Highbrow Magazine - actors https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/actors en A Salute to Hollywood’s Underrated Filmmakers and Actors https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/21724-salute-hollywood-s-underrated-filmmakers-and-actors <div class="field field-name-field-cat field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/film-tv" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Film &amp; TV</a></div></div></div><span class="submitted-by">Submitted by tara on Fri, 10/14/2022 - 21:07</span><div class="field field-name-field-image field-type-image field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" rel="og:image rdfs:seeAlso" resource="https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/sites/default/files/styles/large/public/field/image/1filmmakers.jpg?itok=dK6Xn2n-"><img typeof="foaf:Image" src="https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/sites/default/files/styles/large/public/field/image/1filmmakers.jpg?itok=dK6Xn2n-" width="323" height="480" alt="" /></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" property="content:encoded"><p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">There is an interesting phenomenon in art where the most critically acclaimed creators often fail to reach the broadest commercial audiences. Some of this can be explained by “<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bandwagon_effect" style="color:#0563c1; text-decoration:underline">the bandwagon effect</a>,” a psychological phenomenon where people embrace a fad or trend primarily because others are doing so. While the bandwagon theory might explain why EVERYONE seems to know and love The Rock, it doesn’t explain why an extraordinary number of exceptional artists never convince audiences or producers of their full potential. </span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">In this article, we’ll look at 10 filmmakers who – by my estimation – are underrated. An article like this is, of course, fraught with difficulty because my definition of “underrated” may differ from that of readers. So, we’ll start by defining terms. We aren’t talking no-names who have been universally ignored by fans, critics and peers. Rather, this list is populated by artists who are often celebrated in critical circles, but have not received the widespread recognition they deserve. We will also note upfront that this list is far from exhaustive. There are hundreds of additional names that could populate a story like this because – sadly – great art often goes unrecognized at the multiplex. In the interest of changing this, I encourage you to populate our comments section with your picks. </span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif"><strong>Terrence Malick</strong></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">Although writer-director-producer Terence Malick is an arthouse darling, it’s borderline criminal that one of the most thoughtful storytellers in cinematic history is largely unknown. Case in point: Malick’s last feature film, the World War II drama <em>A Hidden Life</em>, <a href="https://www.boxofficemojo.com/title/tt5827916/?ref_=bo_se_r_1" style="color:#0563c1; text-decoration:underline">opened with just over $50,000 and grossed less than $2 million in the United States</a>. In the meantime, <em>Jumanji:</em> <em>The Next Level</em> – also released in 2019 – <a href="https://www.boxofficemojo.com/title/tt7975244/?ref_=bo_se_r_1" style="color:#0563c1; text-decoration:underline">collected more than $320 million at the domestic box office</a>.  </span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">One needn’t love everything Malick has made. His pictures can be slow because he acknowledges that film is a visual medium, and some of his best works – <em>The New World</em> (2005), <em>The Thin Red Line</em> (1998), <em>Days of Heaven</em> (1978) – play more like visual poetry than a traditional motion picture narrative. Even when his work falters, however, his ambition is obvious. Malick’s artistic passion is something we see with other directors who could have easily made this list – Darren Aronofsky, David Lynch, Jim Jarmusch – and this commitment to pushing boundaries is what film lovers deserve.  </span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><img alt="" src="https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/sites/default/files/2filmmakers.jpg" style="height:651px; width:462px" typeof="foaf:Image" /></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif"><strong>Giancarlo Esposito</strong></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">You know his face.  He pops up in unexpected places in TV and film, always for the better. He’s also done a load of work in animation thanks to the emotion he conveys with his voice alone.  Still, Giancarlo Esposito most often finds himself a supporting player to bigger stars. </span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">Don’t get me wrong, he’s excellent in utility roles, but he has the chops to carry a full load. The fact that his presence always makes projects better seems to argue that Hollywood casting agents are missing the boat. </span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif"><strong>Willem Dafoe</strong></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">Critically, Willem Dafoe gets noticed plenty. He has been nominated for four Oscars. It’s worth noting, however, that only one of those nominations – for 2018’s <em>At Eternity’s Gate</em> – has been for a leading role. And … he’s yet to win. What hurts most is that Dafoe’s consistently great work often remains unseen. For instance, almost nobody in America has watched <em>At Eternity’s Gate.</em> That picture made four times more money overseas than in the U.S. and <a href="https://www.boxofficemojo.com/title/tt6938828/?ref_=bo_se_r_1" style="color:#0563c1; text-decoration:underline">still only brought in $11.5 million worldwide</a>. </span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">Before anyone starts weeping for Dafoe, we have to acknowledge that he’s landed a few blockbuster roles. He was the Green Goblin in a several <em>Spider-Man</em> films, and he was a lead in the 1994 Jack Ryan drama <em>Clear and Present Danger</em>. He also works consistently, which is more than a lot of actors can say. Even so, Dafoe seems underutilized. </span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><img alt="" src="https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/sites/default/files/3filmmakers.jpg" style="height:366px; width:650px" typeof="foaf:Image" /></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif"><strong>Toni Collette</strong></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">As happens with Hollywood actresses, Toni Collette has transitioned from hot property to B-lister. This has nothing to do with her talent. We can likely chalk it up to sexism, ageism and the fickle nature of pop culture. </span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">Collette is – simply put – incredible in every role she touches. Zeena the Seer in <em>Nightmare Alley</em>? Check. Joni Thrombey in “Knives Out”? Yep. Annie in “Hereditary”? Uh huh. And those are just roles she’s played during the last four years. Collette was, arguably, at her career peak in the late 1990s and early 2000s when she starred in <em>The Sixth Sense, Changing Lanes, About a Boy</em> and <em>Little Miss Sunshine</em>. She doesn’t seem to be a first-call actress anymore. She should be.  </span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif"><strong>George Clooney</strong></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">“Wait,” you say, “not long ago George Clooney was one of the most sought-after stars on Earth.” That’s a reasonable assessment. As an actor, Clooney’s recognition may have even exceeded his considerable talent. The problem is, he doesn’t get the same level of reverence when people start talking directors. </span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">Clooney’s directorial debut, <em>Confessions of a Dangerous Mind</em> was one of the wackiest (and best) pictures of 2002. He followed that with <em>Good Night, and Good Luck</em>, an exceptional Edward R. Murrow biopic that is required viewing in my History of American Journalism course at <a href="https://www.csuchico.edu/index.shtml" style="color:#0563c1; text-decoration:underline">California State University, Chico</a>.  It’s true that he has directed imperfect movies. <em>Leatherheads </em>(2008) and <em>The Monuments Men</em> (2014) have flaws, but so do pictures by Steven Spielberg, Quentin Tarantino, Clint Eastwood, Ron Howard and Martin Scorsese. Yet Clooney doesn’t get the reverence that those directors do. I think that’s a shame. In 2020, Clooney directed and starred in the underrated apocalypse drama <em>The Midnight Sky</em>, and in 2021 he released <em>The Tender Bar</em>, a heartfelt coming-of-age story about a boy who grows up in the orbit of his uncle’s bar. Clooney may not be the best director of his generation, but there’s every indication he’ll be producing compelling work for years to come.   </span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><img alt="" src="https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/sites/default/files/4filmmakers.jpg" style="height:475px; width:650px" typeof="foaf:Image" /></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif"><strong>Wes Anderson</strong></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">Just as Terence Malick is revered in certain circles, writer-director Wes Anderson has a loyal following. It’s just too small. </span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">We’re talking about a man who – since 1996 – has given us Bottle Rocket, Rushmore, <em>The Life Aquatic With Steve Zissou, Fantastic Mr. Fox, Moonrise Kingdom and The Grand Budapest Hotel</em>. Yet his last feature – 2021’s <em>The French Dispatch</em> – <a href="https://www.boxofficemojo.com/title/tt8847712/?ref_=bo_se_r_1" style="color:#0563c1; text-decoration:underline">made less than $20 million in the United States</a>. That same year, <em>Venom: Let There be Carnage</em> drew more than $90 million its opening weekend. I have nothing against Marvel Comics movies, but really?</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif"><strong>Patrick Stewart</strong></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">See a pattern here? I clearly gravitate to artists who are known in the industry but haven’t received the opportunities they deserve. Stewart, who has played exceedingly challenging roles in theater, has largely been typecast on screen. Most know him as either Jean-Luc Picard from the <em>Star Trek</em> franchise or Professor Charles Xavier from the <em>X-Men</em> films. There’s no shame in that, as these are iconic roles that made him a hero to nerds worldwide. But he’s capable of so much that we haven’t seen on screen. Like Dafoe, Esposito and Collette, Stewart has had a successful career, but he deserves more high-profile projects that demonstrate his range.     </span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif"><strong>Brad Bird</strong></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">A glance at Brad Bird’s credits is all one needs.  </span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">He first gained fame in animation, as a writer-director for <em>The Iron Giant</em> and <em>The Incredibles</em>. Then he made <em>Ratatouille</em>, another breakout animated hit. But Bird wasn’t satisfied as an animation legend. In 2011, he directed <em>Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol</em> and it was exceptional. Consider his behind-the-scenes and producing work on a host of other well-known projects, and it’s clear that Bird is among the most talented people working in film today. More movie buffs should know his name. </span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><img alt="" src="https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/sites/default/files/5filmmakers.jpg" style="height:366px; width:650px" typeof="foaf:Image" /></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif"><strong>Kirsten Dunst </strong></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">Outside of her time as Mary Jane Watson in Tobey Maguire’s <em>Spider-Man</em> films, Kirsten Dunst hasn’t exactly had an A-list career. Like the other actors mentioned here, she consistently works but hasn’t landed enough high-profile roles to match her talent. Hopefully her astounding turn in 2021’s <em>The Power of the Dog</em> will become a defining moment that changes her career trajectory. Dunst has proven herself capable of producing performances with remarkable emotional depth.  We deserve more of them. </span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif"><strong>Terrence Howard</strong></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">Don Cheadle replacing Terrence Howard as Rhodey in the <em>Iron Man</em> franchise seemed to be a turning point in the latter actor’s career. Back then, Howard was fresh off an Oscar nomination for the 2005 music drama <em>Hustle &amp; Flow</em>, and the sky seemed the limit. Since then, he’s made a lot of movies, but outside of his stint on the TV drama <em>Empire,</em> hasn’t captured the momentum he once had. The losers in all this are movie lovers because Howard is a wonderful actor with enough charisma to tackle more high-profile roles than he’s given. </span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif"><strong>Author Bio:</strong></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif"><em><strong>Forrest Hartman,</strong></em><strong><em> </em></strong><strong>Highbrow Magazine’s</strong><em><strong> chief film critic, is a longtime entertainment journalist who teaches at the Department of </strong></em><a href="https://www.csuchico.edu/jour/" style="color:#0563c1; text-decoration:underline" target="_blank"><em><strong>Journalism &amp; Public Relations at California State University, Chico</strong></em></a><em><strong>. He is also the adviser to <a href="https://theorion.com/" style="color:#0563c1; text-decoration:underline" target="_blank" title="https://theorion.com/">The Orion</a> student news organization at Chico State.</strong></em></span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif"><strong>For Highbrow Magazine</strong></span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif"><strong>Image Sources:</strong></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif"><strong><em>--Daniel Benavides (<a href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Category:Giancarlo_Esposito#/media/File:Giancarlo_Esposito_SXSW_2017_(cropped).jpg" style="color:#0563c1; text-decoration:underline">Wikimedia</a>, Creative Commons)</em></strong></span></span></p> <p> </p> </div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-tags field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Tags:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/filmmaker" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">filmmaker</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/actors" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">actors</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/underrated-filmmakers" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">underrated filmmakers</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/wes-anderson" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Wes Anderson</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/terrence-howard" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">terrence howard</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/terence-malick" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">terence malick</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/toni-colette" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">toni colette</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/george-clooney" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">George Clooney</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/underrated-directors" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">underrated directors</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/brad-bird" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">brad bird</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/willem-defoe" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">willem defoe</a></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-author field-type-text field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">Forrest Hartman</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-pop field-type-list-boolean field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Popular:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">not popular</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-bot field-type-list-boolean field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Bottom Slider:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">In Slider</div></div></div> Sat, 15 Oct 2022 01:07:16 +0000 tara 11389 at https://www.highbrowmagazine.com https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/21724-salute-hollywood-s-underrated-filmmakers-and-actors#comments Adam Driver: A Force to Be Reckoned With https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/19350-adam-driver-force-be-reckoned <div class="field field-name-field-cat field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/film-tv" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Film &amp; TV</a></div></div></div><span class="submitted-by">Submitted by tara on Sun, 02/27/2022 - 13:16</span><div class="field field-name-field-image field-type-image field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" rel="og:image rdfs:seeAlso" resource="https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/sites/default/files/styles/large/public/field/image/1adamdriver.jpg?itok=TtwHS9Ta"><img typeof="foaf:Image" src="https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/sites/default/files/styles/large/public/field/image/1adamdriver.jpg?itok=TtwHS9Ta" width="480" height="270" alt="" /></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" property="content:encoded"><p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">Fresh-faced, cocky, and naively optimistic, Adam Driver left his hometown of Mishawaka, Indiana, with dreams of becoming a movie star at the age of 17. <a href="https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2019/10/28/adam-driver-the-original-man" style="color:blue; text-decoration:underline">Within a week, he found himself broke and forced to move home</a>. With his dreams shattered, Driver lost his sense of purpose, leaving him directionless. </span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">Rejected from Juilliard and two months shy of 18, Driver witnessed the 9/11 terrorist attacks, leading him to join the Marine Corps. Filled with a sense of retribution, as well as self-hatred due to his failures, Driver discovered a sense of purpose through the people with whom he served. He served for 32 months before being honorably discharged due to a mountain biking accident fracturing his sternum. Driver then found himself back where he started, directionless. </span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">To cope with his disappointment, Driver dove back into the performing arts. Through performing, he learned to articulate his experiences, emotions, and trauma from the line of duty. He reapplied and was granted admission into Juilliard. While studying, he and his fellow classmate and future wife, Joanne Tucker, co-founded Arts in The Armed Forces (AITAF) with the mission, “<a href="https://aitaf.org/about/" style="color:blue; text-decoration:underline">create space for meaningful dialogue, igniting connection and deepening our capacity for understanding around our common humanity.”</a> Driver says that it was through acting and AITAF that he learned to put <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EHeNucM4zpE" style="color:blue; text-decoration:underline">“words to feelings for the first time.” He said that he was “making the human connection of being in the military through theater, and in doing so [he] felt less alone.”</a> Through this, Driver mastered an ability to contextualize his character’s emotions, while also showcasing their vulnerabilities. </span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><img alt="" src="https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/sites/default/files/2adamdriver.jpg" style="height:600px; width:400px" typeof="foaf:Image" /></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">Upon graduation, Driver began his acting career full-time. Working in New York City appearing in off-Broadway productions was where his talents as an actor became apparent. His performance in the play <em>Slipping </em>garnered praise with <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2009/08/06/theater/reviews/06slipping.html" style="color:blue; text-decoration:underline">Andy Webster of <em>The New York Times</em> writing, “The strongest asset here[...] is Mr. Driver’s menacing portrait of Chris […] his simmering presence lends the story a palpable tension.”</a> By 2011, Driver found himself working on Broadway with A-list actors such as Frank Langella. <a href="https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/lifestyle/style/man-boy-theater-review-245989/amp/" style="color:blue; text-decoration:underline">His performance, opposite Langella, in the production of <em>Man and Boy </em>earned him critical praise, with <em>The Hollywood Reporter</em> writing, “The actor conveys the agony of a self-doubting young man…craving the love of an overbearing patriarch.”</a><u> </u></span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">Upon being cast in Lena Dunham’s HBO series, <em>Girls, </em>Driver’s mainstream popularity grew. His performance as Adam Sackler, Dunham’s emotionally unstable boyfriend, made him a fan favorite with critics and audiences alike, earning him three Emmy nominations for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series. </span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">Physically imposing at 6’3, Driver towered over Dunham (5’2), yet his size was never what made him intimidating. Rather, it was his ability to manipulate his partners and his bluntness that made him such a dominant force. Sackler highlighted Driver’s ability to blend vulnerability, intensity, and charisma. Sackler’s behavior was reprehensible. A struggling alcoholic and sexual abuser, Sackler often coerced women. Quotes such as, “You should never be anyone’s slave, except mine,” and “I don’t know how to behave without you. I’d die if you go away” demonstrate his character’s toxic codependency and ability to emotionally manipulate his partners, but they also showcase what made Sackler’s character so engrossing. The apparent comprehension of his flaws and failures and his ability to express himself honestly enamored audiences.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">Driver’s fame skyrocketed upon the release of <em>Star Wars: The Force Awakens </em>in December 2015. His performance as Kylo Ren received widespread praise. He portrayed Kylo as unhinged and vulnerable, adding a newfound complexity to the franchise. Whether he was killing his father, struggling to kill his mother, standing up to his master, or berating his lieutenants, Driver’s performance evoked a sense of terror and unpredictability, thus creating an atmosphere of tension whenever he appeared on the screen. </span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><img alt="" src="https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/sites/default/files/3adamdriver.jpg" style="height:355px; width:605px" typeof="foaf:Image" /></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif"><em>Star Wars</em> transformed Driver into an A-List leading man. Fans wondered what his next major role would be. <a href="https://screenrant.com/zack-snyder-adam-driver-dc-movie-role/amp/" style="color:blue; text-decoration:underline">Rumors even circulated that Zack Snyder cast Adam Driver to appear as Nightwing in <em>Batman v. Superman: Dawn of Justice.</em></a> Seemingly, every major studio had an interest in working with Driver post-<em>Sta</em>r<em> Wars</em>. Yet, Driver never went the studio franchise route, opting instead to place his focus elsewhere. </span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">Outside the <em>Star Wars </em>sequel trilogy, Driver remains an independent actor. Driver focused on his craft and resume first and foremost. In the span of five years, he has worked with the likes of Jeff Nichols, Leos Carax, Steven Soderbergh, Spike Lee, Noah Baumbach, Ridley Scott, Terry Gilliam, and Martin Scorsese, who stated that Driver is  <a href="https://www.vulture.com/amp/2019/09/martin-scorsese-adam-driver-best-actor-of-generation.html" style="color:blue; text-decoration:underline">“one of, if not the best, actors of his generation.”</a> Working in a multitude of genres with world-renowned directors allowed Driver to build his resume and allure. </span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">Driver’s success is predicated on his ability and willingness to portray emotionally vulnerable men. His career choices indicate his enjoyment of exploring the psychosis of flawed individuals. Take, for example, his Oscar-nominated performances in <em>BlackkKlansman</em> and <em>Marriage Story</em>. Spike Lee’s <em>BlackkKlansman</em> showcased Driver’s deadpan comedic timing, as well as his ability to subtly bring to life the character’s internal conflicts about racism. His character’s body language shifts from that of indifference to that of frustration as he witnesses racism and injustice. </span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><img alt="" src="https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/sites/default/files/4adamdriver.jpg" style="height:339px; width:602px" typeof="foaf:Image" /></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">Similarly, Noah Baumbach’s <em>Marriage Story </em>allowed Driver to display his comedic sensibilities, this time with a more kindhearted character in Charlie Barber. Opposite Scarlett Johansson, the two share palpable chemistry and deliver their dialogue with ease and comfort, despite their marriage being in ruins. Charlie struggles to express himself, feeling weighed down by the years of repressed resentment. He is a ticking time bomb. As the film progresses, his visual frustration grows ever more apparent, climaxing in a verbal assault where he wishes death upon his ex-wife. Upon release, Charlie is left horror-stricken by his words and breaks down, allowing them to engage in an open dialogue and accept their divorce.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">Driver’s appeal is rooted in his ability to deconstruct his character’s masculinity. Take his three films released in 2021: <em>The Last Duel</em>, <em>House of Gucci</em>, and <em>Annette</em>. The characters he portrays in each amount to an odd yet satisfying “film trilogy” on toxic masculinity throughout modern history. Ridley Scott’s <em>The Last Duel </em>examines masculinity in early modern society through its chronicling of Marguerite de Carrogue’s rape in 1386 as perpetrated by Jacques Le Gris. </span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">Driver portrays Le Gris, a knight who swears his love for Carrogue and insists the accusation is false. Le Gris fails to understand that the cultural misogyny he has been raised in causes him to exert power over women in a common, yet no less horrifying way: sexual aggression. As Driver explained in the Empire Film podcast, “Jacques Le Gris is someone who just takes things by entitlement.”</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><img alt="" src="https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/sites/default/files/5adamdriver.jpg" style="height:400px; width:600px" typeof="foaf:Image" /></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif"><em>House of Gucci </em>explores toxic masculinity in the contemporary era. Driver portrays Maurizio Gucci, former head of the Gucci fashion house. The film follows Maurizio and Patrizia Reggiani’s tumultuous relationship resulting in his murder in 1995. Driver portrays Maurizio as inept and passive. Sheltered in his upbringing, he allows others to dictate his personal life. Upon being named head of the Gucci household, he fails to run the company. Driver’s facial performance displays the tonal shift of Maurizio’s progression. At first, Maurizio is all smiles and laughs. Driver’s performance is breezy as if he were out of a romantic comedy. Yet, as his fame and wealth amass, Maurizio becomes stern and callous. He wears the Gucci name as a badge of honor but despite his fortunes, he struggles to gain respect. Driver’s performance mimics that of a sheep in wolf’s clothing. Power never fits him, causing Reggiani to take control. </span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">If Driver’s 2021 releases were a trilogy, Leos Carax’s <em>Annette </em>would serve as its finale. A musical psychological drama, <em>Annette </em>explores toxic masculinity in the post-MeToo era. Here, Driver takes center stage, portraying Henry McHenry, a comedian whose routine consists of shock humor. His art is rooted in self-hatred, misogyny, and cynicism. He shares with the audience his humiliation and pain in an attempt to create an intimacy between himself and the crowd. His presentation is all in the name of comedy, yet it seemingly is an excuse for him to act out with no repercussions. He is not telling jokes as much as he is daring the audience to call him out on his erratic and inappropriate behavior. In being honest about everything, he is truthful about nothing.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">Starring opposite Driver is Marion Cotillard as Ann Defrasnoux, a world-renowned opera singer who marries McHenry, resulting in media scrutiny. Ann’s talents as an artist are apparent, especially when juxtaposed to Henry’s mediocrity. As their story progresses, Henry’s self-hatred manifests as aggression, leading him to humiliate Ann both professionally and personally. Driver carries his performance with an unearned sense of bravado. His on-screen confidence and comfort give Henry an air of grandeur and self-absorption. In comparison to Cotillard’s classically trained singing voice (she won her Oscar for her portrayal of French singer Édith Piaf), Driver’s voice is amateurish. Yet, the composers allow Driver’s raspy baritone voice to overpower Cotillard’s voice. Driver’s self-conceited performance as Henry dominates Ann as a singer, despite his ineptitude and comparative lack of talent. His ego refuses to allow Ann to outperform him. </span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><img alt="" src="https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/sites/default/files/6adamdriver.jpg" style="height:339px; width:603px" typeof="foaf:Image" /></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">Henry’s abuse towards Ann worsens when six women come forward chronicling his history of abuse. All six of their testimonies detail his anger issues and violent tendencies. Their accounts are treated as revelations as the facade of Henry’s on-stage persona unravels. Audiences now view him as the monster he said he was the entire time. </span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">In his first public appearance following the allegations, Driver depicts an egomaniac refusing to take accountability. His musical number, “You Used to Laugh” feels like a child throwing a tantrum, singing, “You think I care for what you wimps think of me now… It’s not my problem.” Wallowing in the public scrutiny empowers Henry to act tyrannically towards Ann. The musical number “My Star’s in Decline” allows Driver to utilize his height and size to mimic a literal monster come to life. Driver’s drunken appearance and unsteady movements cause destruction in his home, creating an effect like that of Godzilla leveling a city block. Here, he is at his most bitter, rageful, and terrifying. Driver emphasizes McHenry’s menace and jealousy towards Ann allowing us, the audience a window into the demons McHenry has been trying to conceal. With his actions that follow suit, Driver as McHenry solidifies himself as one of the year’s best villains and gives the audience insight into the mind of an egomaniac.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">Through his numerous roles, Driver demonstrates a mastery over his emotions, and a willingness to portray himself unflatteringly. His performances are psychological deep dives into aspects of human nature that most try to conceal. By making space for honesty, Adam Driver succeeds in deepening our connection and understanding of our common humanity. </span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif"><strong>Author Bio:</strong></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif"><em><strong>Ben Friedman is a freelance film journalist and a contributing writer at </strong></em><strong>Highbrow Magazine</strong><em><strong>. For more of his reviews, visit bentothemovies.com, his podcast Ben and Bran See a Movie, or follow him on Instagram, Twitter, and YouTube: The Beniverse.</strong></em></span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif"><strong>For Highbrow Magazine</strong></span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif"><strong>Image Sources:                                      </strong></span></span></p> <p><br /> <span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif"><em>--Dick Thomas Johnson (</em><a href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Star_Wars-_The_Last_Jedi_Japan_Premiere_Red_Carpet-_Adam_Driver_(27163437599).jpg" style="color:blue; text-decoration:underline"><em>Wikimedia</em></a><em>, Creative Commons)</em></span></span></p> <p> </p> </div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-tags field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Tags:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/adam-driver" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">adam driver</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/last-duel" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">The Last Duel</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/jacques-le-gris" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Jacques Le Gris</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/house-gucci" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">house of gucci</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/julliard" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Julliard</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/oscars" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Oscars</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/lady-gaga" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">lady gaga</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/blackkklansman" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">blackkklansman</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/marriage-story" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Marriage Story</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/annette" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Annette</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/films-adam-driver" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">the films of Adam Driver</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/girls" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Girls</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/movie-stars" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">movie stars</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/hollywood" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Hollywood</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/actors" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">actors</a></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-author field-type-text field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">Ben Friedman</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-pop field-type-list-boolean field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Popular:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">not popular</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-bot field-type-list-boolean field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Bottom Slider:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">In Slider</div></div></div> Sun, 27 Feb 2022 18:16:01 +0000 tara 10953 at https://www.highbrowmagazine.com https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/19350-adam-driver-force-be-reckoned#comments Showtime’s ‘The Real Charlie Chaplin’ Expertly Illustrates the Life of an Icon https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/19027-showtime-s-real-charlie-chaplin-expertly-illustrates-life-icon <div class="field field-name-field-cat field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/film-tv" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Film &amp; TV</a></div></div></div><span class="submitted-by">Submitted by tara on Mon, 12/13/2021 - 13:46</span><div class="field field-name-field-image field-type-image field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" rel="og:image rdfs:seeAlso" resource="https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/sites/default/files/styles/large/public/field/image/1charliechaplin.jpg?itok=Cq5pGLcP"><img typeof="foaf:Image" src="https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/sites/default/files/styles/large/public/field/image/1charliechaplin.jpg?itok=Cq5pGLcP" width="480" height="270" alt="" /></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" property="content:encoded"><p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">In his time, Charlie Chaplin was the world’s most recognized face and highest-paid actor. His work in silent films was so prolific that he managed to make successful silent movies years after talking ones took over Hollywood, but his life was also full of controversy. Showtime’s <em>The Real Charlie Chaplin</em> expertly recounts the highs, lows, and secrets of his life with great editing and narration.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">Chaplin was orphaned at an early age, but he always had a passion for performing and making people laugh. By his teenage years, he was working as a comedic actor with a troupe in London. It was there that Chaplin created his famous character of “the tramp,” a roaming transient who is always down on his luck. The footage and narration do a good job of explaining Chaplin’s rise to superstardom, while also acknowledging the fact that his famous character was a combination of other silent-era characters from the past. </span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><img alt="" src="https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/sites/default/files/2charliechaplin.jpg" style="height:600px; width:400px" typeof="foaf:Image" /></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">Pearl Mackie does a consistently great job of narrating Chaplin’s story as remastered footage and photos are shown. Her tone, voice, and rhythm give the documentary an almost calming vibe. The historical footage and photos used throughout are edited perfectly to show the audience the best visual for the narration, and it adds a lot to the immersion of the story.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">Hollywood is known to be a cruel, fickle beast, and even Chaplin who was beloved the world over wasn’t safe from its vicious cycle. Scandals and accusations of being a communist fueled by the FBI turned a star into a pariah. His ex-wives also got up in his storm of controversy and were harassed by Chaplin’s fans despite being victims to his behavior. It’s a complicated story, but it shows how the filmmakers behind this production nailed the execution. </span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><img alt="" src="https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/sites/default/files/3charliechaplin.jpg" style="height:600px; width:393px" typeof="foaf:Image" /></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">Great documentaries are ones that leave you feeling like an expert on a subject you previously knew little to nothing about while also making you curious to learn more. <em>The Real Charlie Chaplin</em> does this while also showing the dark side of Chaplin’s life. </span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">It’s a story told so well that even after seeing all of Chaplin’s skeletons, I found myself thinking “that’s really clever” when they showed footage of movies made later in his life. His mark on show business is undeniable and everlasting, and his story is one that is very much relevant today.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif"><strong>Author Bio:</strong></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif"><strong><em>Ulises Duenas is a contributing writer at </em>Highbrow Magazine.</strong></span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif"><strong>For Highbrow Magazine</strong></span></span></p> <p> </p> </div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-tags field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Tags:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/real-charlie-chaplin" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">The Real Charlie Chaplin</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/charlie-chaplin" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">charlie chaplin</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/showtime" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">showtime</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/comedians" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">comedians</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/hollywood" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Hollywood</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/actors" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">actors</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/silent-films" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">silent films</a></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-author field-type-text field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">Ulises Duenas</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-pop field-type-list-boolean field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Popular:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">not popular</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-bot field-type-list-boolean field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Bottom Slider:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">Out Slider</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-videos field-type-video-embed-field field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"> <div class="embedded-video"> <div class="player"> <iframe class="" width="640" height="360" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/0ApMSyQkk1c?width%3D640%26amp%3Bheight%3D360%26amp%3Bautoplay%3D0%26amp%3Bvq%3Dlarge%26amp%3Brel%3D0%26amp%3Bcontrols%3D1%26amp%3Bautohide%3D2%26amp%3Bshowinfo%3D1%26amp%3Bmodestbranding%3D0%26amp%3Btheme%3Ddark%26amp%3Biv_load_policy%3D1%26amp%3Bwmode%3Dopaque" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe> </div> </div> </div></div></div> Mon, 13 Dec 2021 18:46:19 +0000 tara 10794 at https://www.highbrowmagazine.com https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/19027-showtime-s-real-charlie-chaplin-expertly-illustrates-life-icon#comments Can the Golden Globes Make a Comeback? https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/12477-can-golden-globes-make-comeback <div class="field field-name-field-cat field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/film-tv" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Film &amp; TV</a></div></div></div><span class="submitted-by">Submitted by tara on Wed, 08/18/2021 - 18:13</span><div class="field field-name-field-image field-type-image field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" rel="og:image rdfs:seeAlso" resource="https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/sites/default/files/styles/large/public/field/image/1goldenglobes_alex_mcleod-wikimedia.jpg?itok=pbbD8sIr"><img typeof="foaf:Image" src="https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/sites/default/files/styles/large/public/field/image/1goldenglobes_alex_mcleod-wikimedia.jpg?itok=pbbD8sIr" width="249" height="480" alt="" /></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" property="content:encoded"><p> </p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif"><strong>Can the Golden Globes make a comeback? In a new <em>Highbrow Magazine</em> video, longtime <em>Highbrow Magazine</em> writer and respected academic Forrest Hartman discusses the ongoing controversy surrounding the Hollywood Foreign Press Association, and wonders when and how the Golden Globes will regain the respect of the industry.</strong></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif"><span style="font-size:18px"><strong>Watch the video below: </strong></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif"><strong>Bio:</strong></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif"><strong><em>Forrest Hartman, a </em>Highbrow Magazine<em> contributor, is a longtime entertainment journalist who teaches at the Department of </em></strong><a href="https://www.csuchico.edu/jour/" style="color:#0563c1; text-decoration:underline" target="_blank"><strong><em>Journalism &amp; Public Relations at California State University, Chico</em></strong></a><strong><em>.</em></strong></span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif"><strong>Image Sources:</strong></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif"><em>--Forrest Hartman</em></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif"><em>--Alex Mcleod (</em><a href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:GOLDEN_GLOBES_ALEX_PR_SHOT.jpg" style="color:#0563c1; text-decoration:underline"><em>Wikimedia</em></a><em>, Creative Commons)</em></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif"><em>--J. Deering Davis (</em><a href="https://ast.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ficheru:Cast_of_Modern_Family_@_69th_Annual_Golden_Globes_Awards.jpg" style="color:#0563c1; text-decoration:underline"><em>Wikipedia</em></a><em>, Creative Commons)</em></span></span></p> </div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-tags field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Tags:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/golden-globes" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Golden Globes</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/hollywood-foreign-press" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">hollywood foreign press</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/movies" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Movies</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/hollywood" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Hollywood</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/awards" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">awards</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/oscars" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Oscars</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/critics-choice-awards" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Critics Choice Awards</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/actors" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">actors</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/film-industry" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">film industry</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/films" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">films</a></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-author field-type-text field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">Forrest Hartman</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-pop field-type-list-boolean field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Popular:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">not popular</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-bot field-type-list-boolean field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Bottom Slider:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">Out Slider</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-videos field-type-video-embed-field field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"> <div class="embedded-video"> <div class="player"> <iframe class="" width="640" height="360" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/HvzsI8xJO1A?width%3D640%26amp%3Bheight%3D360%26amp%3Bautoplay%3D0%26amp%3Bvq%3Dlarge%26amp%3Brel%3D0%26amp%3Bcontrols%3D1%26amp%3Bautohide%3D2%26amp%3Bshowinfo%3D1%26amp%3Bmodestbranding%3D0%26amp%3Btheme%3Ddark%26amp%3Biv_load_policy%3D1%26amp%3Bwmode%3Dopaque" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe> </div> </div> </div></div></div> Wed, 18 Aug 2021 22:13:11 +0000 tara 10580 at https://www.highbrowmagazine.com https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/12477-can-golden-globes-make-comeback#comments Actor Kristoffer Polaha’s Journey to Stardom https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/12038-actor-kristoffer-polaha-s-journey-stardom <div class="field field-name-field-cat field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/film-tv" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Film &amp; TV</a></div></div></div><span class="submitted-by">Submitted by tara on Thu, 04/08/2021 - 10:23</span><div class="field field-name-field-image field-type-image field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" rel="og:image rdfs:seeAlso" resource="https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/sites/default/files/styles/large/public/field/image/2krisp.jpg?itok=4OdLNiT7"><img typeof="foaf:Image" src="https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/sites/default/files/styles/large/public/field/image/2krisp.jpg?itok=4OdLNiT7" width="480" height="449" alt="" /></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" property="content:encoded"><p> </p> <p>When I first met Kristoffer Polaha, it was 2003 and he thought he was going to be one of the biggest stars in the world.</p> <p> </p> <p>I know this not because the then 20-something actor wore the guise of a big shot. He didn’t. In fact, Polaha, or Kris as I more commonly call him today, has always been approachable and humble. When we sat down in 2003, what I knew was he had the charm of a politician, the countenance of a leading man and the grace to invite me into his parent’s Reno, Nevada, home. He was visiting them amidst an all-out press blitz for his starring turn in the TBS biopic <a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0346504/" style="color:#0563c1; text-decoration:underline">“America’s Prince: The John F. Kennedy Jr. Story,”</a> and he thought it would be nice to have his hometown paper on board. For a regional entertainment writer, the story was an easy, “yes,” because “America’s Prince” was about to become a television spectacle.</p> <p> </p> <p>“That was the biggest TV movie that TBS had ever released,” Polaha said during a Zoom chat in mid-February. “I think 40 million people watched it that night, and I had a picture in Times Square of my face.”</p> <p> </p> <p>Polaha had reason to believe his career would explode,  but I only know he expected it because he’s candid enough to admit that nearly two decades after it didn’t.     </p> <p> </p> <p>“I was convinced that I was about to be the next Brad Pitt,” he said, his voice relaxed. “I thought, ‘Dude this is about to happen.’ And then it didn’t happen.”</p> <p> </p> <p>Rather than follow “America’s Prince” with increasingly important TV and movie roles, Polaha landed a string of starring appearances in television shows that seemed promising, launched … and then stalled … time and again. From 2004 to 2012, Polaha had key roles in the nighttime soap “North Shore,” the sitcom “Miss Guided,” the romantic comedy “Valentine,” the relationship drama “Life Unexpected” and the Sarah Michelle Gellar thriller “Ringer.” Of those productions, only “Life Unexpected” lasted more than a season, and it disappeared after two. For an actor, watching so many shots drift wide of the bullseye was crushing.</p> <p> </p> <p>This was an era when a multitude of hopeful opportunities were countered by periods of deep financial struggle, the latter made more difficult by the fact that Polaha is a family man. In a business that often sees celebrities bounce from one headline-scorching relationship to the next, Polaha is a beacon of marital stability.</p> <p> </p> <p><img alt="" src="https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/sites/default/files/3krisp.jpg" style="height:600px; width:600px" /></p> <p> </p> <p>Jensen Ackles (of “Supernatural” fame) introduced Polaha to a young actress named Julianne Morris in 2001, when the two men were working on a pilot called “The Third Degree.” Polaha knew almost immediately that Ackles had changed his life.</p> <p> </p> <p>“I walked into Casa Vega, this Mexican restaurant. I saw this woman,” Polaha said. “She was surrounded by this whole circle of dudes, and it was like time stood still for a second. Then, we all sat down at this table and it was a table that was kind of small, but she got squished in between two guys that she already knew. So, she orchestrated a move to another table, and she was at the end.  I had a choice. I could sit next to some guy or I could sit next to her. I sat next to her and we talked. We talked the whole night.”</p> <p> </p> <p>Polaha describes it as “love at first sight,” and when Morris suggested that he extend his stay in Los Angeles rather than fly back to New York as originally planned, he eagerly agreed.</p> <p> </p> <p>“The thought that ran through my head like a little typewriter was, ‘If you’re going to be bold in anything, be bold in love,’” Polaha said.</p> <p> </p> <p>His bold move led to a wedding not long after I would meet him in 2003.</p> <p> </p> <p>“It was a really beautiful, innocent two-year courtship where we just took our time to get to know each other, and it was in that time where I was like, ‘I don’t think that my career is going to amount to anything unless I have someone to share it with,’” he said. “And I loved meeting Julianne when I did because I knew she wasn’t marrying me for my money or my fame or anything other than the fact that she just loved me.”</p> <p> </p> <p><img alt="" src="https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/sites/default/files/4krisp.jpg" style="height:428px; width:600px" /></p> <p> </p> <p>The couple will celebrate their 18<sup>th</sup> wedding anniversary in June, and they have three sons: Caleb, Micah and Jude. Polaha speaks of each with devotion, as he has for as long as I’ve known him.</p> <p> </p> <p>“It’s made the journey that I’ve been on a million times richer, a billion times richer,” he said, “because I get to share it with these people.”</p> <p> </p> <p>Although his family life is rich, Polaha is the first to say that the career bumps have been difficult for everyone. Things came to a head, he said, in 2015, after a key role in yet another series – The Rainn Wilson dramedy <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lasVHBAuEqY" style="color:#0563c1; text-decoration:underline">“Backstrom”</a> – ended in disappointment.  Polaha had signed a deal for “Backstrom” that tied him up for two years, effectively preventing him from taking other opportunities, including what could have been an 18-episode arc on the NBC music drama “Nashville.” An actor rarely knows which projects will become hits, so when “Backstrom” fizzled, Polaha was distraught.</p> <p> </p> <p>“I was so exhausted,” he said. “That was my seventh series.”</p> <p> </p> <p>He had hoped the big break that evaded him after “America’s Prince” was near, but instead he had become an actor with a recognizable face, yet no defining roles. And things were about to get worse. </p> <p> </p> <p>“It all just dried up so that when the show got canceled, I needed money and I needed a job,” he said. “I was asking my agents to get me guest spots on things. I was like, ‘I just need to work.’”</p> <p> </p> <p>All this prompted Polaha to leave his management deal with the major firm WME and return to the man who had helped launch his career, Paul Rosicker at <a href="https://gersh.com/" style="color:#0563c1; text-decoration:underline">Gersh</a>. Polaha credits Rosicker with helping him land the work that now defines much of his career: recurring spots as a leading man in Hallmark Channel movies and series.</p> <p> </p> <p><img alt="" src="https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/sites/default/files/5krisp.jpg" style="height:450px; width:600px" /></p> <p> </p> <p>Not long after returning to Rosicker, Polaha was cast in a light romantic romp called “Dater’s Handbook.” During filming, there was no reason to think it would be anything more than the typical Hallmark romance. But the break Polaha had been longing for was about to hit. His co-star was Meghan Markle.</p> <p> </p> <p>“We had a great working relationship,” he said. “We hit it off, and we were friends. … She texted me in March and she was like, ‘I met somebody.’ Of course we all know – the world now knows – it was Prince Harry of the royal family, and they ended up getting married. Well, that movie shot around the Commonwealth and just kept being seen over and over and over again. All ships rise with the tide, and it ended up being real good.”</p> <p> </p> <p>Polaha hadn’t become the next Brad Pitt, as he dared hope in 2003, but he had laid the foundation for a relationship that continues to provide him with financial freedom and artistic rewards today. </p> <p> </p> <p> “It just happened to be like lightning in a bottle,” he said. “You can’t manipulate it, you can’t plan for it, and Hallmark is just a really wonderful company to work for. To be honest with you, you do a couple of those a year and it becomes this padding from which, financially speaking, you can then go out and seek the other gigs.”</p> <p> </p> <p>Since “Dater’s Handbook,” Polaha has starred in a number of additional Hallmark romances, including <a href="https://www.hallmarkchannel.com/pearl-in-paradise" style="color:#0563c1; text-decoration:underline">“Pearl in Paradise,”</a> <a href="https://www.hallmarkmoviesandmysteries.com/rocky-mountain-christmas" style="color:#0563c1; text-decoration:underline">“Rocky Mountain Christmas”</a> and <a href="https://www.hallmarkchannel.com/double-holiday" style="color:#0563c1; text-decoration:underline">“Double Holiday.”</a> He and Hallmark co-star Jill Wagner have also launched an ongoing Hallmark series called <a href="https://www.hallmarkmoviesandmysteries.com/mystery-101-mysteries" style="color:#0563c1; text-decoration:underline">“Mystery 101.”</a> Feature-length installments of the detective drama air periodically, the latest debuting March 21.</p> <p> </p> <p>“They’re writing seven right now,” Polaha said. “It’s just nice as an actor knowing I have a job. Like, I can look forward to something at least twice a year.”</p> <p> </p> <p><img alt="" src="https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/sites/default/files/6krisp.jpg" style="height:523px; width:343px" /></p> <p> </p> <p>The continuing work for Hallmark has also allowed him to take guest-starring roles in TV series ranging from “Get Shorty,” “Condor” and “Hawaii 5-0” to “The Good Doctor.”</p> <p> </p> <p>Polaha – who has long been open about his Christian faith – has also carved out a niche in the film world, starring in a couple faith-based dramas, the most noteworthy being <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZJAl7A6oTvQ" style="color:#0563c1; text-decoration:underline">“Run the Race,”</a> which was co-produced by football star Tim Tebow. Furthermore, last year he landed small but noteworthy parts in the major releases “Wonder Woman ‘84” and “Jurassic World: Dominion.”</p> <p> </p> <p>The humble nature that prevented Polaha from revealing just how excited he was when we met 18 years ago defines him now, and although his career isn’t anything like he initially imagined, he is pleased. </p> <p> </p> <p>“I never in a million years imagined that I would end up being the face of the romcom genre on television via Hallmark,” he said. “I feel blessed to even be able to call myself a working actor.”</p> <p> </p> <p>Polaha’s gratitude extends to his fans, who he says have been remarkably loyal and kind. In fact, he said the producers of “Run the Race” apologized for not putting him on the movie poster after running the analytics. It turned out that his fan base from Hallmark was a notable driver of ticket sales.  </p> <p> </p> <p>“I had this group of people that were buying movie tickets and changing the box-office number enough for the producers to be like, ‘Ooh, this made a pretty significant difference to our bottom line,’” he said. “It’s not that you think about commodifying your audience or whatever, but I’m an actor. If I were in New York City and I were doing a play, I would go out after the theater, and I would go to the stage door and I would meet my fans and I would have a relationship with those people because they’re the ones that are putting food on my table and taking care of my kids, basically, by buying the tickets to seats.”</p> <p> </p> <p><img alt="" src="https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/sites/default/files/7krisp.jpg" style="height:600px; width:400px" /></p> <p> </p> <p>Although Polaha has found a comfortable niche allowing him to move past the difficulties following “Backstrom,” he isn’t complacent. He wants to direct, and he is also continually looking for projects to produce. In order to gain experience with the former, he directed a short film called <a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt10855386/" style="color:#0563c1; text-decoration:underline">“A Work of Art”</a> that he’s shipping to festivals.</p> <p> </p> <p>“It’s really a beautiful film,” Polaha said. “It’s about this little girl who is about to commit suicide, and she goes down to the beach in Pebble Beach and she starts swimming out into this stormy sea at sunrise, and we see her go under. As she goes under, we go into her mind and she starts remembering this relationship that she has with her uncle, who I play.”</p> <p> </p> <p>Polaha’s most recent career turn has taken him to even newer territory. In early March, he released his first novel, a Hawaii-based romance that he co-wrote with <a href="https://www.annagomezbooks.com/" style="color:#0563c1; text-decoration:underline">Anna Gomez</a>, author of six previous books under the pen name Christine Brae. The result of this team up is <em>Moments Like This: From Kona With Love</em>, the story of a woman named Andie who – with a nursing career and relationship disappointments – moves to Hawaii to help run a friend’s coffeeshop. On Christmas Eve, Andie meets a mysterious man who starts to work his way into her heart, but his secrets have the potential to break her again. Polaha said the story is what you get if you “take a Hallmark movie and pour it into a book and then have the time and the room to breathe and make it more realistic.”</p> <p> </p> <p>Gomez and Polaha met virtually, after an introduction by a neighbor who thought he might be interested in turning one of her novels into a film. Although Polaha liked her books, they were darker than he needed. Still, the two of them hit it off during their Zoom call, and Gomez surprised him with the offer to co-write the <em>Moments Like</em> <em>This</em> series. Ultimately, five books are planned.  </p> <p> </p> <p>“That was Monday,” he said. “We signed our contracts on Wednesday and away we went. … It was so fast and spontaneous and beautiful.”</p> <p> </p> <p>In what is becoming a pandemic norm, Polaha and Gomez haven’t met face to face. Their collaboration instead utilized Zoom and other long-distance communication tools. Initially, Polaha said, their workflow involved trading chapters back and forth.   </p> <p> </p> <p>“I had the craziest pleasure of filming ‘Jurassic World’ during the pandemic,” he said. “So, while the world was shut down, I was in a room at the Langley hotel in England, room No. 15. I had this 14-day quarantine, where I wasn’t allowed to come out of my room for 14 days. My sleep was all jacked up because of the time shift. So, I had like 14 days to write a book. … We wrote 48 chapters in 14 days.”</p> <p> </p> <p><img alt="" src="https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/sites/default/files/8krisp.jpg" style="height:600px; width:426px" /></p> <p> </p> <p>Once the first draft was complete, they passed it back and forth for revisions.   </p> <p> </p> <p>“She arranged it and then she kind of sanded it down,” he said. “Then I looked at it and went through it and sanded it down and threw it back to her. … It was just a really seamless collaboration and so effective that we started book 2 last November.”</p> <p> </p> <p>Although Polaha had never published a novel before, Gomez was interested in collaborating, in part, because she knew he spent extensive time in Hawaii while filming “North Shore.” He said that experience allowed them to bring authenticity to the book’s setting, so serendipitously, an early career letdown became a blessing.   </p> <p> </p> <p>“We lived there for a year. My kid was born there,” Polaha said. “The idea of <em>Moments Like This</em> is that this guy, Warren, takes her to all these unknown places on Oahu. Literally, I was going through my mind, ‘Oh, I’ve got to take them to this valley because this is beautiful. I’ve got to take them to this beach because no one ever goes there and it’s beautiful.’ I had an untapped and unlimited amount of resources to draw from for the book.”</p> <p> </p> <p>Polaha admits that he was terrified by the process at first. Gomez, he said, reassured him as he turned in early chapters, and he became more comfortable. In order to maintain a consistent tone between two authors, Polaha said he tried to parrot Gomez’s style, as she had already laid a lot of the groundwork for the story when he signed on.</p> <p> </p> <p>“Her voice could have been so specific and unique that I couldn’t have latched into it … or maybe it is and it just happens to be that I was able to latch into it anyway,” he said. “Whatever it is, our publisher was like, ‘I can’t tell who wrote what. I can’t tell where Anna’s voice begins and where Kris’ voice ends.’”</p> <p> </p> <p><img alt="" src="https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/sites/default/files/9krisp.jpg" style="height:523px; width:340px" /></p> <p> </p> <p>While this is Polaha’s first published novel, he said he has been writing nonprofessionally for years.   </p> <p> </p> <p>“What I’ll do as an actor, is I’ll break down a character, and I’ll do a back story ,” he said. “So, I’m used to writing, and I’ve filled volumes of journals. I have a stack of journals in my house from college all the way until now. I go through one a year probably where I fill it up like cover to cover.”</p> <p> </p> <p>Polaha said the writing process was actually freeing in some respects.</p> <p> </p> <p>“Acting, funnily enough, is the most vulnerable because it’s my face and my body,” he said. “With the book, I was able to just sit at a desk and create, and this guy was able to go off and have adventures with this girl. It was a really cool little fun safe place to work.”</p> <p> </p> <p>Polaha likes the idea of owning intellectual property that he can, potentially, translate to film in the future, and he also wrote a short detective story that he says is being published soon. He hopes that story will eventually spawn a TV or movie franchise.  </p> <p> </p> <p>“The idea is to create a character that I can play until I’m 70 years old if I want,” he said, “this iconic detective character. I’m doing the footwork to start building and owning the rights and owning the content.”</p> <p> </p> <p>With tentacles reaching in several directions, Polaha admits he isn’t sure where his career is headed, but he’s sure there’s more work to be done.   </p> <p> </p> <p>“When I graduated from NYU, my objective was to be the next Marlon Brando, like I wanted to be the greatest actor of my generation,” he said. “I still feel like I’m capable of that kind of work. … I really truly believe that my story is not told. … I’m genuinely curious. I’m excited to see what’s coming around the corner.”</p> <p> </p> <p><strong>Author Bio:</strong></p> <p><br /> <strong><em>Forrest Hartman, a </em></strong><strong>Highbrow Magazine<em> contributor, is a longtime entertainment journalist who teaches at the Department of </em></strong><a href="https://www.csuchico.edu/jour/" style="color:#0563c1; text-decoration:underline" target="_blank"><strong><em>Journalism &amp; Public Relations at California State University, Chico</em></strong></a><strong><em>.</em></strong></p> <p> </p> <p><strong>For Highbrow Magazine</strong></p> <p> </p> <p><strong>Image Sources:</strong></p> <p><em>Courtesy of Kristoffer Polaha</em></p> <p><em>Elisabeth Caren</em></p> </div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-tags field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Tags:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/kristoffer-polaha" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">kristoffer polaha</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/backstorm" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">backstorm</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/americas-prince" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">america&#039;s prince</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/actors" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">actors</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/hollywood" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Hollywood</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/north-shore" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">north shore</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/life-unexpected" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">life unexpected</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/miss-guided" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">miss guided</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/tv-roles" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">tv roles</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/hallmark-movies" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">hallmark movies</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/moments" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">moments like this</a></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-author field-type-text field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">Forrest Hartman</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-pop field-type-list-boolean field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Popular:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">not popular</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-bot field-type-list-boolean field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Bottom Slider:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">Out Slider</div></div></div> Thu, 08 Apr 2021 14:23:18 +0000 tara 10262 at https://www.highbrowmagazine.com https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/12038-actor-kristoffer-polaha-s-journey-stardom#comments Lena Dunham, Amy Poehler and the Modern Feminist Discourse https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/4588-lena-dunham-amy-poehler-and-modern-feminist-discourse <div class="field field-name-field-cat field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/books-fiction" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Books &amp; Fiction</a></div></div></div><span class="submitted-by">Submitted by tara on Fri, 01/23/2015 - 10:45</span><div class="field field-name-field-image field-type-image field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" rel="og:image rdfs:seeAlso" resource="https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/sites/default/files/styles/large/public/field/image/amypoehler.jpg?itok=mzfWYAUc"><img typeof="foaf:Image" src="https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/sites/default/files/styles/large/public/field/image/amypoehler.jpg?itok=mzfWYAUc" width="480" height="245" alt="" /></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" property="content:encoded"><p> </p> <p>An article recently published in <em>Time</em> magazine outlines all the progress that made 2014 a great year for women. From the feminist takeover of pop culture to the accomplishments of women in traditionally male-dominated fields like math and business to the growing discourse over issues of “sexual assaults, domestic violence, and contraceptive coverage,” women made serious headway in the journey towards equality over the past 12 months.</p> <p> </p> <p>And so it seems appropriate that Lena Dunham and Amy Poehler, influential female actors and writers in their respected realms of comedy, would choose this year to publish memoirs detailing their experiences as women in entertainment. Dunham’s <em>Not That Kind of Girl: A Young Woman Tells You What She’s Learned</em>, released in September, and Poehler’s <em>Yes Please</em>, published a month later, build on the now well-established trend of intimate autobiographies penned by female entertainers. In fact, in her preface, Poehler cites the memoirs of comedians like Tina Fey, Mindy Kaling, Sarah Silverman, and Rachel Dratch as inspiration for her own writing. These books make up the very specific genre of female-comedian memoirs that offers a peak behind the scenes of some of our favorite TV shows and movies, written and performed by hilarious and inspiring women.</p> <p> </p> <p>Like their predecessors, <em>Not That Kind of Girl</em> and <em>Yes Please</em> employ a hodge-podge of essays and lists, peppered with letters, humorous poems, and old emails that jump backwards and forwards chronologically to flesh out a picture of the writers’ lives. Charming, stylized ink drawings – like the illustrations of a pre-teen chapter book from the ‘90s – decorate the pages of Dunham’s book, while Poehler’s memoir includes a collection of old photos and handwritten notes that lend it the quality of a scrapbook or a diary. Also like their predecessors, these books read less like traditional autobiographies and more like a random combination of memories, reflections, and advice meant to entertain as much as to inform; when you finish, you won’t know every detail of the writers’ lives from beginning to end, but you will have enjoyed several humorous anecdotes and learned more about their thoughts and feelings on topics ranging from love and sex to friendship to work. You’ll feel like you have a better understanding of who these women are as people, as if you had sat down to chat with them over coffee.</p> <p> </p> <p>Female writers and self-proclaimed feminists both, Dunham and Poehler dedicate significant portions of their books to stories about and reflections on women. In her introduction, Dunham claims that she writes about her own feminine experience as a way to stay “sane” and to help other women through the simple act of putting her narrative down on paper. Addressing her book as a letter to fellow women everywhere, she says, “And if I could take what I’ve learned and make one menial job easier for you, or prevent you from having the kind of sex where you feel you must keep your sneakers on in case you want to run away during the act, then every misstep of mine was worthwhile.” Dunham acknowledges the “feminist indoctrination” of her upbringing, instilled by a strong mother and grandmother and by the liberal schools she attended growing up. In so many of her stories, she reveals sincere respect for the women she looks up to and love for the women she’s friends with: the chapter dedicated to her artist mother’s nude self-portraits, the story about the crazy night she spent with a famous actress she deeply admired, all the anecdotes describing her adoration for her little sister, or the many references to school friends, coworkers, and acquaintances who affected her in some way.</p> <p> </p> <p>Likewise, Poehler fills her book with little love letters to the most important women in her life. She devotes an entire chapter to her famous relationship with fellow comedian Tina Fey, her “comedy wife” and “the fiercest and most talented voice in the comedy world,” complete with a silly acrostic poem describing Fey’s best qualities. In the section about her time at <em>Parks and Recreation</em>, she gushes about her co-stars Rashida Jones and Aubrey Plaza, emphasizing how strongly she values their friendship. When talking about her best elementary school friends, she says they were, “Smart. Patient. Good daughters and sisters. That’s who I ran with.” She waxes affection when describing the nannies who help raise her sons. Poehler so clearly respects the women who surround her, and she urges ladies to stop the “woman-on-woman crime” of judging each other for the way they raise their children and the professional decisions they make.   </p> <p> </p> <p><br /> <img alt="" src="/sites/default/files/2dunham_0.jpg" style="height:348px; width:625px" /></p> <p> </p> <p>While the reflections and experiences of these powerful female comedians prove entertaining, often funny, and sometimes insightful, their books occasionally leave the reader wondering what the point of it all is. Of course, raising the curtain to peek behind the scenes of Dunham’s and Poehler’s work is a welcome and valuable deed – and the writers definitely incorporate some of this information in their memoirs – but they delve so deeply into their own lives separate from their art that it can feel irrelevant at times. Does a celebrity’s fame automatically make the minutiae of their existences worth reading about?</p> <p> </p> <p>Dunham, for example, is a talented writer. Her stories are beautifully crafted, and her voice is very much her own, with acute and sometimes laugh-out-loud-funny observations about the world she lives in. However, she only glosses over her experience as writer and director of <em>Tiny Furniture</em> and of her hit HBO show, <em>Girls</em>, focusing the bulk of her memoir on the friendships and relationships and memories of her high school and college years. This singularly gifted artist who has accomplished so much at a young age withholds what could have been fascinating information about her creative process, about how she balances the many hats she wears in the entertainment industry, about what happens behind the scenes of a show millions of people watch religiously, in favor of what amounts to a collection of semi-autobiographical short stories about friendships and boys. As she admits herself, the contents of <em>Not That Kind of Girl</em> are only fictionalized versions of her life: “I’m an unreliable narrator. Because I add an invented detail to almost every story I tell about my mother. Because my sister claims every memory we “share” has been fabricated by me to impress a crowd.”</p> <p> </p> <p>Dunham’s writing also retains the TMI quality that makes certain scenes in <em>Girls </em>so difficult to watch. This writer has built a career on sharing a little bit more information than anyone ever wanted or needed to know. But when discussing her little sister Grace, Dunham’s over-sharing got her into trouble with the media almost immediately after the publication of her book. On October 29, a website called Truth Revolt published an article arguing that several of the scenes in her memoir describe sexual abuse; specifically, Dunham narrates a time when she looked into her then-one-year-old sister’s vagina, instances when she masturbated while her sister slept in the bed next to her, and all the times she bribed Grace for physical affection. Media outlets all over the internet responded to these accusations, some in agreement with Truth Revolt) and some in support of Dunham, and Dunham herself lashed out against the sexual abuse allegations with a series of angry tweets.</p> <p> </p> <p><br /> <img alt="" src="/sites/default/files/3dunham.jpg" style="height:427px; width:625px" /></p> <p> </p> <p>Now, anyone who has spent a significant amount of time around children knows that they’re curious about the human body and may innocently experiment in ways that would be inappropriate for adults (child psychologists have routinely defended Dunham’s actions since the controversy erupted). And anyone with siblings understands the complex familial relationship that allows brothers and sisters to simultaneously adore and detest each other, torture and support one another. However, Dunham’s insistence on chronicling her most personal moments opens her up to the analysis and criticism of the public, and for that she can only blame herself. Not everything needs to be shared.</p> <p> </p> <p>Although these two memoirs share a similar structure and many of the same themes, Poehler’s writing feels less like an experiment in creative writing – her style is simpler and more straightforward, and also consistently amusing (she rose to fame writing and performing comedy sketches, after all). Unlike Dunham, Poehler spends more of her book sharing the history of her career, with entire chapters devoted to her years at SNL, her experiences doing improv in Boston and joining the Upright Citizens Brigade, her time as an actor and co-writer on <em>Parks and Recreation</em>, along with her many reflections on what it means to be a woman in show business. These are the gems that only Amy Poehler can give us. Still, at 329 pages, the book is long, and it drags during several sections where Poehler diverges into anecdotes about her upbringing and personal life. Some of these stories are interesting, but many of them, like the chapter about her persistent sleeping issues or the one about every waitressing job she has held over the years, feel unnecessary.</p> <p> </p> <p>In the introduction to her memoir, Lena Dunham states, “There is nothing gutsier to me than a person announcing that their story is one that deserves to be told, especially if that person is a woman.” This may be true, but Dunham’s and Poehler’s most important stories are the stories that explain what made them successful females in comedy; Dunham, especially, doesn’t do justice to that narrative. Women progressed by leaps and bounds in 2014, and while <em>Not That Kind of Girl</em> and <em>Yes Please</em> contributed a small part to that growth, the greatest disappointment is that they didn’t live up to their full potential. </p> <p> </p> <p><strong>Author Bio:</strong></p> <p><strong><em>Melinda Parks is the pen name of a contributing writer at</em> Highbrow Magazine.</strong></p> <p> </p> <p><strong>For Highbrow Magazine</strong></p> <p> </p> </div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-tags field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Tags:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/amy-poehler" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">amy poehler</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/lena-dunham" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Lena Dunham</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/yes-please" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">yes please</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/not-kind-girl" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">not that kind of girl</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/girls" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Girls</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/saturday-night-live" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">saturday night live</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/tina-fey" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Tina Fey</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/parks-and-recreation" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Parks and Recreation</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/tv" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">TV</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/actors" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">actors</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/actresses" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">actresses</a></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-author field-type-text field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">Melinda Parks</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-pop field-type-list-boolean field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Popular:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">not popular</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-photographer field-type-text field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Photographer:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">Google Images; Wikipedia Commons</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-bot field-type-list-boolean field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Bottom Slider:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">Out Slider</div></div></div> Fri, 23 Jan 2015 15:45:46 +0000 tara 5646 at https://www.highbrowmagazine.com https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/4588-lena-dunham-amy-poehler-and-modern-feminist-discourse#comments Remembering Harold Lloyd: The Third Genius of Silent Comedy https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/4286-remembering-harold-lloyd-third-genius-silent-comedy <div class="field field-name-field-cat field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/film-tv" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Film &amp; TV</a></div></div></div><span class="submitted-by">Submitted by tara on Fri, 09/12/2014 - 15:21</span><div class="field field-name-field-image field-type-image field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" rel="og:image rdfs:seeAlso" resource="https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/sites/default/files/styles/large/public/field/image/1lloyd.jpg?itok=22RTqwdd"><img typeof="foaf:Image" src="https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/sites/default/files/styles/large/public/field/image/1lloyd.jpg?itok=22RTqwdd" width="480" height="288" alt="" /></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" property="content:encoded"><p> </p> <p>Charlie Chaplin made audiences laugh, but he also made us feel. His films often balanced delicately, as poet Lawrence Ferlinghetti observes, on “a fine line between sentiment and sentimentality.”  Buster Keaton may not have elicited as much laughter or emotion as Chaplin, but his comedy was at least as creative – particularly throughout the 1920s when he took great risks both physically and financially. Harold Lloyd lacked the vaudeville training and natural comedy of Chaplin and Keaton, yet he could make us laugh as hard as we did when watching Chaplin, and could elicit as much sympathy and suspense as Keaton, but he had to work harder at being funny. And work he did, churning out more pictures over the course of his very prolific film career than Chaplin and Keaton combined. But, although Harold Lloyd rivaled Chaplin’s box office success and earnings, his place in film history is sometimes dismissed by critics and is overshadowed by the great talents of his two main comedy contemporaries.</p> <p>Today, Chaplin’s Tramp – with his tiny moustache, his wooden cane and his bowed legs – is probably the most iconic of the three figures. His image is painted all over Los Angeles and his old studio (later Jim Henson Studios) still stands on La Brea Avenue, while the studios of Keaton and Lloyd have disappeared and their film locations are now, a century later, hardly recognizable. The location of Lloyd’s studio is now – and has been since 1956 – the site of the Los Angeles California Temple of the Mormon Church.</p> <p>We remember Keaton today for his deadpan expression, earning him the nickname, “Old Stone Face.” Keaton rode the front of train engines (<em>The General</em>) and had houses collapse around him (<em>Steamboat Bill, Jr.</em>) and hardly blinked. The world around him might be in chaos, but his expression let us know that he was calm and collected in his resolve that everything would be fine, a result of his character’s determination combined with trust in the hands of fate.</p> <p>Harold Lloyd we remember today not for his “Lonesome Luke” character (a Chaplin knock-off) with which he started his career, but with his “Glasses Character.” Like Keaton on screen he faced insurmountable odds to achieve his goals, but unlike Keaton his face was exceptionally expressive. His comedy was physical like Chaplin’s, a combination of raw slapstick and animated emotion. His objectives on screen were like those of Keaton’s characters, with physical stunts equally impressive and often more suspenseful (though, of course, no one could equal Keaton’s use of special effects, as evident nowhere more so than in <em>The General – </em>a big budget film for its day – in which he collapses an entire bridge with a train on it). But, unlike the down-and-out tramp and Old Stone Face, Lloyd’s character was more of an everyman.</p> <p>Lloyd’s glasses, like Chaplin’s ill-fitted suit, firmly established his character. For Lloyd, the glasses make him seem common and they also challenge the general perception that men with glasses are more serious and astute, a perception that perhaps helps Lloyd elicit greater laughs. Lloyd’s character is anything but what his first appearance might have us believe. Instead of being an erudite and no-nonsense fellow, he is bumbling, clownish, playful and, despite being a common man, he is willing to take some very uncommon risks, from scaling buildings to chasing down robbers and murderers (<em>The Kid Brother; Grandma’s Boy</em>), making us laugh along the way.</p> <p>For the many unfamiliar with Lloyd’s comedic style, the image of him dangling from a clock in <em>Safety Last! </em>is perhaps etched in their consciousness even if they have never seen the film. This is probably, as Roger Ebert writes, “<a href="http://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/great-movie-safety-last-1923">the most famous shot in silent comedy</a>.” And it is probably one of the most iconic shots in film history at that, paid homage only a few years ago in Martin Scorsese’s visually stunning 2011 film, <em>Hugo</em>, an adaptation of Brian Selznick’s beautifully illustrated children’s book and tribute to early cinema, <em>The Invention of Hugo Cabret</em>.</p> <p>But although many are likely familiar with Lloyd’s image, few have – as Ebert writes – seen his works. Today, people are probably less familiar with Lloyd than with Keaton and certainly less familiar with Lloyd than they are with Chaplin. And there are several reasons for this.</p> <p>Comedy, as mentioned earlier, did not come as naturally to Lloyd as to Keaton and Chaplin. It took him time to perfect his character, moving away from being just another Chaplin imitator and establishing his own brand of silent comedy and then developing that character and giving him dimension. Once he did it he did it beautifully, and in high demand he cranked out films in rapid succession, amending them according to public tastes (using the preview to his advantage). The famed producer Hal Roach remarked of Lloyd’s lack of inborn comedic genius that Lloyd was the best actor to play a comedian, owed largely to the same sort of persistence that characterized his on-screen persona. </p> <p>Chaplin was the most recognizable figure in early cinema, but by the 1920s, Lloyd was giving him a run for his money, though working at least twice as hard, or more if judged by output alone—Lloyd cranked out 12 feature films in the 20s compared with Chaplin’s four. Yet over the years Chaplin’s iconic status remained constant, though teetering during the hyper-reactive McCarthy era.</p> <p>Keaton and Lloyd both successfully bridged the gap from silent films to talkies early on, but the stardom of both waned throughout the 1930s and 40s, becoming for many just one of those “dim figures you may still remember from the silent days,” as William Holden’s character famously says in <em>Sunset Boulevard </em>(a scene with a cameo from Buster Keaton). But unlike Lloyd, Keaton kept acting in films throughout his life (with memorable cameos in films such as Chaplin’s <em>Limelight, </em>Stanley Kramer’s <em>It’s a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World </em>and <em>A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum</em>), even if he didn’t actually have the creative control he once possessed, and in the late 1950s his films experienced a renewed interest, something Lloyd’s films would not enjoy for a few years.</p> <p> </p> <p><br /> <img alt="" src="/sites/default/files/2lloyd.jpg" style="height:455px; width:608px" /></p> <p> </p> <p>One argument for the eclipse of Lloyd – who has been referred to by film historian Kevin Brownlow as “the third genius” of silent comedy (along with Keaton and Chaplin) and by others as the “King of Daredevil Comedy” – is that though he produced many of his own films, he never took a directing or writing credit, as did the other two geniuses. Thus, he might be less respected as “just an actor.” Director credits in his films were given to the likes of Sam Taylor, Fred C. Newmeyer and Hal Roach. Yet Lloyd produced many of his films and it is very clear that Lloyd was at least as much involved with creating his films as his two contemporaries, possessing in the 1920s a great deal of creative control over his works (much more so than many directors today), and reworking scenes to perfection, again like both Keaton and Chaplin.</p> <p>It has also been argued that while Lloyd was extremely popular in the booming 1920s, with his go-getter attitude and his ability to beat the odds and get ahead (not unlike his own climb from being a film extra to being a top-earning star), by the 1930s the American public had little taste for pictures of this sort.  With the market crash of 1929 and rapidly escalating unemployment, a grinning character who squeezed past all of the obstacles to success that stood in his way was not something that movie audiences craved when their own reality seemed so grim.</p> <p> </p> <p>The experiences of Chaplin’s hungry Tramp in the 1930s were more reflective of the typical everyman than Lloyd’s Glasses character. Though Keaton also played a go-getter, his success was often the result of fate as much as personal motivation, and in many films he wasn’t so much forging his way up and ahead, but was fighting to get back what was lost by either human force or nature. While Lloyd’s most memorable on-screen moment shows him dangling from a clock as he scales a skyscraper in order to prove himself, Keaton’s is of him just staying firmly put while the front of a house collapses over him, lucky enough to miss the blow simply by standing squarely in the middle of where the window frame lands.</p> <p>Third, although Lloyd was luckier than many of his lesser known contemporaries in making the transition from silent films to talkies, his output diminished and these films lacked the success of his earlier pictures.  Starting with <em>Welcome Danger </em>in 1929 – an expensive picture to make, as Lloyd allegedly insisted on reshooting the film, originally silent, as a talkie – Lloyd breached the world of sound in film, something Chaplin wouldn’t do for another decade. Keaton starred in his first talkie in 1930 – <em>Free and Easy,</em> released after Keaton’s much-regretted contract with MGM – and although it was more commercially successful than many of his own classics of the ‘20s, it marked the beginning of his decline.  For Lloyd, as with Keaton, the transition to sound was not unsuccessful, but the work was not of the same caliber. As Ed Park writes in his liner notes to the Criterion Collection’s release of <em>Safety Last!</em>, “though watchable and even interesting” the eight talkies that Lloyd released beginning with <em>Welcome Danger </em>“lack the sheer comic authority of his best silent work.”</p> <p>The end of Lloyd’s film career as an actor was marked by a disastrous collaboration with acclaimed director Preston Sturges<em>. </em>Though Sturges greatly admired Lloyd’s work, particularly the 1925 film <em>The Freshman, </em>creative differences between Sturges and Lloyd soon surfaced. While the film, <em>The Sin of Harold</em> <em>Diddlebock,</em> has been lauded by some critics, it was not a commercial success. Producer Howard Hughes pulled the film after its initial release in 1947. Some scenes were shot again and the film was re-edited and released in 1950 under the title <em>Mad Wednesday</em>, though faring no better with the general public. Although the film was nominated for some awards, including a Golden Globe nomination for Lloyd, it was the final nail in the coffin of Lloyd’s career as a film star.  </p> <p>Another interesting theory for the decline of Lloyd’s mark (via the liner notes by Ed Park) comes courtesy of Orson Welles, who knew Lloyd through their shared affinity for magic. Says Welles: “Harold Lloyd—he’s surely the most underrated [comedian] of them all. The intellectuals don’t like the Harold Lloyd character—that middle-class, middle-American, all-American college boy. There’s no obvious poetry to it.” But Park adds, “Yet it’s just this everyman persona that gives Lloyd his oomph” and he suggests that his poetry was more subtle than that of Chaplin and Keaton.  And while Keaton is often praised today for his work (and rightfully so), he did occasionally borrow from Lloyd’s bag of tricks and both he and Chaplin greatly admired the style of many of Lloyd’s films, especially <em>Grandma’s Boy</em>, credited as the first feature-length film in which Lloyd successfully matches up comedic gags and slapstick with character development. With <em>Grandma’s Boy</em>, Lloyd’s Glasses character would acquire depth and would no longer be just a vehicle for driving laughs.</p> <p>A final explanation that has been presented for Lloyd’s fall from stardom (raised notably by Lloyd’s granddaughter, Suzanne) is that for many years he, unlike other contemporaries, resisted rereleasing his catalogue or selling his films for use on television, concerned with lack of control and the interference of commercials, which disrupt whatever it is that the filmmaker is trying to communicate to his audience.  One can just imagine Lloyd fretting over his suspenseful climb up the 12-story Bolton Building from <em>Safety Last!</em> being interrupted by a commercial selling Maxwell House coffee or Carnation milk! </p> <p> </p> <p><br /> <img alt="" src="/sites/default/files/3lloyd.jpg" style="height:431px; width:625px" /></p> <p> </p> <p>Throughout the 1940s and 1950s audiences demanded talkies and many of the films of the silent era were neglected during this period, not to be revived until the late-‘50s (as was the case with Keaton’s body of work) and early 1960s (as with Lloyd’s oeuvre). In the ‘60s Lloyd released two compilations featuring scenes from his 1920s classics, which sparked some renewed interest in his film catalogue. In the 1990s his works were released on home video and a decade later on DVD, but, despite all of this, many today remain unfamiliar with Harold Lloyd’s spectacular world of comedy.  </p> <p>No matter the true explanation for Lloyd’s relative obscurity – likely a combination of several, if not all, of the various factors discussed above – he still matters today.  Though he may be the least known and appreciated of the three geniuses of the era of silent comedy, Harold Lloyd was a giant working among bigger giants and he worked harder than his peers if merely to keep pace with their inborn comedic talents. And through his determination, not unlike his character, he influenced and won the respect of those around him and audiences loved him, too.</p> <p>Impressively, Lloyd (like many in that period) did a great deal of his own stunts, sometimes foolishly. What makes this particularly remarkable in Lloyd’s case is that many of the stunts executed in films like <em>Safety Last! </em>were performed after he had lost his thumb and index finger on his right hand in 1919, when Lloyd posed for publicity photos using a real bomb that was mistaken for a prop.</p> <p>But Lloyd’s impact is bigger still for he not only did what others were already doing, but also pushed forward against the existing boundaries. In films like <em>Grandma’s Boy</em> Lloyd toyed with existing conventions of comedy. In <em>The Kid Brother</em> and <em>Safety Last! </em>he played with camera angles and to great effect. Lloyd’s films also created the templates that are still (over)used today for two popular genres. <em>Safety Last!, </em>Ed Park writes, is “the template for the contemporary action flick.”  And others have credited Lloyd with developing the template for the modern romantic comedy. In addition, Lloyd influenced not only the work of Keaton, but of countless others, including Woody Allen (whose antics in <em>Sleeper </em>owe more to Lloyd than any other silent era comedian), Preston Sturges and Mike Nichols (the ending of <em>The Graduate </em>borrows greatly from Lloyd’s 1924 film, <em>Girl Shy</em>). Plus, the characters of the Farrelly brothers’ <em>Dumb and Dumber </em>were named after Harold Lloyd.</p> <p>From a historical standpoint, Lloyd’s films, many shot on location around Los Angeles, are also great pieces to study for any with an interest in the city’s urban metamorphosis over the years.</p> <p>And, above all, Harold Lloyd still matters because his films remain wildly entertaining and fresh, especially in the restored versions which have been released in the past decade.</p> <p>Harold Lloyd might not have had the poetic genius of Charlie Chaplin or the bravado of Buster Keaton. But that’s alright. He had, instead, the subtlety of Harold Lloyd and he created a character with depth, a character we could relate to through the ages, who shared our dreams to succeed and who could make us laugh just as well as he could make our hearts thump and our palms sweat. To some he is undoubtedly still one of those “dim figures . . . from the silent days,” but to those familiar with work, those who love film and film history, he is so much more: an innovator, a daredevil and a hard-working everyman whose contributions were immense, but who remains overshadowed by the other great pioneers of cinema.</p> <p> </p> <p><br /> <img alt="" src="/sites/default/files/4lloyd.jpg" style="height:469px; width:625px" /></p> <p> </p> <p><strong>Author Bio:</strong><br />  </p> <p><strong><em>Benjamin Wright is a contributing writer at</em> Highbrow Magazine.</strong></p> <p> </p> <p><strong>For Highbrow Magazine</strong></p> <p> </p> </div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-tags field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Tags:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/harold-llyod" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">harold llyod</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/charlie-chaplin" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">charlie chaplin</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/buster-keaton" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">buster keaton</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/silent-films" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">silent films</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/comedies" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">comedies</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/comedians" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">comedians</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/actors" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">actors</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/films" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">films</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/hollywood" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Hollywood</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/early-films" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">early films</a></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-author field-type-text field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">Benjamin Wright </div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-pop field-type-list-boolean field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Popular:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">not popular</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-bot field-type-list-boolean field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Bottom Slider:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">Out Slider</div></div></div> Fri, 12 Sep 2014 19:21:41 +0000 tara 5178 at https://www.highbrowmagazine.com https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/4286-remembering-harold-lloyd-third-genius-silent-comedy#comments Remembering the Genius of Robin Williams https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/4221-remembering-genius-robin-williams <div class="field field-name-field-cat field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/news-features" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">News &amp; Features</a></div></div></div><span class="submitted-by">Submitted by tara on Fri, 08/15/2014 - 10:54</span><div class="field field-name-field-image field-type-image field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" rel="og:image rdfs:seeAlso" resource="https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/sites/default/files/styles/large/public/field/image/1robinwilliams.jpg?itok=EMrxIHU8"><img typeof="foaf:Image" src="https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/sites/default/files/styles/large/public/field/image/1robinwilliams.jpg?itok=EMrxIHU8" width="480" height="268" alt="" /></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" property="content:encoded"><p> </p> <p><strong>From our content partner <a href="http://newamericamedia.org/2014/08/robin-williams---a-comic-genius-who-named-everything-except-his-own-depression.php">New America Media</a></strong>:</p> <p> </p> <p>Robin Williams once joked that death is “nature’s way to let you know that your table is ready.” It’s not funny now that the comedian overrode nature by grabbing the table without waiting for the maître d’. But if his suicide has any silver lining, it’s that depression and mental illness are now being talked about more openly.</p> <p> </p> <p>In far-flung India, China and Vietnam, where mental illness, especially depression, is a taboo subject, it is now on the front pages of newspapers and TV programs reporting on Williams’ suicide.</p> <p> </p> <p>Born in Chicago, Illinois, to a father who was an executive for Ford Motor Company and a mother who was a model, his was a childhood among toys. He grew up privileged but reportedly lonely. An overweight and bullied child, Williams played alone in a large home, and no doubt his loneliness and sadness lent themselves to invention: the need to occupy others’ lives via the act of mimicking, via the act of imagination.</p> <p> </p> <p>So much so that it became a habit, a shield, and eventually a vocation -- and his was a kind of talent that hid his own sadness by making others laugh. As a testimony to his down to earth and friendly personality, but also his ability to mimic, a Vietnamese-American friend of mine who once worked as an extra on the Good Morning Vietnam set testified that, “We had a lot of down time in between shooting in the classroom scenes. Robin Williams would learn people's personalities over those six days and make fun of all of us based on that. I was in awe.”</p> <p> </p> <p>But of all things Williams could talk about, or make fun of, on stage-- from sex to violence, from politics to his own divorce, from his struggle with alcohol abuse to his open heart surgery, he didn’t manage to name the thing that ailed him for what it was: a mental illness, depression. Even for one of the world’s most eloquent public figures, the D word still left him tongue-tied. Saying that he was “bummed out,” in an interview with Terry Gross on Fresh Air, seemed as close as he could manage.</p> <p> </p> <p>In Vietnamese there’s a phrase that is used to describe a rare talent, someone who has a golden tongue: “Xuat khau thanh tho.” It means to open one’s mouth and out comes poetry.</p> <p> </p> <p>Robin Williams didn’t speak poetry but he spoke something more accessible in the modern world: the ability to provide humor at will, a rapid fire of comical ideas and observations that no script could match, taking on voices and personalities that seemed spun out of bright clouds. His was a genius rarely seen even among the best entertainers and comedians, and it brought joy and laughter and admiration for the millions.</p> <p> </p> <p><br /> <img alt="" src="/sites/default/files/2robinwilliams.jpg" style="height:426px; width:625px" /></p> <p> </p> <p>If genius is the ability “to carry the spirit of the child into old age, which mean never losing your enthusiasm,” as Aldous Huxley once observed, it seems to be a good fit to describe Williams’ man-child persona. But F. Scott Fitzgerald’s definition of genius may have come closer to capturing what Williams’ gift was all about: “the ability to put into effect what is on your mind.”</p> <p> </p> <p>Williams’ many observations delighted the world. On Clinton’s Monica Lewinsky affair: “God gave men both a penis and a brain, but unfortunately not enough blood supply to run both at the same time.” On Canada: “…like a loft apartment over a really great party.” On his own open-heart surgery and why he afterward would cry at the drop of a hat: "I do not feel they gave me a new valve but a tiny vagina. I do not know. I'm just so emotional these days.”</p> <p> </p> <p>But there’s often a steep price to genius. For Williams it came along on an energy driven by what seemed to be mania, and the down time of which, no doubt, was an overwhelming darkness.</p> <p> </p> <p>But if not curable, it is treatable, with diligence. To do so, however, means breaking the silence around depression, owning up to the disease and seeking help, and sharing one’s story.</p> <p> </p> <p>And, even for a man with a golden tongue, it’s the one thing he couldn’t articulate.</p> <p> </p> <p><strong>Author Bio:</strong></p> <p><em>New America Media editor Andrew Lam is the author of "Perfume Dreams: Reflections on the Vietnamese Diaspora" (Heyday Books, 2005), and "Birds of Paradise Lost," a book of short stories.  </em></p> <p> </p> <p><strong>From our content partner <a href="http://newamericamedia.org/2014/08/robin-williams---a-comic-genius-who-named-everything-except-his-own-depression.php">New America Media</a></strong></p> </div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-tags field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Tags:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/robin-williams" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">robin williams</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/suicide" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">suicide</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/good-morning-vietnam" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">good morning vietnam</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/hollywood" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Hollywood</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/depression-0" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">depression</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/hook" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">hook</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/actors" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">actors</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/mork-and-mindy" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">mork and mindy</a></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-author field-type-text field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">Andrew Lam</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-pop field-type-list-boolean field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Popular:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">not popular</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-photographer field-type-text field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Photographer:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">New America Media</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-bot field-type-list-boolean field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Bottom Slider:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">Out Slider</div></div></div> Fri, 15 Aug 2014 14:54:25 +0000 tara 5078 at https://www.highbrowmagazine.com https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/4221-remembering-genius-robin-williams#comments Soul and Wit are the Essence of John Turturro’s ‘Fading Gigolo’ https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/3952-soul-and-wit-are-essence-john-turturro-s-fading-gigolo <div class="field field-name-field-cat field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/film-tv" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Film &amp; TV</a></div></div></div><span class="submitted-by">Submitted by tara on Mon, 05/05/2014 - 14:55</span><div class="field field-name-field-image field-type-image field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" rel="og:image rdfs:seeAlso" resource="https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/sites/default/files/styles/large/public/field/image/1gigolo.jpg?itok=RupwvBP3"><img typeof="foaf:Image" src="https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/sites/default/files/styles/large/public/field/image/1gigolo.jpg?itok=RupwvBP3" width="480" height="254" alt="" /></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" property="content:encoded"><p> </p> <p>Written, directed by and starring John Turturro, <em>Fading Gigolo</em> is a subtle, charming comedy making an observation about the entanglements of sex and love. It could be due to the age of the cast in the film, but there is a tender treatment of the relationships portrayed, bringing out raw honesty.</p> <p>The premise is rather simple:  Murray (Woody Allen), a rare bookseller, literally “pimps out” his close friend Fioravante ( Turturro), a florist, for a threesome since his business is going under. After a successful venture, the two friends partner up. The business arrangement starts to unravel, however, as Floravante begins to fall for one of his clients: a Jewish widow still mourning the death of her husband.</p> <p>The complications start when Murray’s dermatologist, Dr. Parker, played by Sharon Stone, decides to test out Fioravante before going through with the threesome. In a few, masterful scenes, we see Dr. Parker fall in love with Fioravante: she is hesitant to share him with her friend Selima (Sofia Vergara) who is also contracted for the ménage a trois; she approaches him when she is out with her husband; and there is a conversation of ‘saudade’—the Portuguese word which roughly translates to ‘wanting something that doesn’t exist.’</p> <p>In the midst of this, Murray continues to find clients for Fioravante. When Murray’s kids get lice, he takes them to Avigal (Vanessa Paradis), a Jewish widow. Murray convinces Avigal to meet  Fioravante under the guise of getting a massage, and when they meet ther is a tender connection. Avigal and Fioravante’s relationship becomes an issue, however, when Dovi (Liev Schreiber)—who is part of the Jewish police neighborhood watch—takes an interest in Avigal’s new habits.</p> <p>Everything culminates when at the height of Fioravante and Avigal’s relationship, Murray is kidnapped by Dovi and co. to investigate the situation. As the Jewish community holds Murray in court, Avigal comes in to stand up for herself in an inspiring and touching moment.</p> <p> </p> <p><img alt="" src="/sites/default/files/2gigolo.jpg" style="height:352px; width:625px" /></p> <p> </p> <p><em>Fading Gigolo</em> is reminiscent of Woody Allen films, but the film itself is more grounded. The comedy comes from the entirety of the situation and some clever one-liners, rather than a series of set-up jokes. This, plus the natural pacing of the film, gives <em>Fading Gigolo</em> a realistic lens on what is otherwise an odd situation. The movie benefits from a well-written cast of characters, each with strong convictions.</p> <p>Fioravante is a reluctant, lovable leading man, more in touch with the emotional side of the gigolo business. On a deeper level, <em>Fading Gigolo</em> is less about a man selling his body for sex, and more about the beauty of human connection.</p> <p> </p> <p><strong>Author Bio:</strong><br /> <em>Gabriella Tutino is a contributing writer at</em> Highbrow Magazine.</p> </div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-tags field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Tags:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/john-turturo" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">John Turturo</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/woody-allen" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Woody Allen</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/fading-gigolo" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">fading gigolo</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/movies" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Movies</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/film" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">film</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/directors" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">directors</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/actors" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">actors</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/hollywood" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Hollywood</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/indepedent-films" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">indepedent films</a></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-author field-type-text field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">Gabriella Tutino</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-pop field-type-list-boolean field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Popular:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">not popular</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-bot field-type-list-boolean field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Bottom Slider:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">Out Slider</div></div></div> Mon, 05 May 2014 18:55:59 +0000 tara 4657 at https://www.highbrowmagazine.com https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/3952-soul-and-wit-are-essence-john-turturro-s-fading-gigolo#comments Manufacturing Identity: The Art Behind the Cult of Celebrity https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/3796-manufacturing-identity-art-behind-cult-celebrity <div class="field field-name-field-cat field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/news-features" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">News &amp; Features</a></div></div></div><span class="submitted-by">Submitted by tara on Thu, 03/06/2014 - 09:28</span><div class="field field-name-field-image field-type-image field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" rel="og:image rdfs:seeAlso" resource="https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/sites/default/files/styles/large/public/field/image/1kennedynixon.jpg?itok=ntMeFW7P"><img typeof="foaf:Image" src="https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/sites/default/files/styles/large/public/field/image/1kennedynixon.jpg?itok=ntMeFW7P" width="480" height="326" alt="" /></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" property="content:encoded"><p> </p> <p>P.T. Barnum has been referred to as “the Shakespeare of advertising.” And rightly so. Many credit Barnum with not only creating “The Greatest Show on Earth,” but with establishing the first (creative) mass-marketing campaigns and manufacturing the first modern celebrities, including such notables as General Tom Thumb and the songbird Jenny Lind. Barnum took advantage of new changes in media (advancements in printing and the advent of photography in particular) to give us new celebrities, men and women famous for – as cultural historian Warren Susman writes – their “personality” rather than their “character.”</p> <p>Whereas in previous generations people were celebrated for great achievements – particularly military figures, authors, great thinkers and political leaders – the new media changed this and P.T. Barnum was one of the early pioneers charging forward into the brave new world made possible by emergent technologies, catapulting unknowns to fame and selling people to mass audiences (sometimes with talent, as in the case of Jenny Lind, and in other cases sellable merely for a combination of personality and peculiarity).</p> <p>A common aphorism often attributed to Barnum is that there is a “sucker born every minute,” and whether or not Barnum actually coined the phrase it was these “suckers” that Barnum banked on, expecting them to buy into his humbug craft and the personalities that he was essentially selling to the public. But, of course, Barnum was only taking advantage of the opportunities that capitalism presented, using the dazzling new technologies of the day to line his pockets and simultaneously transform the notion of fame-worthiness. A century before Andy Warhol predicted that the future held for all 15 minutes of fame and before he manufactured his so-called “superstars,” Barnum assembled his own cast of sideshow personages, people famous largely because they were craftily marketed to the public.</p> <p>Since Barnum, the concept of celebrity has changed many times, with new types of stars and personalities thrust into the limelight, reflecting in some ways changes in societal values and the introduction of newer technologies. But as much as some things have changed, others have remained the same.</p> <p> </p> <p><img alt="" src="/sites/default/files/1ptbarnum.jpg" style="height:464px; width:625px" /></p> <p> </p> <p><strong>Types of celebrity and the role of technology </strong></p> <p>The great American essayist Ralph Waldo Emerson made much ado about men of character, men with self-reliance, “representative men.” For Emerson these representative men included the likes of Plato, William Shakespeare, Emanuel Swedenborg, Michel de Montaigne, Napoleon and Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, some overlapping with the “heroes” identified by Emerson’s contemporary, Thomas Carlyle. Many of the names of these heroes and great men would likely be unfamiliar to large segments of the public today, replaced by fleeting names like Honey Boo-Boo, Katy Perry and even Brad Pitt. Although celebrities have existed for millennia, first in the form of religious figures and great leaders, the nature of celebrity has transformed considerably over time, particularly since the era when Emerson and Carlyle were writing. In early America celebrated figures included men like George Washington and Benjamin Franklin, men believed to be made of noble virtue and strong moral character.</p> <p>With the revolution in new technologies that was part of the larger revolution in industry more than just strong character and virtue was needed to be famous. In the age of television commercials, public relations and televised debates (as the Kennedy-Nixon debate amply demonstrated) it is questionable whether a man like George Washington could be elected president if he were to run for office today, when image has in so many ways supplanted substance.</p> <p>The Industrial Revolution brought changes in the way people received information. Changes in printing and the introduction of photography morphed not only how individuals received news and information, giving a major boom to newspapers (as circulation exploded during this time), but it also transformed how individuals thought about people and events. It wasn’t good enough to read or hear that someone was great or talented anymore. Photography gave audiences an image to associate with this greatness or talent. And P.T. Barnum was one of the first to exploit these new changes in media, selling his collection of side show characters to mass audiences, people who were willing to spend their time and money to see these anomalies of nature. Even if they were too poor to afford admission people flocked outside of the tents where the likes of Tom Thumb, the Feejee mermaid and Jenny Lind were being featured, sometimes creating disturbances to gain entrance.</p> <p>By the late 19<sup>th</sup> century, generals, scholars and politicians may still have been celebrated figures, but they were quickly being shoved to the sidelines to make room for actors and artists, a phenomenon that continued to grow with the new changing technologies of the early 20<sup>th</sup> century, most significantly the advent of film.  </p> <p> </p> <p><img alt="" src="/sites/default/files/1benjaminfranklin.jpg" style="height:525px; width:525px" /></p> <p> </p> <p>In the 1910s, film stars were being created due to audience demands, none perhaps more recognizable than Douglas Fairbanks, Mary Pickford and Charlie Chaplin, but also including the likes of Florence Lawrence and Theda Bara. In the 1920s, Joan Crawford, Rudolph Valentino, Greta Garbo and Gloria Swanson were some of America’s best-known faces. With the introduction of “talkies,” many film stars of the silent era were abandoned for actors whose voices were more suitable for the screen and whose celebrity was not too entrenched in the silent era, something beautifully captured in Michel Hazanavicius’ 2011 Academy Award winning film <em>The Artist.</em></p> <p>When the fan magazine <em>Photoplay </em>was introduced, soon to be joined by many competitors, it offered fans glimpses into the daily lives of their favorite celebrities. The public appetite for celebrity culture was rarely sated and it became so great that audiences cared less about whether the stories presented by these fan magazines were legitimate or not than they did about just having that one little portal into the “real lives” of their favorite actors and actresses, even if they knew that these glimpses were nothing more than publicity gimmicks employed by the studios.</p> <p>With the introduction and rapid growth of radio and later television (which quickly came to displace the dominance of film as the major source of American entertainment), the concept of celebrity changed yet again, with a big boost to the celebrity power of recording artists, athletes and television stars. On <em>I Love Lucy </em>the notion of celebrity idealization was lampooned by Lucille Ball, herself one of the most recognizable ladies of the small screen.</p> <p>Politics also became a good source of entertainment in this era. A century earlier the famed Lincoln-Douglas debates were a media spectacular in their own right, boosting Lincoln’s public image and demonstrating the powers of media in shaping public opinion, but by the 1950s, the McCarthy hearings, Eisenhower’s landmark use of televised political ads and Richard Nixon’s “Checkers Speech” (a speech heard by 60 million Americans) reshaped the image of the politician and the means by which he communicated his message. While Roosevelt popularized the use of radio for political purposes, the 1950s saw orchestrated efforts by politicians to promote their agendas and improve their public images via the possibilities presented by the new medium of television.</p> <p> </p> <p><img alt="" src="/sites/default/files/1gretagarbo.jpg" style="height:622px; width:503px" /></p> <p> </p> <p>And the Kennedy-Nixon debate, televised in 1960, amply demonstrated the importance of image in this new era. Though the issue is considered somewhat contentious it has been suggested that at least part of Kennedy’s success was that his image, compared to that of then-Vice President Nixon, was much more likeable and appealing. Whereas Nixon came across as stiff and nervous, Kennedy appeared more confident and relaxed, as well as more physically attractive. </p> <p>With the demise of the studio system in film, the presence of more independent film companies, the rise of television and the growth of public relations, the concept of celebrity became more splintered than it was in the earlier part of the 20<sup>th</sup> century. In the 1950s and 1960s the power of television was unveiled with the appearances of Elvis Presley and later the Beatles on <em>The Ed Sullivan Show, </em>defining pop culture events of the century that both shattered TV viewing records, drawing in some of the largest audiences of all time<em>.</em></p> <p>By the late 1960s, the concept of fame was rattled. Andy Warhol was promoting his “superstars” and shaking the bourgeois art sensibilities of the day, predicting that in the future everyone would have 15 minutes of fame. With more niches and diverse interests, more celebrities were able to creep into the American consciousness, their fame short-lived but sometimes quite memorable. And decades after Warhol first started toying with our minds, with the vast expansion of television networks, the existence of round-the-clock television broadcasting and the marvels of the Internet, celebrity has certainly been extended to many who would not have been able to achieve recognition in earlier eras.</p> <p>There are still talented stars today (people whose fame is undoubtedly deserved), but there are also many more whose celebrity is fleeting and fragile, particularly with the introduction of television talk shows and later “reality television” and YouTube. And while there have long been people who were, as Daniel Boorstin writes, “known for  . . . well-knownness,” the rise of reality television, public relations and diverse and short-lived public interests have led to a boom in the number of celebrities who are “famous for being famous,” with Paris Hilton and the Kardashians being just a few of the more familiar names. But the same could be said of the hirsute rednecks of <em>Duck Dynasty, </em>the superficial cast of <em>The Hills </em>or many other reality TV “stars.”   </p> <p> </p> <p>   <img alt="" src="/sites/default/files/1elvis.jpg" style="height:625px; width:503px" />   </p> <p> </p> <p><strong>The Art of Identity Management</strong></p> <p>Sociologist Erving Goffman, implementing a dramaturgical analysis, postulated that there is a certain artistry to the idea of managing one’s identity, controlling the information that the public knows about an individual. Of course, while Goffman’s work is a seminal one in the field of sociology, what he said was less novel than how he said it, for Shakespeare had already suggested in works such as <em>The Merchant of Venice </em>and <em>As You Like It </em>that the world is but a stage where we all act out our various roles.</p> <p> </p> <p>Goffman elaborated on this, distinguishing our front stage (where we perform) from our back stage (where we let loose and be ourselves), and identifying the methods people employ to define how society views them. He also dedicated in his work, <em>The Presentation of Self in Everyday Life, </em>an entire chapter to the concept of maintaining control over one’s identity, titled “The Arts of Impression Management,” wherein he discusses methods used by actors (i.e., everyday people) when their performances are interrupted or when the performance may not go the way they had planned, methods well-known to many who work in the field of public relations or in the theatre.</p> <p>With the introduction of television and the Supreme Court’s decision in <em>United States v. Paramount Pictures </em>(1948) – in which the production-distribution-exhibition oligopoly of the Big Five studios (MGM, RKO, Warner Brothers, Fox and Paramount) was ruled to be in violation of US antitrust laws – the studio star system was shaken up, many stars becoming managers of their own identity for the first time since they achieved celebrity status. Rather than the studios controlling their images, by the 1950s many film stars were given free(r) reign over their presentation of self to the public.</p> <p>And along with this change in the management of identity, a big responsibility for some, entered the talent agents, publicists and PR men who helped celebrities create and recreate their images using all kinds of tricks, many more sophisticated versions of those found right in the playbook of the old huckster P.T. Barnum.</p> <p> </p> <p><img alt="" src="/sites/default/files/1monroe.jpg" style="height:351px; width:625px" /></p> <p> </p> <p>But even when they didn’t have public relations men in their service, those in the spotlight tried their damnedest to manage identity themselves: changing their names, creating fictitious pasts, getting their names in lights no matter the cost, even getting cosmetic surgery when it seemed advantageous to their career trajectory.</p> <p>True these were all tools used in the early studio years, too, sometimes implemented by the actor’s free will and other times under coercion from the studio men, attempting to create a sellable image. When the English actor William Henry Pratt traveled to Canada at the beginning of the 20<sup>th</sup> century, he changed his name to Boris Karloff, finding it more exotic than his birth name. The studios later pigeonholed him as a horror movie actor, making his name synonymous with that image.</p> <p>Theda Bara is another notable early example. Born Theodosia Goodman in Cincinnati, Ohio, Bara was given a more exotic name and the studios also crafted for her a colorful new background, transforming the little Jewish girl from Ohio into an Egyptian-born actress who pursued a stage career in France before making her way to Hollywood.</p> <p>Other celebrities, and particularly female ones, have dyed their hair, changed their names, underwent the knife and have even had teeth extracted (or so it is rumored) to accentuate their cheekbones. Norma Jean Baker’s transformation into the screen siren Marilyn Monroe is perhaps the most famous example.</p> <p>And, of course, in music there is perhaps no case more prominent than that of Elvis Presley, who was metamorphosed into one of the most recognizable celebrity brands of the 20<sup>th</sup> century. Elvis had been described early on by theater critic Edwin Howard as follows: “Pimples all over his face. Duck-tail hair. Had a funny-looking thin bowtie on. He was very hard to interview. About all I could get out of him was yes and no.”  But under the management of Colonel Tom Parker, a carnival barker in his youth, Elvis was transformed into <em>the </em>face of early rock n’ roll, his name and image tied to all kinds of merchandise.</p> <p> </p> <p><img alt="" src="/sites/default/files/1bradpitt.jpg" style="height:416px; width:625px" /></p> <p> </p> <p>The musician Dave Van Ronk observes that Bob Dylan, another master of public image and illusion (something well-documented in Todd Haynes’ 2007 film <em>I’m Not There</em>), merely followed an “old showbiz tradition” not at all uncommon in the Greenwich Village folk scene of the 1960s: “Everybody changed their names and invented stories about themselves. . . . personal reinvention was the order of the day.” Van Ronk holds up Dylan and Ramblin’ Jack Elliott as two excellent case studies (Elliott was born Elliott Adnopoz and had been encouraged by his surgeon father to follow in his footsteps before he ran away from home, joined the rodeo and made himself the cowboy singer “Ramblin’ Jack”), but we could just as well hold up the example of Peter, Paul and Mary, whose image was largely an invention of manager Albert Grossman – a wholesome folk group that he could easily sell to the American people.</p> <p>Through interviews, press conferences, press releases and public relations stories, celebrities could continuously shape and reshape their identities, at times trying to best maintain their image in the eyes of the public, as with Hugh Grant’s very well-publicized appearance on <em>The Tonight Show </em>following his arrest for lewd conduct with a prostitute or many a celebrity interview with Barbara Walters or Larry King. But, sometimes publicity and interviews can backfire and tarnish a celebrity’s reputation, such as with Richard Nixon’s interviews with David Frost.</p> <p>And in the age of social media we have the issue of rogue celebrities, whose actions and comments on sites like Twitter, Facebook and Instagram become controversies and embarrassments for record labels, studios and television networks. But this too could be viewed also as sometimes intentional, trying to get a celebrity’s name back in the headlines, for as MTV teen mom Farrah Abraham can surely attest any publicity is arguably better than no publicity at all.</p> <p><strong>Celebrity Today</strong></p> <p>While we still have mega-stars like Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie or George Clooney and Julia Roberts, the concept of celebrity in the past few decades, particularly since the rise of the Internet and 24-7 broadcasting and with the introduction of so many new cable channels, has become much more fragmented than it was in the past. Just as there have long been local celebrities whose fame existed only within certain zip codes, today while there are many celebs whose names are known in nearly every household, there are also many more whose fame is fragile and is known to only a small demographic or subculture – the alt/punk crowd, the foodies, the “metalheads,” the reality TV junkies.</p> <p>The Internet has also created many small-time celebrities like Tila Tequila, who became well-known through her exploitation of Myspace, and so many YouTube sensations (which has become another outlet for creating fame, particularly when there is talent present as well, as with Justin Bieber or Lana Del Rey). While there are more outlets for achieving fame than in the past, and while fame may be more marginal than in previous generations, there are also more celebrities today who are famous for nothing more than being famous, whose celebrity status is ephemeral.</p> <p>And yet, even if we know that some people are famous for no legitimate reason, we often still buy into the cult of celebrity, subscribing to magazines like <em>US Weekly</em> and <em>People, </em>or watching television shows like <em>TMZ. </em>Even if we know that we are being duped by “reality TV,” we sometimes enjoy it for the purposes of pure entertainment. Whether or not Barnum actually said it, there is truth to the dictum that “there is a sucker born every minute.” And some of us realize that we are suckers, but we play the game nonetheless.</p> <p>Though the technologies and methods used to sell celebrity have changed over the years – much like changes in the art of photography, writing or acting – the art is still fundamentally the same. Celebrities may not be sold to us anymore on flyers or by carnival barkers, the studio system may not be able to micromanage celebrity identity as it did in the past, there may be more players in the game for shorter periods of time, but it is still the same game of creating and selling an image, a personality – real, false or a combination thereof. But while it may be most noticeable to us that celebrities control and manipulate their own identity, an artistry of sorts, we are all constantly molding our public image, controlling what others know about us, selling ourselves to the public (especially in the age of social media), acting out our own parts on the grand stage of life, the players of the real “Greatest Show on Earth.”     </p> <p> </p> <p><strong>Author Bio:</strong><br /> <em>Benjamin Wright is a contributing writer at</em> Highbrow Magazine.</p> </div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-tags field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Tags:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/celebrity" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">celebrity</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/cult-celebrity" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">cult of celebrity</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/celebrity-watchers" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">celebrity watchers</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/fame" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">fame</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/famous" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">famous</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/george-clooney" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">George Clooney</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/barnum" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">barnum</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/jfk" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">jfk</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/nixon" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">nixon</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/marilyn-monroe" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Marilyn Monroe</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/greta-garbo" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">greta garbo</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/cary-grant" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Cary Grant</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/hollywood" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Hollywood</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/actors" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">actors</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/actresses" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">actresses</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/movie-starts" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">movie starts</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/brad-pitt" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">brad pitt</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/politicians" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">politicians</a></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-author field-type-text field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">Benjamin Wright </div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-pop field-type-list-boolean field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Popular:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">not popular</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-photographer field-type-text field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Photographer:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">Wikipedia Commons</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-bot field-type-list-boolean field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Bottom Slider:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">Out Slider</div></div></div> Thu, 06 Mar 2014 14:28:13 +0000 tara 4390 at https://www.highbrowmagazine.com https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/3796-manufacturing-identity-art-behind-cult-celebrity#comments