Modern Beauty Trends: In: Jennifer Lawrence’s Spy Games

Friday, March 2, 2018

In: Jennifer Lawrence’s Spy Games | Out: Vigilantes

Which movie will prevail at the Oscars this weekend? No one really knows.
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“Not looking like anybody else has made things easier for me, because I’m distinctive.” —Rebel Wilson

Gritty Spies

Hollywood Vigilantes

Jennifer Lawrence may be playing a female spy in Red Sparrow, but don’t call her the female Bond. She isn’t very Atomic Blonde either, for that matter. Lawrence has instead cast her role as a look at the international spy life stripped of glamour and mythology. Her character is a former ballerina who goes through punishing training to become a “sparrow,” a Russian operative meant to gain intelligence through seduction, until she thinks about defecting. The film has its critical champions, and all agree there are some intriguing elements. But the general consensus is that the whole thing doesn’t quite work, and it’s not expected to dethrone Black Panther at the box office. While Sparrow is a break from Hollywood’s notion of spies, this weekend’s other big film dives deep into the Hollywood mythology of the vigilante. Yes, the Bruce Willis–starring Death Wish is a remake of the classic Charles Bronson flick, with divisive director Eli Roth at the helm. Critics haven’t yet gotten a chance to take their hits at it, however. The indiesphere remains mostly silent on Oscars weekend, with the sole exception being the American release of the acclaimed Israeli film Foxtrot.

Frances McDormand, Gary Oldman, Allison Janney, and Sam Rockwell

Saoirse Ronan, Timothée Chalamet, Laurie Metcalf, and Willem Dafoe?

Of course, the real cinematic event of the weekend is actually on TV. The Oscars are finally here, and it’s a bit of an odd year since Hollywood finds itself straddling its past prolicitivites (dusty period films, to put it bluntly) and the future that its younger voters want (prestige genre films with more-diverse casts and directors). Fittingly, the race that seems the most wide open at this point is the one for Best Picture: Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri has been the MVP of awards season, but some feel the film may be too divisive to succeed here, given the Academy’s unique preferential ballot in this category. Get Out is the youthful underdog that could represent a sea change in what we think of as Oscar-worthy movies. (Sadly, word is that some of the Academy’s older voters didn’t see the film because they reportedly didn’t think it was worth it.) Then there’s The Shape of Water, which both camps seem to like and may emerge as the ultimate consensus winner. (And, oh, boy, isn’t it something that this year’s “safe choice” involves a woman romancing a sea monster?) And somehow, Dunkirk and Lady Bird are still in the conversation. Hopefully, the awards won’t be a repeat of last year’s fiasco, but there’s still sure to be a lot of drama at the end of the night. The acting races, meanwhile, seem more or less settled. Frances McDormand, Gary Oldman, Allison Janney, and Sam Rockwell are now far and away the favorites. Though, even the potential upsets seem easy to figure out (Saoirse Ronan, Timothée Chalamet, Laurie Metcalf, and Willem Dafoe may as well be our official first alternatives). Should anyone else prevail, expect audible gasps in the room.

Brad and Leo

Tom Cruise

After months of rumors, Quentin Tarantino has confirmed that Brad Pitt and Leonardo DiCaprio will star in his upcoming film Once Upon a Time in Hollywood. That means Tom Cruise, also rumored to have been in the mix for one of the two lead roles, is the odd man out (no word on whether he just wasn’t interested, or whether he just wasn’t right for a part). Oh well. The two very famous men who did get cast will be playing a couple of Hollywood washups in 1969, and one of the characters just so happens to live next door to Sharon Tate (Margot Robbie has reportedly been offered that role). The film will somehow tie together Hollywood mythology, the Manson murders, and the hippie movement. Though the film doesn’t come without controversy. Many still find Tarantino questionable after the story of Uma Thurman’s on-set crash during Kill Bill emerged, and the director has also been under fire for old comments he made seemingly defending Roman Polanski. The fact that Polanski, who was married to Tate at the time of her murder, is rumored to end up being a character in the film makes it all even messier.