Showing posts with label retirement. Show all posts
Showing posts with label retirement. Show all posts

Monday, July 18, 2022

July 18, Monday

Bullet Train Paris "special screening" -- not a premiere.



"It didn't mean I'm dying or anything.  It just meant I look at like life as: a child to young adult, young adult to middle age, now I'm past that middle age -- so that's what I'm calling the last leg.  I just want to live it with more intentions."



Pitt told AFP: "I'm not getting out by any means.

"It seems that might have been taken as a statement of retirement. That's not what I was saying," he said.

"I'm over that hump of middle age and so I'm looking at that last leg... how do I want to spend that time? At my age, you've made enough mistakes... now there's a comfort in applying that kind of wisdom."

"Bullet Train", which is being released around the world over the next two weeks, sees Pitt trying something new in an action comedy from the director of "John Wick", David Leitch.

Pitt plays a reluctant hit-man fighting off rivals on a Japanese train.

"It's much more fun than the regular punch-up. It's infused with humour and character," he said.

"I can't say enough about Jackie Chan and what he's done, and to be in that arena, even close to that, is something I hadn't done before."

"I really like what we've been able to do on the producing end. You get to be part of stories, foster new talent," he said.

Unlike other major movie stars such as Tom Cruise, Pitt is not as wedded to the nostalgia of movie theatres.

"I like the dichotomy, the streamer as well as the theatre experience, because films were getting so expensive to do and to market that it was either big tent-pole movies or very small intimate movies and there was no room for anythings in-between. Streamers have opened it up for more voices," he said.

Nonetheless, Pitt said he had recently loved going to watch "Elvis" in a cinema.

"I'm a big fan of Austin Butler, I think he's going to do great work," said Pitt of the film's star.

"It was so much fun to be there again. There's a place for both."



I'm so sorry I said that.  Like people are think I'm dying tomorrow.  I was just saying I'm past middle age so what's our next leg." 



He's not retiring yet but he's not denying that he's close to it.  He did not say it was "a long way off."  He mentions he wants to spend "that last leg" applying wisdom from past mistakes.  His biggest mistakes have involved the family so "more intentions" in large part is continuing to make up for those mistakes and showing them the new improved version of himself. 

The plane incident and everything that contributed to it including alcoholism and (lack of) anger management is undoubtedly the biggest mistake but there was also his decision to recruit Harvey Weinstein as a producer over Angelina's objections.  Inglourious Basterds was distributed by the Weinsteins but Brad did not having anything to do with their involvement.  Killing Them Softly was a Plan B production, Brad was one of the producers, and Harvey Weinstein was involved because Brad recruited him.  The film was distributed by The Weinstein Co. which led Angelina to avoid having anything to do with its promotion.  The issue is not being in the same room with Weinstein who would have been hard to avoid during his long reign at the top, it was why they would be in the same room -- because her partner put the film's interests ahead of all other consideration and ignored her feelings and objections.  This matter has resurfaced with the new Plan B film She Said on the NYTimes exposé that launched #MeToo.  There was no attempt by any of Brad's reps to explain or spin his actions and one admitted to a writer that there was no excuse for it.  That is Brad's position.  It will probably be part of his mea culpa -- one of his decisions he is not proud of.  As Brad said in Ad Astra using his character as his alter ego: "I'm selfish.  I've let so many people down.  I'm just a selfish person."

Interview with Anthony Hopkins
I’m realizing, as a real act of forgiveness for myself for all the choices that I’ve made that I’m not proud of, that I value those missteps, because they led to some wisdom, which led to something else. You can’t have one without the other.
Improving his relationship with the children will be a lifelong endeavor but as they go off to college and live away from home, it's mainly Angelina who the new, selfless Brad will be giving "more intentions" to as they "grow old together" in Château Miraval.





The video gives the best look at both signet rings in the same frame and the clearest view of the bee ring from the Paris red carpet.  They're almost identical in size and shape.












Watched over by Tony Webb.  Webb is Angelina's long-time security who has been the head of security at Miraval from the time they moved in.




David Yurman mark visible.







Avoiding putting his arm around Joey King
(From L to R) US actor Brad Pitt, US actresses Joey King, British actor Aaron Taylor-Johnson, US actor Brian Tyree Henry, US Director David Leitch and US Executive producer Kelly McCormick pose for a photo during a preview of the film (Bullet Train) in Paris on July 18, 2022. - (Photo by CHRISTOPHE ARCHAMBAULT/AFP via Getty Images)





















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Thursday, December 6, 2012

Salon

Finally, someone states the obvious.

From Salon

Thursday, Dec 6, 2012 8:55 PM UTC

It’s not about Angelina Jolie quitting acting

The actress speaks out about rape in Syria, and the media hears only the part about her acting-career plans VIDEO

By



For a report this week on Britain’s Channel 4 about rape in Syria, actress and UN special envoy Angelina Jolie spoke out to Cathy Newman about the efforts to aid refugees. So what were the headlines after the interview? USA Today reports that “Angelina Jolie planning to quit acting.” E! says, “Angelina Jolie… Plans to Give Up Acting.” Access Hollywood asks, “Angelina Jolie To Retire When Her Kids Become Teenagers?” And the Christian Science Monitor says, “Angelina Jolie home with the kids? She’s talking about retiring from acting once her brood hits their teen years because of ‘too much to manage’ at home.” If this were the comprehension portion of the SAT, the mainstream entertainment media would have just bombed out mightily.
It was during the final minute of the interview that Jolie, who happened to be sitting next to Foreign Secretary William Hague, responded to the question of whether she ever thinks her humanitarian work is more rewarding than her acting. “I think I’m going to have to give up acting as the kids hit the teenage years anyway, because there’s going to be too much to manage at home,” she said, adding, “If it went away tomorrow, I’d be very happy to just be home with my children.” And that was totally the most significant part of the whole piece. Not William Hague calling the situation in Syria “one of the worst things happening in the world today.”
Sure, Jolie is a huge, Oscar-winning star, and her career decisions are entertainment news. But this isn’t quite the same thing as when her partner Brad Pitt last year said he was giving his acting career “three years” more because “I am really enjoying the producing side and development of stories and putting those pieces together” during an interview that was not about mass rape as a weapon of war.
Similarly, Jolie’s acknowledgment that the obligations of parenthood don’t end when a kid is toilet trained – a sentiment that became part of the national conversation earlier this year when Anne-Marie Slaughter famously railed about “having it all” — would, in the context of a different discussion, have been a legitimate a jumping off point for another public discourse of work and motherhood. I would like to point out however that, gosh, it’d sure be nice if a woman’s choices about how to raise her family didn’t always seem to come with a big fat wave of A-HA! She can’t hack it! By all means, let’s focus on making sure women everywhere are reminded that, as the CS Monitor tells us, Jolie and Pitt “can hire whatever help they want. Nannies, housekeepers, tutors, LEGO experts, whatever. But still, parenthood changes things.” Thanks, helpy helpertons!
It’d be even nicer if the takeaway from an 11-minute segment about bringing aid to women who’ve been sexually assaulted could be something other than the big news that Angelina Jolie says she’d be happy staying home with her kids. I swear to God, I can’t imagine how emotionally deficient a journalist would have to be to watch a story about harrowing sexual violence and boil it down to a headline about who’s quitting acting.
And so, because it seems to have been missed in all the busy chatter about how the movie star is “managing” motherhood, let me tell you what else Jolie told Channel 4. She said, “These years in the filed, I continued to meet victims of sexual violence who had seen no justice, and had felt isolated and abused, and abuse upon abuse because they’d been ignored … How dare we not do something?…  How can we live in a world where people are abused in such fashion? Where young girls and boys are being raped so violently?” Not a sexy, headline making statement. Definitely not one that affects whether there’s a sequel to “Salt.” But if you’re talking about a woman who’s trying to raise awareness of women who’ve been ignored, it’s the one message to not ignore.
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Tuesday, December 4, 2012

Retirement



From CNN






From ABC News


Angelina Jolie and More Stars Who've Tried to Retire

By (@SheilaYM)
Dec. 6, 2012


Angelina Jolie claims she's almost ready to retire from acting. "If it went away tomorrow, I would be very happy to be home with the children," she said in an interview with Britain's Channel 4 News. "I think I'm going to have to give up the acting as the kids hit the teenage years, anyway, too much to manage at home."
It's not the first time Lara Croft has threatened to ditch her guns -- in 2010, Jolie told Vanity Fair she probably wouldn't be in business for much longer -- but it's hard to believe her retirement will last. She'll have to break it for "Maleficent," the movie she's currently working on, when it premieres in March 2014, after the 13th birthday of her eldest son, Maddox.
Jolie's soon-to-be husband, Brad Pitt, has also said he plans to stop acting in a few years, but historically, superstars don't stay retired:

View slideshow at site

Michael Jordan
The basketball icon's 1993 retirement didn't stick. He returned to the game in 1995 after a lackluster stint in baseball with the Chicago White Sox, and led the Bulls to three more consecutive NBA championships in 1996, 1997 and 1998. He retired for a second time in 1999. These days, Jordan's most often found swinging clubs on the golf course -- that is, when he's not getting kicked out because of his cargo shorts.

Jay-Z
Jigga Man's likened himself to Michael Jordan in more than a few songs, and with good reason -- both are among the best in their fields, and both can't stay away. Jay-Z said he was retiring from rap with 2003's "Black Album." In 2006, he announced he was recording a new album and told Entertainment Weekly his attempt to get out of rap was "the worst retirement in history."
He just headlined eight shows at Brooklyn's new Barclay's Center in New York and delighted elderly subway riders in the process. It doesn't look like he's going anywhere anytime soon.

Alec Baldwin
Time's ticking for Baldwin. In 2009, the "30 Rock" star told Playboy he'd give up acting in 2012, when his NBC sitcom wrapped. "In March 2012, I'll wake up and say, 'What am I going to do now? Am I done?'" he said. "I think I will be done. I may finish a play or something, but I'm retiring at the wrap party."
Since that interview, he's reiterated that he plans to get out of the game, but he also took on roles in "Rock of Ages" and Woody Allen's "To Rome with Love." If he's really looking for a new challenge, he could take on Donald Trump for Most Prolific Twitter Ranter.

Clint Eastwood
In 2008, the legendary actor-director said "Gran Torino" would be his last starring role, but he'd continue working behind the camera as a director. He broke his pact with this year's "Trouble with the Curve," which he directed and starred in alongside Amy Adams and John Goodman. He also stole the show at this year's Republican National Convention, though he may not want that on his resume. (Remember his conversation with the empty chair?)

Barbra Streisand
Streisand threw in her touring mic in 2000 with a "farewell" concert. "It feels like time to say goodbye to this part of my life," she told the sold-out crowd at Madison Square Garden.
Or ... not. Six years later, she was back on a comeback tour, and this year, she embarked on the "Barbra Live" set of concerts, which kicked off at the Barclays Center in her native Brooklyn, N.Y.



From Movieline

Talkback || By: || December 4, 2012 05:00 PM EST

If Angelina Jolie Is Talking Retirement, What's She Been Doing Since 2011?

Angelina Jolie Retiring

Angelina Jolie says she's thinking about giving up acting to be a stay-at-home mom, but hasn't she been semi-retired for a while now? Jolie, who can generate headlines simply by pursing her pillow lips a certain way, started the Internet buzzing when she told Britain's Channel 4 News (via the Huffington Post):  "I think I'm going to have to give up the acting as the kids hit the teenage years...too much to manage at home." 
Jolie also told the British broadcast concern that if her acting career "went away tomorrow I would be very happy to be home with the children."  But after looking at her work schedule as of late, I can't help but think that she's already begun saying her goodbyes.
Her last films were released in 2011 and, technically speaking, she didn't appear in either of them:  She wrote and directed In The Land of Blood and Honey, and she was the voice of Tigress in Kung Fu Panda 2. In other words, she was last seen onscreen in the flesh in 2010.
Yes, she's currently shooting Maleficent (and her four-year-old daughter Vivienne Jolie-Pitt reportedly has a minor role in it), but that doesn't hit screens until 2014.  She's also rumored to be talking Tigress again in Kung Fu Panda 3, but that isn't expected out until 2016.
According to IMDb, she's also working on a project with La Femme Nikita filmmaker Luc Besson slated for 2013, and that Cleopatra and, sadly, Salt 2 may be in the works, but those projects are more tentative.
If Jolie does follow through on her intent to retire when her kids hit their teens, she doesn't have a lot of time for smoldering close-ups. The eldest of her six kids, Maddox is 11, and if you've read any Bret Easton Ellis,  you know that the  kids of Hollywood royalty grow up faster than their civilian counterparts.
The good news is that, with her marriage to Brad Pitt in the works,  Jolie won't have to worry about fading from the public's short-term memory if she does retire from the screen for a while. She's one of those rare actresses whose life makes a more interesting tale than some of the movie choices she's made. Unless she follows in the footsteps of Brigitte Bardot,  the camera will always love her.







A bit harsh and exaggerated but valid central thought.

From The Guardian

Angelina Jolie should retire with a bang – not a lecture

If the Maleficent star is to bow out in style she'll need to steer a course between the vapid action fluff and middlebrow issue movies she's favoured lately

Posted by
Tuesday 4 December 2012 12.41 EST guardian.co.uk

 

Dropping the act … Angelina Jolie at the Sarajevo film festival in July. Photo: Reuters
Angelina Jolie has always tried to use her celebrity to draw attention to humanitarian causes. So, following her recent Channel 4 News interview alongside William Hague to discuss warzone sexual assaults in her capacity as a UN special envoy, all the headlines were naturally about when she's going to stop being in films.

And the answer is apparently quite soon. Upsettingly for fans of her work, and for fans of errant red carpet leg-juts, Jolie already has the finishing line in her sights. "I think I'm going to have to give up acting as the kids hit the teenage years because there is going to be too much to manage at home," she said. Given that her oldest son Maddox is now 11, that means Angelina's retirement could be as soon as two years away. If IMDb is right – which, admittedly, could well be a first – then her last role could well be as the Tigress in Kung Fu Panda 3.

Hopefully it won't play out exactly like that, though. Hopefully with a retirement as meticulously planned as this, Angelina Jolie will manage to bow out in a slightly less ignominious manner, with a film that manages to perfectly pull together all of her different acting skillsets. And that film will be incredibly hard to find, because for the last decade or so, Kung Fu Panda aside, she's ping-ponged schizophrenically between two very distinct types of fare.

The first of these, and probably the most financially successful, has been the slightly undercooked blockbuster. These are the films where Angelina, either desperate or unable to let go of Lara Croft, has been happy to grimace and growl and leap about with guns to the sort of bombastic dance music that angry teenage boys stopped listening to in the late 90s. In this category are Gone in 60 Seconds, Wanted, Salt and Mr and Mrs Smith – all mildly diverting films that appear to have been designed to be as instantly forgettable as possible.

The other string to Jolie's bow has been worthy Oscar-bait. She made a Clint Eastwood film, Changeling, back before Clint Eastwood started talking to chairs, when he could win an Oscar if he filmed a cat falling off a shelf. She starred in The Good Shepherd and A Mighty Heart, both so unremittingly serious and self-important that watching them all the way through technically constituted self-harm. And then there was her directoral debut In the Land of Blood and Honey, which once again substituted storytelling for jackhammer moralising.

Somewhere along the line, though, the middle fell out of Jolie's film choices. It's now either hopelessly dumb, borderline-direct-to-DVD action fluff or aggressively middlebrow issue cinema that alienates most mass audiences. There's nothing of the sparky character work Angelina used to excel at in Girl, Interrupted or Hackers or even, to a lesser extent, Pushing Tin. To be fair, Maleficent could move Jolie's career into an interesting new area, but it's a live-action fairytale movie that's coming out two years after everyone stopped liking live-action fairytales, so nobody should get their hopes up just yet.

If she really is going to retire in the next few years, Angelina Jolie will want to go out with a bang. She's one of the most famous movie stars in the world, and she'll want to remind us of what we're missing without her. If she can find the sweet spot between hollow entertainment and endless lecturing, she might just do it on a high.
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