Post by monkeytennis on Nov 3, 2010 2:11:21 GMT
Some interesting shit here. Love the Russell Brand improv 
1: Russell Brand - Forgetting Sarah Marshall Audition
The Audition: This is Brand’s improvised and ultimately successful audition for the part of louche Brit rocker Aldous Snow in Forgetting Sarah Marshall.
Why So Entertaining? With just a single line of instruction, Brand delivers a furious four-and-a-half minute charm offensive, full of surreal asides and sexual swagger. It’s basically Brand being himself, to the power of ten, and it earned him not only this role but the spin-off movie Get Him To The Greek.
2: Kurt Russell Star Wars Audition
The Audition: Here’s Russell being filmed as part of George Lucas’ search for the perfect Han Solo, before production on the first Star Wars movie.
Why So Entertaining? It shows that even the man who made sci-fi heroes of Snake Plisskin and R.J. MacReady couldn’t make Lucas’ direlogue (even clunkier here than in the finished film) fly. Hats off to Harrison Ford, everybody.
3: Gerard Butler Dracula Audition
The Audition: Pre-300 Gerard Butler vamps up for a shot at the title role in updated Dracula myth, Dracula 2000.
Why So Entertaining? You’ve got to be unshakably brave to be an actor: in a dour office room somewhere in LA, Butler dons eyeliner and an Alice Cooper wig before ploughing through a mouthy melodramatic speech. Earned him the role, though…
4: Henry Thomas Audition for E.T
The Audition: Tiny Henry Thomas goes on tape as part of the testing process that saw 300 boys vying for the role of Elliot in Spielberg’s weepy space epic ET: The Extra-Terrestrial.
Why So Entertaining? Because he’s so damn good. Thomas cries totally convincingly, but doesn’t go crazy with the waterworks – instead he gives an authentically teary performance while listening intently to his reading partner. Amazing.
5: Megan Fox auditions for Transformers
The Audition: Now-ousted Transformers sex thing Megan Fox is shown here in the reading sessions that secured her the part of Mikaela in the first bots blockbuster.
Why So Entertaining? The public love/hate affair with Fox centres on her hard-but-hot image, but the pretty girl without heavy make-up (and her departure from the third Transformers film) suggests there might be more to her than meets the eye.
6: Al Pacino's trials for The Godfather
The Audition: Director Francis Ford Coppola screentests his favourite, Al Pacino, for the starring role of Michael Corleone in The Godfather.
Why So Entertaining? Pacino was way down the studio’s list of preferred candidates, after the likes of Robert Redford, Martin Sheen and even the man who eventually played Sonny, James Caan. In this video Coppola explains how he kept including Pacino in the tests despite studio pressure.
7: Rachel McAdams Audition Tape
The Audition: Cute as a button McAdams gives an emotional audition for the part she eventually won in Nick Cassevetes’ flashback romance The Notebook.
Why So Entertaining? If you take into account the fact she was handed the script the night before, the mere fact McAdams can remember her lines is pretty damn impressive, let alone her powerful and authentic performance.
8: Taylor Lautner's audition for 'The Adventure's of Shark Boy and Lava Girl'
The Audition: Twilight’s future Mr SexWolf does a short script read (and action pose) for Robert Rodriguez’s uncharacteristically dreadful The Adventures Of Shark Boy And Lava Girl.
Why So Entertaining? The film was conceived (and officially co-written) by Robert’s son Racer, who gives feedback on Lautner’s performance after the try out. You know, even though he’s seven.
9: Ellen Page - Scene test for 'Juno'
The Audition: Page read two scenes from Diablo Cody’s fizzing slang-heavy script on her way to the role of pregnant teen hipster Juno MacGuff.
Why So Entertaining? This is a screen test rather than an audition, but the rapport between Page and co-star Michael Cera is already clearly very special. And clip proves that Cody’s smart script was the key to the film’s success – with just the words played out against a black background, this isn’t much less fun than the film itself.
10: Basic instinct - Sharon Stone screen test
The Audition: Stone reads several scenes as icy maybe-murderess Catherine Tramell with Basic Instinct director Paul Verhoeven.
Why So Entertaining? Because Stone has that same powerful composure and frankness about her here as she does in the final film. Her half-smile during the interrogation sequence is un-bloody-believable.
11: Mamma Mia! - Chris Klein screen test
www.totalfilm.com/features/26-entertaining-movie-audi tions/chris-klein-1#content
The Audition: American Pie and Election star Chris Klein belts one out at an ultimately unsuccessful audition for the phenomenally successful Mamma Mia!
Why So Entertaining? Klein seems like a nice guy, if this self-aware parody video is anything to go by, but his audition is a nuclear disaster. The singing is tortured, and his overly-expressive facial contortions make him look mentally unfit to be outside alone.
12: Spiderman Screen Test: Tobey Maguire
The Audition: This is the screentest director Sam Raimi made with Maguire before the pair went on to make billions with the hugely successful Spider-Man series.
Why So Entertaining? The test was part of a lengthy testing process that occurred before Maguire was officially cast. Other actors tested in the same way include Colin Farrell, Scott Speedman and James Franco, who ended up playing Parker’s friend Harry Osborn.
Containing a buffed up Maguire (who'd hit the gym to prove himself to studio suits) lit to look like Bruce Lee and an awesome scrap with weapon-wielding thugs - forget auditions, this is more entertaining than most films.
13: Dustin Hoffman Screen Test "Tootsie"
The Audition: Stars as big as Hoffman don&rsquot audition &ndash but they do screen test, especially when the film they&rsquore making is as visually risky as cross-dressing soap romance Tootsie.
Why So Entertaining? The test catches Hoffman and director Sydney Pollack before they&rsquove got the make-up and voice for the actor&rsquos female creation Dorothy Michaels quite right. The result is a little raw, a little frightening, but showcases Hoffman&rsquos flawless improv abilities all the same.
14: Milla Jovovich Audition
The Audition: The angular actress plays for the camera in a visual test for her character in Luc Besson’s stylish sci-fi hit The Fifth Element.
Why So Entertaining? There’s no sound. At first it’s annoying, but then striking – Jovovich’s character Leeloo is a creature of wide-eyed expression and acrobatic movement, and that’s reflected in the tapes moody silence.
15: Jim Carrey Audition For Man On The Moon
The Audition: The superstar comedian presents a homemade audition tape for the role of Andy Kaufman in Man On The Moon
Why So Entertaining? Carrey lobbied aggressively for the part of Andy Kaufman, to hiring a production crew to film him impersonating the comedian and his various routines in this low-budget tape. And lucky for us he did – the performance, as in the final film, are flawless.
16: Casting of Alyson Hannigan
The Audition: The Buffy co-star reads for the part of sex-crazed flautist Michelle Flaherty in the teen comedy smash American Pie.
Why So Entertaining? In the blank, buzzing space of the audition room it’s even more shocking to see the big-eyed and sweet-faced Hannigan talk filth direct to camera. And it’s not easy for her, either – she almost trips over her character’s most famous (and dirty) line.
17: Longer Mark Hamill Star Wars Audition
The Audition: “Luke be a Jedi toniiiiiight…” Mark Hamill places one of the founding blocks of the nerdverse by acing his audition as Luke Skywalker in George Lucas’ Star Wars.
Why So Entertaining? Lucas famously tried out actors for the film in groups, to assess their chemistry. Here Hamill reads with Harrison Ford as Han Solo, and already Ford’s grumpy delivery plays perfectly off Hamill's own earnest insistence just as it would in the final film. Considering the quality of script they’re dealing with – and the other actors who made it fall flat – this is no mean feat.
18: Shia Labeouf - Audition Tape
The Audition: Current Hollywood big-hitter LaBeouf tries out for a lead role in the turgid comedy sequel Dumb And Dumberer: When Harry Met Lloyd.
Why So Entertaining? Increasingly a straight leading man rather than a funny guy, the tape is a reminder that LaBeouf’s strongest suit is probably as a comedian. Here he’s auditioning for the co-lead of Harry, and although he wasn’t physically right for the part he impressed enough to have the role of Lewis created for him.
19: James Brolin Screen Test For James Bond
The Audition: During a regular pre-production contract wobble by Roger Moore before Octopussy, American actor James Brolin screentested for the treasured role of 007.
Why So Entertaining? The story of the men who’ve nearly played Bond through the decades is almost as interesting as the films themselves, and seeing a real screentest made during the tenure of an established 007 is a rare insight. But really – an American?
20: Scream - Screen Test - Jamie Kennedy
The Audition: Kennedy auditions for the part of horror aficionado and keeper of ‘The Rules’ Randy Meeks in Wes Craven's era-defining Scream.
Why So Entertaining? No surprise that the scene they’ve picked for the audition is film’s sleepover climax at which Randy lays out the rules for surviving a slasher flick. Kennedy has them down already, and clearly gets how crucial they’ll be to the film, standing up to deliver the key lines.
21: Hugh Jackman auditions for the part of Wolverine in X-men
The Audition: Then under-the-radar Aussie star Jackman has a lengthy read-through of several scenes from the X-Men movie with director Bryan Singer, hoping to land the part of Wolverine.
Why So Entertaining? Jackman is good – intense, quiet and thoughtful. But the interplay between him and Singer is the most interesting thing. “I’ll have to spin my wheels and see what’s happening” says the director as the audition ends – fascinating, given that Jackman only landed the part, and became the huge star he is today, after first choice Dougray Scott was held up shooting Mission: Impossible II.
22: Robert De Niro's audition for the part of Sonny for the Godfather
The Audition: An explosive Robert De Niro gives a reading for the role of Sonny in Francis Ford Coppola’s epic The Godfather.
Why So Entertaining? Had De Niro got the part we’d have had a very different film. James Caan is strong and impetuous, but De Niro is pure dynamite, moving with the anger and grace he later brought to Mean Streets. As Coppola said, “He was spectacular, but it was Sonny… really killer, like nothing you could ever sell.”
23: Rare Marlon Brando screentest
The Audition: A very young Brando screentests for Warner Bros. in 1947, using a scene from an uproduced script of Rebel Without A Cause.
Why So Entertaining? Because Brando is radiant - shy, but beautiful and charming, with that soft-spoken edge that marked him out from so many others. It's a rare glimpse at the man before he become a star, and then so tired and impatient with the world his intelligence became wrapped up in terse bitterness.
24: Star Wars The Phantom Menace young anakin screen test part 1
The Audition: The soon-to-be most famous ten year-old in the galaxy is shown in the last three candidates for the incredible role of Anakin Skywalker in Star Wars reboot The Phantom Menace.
Why So Entertaining? It's tear-jerking to think that the other kids got so close only to be let go, and it also puts in sharp relief the bilious reaction to Lloyd after the film's release - he's so clearly, you know, a kid. Plus - wait a minute! Bring back that second kid. He totally had something going on.
25: L.Lohan's screentest for The Parent Trap
The Audition: A ten-and-a-half year-old Lindsay Lohan tests for the role of twins Hallie Parker and Annie James in Disney remake The Parent Trap.
Why So Entertaining? Less entertaining, more heartbreaking, given the current state of Lindsay and her career. Co-star Dennis Quaid is warm and fatherly as he walks Lohan through the testing process, and the child actress herself is bouncy, smiley and full of absolutely never to be recovered innocence.
26: Brian Atene’s Stanley Kubrick Audition
The Audition: Twenty year-old aspiring actor Brian Atene makes an audition tape for Stanley Kubrick as the great director gears up for Full Metal Jacket.
Why So Entertaining?: Atene is so painfully conceited that when the video first hit the net a few years ago nobody could tell if it was a parody or not. It isn’t - it's just awesomely bad - but it was never seen by Kubrick either. As Atene describes in this later video, he made two tapes for the director and knew this one was too bad to actually send.
1: Russell Brand - Forgetting Sarah Marshall Audition
The Audition: This is Brand’s improvised and ultimately successful audition for the part of louche Brit rocker Aldous Snow in Forgetting Sarah Marshall.
Why So Entertaining? With just a single line of instruction, Brand delivers a furious four-and-a-half minute charm offensive, full of surreal asides and sexual swagger. It’s basically Brand being himself, to the power of ten, and it earned him not only this role but the spin-off movie Get Him To The Greek.
2: Kurt Russell Star Wars Audition
The Audition: Here’s Russell being filmed as part of George Lucas’ search for the perfect Han Solo, before production on the first Star Wars movie.
Why So Entertaining? It shows that even the man who made sci-fi heroes of Snake Plisskin and R.J. MacReady couldn’t make Lucas’ direlogue (even clunkier here than in the finished film) fly. Hats off to Harrison Ford, everybody.
3: Gerard Butler Dracula Audition
The Audition: Pre-300 Gerard Butler vamps up for a shot at the title role in updated Dracula myth, Dracula 2000.
Why So Entertaining? You’ve got to be unshakably brave to be an actor: in a dour office room somewhere in LA, Butler dons eyeliner and an Alice Cooper wig before ploughing through a mouthy melodramatic speech. Earned him the role, though…
4: Henry Thomas Audition for E.T
The Audition: Tiny Henry Thomas goes on tape as part of the testing process that saw 300 boys vying for the role of Elliot in Spielberg’s weepy space epic ET: The Extra-Terrestrial.
Why So Entertaining? Because he’s so damn good. Thomas cries totally convincingly, but doesn’t go crazy with the waterworks – instead he gives an authentically teary performance while listening intently to his reading partner. Amazing.
5: Megan Fox auditions for Transformers
The Audition: Now-ousted Transformers sex thing Megan Fox is shown here in the reading sessions that secured her the part of Mikaela in the first bots blockbuster.
Why So Entertaining? The public love/hate affair with Fox centres on her hard-but-hot image, but the pretty girl without heavy make-up (and her departure from the third Transformers film) suggests there might be more to her than meets the eye.
6: Al Pacino's trials for The Godfather
The Audition: Director Francis Ford Coppola screentests his favourite, Al Pacino, for the starring role of Michael Corleone in The Godfather.
Why So Entertaining? Pacino was way down the studio’s list of preferred candidates, after the likes of Robert Redford, Martin Sheen and even the man who eventually played Sonny, James Caan. In this video Coppola explains how he kept including Pacino in the tests despite studio pressure.
7: Rachel McAdams Audition Tape
The Audition: Cute as a button McAdams gives an emotional audition for the part she eventually won in Nick Cassevetes’ flashback romance The Notebook.
Why So Entertaining? If you take into account the fact she was handed the script the night before, the mere fact McAdams can remember her lines is pretty damn impressive, let alone her powerful and authentic performance.
8: Taylor Lautner's audition for 'The Adventure's of Shark Boy and Lava Girl'
The Audition: Twilight’s future Mr SexWolf does a short script read (and action pose) for Robert Rodriguez’s uncharacteristically dreadful The Adventures Of Shark Boy And Lava Girl.
Why So Entertaining? The film was conceived (and officially co-written) by Robert’s son Racer, who gives feedback on Lautner’s performance after the try out. You know, even though he’s seven.
9: Ellen Page - Scene test for 'Juno'
The Audition: Page read two scenes from Diablo Cody’s fizzing slang-heavy script on her way to the role of pregnant teen hipster Juno MacGuff.
Why So Entertaining? This is a screen test rather than an audition, but the rapport between Page and co-star Michael Cera is already clearly very special. And clip proves that Cody’s smart script was the key to the film’s success – with just the words played out against a black background, this isn’t much less fun than the film itself.
10: Basic instinct - Sharon Stone screen test
The Audition: Stone reads several scenes as icy maybe-murderess Catherine Tramell with Basic Instinct director Paul Verhoeven.
Why So Entertaining? Because Stone has that same powerful composure and frankness about her here as she does in the final film. Her half-smile during the interrogation sequence is un-bloody-believable.
11: Mamma Mia! - Chris Klein screen test
www.totalfilm.com/features/26-entertaining-movie-audi tions/chris-klein-1#content
The Audition: American Pie and Election star Chris Klein belts one out at an ultimately unsuccessful audition for the phenomenally successful Mamma Mia!
Why So Entertaining? Klein seems like a nice guy, if this self-aware parody video is anything to go by, but his audition is a nuclear disaster. The singing is tortured, and his overly-expressive facial contortions make him look mentally unfit to be outside alone.
12: Spiderman Screen Test: Tobey Maguire
The Audition: This is the screentest director Sam Raimi made with Maguire before the pair went on to make billions with the hugely successful Spider-Man series.
Why So Entertaining? The test was part of a lengthy testing process that occurred before Maguire was officially cast. Other actors tested in the same way include Colin Farrell, Scott Speedman and James Franco, who ended up playing Parker’s friend Harry Osborn.
Containing a buffed up Maguire (who'd hit the gym to prove himself to studio suits) lit to look like Bruce Lee and an awesome scrap with weapon-wielding thugs - forget auditions, this is more entertaining than most films.
13: Dustin Hoffman Screen Test "Tootsie"
The Audition: Stars as big as Hoffman don&rsquot audition &ndash but they do screen test, especially when the film they&rsquore making is as visually risky as cross-dressing soap romance Tootsie.
Why So Entertaining? The test catches Hoffman and director Sydney Pollack before they&rsquove got the make-up and voice for the actor&rsquos female creation Dorothy Michaels quite right. The result is a little raw, a little frightening, but showcases Hoffman&rsquos flawless improv abilities all the same.
14: Milla Jovovich Audition
The Audition: The angular actress plays for the camera in a visual test for her character in Luc Besson’s stylish sci-fi hit The Fifth Element.
Why So Entertaining? There’s no sound. At first it’s annoying, but then striking – Jovovich’s character Leeloo is a creature of wide-eyed expression and acrobatic movement, and that’s reflected in the tapes moody silence.
15: Jim Carrey Audition For Man On The Moon
The Audition: The superstar comedian presents a homemade audition tape for the role of Andy Kaufman in Man On The Moon
Why So Entertaining? Carrey lobbied aggressively for the part of Andy Kaufman, to hiring a production crew to film him impersonating the comedian and his various routines in this low-budget tape. And lucky for us he did – the performance, as in the final film, are flawless.
16: Casting of Alyson Hannigan
The Audition: The Buffy co-star reads for the part of sex-crazed flautist Michelle Flaherty in the teen comedy smash American Pie.
Why So Entertaining? In the blank, buzzing space of the audition room it’s even more shocking to see the big-eyed and sweet-faced Hannigan talk filth direct to camera. And it’s not easy for her, either – she almost trips over her character’s most famous (and dirty) line.
17: Longer Mark Hamill Star Wars Audition
The Audition: “Luke be a Jedi toniiiiiight…” Mark Hamill places one of the founding blocks of the nerdverse by acing his audition as Luke Skywalker in George Lucas’ Star Wars.
Why So Entertaining? Lucas famously tried out actors for the film in groups, to assess their chemistry. Here Hamill reads with Harrison Ford as Han Solo, and already Ford’s grumpy delivery plays perfectly off Hamill's own earnest insistence just as it would in the final film. Considering the quality of script they’re dealing with – and the other actors who made it fall flat – this is no mean feat.
18: Shia Labeouf - Audition Tape
The Audition: Current Hollywood big-hitter LaBeouf tries out for a lead role in the turgid comedy sequel Dumb And Dumberer: When Harry Met Lloyd.
Why So Entertaining? Increasingly a straight leading man rather than a funny guy, the tape is a reminder that LaBeouf’s strongest suit is probably as a comedian. Here he’s auditioning for the co-lead of Harry, and although he wasn’t physically right for the part he impressed enough to have the role of Lewis created for him.
19: James Brolin Screen Test For James Bond
The Audition: During a regular pre-production contract wobble by Roger Moore before Octopussy, American actor James Brolin screentested for the treasured role of 007.
Why So Entertaining? The story of the men who’ve nearly played Bond through the decades is almost as interesting as the films themselves, and seeing a real screentest made during the tenure of an established 007 is a rare insight. But really – an American?
20: Scream - Screen Test - Jamie Kennedy
The Audition: Kennedy auditions for the part of horror aficionado and keeper of ‘The Rules’ Randy Meeks in Wes Craven's era-defining Scream.
Why So Entertaining? No surprise that the scene they’ve picked for the audition is film’s sleepover climax at which Randy lays out the rules for surviving a slasher flick. Kennedy has them down already, and clearly gets how crucial they’ll be to the film, standing up to deliver the key lines.
21: Hugh Jackman auditions for the part of Wolverine in X-men
The Audition: Then under-the-radar Aussie star Jackman has a lengthy read-through of several scenes from the X-Men movie with director Bryan Singer, hoping to land the part of Wolverine.
Why So Entertaining? Jackman is good – intense, quiet and thoughtful. But the interplay between him and Singer is the most interesting thing. “I’ll have to spin my wheels and see what’s happening” says the director as the audition ends – fascinating, given that Jackman only landed the part, and became the huge star he is today, after first choice Dougray Scott was held up shooting Mission: Impossible II.
22: Robert De Niro's audition for the part of Sonny for the Godfather
The Audition: An explosive Robert De Niro gives a reading for the role of Sonny in Francis Ford Coppola’s epic The Godfather.
Why So Entertaining? Had De Niro got the part we’d have had a very different film. James Caan is strong and impetuous, but De Niro is pure dynamite, moving with the anger and grace he later brought to Mean Streets. As Coppola said, “He was spectacular, but it was Sonny… really killer, like nothing you could ever sell.”
23: Rare Marlon Brando screentest
The Audition: A very young Brando screentests for Warner Bros. in 1947, using a scene from an uproduced script of Rebel Without A Cause.
Why So Entertaining? Because Brando is radiant - shy, but beautiful and charming, with that soft-spoken edge that marked him out from so many others. It's a rare glimpse at the man before he become a star, and then so tired and impatient with the world his intelligence became wrapped up in terse bitterness.
24: Star Wars The Phantom Menace young anakin screen test part 1
The Audition: The soon-to-be most famous ten year-old in the galaxy is shown in the last three candidates for the incredible role of Anakin Skywalker in Star Wars reboot The Phantom Menace.
Why So Entertaining? It's tear-jerking to think that the other kids got so close only to be let go, and it also puts in sharp relief the bilious reaction to Lloyd after the film's release - he's so clearly, you know, a kid. Plus - wait a minute! Bring back that second kid. He totally had something going on.
25: L.Lohan's screentest for The Parent Trap
The Audition: A ten-and-a-half year-old Lindsay Lohan tests for the role of twins Hallie Parker and Annie James in Disney remake The Parent Trap.
Why So Entertaining? Less entertaining, more heartbreaking, given the current state of Lindsay and her career. Co-star Dennis Quaid is warm and fatherly as he walks Lohan through the testing process, and the child actress herself is bouncy, smiley and full of absolutely never to be recovered innocence.
26: Brian Atene’s Stanley Kubrick Audition
The Audition: Twenty year-old aspiring actor Brian Atene makes an audition tape for Stanley Kubrick as the great director gears up for Full Metal Jacket.
Why So Entertaining?: Atene is so painfully conceited that when the video first hit the net a few years ago nobody could tell if it was a parody or not. It isn’t - it's just awesomely bad - but it was never seen by Kubrick either. As Atene describes in this later video, he made two tapes for the director and knew this one was too bad to actually send.