Arthur Foulkes The Tribune-Star The Tribune Star Tue Mar 29, 2011, 09:27 AM EDT
TERRE HAUTE — Well-known film critic and newspaper columnist Richard Roeper polished off this season’s Indiana State University speakers series Monday night with a lot of laughs and demolishing of some “urban legends.”
Among the legends he dispelled, Roeper said actress Marisa Tomei really did win the 1992 Oscar for “Best Supporting Actress” for her role in “My Cousin Vinny.” Some people believed that naming Tomei was a mistake that the Academy covered up, Roeper said. But that wasn’t true.
She “won fair and square,” he said.
Many actors and actresses are also the subject of “death hoaxes,” Roeper said. Bill Cosby has allegedly died several times, but is still alive and well. Always check reputable news outlets when you see a blog post that a famous actor was killed snow boarding or in some other way, he said.
Roeper, who co-hosted “Ebert & Roeper” for eight years with film critic Roger Ebert, told a nearly full Tilson Music Hall that the 2010 movie “Inception,” directed by Christopher Nolan, is the best film of the past three years. But he noted that often people disagree with him and post some pretty nasty comments under his videos on YouTube.
“I see my brother now has a You Tube account,” Roeper joked after quoting an especially nasty comment about one of his recent reviews.
Roeper watches about 200 movies each year for his work, he said. He sees little if any value in 3D movies and said it is often more fun to write a negative review about a movie than a positive review. “You can really let yourself go,” he said.
One recent movie he urged the audience to avoid is “The Green Hornet” in 3D. “It sucked in all three D’s” he said.
Another urban legend Roeper dispelled is that the ghost of a dead boy appears in the film “Three Men and a Baby.” The “ghost” is actually a short, cardboard image of actor Ted Danson, who starred in the 1987 movie.
Roeper has interviewed many well known celebrities as part of the Red Carpet ceremonies at the Oscars. However, he said, interviewers must be in their places seven hours before the first celebrities arrive. Security is tighter than at the White House, he said.
During a question and answer period, Roeper was asked to name the nicest actors in Hollywood. He said the most successful and established ones tend to be the kindest and classiest, such as Tom Hanks, and the late Jack Lemon and Paul Newman.
“The ones who are a little more difficult are the ones who think they’ve reinvented acting,” he said.
When asked to single out the worst movie he has ever seen, Roeper said there are too many to name, but he mentioned the film “Freddy got Fingered” (2001) and “White Chicks” (2004) as among the very worst.
Roeper, who has been a columnist for the Chicago Sun-Times since 1987, has been a frequent guest on the Tonight Show, Live with Regis and Kelly and many other programs. He address at Tilson Music Hall was free to the public and included a reception following his one-hour talk.
Arthur Foulkes can be reached at (812) 231-4232 or arthur.foulkes@tribstar.com.
Copyright 2011 News From Terre Haute, Indiana. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
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