Stars: March 2008 Archives

I've enjoyed the trailers for "Nim's Island," the new children's adventure fantasy that stars Jodie Foster and Abigail Breslin. Jodie looks completely at ease doing the comedy in this film which came as no surprise to me since she was so good in "Maverick" all those years ago.

But according to an interview with an Australian newspaper, the two-time Oscar winner had to fight for the part.

"I read the script and said, 'I really want to make this movie' and they said, 'hmm, I don't think so'," she said.
"I'm not a known comedy actress, (so) they didn't want me in it."

Jodie finally won the part of Alexandra Rover, a highly-strung, agoraphobic author who is forced out of her comfort zone to tend to a young fan in trouble. Jodie said the was delighted to be a part of a movie with a simple message, which didn't involve high-tech gadgetry or full-blown computer animation.

"It harks back to a time when heroism was actually doing something with your hands," she said. "Kids have lost this idea that if you do something with your hands and you try hard over and over again (then) maybe you'll be good enough and that will bring you success. It is kind of nostalgic and I miss that in kids' entertainment."

Jodie talked about how she copes with fame and unwanted tabloid attention: "You do a job from, say, seven in the morning to eight or nine that evening and when you end that day, you go back to your life. Your social life is not your professional life. They're very separate things, they should be separate things."

As the top-billed star in "Stop-Loss," I said to Ryan Phillippe at Monday night's premiere of the movie: "You're the big attraction here." He replied: "No, Channing is. Just Channing."

That would be Channing Tatum, whose presence was causing quite a sitr. But Ryan was still the biggest star in the room and his performance in the movie adds handsomely to his stellar resume of roles that includes parts in "Breach," "Flags of Our Fathers," "Crash," "Gosford Park" and a real favorite of mine, "Igby Goes Down."

I wanted to know where Ryan ranks the role of Sgt. Brandon King, a decorated war hero who triumphantly returns to his small Texas hometown and, against his will, is ordered back to Iraq for another tour of duty. This tests everything he believes in. As he grapples with the situation, the lives of his soldier buddies - wounded physically or psychologically from combat - are falling apart.

"For me, it was one of the most colorful parts I've ever had - the range of emotions and situations this character goes through," Ryan said. "That's why I wanted to do it really....This is the kind of movie that does kind of stay with you and you think about after you see it...That's the kind of thing I like to make."

With the war in Iraq now five years old, what does Ryan think about the movie's timing? "That's what makes it relevant and also the fact that the movie is from the soldier's perspective. There's no political agenda. This is happening right now. It happened last week, it'll happen next week. Also, the younger generation, they haven't seen the films about soldiers coming back from war and this film will be very new to a lot of people."

Sgt. King being stop-lossed when he was supposed to be finished tests everything he believes in. As he grapples with the situation, the lives of his soldier buddies - wounded physically or psychologically from combat - are falling apart. They are played by Tatum, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Victor Rasuk and Rob Brown.

"Ultimately, it's about this brotherhood, this sense of connection - the bond that these guys formed during a time of war when they are in a combat zone and how that lasts," Ryan said.

The cast itself bonded at the beginning of the film when they participated in a boot camp: "We were out in the woods for seven days with no phones, no TV, nothing. We just had all this time to spend getting to know each other. We all stay in touch."

"We had a good time, Austin is a great place to shoot a movie - the food is great and the music and the beer," he added. "It's sort of a serious movie so we would go out and find time on the weekends to have fun but a lot of time on the set we were pretty focused."

I'm sure if Jodie Foster didn't have movies to promote, she'd shy away from doing interviews like the one that appears on the cover of Sunday's Parade. The cool site JustJared.com featured some curious excerpts today:

On protecting her kids, Charles Bernard Foster, 9, and Kit Bernard Foster, 6, from the spotlight: "I do what I can. We try not to go out at night or go places where there'll be 20 photographers. I try to minimize their exposure to assaults."

On being tight-lipped about her personal life: "I don't think there is any good thing about fame. In this business, in order to care for yourself and the people you love, you have to separate your professional life from your personal life."

And here's the real surprise:
On having not yet fallen in love: "Oh, my life is basically from the head up. I'm definitely not proud of that. I'm very analytical."

I assuming that last answer was taken out on context since Jodie is in a longtime relationship with Cydney Bernard who she. for the first time anyone can recall, at a breakfast for Hollywood Reporter's Women in Entertainment in December.

I was there, broke the story and believed it was Jodie's way of acknowledging in a public what she never discusses in interviews.

Earlier posts: Jodie Foster thanks "my beautiful Cydney" at women's power breakfast...

Thoughts on my Jodie Foster story...

All anyone wants to talk about are those seriously sexy shots of Daniel Craig emerging from the water in his knickers. Yeah, so? It's those shots, made public before the release of "Casino Royale," his first film as James Bond, that let us know just how hunky this guy was and that he was more than worthy of taking over the iconic movie role of 007.

Daniel talks about the swimsuit pics in the latest issue of "Empire" magazine: "Was it a conscious decision of mine when I looked at that particular photograph and went, 'You look good' to let it go? Yes, probably. It did what it had to do at the time. Of course, it won't f******g go away now. If I ever get to a grand old age, hopefully drunk, sitting in a corner of a bar, mumbling, I'd probably be pleased that picture was taken. I have to see the funny side of it, but it would be nice if they moved on. They need to find a better subject. There surely must be other pictures of blokes in their knickers."

Hmmm. Nope, still can't think of one.

Can you BELIEVE this man is soon to be 54 years old? You could play a game of Monopoly on those abs! These are from the Italian version of Vanity Fair...