossing Actors of 2012, based on the global box office take of their films. Robert Downey Jr. takes the top spot; Forbes credits the worldwide success of "The Avengers" ($1.5 billion) to his "charm and humor" while noting that he'll be walking away with more money than his co-superheroes...

By Sophia Savage
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December 24, 2012 12:13 PM
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Now and Then: The Rachel Weisz Argument, or the Best Performers of the Year

Reviews

Last week, the NYFCC awarded Rachel Weisz its Best Actress prize for her sumptuous period turn in "The Deep Blue Sea," and well-deserved it was. But it reminded me of what I'm calling the Rachel Weisz Argument: an actor's entire body of work in a given year is a better measure of "best."

By Matt Brennan
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December 11, 2012 4:49 PM
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Jessica Chastain on CIA Agents & Actresses, Sex Symbol Status & Redheads in British GQ

Interviews

British GQ got Jessica Chastain to strip down for a bedroom-set photo shoot--often the standard for young actresses breaking into the mainstream with sex-symbol status, whether they want to do it or not (in the THR Actresses roundtable the women share stories). But Chastain seems genuinely happy to be playing the part.

By Sophia Savage
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November 29, 2012 1:20 PM
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Actresses Cotillard, Watts, Hathaway, Weisz, Field, Hunt & Adams Talk Fear, Fame, Nudity & Gender at THR Roundtable

Interviews

This year's THR Actress Roundtable features a smattering of lead and supporting actress contenders: Marion Cotillard ("Rust and Bone"), Naomi Watts ("The Impossible"), Helen Hunt ("The Sessions"), Anne Hathaway ("Les Miserables"), Sally Field ("Lincoln"), Rachel Weisz ("The Deep Blue Sea") and Amy Adams ("The Master"). The women discussed career challenges, the roles they've had to turn down, fight for, and the ones they're hungry to play, and gender imbalance in the industry. Check out some highlights below as well as our interviews with Cotillard, Watts and Weisz.

By Sophia Savage
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November 20, 2012 2:40 PM
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Now and Then: 'Lincoln,' the Movies, and Historical Accuracy

Reviews

"Lincoln" is no dour disquisition, no romance of an imagined past, but a heroic, even thrilling drama of compromise and chicanery in the midst of the Civil War. Indeed, it resolves one of the medium's oldest conundrums: "Lincoln" is that rare thing, good history and great cinema at once.

By Matt Brennan
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November 13, 2012 1:28 PM
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Chastain, Cooper, Jackman & Kushner talk 'Zero Dark Thirty,' 'Les Mis,' 'Silver Linings' & 'Lincoln' in EW's Holiday Preview

News

In EW's Holiday Movie Preview, actors from several hot titles speak out on their roles, including Jessica Chastain on the mysterious "Zero Dark Thirty," Bradley Cooper in the feel-good festival favorite "Silver Linings Playbook," Daniel Day-Lewis' method acting during "Lincoln" and Hugh Jackman on why the epic "Les Miserables" is still relevant.

By Sophia Savage
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November 1, 2012 1:26 PM
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For Love of Benedict: Cumberbitches Fan Club Dedicated to 'Sherlock' Star

News

Benedict Cumberbatch, star of the BBC's hit series "Sherlock," is his own one-man Beatle, apparently. A fan club called "The Cumberbitches" has formed, comprised of 37,000 members and obsessively dedicated to, in their words, the "high-cheekboned, blue-eyed sex bomb."