Of TIFF and Ben and Colin....
Well what can I say...Ben was there...Colin was there...it was fab
First the superficial comments - petty I know but they need to be said. If Edward dazzles, then Ben shines. Everything just glows - his hair, his smile. He is simply beautiful. He radiates a glow that is not present in most mortals. I will liken the moment to seeing Rafael Nadal or Feliciano Lopez in person for the first time. Rafa is like a Greek statue come to life - a perfected human form. Feli and Ben, they are beyond the level of mere mortal - there is something almost unnervingly unnatural about their radiance. It's a good thing though. And when Ben smiles...mmmm, dazzling...he is like this naughty little British schoolboy who has just committed some dreadful deed and is trying to charm his way out of being punished. Colin Firth was surprisingly more disheveled than I would have expected but still completely delightful. The audience was rather Colin-biased as noted by their loud applause. niviene however managed to scream for Ben and he was ultimately compelled to look up to the balcony where we were sitting (and on more than one occasion I might add, including the 'US Open' incident - I knew a Wimbledon-raised boy had to be a tennis fan!!!) in attempt to locate its origination (thank God it was dark). We saw Colin arrive and he literally walked in the theatre about 30 seconds before use. Ben was there about 5-10 minutes before we made it to the entrance but he was probably still somewhere on the red carpet talking to the media as we zoomed by in a mad dash to find some seats. Damned general admission seating *shakes fist* Apparently Viggo Mortenson and Jason 'Lucius Malfoy' Isaacs showed up around the same time to attend their premiere in the adjacent theatre but they must have scooted by without me noticing. Meh.
The movie itself was adorable. I'm not sure if and when it will be released theatrically so I am thankful for being able to see it through this venue (even after having to wait outside in pouring rain for about an hour). A comedic period piece set in the Jazz Age - think Great Gatsby in Britain - which made for a lot of sumptuous costumes and stunning scenery. I could probably name a half dozen actresses who would have been better than Jessica Biel *cough*Scarlett Johansson*cough* in the lead role but she turned out to be tolerable. Kristin Scott Thomas was fab as always, as was Colin but unfortunately his character wasn't fleshed out enough to really make him memorable. Still, it made for a mini English Patient reunion!! Ben basically looked perfect in the period fashion since he does have that old-school, classic film star look. He did an admirable job personalizing what I thought would be a very cliched and generic part. The weird thing about this movie is it is actually a remake of an Alfred Hitchcock film. How you get from Hitchcock to Brit period comedy is beyond me but then again this is the same director who made Priscilla, Queen of the Desert. O_O. Rather strange soundtrack - they mixed contemporary songs with Jazz Age orchestra and it didn't seem to work. Let's just say that Car Wash and Sexbomb were not exactly great choices for this film. Extra added squee-worthy bonus moments: Ben played tennis...and he sang...and he danced...well, sort of, if you can call that tennis, singing and dancing.
Lastly, before I stop gushing, I thought some visuals would be necessary. Since the rich crowd with their gold and platinum VISAs get priority seating at the the theatre, I was relegated to the best of what was left in the balcony so my feeble attempt to take pictures of the cast was basically a waste of time. However, I did manage to stumble across some 'official' press photos to mark the occasion (for future swooning purposes)...please be sure to note the particular 'ping' factor of the Ben Barnes smile
Now that, Stephenie Meyers, is what you really call 'dazzling'.
In the TIFF Program we picked up at the event, there was an ad for another film premiering on Saturday called Stone of Destiny, a supposed 'historic heist film' (how about that one for a new movie genre?? *LOL*) which claims to about a group of Scottish university students who set out to steal an ancient relic from Westminster Abbey. Now for the average person that may sound mildly interesting but for me, that storyline is the foundation of pretty much any pornographic dream I could ever want to have (just throw in some Templars and I'm good to go). Scots university guys + ancient relic + Westminster Abbey = *drools* Since they indicate it is a comedy/drama, I'm thinking it will be something like Ocean's Eleven meets The History Boys. Of course I want to see it so I immediately check to see if tickets are available (YES!). Then I check IMDB to find out who is in the cast and then it hits me. In the words of the immortal Blair Waldorf, 'Oh my F-ing God' - I find out that Charlie Cox is the lead. How did I not know this? I managed to acquire the tickets and will be in attendance on Saturday night. Should Charlie manage to make the premiere my TIFF season will pretty much be a triumph - well almost, since I'll have seen two of the three of the Holy Trinity of young, hot Brit actors. Rumour has it Jim Sturgess is still floating around town somewhere so perhaps there is still hope for me to complete the trilogy. *crosses fingers*
First the superficial comments - petty I know but they need to be said. If Edward dazzles, then Ben shines. Everything just glows - his hair, his smile. He is simply beautiful. He radiates a glow that is not present in most mortals. I will liken the moment to seeing Rafael Nadal or Feliciano Lopez in person for the first time. Rafa is like a Greek statue come to life - a perfected human form. Feli and Ben, they are beyond the level of mere mortal - there is something almost unnervingly unnatural about their radiance. It's a good thing though. And when Ben smiles...mmmm, dazzling...he is like this naughty little British schoolboy who has just committed some dreadful deed and is trying to charm his way out of being punished. Colin Firth was surprisingly more disheveled than I would have expected but still completely delightful. The audience was rather Colin-biased as noted by their loud applause. niviene however managed to scream for Ben and he was ultimately compelled to look up to the balcony where we were sitting (and on more than one occasion I might add, including the 'US Open' incident - I knew a Wimbledon-raised boy had to be a tennis fan!!!) in attempt to locate its origination (thank God it was dark). We saw Colin arrive and he literally walked in the theatre about 30 seconds before use. Ben was there about 5-10 minutes before we made it to the entrance but he was probably still somewhere on the red carpet talking to the media as we zoomed by in a mad dash to find some seats. Damned general admission seating *shakes fist* Apparently Viggo Mortenson and Jason 'Lucius Malfoy' Isaacs showed up around the same time to attend their premiere in the adjacent theatre but they must have scooted by without me noticing. Meh.
The movie itself was adorable. I'm not sure if and when it will be released theatrically so I am thankful for being able to see it through this venue (even after having to wait outside in pouring rain for about an hour). A comedic period piece set in the Jazz Age - think Great Gatsby in Britain - which made for a lot of sumptuous costumes and stunning scenery. I could probably name a half dozen actresses who would have been better than Jessica Biel *cough*Scarlett Johansson*cough* in the lead role but she turned out to be tolerable. Kristin Scott Thomas was fab as always, as was Colin but unfortunately his character wasn't fleshed out enough to really make him memorable. Still, it made for a mini English Patient reunion!! Ben basically looked perfect in the period fashion since he does have that old-school, classic film star look. He did an admirable job personalizing what I thought would be a very cliched and generic part. The weird thing about this movie is it is actually a remake of an Alfred Hitchcock film. How you get from Hitchcock to Brit period comedy is beyond me but then again this is the same director who made Priscilla, Queen of the Desert. O_O. Rather strange soundtrack - they mixed contemporary songs with Jazz Age orchestra and it didn't seem to work. Let's just say that Car Wash and Sexbomb were not exactly great choices for this film. Extra added squee-worthy bonus moments: Ben played tennis...and he sang...and he danced...well, sort of, if you can call that tennis, singing and dancing.
Lastly, before I stop gushing, I thought some visuals would be necessary. Since the rich crowd with their gold and platinum VISAs get priority seating at the the theatre, I was relegated to the best of what was left in the balcony so my feeble attempt to take pictures of the cast was basically a waste of time. However, I did manage to stumble across some 'official' press photos to mark the occasion (for future swooning purposes)...please be sure to note the particular 'ping' factor of the Ben Barnes smile
Now that, Stephenie Meyers, is what you really call 'dazzling'.
In the TIFF Program we picked up at the event, there was an ad for another film premiering on Saturday called Stone of Destiny, a supposed 'historic heist film' (how about that one for a new movie genre?? *LOL*) which claims to about a group of Scottish university students who set out to steal an ancient relic from Westminster Abbey. Now for the average person that may sound mildly interesting but for me, that storyline is the foundation of pretty much any pornographic dream I could ever want to have (just throw in some Templars and I'm good to go). Scots university guys + ancient relic + Westminster Abbey = *drools* Since they indicate it is a comedy/drama, I'm thinking it will be something like Ocean's Eleven meets The History Boys. Of course I want to see it so I immediately check to see if tickets are available (YES!). Then I check IMDB to find out who is in the cast and then it hits me. In the words of the immortal Blair Waldorf, 'Oh my F-ing God' - I find out that Charlie Cox is the lead. How did I not know this? I managed to acquire the tickets and will be in attendance on Saturday night. Should Charlie manage to make the premiere my TIFF season will pretty much be a triumph - well almost, since I'll have seen two of the three of the Holy Trinity of young, hot Brit actors. Rumour has it Jim Sturgess is still floating around town somewhere so perhaps there is still hope for me to complete the trilogy. *crosses fingers*