Eric wrote:What I see here is a star (or thereabouts) willing to call out the Oscar hype machine for what it really is: a vehicle to drive profits.
Ah yes, and who better to call out the Oscar whore machine than a black star (or thereabouts) who willingly sold out for money in a modern minstrel movie?
That being said, Monique's performance is the best thing about Blood Diamond Part II: White Guilt Strikes Harlem.
I kind of agree with Wes. I hate Precious but by the end of the film I was so drawn in by the complex vulnerability that Mo'Nique presents to us that I didn't want it to end. And then it did. This character is a horrible, horrible woman throughout but in the final scenes, Wow! The fact that I could possibly want to sit through more of Precious is some kind of testimony to Mo'Nique.
I think in Welles' mind, Mo'Nique is being targeting and not Sean Penn is because he is somehow above Mo'Nique. He's an important actor while she's just Mo'Nique. If Sean Penn doesn't show, it's because he's off doing important Sean Penn business. Mo'Nique cannot do anything of importance on Sean Penn's level.
At first, I felt her performance was merely a kind of unrepentant evil. However, her final scene with Mariah Carey completely changed my opinion of it. At that moment, she becomes less of what her daughter sees and more of a complex figure, her actions are not in the least bit justified, but something in the way she delivers with conviction and self-certainty for why she acted as she had rings true. It's like we've not seen the character in full and her actions suddenly carry weight. We don't change our opinion of her, but we see her as someone wit a measurable amount of depth. I have to give credit to Mo'Nique. Her performance is astoundingly good.
Wesley Lovell
"Any society that would give up a little liberty to gain a little security will deserve neither and lose both." - Benjamin Franklin
Eric wrote:Jeffrey Wells is a racist. He is far from alone.
I'm sure that crack was meant for me, but is so far from the truth it's not worth a response, however I have sadly come to the conclusion that Wells is a racist.
Yesterday he had a pointless rant about never having seen a film in his life with a mostly black audience, that he never will. He "heard" urban audiences talk at the screen, rattle candy wrappers and go to the bathroom too much. It was sickening, as were the many responses agreeing with him.
Anyway, I caught a little of Joy Behar's rebroadcast interview with Mo'Nique last night. They had a split screen image of the actress alongside her image from the film. I must say the difference is striking. I had thought she was either heavily made up or even more bravely appeared without makeup in the film, but she did more than that. Her facial expressions, especially the way her lips are pursed in the film, are so completely different from her natural look. She said she refused to watch the rushes during the making of the film. A good thing, I don't think she would have been able to go on with the same level of ferocity if she had actually see herself.
My problem with the character in the film is that she is presented as so totally evil that she ceases to be believable at some point - no one could be that rotten for so long and not be called out. Then I realized that the woman is meant to be seen through her daughter's eyes, rather than as might actually have been, growing ever more hideous as Precious comes to the realization that she could and should have a better life without her. In that context the character makes perfect sense.
The film may not make my top ten list, but I'm now a Mo'Nique supporter whether or not she shows up to collect her Oscar.
For once, it took a poster on Goldderby to ask the correct question. Why wasn't this a big deal when Helen Mirren and Heath Ledger didn't show up to collect their award at the NYFCC function during the years they won? And has Sean Penn ever snubbed them?
Sean Penn has only won one NYFCC award (last year for Milk) and he did attend the ceremony and accept it.
This is all very much ado about nothing.
"I want cement covering every blade of grass in this nation! Don't we taxpayers have a voice anymore?" Peggy Gravel (Mink Stole) in John Waters' Desperate Living (1977)
1) Jeff Wells has been waging a near-daily campaign against Mo Nique at his site. No rumor is too far-fetched to flog, no interpretation too negative to presume. And given his past expressed revulsion for fat people, one can't help but wonder if that's what's primarily behind it all.
2) Did anyone else notice that pretty much all the "it's because she wants to be paid" quotes in O'Neil's story are from anonymous sources? I've learned to disregard such things in political reporting, and it's very easy to do the same here. Give me some real journalism and maybe I'll take your premise seriously.
3) While I may not go all the way to Eric's she's-my-hero position, I certainly can root on someone who doesn't feel she has to surrender to every inch of the Oscar hype machine. Now...if people would start not showing up for the Broadcast Critics, that'd really get my support.
For once, it took a poster on Goldderby to ask the correct question. Why wasn't this a big deal when Helen Mirren and Heath Ledger didn't show up to collect their award at the NYFCC function during the years they won? And has Sean Penn ever snubbed them?
Big Magilla wrote:I agree missing the NYFC awards is no big deal and she certainly would seem to have a valid excuse.
The rest of it, though, doesn't paint a very nice picture. I'm sure she would have been compensated for her travel, hotel accommodations and meals while promoting the film but holding her hand out for $100,000 in compensation for one appearance with the rest of the cast just because Oprah is now attached to the film, is extortion.
It would be extortion if she meant it literally, and not as a joke coming from the comedienne she is. Instead of reading her words as filtered through a trouble-making hack "journalist", you can listen to them first-hand and judge for yourself. Me, I'm relieved to finally hear this level of candor coming from a potential Oscar nominee.
Precious costar Mo'Nique, whose performance has been way over-praised but has nonetheless locked an Oscar nomination for Best Supporting Actress, is continuing to give Academy members reasons not to vote for her. The latest boner, as reported by Gold Derby's Tom O'Neil, is her decision not to accept her Best Supporting Actress award from the New York Film Critics Circle on 1.11.
A rep explains that "Mo'Nique and her family will just be returning from vacation that very night" [presumably she means Monday, 1.11] and that "she begins taping her TV show in the a.m. on the 12th."
Bullshit, bullshit, bullshit. If Mo'Nique had any respect for the NYFCC she would cut short her vacation by a day or so and haul her lard ass up to Manhattan on the 11th. It's 12.19 today -- she's got over three weeks to figure this out. And who ends their vacations on a Monday? People flying coach and looking to avoid the crowds?
If Mo'Nique is worried about being fresh and well-rested for the taping of her Atlanta talk show, she could probably delay the start of taping by a day. She could certainly hop on a NY-to-Atlanta plane on the night of the 11th and get a good five or six hours sleep, no problem. So she's full of shit. She's not attending the NYFCC ceremony because she doesn't care to -- end of story.
And one of the reasons she doesn't care to, I suspect, is because the NYFCC is being honcho'ed this year by an outspoken African-American critic, Armond White, who thinks Precious is a load of crap. So in addition to "attitude queen" and "show me the money" we can add "coward" to the list of Mo'Nique slogans, pronouns and adjectives.
Response quotes: Yesterday a prominent NYFCC member, speaking anonymously to O'Neil, said Mo'Nique's snub lends "credence to the story that she wants to be paid to show up for these things."
Us Weekly's Thelma Adams adds the following: "As a NYFCC member, my response is more snacks and drinks for us, and more available seats for more congenial people. My guess is that Meryl will attend."
The NYFCC ceremony will take place at Crimson in the Flatiron district.
I agree missing the NYFC awards is no big deal and she certainly would seem to have a valid excuse.
The rest of it, though, doesn't paint a very nice picture. I'm sure she would have been compensated for her travel, hotel accommodations and meals while promoting the film but holding her hand out for $100,000 in compensation for one appearance with the rest of the cast just because Oprah is now attached to the film, is extortion.
Big Magilla wrote:However, Terrie Williams tells Gold Derby that the reason isn't because the critics refuse to pay Mo'Nique an appearance fee. Williams says, "Mo'Nique and her family will just be returning from vacation that very night. She begins taping her TV show in the a.m. on the 12th" in Atlanta.
She puts her family and her job committments before Armond White? Primadonna.
Big Magilla wrote:A source told the New York Daily News, "Mo'Nique said she signed on to do this film for a small amount of money. She said she didn't care about 'no Oscar' — all that mattered was 'those Benjamins!'
...
"What are you campaigning for, though?" she asks. "Let me ask y'all this, because I know y'all are gonna school me correctly: What does it mean financially?"
What I see here is a star (or thereabouts) willing to call out the Oscar hype machine for what it really is: a vehicle to drive profits.
"Mo'Nique will NOT turn up to accept her award from the New York Film Critics Circle, which seems to lend credence to the story that she wants to be paid to show up for these things," a member of the circle e-mails Gold Derby.
Mo'Nique's rep confirms that the star of "Precious: Based on the Novel 'Push' by Sapphire" will not attend the Manhattan critics' banquet on Jan. 11 where director Lee Daniels will accept the supporting-actress award on his star's behalf at Crimson restaurant. However, Terrie Williams tells Gold Derby that the reason isn't because the critics refuse to pay Mo'Nique an appearance fee. Williams says, "Mo'Nique and her family will just be returning from vacation that very night. She begins taping her TV show in the a.m. on the 12th" in Atlanta.
Williams says she doesn't yet know if Mo'Nique will attend other award ceremonies where her presence is expected. "We're still firming up plans," she adds. Mo'Nique has already won best supporting actress from the Los Angeles Film Critics Assn., which will bestow its prizes at a dinner to be held on Jan. 16 at the InterContinental Hotel. She's also nominated at the Critics' Choice Awards (Jan. 15), Golden Globes (Jan. 17) and SAG Awards (Jan. 23) in Los Angeles. Mo'nique precious movie news
Many Oscar gurus believe Mo'Nique may be ruining her Oscar hopes by refusing to campaign and support "Precious" while also allegedly making outrageous demands for money that is not customarily paid to promote small artsy films. Mo'Nique didn't show up at the Toronto Film Festival and, even though Lionsgate promised that she'd attend the New York Film Festival, she skipped it too.
Roger Friedman of the Hollywood Reporter noted recently, "Rumors have been swirling for some time that the actress-comedienne … has been demanding payments for personal appearances to promote the movie. One source close to the production insists that Mo’Nique asked for $100,000 at one point to show up with the rest of the cast."
A source told the New York Daily News, "Mo'Nique said she signed on to do this film for a small amount of money. She said she didn't care about 'no Oscar' — all that mattered was 'those Benjamins!' Because Oprah and Tyler Perry are backing the film, she feels as though there should be a budget to pay for her promotional duties."
Lionsgate denies that Mo'Nique is refusing to promote the film, noting that she's made appearances on the "Today" show and other programs, but she also used those media opportunities to tout her new BET network chat show.
Scott Feinberg (AndTheWinnerIs) recently dug up a shocking clip of Mo'Nique's TV show from early November when she chatted with past Oscar nominees Terence Howard ("Hustle & Flow") and Taraji P. Henson ("The Curious Case of Benjamin Button"). Bluntly, she asked them why she should bother campaigning.
"What are you campaigning for, though?" she asks. "Let me ask y'all this, because I know y'all are gonna school me correctly: What does it mean financially?"
Howard tries strenuously to explain to Mo'Nique that she needs to pitch in to help to spread the word about a small, important, artistic film so that it can be widely seen and become successful, but she just doesn't appear to grasp the idea.
"My feeling is just different in reference to this campaigning," she says. "I'm really trying to understand it. When they say 'campaign' I say, 'Wait a minute! President Barack Obama had to campaign because he had something to prove that he could do it, but — whoa! — the performance is on the screen so at what point am I still trying to prove something?"
"Your fans here aren't members of the academy," Howard explains to her. "You have to reach that whole other group of people."
Mo'Nique looks befuddled. She doesn't understand any of it.
Gold Derby asked a rep for Lionsgate to comment, but we did not hear back.
