She has been on the top of my girl-crush list and one of my favourite actresses since I don't know when, possibly recently joined at the top by the wonderful Emma Stone.I'm trying to think where I first fell in love with Helena... It must be somewhere amongst all the period dramas, all of Merchant Ivory's E. M. Forster adaptations, and her deliciously gothic appearances in Tim Burton's films of the past 10 years or so. Many people complain that Burton keeps making the same film, the same dark, surreal settings, the same cast (Depp and Carter), etc. But, to be honest, until that style isn't cool and unique to Tim, I won't complain. And if you actually consider Helena's entire portfolio, she has portrayed a wide variety of characters, emotions and situations.
She started out playing young, beautiful innocents in Merchant Ivory films such as "A Room With A View" and "Howard's End" and basically starred in multiple other period dramas, "The Wings of the Dove", Twelfth Night etc. She played these parts superbly and convincingly, but one may argue that such parts offer little variation. Then, however, she branched out, playing the morbid - and definitely not old-fashioned - smoke-aholic Marla Singer in David Fincher's classic "Fight Club". Yes, she has been in basically every Tim Burton film since "The Planet of the Apes" in 2001, but is an ape woman really the same as the mother of an impoverished family or a widow who bakes human pie? And don't forget other fantastic, critically acclaimed turns such as the Queen Mother in "The King's Speech", which won her the BAFTA for best supporting actress or the fact that Bonham Carter was recently awarded a OBE at the end of last year.
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| Bellatrix LeStrange |
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| Marc Jacobs |
Also, Bonham Carter is just intrinsically cool. She wears fantastic outfits, with a style completely incomparable to any other actress. She is the mother of the children of my favourite director and has starred in many of his films and so, many of my favourites. She has modeled for Marc Jacobs, my favourite designer! Though his clothes are bright and vibrant, they match her quirky, other-wordly nature perfectly. I don't know that it's so much I want to marry her as I want to be her and I think you can see why....Speaking of women I love a little too much, there have been some new images released for "The Amazing Spider-Man", including this lovely one of Emma Stone...
AND!!! There is a new "Amazing Spider-Man" trailer. Go to the website to check it out. Now, now, now!!
And speaking of period dramas, I have discovered this brilliant idea for an article: handsome men in period dramas!
Stylist: Handsome men
It's everything you could want in life, aka... handsome men and period dramas! I vote either Firth-Darcy, Fassbender-Rochester or Hardy-Heathcliffe. What about you?
I'm always going on about films I like - naturally -, but I'm never very critical. I never warn you of the rubbish that's to be avoided, I never pick at the flaws of the films I enjoy, so today, I shall do the polar opposite! The Top 5 Worst Films I've Ever Seen:
Scary Movie
This film is to blame for not only all the subsequent "Scary Movie" sequels, but also all the "- Movie"s which followed: "Date Movie", "Epic Movie", dare I mention "Meet the Spartans"? Luckily for myself, my brain and my stomach I have only sat through "Scary Movie" 1, because, as a rational person, I knew I was not likely to enjoy the sequels to such a dud. This film is dull, it is awfully written, awfully acted, and it resorts to incredibly crude jokes to hide the fact that it's not funny: "The more extreme we are, the more likely someone will laugh!" Are the Wayans brothers responsible for all that is wrong with contemporary cinema? Maybe...
Little Nicky/The Waterboy
Having said what I said about the Wayans brothers, I must give Adam Sandler some credit for the awful cinema inflicted upon us. These are the two worst Sandler films I have seen, but I am sure there are many I haven't seen or don't remember that are worthy of this list. Again, poorly written and poorly acted, these films are also slightly offensive. Sandler plays basically the same character twice. In "Little Nicky" he is the devil's son and must save his father's life - or some rubbish like that - and in "The Waterboy" he is, well, a waterboy, a true underdog who fights his way onto the team. Both films are horrifically bad and both these characters play on a slow voice and a dim intellect for laughs. They play to the lowest common denominator. Is it endearing Adam? No, it's not. If you've seen "Tropic Thunder" (love it!) and have watched Stiller's satiric advert for "Simple Jack", you will see exactly what Sandler is doing in these films:
The Cat in the Hat
I don't even remember exactly why this film was so bad (it came out in 2003), but I remember that it was one of the most tedious cinema trips of my life! To be honest, is Mike Myers really that great? Does he really add much to "Shrek" that any other actor couldn't do easily? Are the "Austin Powers" films (except 3, which I do enjoy) really that good? Myers, Sandler and Eddie Murphey all have careers I cannot explain! This film wasn't even a good children's film, it was dull and pointless, unlike "The Grinch", a brilliant, fun, sweet Zeuss adaptation definitely worth a watch around Christmas!
Van Wilder: Party Liaison
This film works similarly to the "Scary Movie" franchise in that it goes as gross as possible and throws in some boobs to try to appeal to teenagers. I love Ryan Reynolds, I really do, and I do love American college films, but this did not entertain me and at times forced me to avert my eyes. Bestiality is not funny people!
Anything with Eddie Murphey
I couldn't think of another specific film worthy of being up here with these horrors, so I thought we should give a shout out to Eddie, who never fails to create some shockers. Anything in which he plays more than one character (I'm also looking at you, Martin Laurence, and you, Adam Sandler) is bound to be a less-than-one star film.
None of these films deserve an accompanying image! I don't want to soil my blog.
I'm sorry if this bout of negativity has lowered the mood of my blog. I much prefer talking about films I love and most films you can definitely find something good in. I shall return to my favourites in the next post for sure!
Film News: There's a new "Hunger Games" trailer out, check it out, this film should be big! And check out my previous post on "The Hunger Games" for a look at the book and its story: "The Hunger Games - A Briefing". Plus, the Super Bowl is on at the moment which means lots of mini film trailers are being aired. Here's a Guardian article with some clips, including for "the Avengers". Plus here's a link to "The Avengers" extended super bowl ad.
Best quote from the advert: Loki "I have an army." Tony Stark: "We have a Hulk."
This shit gonna be good!
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