#ThinkpieceThursday – Coincidence Tanks Top of the Lake: China Girl

#ThinkpieceThursday – Contrived coincidences make Top of the Lake: China Girl lose credibility

Ladies in Lavender – Day Twenty Two – #40movie40day

Ladies in Lavender is a slight wistful film filled with yearning, jealousy and regret. Dame Judi Dench and Dame Maggie Smith give tender nuanced performances filled with love and longing.

Beyond Lemonade – Positioning

A Project Document explains the concept, characters, marketing and branding to anyone who works on Beyond Lemonade or provides services to the project (writers, producers, production staff, ad agencies, web designers or PR people).

Cougar Town – When a Character Doesn’t Ring True

Cortney Cox’s character is is poorly defined, cartoonish and utterly inauthentic. She acts like a thirty-year old Judd Apatow guy trapped in a one-note joke about being desperate but clumsy in the attempt to get laid.

Vulnerability Scenes

Everyone who has heard me speak or teach knows how fundamental vulnerability is to making a movie or television show memorable. The way an audience BONDS with a character is through scenes where the character is vulnerable. Here are some of my favorites– what are yours?

Revolutionary Road – Power of Idealism

The film Revolutionary Road tells the story of Frank and April Wheeler (Leonardo DiCaprio and Kate Winslet), two Power of Idealism characters who feel trapped in the bonds of a mundane suburban lifestyle.