Monday, February 01, 2010

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.

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