Think Of What You've Always Wanted..."Beauty and the Beast"

Beastie Girl
Emma Watson

Well, well, well the first full length feature trailer for Disney's live action version of their animated classic Beauty and the Beast has been released. I have one thing to say: for the love of Emma Watson, magnificent!

This looks like the reel deal. Yes, I meant to spell real that way, as it seems like a really heartfelt & beautiful transition from animation to live action that has the heart and soul of the material of which it is based on.

Personally, I loved the animated BB when it came out in theaters. That's pretty abnormal for someone who really has not liked many animated films since he was a child. I believed I actually dropped a tear or two, FML!

Now onto my Emma Watson love. I am a curmudgeon, thus I so could not get into the first Harry Potter epic that I did not watch the others. But Emma has really proved herself to be an intelligent, poised not to mention articulate young woman who I greatly admire. I did see her in  My Week With Marilyn though, In short, she is one of my girl crushes.

Dear Emma, hey you, I will be seeing this.

Respect & admiration always...jump to the trailer below!

Emma Watson is the coolest at:
https://twitter.com/EmmaWatson
https://www.instagram.com/emmawatson/?hl=en
https://www.facebook.com/emmawatson/    

Hitch A Ride With Marilyn Monroe

The Traveling Marilyn Monroe Statue
Photo: Michael Shinafelt

As anyone who knows me knows, I am a big Marilyn Monroe fan, which should come as no major surprise to those of you who may have just found out this information.

Here is a piece I did on this blog when My Week With Marilyn came out:

http://mshinafelt.blogspot.com/2012/01/reel-life-my-week-with-marilyn.html

So in honor of that I am posting some rare photos of one of my favorite actresses that are part of a traveling pop up exhibit. Also included at the top of this article is the photo I took of the traveling MM statue in Palm Springs, CA when I was there this past February, hey I may not have gotten to shoot the real thing but it was good enough for this fan. 

Marilyn frequently let crew members  photograph her on set when the cameras weren't rolling, to calm her nerves. 

Here, is a sneak peek at the lost photos of Marilyn Monroe, being showcased this month in a traveling exhibition curated by Pierre Vudrag.

Marilyn on the set of one of my favorites "Niagara"
Photo: Allan "Whitey" Snyder

Marilyn Posing for an Ad for Lawn Furniture
Photo: Mischa Pelz

One of My Personal Favorites from the Exhibit Circa 1952
Photo: Lani Carlson 

Hope you enjoyed this preview of some great images of one of the most amazing stars to ever grace the silver screen, I know I did.

Marilyn on IMDB: http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000054/?ref_=fn_nm_nm_1

Reel Life: My Week With Marilyn

“I'm selfish, impatient and a little insecure. I make mistakes, I am out of control and at times hard to handle. But if you can't handle me at my worst, then you sure as hell don't deserve me at my best.”
― Marilyn Monroe

This quote by the most famous woman in the world sums up the film “My Week With Marilyn” ….

Who knew the everlasting, amazing star would end up with a movie about herself that she herself defined in a quote (but after seeing this movie you will not be surprised that she actually did).

OK, yes, I am a longtime Marilyn fan, so much so that when I worked in bookkeeping at a talent agency near the Westwood Memorial Cemetery, where Marilyn was laid to rest, on days when I used to bring my lunch and wanted tranquility and peace I would go there and sit on the bench in front of her marker and eat whatever food I had brought for the day.

“My Week With Marilyn” is not a bio pic per se’ - but a love letter to the woman as an artist & human being, that covers the time when she was filming “The Prince and the Showgirl” with Sir Laurence Olivier, who also directed.

Marilyn was selfish, impatient and, and as she said a “little insecure” I would say a lot. But she was also charming, sweet, sexy, loving and a true artist.

Ultimately this is what you get from “My Week With Marilyn” - a portrait of an extremely complex woman who delivered for the studios a magic no one else could, therefore the difficulties were worth it for them to put up with.

Michelle Williams is one of my favorite actresses working, I love, love, love her! She captures the magic of Marilyn - my favorite stuff in the film is when she portrays the icon flubbing scenes during production of "The Prince and the Showgirl" she is truly awful (on purpose of course), but when she nails the scenes, she captures the magic that was Marilyn.

Love this movie, if you are fan a must see, and to everyone else who is on the fence, this is a enchanting piece of entertainment, and you will be completely captivated by Williams.

Hey, Michelle - FYI you are now officially my favorite for the 2011 Best Actress Oscar.
　
http://myweekwithmarilynmovie.com/