No love for Anchorman?
--- In scifinoir2@yahoogroups.com, Keith Johnson <keithbjohn...@...>
wrote:
>
> Ha-ha! I like Will Ferrell in small doses. Long after the hype on
him had built, I sat down and watched "Talladega Nights" where he was
NASCAR racer "Ricky Bobby", and laughed my butt off. But that was
only the second or third movie I'd seen him in. I also enjoyed his
more subtle turn in "Stranger Than Fiction", the movie where his life
was literally being controlled by an author's keystrokes. And "Elf"
gave me some chuckles as well. I think I saw "Elf", then "Stranger
Than Fiction", then "Talladega Nights", giving me silly comedy,
subtle comedy/drama, then silly comedy again. That was sufficient.
>
> But Ferrell needs to quit doing the same old type comedy film. His
turns in the films about ice skating and basketball, for example, are
all variations of the same Ricky Bobby scheme, so I avoided them. He
has the looks and I think the chops to do other stuff. I don't know
if he can carve the niche of understated, nuanced actor that Bill
Murray has found for his career. But I think he might be able to do
at least as well as Adam Sandler, who's actually not half bad when he
backs off the stupid comedies and reigns himself in for roles like
that in "Spanglish", or "50 First Dates". Ferrell has had training,
like many comedians he gets the drama underlying life, and I think he
could start branching out a bit more.
>
> I'm always intrigued at watching comedic actors who get their start
or fame in really silly, over-the-top roles, who can also pull off
the more subtle stuff. Not everyone can do both: Chevy Chase, for
example. But actors like Steve Martin, Sandler, Murray, Robin
Williams, Eddie Murphy (he has the ability, just not the will I
guess), Steve Carell all have that talent,and I think Ferrell does
too. He's made the dough, now it's time to stretch...
>
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: "Martin Baxter" <truthseeker...@...>
> To: scifinoir2@yahoogroups.com
> Sent: Monday, February 16, 2009 8:38:35 AM GMT -05:00 US/Canada
Eastern
> Subject: Re: [scifinoir2] Will Smith -- The Only Sure Thing At The
Box Office
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> Keith, you forgot to include Will Ferrell. I'm certain that
it was due to your own mental self-defenses kicking in...
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> ---------[ Received Mail Content ]----------
> Subject : Re: [scifinoir2] Will Smith -- The Only Sure Thing At The
Box Office
> Date : Sun, 15 Feb 2009 01:21:34 +0000 (UTC)
> From : Keith Johnson <keithbjohn...@...>
> To : scifinoir2@yahoogroups.com
>
>
> Funny. He isn't a guaranteed big draw for me. Among male actors,
I'm much more likely to see a flick with Don Cheadle, Chiwetel
Ejiofor, Clive Owen, Viggo Mortensen, Robert Duvall. Maybe De Niro if
it's not Meet the Parents or Righteous Kill type crap. And I'd
actually place Clooney higher up on my list than Smith. In fact, I
can't remember the last time I saw a movie because Smith was in it. I
saw "Hancock" and "I Am Legend" because they were scifi, and "Hitch"
because it was a romantic comedy I could share with my wife. The
other males below, I'll certainly consider--especially Damon and Di
Caprio--but depends on the type of movie they're in. I will say, I do
wish Christian Slater were still doing good work, for he'd certainly
be on my list.
>
> For female actors, my list would have to include Judi Dench, Angela
Bassett (keep hoping she finally finds the roles that utilize her
massive talent), Meryl Streep (who's really impressed me with her
continually good work as she gets older), Kimberly Elise (woefully
underappreciated actress), Taraji P. Henson (hard not to be engaged
with, even with unintentionally funny stuff like "He don't love me
no 'mo'!" in "Baby Boy"), Cate Blanchett, Jodi Foster, Queen Latifah
(good dramatic and comedic actress), Sanaa Lathan.
>
> They ought to list the actors guaranteed to kill a movie, to drive
people away. For me, that would include Adam Sandler (don't get his
humour), Pauly Shore (how does he get work?), Jim Carey (most of his
stuff is too manic for me), David Spade (loved him on TV, can't abide
his film work), Mila Jovovich (horrible movie choices), Kate Hudson
(she's sure to star in wretched romantic comedies that make you gag).
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> ----- Original Message -----
> From: "Tracey de Morsella"
> To: scifinoir2@yahoogroups.com, "CINQUE"
> Sent: Saturday, February 14, 2009 5:53:22 AM GMT -05:00 US/Canada
Eastern
> Subject: [scifinoir2] Will Smith -- The Only Sure Thing At The Box
Office
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> Will Smith -- The Only Sure Thing At The Box Office
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> 12 February 2009 1:27 AM, PST
>
> Will Smith has again emerged as the film star whose name on the
marquee guarantees a movie's success, according to most analysts. In
Forbes magazine's Star Currency survey, Smith was the only film star
to receive a perfect score of 10. Others in the top ten included:
Leonardo DiCaprio , Angelina Jolie , Brad Pitt , Tom Hanks , George
Clooney , Denzel Washington , Matt Damon , Jack Nicholson , and Julia
Roberts .
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> http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JQdwk8Yntds
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