I’m proud and pleased to re-present my interview with The Film Fatales, a daring duet of darn-funny dames who dish on film and keep me laughing with each installment of their film review blog!
I have known elizabeth cassidy and Nicole Dauenhauer since the Stone Ages of book publishing, working at Bookspan, aka Direct Brands. They’re funny, they’re fabulous, and the know their films.
Head to their blog and see for yourself! And once you do, you’ll definitely want to LIKE them on Facebook! Because what’s not to like with a rating symbol that looks like this:
NOTE THESE IMPORTANT LINKS! (After reading this interview, I promise you will need them!)
http://filmfatales.blogspot.com/
http://elizabethcassidyart.com/
http://youhaddabethere.blogspot.com/
And now,without further ado… Lights! Camera! Broads!
~~~~~
1. So what made the two of you decide to come together and take on Hollywood in such a devastatingly glamorous way? Did some dastardly director done you wrong one too many times? Seriously, what made you decide, “Hey, we should do this!”
Nicole: Well, I’ve had it out for Spielberg for years — and frankly, he had this coming. We’d been wanting to write together for a while, but wanted it to be fun and light — not heavy and polarizing (like our friendship). Plus, there are so few women movie reviewers and we thought it was time film audiences were given the female perspective.
elizabeth: I did it to meet men. No, well, yes, I do it for that reason and more. I hate to start this interview off with agreeing with Dauenhauer, but we do have similar senses of humor and after my dream about her throwing me off the rooftop of a NYC townhouse because I penned a New York Times bestselling book, I knew it was wise to keep my enemy even closer. Plus we had something to say about what Hollywood is up to and we won’t be ignored. And to meet men.
2. Do you watch most movies together, or do you meet afterwards (maybe so as not to infect each others’ impressions)? Please share your process!
Nicole: It’s a little of both. We prefer to see the movies together, and when we do — there’s always a buffer seat in between. (cassidy has a “jimmy arm” — very unpleasant.) Occasionally, there will be a movie we can’t catch together — so we follow up after and compare notes. Other times, like for Hope Springs or The Dark Knight Rises, one of us has no desire to slap down 12 bucks and we go it alone — then fill the other broad in on the plot so she never has to see it.
elizabeth: I go to the movies with Nicole to accumulate brownie points so I can go to heaven one day. We saw Salmon Fishing in the Yemen together and we got to witness an older couple making out like a couple of thirteen-year-olds a few rows ahead of us. It was a memorable night because while I wanted to move to Yemen to live with that hot sheik, we overheard lover boy’s dentures fall out at a very critical moment. And what am I doing with Jimmy’s arm?
3. There’s a lot of back-and-forth in your blog about what you enjoy about films and what not, though you usually have a reasonable consensus on “love it or hate it.” Have you ever gone at it / had strong words / duked it out over a movie you didn’t fundamentally agree was hit or miss?
Nicole: We tend to agree more than we disagree. Go figure?
elizabeth: I don’t agree with anything Nicole says. I just let her ramble and ramble and ramble. And sadly, the one movie that did us both in was The Campaign. I am receiving and responding quite nicely to shock therapy and I pray that one day my family will let me back into the fold. Just between us, I ain’t praying that hard.
4. Unlike me, kind of an “ingenue” of the blogging world, you’re both fairly seasoned broads in this arena. Can you tell me about some of the other blogging you do?
Nicole: I blog a bit on Skirt!, where I wax philosophical (that may be stretching it) on pop-culture and women’s issues. I also have a humor blog, “You Hadda Be There,” which catalogs the frequently bizarre things my parents say.
elizabeth: Nicole, I think she just called us a couple of old broads. (Francine, here. cassidy–so touchy! Not old. Savory!)I have been blogging since 2008. I started at Skirt! and now have a column on Here Women Talk and World Literary Café. I think it is essential for writers to have their own blogs and it can be a great way to get exposure and develop a following. Everybody has got an opinion and there is room for everyone although I would like to be the supreme blogger of the universe one day. I think that says it all. Check out my words and art at elizabethcassidyart.com.
5. What about other interests? One of the reasons I’m drawn to the two of you is that you always seem to have an improbable amount of tasks you’re handling at once. What else are you doing right now (Elizabeth just had one of her artworks picked up for a book cover!) and how are you finding time to do these things?
Nicole: Well, cassidy’s the true Renaissance woman. She puts me to shame. Other than blogging, I create paper crafts and photo art for my Etsy shop under the name Mockingbird’s Mantle.
elizabeth: The only reason Nicole calls me that is because she tells people that I finished high school at the end of the Renaissance. I think when I got back to my artistic roots last year, I felt a strong rebirth going on inside of me. Life can get in the way of our dreams, so when the universe gave me the gifts back, I decided to run with it. I am so excited to be doing my art again and I do plan on starting my first book this fall. I want to die knowing I have done it all and that I have no regrets. Well, still waiting for Colin Firth to call me.
BONUS QUESTION: Imagine Hollywood’s just called and, based solely on the strength of your Film Fatales brand, wants you to fashion a script that they’re already optioning from you–sight unseen! (Oh I do so love imagination, don’t you?) What is the genre of the film and who’s going to star in it?
Nicole: It should be equal parts comedy, action, drama, and French farce with equal strength. And, obviously Catherine Zeta Jones should play me because we look so much alike.
elizabeth: I think it should be called The Campaign: Part Deux about two women running for the presidency of this country. I don’t mind being cast as the evil villainess (type casting) who defeats Nicole in a landslide. But then Nicole would then be able to go find her Heathcliff while I sit around in the White House in my underwear. Who would play my part? Who would play my part? I want to play me. I think I have that down pat.
~~~~~
A huge thanks to the Film Fatales for visiting the Shed and shedding some wisdom on what makes for a great flick! I for one can’t wait to see their comedic, action-packed, drama-drenched French farce about an election for which I would find it almost impossible to cast a vote… Which one could I possibly choose?!
If you’re new to here, stay a while and have a look around. We’ve had a few interesting people visiting here, and more are lined up this fall.
Thanks for coming!
Let’s connect! Find me on Twitter and Facebook, and email me: francine@francinelasala.com.
Francine LaSala's Clippings in the Shed 