Interview with Oliver James

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Singleton</div> </tD> </tR> <tR> <tD VALIGN=TOP HEIGHT= 19 WIDTH="575"><IMG BORDER="0" SRC="1x1.gif" HEIGHT="19" ALIGN="bottom" WIDTH="575" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></tD> </tR> <tR> <tD VALIGN=TOP HEIGHT= 20 WIDTH="575"><div> <B>What this guy wants</B></div> </tD> </tR> </TABLE></div> <bR> <div> In addition to discovering art house gems, such as <A HREF="http://www.reelmoviecritic.com/holiday2002/id1694.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="http://www.reelmoviecritic.com/holiday20"><U><I><B>Nowhere in Africa</B></I></U></A><B> </B>and <A HREF="http://www.reelmoviecritic.com/20032q/id1900.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="http://www.reelmoviecritic.com/20032q/id"><U><I><B>Bend it Like Beckman</B></I></U></A><B>,</B> I enjoy seeing a film made for the coming of age crowd (pre teens to young adults) that appeals to parents and grandparents as well. Those who found <A HREF="http://www.reelmoviecritic.com/2001/id1940.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="http://www.reelmoviecritic.com/2001/id19"><U><I><B>Princess Diaries</B></I></U></A><B> </B>charming will be even more enthralled with <I><B>What a Girl Wants (WAGW) </B></I>starring Amanda Bynes, Colin Firth, Kelly Preston and newcomer Oliver James. It's overly cute and every minute of it is fun.</div> <bR> <div> Oliver James was selected to audition for his debut role in <I><B>WAGW</B></I> after the casting director saw his picture in a head shot book, full of acting and modeling hopefuls.  After a few auditions, the role was his. Oliver is a young John Travolta type, who can sing and act. Movies that get 3 ½ or more stars always have something special. In this case, it's the role of Ian played by Oliver that ties things together. He's the young man who welcomes Daphne (Amanda Bynes) to her hotel in London. Later he takes her on her first date and before the movie is over he helps her realize her lifelong dream.</div> <bR> <div> The big standout in the movie is the music in general and Oliver's performance in particular. He captures the essence of Frank Sinatra with "The Way You Look Tonight," Louis Armstrong's "What a Wonderful World," and James Brown's "Get Up Offa That Thang." There are a few songs that artists generally don't cover because it only sounds good one way. Jerry Butler singing "For Your Precious Love" is one of them and James Brown singing <I>anything</I> is another. Oliver does a rousing rendition that makes a staid group get up out of their seats and I expect this might happen at a few screenings of the film as well. Oliver described his ability to cover this range of songs by saying modestly, "I've always had a fairly versatile voice."</div> <bR> <div> Oliver is a talented new young actor who is inspired by Robert De Niro because of his ability to "…cross from serious drama to comedy," and directors such as Martin Scorsese, Sam Mendes and Steven Spielberg. </div> <bR> <div> More than just a funny fluff piece, <I><B>WAGW</B></I> has "…a lot [to say] of modern culture," says Oliver. He thinks there are important messages such as "You can't please everybody all the time." When Oliver was cast for the role, he did not expect the movie to have the exposure it's getting. He thinks that part of his ability to perform well was that he did not feel a lot of pressure, because he didn't think the world would be watching.</div> <bR> <div> Kids should have a category at the Academy Awards for movies other than "animation." It might be called "Best Film for Teens" and <I>What A Girl Wants </I>would be on the short list. It's a real delight to see a young man with an old soul.</div> <bR> <div> <TABLE BORDER="0" CELLPADDING="1" CELLSPACING="1" WIDTH="621" BORDERCOLORLIGHT="#C0C0C0" BORDERCOLORDARK="#808080" FRAME="BOX" RULES="ALL" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0" > <tR> <tD VALIGN=TOP HEIGHT= 19 WIDTH="617"><div> George O. Singleton  © 2003</div> </tD> </tR> <tR> <tD VALIGN=TOP HEIGHT= 19 WIDTH="617"><div> <A HREF="Reelmc@lightfirst.com" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Reelmc@lightfirst.com"><U><U>Reelmc@lightfirst.com</U></U></A></div> </tD> </tR> </TABLE></div> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> </td> </tr></table></body>