Joseph Gordon-Levitt

Joseph Leonard Gordon-Levitt (born February 17, 1981) is an American actor whose career as both a child

and adult has included television series and theatrical films. Levitt is set to play Villamax XXIII in Power Rangers LG: Galactic Underground , Anthony Marsh, Jr 's fan-film reboot of Power Rangers: Lost Galaxy and his fan-fiction continuity of it. He is also supposed to be the voice of General Havoc in Power Rangers LG: Galactic Military Police Defenders but the project was later canceled in July 2011 in turns of a planned reboot. Levitt is previously known for playing the villainous Cobra Commander in G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra in 2009, but he not returning for the sequel, prior to it being a "Reboot".

He is known for his roles in the 2009 indie (500) Days of Summer and Christopher Nolan's sci-fi film Inception. The former earned him a Golden Globe nomination. Beginning in commercials as a young child, he made his film debut in 1992's Beethoven. Gordon-Levitt subsequently co-starred in the television sitcom 3rd Rock from the Sun (1996–2001) as the young Tommy Solomon. After a hiatus during which he attended Columbia University, Gordon-Levitt left television for film acting, appearing in various independent films, beginning with the 2001 film Manic, followed by critically acclaimed performances in 2004's Mysterious Skin, 2005's Brick, and 2007's The Lookout. He runs an online collaborative production company titled HitRECord.

Career

Later Film Career

Gordon-Levitt has said that he made a conscious decision to "be in good movies" after returning to acting. His films include 2001's drama Manic, which was set in a mental institution, Mysterious Skin (2004), in which he played a gay prostitute and child sexual abuse victim, and Brick (2005), a modern-day film noir set at a high school, in which he had the lead role of Brendan Frye, a teen who becomes involved in an underground drug ring while investigating a murder. Brick received positive reviews, with The Minnesota Daily's critic commen

ting that Gordon-Levitt played the character "beautifully", "true to film's style", "unfeeling but not disenchanted", and "sexy in the most ambiguous way." Another reviewer described the performance as "astounding". He also starred opposite Steve Sandvoss as a young judgmental missionary in Latter Days (2003), a film that centers on a sexually confused Mormon missionary (Sandvoss) who falls for his gay neighbor. He had roles in Havoc and Shadowboxer.

His next role was in The Lookout, where he played Chris Pratt, a janitor involved in a bank heist, which was released on March 30, 2007. In reviewing the film, The Philadelphia Inquirer described Gordon-Levitt as a "surprisingly formidable, and formidably surprising, leading man", while New York magazine stated that he is a "major tabula rasa actor ... a minimalist", and that his character worked because he "doesn't seize the space ... by what he takes away from the character." The San Francisco Chronicle specified that he "embodies, more than performs, a character's inner life." His 2008 films include Killshot, in which he played a hoodlum partnered with a hired killer played by Mickey Rourke, and Stop-Loss, directed by Kimberly Peirce and revolving around American soldiers returning from the Iraq War.

He played a lead role opposite Zooey Deschanel in (500) Days of Summer, a 2009 release about the deconstruction of a relationship, which received positive reviews. His performance, described as "the real key" to what makes the film work, credits him with using "his usual spell in subtle gradations." Variety's Todd McCarthy praised his performance, saying he "expressively alternates between enthusiasm and forlorn disappointment in the manner Jack Lemmon could". Peter Travers of Rolling Stone said the movie "hits you like a blast of pure romantic oxygen" and credited both lead actors for playing "it for real, with a grasp of subtlety and feeling that goes beyond the call of breezy duty." He was subsequently nominated for a Golden Globe Award. He also played villain Cobra Commander in G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra. On November 21, he hosted Saturday Night Live. In 2010, Gordon-Levitt starred opposite Leonardo DiCaprio in Christopher Nolan's science fiction thriller Inception, replacing James Franco in the role of Arthur, who is the "Point Man", Dom Cobb's (DiCaprio) partner and the person responsible for researching the team's targets. Inception received critical acclaim and was number 1 at the US box office for 3 consecutive weeks and has made over $800 million. He will play the younger version of Bruce Willis' character in the time-traveling thriller Looper. He is currently working with Christopher Nolan on Nolan's The Dark Knight Rises, Nolan's third and final film of his Batman film series..

Stage

He was one of the many producers of the Broadway show Slava's Snowshow.

Other projects

Gordon-Levitt's side project, hitRECord.org, is an online collaborative production company. According to the hitRECord website, "we create and develop art and media collaboratively here on our site; we use my position in the traditional entertainment industry to turn that creativity into money-making productions; and then we share any profits with the contributing artists". Gordon-Levitt has owned the website hitrecord.org since 2004, when it hosted six videos and short films. Beginning in 2009, he opened the website to host films by others. In a 2007 interview in Salon, he was attributed as describing his website as "[an] alternative outlet of where [he] get[s] to be a little less professional and just freak out a little bit." The site has since expanded, with more than 10,000 participants collaborating to make songs, images, stories, and short films. According to a 2010 article in Details magazine, Gordon-Levitt oversees the site from a bank of computers in his home studio.

Gordon-Levitt's first film as director, the 24 minute-long Sparks, an adaptation of a short story by Elmore Leonard, was selected for the 2009 Sundance Film Festival as part of a new program for short films. In 2010, he directed another short film, Morgan and Destiny's Eleventeeth Date: The Zeppelin Zoo. It premiered at two houses during the South by Southwest festival in Austin, Texas.

References

1. ^ "Joseph Leonard Gordon-Levitt" is his full name and Los Angeles, California, is his birthplace. California Birth Index, 1905–1995. Center for Health Statistics, California Department of Health Services, Sacramento, California.
2. ^ Mueller, Matt (2008). "Hey Joe". Wonderland Magazine. Archived from the original on 2008-05-08. Retrieved 2010-07-22.
3. ^ McCafferty, Dennis; Alan Carter, Lydia Strohl (1999-04-02). "Favorites of a Young Rock Star". USA Today, through Rome News-Tribune. Retrieved 2010-07-09.
4. ^ Elkin, Michael (2003-05-22). "He has a Mania for Good Works". The Jewish Exponent. Retrieved 2010-04-28.; transcribed text
5. ^ ^{a b c d e f g h i j k} Lidz, Frank (2007-03-25). "From Alien Boy to Growing Star in the Indie Universe". The New York Times. Retrieved 2007-03-26.
6. ^ ^{a b} "Joseph Gordon-Levitt interview, Details Magazine".
7. ^ Warner, Kara (2010-10-06). "Joseph Gordon-Levitt's Brother Dead At 36". MTV. Viacom. Retrieved 2010-10-06.
8. ^ Lang, Bret; Walker, Hunter (2010-10-05). "Joseph Gordon-Levitt's Brother, 'Burning Dan,' Dies". The Wrap. The Wrap News Inc. Retrieved 2010-10-06.
9. ^ ^{a b c d} Chonin, Neva (2007-03-25). "Look out: his star is rising". San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved 2007-03-26.
10. ^ "Joseph Gordon-Levitt - Treasure Planet Interview". BBC News. BBC Online. 2003-02-04. Retrieved 2010-09-09.
11. ^ Hirschberg, Lynn (2007-09-16). "Kid Rock". The New York Times. Retrieved 2011-02-28.
12. ^ ^{a b c d} Roberts, Sheila (2007-03-24). "Joseph Gordon-Levitt Interview, The Lookout". MoviesOnline. Archived from the original on 2007-03-29. Retrieved 2007-03-26.
13. ^ Fjerstad, Tatum (2006-04-06). "This film's too cool for school — in a good way". The Minnesota Daily. Archived from the original on 2007-09-30. Retrieved 2007-03-26.
14. ^ Wright, Andrew (2006-04-06). "On Screen". The Stranger: Seattle's Only Newspaper. Retrieved 2007-03-26.
15. ^ ^{a b c} "Joseph Gordon-Levitt". Rotten Tomatoes. Flixster Inc. Retrieved 2010-09-09.
16. ^ Rea, Steven (2007-03-25). "On Movies: 'Lookout' can't be called an overnight success". The Philadelphia Inquirer. Archived from the original on 2007-10-24. Retrieved 2007-03-26.
17. ^ Edelstein, David (2007-03-25). "A Terrible Thing to Waste". New York Magazine. Retrieved 2007-03-26.
18. ^ Zacharek, Stephanie (2009-07-19). "(500) Days of Summer". Salon. Retrieved 2009-07-20.
19. ^ McCarthy, Todd (2009-01-18). "500 Days of Summer". Variety.
20. ^ Travers, Peter (2009-07-16). "(500) Days of Summer". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 2009-07-20.
21. ^ "The 67th Annual Golden Globe Awards Nominations". Golden Globes.org.
22. ^ Brian Jacks (2008-09-04). "'G.I. Joe' Movie Will Reveal 'Twisted' Cobra Commander; Mask And Menacing Voice Included". MTV Movies Blog. Retrieved 2010-09-07.
23. ^ Stanhope, Kate (2009-10-31). "January Jones, Joseph Gordon-Levitt to Host SNL, along with Dave Matthews Band as the musical guest.". TV Guide. Retrieved 2009-11-02.
24. ^ Vozick-Levinson, Simon (2009-04-24). "Joseph Gordon-Levitt replaces James Franco in 'Inception'". Entertainment Weekly. Time Warner Inc. Retrieved 2010-09-08.
25. ^ "Inception (2010)". Box Office Mojo (IMDb Inc).
26. ^ Flemming, Mike (2010-05-14). "CANNES: Bruce Willis Plays Mature Joseph Gordon-Levitt In Time Travel Pic 'Looper'". Deadline Hollywood. Mail.com Media Corporation. Retrieved 2010-09-07.
27. ^ "Joseph Gordon-Levitt's Role Added To 'The Dark Knight Rises'". Entertainment News International. March 2011.
28. ^ Cox, Gordon (2008-12-12). "Ticket brokers try to catch a break". Variety. Retrieved 2010-01-01.
29. ^ "hitRECord in a nutshell".
30. ^ "Table of Contents". HitRecord.org. Archived from the original on 2008-01-05.
31. ^ O'Hehir, Andrew (2007-03-08). "Life's not simple". Retrieved 2009-07-21.
32. ^ "2009 Sundance Film Festival Announces Short Film Program". Sundance Film Festival. 2008-12-08.
33. ^ ^{a b} Bettinger, Brendan (2010-08-09). "Watch Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Channing Tatum in the Short Film Morgan And Destiny's Eleventeenth Date: The Zeppelin Zoo". Collider.com. Retrieved 2010-09-08.
34. ^ Detroit Film Critics Society (December 18, 2009). "Detroit Film Critics Society Announces the Best of 2009 Nominations and Winners". Press release. Retrieved June 15, 2010.
35. ^ "Nominations and Winners". Official Website of the Annual Golden Globe Awards. Hollywood Foreign Press Association. Retrieved April 7, 2010.
36. ^ Film Independent (December 1, 2009). "25th Film Independent Spirit Award Nominations Announced". Press release. Retrieved June 15, 2010.
37. ^ "2010 Nominees and Winners". Official Website of People's Choice Awards. Retrieved June 15, 2010.
38. ^ ^{a b} "First Wave of "Teen Choice 2010" Nominees Announced". The Futon Critic. June 14, 2010. Retrieved June 15, 2010.
39. ^ "Superstars, Sci-Fi and Superheroes Unite at Spike TV's 'SCREAM 2010'". PR Newswire. PR Newswire Association LLC.. 2010-10-18. Retrieved 2010-10-18.

External links

• Joseph Gordon-Levitt at the Internet Movie Database
• Joseph Gordon-Levitt at Rotten Tomatoes