O Canada, we stand on link for thee!

Pajiba celebrates the hottest Canadian celebrities for Canada day. I didn't even know that Iceman (Shawn Ashmore) and Helo  (Tamhoh Penikett) were Canadian.
Movie|Line opts for "badass Canadians" like Carrie-Anne Moss and Nathan Fillion. 
unexamined / essentials Lovely review of Woody Allen's Midnight in Paris. (I hadn't considered Gil's insomnia before.) Hey maybe when Woody is done with Rome he should continue his world tour in Canada. Maybe Montreal? Winnipeg?
Guardian a new book of private candids of Elizabeth Taylor and famous friends. Fun fact: Liz married Richard Burton (the first time at least) in Canada. The second time they were married in Botswona. Obviously.

Brando & Liz, so candid its almost demystifying.

Rants of a Diva Halfway Report: best rentals, hot boys, best films, and more...
CHUD Why there's no sequel to Spike Lee's Inside Man and what might be next for him. 
Awards Daily They're now calling The Invention of Hugo Cabret, "Hugo" only. Gah, DULL. Audiences are so dumb. Or Hollywood thinks they are. It amounts to the same thing.

Telegraph Whoa. Tim Robey kinda likes Transformers Dark of the Moon. I love this bit especially...

If you wonder why it had to take a spirit-taxing two and a half hours about this, it’s because Bay’s ego clearly considers it logically irrefutable that the longer one of his films is, the better it must be.

You can say the same, unfortunately, for many far greater auteurs. Length -- one might say dick-measuring --almost always comes with the territory of being a respected auteur, whether you're respected for your art or your money-generating craft... the same thing tends to happen.
My New Plaid Pants meanwhile JA fears he'll go see it this very weekend "like some sort of brain-damaged masochist." hee.

 

Finally, Clothes on Film has a fine piece on Kate Winslet's omnipresent floral housedress in Todd Haynes' remake of Mildred Pierce (which should be cleaning up in the Emmy nominations in a couple of weeks -- I'm most curious to see if/how many supporting actress nods it manages since I suspect Brian F. O'Byrne and Kate Winslet are givens). Ann Roth was the costume designer for that miniseries. You can see an interview with Ann Roth about her designing process (not a Mildred interview) here.

Genie Awards: It's "Incendies" and the Red Carpet

Canada's Genie Awards were held this week and Incendies, which you'll remember was up for the Foreign Film Oscar, was the big winner. The "runner up" as it were, the movie that did very well for itself that didn't win the big one, was Barney's Version which was just Rosamund Pike short of sweeping all the acting trophies. Curiously, if you trust photos from the big event the Barney's Version team was curiously absent. That's so uncool when you win that many awards!

Melissa Etheridge performed (anyone know what song?) and here's a photo of presenters Mia Kirshner (more on her in a bit) and Rossif Sutherland. Yes, he's another spawn of Donald Sutherland -- I didn't know there was a post Kiefer! -- he was nominated for Best Supporting Actor for a film called High Life. Perhaps he can co-star with Armie Hammer at some point since he appears to be the only other 6'5" actor in their age bracket.

Xavier Dolan's Heartbeats went home empty-handed but at least it won nominations for Pic/Director, Cinematography and Supporting Actress.

Best Picture INCENDIES
Best Director Denis Villeneuve for INCENDIES
Best Actor Paul Giamatti in BARNEY'S VERSION
Best Actress Lubna Azabal for INCENDIES
Best Supporting Actor Dustin Hoffman in BARNEY'S VERSION
Best Supporting Actress Minnie Driver in BARNEY'S VERSION
Original Screenplay Jacob Tierney for THE TROTSKY
Adapated Screenplay Denis Villeneuve for INCENDIES
Editing INCENDIES
Cinematography INCENDIES
Art Direction: BARNEY'S VERSION
Costume Design: BARNEY'S VERSION
Make Up: BARNEY'S VERSION
Original Score: BARNEY'S VERSION
Original Song: "Already Gone" from THE TROTSKY (below. I liked this movie. Did any of you see it?)

Sound: INCENDIES
Sound Editing: INCENDIES
Documentary: LAST TRAIN HOME
Live Action Short: SAVAGE
Animated Short: LIPSETT DIARIES

Special Prizes
The Claude Jutra (this is a debut film prize) Jephte Bastien for SORTIE 67
(Honorable Mention: Peter Stebbings for DEFENDOR)
Golden Reel: (this is a prize for the highest grossing Canadian film) RESIDENT EVIL: AFTERLIFE

RED CARPET LINEUP

Mia Kirschner is a dark beauty but I can never ever decide what I think of her acting. I loved the Atom Egoyan film Exotica (the first thing I saw of hers) but I didn't feel fannish until I caught her as a dominatrix in Love and Human Remains. So I thought I was "yes!" on Mia until The "L" Word (hated her on that) so I was blown away by her inchoate despair and haunting of The Black Dahlia (film bitch supporting actress nomination). It seems that my reaction to her is completely dependent on the role/movie which is not something that usually affects me to that degree... i.e. I usually know whether or not I like an actor's work independent of which projects house them. Anyone have any strong feelings one way or the other on Mia?

I can't be the only one who gets freaked out when creepy child stars grew up. Look at Cameron Bright (Birth), now 18, and Jodelle Ferland (Tideland), 16. Yikers. (No, they're not together. I just enjoy my photoshop.) Yes, I know Cameron Bright is in the Twilight movies but I haven't seen them since the first one bored me to tears so to me he's still that creepy boy who tried to seduce Nicole Kidman.

"You're a little liar aren't you?"

I would die to see Sassy Gay Friend take on Birth (2004) but it's too obscure to get that treatment.

Finally there's Best Actress winner Lubna Azabal (who I keep hearing great things about but who is evaded my eyeballs up till now) from Incendies wielding her Genie. The Genie looks like the most dangerous prize this side of Emmy's 'careful or you'll lose an eye' winged she-demon. Oh and Rachel LeFevre she of the booted from Twilight fame.

That's it. Bye!

Pssst. INCENDIES opens in the U.S. on April 22nd.

Review: Heartbeats

"The only truth is love beyond reason" goes the quote from French poet Alfred de Musset that opens Xavier Dolan's moody dreamy French Canadian film Heartbeats. That sounds beautiful in theory, sure, but living it is messier. Immediately the film cuts to a funny frank series of talking head interviews from people who have been unlucky in love. One woman compares herself to Glenn Close in Fatal Attraction and describes panicking at her computer, waiting for emails that never come.

If somebody died every time I hit refresh, there'd be nobody left alive. 

Poetic idealized notions of love clashing with humiliating darkly comic reality? It's a pretty apt way to introduce and describe this arguably slight but beautiful film...

Read the rest at Towleroad

Heartbeats is currently available in select theaters from IFC and On Demand. I'll have an interview with one of the actors shortly after Oscar weekend wraps up. 2011 Index of Movies. This will undoubtedly pick up soon.