Little Shop of Horrors

I have a confession to make... I like musical films, especially those with music created by Alan Menken and the late Howard Ashman. Menken and Ashman use the songs they write for their productions as a method of progressing the story. Matter of fact, all of the films they have worked on (whether together or separately) are known for their music! Beauty and the Beast would not be as well-known if not for its musical score and Broadway-style songs! It is the same result with Aladdin's score, as well as the deleted score for the film written by Ashman before his unfortunate passing. (If you wish to learn more about Howard's passing and the events leading up to it, I encourage you to read History of Aladdin: Part 4) It is also no exception to Menken and Ashman's 1986 masterpiece, Little Shop of Horrors. I must admit, this musical film is a guilty pleasure of mine, not because of the musical score or its production history (which I will discuss in greater detail later on), but because it is an amazing film overall. The cast lead by Rick Moranis and Ellen Greene is spectacular, and it is this film where Moranis became one of my favorite actors. He embodies the role of Seymour Krelborn and is an excellent singer, his take on the songs Suddenly Seymour, Grow For Me, and Feed Me are my favorite interpretations of those musical numbers. However, there is an actor in this film I do not particularly care for, Steve Martin. I must honestly say that I have never been a huge fan of this actor, and this film is no exception. I do not mean to offend, but I find Steve Martin to be somewhat obnoxious in the roles he plays, and in Little Shop his obnoxious level is unbearably high. His role as the sadistic dentist and the female protagonist Audrey's boyfriend is one I do not look forward to whenever I watch the movie. The song Dentist has always made me cringe, but the film's version in particular is one I usually skip. The puppetry and voice for the alien plant, Audrey II is spectacular, and I applaud the many hours of work the puppeteers put into animating all of the plant puppets. According to various featurettes and news articles, the puppets were animated using stop motion. As a result, the actors had to sing slowly so the footage would look normal in conjunction with the puppet's animation when the footage's speed was increased. Overall, this is a film I would highly recommend that you should check out for yourself. This is the reason that I have left the plot out of the review so you could enjoy the movie with "fresh eyes".

10 Favorite Actors/Actresses: #5

Here we are at the halfway point of the list!I deeply apologize for the extended hiatus. Once again, I have been busy with obligations at home and at school, therefore being prevented from updating the blog. Now that the semester is winding down in terms of workload, let us get back into the list of favorite actors and actresses!

#5: Stephanie Nadolny

Best Known For: Son Goku in the Dragonball franchise, as well as his son in the same series.

I must say that despite her retiring from voicing these two characters, she will always be the definitive voice in my eyes.  When Funimation started using their own voice cast for the Dragonball franchise, Stephanie Nadolny was thrust into the spotlight as the child voice of the protagonist, Son Goku. When I think of Goku or his oldest son, Gohan, Nadolny's voice is the one that I think of them using. It is sad that she did not reprise her role for everything after the english dub of Dragonball Z: Kai. The last time we have heard her voice was in archival recordings used for Ultimate Tenkaichi. Miss Nadolny, if you are reading this post, I wish you the absolute best in life and I wonder why you did not reprise your roles. Colleen Clinkenbeard is good as Goku and Gohan, but she does not hold a candle to Stephanie Nadolny.

10 Favorite Actors/Actresses: #6

#6: Adam Jacobs

Best Known For: Marius Pontmercy in Les Miserables, Simba in The Lion King stage adaptation, and the title character in the stage adaptation of Aladdin

One of the main reasons I enjoy the work of this actor is because he portrays three of my favorite fictional characters, and he portrays them pretty well accurately to the source material as well as once again making the role his own like the rest of the actors on this list (if you haven't caught on, if an actor can make the role their own and put their own spin on a role, then they will more than likely make this list). If you see him as Aladdin, do not expect an imitation of Scott Weinger and Brad Kane, expect to see Adam Jacobs' interpretation of the character. The same can be said about his interpretation of Simba and Marius. I can say that based on what I have heard and seen, he absolutely kills it when singing Proud of Your Boy, causing me to have teary eyes whenever I see the stage version of Aladdin. If Disney someday remakes the film, I would want him reprising his stage role as well as him reprising his role as Simba.

 

10 Favorite Actors/Actresses: #7

#7: Ciara Renee

Best Known For: Esmeralda in the stage adaptation of The Hunchback of Notre Dame, Kendra Saunders/Hawkgirl in DC's The Flash and Legends of Tomorrow

As many of you may know, one of my favorite novels is Victor Hugo's The Hunchback of Notre Dame, and the Disney adaptation ranks pretty high on my list of favorite Disney films despite not being faithful to the source material. However, the stage adaptation of the Disney film is more faithful to the source material, blending material from both the novel and the film. Ciara Renee's portrayal of the gypsy La Esmeralda was no exception to this concept, as she not only borrowed elements from her film and literary counterparts, but she also brought some of her own material to make the character more likable and fleshed out. Renee brought her sense of wit and sarcasm (something she also brought over in her role as Hawkgirl in DC's TV Universe), as well as bringing a believable range of emotions to bring Esmeralda to life. If the show were to go to Broadway someday, I would definitely love to see her reprise her role. She is one of the few stage actresses on this list, with the other stage actress slated to appear later on in this list, mainly due to her ability to make a character relatable and believable.

 

10 Favorite Actors/Actresses: #8

Before we begin, I would like to apologize for not updating daily like I promised I would. I have been swamped with classwork, preventing me from frequently updating this list.

Now without further ado, let us continue the ten favorite actors and actresses list with number eight, and this time, I am focusing on how the actor contributed to a specific role!

#8: Tom Welling
  Best Known For: Clark Kent/The Blur/Superman in Smallville

When people ask me who my favorite actor that portrayed Superman is, I will most likely say Tom Welling's interpretation of both the Man of Steel and his alter-ego, Clark Kent. Usually when adapting Superman, the Clark Kent side of the character is often neglected or not expanded upon. Tom Welling in Smallville fixed this problem and allowed us to see a side of the character we rarely saw. We did not see a man in a blue suit and sometimes red tights, but we saw the man and personality of the character behind the suit. We saw the reporter for The Daily Planet, the young adult struggling through high school and learning of his Kryptonian heritage,  and his relationship struggles with Lana Lang and Lois Lane. Matter of fact, we did not even see him don the iconic costume until the final episode of the series, and even then, we did not see him in the actual suit. Those portions of the episode were made using body doubles and CGI, further adding to the fact that this portrayal is all about Clark Kent and not Superman. As mentioned earlier, many actors bring their own to portraying Superman, but portraying and fleshing out Clark Kent is something rarely seen, which is why Mr. Welling has earned a spot on my list!

10 Favorite Actors/Actresses: #9

 #9- Emma Watson
  
Best Known For: Hermione Granger in Harry Potter franchise


Number nine (as mentioned above) is an actress that co-starred with the previously mentioned Daniel Radcliffe in the Harry Potter franchise as the female lead in the series. She is best known for playing the roles of characters with high intelligence and intellectual prowess, such as Hermione in Harry Potter and Belle in the upcoming remake of Beauty and the Beast. Like Radcliffe, she fully immerses herself in each role she portrays and makes it her own, contributing her intelligence and cynicism.

10 Favorite Actors/Actresses: #10

To tide you all over until the release of my multi-part look at Batman: The Killing Joke, I thought I would give you an insight into ten of my favorite actors and actresses across media, including actors who have physically appeared in film as well as voice acting for animation. Every other day, I shall release a new actor or actress to this countdown until we have reached number one.

10- Daniel Radcliffe
Roles best known for: Title character in Harry Potter, Igor in Victor Frankenstein

Throughout my childhood and teen years, I was known as a bit of an avid reader (and I still am in case you are wondering, as evidenced by my favorite book being Victor Hugo's Les Miserables) and starting to becoming the film buff  I am today (like Adam Goldberg in his youth). The main series that contributed to both of those aspects was a franchise known as Harry Potter. When I was a child, I would always go to a movie theater to see the premiere of the most recent film in the series, which created many fond memories throughout my life. I was hooked to the point of wanting to read the books, which sparked my passionate interest in literature. While I would love to talk about how much Harry Potter impacted my life and my interests, I must stay on topic and discuss why the man who embodied the role of the franchise's title character is one of my favorite actors, a trait he shares with one of his fellow costars. I enjoy seeing how Radcliffe immerses himself in each role he is involved in and able to put his own twist and interpretation to each character he plays. With each role I have seen him portray, I do not see him as simply "Daniel Radcliffe" playing (insert character name here), I see the character embodied by Radcliffe as he makes the role his own. Of course, my favorite role he has played is The Boy Who Lived, Harry Potter. If I had to choose a particular film in that series, I would say his portrayal in Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix.