Posts Tagged ‘Wendy Crewson’

NEWSTALK 1010: THE RICHARD CROUSE SHOW WITH Joe Pantoliano and Mick Rock!

On this week’s The Richard Crouse Show we meet:

Joe Pantoliano, a working actor for over forty years. From doing plays in empty basement theatres in New York City to Broadway to guest roles on the biggest television shows of several decades like “M*A*S*H” and “The Sopranos” and juicy supporting parts in films like “Risky Business,” “The Goonies,” “The Fugitive,” “Memento,” “Bad Boys” and “The Matrix” he says “There aren’t any small parts, only small paychecks.”

He jokes that he has a twenty-minute face, perfect for character work but his new film, “From the Vine” offers him the chance to show off his ninety-minute face. His first starring role in recent memory sees him playing a man who gives up a high-flying career as an executive to return to Italy, where he was born, to search for find his centre and regain his moral compass. In this interview we talk about the parallels between his life and that of his “From the Vine” character, Jimmy Stewart’s wig and how “On the Waterfront” made him want to be an actor… and here’s a surprise. It had nothing to do with Marlon Brando.

Let’s get to know Joe Pantoliano.

Then we meet hip hop musician, former elementary school teacher and author Humble the Poet. He stopped by the “Pop Life” bar to discuss his new book “Things No One Else Can Teach Us,” what he learned from his failures, including a bad record deal, how even after he crawled out of crippling debt, the satisfaction was short lived and much more.

Finally, we close with legendary rock photographer Mick Rock who talks about his collaboration with David Bowie.

Listen to the whole thing HERE! (Link coming soon)

Here’s some info on The Richard Crouse Show!:

Each week on the nationally syndicated Richard Crouse Show, Canada’s most recognized movie critic brings together some of the most interesting and opinionated people from the movies, television and music to put a fresh spin on news from the world of lifestyle and pop-culture. Tune into this show to hear in-depth interviews with actors and directors, to find out what’s going on behind the scenes of your favourite shows and movies and get a new take on current trends. Recent guests include Ethan Hawke, director Brad Bird, comedian Gilbert Gottfried, Eric Roberts, Brian Henson, Jonathan Goldsmith a.k.a. “The most interesting man in the world,” and best selling author Linwood Barclay.

Click HERE to catch up on shows you might have missed!

RICHARD’S CTV NEWSCHANNEL WEEKEND MOVIE REVIEWS FOR JULY 17!

Richard sits in on the CTV NewsChannel with host Marcia MacMillan to have a look at the new movies coming to VOD and streaming services including feel-good “From the Vine,” the based-on-true-events thriller “Target Number One,” the hybrid barumentary “Bloody Nose, Empty Pockets” and the forlorn romance “Dirt Music.”

Watch the whole thing HERE!

IN ISOLATION WITH..: LEGENDARY ACTOR AND “FROM THE VINE” STAR Joe Pantoliano!

Check out episode twenty-four of Richard’s web series, “In Isolation With…” It’s the talk show where we make a connection without actually making contact! Today, broadcasting directly from Isolation Studios (a.k.a. my home office), we meet Joe Pantoliano, a working actor for over forty years. From doing plays in empty basement theatres in New York City to Broadway to guest roles on the biggest television shows of several decades like “M*A*S*H” and “The Sopranos” and juicy supporting parts in films like “Risky Business,” “The Goonies,” “The Fugitive,” “Memento,” “Bad Boys” and “The Matrix” he says “There aren’t any small parts, only small paychecks.”

He jokes that he has a twenty-minute face, perfect for character work but his new film, “From the Vine” offers him the chance to show off his ninety-minute face. His first starring role in recent memory sees him playing a man who gives up a high-flying career as an executive to return to Italy, where he was born, to search for find his centre and regain his moral compass. In this interview we talk about the parallels between his life and that of his “From the Vine” character, Jimmy Stewart’s wig and how “On the Waterfront” made him want to be an actor… and here’s a surprise… it had nothing to do with Marlon Brando.

“They sent me to a place called Bob Roberts,” Joe says in the interview, “a guy who made wigs on Robertson Avenue. Robertson Boulevard in LA, and as I was walking up the courtyard out walks Jimmy Stewart. He’s got a fishing cap on, and he is carrying a box. It’s his hairpiece. I said, ‘Mr. Stewart. I’m a young actor and I just got a big job over at Warner Bros. I’m getting fitted for my first hair piece.’ He said, ‘Well good for you young man. I didn’t get fitted for mine until I was 38.’”

Let’s get to know Joe Pantoliano.

Watch the whole thing HERE on YouTube or HERE on ctvnews.ca!

CFRA IN OTTAWA: THE BILL CARROLL MORNING SHOW MOVIE REVIEWS!

Richard sits in on the CFRA Ottawa morning show with host Bill Carroll to talk the new movies coming to VOD and streaming services including the tonic for the soul travelogue “From the Vine,” the quirky comedy “The Sunlit Night,” the journalism thriller “Target Number One” and the hybrid documentary “Bloody Nose, Empty Pockets.”

Listen to the whole thing HERE!

FROM THE VINE: 3 STARS. “exudes good vibes and appeals to our better natures.”

“From the Vine” breathes the same fragrant air as “Under the Tuscan Sun,” “A Good Year” and any number of other movies that offer up beautiful scenery and a stripped-down way of life as a tonic for the soul.

In a rare leading role Joe Pantoliano stars as Marco Gentile, an Italian born CEO of a Canadian automobile company. He’s at a crossroads in his life. Tired of the grind and troubled by an unkept promise he made years ago, he throws it all away. Without consulting his wife Marina (Wendy Crewson) he quits his high-paying job and makes a plan to hightail it to the tiny town of Acerenza, site of his grandfather’s old vineyard in Italy. There he hopes to reconnect to a way of life that will help him find his centre and regain his moral compass. But will his new beginning spell an end to old relationships?

There is a sense of déjà vu that comes along with watching “From the Vine.” Like the movies I mentioned above, it’s a beautifully shot travelogue with that follows a familiar path. Adding some spark are engaging performances from the cast.

Pantoliano plays Marco as a man having an extreme mid-life crisis, but it’s not about buying a Maserati or trading in his starter wife for someone younger. He’s having an actual existential crisis brought on by the realization that the life he leads isn’t the life he wants. To illustrate his dilemma director Sean Cisterna adds in a few surreal Felliniesque flourishes, but the heart of the character comes from Pantoliano’s rough-hewn charm.

As Marco’s long-suffering wife, Crewson brings warmth and a considerable amount of heart.

“From the Vine” doesn’t add anything new to the soul-searching travelogue genre but the point of these movies is not to reinvent the wheel. Like rom coms, the most formulaic variety of mass entertainment there is, it’s about the journey not the individual stops along the way. Sure, the story is predictable but it exudes good vibes and tries to appeal to our better natures and these days maybe that’s enough.

Richard hosts the Facebook Fishbowl Lounge at the 2016 Canadian Screen Awards!

Screen Shot 2016-03-15 at 3.42.05 PMI have a few people to thank today! Firstly, Sunday night I hosted the Facebook Fishbowl Lounge at the Canadian Screen Awards red carpet. Really fun. Thanks to Marc Dinsdale for shooting and posting everything we did and thanks to everyone who stopped bvy the booth to answer questions from my Facebook Random Question Generator. It was a fun way to get things started last night.

Then I moved on to host the Press Room. We had great guests down there and I’d like to offer thanks to everyone who asked questions.

My biggest thanks of the night goes to Touchwood PR–Alma P, Andrea Grau Clunie,Juli Strader, Laila Jennifer Rashwan, Susan Smythe-Bishop, Julia Caslin and the entire gang over there. It was a long night but with organization, good humour and efficiency they made the night run without a hitch.

 

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Zoomer TV: DO Boomers affect the direction of Hollywood storytelling?

Screen Shot 2013-11-06 at 9.12.48 AM“The Zoomer”: Created by ZoomerMedia Founder and VisionTV Executive Producer Moses Znaimer for and about Canadians 45-plus years of age, theZoomer offers groundbreaking, intelligent, and hard-hitting discussion on how our growing demographic is changing Canada and the world culturally, socially, politically, economically. It’s the next step in his New Vision of Aging, that is, Moses’ crusade to alter the stereotype and shape the agenda when it comes to topics of greatest importance to Canadians as they age.

On this episode Richard and panel members Mary Walsh, “Cairo Time” director Ruba Nadda, Blue Rodeo musician Jim Cuddy, actress Wendy Crewson, author Joseph Boyden and hosts Conrad Black and Denise Donlan discuss zooms–that’s boomers with zip–in the movies.

Watch the whole episode HERE!

 

Monday Nov 4, 2013 at 9 am Richard is on Zoomer TV with Conrad Black & Denise Donlan

photo copyMonday November 4, 2013 at 9 am Richard is on Vision’s Zoomer TV with hosts Conrad Black, Denise Donlan and guests Jim Cuddy, Wendy Crewson, filmmaker Ruba Nadda, Mary Walsh, author Joseph Boyden and more! Learn more here: https://thezoomertv.com/