I wonder why it is that Disney movies always have the best music? I have at least 2-3 Disney soundtracks at home, Mulan being one of them.
Mulan
Beauty and the Beast
Aladdin
Showing posts with label family movies. Show all posts
Showing posts with label family movies. Show all posts
You're Never Too Old for a Disney Movie...
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Beauty and the Beast
Aladdin
Idris Elba
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Name: Idrissa Akuna Elba
DOB: Sept. 6, 1972
Where: Hackney, London, England
Years Active: Actor, hip hop artist
Occupation:1995-present
Website: http://www.dris.com
-English actor of TV, film, theatre
-Grew up in Canning Town, East London
-DJ under the moniker DJ Big Driis/Big Driis the Londoner.
-In 2009, he appeared on an episode of the American sitcom The Office, playing Charles Miner, Michael Scott's new boss.
-Recently, he took the role of Det. John Luther in the BBC show Luther.
Early Life
-Shortened his first name at school in Canning Town, where he first got into acting. His father is Sierra Leonean and his mother is Ghanian.
-Grew up in East Ham, and began helping his uncle with a wedding DJ business in 1986. Left school in 1988 and won a place in the National Youth Music Theatre- thanks to a grant.
-After this, he began working the night shift at a Ford factory in Dagenham from 1989-1990
Career
-In 1995, landed his first role on a series called Bramwell, a medical drama set in 1890s England. In 1995, had a supporting role as a gigolo on an episode of Absolutely Fabulous, entitled "Sex". Alot of the roles he got were on British TV shows.
-Moved to New York City in 1999. Returned to England occasionally for a job, such as one in the Inspector Lynley Mysteries, a crime series. In 2001, he landed a starring role on an episode of Law and Order.
-He appeared as the role of Charlie Gotso in The No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency opposite Jill Scott and Anika Noni Rose.
-In the Tyler Perry movie Daddy's Little Girls, he played Monty, a working class mechanic who falls in love with an attorney(Gabrielle Union), who is helping him to gain custody of his kids, and finds this relationship threatened by the arrival of his ex-wife.
Personal Life
-Currently single
-He and ex-wife Kim Elba have one daughter
-Spends much of his time in London, but owns a house in Atlanta, so he can be close to his daughter
-Fan of Arsenal F.C. while his dad supports Manchester United
-In the April 2004 issue of Essence Magazine, he was voted one of the "Ten Hottest Men on the Planet".
-In the May 2007 issue of People Magazine, he was voted as one of the 100 Most Beautiful People in the World
Filmography Readmore..
Mickey Rourke
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Name: Philip Andre "Mickey" Rourke Jr
DOB: Sept. 16, 1952
Where: Schenectady, New York
Occupation: Actor, professional boxer, screenwriter, music supervisor
Years Active: Actor(1979-present), boxer(1991-present)
-During the 1980s, Rourke starred in Diner, Rumble Fish and 9 1/2 Weeks. In 2005, Rourke made his comeback in mainstream Hollywood with a lead role in Sin City, in 2010, he appeared in the movies Iron Man 2, playing a Russian physicist named Ivan Vanko who becomes a villain named Whiplash and The Expendables.
Early Life
-Born to a family of Irish and French descent.
-Father Philip Andre Rourke Sr. was an amateur body builder, left the family was Mickey was 6.
-Mother Annette married Eugene Addis, a Miami Beach police officer with 5 sons and moved Rourke, younger brother Joey, sister Patricia to southern Florida.
-Took up self defense at the Boys Club of Miami in his teen years
-At the 1971 Florida Golden Gloves match, Rourke suffered a concussion
Career
-Rourke's filml debut was a small role in the Steven Spielberg movie 1941. But it was his role of an arsonist in Body Heat that gained him attention. His role in the erotic movie 9 1/2 Weeks gained him attention as a sex symbol.
-In 1991, he went back to boxing and he was undefeated in 8 fights. During this part of his career, he suffered various injuries, such as a broken nose, toe, split tongue, broken ribs, compressed cheekbone. Also suffered from short term memory loss
-His trainer was Hells Angels member Chuck Zito. His entrance song was Guns N' Roses song "Sweet Child O' Mine"
-In the 1990s, he needed reconstructive surgery to fix his injuries.
-He starred in the 1990s remake of the 1971 British crime thriller Get Carter with Sylvester Stallone
-He appeared in the Enrique Iglesias video for "Hero".
-In 2004, he provided the voice for the character "Jericho" in the 3rd installment of the Driver video game series.
Personal Life
-Dated several celebs over the years
-In Nov. 2007, Rourke was arrested in Miami Beach on DUI charges
-Since 2009, he has been dating a Russian model named Anastassija Makarenko.
-Big motorcycle enthusiast
-Loves dogs!
-His most favorite dog was a Chihuahua terrier mix he named Loki. He wears a locket with Loki's picture in it around his neck because on Fbeb. 18, 2009, Loki died in Rourke's arms at age 18.
Filmography
Alan Rickman
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Name: Alan Sidney Patrick Rickman
DOB: February 21, 1946
Where: Hammersmith, London, England
Occupation: Actor(stage and screen)
Years Active: 1978-present
Partner: Rima Horton(1965-present)
-Member of the Royal Shakespeare Company
-Best known for his roles as German terrorist Hans Gruber in Die Hard, Severus Snape in Harry Potter, Eamon de Valera in Michael Collins, and Metatron in Dogma.
-Also has appeared in other movies, such as playing the Sheriff of Nottingham in Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves, Jamie in Truly Madly Deeply, Colonel Brandon in Ang Lee's Sense and Sensibility. And most recently, he played Judge Turpin in the film adaptation of Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street.
Early Life
-Son of Margaret Doreen Rose, a housewife and Bernard Rickman, a factory worker. His mother was from Wales, a Methodist and his father an Irish Catholic.
-Has one older brother, David, a graphic designer, a younger brother, Michael, a tennis coach, and a younger sister, Sheila.
-When he was 8, his father died, leaving his mother to raise 4 children all alone.
-He excelled at calligraphy and watercolor painting. Later attended the Chelsea College of Art and Design and then the Royal College of Art. This allowed him to work as a graphic designer. After he graduated, him and several friends opened a graphic design studio called Graphiti. But closed it after 3 years
Career
-In 1982, British TV came to know Rickman as Reverend Obadiah Slope in the TV adaptation of Barchester Towers.
-Over the years, he has appeared in various films and plays, playing romantic leads such as Colonel Brandon in Sense and Sensibility, Jamie in Truly Madly, Deeply, villains such as German terrorist Hans Gruber in Die Hard, The Sheriff of Nottingham in Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves, and most recently, Potions professor Severus Snape in the Harry Potter series of films.
Harry Potter, Severus Snape
Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves, Sheriff of Nottingham
Love Actually, Harry
Die Hard, Hans Gruber
-He has also tried his hand at comedic roles, such as the angel Metatron in the movie Dogma, playing Emma Thompson's fool husband Harry in Love Actually(which is my favorite love movie)
-In 2007, he received alot of attention with his portrayal of Judge Turpin in the movie adaptation of the musical play Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street. And also he provided his voice for the character Absolem the Caterpillar in the 2010 Burton-directed Alice in Wonderland.
-In 2011, he reappeared as Severus Snape in the final movie: Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows- Part 2.
Personal Life
-In 1965, at age 19, he met his partner Rima Horton, who was a part of the London Borough Council. They started living together in 1977.
Filmography
IMDb
-In the scene in Die Hard where Hans is supposed to have dropped from the top of the Nakatomi building, he was actually dropped by a stuntman from a 20 foot high model of the building onto an air bag. And the look of surprise on his face is real; instead of going on 3, Rickman was dropped on the count of 2.
-In the 1994 movie Four Weddings and a Funeral, Rickman was the original choice to play the role that Hugh Grant was supposed to play. He was producer Richard Curtis' ideal choice for this movie.
-Failed his California driving test at one point for driving too cautiously through a green light
-Attended the funeral for actress Natasha Richardson.
-In the Harry Potter movies, he is 11 years older than Timothy Spall, who plays Peter Pettigrew, 17 years older than David Thewlis, who plays Professor Remus Lupin Readmore..
Things You Didn't Know About......
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Movies!
Performance
-Anita Pallenberg replaced the pregnant Marianne Faithfull
-The sex scenes between Mick Jagger and Anita Pallenberg really upset fellow Stones member Keith Richards because Anita and him were going out at the time.
-Keith was so angry about Mick and Anita doing the sex scenes together that he refused to play on the track Memo from Turner.
The English Patient
-Ralph Fiennes burn make up took 5 hours every day
-Naveen Andrews and Kevin Whately had to learn how to ride motorcycles for the movie.
The Godfather
-Mafia boss Joe Columbo, the leader of one of the "5 Families of New York" and his organization the Italian American Civil Rights League started a campaign to stop the movie.
-In the scene where the horse's head was in the bed, a real horse's head was acquired from a dog food factory and placed there. Actor John Marley's screams of horror were real as he did not know that a real head was going in.
-Al Pacino wore a foam latex facial appliance that covered his entire left cheek and was covered with makeup to give it the look of bruising, to simulate the bruises Michael gets after he gets his jaw broken by Captain McCluskey.
-A majority of Francis Ford Coppola's relatives appeared in the movie:
1. Sister Talia Shire plays Connie Corleone
2. Mother Italia Coppola serves as extra in restaurant
3. Father Carmine Coppola as piano player in mattress sequence
4. Sons Gian-Carlo Coppola and Roman Coppola can be seen as extras in the scene where Sonny beats up Carlo at the funeral
5. Daughter Sofia Coppola is the baby Michael Rizzi holds in the baptism
-A young Sylvester Stallone auditioned for the role of Paulie Gatto and Carlo Rizzi, but did not get the role.
-Al Pacino's maternal grandparents emigrated from Corleone, Italy to the US just like Vito Corleone.
-Many of the actors cast were not Italian: Marlon Brando is of Dutch descent, James Caan is German and Jewish, Abe Vigoda is Russian-Jewish, and he fough tooth and nail for Al Pacino, who had obvious Italian looks
Sleepy Hollow
-The town of Sleepy Hollow was built from the ground up in 3 months
-Goldeneye, the horse that played Gunpowder in the movie was adopted by Johnny Depp when he heard it would be put down
-Ichabod Crane and Katrina Van Tassel, were reportedly real people
-Casper Van Dien is in real life related to the Van Tassels
-Tim Burton says the gothic nature of the movie was inspired by Hammer Productions movies. Hammer Productions is a movie studio out of England that specializes in horror movies
-In Washington Irving's story, Ichabod Crane was a schoolteacher who came to Sleepy Hollow and ran afoul of the resident specter, the Headless Horseman.
-There are approximately 18 decapitations in the movie
Up
-Russell is Pixar's first Japanese-American character voiced by an Asian-Americana actor, Jordan Nagai
-The Fenton's Ice Cream Parlor in the movie really exists and has 2 locations; Oakland, Calif. and Vacaville, Calif.
The Forbidden Kingdom
-This movie marks the first time that martial artist Jackie Chan and martial artist Jet Li ever worked together
-Before filming, the entire cast went through a dialog run. Because the majority of the cast listed English as their 2nd language
Gran Torino
-There were open casting calls for Hmong people in Hmong communities in Detroit, Michigan, Saint Paul, Minnesota and Fresno, Calif. Only Doug Moua had acted before.
-Clint Eastwood encouraged the Hmong actors to ad-lib in Hmong
-There is a Hmong gang member with a tattoo on his chest. It's of the Chinese character for Family
Prizzi's Honor
-For the role of Charley Partanna, Burt Reynolds, Sylvester Stallone, Christopher Reeve, Tom Hanks, Dustin Hoffman, Bill Murray, Ryan O'Neal, John Travolta, Jon Voight were all considered
-Film debut of Stanley Tucci
In the Heat of the Night
-Frequently cited as Sidney Poitier's favorite of all films he's done
-Due to the murder of civil rights activist Martin Luther King Jr., the presentation of Best Picture Oscar was postponed from April 8, 1968 to April 10, 1968
The Flower Drum Song
-Actor Jack Soo's first film
-Actress Miyoshi Umeki, while appearing to by shy, is actually known for her sense of humor.
Love Actually
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Love Actually
In honor of the approaching Christmas season....
-The cast is composed of mainly British actors
-Set in London, 5 weeks before Christmas
-Played out in a countdown to the holidays with an epilogue at the end
Plot
Billy Mack and Joe
-With the help of his manager Joe(Gregor Fisher), aging rock singer Billy Mack(Bill Nighy) records a holiday version of The Trogg's song Love Is All Around. And if you watch this, and see him, who would be the first person you think of? Because when me, my dad and sis watched it, we all looked at each other and said "Keith Richards".
Juliet, Mark and Peter
-Juliet(Keira Knightley) and Peter(Chiwetel Ejiofor) are married in a ceremony videotaped by Mark(Andrew Lincoln), Peter's best buddy and best man. The video reveals that he secretly is in love with Juliet. And at the wedding, Mark reveals to Peter and Juliet a choir in the upper part of the church playing All You Need is Love, a song made famous by The Beatles.
Jamie and Aurelia
-Writer Jamie(Colin Firth) first appears preparing to attend Juliet and Peter's wedding. His girlfriend(Sienna Guillory) misses the ceremony to sleep with his brother. After finding this out, he retires to a French cottage where he meets Portugese housekeeper Aurelia(Lucia Moniz). There is an instant attraction between the 2, and later he meets Portugese and goes to propose to her.
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| This scene cracks me and my sister up so much! |
Harry, Karen and Mia
-Harry(Alan Rickman) is the manager of a design agency; Mia is his manipulative, seductive new secretary. For Christmas he buys her an expensive necklace from a jewelry saleseman named Rufus(Rowan Atkinson), who wraps the gift in a very fancy way. Elsewhere, his wife Karen(Emma Thompson) is busy dealing with her kids Daisy(Lulu Popplewell) and Bernard(William Wadham), who are appearing in the school Nativity play. Later on, when Karen finds the necklace in Harry's coat pocket, and she assumes it's for her.
David and Natalie
-Karen's brother, the recently elected British Prime Minister David(Hugh Grant) is a young and single guy. Natalie(Martine McCutcheon) is a new junior member of the house staff who helps him out. Something seems to start between them. When David walks in to find the US President(Billy Bob Thornton) trying to seduce Natalie, he is inspired to take a stand against the bullying President's policies. He has her moved to somewhere else, but then receives a card from her declaring her love for him. He visits her at her home, seeing they are on their way to the local school for a play. He drives her to the play and they watch it from backstage, and their romance is revealed when the curtain goes up and they are seen kissing.
Daniel, Sam, Joanna
-Daniel(Liam Neeson), Karen's friend, and his stepson Sam(Thomas Sangster) fend for themselves as they mourn the loss of their wife and mom. Sam has, meanwhile, fallen for an American classmate of his named Joanna(Olivia Olson). After a discussion with his stepdad, he decides to learn the drums to accompany her in the play.
Sarah, Karl and Michael
-Sarah(Laura Linney) first appears in the wedding, sitting next to Jamie. She works at a graphic design company where she has been in love with the creative director Karl(Rodrigo Santoro). Any possible chances for intimacy are interrupted by her mentally ill brother Michael(Michael Fitzgerald). On Christmas Eve, she visits her brother and wraps a scarf around him as he hugs her
-After several attempts to woo English women, Colin Frissell(Kris Marshall) informs his friend Tony(Abdul Salis) that he plans to go to the US and find love there, convinced his British accent will win him women. He lands in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, and goes to a bar where he meets Stacey(Ivana Milicevic), Jeannie(January Jones) and Carol-Anne(Elisha Cuthbert), 3 beautiful woman who fall for his Basildon accent and invite him to stay with them at their home, where they are joined by their roomate Harriet(Shannon Elizabeth), who in the movie is supposed to have a thing for British guys.
John and Judy
-John(Martin Freeman) and Judy(Joanna Page) meet as body doubles for the sex scenes in a movie where Tony is a production assistant. John tells Judy that "It's nice to have someone he can chat to." While on set they are comfortable being naked and simulating sex, offscreen they are shy and quiet.
Epilogue
-The epilogue is set 1 month later, and alot of the characters seem to be in love, only 2 of the relationships are not romantic: the one of Billy Mack and his manager Joe, and Sarah and her brother Michael.
-John and Judy greet Tony, who is there to meet Colin on his way back from the US, where he returns with beautiful Harriet in tow and her younger sister Carla(Denise Richards), who immediately falls for Tony.
-Natalie is seen welcoming back David in front of cameras.
-The scenes dissolve into live action views of actual arrivals at Heathrow Airport.
Cast
Alan Rickman as Harry
Emma Thompson as Karen
Hugh Grant as David
Keira Knightley as Juliet
Colin Firth as Jamie
Lúcia Moniz as Aurélia
Liam Neeson as Daniel
Thomas Sangster as Sam
Bill Nighy as Billy Mack
Gregor Fisher as Joe
Martine McCutcheon as Natalie
Chiwetel Ejiofor as Peter
Andrew Lincoln as Mark
Laura Linney as Sarah
Rodrigo Santoro as Karl
Kris Marshall as Colin
Abdul Salis as Tony
Heike Makatsch as Mia
Martin Freeman as John
Joanna Page as Judy (credited as Just Judy)
Olivia Olson as Joanna
Billy Bob Thornton as President of the United States
Rowan Atkinson as Rufus
Nina Sosanya as Annie
Ivana Milicevic as Stacey
January Jones as Jeannie
Elisha Cuthbert as Carol-Anne
Shannon Elizabeth as Harriet
Denise Richards as Carla
Lulu Popplewell as Daisy
Marcus Brigstocke as Mikey
Cool stuff
-Most of the filming took place in London, at places like Trafalgar Square, the central court of Somerset House in the Strand, Grosvenor Chapel on South Audley Street near Hyde Park, St. Paul's Clapham on Rectory Grove, Clapham in the London Borough of Lambeth, The Millenium Bridge, Selfridges department store on Oxford Street, Lambeth Bridge, the Tate Modern, Canary Wharf, Marble Arch, London City Hall.
-For some reason, the movie did not really catch on in the US. I wonder why? I thought it was a really funny movie. I like it. But then again, sometimes people in the US may be a little hesitant to accept movies from other countries, like England.
Trivia
-The scene where Kris Marshall's character Colin insults the caterer's food was actually a scene written for Hugh Grant in Four Weddings and a Funeral
-Olivia Olson, who plays Sam's crush Joanna, does all her own singing.
-In 2004, it was the most rented DVD in the UK
-The house in which Colin Firth's character stays in France, including the dock, was heavily damaged by fire during the 2003 heat wave, but the house survived.
-The video for Billy Mack's Christmas Is All Around, is a clear and kind tribute to the videos that Robert Palmer usually shot, with him in a good suit, backed up by an all girl band, dressed up and dancing in a back and forth manner.
-The vicar used in Peter and Juliet's wedding is a real vicar.
-They had to put Emma Thompson in a fat suit because in real life she is a very thin woman
-Kris Marshall returned the pay check he got for the scene where the 3 American girls undress him. He said he had so much fun having 3 girls undress him for 21 takes that he was willing to do it for free.
-Knowing that Billy Bob Thornton has a ridiculous fear of antique furniture, Hugh Grant had fun flashing furniture in front of Thornton to see him freak out.
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