tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-26817689169495231012010-02-27T20:45:17.835-08:00Rainy-Day Katehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07975999092917757308noreply@blogger.comBlogger105125GoodPrattlehttp://feedburner.google.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2681768916949523101.post-14165428581509468482010-02-27T20:06:00.000-08:002010-02-27T20:43:16.625-08:002010-02-27T20:43:16.625-08:00

Foreign films generally don't get much attention Stateside unless they've been nominated for an Academy Award—which unfortunately results in American moviegoers frequently overlooking great films. However, there is one particular incident of this that I consider especially egregious. Y'see, there's this Danish film out now called Terribly Happy, which was adapted from a novel by Erling Jepsen,

Rainy-Day Katehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07975999092917757308noreply@blogger.com0http://www.goodprattle.com/2010/02/terribly-happy-director-henrik-ruben.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2681768916949523101.post-63736068830414122112010-02-20T20:27:00.000-08:002010-02-27T20:13:41.306-08:002010-02-27T20:13:41.306-08:00

Here at Good Prattle we've been hyping up the Chris Columbus-directed Percy Jackson and the Olympians: The Lightning Thief for a couple of weeks now. I will avoid engaging in the admittedly ridiculous levels of Harry Potter comparison this film has been experiencing; suffice it to say, however, that Percy Jackson has the makings of a great, truly entertaining new fantasy franchise. And

Rainy-Day Katehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07975999092917757308noreply@blogger.com0http://www.goodprattle.com/2010/02/percy-jackson-director-chris-columbus.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2681768916949523101.post-30701711717972269902010-02-13T21:10:00.000-08:002010-02-13T21:11:09.356-08:002010-02-13T21:11:09.356-08:00

Logan Lerman has the honor of being the first individual on whom Good Prattle has ever had two articles: he was first featured on this website when I participated in his roundtable interview for retro road trip flick My One And Only; now he's here being interviewed one-on-one for Percy Jackson and the Olympians: The Lightning Thief, in which he plays the title character. He and I talk about The

Rainy-Day Katehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07975999092917757308noreply@blogger.com0http://www.goodprattle.com/2010/02/percy-jackson-actor-logan-lerman.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2681768916949523101.post-20514045711072937232010-02-06T21:36:00.000-08:002010-02-06T22:27:12.050-08:002010-02-06T22:27:12.050-08:00

The first Friday afternoon in February was blustery, windy, and pre-blizzard-y; the cast and director of Percy Jackson and the Olympians: The Lightning Thief were holed up in the comfortably-heated Empire State Building, however, talking enthusiastically about the aforementioned film. The film is about a sixteen-year-old boy named Percy who discovers that he is the son of Poseidon—and that the

Rainy-Day Katehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07975999092917757308noreply@blogger.com0http://www.goodprattle.com/2010/02/percy-jackson-actress-alexandra.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2681768916949523101.post-25213885082575087362010-01-23T21:03:00.000-08:002010-01-23T21:18:19.424-08:002010-01-23T21:18:19.424-08:00

James McAvoy enters the room right after Paul Giamatti leaves and his third sentence contains a joke about blowjobs. This should give you a good idea about the sort of person with whom we're conversing. He stars in The Last Station as Valentin Bulgakov, secretary for Tolstoy (Christopher Plummer) toward the end of the great writer's life, alongside Giamatti, Helen Mirren, and his wife Anne-Marie

Rainy-Day Katehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07975999092917757308noreply@blogger.com1http://www.goodprattle.com/2010/01/last-station-star-james-mcavoy.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2681768916949523101.post-88537738413614700362010-01-16T20:56:00.000-08:002010-01-16T21:34:18.500-08:002010-01-16T21:34:18.500-08:00

Paul Giamatti has played John Adams; he has played a wine aficionado; he has played himself. Now, in The Last Station, he gets to play an antagonist who literally has a habit of twirling his mustache. The Last Station is a film about Valentin Bulgakov (James McAvoy), the young secretary whom Leo Tolstoy (Christopher Plummer) employed toward the end of his life, but the film also explores

Rainy-Day Katehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07975999092917757308noreply@blogger.com1http://www.goodprattle.com/2010/01/last-station-star-paul-giamatti.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2681768916949523101.post-1878165835652565382010-01-09T17:54:00.000-08:002010-01-09T18:38:16.288-08:002010-01-09T18:38:16.288-08:00

Welcome to 2010! Good Prattle's first interview this decade is with VV Brown, a singer-songwriter whose music hearkens back to the 1960s... if, y'know, 1960s musicians incorporated electronic Gameboy blips into their music. Herein she and I discuss the greatest influences on her album, late R&B legend Ruth Brown, and the days of Super Mario Land. Enjoy this interview; she's a doll.How are you?I’m

Rainy-Day Katehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07975999092917757308noreply@blogger.com0http://www.goodprattle.com/2010/01/british-musician-vv-brown.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2681768916949523101.post-4292067226088332202009-12-27T08:57:00.000-08:002009-12-27T09:09:50.448-08:002009-12-27T09:09:50.448-08:00

Happy Christmahanukwanzaakkah, ladies and gents! I’ve got a holiday present for you. A month or two ago, we ran an interview with screenwriter extraordinaire Diablo Cody. Well, we ran the first half of that interview, anyway: the second half had gone missing. I recently located the rest of the interview, however, and now I’m sharing it with you! In this portion of the interview she and I touch on

Rainy-Day Katehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07975999092917757308noreply@blogger.com1http://www.goodprattle.com/2009/12/hollywood-screenwriter-diablo-cody-take.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2681768916949523101.post-72092132789777638592009-12-19T23:59:00.000-08:002009-12-20T01:05:30.366-08:002009-12-20T01:05:30.366-08:00

Yes, their name really is fun., and their songs live up to that moniker: their debut album Aim and Ignite is bright, colorful, and joyful, and it brings cheer to all who listen. (Anyone to whom it does not, I suspect, isn't human.) Their songs, such as 'Light A Roman Candle With Me' and 'Barlights', are beautifully named; their melodies soar and their lyrics are touching. The Brooklyn-based band

Rainy-Day Katehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07975999092917757308noreply@blogger.com0http://www.goodprattle.com/2009/12/indie-band-fun.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2681768916949523101.post-84535505311711061802009-12-12T19:54:00.000-08:002009-12-12T20:45:17.808-08:002009-12-12T20:45:17.808-08:00

This week we've got an interview with a band Albert Hammond, Jr., likes so much he has agreed to produce their first album. He's got good taste: the Postelles are retro pop-rock like you haven't heard since... well... since retro was modern. All four band members hail from New York City; they went to high school together in Manhattan, where they formed the Postelles, and half the band is still

Rainy-Day Katehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07975999092917757308noreply@blogger.com0http://www.goodprattle.com/2009/12/nyc-based-band-postelles.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2681768916949523101.post-13305867335403656962009-12-05T19:46:00.000-08:002009-12-05T21:25:13.785-08:002009-12-05T21:25:13.785-08:00

Forest Fire was divided between Brooklyn, NY, and Portland, OR, when they were recording their debut album Survival; as a result, it was assembled over a period of eight months. This forced them to spend a lot of time meditating on and perfecting their material between recording sessions, and this extra work shows: Survival is an intricate gem of an album that deserves to be heard by everyone.

Rainy-Day Katehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07975999092917757308noreply@blogger.com0http://www.goodprattle.com/2009/12/brooklyn-based-band-forest-fire.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2681768916949523101.post-16513272716464475462009-11-28T20:12:00.000-08:002009-11-28T21:40:17.101-08:002009-11-28T21:40:17.101-08:00

This is another interview concerning the excellent film Dare, which follows three teenagers—Alexa (Emmy Rossum), Ben (Ashley Springer), and Johnny (Zach Gilford)—over their last semester of high school; in this time they take risks and form relationships with each other, and the consequences of these actions change all three of them profoundly. You might remember Ana Gasteyer (who plays Ben's

Rainy-Day Katehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07975999092917757308noreply@blogger.com0http://www.goodprattle.com/2009/11/dare-actress-ana-gasteyer.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2681768916949523101.post-55512574012555839772009-11-21T19:15:00.000-08:002009-11-21T20:16:17.814-08:002009-11-21T20:16:17.814-08:00

There's this film out called Dare. You might have heard of it... especially if you've been reading Good Prattle's most recent interviews. In case you haven't, well, it's a film about three high school seniors looking to experience life in some way before they leave for college, and it's probably the most... nakedly... honest film about high school that has been released in several years. Alan

Rainy-Day Katehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07975999092917757308noreply@blogger.com0http://www.goodprattle.com/2009/11/dare-actor-alan-cumming.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2681768916949523101.post-51584916357017226222009-11-14T14:10:00.000-08:002009-11-14T16:45:00.344-08:002009-11-14T16:45:00.344-08:00

The film Dare is a dark, realistic drama about high school in which popular kid Johnny Drake, a second-semester high school senior, forms relationships with two outcasts named Alexa (Emmy Rossum, with whom we spoke last week) and Ben (Ashley Springer). The consequences of this new-found closeness change all three teenagers profoundly. Johnny is played by Friday Night Lights veteran Zach Gilford;

Rainy-Day Katehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07975999092917757308noreply@blogger.com0http://www.goodprattle.com/2009/11/dare-actor-zach-gilford.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2681768916949523101.post-22434723913872675292009-11-07T18:36:00.000-08:002009-11-07T19:48:18.168-08:002009-11-07T19:48:18.168-08:00

Emmy Rossum is probably best-known for her turn as Christine in the film adaptation of The Phantom of the Opera; almost every article written about her stresses the fact that she was an opera singer as a young girl. But in the film Dare, in which she delivers what is arguably her best performance ever, there is nary a song in sight—or, rather, in earshot. In this film she plays Alexa, a good girl

Rainy-Day Katehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07975999092917757308noreply@blogger.com1http://www.goodprattle.com/2009/11/dare-actress-emmy-rossum.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2681768916949523101.post-84761474207795818812009-10-24T20:55:00.000-07:002009-10-24T21:28:04.714-07:002009-10-24T21:28:04.714-07:00

Sophie Okonedo has spent the past twenty years building up a stellar reputation as an actress, and this reputation is certainly well-merited: the RADA graduate was nominated for an Oscar in 2004, after all, for her role in Hotel Rwanda. And her latest project is based on real life as well: the upcoming movie Skin recounts the life of one Sandra Laing, a South African woman born during the

Rainy-Day Katehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07975999092917757308noreply@blogger.com0http://www.goodprattle.com/2009/10/british-skin-actress-sophie-okonedo.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2681768916949523101.post-69372297362909650922009-10-17T20:53:00.000-07:002009-10-17T21:31:12.979-07:002009-10-17T21:31:12.979-07:00

Corbin Bleu made his name doing Disney but he thankfully has the maturity of someone his own age, if not somewhat older, rather than an age more typical among fans of his early work. He seems to be doing a good job navigating Hollywood post-High School Musical; he was, after all, cast in Ashton Kutcher's racy television series The Beautiful Life (it was canceled after two episodes, sure, but the

Rainy-Day Katehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07975999092917757308noreply@blogger.com1http://www.goodprattle.com/2009/10/free-style-actor-corbin-bleu.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2681768916949523101.post-9667669407533733492009-10-10T18:58:00.000-07:002009-10-10T19:26:09.368-07:002009-10-10T19:26:09.368-07:00

There are very few writers in Hollywood who command name recognition. Perhaps the newest person to join their ranks is Juno scribe Diablo Cody, who has since gone on to helm the excellent TV show United States of Tara and pen the recently released horror-comedy film Jennifer's Body. Herein we talk about Bust magazine, being on Showtime, and the beauty of Heathers. Enjoy; it's a treat!Hi, Diablo.

Rainy-Day Katehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07975999092917757308noreply@blogger.com4http://www.goodprattle.com/2009/10/jennifers-body-writer-diablo-cody.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2681768916949523101.post-9605204862950388632009-10-03T20:46:00.000-07:002009-10-03T22:09:39.495-07:002009-10-03T22:09:39.495-07:00

In the past two weeks of Bright Star content I have already spoken glowingly about the film and the efforts of those who worked on it; I have spoken on its brilliance as a period piece that transcends the period in which it is set and I have remarked on the truly magnificent performances that populate this work. Perhaps the most incandescent such performance in the film (and, as I have by now

Rainy-Day Katehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07975999092917757308noreply@blogger.com1http://www.goodprattle.com/2009/10/bright-star-actress-abbie-cornish.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2681768916949523101.post-65670013244777987872009-09-26T20:38:00.001-07:002009-09-26T20:54:42.190-07:002009-09-26T20:54:42.190-07:00

We have already spoken glowingly of Jane Campion's new film Bright Star, but it bears repeating: this film might just be the best of the year. Despite its centuries-past setting there is something astonishingly timeless about this beautiful depiction of the affair between great poet John Keats and his neighbor Fanny Brawne; long story short, Miz Jane Campion has done it again. Last week we spoke

Rainy-Day Katehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07975999092917757308noreply@blogger.com0http://www.goodprattle.com/2009/09/bright-star-director-jane-campion.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2681768916949523101.post-16138298403003344492009-09-19T20:20:00.001-07:002009-09-19T20:58:32.411-07:002009-09-19T20:58:32.411-07:00

Bright Star, Academy Award-winning director Jane Campion's new film about the love affair of the young Romantic poet John Keats and his 18-year-old neighbor Fanny Brawne (Abbie Cornish), will by the end of the year probably have been the best film of 2009. Lyrical and chaste but shockingly modern in atmosphere, excellently executed not only in terms of acting and writing and directing but in

Rainy-Day Katehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07975999092917757308noreply@blogger.com1http://www.goodprattle.com/2009/09/bright-star-actor-ben-whishaw.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2681768916949523101.post-5445102534430389092009-09-12T20:41:00.000-07:002009-09-12T21:22:59.872-07:002009-09-12T21:22:59.872-07:00

In all likelihood you've already heard their breakout hit She Loves Everybody or have seen the condom-wrapper packaging for their first single. D.A. Wallach and Max Drummey, the boys of indie pop-rock band Chester French, sure like to get crafty with the trimmings. But beyond all the fun, futzy stuff is a band that makes really good indie pop-rock music. And they like to get fun with questions,

Rainy-Day Katehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07975999092917757308noreply@blogger.com0http://www.goodprattle.com/2009/09/american-indie-band-chester-french.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2681768916949523101.post-4289265925477585802009-09-04T22:26:00.000-07:002009-09-08T12:51:32.831-07:002009-09-08T12:51:32.831-07:00

After what will have been eight spectacular seasons, Monk is finally packing it in... and you can bet he's doing so as neatly and methodically as possible. It's a sure bet, truly, that the final season will leave no loose end untied. Tony Shalhoub (the actor responsible, over the past eight years, for the portrayal of Adrian Monk himself) certainly intends to do his part to ensure this. This week

Rainy-Day Katehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07975999092917757308noreply@blogger.com0http://www.goodprattle.com/2009/09/monk-actor-tony-shalhoub.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2681768916949523101.post-33859286303074314262009-08-29T13:17:00.000-07:002009-08-29T13:28:17.642-07:002009-08-29T13:28:17.642-07:00

“Everybody knows who he is, right? He’s so famous. His tan is… so famous.” George Hamilton has decades of Hollywood experience to his name and still the first thing that the actor playing Hamilton in My One And Only can think to mention about him is his tan. In all fairness, however, this is probably true of almost everybody: Hamilton himself is an icon—but his tan is legendary. At the press day

Rainy-Day Katehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07975999092917757308noreply@blogger.com0http://www.goodprattle.com/2009/08/perma-tan-hollywood-legend-george.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2681768916949523101.post-74740390938937449722009-08-22T18:46:00.000-07:002009-08-22T20:55:23.792-07:002009-08-22T20:55:23.792-07:00

Teenagers are hard to come by in Hollywood. I don't mean nineteen-year-olds pretending to be in high school; I mean real live honest-to-god teenagers. Logan Lerman, at seventeen, is one of them. He's certainly sharp, but he hasn't let the industry age him to the point of being an adolescent with the maturity of a 40-year-old; he's his age—he's simply intelligent. He's also articulate, talented,

Rainy-Day Katehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07975999092917757308noreply@blogger.com2http://www.goodprattle.com/2009/08/my-one-and-only-actor-logan-lerman.html