Today, the Shattered Lens wishes a happy birthday to Naomi Watts.
In this scene from 2017’s Twin Peaks: The Return, Watts tells off to low-level hoodlums who have been demanding money from her husband.
Tag Archives: Naomi Watts
The Films of 2025: Emmanuelle (dir by Audrey Diwan)
This film is taking itself way too seriously….
I had that thought 16 minutes into Emmanuelle. A remake of the wonderfully trashy 70s film that made a star (of sorts) out of Sylvia Kristel, this version of Emmanuelle takes itself way too seriously. It should be noted that no one is under the impression that the original Emmanuelle films or any of the unofficial spin-offs were high art. The first film may have pretended to be about something but, ultimately, it was a trashy sex romp that was made because some folks wanted to make a lot of money. That’s one reason why the original film and Kristel’s version of the character continue to be popular. Both were totally shameless and unapologetic.
The remake, though, is boring. Emmanuelle (played by Noemie Merlant) even has a boring job. She works in quality control for a large chain of luxury hotels. That’s right, quality control. This film reimagines Emmanuelle as being the female version of Creed from The Office Emmanuelle has been sent to Hong Kong so that she can evaluate a hotel that is being managed by Margot (Naomi Watts). The company has tasked Emmanuelle with finding an excuse to fire Margot and Emmanuelle is feeling conflicted about it. Let me tell you, there’s nothing sexier than quality control.
Emmanuelle has several sexual experiences while staying at the hotel. The sensuality of Hong Kong gets to her. While wearing a towel, she flirts with a nervous room steward. She touches herself in front of an escort who hangs out at the hotel’s pool and she gets upset when Margot sends the escort and her friends away. Emmanuelle wanders through the film with a blank expression on her face, staring at things that are often happening off-camera. Hong Kong is presented as being a world where everything is for sale and no desires are forbidden. If this was one of Joe D’Amato’s Black Emanuelle films, the decadence would probably be strange and entertaining. However, since this is an Emmanuelle film that takes itself seriously, it’s kind of boring.
In fact, this film really does get caught up in the whole “Will Emmanuelle get Margot fired?” plot. That is probably the least interesting part of the movie but the filmmakers really do want us to understand that Emmanuelle could lose her job if she doesn’t give Margot a bad report. But honestly, who cares? This film makes the mistake of assuming that “quality control” is a lot more exciting than it actually is.
Emmanuelle does fall in love over the course of the film. Kei (Will Sharpe) is an enigmatic guest who hasn’t had sex in “two or three years” because he lost his desire. He’s suffering from ennui! Emmanuelle yells at Kei for smoking in the hotel but she’s attracted to him as well. At least, that’s what the film wants us to believe. Merchant and Sharpe have so little chemistry — romantic or sexual — that it’s hard to really care. They have some philosophical discussions, the type of stuff that even Zalman King would have dismissed as being rather pretentious.
The main problem, as I said before, is that this film just isn’t fun. It gets bogged down with its plot and Merlant, Watts, and Sharpe all sleepwalk through their roles. This film should have been glorious trash. Instead, it’s just dull.
March True Crime: The Hunt For The Unicorn Killer (dir by William A. Graham)
Who started Earth Day?
There are a lot of names that get mentioned. Some people give all the credit to U.S. Senator Gaylord Nelson of Wisconsin, who was an environmentalist before it was trendy and who proposed a day-long “teach-in” in 1970. (According to Norman Mailer, Hunter Thompson, and Gary Hart, Gaylord Nelson was also George McGovern’s personal pick for his running mate in 1972 but ultimately, Nelson didn’t get the spot because it was felt people would make fun of his first name. Considering how things went with Thomas Eagleton, one imagines that McGovern probably ended up wishing he had the courage to go with his first instinct.) A peace activist named John McConnell also proposed the idea of an Earth Day in 1969 but there’s some debate whether his proposed Earth Day became the actual Earth Day. Like all things, many people have taken credit for the idea behind Earth Day.
Ira Einhorn was one of those people. A prominent member of Pennsylvania’s counter-culture, Einhorn was a self-styled New Age environmentalist and he did speak at the first Earth Day event in Philadelphia. Einhorn went on to become a prominent guru, providing his services to several corporations that were looking to shake off their stodgy image. He led protests against nuclear energy. He wrote articles about CIA duplicity. He was, for a while, a popular figure and, due to his last name, he was nicknamed “The Unicorn.” He always claimed that he was instrumental in starting Earth Day but the organizers behind the event have always been quick to say that he had little do with it.
It’s understandable that the people behind Earth Day would rather not be associated with Ira Einhorn. Einhorn presented himself as being a quirky, fun-loving hippie but, in private, he was known for having both a violent temper and a misogynistic streak. In 1977, Einhorn’s ex-girlfriend, Texas-born Holly Maddux, disappeared. In 1979, her mummified remains were found in a box that Einhorn kept in his closet. Arrested for her murder and defended in court by future U.S. Sen. Arlen Specter, Einhorn claimed that he was innocent and that he had no idea how Holly Maddux ended up in his closet. (He suggested the CIA might be responsible.) With the help of his wealthy friends, Einhorn fled the United States and ended up in Europe. He lived in Europe for nearly 20 years until he was finally arrested in France. Einhorn’s claim that he was being framed for his anti-nuclear advocacy found a sympathetic audience amongst certain members of the French intellectual community. Eventually, though, Ira Einhorn was extradited to Pennsylvania. He spent the rest of his life in prison, eventually dying in 2020. To the end, he had his supporters despite the fact that he was clearly guilty.
Made for television in 1999, The Hunt For The Unicorn Killer tells the story of Ira (Kevin Anderson), Holly (a pre-Mulholland Drive Naomi Watts), and Holly’s father, Fred (Tom Skerritt). It does a good job of telling the disturbing story of Ira Einhorn and it features good performances from its main stars. Tom Skerritt especially does a good job as a father determined to get justice for his daughter. The film shows how so many of Ira’s friends rationalized his actions, not wanting to admit that their nostalgia for the 60s and the counterculture was blinding them to the monster in their midst. It’s a portrait of how one evil man was able to take advantage of the idealism of others.
The Hunt For The Unicorn Killer‘s original running time was 163 minutes and it was aired over two nights. It was later edited down to 90 minutes for syndication. The uncut version is available on YouTube and that’s definitely the one to see.
Lisa Marie’s Way Too Early Oscar Predictions For April
Now that the 2023 Oscars are over with, it’s time to move on to the 2024 Oscars!
Needless to say, there’s probably nothing more pointless than trying to guess which films are going to be nominated a year from now. I can’t even guarantee that all of the films listed below are even going to be released this year. And, even if they are released this year, I can’t guarantee that they’ll actually be any good or that the Academy will show any interest in them. Sundance was a bit low-key this year. Dune Part II seems like a contender but will it be remembered 9 months from now? Whereas last year started out with everyone waiting for Oppenheimer and Killers of the Flower Moon, this year feels far different as Hollywood, still recovering from last year’s strikes, tries to catch up. As many will say over the months to come, no one knows anything. As much as I hate quoting William Goldman (because, seriously, quoting Goldman on a film site is such a cliché at this point), Goldman was right.
In other words, there’s no real science to these predictions. It’s too early in the year to do anything but guess. And for now, these are my guesses. A year from now, they’ll be good for either bragging rights or a laugh. Hopefully, they’ll be good for both.
Best Picture
The Apprentice
The Bikeriders
Blitz
Didi
Dune, Part II
Emmanuelle
The Fire Inside
Here
Hit Man
SNL: 1975
Best Director
Ali Abassi for The Apprentice
Richard Linklater for Hit Man
Steve McQueen for Blitz
Rachel Morrison for The Fire Inside
Denis Villeneuve for Dune Part II
Best Actor
Austin Butler in The Bikeriders
Daniel Craig in Queer
Richard Gere in Oh, Canada
Andre Holland in The Actor
Glen Powell in Hit Man
Best Actress
Adria Arjona in Hit Man
Jodie Comer in The Bikeriders
Ryan Destiny in The Fire Inside
Cynthia Erivo in Wicked
Jessica Lange in Long Day’s Journey Into Night
Best Supporting Actor
Kieran Culkin in A Real Pain
Tom Hardy in The Bikeriders
Samuel L. Jackson in The Piano Lesson
Jeremy Strong in The Apprentice
Anthony Wong in Emmanuelle
Best Supporting Actress
Joan Chen in Didi
Danielle Deadwyler in The Piano Lesson
Saoirse Ronan in Blitz
Rachel Sennot in SNL: 1975
Naomi Watts in Emmanuelle
6 Actresses Who I Hope Win An Oscar In The Next 10 Years
Continuing the theme from my previous post, here are 6 actresses who I sincerely hope will have won their first competitive Oscar by the time that the 2033 ceremony rolls around.
- Greta Lee
Greta Lee, regardless of what the Academy might claim later tonight, gave the best performance of 2023 in Past Lives and it’s a shame that she wasn’t even nominated for her work. Fortunately, her work in Past Lives will undoubtedly lead to more roles. She will be appearing in the new Tron film, which …. doesn’t sound like an Oscar contender. But no worries! Hopefully, she’ll get another award-worthy role soon.
2. Glenn Close
For all of her nominations, Glenn Close has never won an Oscar, which is just shocking. She’s won almost every other award out there but the Oscar remains elusive. Hopefully, that will be corrected soon. Like Harrison Ford, who I mentioned in the previous post, Glenn Close isn’t getting any younger and one hope that she’ll soon get a role that the Academy can use to honor both her and her entire career.
3. Scarlett Johansson
I always mention Scarlett on these lists and I’ll keep doing so until she wins. She’s received two nominations (both in the same year and both very much overdue) but she has yet to win an Oscar to make up for the one that she should have won for Lost In Translation.
4. Amy Adams
My fellow redhead, the amazing Amy Adams, has been nominated a lot but she has yet to win. As she’s best when she’s allowed to be naturalistic, it seems that the Academy has taken her for granted. She should have won for Arrival and she should not have to make any more films like Hillbilly Elegy just to get the award she deserves.
5. Naomi Watts
Naomi Watts is, like Amy Adams, taken for granted. The Academy still owes her for Mulholland Drive, as far as I’m concerned.
6. Saoirse Ronan
With four nominations before she has even turned 30, Saoirse Ronan is destined to eventually win an Oscar. She should have already won for both Brooklyn and Lady Bird.
Horror Film Review: Goodnight Mommy (dir by Matt Sobel)
Poor Naomi Watts.
I mean, let’s just be real here. Naomi Watts is an excellent actress. One could argue that she’s one of the best actresses working today. She’s someone who can be convincing in just about any genre. She can do drama. She can do comedy. She can do horror. She can star in small indie films and expensive blockbusters. She can play suburban housewives and sultry femme fatales with equal skill. She’s an actress who has played a wide variety roles and has shown a willingness to take risks in her career.
And yet, far too often, she gets cast in disappointing and misconceived films. Indeed, it sometimes seem like David Lynch is the only director to really understand just how good Naomi Watts can be, whether he’s working with her in Mulholland Drive, Inland Empire, or Twin Peaks: The Return. Watts provided Twin Peaks: The Return with a heart and the scene where she tells off the two crooks who are extorting money from her husband still carries a punch. She brought a lot of genuine and needed emotion to a miniseries that would have otherwise been cold and impersonal. Unfortunately, not every director has the insight or the skill of a David Lynch.
Just consider 2022’s Goodnight Mommy, a thoroughly unnecessary remake of a 2014 Austrian film. Watts is cast as the Mother, a former Hollywood actress who now lives on an isolated farm and who spends most of her time drinking and sulking in her room. Due to some recent plastic surgeon, the Mother’s face is completely and totally bandaged.
This concerns her twin sons, Elias (Cameron Crovetti) and Lukas (Nikolas Crovetti). They worry about how strange the Mother has been acting ever since they moved out to the farm with her. (While the Mother was getting plastic surgery, the twins were living with their father.) The Mother orders them to stay out of her room and hardly speaks to them. When Elias notices that his mother’s formerly blue eyes now appear to be green, he worries that his real mother may have been replaced with an imposter.
As I mentioned earlier, Goodnight Mommy is based on a 2014 Austrian film. The original film, if I remember correctly, was effective creepy, well-acted, and full of atmosphere. The remake feels more than a bit pointless and slow. The big twist that was so effective in the Austrian film falls flat in the American remake, largely because the kids playing the brothers in the remake are both directed to give boring and inauthentic performances. The remake of Goodnight Mommy mistakes a slow space for a creepy atmosphere.
That said, Naomi Watts gives a good performance as the Mother, one that will probably keep viewers guessing if they haven’t already seen the original film. In fact, Watts is so good that it just makes it all the more disappointing that the film itself feels so pointless. When it comes to Goodnight Mommy, go with the original and ask your local film producers to give Naomi Watts a role in a decent movie.
10 Oscar Snubs From The 2000s
Welcome to the aughts. The new century started out with the terror of 9-11 and it ended with the collapse of the world’s economy. In between, a lot of films were released. Some of them were really good. A few of them were nominated for Best Picture. Most of them were not. As always, there were snubs aplenty.
2000: Michael Douglas Is Not Nominated For Wonder Boys
I recently saw someone online bemoaning the fact that Michael Douglas appears to be fated to end his career as a supporting character in the MCU as opposed to playing the type of “mature” roles with which he made his reputation. And I actually think that person had a good point. Michael Douglas, whose performances once epitomized the last few decades of the 20th Century, does seem a bit out of place surrounded by CGI and responding to the overly quippy dialogue of the MCU. If you want to see a truly good Michael Douglas performance that doesn’t involve anyone shrinking, check him out in Curtis Hanson’s Wonder Boys. Though Wonder Boys won the Oscar for Best Original Song and picked up nominations for Editing and Adapted Screenplay, Michael Douglas’s wonderful lead performance was overlooked.
2001: Mulholland Drive Is Almost Totally Ignored
Considering the reverence with which it is now viewed, it’s interesting to note that Mulholland Drive only received one Oscar nomination, for David Lynch’s direction. The film was not nominated for Best Picture. Naomi Watts and Laura Harring both went unnominated. At the time, I imagine the film was too strange for Academy voters and its origin as a television pilot probably worked against it. Today, it is regularly cited as one of the best films ever made.
2002: Leonardo DiCaprio and Tom Hanks Are Not Nominated For Catch Me If You Can
Catch Me If You Can was that rarest of movies, an underrated Steven Spielberg production. Christopher Walken was nominated for Best Supporting Actor and the film’s score was nominated as well. But both Leonard DiCaprio and Tom Hanks went unnominated, despite doing some of the best work of their careers.
2002: Robin Williams Is Not Nominated For One Hour Photo
One Hour Photo featured what I consider to be Robin Williams’s best and most poignant performance. It was also perhaps his most frightening performance, which probably explains why the Academy shied away from honoring it.
2003: Scarlet Johansson Is Not Nominated For Best Actress For Lost In Translation
Though Bill Murray got most of the awards attention, Scarlet Johansson’s performance was just as important to the success of Lost In Translation.
2004: Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind Is Not Nominated For Best Picture or Best Actor
Even before he decided to present himself as being an expert on vaccines and modern art, I wasn’t a huge fan of Jim Carrey’s. That said, even I have to admit that he deserved a nomination for Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind. The film itself was only nominated for two Oscars. Kate Winslet was nominated for Best Actress and Charlie Kaufman won the Oscar for Original Screenplay. The film deserved quite a bit more.
2007: Once Is Not Nominated For Best Picture
This is one snub that I haven’t quite gotten over. Once, a beautiful independent film from Ireland, deserved far more love than it received from the Academy. That said, it did win the Oscar for Best Original Song and Glen Hansard gave one of the best acceptance speeches in Oscar history. So, there is a little justice.
2008: The Dark Knight Is Not Nominated For Best Picture
If ever there was a comic book movie that deserved to be nominated for Best Picture, it was this one. To me, I think the main reason why The Dark Knight is superior to so many other comic book movies is because, even with Batman and the Joker running around, it still feels as if it’s taking place in the real world. The smartest decision that Christopher Nolan made was to use a real city for Gotham instead of constructing a phony-looking set. The fact that The Dark Knight received 8 nominations without also receiving a nomination for Best Picture leaves little doubt that the film’s lack of a nomination was due to its origins as a comic book movie. There was such an uproar about The Dark Knight failing to pick up a Best Picture nomination that the Academy increased the number of Best Picture nominees to ten. (Of course, that’s didn’t do much to help anything.)
2008: Robert Downey, Jr. Is Not Nominated For Best Actor For Iron Man
The MCU is now so big that it’s easy to forget that, if Robert Downey, Jr. hadn’t been a convincing Tony Stark in 2008, the whole thing would have never happened. Going back and watching the early MCU films, before they got bogged down in their own formula, can be an eye-opening experience. Downey’s performance in the first Iron Man holds up extremely well. He goes from being an irresponsible businessman to being a hero and he’s convincing at every turn. He gave such a good performance that it convinced even those of us who weren’t comic book readers to stick around and see what was coming up next in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
2009: George Wyner Is Not Nominated For Best Supporting Actor For A Serious Man
Not all snubs involve big stars or famous actors. Some of them involve talented character actors like George Wyner who totally knock their one scene out of the park but who still don’t get the recognition that they deserve. In A Serious Man, Wyner plays the rabbi who tells Larry Gopnik (Michael Stuhlbarg) the parable of the dentist who found Hebrew phrases on the teeth of one of his patients. It’s a mesmerizing scene, thanks to George Wyner’s skill as a storyteller.
Agree? Disagree? Have a snub of your own that you’d like to mention? Let us know in the comments!
Coming up next, we go from the 2010s to the present day!
Happy 21st Anniversary To Mulholland Drive
Mulholland Drive (2001, dir by David Lynch, DP: Peter Deming)
21 years ago today, David Lynch’s Mulholland Drive was released into theaters.
Horror Film Review: Shut In (dir by Farren Blackburn)
The 2016 film, Shut In, is yet another film in which Naomi Watts plays an intelligent woman who is forced to do stupid things because, otherwise, there would be no story.
This time, Watts is cast as Dr. Mary Portman, a psychologist who is taking care of her stepson, Stephen (Charlie Heaton). Stephen was left in a vegatative state by a tragic accident that not only killed Mary’s husband but which also totaled a brand new SUV. Mary and Stephen are in an isolated house so there’s no way anything could go wrong, right?
Mary has a lot on her mind. Not only does she have to take care of Stephen but she’s also starting to date again. Plus, one of her patients, a child named Tom (Jacob Tremblay), has disappeared. She’s worried about Tom. He disappeared near her house and no one has been able to find him. Mary occasionally thinks that she sees Tom but her psychologist (played by poor Oliver Platt, who looks embarrassed to be there) says that Mary is just seeing what she wants to see. And when two little hands come out of the darkness to keep Mary from entering a crawlspace, that’s just a coincidence, too.
Right.
Because it’s not like totally obvious, from the freaking start, that Tom is hiding out in her house.
Now, before anyone gets excited, this film does not feature Jacob Tremblay as an evil child who torments Naomi Watts. (Jacob Tremblay is 15 years old now, just in case you needed an excuse to feel old.) Instead, it turns out that Mary’s tormenter is….
What?
Spoiler alert?
Really, I have to give a spoiler alert before revealing the most obvious twist of all time? How is that fair?
Okay, fine. SPOILER ALERT! Stop crying, you babies.
Mary is being menaced by Stephen, who it turns out woke up from his coma long ago and is now faking his vegetative state. That seems like that would be a difficult thing to fake but, whatever. Anyway, it turns out that Stephen has really enjoyed having Mary all to himself and he’s not really happy about the idea of having to share her with Tom. So, Stephen’s idea is to trap Tom in the crawlspace and hold Mary hostage. Or something. I don’t know. It doesn’t seem like Stephen’s really thought this out. Normally, that would be understandable because it takes a lot of planning to trap someone in a crawlspace while pretending to be in a coma. But Stephen spends all day lying around so he should have used that time to give a little more thought to his plan.
Eventually, Oliver Platt realizes that something strange is happening so he goes up the house to rescue her but — surprise! — Stephen kills him. Seriously, Oliver — you deserved better than this movie.
For that matter so does Naomi Watts. Watts is a good actress who can play both comedy and drama and yet, she keeps showing up in these movies where she basically spends the whole movie being held prisoner, either physically or mentally. She always does a good job in them and, when I first heard that Woman In The Window was being turned into a movie, she was my choice for the role played by Amy Adams but, still, Watts definitely deserves better than a by-the-numbers film like Shut In. Too often, the film requires Mary to act in a totally illogical, rather stupid manner. Watts does her best with the character but the script lets her down.
Along with being totally predictable, Shut In moves at a glacial pace. A lot of time is spent in an attempt to establish mood and atmosphere but again, the big twist is so obvious that no amount of mood and Kubrickian atmosphere is going to save it.. Shut In is a movie that very slowly takes us to exactly where we think it’s going to take us. Everyone involved deserved better.
Scenes That I Love: Cooper Says Goodbye In Twin Peaks: The Return (Happy Birthday, Kyle MacLachlan!)
Happy birthday, Kyle MacLachlan!
Kyle MacLachlan is 61 years old today. While MacLachlan has appeared in a lot of different movies and tv shows and he’s also played a lot of different characters, he will probably always be best known for playing FBI Special Agent Dale Cooper on Twin Peaks. MacLachlan, with his combination of earnestness and darkness, was the prefect choice to play Cooper and it’s impossible to imagine Twin Peaks without him.
Of course, MacLachlan didn’t just play Dale Cooper during the third season of Twin Peaks. He also played Cooper’s evil Doppelganger and, for the majority of Twin Peaks: The Return, he played Dougie. Dougie could barely speak and usually had no idea what was happening around him but he still thrived in Las Vegas. MacLachlan’s performance as Dougie was both funny and poignant. At the same time, I do think that every fan of Twin Peaks breathed a sigh of relief when Cooper finally woke up from that coma, stopped acting like Dougie, and started acting like himself.
Today’s scene that I love comes from Part 16 of Twin Peaks: The Return. In this David Lynch-directed scene, Cooper — who has only recently reclaimed his identity — says goodbye to Dougie’s wife and son. Like so much of Twin Peaks; The Return, this is a scene that could be unbelievably mawkish in the hands of another actor. However, Kyle MacLachlan plays the scene with such sincerity that it’s actually very touching.
In honor of Kyle MacLachlan’s birthday, enjoy today’s scene that I love:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p2UveFrlnIE
Through the Shattered Lens 