Here we are at the end of 2007, and Movie Dearest celebrates its first calendar year with the first of what will be an annual tradition here: the Movie Dearest Awards!
Honoring the best in film, television and the stage as covered here on MD, the awards are like the Oscars, the Emmys and the Tonys all rolled into one. Now all the MD Awards need is a nifty nickname like them; how about … the “Emdies”? The “Dearies”? Or (dare I suggest it) the “Kirbys”???
Cast your vote on this all-important decision in the special MD Poll below, and enjoy this year’s winners in six categories in the posts that follow.
When even a character in it describes Xanadu as “children’s theater for 40 year-old gay men”, what other choice do we have then to name it the Movie Dearest Stage Show of the Year?
Based on the notoriously-awful-but-we-love-it-anyway movie musical starring Olivia Newton John, the unexpected hit has been packing in the “Fanadus” since it opened on Broadway this past summer. Directed by Christopher Ashley from a book by Douglas Carter Beane, an Aussie-fied Kerry Butler channels ONJ, while the hunkalicious Cheyenne Jackson skates his way to stardom. Tony Roberts takes over for Gene Kelly, and the fab scene-stealers Jackie Hoffman and Mary Testa appear as the evil muses.
Yup, turning one of the biggest bombs in movie history into a critically acclaimed stage musical sure takes a lot of balls … disco balls, that is.
For all the Movie Dearest coverage of Xanadu, including pictures and videos, click here.
Click here to pre-order the Xanadu
cast album from Amazon.com.
Link via XanaduOnBroadway.com.
With a cast of characters that include an über diva, her flamboyant assistant, his fabulously bitchy “hag”, a transgender hottie and a precocious QIT (”Queen in Training”), it is no wonder that Ugly Betty is often called the gayest show in primetime. Sure, it is; but it also one of the best hours of network programming to come along in a long time, which made it easy to name it the Movie Dearest Television Show of the Year.
With its rich scripts that deftly combine satire with the art of the telenovela, an insanely talented cast and consistently clever direction, Ugly Betty would be nothing without its leading lady, a perky underdog we all (male or female, gay or straight, young or old) can relate to; it is no wonder America Ferrera, in the guise of the spectacled, brace-faced Betty Suarez, has won every award on the map.
Alas, it seems the dreaded writers strike has derailed most if not all of the remaining second season, which has avoided the sophomore slump so many other popular shows have suffered from. Here’s to a quick resolution to the ongoing conflict so we can all get back in Mode as soon as possible.
For all the Movie Dearest coverage of Ugly Betty, including more pictures and videos, click here.
Click here to buy the first season of Ugly Bettyon DVD from Amazon.com.
Link via ABC.go.com.
It has been awhile since we have seen a debut performance as winning, charming and confident as that of the 19 year-old Nikki Blonsky, the Movie Dearest New Star of the Year.
As the plucky and determined Tracy Turnblad in Hairspray, Nikki had big dancing shoes to fill, following in the beloved footsteps of Ricki Lake (the original movie Tracy) and Marissa Jaret Winokur (the Tony Award-winning Broadway Tracy). But she took the challenge head on, making the character all her own and, in the process, ensuring her stardom for years to come, not to mention a Golden Globe nomination as Best Actress.
Next year she’ll star in the Lifetime original movie Queen Sized and co-star in the big screen comedy Harold, and may even make her Broadway debut in (what else) Hairspray. And we’ll be with her every step of the way, cheering her on.
For all the Movie Dearest coverage of Hairspray, including more pictures and videos of Nikki, click here.
Links via Imbd.com.
One would never expect to hear Oscar talk concerning a Disney Princess, but then, one has never been as effortlessly and joyfully portrayed as Enchanted’s Giselle. Credit goes to our Movie Dearest Woman of the Year, Amy Adams, for bringing a fairy tale ideal into the real world (literally), and making us believe every minute of it.
Mixing wide-eyed wonderment with subtle degrees of melancholy, Amy creates a character that progresses from a pen and ink girl to a flesh and blood woman, with real emotions and desires. Of course, the latter isn’t too hard when you have both James Marsden and Patrick Dempsey to play off of (talk about your Sophie’s choice). And, let’s not forget, she sings and dances … and makes her own dresses to boot.
In addition to the recent Charlie Wilson’s War, Amy has a slew of high-profile projects on the horizon, including the black comedy Sunshine Cleaning and not one, but two projects with Meryl Streep: the film adaptations of the Tony Award-winning play Doubt and the best-selling memoir Julie & Julia. No doubt, we’ll be enchanted with her all over again.
For all the Movie Dearest coverage of Enchanted, including Amy’s Women We Love profile, click here.
Click here to buy the Enchanted soundtrackfrom Amazon.com.
Links via Imdb.com.
In year’s past, he played Elvis onstage and 9/11 hero Mark Bingham on film, but 2007 was the breakout year for Cheyenne Jackson. So naturally, he has to be the Movie Dearest Man of the Year.
Stepping into the roller skates of his injured predecessor, Cheyenne took over the central role of Sonny Malone during previews of our Stage Show of the Year, Xanadu, and rolled away with the hearts of everyone who has had the pleasure of seeing him. He’ll next be heard on the show’s eagerly awaited cast album and, fingers crossed, could net his first Tony Award nomination. He will also star in the horror film Hysteria and the Lifetime TV drama Family Practice next year.
By all accounts, the man who has been dubbed “Broadway’s sexiest man” (amen to that) is as refreshingly approachable and swoon inducing in person as one could hope. Now, if only Hollywood would come a callin’ with a big screen movie musical for him to star in; after all, I think we can all agree that we can never get to much Cheyenne.
For all the Movie Dearest coverage of Xanadu, including Cheyenne’s Out in Film profile, click here.
Click here to pre-order the Xanaducast album from Amazon.com.
Link via CheyenneJackson.com.
Debuting right after Movie Dearest did was a film that perfectly encapsulated the spirit and fun of the movies that inspired this blog in the first place. It was a movie firmly entrenched in the history of its genre, and one that is also connected to the related art forms of television and the theater … it is, after all, a movie based on a stage musical about a TV show. When it came time to select the Movie Dearest Movie of the Year, there was no question as to what it would be: Hairspray.
With nearly 70 posts related to it, you could say that we were a bit obsessed with the ‘Spray this year, but we weren’t the only ones. Following a record-breaking opening weekend and rave reviews, the endearingly embraceable Hairspray has gone on to become one of the most successful movie musicals in history, and has gone on to win awards and nominations from the Golden Globes, the Screen Actors Guild and the Grammy Awards, among many others (next up: the Oscars). Not too shabby for a third generation version of a little John Waters movie.
With direction and choreography from Adam Shankman, words and music from Marc Shaiman and Scott Wittman, and starring a now all-star cast lead by our New Star of the Year Nikki Blonsky, Hairspray gave us all a heaping helping of joy this year, and I am sure we all look forward to catching “the beat” for years to come.
For all the Movie Dearest coverage of Hairspray, including more pictures and videos, click here.
Click here to buy the Hairspray DVDand soundtrackfrom Amazon.com.
Link via HairsprayMovie.com.
Here we are at the end of 2007, and Movie Dearest celebrates its first calendar year with the first of what will be an annual tradition here: the Movie Dearest Awards!
