“Seriously?” asked the celebrated, thrice-Oscar-nominated actress of an overstepping journalist.
It was April 2018 and Michelle Pfeiffer was sitting on the stage of the Beacon Theatre beside director Brian De Palma and actor Al Pacino, her collaborators on the controversial gangster classic Scarface. And to the apt mystification of actress and onlookers alike, the moderator of the event, Jesse Kornbluth, wanted to know what Pfeiffer weighed in 1983.
Pfeiffer had reunited with De Palma and Pacino at that year’s Tribeca Film Festival for the 35th anniversary of the movie that propelled her to multi-million-dollar-paycheck, magazine-covering movie stardom. Pfeiffer was so intent on scoring the supporting role of Elvira Hancock—the abrasive, indolent, fashion-forward wife of Pacino’s vicious drug kingpin Tony Montana—that the then-little-known actress paid her own airfare from New York to Los Angeles to audition. The actress, who the year prior had tackled her first lead role in...
It was April 2018 and Michelle Pfeiffer was sitting on the stage of the Beacon Theatre beside director Brian De Palma and actor Al Pacino, her collaborators on the controversial gangster classic Scarface. And to the apt mystification of actress and onlookers alike, the moderator of the event, Jesse Kornbluth, wanted to know what Pfeiffer weighed in 1983.
Pfeiffer had reunited with De Palma and Pacino at that year’s Tribeca Film Festival for the 35th anniversary of the movie that propelled her to multi-million-dollar-paycheck, magazine-covering movie stardom. Pfeiffer was so intent on scoring the supporting role of Elvira Hancock—the abrasive, indolent, fashion-forward wife of Pacino’s vicious drug kingpin Tony Montana—that the then-little-known actress paid her own airfare from New York to Los Angeles to audition. The actress, who the year prior had tackled her first lead role in...
- 2/16/2021
- by Matthew Eng
- The Film Stage
Carey Mulligan Brilliantly Defended ‘Wildlife’ After Moviegoer Slammed Her Character During Nyff Q&A
“Wildlife” star Carey Mulligan and filmmaker Paul Dano were forced to defend their film during an awkward moment at the film’s New York Film Festival post-screening Q&A session. Following the October 1 screening, a man in the audience was selected to ask a question but instead criticized the movie directly to Mulligan and Dano. The male audience member singled out Mulligan’s character, Jeanette Brinson, as a problem in the movie.
The audience member addressed Mulligan and criticized her character for being “completely reprehensible” and “unsympathetic.” Mulligan’s Jeanette is a 1960s housewife whose life spirals after her husband, played by Jake Gyllenhaal, leaves home to fight wildfires in the mountains of Montana. Mulligan responded to the criticism by addressing how new it still is for audiences to see female characters as messy as Jeanette since there are so few of them ever represented.
Read More: ‘Scarface’ Reunion: Audience...
The audience member addressed Mulligan and criticized her character for being “completely reprehensible” and “unsympathetic.” Mulligan’s Jeanette is a 1960s housewife whose life spirals after her husband, played by Jake Gyllenhaal, leaves home to fight wildfires in the mountains of Montana. Mulligan responded to the criticism by addressing how new it still is for audiences to see female characters as messy as Jeanette since there are so few of them ever represented.
Read More: ‘Scarface’ Reunion: Audience...
- 10/2/2018
- by Zack Sharf
- Indiewire
“Scarface” was released 35 years ago this December, but its early anniversary celebration hit a memorable snag at last month’s Tribeca Film Festival. During a post-screening Q&A with the cast and director Brian De Palma, moderator Jesse Kornbluth elicited jeers for asking Michelle Pfeiffer what she weighed when stepping into the role of cocaine addict Elvira Hancock, a question he later defended as “a comment on the knee-jerk political correctness of our time.” Nonetheless, on Monday, Universal Pictures, Screenvision Media, and the festival announced that the crime drama will be re-released for three days this June, and audiences nationwide will be shown said Q&A following the credits.
“The Tribeca Film Festival talk was an important commemoration of the film,” said Screenvision Media’s executive vice president of operations and exhibitor relations, Darryl Schaffer, in a statement. “We’re excited to extend it to the big screen and provide...
“The Tribeca Film Festival talk was an important commemoration of the film,” said Screenvision Media’s executive vice president of operations and exhibitor relations, Darryl Schaffer, in a statement. “We’re excited to extend it to the big screen and provide...
- 5/21/2018
- by Jenna Marotta
- Indiewire
“Scarface” was back in the news this week thanks to a disastrous panel during which Michelle Pfeiffer was asked how much she weighed while filming Brian De Palma’s crime drama. Jesse Kornbluth, who moderated said panel as part of the Tribeca Film Festival, told IndieWire yesterday that his question was intended as a “comment on the knee-jerk political correctness of our time,” arguing that asking Robert De Niro how much weight he gained for “Raging Bull” wouldn’t have stirred any controversy.
Now another strange twist to the story has come to light: Kornbluth wasn’t even supposed to moderate the discussion.
The original host, “Billions” creator/showrunner Brian Koppelman, explained what happened on Twitter after being misreported as having asked Pfeiffer the offending question: “I prepared really hard to do the panel and was really looking forward to it. But someone on here sent DePalma an old quote of mine,...
Now another strange twist to the story has come to light: Kornbluth wasn’t even supposed to moderate the discussion.
The original host, “Billions” creator/showrunner Brian Koppelman, explained what happened on Twitter after being misreported as having asked Pfeiffer the offending question: “I prepared really hard to do the panel and was really looking forward to it. But someone on here sent DePalma an old quote of mine,...
- 4/21/2018
- by Michael Nordine
- Indiewire
During Thursday night’s 35th anniversary screening of “Scarface” at the Tribeca Film Festival, moderator Jesse Kornbluth drew boos from the audience for asking Michelle Pfeiffer how much she weighed while filming the 1983 cult-classic gangster movie.
“As the father of a daughter, I’m concerned with body image,” Kornbluth asked Pfeiffer. “[During] the preparation for this film, what did you weigh?” Kornbluth was immediately booed prompting him to reply “this is not the question you think it is.”
“Well, okay. I don’t know,” responded Pfeiffer. “But I was playing a cocaine addict, which was part of the physicality of the part, which you have to consider.”
Also Read: 'Scarface': Mexican-Born Writer Gareth Dunnet-Alcocer Tapped to Rewrite Universal's Gangster Reboot (Exclusive)
“As the shoot went on, I tried to time it so I became more and more emaciated. The problem is, the movie went six months and the climactic scene kept getting delayed,” added Pfeiffer. “The crew kept bringing me bagels because they were so worried about me.”
Kornbluth did not respond to TheWrap’s request for comment on Friday and defended his question in a statement provided to TheWrap.
“It is true that a gentleman should never ask a woman about her weight. But that was not my question. It is a comment on the knee-jerk political correctness of our time that no one would be shocked if you asked Robert De Niro about the weight gain required for his role in ‘Raging Bull’ but you get booed — not by many, but by a vocal few — for asking Michelle Pfeiffer about the physical two-dimensionality required for her to play a cocaine freak in ‘Scarface.'”
Read original story Michelle Pfeiffer ‘Scarface’ Weight Question Draws Boos at Panel At TheWrap...
“As the father of a daughter, I’m concerned with body image,” Kornbluth asked Pfeiffer. “[During] the preparation for this film, what did you weigh?” Kornbluth was immediately booed prompting him to reply “this is not the question you think it is.”
“Well, okay. I don’t know,” responded Pfeiffer. “But I was playing a cocaine addict, which was part of the physicality of the part, which you have to consider.”
Also Read: 'Scarface': Mexican-Born Writer Gareth Dunnet-Alcocer Tapped to Rewrite Universal's Gangster Reboot (Exclusive)
“As the shoot went on, I tried to time it so I became more and more emaciated. The problem is, the movie went six months and the climactic scene kept getting delayed,” added Pfeiffer. “The crew kept bringing me bagels because they were so worried about me.”
Kornbluth did not respond to TheWrap’s request for comment on Friday and defended his question in a statement provided to TheWrap.
“It is true that a gentleman should never ask a woman about her weight. But that was not my question. It is a comment on the knee-jerk political correctness of our time that no one would be shocked if you asked Robert De Niro about the weight gain required for his role in ‘Raging Bull’ but you get booed — not by many, but by a vocal few — for asking Michelle Pfeiffer about the physical two-dimensionality required for her to play a cocaine freak in ‘Scarface.'”
Read original story Michelle Pfeiffer ‘Scarface’ Weight Question Draws Boos at Panel At TheWrap...
- 4/21/2018
- by Umberto Gonzalez
- The Wrap
Scarface fans didn't need mounds of cocaine to pump themselves up to see Al Pacino; Michelle Pfeiffer; director Brian De Palma; and co-star Steven Bauer, who played Pacino's character's gangster sidekick Manny, at a 35th anniversary screening of the beloved drug kingpin drama at the Tribeca Film Festival.
The packed, sold-out audience at New York's Beacon Theatre cheered throughout a postscreening discussion with the cast (and booed at one poorly worded question from the moderator, writer Jesse Kornbluth) and even gave Pacino a standing ovation as he took the stage.
Though the film was released in 1983, viewers watching the...
The packed, sold-out audience at New York's Beacon Theatre cheered throughout a postscreening discussion with the cast (and booed at one poorly worded question from the moderator, writer Jesse Kornbluth) and even gave Pacino a standing ovation as he took the stage.
Though the film was released in 1983, viewers watching the...
- 4/20/2018
- by Hilary Lewis
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Scarface fans didn't need mounds of cocaine to pump themselves up to see Al Pacino; Michelle Pfeiffer; director Brian De Palma; and co-star Steven Bauer, who played Pacino's character's gangster sidekick Manny, at a 35th anniversary screening of the beloved drug kingpin drama at the Tribeca Film Festival.
The packed, sold-out audience at New York's Beacon Theatre cheered throughout a postscreening discussion with the cast (and booed at one poorly worded question from the moderator, writer Jesse Kornbluth) and even gave Pacino a standing ovation as he took the stage.
Though the film was released in ...
The packed, sold-out audience at New York's Beacon Theatre cheered throughout a postscreening discussion with the cast (and booed at one poorly worded question from the moderator, writer Jesse Kornbluth) and even gave Pacino a standing ovation as he took the stage.
Though the film was released in ...
- 4/20/2018
- The Hollywood Reporter - Film + TV
Thirty-five years after release, Brian De Palma’s crime classic “Scarface” is still making some big waves. However, at last night’s Tribeca Film Festival anniversary screening and panel, it wasn’t Al Pacino recounting an injury sustained on set, or even Steven Bauer talking about the film’s cultural legacy, that took center stage. Instead, the night took an unexpected turn when moderator Jesse Kornbluth asked star Michelle Pfeiffer a question about her weight during the filming of “Scarface.”
Today, Kornbluth has defended his remarks by criticizing “the knee-jerk political correctness of our time.”
At the event, Kornbluth faced immediate backlash for his question. “As the father of a daughter, I’m concerned with body image,” he asked Pfeiffer. “[During] the preparation for this film, what did you weigh?”
The actress, who plays Pacino’s character’s wife in the film, cocaine addict Elvira, was joined on stage by Pacino,...
Today, Kornbluth has defended his remarks by criticizing “the knee-jerk political correctness of our time.”
At the event, Kornbluth faced immediate backlash for his question. “As the father of a daughter, I’m concerned with body image,” he asked Pfeiffer. “[During] the preparation for this film, what did you weigh?”
The actress, who plays Pacino’s character’s wife in the film, cocaine addict Elvira, was joined on stage by Pacino,...
- 4/20/2018
- by Kate Erbland
- Indiewire
In the words of Michelle Pfeiffer,"Well, okay." The three-time Oscar nominee joined some of her Scarface co-stars for a panel conversation Thursday night in honor of the film's 35th anniversary after it was screened at the annual Tribeca Film Festival. While seated amongst Al Pacino, Steven Bauer and director Brian De Palma onstage at New York City's Beacon Theatre, moderator Jesse Kornbluth began the talk with a controversial question for Pfeiffer first. "As the father of a daughter, I am concerned with body image," he said. "In the preparation for this film, what did you weigh?" The query was immediately met with vocal backlash from the audience...
- 4/20/2018
- E! Online
The Tribeca Film Festival celebrated the 35th anniversary of Scarface on Thursday night with "the greatest double feature in the history of the Beacon [Theater in Manhattan]:" a screening of the movie followed by a panel featuring three of the actors – Al Pacino, Michelle Pfeiffer and Steven Bauer – plus director Brian De Palma.
The crowd was raucous throughout the screening, hooting and hollering each time Pacino delivered one of his signature lines or snorted his way through yet another small mountain of cocaine. Viewers brought the same energy into a bizarre, sometimes...
The crowd was raucous throughout the screening, hooting and hollering each time Pacino delivered one of his signature lines or snorted his way through yet another small mountain of cocaine. Viewers brought the same energy into a bizarre, sometimes...
- 4/20/2018
- Rollingstone.com
One of the Tribeca Film Festival’s greatest draws in recent years has been cast reunions for some of cinema’s most treasured modern films. Last year, the festival screened all three “Godfather” films before reuniting director Frances Ford Coppola with the remaining cast for an onstage panel. This year, to celebrate the 35th anniversary of Brian De Palma’s “Scarface,” De Palma was reunited with stars Al Pacino, Michelle Pfeiffer, and Steven Bauer to look back the iconic gangster classic.
After a Thursday evening screening of the film at New York City’s Beacon Theater, the stars came out for a Q&A and were greeted with rapturous applause and cheers. Pacino, who plays Cuban gangster Tony Montana in the film, was given a standing ovation when he came out and greeted the crowd.
But the brief Q&A took a strange turn when moderator Jesse Kornbluth asked Michelle...
After a Thursday evening screening of the film at New York City’s Beacon Theater, the stars came out for a Q&A and were greeted with rapturous applause and cheers. Pacino, who plays Cuban gangster Tony Montana in the film, was given a standing ovation when he came out and greeted the crowd.
But the brief Q&A took a strange turn when moderator Jesse Kornbluth asked Michelle...
- 4/20/2018
- by Jamie Righetti
- Indiewire
Reprising some familiar stories but filling in plenty of fond nuance, the lead actors and director of Scarface marked the film’s 35th anniversary with a crowd-pleasing Q&A session Thursday night at the Tribeca Film Festival.
After a screening of the 1983 film, director Brian De Palma joined Al Pacino, Michelle Pfeiffer and Steven Bauer (who played Tony Montana’s gangster partner) to reminisce. As they were brought onstage one by one, the sold-out Beacon Theatre crowd let out loud, concert-worthy roars and gave Pacino a standing ovation before anyone had uttered a word.
“Bombast was part of what we were trying to say with the movie,” Pacino said. “It was bigger than life.”
Pacino recalled stumbling on the original 1932 Scarface when it was playing at the long-shuttered Tiffany Theatre on Sunset Boulevard in L.A. Seeing star Paul Muni on screen, he remembered thinking, “I want to be him!
After a screening of the 1983 film, director Brian De Palma joined Al Pacino, Michelle Pfeiffer and Steven Bauer (who played Tony Montana’s gangster partner) to reminisce. As they were brought onstage one by one, the sold-out Beacon Theatre crowd let out loud, concert-worthy roars and gave Pacino a standing ovation before anyone had uttered a word.
“Bombast was part of what we were trying to say with the movie,” Pacino said. “It was bigger than life.”
Pacino recalled stumbling on the original 1932 Scarface when it was playing at the long-shuttered Tiffany Theatre on Sunset Boulevard in L.A. Seeing star Paul Muni on screen, he remembered thinking, “I want to be him!
- 4/20/2018
- by Dade Hayes
- Deadline Film + TV
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