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At
gunpoint, every relationship could be put into one of two broad categories:
"odd couple" or "birds of a feather." In Hollywood, the former seems to
be the more popular form. Classic screen pairings like Hepburn and Tracey
to Martin and Lewis were huge hits in their time and the formula continues
in the new Millennium.
Astrologically,
an "opposition" (the polarized relationship between planets
within one person's chart or between two people's charts) represents a
struggle to be understood. The sign that's opposite your own (for instance,
if you're a Pisces your opposite is Virgo) comes six signs after yours,
or has a birthday about six months after yours.
Three
current box office hits, Erin Brokovich, U-571 and
Return to Me, star opposites who balance out their differences
with slightly surreal, but unmistakably watchable onscreen chemistry.
Julia
and Albert: Generational Foils
 It
can be described as A Civil Action with push-up bras. Erin
Brockovich owes much of its success to the feisty on-screen sparring
between its two stars: perennial cover girl Julia
Roberts, and British acting legend Albert Finney. Finney, a
no-nonsense Taurus, with the booming voice and rugged charm often associated
with his sign, seems an odd choice to star with Roberts, a sexy Scorpio
with the attitude to back up her diva status. Her volatile romantic history
has often kept the public more interested in her personal life than her
screen roles.
This
film, directed by iconoclastic Steven Soderbergh (Sex, Lies and
Videotape, Out of Sight and The Limey)
is a departure for both actors. It brings Finney into the commercial mainstream,
and Roberts a newfound respectability. Roberts is known mostly for such
pop fare as Pretty Woman and My Best Friend's Wedding,
while Finney's resume boasts the more estimable Tom Jones,
Under The Volcano and The Dresser.
In
this film, their "opposite" energies strike a balance, making
Finney more accessable and Roberts more serious. In addition to having
opposite Sun signs, Finney's Saturn, planet of patience and restraint,
is in wise Pisces, and it makes an opposition to Roberts' Venus, Pluto
and Uranus all in nervous, health-obsessed Virgo. How perfect that Finney
should hold back, as the generous older actor does so well in this film,
and allow his younger peer to bounce off the walls with high-strung energy
as she searches for the truth about the high incidence of autoimmune illnesses
that have struck a small California town.
Roberts'
passionate Scorpio Sun is also exactly opposite Finney's sensual Venus
in Taurus. No doubt if Roberts wasn't already madly in love with former
Law & Order lead Benjamin Bratt, she and Finney would
have the astrological potential to be yet another Hollywood couple, even
though he is old enough to be her father, and then some. Thank goodness
these two can put that subtle sexual tension to use on the screen, not
in reality!
Keitel
and McConaughey: Macho Oppositions
Another
hot young Scorpio is starring opposite a tough but sensual Taurus screen
legend, but this time it's in the uber-patriotic submarine action flick,
U-571. The charts of Harvey Keitel and Matthew McConaughey
are even more full of oppostions and inner connections than the previous
Scorpion-Bull pair. In addition to having opposite Sun signs, these two
actors have opposing Moons.
McConaughey's
Moon (his emotional nature) is in discriminating Virgo, an earth sign
that shows an innate connection to Keitel's earth sign Sun in Taurus.
Both men have a practical streak, which is good, because if either goofed
off too much they would've been stuck filming more nausea-provoking boat
scenes than necessary! And the film might've gone way over budget, which
would stick in any earth sign's craw!
Keitel's
Moon sign is in gentle, intuitive Pisces, a water sign that grooves easily
with his co-star's water sign Sun in Scorpio. Water signs aren't always
big talkers, but they are naturally perceptive about human nature. For
two actors, this easy understanding of the others' deeper side makes working
together that much more meaningful on screen and off.
Both
men also have a significant conjunction (planet in the same sign at close
degree) in their charts. Mars, the traditionally masculine planet that
represents passion and aggression, is in the high degrees of Capricorn
(sign of discipline and ambition—very military!) for each of them. Clearly,
both McConaughey and Keitel (a former Marine who still does benefits and
other forms of service for the Corps) had a similarly passionate response
to the script and ideas behind U-571.
David
and Minnie:
Jupiter and Venus Return to Them
X-Files
star David Duchovny and young British actress Minnie Driver (Good
Will Hunting, The Governess) seem like an unlikely
pair to star in actress-turned-director Bonnie Hunt's romantic comedy,
Return To Me. Duchovny is a Leo, and Driver, his opposite,
Aquarius. Of all the opposites in the zodiac, the lion and the water-bearer
seem the most different. Leos are typically known for their love of attention,
romantic natures and ability to lead. Aquarians are known to prefer group
settings over more intimate ones, and tend to lead with their brains over
their hearts.
This
pair of opposites, however, has some interesting chart connections. Most
prominent, is the fact that Duchovny's Jupiter (planet of generosity,
good luck and expansion) sits exactly on Driver's Venus. He may be the
one who connects Driver to better roles, not just now but in the future,
and this warm Leo may be the one who finally brings out the "romantic
lead" potential in this distant Aquarian.
Duchovny's
Aquarius Moon is in the same sign as Driver's Sun, which shows that they
both possess an interest in "futuristic" projects. Driver was recently
quoted on ABC's The View as saying she promised the X-Files
star that she'd appear on an episode of his hit sci-fi show. Noted psychologist
(and astrology afficionado) Carl Jung wrote extensively about "the shadow,"
the dark part of each of our natures that we unconsciously repress. As
is the case with these Hollywood opposites, the closer they get to their
shadows, the more integrated and fascinating they become.
Julia
Roberts and Benjamin Bratt: Still Peaking
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