Repackaged TV shows, comic books (too often, it seems) and even board games (yes, really). It certainly seems like anything can be fodder for movies these days, but far too often the most obvious source gets overlooked: Good, old-fashioned books.
This year, three books that I've enjoyed to varying degrees are coming to the big screen, and it starts this week with "Water for Elephants."
On paper at least, Sara Gruen's popular novel, being directed by Richard Lawrence (director of "I Am Legend" and a whole lot of music videos before that), seems like it would be a hard one to screw up in movie form, because the story is just so naturally epic. And with Reese Witherspoon, Robert Pattinson, Christoph Waltz and the great Hal Holbrook, it features a first rate cast, too, so here's hoping it all works out.
Another wildly popular book that is making the leap to movies this year is Kathryn Stockett's "The Help," but in this case, I'm hoping the flick will be a lot better than the novel. While I didn't hate Stockett's work, I found it to be full of stock characters drawn in broad strokes of black and white (and that, despite the book's subject matter, has nothing to with race). As a movie, however, it has great potential.
In this case, too, the story of a young Southern woman who led a group of black maids to find the voice for their grievances has a perfect cast, led by solidly funny lady Emma Stone in the main role of Eugenia "Skeeter" Phelan and Viola Davis as Aibileen Clark, the leader of the maids. Keep an eye out for this as counter programming to all the super hero flicks and late summer comedies Aug. 12. Here's the first trailer I know of for it:
And finally, from a book intended for readers much younger than me that nonetheless managed to thoroughly engross me, Martin Scorsese will bring Brian Selznick's young adult novel "The Invention of Hugo Cabret" to the big screen Nov. 23 as the shortened "Hugo Cabret" (and, unfortunately, in 3-D, but I think I've lost that battle already).
The magical story is about a boy who lives a secret life inside the walls of a Paris train station. There, he discovers one of French filmmaker George Méliès' automatons, which were mechanical, wind-up figures, and that's when the tale really gets fun.
For the movie, young Hugo is played by Asa Butterfield, with his friend Isabelle being played by Chloe Moretz (a Georgian and the unforgettable Hit-Girl from "Kick-Ass") and the station inspector being played by Sacha Baron Cohen. Even in awful 3-D, I really can't see anyway that Scorsese can make this into anything but a completely fun holiday flick.
I always try to picture the books I'm reading as movies (Williams Boyd's spy saga "Restless" would make a great one, but no one's jumped on that yet), so here's hoping they can continue to inspire great filmmakers in this increasingly digital world. Peace out.
Tuesday, April 19, 2011
Remember good, old-fashioned books?
Saturday, April 02, 2011
An extended look at "Water for Elephants"
Actually, before we get into any of that, a couple of tidbits about TV, starting with a question: When's the last time you actually tuned in for a live broadcast of "Saturday Night Live."
For me, I couldn't even tell you for sure, because it's been well more than 10 years. I can, however, guarantee you that I will be tuning in one week from today, when they've managed to land the perfect host: Dame Helen Mirren, presumably to pimp the "Arthur" remake starring Russell Brand and somehow Luis Guzman too that comes out that week. Yeah, I'll watch both of those.
And HBO has just announced that the summer's funniest stretch begins at 10 p.m. July 10 when Larry David's "Curb Your Enthusiasm" returns for (I think) its eighth season. Last season's "Seinfeld" reunion of sorts was more than a bit of a dud, but with the show hitting New York this season and Ricky Gervais set to appear in some form, I'm betting on a return to very, very funny.
OK, on to the main event. Although I'm certainly going to see Duncan Jones' "Source Code" today and really looking forward to it, and thoroughly enjoyed the slyly witty "Cedar Rapids," my money is on "Water for Elephants" as the first great movie of 2011. I quickly devoured the novel by Sara Gruen, a rather epic romantic triangle tale that unfolds at a traveling circus. And the casting of this, with Robert Pattinson, Reese Witherspoon and, looking great in these clips, Christoph Waltz as the circus' big man around the tent, looks just about perfect. And though he makes no appearance in these seven minutes or so courtesy of Collider.com, keep an eye out for definite Reel Fanatic fave Hal Holbrook too. Enjoy these seven scenes from the movie, and stick around afterward for something truly very funny from "Parks and Recreation."
Saturday, March 05, 2011
TV news good and bad, and a Saturday clip show
There are indeed some fun trailers out there today, but before I get into any of that, there's also a bit of TV news both good and bad.
Being a glass half full kind of guy, at least on a Saturday morning the day after mi hermano and I just bought tickets to see the fabulous Baseball Project in concert twice next weekend in Atlanta and Athens, I'll start with the good.
As Charlie Sheen continues to implode in spectacularly entertaining form, CBS has wisely locked up "How I Met Your Mother" for two more years, meaning it will run for at least (wow) eight seasons. I can certainly dig that, because at this point, though I'm not really all that curious about who the "Mother" is, the primary cast of Josh Radnor, Alyson Hannigan, Jason Segel, Cobie Smulders and, of course, Neil Patrick Harris, are still very, very funny together. And besides, this season, with the death of Marshall's dad and other things, they've gone in interesting new directions.
And now for the bad ... well, actually insidious. It seems that these things come in waves, so now that NBC has decided it has the huevos to go ahead with a remake of "Prime Suspect" with Mario Bello somehow in Dame Helen Mirren's role (yes, she owns it) of detective Jane Tennison, David Fincher and Kevin Spacey are somehow teaming up to shat upon my second-favorite British TV product, the "House of Cards" trilogy of miniseries.
For anyone who's unfamiliar with that program, the late, great Ian Richardson played politician Francis Urquhart (and yes, they do get plenty of mileage out of the initials F.U.), whose diabolical rise in the Conservative party from chief whip to prime minister and back down again was just a treat to watch (and you can definitely find it on DVD.) What these shows had in common is that like Mirren's role in "Prime Suspect," Richardson's delightfully wicked performance in "House of Cards" was truly just one-of-a-kind. No network has apparently picked up this latest travesty yet, so here's hoping none does.
OK, as promised, on to the clips, and there really are some good ones. I shouldn't admit this, but here goes: I thought "Kung Fu Panda" was pretty easily the best animated movie of 2008, and therefore, yes, better than Pixar's "Wall-E." The latter was a better technological accomplishment, for sure, but "Kung Fu Panda" just a had a lot more humor and heart. And besides, the beauty of the movie world that Pixar hath wrought is that we now have far more interesting (and not-so-interesting) animated movies than we did, say, 10 years ago (and I'm definitely going to see one, "Rango," this afternoon.) So, enjoy this first trailer for "Kung Fu Panda 2," which of course contains a Chinese dragon poop joke, but still looks pretty great, and keep an eye out for the movie May 26.
And coming much before that will be James Gunn's "Super," and thankfully but not surprisingly, this first trailer looks just as crazy as the movie itself should be too. For anyone who doesn't know, Rainn Wilson plays a man who transforms himself into a super hero after his wife (Liv Tyler) is stolen away by her drug dealer (Kevin Bacon, naturally.) Among the many great things in this trailer is that Ellen Page, as his still-very-young-looking sidekick, should be genuinely psychotic, and I love the cheeky "from the lunatic who brought you 'Slither' " card. If, like me, you live outside one of America's major cities, keep a look out for this on IFC's on demand cable feed (I'm hoping, at least!) starting April 1.
Sara Gruen's "Water for Elephants" was one of my favorite novels of the past few years or so, and nothing I've seen so far says the movie made from it by director Francis Lawrence won't be pretty great, too. The only beef I have with this latest trailer is that it really tells pretty much the entire story, but I'm still betting the movie starring Reese Witherspoon, one Robert Pattinson and Christoph Waltz (and though he makes no appearance in this trailer, the great Hal Holbrook in a key role, too ... bully!), will still have some surprises when it unfolds April 22. Enjoy the clip.
And if you'll excuse me now, I'm off to do some swimming and then see "Rango," and tomorrow "The Adjustment Bureau." There haven't been two theater movies worth seeing in one weekend since ... well, it seems like last year, so I'm rather psyched. Peace out.
Wednesday, January 19, 2011
I suppose that was Parkinson's, too?
In case anyone was wondering, yes that is a thoroughly inappropriate and equally funny Larry David joke that's featured in the video at the bottom of this post. Nothing like a good tease ...
But before the videos, most of which have to do with HBO, there is a bit of news out there today, starting with the photo at the top of this post. Just to get the particulars out of the way, it features, from left, Michael Fassbinder as Magneto, Rose Byrne as Moira MacTaggert, January Jones as Emma Frost, Jason Flemyng as Azazel, Nicholas Hoult as Beast, Lucas Till as Havoc, Zoe Kravitz as Angel Salvadore, Jennifer Lawrence as Mystique and James MacAvoy as Charles Xavier.
And they are, of course, the stars of "X-Men: First Class," which is set to come out in June. If you ask me, they all look more than a little awkward and rather unhappy to be there, but if director Matthew Vaughn brings any of the true comic book sensibility he did to "Kick-Ass" to this, it should just be a whole lot of fun.
After that, just a couple of tidbits I found interesting, starting with the fact that Robert Downey Jr., once he's finished bitching about Ricky Gervais' very funny Golden Globes performance (from what I watched, anyway), will be starring as Mr. Peabody in Dreamworks Animation's big-screen "Mr. Peabody and Sherman."
Surely you remember the genius dog and his pet boy from "The Rocky and Bullwinkle Show," usually the funniest thing about the show each week. I should probably know to just say no to these by now, but I just have a sneaking suspicion this could turn out to be pretty darn funny.
And something I can almost guarantee you will be funny, if it ever comes to series, is what Fox has just ordered from Rob Thomas in pilot form. After creating the sublime "Veronica Mars," which you can watch in its entirety on Netflix streaming, bully, he also made the wickedly funny "Party Down," which surely would have lasted more than two seasons if it hadn't lost Jane Lynch and then Adam Scott to "Glee" and "Parks and Recreation," respectively.
The point is, the man knows funny, so I have high hopes next fall for "Little in Common," a new comedy from Thomas that centers on families whose children play little league sports. Not being one of those myself, I always find it funny when parents take something much more seriously than their children, so this could be a hoot.
OK, I do have to get ready for work, so as promised, to close just a quartet of videos. The thing I'm most psyched for on the big screen this spring is that one of my favorite novels, Sara Gruen's "Water for Elephants," is hitting theaters in movie form in April. As you'll see from this New Zealand trailer, if you didn't know already, Robert Pattinson, Reese Witherspoon and Christoph Waltz make up the three sides of an odd love triangle at the circus, and definite Reel Fanatic fave Hal Holbrook also makes an appearance. Enjoy the clip, and definitely see this when it comes out.
And just to solidify its hook on me until at least next fall, HBO will be premiering "Game of Thrones," based on the series of novels by George R.R. Martin, on April 17. This should just be epicly good, and just in case you need any further inducement from me to watch, at least the first episode was directed by Thomas McCarthy, director of "The Visitor" and "The Station Agent." Enjoy this clip which rather briskly introduces some of the main players, and then stick around for two doses of, yes, Larry David.
Most sane people simply accept the fact that Bill Murray is the funniest man on the planet, but I think there are two people who can give him a run for that title, Larry David and Ricky Gervais. So, when you put them together, as this behind-the-scenes clip for season eight of "Curb Your Enthusiasm" promises, I would hope hilarity would, by force, ensue. I'm not sure when the new "Curb," which brings Larry back to New York, will premiere, but it usually seems to pop up around August or so. Enjoy this clip and, even better, the Godzilla spoof that follows, and have a perfectly endurable Wednesday. Peace out.
Thursday, January 06, 2011
Kevin McDonald and the future of movies ... YouTube?
I tried for about a week to make a one-man movement against movies bypassing theaters, and then I found that IFC was putting its always interesting movies on pay-per-view cable at the same time they were opening at a theater, well, nowhere in the world near me.
I've seen several movies this way, and the next one will probably be James Gunn's "Super," unless the presence of Rainn Wilson and Ellen Page will be enough to get this to play everywhere (seriously doubt it.) The flick, set to open April 1, stars Wilson as a man who, after his wife (Liv Tyler) gets hooked on drugs and runs off with the pusherman, dons a cape and turns into an avenging superhero of sorts, with Page as his sidekick. I'm laughing at that already, so definitely keep an eye out for it.
And before that, Kevin McDonald, director of "State of Play" and "The Last King of Scotland," is pioneering another way for movies to get exposure without dealing with movie theaters: YouTube. His new movie, titled "Life In a Day," has some rather lofty aspirations: Drawing from 4,500 hours of footage sent in from 192 countries, it indeed tries to capture a day in the life of this world we all live in.
Sounds like a fascinating idea, and when the movie premieres at 6 p.m. mountain time Jan. 27 at the Sundance Film Festival, it will be simultaneously streaming on the movie's YouTube channel, which you can find here. If you miss that, it will stream again the next day at 7 p.m. in whatever time zone you're in, with subtitles of your choice.
I don't think I'll ever get used to watching movies on a computer, but with YouTube streaming to Blu-Ray players now, the future is certainly here, so I guess we should all just deal with it ... and in this case, embrace it too.
After that today, there's a bit of great movie news and then a Muppets video (because I just can't get enough of them) that surely hasn't been approved by Disney or anyone from the Henson clan.
In movie news, it seems that Robert Pattinson (hate if you have to) has stepped into the lead role of David Cronenberg's "Cosmopolis," which was once to be played by Colin Farrell.
Now, I really have nothing against Mr. Pattinson, and if he helps this flick, based on the novel by Don Delillo, get made, bully, because it sounds just tailormade for Cronenberg.
The book, which I haven't (yet) read, deals with 24 hours in the life of a newly married billionaire (Pattinson) as he cheats on his wife, is pursued by a stalker, gets attacked by a protester and gradually loses his entire fortune over the course of a single day. Adding some serious chops to the cast, Marion Cotillard will play Pattinson’s wife and Paul Giamatti will play one of the two men stalking the billionaire.
All sounds great to me, and we'll be getting another Cronenberg movie some time this year, though as yet I have no idea exactly when. He's wrapped production on "A Dangerous Method," which stars Viggo Mortensen as Sigmund Freud and Michael Fassbender as Carl Jung as they collaborate to come up with the cure for a woman (Keira Knightley) suffering from some kind of psychological issues. That's definitely near the top of my must-see list for 2011, so if you hear anything about when it will be hitting theaters, please let me know.
And with that, it's time to wrap things up so I can go to work, but not before a true bit of inspired madness starring the Muppets performing Kanye West's "Monster." Yes, really. And as you can imagine, this clip has all kinds of language that should never come from the mouths of Muppets, so please don't say I didn't warn you and, of course, watch it with headphones on if you're at work! It's all extremely silly, but also inspired, especially when Miss Piggy hits the screen as Nicki Minaj. Enjoy the clip, and have a perfectly pleasant Thursday. Peace out.
Monday, January 03, 2011
2011 movie outlook: 20 flicks I'm really looking forward to
Predicting how any year will turn out during its first week is, of course, the definition of a fool's errand, but I've certainly been called worse, so here goes: Twenty flicks I'm definitely looking out for this year, in order of release date:
"The Cabin in the Woods": The fact this was delayed for many months simply for some post-filming 3-D conversion certainly isn't promising, but in better news, it is a horror movie from the minds of "Buffy the Vampire Slayer"/"Angel" mastermind Joss Whedon and co-conspirator Drew Goddard, so I'm in. (Jan. 14)
"Cedar Rapids": Ed Helms of "The Office" stars in this Miguel Arteta comedy about insurance salesmen at a conference in the titular city. This looks like the broadest kind of comedy, so here's hoping it plays wide too. (Feb. 11)
"Jane Eyre": Mia Wasikowska, easily one of my favorite young actresses, steps into the now-all-too-familiar role, but with "Sin Nombre" director Cary Fukunaga in charge and the truly haunting feel of the trailer, I'm betting this will have something new to offer. (March 11)
"Paul": Director Greg Mottola reunites the "Shaun of the Dead"/"Hot Fuzz" comedy team of Simon Pegg and Nick Frost for this flick about two geeks who encounter the titular alien on their way to Comic-Con. (March 18)
"Sucker Punch": If anything, director Zack Snyder's first movie based on an original idea - about a young woman who fights her way out of a mental institution - just might be too crazy, but I'm almost certain it will be a heck of a lot of fun, too. (March 25)
"Source Code": Director Duncan Jones follows up his fantastic debut, the seriously smart sci-fi flick "Moon," with this fairly generic sounding thriller about a man (Jake Gyllenhaal) who changes bodies with a soldier to stop a train bombing. Hope for the best here. (April 1)
"Your Highness": If you're looking for more than high stoner comedy, stay away, but director David Gordon Green proved he's a master of it with "Pineapple Express" and he's back with more this time around - with James Franco, Natalie Portman, Danny McBride and Zooey Deschanel all in tow. (April 8)
"Hanna": Saoirse Ronan reunites with "Atonement" director Joe Wright for this tale of a young lady raised by her father, an ex-CIA agent, to be the ultimate assassin. Right up my alley. (April 8)
"Water for Elephants": Sara Gruen's best-selling novel, easily one of my favorites, gets a cast worthy of the grand historical romance it unfurls at a traveling circus: Robert Pattinson, Reese Witherspoon, Christoph Waltz and Hal Holbrook all star in one of the movies I'm most looking forward to for next year. (April 22)
"African Cats": The Disney Nature movies have all been beauties to behold, but this one should finally have a great story to match as it focuses on two families, one of lions and one of tigers, and what they do to survive and thrive in Africa. (April 22)
"X-Men: First Class": After reviving the comic book movie with the big ball of fun that was "Kick-Ass," director Matthew Vaughn now tries to breath much-needed life into the mutant saga, with a new class including James McAvoy as Professor Charles Xavier, Michael Fassbender as Magneto and even Reel Fanatic fave Jennifer Lawrence as Raven/Mystique. (June 3)
"Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows - Part 2": It will certainly be a bit sad when the grand saga ends, but part one - while not the best of Harry's flicks - set the stage for a rousing finale. (July 15)
"Cowboys and Aliens": Movie titles just don't get much more straightforward than that, and unlike, say, "Snakes on a Plane," this one should deliver all the fun it promises. When aliens invade the old American West, they find they have to take on not only Indiana Jones, but James Bond too. (July 29)
"30 Minutes or Less": "Zombieland" director Ruben Fleischer serves up what should be a second helping of very funny with this flick about two fledgling criminals who strap a bomb to the chest of a pizza delivery boy (Jesse Eisenberg) to get him to rob a bank. I promise it will be a whole lot funnier than I'm making it sound here. (Aug. 12)
"The Help": Another of my recent favorite novels, Kathyrn Stockett's "The Help," comes to the big screen with a great young actress (Emma Stone) in the lead role of Eugenia "Skeeter" Phelan, a Southern woman who convinces a group of Mississippi maids to tell their stories in the '60s. Sounds more than a little "Oprah" to me, and it is, but it should also be a lot of fun to watch. (Aug. 12)
"Moneyball": There are few genres I love better than a great baseball movie, and this flick based on Michael Lewis' book about the Oakland A's should hopefully deliver exactly that. Features Brad Pitt as bean counter Billy Beane and Philip Seymour Hoffman as A's manager Art Howe. (Sept. 23)
"The Muppets": After what seems like at least a three-year wait, there will indeed be a new Muppets movie next November, with this shortened title and our beloved puppets staging a show (of course) to save their theater from some evil oil barons. (Nov. 23)
"Hugo Cabret": It should be a banner year for literary adaptations, as now Martin Scorsese takes on this great children's novel by Brian Selznick about a boy who grows up in the walls of a Paris train station and encounters the world of George Melies' automatons. With Asa Butterfield as young Hugo and Hit-Girl Chloe Moretz co-starring, I can't see how even thoroughly unnecessary 3-D will ruin this. (Dec. 9)
"The Adventures of Tintin: The Secret of the Unicorn": No less than Steven Spielberg directs the first installment of an expected trilogy as the young Belgian detective finally comes to the big screen and, this time out, hunts for treasure on a sunken ship. (Dec. 23)
"We Bought a Zoo": Director Cameron Crowe - at last - returns to making movies with what should be a fun ride, the story of a man (Matt Damon) and his family who indeed move to the English countryside and buy and operate a zoo.
And there you have it. I'm more than certain there are some I've forgotten, so please feel free to let me know what they are or just sound off on your favorites. Peace out.
Thursday, December 16, 2010
Details emerge about Roger Ebert's new show, plus the first look at "Water for Elephants"
As with many things that don't come immediately to my fairly little burg when it's promised to be "opening at a theater near you," we won't be getting the return of "Roger Ebert Presents At The Movies" in its first-run airings. Nards.
I'm still fairly certain that we'll still get it within a week or so of its initial airing in Atlanta, and with, according to Ebert at least, "81 percent" national coverage and the top 20 markets all getting this in first-run, most of the country will get to see this, and that can only be a great thing.
Before being resurrected from the ashes by Ebert and returned to its public TV beginnings, the "At the Movies" franchise was terminated by Disney after a rather impressive run. Now, with Ebert in charge and, of course, the show airing at truly God-awful times (more on that below), here's hoping it will at least find a limited audience for a five-year run or so.
When it makes its debut on some stations on Jan. 21, it will return to the simple thumbs up/thumbs down format, but seems to have lost one co-host. Christy Lemire of the AP, who likes odd movies and deplores by-the-numbers romantic comedies,which I can certainly appreciate, will still make up one half of the main duo of hosts. Elvis Mitchell, however, who starred on the pilot they released earlier this year, has apparently left, which is a real bummer.
As for who will step into that slot, you'll know when I do, and for a complete list of when and where "Roger Ebert Presents At The Movies" will makes its debut, check out this pdf.
And all I have after that today is the first trailer I know of for "Water for Elephants," which is based on one of my all-time favorite novels. Thankfully, the movie is coming out fairly soon, April 15, so definitely keep an eye out for it.
As you'll see from the trailer, I think they got the casting just about perfect. The story, a rather grand bit of historic and romantic fiction, tells the story of Jacob Jankowski, a veterinary student who leaves school and finds work tending to the animals of the Benzini Brothers Circus. There, he becomes involved in a rather steamy love triangle with the beautiful horse lady Marlena and her husband, the brutal head animal trainer August.
Already known was that one Robert Pattinson would play Jacob (fair enough), Reese Witherspoon plays Marlena (even better) and Christoph Waltz plays the often maniacal August (just about perfect). What I didn't know until this morning, however, is that, best of all, the truly great Hal Holbrook plays the narrator of this tale, the elder Jacob from his nursing home. I really can't see anyway this flick, being directed by Francis Lawrence ("I Am Legend," among other things), should be anything short of fantastic (at least if it is, I'll be rather sorely disappointed). Enjoy the trailer, and have a perfectly pleasant Thursday. Peace out.
Saturday, April 10, 2010
Two crazy rumors, one to laugh about and one to hope for
You know, I would suggest someone try to shame The Sun if it had even an ounce of it left, or the folks who put it out just clearly didn't have so much fun f***ing with the entire world.
The British's tabloid's latest creation, as I've dutifully documented above by sharing the photo, is the immediately shot down but still very funny rumor that one Robert Pattinson would be playing Kurt Cobain in a biopic to be titled "All Apologies." And, as you might be able to tell, that's Scarlett Johansson in the photo as Courtney Love, who Love has supposedly and rather immodestly suggested should play her.
All I can really say about all that is great title, and I'd imagine that last bit about Courtney Love is probably the only thing approaching truth in it. But it's still just a heck of a lot of fun.
And, in a rumor that I would much more readily get behind, the co-creators of "Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs" - which along with "Coraline" shares the distinction of being one of the two 2009 animated movies that were better than Pixar's "Up" - are eyeing a sequel in the form of "Pickles to Pittsburgh," the soon-to-be-released followup children's book by Judith Barrett.
In the new work, according to Publisher's Weekly, the townspeople of Chewandswallow find themselves still cleaning up all that food rained down by Bill Hader's Flint Lockwood. In what should make for a globe-trotting adventure, they come up with a global food distribution plan, hence Eggplants to Ecuador, Chili to Chile and the titular "Pickles to Pittsburgh."
I'm laughing at that already, so here's hoping this somehow happens, and soon. And in the meantime, Comedy Central has released a short clip of next week's episode of "South Park," which will be the rather seriously amazing 200th one. Never strangers to excess, as you'll see from the clip, co-creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone are bringing back every celebrity who has been mercilessly mocked during the show's run for a class-action lawsuit against the city. Nothing but funny there, especially the return of Mecha Streisand. Enjoy, and have a fantastic rest of the weekend.
Thursday, February 18, 2010
A Thursday report just chock full of good movie news
There really is just a ton of news out there this morning about filmmakers and actors I like, so let's just jump right into it.
First up, in perhaps the biggest and best of it all, Kathryn Bigelow is set to reunite with "The Hurt Locker" scribe Mark Boal for "Triple Frontier," which is described as a "Traffic"-like drug parable set in the notorious border zone between Paraguay, Argentina and Brazil, and Bigelow says the film will use the same "raw and visceral visual style" as "The Hurt Locker."
Except for the "Traffic" reference (I can really think of very few movies that are more overrated than that one), that all sounds great to me. It's a perfectly gritty subject for her, and if I were still a betting man, I think there's been a groundswell of activity behind "The Hurt Locker" that just might bring it the big Oscar prize on March 7, which would be just fine with me (though, of course, I'm still standing behind Quentin Tarantino's "Inglourious Basterds," which I've seen four times now.)
And in a related note, Jeremy Renner, also an Oscar nominee for his performance in "The Hurt Locker," has set up his next project, and being a devoted fan of all things Baltimore, it certainly sounds intriguing to me. To be directed by James McTeigue of "V for Vendetta" and star Renner and Ewan McGregor, "Raven" is sort of based on Edgar Allen Poe's poem, but set in 1850's Baltimore with a serial killer's crimes mirroring Poe's work (and it damn well better be shot in 2010 Baltimore, too.) Renner probably won't win on Oscar night, but as far as male performers go, he and Christoph Waltz (who we'll hear about in just a few paragraphs) certainly had the "breakthrough" performances of 2009, and he's definitely got my attention.
Duncan Jones garnering stellar cast for next flick
I've somehow managed to once again con my way into a press pass to the upcoming Atlanta Film Festival 365, and if they screen even one movie as good as Duncan Jones' debut "Moon," which I squeezed into there last year, it will be well worth the trip.
So it's certainly good news that Jeffrey Wright has now signed for Jones' next flick, "Source Code," joining the already-announced Jake Gyllenhaal, Vera Farmiga and Michelle Monaghan.
Best as I can tell, the flick is a sci-fi thriller involving time continuums in some way. Gyllenhaal is, of course, the main star, who's investigating a train bombing and finds himself in the body of one of the victims, reliving the incident until he can find out who's behind it. Farmiga will play Gyllenhaal's handler, and Monaghan a woman on the train with whom the man he becomes is romantically involved. All I know about Wright's involvement is that he plays a helicopter pilot of some kind, but I do know that with this director and cast, this is one I'll definitely be keeping my eyes on.
Cobain biopic in the works
Just about the last thing the world needs is another musician biopic, but I think I'd certainly at least turn out for one about Kurt Cobain. In fact, I can't believe this hasn't been done already.
Oren Moverman, director of "The Messenger" (which I haven't seen yet, but everyone tells me I should), is about to sign on to direct and rewrite David Benoiff's script for the project, using as at least a partial source Charles R. Cross' 2001 biography, "Heavier than Heaven: A Biography of Kurt Cobain."
No word yet on who would play Cobain, but I'd have to say Jared Leto, assuming he isn't just way too strung out by now, would be a natural, or maybe Billy Crudup. And as to why I'd want to see this, well, Cobain's certainly a fascinating subject, and I can still remember when my roomie at the time, Cory, told me what had happened to him. We had just seen the Breeders open for Nirvana about six months earlier at Atlanta's now-defunct Omni. A real bummer, but this seems to be in the right hands, and could make for a really compelling flick.
Waltz sets next project as another mean bastard
I've been hearing talk lately that Christopher Plummer, nominated for "The Last Station," just might pull the upset on Oscar night and nab the Best Supporting Actor award that everyone has been assuming would go to Christoph Waltz for his work as the Jew hunter Hans Landa in "Inglourious Basterds."
If that's the case, it would be a genuine travesty, because anyone who's seen QT's flick (and if you somehow haven't, why the heck not?) knows, he just takes over every scene he's in, and you can't take your eyes off him.
We'll just have to wait and see how that all turns out, but in the meantime comes word that he's in talks to star in "Water for Elephants" with Reese Witherspoon and a certain vampire dude you may have heard of named Robert Pattinson.
Based on the novel by Sara Gruen and to be directed by Francis Lawrence of "I am Legend," the story is about a Depression-era love triangle between a veterinary student (Pattinson) who joins a travelling circus and falls for the star performer (Witherspoon). Waltz would play the third angle, Witherspoon's husband, described as "a dangerous paranoid schizophrenic animal trainer who is as mean to his wife as he is to the circus creatures."
I'll watch Mr. Waltz in just about anything at this point - he's in Michel Gondry's upcoming "Green Hornet" with Seth Rogen, too, but I'd put my money on this flick being finished first - and especially in something that sounds this intriguing.
Carla Gugino set to run "Faster" with the Rock
You know, I really have no beef whatsoever with Dwayne Johnson. I'm sure he's a perfectly nice guy, but I'm not sure I've ever seen one of his movies. That said, putting the simply stunning (and just as talented) Carla Gugino in one of his flicks just might be enough to get me to buy a ticket.
She's come aboard the revenge thriller "Faster," being directed by George Tillman Jr., who made the mostly entertaining Biggie biopic "Notorious", and also starring The Rock, Billy Bob Thornton, Maggie Grace and Moon Bloodgood.
So, what's it about? Well, apparently, The Rock is an ex-con bent on avenging the death of his brother, murdered 10 years earlier when the two were double-crossed during a heist. Gugino will play the detective in charge of the investigation of the killing.
On second thought, I really can't see any way I will go see this, but I just really like Carla Gugino, so I'm just passing the news along 'Nuff said on that.
Whedon and Spurlock to harass poor Comic Con-goers
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I'm not sure why, but I just can't stand to even look at, much less listen to, Morgan Spurlock. I think it's because I also can't stand documentaries in which the filmmaker feels the need to make himself the star - exactly the wrong approach in my book - and no one except for maybe Michael Moore does this more than Spurlock. And, for that matter, Moore is just a much better filmmaker.
Now, however, it seems that Spurlock and Joss Whedon (because, with "Dollhouse" canceled I guess he just has nothing better to do) are teaming up to make a documentary about Comic Con, which I'd love to attend some day.
The duo will apparently follow their poor victims for three months leading up to this year's mega-geekfest in San Diego. I can't imagine anything good coming from any of this, but I've been wrong at least once before (and probably already today), so maybe I am about this too.
Whew. That certainly went on a lot longer than I intended when I woke up this morning, so anyone who actually made it this far deserves a reward. I'm not sure that the latest weekly installment of "Alice In Wonderland" featurettes really qualifies, but they've at least managed to keep them all entertaining, and there just something soothing about watching Helena Bonham Carter with the Red Queen's enormous head calling for a pig to rest her feet on. Enjoy, and have a perfectly enjoyable Thursday. Peace out.
Sunday, November 23, 2008
An often grumpy, clearly middle-aged man attempts to review "Twilight"
I tell you all that as a qualifier, so take this review with a big grain of salt but also know this from the outset: Despite its serious flaws as a vampire tale I really had a lot of fun watching Catherine Hardwicke's "Twilight."
I had almost decided to just act my age and skip it altogether, but instead opted to latch on to two friends who are fans of the series who were headed to a Saturday matinee (conveniently making me look like much less of a perv than I might have going to a movie intended for teen girls all by myself.) At my urging, we sat fairly close to the front and therefore away from the twittering masses, who as best as I could tell were very well behaved anyway.
Things didn't get off to the best of starts as the projector malfunctioned during a promising trailer for "Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince," and we were subjected to a 10-minute delay. Theater manager Wes Clark, who knows me well by my frequent theater visits, said he was afraid he might soon have a riot of "Twilighters" on his hands.
But once it finally got going, I found a lot more to like than I expected going in. First and foremost, Hardwicke gives the town of Forks, Washington, (a real place, evidently) a genuine sense of time and place (even though it was for whatever reason actually filmed in Portland, Oregon.) And she does so without resorting to any forced quirks to induce laughs, instead just letting the scenery speak for itself.
Second, apart from the vampires (which we'll deal with later), all her characters have a natural feel to them, starting with young lead Kristen Stewart. She already gets a gold star in my book for her turn in last year's "Into the Wild, and she makes a genuinely engaging lead. And Billy Burke as her clearly in-over-his-head single father gives the movie most of its intentional laughs, especially when he finds a vampire (though he doesn't know that) has shown up to take his daughter to the prom.
Finally on the very good side, the high school our heroine Bella attends is filled (again, minus the vampires) with the kind of kids you'd expect to find in an American high school in a small town. The main quartet (Anna Kendrick, Michael Welch, Justin Chon and Christian Serratos) are refreshingly geeky and insecure, and were an entertaining bunch to watch.
OK, so far so good, but this is a vampire story of sorts, right? Of course, and that's where it starts to fall apart more than a bit because the vamps themselves are (by design, but still) just way too corny.
I mean, I know this is a story for teens and tweens rather than a horror movie, but vampires that play baseball (I'm not kidding) and scurry after woodland creatures rather than feast on the blood of humans? Give me a break (and let's not even get into whether this actually makes them any better on the morality scale.) And what in the world is Dr. Cullen supposed to be, some kind of Noah of the undead? It was just creepy, and not even slightly in the fun, horror movie kind of way.
By the time we get any real action involving any actually menacing vampires there's only about 20 minutes left in the flick, and we've been subjected to so much treacle at that point that it just drains most of the tension right out of it.
So, if it doesn't really work as a vampire movie, does it work as a love story? Well, for its intended audience, I'm fairly certain it was just about right, but for the rest of us it gets more than a little bit ridiculous. As my two fellow moviegoers and devoted "Twilight" fans (and anyone who's read 2,000 pages of anything is "devoted" in my book) pointed out, the book is much more about character and dialogue than plot, which wouldn't necessarily translate all that smoothly to the big screen.
OK, fair enough, but what that leaves us instead is a lot of vacant staring between Bella and her vampire hunk Edward, played by Robert Pattinson. I'm sure this was intended to convey longing, but more than once just made me laugh out loud (and once earned me a sharp elbow to the ribs.) I'm really not sure what else Hardwicke could have done with this, but it just really doesn't work too well in movie form. (And if you haven't seen Hardwicke's flick "Thirteen," which was co-written by "Twilight" vamp Nikki Reed, rent it now and thank me later.)
But all that said, I left the theater with a smile on my face thanks to a sweet ending that adroitly sets up the next chapter, and that's more than I can say for a lot of flicks out there this year. Peace out.
