Little Seen Film of the Day – Picture Day

Picture DayThis one is for all the rabid Orphan Black lovers out there (like me).  Or maybe it’s not.  Maybe they’ve already found this film and devoured it like all things Tatiana Maslany.  So maybe this is for everyone else.

A couple of years ago, before the Clone Club, I saw a little Canadian film at the Toronto International Film Festival, 2012.  It was fun, it was well written, and it starred a young actress who caught my eye.  I remember saying to Beth, “We should get Tatiana Maslany to come to Chlotrudis for the Breakout Award.  I think she’s going to go places.”  Well, it wasn’t many months later that Orphan Black hit the scene and the rest his history.  Tatiana Maslany was a cult favorite, rapidly gaining wider and wider audiences.  But back in 2012, she starred in a terrific, complex, teen comedy/drama called PICTURE DAY.

Claire (Maslany) was a bad ass in high school, but now she’s repeating her senior year and she’s become something of a joke.  She’s hanging around Henry, a nerdy freshman that she used to babysit, who now has a hopeless crush on her, with a goal of making him into a mysterious, hip rebel.  Her success with Henry throws his life into a turmoil, but her own life isn’t much better off.  With a mother who barely notices her, and an 33-year-old rocker-wanna-be boyfriend who’s clearly not in Claire as much as he’s into the adoration of young groupies, Claire’s work with Henry is really the only things that’s going well – at least in her mind.  Clearly, Claire’s is being set up for some tough life lessons, which are delivered in a way that isn’t heavy-handed, a credit to writer/director Kate Melville’s skill as a flimmaker.  But it’s Tatiana Maslany, who shines in PICTURE DAY.  Clearly just a taste of what was to arrive less than a year later on the small screen.

Promises, Promises

Promises, Promises was more delightful than I had imagined!

Going in, I was most scared for Sean Hayes, but dammit, the boy can sing! (He does mug a bit in the middle, but not all the way through.)

Kristen is miscast. She’s neither young enough nor vulnerable enough. But she sounds great!

“A House Is Not A Home” has no place in the musical and should not have been added, but “I Say A Little Prayer” is a nice way to give Kristin a big number early on and helps even out the ballad/uptempo balance for her.

The male dancers are great! Very athletic and joyful.

But the biggest surprise was Katie Finneran! She was my favorite part of Wonderfalls on TV, but damn. She steals the show in the first scene of Act II. She should get another Tony for this performance.

Finally, I’m very glad that no one wore pink and orange together. I was worried when I saw the show logo. That color combination nearly made me ill in the Sweet Charity revival.

P.S. I was so excited by the music that I had to go home and download two Jill O’Hara albums. She was the Fran in the original show and I have always dug her voice.

Rhoda as Tallulah? Awesome.

Valerie/Tallulah

I’m just ecstatic hearing that Valerie Harper (yeah, Mary’s Rhoda) is playing Tallulah Bankhead in a new play entitled Looped. Apparently, the title comes from the idea that the whole play takes place during an ADR session for Tallu’s classing Hammer horror film, Die! Die! My Darling!

I lost some respect for Valerie after she walked off the set of a show named after her. Jeesh, during the first season, even. Pretty freaking sad if you can replace her with Sandy Duncan and still manage to keep the series running for five more seasons. And that union president race against Laura Ingalls got pretty nasty. But this just may make up for all of that.

What? You haven’t seen Die! Die! My Darling!? Holy frijoles, get over here quick. I’m itching to watch it again, especially since Tallu plays a bible-thumping vegetarian who — once upon a time — was a … well, a loose, jazz-loving woman. Okay, she was a whore. And Stephanie Powers plays the mod girl Tallu kidnaps. And a very young Donald Sutherland plays the retarded groundskeeper. What’s not to love?!