Happy Birthday actor Anthony Edwards
Born: July 19, 1962 in Santa Barbara, California, USA
Married to: Jeanine Lobell (5 September 1994 – present) (4 children)
| PLANES 2013 dir. ANTHONY EDWARDS Stars: Dane Cook Stacy Keach |
 Top Gun1986 dir. Tony Scott Also Starring Kelly McGillis Val Kilmer |
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Happy Birthday actor Campbell Scott
Born: July 19, 1961 in New York City, New York, USA
Married to:
Kathleen McElfresh (30 May 2009 – present)
 THE AMAZING SPIDER-MAN dir. Marc Webb Stars: Andrew Garfield Emma Stone |
 DAMAGES Season 3Starring: Martin Short Tate Donovan |
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Happy Birthday actor Mark Webber
Born: July 19, 1980 in Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA
Married to:
Teresa Palmer (21 December 2013 – present) (1 child)
| FOR A GOOD TIME, CALL 2012 dir. Jamie Travis Stars: Ari Graynor Lauren Miller |
 Scott Pilgrim vs. the Worlddir. Edgar Wright Stars Michael Cera Mary Elizabeth Winstead |
 JESSABELLE2014 dir. Kevin Greutert Stars: Sarah Snook Mark Webber |
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Happy Birthday actor Vinessa Shaw
Born: July 19, 1976 in Los Angeles, California, USA
| BIG MIRACLE dir. Ken Kwapis Stars: Drew Barrymore John Krasinski |
 3:10 to Yuma2007 dir. James Mangold Starring Russell Crowe Bale |
 SIDE EFFECTS2013 dir. Steven Soderbergh Stars: Rooney Mara Channing Tatum |
Happy Birthday actor Jared Padalecki
Born: July 19, 1982 in San Antonio, Texas, USA
Married to: Genevieve Padalecki (27 February 2010 – present) (2 children)
He and former Supernatural (2005) recurring guest star, Genevieve Padalecki, were married on February 27, 2010 in her hometown of Sun Valley, Idaho. Jensen Ackles, who plays “Dean Winchester”, the older brother to Jared’s character “Sam Winchester” on Supernatural (2005), was one of the groomsmen. Jared’s real-life older brother, Jeff Padalecki, was best man.
Happy Birthday actor Benedict Cumberbatch
Born: July 19, 1976 in Hammersmith, London, England, UK
Married to: Sophie Hunter (14 February 2015 – present) (1 child)
| Four Lions 2010 dir. Christopher Morris Starring: Will Adamsdale Benedict Cumberbatch |
 TINKER TAILOR SOLDIER SPY dir. Tomas Alfredson Stars Gary Oldman Colin Firth |
 WAR HORSE dir. Steven Spielberg Stars: Jeremy Irvine Emily Watson |
 The Other Boleyn Girl2008 Directed by Justin Chadwick Starring Portman Scarlett Johansson |
| Atonement 2007 dir. Joe Wright Starring Knightley James McAvoy |
 STAR TREK INTO DARKNESS2013 dir. J.J. Abrams Stars: Chris Pine Zachary Quinto |
 Creationdir. Jon Amiel Starring Jennifer Connelly Paul Bettany |
 THE HOBBIT: The Desolation of Smaug2013 dir. Peter Jackson |
 12 YEARS A SLAVE2013 dir. Steve McQueen Stars: Chiwetel Ejiofor Michael Kenneth Williams |
| STARTER FOR 10 2006 dir. Tom Vaughan Stars: James McAvoy Alice Eve |
 AUGUST: OSAGE COUNTY2013 dir. John Wells Stars: Meryl Streep Julia Roberts |
ICE AGE – COLLISION COURSE (USA 2016) **
Directed by Mike Thurmeier
Starring: Ray Romano, Denis Leary, John Leguizamo |
Review by Gilbert Seah
Saving the world is a common theme in action hero and animated movies these days. The same is applied in the latest and 5th instalment of the ICE AGE franchise, appropriately called ICE AGE – COLLISION COURSE as the planet is about to be destroyed by asteroids, according to the reading of the pillar by Buck (Simon Pegg).
The film has its signature ice age segment of Scrat (Chris Wedge) chasing his runaway acorn which somehow always gets away. It’s a mostly silent segment and has grown in popularity just as Beep Beep and the Coyote are now famous in the Looney Tunes world. Popular as they are, these antics grow tiresome. I am not a fan of either Beep Beep or Scrat’s acorn antics. In ICE AGE COLLISION, the antics lead to an almost destruction of the planet by an steroid, unless the hero can save the world.
The story goes on like this. While trying to bury his acorn, Scrat accidentally activates an abandoned alien ship that takes him into deep space, where he unwillingly sends several asteroids en route of collision with Earth. Not very original a premise of an alien ship hidden in the Arctic or Antarctic! Meanwhile on the planet Earth, Manny (Ray Romano) is worried about the upcoming marriage between Peaches (Keke Palmer) and her fiancé, Julian (Adam Devine), while Sid (Joh Leguizamo) is dumped by his girlfriend, Francine (Melissa Rauch), just as he is about to propose to her. During Manny and Ellie’s (Queen Latifah) wedding anniversary party, some of the asteroids strike the place and the herd barely escape with their lives. Meanwhile at the underground cavern, after stealing a dinosaur egg from a trio of Dromaeosaurs, Buck discovers an ancient stone pillar, which he takes to the surface, where he meets Manny and the others.
The story is nothing really original nor does it contain a lot of comedic potential. What follows is a rather lame series of mildly funny at best, incidents that lead to a climax that is also not particularly exciting.
Actors from the other ICE AGES movies, Ray Romano, John Leguizamo, Denis Leary, Queen Latifah, Keke Palmer, Jennifer Lopez, Simon Pegg and Chris Wedge all reprise their roles while new additions Jesse Tyler Ferguson, Adam DeVine, Nick Offerman, Max Greenfield, Stephanie Beatriz, Melissa Rauch, Carlos Ponce, Michael Strahan, Jessie J and Neil deGrasse attempt to breathe new life into the franchise.
The film is again directed by Canadian Mike Thurmeier of Blue Sky Studios, who did a few of the other ICE AGES films.
The ICE AGE series were never that funny or inventive compared to other animated series like SHREK, TOY STORY or MONSTERS INC. But they somehow found themselves into the hearts of many, which has resulted in a total of 5 films. I am hoping this will be the last as the series. Scrat chasing his and his acorn has become terribly tedious.
Costing a frugal $50 million to make compared to other more expensive animated features, there should be enough ICE AGE followers for Fox Studios to make their money back. Hopefully, Blue Sky Studios will come up with more original animation as their next project.
Also, Free logline submissions. The Writing Festival network averages over 95,000 unique visitors a day.
Great way to get your story out: http://www.wildsound.ca/logline.html
Deadlines to Submit your Screenplay, Novel, Story, or Poem to the festival:http://www.wildsound.ca
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LES INNOCENTES (THE INNOCENTS) (France/Poland 2016)
Directed by Anne Fontaine
Starring: Lou de Laâge, Agata Buzek, Agata Kulesza |
Review by Gilbert Seah
The nuns in a convent during World War II are THE INNOCENTS referred to in this film, based on a true story.
Anne Fontaine (her last film COCO AVANT CHANEL) is a director who has made her name in making films about women. Her most notable film was DRY CLEANING, my favourite one of hers, in which she dished out a delicious dose of devilishness without being too serious. THE INNOCENTS is her most serious film.
It is Warsaw in the December of 1945 when the second World War is finally over. But the problems are not. When the film opens, a young French female doctor, Mathilde (Lou De Laâge) is treating the last of the French survivors of the German camps. When a panicked Benedictine nun appears at the clinic one night begging Mathilde to follow her back to the convent, what she finds there is shocking: a holy sister about to give birth and several more in advanced stages of pregnancy. Russian soldiers have raped the nuns who are now facing both the shame of exposure and a crisis in their faith. And they have deal with their pregnancies and their babies afterwards. Being nuns, they are totally new to the concept of birth. But worse of all, their strict Rev. Mother (Agata Kulesza) is not helping.
The film is beautifully shot by cinematographer Caroline Champetier. The luscious white snow on the ground, the woods, the middle of winter contrasted are contrasted with the dark corridors of the convent. The haunting music by Grégoire Hetzel is excellent and one wishes that the soundtrack be played a bit louder for it to be more appreciated.
But the narrative is not as strong as one might expect a story of this nature to be. One reason is the lack of a clear point of view. Though the majority of the film is told from Mathilde’s perspective, the film occasionally shifts to nun Maria’s and the Rev. Mother’s views. But the script also fails to establish the strength of the nun’s faith. The nuns and Rev. Mother appear not only helpless, but undetermined to have any self will to fight. All they do is pray and say it is God’s Providence in the midst of all the troubles. The fact that they are this helpless and unwilling to help themselves makes them more pitiless which undermines the power of the story.
The camaraderie between Mathilde and her co-worker, a French Jewish doctor (Vincent Macaigne) provides some needed distraction from the over-serious proceedings. But Vincent claims (and he improbably correct) that he is too ‘ugly’ for Mathilde. His romantic advances are not returned.
Fontaine’s film also ends up over sentimentalizing as in the births of the new born with too many shots of smiling nun faces. The message of Fontaine’s film comes out muddled. It is a pity as Fontaine has put in a lot of effort into this piece of work.
Also, Free logline submissions. The Writing Festival network averages over 95,000 unique visitors a day.
Great way to get your story out: http://www.wildsound.ca/logline.html
Deadlines to Submit your Screenplay, Novel, Story, or Poem to the festival:http://www.wildsound.ca
Watch recent Writing Festival Videos. At least 15 winning videos a month:http://www.wildsoundfestival.com
THE MISSING INGREDIENT: WHAT IS THE RECIPE FOR SUCCESS?
Review by Gilbert Seah
THE MISSING INGREDIENT: WHAT IS THE RECIPE FOR SUCCESS? is the question posed throughout this new documentary of the same name. The answer is given near the end of the film by one of the owners of Gino’s, the successful restaurant that became an institution in NYC. However, one might argue if that is the correct answer- or that there are more ingredients to its success.
Whatever the point is, this Canadian documentary is strangely totally set in NYC. One wonders of the reason the effort was not taken up by an American filmmaker. Maybe it takes an outsider to be able to see the whole picture.
The film centres on two restaurants in NYC. One is already a success as an institution, the Italian Gino’s and the other, another Italian restaurant, Pescatore that strives desperately to be one. Director Sparaga interviews the owners of both restaurants, the clientele and workers. It is difficult to define the success of Gino’s. Gino’s is an unpretentious place, where the customers become family. Gino’s does not accept credit cards, but allows credit as kept in the log of a handwritten book. Gino’s has bright orangey red zebra wallpaper that became the restaurant’s icon. A big part at the end of the film has Pescatore using, after Gino’s has closed, the identical wallpaper with zebras but in yellow – to disastrous results.
Sparaga’s film flows easily. It is a very likeable documentary that never passes judgement on any one of his subjects. Even when Charles, the owner of Pescatore steals Gino’s wallpaper, a definite no-no, as opinionated by everyone interviewed on this subject, Sparaga goes on to film Charle’s view on the topic, even as he he says at his restaurant that if anyone working there will not support the wallpaper would best be looking for a job someplace else. Sparaga later allows Charles as he opens his new restaurant to be respected for his hard work and dedication despite a bad decision in the past.
This is where Sparaga’s film succeeds. Despite having a restaurant’s success as the subject, his film is also a candid study of people’s behaviour – their loyalties; their dedication; their goals and their pleasures. Restaurant come and go. People don’t. Gino’s though terribly successful had to finally close its doors. It is what can be learnt from the people and not from the restaurant that is priceless.
By the time the last reel is played, the audience will remember the sad faces of the founders of Gino’s, the face of Charles who tried so hard to make Pescatore work as well as the words of the loyal customers of Gino’s. But many will not recall the dishes at Gino’s that were displayed in the film.
THE MISSING INGREDIENT: WHAT IS THE RECIPE FOR SUCCESS? turns out to be a very likeable documentary that is easy to watch. It dishes out life lessons as famously as Gino’s dished out great food.
Also, Free logline submissions. The Writing Festival network averages over 95,000 unique visitors a day.
Great way to get your story out: http://www.wildsound.ca/logline.html
Deadlines to Submit your Screenplay, Novel, Story, or Poem to the festival:http://www.wildsound.ca
Watch recent Writing Festival Videos. At least 15 winning videos a month:http://www.wildsoundfestival.com
Jane Austen (1775–1817)
Born: December 16, 1775 in Steventon, Hampshire, England, UK
Died: July 18, 1817 (age 41) in Winchester, Hampshire, England, UK
QUOTES:
If any one faculty of our nature may be called more wonderful than the rest, I do think it is memory. The memory is sometimes so retentive, so serviceable, so obedient–at others, so bewildered and so weak–and at others again, so tyrannic, so beyond control! We are to be sure a miracle every way–but our powers of recollecting and of forgetting, do seem peculiarly past finding out.
[her last words, when asked by her sister Cassandra if there was anything she wanted] Nothing, but death.
[when asked why her heroines always flawed] Pictures of perfection make me sick and wicked.
One half of the world cannot understand the pleasures of the other.
It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in possession of a good fortune, must be in want of a wife.
Zodiac
HAPPY CHRISTMAS
Festival Reviews 