'Unleashed'
A place to talk about movies--Old and new, good and bad, high art and high cheese. It's the place to place your kittens on the award winners, gossip about upcoming fims and discuss DVD releases and extras. Spoiler policy: White font all plot-related discussion until a movie's been in wide release two weeks, and keep the major HSQ in white font until two weeks after the video/DVD release.
So, assume Chris Rock is right and there are only four stars: Who are they? (I'm going to allow four of each gender because I'm nice that way.) Who make movies into must-sees, no matter how awful the movie?
Tom Cruise
Sean Connery
Julia (ugh) Roberts
Betsy, I'd add Renee Zellwegger as box office bait. And has Harrison Ford's day passed?
Sean Connery? These days? I don't think so.
Oh, damn. I have to include Jim Carrey, because the evidence is that he can open a really, really bad movie and make it a hit.
ita's right about The Sean, alas.
Do people go to see movies just because Renee Zellweger is in them? It wouldn't surprise me, though I fail to see her charm.
On the female side, I'd add Nicole Kidman and Halle Berry. For men, I think of Jim Carrey, Arnold Schwarzenegger and Keanu Reeves.
Will Smith?
Tom Hanks.
"Movie Star" to me is about more than opening a movie. You've got to be the kind of person people stop to stare at on the street, too.
Betsy, I'd add Renee Zellwegger as box office bait.
Lately, I'd say Zellwegger isn't in the same class as Cruise or Roberts, if she ever was. And though Sean is usually a big draw, I wouldn't put him on that list either.
Which is so far leaving me with a list with all of two people on it.
These days I think it's less about the star and more about the franchise. When's the last time anyone in Spiderman or X Men opened a movie on the basis of their name? Not that they aren't really talented people, just that grabbing something with potential for sequels is better than grabbing a name.
Well, perhaps not better, but it's easier to plan for, I think.