D23 Expo: Disney's Film Slate

It's not a hard task when I am asked to cover the D23 Expo down in Anaheim:  Disney?  Pixar?  Disney World?  Disneyland?  It's billed as the "ultimate Disney fan event", so count me in! On Saturday morning, I was able to attend The Walt Disney Studios presentation which gave the audience a taste of the films to come now through 2014.  Fans lined up as early as 6AM to get in line and wait for a seat in the Arena.  I rolled into the convention center at 10:15 AM with my Press Pass and I was escorted to a seat within minutes.  As a press member, I was thrilled with the VIP treatment all day, but I know the long lines and chaos of some of the events had a lot of the attendees grumbling.  It's something for the D23 planners to consider when most fans are accustomed to the golden Disney customer service.

 Billy Crystal received a standing ovation when he came out. I wonder if 2012 Academy Award Producer, Brett Ratner is listening?  

Once we were all settled in, the program kicked off with a highlight reel of the movies that were going to be presented to us.  Tim Burton's Frankenweenie, The Muppet Movie, and The Avengers received the biggest cheers as these are all highly anticipated films in the Disney lineup.  John Lasseter was on hand to present the Disney/Pixar animated slate and this is when D23 started rolling in the stars from Jon Cryer for Planes (If you like Cars, you are sure to like Planes, right?), Sarah Silverman and Jack McBrayer for Wreck-It Ralph (an 8-bit video game bad guy), Kevin McKidd and Kelly McDonald for Brave, and Billy Crystal for the prequel to Monsters, Inc called Monsters University. You knew they were buttering us up for box office dollars.  What interested me the most was the humor behind Wreck-It Ralph and the beauty and strength behind the story of Brave, which features Pixar's first female main character. (It's about time, guys!)  Expect to see Wreck-It Ralph in theatres November 2, 2012 and Brave will be hitting the big screen on June 22, 2012.  They also teased us with two untitled films:  one for Holiday 2013 about Dinosaurs and another feature about what takes place in your mind for Summer 2014.  (Yes, what happens in your brain.  You can't make this stuff up.)  The Pixar segment wrapped up with cupcakes in honor of Pixar's 25th Anniversary.  It was a very Oprah-esque moment as cast members came out with boxes of cupcakes for the full arena.  You get a cupcake and you get a cupcake and you get a cupcake!

Director Rich Moore, Sarah Silverman, and Jack McBrayer (Hello, tan boy!) for Wreck-It Ralph.

Walt Disney Studios' feature fare was up next with a lengthy and rather awkward presentation about the March 2012 film, John Carter.  Andrew Stanton, Oscar winner for Finding Nemo and Wall-E, brought out Willem Dafoe, Lynn Collins, and Taylor Kitsch to describe four long clips about the movie.  Lynn and Taylor looked uncomfortable up there and read their sound bites straight from the TelePrompter giving rehearsed pitches about the film.  It was clear Disney had invested a lot of money in this film and they really want us to see it.  Unfortunately, the response was rather lukewarm in the audience.  Livening up the audience was the presentation for Frankenweenie described as a film about a town where "Transylvania meets Burbank" in a timeless story of a boy and his dog told in a way that  only Tim Burton can achieve.  The film is all stop motion and in black and white with a Danny Elfman score, could this film be any more delicious?  We have to wait until October 2012, so tide yourself over with the Tim Burton Exhibit at LACMA in the meantime.

Willem Dafoe for John Carter

Jenifer Garner was brought out next to talk about The Odd Life of Timothy Green which will be perfect family fare.  Garner was positively sweet in her role as a Disney spokesperson, but I do wish the questions were less rehearsed and more spontaneous.  Sometimes the Disney suits are not as engaging as John Lasseter who is able to balance the creative and the corporate a bit better than others.  Next up was Oz (March 2013), the Sam Raimi directed film that just began principal photography on July 21st in Detroit.  Yep, Detroit is Oz, kids, in case you didn't know.  The stellar cast includes James Franco, Rachel Weiz, Mila Kunis, and Michelle Williams and Disney promises the audience a story we haven't heard from The Wizard of Oz legacy.

Jeremy Renner and Scarlett Johansson for The Avengers.

Finally, the two films the audience was waiting for:  The Muppet Movie and The Avengers.  I was more excited about the former since I am tired of superheroes.  I know I am in the minority on this topic, so I will give you a few highlights on The Avengers.  First up, Jason Segel, Kermit, and Miss Piggy make an appearance and introduce two clips from the film.  The longer musical clip to "We Built This City" by Jefferson Starship proved to me that the silver screen has been missing the Jim Henson heart for some time. This movie will be huge and I will be the first in line to buy a ticket.  The Avengers clip was action-packed filled with stars, superheroes, and the perfect fare for Marvel fans.  Kevin Feige, President of Marvel Studios, introduced Scarlett Johansson, Robert Downey, Jr, Jeremy Renner, Chris Hemsworth, Tom Hiddleston, and Cobie Smulders to an arena filled with screaming fans.  Joss Whedon and several cast members were still shooting back in Cleveland since there are two weeks left of principal photography left.  They then showed the same exact trailer again.  I wasn't sure if this was for the audience or for the cast who stayed on stage to watch the clip.  I do know that it was at the end of a 2 hour and 45 minute presentation, so a lot of the audience was antsy to move on to the next event and pick up their cell phones after keeping us in a media blackout for that time period.

Chris Hemsworth of The Avengers

Overall, Disney has a strong slate of films through 2014, but I will be fascinated to see how well John Carter performs at the box office given the lackluster response from the D23 audience.  I will be back tomorrow to give you some of the Expo and Archive details and photos from the show floor.  In the meantime, I want to hear what film you are excited about, feel free to comment below!





Photos 2-6:  Courtesy of D23 Expo 2011.

The Stylist Edition

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Update:  To read the 2012 Stylist edition, click here.  

During Awards Season, I was commenting about the importance of a stylist and how they were critical in organizing an overall look for the celebrity based on their shape, personality, coloring, etc.  While some stylists are uber-high profile like Rachel Zoe, other stylists remain in the background doing all of the legwork for the big march down the red carpet.  It can be challenging to find out who is dressing the stars.  Well, my questions were answered by this week's shiny new Hollywood Reporter magazine that came in the mail.  Remember when I was questioning Amy Adams stylist?  Well, I am going to share some of the highlights from The Hollywood Reporter's Top 25 Stylists and I think some of the stylist/celeb pairings are going to surprise you.  (Because there are 25 stylists to go through, I will comment on certain ones and the others I will just list who they dress.)

Photo Courtesy of Amanda Lyons

1. Rachel Zoe:  Duh, of course. She put together 8 divine outfits for Anne Hathaway at The 83rd Annual Academy Awards.  That tux was the piece de resistance, in my opinion.  Also dresses: Jennifer Garner, Eva Mendes, Liv Tyler, Demi Moore (Although recent rumors have her defecting to former Zoe assistant, Brad Goreski.)

2. Kate Young:  Natalie Portman's stylist all season long.  I am not sure I agree with this because of the misguided Golden Globes dress, but the Rodarte dress at the Oscars was a winner.  Also dresses:  Alicia Keyes.

Kevork Djansezian, Getty Images

3. Petra Flannery:  Petra would have been number 2 in my book because made Mila Kunis into a red carpet movie star this year.  Mila did not have a single fashion misstep all season. Her other client, Hailee Steinfeld, was dressed age appropriately and simply looked fresh and lovely at the Oscars in Marchesa. Also dresses:  Zoe Saldana.

4. Jen Rade:  Another controversial one in my book because she has big hits like Angelina Jolie, but big misses like The Office's Jenna Fischer.  I love Jenna, but she never looks styled at any red carpet.  In fact, I was surprised to hear she used a stylist, that's how ill-fitting her dresses look.  I think this stylist/celeb pairing needs rethinking because Jenna deserves to shine like the beauty that she is.  Also dresses:  Pink, Cher.

5. Anna Bingemann:  Dresses Claire Danes, Naomi Watts, Gwyneth Paltrow, and Tina Fey.

6. Cristina Ehrlich:  Okay, we finally have the answer!!  This is who dresses Amy Adams. This is another pairing that isn't working. Amy is stunning and I always feel like her dresses miss the mark or they are styled with the wrong jewelry like at the Oscars this year.  Also dresses:  Penelope Cruz, Julianne Hough, Kyra Sedgwick, Ashley Green, Julianna Margulies.

7. Deborah Waknin:  Dresses Halle Berry, Sandra Bullock.  (That's some A-list star wattage!)

8. Elizabeth Stewart:  This one may be controversial for some of you, but Cate Blanchett looked amazing in person.  The fault of the stylist on the Givenchy Couture dress is that it did not photograph well. That is also a part of their job to make sure it translates well live and on camera.  Also dresses:  Jennifer Lawrence, Amanda Seyfried, Kristin Davis, Viola Davis.

9. Leslie Fremar: Dresses Reese Witherspoon, Julianne Moore, Charlize Theron.

10. Jeanne Yang:  Dresses Katie Holmes, Tom Cruise, Christian Bale, and Melissa Leo (That Marc Bower dress at the Oscars was terrible and she will forever be the 2011 Oscar winner in that dress!)

11. Leith Clark:  Dresses Michelle Williams, Keira Knightley.

12. Estee Stanley:  Dresses Jessica Biel, Lea Michele.  This is a good stylist for young Hollywood as she has done a great job with putting Lea on the fashion map.

Nicole Kidman at the 2011 Grammys.

13. L'Wren Scott:  She's a designer and a stylist, but whoa--she was all over the map with her client, Nicole Kidman, this season.  Nicole has always been a fashion icon, but I don't think her fashion choices this year hit the mark except for the dress she wore to the Grammys.

14. Jessica Paster:  She used to be THE stylist to go to before the Top 10 crop of stylists came forward and made their fashion mark.  Dresses:  Annette Bening, Emily Blunt.

15. Rob Zangardi and Mariel Haenn:  Dresses Jennifer Lopez, Rachel McAdams, Will and Jada Pinkett Smith, and Rihanna.  They've done a great job with J Lo's "comeback" on American Idol and giving her short dresses to showcase those Venus razor sponsored legs.  She looks fabulous.

16. Maryam Malakpour:  Dresses Heidi Klum, Courtney Cox, The Rolling Stones. (Yep, even old rock stars have a stylist.)

17.  Tanya Gill:  I was surprised to see Tanya this far down the list.  She dressed a very polished Hillary Swank this year.  Hillary's looks at the Oscars and the SAG Awards really hit the mark.  They weren't fashion game changers, but they offered up a softer side of the perennially buff Swank.  Also dresses:  Jane Fonda, Kate Winslet.

18. Tiina Laakonen:  Dresses Carey Mulligan.  I think we will all be hearing more from this stylist in the next few years with a high profile client like Carey.  She's definitely one to watch.

19. George Kotsiopoulos: You know him from E!'s Fashion Police.  He dresses Freida Pinto, Kristen Stewart, Kerry Washington, Katy Perry, and Kathryn Bigelow.  I expect him to be more of a TV personality versus a stylist with his new found TV fame.

20. Nicole Chavez:  Yikes, she dressed Scarlett Johansson this year.  That outfit was on trend with the lace, but it fit snugly in all of the wrong places.  I was about two feet away from Scarlett on the red carpet at the Oscars and this beautiful actress with an incredible body did not look her best.  Also dresses:  Rachel Bilson, Catherine Zeta-Jones, and Katherine Heigel.

21. Annabel Tollman:  Dresses Jessica Simpson, Cynthia Nixon, and formerly, Scarlett Johansson. (Go back to her, Scarlett!)

22. Brad Goreski:  One of my personal faves from Bravo's The Rachel Zoe Project, but he's now on his own dressing Jessica Alba.  Truth be told,  I want the real skinny:  Did Demi Moore defect to Brad?

23. June Ambrose:  Dresses Diddy, Jay Z, Kelly Ripa, and Mariah Carey.  (Eh.  Do any of these celebs make an impressive fashion mark?)

24. Samantha McMillen:  Dresses Johnny Depp and Michelle Pfeiffer.

Nicole Richie at the 2010 Oscars.

25. Simone Harouche:  I cannot believe she is only number 25.  She is one of my favorites for creating Nicole Richie's current look after Nicole parted ways with Rachel Zoe.  On the flip side, she is also dressed Christina Aguilera and Miley Cyrus, so maybe that is why she is stuck in the number 25 position.

Well, there you have it, a fashion stylist bible all thanks to The Hollywood Reporter and a few added comments from me.  I also tried to link as many of the stylists' websites for you to peruse, it is surprising how many stylists hide behind their agency's websites versus becoming a brand like Rachel Zoe. (But that is another topic for another day!) The Style Issue is dated March 18, 2011 if you want to pick up a copy of this week's edition with Rachel Zoe on the cover.  I am keeping this one handy because we are going to need it with the next award season beginning in only 5 months.  Yep, Emmys season is just around the corner.  Be sure to comment below because I would love to hear your thoughts on some of these stylists and see if you agree with me or not.

To view my 2012 Top 25 Stylists article, click here.