Quantcast
Channel: Moviefone Trivia RSS Feed - Moviefone
Viewing all 417 articles
Browse latest View live
↧

Tom Cruise Facts: 12 Things You (Probably) Didn't Know About the 'Rogue Nation' Star

July 31, 2015, 6:00 am
$
0
0
%Slideshow-307863%
Tom Cruise is a major box office star and a beloved actor. He had us at hello in "Jerry Maguire" and cemented his place as an action star in films like "Top Gun" and "Minority Report." Now he's bringing back IMF agent Ethan Hunt for the fifth time in "Mission: Impossible - Rogue Nation."

Even though he's been in the spotlight since the '80s, there are still some things you might not know about him. From the cartoon character based on him to his own holiday, here are 12 things you might not have known about Tom Cruise.
Tom Cruise Visits "The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon"
[Sources: IMDB, Playboy, People, Interview]
↧
Search

'Babe': 20 Things You (Probably) Didn't Know About the Talking Pig Movie

August 4, 2015, 11:45 am
$
0
0
"That'll do, pig. That'll do."

It's been 20 years since the world fell in love with the sheep-herding pig at the center of the film "Babe," which opened August 4, 1995. The movie was hailed as a kids' movie that delighted viewers of all ages -- it was the rare children's film nominated for a Best Picture Oscar -- as well as an advance in effects magic that launched a wave of live-action, talking-animal flicks.

It's hard to imagine that the G-rated classic came from George Miller, the same filmmaker behind the ultra-violent, hard-R "Mad Max" franchise. That's one of many things you may not know about "Babe," here are 19 more:

1. In 1986, producer/co-screenwriter Miller became interested in the story during a long plane flight from Sydney to London, where the woman seated next to him was laughing uproariously at Dick King-Smith's book, "The Sheep-Pig." Upon landing, he found the book in a bookstore and immediately began negotiating with King-Smith for the rights, a process that ultimately took years.

2. Part of the reason it took nearly a decade to get the film made was British author King-Smith's objection to Miller's insistence on shooting the film in his native Australia. He told Miller, "Pigs don't fly, and neither do I."

3. The other reason it took so long: Miller was waiting for technology to catch up with his vision of putting live, talking animals on screen.

4. The animals were a combination of real critters trained by Californian Karl Lewis Miller (the animal trainer behind the "Beethoven" films and "Cujo"), the London-based Jim Henson's Creature Shop, and John Cox's Creature Shop in Australia, which built animatronic animals to match the real ones.

5. Karl Miller also appears in the film as the man who buys three puppies.
6. To make the animals talk, the filmmakers relied on computerized mouth movements developed by Los Angeles effects house Rhythm & Hues, best known for the talking cat in "Hocus Pocus" and the Coca-Cola polar bear ads.

7. There were 48 purebred, Large White Yorkshire pigs cast as Babe, since the filming was spread out over the course of three years, and the pigs kept outgrowing the role. All the Babes were female, since the male pigs' genitals were far too visible on screen.

8. Some 500 animals appear in the movie, though Karl Miller trained 970 of them -- not just pigs, but also dogs, cats, sheep, cows, horses, goats, ducks, mice, and pigeons.

9. Christine Cavanaugh, a voiceover actress best-known for playing Chuckie Finster on "Rugrats" and Dexter on "Dexter's Laboratory," voiced the role of Babe.

10. Magda Szubanski was one of Australia's most popular comic actors when she was cast as Esme Hoggett. She was only 34 at the time; make-up was used to age her 20 years.

11. Miller said at the time of the film's release, "Babe" cost $20 million to make, though some reports said $25 or $30 million. Even at the higher price, that sounds like an incredible bargain by today's standards.

12. The movie earned $64 million in North America and a total of $254 million worldwide.
13. Before starring as Farmer Arthur Hoggett in "Babe," James Cromwell was best known for playing Mr. Skolnick in the four "Revenge of the Nerds" movies. He was 55 when "Babe" gave him his big break -- and an Oscar nom for Best Supporting Actor. He has said he almost decided not to take the role because it had only about 16 lines of dialogue, but a friend convinced him that the free trip to Australia would be worth it.

14. "Babe" was nominated for seven Oscars, including Best Picture, Best Director (for Chris Noonan), Best Adapted Screenplay (for Miller and Noonan), Best Editing, and Best Art Direction. Best Supporting Actor nominee Cromwell reportedly spent $60,000 of his own money campaigning for the trophy. But the movie's only win was for Best Visual Effects.

15. The film was briefly banned in Malaysia. Some reports said it was because the Muslim country objected to a film about a pig, but actually, it was because the name "Babe" is considered vulgar there. Eventually, it was released there on VHS, bypassing theaters.

16. Cromwell, who was already a vegetarian, went the rest of the way and became a strict vegan and committed animal-rights activist after "Babe," His career prospered, with prominent roles in "Star Trek: First Contact," "L.A. Confidential," and "The Green Mile."

17. Cromwell, Szubanski, and most of the voice actors returned for the 1998 sequel, "Babe: Pig in the City." Cavanaugh declined to return and was replaced by her "Rugrats" castmate, Elizabeth Daily. Director Noonan also sat out the sequel, which George Miller directed and co-wrote. Many critics found it superior to the original, but the dark tone and occasional animal violence made families squeamish, and the film was a flop.

18. Cavanaugh died in 2014, at age 51, from undisclosed causes.

19. Chris Noonan's most recent feature film directing job was 2006's "Miss Potter," another movie involving anthropomorphic animals -- it was the biopic of children's author Beatrix Potter, starring Renee Zellweger.

20. After "Babe: Pig in the City," George Miller made another animal film -- the 2006 hit, "Happy Feet" -- followed by its 2011 sequel. These three films were his only releases over the last 20 years, until 2015's critically-acclaimed success "Mad Max: Fury Road."
%Slideshow-308853%
↧
↧

7 Comedian-Led Sitcoms You (Probably) Forgot About

August 5, 2015, 10:00 am
$
0
0
%Slideshow-275848%
There have been tons of TV shows headlined by stand-up comics over the years, but not all of them can be hits like "Seinfeld," "Ellen," "Martin," "Roseanne," or "Everybody Goes Raymond." For every stand-up sitcom success story, there are some short-lived programs that fell by the wayside. Even the most talented and popular comics couldn't make some of these shows last. Jerrod Carmichael is the latest young comic to headline a new series -- "The Carmichael Show" premieres on NBC come August 26. Will it stand the test of time? Take a look at 7 comedian-starring sitcoms you (probably) forgot about.

↧

Miles Teller Facts: 10 Things You (Probably) Didn't Know About the 'Fantastic Four' Star

August 7, 2015, 10:00 am
$
0
0
%Slideshow-309971%
Miles Teller started making waves with his raw performance in 2010's "The Rabbit Hole," and in less than five years, he's become a household name and a superhero in "Fantastic Four." He's dripping with charm and already loved by critics thanks to his performance in 2014's "Whiplash." Get ready, because this 28-year-old up-and-comer is taking over Hollywood.

From his interesting tattoo to the near-death experience that changed his life, here are 10 things you probably didn't know about Miles Teller.Samsung Galaxy At Coachella Valley Music And Arts Festival 2014
[Source: IMDB, Esquire]
↧

'Sunset Blvd.': 15 Things You (Probably) Didn't Know About the Hollywood Classic

August 10, 2015, 10:30 am
$
0
0
Long before the lurid "E! True Hollywood Story" series, there was "Sunset Boulevard" -- maybe the darkest, most cynical movie ever made about what Hollywood is really like.

Released 65 years ago this week (on August 10, 1950), director Billy Wilder's classic explored fame from the perspective of those who had it and lost it (like Gloria Swanson and her "waxwork" friends, playing lightly fictionalized versions of themselves) and those who never quite made it, like the struggling young screenwriter (William Holden) and the failed actress-turned-script reader played by Nancy Olson.

Even if you haven't seen "Sunset Boulevard," you may feel like you have, whether because of the popular Andrew Lloyd Webber musical it spawned, the movies that copied it (particularly "American Beauty," with its narration from beyond the grave), and the countless parodies of Swanson's final "All right, Mr. DeMille, I'm ready for my close-up" scene. In honor of the film's anniversary, here are 15 things you need to know about the Hollywood classic.
1. Initially, Wilder (above) and writing partner Charles Brackett conceived the story as a comedy about a has-been actress making a comeback, and they imagined Mae West as the star. But West found the role unflattering, a problem that continued to make casting difficult after Brackett and Wilder rewrote the film as a drama. They approached such silent-era stars as Mary Pickford, Pola Negri, and even Greta Garbo (who'd starred in the writers' hit "Ninotchka"), but all of them turned down the role of Norma Desmond.

2. George Cukor, a director famed for his sensitivity toward actresses, suggested Swanson, another glamorous silent actress who hadn't successfully transitioned into the sound era. She had also once lived in a mansion on Sunset Boulevard. Unlike Norma, she wasn't hiding away in a Hollywood mansion; she was working in New York in the then-new medium of television. She was insulted by Paramount's' request that she do a screen test, but Cukor convinced her that it was the role she would be remembered for, worth the indignity of such an audition, and he joked he would shoot her if she didn't take it.

3. To hide what they were making, from both Paramount brass and the Production Code censors, Wilder and Brackett told everyone they were making a comedy called "Can of Beans."

4. To play kept man Joe Gillis, the filmmakers cast Montgomery Clift, but the rising young star dropped out two weeks before the shoot. His given reason was that the affair between a young man and an older woman was too similar to what he'd done in "The Heiress," but the real reason may have been Clift's off-camera relationship with older singer Libby Holman. The story was that she felt the movie would be seen as a mockery of their romance, and that she threatened to kill herself unless Clift quit. Wilder tried and failed to get Fred MacMurray (his "Double Indemnity" star) and Gene Kelly. He almost hired Marlon Brando to replace him, but the Broadway star had never made a film before (Brando's screen debut in "The Men" was still more than a year away). Eventually, contract player William Holden got the part, which made him an A-list star.
5. The house that played Norma's mansion was really on Wilshire Boulevard, not Sunset. It had belonged to J. Paul Getty's family. It would appear on film again a few years later in "Rebel Without a Cause," shortly before the Gettys tore it down and replaced it with an office high-rise.

6. Erich von Stroheim, who plays Norma's director-turned-husband-turned-butler Max, was indeed one of the great directors of the silent era. He had directed Swanson in the epic "Queen Kelly" but had been fired when the sprawling production went over budget. The film had never been seen in America, until excerpts of it showed up in "Sunset Boulevard" as the old Norma Desmond movie that Norma watches on her projector at home.

7. Norma's leopard-upholstered car was a real Isotta-Fraschini, an exotic Italian auto that had been a popular choice among silent film royalty. The script called for von Stroheim to drive it onto the Paramount lot, but he didn't know how to drive. The car was towed by a truck hidden outside of camera range instead. Even so, von Stroheim accidentally steered it into the Paramount gate. After the shoot, the car ended up back in Italy, in an automotive museum in Turin.

8. Crew members asked Wilder what kind of set-up he needed for the sequence involving the bizarre funeral for Norma's chimpanzee. Replied Wilder, "You know, the usual monkey-funeral sequence."

9. Initially, the movie opened in a morgue, with the corpses awakening and discussing with each other how they died, leading to Joe Gillis telling the story of his affair with Norma. But test audiences laughed too hard, and the absurd tone didn't work with the rest of the movie. The sequence was cut, so that the film would begin with Joe's body floating in the pool, but the idea of the dead narrator stayed.
10. That eerie shot of Joe face down in the pool (pictured), seen from underneath with the police and paparazzi hovering over him, was difficult for Wilder to get right. He tried lowering a camera into the pool in a see-through, waterproof box, but he didn't like the result. Ultimately, he succeeded by placing a mirror on the floor of the pool and shooting the reflection of Holden and the cops and photographers.

11. The "waxworks," Norma's fellow silent-film ghosts who come over to play bridge, were played by real-life silent relics Buster Keaton, Anna Q. Nilsson, and H.B. Warner. In real life, Keaton had a reputation as one of Hollywood's best bridge players. Wilder coached the others to watch how Keaton handled the cards and do likewise.

12. Director Cecil B. DeMille, a pioneer of silent Hollywood who was still a top director when "Sunset Boulevard" was shot in 1949, also famously played himself. He had made Swanson a star by directing her in several silent hits and had nicknamed her "young fella," which is what he calls Norma. When Norma visits him on the Paramount lot, he's shooting "Samson and Delilah," which would be his biggest hit yet in real life.

13. As Wilder feared, the Hollywood "powers that be" were horrified and outraged by the portrait "Sunset Boulevard" painted of them and their dream factory. At the film's Hollywood premiere, MGM chief Louis B. Mayer denounced Wilder, saying, "You have disgraced the industry that made and fed you! You should be tarred and feathered and run out of Hollywood!" Wilder's typically blunt response: "Go f--k yourself."

14. "Sunset Boulevard" cost $1.6 million to make. It returned $2.5 million in its initial American run -- not enough to make a profit -- but ultimately returned $5 million by 1960, when it had played in theaters all over the world.
15. Despite the initial outrage from Hollywood insiders, the Academy recognized the film's artistry and nominated it for 11 Oscars, including Best Picture, Best Director, Best Black-and-White Cinematography, and Best Editing. It won for Best Screenplay, Best Black-and-White Art Direction, and Best Score (for composer Franz Waxman). It earned nominations in all four acting categories, for leads Holden and Swanson and supporting players von Stroheim and Olson. It's one of only three films nominated in all four acting categories that didn't win any of them; the other two are "My Man Godfrey" (1936) and "American Hustle" (2013).
%Slideshow-304981%
↧
↧

'The Usual Suspects': 20 Things You (Probably) Didn't Know About This Modern Classic

August 15, 2015, 4:00 am
$
0
0
Who is Keyser Soze?

20 years ago this week (August 16, 1995), audiences uncovered the answer to that question -- and they're still reeling from it two decades later.

"The Usual Suspects" is an intricately plotted crime thriller that, despite the big twist at the end, never feels convoluted but rather like a puzzle we're putting together along with its nefarious main characters -- B-level criminals who find themselves under the shadow (and gun) of the crime lord equivalent of the devil incarnate.

The film won Kevin Spacey and writer Christopher McQuarrie ("Mission: Impossible: Rogue Nation") Oscars, and put director Bryan Singer on the path to make the "X-Men" films. In honor of the film's 20th anniversary, here are 20 facts you need to know about this modern classic.

1. Writer Chris McQuarrie got the title for his film from an article in Spy Magazine.

2. The film's most iconic image -- the titular characters standing before a line-up -- was the first image that popped into McQuarrie's head when conceiving the film. That image became the film's poster.

3. McQuarrie came up with the spine of the film while employed at a solicitors office.

4. The R-rated "Suspects" drops an impressive 98 eff bombs.
5. Bryan Singer really wanted Gabriel Byrne (above) to play Keaton, so the director shot the entire film in Los Angeles to accommodate the actor's prior commitments in the city, thus building the film's shooting schedule around Byrne's.

6. But Byrne almost passed on the role, because he didn't think the filmmakers could pull off the complicated material.

7. In fact, Byrne signed on only to quickly back out -- now citing personal problems. He was back on board the production once the filmmakers were able to work it out so they could shoot Byrne out in five weeks.

8. Another actor who passed on the film? Al Pacino. He turned down the role of cop Dave Kujan, played by Chazz Palminteri. Having recently played LAPD Detective Vincent Hanna in "Heat," Pacino felt like he would be hitting the same notes, just in a different character, so he passed. He has since gone on record saying he regrets letting "Suspects" get away. Womp womp.

9. As awards buzz gathered for the film, its writer and director found themselves on the outs due to issues that developed during the making of "Suspects." The two were childhood friends that grew up in Jersey, and McQuarrie accepted the Oscar for Best Screenplay that year while still at odds with Singer. This would mark the first of two falling outs the writer and director would have throughout their careers.
10. During interviews for his new film, "Rogue Nation," McQuarrie revealed that after winning the Oscar (at the young age of 27) he spent the rest of his career trying to earn it. Watch McQuarrie's win above.

11. The role of Fenster, famously played by Benicio Del Toro, was originally written as an older character. The intent was to have him played by a veteran character actor -- think a Harry Dean Stanton-type.

12. In fact, Del Toro didn't originally audition for the role. He instead read for the role of McManus.

13. When he got the role of Fenster, Del Toro made the then-baffling choice (at least for filmmakers) to have his character speak in a mumble-y, unintelligible voice. McQuarrie was, at first, not a fan of this, but eventually appreciated the creative choice.

14. Oh, and the other actors' confused reactions to Fenster's unique speech pattern? All improvised, which proved to be quite easy because obvious reasons.
15. What wasn't easy was shooting the line-up scene. It was originally planned to be a "serious" scene, but the actors got a case of the giggles while shooting and were messing around, so Singer opted to go with the funnier version of it. Word 'round the campfire is that the laughter was mostly caused by Del Toro having a bad case of the farts. Yep, that happened.

16. When the criminals are handed envelopes, each one containing their personal bios, the order in which they receive them mirrors the order in which they die in the film.

17. "Terminator" actor Michael Biehn was set to play McManus, but the actor turned it down due to his commitments to the David Caruso "classic," "Jade."

18. Keyser Soze was originally going to have a less iconic name: "Keyser Sume," named after McQuarrie's former boss. McQuarrie changed it when his boss objected to having his name associated with such a megaton-evil villain.

19. While everyone -- and especially Spacey -- now know who Keyser Soze really is, Singer was able to convince the other actors while shooting that they were Soze. Rumor has it that, when Byrne first saw the film and discovered the villain's true identity, he stormed out of the screening.
20. The Soze name was caused film executives concern, as they worried that "average" audiences would have no idea how to pronounce it. Hence why the "Who is Keyser Soze?" marketing campaign was launched, to help Rosetta Stone moviegoers on how to say the Big Bad's name.
%Slideshow-304981%
↧

Kristen Stewart Facts: 12 Things You (Probably) Didn't Know About the 'American Ultra' Star

August 21, 2015, 7:00 am
$
0
0
%Slideshow-313964%
Kristen Stewart rose to fame with the popular (but not always loved) "Twilight" series. Since leaving behind human-turned-vampire Bella Swan, Stewart has found her way back to more indie films, and some critical acclaim. Even though she's spent a lot of time in the spotlight, she's a pretty private person, so it's time find out some things you never knew about the star (like the fact that she does, indeed, smile).

From how she was discovered to who she replaced in one of her first movies, here are 12 things you might not know about Kristen Stewart.MTV Movie Awards Show
[Source: IMDB]
↧

Emily Ratajkowski Facts: 8 Things You (Probably) Didn't Know About the 'We Are Your Friends' Star

August 28, 2015, 10:00 am
$
0
0
%Slideshow-315972%
Emily Ratajkowski is best known for showing off her amazing body in the "Blurred Lines" music video, and now she's giving her film career a real try. With supporting roles in "Gone Girl" and "Entourage" under her belt, she's taking on her biggest role yet, opposite Zac Efron, in "We Are Your Friends."

From her international childhood to her favorite memories, here are eight things you probably didn't know about Emily Ratajkowski.
Britain We Are Your Friends Photo Call
[Sources: IMDB]
↧
Search

11 Times the 'Home Alone' Movies Took Things Way Too Far

August 31, 2015, 9:00 am
$
0
0
Kevin McCallister is one sadistic little boy, and we've got the GIFs to prove it. Looking back at "Home Alone" and "Home Alone 2: Lost In New York," we can't deny the over-the-top weirdness and sinister elements of these so-called family favorites. Seriously, take a look for yourself.
↧
↧

11 Mistakes You Never Noticed In Emmy-Winning TV Shows

September 3, 2015, 10:00 am
$
0
0
%Slideshow-316473%
Ever watch a TV show and notice a piece of jewelry that wasn't there a frame ago or a rogue magazine that found its way to a table out of nowhere? These oops moments probably happen more than you think.

Yup -- even the most critically acclaimed shows make mistakes, and we've got the pictures to prove it. Check out these blunders you may have missed from some of your favorite Emmy-winning comedies and dramas.

As always, all photos are courtesy of Moviemistakes.com.
↧

13 Stars Who Almost Have an EGOT

September 4, 2015, 6:00 am
$
0
0
%Slideshow-317092%
Oh, the elusive EGOT. It takes a very special performer to nail down an Emmy, Grammy, Oscar, and a Tony. The enviable club is a relatively small one, with impressive members like Whoopi Goldberg, Rita Moreno, Audrey Hepburn, and Mel Brooks. But there are a few entertainers that are almost there! Find out who is just one coveted statue away from reaching EGOT status. Some of the contenders surprise you...
↧

5 Reasons 'Jack and Jill' Is Adam Sandler's Most Underrated Film

September 8, 2015, 1:00 pm
$
0
0
%Slideshow-318109%
We're not saying Adam Sandler's 2011 comedy "Jack and Jill" is up there with early faves "Happy Gilmore" and "Billy Madison," but it certainly does not deserve all the hate constantly thrown at it. The film has been the butt of every bad movie joke practically since the poster premiered and it's about time we give it some respect. Razzies be damned! Despite its seemingly inane premise and utter ridiculousness, "Jack and Jill" is more than just bathroom humor and Sandler doing a silly accent in a wig. Here are 5 reasons "Jack and Jill" needs some love.
↧

10 Stars (Shockingly) Never Nominated for an Emmy

September 9, 2015, 9:00 am
$
0
0
%Slideshow-318123%
Even if a show is critically acclaimed, adored by fans, and a massive ratings hit, Emmy nominations aren't always a guarantee. Such is the case for a handful of beloved TV stars... Not only have these actors and actresses not won an Emmy over their fantastic careers -- they haven't even been given the chance. Not cool, Emmys. Not cool.

So, who's been super duper snubbed in the past? Check out 10 TV stars who have never been nominated for an Emmy (but totally should have been).
↧
↧

Quiz: Are These Real Tyler Perry Movie Titles?

September 11, 2015, 6:00 am
$
0
0
Tyler Perry is one of the most prolific directors around, but how well do you really know his work? Can you tell real Tyler Perry movie titles from fake ones? Test your knowledge of Tyler Perry's extensive filmography right now and find out if Madea would be proud of you.
↧

Taraji P. Henson Facts: 8 Things You (Probably) Didn't Know About the 'Empire' Star

September 11, 2015, 7:00 am
↧
Search

'Goodfellas': 25 Things You (Probably) Didn't Know About Scorsese's Masterpiece

September 14, 2015, 6:00 am
$
0
0
"I want people to get infuriated by it," Martin Scorsese said of his initial impulse in making "Goodfellas." "I wanted to seduce everyone into the movie and into the style. And then just take them apart with it."

In fact, some people were appalled and repulsed at the early screenings of "Goodfellas," which opened 25 years ago this week (on Sept. 19, 1990). At one test preview, there were mass walkouts within the first 10 minutes. But Scorsese's angry gesture soon backfired. Viewers did get seduced by the lowlife mobsters (taken from Nicholas Pileggi's 1985 true-crime book "Wiseguy") and the director's own adrenalized filmmaking style. Instead of an assault on the audience, "Goodfellas" became one of the most influential and beloved movies of the past quarter century.

In honor of "Goodfellas" turning 25 this week, here are 25 things you need to know about Scorsese's masterpiece. Don't let that red sauce burn on the stove while you're reading.
1. The real Henry Hill was an associate of the Lucchese crime family, who later went into the federal witness protection program in 1980. Pileggi's interviews with Hill made up the bulk of "Wiseguy." He earned a reported $480,000 as a consultant on the film, whose details he would later praise as 90 percent accurate.

2. Unlike the character portrayed by Ray Liotta, who witnesses several murders but never kills anyone himself, Hill admitted to Howard Stern that he had murdered three people on orders from Paul Vario, the real-life model for Paulie Cicero.

3. The real Tommy De Vito (as played by Joe Pesci) was named Tommy "Two Gun" DeSimone. Unlike the diminutive Pesci, DeSimone was over six feet tall and built like a heavyweight boxer. In the film, he's whacked for his own unauthorized whacking of made man William "Billy Batts" Bentvena, but in real life, Batts wasn't the only mafioso that Tommy killed without permission. He also killed Ronald "Foxy" Jerothe. Both victims were associates of John Gotti, future boss of the rival Gambino family.

4. Paul Vario (renamed Paulie Cicero in "Goodfellas" and played by Paul Sorvino) was the real-life boss of the crew that included Hill, Burke, and DeSimone. Hill claimed that Vario had an affair with his wife, Kare,n (played by Lorraine Bracco) while Hill was in prison, though the movie doesn't mention it. Vario died in prison in 1988.

5. Scorsese phoned Pileggi's office to talk about optioning the film rights to "Wiseguy," but when the author saw a message that said, "Call Martin Scorsese," he thought it was a joke and didn't follow up. But the filmmaker called back and said, "I've been looking for this book for years." Pileggi replied, "I've been waiting for this phone call all my life."
6. Marlon Brando almost talked Scorsese (pictured, right) out of making "Goodfellas," saying the director would just be repeating what he'd done in "Mean Streets" and "Raging Bull." But Scorsese's longtime editor, Thelma Schoonmaker, read Pileggi's tale to her husband, legendary British film director Michael Powell. Convinced that the story offered a fresh, funny take on the gangster genre, Powell told Scorsese, "You must do it," and changed Scorsese's mind.

7. Scorsese and Pileggi changed the movie's title from "Wiseguy" to "Goodfellas" to avoid confusion with CBS' then-current mob drama series "Wiseguy."

8. For the sake of authenticity, Ray Liotta turned to tapes of the FBI's conversations with Hill. The actor would listen to them in his car and mimic Hill's speech patterns as he drove to and from the set.

9. De Niro also relied on Hill for authenticity, going through the FBI to contact their protected witness and quiz Hill about the way Jimmy would hold a cigarette or a shot glass. Sometimes he'd call Hill several times in a day. Scorsese, however, has said he spoke to Hill only once, when the film was nearly finished.

10. Scorsese often cast his parents in cameos in his movies, but in "Goodfellas," he really put them to work. His mom plays Tommy's mom, and his dad plays a mobster (he can be seen cooking sauce in the prison-dinner sequence). But Scorsese also had his parents starch the extraordinarily pointy shirt collars the mobsters wear; he didn't trust anyone else to do the job right. The senior Scorseses also cooked that stockpot of red sauce that Henry spends all day simmering near the end of the movie.
11. The notorious "Funny how?" sequence (pictured above) was improvised by Pesci and Liotta, based on a conversation Pesci had once had with someone Scorsese characterized as "a dangerous man." This time, Pesci got to be the dangerous man. He improvised the lines in rehearsal, Scorsese had them transcribed, and the actors memorized them before the cameras rolled.

12. The celebrated Steadicam tracking shot through the bowels of the Copacabana was inspired by just a sentence in Pileggi's book noting that, when Hill would visit the famous nightclub, he'd enter through the kitchen. Scorsese and cinematographer Michael Ballhaus turned Henry and Karen's arrival for a show at the club into a mini-epic -- one of the most famous oners in movie history. The director insisted on getting the entire shot in one take. Ballhaus said it took eight tries, but they got it, and it didn't even take up a full day of shooting.

13. Hill claimed that Tommy's near-lethal pistol-whipping of Billy Batts was fairly accurate, except that in real life, DeSimone hit him so hard that he broke the gun.

14. During the sequence where Tommy fatally empties his .45 into Spider (Michael Imperioli), poor Imperioli stumbled backward into the bar so forcefully that he slashed his hand on a glass pitcher and had to be taken to the emergency room to have the wound stitched up.

15. Edward McDonald, the prosecutor who talked Hill into turning state's evidence, had the guts to suggest to Scorsese that he should play himself in the movie. After giving McDonald a screen test, Scorsese agreed.
16. Schoonmaker has said that she and Scorsese especially enjoyed putting together the lengthy montage that makes up Henry's last day as a wiseguy (above) because they made a point of experimenting and violating every rule of classical editing in order to simulate the jagged, out-of-control rhythms of Henry's cocaine-fueled paranoia. Test audiences found the sequence irritating, prompting Schoonmaker and Scorsese to make the sequence even faster and edgier.

17. The ratings board initially deemed the film too violent for an R rating. Scorsese had to trim bloodletting from 10 scenes before the board relented.

18. The 1978 Lufthansa heist, as depicted in the movie, was indeed the largest-value robbery in American history up to that point, netting $5 million in cash and nearly a million more in jewelry. As in the film, law enforcement suspected Jimmy's crew almost immediately, leading him to have most of the co-conspirators killed. The biggest break in the case didn't come until 2014 with the arrest of Vincent Asaro, then 78, a former Gambino soldier and alleged co-conspirator (though Hill claimed Asaro wasn't involved).The loot has never been found.

19. Henry, at the end of the movie, may have complained about having to live the rest of his life as an ordinary schnook, but it didn't work out that way. He, Karen and their son and daughter were placed in new identities and new homes in various cities, from Omaha to Seattle. But Hill kept blabbing about his real identity to his neighbors and kept getting arrested on drug charges. Eventually, the FBI booted the Hill family from the program. After 25 years of marriage, Henry and Karen were divorced in 1989.

20. A year later, of course, "Goodfellas" made him famous. Hill would go on to tell his own story in books, a website, and various radio interviews with Stern. He marketed his spaghetti sauce online and opened a restaurant called Wiseguys in Connecticut. After he appeared alongside Liotta in an Entertainment Weekly photo shoot in 2006, the actor persuaded him to enter rehab. In 2012, he succumbed to complications from heart disease. He died peacefully at 69 in a Los Angeles hospital bed, surrounded by family.
21. Unlike Henry, Karen Hill and the couple's children, Gregg and Gina, have maintained assumed identities and kept a relatively low profile. Gregg and Gina did publish a memoir of their own, 2004's "On the Run: A Mafia Childhood."

22. Pileggi's wife, Nora Ephron, wrote her own movie inspired by Henry Hill, "My Blue Heaven." It was a comedy about a flamboyant mobster (Steve Martin) struggling with suburban life while in Witness Protection. It actually came out in theaters a month before "Goodfellas."

23. In the years after "Goodfellas," Sorvino would often appear on TV cooking shows, demonstrating that he was an expert at cutting paper-thin slices of garlic with a razor blade, just like Paulie. In 2010, he finally started marketing his own line of pasta sauces.

24. The film cost a reported $25 million, making it Scorsese's most expensive picture at that point in his career. It earned back $47 million in North America.

25. "Goodfellas" was nominated for six Oscars, including Best Picture, Best Director, Best Adapted Screenplay (for Scorsese and Pileggi), Best Editing, and Best Supporting Actress (for Bracco). Pesci won the movie's only Academy Award, for Best Supporting Actor.
%Slideshow-318509%
↧

13 Stars Who Have Been Nominated for Emmys Twice in the Same Year

September 14, 2015, 1:00 pm
$
0
0
%Slideshow-319037%
One Emmy nomination is nice and all, but if you get two nominations you (and your agent) are definitely doing something right.

Actors and actresses get nominated for more than one Emmy in a the same year more than you probably notice -- there are 5 double acting nominees just in 2015 alone. Who has had the honor of being up for two acting credits in the same year? Here are 13 stars who can call themselves double Emmy nominees.
↧
↧

​'Almost Famous': 15 Things You (Probably) Didn't Know About Cameron Crowe's Oscar-Winning Film

September 15, 2015, 6:00 am
$
0
0
%Slideshow-318509%
​Fifteen years later, that tour bus group singalong of Elton John's "Tiny Dancer" still rings in our ears.

"Almost Famous" may not have been a hit when it first opened on September 15, 2000, but over the years, it's come to pluck the heartstrings and echo in the eardrums of millions of fans. It made a star of Kate Hudson, gave an early career boost to Zooey Deschanel, and won writer/director Cameron Crowe (of "Say Anything" and "Jerry Maguire" fame) his only Oscar to date.

In honor of "Almost Famous'" fifteenth anniversary, crank up Stillwater's "Fever Dog" and check out these facts you may not know about Crowe's semi-autobiographical film.
↧

5 Things You Need to Know Before You See 'Maze Runner: The Scorch Trials'

September 17, 2015, 7:00 am
$
0
0
While many moviegoers are looking forward to the November release of "The Hunger Games: Mockingjay, Part 2," that's not the only movie franchise based on a series of dystopian young adult novels returning to theaters this fall. "Maze Runner: The Scorch Trials" is the middle act of the Maze Runner trilogy. It continues the saga of Thomas and the other survivors of the brutal human experiment as they learn more about their plague-ravaged world and the civil war that threatens to further tear it apart.

While fans of the Maze Runner novels are already lining up for this sequel, those who only saw the first film may not know what to expect. To help you prepare for Thomas' latest adventure, here are the five key things you need to know before entering The Scorch.

1. Out of the Maze, into the Scariest (Sandiest) Place Ever
Don't expect Thomas and friends to be dropped into another isolated experiment with a giant maze in the middle. This time, our heroes will be venturing into the wider world.

Mind you, that world is every bit as dangerous as the original maze. Dubbed "The Scorch," this hellish desert is filled with deadly obstacles of both the man-made and natural variety. It also contains the ruins of the civilization that once was. If "Mad Max: Fury Road" left you craving for more post-apocalyptic desert wastelands, "The Scorch Trials" may be just what the doctor ordered.

2. There's a War Brewing
Thomas and friends finally encountered the faceless enemy controlling their every action in the climax of the first movie. Look for the sequel to delve much deeper into the mysterious organization that is WCKD, and reveal why they dumped a bunch of teenagers into a giant death trap.

As you can expect from a group whose name sounds like "Wicked" (and was actually spelled that way in the books), not everyone in the world of Maze Runner is thrilled with having a totalitarian regime calling the shots. This film will also introduce a resistance group rising up in opposition to the heavily armed and militaristic WCKD.

The question Thomas struggles with in this sequel is which side of the conflict he wants to be on. Not unlike a certain upcoming Marvel Studios movie, "Which side are you on?" is really the crux of the conflict.

3. You're Gonna Meet Some New Allies (and Enemies)
"Scorch Trials" will feature several returning characters from the first movie, including Thomas (Dylan O'Brien), Newt (Thomas Brodie-Sangster), Teresa (Kaya Scodelario), Minho (Ki Hong Lee) and the mysterious researcher Ava Paige (Patricia Clarkson).

Look for several major new players to enter the board, as well. The most significant of these will be Janson (Aidan Gillen), one of the researchers in charge of the facility supposed designed to protect teens like Thomas who are immune to the deadly Flare virus. Naturally, Janson is more than he seems, and his motivations might not be so benevolent. Would you expect anything less from the guy who plays Littlefinger on "Game of Thrones?"

Other new characters will include Brenda (Rosa Salazar) and Aris (Jacob Lofland) as new allies to Thomas' group, and Jorge (Giancarlo Esposito) as the leader of a dissident group known as the Cranks.

4. More Answers Are Coming
The first "Maze Runner" didn't seem to want viewers to know much about the true nature of this world, or the reason why dozens of innocent teens were dumped into a giant death trap and forced to build a Lord of the Flies-style civilization. As per usual in these types of mystery-driven stories, the characters with the answers always seemed to be the most tight-lipped.

Expect the sequel to ease up in that regard. The film won't just showcase the wider world outside of the maze, it'll also explore the sorry state of civilization after a disease called The Flare has decimated humanity. What is the source of this disease? Can it be stopped? Are Thomas and his friends better off cooperating with WCKD's experiments or seeking answers in the wastelands of the Scorch?

Also look for the sequel to delve deeper into Thomas' past as he wrestles with old memories finally resurfacing. Based on the trailer, it seems we'll get a closer glimpse into Thomas' childhood and the tragic events that left him orphaned and alone.

5. It's Really Different From the Book
Book purists might want to brace themselves: The adaptation will be a bit different from its source material – more so than the first movie was.

As Maze Runner creator James Dashner explained in a recent interview, some of these changes are "rippling effects" that occur as a result of deviations in the first movie. Perhaps the biggest change is that the telepathic communication between Thomas and Teresa won't be included in the film. Instead, other storytelling devices will be used to continue building their relationship.

Another major change is that a significant chunk of material from the third Maze Runner novel, "The Death Cure," will be shifted into this film. So fans can expect the climax of "The Scorch Trials" to play out much differently than the book.

The good news is that the series will buck the familiar trend of most YA novels-turned-movies by not breaking the final installment into two parts. "The Death Cure" is currently slated for release in February 2017.

"Scorch Trials" hits theaters this Friday.
%Slideshow-272266%
↧

'Seven': 20 Things You (Probably) Didn't Know About David Fincher's Classic

September 21, 2015, 6:00 am
$
0
0
Two decades later, we're still totally creeped out by "Seven."

The seven-deadly-sins-inspired serial killer thriller, which opened 20 years ago this week (on September 22, 1995), helped put director David Fincher on the map and marked a career milestone for stars Brad Pitt, Morgan Freeman, and Kevin Spacey. What's more, from its jittery opening credits to its grim shocker of an ending, "Seven" has become a template for how to make a dark, suspenseful crime drama.

Despite its many imitators, however, "Seven" maintains its secrets, from who almost starred in it to how it accomplished its unsettling effects to the softened ending that was almost tacked on. Here are some of those secrets. (Warning: Spoilers follow, though, c'mon, the movie's 20 years old.)
1. "Seven" screenwriter Andrew Kevin Walker has a cameo. He's the corpse seen at the beginning of the movie.

2. Walker wrote the screenplay, his first, while living in New York City and working as a retail clerk at Tower Records. He has credited those dismal years with influencing the movie's bleak setting and tone.

3. Having moved to Los Angeles to become a screenwriter in earnest, Walker cold-called David Koepp, then best known as the screenwriter of "Bad Influence" and "Death Becomes Her." (Later, he'd be the blockbuster scribe of the first two "Jurassic Park" movies and "War of the Worlds.") Koepp liked the "Seven" script and helped Walker sell it to New Line Cinema. But the studio didn't like the head-in-a-box ending, a sequence that would be a point of contention throughout the production.

4. Fincher was then a music video director who'd recently made his feature debut with "Alien 3," and he found the process so miserable that he claimed he'd rather contract colon cancer than direct another film. But then he received Walker's screenplay and loved it. He didn't know that New Line had mistakenly sent him the original draft, the one with the severed-head ending.

5. Morgan Freeman was not the first choice to play William Somerset, the world-weary older detective. Walker had envisioned William Hurt as the character, whom he'd named after his favorite author, W. Somerset Maugham. The producers wanted Al Pacino, but he was committed to the film "City Hall."
6. Similarly, Brad Pitt was not the first choice to play Somerset's hot-tempered partner, David Mills. But Denzel Washington and Sylvester Stallone both turned down the role.

7. As serial killer John Doe, Kevin Spacey goes unmentioned in the opening credits. The actor's sudden appearance -- almost two-thirds into the film, not counting the mid-point chase -- came as a surprise to most viewers, as critics were generally good enough to keep that spoiler out of their reviews.

8. "Seven" was shot in Los Angeles, but to make the film's unnamed city look as gloomy as possible, the filmmakers generated a constant stream of fake rain.

9. Freeman called the set a "dark and unhealthy" place, and claimed Fincher developed a cough from the constant spray of water and mineral oil used to create the dank atmosphere.

10. Also adding to the gloom was the unusual way the film negative was processed, called bleach bypass. It involved leaving the silver in the film stock during development, creating a darker, grainier print.
11. Like Fincher, graphic designer Kyle Cooper was working on just his second film, after "Dead Presidents." His credits for that were based on tabletop shots of paper money on fire. Seeing the word "God" burn up on a bill gave Cooper the idea of using the pages of John Doe's notebooks to generate the opening credits for "Seven" (pictured).

12. Once he had the footage on film, Cooper scratched the negative with fish hooks and razor blades. The disturbing result became one of the most influential opening-credit sequences in modern film history, making Cooper the most sought-after opening credit designer since Saul Bass.

13. "Seven" is also one of the few films where the end credits crawl down instead of up.

14. Pitt and on-screen wife Gwyneth Paltrow fell in love for real during the shoot in early 1995.

15. Years later, Pitt claimed he had it written into his "Seven" contract that New Line keep in the final cut the head-in-a-box climax and Mills' vengeful shooting of John Doe. Audience testing, however, made New Line squeamish about the finale. The studio still thought the decapitation of Mills' pregnant wife too disturbing (couldn't it just be the head of Mills' dog, studio executives asked) and thought the character would be more heroic and likable if he refrained from shooting Doe. With the support of Pitt and Freeman, Fincher successfully argued in favor of the severed head and the shooting, but he mitigated the ending anyway. Initially, "Seven" was to end abruptly once Mills kills Doe. Instead, Fincher added the scene of the shocked Mills being taken away by his fellow cops, as well as Freeman's final, partially reassuring voiceover.
16. John Doe's books -- his handwritten journals documenting his street-level perceptions of humanity -- were handwritten. They took two months to finish writing, and cost a rumored $15,000

17. Ever wonder why Mills wears a cast for the back half of the film? While filming the scene where he chases John Doe in the rain, Pitt fell and his arm went through a car windshield, requiring surgery. They worked the accident into the script.

18. Brad Pitt reportedly earned $7 million for the film.

19. "Seven" cost a reported $33 million to make. It earned $100 million in North America, where it topped the box office chart for four straight weeks. Overseas, it earned an additional $227 million.

20. Three months after its initial release, New Line put "Seven" back into theaters in New York and Los Angeles at Christmastime in hopes of earning Oscar nominations for the filmmakers and stars. But the film's only Academy Award nomination came for Richard Francis-Bruce's editing.
%Slideshow-319062%
↧
Viewing all 417 articles
Browse latest View live
Search