australians in hollywood

Abbie Cornish Read Good, Speak Good, Too

9:08AM Clem Bastow | There’s nothing more the Australian media like than hearing someone from right here in lil ol’ Aussie is doing good overseas (second only to making sure we all hear when an Australia doesn’t win an award), so gather round gran’ma’s rocking chair on the porch overlooking the canefields as we hear of the latest expat to do our tiny, culturally bankrupt country proud… It would seem Abbie Cornish, who makes her trade as an actor, can actually act! And the critics are prepared to say so! Good job, deary, you show the world how good us Aussies can be if we’d only get a break, etc: Aussie star-on-the-rise Abbie Cornish continues to win friends and influence people, with her turn in Stop-Loss, earning solid reviews in the US. Cornish stars opposite real-life love interest Ryan Phillippe in the film. “Ms Cornish, in spite of some accent trouble – her native Australia is a long way from Texas, geographically and phonetically – gets every nuance of her character’s toughness and bewilderment exactly right,” the New York Times critic said. Actually, hang on, that’s not really glowing praise, is it? If it’s A.O. Scott, who has recently softened to endearing “best ever!!” enthusiasms, then it’s definitely not. But you know, we’re just a tiny little colony of bright-eyed hopefuls, we’ll take what we can get! More »

The Happy Little Hollywood Vegemites

10:39AM Clem Bastow | We like nothing more than a bit of jingoistic “Aussies made good overseas” reportage, so thanks to News Ltd for providing us with not one but two such pieces today. While most of us are content to sit on our arses and watch Home & Away, some Australians are kicking goals across the pond – namely, Radha Mitchell and Sam Worthington; the former starring in The Code with Morgan Freeman and the latter in James Cameron’s sci-fi comeback, Avatar. Fittingly, the Sydney actor – who departed Australia in January for the plum role in Cameron’s $244 million budget sci-fi extravaganza Avatar – says working with the director who made Kate Winslet and Leonardo DiCaprio stars has been “epic”. A virtual unknown in the US, Worthington made headlines when he beat thousands of hopefuls who auditioned in Cameron’s worldwide screen tests, winning the lead part of wounded ex-marine Jack Sully. We’d like to send them a plate of celebratory lamingtons and pavlova care of the Australian Embassy, and declare the rest of today to be All Good Aussie Day – tinnies and shrimp for everyone! Avagoodweekend!! More »