Speaking of V-Day...

If the movie is this good, maybe I should go see it.

What Film School Rejects has to say.

Much more exciting than that, Neil Marshall finally has a new flick coming out. Centurion is an action period piece about seven Roman soldiers trapped behind enemy lines and stars Michael Fassbender, Dominic West, and Olga Kurylenko. The new trailer has just made its way to the internet:

More Centurion Videos

To date I've really enjoyed Marshall's films. Dog Soldiers, The Descent, even Doomsday. While Doomsday is easily the most forgettable of the three, I still thought it was entertaining. Dog Soldiers is my favorite but that might just be because the cast is full of good looking British men. Maybe.

In any case, Centurion could be fun. It'll be out in the UK in April and will hopefully make its way to the states not long after.

Avatar

I awoke this morning to my phone ringing merrily next to my ear, my mother calling to see if I wanted to see Avatar tonight. I mumbled something back that translated to "Yes, of course." Twenty minutes later when she called back with a show time, after I had managed to wake up a little, I advised her to go ahead and get the tickets online if she could. And to make sure she was getting the ones for the 3D IMAX. There had been two things I'd heard about Avatar over the course of the week. 1) Showtimes were selling out like crazy and 2) make sure you get the full visual experience in the IMAX.

Both, it turns out, are true. When we arrived at the theater (an unplanned hour early thanks to a fast dinner) the 7 PM show was sold out. When we walked inside, there was also already a line filling up the hallway for theater one. Guess it was lucky we were so early. Not a huge fan of waiting in lines but when they finally let us in we were able to get great seats just where I like to sit in a theater (in the middle, about two thirds back). So I guess that makes it worth it.

There were a few trailers, warnings that they were not, in fact, enhanced for IMAX, and then finally the words popped up on the screen. "Please put on your 3D glasses." Another trailer or two (Alice in Wonderland, not so excited about) and then it was time to begin. Credits. Voice Over. Spaceships. Game on.

Now here's the thing. I'm not really interested in writing a full review of Avatar. The story is okay. It has its problems, its cliches. Some moments are trite, some are painfully familiar as we've seen it all told before, some of it just silly. If this movie was anything less than what it is, it wouldn't be all that great.

What is it then? It's a spectacle. A delightful, sensational technological visual wonderland designed to make the audience "Oooh" and "Aaah" and it really, really, really works. James Cameron proves his mettle as a filmmaker. And the result is so very pretty.

My reaction upon walking out of the theater: "Squee!"

Of course I would have loved a little bit more going on with the story but whatever. I went to see Avatar to see what it would look like, to experience the potential of what 3D and IMAX can be, and in that it does not disappoint in the slightest. For my expectations, I got what I was hoping to get. I'm pleased with that. I'm happy with what it is. I don't know if I'd want to pay to see it again but I'm very, very glad I did see it this once. In the 3D. In the IMAX. It's made for that, that's how you should see it to experience it fully.

Avatar is eye candy and it is super delicious.

And now that that's out of the way, hopefully I'll be able to get a few more films on my "Want to (NEED to) See" List knocked out this week.

Currently on the list:
An Education
Me and Orson Welles
A Serious Man
Fantastic Mr. Fox
Precious

Did make it to It's Complicated on Friday which is cute, Meryl Streep is wonderful as always. Also planning on seeing Sherlock Holmes just cause. RDJ. Yeah....

Girl Talk Thursday - Who's Your Romance?

I went through a brief phase towards the end of high school when I could just not get enough of the romance novels. I don’t know how many I must have read but it’s not like they take that long to get through. In a good week I would easily get through several. I started covertly, sneaking them off of my mom’s shelf, but soon enough I was just reading them out there in the open. Not really sure what got me started and I’m even less sure of why I stopped.

I’ll still occasionally grab a romance off of my shelf or pick up a new one in the store but I have to be honest here, I can’t remember the last time I actually finished one. Maybe it’s an age thing or something but now I find the plots and frequently the characters to be boring, cliché, and sometimes even annoying. The last one I tried to read spent so much time telling me the heroine and hero were so “smart” and “intelligent” and “brilliant” all while they were running around acting like big idiots. I wasn’t convinced.

ANYWAY.

As a reader, I’ve definitely imagined myself as a character in the novels I’ve read. I think if I were to star in my own romance I would definitely want to be in one of the historical ones set in London. Beautiful dresses, elaborate parties, shenanigans unacceptable by society’s standards. There would be none of that damsel in distress nonsense, no contrived plots for me. I might be the debutante on the sidelines, a little too smart and bored to really take part. My leading man would possibly be tall, dark, and handsome (I’m allowed at least one cliché, right?) and would notice how awesome I was. There’d be some friction because we would be both be a little too disillusioned for our own goods but eventually it would work out. I guess it would end with babies?

OR.

If I go back to the sort of scenarios I used to imagine myself in before I even picked up a romance novel, I would definitely be the awesome heroine in the action/adventure plot. The female equivalent of Robin Hood, the good witch in the woods who made that amazing potion, maybe even captain of the pirate ship! I’ve noticed I’m not the first lady participating this week whose romance novel character fantasies involve some combination of swords, kicking ass, and pants.

Makes sense to me! Why should we have to be relegated to the role of dress wearing, bosom heaving, corset enclosed, helpless woman who needs a man to come to her rescue? F’ that! I will cut you just as soon as kiss you!

Not that I want my hero to be weak or even in need of saving himself. Ideally we’d be going up against the villain together, we’d need each other to succeed. We would both be strong, capable people who work better together than individually.

And we would have some great sex.

So I think my plot would go something like this. I’m a girl/princess/lady/whatever who lives in some sort of castle or village. I somehow stumble across this truly heinous plot by the evil villain and this sets off a string of events leading me out into the wide world on a quest to retrieve some object or save some other person. Along the way I’d meet and team up with my hero and maybe a couple of other supporting characters. We’d all distrust each other at first but over the course of adventures and various life saving we’d form a deep bond and eventually realize we were in love. The quest would continue, something crazy and epic would happen possibly involving various gods of different cultures, and in the end we would vanquish the villain together.

The love part wouldn’t be easy though. He would definitely be the dangerous type and the story would be fraught with sexual tension before any sort of consummation ever occurred. Maybe there wouldn’t even be any consummation! Unfulfilled desire is hot. There would definitely be lots of close whispering in corners, smoldering stares, that sort of thing.

So maybe we would have some great sex. Maybe not.

I think that more or less covers it. I love the quest idea. If I lived in another magical time period I would definitely go on a quest. I think that would cover more of my romance novel than the lovin does. Maybe that’s why I’m not such a fan of romance novels anymore. Love always has to be the center of the story and the character’s lives. In my real life I don’t really want that, my fantasy life isn’t much different.

In Which She Gets On Topic

For a blog ostensibly about film, I sure haven't talked about movies nearly enough lately. Which is ridiculous as there are actually quite a few around right now worth seeing.

Normally the summer months are the domain of blockbusters. Last year I was all about gettin me some Iron Man action. This summer however nothing on the large scale really appealed to me. Transformers 2? GI Joe? No thank you. Sure, Star Trek was great fun but Wolverine was beyond boring and please don't get me started on Terminator. Infuriating.

Luckily, there has not been a dearth of quality in the theaters. It's just not to be found in the large budget affairs. This summer, the films that are most worth seeing are the little guys.

So far, these have been my three favorites. I kind of want to see them all again. Depending on where you live, you should still be able to catch them.

(500) Days of Summer

I loved, loved, loved this movie. I am not really a romantic comedy kind of girl, even if I did go see The Ugly Truth, but 500 days is not your typical romantic comedy. It's more accurate to focus on the comedy part, rather than the romance. It is a love story but it's not the love story you might expect it to be. (500) Days is a whimsical look at the difficulties of love and dating. It's upbeat and mostly nice but it's also relateable. At least for me, a single 20 something in LA, it was.

Plus, how can you not love a movie with two leads as cute as these guys are?

Hurt Locker

Hurt Locker is wonderful. I'm not sure I really need to see another movie about this war. The word that came to mind immediately as the credits started to roll was "intense" and it's a word I've heard many people use to describe this particular film going experience. I was at the edge of my seat, quite literally, the entire film. While there were some moments I found to be a little silly, this movie has so much going for it I'm willing to forgive them. The performances in particular stand out, Jeremy Renner really nails it as Sgt. James and the rest of the cast is solid as well. I can't recommend Hurt Locker enough.

District 9

Neill Blomkamp's sci fi flick about aliens in South Africa proves that a large budget is not always necessary, or even always desirable, for a special effects heavy action story. This movie has it all: monsters, explosions, gun fights, blood, space ships. Occasionally ridiculous, for the most part wonderful, it was all accomplished on a budget that is tiny compared to the standard $100+ million for all of the usual summer nonsense. Sure, the veiled digs at apartheid and racism are rather thin but seeing a story told from such a different perspective is a refreshing treat. I also enjoy how Blomkamp manages to integrate the faux-documentary approach into the narrative without getting carried away ala Cloverfield. District 9 is a must for any sci fi or action fans. It's a rare thing, an action movie that actually focuses on character and story telling. What a concept!



These certainly aren't the only movies out now worth seeing. Harry Potter was great for the HP fans, Julie and Julia is passable but Meryl Streep is phenomenal as always, and, hmm... what else? Drag Me To Hell is wonderful but you probably won't find that playing anymore.

I'm a bit behind on others. I never did make it to Paper Hearts or Away We Go. Ponyo and Inglorious Basterds I also still need to get to.

What else is out there? What am I missing?

Review: Watchmen

Alan Moore’s Watchmen is an interesting creature; critically acclaimed, held in high esteem by a small but hardcore group of fans, until it’s feature film debut this month it was virtually unknown by the mainstream. Not just a long form comic, it justifies the phrase “Graphic Novel.” And until now it was believed to be unfilmable.

Which begs the question; does Zach Snyder’s adaptation prove Watchmen is filmable? Obviously, it’s been filmed. How successfully is up for debate.

For those not familiar with the film or the comic, Watchmen takes place in an alternate version of 1985. We’ve won in Vietnam, Nixon has been reelected for a third term, and the Cold War is still going strong. Russia is moving into Afghanistan, the doomsday clock is set permanently to five minutes to midnight. Oh yeah, and Superheroes are real. Ozymandias, Rorschach, Comedian, Nite Owl, Silk Spectre, all ordinary citizens who happen to like fighting crime and wearing a mask. The only one amongst them all who has any real super power is Dr. Manhattan.

Watchmen is a history study of the evolution of these heroes; from the gimmicky Minutemen of the days following WWII to the Watchmen themselves. The story goes from their early glory, to the public backlash that leads to masks being outlawed, and finally to the present day and their redemption. These “Superheroes” are human and flawed. Watchmen is as much satire as it is case study. Where is the line between good and evil? Where does morality lie? What makes a hero and who is really the villain?

The complexity of Watchmen is what makes it so great. It’s not where the story goes, but how it goes about getting there. It’s this complexity that made many fans believe it could not be made into a movie. It’s also what had those same fans waiting over two decades to see if they were right while they secretly (or not so secretly) hoped they were wrong.

Early on fans heard rumors that the ending of Watchmen had been changed. “No Squid!” circled the internet. Honestly though, I think the film would have benefited from more changes. The Squid works well enough in the book (either you’ve read the book so I’m not spoiling anything or you haven’t, in which case you have no idea what I’m talking about) but I can’t imagine that working very well on screen, astronomical CGI costs aside. Losing the squid was not tragic and the ending could have potentially worked fine without it. What makes the ending of the graphic novel so effective are all of the details. It’s all the accumulation of all the small tragedies. The imagery in the film is evocative of September 11th for sure, but it doesn’t have the same human face. It’s sterilized.

I think the failure of this ending serves to highlight Zach Snyder’s failure in this film as a whole. He is able to mimic the visual style and tone from the Graphic Novel but he fails in the nuances. Snyder’s Watchmen is a high-testosterone fan boy’s wet dream. It looks great, has plenty of sex and violence, but it’s lacking the maturity to know when enough is enough. Sometimes you just need to say, “Cut!” I can agree that the action sequences look cool but really, I got the point that Comedian is losing the fight. He could have gone out the window two minutes earlier and we would have lost nothing.

Speaking of Comedian, how great is Jeffrey Dean Morgan? The casting in general is great. While I wouldn’t have minded a slightly older Laurie, Malin Ackerman surprised me. I was expecting much worse. Carla Gugino’s make-up could have been improved, Matthew Goode’s build was a little odd for Adrian, and a couple of other minor complaints but for the most part I loved everyone. Occasionally I had moments of pity for the actors, some of the scenes were just god-awful, but the actors themselves did what they could with what they were given. In some instances they were competent, in others they excelled.

The three standouts for me, and I think for most everyone, are Morgan as Comedian, Patrick Wilson as Dan Dreiberg, and Jackie Earle Haley as Rorschach. I don’t even know where to begin in expressing my delight with Haley. From his voice to his posture to his expressions, he’s perfect. Absolutely, spot on. He is Rorschach; it’s as simple as that. It’s a rare thing to see someone bring a character to life so completely (Dark Knight comparisons are obvious here, I think). Haley’s performance alone makes Watchmen worth it for me.

As a fan of the comic, I went into this movie expecting the worst. I’m happy to say that that’s not what we get. Watchmen, while not great, is far from horrible. It’s flawed in many ways and I think the blame for that falls completely to Zach Snyder. He’s great at preserving the visual feel of these comics, but he’s not a very good director. His character development is atrocious (a problem 300 had as well), his music selection juvenile (we’re supposed to be watching a movie, not a music video for Sound of Silence), and he just doesn’t know when, or how, to step away from the source material. The 163 minute running time is cumbersome, to say the least.

I'd just like to point out that the graphic novel is the source material, the inspiration. It's not supposed to be the storyboard. There are scenes that are almost frame for frame lifted from the comic. While cool maybe once or twice, here or there, it's just unnecessary. The direction frequently comes across as pandering to fan boy sensibilities rather than focusing on making a good film.

Despite all of this Watchmen manages to remain a decent film. The problem for fans of the comic is going to be in seeing all of the ways in which a change could have been made to make this a better Movie. For people new to the story the problem may come in trying to follow the complex narrative. However, on both sides there is plenty of room for enjoyment. In fact, I have yet to come across anyone, fan or not, who hasn’t liked the movie. Everyone has at least a small complaint but we all agree that we enjoyed it.

For all of its flaws, Watchmen is a cultural experience worth being a part of. It’s worth giving a chance.

***

One of my favorite parts of the whole damn movie is the opening credit sequence. Watch it again online.

Review: Hancock

I have to be honest. I was very not sure about Hancock. I was never able to get fully excited about this summer’s Will Smith action vehicle. On the one hand, I like Will Smith. On the other, the trailers were lackluster at best. On the one hand, the story concept was intriguing. On the other, the original premier was canceled only a month before for reshoots (never a good sign).

In the end my deciding factor was that a friend of mine worked on it last summer and if nothing else, it’s cool to see your friend’s names in the credits. And he did get a pretty good credit so I at least wasn’t disappointed in that.

After everything my expectations for Hancock were fairly low. I like a lot of the talent that was involved, on both sides of the camera, but the scattered marketing campaign and rumors of numerous changes to the original script and story kept the excitement level from building too high. I think that was probably for the best as Hancock turned out to be an entertaining but not great summer flick.

Will Smith plays John Hancock, an alcoholic super hero the world would rather see go away. His antics often cost more than the good they necessarily serve. For example, Hancock saves the life of a man stuck in front of a chain but manages to cause a massive train wreck in the process. The man he saves is Ray Embry (Jason Bateman), a down on his luck PR agent with dreams of saving the world through marketing. Ray brings Hancock home to meet the family, son Aaron (Jae Head) and wife Mary (Charlize Theron). It’s obvious from the start the Hancock makes Mary uncomfortable and it’s this dynamic that plays a major part of the film’s second half.

The buzz for the film is right in that Hancock gives us something nice and original, especially for the first half. It’s also right in that the transition to the second half is awkward a good bit of the film’s originality degenerates into the standard super hero fighting with an unexceptional twist.

Not to say that Hancock isn’t enjoyable. If nothing else Will Smith is his usual charming self and if you’re a fan of his you’ll more than likely be very happy with what you get. Will Smith is one of those actors I will watch in almost anything (except for Hitch apparently…) and I like his treatment of Hancock’s many ups and downs. I think he brings the character respectably to life and I have no complaints there. Jason Bateman is also great as Ray. He makes Ray into an incredibly likable and sympathetic guy. Ray’s character could have easily turned into a sap you pity but instead Bateman makes him someone who believably holds his own in extreme circumstances. The dynamic between the two men, how they come together and how they ultimately need each other is one of my favorite parts of the film. It adds a nice human element to all of the action and highway destruction.

Charlize Theron is also fine as Mary. I don’t even mind all that much what they end up doing with her character. She too has good chemistry with Will Smith and while I agree that the second half of the film is lacking I don’t think she’s to blame.

For me, the problem is in how the film is ultimately indecisive. Someone somewhere couldn’t decide what to do with this movie. Do we keep it a dark, adult super hero story and risk the R rating? Or do make it nicer, advertise it in front of family flicks like Prince Caspian, and risk less at the box office. The people at the top went so far and then got cold feet. And the film suffers for it. In just the narrative structure alone, the momentum of the story if killed before it ever really gets going. I think one of the reasons there is so much talk about the first half and the second if is because the halves are so noticeable. There is no smooth arc easing one into the second, there is just the build up and then the twist. After the twist the only thing left is the standard super hero movie action. The action’s not bad, it’s just nothing amazing either.

Hancock goes both ways. There’s the good: the actors are likable and the dialogue is solid. And the bad: the story is uneven and Peter Berg is occasionally self indulgent with his editing.

Where does that leave us, the audience? Hancock is a fun movie that some will love, some will hate, and most will probably forget. Either way, it’s going to make a killing at the box office.

Thoughts: My Weekend in Film 6/16

I feel like I have a lot of updating to do. I watched more movies this weekend than I have the last few weeks. I've also been so busy with work that I have a backlog of things I want to write about. I won't say exactly what though since I don't know how much time I'll have to get to it all and I don't want to disappoint anyone when something gets left out.

Before I talk about my weekend I do want to share these to interviews though. The first is an absolutely fantastic one with Andrew Stanton, the writer and director of Pixar's Wall-E. I have told you guys I'm extremely excited about this movie, haven't I? Anyway, you can find the interview here. It pretty much just reaffirms all of the reasons I love Pixar.

The second interview is with director M. Night Shyamalan. Okay, so I may be the only person ever to actually like The Happening. Really the only movie of his that I can straight up say I don't like is Signs. I'm a fan and if nothing else I have to respect his love of movie making. Say what you will about this guy, his love of film seems genuine and that right there makes him a lot more respectable than a lot of directors out there. He does what he does and leaves it up to you to decide if you like. Either way he doesn't compromise his vision, even if that vision may be highly flawed.

Anyway, I'll talk a bit more about The Happening in a minute. You can find his interview here.

Now that that stuff is out of the way let's move on to my weekend shall we?

Friday PM:

A picture from the set of my short "Tomorrow's Party"

Rather than watching other people's work, I actually made a bit of progress on my own. I spent the night working with the guy who is potentially going to be providing me with music for my short. I'm now way past my April goal of finishing but I suppose I shouldn't really be surprised. The picture editing I finished more or less when I hoped to. I just completely underestimated how much time the music was going to take me.

One thing about me: I'm a complete perfectionist. Especially when it comes to anything remotely creative. When I was younger I used to do this thing where if I didn't think I could get something as perfect as I wanted it, I just wouldn't do it. A fear of failure or some such thing. I've grown past that bit but sometimes it can take me a really, really long time to finish something.

In this case, I could have settled on a couple of music options earlier. They just weren't quite right for my film. And if I settle on less than perfect music, well, what was the point of putting all of this time and energy into something that I'm just going to give up on in the final act? Instead, the process has dragged out two months longer than I hoped it would. I think the time will be worth it though. From the progress made Friday night I feel like what I'll be getting is music that fits the story and the emotions that I'm attempting to convey. Every little detail is so important; the more details I get right the better my final film will be. This film means so much. I want it to be as close to perfection as it humanely possible to get.

It's also been a huge learning process. I can add this music experience to the list of other things I now know. It's all to make the next one that much easier to do ;)

Saturday Afternoon:

I was so incredibly lazy all weekend. Saturday started with breakfast (huevos rancheros from a little Mexican joint nearby. Delicious!), moved on to hanging out in my front yard, and finally made its way to film. That wonderful marine layer we're all so used to out of the westside maybe Saturday a bit chilly. A slightly overcast, chilly Saturday? Perfect time to go to a movie!



So here's where I'll talk more about The Happening. See, the thing is, I really enjoyed it. Yes, it's flawed. Yes, there's a lot wrong with it. The acting is stiff, the dialog can be absolutely atrocious, stylistically I don't think it's as strong as M. Night's other films. However, emotionally it hit all of the right notes for me and while I can't really argue that it's a good film I can confidently say that it is an enjoyable one. If you're a fan of his previous works then I definitely recommend you go see The Happening. If you're not? Then you may want to wait for video. I don't regret seeing it in the theater (especially since I went to a cheaper matinee show) but it's not necessarily something that absolutely has to be seen on the big screen.

I also have to mention that I really do appreciate the restraint they showed in releasing a film that runs only about an hour and half long. When there are so many films with ridiculously inflated running times, it is so incredibly nice to get a film that doesn't run too long. Hollywood just doesn't seem to know when to say "Stop, it's time to CUT now" anymore. A movie doesn't have to be over two hours long in order to be good. In fact, a too long running time has frequently been my biggest complaint about a lot of films in the recent past. Shorter can most definitely be better.

I'm really hoping to write a full review on The Happening in the next couple of days so I won't write anymore now. I think I've really said enough at this point anyway.

Saturday PM:

After going to the local park with a few people and throwing a baseball around until it was too dark to see, we came home and just kind of hung out for a while. There was a bit of channel surfing going on that I didn't pay much attention to.

Finally the channels stopped changing and we were left watching 2003's Ben Affleck vehicle Paycheck.



I never actually saw Paycheck when it came out. At the time I was working part time at a video store and even the free rental didn't convince me that watching Paycheck was a good idea. I mean, John Woo is a cool director, he's made some awesome films. However he's not exactly someone I would pick to direct an adaptation of a Philip K. Dick story. (Honestly the only Philip K. Dick adaptation I've ever liked is Ridley Scott's Bladerunner. Possibly a "duh" statement. And even that departs quite a bit from the story Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep.)

Ben Affleck? Yeah, I'm not really a fan. So Paycheck I skipped.

Finally watching it this weekend what I have to say is this: It's not a good movie. But. It's an ALMOST good movie. It has a lot going for it and it certainly keeps my interest. In the end it doesn't quite work as well as I would have liked but it's fun. I'm sticking with my original opinion of John Woo being the wrong choice for this film though. The focus is too much on making it a standard action flick rather than taking advantage of all of the cool things the story offers.

Again, I'm kind of hoping to be able to write a full review so I'm going to move on to the next one now. Don't want to blow my load to early now, do I? Er, is that I bad phrase to use? I think maybe it is...

On to Sunday!

Sunday PM:

One of my favorite animated films ever was on Sunday night. Hayao Miyazaki's Spirited Away. I've talked about my love of Miyazaki in my reviews of Kiki's Delivery Service and Howl's Moving Castle.



Spirited Away is possibly his best film. Character design, story, writing, animation, I can not think of one thing I wish was better. I love it all. So much time and care obviously goes into his films. The results are beautifully crafted films that far surpass most of what we see America producing. His films are always kid friendly and yet challenging for the adult viewer as well. There is always a strong moral center but his themes never come across as preachy.

I love this movie so much. I highly recommend you all watch it. There's a good chance you'll fall in love as well.

After Spirited Away, K and I managed to once again leave to couch and get out of the house. We had somewhere we needed to be. After all, The Incredible Hulk opened this week.



I've gotta say, the rumors are true. Marvel managed to deliver us TWO excellent comic book movies this summer. It gives me hope for their future adaptation plans. I'm not sure I liked the Hulk more than Iron Man but I enjoyed it at least as much. It's really well done. Edward Norton continues to earn my love. He and Liv Tyler are also great together. She's not always my favorite actress but I've liked her more than I haven't. I guess I can't completely blame her for Armageddon. She's not the worst part of that movie. (I'm looking at you animal crackers! Worst. Scene. Ever.)

She's good in The Incredible Hulk though. As is the rest of the cast. And the CGI. Sure the Hulk still looks like CGI. But dude, he's a giant green guy. How realistic are we really expecting him to look? The action is one thing that I would say Hulk does better than Iron Man. Where the final fight in Iron Man leaves me wanting more, it's a bit anti-climactic, all of the action in Hulk is great. It's well paced, it's explosive, and all of the build up comes together in one kick ass finale.

And thank you Marvel. First Robert Downey Jr. and now Ed Norton in all of their male shirtless glory. I am one happy lady right now. Damn but do they both look good. I've never been one to put up pictures of celebrities on my walls. But these movies are really making me reconsider that decorating decision. There are worse things to stare at than Ed Norton in torn up jeans. Mmmm... I would tear those pants up myself, I tell you what!

Is it just me or is this post getting increasingly inappropriate?

Again. Moving on.

On the Slate:

Lifeforce - In from Netflix. Hopefully I'll have time to give it a go.

The Tripletts of Bellville - It's been a while since I've watched this one. I'm all in the mood for it so maybe I'll make that happen this week.

Mongol - I really need to see it!

Medicine For Melancholy - Playing as part of the LA Film Festival I'm planning on going to the Friday PM showing. For more info check out the LA Film Fest's website.

Thoughts: My Weekend in Film 6/9

After a crazy April/May, I decided to give myself a little mini-vacation. I escaped LA and spent the weekend with my parents in Phoenix, AZ. A lot of sun, a lot of pool, mini-golf, batting cages, and new glasses. All in all a good weekend.

Movie watching this weekend was a little sparse. With You Don't Mess With the Zohan and Kung-Fu Panda being the only major releases this weekend, I was in no rush to get to the theater. Of course, Mongol wasn't playing in Phoenix. That I would have gone to see.

I mostly spent my weekend hanging out with my parents and friends, but there was a little watching going.

Friday PM:

I caught the last flight out of LA to PHX so I had a bit of time to kill after work. I wisely spent it watching last week's episode of Top Chef.



The series finale of Season 4 is on this Wednesday and I'm pretty excited. I've watched Top Chef on Bravo since Season 1 and this is the first time since that season where I've really liked the chefs. Harold is still my favorite but I liked Leanne and even Tiffany of Season 1. Season 2 gave us Sam Talbot, and who doesn't love Sam. And season 3... well, I mean, the competitors were likeable. They just weren't very competitive. I just feel like talent-wise (which is sort of unfair to judge from home because we can't actually taste the food) this season gives us chefs who I feel like could compete with the Top Chefs of season 1. Season 2 didn't and neither did season 3. But Richard and Stephanie are awesome. They seem amazingly nice and genuinely talented. No offense Lisa, but I think it's pretty much down to the two of them to win.

And I'll be happy with either one of them. It would be cool to see a woman chef win but Richard is so awesome that I won't hold his gender against him. Either way, I'm looking forward to Wednesday's season finale.

Saturday PM:

Before the cold medicine kicked in and I passed out on Saturday, I watched The Rock. I know, what was I thinking? Voluntarily watching a Michael Bay movie? She really must be ill!



Actually, I used to really enjoy this movie. I never necessarily thought it was exceptionally good. But it was entertaining.

Watching it again... I can see where I enjoyed it as a teenager. Now though? Eh. Nicholas Cage is horrible. The dialog is so incredibly cheesy. I remembered that line at the end about the bad guy being Rocket Man (who could forget that garbage?) but seriously. The whole movie is just as bad.

Oh well, at least the Benadryl kicked in pretty fast and knocked me out. There are worse things to fall asleep to.

Sunday:

No movies. But I did get new glasses. To better enjoy future movie goodness. Mmmm... more goodness...

Anyway, yeah...

On The Slate:

Mother of Tears - Plans to go on Wednesday. Yay!

Mongol - At some point this week. I hope.

The Incredible Hulk? The Happening? I dunno. Maybe. We'll see.

Thoughts: My Weekend in Film 5/26

Yay for Memorial Days and three day weekends! The day off was enjoyed greatly and I used my extra time for extra movie watching (among other things). It was pretty sweet.

I also apologize in advance if this post seems a little out of it. My allergies have got me feeling all icky today. It's only taken me three hours to write this. I'm sure it's completely coherent and awesome.

Friday PM:

While I didn't watch any movies I did go see a live performance of R. Kelly's Trapped In The Closet.



For those of you not familiar with it, Trapped in The Closet is a Rock Opera about a web of people involved in various affairs and other nonsense. It's pretty ridiculous and very amusing. It's available on DVD but you can actually watch the episodes online as well over at IFC's website.

This particular performance that I went to see was done by a bunch of white kids acting out the first 12 chapters. It was done by a talented bunch of performers and I don't think I stopped laughing once. I even only yawned once which is an accomplishment in and of its self considering the fact it was a midnight performance on a Friday night. There's a reason I usually don't go out on Fridays. Anyway, yeah, it was really good and I'm hoping they do the next ten chapters soon.

Saturday:

I actually spent most of my day Saturday at wedding so no movie watching going on there. Wedding was beautiful though. I even teared up a little during the ceremony.

Sunday Early Evening:

I spent Sunday wandering around my neighborhood, walking, drinking coffee, doing a little bit shopping. Both J and K were out of town so I pretty much had the day to myself. It was nice to not have a schedule and just be able to do whatever I felt like, whenever I felt like it.



I stopped back at home for a bit after shopping and decided to watch MASH. In honor of Memorial Day and all that (the irony is part of the point). I love MASH so much. I haven't seen as much Altman as I really should have but MASH is by far my favorite of what I've seen. The performances are great and Altman's style compliments the story so very well.

I was somewhat of a fan of the TV Series but until recently had never seen the movie. Watching the movie, I must say that it's far superior to the show. I still enjoy the show as much as I ever did but I'll take the movie over it any day.

Sunday PM:



After MASH I once again left my couch and ventured to the local theater to catch Prince Caspian. I like the first Chronicles of Narnia movie well enough and grew up with the books so I was happy to watch Prince Caspian. It's pretty good. I did like it a bit better than the first but I think I have the same problem with it that I had with The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe.

It just seems like they can't decide who they want their audience to be. The films fall into this weird place where they're really too old for kids but too young for adults. Prince Caspian is pretty dark and violent, not something I would think to necessarily take a kid to. At the same time, it's still pretty young. I just think they would have a wider appeal if they went one way or the other. Honestly, I think going more in the direction kids movie would really work best. That may just be because the books were a part of my childhood.

Either way, if you liked the first you'll probably like the second as well. And I liked them both enough that I'll continue to see the series in the theater. Not as good as Lord of The Rings or some of the Harry Potters but good enough.

Sunday Late PM:

After the movie and a bit of work I decided to channel surf for a while. Have I mentioned that I'm a big fan of my couch?



I settled on watching the second half of Clueless. I've got to say, Clueless is still one of my favorite movies and it's easily one of the best teen movies ever. An adaptation of Jane Austen's Emma, Clueless is an intelligent, witty look at the lives of spoiled Beverly Hills teens. It's goofy and fun and I still love Cher's wardrobe.

It's one of those movies I will almost always turn on if I see it playing on TV. I've seen it so many times I've lost count. And yeah, I own the DVD. I've also been to the place where Cher is held up after the valley party. My friend lives down the street.

And. I have to point out the amount of tongue in that final kiss. Damn that's a lot of tongue.

I love it.

Monday AM:



Before Memorial Day BBQ fun I decided to veg on the couch for a while. Men In Black was on and I was honestly just too lazy to change the channel. I know. Go me and lazy. It's not my favorite movie ever but I love Will Smith and it was plenty entertaining for a quietly spent morning.

Speaking of Will Smith, I am so up in the air about whether or not I'm excited for Hancock. The premise sounds great, the second trailer looks decent, and my friend worked on it. It's just that the marketing is making me nervous. And the fact that the premier was canceled so they could go into reshoots. Less than a month before it's scheduled release. In addition to that they showed a trailer for it before Prince Caspian. Hancock mixed in with a bunch of family movies. It all seems like they're trying to market it as a goofy fun comedy which is NOT what the original premise of an alcoholic, troubled super hero seemed to be.

I'll still probably go see it but I don't have much hope for it being very good. Which is a shame because it seems like it could be such a cool, actually original, summer action film. Ah well. Maybe I'll be wrong. That would be nice.

Here's the trailer if you haven't seen it yet:



Monday Late PM:



After the BBQ and tie dyeing and other activities K and I decided it was as good a time as any for Dazed and Confused. Another of my favorite teen movies, Dazed and Confused is pretty much the perfect high school movie about nothing. The characters drive around, drink, get stoned, hang out, get into a moderate amount of trouble. It all ends in an awesome looking kegger that makes me a little jealous. How come we never had parties like that when I was in high school? If the kids I went to school with were that cool, I may have actually enjoyed my time there better. Oh well. Dazed and Confused is fun.

A word of advice though. Playing a drinking game where your one rule is take a drink whenever someone is paddled... not the best idea ever. You probably won't make it through the movie. My friend in college who tried certainly didn't. And I did not envy the hangover it gave her either.

On the Slate:

Rules of Attraction - after being told that I'll really like this by numerous friends I finally got it from Netflix. If I have my way I'll be watching it tonight.

Sex and The City - comes out this weekend. Of course K and I will be seeing it.

Not sure what else yet. We'll see.

Review: Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull

All right. Go ahead. Say it. I'm too young to REALLY understand Indiana Jones. I wasn't born when Raiders of the Lost Ark was released. I was an infant when Temple of Doom came out. I was only six when we got The Last Crusade. I didn't really grow up with Indiana. I just can't appreciate it at the same level you older folks can, those of you around to watch each successive movie unroll in the theaters.

I say nonsense! Sure, my experience with the trilogy is different. I watched Raiders of the Lost Ark for the first time on HBO. I had to sneak over to friend's house to watch Temple of Doom because my mom was worried it would be too scary for me (she was probably right considering I wasn't even 7 yet). I had to beg my mom to buy me a VHS copy of Last Crusade one afternoon at the grocery store. You're right; I missed them on the big screen. But can I even remember a time when there was no Indy? He was as much a part of my childhood as he was a part of your adolescence.

And now, this chance to FINALLY see Dr. Jones on the big screen, to finally see the adventure in its full and total glory, while the nostalgia may be different for me I promise you it means just as much. When that Paramount logo came up on the screen, the music queued, the lights dimmed, you can bet I was quivering with barely contained excitement and slight trepidation.

What was going to happen? Was Kingdom of The Crystal Skull going to be all that I love about Indiana Jones? Or was it going to be another Episode I? Did I keep myself awake, drag myself to another midnight screening, only to be bitterly disappointed as I was when Lucas murdered Star Wars? (After Episode I I’ve only gone to one other midnight screening, Harry Potter and the Order of The Phoenix, because I was so upset by how awful Star Wars turned out to be).

I blinked as a blinding desert sun filled the screen. A group of kids speeds down the highway. They weave in and out of convoy of military vehicles. As they pull to the front car, daring the driver to race, one of the kids shouts, "Hey, what do you got in there?"

What indeed? Oh I knew. I bet you can guess.

The year is 1957. War World II is over but the Cold War is in full swing. Nazis are now out of the picture but that's okay. We've got the commies instead. We find Indiana kidnapped by the Russians, searching a military warehouse for a mysterious crate, escaping them only to come under suspicion by the FBI in an atmosphere filled with McCarthyism's paranoia. Of course Dr. Jones is going to say forget this, I'm leaving town. But as the train is about to pull out of the station a reckless young man demands his attention and drags Dr. Jones into a search for a missing friend, the boys mother (guess who that is and where that plot line is going), and the mysterious "Crystal Skull". The KGB is not far behind and we soon find ourselves neck deep in the Amazon searching for a lost city of gold.

The hardest thing about a movie featuring such an iconic character coming so long after the original installments is that so much has changed over the last twenty years. I'm no longer a kid pretending there's lava under my swing set, Harrison Ford is passing his prime, George Lucas has proved himself a hack and Stephen Spielberg has moved from the immense creativity of Jaws to the nonsense of War of the Worlds. The technology has changes, the techniques have changed, the world itself has changed. There was so much room for so much to go so wrong.

Instead, they manage to make it go right. Unlike the first three movies, which contain elements of the mystical but still stay relatively grounded in a feeling of realism, Kingdom of the Crystal Skull establishes a level of ridiculousness and absurd energy from the very beginning. This complete departure to fantasy works because the energy is maintained for the entire duration. Sure it requires suspension of disbelief, more than even the originals, but once I suspended it I could keep it suspended. A world is established, we are given rules for that world, and those rules are respected. That in and of itself I appreciate.

Don't get me wrong, Indiana Jones and The Kingdom of The Crystal skull is completely gooftacular. Shia LeBeouf's character is named "Mutt". He swings through tress like Tarzan. Indiana, Mutt, and Marion get sucked down not one, not two, but three waterfalls. There are aliens!!!

The thing is, like I said, we're told from the very beginning what it is that we're getting into. The goofiness becomes the fun. It is part of this movies charm. The plot is silly but the silliness had me smiling and laughing and thoroughly enjoying myself.

I think the only possible way that an Indiana Jones movie this long after The Last Crusade was released in 1989 would work is if Spielberg and Lucas embraced the elements the elements of fantasy from the originals. Which is exactly what they did. They ran with it and it looks like they had a lot of fun in the process. If seriousness won't work, then take it over the top. Run with it.

At the same time the story went over the top, Spielberg returned to his roots. He and cinematographer Janusz Kaminski were very careful to stay faithful to the tone and style of the original movies. The result is one good-looking movie. Beyond just looking good though, it's actually just plain well crafted.

There is a moment when Mutt and Indy are crawling through a dark tomb, their fingers tracing along artifacts, the light from torches flickering on the walls. I thought to myself "Okay, this is where the movie starts to feel long. This is where I wish they would cut out fifteen minutes." Only... that never happened. The moment in the tomb lasts for just the right amount of time and then it's over. We move on. The craft of filmmaking is something that Spielberg knows and in his return to a younger version of himself he remembers everything he used to do so right. Yes we're seeing a young story through an old lens but trust me. Just like Mutt has a lot to learn from that "Old Man" Henry "Indiana" Jones, all of these new action filmmakers could stand to learn a thing or two from this old man Spielberg. He respects the integrity of form, he knows when to cut a scene, when to have a longer take, how to follow the rules of filmmaking. You need to understand the rules before you can properly break them. Our current crop of directors needs to learn the longer is not necessarily better.

And all of those fun haters out there can just get over it. It's hot outside. Our economy sucks. This movie is escapist fantasy pure and simple. I love Harrison Ford coming back as Indiana Jones, an older and stiffer Indiana for sure but one who can still pack a punch. I like Shia LeBeouf as the young sidekick probably thrown in just to attract that younger audience. I'm so happy to see Karen Allen come back that I could have cried (Marion and Indy are one of my favorite movie couples ever). I even like Cate Blanchett in a role that could have been simply a cookie cutter villain. She manages to make it more.

Age is the theme for this Indiana Jones. Older filmmakers, an older hero, an old love story. None of this is a bad thing. No one should be worried about whether or not this will appeal to a younger audience. I can't deny that it's a film made for the fans but it's a film that's made well and with love. Anyway, who out there isn't a fan of Indiana Jones? Don't expect the serious; just enjoy the ride.

Trailers: Tropic Thunder

I finally found a trailer so good that it's actually distracted me from the Dark Knight. Who knew that was even possible? But really, this little taste of brilliance is one of the funniest things I've seen in a damn long time. I almost fell out of my chair.

It's actually the second trailer out for Tropic Thunder but the first one didn't even really put this film on my radar. This one has jumped Tropic Thunder up to the top of my list of movies I'm excited about (well not higher than Dark Knight, but you know...).

And here it is, the red band trailer for Tropic Thunder:

ALSO, DEFINITELY NSFW. YOU ARE WARNED :)




For a larger look head over to Film School Rejects.

Thoughts: My Weekend in Film 5/5

I've just got to start this out by saying I am completely exhausted. I'm not even sure what happened this weekend, it was just a lot. There were house guests and social activities. There was the beach and the pool, shopping, a picnic, hang outs. There was food. And, as always, there were movies.

Thursday PM:



Technically the weekend doesn't start until Friday. Technically. And even though I did work on Friday, Thursday night's adventures at the cineplex felt like a weekend kick-off to me. Just like it was the summer movie season kick-off.

I all ready posted my Review of Iron Man so I'm not going to talk too much about it. I just want to say again that this movie is Fun. With a capital "F". It's not great but it is pretty perfect for what it's trying to be. A superhero movie with awesome effects and a lot of action. I love Robert Downey Jr and personally I think he makes the movie. It could have been slightly improved with a shorter running time but in the end it's worth seeing on the big screen.

Friday PM:



Made it to disc 3 of Season 1 of The Tudors. I'm definitely getting more into the show. The episodes I watched covered the outbreak of the sweat. At this point the drama is building, there are a couple of more story lines unfolding, and everything is being given more depth. I'm almost done with Season 1 now which is unfortunate since I still don't actually have Showtime. Oh well, Season 2 will be out on DVD eventually.



After The Tudors my roommate joined me and we put Mr. Bourdain back on the TV. I love having the DVR. We watched a few more episodes of No Reservations but that, along with Sex and The City, is an almost daily occurrence. I think we actually watched at least an episode every day this weekend. Friday night was Sweden. We also caught an Italy episode, another New York episode, and a couple of others. Good times.

I know I say a lot how much I like this show, but I just want to keep saying it! What really makes it is Tony's charming personality, the writing, and the locations. And Tony's reactions to all of the locations. One of these days I will actually pick up his book. And while I am not a fan of working in Reality TV (not that that's prevented me from being here) I would love to work on No Reservations. I think that would certainly be an adventure.

After No Reservations and a couple of beers I was ready for sleep. It was about midnight and after working all week I'm usually really tired on Friday nights.

Not that my going to bed meant the night was over. In fact, it was far it...

Saturday Super Early AM:

Around 2:30 AM my other roommate came home with a couple of Scottish boys in tow. I think she found one of them at Coachella the other weekend. Anyway, instead of sleeping I hung out, drank more beer, listened to a lot of music, and eventually stuck on a movie.

Now, what kind of movie would you put on at 6 in the morning, a little drunk, extremely sleepy, and in the company of a Scottish Italian? A Clint Eastwood western of course!



That's right, Sergio Leone's classic The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly.

I adore Clint Eastwood, especially his appearances in the westerns. The Good, The Bad, And The Ugly is easily one of the best. Angel Eyes, Tuco, and Blondie. Of course Blondie. Lee Van Cleef, Eli Wallach, and Clint Eastwood. This casting is perfect, the chemistry is there, these men are rough. Gunslingers.

I'll be honest and say that I fell asleep before the end. It was 6 AM after all. But for Morricone's score alone it was the perfect choice. I love the music and with that in my ears and Clint's face floating through my blurry vision I fell happily comfortably asleep.

For a few hours at least...

Saturday:

Didn't watch anything. Not really. Turned the TV on a couple of times. There was a little bit of Scrubs, a little Sex and The City, some more No Reservations. Mostly though I was off doing other things and being social. Go figure.

Sunday PM:

Again, most of my day Sunday was spent out and about so I didn't watch anything during the day. After the day out and my picnic dinner by the Marina I was ready for some couch time.



I finally put in Once. And then my roommate brought the Scottish boys back and I couldn't for the life of me tell you anything about the movie. I got a good way through but really wasn't following so I hit the stop button. I'll try again this week.

I can say this though, I love the music! I'm actually really excited to actually watch this thing, especially now that I've heard a bit of it. I also have a feeling that I'll be purchasing that soundtrack. Probably sometime very soon.

After a while the Scottish boys left with roommate J and we finally had the couch returned to us. Roommate K and I watched a little Family Guy and then I introduced her to the crazy that is Aqua Teen Hunger Force.



I haven't watched the show in a while, I haven't even seen the movie, but I adore everything that I have seen. I think it's hilarious and nuts and it entertains me. Knowing my roommate, I was really surprised she had never seen it. It's just right up her alley. I'm now on a mission to make her watch a lot of it. A LOT.

Sunday Late PM:

Eventually she gave in to the tired and the TV was mine. I wasn't quite ready for sleep yet so I switched on Aliens (it was playing on Fox Movie Channel). I've always loved Aliens but it's been a long while since I've seen. Watching it again last night... I had forgotten how amazingly good it actually is.



James Cameron gives us a work of brilliance. Aliens is arguably one of the best sequels ever made. It fits so perfectly into the universe that Ridley Scott established in Alien but gives us something new. It's a formula that I've seen countless times since but I can't think of a single example that comes close to getting it as right as Cameron does. There's a reason the first two Alien movies are two of my favorite movies ever. Watching Aliens again last night just reminded me why that was.

On The Slate:

Once - Now I've seen a bit of it I'm all anxious to watch all of it. Hopefully I can actually make that happen this week.

Paris, Texas - Wim Wenders's classic road movie. In the mail from Netflix.

Batman - Tim Burton's original. With all of the Batman talk K and I are both feeling this journey back to the beginning. Some don't think it holds up but I'm still a fan.

Not sure what else. Gossip Girl tonight, Top Chef on Wednesday. Maybe some Grey's. And possibly a few other movies thrown in. I'm all in the mood to watch Alien again now.

Hopefully there will be a little sleep mixed in there as well. I think I definitely need some.

Review: Iron Man

And Summer 2008 at the movies has officially begun.

What can I say about this season’s opener, Iron Man? A few things, some good, some not so good. The one thing that matters though: if this is just the beginning of what we’ll be getting over the next few months, then it’s going to be one hell of a summer.

In this latest of the comic book adaptations we’ve gotten over the last few years, we meet Tony Stark. He’s a billionaire playboy at the head of a weapons manufacturing dynasty. A genius (and possibly borderline sociopath) Tony takes life for granted and gets off more when he blows something up than when he, ah, lays someone down.

The story of Iron Man is simple. This carefree lothario is ambushed in the desert, taken prisoner by Middle Eastern terrorists, and has a revelation that yes, his weapons are in fact hurting the world. He builds a ridiculous “iron” suit, escapes, learns how to fly; there’s a bad guy, a cute girl, and lots of explosions.

That, my friends, is that.

But let’s face it, we don’t go to see a movie like Iron Man for its in-depth plot, complicated characters, or social commentary. We go for the explosions, the shiny lights, and the other absurd effects. So the question then is, does Iron Man deliver?

On the surface it does. By it’s nature, to a certain extent, that’s all that matters. The effects are spot on. The score is appropriately rock & roll and adrenaline pumping. The cinematography is actually quite good (thank you Mr. Libatique!). The acting is… certainly it’s not bad. Okay, the acting is fine. Continuing with the theme of shallow, there just isn’t a lot for these actors to do.

Actually, I was surprised when I first learned of this film’s cast. Robert Downey Jr., Gwyneth Paltrow, Jeff Bridges. You really don’t need that kind of talent in a film of this caliber. But then again maybe that’s the difference between something like this and, say, Fantastic Four. Or Daredevil. Perhaps those movies would have reached the level of Watchablity if they had been filled with more talented casts. As I’ve said in the past, Jessica Alba may be pretty to look at but pretty is about all that girl’s got going for her. So by casting someone like Downey as Tony Stark, someone who’s charm is so easy and natural it’s nearly impossible to temper, John Favreau astutely made the decisions that elevated what would have otherwise been another depressing waste of celluloid into something at the very least entertaining.

That is what Iron Man has going for it. Where does it fall short?

Iron Man is missing the key factor that makes other comic book adaptation successes like the first two Spiderman movies, X-Men, and Batman Begins. Yes, those are good, occasionally even great, films and Iron Man is not on their level for many reasons. But there is one thing above all others that keeps it from crossing that threshold into the realm of greatness. Those other movies are able to go beyond their stories of super heroes and evil villains. They have more to them than just the age-old story of Good vs. Evil. They take their archetypes and they make them Human. They are able to appeal to an audience wider than the fan boys and comic book lovers and special effects freaks. Iron Man fails to move beyond explosions into humanity.

One prime example of this failure, and the thing that bothered me most, is its treatment of the terrorists or insurgents or warlords or whoever they were supposed to be. The men who initially take Stark captive are simple caricatures of the people in the Middle East who we are currently at war with. And yes, I know there’s a long history of dehumanizing the enemy in cinema. We’re about to see another entry into another franchise that is built on this very practice (“I hate Nazis” anyone? You know who I’m talking about). However, I feel like Iron Man takes this simplification too far. Our involvement in the Middle East is complicated and it made me uncomfortable to watch such a crude portrayal of our “enemy”. I can give the film credit and say that it at least moves past this by the end, after we’ve been introduced to the real villain, but I still think that it could have been handled better.

All in all though, Iron Man gives us what it promised it would: the flashy explosions, the badass (and gorgeous and sexy) hero, the epic final battle, and plenty of fan service. It is what it is. A simple action movie. A comic book adaptation. Fodder for sequels and spin offs. And it is wildly entertaining. It made me smile more than it made me cringe and sometimes that’s enough.

If you only see one movie this summer, this is certainly NOT the movie to see. But it looks great on the big screen and tastes good with some popcorn and soda. For a fun start to the summer season, check it out.

If nothing else, you get a few amazing trailers to go along with it.

Production: The Book of Caleb

Way back in the fall of 2005 I left the comforts of my parents house in warm, sunny south Florida to spend the winter in the cold of Bucks County, Pennsylvania. I drove over twenty hours in order to work on my very first feature film. I was to be the script supervisor on the ultra low budget indie The Book Of Caleb. Written and directed by FSU alum Matt Manahan, The Book of Caleb was a production unlike any I've seen or been a part of since.

It was run incredibly professionally, crewed with immense talent, fueled by passion. And done on a tiny budget that shouldn't have allowed most of the things we accomplished to occur.

Now, after a long wait and much anticipation, The Book of Caleb is finished. I'm incredibly excited for Matt and everyone else who has spent countless hours putting this thing together. And I just wanted to share my excitement and spread the love.

So go visit them at their website. And if you want to see it, check them out at From Here To Awesome. Or even at YouTube.

For your viewing pleasure, a taste:

Thoughts: Heath Ledger

I was talking to a friend of mine a few weeks ago about The Dark Knight. It was just after I had finally seen the trailer on the big screen and I had to share my excitement with someone. The Dark Knight looks fantastic but there was one thing in the trailer that had really gotten us both going. Or rather, one person. I don't think I need to tell you who that was.

Last week I was sitting at my desk, muddling through my To Do List. Our Assistant Location Manager came in and made an announcement. "Did you guys here about Heath Ledger? They just found him dead in his apartment."

Wait. What?

I've been wanting to write something about Heath Ledger. Something about how saddened I am by his death. Something about how he was one of the few young actors that I was truly excited about. Maybe even something about how, purely selfishly, I'm incredibly disappointed that I will never have the opportunity to work with him.

However, what do I really have to say that no one else can say? When it comes down to it, I didn't know the guy. I've never even seen him in real life. I just know and respect his work. I appreciate his talent. But I have nothing really beyond that to say.

So rather than just being another fan lamenting his death, I'll say simply that I'm sorry he's gone. I feel for his family and friends. And I'm sorry that we won't have any more of his work to look forward to after this summer's Dark Knight.

Now while I can't really say much more than that, someone who knew him most certainly can. I'll leave you here with this then. A very nice piece by The Dark Knight's director, the wonderful Christopher Nolan.

Heath Ledger: dedication and passion of a star

Trailers: The Dark Knight

We've seen stills. We've seen posters. And now, finally, we get the trailer.

The Trailer.

A goodness me. Where do I even begin? Oh Heath Ledger. You're creating many an inappropriate feeling in myself and my friends. I cannot wait to see your Joker on the big screen. I may not be able to contain my excitement.

Review: 3:10 To Yuma

Cross posted at Epinions



3:10. It’s the time the train to Yuma Prison arrives in Contention. The air is silent. The men are still. The guns are cocked. The clock is ticking. Praying won’t stop time. 3:10 is coming. Death may be coming with it.

3:10 To Yuma is remake of the 1957 Glenn Ford film and both versions are based on the story by Elmore Leonard. It is the story of gunman Ben Wade and rancher Dan Evans. Wade is caught after robbing a Pinkerton coach with his gang. Evans volunteers to join the posse escorting Wade to Contention. As they move closer to Contention and the 3:10 train, as Wade’s gang closes in on them, as they face a myriad of other difficulties in the wild west, it all comes down to a battle of wills between Wade and Evans. When it’s no longer about the money that will save Evans’s dying ranch, will Evans still make that walk to the train with Wade? When the guns are all pointed in his direction and death seems like the only option, will Evans still make his stand?

What makes a hero? Where is the line between right and wrong? When both sides are comprised of evil men, where do you make your stand? What do you fight for? What do you die for?

3:10 is about the battle of wills; it is about these two characters, men so different that they may actually be a bit the same. Russell Crowe is Ben Wade and Christian Bale is Dan Evans. If you’re not convinced to go see this movie right there, well, you should be. While I’m not always a fan of Crowe I think he is perfect for the Western genre. He has a roughness about him, that dangerous gleam in his eye. He belongs in the untamed, lawless lands, of the old west. He looks like a gunslinger. Christian Bale on the other hand is just brilliant. He is one of the best actors working today and I will see him in pretty much anything. Put the two of them together and nothing else matters. What you are going to see will be brilliant.

Not to say that it is going to be perfect. 3:10 To Yuma is not. There are a lot of problems with the film. I really was not a fan of the script for one thing. I don’t think it was very well written, there were a few plot elements that didn’t work for me, character development wasn’t great. The only thing that saves the story is the performances by the two lead actors. If it wasn’t for Crowe and Bale this would have been a mediocre film at best.

The other performances are all solid. Logan Lerman (The Butterfly Effect) is good as Dan’s son William. Ben Foster’s performance as Wade’s second in command, the psychopath Charlie Prince, is right up there with Crowe’s and Bale’s. Peter Fonda, Dallas Roberts, Alan Tudyk (Serenity), Gretchen Mol, and Kevin Durand are all solid as well. I think Mol, Lerman, and Benjamin Petry, who plays Dan’s younger son Mark, would have all benefited from better writing. As it is they’re all good. They just could have been better. The same goes for several of the other actors.

There is a tense moment when Wade and Evans have taken cover from gunfire. They crouch low together, catching their breaths. Evans is filthy and bleeding, Wade has been shot. Evans looks at Wade and tells him that he is not stubborn. He tries to explain to Wade why saving a small piece of dessert land is so important to him, what it means. Wade’s response? “Why are you telling me this?” Evans: “I don’t know.”

My point exactly. Why are we being told these things? A major flaw of this script is how much is just told to us through dialogue. I don’t want to be told about it, I want to see it. I want the story to evolve out of the visuals and the actions. I don’t want to be told who these men are. I want to discover who they are, I want to believe. Telling me story after sad story doesn’t help me get into a character’s head. His actions do that. It’s the bits that are unsaid that make a character into something more.

The cinematography and direction are not the best either. Director James Mangold and cinematographer Phedon Papamichael do not impress me. They did a great job working together on Walk The Line. However, for this film I don’t feel like they really grasped the needs of the story. I don’t really like a lot of the handheld, shaky camera work, especially during the beginning sequence. I found it to be incredibly distracting and off-putting. This improves as the film goes on but I don’t think the visuals are ever as good as they can be. There are a couple of explosions, one of which I definitely did not need. And as much shooting as there is, I almost wanted there to be more (more shooting but a little less gory blood. I like gore but here it felt unnecessary). Of course, that does go back to character development. At the end I did understand what they were going for but I’m still not sure I like how they went about it.

I did really enjoy the music though. The score by Marcos Beltrami is fantastic. It’s the kind of music you want to hear in a western. It complements the action and sets the tone. It just fits.

As a fan of westerns, especially Clint Eastwood’s, there was no way I was not going to see this movie. Especially with it’s cast. While I do think it could have been better, in the end I am happy with it. Again, that is almost completely due to Russell Crowe and Christian Bale. I’ve been a fan of Crowe in the western genre ever since Sam Raimi’s Quick and The Dead. I’ve been a fan of Christian Bale since I was a kid watching Newsies. Seeing them together is an absolute pleasure. 3:10 To Yuma is worth it for that alone.