Snow White gets a makeover... Three of them.

 What’s on now: In the middle of P.S. I Love You. In desperate need of some dark chocolate right now.

 In other news: 2012 Oscar Nominations are out! I haven’t seen all the nominated movies yet, but I’m rooting for War Horse for Best Picture, Gary Oldman (Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy) for Best Actor and MerylStreep (The Iron Lady) for Best Actress.

 Today’s fun fact: Ashley Judd and Sandra Bullock were also considered for the leading female role of Maggie Fitzgerald in Million Dollar Baby, ultimately played by Hilary Swank.

I like to think that at the exact same moment last year, three different people in three different brainstorming sessions in three different cities put up their hands and said, “Why don’t we revamp Snow White and the Seven Dwarves?”

That’s the only explanation I can think of as to why we’re suddenly faced with three very different reboots of the classic fairy tale: ABC’s new show Once Upon a Time, and two film versions in Mirror Mirror and Snow White and the Huntsman.

I saw the season premiere of Once Upon a Time and thought it was just all right. But now my friends are telling me it’s only gotten better and I should catch up. I probably will at some point. Mostly I’m interested to see if it lasts longer than one season. It didn’t strike me as the sort of storyline that could be healthily stretched out for more than a year or two.

The show stars Jennifer Morrison (House), Josh Dallas (Thor) and Ginnifer Goodwin (He’s Just Not That Into You), who plays a new version of Snow White. Once Upon a Time follows the story of an entire magical kingdom, the denizens of which are characters from classic fairy tales. They’ve been trapped in a terrible place (the real world) and don’t remember their beautiful kingdom or who they really are, because Snow White and her prince pissed off the evil queen, who apparently managed to survive this time round, even though she has been brutally slaughtered in various creative ways in every other version of Snow White ever.

Side note: My personal favorite is in the appropriately labeled Grimm version, in which she was forced to wear a pair of heated iron shoes and then dance until she dropped dead. Wow. Have I ever mentioned that pretty much every fairy tale beloved by children around the world is exceedingly effed up? ‘Cause they are.

Back on track, the show follows these characters as they struggle with their issues and a way to reverse the curse is sought. Once Upon a Time airs on ABC on Sunday at 8/7c.

The next two aren’t out yet. The first one, set to open March 16, is Mirror Mirror, starring Julia Roberts (Eat Pray Love) as the Evil Queen, Lily Collins (The Blind Side) as Snow White, Armie Hammer (The SocialNetwork) as the Prince and Nathan Lane (The Producers) as… someone else. He seems to be some kind of personal assistant to the queen. No huntsman in this one.

Definitely the more family-friendly of the two films. It’s lighter, meant to be funnier (though that remains to be seen) and something tells me this Evil Queen will evade the burning-iron-shoe-death-dance of her predecessors. Jail for life? Or a change of heart, perhaps? Who knows.

All I know is there is literally going to have NOTHING else out in March for this to be my movie of the month. Actually, not even that. I’ll save this for the Netflix queue (possibly soon to be my Blockbuster queue... but more on that later), but if this is my best option for a March movie, I’ll skip it and go see two movies in April or May.

It doesn’t look completely awful. But it does look like a kids’ movie, and probably not the kind that’s rife with adult innuendos and therefore readily enjoyable by a more mature audience. Unless you have kids and go with them. That makes everything better.

And last but not least, to be released on June 1, is Snow White and the Huntsman. To get an accurate feeling of my feelings about this up-and-comer, allow me to share my thought process as I saw the trailer for the first time.

What movie is this? ... Looks creepy… ooh, a battle! … Snow White and the Huntsman? … interesting… OMG Charlize Theron as the Evil Queen, that’s pretty neat… Damn, she seems like kind of a badass… I wonder who’s playing Snow White… Apparently the magic mirror is a dude draped in a gold sheet… Whatevs, I can roll with it… Oooh, that must be Snow White! … Wait, is that? … No… Kristen Stewart? … No, it can’t be Kristen Stewart… It is?? What?? NOOOOOOO!!!!

As you may be able to gather, I’m not a Kristen Stewart (Twilight) fan. I’ve never seen Twilight and I don’t care to, mostly because I find Stewart to be dull and annoying. And dull. Quick, be happy! ::blank face:: Quick, be mad! ::blank face:: Quick, be sad! ::blank face:: Not to mention all that crap about her being nasty about not wanting to be famous or some bullshit. If any kind of celebrity ever wants me to immediately lose me as a potential fan forever, all he or she has to do is complain about being rich and famous ONCE.

Imagine my delight when 15 seconds later in the trailer, Chris Hemsworth (Thor) shows up wielding twin axes and looking exceedingly rugged. Instead of a giant hammer this time round, he’s got giant axes! Yay! And apparently he’s sport some sort of British Isles burr accent. Double yay! And then I remembered Kristen Stewart’s in it, too. Kristen. F***ing. Stewart. GAAAARRRGH.

But I’m forcing myself to look at the good bits. CharlizeTheron (Hancock) is fabulous, and she looks great in the role. Hemsworth is a treat and a half. And there’s a shot proving they will be using the whole poisoned apple incident in this version, so at some point Kristen Stewart will be dead. And it will probably be the most poignant performance of her “career.” Honestly, I don’t see how she was the better choice over, say, Emma Stone or Kat Dennings.

Okay, I’ll leave off with the K.S.-bashing for now. The movie looks good. It looks like an edgy, epic revamp of a good story, with some of the good bits getting a little better. And no musical numbers. And Chris Hemsworth. For the love of Thor, K.S. better not screw this up for me, especially since at this point it will be my June movie. I have yet to be disappointed by a movie of the month, and I don’t want to start now.

Why Snow White is suddenly getting the triple-makeover, I don’t know. Maybe three groups of people decided to see who could do it best. All three certainly look different. There’s a Snow White remake for everybody: the TV watchers, who like their stories long-running and constantly developing; families and kids who prefer things light-hearted and Disney-y; and those who are dew-eyed optimists desperately hoping that the angsty vampire-hugger doesn’t ruin the first potentially good movie she’s been cast in.

Or maybe that’s just me.

Starring: Ginnifer Goodwin, Jennifer Morrison, Lana Parrilla, Josh Dallas

Created by: Adam Horowitz and Edward Kitsis

Unrated

2011

Starring: Lily Collins, Julia Roberts, Nathan Lane, Armie Hammer

Written by: The Grimm Brothers, Melissa Wallack and Jason Keller

Directed by: Tarsam Singh

NYR

2012

Starring: Chris Hemsworth, Charlize Theron, Kristen Stewart

Written by: Hossein Amini, Evan Spiliotopoulos and Evan Daugherty

Directed by: Rupert Sanders

NYR

2012

C4CC Countdown: 10 Underappreciated Actors

What’s on now: Network, now streaming on Netflix. A friend told me it was a classic, and it's okay so far.

In other news: Apparently folks are talking seriously about making a Top Gun 2... erm... okay... Why?

Today's fun fact: In X-Men: First Class, it took makeup artists almost six hours to do Jennifer Lawrence's body work for her role as Mystique.

Toss a rock in Hollywood (not recommended, said rock is probably worth more than you are) and you’ll probably hit an actor, or at least someone in the food industry aspiring to be an actor. There’s hundreds of them, and they’re everywhere, not just in Cali. And no matter how hard they try, not all of them are going to make it. It’s a cold truth, and I do feel bad for those who have their hearts set on something so much and want it so desperately, but probably won’t get it. Seriously, I think I feel tears welling up.

The fact of the matter is, there is only so much room for stars in such a saturated industry. One in maybe a thousand actors actually “make it.” There are a limited number of roster slots for the Tom Hankses and the Brad Pitts and the Denzel Washingtons of the world. Everyone wants to be them, but there just isn’t space.

This post is not about those people.

There is a third category between the multi-gazillionaire superstars and the desperate hopefuls who, between busing tables, daydream about walking the red carpet someday. These are actors who I believe have made it, but for some reason don’t seem to get the respect and admiration they so deserve.

There are many reasons why these people might be perpetually flying under the radar. Maybe they keep their noses clean and their business out of the tabloids. Maybe they’re just not as pretty (which is certainly not the case for some of the gents featured in this post, I assure you). But they have proven, to me at least, that their acting chops are not to be trifled with.

I fervently believe that most if not all of the following could act circles around plenty of today’s A-listers. Where are their awards? Granted, some of them have won a couple, but mostly for indie projects that the average viewer has never even heard of let alone seen.

As part of an experiment, I read the following list of 10 men to a friend, who would consider herself to be a casual movie-watcher. She did not know a single one of them offhand. She might have recognized one or two if I had shown her pictures of them. But if I asked her about, say, Russell Crowe, she could picture him and name at least two or three of his movies off the top of her head.

The list is in reverse order, leading up to who I think is the absolute most severely underappreciated actor at the moment, including my three favorite performances done by each one. These guys deserve some recognition, even if it only comes from die-hard movie geeks like me.

There are probably some folks out there (namely those who actually went to film school and other such critics) who would look at this list and think I’m either nuts or at least my taste is in the range of "questionable" to "bloody awful." Well, my blog means my list and it took me forever so if y’all are gonna be mean, bugger off. Otherwise, read on!

10. Bill Pullman

Bill Pullman is one of those guys who, for a long time, I thought was just in every movie. No big. I seriously see him everywhere, not so much recently. I finally figured out why. The guy had been steadily working, mostly in movies, for 25 years. TWENTY-FIVE. That’s longer than I have been alive! He mostly plays the small roles, the supporting roles that most people don’t even notice, but were still important. Of the three small awards he’s been nominated for, he’s won them all. Pretty cool to be batting 1.00. I enjoy his subtlety, and I’ll always remember him as one of the coolest Presidents of the United States.

C4CC’S Picks

1. Independence Day
2. Bottle Shock
3. Spaceballs

9. Neal McDonough

Neal McDonough hasn’t been in as much, but everything he has done has been good. His acting is solid at the very least, and he does a lot of character acting, at least by my limited understand of what character acting actually is. McDonough is something of a perpetual supporter, it seems. Either that or a perpetual ensemble actor. But the reason he finds himself on my list is because even in the small roles that are his bread and butter, he always makes himself noticed. Part of it are his laser-like eyes, which are a startling blue color so intense, you half expect him to break the fourth wall with them. But the other part is how he always seems to make you care about his character, as minor as he may be.

C4CC’S Picks

1. Tin Man
2. Captain America: The First Avenger
3. Minority Report

8. Sean Astin

Seriously, where the hell is this guy’s Best Supporting Actor Oscar? He wasn’t even nominated for his performance in Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King as Samwise Gamgee. The award ultimately went to Tim Robbins for Mystic River, by the way. TRAVESTY. 

This man perfectly played the only thing that kept Frodo from epically failing his equally epic quest in the most epic fantasy trilogy EVER. The man was spot on in one of the greatest films of all time, and no one even knows who he is. He’s got more raw emotion oozing out of him in any performance he gives than I don’t even know what. He can cry convincingly at the drop of a hat. To me, that is a hallmark of a master. But also, Sean Astin is a pro at giving us characters that we can’t help but root for. Ever heard of a little film called Rudy? And did I mention that he is one of the few child actors out there who didn’t turn into a drug-addicted, questionably psychotic mess?

C4CC’s Picks

1. Rudy
2. The Lord of the Rings Trilogy
3. The Goonies

7. Keith David

Another case similar to Bill Pullman. Keith David has been in quite a lot, but as smaller supporting roles that are important enough to have names and smallish story archs but not exactly a headliner. One thing David does quite a lot that Pullman does not, however, is voice acting. David has this rich, deep, rumbly voice that he has lent to a couple beloved animated characters.

Remember Gargoyles? If you answered no, I weep for you. One of the most fantastic Saturday morning cartoons of my childhood that managed to be funny, dark, violent and educational all at once. It successfully traumatized an entire generation into understanding the danger of playing with guns in a single episode. No other cartoon has managed so much so fast! David lent his sultry baritone to Goliath, the main character.

Seriously, check out David’s imdb profile. He works on at least ten projects a year, and he does absolutely everything. Movies, TV, video games, voiceovers, everything. The man is a jack of all trades and master of them all.

C4CC’s Picks

1. The Princess and the Frog
2. Princess Mononoke
3. Gargoyles

6. Stanley Tucci

The only reason Tucci isn’t number 3 or higher on this list is because, unlike a lot of the other fellows on this list, I think he’s starting to pick up a little momentum in his notoriety. I think if a lot of people saw a picture of him, they would say, “Oh yeah… that guy.” That guy indeed. What I love most about him is that he’s very much a chameleon. Some actors, even those that are superstars, seem to play the same guy in every movie they’re in. Rugged cowboy goes to the moon. Rugged cowboy is a single dad struggling to raise his teenage son. Rugged cowboy has to lead ragtag group of survivors through zombie-infested Wichita. You get the drift. But Tucci doesn’t do that. His characters are varied and unique with each different movie. In one film he makes you chuckle, in the next he makes you shake your fist at the screen. And his only Oscar nomination (for Best Supporting Actor) so far came from The Lovely Bones, a movie pretty much everyone I know, myself included, didn’t even like! What does that tell you?

C4CC’S Picks

1. Julie & Julia
2. The Devil Wears Prada
3. Captain America: The First Avenger

5. Michael Fassbender

Much like Tucci, Fassbender is only this far down the list because he’s an up and comer. He just hasn’t become a household name yet. He’s all the rage in the murky underworld of movie buffs, and I think he’s certainly on deck to become the next big thing. He’s even already had some pretty mainstream big-time projects out that should grab the casual moviegoers’ attention. Mark my words, in the next couple of years, everyone is going to know who Michael Fassbender is. The Fass, as he is affectionately known as to those of us weirdos who are comparable to meth-heads when it comes to the cinemas. He has a powerful presence on the screen, with the regality of a tiger. Not to mention that he can do just about anything. Action, foreign films, sci-fi, indie, drama, historical… you name it, not only has he probably already done it, but he has guaranteed kicked its ass to boot. I’m very much looking forward to watching how his career progresses. Already he is the sort of actor who will get my bum in a seat if his name is attached to a project.

C4CC’S Picks

1. Inglourious Basterds
2. X-Men: First Class
3. 300

4. Christoph Waltz

Another fellow who could be at the top of the list, but was docked a couple points because he seems to be gaining notoriety. Waltz has been in the game for about 35 years. 35. Holy crap that’s a long time. Only thing is, he didn’t start gaining momentum in America until 2009 with Quentin Tarantino’s holy-craptastic Inglourious Basterds. Just to clarify, holy-crapstatic is a synonym for omg-that-was-so-freaking-awesome. With his character of SS Col. Hans Landa, Waltz easily became the most terrifying, hated and yet twistedly beloved character of the year. He plays evil and/or crazy ridiculously well. He’s played that guy in the couple of movies I’ve seen him in so far. I’ll be interested to see if he gets pigeonholed as a bad guy actor, kind of like the path Mark Strong seems to be headed down these days. I think he can do anything. We’ll just have to wait and see.

C4CC’S Picks

1. Inglourious Basterds
2. Water for Elephants
3. The Green Hornet

3. Jensen Ackles

I know what you’re thinking: “Who the hell is Jensen Ackles?” If you’re asking that, I pity you. Now, I’ll admit, I’m slightly biased toward this man. He’s one of the stars of Supernatural, possibly my favorite TV show ever and as such, I may have a slight blind spot for him. Not to mention that he is drop-dead gorgeous. (Never really understood that phrase… things that up and drop dead tend to not be so attractive…) But I tried my hardest to grade him based solely on his acting chops… And he still came out as No. 3. Why? I’ll tell you why. His performances move me. He makes me feel what his character is feeling. When his character is angry, I cheer for him to go on a rage rampage. When his character cries, I want to rip my heart out and give it to him just so he can have one that isn’t broken. When he cracks a joke, I laugh every time. I can’t quite put my finger on it, but Jensen put some kind of spell on me. He’s something of CW stock actor, appearing on multiple shows such as Dawson’s Creek and Smallville until finally landing a lead role on Supernatural (heart times infinity). He’s only done a couple of smaller movies, though My Bloody Valentine 3D had a fairly wide release (unfortunately it was rather terrible). He seems content to stay out of the mainstream spotlight, something I respect him for. Still, I would love to seem him in a big-budget action flick or something. His talents should be shared with the whole world, not just the couple hundred thousand of us who know and adore Supernatural.

C4CC’S Picks

1. Supernatural
2. Ten Inch Hero
3. EVERYTHING ELSE

2. Jim Cummings

I guarantee you know who this is. No, really. I mean, you wouldn’t know who you were looking at if I showed you a picture of him. I probably wouldn’t know him if I randomly saw a picture of him. But once he opens his mouth, you’ll know. Cummings has lent his voice to dozens of beloved characters for decades. His most well-known is Tigger. He’s arguably the most prolific and talented voice actor in the game. He’s one of those guys that you swear has already been around forever but is still going strong. Of all the men on this list, he’s by far done the most. This guy must wake up laughing. Just the gig as Tigger’s voice alone should have him totally rolling in green. And he has the benefit of no paparazzi (who would know who he is anyway?) and no crazed fans attacking him wherever he goes. Must be the life.

C4CC’S Picks

1. Winnie the Pooh
2. The Lion King
3. Balto

1. Paul Bettany

One question: Where the HELL is this man’s trove of awards??!!

Funny truth: He hasn’t even been in much compared to some of the other guys on this list. I’ve seen 11 of his movies, in two of which he was the voice of a computer. But he’s memorable and he’s authentic. I love how he’s someone I love to cheer for, but he can also be the scariest dude ever. Just check out The DaVinci Code. His characters tend to be the ones you can’t take your eyes off of. Also, he’s someone who will get my butt in a movie theatre seat. I HATE horror movies, mostly because I’m something of a wuss with an overactive imagination. But I sucked it up and rented Legion, just because Bettany was in it. Scared the ever living out of me, but it was still worth it to see one more sample of the man’s work. He’s not exactly a spring chicken, but he doesn’t need youth to be magnetic on the screen. This is a man who will be doing this until he’s a very old man, and doing it damn well.

C4CC’S Picks

1. Wimbledon
2. The DaVinci Code

     3.  Master and Commander: Far Side of the World

I can't help but feel like I'm forgetting someone, or a few someones. There are a couple of folks like Gary Oldman and David Thewlis that arguably should be on the list, but I ended up deciding they were a bit more well-known than some of the other guys. It was hard to pick only 10. I was at this thing more nearly two months, mostly because I just couldn't make up my mind on who deserved it more. When I started compiling this little ditty, no one knew who the bloody hell Michael Fassbender was, but now that he was nominated for a Golden Globe (and should have gotten it ::angry face::), his notoriety should pick up some steam. And looking back, there are some folks who I now think would have done better in this listing than some of the people I picked. But at this point my blog-ideas notebook is overflowing with backlog, I can't stand thinking about this list anymore and my brain is about to explode.

Let's just say it'll be a while before I suck it up and make that "10 Underappreciated Actresses" list.