By Bettina Zilkha
Posted 01/27/12 at 01:00 PM
Most everyone has heard about the new show Smash. There has been a pull-out all the stops marketing campaign. The question is, is it worth all the hype?
The answer, judging by the first episode, is a resounding yes. The show is compelling, funny, dramatic, and entertaining. Most of all, the cast is hugely talented and a joy to watch, whether performing the grueling dance numbers or weaving the story lines together.
The premiere, presented by NBC, Volvo and The Cinema Society, was held at the Metropolitan Museum, and much of the ensemble, including Debra Messing, Anjelica Huston, Katherine McPhee (in Donna Karan), Brian d'Arcy James, and Jack Davenport, joined notables such as Bebe Neuwirth (in Dolce & Gabbana), Sarah Jessica Parker (in Tory Burch) and Matthew Broderick, and Lauren Hutton, to watch the engaging tale of the creation of a new musical about Marilyn. Central to the story is the competition between two women, played by Katherine McPhee and Megan Hilty, for the starring role.
"The dance portions of the show are very difficult," said cast member Savannah Wise, wearing an off white Supertrash dress. "The day of the shoot of any musical number--that's a long day. They make us do them in their entirety, a fully produced musical number. It's a blast--but you go home broken."
"We've been working really long hours and the schedule's tough, so we try to keep each other laughing and happy," added cast member Phillip Spaeth.
By Bettina Zilkha
Posted 01/20/12 at 03:10 PM
Man on a Ledge is a heart-pounding new thriller about, you guessed it, a man on a ledge. Framed for a crime he swears he didn't commit, Nick Cassidy (Sam Worthington) uses the ledge as a platform (if you'll excuse the double entendre) and a diversion to prove his innocence. The scenes were filmed on an actual ledge outside a room at the Roosevelt Hotel in midtown Manhattan. No stranger to action movies, the Avatar star had to battle wind, cold and other distractions.
"I get to be a tough guy in the films, but in real life I'm a pussycat," Worthington revealed to FashionEtc at the January 19 Cinema Society screening. "I sit on the couch, do my washing, do normal stuff. It's only in the movies that I get to do the crazy stuff. That's the appeal. In real life I'm not going to battle monsters, kiss blue aliens, and stand two hundred feet in the air."
Co-star Elizabeth Banks, gorgeous in a black-and-gold studded, one-shouldered Versace, had a bit of a scare during one of the ledge scenes.
"A piece of scaffolding fell between Sam and I while we were shooting out on the ledge. We both looked at each other for a beat and we were so happy that it didn't fall on either of us," Banks told us. "It wasn't a brick-size piece of scaffolding and it wasn't heavy, but if it would have fallen on us I'm sure it would have startled us to the point where I'm sure one of us would have fallen. It landed exactly in between our feet."
By Bettina Zilkha
Posted 01/19/12 at 03:00 PM
Gina Carano, the gorgeous 29-year old mixed martial arts superstar, is currently starring in Steven Soderbergh's latest movie, Haywire. Talk about accomplished. At the Cinema Society screening in New York City, Carano spoke to FashionEtc about the challenge of transitioning from one medium to another.
"I'd never acted before," said the tall, buff and surprisingly soft-spoken champion, wearing Bebe, "but I think that my fighting background, and being in front of thousands of people in very intensive circumstances, helped me a lot."
The movie, an adrenaline-fueled thriller about a highly trained government operative betrayed by her colleagues, features Carano fighting with the likes of Ewan McGregor, Michael Fassbender and Channing Tatum—and they are all impressive fighters.
It seemed a little scary, but for Ewan McGregor, fighting was the best part of making the film.
"We had a big fight scene, me and Gina, and that was the most fun," the approachable and upbeat McGregor told us—180 degrees from the character he plays in the film. "It's just fun learning fights, learning the choreography. When you've got something physical to do it's great fun, especially when you're doing it with such a professional, capable and attractive athlete. Gina doesn't break sweat. She's better than I could ever, ever be—so that was my main worry, keeping up with her."
By Bettina Zilkha
Posted 12/15/11 at 06:40 PM
Glenn Close's new film, Albert Nobbs, is a deeply moving tale about a woman forced to live as a man in 19th Century Ireland in order to survive, taking on the job of a butler for many years, until she falls in love. Suddenly her job, her secret and her world are threatened.
The movie and its message have been a labor of love for Close.
"I would like it if it made people think about what it is that makes us human beings, and what it is that unites us rather than separates us," said Close, looking chic in an Armani pants suit. "I personally think that we all need to feel safe, and that we all need some sort of connection with another human being. That supersedes gender, and it's all about how you can survive. For me that's the basic message."
Mia Wasikowska, gorgeous in a black Elie Saab cocktail dress, loved working with Close, and loved the message.
"It was a really beautiful movie about finding someone to survive with in the very pure sense of the word. It's also about the masks that people put up and how they hide behind them, and how it can really affect your life," she said.
Close's face is entirely transformed by prosthetics and makeup. FashionEtc asked the director, Rodrigo Garcia, how long the daily ritual took.
"Not that long. It was under two hours, it wasn't a big mega thing. It was definitely hard work. We couldn't afford to make it take longer, we had budget and time constraints," answered Garcia. "Her transformation was helped by the cut of the clothing. She's wearing something to change the shape of the torso, but a lot of it was posture, the way she walked and the way she approached Nobbs' physicality."
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