Thompson on Hollywood

Tina Fey Talks Her Post-'30 Rock' Career, 'Admission,' and Oscar Hosting

Interviews

A few weeks ago I went to see Tina Fey's latest movie "Admission" (March 22) on the same night that I watched the last episode of her seven-year NBC sitcom "30 Rock." Fey is a fascinating example of a pioneering woman who has become hugely successful while playing inside the box of what men can handle without being threatened.

By Anne Thompson
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March 13, 2013 4:28 PM
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SXSW 2013: Destin Cretton Talks Grand Jury Winner 'Short Term 12,' Immaturity and the Mystery of Indie Film's Future

Festivals

Destin Daniel Cretton talks his "Short Term 12," from Sundance winning short to SXSW Grand Jury prize-winning feature...

By Sophia Savage
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March 13, 2013 12:57 AM
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SXSW 2013: 'Loves Her Gun' Star Trieste Kelly Dunn Talks Improv, Road-Tripping and Directors

Interviews

Geoff Marslet's "Loves Her Gun" will be talked about at SXSW, not only because it centers around violence and gun control, but because the improvised dialogue makes for a naturalistic portrait of a woman's progression from victim to aggressor. Trieste Kelly Dunn, who broke out in SXSW 2010's "Cold Weather" and went on to star in Cinemax's "Banshee." The story starts off with a random act of violence in NYC before a road-trek to Austin, Texas, where the majority of the drama unfolds, complete with hipster band, moustache and river tubing with beer.

By Sophia Savage
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March 11, 2013 7:04 AM
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SXSW 2013: 'Bellflower' Producer Grashaw Talks Directorial Debut 'Coldwater'

Festivals

Vincent Grashaw produced, edited and acted in SXSW's 2010 hit "Bellflower," written, directed and starring his fellow Coatwolf Productions pal Evan Glodell. Now he's back in Austin with "Coldwater," his feature directorial debut, which he also co-wrote. The testosterone-fueled drama centers on a teenage boy (Ryan Gosling look-a-like PJ Boudousque) sent to a privately run reform boot camp for misbehaving youth.

By Sophia Savage
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March 9, 2013 7:32 PM
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Interview: How Noomi Rapace Became a Global Movie Star, from 'Dragon Tattoo' to Ridley Scott, Brian De Palma and 'Dead Man Down'

Interviews

Swedish actress Noomi Rapace never wanted to go Hollywood. As far as she's concerned, she hasn't changed her preference for complicated, compelling roles. Look at the range of what she's done since "The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo" series catapulted her into a bankable global marquee name. She played a happily married woman facing her estranged, once-abusive mother in Pernilla August's Swedish family drama "Beyond." Rapace brought strength and spirituality to her role as a space-trekking scientist in Ridley Scott's summer epic "Prometheus." And she didn't play another pretty sidekick in "Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows," which led to her co-starring opposite Rachel McAdams again in Brian De Palma's kinky Eurothriller "Passion," which comes out in June.

By Anne Thompson
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March 7, 2013 6:00 AM
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SXSW Interview: Olivia Wilde Finds Her Inner Slapstick Comedian in 'The Incredible Burt Wonderstone'

Interviews

SXSW opener “The Incredible Burt Wonderstone” -- which even Steve Carrell admits “won’t be changing any lives” -- did give Olivia Wilde a chance to get in touch with her “inner Lucy.” What? She pulls a football out from under Jim Carrey? No, she has to act awkward and ungainly and do “my tiny homage to Lucille Ball, who I grew up watching obsessively.”

By John Anderson
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March 6, 2013 12:46 PM
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Rooney Mara Talks with Steven Soderbergh in Interview Magazine -- the "Finch," Loving the Oscar, Nudity and More

Interviews

Rooney Mara submitted to an email chat with her "Side Effects" director Steven Soderbergh for this month's Interview Magazine. The two smartypants engage in sarcastic banter about David Fincher, the Oscars and, er, the "reverse cowgirl."

By Beth Hanna
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February 22, 2013 2:22 PM
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Why 'Life of Pi' Will Win Multiple Oscars Next Weekend

Interviews

Going into the final Oscar stretch, Ang Lee's "Life of Pi" has turned out to be a stronger contender--and box office juggernaut, at close to $600 million worldwide--than many had expected. Nominated for eleven Oscars, among the categories the movie is favored to win are best director, cinematography, visual effects and editing. Some weeks back I moderated a lively DGA panel with cinematographer Claudio Miranda (“The Curious Case of Benjamin Button”), producer David Womark, VFX animator and supervisor Erik Jan De Boer, visual effects supervisor Bill Westenhofer (of beleaguered Rhythm & Hues) and Lee's long-time editor Tim Squyres.

By Anne Thompson
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February 19, 2013 1:32 PM
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Oscar Q & A: Meet Tom Van Avermaet, Director of Darkly Glimmering Short 'Death of a Shadow' (TRAILER)

Interviews

Of all the Oscar-nominated shorts, Tom Van Avermaet's gorgeous "Death of a Shadow" occupies the most complex and entrancing alternative reality. Matthias Schoenaerts ("Rust and Bone") plays Nathan Rijckx, a deceased WWI soldier stuck in a limbo where an intricate steam-punk machine selects each person's moment of death. He has a second chance at life if he agrees to work for a Grim Reaper figure who collects shadow images of the moment that people die. Rijckx agrees to shoot 10,000 shadows in order to return to life and find the woman he fell in love with at the moment he died.

By Maggie Lange
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February 18, 2013 2:56 PM
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Interview: 'Lore' Director Cate Shortland Explores World War II Landscape of Identity and Sexuality

Interviews

Australian filmmaker Cate Shortland's "Lore," which was shortlisted for the foreign Oscar, is now playing in limited release. After her 2004 debut "Somersault" broke out Sam Worthington and Abbie Cornish, Shortland took her time coming back to helm another film. Set in vastly different territory, World War II drama "Lore" made its debut in Toronto. It was worth the wait.