Thursday for thought: Bring on the actor panels; a compilation of Paleyfest interviews

by kranARI

PALEYFEST

A good interviewer doesn’t only prepare interesting questions but also knows how to jump in and stand his or her ground in an interview. In these large panels it must be even harder to keep all cast members engaged, feeling included and produce interesting results so these are bits and bobs of my favourite panels that I wanted to share with all of you,  all gathered together in one place.

Paleyfest panels are starting again, March 1 to 15 so in an attempt to get into the Paley mood, here are some videos from last year to get you warmed up.

All videos are property of The Paley Centre for media, which is kind of the equivalent of “Inside the Actor’s studio” for television. Paley hosts amazing panels for all kinds of shows like Parks and Rec, Castle, Community, New Girl, Modern Family and any other current successful network shows that seems to attract some great fandoms.

CASTLE

Stana and Nathan describe being handcuffed to each other for filming, I have to laugh about how they finish each other’s sentences…Penny Johnson (Captain Gates) talks about her induction into the series, she’s actually pretty funny!

WHITE COLLAR

Matt Bomer (Neal Caffrey) and the adorable Willie Garson discuss what it’s like working from day to day and what ultimately makes this show tick. After getting your Mozzie fix, I was surprised to find out the hilarious Marsha Thomason (who plays Diana) is actually from Manchester! The things you discover from watching interviews like this are amazing…

MODERN FAMILY

I love this clip of Sophia Vergara and Ed O’Neil talking about Gloria and Jay’s relationship. The most hilarious bit is the story about the dog and how Sophia and therefore Gloria end up hating the dog on the show…

ONCE UPON A TIME

Jennifer Morrison animately talks about how her character Emma will come to slowly accept Henry’s story book reality. Then, toys with the idea that kissing every character might bring back memories of who they truly are. Lana Parilla describes bringing her characters to life through costume and how her ass keeps growing with every fitting…

HOUSE

Hugh Laurie (House), Jesse Spencer (Chase) and Jennifer Morisson (Cameron) talk about how their acting styles affected each other’s performances. It’s fun to watch the banter amongst the cast.

GLEE

In this clip, the beautiful Heather Morris talks about dancing in front of Britney Spears twice and the pop stars’ inability to make the connection. She excitedly describes how amazing it was to “fake vomit” on her birthday for the show while performing a Ke$ha number.

Wicked Wednesday : Winter warmers end with our fave TV shows of the season

by kranARI

ONCE UPON A TIME

Once Upon a time has become my winter discovery and let me just say, how perfect of a winter saver it has been. The show brings back childhood memories of Grimm and other fairy tales and puts a classic spin on things. What I love about this show is the vast imagination that goes into the writing and how all characters especially the villains are given a human side relatable to all. Did I also mention the really hot cast? Read a good review of the show on Silver Screen Rave.

HOMELAND

photo courtesy of ScreenRant

If I’ve manage to intrigue you with talk about Zero Dark Thirty, you should give Homeland a try. Even though Showtime’s current season has come to an end, feel free to brush up on older episodes because let me tell you, this show will ROCK YOUR WORLD! Accept the possibility that you will be having a relationship with Claire Danes’ wobbly chin and dine in! Both Danes, Damian Lewis (the most evil / loveable antagonist you’ll ever meet) and the show have lots of awards to prove their worth but take my word for it, make yourself a cup of herbal tea, cause your heart will be beating too fast for its own liking and sit back and enjoy.

CASTLE

property of TV Guide

And when Homeland has made you curl up in a ball of nerves, just change the channel and watch something lighter like Castle. Yes, the past few seasons have been full of angst but this current one is one loved up, humorous taste of heaven. Yes, let’s analyse this Stana Katic obsession.

ELEMENTARY

property of Entertainment weekly

One of the most understated shows of the year is probably the US version of Sherlock. With gripping story lines and the unique characterisation by Jonny Lee Miller in the role of Sherlock, the show has successfully managed to quickly become a weekly favourite of mine. It’s dark, yet witty with a tinge of humour and some real angst is starting to develop between its two main characters Watson (played by Lucy Liu) and Sherlock. What a clever idea the creators had to pick a female Watson opposite Miller’s Holmes and I’ve been even more pleased recently to discover some of Lucy Liu’s hidden talents. A very interesting analysis on Elementary if you ‘re keen to check it out is written by Miss Alexandrina in this well thought out psychological piece.

Moody Monday : Modern Time Heroines

by kranARI

photo courtesy of Hypable

Tv series Once Upon a Time has not only resurrected our love for classic and modern childhood fairy-tales, it has single-handedly changed our perspective on what it means to be a hero and a villain. Episode by episode we revisit those dark and haunted stories like Little Red Riding Hood, Peter and the Wolf, Hansel and Gretel with a twist of modern reality and a spoonful of compassion for the series well cast villains, The Evil Queen and Rumplestiltskin. Our Heroes and Heroines share equal gender-powered roles in saving the day with Mulan leading the way of the modern tales and Snow White kicking some serious ass in the forrest while Belle from Beauty and the Beast gives new meaning to the concept of courageous book worm. And of course, true love is aways at the centre of all these tales so I’d personally like to introduce you to the heroines that make this show so freakin cool.

LANA PARILLA as THE EVIL QUEEN

photo by Troy Jensen

Lana plays onion layered Evil Queen Regina who as the seasons unfold, starts to shed her nasty skin. We watch her slowly change from the inside out and  only to replace it with love for those around her. Unfortunately she must now pay the price of her evil-doings but those lovely compassionate eyes and layered portrayal of Regina only makes us love and root for her even more.

GINNIFER GOODWIN as SNOW WHITE

With Goodwin’s Shakespeare background, the role of Snow White almost fits like a glove made in acting heaven. Ginnifer brings depth and compassion to the screen as well as a spunky-modern sense of style as her modern day equivalent, Mary-Margaret. Snow White proves to be a warrior at heart who is willing to fight for true love time and time again but who, in modern-day times, really just wants to settle down and enjoy her family. As awkward as it might seem for thirty-four year old looking Goodwin to have a 28 year-old daughter on the show (even though time froze for a whole 28 years), she manages to portray nurture very well and has a fierce sense of protection for her daughter Emma which makes the relationship believable.

JENNIFER MORRISSON as EMMA SWAN

photo courtesy of OnceUponaTimeABC

Emma Swan is a pretty good name for a fairytale character, don’t you think? You might recognise Jennifer Morrison from House MD but it’s the first time she has landed a starring role in a hit TV series which, really does make a difference. In her current role she is truly being given such a great opportunity to shine and show off her comedic, sarcastic and dramatic side while engaging in some pretty cool fighting scenes. As Emma, the long lost daughter of Snow White and Prince charming, she plays modern day saviour who has to come to terms with her own past, motherhood, and save the town from the curse the Evil Queen has inflicted upon its people.

EMILIE DE RAVIN as BELLE

photo by Mark Anderson

Belle is truly the hidden gem of the characters of this show. Plucked from the cast of Lost, she was given the role of Belle to Rumplestiltskin’s “beast”. The writers have gradually given her more and more depth propelling her from love-interest to adventurer and guide to Rumplestiltskin’s dark yet endearing character.

MEGHAN ORY as RED

One has to give props to the writers and creators of the show for really taking a character like Ory’s Red and giving it new light. So let’s just say little Red Riding Hood is not so little anymore and might not exactly be who you believe her to be. Meghan’s character struggles with independence, self-discovery and brings not only her spunk but brilliant detective instincts to the town of Storybrooke.

JAMIE CHUNG as MULAN

photo property of Nylon

Turns out Sucker Punch is not the only film that churns out cool female characters. Mulan has yet to reveal with whom her true heart’s lies in Once Upon a Time, but as far as a warrior and a female, she certainly kicks ass. Chung’s performance aligns well with the rest of her female cast mates in that she shows that beauty, brains and brawn can all co-exist. I do hope the writers will soon give her the opportunity to explore her character romantically and thus give her performance another level to play with.