Julia Roberts Should Have Looked Closer at 'Mirror Mirror'
April, 11, 2012 9:46 am | Comments On #Julia Roberts, Lily Collins, mirror mirror, Movies, Tarsem SinghBravo to Julia Roberts for showing that she is a good sport by playing the role of the Evil Queen in "Mirror Mirror."
At one point in the film, a stunning Roberts talks to her reflection in the mirror which replies, "I'm a mere reflection of you, but I have no wrinkles.
This film is fun, but it should have been funny. "Mirror Mirror" misses in spots, then resumes its wit, which makes laughter a rocky road. A better script was sorely needed. The director, Tarsem Singh, is Indian and is known for his music videos such as REM's "'Losing my Religion" and the visually striking film "...
Read More'The Hunger Games' Is Fiction ... Or At Least We Hope So
April, 02, 2012 12:11 pm | Comments On #MoviesRich, poor, Republican, Democrat. What could happen to our world if we don't address poverty? "The Hunger Games" is fiction. Or maybe not.
Do we have blinders on to the acute need for wealth to be redistributed? Are we choking our families and leaving our children to have to face up to a bleak future? Will Capitalism triumph over poverty or destroy us all?
"The Hunger Games" is about children left to fight for their lives in a post-apocalyptic dystopian world -- as ghetto children do today. We just don't talk much about them, much less make movies about them.
The writer of this trilogy, Suzanne Collins, is the true star of this film. She wrote the novel, co-produced it and co-wrote the screenplay that is directed by Gary Ross. Ross also co-wrote the screenplay along with Billy Ray.
Collins' idea came from watching...
Read MoreFrank Frazetta Could Have Helped 'John Carter'
March, 18, 2012 3:40 pm | Comments On #MoviesFrank Frazetta rotoscoped me for director Ralph Bakshi’s "Fire and Ice."
Remember Bakshi’s "Fritz the Cat" which in the 1980s made him a star? Well, Bakshi cast me in "Fire and Ice." We filmed the movie and then I was rotoscoped by Frazetta (right). Rotoscoping is a process of creating a cartoon by drawing directly on the film.
Frank Frazetta also drew early images of John Carter. Edgar Rice Burroughs was a fan of Frazetta and they collaborated with Frazetta doing the book jackets for many of Burroughs' novels.
Edgar Rice Burroughs flunked his entrance exam for West Point. He had more...
Read MorePicasso Visits 'Downton Abbey'
March, 14, 2012 9:01 am | Comments On #Carole Mallory, MoviesIn 1971, on our first date, Claude Picasso, Pablo's son, moved into my apartment in New York City. As a model, I was on the covers of Cosmopolitan, Newsweek and New York Magazine. Claude was going through a divorce and so was I. He had difficulty making a living as a photographer so I offered to help him out financially. His mother, Françoise Gilot, gave me a three pieces of Picasso jewelry to show her gratitude.
In 1973 upon Picasso's death, Claude and I became engaged. There was no hope for him to inherit Picasso's fortune due to the Napoleonic Code. Napoleon, like Picasso, had been a philanderer and had protected his assets. This French code or law said any child born out of wedlock could not inherit if there were no will. Enfin, Pablo Picasso would not leave a will because he felt the...
Read More'The Artist' Producer Thomas Langmann Learned From His Film Family
February, 27, 2012 12:26 pm | Comments On #Harvey Weinstein, Movies, producer, The Artist, Thomas LangmannWhere did producer Thomas Langmann, an Oscar winner for "The Artist," come from?
And what is it about the French that they love to embrace risk?
Langmann sold his home and borrowed money from relatives to get "The Artist" rolling. Then he met Harvey Weinstein and the rest is cinema history.
Langmann’s father was Claude Berri, whom I met on the beaches of St....
Read MorePan Am Memories: Aloha to Hawaii And to My Mother
February, 22, 2012 6:18 pm | Comments On #TelevisionBecause the faltering TV series "Pan Am" was pulled from the schedule this past week -- its actual fate yet to be decided by ABC -- I was inspired to write the following piece about my trip to Hawaii with my mother.
We were flying to Oahu from San Francisco. It would be our first layover on our trip around the world as a guest of Pan Am. I had been a stewardess for six months so I had benefits.
As we landed at the Ohana Honolulu Airport, I tried to imagine the Japanese bombing this peaceful island. Pearl Harbor was a lagoon harbor three miles to the west. No, I told myself, that was long ago and far away.
...
Read MoreWhat Norman Mailer Would Have Told Me About 'Safe House'
February, 17, 2012 9:35 am | Comments On #Movies
In "Safe House," Denzel Washington plays one badass sociopath, murderer, traitor and still manages to steal screen time from all of those around him and to be charming to boot. This includes Ryan Reynolds (Matt Weston) whose character is along for the ride and a backdrop for Tobin Frost’s (Washington’s) driving escape from the CIA.
Julian Assange anyone? (Not that we know if Assange is guilty, whereas we know Frost is.)
The script by David Guggenheim is one-dimensional in that the film is about Frost’s running from the CIA and from Weston, the “housekeeper “of a safe house...
Read MoreHow 'The Woman In Black' Reminded Me of 'Stepford Wives'
February, 09, 2012 12:40 pm | Comments On #Daniel Radcliffe, Janet McTeer, Movies, The Stepford Wives, The Woman in BlackIs death ever kind?
Oh, I'm not speaking of mercy killing. I mean are there benevolent ghosts who do unto others as they would have others do onto them? Does a ghost always view death as deadly or is it kinder on the other side?
"The Woman in Black" is based on Susan Hill's haunting novel from a screenplay by Jane Goldman. It is the story of a tormented ghost and all of those who see her and her suffering. Whenever someone sees "The Woman in Black," something horrible happens to this person or this person's family.
Will this lawyer Arthur Kipps( Daniel Radcliffe)...
Read MoreRidley and Tony Scott Put Their Stamp on 'The Grey'
January, 30, 2012 2:17 pm | Comments On #liam neeson, Movies, Ridley Scott, the Grey, Tony ScottComplaint. Don’t leave the theater once the credits come on. Ever.
There is a tag ending on "The Grey." If the entire ladies room had not been buzzing about what had happened after the credits, I would not know the conclusion. Not that it is black and white. Grey, it is.
I refuse to say more so as not to spoil this thriller of a film directed by Joe Carnahan from a script by Ian MacKenzie Jeffers based on his short story "Ghost Walker."
I was so frightened I was unable to watch the screen at times. The soundtrack is a character unto itself and at times indicates what will, or could happen. And this works to build the suspense.
...
Read MoreThe Night I Danced With the Shah of Iran
January, 23, 2012 5:38 pm | Comments On #Pan Am, Television
With the return of the TV series "Pan Am" on Sunday night, I recalled my layover in Iran.
Tehran was a destination that held mystery to me. Another stewardess was dating one of the princes and wanted me to meet him. The Shah had done wonders for this country and had given rights to repressed women. I wanted to see their struggles towards independence.
When we landed at Mehrabad airport, the Alborz Mountains loomed in the distance. Janice was my good friend who flew with me and on another trip to Tehran had met one of the sons of the Shah.
...
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Description
Carole Mallory is an actress, journalist, professor, film critic. Her film credits include “Stepford Wives” and “Looking for Mr. Goodbar.” As a supermodel she graced the covers of Cosmopolitan, New York, Newsweek. Her new novel, "Flash," hit #22 on Kindle's bestseller list of erotica in its first day of release. She also has written a memoir of her time with Norman Mailer, “Loving Mailer.” After the writer's death, she sold her archive of his papers to Harvard. Her journalistic pieces on Vonnegut, Jong, Vidal, Baryshinikov, Heller have been published in Parade, Esquire, Playboy, Los Angeles Magazine, the Huffington Post. Her review of Charles Shields' biography of Kurt Vonnegut, "And So It Goes," was published in the Sunday Philadelphia Inquirer. She is teaching creative writing at Temple University and Rosemont College and blogs at malloryhollywoodeast@blogspot.com.
