Every once in a while we shift our focus off of our beloved television programs and spread our affections to one of the other mediums/arts. (Star Trek has been an object of obsession for two of my co-horts here at the Nose). We have the good fortune of writing 
for television and film blogs and writing for them anonymously. Sometimes writing for them is a challenge re: time, particularly since we all do have careers in various media outlets and that's not counting our respective lives beyond work. It is no secret that all of us here at The Flaming Nose feel blessed or lucky (depending on one's perspective) to work in the film, television and music industries. As much as I savor my television programs I came of age loving music and film more; and the deeply rooted attachment I have to film has never wavered since my youthful discovery. My mum and dad loved movies and in some DNA carpentered moment I got the love of film into my system. Even when the movies go through painfully awful periods (too many in the last 20 years) I always know that the sun will rise and set and at some point I will be looking at the 
right time to catch one of the most beautiful of sights (beyond sunrises and sunsets) -- a great big bouncy piece of cinematic brilliance.
I also love books and I enjoy a well written crime novel (not the slasher ones, but the deep thinking ones); and clearly no one does this better than James Ellroy, but the great Irish writer, Ken Bruen has managed to steal away many hours of my life as I transport myself to his venues of the rough and wacky. I love his integration of music into his works. How can you not love a guy who references everyone from the Eagles to Trisha Yearwood to Frank Sinatra? Some time back I purchased a copy of his London Boulevard on amazon.com.uk. I couldn't buy it in the states and I was too big a fan to wait for its U.S. arrival. I read it in one sitting. It's a short book! Shortly thereafter I heard they were making a film out of it and that William Monahan (most notably, The Departed) was writing the script and making his directorial debut, but the the bigger excitement was that two of my favorite film actors were going to play the leads or in the case of one of them a combination of the leads. Since 2002 when I kicked along to Bend it Like Beckham I have adored Keira Knightley. She has been cast as the combo pairing of the actress and the
love interest. In the book, these are two separate characters. Keep in mind, in the book, the actress is a 60 year old and I guess they didn't want to have Julie Christie play the actress (even though she is 68 she could still play 60), although that would have been an intriguing move. Of course, then you couldn't have hired Colin Farrell to play the character of Mitchell since Mitchell is 47 years old in the book (although I suspect Colin may look 47 before he is really 47 - I'm not being mean since I love the guy's acting and clearly I'm a fan, but all of those cigarettes will age him the way they aged Mel Gibson).
I return to the thought. Drive truth away from storytelling. Why not? It's done all the time, so now we have the stunningly beautiful (a cross between Julie Christie and Jacqueline Bisset - what a cross) and gifted young actress, Keira Knightley playing the female lead in one of my favorite recent books. I love Colin Farrell too, although he hasn't done a great deal to deserve the love, but from the first time I witnessed him I gathered this bloke up in a big bunch of pony-tailed (hopefully, those
days are past him) potential! Every once in a while he hits a high mark (think In Bruges and not Alexander or Miami Vice for that matter). I can only hope that London Boulevard will be his cinematic payday. I'm looking forward to this film (although since it starts production in a couple of weeks it won't be out until summer or fall of 2010) and I am most looking forward to the highly anticipated (my highly anticipated) chemistry of these two old-school movie actors. They could have co-starred in just about any of the great dramatic films from the golden period of films back in the 1940's. They are timeless types and that part may come from their Isles roots. Americans (and yes, I am an American and I love my country) don't do timeless well. 
We are too contemporary and our actors (outside of Johnny Depp who is clearly in a schoolroom with no other students) reek of the now. The Brits and the Irish have qualities we lost somewhere in the counterrevolutionary period of the 1960's (which in many ways the Brits started). We've never been the same. What other group of people travel in their pajama pants? We've become sneaker/sweatshirt slobs. We AIN'T timeless anymore. Keira Knightley and Colin Farrell. I like them. Pure and simple. They are gorgeous and gifted and they both seem like decent people. They clearly attempt to live somewhat normal lives (now that he is healed from his addictions), they avoid Hollywood pomposity, they even seem grounded with their highly devoted to family lifestyles. They are funny, quick, clever, witty, articulate and wickedly smart. If they 
weren't actors I'd assemble their selves as the perfect Match.com entry.
The book is a solid entry in the crime genre and if you have any tender loving feelings for Billy Wilder's Sunset Boulevard (if you know anything at all about film you would have to have lots of tender loving feelings for it) then you are going to anticipate this film as much as I am. Now whether Monahan can achieve even half the depth of that script is yet to be known, but I am going to trust that it will be worth the wait. Hopefully, Monahan avoids the gratuitous use of the F BOMB. His films (The Departed most notably) have the word being dropped in every third word placement. Outside of hardened criminals I'm not sure who talks this way except maybe the director and lead male actor. One must think that, correct?
Now that the 2008-2009 television season is wrapping itself (Dancing with the Stars ends
next Tuesday - I'm worried about that outcome, well, not really, but it sounds so melodramatic, but it better not be Shawn - Melissa and Gils are better) up we can target our moments of being entertained on to the summer of '09 film releases. I am shockingly looking forward to Terminator Salvation since I like Christian Bale. That's it. The only reason. I am also dying (no pun intended) to see Michael Mann's Public Enemies. Johnny Depp and Christian Bale are two of the best actors working in films today and since I was born and raised in Chicago I am always game for another take on the life and death of John Dillinger. Funny People looks good and the chick in me looks forward to The Time Traveler's Wife.
Happy weekend to all. Tomorrow, is the second leg of the Triple Crown with the running of the Preakness. Heaps of health to Mine That Bird. With or without the rider up as Calvin Borel I am hoping beyond hope that this gelding goes the distance.
Dedicated to a walk on a boulevard in London. Having lived there right out of Grad School I still love going there. I'll be back there at the end of the summer taking the tube and enjoying the company of some good friends! By then, London Boulevard will have concluded production and my wait will have gotten that much shorter.
for television and film blogs and writing for them anonymously. Sometimes writing for them is a challenge re: time, particularly since we all do have careers in various media outlets and that's not counting our respective lives beyond work. It is no secret that all of us here at The Flaming Nose feel blessed or lucky (depending on one's perspective) to work in the film, television and music industries. As much as I savor my television programs I came of age loving music and film more; and the deeply rooted attachment I have to film has never wavered since my youthful discovery. My mum and dad loved movies and in some DNA carpentered moment I got the love of film into my system. Even when the movies go through painfully awful periods (too many in the last 20 years) I always know that the sun will rise and set and at some point I will be looking at the 
right time to catch one of the most beautiful of sights (beyond sunrises and sunsets) -- a great big bouncy piece of cinematic brilliance.I also love books and I enjoy a well written crime novel (not the slasher ones, but the deep thinking ones); and clearly no one does this better than James Ellroy, but the great Irish writer, Ken Bruen has managed to steal away many hours of my life as I transport myself to his venues of the rough and wacky. I love his integration of music into his works. How can you not love a guy who references everyone from the Eagles to Trisha Yearwood to Frank Sinatra? Some time back I purchased a copy of his London Boulevard on amazon.com.uk. I couldn't buy it in the states and I was too big a fan to wait for its U.S. arrival. I read it in one sitting. It's a short book! Shortly thereafter I heard they were making a film out of it and that William Monahan (most notably, The Departed) was writing the script and making his directorial debut, but the the bigger excitement was that two of my favorite film actors were going to play the leads or in the case of one of them a combination of the leads. Since 2002 when I kicked along to Bend it Like Beckham I have adored Keira Knightley. She has been cast as the combo pairing of the actress and the
love interest. In the book, these are two separate characters. Keep in mind, in the book, the actress is a 60 year old and I guess they didn't want to have Julie Christie play the actress (even though she is 68 she could still play 60), although that would have been an intriguing move. Of course, then you couldn't have hired Colin Farrell to play the character of Mitchell since Mitchell is 47 years old in the book (although I suspect Colin may look 47 before he is really 47 - I'm not being mean since I love the guy's acting and clearly I'm a fan, but all of those cigarettes will age him the way they aged Mel Gibson).I return to the thought. Drive truth away from storytelling. Why not? It's done all the time, so now we have the stunningly beautiful (a cross between Julie Christie and Jacqueline Bisset - what a cross) and gifted young actress, Keira Knightley playing the female lead in one of my favorite recent books. I love Colin Farrell too, although he hasn't done a great deal to deserve the love, but from the first time I witnessed him I gathered this bloke up in a big bunch of pony-tailed (hopefully, those
days are past him) potential! Every once in a while he hits a high mark (think In Bruges and not Alexander or Miami Vice for that matter). I can only hope that London Boulevard will be his cinematic payday. I'm looking forward to this film (although since it starts production in a couple of weeks it won't be out until summer or fall of 2010) and I am most looking forward to the highly anticipated (my highly anticipated) chemistry of these two old-school movie actors. They could have co-starred in just about any of the great dramatic films from the golden period of films back in the 1940's. They are timeless types and that part may come from their Isles roots. Americans (and yes, I am an American and I love my country) don't do timeless well. 
We are too contemporary and our actors (outside of Johnny Depp who is clearly in a schoolroom with no other students) reek of the now. The Brits and the Irish have qualities we lost somewhere in the counterrevolutionary period of the 1960's (which in many ways the Brits started). We've never been the same. What other group of people travel in their pajama pants? We've become sneaker/sweatshirt slobs. We AIN'T timeless anymore. Keira Knightley and Colin Farrell. I like them. Pure and simple. They are gorgeous and gifted and they both seem like decent people. They clearly attempt to live somewhat normal lives (now that he is healed from his addictions), they avoid Hollywood pomposity, they even seem grounded with their highly devoted to family lifestyles. They are funny, quick, clever, witty, articulate and wickedly smart. If they 
weren't actors I'd assemble their selves as the perfect Match.com entry.The book is a solid entry in the crime genre and if you have any tender loving feelings for Billy Wilder's Sunset Boulevard (if you know anything at all about film you would have to have lots of tender loving feelings for it) then you are going to anticipate this film as much as I am. Now whether Monahan can achieve even half the depth of that script is yet to be known, but I am going to trust that it will be worth the wait. Hopefully, Monahan avoids the gratuitous use of the F BOMB. His films (The Departed most notably) have the word being dropped in every third word placement. Outside of hardened criminals I'm not sure who talks this way except maybe the director and lead male actor. One must think that, correct?
Now that the 2008-2009 television season is wrapping itself (Dancing with the Stars ends
next Tuesday - I'm worried about that outcome, well, not really, but it sounds so melodramatic, but it better not be Shawn - Melissa and Gils are better) up we can target our moments of being entertained on to the summer of '09 film releases. I am shockingly looking forward to Terminator Salvation since I like Christian Bale. That's it. The only reason. I am also dying (no pun intended) to see Michael Mann's Public Enemies. Johnny Depp and Christian Bale are two of the best actors working in films today and since I was born and raised in Chicago I am always game for another take on the life and death of John Dillinger. Funny People looks good and the chick in me looks forward to The Time Traveler's Wife.
Happy weekend to all. Tomorrow, is the second leg of the Triple Crown with the running of the Preakness. Heaps of health to Mine That Bird. With or without the rider up as Calvin Borel I am hoping beyond hope that this gelding goes the distance.
Dedicated to a walk on a boulevard in London. Having lived there right out of Grad School I still love going there. I'll be back there at the end of the summer taking the tube and enjoying the company of some good friends! By then, London Boulevard will have concluded production and my wait will have gotten that much shorter.
1 comment:
Now you've got ME excited about "London Boulevard" -- sounds wonderful and with those two could be amazing. Keira is incredibly lovely.
Agree with your conclusion about Brits vs. U.S. actors -- timeless isn't an American strong point. I guess it might be the only several hundreds of years of history vs. thousands -- gives them a perspective that's built into their DNA!
Wonderful post, Judith!
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