Caricature/Cartoon – Tom Hanks – The Cast Away or Robert Langdon?

Was Robert Langdon Cast Away? Or did Tom Hanks become Robert Langdon after he was Cast Away?

Someone please help the pups!

Same Guy?

In his recent movies, The Da Vinci Code and Angels & Demons, Tom Hanks plays the role of Professor Robert Langdon, who teaches Symbology whenever he finds time from his sabbaticals in Europe (the seat of all symbological trouble.) In Dan Brown‘s new Novel, The Lost Symbol, Langdon is closer home, burying his nose into masonic issues of symbolic proportions.

Among the Tom Hanks movies that I’ve watched two made a strong impression on me. One was The Green Mile, and the other Cast Away. The Green Mile made me wonder how he could convey such strength of feeling through a character molded in passivity. The Cast Away was a movie that I saw at the second inflection point in my life – it helped me by reinstating my faith in what humans can achieve.

Hanks won the 1993 Academy Award for Best Actor for his role in Philadelphia, and in 1994 for his role in Forest Gump.

Nineteen of his films raked in more than $100 million (per film), which obviously makes him the biggest Hollywood star of today.

Here are some other info-bytes about Tom Hanks.

• He is a supporter of gay marriages.
• He once wanted to be an astronaut (not a caricaturist, mind you.)
• Tom Hanks loves old typewriters, baseball, and many other things that you could discover on his myspace page.

Also check out these two links.

• Tom Hanks profile at Rotten Tomatoes
• The Wikipedia Entry on Tom Hanks

If you’d like to figure out whether Tom Hanks is related to you, here is his family tree.
If you call yourself a Tom Hanks fan, take this quiz!

Update: April 16, 2010:

Is Robert Langdon Gay?

A search string that brought a visitor to my blog, prompted this update:-)

Well…I believe that Robert Langdon isn’t “just” gay. He might be a bisexual – but none of the books that he figures in, has anything to suggest that he is a gay.  In “Da Vinci Code” he ends up spending the night with the heroine of the book, and in “Angels & Demons” there were undercurrents suggesting that Langdon was attracted to Vittoria, the heroine! None of the books, including “The Lost Symbol” had anything indicating that Robert Langdon could be gay!

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Caricature/Cartoon & Portrait – Sandra Bullock Plans to Retire After a Golden Globe, an Oscar, and Two Razzies!

Sandra Plans her Next Move!

What Next?

I am an admirer of Sandra Bullock. A great fan indeed. Mainly because despite her god-given nose, she went on the conquer Hollywood, and lately because she had the gumption to accept in person, the two Razzies that she won just the eve before the Oscars! Here’s Sandra making here future plans after winning the three (actually four) awards in a row! Retirement from acting could allow her to focus her attention on Fortis Films, her own production company. Good thinking, I’d say. Fortis Films need to do better if they don’t want more Razzies coming their way!

Here’s a portrait of Sandra Bullock that I did in 1998 – A much younger Sandra by a much younger me!

Young Sandra Bullock - 1998 (Graphite Relief Work - 8.5 inches x 11.5 inches)

For Sandra, success didn’t come easy. Born in 1964, she continued to struggle until her early thirties, when she starred in Speed. Next she worked in While You Were Sleeping and Miss Congeniality (a lovely movie.) Both these movies had their sequels made.

Another movie in which Sandra Bullock’s performance brought her applause was Crash. (Albeit small, her role in this movie leaves a strong impression on you.) Another good movie is the Lake House, which is based on a somewhat abstract concept. (Two people, Keanu Reeves and Sandra Bullock, inhabit the same house but in different dimensions of time – and they connect through time. Weird Concept – but weirdness has its takers, as this caricature here proves.)

According to the Wikipedia entry, the Blind Side has been a hugely successful movie – the highest grosser so far with a female lead. Following are the awards that she won for her performance in this movie.

The Academy Award (and she won on her first nomination!)
The Golden Globe Award
The Screen Actors Guild Award

Additionally, Sandra Bullock has the rare distinction of winning two Razzies (Golden Raspberry Awards give for worst performances) just a day before winning the Oscar! She won the Razzies for some unknown (to me) film called, All About Steve! (This movie, incidentally, was produced by Fortis Films, Ms. Bullock’s own production company.)

Movies I’d recommend (and I’ve seen):

• Speed
• Demolition Man (with the one and only Wesley Snipes, and the Caricature King Sylvester Stallone.)
• The Net
• Ms. Congeniality

and of course, The Blind Side!

Have fun:) Do return for New Celebrity Calendars (Sandra’s included) – the Next Update on your favorite Caricature Blog!

Download the Celebrity Calendar “Sandra Bullock with her Oscar, Golden Globe, and Razzies!” here.

Caricature/Cartoon – Gorgeous George Clooney’s Impeccable Hairstyle.

You’ve been waiting for the “Gorgeous George” Clooney to debut on this blog…haven’t you? Your wait ends:-) Here’s Mr. Impeccable!

Is the Alien Right?

Clooney shot to fame by portraying the character of Dr. Doug Ross, in the famous NBC series ER. (He returned to the ER series in March ’09.) He began his Hollywood career in “From Dusk till Dawn.” He worked in some other movies until he became the Batman (after Val Kimer and Michael Keaton – I haven’t seen the one with Michael Keaton…can’t imagine him as Batman!). Unfortunately “Batman and Robin” belied Clooney’s expectations. Another memorable film of his was “Three Kings“, a movie that I’d be happy to recommend.

Other famous movies that star Clooney are:

• The Perfect Storm
• Ocean’s Eleven (as Danny Ocean, followed by O12 and O13)

Around 2002, Clooney began testing the Directorial Waters. His famous directorial ventures are:

• Confessions of a Dangerous Mind
• Leatherheads

“Up in the Air” (2010) is his most recent release, in which he plays the role of Ryan Bingham.

On the personal front, Clooney seems to be highly risk-averse. He had a married stint of 4 years, after which he decided never to marry again.

Some other interesting Clooney bytes:

• Nick Name: Gorgeous George
  In 1997, he was voted the best-dressed television star (Note the bow-tie.)
  Until 2006, he owned a pet pig called Max. Upon his death in 2006, he was devastated and vowed never to adopt a pet pig again. (Another proof of his risk-averse nature. I wonder how brave a batman he made?) Here’s a news-byte that might interest those who believe in communicating with the spirits.
  Nephew of Rosemary Clooney.

Those on facebook might be interested in starting a campaign against him. This is what he has to say about Facebook.

“I’d rather have a rectal examination on live TV by a fellow with cold hands than have a Facebook page!”

I’ll be adding the George Clooney Calendar soon. Return for your copy.

Also…from the Blogosphere:

• Clooney’s Cookie Crumbs
• GC Celebs Fan Page
  

Download the George Clooney Hollywood Celebrities Calendar for 2010 here.

Caricature/Cartoon – Julia Roberts – The Pretty Woman’s Dazzling Smile helps the Rodent Household!

Of course, you’ve seen this smile before. But did you know that her dazzling smile could help Mr. and Mrs. Mouse get over their electricity woes.

Julia Roberts has many reasons to smile. She’s one of the prettiest women in the world, she was one of the best-paid actresses in Hollywood, she won an Academy Award (for her performance in Erin Brockovitch,) and in 2007 (according to Wikipedia) her estimated net worth was $140M. She also made to the list of the “50 Most Beautiful People” by People Magazine, 11(!) times, and 2001, Ladies Home Journal voted her the 11th most powerful woman in the world! All these reasons put together could make Hitler win the Best Smile contest – leave aside Ms. Roberts, who has a spontaneous smile:)

Here are my favorite Julia Roberts Movies:

• Pretty Woman (with Richard Gere.)
• Sleeping with the Enemy (with Patrick Burgin – the psycho husband.)
• The Pelican Brief (with Denzel Washington – The movie’s based on an extremely readable book by John Grisham – Do read it.)
• My Best Friend’s Wedding (with Dermot Mulroney, Cameron Diaz, and Rupert Everett.)
• Erin Brockovitch (with David Brisbin and Erin Brockovich-Ellis (Yes, the real Erin Brockovitch, who played the part of the waitress.) (Read the real Erin Brockovitch story. )

Julia Roberts’ smile is almost as famous as the MonaLisa smile…but do you really know her smile? Find out here.

Download the Printable Julia Roberts Hollywood Celebrities Calendar for 2010.

Caricature/Cartoon – Pamela Anderson (Lee)…the Fish, and the Missing Fish-bowls.

These fish are confident that those aren’t “Pancho” and “Lefty”…or if they are, they are also their erstwhile homes!

They aren't Pancho and Lefty!

Pamela Anderson, the evergreen model, actress, and sex-symbol, was born Pamela Denise Anderson in 1967. Pamela’s popularity, among other things (most not known to me,) result from her incredible twin assets. In fact, while for most celebrities the caricaturists look for their characteristic facial features that they could exaggerate; with Pamela, ignoring her non-facial features would probably be an insult. But then, you can’t ignore her wild hair too.

Our newspaper brings along eight pages of gossip – and a recent, drab bit of such gossip says that these days Pamela is living in a trailer that’s parked in her own lawn, so that she doesn’t distract the renovators of her house and cause accidents!

Here are some other factoids about Pamela Anderson:

• She tried staying married to Tommy Lee. Some of their home-videos of the saucy kind escaped into the cyber-space.
• She appeared in the role of Casey Jean Parker in the Baywatch serial and helped save souls!
• In the 1990 Feb Issue of the Playboy magazine, Pamela appeared in the centerfold (having been chosen the Playmate of the Month.)
• After 14 years, she returned in nude on the cover of the Playboy magazine’s May 2004 issue. (Yes, I am not providing a link here – go, find it yourself:-)

After the Juicy Gossip…now something else!

• She’s a vegetarian.
• She’s an active member of PETA (Of course – who could be a better model for the “I’d Rather Go Naked Than Wear Fur” campaign.)
• She also wrote to President Obama for the legalization of marijuana.
  (These factoids are credited to Wikipedia.)

Finally, she’s also one of the pioneers of cosmetic surgery. She’s done for this industry more than any other woman. But then, the fish can’t be wrong…can they? After all glass is silicon, and so are the implants!

(Short link for this post: http://wp.me/pJgyP-5G)

Download the Pamela Anderson and the Missing Fishbowls Hollywood Celebrities Calendar for 2010 here.

Caricature/Cartoon – Angelina Jolie as Lara Croft – The Tomb Raider

Lara Croft’s Guns!

Oops...but can't let them know!

Angelina Jolie, who comes from a family of actors, is a Hollywood actress who has won an Oscar and three Golden Globe Awards. Angelina won the hearts of her international audience through the Tomb Raider series of movies, where she played the role of Lara Croft, the female action hero of the Role-playing Game “Tomb Raider.” I think that Angelina’s features, which are beautiful while they are strong; ensure that she’s able to “become” any character she plays onscreen.

In Mr. & Mrs. Smith, Angelina Jolie starred opposite Brad Pitt, her current partner. From Johnny Lee Miller (Hackers), to Billy Bob Thornton (Pushing Tin), to Brad Pitt (Mr. & Mrs. Smith) – Angelina’s talent of finding her life partners through her work, shines through.

(Wow! She WAS married to Billy Bob “Thorn”ton…A Rose with a “Thorn”?)

That the “Smiths” aren’t married has been confirmed by none other than Dewey Dewster, who says, “Brad would have been her third but they have not married…..’n that makes a break-up a bit easier on everyone but the kids.” – Thanks Dewey:-)

The Brangelina breakup that we talked about in the post about Brad Pitt’s Caricature…could it be an outcome of Angelina working in yet another movie with another co-star who takes her breath away?

This isn’t going in the right direction, especially as Dewey has asked me to be kind to her. I quote Dewey once again- “Since it sounds like ya aren’t real thrilled with Angelina…..we can’t wait ta see what yer rendition of her will be……just remember ta be a bit kind.”

2001 onwards, Jolie has been involved in a great deal of humanitarian work, and it’s really nice of her – I agree. There are many out there who can share but who don’t…she’s someone who does, and we love her for that.

Well, that’s all about the Gun-toting Tomb Raider, who helps people in distress while managing her apparently turbulent life quite dexterously. About her being a highbrow, isn’t she?

Return my dear reader, for there’s something coming up again – soon! And yes, if you are here, leave a comment – what’s your take on the Brangelina Rumor?

News Flash – Calendars are Up!
Download Angelina Jolie’s Printable Calendar pdf here.
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Caricature/Cartoon – Brad Pitt and Achilles’ Dilemma in Troy.

What’s he thinking?

I Need Them…Pronto!

I didn’t know that Brad Pitt could look so handsome, until I watched Troy (and until I DIDN’T watch “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button” and “Interview with a Vampire.”) In Troy, his bronzed body, his rippling muscles, and his little golden lock bound in itsy-bitsy leather straps, must’ve made him the heart-throb of every movie-going teenager/tweener/thirtier…! But the best-kept secret about Troy was that it didn’t have a single shop that sold good quality heel-guards! In fact, Achilles spent a lot of time, going shop to shop…hoping that he’d find one – so that his heel stayed intact!

Now, you tell me – what was Brad’s Achilles’ heel when it came to his relationship with Ms. High-brow Angelina Jolie (The Brangelina Fever)? (you don’t believe that she’s a high-brow – right? Wait for her Caricature to appear on your favorite caricature blog!) Why didn’t their relationship work out? Who lurked in the shadows…and who came between this happy Hollywood couple (or who all – if we could take cues from the original Tiger Woods Musical Chairs that he played with about twenty (nineteen/fourteen – I don’t remember) beauties)? Is it that an old relationship (with Jennifer Aniston) refuses to die? And also…what exactly is in the air? A Divorce or a Separation? Are they really married?

I am confused.

If you know the answers to these questions, please enlighten this ignorant caricaturist through your comment on this post. Your answers could become part of a star-studded post on this blog, which I intend to call – “The TMZ Caricature!”

(Check out the TMZ Website for the Brangelina rumor – Oprah Winfrey’s blacklisted Brangelina from her show!)

And now, it’s time for a short non-commercial break – Don’t go away!

(Nice tune of unidentified origins.)
Coming up shortly…Celebrity Caricature Calendars of the printable sort! Do return for your copy.
(Another nice tune of unidentified origins.)

Thanks for being with me…
Now it’s time for me to say good-bye. In the next post of this blog, we shall meet the caricature of Angelina Jolie, and ask her what went wrong…
until then…
stay with me – I am Shafali, and…

(PS: Did I get carried away with that “Caricature of a Talk-show”?)

Update – March 14, 2010.

Download the Brad Pitt as Achilles in Troy Hollywood Celebrities Calendar for 2010 here.

Caricature/Cartoon of Avatar – The Story – A Verbal Caricature

Do you find the Na’vi men handsome?

Look into my Eyes!

I haven’t seen Avatar yet. Somehow the prospects of watching a human fall in love with a 10 ft blue-skinned “beauty” through his genetically engineered avatar don’t appeal to me. This of course isn’t everything about the movie and so I am confident that the other great things about it will motivate me into watching it. Avatar, a James Cameron movie has beat the record of Titanic in revenues, and it has used a variety of hi-tech multimedia effects. They say that the Avatar imagery outshines everything that we’ve ever seen before.

Here’s a quick verbal caricature of the story (Don’t read if you haven’t watched the movie yet.)

Avatar – A Verbal Caricature of the Movie (from Whatever I’ve read and heard!)

About a century and a half from now, the rapacious humans have exhausted Earth’s natural resources, and have somehow (don’t ask me how) found another place to exploit. It is the moon in the Alpha Centauri Star system, and is aptly named Pandora. Humans, like Terriers, love to dig, and so they dig in Pandora, to obtain Unobtainium (and they succeed! Remember, Nothing is Impossible.) But then there are others. These others are called Na’vis and they are blue-skinned, slim, and about 10 feet tall – this obviously makes me wonder what the bending moment of these Na’vis is?

Never mind their long, lithe bodies – they are the mix of the primitive and the evolved. And so it isn’t easy for the Humans to obtain Unobtainium on a sustained basis, as the Na’vi resist them (and also because the finicky humans can’t breathe in the Pandora’s box.) So the humans do what they do best. They use their usual underhand espionage tactics and slip in as genetically engineered avatars controlled by real humans through their minds – this is where I smell a bit of the Matrix concept – but as “an idea cannot be copyrighted, only its expression can be,” I am sure nobody would be suing Mr. Cameron.

Anyway, Jake Sully (Sam Worthington) is found worthy of being sent out in form of a blue-skinned, 10 ft, alien. After some twists and turns of the Hollywood movie variety, he’s “rescued” by a beautiful Neytiri (Zoe Saldana,) the lovely Na’vi princess who he falls in love with. (Now that’s something that doesn’t connect. If I play the part of a mouse in a movie, will I fall in love with a real mouse?)

Next there are more twists and turns, which you can read about here. The important point to note is that in the end, Jake happily becomes the new leader of the Na’vi tribe and his Na’vi avatar is made permanent by the blue-skinned, 10 ft, aliens! I don’t know how he jumped and swung from tree to tree (Someone tell me that this swinging/flying doesn’t look like “Tarzan” or “Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon” variety! If my height doubled, I won’t even be able to walk!)

All said and done, if this movie has beat the world’s ever highest grosser Titanic, it must be good, and the Na’vis must be beautiful!

PS: The blue bodies, the “avatar”, and Neytiri…all make me think that James Cameron has read some Hindu Mythology as well. Ever wonder why his script was exiled into his cupboard for 14 (no more, no less, but 14 years)? The exact period of Rama’s exile? And Na’vi? It means – New, in many Indian Languages:-)

Ain’t those Na’vi men Handsome?

Update: March 14, 2010:

When I created and posted this caricature, I didn’t expect these many searches for “Neytiri Naked” to end up on this page! I can understand the disappointment that these starry-eyed, steamy-breathed bounty-hunters must feel when our self-proclaimed Handsome Na’vi Avatar sneers at them from this page!

The continuation of the thought that resulted in the verbal caricature makes me wonder why we are so keen on seeing what a female alien looks like naked? (There wasn’t a single search for the male Na’vi avatar naked!) I guess those searchers and researchers must’ve somehow guessed that Neytiri was actually a vertically stretched human called Zoe Saldana, with blue paint all over her body! Only that could explain those searches – otherwise, why wouldn’t we search for naked Guerilla, naked chimpanzee, and so on, and so forth!…the Caricaturist wonders!

Well, for those who are keen on the Male Na’vi (Women visitors, come forward,) I’ve uploaded the calendar.

Download Na’vi Avatar in Jame’s Cameron’s Avatar 3D Character Printable Calendar for 2010.

Caricature/Cartoon – Bruce Willis, the Unbreakable, and the Die Hard Woodpecker.

Bruce Willis – The Unbreakable!

Unbreakable – Eh?!

I had watched the first three Die Hard Movies before I watch The Sixth Sense, when Bruce Willis catapulted to the top of my Hollywood favorites list. Somewhere around the same time I saw “The Unbreakable” – Samuel L. Jackson and Bruce Willis. I think that both these movies (the Sixth Sense and the Unbreakable) were directed by Manoj “Night” Shyamalan. So one thing led to another, and I became a fan of Shyamalan’s work too – until I saw “The Village“, which made me wonder whether Shyamalan could weave his magic only through Bruce Willis!

Here are some other interesting links.

• Learning from Die Hard
• Bruce Willis Fan-site
  
• Manoj “Night” Shyamalan’s Website (Interesting – but dark!)

Coming up shortly…Celebrity Caricature Calendars of the printable sort! Do return for your copy.

News Flash – Calendars are Up!
Download Bruce Willis’ Printable Calendar pdf here.
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Caricature/Cartoon – Jack Nicholson and the Two Birds – As Good as it Gets!

From the romantic comedies such as “As Good as it Gets” to some serious gray character stuff in “A Few Good Men” – Jack Nicholson has played a memorable role in every kind of movie. He began his movie career in 1958 and since then he has worked in more than 60 movies! This caricature is dedicated to his awe-inspiring (brow-lifting?) ability to transform into the characters he plays.

The Secret is Out – This is How Jack Nicholson Accomplishes it!

The Wolf with the birds?!

Check out some interesting info-bytes about Jack Nicholson and his movies at the following links.

• As Good as it Gets
• A Few Good Men (A Quote from the Movie)

News Flash – Calendars are Up!
Download Jack Nicholson’s Printable Calendar pdf here.
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Caricature/Cartoon – Morgan Freeman a.k.a Detective Alex Cross and… The Two Dueling Mosquitoes.

If you haven’t heard of Dr. Alex Cross, you aren’t a true fan of detective fiction. The celebrated oscar-winning Hollywood actor Morgan Freeman played his character in the films “Kiss the Girls” and “Along Came a Spider“. Both these movies were based on the Alex Cross novels by James Patterson. Among other Patterson Novels, detective Alex Cross features in “Jack and Jill“, “Violets are Blue“, and “The Big Bad Wolf“!

Will he spot them?

Note: Morgan Freeman won his academy award for his role in the film “Million Dollar Baby.”

News Flash – Calendars are Up!
Download Morgan Freeman’s Printable Calendar pdf here.
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