HollyHunter Tagged Articles at Cinematical

We've been pretty hard around here on a certain movie with adamantium claws. Yes, whenever I'm reminded of X-Men Origins: Wolverine, which comes out on DVD and Blu-ray today, I wish I had been shot with amnesia bullets. Still, I appreciated Hugh Jackman's determined efforts to stay out of the damn costume. Whenever Wolverine has donned a uniform in the previous X-Men flicks, he looks like he can't wait to rip it off. In his natural state, as the wandering, memory-challenged Logan, he repels latex like Congress repels taxpayers.

Most actors quickly declare that the biggest challenge in superhero movies is the costume: how to avoid looking sheepish or silly while wearing a form-fitting, custom-made suit that may reveal more than most of us are willing to bare at the beach? With advanced, super-realistic, computerized special effects and ripped body / stunt doubles available as needed, though, I think the bigger challenge lies in bringing the secret identities of superheroes to life: all those moments when supposedly normal people are leading supposedly "normal" lives.

Who, then are the most convincing superheroes without costumes? What actors and actresses have made you believe that their very human characters on screen could transform into larger-than-life heroes and/or heroines with a quick dash into a phone booth? Mind you, I'm not just talking Dr. Manhattan in Watchmen ...

1. Famke Janssen as Jean Gray in X-Men
She cuts a fine figure, doesn't she? Famke Janssen is undoubtedly sexier than Wolverine when they both suit up, yet she really shines whenever she's using her brain -- which is all the time. She doesn't need the costume to be one of the smartest, most empathetic, and most lethal people, in the universe.

Mother's Day is bittersweet for me because my own mother passed away 11 years ago. In recent times, though, the sweet far outweighs the bitter, because I have wonderful memories of our time together watching -- and loving -- movies. When I'd come home from school in the afternoon, we'd talk and watch old movies on a tiny, black and white TV. When everyone else in my family thought I was crazy for waiting in line for hours to see Star Wars and Close Encounters of the Third Kind, she told me about waiting in line for hours as a young teen to see Gone With the Wind. When she was dying of cancer and I visited for a couple of weeks from out of state, we spent hours watching old movies together.

In honor of all of our mothers, I've compiled a list of seven of the most awesomest movie moms. But this isn't a competition; it's just a list, and it's just a highly personal reflection of my own thoughts, so please feel free to share your favorite, most awesome movie moms in the comments.

1. Geena Davis as Samantha Caine / Charly Baltimore in The Long Kiss Goodnight

As Elisabeth Rappe rhapsodized recently, "the charm of the movie is that her psychotic nature is buried within a happy-go-lucky mom who enjoys baking muffins and wearing ugly Christmas sweaters." Home-made muffins are nice and all, but wouldn't it be cool if your mother could assassinate those bullies who keep beating you up after school? Not saying she would, of course, though that would have been a tantalizing prospect for me. Of course, the flip side is that you'd better behave ... or else!

I've sat here for a few minutes trying to figure out just what I want to say about this film, and the best I can come up with is that I have no idea. It's one of those films that could be terribly offensive and crappy, but has a million and two assurances that it is more than just women, sex and danger. But the best thing to do is start at the beginning. Free of brother Joel, Ethan Coen and his wife, Tricia Cooke, are writing the script for Drive-Away Dykes, which Holly Hunter and Selma Blair are set to star in.

The plot: Jamie (Blair) and Marion are lesbians and friends, but not lovers, who decide to drive to Florida. However, when they get a flat, they discover a severed head and plaster casts of penises in the trunk -- I guess someone is a fan of Cynthia P. Caster. The owners of the car and head are looking for their lost cerebellum and find their way to the women. Then, "the girls triumph over their evil - and repressed - antagonists, and prove that love is the ultimate road trip." Okay. Oh, and also, there will be "plenty of hot lesbian sex ..." For those now sliding this into the late night Skinemax fare, you might want to reconsider. Beyond the Coen contribution is director Allison Anders. Recently she's directed episodes for a number of television shows such as The L Word, but she's also the director of The Missing Ingredient from Quentin Tarantino's Four Rooms, as well as Gas, Food Lodging and Mi Vida Loca. Since I'm at a loss, what say you?