Mira Sorvino, daughter of character actor Paul Sorvino, scored an Oscar and a Golden Globe in her first major role. Five years later, her career had cooled to the point where she was doing TV movies.
What the hell happened?
Sorvino got her start on the syndicated soap opera, Swans Crossing in 1992. The teen drama, which starred Buffy the Vampire Slayer’s Sarah Michelle Gellar, aired daily for 13 weeks for a total of 65 episodes. Sorvino appeared in 6 of them.
The next year, Sorvino was hired as a third assistant director on the low-budget crime drama, Amongst Friends. Gradually, Sorvino was bumped up to casting director and eventually assistant producer. As a resulted, she landed a role for herself as well as roles for family members.
In 1994, Sorvino appeared in a few projects. Among them was a supporting role in Whit Stillman’s Barcelona, the second film in a trilogy of high-minded social comedies.
Sorvino played a “party girl” one of the main characters meets at a bar. It was a small role in an arty independent films. But it helped get Sorvino noticed.
Barcelona got good reviews and did respectable box office.
Later that year, Sorvino played Rob Morrow’s wife in Robert Redford’s biographical drama, Quiz Show. Quiz Show was about a scandal in the 50’s around a rigged TV game show.
Morrow played the investigator who brought the show down. Once again, it was a small role in a prestigious movie.
The following year, Sorvino’s career was changed forever when Woody Allen cast her in a supporting role in his latest comedy.
In Mighty Aphrodite, Allen plays a father who becomes obsessed with finding the biological mother of his bright adopted son. Eventually, he discovers that the boy’s mother is a prostitute played by Sorvino and he takes it upon himself to set her up with a nice guy. The entire comedy is played as a satire of Greek tragedy including a Greek chorus.
Mighty Aphrodite got good reviews and did decent box office for a Woody Allen movie. Come awards season, it got a few nominations for Allen’s screenplay. But Sorvino cleaned up. She won an Oscar, a Golden Globe and a whole mess of critics’ awards.
All that recognition is really quite remarkable considering that 1) Woody Allen was hardly a starmaker in 1995 and 2) Sorvino played the part with an annoying helium voice.
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y5QsDSeGv_k]I think the Academy embraced Woody returning to more light-hearted material like Mighty Aphrodite. And Sorvino seemed like a fetching, fresh-faced starlet in the making. If nothing else, she deserved the award for kissing Woody Allen.
Hollywood was caught unaware by Sorvino’s sudden rise to stardom. At the time she won the Oscar, she had already completed a couple of other movies which were released in 1996. The first was the ensemble Beautiful Girls.
Beautiful Girls was a comedy/drama starring Timothy Hutton. It helped to transition Natalie Portman into adult roles. The star-studded cast also included Matt Dillon, Rosie O’Donnell, Michael Rapaport (who also appeared in Mighty Aphrodite) and Uma Thurman.
Sorvino played Dillon’s girlfriend. It was a small role in a crowded movie that definitely didn’t capitalize on Sorvino’s awards win. The film got mostly positive reviews, but Portman was singled out for praise. It fared so-so at the box office.
Sorvino also starred in the HBO movie, Norma Jean & Marilyn. The Monroe biopic cast Ashley Judd as Norma Jean and Sorvino as Marilyn Monroe after she had undergone her Hollywood transformation.
Sorvino as Marilyn slowly unraveled while being haunted by visions of her former self as played by Judd. Although it was just an HBO movie, people took notice of Sorvino’s brave performance and she was nominated for a Golden Globe and an Emmy.
1997 seemed like it would be the year in which Sorvino could capitalize on her Oscar win. She started off the year by starring opposite Friends star, Lisa Kudrow in Romy and Michelle’s High School Reunion.
The film took the popular “dumb guy buddy comedy” formula and recast it for women. It showcased Sorvino’s sex appeal as well as her comic chops. In general, reviews were positive. But the film was not a hit. It has gained a cult following over the years.
A TV-movie prequel aired on ABCFamily in 2005 without Kudrow or Sorvino’s involvement.
The same year, Sorvino also starred in Mimic. There was a lot of buzz around Mimic at the time because it was the first American film by Guillermo del Toro.
Sorvino plays an entomologist who creates a new breed of bug to combat roaches who are carrying diseases. She is hailed as a hero for her life-saving work. But eventually her new bugs return as human-sized monsters.
Originally, The Mimic was intended as a 30 minute short film that would be packaged with two other shorts to form a feature-length film. But DelTorro expanded The Mimic into a single full-length feature. As a result, it feels a little thin.
The Mimic is worth watching for all of del Toro’s touches. But it is one of the director’s weaker entries. The reviews were mixed, but not horrible. The box office was about the same. In 2011, del Toro released a director’s cut of the film which was 6 minutes longer. There have also been two direct-to-video sequels.
Around this time, Sorvino was dating director, Quentin Tarantino. Tarantino encouraged Sorvino to surf the wave of Hong Kong action films that were flooding into America.
Sorvino was teamed with Hong Kong action star, Chao Yun-fat in Antoine Fuqua‘s directorial debut, The Replacement Killers. Despite the rising popularity of Hong Kong-style action movies, The Replacement Killers failed to impress critics and audiences alike.
Having struck out in horror and action, Sorvino tried her hand at romantic drama. In 1999, she starred opposite Val Kilmer in At First Sight.
The Iceman played a blind masseur with whom Sorvino finds love. I’m a dude. I haven’t watched it. I’m not going to watch it. Not even the allure of Sorvino is strong enough to make me watch it.
Critics panned the cheesy melodrama. It flopped at the box office although it has a cult following on video.
In 1999, Sorvino also appeared in Spike Lee’s underrated drama, The Summer of Sam.
Like most Lee joints that aren’t Do The Right Thing, Summer of Sam is a little bloated. But there’s a lot to like in this film about the summer of 1977 in New York.
At the time the Son of Sam killer was on the loose. Sorvino plays John Leguizamo’s disco-loving girl friend who starts to wear a wig so as not to be a victim of the killer. The movie isn’t about the murders so much as the paranoia in New York City in 1977.
Reviews were mixed and the movie bombed.
Sorvino’s career was going into free fall. So much so that in 2000, her only release was an adaptation of The Great Gatsby on basic cable.
Five years after winning an Oscar and Golden globe for Mighty Aphrodite, Sorvino had struck out in just about every genre of film. The offers dried up. She continued working in smaller movies that often went direct-to-video.
Sorvino’s next relatively high-profile role (other than appearing on an episode of Will and Grace) was the 2004 sci-fi drama, The Final Cut.
The Final Cut stars Robin Williams as a “cutter”, someone who edits people’s memories. Even with the star power of Williams, the movie was poorly received and did nothing to revive Sorvino’s flagging career.
Since then, Sorvino has found work mostly on TV. Usually in the form of mini-series or guest appearances on shows like House.
Sorvino shot to stardom overnight winning an Academy Award in her first major role. But she was unable to capitalize on her rise to fame and fell just as quickly. It’s a shame because if the right movie had come along, Sorvino could have been great in any of the many genres she tried.
I had a huge crush on Mira Sorvino in the mid to late-1990’s. I think it’s a shame that her career went nowhere. I thought she was excellent in “Norma Jean” and “Romy & Michelle” is kind of a guilty pleasure. It’s a dumb movie but I love to watch it and quote it (I regularly try to convince people that “I invented Post-Its”).
I’m the same way. I also really enjoyed her in Mighty Aphrodite and Summer of Sam. She’s the main reason I watched The Mimic although I was terribly disappointed in it. I think it’s a shame an Oscar winning actress was reduced to Lifetime mini-series.
Yeah, I watched both “Mimic” and “The Replacement Killers” because she was in them. So her career may have fizzled, but she can proudly say that she was able to convince us to watch a movie about giant killer cockroaches. So that’s something.
5 Oscar Blessings and 5 Oscar Curses: http://whatculture.com/film/5-oscar-blessings-and-5-oscar-curses.php 5. CURSE: Mira Sorvino Mira Sorvino fell into familiar territory by becoming the 4th actor directed by Woody Allen to an Oscar when she nabbed the Best Supporting Actress prize in 1996 for her role as a ditzy, yet troubled prostitute in ‘Mighty Aphrodite’. After the win she had a handful of leading roles in middle of the road Hollywood features (‘Romy & Michelle’s High School Reunion’, ‘The Replacement Killers’, ‘Mimic’) but failed to capitalize on her new found crowning. She never really made a splash as a leading lady or a… Read more »
10 Worst Actors To Ever Win An Oscar: http://whatculture.com/film/10-worst-actors-to-ever-win-an-oscar.php/2 9. Mira Sorvino If there’s any Oscar win on this list that turned a few heads and raised more than a couple of eyebrows, it’s Mira Sorvino’s for her admittedly unexpectedly good turn in Woody Allen’s Mighty Aphrodite. Sorvino, who prior to this had acted in two notable films – bit parts in Quiz Show and Barcelona – was given a major boost by Allen’s plucking her from relative obscurity, such that critics and AMPAS voters became infatuated with her screen presence – not to mention her radiant beauty – and… Read more »
Someone needs to watch Summer of Sam. Or even Marilyn and Norma Jean. Sorvino is a talented actress.
What is it with this site and their inane lists?
8 Oscars Winners Who Should Give the Award BackL http://itthing.com/8-oscars-winners-who-should-give-the-award-back 2. Mira Sirvino In one of the Academy’s most amazing upsets, Mira Sorvino beat out Joan Allen, Kathleen Quinlin, Mare Wingingham and Kate Winslet for her 1995 Best Supporting Oscar. Her annoying hooker with a heart of gold in Woody Allen’s Mighty Aphrodite was a well-written role that she added nothing to except a Jersey accent. While she did show some promise in Romi and Michelle’s High School Reunion, her career has been flat for the past 14 years as she has wallowed in TV movies and straight-to-DVD fare (a.k.a.… Read more »
The Oscar Curse: How Winning an Academy Award Has Often Become the Kiss of Death:
http://movies.yahoo.com/news/oscar-curse-winning-academy-award-often-become-kiss-20110225-104200-262.html
On the route toward winning her first Oscar, Kate Winslet overtook Bette Davis as the youngest actor to receive six Academy Award nominations. Winslet’s truly remarkable achievement commenced with a Best Supporting Actress nomination for “Sense and Sensibility” in 1995. The career track of the actress who beat out Winslet for that award is not quite as impressive, despite the fact that Mira Sorvino, winner for “Mighty Aphrodite” has played Marilyn Monroe and Daisy Buchanan during the time.
The Oscar Curse: Big win doesn’t guarantee continuing success: http://www.toledoblade.com/Movies/2013/02/24/The-Oscar-Curse.html Louis Gossett, Jr., was primarily a TV actor when he won a Best Supporting Actor Oscar as tough-but-fair Sgt. Emil Foley in 1982’s An Officer and a Gentleman. He followed up that industry honor with 1983’s legendarily bad Jaws 3D. Gossett also starred in 1986’s box-office hit Iron Eagle, but many of his later films are of the low-budget family-friendly variety, including 2012’s Smitty, which co-stars an Oscar-winning actress with a similarly fading star, Mira Sorivino. Her 1995 Best Supporting Actress win in The Mighty Aphrodite was a surprise —… Read more »
Oscar’s Curse: How the Academy ruined these actors’ careers: http://entertainment.ca.msn.com/movies/oscars/oscars-curse-how-the-academy-ruined-these-actors-careers-618?page=3 Best Supporting Actress: “Mighty Aphrodite” (1995) Whenever you hear the name Mira Sorvino advertised in a movie, do you hear an imposing voice proclaim: “And starring Academy Award-winning actress Mira Sorvino”? No, you don’t. Truly, it’s a shame, because the goofy faced beauty had displayed considerable charm and a flair for comedy (“Romy and Michele’s High School Reunion”) in a mostly unmemorable career. Though it was those qualities that won her the Oscar as the ditzy, vocally challenged prostitute in Woody Allen’s “Mighty Aphrodite,” she was nevertheless greatly criticized at… Read more »
10 Actors Whose Careers Went Downhill After They Won Oscars: http://whatculture.com/film/10-actors-whose-careers-went-downhill-after-they-won-oscars.php/4 8. Mira Sorvino You might remember Mira Sorvino from a period of time called “the ’90s,” where she suddenly shot to fame as the star of Woody Allen’s Mighty Aphrodite, playing a friendly prostitute called Linda Ash with a funny voice. It was an endearing performance, and Sorvino made it her own: she picked up the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress. Woody Allen is pretty good at writing roles for people to win Oscars, you see. Despite the fact that she’s an Oscar-winner, though, I wouldn’t find it… Read more »
10 Victims of the Oscar Curse & Oscar Jinx: http://www.onlygoodmovies.com/good/movies/10-victims-of-the-oscar-curse-oscar-jinx/ Victim’s Name: Mira Sorvino Won For: Mighty Aphrodite (1995) Why They’re Cursed: After a few small film roles, Sorvino shocked Oscar viewers by winning Best Supporting Actress for her portrayal of a hooker with a funny voice in Woody Allen’s Mighty Aphrodite. A number of critics called the win a fluke, and they’re looking more and more like geniuses with every passing day. Sorvino starred in the not-so-high-concept Romy and Michele’s High School Reunion, and Spike Lee’s Summer of Sam failed to generate much interest at the box office. Now… Read more »
HOT GALLERY: 10 Stars Who Fell Victim to the Oscar Curse:
http://www.snakkle.com/galleries/before-they-were-famous-stars-photo-gallery-10-stars-who-fell-victim-to-the-oscar-curse-then-and-now/mira-sorvino-mighty-aphrodite-1995-movie-red-carpet-2011-photo-split/
Mira Sorvino—Today
Post-Oscar, Sorvino hasn’t had such luck with the critics. She followed up with some seriously forgettable roles in Mimic and The Triumph of Love. (Like we said, forgettable.) She did briefly shine as Romy White in Romy and Michele’s High School Reunion before diving into more low-budget fare. She does have several releases planned for 2012—here’s hoping that Sorvino can end her epic streak of meh.
10 Actresses Whose Careers Went Downhill After Winning An Oscar: http://whatculture.com/film/10-actresses-whose-careers-went-downhill-winning-oscar.php/7 Mira Sorvino Oscar Win: Best Supporting Actress, Mighty Aphrodite (1996) It’s pretty easy to explain why Mira Sorvino’s career went downhill after her Oscar win: she peaked too early. After appearing in just four movies, Sorvino landed a huge role in Woody Allen’s Mighty Aphrodite which catapulted her into stardom. Suddenly, with an Oscar under her belt, the young actress was starring in mainstream movies such as Mimic and Romy and Michelle’s High School Reunion. In 1999, she co-starred alongside Val Kilmer in At First Sight, and after yet… Read more »
Replacement Killer in review – http://www.comicbookandmoviereviews.com/2011/09/replacement-killers.html
Nice review.
Something cool happening at the FB page. TMC1982 tweeted some articles from Le Blog and a couple of celebs commented on WTHH to Mira Sorvino. Stop by the FB page to see who said what.
http://www.facebook.com/LebeausLeBlog
And feel free to “like” us while you are there. 😉
Man, I deleted my Facebook account a while ago so I can’t “like” or even have a look at what’s happening over there.
Is anybody going to name names?
I won’t hold you in suspense.
John Leguizamo (Sorvino’s Summer of Sam co-star) was the first to respond. He simply said that Sorvino is a mom who still “does a few flix”. Ashley Judd (Marilyn and Norma Jean) said she thought the question was “rude” but she noted that Sorvino was “an abolitionist”. I am not sure exactly what that means in the 21st century, but interesting all the same.
Tweets are frustratingly short. I am not sure how anyone deals with the constraints as I am incapable of saying anything in so few words.
I’m sorry Ashley thinks it’s rude.
The title can seem a little snarky if you haven’t actually read the articles. Most are just wondering why we aren’t seeing as much of a performer who we liked. We miss these folks. Off the top of my head, the Michael Keaton and Rick Moranis articles are particularly wishing to see more of them.
Yeah, the title puts some folks on the defensive. But, it’s also an attention grabber. So, I’m not changing it. Also, the articles are a bit on the snarky side by design. I figure celebs can handle the gentle ribbing I usually give them. And if not, I’m happy to have them drop by and tell me off. In the case of Ms. Judd (who I went to school with) I don’t think she read the article. She just got a tweet with a snarky question in it. So, I can’t really blame her for thinking it was a bit… Read more »
I’ve told this story before on Lebeau’s Facebook page in regards to these “What the Hell Happened to…” blogs. I perhaps out of sheer curiosity and maybe “just for the hell of it”, I sent a link to the WTHHT entry about Kim Basinger to her daughter Ireland on Twitter. When she caught wind of it, she immediately tweeted back to me saying “What the hell is wrong with you?” I don’t know if as w/ the case more than likely w/ Ashley Judd, Ireland thought that I was simply asking a snarky question about her mother w/o actually reading… Read more »
I was just laughing about that the other day. The article may be many things. But “stalkery”?
Still, I’m not going to blame someone for getting defensive about their mom or even their friend’s mom.
Funny stuff though.
Since both Kim Basinger and Mira Sorvino have been mentioned in the same breath: http://www.today.com/id/4285114/ns/today-today_entertainment/t/curse-supporting-class/#.UdqNhjuOQRg For Sorvino and Basinger, the problem seems to be that they simply chose to star in bad films. After success in “Mighty Aphrodite,” Sorvino moved on to the dumb horror flick “Mimic,” dumb action flick “The Replacement Killers,” dumb comedy “Romy & Michelle’s High School Reunion,” dumb sex film “Tales of Erotica,” and a prominent role in the very dumb box-office bomb “Gods & Generals,” the worst film of 2003. On the positive side are stints in the critically divisive “Summer of Sam” and “The… Read more »
Five Actors Who Define the Oscar Curse: http://blogs.amctv.com/movie-blog/2009/02/five-actors-who/ 3. Mira Sorvino Mira Sorvino burst onto the Hollywood scene with her Oscar-winning role as Linda Ash in Woody Allen’s Mighty Aphrodite. Besides being Paul (Goodfellas) Sorvino’s daughter, she seemed like she was that combination of smart and cute that would drive teenage girls and men to theaters for at least a couple of decades. But it didn’t happen. Maybe it was her choice of projects, like Mimic, Summer of Sam, and the Replacement Killers. Or maybe the Curse took hold: Most recently Mira Sorvino starred in a TV miniseries. She speaks… Read more »
Mira looked hot in “Norma Jean & Marilyn,” but I thought that film would have been better if Ashley Judd had played both roles because, along with the fact that she looked exactly like Norma, the film would’ve better reflected Marilyn’s lifelong struggle with herself if it was the same actress playing both title roles.
I may be blinded by my screen crush on Sorvino, but I can’t quite agree with you. I think the idea that Norma Jean and Marilyn were separate people was the point of the movie. But mostly, I am against anything that takes Sorvino off screen. I just watched her give Cuba Gooding Jr his Oscar while writing up that article and DAMN! I seriously don’t understand how Sorvino wasn’t Angelina Jolie big.
Her legs alone deserve awards. She’s lovely, but her legs are breathtaking.
Could not agree more.
I guess that thought occurred to me because I saw a pic of Norma Jean in a book years ago & thought she looked just like Judd. As I said, Mira looked hot as Marilyn, so I’m not faulting her performance. I also thought she looked hot as Romy & in “Mimic,” as dull as that film was.
I’m with you. I wanted to like Romy & Michelle and Mimic more than I did. If you haven’t seen Summer of Sam, check it out. It’s a good movie and Sorvino has never looked better.
25 A-List Hollywood Actors Who Fell the F Off: http://www.complex.com/pop-culture/2013/02/25-a-list-hollywood-actors-who-fell-the-f-off/mira-sorvino Mira Sorvino Best Known For: Mighty Aphrodite (1995), Romy and Michele’s High School Reunion (1997) Most Recent Project: Trade of Innocents (2012) From a cinephile’s perspective, when you start your career working with Whit Stillman, Woody Allen, and Spike Lee, you either continue to work with greatness, or you plummet. In a ten year span, Sorvino went from Oscar winner to Golden Globe nominee for a Lifetime movie. Lately, Sorvino has gotten back to doing the sort of indies that brought her acclaim in the first place. And when we… Read more »
Mira Sorvino joins CBS comedy pilot:
http://www.deadline.com/2013/02/mira-sorvino-to-star-in-cbs-jim-gaffigan-comedy-pilot/
The Oscar winner will play Jim Gaffigan’s wife and mother to their five kids who live in a NYC apartment.
On the one hand, happy to see Sorvino working again. On the other, what are the odds of this being watchable?
Slim, really. Besides, good or not, networks don’t give shows a real chance anymore. True, I couldn’t make it through 30 minutes of Lori Petty’s attempted sitcom in the ’90’s [alas, as talented as Petty is, it was awful], but how can you tell about a series after only 3 or 4 episodes?
Mira Sorvino Books Multi-Episode Arc on “Psych”:
http://www.tvguide.com/News/Mira-Sorvino-Psych-1067868.aspx
I think why Mira Sorvino’s career hit a downturn is kind of obvious, she was arguably, never really a popular star to begin with. She of course, got a lot of notoriety and buzz from her Oscar win. Because of her Oscar win and Mira being a young and very beautiful woman, studios started to promote her heavily in movies that wound up doing poorly. What also helped in getting Mira some press was her dating Quentin Tarantino for a while, who was the hot new director at the time thanks to “Pulp Fiction”.
10 actors who could use a Quentin Tarantino-steered comeback: http://www.hitfix.com/galleries/overlay/10-actors-who-could-use-a-quentin-tarantino-steered-comeback#8 This might be one of the hardest bits of casting on this list to pull off, for the simple reason that Tarantino and Sorvino were a couple, but that’s also one of the reasons it would be great. Sorvino, like Bridget Fonda, appears to have simply dropped off the radar completely, and she is too interesting a performer for that to be okay. Tarantino knows her as well as anyone does, so it just stands to reason that if he decided to write a great role for her, it could… Read more »
14 Actors We Must Rescue From Obscurity:
http://www.hollywood.com/photos/celebrities/56801654/14-actors-we-must-rescue-from-obscurity#934321/3
Mira Sorvino
Sorvino is an Oscar-winner and a cult icon as Romy White. Since then, she’s been banished to the realm of direct-to-video and television guest stars. She is a great comic actress and really should do more television. There’s no reason she couldn’t get some buzz as the lead on a high profile indie film or the lead on an irreverent comedy.
Whatever Happened To…?: http://www.bigthoughtsfromasmallmind.com/2010/06/whatever-happened-to_16.html Mira Sorvino It seems that Mira Sorvino’s name will always be linked with the dreaded “Oscar Curse.” The way I see it, if Marisa Tomei can shake of the shackles of the alleged curse than there is no reason why Sorvino cannot do the same. Sure Mira has been working steadily over the last few years but she is not getting the same caliber roles that she received in the early 90’s Career Highlights: Mighty Aphrodite (1995); Barcelona (1994); The Grey Zone (2001); Blue in the Face (1995); Summer of Sam (1999); Quiz Show (1994); Beautiful… Read more »
The Fall of Mira Sorvino:
http://www.welcometothetoolshed.com/welcome_to_the_toolshed/2009/01/catching-up-on-tivo-watched-the-last-templar-im-a-sucker-for-all-this-templargrail-quest-bullshit-and-will-lap-it-up.html
’90s movie stars we completely forgot about http://www.looper.com/40982/90s-movie-stars-completely-forgot/ Mira Sorvino She was once one of the hottest acts in Hollywood during the ’90s, even earning an Academy Award for her performance in Mighty Aphrodite. Mira Sorvino continued her success with a string of acclaimed roles in films like Romy and Michele’s High School Reunion, Mimic, and Summer of Sam. After 2000, Sorvino continued to act, but has changed her primary focus to smaller independent films; she received a Golden Globe nomination for her work in 2006’s Human Trafficking. Sorvino has also been doing some acting for the small screen, appearing… Read more »
Ms. Sorvino is the actress-equivalent to the music world’s One Hit Wonder: In the (fickle) world of popular music, one can have THE BIGGEST HIT in the gol-durn world but if one doesn’t have a successful FOLLOW-UP in, say, three-to-six months afterward, you are, uh, finished. You might still have a CAREER — look at Joan Osborne, her “Relish” album was HUGE but its successor was not — but you’re not “A-List” anymore. Joan O still performs regularly and has a following but when was the last time you heard a NEW song by her on mainstream radio? Mira S… Read more »
I would say she had some follow-up, but nothing that hit big. And let’s face fact, Oscar or no Oscar, Mighty Aphrodite was never that big to begin with. I doubt many non-Woody Allen fans have even heard of it. I think the biggest movie of her career box office wise was Romy and Michelle which fell just shy of $30 million in domestic box office. I don’t know for sure because Box Office Mojo doesn’t track Sorvino! She’s not even listed as being in The Mimic which grossed around 25 mil. Mighty Aphrodite, by comparisson, grossed under 7 mil.… Read more »
re: Oscar or no Oscar, Mighty Aphrodite was never that big to begin with Y’know, you sort-of brought up an interesting point: Some folks (not me, but…) have pointed out that the OSCARS are “out of touch” with real-world filmdom. Martin Scorsese has done MANY GREAT FILMS, yet no he get Oscar. A Woody Allen film — as we all know, everyone outside of NYC and LA loves and relates to Woody’s films SO well [sarcasm] — that few non-WA fans saw gets an Oscar. Go figure. Another thing: Every year there’s the Oscar for A Short Film Almost No… Read more »
You’ll get no argument from me that the Oscars are out of touch. But that’s not necessarily a terrible thing. Consider the alternatives: The People’s Choice Awards, the MTV Movie Awards, etc. The Oscars are what they are, a peer reward. I don’t expect them to be in touch with the tastes of the masses.
Btw, Scorsese did finally win for The Departed. Many, many years later than it should have happened. But it has finally happened.
Harvey’s Girls http://www.pajiba.com/think_pieces/harveys-girls-the-wouldbe-ingenues-where-are-they-now-and-what-happened-then.php An interesting article to include Mira and a question: What do all the following actresses have in common? Mira Sorvino, Gretchen Mol, Jessica Alba, Sienna Miller and Uma Thurman. They were all at one time “it” girls, which is suppose the the next big breakout star that producer Harvey W. discovered and promoted heavily, only to see the promises of greater things fizzle out. “Every few years, Harvey picks a new girl as his pet. He puts her in a picture or two, takes her to an event, and not unlike Cher Horowitz, makes her a project,… Read more »
Interesting article. I do think Weinstein tried to be a star maker where actresses were concerned. He was successful in pushing young actresses into the spotlight. Less successful at actually making them stars. But, that’s a hard thing to do in a male-dominated industry. Assuming the casting cough rumors are not true, I think Weinstein should be applauded for promoting actresses. If he actually is receiving favors for the promotion, well, that’s gross. For decades, people have liked to speculate that these actresses were being exploited. It’s easy to see how the rumors got started. It’s not hard to believe… Read more »
I liked Sorvino’s turn in that Great Gatsby adaptation. It inspired me to ‘cast’ her as the voice of Jean Grey/Phoenix in a DTDVD animated adaptation of the X-Men story arc “The Dark Phoenix Saga”:
http://www.comicbookmovie.com/fan_fic/news/?a=60597
I think Mira Sorvino is a fine actress, and it’s too bad some of the films that looked good on paper (such as “The Replacement Killers”, which I thought was okay) torpedoed her career. Nevertheless, I enjoyed “Barcelona”, “Mighty Aphrodite” (I don’t even care for Woody Allen films as much as others do), “Beautiful Girls”, “Romy and Michele’s High School Reunion” (it’s a clever film about best friends:-) and “Summer of Sam”.
I wonder if Mira in part, suffered from the same sort of problem as say for example, Kurt Russell, Tom Berenger or perhaps Brendan Fraser, if you want to talk about men. What I mean is that because of her versatility so to speak (meaning, that she could just about do any genre), she was never truly able to find her niche or brand. In other words, nobody really knew what to expect when they went to see a “Mira Sorvino” type movie. It was as if, Mira was kind of a character actress in a leading lady’s body if… Read more »
I think that’s an accurate assessment.
Did Mira S really “compare work on a series as [to] a prison sentence”? If so: Well aren’t we hot-snot! Btw, re: Both she and her dad had/have stank attitudes. The difference is, Paul has always done TV, even if he thinks he’s too good for it. Wasn’t the reason Paul Sorvino left Law & Order was to focus on his singing career? What singing career?!? Well, if she did dis TV work, she’s gonna hafta eat ____ and do some (more) because big-time movie work ain’t happening….she’s been in too many turkeys and Woody Allen/Oscar “afterglow” will only take… Read more »
10 Oscar-Winning Celebs Whose Movies Always Flop http://www.starpulse.com/news/Lucille_Barilla/2014/03/02/10_oscarwinning_celebs_whose_movies_al?page=3 Mira Sorvino Mira Sorvino was one to watch after winning a Supporting Actress Oscar for Woody Allen’s “Mighty Aphrodite” in 1995. Soon after, she continued her carefully crafted movie persona of the lovable ditz as Romy White in 1997’s “Romy and Michelle’s High School Reunion.” Since then, Sorvino has hit a dry spell, with 32 movies under her belt and none a box-office hit. She was recognized for her work in the Lifetime Television film “Human Trafficking” in 2005 with a Golden Globe Nomination, but has since become more well-known for her… Read more »
AGREED
love her
Shes probably not hangin around Hollywood bcuz shez also smarter!
Lebeau, have you ever considered doing a write up on Marisa Tomei? A lot of people seem to think her movies after her oscar win for My Cousin Vinny were not that impressive. I kind of feel that she’s been reduced to small thankless roles in other people’s movies.
Yes, some day I’m sure I will.
10 Oscar-Winning Celebs Whose Movies Always Flop http://www.starpulse.com/news/Lucille_Barilla/2014/03/02/10_oscarwinning_celebs_whose_movies_al?page=1 Marisa Tomei Big things were supposed to happen for Marisa Tomei after she became the underdog to beat in 1992 for “My Cousin Vinny.” Tomei was to usher in a new type of actress, one who was relatable and offbeat, while still being able to deliver the goods. Even though she was recognized by the academy for her latter work in the films “In the Bedroom” (2001) and “The Wrestler” (2008), Tomei hasn’t had a big box office moneymaker since “Vinny.” It’s not for lack of putting herself out there. Since her… Read more »
i would chris o donnel ,richard gere too
Fingers crossed for a further expansion on Sorvino’s career leading up to her b-day within the next week!
I’m sure you have noticed I have been concentrating on new content this month. So Mira Sorvino’s birthday will be celebrated with a gallery but not an update yet. I do plan to go back and do some more updates hopefully sooner rather than later. There’s just so much to do.