Sure, they’re not box office champs , but the Muppets’ resurgence as competitive marquee stars is reason enough to scan Twitter for the best tweets about Jason Segel’s new film. Who will top this week’s tally? Join us for a quintet of quips that will make the Swedish Chef throw his wooden spoon in glee.
It was probably just a matter of time before French filmmaker Michel Hazanavicius broke through in the United States: His OSS 117 diptych of spy spoofs had already acquired something of an international audience, and his curiosity about Hollywood has grown alongside his reputation. But no one — least of all Hazanavicius himself — likely foresaw him breaking through with The Artist .
Happy Tuesday! Also in today’s edition of The Broadsheet: Chris Evans is cold as Iceman … The other Turkey in the news this week… More on the NYFCC awards vote troubles… All three of Jason Segel’s dreams come true… Your student-loan doom explained… and more.
Can something be considered fan fiction if it’s also an official, canonical studio product? I’m going to argue yes, absolutely, because with The Muppets , Jason Segel has crafted what can only be described as the most extravagant work of fan fiction ever, Mary Sue-ing himself into the Muppet universe as a character who helps reunite the gang in order to save their old theater and the day. Segel, who co-wrote the film with Nicholas Stoller, even leaves his own tentative mark on Jim Henson’s beloved ensemble by inserting a personal addition in the form of alter ego Walter (voiced by Peter Linz), his character’s Muppet brother and the group’s most devoted fan even when the rest of the world seems to have forgotten about them. Fandom can be a precarious thing — someone’s devotion to the source material he or she is adapting to screen can sometimes lead to being too cautious with it, too respectful to do what’s best for the movie instead of only for the hardcore supporters. But the love Segel has for the Muppets is a genuine, perceivable and positive quality that suffuses this good-hearted revitalization of the franchise, and if some wish fulfillment sneaks in there too, it seldom gets in the way of the enjoyment to be had.
President John F. Kennedy was assassinated 48 years ago today in Dallas, Texas, prompting what would become the biggest single market in conspiracy theories until 9/11. Many of them came bundled in such staggeringly ambitious work as Oliver Stone’s JFK , Don DeLillo’s Libra , and Josiah “Tink” Thompson’s exhaustive Zapruder film study Six Seconds in Dallas — the latter of which filmmaker and Movieline favorite Errol Morris reconnects with today for an intriguing new short exploring the legend of that fateful day’s “Umbrella Man.”
Throughout the Twilight franchise, one screenwriter has adapted author Stephenie Meyer ‘s bestselling book series about a teenager and her love for a vampire for the screen: Melissa Rosenberg . It’s a tricky job, balancing the desire to satisfy fans with the need to make Meyer’s 500+ page-novels cinematic, all while transforming heroine Bella Swan ( Kristen Stewart ) from unsteady teen to self-possessed woman. But in Breaking Dawn – Part 1 Bella finally is an agent of her own destiny, her senses awakened, and her choices confident. Was she, as Rosenberg insists, an active heroine under the surface just waiting to spring into action all along?
Jackson Rathbone says he has felt right at home playing Jasper in the Twilight films, though the vampire’s quiet, reserved nature contrasts with the actor’s other identity: as the leader of L.A. funk rock band 100 Monkeys, who kick off their first European tour this month. Rathbone, who was strumming a guitar between interviews at the recent junket for this week’s Breaking Dawn – Part 1 , spoke with Movieline about balancing film and music, Twilight ‘s effect on his success as a musician, and moving on from the series after Breaking Dawn – Part 2 hits theaters next year.
Even though you may not immediately recognize the name Warwick Davis, you are familiar with his work. That’s because the English actor has been involved with two of the most storied franchises in all of film history — the first being Star Wars , where Davis made his onscreen debut as Wicket in Return of the Jedi at the tender age of 13. Nearly three decades (and title roles in Willow and the six-part Leprechaun series) later, Davis helps close the door on the Harry Potter franchise, where he has played Hogwarts charms master Professor Flitwick and Gringotts goblin Griphook for 10 years.
Although Albert Nobbs has made the festival rounds and has long been generating awards-season buzz — particularly for star and co-writer Glenn Close — the film only had its Hollywood coming-out party of sorts over the weekend.
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