Nominated for Best Picture at this year’s Academy Awards, the film is a story that unfolds from inside the young mind of Oskar Schell (Thomas Horn), an inventive eleven year-old New Yorker whose discovery of a key in his deceased father’s belongings sets him off on an urgent search across the city for the lock it will open. A year after his father (Tom Hanks) die on 9/11 in the World Trade Center on what Oskar calls “The Worst Day,” he is determined to keep his vital connection to the man who playfully cajoled him into confronting his wildest fears.

“What I find so moving about Oskar is that he feels there has to be an answer, but there is not always a clear ‘why’ or a ‘because’ to a situation,” Bullock says. “And sometimes the answer you get is not the one you expect, which is something Oskar has to discover for himself.”

Unlike Oskar’s father, his mother, Linda (Bullock), has always found it tough to reach her son, and that only seems to increase by a factor of 10 when her husband is no longer there to bridge the gap. Yet, much as she seems lost in her own private realm of grief, Linda is connecting to Oskar in ways of which he is not even aware.

Director Stephen Daldry felt there was an organic empathy in Bullock that would allow the role to work. “Sandra is a first-rate actress who really took her role to heart,” he says. “She looked after Thomas very well and formed a strong relationship with him that translated to the screen. She was able to bring a gravitas that was entirely appropriate but also a real charm.”

For Bullock, the intriguing part was playing a mother who has to work at bonding with her son and forging her own route back into his world after his father’s death. “I think when her husband was alive, Linda was always okay with just stepping back and letting Oskar and his father be a great team together,” she observes. “But now that Oskar has lost his playmate and the one person who grounded him and who he felt was his intellectual equal, she isn’t sure she can be any of those things to her son. And she’s in the process of grieving too, so she doesn’t have much energy to fight for that connection she so desperately wants with him. She has to struggle to find the solution.”

Given the subjective, first-person viewpoint of the film, Bullock also had to play her character the way Oskar perceives her – which was especially difficult because Oskar does not see the full picture of his mother. “I had to come to grips with the idea that the audience is seeing Linda on the screen entirely through Oskar’s point of view – and his view of her is not always very favorable,” she explains. “In some scenes, she can seem to be the opposite of nurturing, yet later, it becomes clear what is really going on with her. Still, I had to be okay with her looking at times like she wasn’t being a good mother to a child who is really in need. Part of it is that what Oskar sees is her grief, which is ugly and imperfect, but also very real. But what Oskar doesn’t know is that she is also very worried about him and that causes her to really try to think like he does.”

To explore Linda Schell’s experience more deeply, Bullock listened to recordings of phone calls and voice-mail messages left by those trapped in the World Trade Center for their families. “That was very hard for me,” she says. “But what floored me was to hear people giving comfort to those they were leaving behind. You really understand that the pain of hearing that is something that could never go away.”

Opening soon across the Philippines, “Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close” is distributed worldwide by Warner Bros. Pictures, a Warner Bros. Entertainment Company.

Sandra Bullock, Incredibly Affecting in the Oscar Nominated Film ‘Extremely Loud’ originally appeared on Starmometer on February 8, 2012.

Based on the acclaimed novel of the same name, “Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close” tells the story of one young boy’s journey from heartbreaking loss to the healing power of self-discovery, set against the backdrop of the tragic events of September 11.

Eleven-year-old Oskar Schell is an exceptional child: amateur inventor, Francophile, pacifist. And after finding a mysterious key that belonged to his father, who died in the World Trade Center on 9/11, he embarks on an exceptional journey—an urgent, secret search through the five boroughs of New York. As Oskar roams the city, he encounters a motley assortment of humanity, who are all survivors in their own ways. Ultimately, Oskar’s journey ends where it began, but with the solace of that most human experience: love.

Academy Award® nominee Stephen Daldry (“The Reader,” “The Hours”) directs “Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close” from a screenplay by Academy Award® winner Eric Roth (“Forrest Gump,” “The Insider”), based on Jonathan Safran Foer’s acclaimed novel. The film stars Academy Award® winners Tom Hanks (“Forrest Gump,” “Philadelphia”) and Sandra Bullock (“The Blind Side”), and is being produced by Academy Award® winner Scott Rudin (“No Country for Old Men,” “The Social Network,” “True Grit”).

Opening across the Philippines in February 2012, “Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close” is distributed by Warner Bros. Pictures, a Warner Bros. Entertainment Company.

‘Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close’ – Movie Poster and Trailer originally appeared on Starmometer on October 6, 2011.

Principal photography is underway on Warner Bros. Pictures’ feature film adaptation of Jonathan Safran Foer’s acclaimed novel “Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close.” The film stars Sandra Bullock and Tom Hanks, and is being directed by Stephen Daldry (The Reader, The Hours) and produced by Scott Rudin (The Social Network, True Grit).

“Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close” also stars Thomas Horn, making his acting debut as 11-year-old Oskar Schell, an exceptional child with an off-kilter world view and a daunting mission ahead of him.

Oskar is convinced that his father (Hanks), who died in the 9/11 attacks on the World Trade Center, has left a final message for him hidden somewhere in the city. Feeling disconnected from his grieving mother (Bullock) and driven by a relentlessly active mind that refuses to believe in things that can’t be observed, Oskar begins searching New York City for the lock that fits a mysterious key he found in his father’s closet. His journey through the five boroughs takes him beyond his own loss to a greater understanding of the observable world around him.

Shooting entirely in New York, Daldry directs the film from a screenplay by Eric Roth (Forrest Gump, The Insider). Celia Costas (Doubt, Closer) serves as executive producer with Mark Roybal (Doubt) and Nora Skinner (The Reader).

Also starring in the film are James Gandolfini as Ron, a new friend of Oskar’s mom; Zoe Caldwell as the boy’s grandmother; Max von Sydow as the man renting a room from Oskar’s grandmother, who befriends Oskar and accompanies him on his quest; and Viola Davis and Jeffrey Wright as a couple whose own tenuous relationship has a profound effect on Oskar.

The behind-the-scenes creative team includes director of photography Chris Menges (The Mission, The Killing Fields); production designer K.K. Barrett (Where the Wild Things Are); and costume designer Ann Roth (The English Patient).

“Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close” is currently scheduled for release in 2011 and will be distributed worldwide by Warner Bros. Pictures, a Warner Bros. Entertainment Company.

Tom Hanks Paired with Sandra Bullock in ‘Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close’ originally appeared on Starmometer on March 3, 2011.

Sandra Bullock bested Reese Witherspoon and Cameron Diaz this year for taking in a talent fee of US$56 million between June 2009 and June 2010. Bullock’s notable films within the said period are “The Proposal” opposite Ryan Reynolds and “The Blind Side” which won her an Oscar Best Actress trophy.

Cameron Diaz (Knight and Day, Shrek Forever After) and Reese Witherspoon (Everything You’ve Got, Monsters vs. Aliens) are tied in 2nd and 3rd with US$ 32 million each.

Jennifer Aniston (The Bounty Hunter, Love Happens, Management) occupied the no. 4 spot by taking in US$ 27 million and ‘Sex and the City’ star Sarah Jessica Parker, ranked fifth on the list with US$ 25 million.

Sandra Bullock Tops Forbes’ List of Highest Paid Actresses of 2010 originally appeared on Starmometer on August 5, 2010.

Sandra took home the awards for Worst Actress (for her performance in All About Steve) and Worst Screen Couple (shared with Bradley Cooper for All About Steve).

Here is the complete list of Razzie awardees:

Worst Picture of 2009:

Transformers: Revenge Of The Fallen

Worst Actress of 2009:

Sandra Bullock – All About Steve

Worst Actor(s) of 2009:

All Three Jonas Brothers – JONAS BROTHERS: THE 3-D CONCERT EXPERIENCE

Worst Screen Couple:

Sandra Bullock & Bradley Cooper – ALL ABOUT STEVE

Worst Supporting Actress:

Sienna Miller – G.I. JOE: THE RISE OF COBRA

Worst Supporting Actor:

Billy Ray Cyrus – HANNAH MONTANA: THE MOVIE

Worst Prequel, Remake, Rip-off or Sequel
(Combined Category for 2009):

Land of The Lost -
(UNIVERSAL PICTURES)

Worst Director:

Michael Bay -
TRANSFORMERS: REVENGE OF THE FALLEN (AKA TRANNIES, TOO)

Worst Screenplay:

Transformers: Revenge Of The Fallen

Worst Picture of the Decade:

Battlefield Earth – Nominated for 10 Razzies, winner of 8 including Worst Drama in the first 25 years.

Worst Actor of the Decade:

Eddie Murphy – Nominated for 12, winner of 3 Razzies for “Adventures of Pluto Nash,” “I Spy,” “Meet Dave,” “Norbit,” “Showtime” and “Imagine That.”

Worst Actress of the Decade:

Paris Hilton – Nominated for 5, winner of 4 Razzies for the films “The Hottie and the Nottie,” “House of Whacks,” and “Repo: The Genetic Opera.”

Sandra Bullock, Transformers 2 – Big Winners at the 2010 Razzie Awards originally appeared on Starmometer on March 8, 2010.

Here is the complete list of nominees and winners of the 2010 Golden Globe Awards which took place at The Beverly Hilton Hotel Sunday (January 17) in Beverly Hills, California:

FILM

BEST FEATURE – DRAMA

Avatar – Winner
The Hurt Locker
Inglourious Basterds
Precious
Up in the Air

BEST FEATURE – COMEDY

The Hangover – Winner
(500) Days of Summer
It’s Complicated
Julie & Julia
Nine

ACTOR – DRAMA

Jeff Bridges, Crazy Heart – Winner
George Clooney, Up in the Air
Colin Firth, A Single Man
Morgan Freeman, Invictus
Tobey Maguire, Brothers

ACTRESS – DRAMA

Sandra Bullock, The Blind Side – Winner
Emily Blunt, The Young Victoria
Helen Mirren, The Last Station
Carey Mulligan, An Education
Gabourey Sidibe, Precious

ACTOR – COMEDY OR MUSICAL

Robert Downey Jr., Sherlock Holmes – Winner
Matt Damon, The Informant!
Daniel Day-Lewis, Nine
Joseph Gordon-Levitt, 500 Days of Summer
Michael Stuhlbarg, A Serious Man

ACTRESS – COMEDY OR MUSICAL

Meryl Streep, Julie & Julia – Winner
Sandra Bullock, The Proposal
Marion Cotillard, Nine
Julia Roberts, Duplicity
Meryl Streep, It’s Complicated

DIRECTOR – MOTION PICTURE

James Cameron, Avatar – Winner
Kathryn Bigelow, The Hurt Locker
Clint Eastwood, Invictus
Jason Reitman, Up in the Air
Quentin Tarantino, Inglourious Basterds

SUPPORTING ACTOR

Christoph Waltz, Inglourious Basterds – Winner
Matt Damon, Invictus
Woody Harrelson, The Messenger
Christopher Plummer, The Last Station
Stanley Tucci, The Lovely Bones

SUPPORTING ACTRESS

Mo’Nique, Precious – Winner
Penelope Cruz, Nine
Vera Farmiga, Up in the Air
Anna Kendrick, Up in the Air
Julianne Moore, A Single Man

SCREENPLAY – MOTION PICTURE

Jason Reitman and Sheldon Turner, Up in the Air – Winner
Neill Blomkamp and Terri Tatchell, District 9
Mark Boal, The Hurt Locker
Nancy Meyers, It’s Complicated
Quentin Tarantino, Inglourious Basterds

FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILM

The White Ribbon (Germany) – Wega Films; Sony Pictures Classics – Winner
Baaria (Italy) – Medusa Film; Summit Entertainment
Broken Embraces (Spain) – El Deseo SA; Sony Pictures Classics
The Maid (Chile) – Forastero; Elephant Eye Films
A Prophet (France) – Chic Films; Sony Pictures Classics

ANIMATED FEATURE FILM

Up – Winner
Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs
Coraline
Fantastic Mr. Fox
The Princess and the Frog

BEST SCORE

Michael Giacchino, Up – Winner
Marvin Hamlisch, The Informant!
James Horner, Avatar
Abel Korzeniowski, A Single Man
Karen O, Carter Burwell, Where The Wild Things Are

BEST ORIGINAL SONG

The Weary Kind from Crazy Heart, Music & Lyrics by: Ryan Bingham, T Bone Burnett – Winner
Cinema Italiano from Nine, Music & Lyrics by: Maury Yeston
I Want to Come Home from Everybody’s Fine, Music & Lyrics by: Paul McCartney
I Will See You from Avatar, Music by: James Horner, Simon Franglen; Lyrics by: James Horner, Simon Franglen, Kuk Harrell
Winter from Brothers, Music by: U2; Lyrics by: Bono

TELEVISION

TELEVISION SERIES – DRAMA

Mad Men – Winner
Big Love
Dexter
House
True Blood

TELEVISION SERIES – COMEDY OR MUSICAL

Glee – Winner
30 Rock
Entourage
Modern Family
The Office

PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTOR IN A TELEVISION SERIES – DRAMA

Michael C. Hall, Dexter – Winner
Simon Baker, The Mentalist
Jon Hamm, Mad Men
Hugh Laurie, House
Bill Paxton, Big Love

PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTRESS IN A TELEVISION SERIES – DRAMA

Julianna Margulies, The Good Wife – Winner
Glenn Close, Damages
January Jones, Mad Men
Anna Paquin, True Blood
Kyra Sedgwick, The Closer

PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTRESS IN A TELEVISION SERIES – COMEDY OR MUSICAL

Toni Collette, United States of Tara – Winner
Courteney Cox, Cougar Town
Edie Falco, Nurse Jackie
Tina Fey, 30 Rock
Lea Michele, Glee

PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTOR IN A TELEVISION SERIES – COMEDY OR MUSICAL

Alec Baldwin, 30 Rock – Winner
Steve Carell, The Office
David Duchovny, Californication
Thomas Jane, Hung
Matthew Morrison, Glee

MINI-SERIES OR MOTION PICTURE MADE FOR TELEVISION

Grey Gardens – Winner
Georgia O’Keeffe
Into the Storm
Little Dorrit
Taking Chance

BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTOR IN A MINISERIES OR MOTION PICTURE MADE FOR TELEVISION

Kevin Bacon, Taking Chance – Winner
Kenneth Branagh, Wallander: One Step Behind
Chiwetel Ejiofor, Endgame
Brendan Gleeson, Into The Storm
Jeremy Irons, Georgia O’Keeffe

BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTRESS IN A MINI-SERIES OR MOTION PICTURE MADE FOR TELEVISION

Drew Barrymore, Grey Gardens – Winner
Joan Allen, Georgia O’Keeffe
Jessica Lange, Grey Gardens
Anna Paquin, The Courageous Heart of Irena Sendler
Sigourney Weaver, Prayers for Bobby

PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTRESS IN A SUPPORTING ROLE IN A SERIES, MINISERIES OR MOTION PICTURE MADE FOR TELEVISION

Chloe Sevigny, Big Love – Winner
Jane Adams, Hung
Rose Byrne, Damages
Jane Lynch, Glee
Janet McTeer, Into The Storm

PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTOR IN A SUPPORTING ROLE IN A SERIES, MINISERIES OR MOTION PICTURE MADE FOR TELEVISION

John Lithgow, Dexter – Winner
Michael Emerson, Lost
Neil Patrick Harris, How I Met Your Mother
William Hurt, Damages
Jeremy Piven, Entourage

67th Golden Globe Awards – 2010 Winners originally appeared on Starmometer on January 18, 2010.

Plot: Crossword puzzle constructor Mary Horowitz (played by Bullock) is smart and pretty. Set up on a blind date with Steve (played by Cooper), a news cameraman, Mary thinks the chemistry is undeniable and just knows she has found her soulmate. She decides to do anything and go anywhere to be with him.[2]

Mary’s escalating infatuation is encouraged by the self-serving actions of news reporter Hartman Hughes (Church) who enjoys torturing his insolent cameraman at every opportunity. As the news team crisscrosses the country covering breaking news stories, Steve becomes increasingly unhinged as Mary trails them.

When the overzealous Mary becomes embroiled in the news story of the year, Steve and Hartman begin to see her differently. Hartman is plagued by guilt, knowing his game of one-upmanship with Steve has placed her squarely in harm’s way, while Steve is feeling his own pangs of remorse at his callous behavior. Despite the media storm surrounding her, Mary with her upbeat unaffected manner not only brings everyone together but finds her own oddball friends and discovers her true place in the world.

Also starring Thomas Haden Church, Ken Jeon, Jonathan Chase, and DJ Qualls. Directed by Phill Trail.

All About Steve is now showing in Philippine cinemas.

Video Link: All About Steve – Movie Trailer

Sandra Bullock Paired with Bradley Cooper in ‘All About Steve’ originally appeared on Starmometer on November 4, 2009.

Also starring in The Proposal are Dennis O’Hare, Malin Akerman and Mary Steenburgen under the helm of Anne Fletcher.

Gist: A book editor is forced to marry her male assistant in order to stay in the country. When they travel to Alaska to meet his family, the new couple has to fake their way through a surprise wedding thrown by his parents.

Video Link: The Proposal HQ Trailer

Sandra Bullock & Ryan Reynolds Star in ‘The Proposal’ originally appeared on Starmometer on February 24, 2009.

Plot: Crossword puzzle constructor Mary Horowitz (played by Bullock) is smart and pretty. Set up on a blind date with Steve (played by Cooper), a news cameraman, Mary thinks the chemistry is undeniable and just knows she has found her soulmate. She decides to do anything and go anywhere to be with him.[2]

Mary’s escalating infatuation is encouraged by the self-serving actions of news reporter Hartman Hughes (Church) who enjoys torturing his insolent cameraman at every opportunity. As the news team crisscrosses the country covering breaking news stories, Steve becomes increasingly unhinged as Mary trails them.

When the overzealous Mary becomes embroiled in the news story of the year, Steve and Hartman begin to see her differently. Hartman is plagued by guilt, knowing his game of one-upmanship with Steve has placed her squarely in harm’s way, while Steve is feeling his own pangs of remorse at his callous behavior. Despite the media storm surrounding her, Mary with her upbeat unaffected manner not only brings everyone together but finds her own oddball friends and discovers her true place in the world.

Also starring Thomas Haden Church, Ken Jeon, Jonathan Chase, and DJ Qualls. Directed by Phill Trail.

Video Link: All About Steve – Movie Trailer

All About Steve – Movie Preview originally appeared on Starmometer on February 23, 2009.