Jeff Shear at 2008-07-17 10:50:00:
I like Ms. Cody's name, her little red stockings, her tattooed thighs, but I swear if she continues making sophomoric comments -- which she invariably does in every interview -- as she did in this one, like: "People's reaction to art is often more about themselves than about the art," I'm going to finally return my overdue copy of "Juno" to Blockbuster. And I'm going to bring it back to the drop-off desk between the buns of a Big Mac. Riddle this... What's the difference between a Hollywood intellectual and a pseudo intellectual? Answer: A pseudo intellectual deludes only himself; a Hollywood intellectual deludes the rest of us.
Scott at 2008-07-17 13:40:00:
Look, part of Diablo's charm is that she has no regulator on the words that come out of her mouth - or on her blog. In fact, it was that plus her good sense of humor that attracted a Hwood manager to her in the first place. Who knows? Perhaps she has the wool pulled over everybody's eyes -- but to have Spielberg giving her his ideas for her to write, I strongly suspect there's a 'there' there.
Jeff Shear at 2008-07-17 14:45:00:
It's the wool I wonder about, and you're spot on with the Gertrude Stein line referring to Los Angeles, and the issue of any "there there" in Cody's long-term success. Don't get me wrong. I love her. I love her personal story,and I love her publicist, too. Why not? That's HoLAwood. Let's see how Diablo holds up when the bloom is off the "rose is a rose is rose." Give her another film or two. As always, grinning with Gertrude, Jeff
Scott at 2008-07-17 15:35:00:
Oh, I've no doubt there are critics out there waiting to pounce on Ms. Cody's next effort, which happens to be a horror-comedy movie she wrote called Jennifer's Body.
Jeff Shear at 2008-07-17 16:09:00:
Actually, her bigger problem may be magic. "Juno" is a magical piece of work and not legerdemain. Now, if she can do sleight of hand, which we refer to as "craft," then more power to her. Horror is huge. It's heavy metal for film. She may be smart to lower expectations with a horror script, take aim at a wider audience out for thrills and bring in the bucks for her studio, which will give her another chance to make real magic. I have a different beef with her. I simply want her to stop bloviating about art, because it makes her sound like a bore. I'd rather hear her talk about how she got to hang out with John Cusack: before "Juno" or after "Juno."
Scott at 2008-07-17 18:05:00:
Your comments remind me of that great Steve Martin quote: “I believe entertainment can aspire to be art, and can become art, but if you set out to make art, you’re an idiot.”