Shining in Shadows: Movie Stars of the 2000s (Star Decades: American Culture/American)

In the 2000s, new technologies transformed the experiences of movie-going and movie-making, giving us the first generation of stars to be just as famous on the computer screen as on the silver screen. __Shining in Shadows__ examines a wide range of Hollywood icons from a turbulent decade for the film industry and for America itself. Perhaps reflecting our own cultural fragmentation and uncertainty, Hollywood’s star personas sent mixed messages about Americans’ identities and ideals. Disheveled men-children like Will Ferrell and Jack Black shared the multiplex with debonair old-Hollywood standbys like George Clooney and Morgan Freeman. Iconic roles for women ranged from Renee Zellweger’s dithering romantics to Tina Fey’s neurotic professionals to Hilary Swank’s vulnerable boyish characters. And in this age of reality TV and TMZ, stars like Jennifer Aniston and “Brangelina” became more famous for their real-life romantic dramas—at the same time that former tabloid fixtures like Johnny Depp and Robert Downey Jr. reinvented themselves as dependable leading men. With a multigenerational, international cast of stars, this collection presents a fascinating composite portrait of Hollywood stardom today.

In the 2000s, new technologies transformed the experiences of movie-going and movie-making, giving us the first generation of stars to be just as famous on the computer screen as on the silver screen.

Shining in Shadows examines a wide range of Hollywood icons from a turbulent decade for the film industry and for America itself. Perhaps reflecting our own cultural fragmentation and uncertainty, Hollywood’s star personas sent mixed messages about Americans’ identities and ideals. Disheveled men-children like Will Ferrell and Jack Black shared the multiplex with debonair old-Hollywood standbys like George Clooney and Morgan Freeman. Iconic roles for women ranged from Renee Zellweger’s dithering romantics to Tina Fey’s neurotic professionals to Hilary Swank’s vulnerable boyish characters. And in this age of reality TV and TMZ, stars like Jennifer Aniston and “Brangelina” became more famous for their real-life romantic dramas—at the same time that former tabloid fixtures like Johnny Depp and Robert Downey Jr. reinvented themselves as dependable leading men. With a multigenerational, international cast of stars, this collection presents a fascinating composite portrait of Hollywood stardom today.

Introduction: stardom in the 2000s / Murray Pomerance The wonder boys: Matt Damon, Johnny Depp, and Robert Downey, Jr. / Dominic Lennard Clint Eastwood and Morgan Freeman: million dollar seniors / Robert Eberwein Jennifer Aniston and Tina Fey: girls with glasses / Victoria E. Johnson Puerile pillars of the Frat Pack: Jack Black, Will Ferrell, Adam Sandler, and Ben Stiller / Brenda R. Weber Javier Bardem and Benicio Del Toro: beyond machismo / Mary C. Beltrán Philip Seymour Hoffman: á Jesus of uncool / Jerry Mosher A postfeminist primer: Maggie Gyllenhaal, Hilary Swank, and Renée Zellweger / Corinn Columpar Heath Ledger: I'm not there / Claire Perkins Leonardo DiCaprio and Sean Penn: acting authentic / Michael K. Hammond Kate Winslet and Cate Blanchett: the performance is the star / Charlie Keil Brangelina: celebrity, credibility, and the composite überstar / Linda Ruth Williams George Clooney: The Issues Guy / David Sterritt In the Wings. Contents 8 Acknowledgments 10 Introduction - Stardom in the 2000s 14 1 - Wonder Boys—Matt Damon, Johnny Depp,and Robert Downey Jr. 25 2 - Clint Eastwood and Morgan Freeman—Million-Dollar Seniors 45 3 - Jennifer Aniston and Tina Fey—Girls with Glasses 63 4 - Puerile Pillars of the Frat Pack—Jack Black, Will Ferrell, Adam Sandler, and Ben Stiller 83 5 - Javier Bardem and Benicio Del Toro—Beyond Machismo 103 6 - Philip Seymour Hoffman—Jesus of Uncool 121 7 - A Postfeminist Primer—Maggie Gyllenhaal, Hilary Swank, and Renée Zellweger 141 8 - Heath Ledger—I’m Not There 160 9 - Leonardo DiCaprio and Sean Penn—Acting Authentic 179 10 - Kate Winslet and Cate Blanchett—The Performance Is the Star 195 11 - Brangelina—Celebrity, Credibility, andthe Composite Überstar 213 12 - George Clooney—The Issues Guy 233 In the Wings 251 Works Cited 256 Contributors 260 Index 264 In the 2000s, new technologies transformed the experiences of movie-going and movie-making, giving us the first generation of stars to be just as famous on the computer screen as on the silver screen. 'Movie Stars of the 2000s' examines a wide range of Hollywood icons from a turbulent decade for the film industry and for America itself