Film
Hudgens plays Agnes (“Apple”) Bailey, a desperate pregnant teenager who runs away from a cruel drug-addicted mother played by Rosario Dawson. She tries to connect to her wealthy dad, played by Brendan Fraser. Things keep looking bleaker until she meets Frank McCarthy (James Earl Jones), a priest. He introduces her to Kathy DiFiore (Ann Dowd) who runs a shelter for homeless pregnant teens. It’s a true story with only a few small liberties taken by the writer/director, Ron Krauss, who lived in a homeless shelter for a year intending to shoot a documentary.
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“Bethlehem,” co-written by Israeli director Yuval Adler and Palestinian writer Ali Waked, focuses on the twisted and codependent connection between an Israeli Secret Serviceman and his Palestinian informant. It makes no judgments; that’s left to the viewer.
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Rosario Dawson walked into the Waldorf Astoria looking nothing like the violent drug addict she plays in “Gimme Shelter.” Dawson’s smooth skin glowed under only a touch of makeup. The actress’s almond eyes sported a hint of smoky-blue eye shadow. When I told Dawson she looked beautiful, she laughed and said, “Why? Because I brushed my teeth?” Dawson was referring to her character’s brown, rotted teeth.
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Snubs and predictions for Best Picture, Best Actress, Best Actor, Best Supporting Actress, Best Supporting Actor and Best Director. American Hustle, 12 Years a Slave, Gravity, Leonardo DiCaprio for The Wolf of Wall Street, Matthew McConaughey for Dallas Buyers Club or Chiwetel Ejiofor for 12 Years a Slave
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Jordan Belfort, who Leonardo plays, wrote the book the movie is based on so it’s from his perspective. It describes debaucherous and excessive behavior. I can imagine that other people might not want to be portrayed. They were criminals. They swindled innocent people out of their money and many never paid for their crimes.
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Juliette Lewis, Abigail Breslin and Annette Insdorf, moderator of the “Reel Pieces” series at 92Y Most families have their share of rage, but the Westons in “August: Osage County,” opening December 25, make other dysfunctional families seem normal. The film, adapted by Tracy Letts from his Pulitzer Prize-winning play of the same name, offers … Read more
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“August: Osage County,” opens Christmas day. Written by Tracy Letts, adapted from his Pulitzer Prize-winning play. It’s a close look at three sisters played by Juliette Lewis, Julia Roberts and Julianne Nicholson. Meryl Streep plays Violet Weston, the drug-addled matriarch. Also starring Abigail Breslin, Dermot Mulroney, Chris Cooper, Margo Martindale, Sam Shepard. Produced by George Clooney and Harvey Weinstein
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Over the past three-plus decades Whitaker has worked with an extraordinary array of brilliant directors in an astounding number of films. The movies include “The Color of Money” (Martin Scorsese), “Platoon” (Oliver Stone) “Good Morning, Vietnam” (Barry Levinson), “Bird” (Clint Eastwood), “Body Snatchers” (Abel Ferrara), and “The Crying Game” (Neil Jordan).
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And the winners are… Best Picture: American Hustle Best Director: Steve McQueen, 12 Years a Slave Best Screenplay: Eric Singer & David O. Russell, American Hustle Best Actress: Cate Blanchett, Blue Jasmine Best Actor: Robert Redford, All is Lost Best Supporting Actress: Jennifer Lawrence, American Hustle Best Supporting Actor: … Read more
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Evan Rachel Wood stars with Shia LaBeouf in the “True Romance” style slash Tarrantino-esque thriller, “Charlie Countryman,” opening today in limited release. LaBeouf plays Charlie whose dead mother appears and sends him to Bucharest, Romania. The griefstricken and unglued Charlie is led through a series of bizarre events that lead him to Gabi (Wood), a mysterious Romanian he falls instantly in love with. The trouble is, as director Fredrik Bond put it, “Gabi is like playing with plutonium.” It is a dark and twisted, yet funny, love story in the brutal underworld of Bucharest.
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