I'm not going to pretend to understand the legalities here. I suspect that like most of us educated in the U.S., my knowledge of Canadian politics and history is sorely lacking, but I have that nostalgic liberal (and that's not a four-letter word, Fox News!) American tendency to view Canada as a little more sane than the land of my birth. You know, health care, gun control, laws that occasionally recognize LGBT citizens as human beings.

But it looks like more than my delusions of utopia could be at risk. Working its way through the Canadian government right now is a bill that would give the Canadian Heritage minister the right to ax promised funding for any film project it deems “offensive.” This apparently includes “gratuitous violence, significant sexual content that lacks an educational purpose, or denigration of an identifiable group.” That would seem to include films like these:

When Night Is Falling

Exotica

  … continue reading

The Golden Globes might be less than golden this year. The ongoing writers' strike has threatened the upcoming awards show, set to air Jan. 13. The WGA plans to picket the event, meaning no writers for the show. The presence of a WGA picket line also might mean no presenters to hand out the lovely little globe shaped statues. Of course, the lack of presenters may be unimportant, as the nominees aren't all that likely to cross the picket lines either.

That's right, ladies. We may have to live without the stars at this year's event. No Golden Globe girl, no red carpet roundups, no fashion reports from Joan and Melissa Rivers ... OK, there is at least one upside to this strike business.

Despite my distaste for the Rivers' family commentary, I was planning to watch some of the pre-show prancing in the distant hope that Jodie Foster might actually walk hand-in-hand down the red carpet with Cydney. A girl can dream.

… continue reading

I was also really looking forward to listening to Holly Hunter's shiver-inducing drawl as she accepted her trophy for her brilliant performance in Saving Grace.

One of my childhood memories is a time at my cousin's 12th birthday party when I thoughtfully said, "Twelve is such a ripe old age." I don't know what led to that pronouncement, but I remember it often, even several multiples of 12 later. Age is like that. Each milestone seems far away, then one day you realize that a lot of them are behind you. It's not a bad thing — older really is better — it's just surprising. A few weeks ago, one of America's favorite children reached one of those milestones when Caroline Kennedy turned 50.

Kennedy certainly has accomplished a lot in her adulthood, but to many of us, she always will be JFK's little girl. And "Sweet Caroline." … continue reading

Holly Hunter returns to TNT tonight at 10/9c in Saving Grace. I haven't been a fan of the show so far, but I just watched the "rapid recap" of season 1 on TNT.com and was pretty entertained.

Plus, Holly Hunter is gorgeous and incredibly talented. Sounds like a good way to warm up on a December evening. … continue reading

How do you get a bunch of actors to stop talking? Wait, wait: I know this one. Does it involve a pineapple, a screwdriver and a three-legged dog? Oh, sorry; you weren't joking? In all seriousness, the way to get a group of top-flight, big-name actors to finally stop speaking is to stop giving them scripts. A slew of A-list actors are appearing in the new Speechless campaign, a collaboration between the striking members of the Writers Guild of America and members of the Screen Actors Guild.

So far 14 black-and-white, mostly wordless spots have been released, with more on the way. Among the actors already appearing are Oscar winners like Holly Hunter, Susan Sarandon and Sean Penn and TV heavyweights like America Ferrera, Eva Longoria and Ed Asner. Even L Word alums like Rosanna Arquette and Alan Cumming joined in the silence. Here are some of my favorites so far. (For the entire list, check the Speechless channel on Brightcove.) … continue reading

Boo! Did I scare you? No, well, fine. But I do know a scary secret. Lean close, I'll tell you. Closer. A bit closer. Boo! OK, come on, that time I had to scare you, just a little. Actually, this news is probably only truly terrifying to the actresses whose dirty little secrets I’m about to spill. You see, before they were screen queens, these ladies were all scream queens. Sure, they’re all big Oscar winners, A-listers and TV stars now. But at the start of their careers, they were just glorified bait. Here's a look at 10 actresses' horrific early careers.

Jamie Lee Curtis (Halloween, 1978): Like mother, like daughter. Jamie Lee followed in her mom Janet Leigh’s bloody footprints by squaring off with a Psycho killer. But at least Jamie got to live to fight another day, albeit two decades later in Halloween H20. … continue reading

I am not particularly drawn to the paranormal. As I mentioned previously, I had a few issues after my brother tricked me into seeing Poltergeist. And it's not just that I get scared. (Of course, it's partly that I get scared.) It's also that it's just not my thing most of the time. I did watch The Twilight Zone, and I like the occasional campy heaven-and-hell–themed movie (Two of a Kind, Oh God, Switch). And there's The Hunger. But that's not about the vampires.

It seems, however, that my tastes do not reflect the current television lineup. Alessandra Stanley, the New York Times TV reviewer who recently expressed dismay at how insecure the new Jaime Sommers is, notes that this season is paranormal-heavy. I must say I agree with her that it is pretty weird.

She noted that a few of the paranormal shows have been on for a least a couple of years:

The Ghost Whisperer

… continue reading

We've been hearing an awful lot about the elder stateswomen of Hollywood taking over the airwaves lately. From Glenn Close in Damages, Kyra Sedgwick in The Closer, Sally Field in Brothers & Sisters to Mary-Louise Parker in Weeds, Lili Taylor in State of Mind and Holly Hunter in Saving Grace, women of a certain age have been generating a whole lot of buzz. Even Whoopi Goldberg joining The View could be viewed as part of the "trend."

With all this positivity going on around about these lovely ladies, I'm led to wonder about the future. What I want to know is this: Are any of today's youngsters going to be ready to step up to the plate when these ladies take their final bows and gracefully exit the stage? Now, I know that's likely a long way off, but that doesn't make my curiosity any less. So I decided to don my Carnac the Magnificent-like turban and see if I could find any answers in my crystal ball. Forgive me if said crystal ball provides some somewhat strange replies. The power is on the fritz here due to some nasty thunderstorms last night, and I'm afraid my battery supply is being used elsewhere. (I meant in flashlights, people!) … continue reading

This is about the best argument against on-the-job training I’ve ever seen. If you’ve wondered what would happen if you put an Academy Award–winning actress and an inexperienced reporter together and let the cameras roll, this is the clip for you.

Last week, video surfaced of ABCNewsNow reporter Merry Miller (no, I did not make that name up) interviewing Holly Hunter. The live segment was supposed to promote Holly’s new TNT series Saving Grace. Instead, the result was more like a Christopher Guest mockumentary. Please witness four minutes of awkward. Just try to sit through it without wincing: … continue reading

Last night I returned from the Television Critics Assocation summer press tour in Los Angeles, where I spent five days trapped at the Beverly Hilton attending press conferences from what seemed to be almost every single network on cable television. Throughout all those press conferences, one theme seemed to crop up repeatedly: If you're a mature actress (as in, over 30) who wants to play a complex, strong woman, get a job on cable.

On TNT's Saving Grace, Holly Hunter plays an Oklahoma City police detective who hits bottom when she almost kills someone by driving drunk, then begins getting advice from an unconventional angel named Earl (Leon Rippy).

Laura San Giacomo and Holly Hunter of Saving Grace

When asked why we're experiencing such a golden age for female characters on cable, Hunter theorized: "I actually believe that it's probably because of cable. It probably really and truly is that cable has kind of changed the landscape, semi-permanently, at least, because it's a money maker, and it happens to be ... made for less money. And so risks can be greater because less cash is at risk. It's not in competition with network. So every single thing about it adds up to the people who were wanting to take some chances, are given the opportunity." … continue reading

In Sunday's New York Times, an article titled "In the Prime of Their Time" focused on older actresses on TV. Here are the (kind of silly) opening lines:

"Botox and plastic surgery allow actress to look younger. Television is permitting them to act their age. Older stars who once had to resign themselves to playing frustrated spinsters or docile moms are suddenly flaunting their ripened sex appeal on television. It's not 'The Roman Spring of Mrs. Stone' anymore. This season marks the summer of hot cougar love."

Let's all take a moment to roll our eyes at the "cougar" thing. OK, done? Anyway, the first name mentioned in the article is, of course, Kyra Sedgwick's — The Closer starts its third season today (TNT, 9/8c). But Sedgwick's character, Deputy Police Chief Brenda Johnson, is dating someone age-appropriate, so the rest of the article focuses on some saucier pairings.

Too bad this photo of Holly Hunter and Laura San Giacomo doesn't actually depict a couple. They're just co-stars, in Saving Grace, which premieres July 18 on TNT. Hunter plays a cynical cop with a touched-by-an-angel-ish shot at redemption.

… continue reading