HOLLYWOOD

By Tony Rizzo
HOLLYWOOD — Bradley Cooper’s breakout films were “The Hangover” and “The Hangover, Part 2.” He’s been shooting films non-stop ever since. In June, he shot “The Words” in Montreal with Olivia Wilde, Zoe Saldana, Jeremy Irons, Ben Barnes and Dennis Quaid. It’s due out in 2013. Then he went right into “The Place Beyond the Pines,” with Ryan Gosling, Rose Byrne, Ray Liotta, Eva Mendes and Bruce Greenwood, also out in 2013. He’s currently in Darby, Pa., shooting “The Silver Lining Playbook,” with Robert DeNiro and Julia Stiles. Cooper plays a former teacher, released from a mental institution after four years, who moves in with his mother in hopes of getting his ex-wife back. It too, will be out in 2013.

Cooper is preparing for what could be the most demanding role of his career, as Lucifer in the film adaption of John Milton’s epic “Paradise Lost.” Casey Affleck plays the angel Gabriel, with “Blood Diamond’s” Djimon Hounsou as the Angel of Death. It tells of the battle between two archangels when Lucifer is banished and takes on the forces of heaven. This could be one of the greatest battles between good and evil ever filmed.
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Michelle Williams is already getting an Oscar buzz for her portrayal of Marilyn Monroe in “My Week With Marilyn.” In 1956, MM formed Marilyn Monroe Productions and, intent on proving she could really act, hired one of the greatest actors of her time, Laurence Olivier, to direct and star opposite her in “The Prince and the Showgirl.” She arrived in London with Arthur Miller, her husband of two weeks, who would later write the screenplay for her last film, “The Misfits.” Olivier sought advice from Joshua Logan, who had directed MM in “Bus Stop.” Logan advised him not to criticize or yell at her, or she would become too insecure to work.

Olivier, however, repeatedly lost his temper and couldn’t direct her effectively. In true Hollywood fashion, for her, she started showing up late or not at all. She’d hired him thinking they’d become best friends and he’d get a great performance out of her. When he ignored her socially, she attached herself to a production assistant, Colin Clark, who wrote the book “My Week With Marilyn.”

The biggest award Monroe ever won was a Golden Globe for “Some Like it Hot.” If Michelle Williams gets an Oscar nom, she’ll get it for playing MM, who never got it for playing herself! She should have known she couldn’t be best friends with any man, because, after all, she’s the one who said, “DIAMONDS are a girl’s best friend.”