We’re happy to announce that the crazy Canadian exploits of Randy and Evi Quaid will continue into the holiday season. The pair made headlines last month when they sought asylum in Vancouver from “Hollywood star whackers” they claim are trying to kill them. It was announced on Tuesday that the hearing to decide Randy’s immigration case will be postponed until next month, which means the co-star of National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation will be spending this Christmas in Canada.
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Those kooky Quaids are spending Christmas in Canada
Actor Randy Quaid seeks Canadian refugee status
Refugee status hopeful Randy Quaid (Image: James Jeffrey)
Sometimes famous people do crazy things, and sometimes they do it in Canada; when that happens, we’ll be there to slap on a pair of handcuffs and give them an immigration hearing! Such was the order of events for actor Randy Quaid and his wife, Evi, who were detained in Vancouver last Thursday after local authorities learned of outstanding American warrants for their arrest.
The Quaids are wanted for charges related to squatting in a home they formally owned, the latest in a series of legal and financial blunders for the troubled actor and his wife. Quaid filed for bankruptcy in 2000, and though his career momentarily resurged thanks to his performance in 2005′s Brokeback Mountain, he was eventually banned from the Actors Equity Union in 2008 due to claims he’d physically and verbally abused other actors.
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Q&A with Blue Valentine director: Ryan Gosling and Michelle Williams’ latest “like a documentary of two people falling in love”
From left to right: producer Alex Orlovsky, producer Lynette Howell, actor Faith Wladyka, actor Ryan Gosling, director Derek Cianfrance, and producer Jamie Patricof attend the Blue Valentine premiere at Ryerson Theatre on September 15, 2010 (Image: Jeff Vespa/WireImage)
Did you know Ryan Gosling had a brother? Neither did he. But the producers of Half-Nelson were on to something when they insisted Gosling meet “his brother,” Derek Cianfrance—the man who would eventually become the director of Gosling’s new flick Blue Valentine. Derek not only shares a passing physical resemblance to the Cornwall, Ontario, superstar (blue eyes, sandy hair), but they’re also the kind of guys who can spend nine-hour dinners talking about love. The film screened on Wednesday as part of TIFF, and we got to sit down with the director for a one-on-one.
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TIFF Oscar buzz begins: Natalie Portman wins critics’ support in Black Swan
(Image: James Helmer)
The Oscar baiting of TIFF films has officially begun, with acclaim for Darren Aronofsky’s Black Swan pouring in—with overwhelming praise for Natalie Portman’s starring performance—after its international premiere at the Venice Film Festival. The film, scheduled to screen in Toronto on September 13 at Roy Thomson Hall, follows Nina (Portman) as a spotlight-craving ballerina who becomes entangled in a pas de deux with a rival dancer played by Mila Kunis. Eventually Nina’s plight takes a Cronenberg-esque turn (hey, this is an Aronofsky flick), with her eyes discolouring and wings sprouting from her back as she becomes the swan she strives to portray onstage.
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Johnny Depp a no-show at Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus premiere; crowd boos Christopher Plummer
Don't sweat the small stuff: fans expecting to see Johnny Depp had to be satisfied with Verne Troyer (Photo by Karon Liu)
Even though it probably had the most star-packed cast of any movie at TIFF (Johnny Depp, Jude Law, Colin Farrell, etc.), was directed by Terry Gilliam and had a lot of hype (it was Heath Ledger‘s last movie), we didn’t expect any of the truly big names to show up. TIFF is almost over, after all, and there was no press conference for the film. Plus, we saw the red carpet call sheet and the most recognizable names confirmed were Verne “Mini Me” Troyer and Tom Waits.
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The lowest point in Yorkville is also the coolest: hanging with Clive Owen, Terry Gilliam and Michael Caine in the secret Bay Street Station
Clive Owen at the Harry Brown after-party under Bay Station (Photo courtesy of Grey Goose)
At the Harry Brown after-party last night, we were twisting prosciutto around our fingers and sipping Grey Goose martinis on the platform in the secret Bay Street subway station with Clive Owen. It felt like we were in the hippest of British society clubs. Also in the underground were Harry Brown co-stars, Sir Michael Caine and a dashing pregnant Emily Mortimer, along with uninhibited director Terry Gilliam (whose TIFF film, The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus, was the last to star Heath Ledger).
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Oscar buzz, vodka and stalking advice doled out at the Hazelton Hotel
To be Blunt: early rumblings suggest Young Victoria could be Emily Blunt's big break (Photo by chloe004)
With two weeks left until the opening gala of the Toronto International Film Festival, reporters gathered at the Hazelton Hotel to get a rundown on the buzziest films (Precious), parties (One X One), possible Oscar contenders (Mo’Nique, the woman from Soul Plane) and TIFF-inspired cocktails (Skyy vodka for all).
CTV film critic Richard Crouse said the Oprah-backed film Precious could mean a possible Oscar nomination for Mo’Nique, while co-star Mariah Carey can finally shake off the tarnished glitter from, well, Glitter. Closing film Young Victoria also got a thumbs-up and was predicted to be Emily Blunt’s big break. But the most intriguing film tidbit (and a brilliant marketing move to boot) was that everyone who went to the pre-screening of Heath Ledger’s last film, The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus, had to sign a waiver that forbid them from talking about it.
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