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Maggie Gyllehhaal Gets ‘Bad’ in Crazy Heart

Roger Friedman
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If you haven’t noticed, Maggie Gyllenhaal and Peter Sarsgaard are like the Joanne Woodward and Paul Newman of this generation.

They are each in Oscar contender films ‘ Maggie in ‘Crazy Heart‘ with Jeff Bridges, Peter in ‘An Education‘ with Carey Mulligan. And they each give sensational, understated performances. A year ago they performed Chekhov’s “Uncle Vanya” together directed by Austin Pendleton at CSC. They’re the real thing.

I had lunch with Maggie at Cookshop on 10th Avenue a couple of weeks ago, to talk about how much everyone loves Jeff Bridges and how ‘Crazy Heart’ turns out to be Fox Searchlight’s surprise movie of the season.

Back in September at the Toronto Film Festival, when I saw Jeff Bridges at the premiere of ‘The Men Who Stare at Goats,’ I’d asked him what else he had coming out, he didn’t even mention ‘Crazy Heart.’ Then ‘Amelia‘ tanked, and F/S scrambled for a live action Oscar film. (The fantastic ‘Mr. Fox‘ notwithstanding.) They looked in all their cupboards and drawers, and found this little film with a country heart of gold.

The Sarsgaards have a three-year-old daughter Ramona who Maggie says has changed her acting career completely. ‘I got a feeling when she was 14 months that I had to do something for myself. It was just during the writers’ strike. And then ‘Crazy Heart’ came to me, and I thought there’s no way this movie will be made. When I read it I said no way.’

Her character Jean is a local journalist/single mom who comes to interview Bridges’ Bad Blake, a washed up country star. They fall into a relationship quickly — which is almost hard to believe because Bad Blake is such a disaster. ‘But he’s also very charming,’ Maggie says, protesting. It’s a much softer part for Maggie, whose career highlights (‘Batman’ aside) include playing S&M in ‘Secretary’ and a drug addict in ‘Sherrybaby.’ Maggie says of Jean, ‘There’s a fierceness about them that Jean doesn’t have.’ She says she got her inspiration from characters played in the 70s by the likes of Sissy Spacek, Ellen Burstyn and Jane Fonda.
Maggie and her famous brother Jake are the children of director Stephen Gyllenhaal and screenwriter Naomi Foner, a (now divorced) couple who worked a lot when the kids were growing up. Among their credits are ‘A Dangerous Woman’ and ‘Running on Empty.’ How did they manage to work so much?, I asked Maggie. ‘They cobbled it together,’ she says.

When Gyllenhaal was making “Crazy Heart,” she says, her mom came to the set for two weeks to watch Ramona. ‘She said I wanted to give you the freedom to lose yourself in your work.’

And Ramona kept busy while her mom worked. Bridges included many pictures of her in a book he gave the cast when the movie wrapped.

‘I sort of thought, do I want to approve these pictures? But then I thought she was a major, major part of that experience.’ Does Ramona see her on screen ever?’ ‘I did a voice over for a children’s movie. I asked her, it that nice for you or funny? And she said, It’s nice. And it’s funny.’

Willie Mitchell, the great producer of Al Green and others, dies

Roger Friedman
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Willie Mitchell, the great musician, producer and composer, has died in Memphis. He was 81.

Willie was famous for putting Hi Records on the map in 1970, the label that gave us Al Green, Ann Peebles, O.V. Wright, Syl Johnson, and dozens and dozens of hits. He produced them all from his Royal Studios in Memphis, an assuming red brick building.

All those hits like “Let’s Stay Together” and “I Can’t Stand the Rain” came from Willie’s craftmanship. He was one of a kind, a legend. The Grammys honored him in 2008 with a lifetime achievement award.

And it’s not like Willie — a famed trumpeter and bandleader — only worked with Memphis musicians. Big rock stars sought him out all the time. Keith Richards asked him to produce his first solo album years ago, and the result was a wonderful track called “Make No Mistake.” Willie recently worked with Rod Stewart on his album of soul songs. There was only one Willie Mitchell sound, a lush undersweep with the Memphis Horns (the Hodges brothers) and a whip of a back beat. Everyone wanted to copy it, but no one could. And years after Al Green thought he’d moved on, he came back to get it again with Mitchell on a pair of recent albums.

Rock Hall May Jump Ahead Five Years to Get Stars

Roger Friedman
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Rock Hall May Jump Ahead Five Years to Get Stars

The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame is considering a move not unlike “Desperate Housewives.”

In fact, you might call Jann Wenner the “desperate despot” of rock.

Sources tell me that Wenner is considering doing exactly what the TV show did a couple of years ago — jump ahead five years.

Currently, the RRHOF charter says that in order to be inducted, a band or act isn’t eligible until 25 years have passed since its first record release.

But now that popular music has passed into its retirement, the number of possible new inductees has thinned considerably. This winter, the Hall will induct Genesis, the Hollies, Iggy Pop and the Stooges, Jimmy Cliff and ABBA. They’ve all been the on the ballot for a long time and have finally made it mostly because the choices are diminishing.

I’m told that Wenner has looked at the next group of possible inductees, for 2011, and it’s not good: The only superstar who’s had a major career and influenced rock and roll is Sting. Otherwise, the perfectly nice but not exactly big game changers are ‘Til Tuesday, Chris Isaak, Suzanne Vega and Simply Red.

Of course, Wenner could do what many consider the right thing and induct the many missing names from Chubby Checker, Billy Preston and Mary Wells to Chicago, the Moody Blues, Todd Rundgren, Linda Ronstadt, Carly Simon, Carole King, Neil Diamond, Neil Sedaka, Rufus & Carla Thomas and so many more it’s hard to list them. But that’s unlikely.

The new idea is to change the charter so that it only takes 20 years to get in. That would move up a lot of acts on the ballot that are more current and carry some name value, which would be good for TV rights. Believe it or not, the following would then be eligible for the 2011 ceremony: Guns N’ Roses, Green Day, Public Enemy, Nirvana, Kid Rock and Smashing Pumpkins. Also a possibility right away: Keith Richards as a solo artist.

The fear, of course, is that with these new guidelines, the artists who’ve been snubbed previously will now never get in. Of course, one other solution would be just to shut the doors, stop inductions entirely and make the annual dinner a revisit of inductees. But TV doesn’t want Nursing Home Rock, so Wenner — who has no one to stop him — will probably not do that either.

Oscar Cast Needs Avatar, Nine, Sandra Bullock

Roger Friedman
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A lot of Academy voters are probably going through their holiday mail today — and guess what — the Oscar ballot is here.

Some nominees seem like done deals. “Up in the Air,” “Precious,” “The Hurt Locker,” “Inglorious Basterds” and maybe “Invictus” or “Up” are the top likely choices. By now, a regular voter could rattle off that list of five without too much trouble.

But where to go from there? With 10 total Best Picture nominees, it’s the “back five” that will take a little more work and thought this year.

“Avatar,” for example, looks like the Big Studio shoo-in. It’s made a gazillion dollars. Even thought it has no acting nominations, a terrible script and a lot of CGI, “Avatar” will still take a nod. And the idea of James Cameron parading his ego around the Oscars is too tantalizing to pass up.

“Nine” would be next, if for nothing else, the glamour quotient. Without “Nine,” the Oscars could be a dreary affair. (Don’t forget– animated “Up” is great but produces no big stars on the red carpet.)

“Nine” also benefits from at least two or three performance nominations (Marion Cotillard in lead, Penelope Cruz in supporting, Daniel Day-Lewis in lead) and lots of craft noms too. Between SAG, Critics Choice and Golden Globes, “Nine” has momentum. (And if the show doesn’t feature Fergie singing “Be Italian” and Kate Hudson on “Cinema Italiano,” then we’re in for a long, long night.)

Three more? How about “An Education” — absolutely, with Carey Mulligan for best actress, too — and “A Single Man,” with nominations for Colin Firth and Julianne Moore.

One more nomination needed for the big show on March 7: Sandra Bullock, for “The Blind Side.” If we’re going popular this year, then a Bullock nomination is cool. Even Meryl Streep, this year’s fait accompli best actress, would agree.

The 10 nominees that can make this year’s show exciting: “”Up in the Air,” “Precious,” “The Hurt Locker,” “Inglorious Basterds,” “Invictus,” “Nine,” “Up,” “A Single Man,” “An Education” and “Avatar.”

Movies We Want to See in 2010

Roger Friedman
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While Academy voters are studying their ballots and watching their videos, believe it or not there are a lot of new movies coming soon. Here’s a short list of what we’re looking forward to in 2010:

Howl – a docudrama about poet Allen Ginsberg’s obscenity trial following publication of his famous poem is one of the Sundance openers this year. James Franco is Ginsberg, and should be riveting. Great supporting cast, too: Mary-Louise Parker, Jon Hamm, David Straithairn, Treat Williams, etc.

Shutter Island – Martin Scorsese’s thriller with Leonardo DiCaprio was supposed to have been released a few weeks ago. But Paramount delayed it, saying Oscar campaigns for “Up in the Air” and “The Lovely Bones” had them overextended financially. A February release isn’t always bad — look at “The Silence of the Lambs.” And Scorsese is rarely off key.

The Ghost Writer – Roman Polanski’s new epic comes as he finishes it from lockdown home arrest in Switzerland. The film is supposed to open the Berlin International Film Festival on Feb. 8. Polanski won’t be there, but emotions and support will be high. He’s one of our greatest filmmakers, regardless of his past activities. An eclectic cast comprises Pierce Brosnan, Ewan MacGregor, Kim Cattral, Jim Belushi, Tim Hutton and beloved 93-year-old Eli Wallach. Get ready, this is going to be big news when it’s finally seen.

The Tempest — Julie Taymor’s take on Shakespeare, with Helen Mirren playing Prospera, the distaff version of the Bard’s conjurer.

The Tree of Life — Terrence Malick is never less than interesting. Now he’s got Brad Pitt and Sean Penn in a “Benjamin Button”-type ethereal epic that we probably won’t see until the fall. Will it be great? Weird? Self-referential? Or magnificent, like Malick’s “Days of Heaven”? We can only hope.

Hereafter – Clint Eastwood won’t stop making movies, which is just fine. Following “Invictus” he went straight ahead to make this thriller with Matt Damon and Bryce Dallas Howard. My money’s on Clint. And unlike “Invictus,” this may have a love story.

The King’s Speech — Colin Firth is so hot right now — and Oscar bound — in “A Single Man.” Add all that to Geoffrey Rush and very hot HBO director Tom Hooper (”John Adams”) and we may have a new “Shakespeare in Love” next fall. Woefully underused Jennifer Ehle, plus Helena Bonham Carter, Guy Pearce, Timothy Spall, and Michael Gambon round out this cast. If this isn’t an Oscar nominee, I don’t know what it is.

Robin Hood — Russell Crowe at least doesn’t have to fake an accent the way Kevin Costner did long ago. Saddled with many false starts and millions spent on scripts that didn’t work, Ridley Scott’s “Robin Hood” should nevertheless prove to be a success. Cate Blanchett is Marian, and there’s a strong supporting cast including breakout star Oscar Isaac (also in “Sucker Punch”) and stalwarts like William Hurt and Max von Sydow.

Sucker Punch — The first new film from Zack Snyder, whose “Watchmen” was a watershed fantasy film this year. Snyder puts together Jena Malone, Abbe Cornish, Scott Glenn and Jon Hamm. Could be a winner, and nothing less than interesting.

The Conspirator – Mary Surratt was the only woman charged with conspiracy in the assassination of Abraham Lincoln. Robin Wright (ex-Penn) gets to play her, directed by Robert Redford. If this is good, it’s also great, with awards awaiting. James McAvoy, on the edge of being huge, is featured along with Kevin Kline, Justin Long and Tom Wilkinson.

Broadway Shows on New Year’s Chopping Block

Roger Friedman
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Broadway is packed this week with tourists and the like. You can barely get a seat to any show, and the restaurants in the theater district are full.

But come January 4th, the Great White Way will be singing a different tune. Several shows are in trouble at the box office and may close quickly.

Among them: “Superior Donuts” closes January 3rd despite solid reviews and an initial rush for tickets. The dreadful “Bye Bye Birdie,” which was already a limited run. Ditto Carrie Fisher’s wonderful “Wishful Drinking” at the subscription Roundabout Theater.

But these are the shows people are gossiping about in the theatre biz: “Ragtime,” “Burn the Floor,” “Hair,” “Memphis,” “God of Carnage,” and, believe it or not, “Fela!”

The latter is a surprise since Jay Z and Will and Jada Smith were faux drafted to endorse and support it. But only Jay showed at the opening, the press office has done nothing but create enemies, and now I’m told this by an inside source: “They’re papering the house. The tickets are so discounted, it’s impossible to make money.”

According to playbill.com, “Fela!” is playing at 89.5% capacity. But the average sold ticket is $77, a far cry from the official top price of $125.

Having even more trouble is the revival of “Finian’s Rainbow” at the St. James. This very terrific production is filling just 59% of its seats, and the average is a paltry $68.

If only that show’s publicist–same as “Fela!”– had done something early on to encourage positive endorsements. I took my family to see “Finian’s” on Saturday, ages 9 to 77, and everyone had a grand time. Kate Baldwin and Jim Norton are not big names, but they’re dynamite. Christopher Fitzgerald continues his hot streak, going from Igor in “Young Frankenstein” to the winning leprechaun here. And the score–”How Are Things in Glocca Morra?”– by Yip Harburg and Burton Lane–is out of this world. The show is as timely as ever, and a definite must for families, especially teenagers. You’d think it would be a natural hit.

But there may be no pot of gold at the end of this rainbow.

Showbiz411 on Holiday

Roger Friedman
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This column is on a short hiatus–believe it or not–possibly not returning before January 4th. If something terrible, or great, happens, go straight to http://www.hollywoodreporter.com for more information. See you in the New Year!

Favorite Cinema 2000-2009

Roger Friedman
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Everyone loves/hates lists. Here are two for the decade of 00’s. Don’t like the choices? Make your own list! It’s fun! PS If I forgot something, it’s inadvertent. Most boring movie of all time: “Gerry,” by Gus van Sant. I can still remember counting the panels in the Eccles Auditorium while Matt Damon and Casey Affleck wandered around the desert. In case you need to know, there are seven acoustic panels on either side of the movie screen.

THE BIG GUNS

1.” ‘Memento/The Dark Knight – Director Christopher Nolan was the find of the decade. That he could swing from the best indie film to best action/adventure says a lot.
2.” Almost Famous – Cameron Crowe’s summation film and memoir. My sentimental favorite.
3.” ‘Lord of the Rings (series) — Peter Jackson’s epic trilogy will last forever.
4.” ‘The Departed/The Aviator/Gangs of New York – Martin Scorsese flourished in this decade. Leonardo DiCaprio owes him something BIG.
5.” Chicago/Dreamgirls/Nine/Sweeney Todd – Rob Marshall and Bill Condon brought back the movie musical.’ Tim Burton made a valiant effort as well.
6.” ‘Vicki Cristina Barcelona/Match Point — Annie Hall was released thirty two years ago. Woody’s still going strong. This pair proves it.
7.” ‘Volver/Bad Education — Pedro Almodovar really can do no wrong. These were the highlights of his decade. Penelope Cruz in Volver is like a beautiful dessert.
8.” ‘The Pianist – Why do people fight over and support Roman Polanski? Here’s the reason.
9.” ‘Million Dollar Baby/Mystic River/Letters from Iwo Jima/Gran Torino – Clint Eastwood’s remarkable renaissance
10.” ‘Inglourious Basterds/Kill Bill, Vols. 1 and 2 — Audacious and annoying, hyper and hilarious Quentin Tarantino
11.” ‘A Serious Man/No Country/O Brother Where Art Thou? – The Coen Brothers can be confounding, but when they hit the mark, watch out.
12.” ‘Gosford Park/Prairie Home Companion/Dr T and the Women –Robert Altman, the master: his last films are as good as his first.
13.” ‘Casanova/Chocolat/The Hoax – Underrated Lasse Hallstrom, whose “Cider House Rules” came just before this, always combines charming and sublime
14.” ‘Slumdog Millionaire/The Namesake – Indian culture brought to the West. Danny Boyle’s tour de force, and one of Mira Nair’s valentines
15.” ‘Juno/Up in the Air/Thank You for Smoking – Jason Reitman is three for three. And this may be his year in the awards circle.
16.” ‘Eastern Promises/A History of Violence – David Cronenberg drops the creepy, and hits two memorable homeruns.
17.” ‘Before the Devil Knows You’re Dead – Sidney Lumet is our living legend. If ThinkFilms had had money, this woulda been an Oscar film. Now it becomes a cult classic alongside Lumet’s standards like “Prince of the City” and “Serpico.”
18.” ‘Farenheit 911/Bowling for Columbine/Sicko/Capitalism — Michael Moore tells like it is. This makes people crazy. But it also changes the playing field.
19.” ‘Minority Report/Catch Me If You Can/The Terminal/AI: Artificial Intelligence/Munich– Steven Spielberg made these five films, as well as War of the Worlds. Hopefully he’s taking a nap right now. Great stuff in each one of them. Revisit Jude Law in “AI” or Chris Walken in “Catch Me.”
20.” ‘Hotel Rwanda/The Last Days – Genocide explained. The first is Terry George’s retelling of a holdout during a disaster. The second is James Moll’s still searing documentary of Holocaust survivors. One of them returns to her Hungarian home; another questions the doctor who killed her sister. Stunning.

BRAINSTORMS
1. Wall E – Andrew Stanton’s genius moment.
2. Me and You and Everyone We Know/Thumbsucker/The Tao of Steve-A charming Sundance trio, by Miranda July, Mike Mills, and Jenniphr Goodman.
3. In the Bedroom – the Sundance hit that went all the way to the Oscars, by Todd Field.
4. Sideways/About Schmidt – Alexander Payne and Jim Taylor’s signature pieces.
5. The Motorcycle Diaries – Walter Salles crystallizes Che Guevara and Castro in a road movie.
6. Vera Drake – Mike Leigh has so many amazing achievements. But Imelda Staunton and co. did something extra special here.
7. Goodnight and Good Luck- This was the decade of George Clooney, from his meticulous directing here and in “Confessions of a Dangerous Mind” to his acting in Syriana, Michael Clayton, Up in the Air, even as Mr. Fox.
8.’ Diving Bell and the Butterfly/Before Night Falls – Famed artist Julian Schnabel cemented his place as a fine director
9. Rodger Dodger/Igby Goes Down/Thirteen– two coming of age films, maybe once in a lifetime offerings, pungent and sweet. The third, Catherine Hardwicke’s searing saga, is more relevant than ever today.
10. Precious/Talk to Me – 2009’s indie smash, by Lee Daniels. Deserving of all its praise. And Don Cheadle is so outstanding in Kasi Lemmons’ saga of music and politics. Dumped by its studio. Treasured by its fans.
11. Little Miss Sunshine – For a minute, Jonathan Dayton and Valerie Faris ruled the world. Rightly so. Movie making is so much about the right chemistry without a formula.
12. Fantastic Mr. Fox/Hotel Chevalier – Wes Anderson’s whimsy doesn’t always work. But in these two instances, the whole thing came together.
13. A Mighty Wind/For Your Consideration – So funny, you’re laughing now just thinking about them. Catherina O’Hara’s “facelift.” OMG
14. Lost in Translation/Marie Antoinette – So Sofia Coppola was not the second coming of anything, but she has a lot of great ideas.
15. Capote/The Savages – Bennett Miller nailed it, with the help of Philip Seymour Hoffman (our finest actor of the decade) and Catherine Keener. In Tamara Jenkins’ ode to imperfection, Hoffman is just as good if not better, with Laura Linney in lockstep.
16.’ The Lives of Others– Florian von Dommersmarck would have won the general Best Picture award, but the film is in German. Absolutely brilliant in any language.
17. Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon/House of Flying Daggers–Ang Lee got his warriors flying, Yimou Zhang made them beautiful.
18. City of God/The Constant Gardener – Fernando Merielles goes from doc-style alarming to spies in the house of love.
19. The Station Agent/The Visitor – Tom McCarthy acts, and he directs. He does them both well. I hate him. (Just kidding.)
20. Finding Neverland/Stranger than Fiction/Monster’s Ball – There’s no theme here yet except interesting directing: Marc Forster’s tale of J.M. Barrie almost got Johnny Depp his long awaited Oscar. Stranger made no sense, but I loved it. Monster’s was Halle Berry’s big moment, and it has nice work from Billy Bob, Heath Ledger, and P Diddy.
21. Special Mention: Borat. Bruno was so awful that it’s almost tainted Borat. But you have to remember the way you felt when you first saw it, before the lawsuits and the backstories. A phenom.

Daniel Day-Lewis Makes It Look Easy In Nine

Roger Friedman
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Daniel Day-Lewis has two Oscars, one for playing a paralyzed man with cerebral palsy whose left foot does the talking, and another for playing a megalomaniac empire builder who bludgeoned one enemy with a bowling pin.

Now, in the musical comedy, “Nine,” he follows the advice of the musical’s centerpiece number: “Be Italian.” DDL, famous for living his roles, seems Italian as crazed director Guido Contini in “Nine.” It’s funny to think since DDL comes from an upper crust Jewish family in England. His father was the UK’s poet laureate.

But Daniel lives his parts. It’s not like he went around butchering people while shooting “Gangs of New York.” But he stays in character while filming each role. He never lost his Italian accent during “Nine.”

He did have a lot of Italian experience. A decade ago, he dropped out of the acting biz for a while and worked in a shoemaker’s shop in Florence, Italy. No one believed this story when it was first told, but I can tell you first hand that it’s true. In 2003, I went to meet Stefano Bemer in Florence.

Bemer’s very small shop was not in a fashionable area of Florence, but hidden away and extremely discreet. It consisted of a tiny waiting area with a counter, adjoined by a similar workspace. There, a couple of workers banged on nails and tried not to inhale glue as they made one-of-a-kind pairs of men’s shoes.

The shoes then all carried the same price tag: $1,500 for the actual product, plus $250 for the three required fittings. I tried on a pair of suede desert boots which Bemer had in my size. The price tag for these was $730. They were lovely, but I declined in several languages. The word “no” always works.

Bemer had nothing but praise for Day-Lewis, whom he called a hard worker. “I used to say to him, ‘Daniel, no one is perfect,’” said Bemer, noting that Day-Lewis would often become disturbed when a stitch was not exactly right.

Day-Lewis worked for Bemer for an astounding 11 months in 1999. The shoe man would definitely take him back.’ Bemer, meanwhile, makes shoes for many of the well-heeled including Sting, who has a villa nearby in Tuscany.

A lot has changed in the time since DDL’s time as a cobbler. Just before that, in fact, he’d suffered something of a breakdown on stage in London playing “Hamlet.” Dame Judi Dench played his mother in that production. She was in a scene with him when Daniel, who was very intense about his identification with “Hamlet” and his father, snapped. Now, Dench tells me, “he’s a different man.” She’s in “Nine,” too, as Guido’s best friend and costume designer. “It’s having a family. He’s much lighter, and great fun.”

PS DDL’s Guido, of course, is based on the director Federico Fellini. He’s got it right, too. Here’s a clip of the original, from 1971: http://www.cbsnews.com/video/watch/?id=4683240n

Jennifer Hudson Is NOT Pregnant, Thanks

Roger Friedman
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Maybe it’s because it’s a holiday weekend, but the crazy stories are starting up again.

Oscar winner Jennifer Hudson tells me by email tonight that she is definitely not pregnant despite Star magazine and others insisting on it.

Hudson had a baby son, David, last August. She is planning a wedding to David’s dad, her fiancee, David Otunga. She is also prepping for a Winnie Mandela movie she’ll shoot this spring, and starting to map out a new CD.

So no new babies for J-Hud. She’s got her hands full, anyway! As Jennifer says, with a laugh: check it out in three or four years, but not before that!

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