Last week’s “Salem” pilot was a rather bewitching debut, especially if you love the manipulative tendencies of the show’s main character, Mary Sibley (Janet Montgomery). During the narrative’s opening moments, we’re on Mary’s side as she essentially mortgaged her own humanity to ensure lover John Alden’s (Shane West) return to Salem.
Their reunion, however, is met with its share of compromise, as the town has sunk into a deeper pit of immorality and violence. Mary Sibley, the supposed heroine of the story, has done, in Montgomery’s own words, some pretty “horrific things” during her journey.
“Salem” – Shane West as John Alden, Seth Gabel as Cotton Maher (WGN America)
“Salem’s” second episode, titled “The Stone Child,” has Alden trying to figure out what the heck is really going down in Salem. Although she’s the leader of the true witches of Salem, Mary Sibley still holds deep feelings for Alden. Will human love triumph over witchcraft, or is Salem literally going down in flames. And what the heck is the stone child?
“Salem” airs Sunday, April 27 on WGN America at 10 pm et/ 9 pm ct.
Here’s a clip of Janet Montgomery talking about why she loves playing Mary Sibley:
Documentary filmmaker Mark Mori met Bettie Page through his entertainment attorney back in 1996. After reading the biography Bettie Page: The Life of a Pin-Up Legend, Mori was inspired to shoot a documentary on Page’s troubled yet ultimately triumphant life. Now out on Blu-ray and DVD (it’s also available as a VOD rental), Bettie Page Reveals All is Mori’s detailed look into Page’s history.
The project is actually narrated by Page, as her voice was lifted from Mori’s interviews with the late model (she passed in 2008). I talked to the Academy Award nominated filmmaker over the phone this week, and he shared a few insights about his subject. Although Page never allowed the director to put her on camera, the documentary’s visual detail isn’t lacking thanks to the plethora of interviews and photographs within the piece. Since a picture is worth 1,000 words, Bettie Page Reveals All definitely has a lot to say.
__________________
How long were your interviews with Bettie Page?
Well I did several lengthy audio recordings, a total of about five or six hours where I just tried to get everything. Originally, it was just for research. But her voice was really magic, her genuine personality comes through and I used that as the narration. I also have over 1,000 photographs of Bettie Page in the film and we used comic book panels and a lot of other things to illustrate her story.
BETTIE PAGE REVEALS ALL (Music Box Films)
The documentary starts off with Bettie Page’s funeral. Was it easy to receive access to the funeral?
I had Bettie’s blessing. This was the authorized documentary so people like Artie (Arthur Felig) the Camera Club photographer, Harry Lear her third husband, Paula Klaw from Movie Star News and even her agent and manager, I was able to get access with everything connected to Bettie because she wanted this film to get made. Anybody who was a fan of Bettie or wanted to hear her story told was interested in working with me on (the project).
What were your impressions of Bettie Page during your interviews? She seemed like a very strong woman.
Well that’s one of the things you get from her in the film. She was constantly overcoming tragedy and constantly getting knocked down, including ten years in a mental institution (Pagewas released from Patton State Hospital in San Bernardino County in 1992).
She was always able to pick herself back up and she just was very strong willed. She was just this force of nature and she didn’t try to make herself into something. She lived her life how she saw fit. She was an independent woman in the ‘40s and ‘50s and a sexual being that couldn’t understand why people had a problem with her sexuality.
One thing that’s not in the film that you get in the DVD extras is she talks about wanting to join a nudist colony. Feeling free in her nudity was actually a part of her being.
Bettie Page in Mark Mori’s BETTIE PAGE REVEALS ALL (Music Box Films)
What are some of the other bonus features on the Blu-ray and DVD release?
In the documentary, you get a minute or two of a phone call that we arranged between Paula Klaw and Bettie. It was the first time they had spoken in 35 years. In the DVD extras you get the whole 15 minute phone call, a and you get a different angle on who Bettie is.
I also got from the Klaws nine of what Bettie called her “wiggle movies.” The old Irving Klaw movies where she’s dancing around in these 16 mm/ 8 mm films – we restored nine of those. For the purpose of the DVD we put them to songs to Bettie. There’s a couple of other original songs that people may have never heard before that we discovered or that people brought to us.
We also have more of Bettie’s voice talking about her early life and we have more special photographs of her that did not make it into the documentary. There are also a few deleted scenes from the movie.
How would you explain Bettie Page’s continued popularity?
It’s her authenticity. This is why her photographs are so appealing. She’s gorgeous but there’s a real person there. It comes through in her eyes and what she’s doing. There’s no artifice. She’s just being genuine. You get a richer picture when you hear her voice and see that along with the pictures. There will never be another Bettie Page and she wasn’t trying to be the world’s greatest model. She didn’t even understand why anybody thought what she was doing was a big deal.
Were Bettie’s final years happy ones in your opinion?
She did enjoy the attention. She didn’t want to go out in public. She didn’t want that kind of attention but she was flattered that people were interested in her. Between the money and the attention she was getting, she did enjoy her later years in life. One thing I heard was she would give pizza boys $100 tips. So she was okay.
What was is like to have a project and work on it for so many years? Even though it must have been a difficult process, is getting feedback from fans of Page part of the joy in doing the documentary?
It’s both. It’s a hard thing when you’re going through it. There’s moments of sheer terror when you think, ‘What have I done?’ Then when it works and it’s successful and I’ve been through it several times now, then it seems worthwhile.
In fact it was in the process of making the documentary when I began to (really) appreciate Bettie. These young women would tell me about how they had a pure emotional connection with her. It was clear to me that they were getting their sexual confidence by identifying with Bettie Page.
The dominant culture was giving a negative message that if you’re not some preconceived notion of beauty, then you’re really not anything. Bettie Page was a means for these women (to overcome) that and for them to gain confidence in themselves.
___________
For more info on the Blu-ray and DVD release of Bettie Page Reveals All, check out its official website.
“For No Good Reason’s” main selling point as a documentary is the interaction between Johnny Depp and Ralph Steadman, the British artist who’s best known for his collaboration with author Hunter S. Thompson. Steadman’s expressionistic, larger than life images of an America gone mad, coupled with Thompson’s gonzo journalism swagger, made for an iconic pairing. The doc investigates their close knit and frequently tumultuous relationship.
Although the pleasurable conceit of the documentary has Depp visiting Steadman at his Old Loose Court in Kent residence during one lazy day, “For No Good Reason” was shot over a 15-year period. Such a lengthy process did not deter filmmaker Charlie Paul, who found himself consistently intrigued by Steadman and his work.
Ralph Steadman – “For No Good Reason” (Sony PIctures Classics, CR: Charlie Paul)
“Ralph has been an artistic hero of mine since I was in art college,” said Paul. “To be allowed access into the world of someone like Ralph obviously was such an engaging thing for another artist to make a film about. Ralph is constantly surprising so there was never a time when I thought I’m running out of subject here. When things got dry, we’d turn ten degrees and suddenly a whole new world is there.”
I’ll be doing more posts on “For No Good Reason,” but for now check out this following clip as Charlie Paul discusses how having tons of footage on Steadman lead to his crafting an “honest” and “open” documentary (producer Lucy Paul is also heard in the clip):
“For No Good Reason,” which also features interviews with director Terry Gilliam, Jann Wenner, and actor Richard E. Grant, opens in New York on April 25 and the following week in Los Angeles.
Even though she’s one of the world’s top supermodels, Kate Upton must have felt a twinge of intimidation after landing a co-starring role in “The Other Woman.” With Cameron Diaz and Leslie Mann leading the way, Upton had to show she could bring something valuable to the table.
I watched the film several weeks ago, and one of the comedy’s greatest assets rests in the chemistry among the three actresses, as they play women who have all been cheated by an all too charming philanderer (“Game of Thrones” star Nikolaj Coster-Waldau). Upton stars as a kind, nubile, and slightly spacey beauty who is the cheater’s latest girlfriend, with Mann chiming in as the cuckolded wife and Diaz playing an ex-mistress.
The Other Woman (20th Century Fox, CR: Barry Wetcher)
Upton’s most difficult scene was a beach scene which featured her in a sexy white bikini. “It was so amazing,” said Upton. “I’m so lucky. I didn’t know what to expect when I first came on set, and they opened their arms to me and made me feel really comfortable instantly.”
To listen to Upton talk about shooting “The Other Woman’s” bikini/beach sequence, click on the media bar below:
Directed by Nick Cassavetes (“Alpha Dog,” “The Notebook”), “The Other Woman” opens April 25.
When you’re a middle-aged sap like me, a show like “The Fabulist” is informative and, if I ever decided to look presentable in public, highly educational . Hosted by Kristin Cavallari and Orly Shani, the E! series has the pair checking out the latest trends in fashion, lifestyle, and health. The telegenic Cavallari, who received her TV start on the MTV reality series “Laguna Beach,” is a veteran of the medium while fashion designer Shani gained her share of fame on NBC’s “Fashion Star.”
Although covering what’s hot and fashion forward is a huge element of “The Fabulist,” the co-hosts bring their own spin to the proceedings. “We’re both moms and aside from fun days like this we both have very regular lives,” said Shani, who attended the NBC Universal summer press day earlier this month with Cavallari to promote the show. “And so there’s a practicality to what we find interesting on the show.”
As for Cavallari, she’s expecting her second baby with husband (and Chicago Bears quarterback) Jay Cutler and she recently stopped by Sprout San Francisco in Chicago to offer up a baby gift ideas on the following E! Online video/article.
During the interview, I asked Shani and Cavallari if they cover trends that they’re not exactly crazy about.
Check out the video below for their answer, which dealt with such trending topics as orange lipstick and naked yoga:
“The Fabulist” airs Monday nights on E! (8:30 pm et/pt).
Former Friday Night Lights actor Taylor Kitsch, after starring in such high profile projects as John Carter, Battleship, and most recently Lone Survivor, will next be seen in the comedy The Grand Seduction. Kitsch plays a city slicker doctor who moves to a small fishing village for a trial residence. The townsfolk are on their best behavior with the cricket loving doc, as they need a medical professional to secure a business contract that will employ its denizens.
The Grand Seduction (Photo: Duncan de Young/Max Films)
Brendan Gleeson, who’s known for playing tough guys (In Bruges, Gangs of New York), is one of the many people who attempt to seduce the good old doctor into loving their town. The picture is directed by Don McKellar, the screenwriter behind the 2008 drama Blindness.
The movie, which clocks in at a meaty 115 minutes, looks pretty charming and would probably fit on a double bill with Salmon Fishing in the Yemen. To see if Taylor Kitsch has a knack for comedy, check out the trailer below:
The Grand Seduction opens in select theaters May 30.
Recently released on Blu-ray, The Invisible Woman (111 minutes, Rated R) centers on the life of Ellen Ternan (Felicity Jones), an 18-year-old woman who enters a love affair with a married Charles Dickens (Ralph Fiennes). Directed by Fiennes, the narrativeis mainly told from Ternan’s point of view, as she starts off as a wide eyed teenager who’s smitten with the great author.
The film, based on , also deals with the woman’s new life after Dickens passing. Ellen would later change her name to Nelly and live an altogether separate life as a married woman and schoolteacher. Felicity Jones does nuanced work as “the invisible woman,” an independent minded spirit who finds herself caught in Dickens’ formidable shadow, even after his passing. Kristin Scott Thomas, who previously worked with Fiennes in The English Patient, co-stars as Ternan’s mother.
Although the narrative delves into Charles Dickens’ own conflicts in keeping a happy home while also continuing his passionate romance with his muse, it’s Ternan’s own path towards acceptance which serves as the heart of the story.
Special features on the Blu-ray include commentary from Fiennes and Jones, Red Carpet coverage at the Toronto Film Festival and an informative SAG Q&A featuring Fiennes and Jones.
The Invisible Woman (Sony Pictures Classics)
Towards the end of the SAG interview, Fiennes elaborated on the theme of The Invisible Woman.
“What moved me to make the film was (it was about) a woman seeking closure with a relationship, with a past love affair, a past intimacy,” said Fiennes. “That moved me – the idea that someone is haunted by something in their past, in this case a love affair which they still have not had reconciliation with. I want the audience to witness what that journey is for Nelly and reflect on it. I think, most people in their life, whether it’s with a lover or a sibling or a parent or a child, if you lose that person, it affects you and it’s not easy to articulate closure with it. So that, for me, is what the film is about.”
Signs are supposedly everywhere, but sometimes we need a few life events to push us in certain directions. If our antennas are just tuned into to the right moment, and we will pick up certain signals which could send us off into an entirely different and unexpected direction.
For Thomas Haden Church, taking part in Heaven is for Real was partly inspired by his own conversations with ambitious filmmaker Randall Wallace, whose directing credits include We Were Soldiers and The Man in the Iron Mask. A bit of synchronicity also played into his decision, as he had never seen the actual book that the script was based on until he visited the home of a recently departed friend.
The book was laying on the coffee table, and after his friend’s wife told Church that it helped her through her tough times, the actor came to a decision.
“This is either one of those ‘whatever’ and walk away moments, because I am a bit of a skeptical guy,” said Church, who visited the house just a half hour after talking to Wallace on the phone. “I’ve worked in the industry for 25 years. But then I thought maybe this is that other moment where this family, faith-based message film is the right thing that I should do right now.”
For Thomas Haden Church, it was an inspired choice in taking the role of Jay Wilkins, Todd Burpo’s friend and fellow congregation member, in Heaven is for Real.
During our interview with the Texas based actor, he talked about how his current thoughts on heaven. It’s a long clip, but it’s definitely a memorable one. Check it out below:
“Tales of Honor: The Secret Fleet,” a free to play space adventure based on the Honor Harrington novels by David Weber, hits the App Store on May 1. The adventure has gamers playing a newly graduated tactical officer who must commandeer the HMS Havoc after most of the senior officers are killed. Throughout their journey, players will also unlock more information about Honor Harrington.
Along with the starship combat, players must also repair and upgrade their ship. Currency is earned by completing various missions in the game, and weekly online events will be part of this app’s features in the coming weeks.
Tales of Honor: The Secret Fleet (Evergreen Studios)
“Tales of Honor: The Secret Fleet is the next phase in the expansion of the Tales of Honor story world,” said Evergreen Studios CCO Scott Kroopf. “Now gamers can discover the unique battle tactics and enjoy the military authenticity of the Honorverse. The game, like the recently released comic (Tales of Honor: On Basilisk Station), is intended to funciton as a standalone experience, yet we’re designing them to be complementary. Our goal is to make it easy for fans of all types to explore the rich universe that David Weber has created.”
Judging from the trailer, the visuals are definitely eye catching, and hopefully this app will give us an engaging free to play experience. Although many apps go for the cash grab with the freemium model, I’m crossing my fingers that this game stands out amidst the fray.
If you’re a Weber fan or want an experience beyond the app, “Tales of Honor: On Basilisk Station” hits stores and will be available digitally onComixology.comon April 30.
Don’t let the ominous photo fool you, since “Blue Ruin’s” true horror lies in the tragedy that’s scarred drifter Dwight Evans (Macon Blair) for life. A loner to the end, Dwight’s sole mission is to seek vengeance on the man responsible for murdering his parents. Brooklyn based filmmaker Jeremy Saulnier’s feature is a compelling hybrid of art house and genre driven movies, and coupled with Blair’s harrowing (and occasionally humorous) performance as Evans, “Blue Ruin” is a cinematic home run.
“Blue Ruin” has spent the past year garnering its share of acclaim on the festival circuits, with Saulnier receiving the FIPRESCI International Critics Prize at the Cannes Film Festival. The praise is definitely understood, as the picture takes the revenge drama genre into an entirely different (and inspired) level.
I interviewed Blair and Saulnier today, and more posts on “Blue Ruin” are in the offing on Deepest Dream (for an insightful look on Saulnier’s background, check out this IndieWire piece).
Here’s a quick clip of the director offering up solid filmmaking advice.
“The lessons are, stay true to yourself, and patience is just as important as being aggressive,” said Saulnier, who also penned the screenplay and was the film’s cinematographer.
Check out the video below:
“Blue Ruin” opens in select theaters and on demand April 25. The trailer, which does a great job of capturing the film’s somber and compelling tone, is seen below:
What was is like to have a project and work on it for so many years? Even though it must have been a difficult process, is getting feedback from fans of Page part of the joy in doing the documentary?
As for Cavallari, she’s expecting her second baby with husband (and Chicago Bears quarterback) Jay Cutler and she recently stopped by Sprout San Francisco in Chicago to offer up a baby gift ideas on the following 
