Jan 22 2007 09:31 PM ET

Sundance Diary: Featuring Celebrity Guest Blogger Elle Fanning!

Elle_lHey, kids. I’m posting this direct from EW headquarters on Main Street, where the Fanning family has just arrived to drench us all in cute. And of course, seeing Elle Fanning (pictured at Sunday’s premiere of The Nines) in the flesh isn’t helping me get over my obsession with The Nines any — WHY HASN’T ANYONE BOUGHT THIS YET — and now I’m being swept back into that world, all those rich colors and the warm humor of Melissa "Sookie" McCarthy and the abs of Ryan Reynolds and the way the last instant exploded into my stomach and made me remember why we live, why we put up with all this, excuse my French, bullcrap… jeez, I can’t say enough about that damn movie.

OH! PopWatchers, get excited… I’m gonna pass the mike to a very special guest…

"hey i’m elle fanning. Yesterday I went skiing for the first time and it was the funnest thing I have ever done!!!!!! Picabo Street and Jonna Mendez taught Dakota and I. I would love to come back to Utah again!!!"

Okay, that kid types faster than I do. Anyway, we’re having fun hereright now, which is making me feel better because I had a roughmorning. You’re gonna kill me, but I didn’t get up in time for Grace is Gone.I guess that’s what I get for blogging until 5 a.m. and thinking I’mgoing to make a 9 a.m. movie. Sigh. I’ll try and catch it again before Igo. But that’s Sundance in a nutshell: The best laid plans, etc, etc.It’s still pretty freakin’ stressful, even though I think I’ve got therhythm down.

So let’s stop talking about this frantic race to see every movieever (and the desperate hunt for a shuttle bus in the dead of nightwhen something is starting in five minutes but is a 10-minute drive away)and instead talk about famous people and free stuff and parties. Thispart is not bad. On Friday, EW’s Missy Schwartz and I hit a bunch ofstyle suites, scoping out the swag and which celebs were picking upwhat swag. We didn’t see a whole lot. Matisyahu picked up some SnowJoggers boots for his wife. Nick Nolte’s people pretty much clubbed usover the head to get to the Lacoste shirts. Molly Shannon, according towhat she said while some autograph hounds were taking her picture,really enjoyed her massage at the American Eagle spa. (I’ll get theinside scoop on those first-hand on Wednesday, ahem.) The whole thingis kind of gross, I’ll admit — and more and more we’re getting thesense from the celebs that they don’t want to be tied to the swagprocess in any way, because it’s just so gauche. (Blame Edward Norton.)You gotta wonder, then, given this sea change in the way peopleperceive "gifting," how long this concept is going to live on. There’salready a style suite that’s set up a mail-order process so the starsdon’t have to be seen toting giant bags of stuff and can just have itshipped to their home. Still tacky, but more stealthy, I guess. But themystique of the shopping spree lives on, and all up and down MainStreet, plenty of non-famous people are clamoring for whateverthey can get. In fact, one of them actually posed as MissySchwartz in order to get pants. I am not kidding. It was brilliant.

As for what I picked up, I’d like to thank the nice people at Hanesfor the most comfortable underwear ever. Was that too personal? Eh,deal. I feel very close to all of you. And now I gotta run for a bitand do some interviews for Adrift in Manhattan. Will be back soon with party coverage. And maybe I’ll talk Billy Baldwin into guest blogging. Hold your breath!

Comments (1-23) of 23 Add your comment

  • daisyj

    On the one hand, I’m kind of horrified by the whole celeb-gifting process. On the other hand, I really want it to last for long enough for me to get famous so I can get in on it. (What? It could happen.) (Although, I do admit, I will probably never be famous enough or cute enough to learn to ski from Olympians.)
    BTW, Whit, not that we aren’t having a totally fabulous time in here, but do you think you could get rid of a few of these wrappers and old tickets? It’s getting kinda stuffy in here, and I think Ron’s got a papercut.

  • brandonk

    Is that little girl wearing lipstick, or did she just have a cherry popsicle?

  • johnathan

    is that quote for real? that’s hilarious. if whitney pastorek made that up, I’m going to marry her.

  • jenjen

    Dakota has a sister. Too bad for all the potential child stars out there.

  • bob

    Thanks for the running commentary. Sundance has really come alive for me. Hey, I am just over the hill in Denver. Do you think you could come over and cover the Hunting and Fishing Show when you finish up in Utah? I hear they are giving away wool socks!

  • Martha

    Hey Whitney – awesome job covering Sundance. Please tell your little buddy Elle that she and her sister did a great job on the voices for “My Neighbor Totoro” a while back…my 4-year-old daughter loves that movie.

  • Robert

    Elle Fanning ist so cool, she ist my favorite Actress in the World, I love she over all.

  • Scott

    Ms. Pastorek-
    I just fell upon this (after you were referenced in Pajiba…swell!). Anyway, glad to be reading.
    Your male cousin from texas.

  • stefan

    Elle is cute and I like her smile and she is very lovely and she is a great actress for her age yours Stefan from Linz Upper Austria

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  • qzvfboyur xprz

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  • Maddy

    Elle rox my sox. ;) She’s showing up more and more lately. She’s going to be bigger than Dakota by the time she’s 12. They’re both so smart. They’re not going to be the next Lindesy Lohans, that’s for sure.

  • Vannessa

    Dakota and Elle Fanning are perfect and they are adorable! I wish I could be them.

  • Vannessa

    Elle and Dakota Fanning are the cutest kids in the world! They are VERY< VERY talented! I wish I could have there life. I am there biggest fan!

  • Gabriella

    Elle and Dakota Fanning are really great actors and have the cutest smiles. I love the movies they’re in. They’re just so special the the actors/celebirty world.

  • anon

    dakota and elle fanning are the best actresses in the whole world and there will never be anybody else quite like them.I love you girls, you Rock!!!

  • teeny

    teeny

  • teeny

    teeny

  • teeny

    teeny

  • kubis

    kubis

  • blodulv

    blodulv

  • earshot

    earshot

  • shinedown

    shinedown

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