Only you can right a serious wrong to Ricky Gervais

I suppose there have to be more important injustices to battle in the world than what happened to one movie, but the treatment of Ricky Gervais' "Cemetery Junction" has been particularly appalling.

Never heard of it? None too surprising, I suppose. If someone told you this was a tale about young insurance salesman in England in the 1970s written by Gervais and partner in comedy Stephen Merchant (co-creators of both "The Office" and "Extras"), you'd probably want to see it, right? Well, I certainly would, and you'd think that unless this were somehow just utterly awful (which I find really hard to believe, though I'll surely find out soon), it would at least get a limited U.S. release, right?

Nope. This somehow went straight to DVD in this country, and the only good news in all of this is that it has finally come out this week. I've added it to my Netflix at the top of the queue, but it's threatening me with a "short wait," so I may try to redbox it instead. However you get your DVD fix, surely give this one a try.

And speaking of Gervais and Merchant, they're developing a series for BBC2 with legendary littleman Warwick Davis called "Life's Too Short." It's apparently about Davis' daily life, but Gervais and Merchant star in it somehow too, so keep an eye out for it on this side of the pond (and if you see it, surely let me know when and where.)

OK, after that, all I have today is a cache of clips which, I promise, just get odder as you go along. First up comes the first trailer I know of for Darren Aronofsky's "Black Swan," which surely would have made the fall preview I penned yesterday except, in my mind at least, in movie terms December is winter. Anyways, as you'll see, it's gonna be a really weird but hopefully also wonderful flick. Natalie Portman and Mila Kunis star as rival ballerinas who, as best as I can tell, get consumed by their competition and one particular role. It looks more than a little too "Single White Female"-ish to me, but surely Aronofsky has a lot more going on than that. Enjoy. (P.S.: There is, unfortunately, an ad that runs before this, but I promise that a) I don't make any money off it and b) if you sit through that, this particular clip looks great full screen.)



Next up, and thanks to a heads up from Amy Frazier Maclean, a good friend of mine from my UGA days and still one of my favorite people in the world, here's the first trailer for Casey Affleck's documentary about buddy Joaquin Phoenix. As I'm sure everyone remembers, Phoenix had some kind of meltdown a few years ago and (for real? who knows?) became some kind of rapper who looks like a Hasidic Jew. It all smacked of little more than a stunt, but as far as filmmaking goes, stunts often work well as none-too-long (here's hoping, at least) docu- (or mocku-) mentaries. Enjoy the clip, and if you live in a big American city, keep an eye out for the flick Sept. 10.



OK, I did warn that things would just get weirder, right? One of my many tasks at work is picking out the movie reviews that run in our weekly entertainment tab, and it's becoming increasingly hard to find reviews written by Tuesday afternoon, when we really have to put the thing together. For example, this week, there are a rather amazing six movies opening in Macon this week (including, yes, really, some kind of Christian movie called "What If" starring Hercules himself, Kevin Sorbo), but I could only find a review for one, Christy LeMire of the AP's cruel dissection of "The Switch." I digress with all that to tell you this: Of all the movies opening this week, the one I was most certain we wouldn't get a review of was "Piranha 3D" (well, that and "Vampires Suck," too, actually.) And besides, why submit to critics when you can just make your own pitch for not only plaudits, but a Best Picture nomination at the Oscars? I'm certain I won't go see the movie, but this Funny or Die clip featuring stars Adam Scott, Jerry O'Connell and others is certainly made in the right spirit. Enjoy.

Piranha 3D: For Your Consideration from Piranha 3D

And finally, saving the oddest for last, Zhang Yimou really has made a Chinese remake of the Coen brothers' "Blood Simple" (just let that sink in for a second.) It's described as a broad comedy, and below is the first Western trailer. Called "A Woman, A Gun and a Noodle Shop" (I'm laughing at that already), it's set for a limited U.S. release in September, and yes, I think that, given the chance, I certainly would go see this. Enjoy the trailer and have a perfectly harmless Wednesday. Peace out.

Take the first short trip to Gervais' "Cemetery Junction"

Actually, let's start with what, at first glance, seems to be the oddest news of the day: Steven Spielberg is eying Spock himself, Zachary Quinto, to play George Gershwin in a new grand biopic.

I say on the surface, however, because it actually makes a lot of sense. Spielberg revels in movies like this, especially when it's about a rather famous Jewish American. Anyone who had to suffer through high school marching band (I played the clarinet myself) has had the pleasure of trying to play Rhapsody in Blue at least once, and it was of course used to perfection in my favorite Woody Allen movie, "Manhattan."

And, judge for yourself with the pic of Gershwin here, but I think the resemblance is there, and though I gave up on "Heroes" a very long time ago (is it really still on the air?), Quinto can really act. Anyways, something to keep your eyes on.

But here today it's really all about the first trailer (that I've seen, at least) for "Cemetery Junction." And what is that? Well, it's the first collaboration of Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant since "Extras," reason enough to cheer, and it's a movie that will hopefully open wide enough for me to see it when it drops ... well who knows? It's listed as April 7 for the UK and next fall for much of the rest of the world, but I can't find a release date anywhere for the U.S. Nards!

Anyways, though it's a return to the working world, it's hardly a "The Office" knockoff. Instead, though Gervais plays a role, the focus is on three young chaps who sell insurance in Reading in the early '70s. The accents are indeed a bit hard to understand when you're listening to them five minutes after waking up, but other than that, the trailer looks good to me. Enjoy, and stick around afterward for some big news about the U.S. "The Office" and a couple of more clips.



Next up comes a pretty big spoiler about the U.S. "The Office," so if you don't want to know, just skip down to the next clip. Anyone who'd been watching knows that Dunder Mifflin has been bought out, and now it seems that the buyer has been revealed.

According to movieviral.com (and, as you'll see, they have memo to prove it), Kathy Bates will very soon join the cast for at least a little while as Michael's new boss when Dunder Mifflin is bought by some entity called Sabre Corp. (and we all know he does so well with female bosses, so this should be a hoot.) Bates plays Sabre Corp. CEO Jo Bennett. The new company is apparently a printer selling company (synergy, anyone?).

Lest you doubt this, there's already a Web site for Sabre Corp. you can find here. And, because what would "The Office" be without a memo, here's the one announcing Sabre Corp.'s new acquisition:

FROM: Dunder Mifflin Management

TO: All Dunder Mifflin Employees

SUBJECT: Dunder Mifflin Joins Sabre

Dear Colleagues,

By now you have probably heard stories regarding the ownership of Dunder Mifflin. Allow us to take this opportunity to shed some light on our company's future. We are very pleased to announce that Dunder Mifflin will be joining the Sabre Corporate family. This marks a high point in our company's history. Rest assured that Sabre will do all they can to make this transition as smooth as possible.

At this time, it is important that we keep our focus on our every day activities and continue to deliver the kinds of results that have made Dunder Mifflin what it is today. It is an exciting time, and these are exciting possibilities. We are confident that you, our employees, are the best team to face the challenges and seize the opportunities that lay ahead.

This promises to be a very exciting journey for all of us.

Regards,
Dunder Mifflin Management

Like I said, Michael (Steve Carell) with Kathy Bates as his boss? Sounds like great TV to me. Stay tuned.

Except for that, all I have left today is a couple more clips. First up comes what purports to be a new trailer for Martin Scorsese's "Shutter Island," which will finally hit theaters Feb. 19. There doesn't seem to be a whole lot new here, but I'm thoroughly psyched for this flick, so enjoy the trailer.

And finally, courtesy of Collider.com come three clips from "Thankyoumoreplease," the writing and directing debut from "How I Met Your Mother" (which I believe has just been renewed for a sixth season) star Josh Radnor. The movie stars Radnor, Malin Akerman and Tony Hale of "Arrested Development," and although the clips below don't really look all that promising for this flick about six New Yorkers dealing with, well, life, this movie did just win the Dramatic Audience Award at Sundance, so what in the world do I know? Enjoy the clips, and have a perfectly passable Monday. Peace out.

A behind-the-scenes glimpse of "Cemetery Junction," and proof that Wes Anderson really will work again?

This being a lazy Saturday morning, I really don't have too much, but certainly wanted to pass along this BBC clip from the set of Ricky Gervais' and Stephen Merchant's "Cemetery Junction," easily one of the movies I'm most looking forward to for 2010. It really doesn't reveal a whole lot except that, once again, the two of them just love telling jokes about Ralph Fiennes, and really, who doesn't?



OK, the only other thing I've got is the first photo I've seen from Wes Anderson's "Fantastic Mr. Fox," which will be his first foray into animation when and if it finally comes out (there's still no release date at the IMDB.)

I used to have a lot of love for Wes Anderson, and for his early work, I certainly still do. If you were to put a gun to my head and make me list, say, my 20 favorite films, Anderson's "Bottle Rocket," "Rushmore" and "The Royal Tenenbaums," each an improvement on the other, would all make the list. But his last two, "The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou" and "Darjeeling Limited," have just left me more than a little cold.

In other words, Mr. Anderson really needs his mojo back, and though I have serious doubts this flick is gonna get it for him, here's hoping. Enjoy the pic, which comes courtesy of JoBlo, and the rest of your weekend. Peace out.