The Hottest Actresses Of 2011

The actresses of 2011 are on a mission to make this year the hottest ever. I can't tell if it's summertime making me hot or these lovely ladies.

Mila Kunis - Friends With Benefits

It seems like you can’t flip a channel these days without hearing Mila Kunis’ name. She’s everywhere, smiling and radiant, from magazine covers to number two on Askmen’s Top 99 Women of 2011. If you happen to take a girl on date this summer and it’s to see Friends with Benefits, we won’t judge you. Because we’ll be doing the same exact thing.

Blake lively - Green Lantern

It’s been quite a year for young Ms. Lively. Her cellphone photos notwithstanding, Blake’s worked her way into a major summer blockbuster in Green Lantern. She may be on the one hottest women in Hollywood right now and certainly atop the A-list of actresses. We could write a whole bunch on her but let’s be honest; you’re here to soak in her beauty. Just Askmen, they ranked her number one for 2011.

Rosie Huntington-Whiteley - Transformers: Dark of the Moon

Rosie Hunington-Whiteley started off as one of the hottest women in the world anyway. Now she’s one of the hottest actresses of 2011 thanks to Megan Fox early departure from the Transformer’s franchise. In Transformers: Dark of the Moon, Rosie is the human equivalent of the all-spark, breathing life into Michael Bay’s robots-gone-wild explodeathon.

Emma Stone - The Amazing Spider-Man

You loved her in Superbad, you probably won’t see Crazy, Stupid, Love and, if you have a girlfriend, you might see Friends With Benefits. So why care about Emma Stone Simple, she’s Gwen Stacy in The Amazing Spider-Man. Fanboys around the world are squealing in glee for good reason. She’s a knockout redhead, with a playfully naughty side and one of 2011’s hottest actresses.

Natalie Portman - Your Highness

Perhaps the most recognizable scene in 2011 is Natalie Portman's behind in Your Highness. Pregnancy be damned. It’s one of the hottest scenes in 2011 and she’s still one of the hottest women working in Hollywood today. It doesn’t hurt that she’s in Thor, playing a ditzy, brilliant and entirely too trusting astro-physicist who falls for the hammer-wielding God of Thunder.

Jennifer Lawrence - X-Men: First Class

Remember Winter’s Bone? The movie about back country Ozark family held together by an intrepid young girl? That’s what we thought. Jennifer Lawrence was so under the radar in 2010, she could have landed in a walled compound in Abbottabad. That is, until a photo shoot in Esquire changed everything. The collective thud you heard was the jaws of men everywhere. In 2011, she stars as the shape-shifting Mystique in X-Men: First Class, and we’re hoping there are plenty of similar roles for her in the future.

Abbie Cornish - Sucker Punch

If you didn’t know Abbie Cornish before 2011, you definitely know her now. Sucker Punch put her on the walls of dorm rooms and desktops everywhere. In Limitless, she plays Lindy, stealing Bradley Cooper’s heart and making ours stop. Plain and simple, Cornish is hot.

Olivia Wilde - Cowboys & Aliens

Number thirty on Askmen’s Top 99 Women of 2011, Olivia Wilde, continues to bewitch audiences. She’s staring in John Favreau’s Cowboys & Aliens, fulfilling the dusty fantasies of sci-fi and western fans everywhere. The bewitching brunette made men everywhere want to climb into a computer and ride a light cycle.

Emma Watson - Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2

As Hermoine, Emma Watson, stole the hearts of people around the world. The final installment of Harry Potter is due to hit theaters this week and Watson is ready to be one of the hottest actresses of 2011. The English born isn’t wasting any time breaking about from her magical roots. She’s due to star as Lucy in My Week with Marilyn later in the year alongside the likes of Kenneth Branagh and Dame Judy Dench.

Scarlett Johansson - The Avengers

Is there a year that Scarlet Johansson doesn’t qualify for a list like this? She’s one of the hottest actresses of the past decade and plays a range of roles. She’s a woman for all tastes and seasons. We’re hoping she makes an appearance at Comic-Con this year and dishes some dirt on the production of The Avengers. In her costume. Which is leather and super tight. Hmmmm.

Minka Kelly - The Roommate

Did you see the Roommate? Because you really, really should rent it from On-Demand. When you’re alone and ready to indulge in some seriously hot... um... drama. Trust us. Minka Kelly set to star in the upcoming TV reboot of Charlie’s Angels and her boyfriend, Derek Jeter, isn’t having that bad of a year either.

Black Swan Movie

 

 Black Swan Poster

 Black Swan Poster

Black Swa is and American psyckological thriller 2010 d irected by Aronofsky Darren. Starring  Natalie Portman and Vincent Cassel. Here are some pictures of it!

Black Swan Movie

 

 Black Swan Poster

 Black Swan Poster

Black Swa is and American psyckological thriller 2010 d irected by Aronofsky Darren. Starring  Natalie Portman and Vincent Cassel. Here are some pictures of it!

Oscarbation: It's a Wrap

the royals win...the zietgeist goes down down for the count. the critics and pundits are in a bitter snit. they say the academy embarrassed itself. they say 20 years from now the history of oscar will see the taint of their selection. i say 20 years from now the film will be remembered well and the current critics and pundits will not be remembered. i say the right choice was made with 'the king's speech' coming out on top. i think now it was not a true race. i believe the pundits tried to create a race. 'the social network' is a 2010-2011 film...a zietgeist. the king will reign for years to come.

colin was a lock. sandra had the key and opened the lock and charmingly awarded mr. firth his oscar after using her charm and personality to give each nominee his due as only she could. her 3-4 minutes on the stage were the best minutes of the night. she showed all the charm ms. hathaway could not throughout the proceedings. ms. hathaway has all the charm of a meat clever. what was all her bowing and kowtowing about? why was she kissing ms. bullocks buttocks? she will never be a sandra bullock. she is crass with a smile.

james franco got lousy reviews as host. he's james franco what did they expect? he is an independent spirit. he was himself. i say good for him. he kowtowed to no one. he doesn't have too. he's an amazing talent.

i hope melissa leo is aware that her phony and crass acceptance speech will show forever on you tube? i did not think it possible but her oscar acceptance was more over the top than her 'the fighter' performance. she won i get it. now just make her go away. helena and/or amy you were robbed. 

otherwise all was good. 'inception' was rewarded in the tech categories it deserved.  'social network' won editing which was deserved and score which it did not. 

the natalie portman and christian bale wins were expected and worthy. between them and colin the acting awards were 3/4 right on. 

it's now in the history books and before we know it it all begins again.

here's to the films of 2011. may you be as good as 2010 which in fact was a remarkable film year.

And The Oscars Go To...

Best Picture: The King’s Speech
Best Actress: Natalie Portman, Black Swan
Best Actor: Colin Firth, The King’s Speech
Best Director: Tom Hooper, The King’s Speech
Best Adapted Screenplay: Aaron Sorkin, The Social Network
Best Original Screenplay: David Seidler, The King’s Speech
Best Animated Feature: Toy Story 3
Best Supporting Actress: Melissa Leo, The Fighter
Best Supporting Actor: Christian Bale, The Fighter
Best Editing: Angus Wall, Kirk Baxter, The Social Network
Best Cinematography: Wally Pfister, Inception
Best Original Score: Trent Reznor, Atticus Ross, The Social Network
Best Art Direction: Alice in Wonderland
Best Costume Design: Alice in Wonderland
Best Visual Effects: Inception
Best Make-Up: The Wolfman
Best Sound Mixing: Inception
Best Sound Editing: Inception
Best Song: We Belong Together, Toy Story 3, Randy Newman
Best Documentary Short: Strangers No More
Best Live Action Short: God of Love
Best Animated Short: The Lost Thing
Best Foreign Language Film: In a Better World, Denmark
Best Documentary: Inside Job

to be continued

Spirit Award Winners in Independent Film

Best Feature: “Black Swan”
Best Director: Darren Aronofsky, “Black Swan”
Best Actor: James Franco, “127 Hours”
Best Actress: Natalie Portman, “Black Swan”
Best Supporting Actor: John Hawkes, “Winter’s Bone”
Best Supporting Actress: Dale Dickey, “Winter’s Bone”
Best Screenplay: Lisa Cholodenko and Stuart Blumberg, “The Kids Are All Right”
Best Documentary: “Exit Through the Gift Shop”
Best Foreign Film: “The King’s Speech”
Best First Feature: “Get Low”
John Cassavetes Award: “Daddy Longlegs”
Best First Screenplay: Lena Dunham, “Tiny Furniture”
Best Cinematography: Matthew Libatique, “Black Swan”
Robert Altman Award: The director, casting director and ensemble of “Please Give”
Piaget Producers Award: Anish Savjani, “Meek’s Cutoff”
Someone to Watch Award: Mike Ott, “Littlerock”
Truer Than Fiction Award: Jeff Malmberg, “Marwencol”

SAG 2010

to follow upon last night's late posting on the 2010 sag awards i present the winners

in film

the critics are pissed. the critical darling 'the social network' lost best ensemble to the most deserving 'the king's speech'. for those who may not be aware the best ensemble is the sags equivalent to best picture. i applaud the actors who looked at great acting as opposed to the stylistic presentation of despicable characters in 'the social network'. i can only hope the academy voters follow suit. deep in my heart i believe the king will reign supreme on february 27.

colin and natalie seem poised to win top acting honors at the oscars now more than ever. they should and will win

in tv

ensemble went to 'modern family' for comedy and 'boardwalk empire' for drama.

i was particularly happy and giddy that julianna margulies (the good wife) won best actress in a drama and betty white (hot in cleveland) won for best in comedy.

'The King's Speech' Takes Top SAG Award

'the king's speech' is on a roll and now heads toward oscar night as the front runner. just weeks ago 'the social network' seemed unstoppable. but since the pga, the dga and now the sag has gone royal everything is in turnaround. a lot of pundits thought 'the fighter' might take ensemble cast award tonight. they were wrong. i was right. the king, his therapist and their supporting cast ruled. so now we move on to the last stretch toward the oscars. it's a race for sure but the royals are now ahead by a pretty long nose. but the sag's sometimes get ahead of themselves. remember just three years ago when christie and cotillard upset the betting odds.

i've been on the firth and portman bandwagon for weeks now and tonight they prevailed.

the winners of the 2010 sag awards are

for film

Best Ensemble: “The King’s Speech”
Best Actor: Colin Firth, “The King’s Speech”
Best Actress: Natalie Portman, “Black Swan”
Best Supporting Actor: Christian Bale, “The Fighter”
Best Supporting Actress: Melissa Leo, “The Fighter”
Best Stunt Ensemble: “Inception” (presented on the red carpet)

and in television

Best Actress in a TV Movie or Miniseries: Claire Danes, “Temple Grandin”
Best Actor in a TV Movie or Miniseries: Al Pacino, “You Don’t Know Jack”
Best Ensemble in a Comedy Series: “Modern Family”
Best Actress in a Comedy Series: Betty White, “Hot in Cleveland”
Best Actor in a Comedy Series: Alec Baldwin, “30 Rock”
Best Ensemble in a Drama Series: “Boardwalk Empire”
Best Actress in a Drama Series: Julianna Margulies, “City Island”
Best Actor in a Drama Series: Steve Buscemi, “Boardwalk Empire”
Best Stunt Ensemble: “True Blood”

Rapace in running for Best Actress BAFTA!

Back in August last year I reported on rumours coming out of Hollywood that Noomi Rapace could be in the running for an Oscar nomination for her tremendous portrayal of Lisbeth Salander in the Swedish-language film adaptation of Stieg Larsson's books. Along with speculation that the makers of the English-language version might try to dampen any such hype, in case it damaged their own film.

I think, if all things were equal (which they never are in the entertainment world), Rapace would be a worthy shoo-in for at least an Oscar nomination. However it remains to be seen whether Hollywood would/will embrace the foreign-language performance. Rapace was overlooked by the Golden Globe Awards (I'm not sure whether her and the film were eligible, depending on their criteria) - Natalie Portman (BLACK SWAN) won Best Actress in a Drama ahead of four other English-language performances - but today comes welcome news that Britain's own film awards, the BAFTAs, have lined up Rapace as a deserved nominee in the Best Actress category.

Joining Rapace and Portman in the Best Actress category for the BAFTAs are Annette Bening and Julianne Moore (THE KIDS ARE ALRIGHT), along with Hailee Steinfeld (TRUE GRIT). Moore and Bening were both nominated in the Best Actress - Comedy or Musical category at the Golden Globes (Bening won the category), where like Rapace, Steinfield was overlooked by the Hollywood Foreign Press. It's kind of interesting that in fact the BAFTA list only includes three of the ten Best Actress nominees (Drama and Comedy/Musical) from the Golden Globes.

The Academy Award (Oscar) nominations will be announced next week. It would be fantastic (and deserved) to see Rapace on the list, but I'm not that hopeful of the American academy sharing the foresight of their British counterparts, even though there is some overlap between the bodies. A shame. In its latest 'Oscar predictions' rankings, Entertainment Weekly lists Rapace at number 10 for Best Actress, with bigger names (which may be preferred by the often-conservative American academy voters) and previous Oscar nominees and winners such as Hilary Swank, Michelle Williams and Nicole Kidman 'above' her (Halle Berry was also rated above her until the BAFTA nominations).

As I said in my review of Män som hatar kvinnor (aka the Girl with the Dragon Tattoo) in December 2009: "In terms of acting, I thought Noomi Rapace was brilliant as Lisbeth Salander. She conveyed the computer hacker’s conflict, confusion, anger, and uniqueness (amongst other things) exceptionally well through glances, gestures, and other non-speaking moments – not just scripted dialogue. Like the best performances, I never saw it as someone acting as Lisbeth Salander, rather Rapace was Lisbeth Salander. " Read the full review here.

What do you think of Rapace's performance as Salander (especially in the first film, which is eligible for this year's Oscars etc)? Do you think she deserves to be nominated? How does her performance compare to some of the other strong female acting performances of 2010?

'Black Swan': ****stars

first let me state that i've never been a fan of natalie portman. then i shall say that every once in awhile an actor gets a role of a lifetime like charlize theron in 'monster' and adrien brody in 'the pianist'. this is natalie's role of a lifetime. she is nothing less than extraordinary as a ballerina rehearsing the role of the swan queen in 'swan lake'. as she tries to enhance the role of the evil twin, the black swan, her descent into madness is slow but asured as she becomes more the black queen than the white queen twin. yes ms. portman is extraordinary and gives one of the greatest performances on screen ever.

'black swan' is in and of itself an extraordinary film. as it is one of the best of 2010 it will indeed be one of the best of this young decade. brilliantly directed by darren aronofsky it is so much more than a dance film. it is a 'horror' film in the best sense that madness is horrific.  if this film does not send shivers down your spine you may be dead.

the supporting cast truly supports the lead and unselfishly enhances her portrayal especially mila kunis and vincent cassell. barbara hershey shines as the mommie dearest of ballerina nina sayers.

run to see this film. i was shocked at how damn good it is. more shocked that natalie portman won me over. she's going to be hard to beat come oscar time.