"Hear me, vain and foolish mortal woman!"

[Great Moments in Screen Bitchery #976, Maggie Smith in Clash of The Titans]

You know. You'd think those mortals in ancient Greece would know not to blaspheme Thetis in her own sanctuary?! Now she's only going to be happy with a human sacrifice. Maggie Smith is fierce enough as a mortal. Crossing Maggie when she's got godlike powers at her disposal ?!? Moronic.


You in danger girl!
*

The Beginning of the End of Harry Potter

Apparently yesterday marked quite a milestone. According to /Film, the Harry Potter series concluded filming just yesterday.

(How cute. They're at the cinema!)

I've never been part of Hogwarts mega-legion of boosters but it's still an historic moment that I thought we should mark here. I only wish that the series -- which has already earned more money than anyone could ever count or need -- hadn't popularized the greedy "split the last film into two" grab that every studio will now employ for all popular franchises. We haven't seen the results yet but one assumes the filler-to-substance ratio will be off the charts and you know it won't end with The Twilight Saga and Potter. I couldn't get through even the first Twilight book (my god the whining) so I can't speak for Breaking Dawn but Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows definitely doesn't need 300 minutes to tell its story, especially since the middle section of the book is filler itself. I wouldn't worry if these films were 90 minutes but you now they'll stick with the traditional Potter length which, six films going, average out to 150 minutes or 2½ hours exactly. I did the math. When the series is over Harry Potter will have lasted about 1,200 minutes... or roughly the length of two seasons on a pay cable drama. And isn't that what all these multi-film stories essentially are, ginormous television series that you have to pay for?



All that said, I hope the last two films miraculously turn out great for the fans and I also hope that there's enough of Maggie & Helena and such to get me through before the movies pull an Avada Kedavra on me with their bloat. And on that note I should quit typing. If I'm claiming that nobody needs that extra 150 minutes of Potter or another 378 minutes of Twilight in their lives than I probably shouldn't whine so much that I'm mistaken for Bella Swan.
Maggie Smith Helena Bonham Carter

Cape Link

cinema
stale popcorn is counting down the 00s in a comprehensively personal way. Love it
92nd Street Y are you going to the Grease 2 Sing-along?
serious film wonders what film might eventually throw Citizen Kane from its "greatest" throne
hot blog James Cameron discusses science in his science fiction. I love this bit

Asked whether the Alien or a Na'vi would win a fight, Cameron's answer was, "Sigourney (Weaver) would win."

Heh and duh!


/film Ang Lee and the Life of Pi in 3-D
thompson on hollywood talks with Annette Bening about her awards-contender roles in Mother and Child and The Kids Are All Right
natashavc young hollywood '98 fetal flashback: Reese & Ryan
movies kick ass talks up Oscar's 1964 Best Actor race with friends

small screen diversion
critical condition a great thinky piece on Glee's Madonna episode
i need my fix an evening with Glee
what's good... let's hear it for Jonathan Groff's agent
newnownext rich from fourfour visits the set of RuPaul's Drag Race. Lengthy interesting piece with wonderful photos

back to big
Finally, I just wanted to draw your attention to a great reunion pic: Juliette Lewis and Robert DeNiro at the Tribeca Film Festival!


DeNiro showed up at the party for Juliette's latest pic Metropia (she's not in it -- sigh -- just voicework). I mean seeing these two together again is just bananas. The last time I saw them together Juliette was sucking on Bobby's thumb. Which was also bananas. In both connotative senses of the fruit.


At the risk of embarassing one of my best friends, I must ask that if you ever meet Nick Davis you demand to hear his Juliette/Cape Fear voice. It's so unnervingly spot on that the first time he did it for me it made me love both him and Juliette more. And I didn't think I could in either case! So while I'm spreading the link love, please note that Nick is still on his best actress tear having recently written up performances by Ann-Margret, Jane Wyman, Talia Shire and, most controversially, Maggie Smith. Read 'em.