Australia, Sushi Style

Globetrotting Nicole Kidman and Hugh Jackman were in Japan yesterday for the premiere of Australia. The lucky Japanese will get the dubbed version, and will miss out on Nicole's bad acting in the process. It is understood that the Japanese actress who dubbed Nicole's voice has added much needed spark. The only problem is, the Sushi eating public will still need to see Nicole's lack of facial expression. That's right, the frozen face can't be removed from their screens.

Nicole looked quite elegant in this black dress. I have to say I am pleased she is moving more away from the dyed blonde hair and returning to a red shade. While the recent Vogue photo-shoots were clearly red wigs, these pictures above from Sushi World indicate that Nicole has dyed some of her own locks a shade of red. Nicole is finally listening! Blonde does NOT work with your stark white skin, OK!

Don't forget to vote on the Poll regarding the upcoming USA and Down Under DVD release of Australia (which won't be dubbed, sorry!).

Keith: Do not speak to anyone without my permission!

Nicole Kidman tore strips off hubby Keith Urban at the Vanity Fair Oscar after-party for congratulating Penelope Cruz on winning the Best Supporting Actress Oscar. Why? Two reasons, my dears. 

1. Nic was jealous of Penny winning, and didn't want her hubby making Penny feel any better about her award than she already was. For anyone who hasn't seen Vicky Cristina Barcelona, Penny did a pretty good job of the psycho ex-wife who hates to chuck a tantrum. Did she deserve an Oscar? Who really cares, as long as it pisses off Nicole, that is pretty funny! But poor Keith being told off just for being nice to someone is as off as ten day old custard. Who wears the pants in that family, pray tell? By the way, I loved the way Penny wouldn't let go of her Oscar all night. Well, probably not a bad thing with a jealous person running around.
   
   
2. Secondly, Nic ripped into Keith because Penny is Tom's ex lover, and is the first woman he hooked up with after he gave Nic her marching orders to join a nunnery in Sydney. 
   

It certainly makes you realise how tense the set of Nine must have been with these two cats going for it.  Here kitty, kitty ...

Nicole Wins 'Worst Actress' Award: OSCARS 2009

The Oscars are over for another year. Congratulations to Kate Winslet for winning the Best Actress award for The Reader.  What a brilliant film!

For the first time this year, the Academy have created a new category for Worst Actress. The reason? They were shocked by Nicole's dreadful performance in the flop Australia, and felt they needed to send a message to the industry that crap acting will not be tolerated. Nicole was so embarrassed that we can only show you the photo of her from behind walking up the stairs to collect her prize. Congratulations Nicole on winning this award, it's better than nothing!

At the after-party, Nicole was spotted without a glass of white wine in her hand.  It is believed she quickly hid it under the table when the photographers walked by. It's OK Nicole, you are not pregnant at the moment ... or are you?  Keith on the other hand enjoyed a glass of dry ginger.

Congratulations to all the Oscar winners this year, including Heath Ledger, Sean Penn, Penelope Cruz and everyone else.

See Kate Winslet's Oscar speech here.

NEW POLL: Warning, DVD is Coming!

The DVD of Australia will be released in USA in March, and Down Under in April for those who missed it on the big screen. After terrible box office results in USA, I am wondering why they are bothering with a DVD release there at all. Perhaps they are hoping it will find a new market with the home theatre crowd. 

A new Poll on Nicole Kidman's Journey starts today. Let us know if you think all DVD copies should be destroyed. Or perhaps you might be one of the odd few who enjoyed it and plan to borrow the one copy that will be kept in the world. This copy will be used as an example of how to make a bad film.

Vote now on the right hand corner of this Blog!  Also, feel free to comment on the sort of special features a DVD like this should contain. FOR EXAMPLE: 

1. Exclusive footage of Nicole applying Botox behind the scenes
2. Nicole secretly filmed swimming naked in the fertility waters
   
3. Interviews with cast and crew about how they tolerated Nicole's rants and raves
4. Nicole discussing the hot temperatures she had to work in. In this interview, Nicole accidentally reveals that the glue holding her wig in place would often melt because of the hot weather, and run into her eyes and ears.

Any other suggestions?

Exciting Oscars 2009: Fine Actresses

It's been ages since the Oscars have been this exciting. How often do you get a group of female actresses who all deserve the Golden Boy (well, almost all of them). I've been fortunate enough to see these five films. It is very hard to choose my favourite peformances, but if I really had to choose, I'd give a big statue to Kate Winslet, and three smaller statues to the others as follows:

1. Main statue - Kate Winslet in The Reader
2. Second smaller statue - Melissa Leo for Frozen River
3. Third smaller statue - Meryl Streep for Doubt
4. Fourth smaller statue - Angelina Jolie for The Changeling

Ann Hathaway is the odd one out in this list. Sorry, just didn't think she was worthy of a nomination. The film itself was frustrating to watch too with the 'doco, in your face' camera style.

So what does all this have to do with Nicole Kidman? Well alot actually. It shows how many fine actresses have been nominated this year. That is why Australia is not in the nominee list. Maybe they'll let Nicole read out the best actress nominees, since she'll be there. Wouldn't that be fitting?

I See Red

Click on above image for close-up of real horse hair

Before any fans get excited, Nicole has not died her hair red again. On Wednesday, Vogue magazine did a Malibu beach period costume photo shoot featuring a red/crimson theme. Vogue kindly offered to dye one of her many wigs to fit the theme.  Of course there will be fans out there claiming it is her real hair.  Make no mistake, this lady in red never does any publicity without the glued on security.  Did you know many horses have sacrificed their manes for the likes of her? I'm ringing PETA now.

What you should be questioning is why Vogue Magazine are offering her more work when the Green Eyed Monster/Green Dress photo spread they did of Gran back in November 2008 wasn't a big seller. 

So what is the purpose of this photo shoot? Is it to show that getting botox around your eyes helps you from squinting in the sun?  Ah, I see, it is a commercial for Botox. Of course.

Daytona Demons

Click on image to enlarge
(Warning: some people having a good time)

Nicole's ex-hubby Tom Cruise revisited the set of his 1990 movie Days of Chunder last Sunday to attend the Nascar event, a pre-race to the 51st Daytona 500 in Florida. Keith Urban also showed up to perform some songs, including his latest single Sweet Thing. Nicole was spotted in the crowd yawning again as she usually does when Keith performs.  While there is a rumoured feud between Tom and Keith, no punch ups came to fruition. This is possibly because Tom's son Connor was there and both fathers were behaving!

Defying Gravity: The Votes Are In!

The Poll asking your favourite Nicole Kidman nickname has now closed. The top three results are as follows:  

1. Granny Freeze in top spot with 64% of votes
   
2. Ice Queen at second spot (15% of votes)
   
3. Bat Face sitting pretty at Number 3 (8% of votes)
   

The other two nicknames in the Poll were Nikkers and Flat Screen Forehead.

We are pretty sure the nickname Granny Freeze was an inspiration for the name of Keith's new album.  Thanks again for voting.  Stayed tuned for a new Poll soon! 

Time is running out!

Alot of people have a nickname. But lucky Nicole has three or four. Which one do you prefer? Let us know by voting on the Poll on the right side of this Blog. Only hours left to vote. Currently coming first is the nickname Granny Freeze.  This was a nickname kindly given to Nicole by the Lainey's Gossip website, I believe. If you are not sure how they came up with this nickname, here are some clues. Look at the photos of Nicole coming out of the gym, or when she attended court in Sydney. No red carpet moments there!

GRANNY AWARDS 2009: Best Hair Extensions Award

Keith Urban supported his wife at the 2009 Granny (oops, Grammy) Awards last night when she was nominated for the 'Best Hair Extensions' award. Unfortunately she didn't win because hair extensions are NOT meant to be so easy to notice.

Keith and Nicole did the usual 'let's look into each other's eyes and hold hands' routine for the media in a display of their true love. Paul McCartney also posed with the two to try and steal some of Nicole's famous camera-hogging. Nicole did her best to try and push Sir Paul out of the way.

Oh, by the way, Keith was nominated for 'Best Country Collaboration' for his duet with Trisha Yearwood on the song Let the Wind Chase You.

Charity begins at home

The $6.5 million homestead that Nicole bought in July 2008 at Sutton Forest, New South Wales, will finally have a tenant. Nicole is allowing her single sister Antonia, and four children to live in the 45 hectare homestead (probably rent free). The property comes complete with stables, ideal for horse riding lover Antonia. 

Recent renovations include a  pool, tennis court, gym and an entertainment centre. Antonia and her kids will be able to ride horses in the estate's paddock, shielded from prying eyes. An earthen wall 2.5m high and 250m long, dubbed The Great Wall by locals, is being built on the property's perimeter, making it impossible to see from the road (see top left photo). Locals consider the wall ugly and there has been debate on whether it was council approved.  Some are saying the wall is an anti-paparazzi measure, while others claim it is to shield the paddock from the wind. There are also motels expected to be built close-by, which may be the real reason the wall is going up. 

Whatever the reason, I am sure Antonia will be most comfortable in this amazing retreat. It's good to see someone will live here, since her older sister finds Australia difficult to live in. Perhaps Nicole should have a chat with Cate, Judy, Toni, Russell, Guy or Eric and find out how they manage living Down Under so successfully.

Would it have worked with Nicole?

As mentioned in a previous post, Kate Winslet was first choice for the lead role in The Reader but declined because of filming commitments on Revolutionary Road. Nicole Kidman was then surprisingly offered the role. Nicole accepted, but pulled out before filming began due to pregnancy. By that time, Kate was available to take on the role.  

The Reader is an intriguing story that sees Kate as a German woman, Hanna Schmitz, accused of Nazi war crimes. The film will draw you in, and this is largely attributable to Kate's convincing portrayal, as well as the performances of the two male leads.  Kate has been nominated for Best Actress at the upcoming Oscars, while the film has been nominated in the Best Film category (apparently pushing The Dark Knight off the nomination list).  Kate appeared at the Berlin Premiere yesterday with her male co-stars (Ralph Fiennes and David Kross).

Would The Reader have been the same if Nicole had been in it? We will never know, but based on her acting in Australia it's highly unlikely. I just can't imagine Nicole doing those courtroom scenes. 

Nicole secretly must be kicking herself though at a lost opportunity. Good luck Kate on Oscar night!