Posts Tagged ‘Films’

Health Ledger’s family say that they are “proud and excited” that the actor has been nominated for a posthumous Oscar.

Ledger died from an accidental overdose exactly one year before being short listed for the best supporting actor role for his part as the joker in the latest Batman movie: The Dark Knight.

Ledger’s portrayal of a maniacal killer/tortured soul won critical acclaim in the media, and is considered to be one of the best played roles in history by the films fans.

Ledgers sister Ashleigh Bell said that he thought playing the Joker was “the most fun he ever had working on a film”.

She said that he said it was “the time of his life!.

“We will take this opportunity today to honour his wonderful life and take comfort in knowing Heath will continue to touch future generations through this amazing art-form,” she added.

The actor who also had starring roles in Brokeback Mountain, First Knight and
The Brothers Grimm is up against Josh Brolin, Robert Downey and previous winner Philip Seymour Hoffman.

If Ledger wins the award it will be the second time that a deseased actor will have won an Oscar, after Robert Finch’s award for Network back in 1977.

Ledger was found dead in his Manhattan apartment with a bottle of prescription sleeping pills nearby. The inquest that followed his death showed that the 28 year old died because he’d taken a mix that included pain killers, sleeping pills and anti-anxiety medication.

Ledger’s sister Kate said: “It seems like merely yesterday. We are still all nursing broken heart.”

Meanwhile other Oscar nominees are getting excited about the fact they could walk away with a prestigious award. Danny Boyle, director of Brit-flick-that-isn’t-a-gangster-movie Slumdog Millionaire is over the moon with his films 10 nominations.

He said: “I’m ecstatic! Thank you to the Academy from the cast and crew.

“It feels like you’ve given us a billion nominations!”

Kate Winslet who had a teary/pathetic acceptance speech at the recent Bafta awards is nominated for her role in The Reader, she said: “I’m extremely happy to have been nominated. And very fortunate. Playing Hanna Schmitz will always remain one of the biggest challenges I’ve ever been blessed with.”

Brad Pitt’s new movie, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, is currently leading the Oscar charge with 13 nominations, including Best Actor. He said: “It’s great fun for the movie to see it get acknowledged that way, but it’s not the goal.

“It’s a fickle business, and there to be enjoyed if you’re invited and there to be enjoyed if you’re not.”

The 81st Award show will take place in Los Angeles on 22 February.

Right men, listen up. A new study has been released that will get us out of having to be subjected to the dreaded Rom-Com. The study by Heriot Watt University in Edinburgh has found that these movies promote “unrealistic expectations” when it comes to love and relationships.

The researchers blame films like Four Wedding and a Funeral with the foppish gent Hugh Grant, and Notting Hill with the foppish gent Hugh Grant, essentially anything with Hugh Grant, and a host of other slushy, obvious movies.

The study found that men and women have a serious difference of opinion over Rom-com’s such as Runaway Bride – because its rubbish according to men, and good according to women.

The study by psychologists at the family and personal relationships lab at the University studied 40 soppy box office hits between 1995 and 205, identifying common unrealistic themes in each one.

The movies quite often included Meg Ryan and Jennifer Lopez - Two Rom-com actresses that would look entirely out of place in any other type of movie.

The university’s Dr Bjarne Holmes said: “Marriage counsellors often see couples who believe that sex should always be perfect, and if someone is meant to be with you then they will know what you want without you needing to communicate it.

“We now have some emerging evidence that suggests popular media play a role in perpetuating these ideas in people’s minds.

“The problem is that while most of us know that the idea of a perfect relationship is unrealistic, some of us are still more influenced by media portrayals than we realise.”

One part of the project involved 100 students watching the 2001 Rom-com Serendipity, while another 100 students watched a David Lynch drama. The students who watched/suffered the romantic film were more likely to believe in fate and destiny, and a stronger belief in predestined love.

Kimberly Johnson, who worked on the study, said: “Films do capture the excitement of new relationships but they also wrongly suggest that trust and committed love exist from the moment people meet, whereas these are qualities that normally take years to develop.”

The moral of this story? Avoid anything with Hugh Grant on the poster. It’s a rule I’ve lived by for many years.

TOP 12 MUST SEE FILMS OF 2008

Sweeney Todd
Released 25 January - The magical triumvirate of director Tim Burton with his favourite muses Johnny Depp and Helena Bonham-Carter seldom fails. They’re maxing up the goth-ness to true Edward Scissorhands proportions here as Depp tackles lethal barber Todd.

John Rambo

Released February 22nd - Rambo is that much older and that much more violent for his big comeback. The original action hero is not pulling any punches as he rescues some Christian missionaries from the nasties in the Burmese jungle. Enchanted fans be warned?

Juno
Released February 1 - It’s already out in the States and the buzz has spread like wildfire for this hilarious teenage pregnancy story. Director Jason Reitman has proved that the excellent Thank You For Smoking was not a fluke.

There Will Be Blood
Released February 8 - Everyone’s talking about Daniel Day Lewis’ role in this Paul Thomas Anderson period drama - an eccentric oil man driven by greed at the turn of the 20th Century. He’s favourite in the Best Actor Oscar race as we type this.

Indiana Jones And The Kingdom Of The Crystal Skull
Released May 22 - It looked for all the world as if the title was going to be ‘Indiana Jones And The City Of The Gods’. The new title, wordy as it is, refers to the real-life discovery of a quartz skull in Belize. The sinister world that comes from this starting point will be where senior Indy and young apprentice Shia LaBoeuf get to terms with the year’s biggest action budget. More than just a payday for the old guard, we hope?

Iron Man
Released May 2 - The second most exciting superhero flick of the year has Robert Downey Junior looking right at home as a weapons-toting maniac who just loves to blow stuff up and turn himself into the turbo-charged cyborg above. Expect a special-effects action binge?

Sex And The City: The Movie
Released 30 May - To some, the thought of a two hour SATC sounds worse than pulling teeth. To others it’ll provide the climax to one of the most successful shows ever to cross our screens. Expect shopping, clothes and urrr? sex!

Valkyrie
Released 11 July - Remember Tom Cruise’s weird haircut at the Lions For Lambs premiere? This was the reason. Tom had been shooting the now nearly completed Valkyrie in which he plays Nazi officer Claus von Stauffenberg and plots to assassinate Hitler - A challenging part. With Bryan Singer at the reins it might just be a winner.

The Dark Knight
Released 25 July - Of all the summer’s big hitters, this has to be the most mouth-watering. We’ve been lucky enough to catch the first 7 minutes of the new bat flick (with Heath Ledger looking insane as The Joker) and it’s already pretty stunning. Complete with his new two-wheeler toy (above), The Bat may just steal Summer.

Wanted
Released 20 June - It’s seldom been heard of thus far. But the combination of James McAvoy, Angelina Jolie and Nightwatch director Timur Bekmambetov is not to be sniffed at. Look out for fast cars and snazzy effects as average Joe McAvoy discovers deadly new powers he never thought he had.

Bond 22
Released 7 November - Currently entering principal photography, the still-nameless new Bond is shrouded in mystery. The personnel, however, including Mark Forster in the director’s chair and Bourne stunt man Dan Bradley, are a good start.

Star Trek
Released 26 December - Things weren’t looking good for the ancient sci-fi series. But JJ Abrams’ desire to breathe new life into ‘the trek’ eventually won over the big wigs at Paramount. Expect an improvement on Star Trek: Nemesis.