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That Vanity Fair Cover exposed the faulty politics of showbiz

posted 16 years ago by CoolBrittannia
8 replies | jump to latest

I rewatched Rounders today and I have to say in retrospect, Gretchen Mol snagging the cover of Vanity Fair seems ludicrous!! She got the cover when this movie came out. She had a rather small part in Rounders and her performance was by no means a "star-making performance". She simply played the role of the neglected girlfriend who takes a backseat in favour of the poker plotline.

The fact that she managed to get the cover without any attention grabbing performance under her belt that would make her destined for stardom clearly exposed the mechanics of how one lands a cover in the entertainment industry. Her cover was obviously the result of
a) a pushy publicity team that pressed hard for her to get the cover
b) a high-profile magazine wanting a pretty face for its issue but one that has little merit
c) a film studio seeing an opportunity for cross-promotion for Rounders

To put it bluntly, Gretchn Mol on the cover of Vanity Fair was a crock of sh*t!
And I'm being very expressive about this because Vanity Fair is considered to be a highly reputable magazine featuring articles written at a sophisticated level. To me, it's just inane that this magazine would operate like some celebrity rag like US,Star or People.

Thinking about her on the cover to this day still grinds my gears considering how undeserving she was! (Sorry for the Family Guy reference)

Finally, I just want to compare Mol with other up-and-comers of the past who DID deserve landing high-profile magazine covers because their early films featured impressive performances that are uncomparable to the bland role Mol had in Rounders:
Alicia Silverstone in Clueless;
Gwyneth Paltrow in Emma
Renee Zellweger in Jerry Maguire

I think you get the picture. And as for Silverstone, well, even though she made poor choices later on , at least her performance in Clueless JUSTIFIED an effort to make her a star in the press as opposed to an UNJUSTIFIED effort for a performance that amounted to basically nothing!

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[–] Solozzo 16 years ago

So your point is she shouldn't be on the front page of that magazine?

Someone must play the girlfriend. I loved "Rounders" (I play much poker. Guess that affected my evaluation of the movie, but really, it was good craftsmanship, good entertainment?), but didn't become a fan of Mol beacuse of it.

But I kind of did after watching "An american affair". But I have never read the magazine "Vantiy Fair", actually I had never heard of it (I'm norwegian).

Hmmm..don't see why me seeing Mol on the cover would change anything anyway.

I guess you really is criticizing "Vanity Fair"?

Anyway, I don't really see any problem here..? Is this part of a debate on policies on who gets to be on the cover of magazines?

[–] warmislandsun 15 years ago

This ties in perfectly with the blind item post.

[–] kinickibeck 14 years ago

she had sex to get to the top thats why she got the cover of vanity fair it had nothing to do with pushy agents if that were so then alot of talentless hacks would be on the cover of vogue or vanity. She spread her legs to powerful men and women in hollywood and thats how she rose and thats how she crumbled.
shes the originaly blake livly

[–] RemiRoyer33 13 years ago

Exactly, Blake Lively is following in Gretchen Mol's footsteps.

[–] aces_boss_yo 13 years ago

Don't hate the player, people! The games a bitch, though!
Peace!

I might as well enjoy my life and watch the stars play...........

[–] meccamega 13 years ago

In an industry where the casting couch is everywhere. What are any other options? What else are you supposed to do? She wasn't first and won't be the last that's for sure. If she had to do that just to get roles, then what do the Brad Pitts do to get at the top? The casting couch is as old as Hollywood itself.

[–] aces_boss_yo 13 years ago

I don't know if this is a statement/and/or question that was directed at me specifically, but I am a Gretchen fan, so.....

I might as well enjoy my life and watch the stars play!