Dear Lebanon,
I wanted to write to say Happy 70th birthday.
I know that in reality you have been around thousands of years, and were trading and writing long before my ancestors. But that moment of your birth in November 1943 was special, different – you took your first steps as a new nation founded on uniting principles rather than lines of division.
I’m proud that my predecessor, Edward Spears, was there to support that, and that we believed as strongly then as now in the idea of Lebanon.
The thing is, Lebanon, do you still believe in that idea? This is a question only you can answer. Without doubt, it has been a bumpy seven decades, with troublesome teenage years and plenty of midlife crises, to put it mildly.
You now face another tough year, and rising anxiety that...
Lifestyle
Mayor Suthers,
Congratulations on being elected mayor of Colorado Springs. You’re a life-long resident of this fair city, so I certainly don’t need to tell you how great this place is, especially the local parks and open spaces.
As an avid hiker and lover of our city parks and open spaces, please allow me to bend your ear for a moment.
First, please fix the roads. I know you’ve been hearing this from everyone since you announced your candidacy — but I’m talking about the roads in our parks. Helen Hunt Falls in North Cheyenne Canyon Park is a major draw for both tourists and locals, but the three miles of road from the park entrance to the falls is littered with over 200 potholes. (Yes, someone counted them.) Other parks around the city are in the same shape. I don’t think blowing...
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Dear Mr. Allen:
Let me start by saying I am one of your biggest fans. (I used to be your biggest fan, but then you made September.) I watch your early, funny films with joyful glee. I sit in rapt attention and awe, basking in the glow of Manhattan, Annie Hall and Bullets Over Broadway again and again and again. I love almost all of your pre-Mia films, and enjoy some of your post Mia’s. I’ve sat through your performances in Casino Royale, Picking Up the Pieces, and The Sunshine Boys, although you had nothing creatively to do with them. And I’ve suffered through Melinda and Melinda, Cassandra’s Dream, Hollywood Ending and Anything Else, just because I am an obsessive-compulsive who will go through painstaking self-abuse just to experience anything and everything from an artist I love. Oh...
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Dear Zoe,
Before I begin, please know that the majority of my disgust is reserved for Cynthia Mort and Jimmy Iovine. They hold primary responsibility for your casting in the upcoming film Nina, and that choice symbolizes the utter disregard the film industry has shown for telling the stories of Black women faithfully.
But you're a grown woman, Zoe, and you made the decision to participate in this film despite public objections from Nina's daughter, Simone. Of course you owe nothing to me or the thousands of other people of African descent who find your choice to portray Nina disturbing and offensive.
I do wonder how it must feel to research Nina - to read and watch her critiques of racism and white supremacy in American culture – while preparing for a project that reinforces...
2,885
Dear Priyanka
As 'Ud Ja Ab Teri Baari' played full throttle and the end credits of Mary Kom rolled on, I stood-still, fascinated after a fabulously inspiring cinematic experience. My first impulse was that this is one film my 10-ear-old daughter Insha must watch. In India, women are worshipped as deities but still the girl child is mostly considered a liability. The majestic story of Magnificent Mary and how she toppled all odds will instill a lot of self belief not only in my daughter but every single girl child in India and the world in general.
The pain and the effort you've taken in becoming Mary Kom is brilliant and as Coach Sir would say, you never lose 'Focus' even once. The perfect body language, the arduous physical conditioning, the momentous self belief and the sheer...
2,752
Dear Mr. Lee,
When asked about the bankruptcy of Rhythm + Hues, the visual effects house largely responsible for making your film Life of Pi as incredible as it was, you said:
“I would like it to be cheaper and not a tough business [for VFX vendors]. It’s easy for me to say, but it’s very tough. It’s very hard for them to make money. The research and development is so expensive; that is a big burden for every house. They all have good times and hard times, and in the tough times, some may not [survive].”
I just want to point out that while, yes R...
2,743
Dear Gwyneth,
I really enjoyed your recent comments to E! about how easy an office job is for parents, compared to the gruelling circumstances of being on a movie set.
"I think it’s different when you have an office job, because it’s routine and, you know, you can do all the stuff in the morning and then you come home in the evening," you said.
"When you’re shooting a movie, they’re like, ‘We need you to go to Wisconsin for two weeks,’ and then you work 14 hours a day, and that part of it is very difficult.
"I think to have a regular job and be a mom is not as, of course there are challenges, but it’s not like being on set.”
As a mother of a toddler, I couldn’t agree more! "Thank God I don’t make millions filming one movie per year", is what I say to myself pretty much...
7,369
Dear Mr. Priyadarshan,
I being an ardent fan of bollywood movie have had the pleasure, actually less of pleasure and more of pain, of following your bolywood career over so many years. You know after so many years of observation I have inferred either you are a sadist or a person with deep hateful sentiments against the Hindi speaking crowd. To justify my claims here is a list of the movies you have made in Hindi-
Name Origin
Khatta Meeta Remake of Vellanakalude Nadu(Malayalam)
De Dana Dan Remake of Vettam(Malayalam)
Billu Remake of Kadha Parayumbol (Malayalam)
Mere Baap Pehle Aap Remake of Ishtam (Malayalam)
Bhool Bhulaiyaa Remake of Manichitrathazhu (Malayalam)
Dhol Remake of In Harihar nagar (Malayalam)
Chup Chup Ke Remake of Punjabi House (Malayalam)
Malamaal Weekly...
3,037
Dear Judd,
We're writing because -- well, you know why we're writing. You got the, like, hundreds of e-mails we sent, man. And we know why you're ducking us.
You've been using our lives in your movies for too long, Apatow. We want our royalties.
Don't even try to deny it. Every movie you make, it starts all over again. It's like you've been following us around for the last six months. "The 40 Year Old Virgin"? Ted was not amused, man. "Knocked Up"? That was the worst nine months of Alan's life.
You're a Hollywood big shot and your name is on every hit comedy that's come out in the past five years. Writer. Producer. Director. And every movie, it's the same thing: a loserish dude is redeemed by a hot woman who won't stand for his loserishness anymore. Well, we're not losers,...
2,567
Dear Mr. Lynch,
Beyond the joy of creation, recognition, and the obvious benefits of fame like money and girls, I think the biggest ambition of any artist is to gain the respect of the guys who influenced them. To be considered an equal by them for just five minutes. To talk as peers.
Mr. Lynch, you’re on my short list. However, the road to fame is long, hard, and wrought with happenstance, obstacles, luck, and a zillion other x factors out of my control. I just might not ever make it. And even if I do, I might not ever do anything up your alley. And, not to be crass, but you’re getting up there in years. So, in the unfortunate and likely event that our paths never cross, I figured I’d at least send this little message out into the ether. Maybe you’ll pluck it out of the...
3,691