Ewan McGregor - Beginners #1: This is what love feels like - Page 3

**firewall** · 12-11-2011, 11:10 AM

I enjoyed it because Ewan was on my screen. Obviously that was going to be enough to keep ME engaged. But my husband got bored and a little restless. So, I'd say it depends on who is watching it and how they feel about the actors. Because, again, I think the strongest part of the film is the performances.

**LilMouse** · 12-11-2011, 01:16 PM

Wait...this whole time I thought we were discussing Ghost Writer and not Beginners

I'm very confused today.

Now that I know we're talking about Beginners - I do agree all the performances were strong and I liked the chemistry between the cast. I liked Ewan's voiceovers. I do agree the story is very simple. Ewan looked gooooooood.

BehrItAll · 12-11-2011, 06:59 PM

Where did you get idea we were discussing Ghost Writer?

I did like the story too though, even it is simple. It has a strong message.

**firewall** · 12-11-2011, 11:14 PM

Um, sorry to confuse you, Vic. I know it's odd that I would have picked The Beginners thread to discuss The Beginners.

**LilMouse** · 12-12-2011, 08:26 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by rainydreams (View Post)

Um, sorry to confuse you, Vic. I know it's odd that I would have picked The Beginners thread to discuss The Beginners.

How dare you stay on topic!!! haha.

I think what made me think of Ghost Writer is b/c you said Beginners is slow, and I automatically associated slow with GW.

But I liked in Beginners whenever Ewan would say something like "this is what people did in 1960, and in 1980, and in..."

**firewall** · 12-12-2011, 11:22 AM

It is our way to be off-topic even in off-topic threads!

I think that both Ghost Writer and The Beginners can be classified as "slow" which is not to say that they aren't enjoyable films. I happen to like Ghost Writer quite a lot, actually. And even though The Beginners will never be a favorite, I am still glad I watched it.

**LilMouse** · 12-12-2011, 05:17 PM

GW is a great movie and one of the only political movies that actually intrigued me. With Beginners, I loved the relationships. Chris/Ewan were believable as family and Ewan/Melanie were adorable.

BehrItAll · 12-13-2011, 06:28 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by rainydreams (View Post)

Um, sorry to confuse you, Vic. I know it's odd that I would have picked The Beginners thread to discuss The Beginners.

I cracked up so much at that that my dad asked me what's so funny.

Well said Vic.

Quote:

Ewan would say something like "this is what people did in 1960, and in 1980, and in..."

Yea, and I liked the imagery.

**LilMouse** · 12-13-2011, 07:03 PM

Quote:

I cracked up so much at that that my dad asked me what's so funny.

haha

BehrItAll · 12-17-2011, 05:54 PM

It's true.

**LilMouse** · 01-13-2012, 04:18 PM

I'm glad people realize that Ewan often gets the shaft

Quote:

ewan mcgregor in beginners: the most overlooked performance of 2011

After 60 years as a working actor, Christopher Plummer is finally the favorite to win an Academy Award at the Oscars in February for his work inBeginners. The 82-year-old acting legend — who was nominated only once before, for The Last Station in 2010 — has been consistently overlooked throughout his illustrious career, an irony since his performance in Beginners has forced many to overlook another long-underrated actor: Ewan McGregor
McGregor — who stars in Mike Mills’ indie darling as Plummer’s onscreen son — isn’t actually competing against Plummer for Supporting Actor space; he’s the lead in Beginners, the film’s wounded and beating heart. McGregor plays Oliver, an illustrator whose mother has just died, prompting his father, Hal, to finally acknowledge his homosexuality. That leaves Oliver with an awful lot to contend with: not just Dad’s purple sweaters, himbo boyfriend and fast-approaching mortality, but also his own crippling doubts about modern love and relationships. He also talks to his dog. Suffice it to say, Beginners gives McGregor a wide range of emotions to play with, and the star never falters once. A more endearing performance from 2011 would be hard to find — well, unless you’re an Oscar prognosticator. Despite giving one of the year’s best performances — despite carrying Beginners and his co-stars Plummer, Melanie Laurent and Cosmo the dog to the lofty heights they achieve — McGregor isn’t on the Best Actor radar. At all.
There’s George Clooney in The Descendants, doing a lot of what McGregor does in Beginners but not as well (truth); there’s Brad Pitt in Moneyball, all squints and smirks and golly-gees; there’s Jean Dujardin in The Artist, a wild-card French import who makes the silent film sing; there’s Michael Fassbender and his fassboner in Shame; and there’s Gary Oldman in ,i>Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy, a veteran who is beloved by everyone. Throw in the dwindling awards bona-fides of a jowl-y Leonardo DiCaprio in J. Edgar, Demian Bichir and his SAG nomination for A Better Life and Ryan Gosling in Oscar sleeper The Ides of March, and there’s hardly any room for McGregor in even the second group of likely Best Actor also-rans.
Not that we should be too surprised by all this. You rarely hear McGregor mentioned when people discuss actors in his peer group, but there he is — certainly as viable a performer, if not a box-office star, as DiCaprio, Matt Damon, Ben Affleck and Mark Wahlberg. Come to think of it, Wahlberg might be the best analog for McGregor: a forever-under-appreciated actor who constantly lifts his fellow cast mates. Without Wahlberg, it’s hard to imagine Christian Bale and Melissa Leo winning Oscars for The Fighter; similarly, without McGregor, it’s hard to imagine Plummer taking the slow walk up to the stage at the Kodak Theater in February.
So where does that leave poor Ewan? Nowhere closer to getting an Oscar nomination, that’s for sure. But when people look back on 2011, I hope they will remember McGregor’s work in Beginners— just as I hope he won’t have to wait as long as Plummer to get his moment in the Academy’s sun.

Christopher Rosen: Ewan McGregor in Beginners: The Most Overlooked Performance of 2011

BehrItAll · 01-15-2012, 05:38 PM

I am tweeting this!

**LilMouse** · 01-16-2012, 08:42 AM

^^^

I hope with Chris winning the GG last night, he'll get an Oscar nod, win it, and give another shout out to Ewan. Also, maybe Ewan can present at the Oscars.
Presenting one year, nominated and win the next year, maybe?

**LilMouse** · 01-16-2012, 11:57 AM

Chris' speech

GOLDEN GLOBES: Christopher Plummer wins for Beginners - YouTube

BehrItAll · 01-16-2012, 09:20 PM

I will have to watch the speech tomorrow, but from the gifs

Are the Oscar nods out yet?

Chris and Ewan deserve one!

CONGRATS TO Christopher Plummer!


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