Instead of showing up in Toronto to promote A Dangerous Method with her costars, My Michael Fassbender went back to Venice to collect his Best Actor prize for Shame. These are the photos from his victory posing – look at that smile! He looks like a magnificent shark. I think that’s why I love him so much – he’s traditionally handsome, but when he smiles, he looks so predatory and HOT. As for Fassbender’s work in Shame, he won for the role where he’s in various stages of Fassdongy undress – the same movie that might be too erotic and dongy for American audiences, but I think it has just been purchased (for distribution) by Fox Searchlight. SIGH. I really need to see this movie. Right now. Hopefully it will get an R-rating and some kind of release. Anyway, it seems like Michael was the only winner at the Venice Film Festival who collected an award for an English-language film.

Besides naming the Russian film “Faust” as the winner of the Golden Lion at the Venice Film Festival on Saturday, the jury headed by director Darren Aronofsky (“Black Swan”) handed out numerous other prizes. The Coppa Volpi for best actor went to Michael Fassbender, who plays a man obsessed with impersonal gratification in the film “Shame” by Steve McQueen of Britain.

Asia put in a strong showing. The Coppa Volpi for best actress was awarded to Deanie Yip in the film “Tao Jie” (“A Simple Life”) by Hong Kong’s Ann Hui. China’s Cai Shangjun won the Silver Lion for best director for his film “Ren Shan Ren Hai” (People Mountain People Sea), which was a surprise late addition to the festival lineup. And the Marcello Mastroianni Award for best new young actor or actress went to Shota Sometani and Fumi Nikaido in the film “Himizu” by Japan’s Sion Sono.

A special jury prize was give to “Terraferma” by Emanuele Crialese of Italy, while the Osella for the best cinematography went to Robbie Ryan for the film “Wuthering Heights” by Andrea Arnold and the Osella for best screenplay went to Greece’s Yorgos Lanthimos and Efthimis Filippou for the film “Alpis” (Alps).

The handful of American films in competition, including George Clooney’s “The Ides of March,” “Dark Horse,” “Texas Killing Fields” and “Killer Joe” were shut out.

[From The LA Times]

Fassbender is supposed to make it to Toronto to do even more promotional work for Shame, having missed both the press conference and festival premiere of A Dangerous Method. I’ve been reading some of blogs and articles from Toronto, and it seems like Michael really is this year’s critical-darling actor. Also, there’s this piece in Macleans in which a blogger recounts a conversation she had with two female critics in Toronto about the actual Fassdong. One lady said, “I’ve been quoted in print as saying Ewan McGregor has the most beautiful penis I’ve ever seen. Well, the title now goes to Michael Fassbender.” THANK YOU.

By the way, I got some Fassbender for my birthday – the DVD of X-Men: First Class. He really is wonderful in that film, as he is in nearly every film he’s ever done. He’s so beautiful.

Photos courtesy of WENN.