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David Poland

By David Poland poland@moviecitynews.com

Posted Thursday, November 24th, 2011 - 19 Comments »

DP/30: Descendants, actors Beau Bridges, Matthew Lillard, Robert Forster

19 Comments »

19 Responses to “DP/30: Descendants, actors Beau Bridges, Matthew Lillard, Robert Forster”

  1. Joe Leydon says:
    November 24, 2011 at 11:48 am

    I wonder how much money Fox Searchlight is passing up by not going wider today with The Descendants.

  2. David Poland says:
    November 24, 2011 at 1:24 pm

    Joe… think you’re overestimating the sure bet of that movie’s grosses. They have to convince people other than critics before they start making bank on this one.

  3. LexG says:
    November 24, 2011 at 1:58 pm

    Lillard is FANTASTIC in Descendants. He’s always been a good actor but plays such goofballs, and usually in proudly dumb movies, that it’s exhilarating when a great director goes with an off-kilter choice like that and it turns out so well. Like, who would have thought to cast Matthew Lillard opposite George Clooney, yet in one big scene he hits so many precise notes so well.

  4. sanj says:
    November 24, 2011 at 3:32 pm

    the best part of the entire dp/30 is Beau Bridges poem near the end.

  5. movieman says:
    November 24, 2011 at 6:38 pm

    It would have been nice if (thinking) adult audiences had a real choice at the multiplex this holiday weekend. (“Hugo” seems to be benefitting from the slim–at least for anyone over the age of 12–’plex pickings right now. Not surprisingly, its core demographic opening day was adults who traditionally patronize “prestige” films.)
    But the release pattern reminds me of a similar tactic successfully employed by Paramount 28 years ago this w-end with “Terms of Endearment.” After a “Descendants”-sized platform release at Thanksgiving, it successfully expanded on December 9th.
    I just hope F-S doesn’t platform this to death and kill its momentum.
    It’s happened before.

  6. scooterzz says:
    November 24, 2011 at 7:13 pm

    slightly related: lillard is currently on stage in ‘harbor’ at the victory theater in burbank…small space, good performances… also, looking forward to catching bridges as a song-and-dance man when he steps into ‘how to succeed…’ in january

  7. Joe Leydon says:
    November 24, 2011 at 7:20 pm

    Nothing is a sure bet. But considering this is the day when entire families have to decide which film will be acceptable to everyone…

  8. Gus says:
    November 24, 2011 at 9:05 pm

    Might want to give SPOONER a look, Lex. It’s on Netflix instant. Lillard plays a semi-retarded (or maybe just Apatovian) 30 year-old in drake doremus’ first (or second?) feature. Not a great movie by any stretch but I found Lillard really impressive and surprisingly moving in it.

  9. yancyskancy says:
    November 24, 2011 at 10:02 pm

    Payne says he’d never seen Lillard in anything before. He got the role because he nailed the audition.

  10. leahnz says:
    November 24, 2011 at 10:11 pm

    does lillard look like THAT in ‘the descendants’? i can’t even believe that’s him – like the mythbusters dude only not having swelled yet – granted i haven’t seen him in a long time and haven’t seen the descendants. (eta still sounds the same)

    robert forster shoulda won an oscar for jackie brown, he was robbed (by whom i can’t even remember, but still)

    i always think of lillard and jake busey together as a set for some reason. haven’s seen him in ages either come to think of it.

  11. movieman says:
    November 25, 2011 at 4:45 am

    Lillard looks completely different in the movie, Leah. He’s got dark hair (darker than I’ve ever seen on him), and no facial hair.
    I actually did roundtables with him, Seth Green and Dax Shepard back in 2004 for the uber-lame “Without a Paddle.”
    He seemed like an OK guy at the time. But I never pegged him for a future Payne dramedy.
    Of course, I would have never imagined “Wings” alum Thomas Haden Church costarring in “Sideways” prior to 2004 either.
    I should have probably said:
    After a “Descendants”-sized platform release at Thanksgiving, it successfully expanded on December 9th and the rest was history.
    At this vantage point, it’s stiffest Oscar competition looks like “The Artist” and “War Horse.”

  12. yancyskancy says:
    November 25, 2011 at 10:52 am

    leah, it was Robin Williams in GOOD WILL HUNTING who stole Forster’s Oscar. Still can’t believe voters had Forster and Burt Reynolds (in BOOGIE NIGHTS) to choose from and went with Williams. I think it was one of those ‘career achievement’ awards, where someone who’s lost a number of times in the lead category finally gets a supporting win.

  13. Krillian says:
    November 25, 2011 at 12:52 pm

    I thought it was Reynolds’ to lose and I seem to recall him giving a couple bridge-burning interviews and lining up some TNT movies that soured some voters.

    Forster, it was like the nomination was reward enough for an actor resurrected from obscurity by QT.

  14. leahnz says:
    November 25, 2011 at 1:07 pm

    ah, robin williams, thanks. oh well, he was really good in GWH, i guess i can’t begrudge that – maybe just a little – but if i had to give williams an oscar it would have been for his brilliant turn as ‘sy the photo guy’ in ‘one hour photo’, because he achieved the impossible: making me forget i was watching robin williams to go on a weird trip with his sad, creepy ass.

    (movieman: did you know that paragon of comedy cinema ‘w/out a paddle’ was shot here? hooray. i think that’s the last time i actually saw lillard full stop, so his appearance in the interview was a bit of shock, i didn’t intend for my comment above to sound so looksist, which it did in hindsight. he wasn’t in ‘the descendants’ trailer i’d watched, but i looked it up and saw lillard looks far more ‘himself’ in the movie – himself being ‘how i remember him’ of course, more power to him looking however he darn well pleases)

  15. yancyskancy says:
    November 25, 2011 at 2:22 pm

    Krillian: I thought Forster deserved the win, but was frankly surprised that he even got nominated. It was the film’s only nomination, and the Academy often overlooks such non-showy work, no matter how superb.

    I don’t have any big beef against Robin Williams, but it does gall me that the Academy has given him so much love over the years while snubbing the best acting work of Steve Martin and Eddie Murphy (to name two).

  16. leahnz says:
    November 25, 2011 at 3:00 pm

    but yancy, not that i disagree with you but just wanted to point out that ‘the academy’ notoriously does not like to validate comedic perfs – laughing must chaffe their adult nappies or something – and william’ss noms have all come for drama roles or roles with a heavy dramatic component (my memory is a shocker): ‘GWH’, dead poets society, fisher king, good morning vietnam…i may have missed out some but with the exception of ‘good morning’ none of those are overtly comedic perfs, and i can only guess that the nom for ‘vietnam’ was tied to the dramatic setting/subject matter/war element of the movie and william’s force of nature perf with lots of deadly serious moments, and quite possibly its financial success/popularity.

    now i can’t remember my original point but murphy and martin for example haven’t really made many celebrated forays into ‘serious dramatic roles’ of note for the academy to fawn over

  17. yancyskancy says:
    November 25, 2011 at 4:41 pm

    Good point, leah — because, indeed, it’s the lack of recognition for Martin and Murphy’s comedic work that ticks me off, and as you say, Williams’ nods have come for predominantly dramatic work. I guess part of my problem is that I didn’t find Williams particularly deserving for any of those nominations. I would’ve had no problem with nods for AWAKENINGS, maybe ONE HOUR PHOTO, MOSCOW ON THE HUDSON or GARP, but of course the Academy passed him over in those instances.

  18. movieman says:
    November 25, 2011 at 7:30 pm

    I vaguely remember hearing that “Paddle” was shot in NZ, Leah.
    But I don’t recall any of the actors making an issue of it at the time.
    And that was seven long years ago.
    Lots of water (paddled?) under the bridge for me since then, lol.

  19. Alisa says:
    January 25, 2012 at 2:00 pm

    In first 15 min of the interview Beau managed to say three times that he has a house in Kauai.

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