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Adams on Reel Women: Oscar winner Streep asks, ‘Why don’t they want the money?’

June 29, 2012 By Thelma Leave a Comment

Where the girls are: Rudolph, Wiig, Streep, Stone


Earlier this month, Meryl Streep talked numbers at the Women in Film Lucy & Crystal Awards. To paraphrase her point, there were five movies over five years — “The Help” (2011) “Bridesmaids” (2011), “The Iron Lady” (2011), “Mamma Mia!” (2008), and “The Devil Wears Prada” (2008) — that earned a collective $1.6 billion for Hollywood. True, she starred in three of them, but if they had been cop movies, zombie thrillers, or Westerns, there would be a stream of films trying to cash in on the women’s market. So Streep’s question — “Why don’t studios want the money?” — hangs heavy in the air.

TV Writer Nell Scovell (“Warehouse 13,” “Monk”) had the most straightforward answer: “They want the money but don’t want to give women the power. It’s a conundrum.”

Animator Signe Baumane responded: “I think Hollywood is stuck in the notion that only 21-year-old men go to movies. The New Yorker article on Ben Stiller says that much too. Big studios are like big animals, they can’t adapt to small changes quickly, but small changes accumulate into BIG ones before soon.”

We hope so. In the meantime, where do we stand?

[Related: Adams on Reel Women: Director Lynn Shelton talks Emily Blunt and ‘Mad Men’]

Those five movies are just the tip of the iceberg

If you add in the year’s top grosser, “The Hunger Games,” and the movies from “The Twilight Saga,” that earnings number grows exponentially. Then there’s a surprise hit like “The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel,” which grossed approximately $38 million domestically and $121 million internationally on the backs of Judi Dench and Maggie Smith (anybody who’s watched TV’s “Downton Abbey,” starring Smith as the dowager matriarch who speaks her very sharp mind, wouldn’t be surprised). Add in the gushy Nicholas Sparks drama “The Vow” with Rachel McAdams and Channing Tatum, and there’s another 2012 film that hosed up $194 million globally, following on other films in the successful Sparks franchise (“The Notebook,” “Dear John”), which have frugal production budgets and easily earn out theatrically. Toss in the female-dominated action franchises like Kate Beckinsale’s “Underworld” ($459 million worldwide) and Milla Jovovich’s “Resident Evil” ($675 million worldwide) and the money grows. You, readers, can probably add more to this list.

One answer: The demographics within Hollywood

When it comes to green-lighting films in Hollywood, women don’t have their hands on the switch — and those who do tend to be part of a male scrum. They made it to the top by assimilating into the male studio culture, not by rebelling against it. On the production side, a San Diego State University study last year found that among writers, directors, editors, cinematographers, producers, and executive producers, the division of labor was 82 percent men and 18 percent women. The disconnect is that the audiences do not reflect that same split. The gap between 18 percent and 51 percent is a red flag. Serving that market has a huge profit potential. Healthy industries should be constantly seeking growth, and this is an underserved market.

Another answer: The power of critics as gatekeepers

The critics function as gatekeepers — telling readers what to see and what to skip. Guess what? Men dominate that arena, too. That’s why we’ve seen Michael Cera lose his virginity so many times in coming-of-age comedies and there were so many inexplicably positive reviews for “The Three Stooges.” A San Diego State study based on 100 newspapers, in 2007, concluded that men dominate movie criticism in a way that echoes male dominance behind the screen. In a study conducted by Martha M. Lauzen at the Center for the Study of Women in Television and Film, 77 percent of film critics are male. As a female member of the New York Film Critics Circle, which includes newspaper, magazine, and online critics, I’ve always been a fortunate minority. According to our website (www.nyfcc.com), there are 31 members, including the late Andrew Sarris. Of that number, seven (or 23 percent) are female — and that’s considerable growth since I joined the organization in 1995.

One solution: Women, vote with your box-office dollars:

Go see “The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel” or Streep’s upcoming middle-age marriage comedy, “Hope Springs,” or the cluster of microbudgeted and intensely satisfying movies like Lynn Shelton’s “Your Sister’s Sister”; Sarah Polley’s “Take This Waltz” (opening Friday); or Nancy Savoca’s “Union Square” (opening July 13). If we build the audience, the product will come — and it will come from a variety of sources, small and large.

Another solution: Women, make movies

Meryl Streep joined with director Phyllida Lloyd to make “Mamma Mia!” and “The Iron Lady.” She voted with her box-office clout. This is what Mira Sorvino is doing with “Union Square,” Emily Blunt with “Your Sister’s Sister,” and Drew Barrymore with her underrated movie “Whip It!”

And another solution: Opening-weekend grosses are not king, er, queen

Let’s ignore Hollywood’s obsession with opening-weekend numbers and echo models like that of “My Big Fat Greek Wedding,” building the female audiences one movie and one weekend at a time. Carla Stockton, editor in chief of Dapt’d, explained: “Women, especially women in the next-up age brackets, are more likely to weigh critics’ reviews, friends’ word of mouth, etc., and they will wait to see the film till it’s been out awhile. Too much focus, it seems, gets placed on opening weekend. So, while the industry is aware that we want films with strong women’s POV, it is intimidated by the pressure of first weekend from delving too deeply into that fountain. I also think we writers must persevere in creating more, better, stronger, more compelling women for stage and screen.”

[Related: ‘To Rome With Love’ star Greta Gerwig is wild about Woody Allen — just read her high school yearbook]

I’m definitely with Carla: We’re listening, and we’re going to be writing, producing, and directing the movies we want to see — and supporting them in print. And when one person speaks out, like Streep did, we’ll rally around her, until our voices are heard.

And there’s some reason for optimism. According to USA Today’s Susan Wloszczyna: “I think much like Snow White, they are slowly waking up to the fact that if you please them, women will show up in hordes, and even for more than one viewing. I was astonished and gratified that ‘Snow White and the Huntsman,’ which is essentially an action film with two female leads, did so well. How often does that happen? And even Pixar finally woke up and smelled the estrogen with “Brave.” There is movement afoot. The female screenwriting ranks have been growing, and now there just needs to be more female directors doing big studio films.”

See the trailer for ‘Brave’:

Filed Under: Essay, Movies & TV Tagged With: Academy Awards, best actress, Brave, Bridesmaids, Meryl Streep, New York Film Critics Circle, The Help, The Iron Lady, Women in Film, Yahoo! Movies

Oscars 2012: Best Supporting Actress Roundtable

September 28, 2011 By Thelma 19 Comments

Melissa McCarthy,Dark Horse,Best Supporting Actress,Oscars 2012,Bridesmaids

OK, luvvies, let’s take a flyer into Best Supporting Actress territory. This is truly the wilderness. Here’s my first pass, with many holes since ….One thing I’m sure of: Viola Davis in Best Actress — pretty confident of Keira Knightley also in lead category.
1. Octavia Spencer, The Help
2. Janet McTeer, Albert Nobbs
3. Vanessa Redgrave, Coriolanus
4. Marion Cotillard, Midnight in Paris
5. Shailene Woodley, The Descendants
6. Jessica Chastain, Take Shelter or Tree of Life
7. Berenice Bejo, The Artist
8. Sandra Bullock, Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close
9. Kate Winslet, Carnage
10. Carey Mulligan, Shame

Let’s rip.

Susan Wloszczyna: This looks pretty close to the mark of who is in the running. I would give the edge to Vanessa Redgrave, however. Although I found her rather ridiculous in Anonymous (I think I am in the minority in thinking this was Anony-mess) she is the epitome of riveting in a rather rousing Shakespeare adaptation.

As for the Melissa McCarthy confab: I thought of her force of nature in Bridesmaids. She had me won over instantly with her dainty pearl necklace — a nice contrast with her wardrobe that was inspired by Guy Fieri of Food Network fame — although it clashed with her carpal tunnel brace. If she were nominated I wouldn’t complain.

I would also move Berenice up a notch. I think the academy is going to fall hard for The Artist and she is perfection in it.

Sasha Stone: It’s hard for me to care about the Oscars this year. But every so often a name pops up that sparks my genuine interest. Melissa McCarthy is one of those. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Movies & TV, Oscar Race Tagged With: Anne Thompson, Best supporting actress, Bridesmaids, Descendants, George Clooney, Kim Voynar, Melissa McCarthy, Octavia Spencer, Oscars 2012, Sasha Stone, Susan Wloszczyna, The Help

Woman to Watch: Rose Byrne

June 7, 2011 By Thelma Leave a Comment

Rose Byrne,Damages,X-Men: First Class,Girlfriends

Byrne, pre-X

by Thelma Adams (Marie Claire, Jan 2009)

WHY SHE’S ON OUR RADAR: The 29-year-old Aussie won us over on FX’s addictively wicked law drama Damages, now in its second season, as the guileless protégé to Glenn Close’s ball-busting legal eagle.

HER SHTICK: Perennially underestimated, with a porcelain beauty that belies steely determination.

AS SEEN IN: Troy, Marie Antoinette, 28 Weeks Later

FIGHTIN’ WORDS: Though she tends to play loyalists, that’s about to change for her Damages character, the ambitious lawyer Ellen Parsons. “This season is really Ellen’s time to become a warrior. She’s working for the FBI, and she’s very damaged, but she’s covering it up. She’s hardened.”

CLOSE ENCOUNTERS: “I adore working with Glenn. She’s obviously got a touch of the maniac. The quality of everything is so important to her. She doesn’t back down.”

MAIL BONDING: Now based in New York City, Byrne is in a long-distance relationship with her boyfriend of four years, fellow Aussie Brendan Cowell. “All forms of contact are good: letters, parcels, e-mails — I’ve been trying to get a Webcam for my computer, but I’m such a Luddite. I have to go back to Apple’s Genius Bar.”

COMIC RELIEF: “I’m the youngest of four, and I’m always the clown — making the jokes, wanting attention. My parents were so relaxed by the time I was growing up that I got away with a lot more.”

DON’T LOOK FOR HER AT COMIC-CON: Byrne scoffs at her geek cred, which she earned playing Natalie Portman’s handmaiden in Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones. “I wouldn’t call it a role; I’d call it an extra.”

ROUND UP “I’ve already started saying that I’m 30 when I’m still 29. That way, I’m already there.”

photo credit: Brian Ach/Wire Image

Filed Under: Celebrity, Movies & TV Tagged With: Bridesmaids, Damages, Glenn Close, Interview, Marie Claire, Rose Byrne, X-Men: First Class

Movie Review: Bridesmaids

May 11, 2011 By Thelma Leave a Comment

Rose Byrne,Wedding,Maya Rudolph,Kristen Wiig,Judd Apatow,Naughty Bigs,Chick Flick,Wedding Comedy

credit: Suzanne Hanover

 

Us Rating: *** 1/2

This rowdy, witty gem focuses on Annie (Kristen Wiig), a broke single gal who freaks out when her BFF, Lillian (Maya Rudolph), gets engaged. As insecure Annie feebly organizes the bridal shower and bachelorette weekend, she also must steer Lillian’s kooky bridesmaids through a hell of petty rivalries and wacky situations.

As early as the engagement party, Annie starts a public battle for Lillian’s affections with beautiful, patronizing Helen (an excellent Rose Byrne), leading to mortifying dueling toasts that embarrass the bride. Another hysterical scene: After Annie insists on taking the girls to a funky BBQ joint, they all get gastric distress while trying on fluffy gowns. And watch for raucous sex between Wiig — who cowrote the flick — and her selfish friend-with-benefits (Jon Hamm). The comedy’s standout supporting cast member? Plus-size Melissa McCarthy (CBS’s Mike & Molly), the groom’s aggressive, sex-crazed sister. But in the end, it’s Wiig — sharp, vulnerable, angry — who gets the most giggles. This bridesmaid owns the aisle.

Filed Under: Criticism, Movies & TV Tagged With: Best Friends, Bridesmaids, chick flick, comedy, Jon Hamm, Judd Apatow, Kristen Wiig, Maya Rudolph, Naughty Bits, Rose Byrne, Vegas, Wedding

Woman to Watch: Kristen Wiig

March 20, 2011 By Thelma Leave a Comment

Kristen Wiig,Marie Claire,Paul,SNL,funny women we love

Wiig in Black

(Marie Claire,September 2008)

With Wiig in the alien comedy Paul, I pulled this interview out of the archives:

WHY SHE’S ON OUR RADAR: Saturday Night Live’s white-hot wiseacre cuts up as Ricky Gervais’s inept doctor in the I-see-dead-people comedy Ghost Town. “I play his surgeon,” says Wiig. “He dies and then comes back to life. It’s pretty much my fault.”

HER SHTICK: Dead-on impressions, like the excitable Target clerk and jacket-loving Suze Orman.

ALSO SEEN IN: Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story, Semi-Pro, and Knocked Up.

FUNNY FACES: “Aunt Linda was inspired by a lady I saw on a plane who was confused by the in-flight movie,” says Wiig, 35, of her daffy film-critic character on SNL. “She just kept saying, ‘What’s going on?’ So I wrote a sketch about a woman who was watching The Matrix and kept asking, ‘What are they doing? Why are they flying?'” [Read more…]

Filed Under: Celebrity, Movies & TV Tagged With: Bridesmaids, Funny Women We Love, Ghost Town, Interview, Kristen Wiig, Marie Claire, Nick Frost, Paul, Ricky Gervais, Simon Pegg

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