Jezebel
hookers, victims & doormats
Posts Tagged “
hookers, victims, & doormats
”
hookers, victims & doormats
hookers, victims & doormats
Hollywood's Women Problem Is A Case Of Arrested Development
There are few good parts for women in Hollywood right now. This is an incontrovertible fact. When you become a woman of a certain age, somewhere after 30 and before the hot flashes begin, there are no parts at all. Karen Allen, 56, who will be in the new Indiana Jones movie reprising her role as the plucky Marion Ravenwood, tells the L.A. Times, "I'm from a generation of fantastic actresses. It's a big pool of really wonderful actresses, and so many of them we never even get to see on the screen anymore." But why? Why is Julie Christie relegated to senility and Cameron Diaz stuck in the woman-girl cul-de-sac? More »
hookers, victims & doormats
"Woman-Girl Syndrome": Hollywood's Latest Malady
There are many actresses who have built careers on their innate adorableness — the L.A. Times mentions Cameron Diaz, Meg Ryan and Melanie Griffith, though Kate Hudson also comes to mind — and one Hollywood agent terms this studied cuteness the "woman-girl syndrome." You see, according to LAT writer Rachel Abramowitz, when these women find themselves in the throes of "cinematic middle age...their biceps are well-honed, but their options are limited." Apparently "cute" is not so cute with crows feet, according to the Hollywood establishment. Diaz, Abramowitz points out, "skyrocketed to fame essentially playing grown-up girls. But that's not a stereotype she can keep playing deep into her 30s." It doesn't help that romantic comedies don't even have female heroines anymore, as "the creative Politburos that run the studios have collectively decided that only men are entitled to their romantic fantasies, that love stories should preferably be told from the male perspective." More »
hookers, victims & doormats
Ellen Page To Star As One Of English Literature's Saddest Sacks
Another day, another round of casting announcements chock full of stereotypes. While older actresses like Susan Sarandon have their pick of saucy-yet-loving-powerful-woman roles, the younger actresses who have yet to convince everyone they're talented sometimes pick up a few victim roles along their march to Serious Actress territory. Maybe it's because they are still pretty "fresh faces", but these talented actresses still succumb to playing victimized lovers, even in supposedly intellectual and interesting films. In this edition of Hookers, Victims, and Doormats, Ellen Page pretends she is "plain" in Jane Eyre and Eva Mendes continues to mimic Angelina Jolie's action film career. All that and more after the jump! More »
hookers, victims & doormats*
Angela Bassett: Boarding The ER Ship To Troubletown
*Inspired by Shirley MacLaine's assertion that the best parts for actresses fall into one of the above categories.
This week in Hollywood casting announcements: plenty of potential victimization for Tinseltown's bold-faced beauties. (Victim characters, of course, are easy to spot: They're usually described as "troubled" or have a "tortured past," have "suffered" a "crisis," are "surviving" and "learning to move on" from their rape/brutal attack/illness...take your pick!) After the jump, take a look at the newest roles for Angela Bassett, Nicole Kidman, and America Ferrera and see how they stack up on the actress-cliche scale.More »
hookers, victims & doormats
Tilda Swinton To Feel "Irreparable Consequences" In I Am Love
Sure, there might be an actor's strike on the horizon, but that isn't going to stop studios from casting actresses in stereotypical roles! Yup, it'ss time again for another round-up of the latest movie castings in Hollywood. Unfortunately, aside from Tilda Swinton, we don't have that many big-name actresses in this week's installment (unless you count Virginia Madsen as "big," which you don't) and we're not given that much information about their characters. So, we'll just make educated guesses, like we always do! After the jump, Tilda has an affair with a sexy Italian chef, Virgina Madsen competes with Hilary Swank for some screen time and Gere-time (spoiler: she loses), and Moon Bloodgood takes on the newest Terminator movie. All of it and more, after the jump. More »
hookers, victims & doormats
Halle Berry Will Suffer In Black And White In Frankie And Alice
Ever notice how many female characters are "suffering" in Hollywood films? "She was suffering through a break-up," "the character was suffering from an abusive past," "she will play a woman who is suffering through cancer," et cetera. It seems like whenever writers want to throw some "depth" into their scripts they will construct a "suffering" character (usually female) and is forced to learn a lesson the hard way and/or die. Sure, it can be done well (Sophie's Choice) but the suffering victim has become so overused that it is now just a cliche that talent agents foist on their starlet clients to move them into Serious Actress territory. In the latest casting announcements, we hear about more suffering women: Halle Berry plays a woman "suffering" from a personality disorder in a mix between Gothika and Queen; Rudy from The Cosby Show plays a hooker (!), and that girl who isn't Vanessa Hudgens stars in a (hopefully) campy re-make of Teen Witch. All that and more after the jump! More »
hookers, victims, & doormats
Allison Janney Taps Into That Other Hollywood Stereotype: The Shrew
Sure, there are enough hooker, victim, and doormat roles around Hollywood to keep Lindsay Lohan in Louboutins, but those aren't the only stereotypical female characters swimming in the brains of underpaid screenwriters. There's another cliché almost every actress over 30 has played: The Shrew. So, in honor of the revival of Kristen Johnston's career (and the popularity of shrews in the newest announcements of castings) we are declaring "Shrew" a new category to our Hookers, Doormats, & Victims feature! After the jump: Allison Janney and Kristen Johnston square-off to see who's baddest bitch in new comedies; Sigourney Weaver teams up with James Cameron again; and a remake of Friday the 13th promises to hack all of the popular girls to pieces. More »
hookers, victims, & doormats
Portman Muscles In On Knightley's Period-Piece Turf
Sometimes it isn't just the starlets who get stuck with the stereotypical parts in films. Serious Actresses can get stuck with stupid shit too, especially since most aren't getting lead roles anytime soon! In the latest round-up of new castings in Hollywood, Natalie Portman sets her sights on an adaptation of Wuthering Heights and Marcia Gay Harden is set to star in a sure-to-be-cancelled new drama series on CBS about journalists who help save the world. Also in the mix, two well-known Spanish actresses lower themselves to supporting roles in American films, but the good news is they are probably getting paid more than they did in any starring role in their Spanish films. More on the latest hookers, victims and doormats in Hollywood, after the jump. More »
Hookers, Victims, & Doormats
Are actresses more likely to avoid stereotypes in comedies? We know that some actresses don't think so but two of the newest casting announcements for comedies show us the two possible ends of the spectrum. Drillbit Taylor's Leslie Mann is cast to play the wife of an imprisoned man (Jim Carrey) who falls in love with his cell mate in the black comedy I Love You Philip Morris. Verdict: probably a victim/doormat. Toni Collete will star as the close friend of Maya Rudolph and John Krasinski, who play a couple looking for the best place to raise their unborn child in an untitled film. Verdict: With Sam Mendes directing and two parts of the McSweeney's machine writing, Collette will probably make out okay. [THR. THR]
hookers, victims & doormats*
Starlet Rosamind Pike To Suffer As Vain Surrogate
*Inspired by Shirley MacLaine's assertion that the best parts for actresses fall into one of the above categories.
Along with playing the ubiquitous hooker, victim or doormat character, actresses are often pegged playing "the wife of," or "the mistress of," or even "the best friend of", especially in films that aren't specifically directed at women. Unless they are starring in a rom-com or a movie that is somehow centered around shoe-shopping, actresses in mainstream films are most often seen in some sort of role that supports the main actor. The newest casting announcements out of Hollywood prove that: most were almost entirely supporting roles, and there were even some hookers and doormats in there to keep things spicy! After the jump, Rosamund Pike fears aging and sticks with the surrogate-obsessed pack in a sci-fi thriller, and Camilla Belle fools around with a dreamy (but much older) Vincent Cassel in a new Brazilian coming-of-age film. More »
Guess who got another job! Everyone's fave child star turned cautionary tale, Lindsay Lohan, has inked a movie deal. What is BAngieB's pretty pretty girl going to be doing? Why, playing a loyal follower of Charles Manson in a flick called Manson Girls. Sweet! [E!]
Hookers, Victims & Doormats
Breaking! Some dude over at the Huffington Post figured out that being a female in Hollywood sucks! You're either Natalie Portman and Scarlett Johansson basically sucking face in The Other Boleyn Girl or you're a creaky old crone like Jessica Lange, Kathy Bates and Joan Allen in Bonneville, saying things like "Oh, doesn't that just take you back?" The writer in question, Metro film critic Daniel Holloway wonders why "women who look like Scarlett Johansson are handed roles that require them to do little more than look like Scarlett Johansson, while any woman over 45 is left in such a pickle that she jumps at any part with more than 15 lines." Man, we've been asking that question for months now! And anyway, Goldie Hawn said it best in the First Wives Club: "There are 3 roles for women in Hollywood: Babe, District Attorney, and 'Driving Miss Daisy.'" [Huffington Post]
Breaking! Some dude over at the Huffington Post figured out that being a female in Hollywood sucks! You're either Natalie Portman and Scarlett Johansson basically sucking face in The Other Boleyn Girl or you're a creaky old crone like Jessica Lange, Kathy Bates and Joan Allen in Bonneville, saying things like "Oh, doesn't that just take you back?" The writer in question, Metro film critic Daniel Holloway wonders why "women who look like Scarlett Johansson are handed roles that require them to do little more than look like Scarlett Johansson, while any woman over 45 is left in such a pickle that she jumps at any part with more than 15 lines." Man, we've been asking that question for months now! And anyway, Goldie Hawn said it best in the First Wives Club: "There are 3 roles for women in Hollywood: Babe, District Attorney, and 'Driving Miss Daisy.'" [Huffington Post]
Hookers, Victims & Doormats
Natalie Portman is sick of being offered the same degrading roles over and over again. "It's the virgin-whore thing in evidence to the greatest extent. That's really been bothering." In non-hooker casting news, Bollywood star Mallika Sherawat is playing a female yogi in The Aquarian Gospel , a film based on the myth that Jesus visited India. Also, Mad Men's January Jones has been cast in The Boat That Rocked alongside Kenneth Branagh and Rhys Ifans. The Boat is about pirate DJs (seriously). January plays an American woman who visits the DJs on the boat and falls in love with Ifans. They had us at "pirate DJs." [Mirror, Reuters, Variety]
Natalie Portman is sick of being offered the same degrading roles over and over again. "It's the virgin-whore thing in evidence to the greatest extent. That's really been bothering." In non-hooker casting news, Bollywood star Mallika Sherawat is playing a female yogi in The Aquarian Gospel , a film based on the myth that Jesus visited India. Also, Mad Men's January Jones has been cast in The Boat That Rocked alongside Kenneth Branagh and Rhys Ifans. The Boat is about pirate DJs (seriously). January plays an American woman who visits the DJs on the boat and falls in love with Ifans. They had us at "pirate DJs." [Mirror, Reuters, Variety]
hookers, victims & doormats*
Marisa Tomei Takes It All Off; Gina Gershon Hangs At The Brothel
*Inspired by Shirley MacLaine's assertion that the best parts for actresses fall into one of the above categories.
Guess what, kids? The writers' strike is almost really and truly over! Now you can look forward to more of the same romantic comedy tripe they've been feeding us. I hear How To Lose 27 Dresses In 10 Days In Paris just signed Debra Messing to star! But seriously, since screenwriters are actually writing for a living again, there's a slew of casting news about Hollywood women and there's gonna be a lot of hookers strutting the silver screen in the coming months. Oscar winner Marisa Tomei is slated to play an '80s-era stripper in the Wrestler (fingers crossed for an homage to Flashdance!), Gina Gershon plays a resident hooker at a Nevada brothel owned by Helen Mirren in Love Ranch, and Penelope Cruz stars in an adaptation of a Philip Roth novel, The Dying Animal, called Elegy. Check out the rest of the Hollywood shuffle, with some victims and doormats thrown in for good measure, after the jump. More »
hookers, victims & doormats*
Hilary As Amelia? The Geena Davis Institute Would Approve
*Inspired by Shirley MacLaine's assertion that the best parts for actresses fall into one of the above categories.
This just in from The Geena Davis Institute on Gender in Media (yes, such a thing exists) — men outnumber women nearly 3 to 1 on the silver screen. The study, conducted at USC's Annenberg School of Journalism, also notes that "females are over five times as likely as males to be shown in alluring apparel and are roughly three times as likely as males (10.6% vs. 3.4%) to be shown with an unrealistically 'ideal' body." That's the bad news. The good news is several female actresses have recently been awarded parts that show off something other than their 'ideal bodies': their acting chops. After the jump, an assessment of parts just assigned to Jezebel girl crush Amanda "Big Love" Seyfried, Hilary Swank, Uma Thurman, and Mary Steenburgen. There's nary a hooker or doormat to be found (and only one victim)! More »
hookers, victims & doormats*
Kate Hudson Gets Creative; Heather Locklear Goes Lifetime
*Inspired by Shirley MacLaine's assertion that the best parts for actresses fall into one of the above categories
With rumors of the writers strike coming to a close, today was rife with casting notices for many an A (or B) List actress. Kate Hudson, Brittany Murphy, Robin Wright Penn, Maggie Gyllenhaal, Monica Bellucci, Winona Ryder, Julianne Moore and Heather Locklear have all been placed in forthcoming films, some of which are contingent on the writers strike reaching a resolution. So are these ladies portraying hookers, victims, doormats, some insidious combination of all three, or are they playing actual three dimensional female characters? Find out after the jump. More »
Hookers, Victims & Doormats
The Devil Wears Prada's Emily Blunt may need to start practicing her Texas twang: The British actress is in talks to appear in drama The Girl, playing a young Texas woman who comes across the abandoned daughter of an illegal Mexican immigrant and reluctantly heads to Mexico in search of the girl's mother. Two females, road trip, Texas...will this be like Thelma & Louise but with a less suicidal ending? [Reuters]
The Devil Wears Prada's Emily Blunt may need to start practicing her Texas twang: The British actress is in talks to appear in drama The Girl, playing a young Texas woman who comes across the abandoned daughter of an illegal Mexican immigrant and reluctantly heads to Mexico in search of the girl's mother. Two females, road trip, Texas...will this be like Thelma & Louise but with a less suicidal ending? [Reuters]
