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April 2008
July’s Summer Movies: Will Smith and Batman, etc.
As temperatures rise in July, so do the number of summer movies. July’s list brings us not one, not two, but three superhero movies, a musical not being sold as such, and the return of a TV show turned movie that might be too little, too late.
Looking back: May movies and June movies.
JULY 2 (Wednesday)
The lowdown: Will Smith plays a superhero that’s neither very super, nor much of a hero - until a PR man tries to make him over.
The box office: $225-$250 million
The forecast: By now, putting Will Smith in a summer movie is like shooting fish in a barrel. Even Wild Wild West pulled down $113 million. So Smith deserves credit for taking on a project as challenging as this one. It will be tough to maintain the tone between heroics and comedy , but I think Smith and his very inventive director, Peter Berg (The Kingdom), will pull it off.
The prospect: A
Kit Kittredge: An American Girl
The lowdown: After being relegated to the small screen for years, the beloved doll line and book series gets its first feature film.
The box office: $30 million
The forecast: Some may roll their eyes at more dolls being turned into movies, but trust me - this isn’t BRATZ all over again. Sure, it skews young, but the movie has a surprisingly good cast, including Abigail Breslin, Joan Cusack and Stanley Tucci. And its Cincinnati setting is an added bonus for us locals. Why look, you can even see Middletown on a map at 1:20 in the trailer!
The prospect: B
JULY 11
The lowdown: Everybody’s favorite red-skinned, horned hero and his buddies try to stop an evil dictator.
The box office: $75 million
The forecast: Guillermo del Toro is a genius; his last film, Pan’s Labyrinth was a masterpiece. However, Hellboy was not one of his best films, and I’m a little puzzled as to why a sequel to a movie that made only $60 million as a spring release is suddenly considered big enough to compete in the summer and open a week before Batman. I’ll see it, but I’m afraid the geek appeal is being grossly overestimated here.
The prospect: B
Journey to the Center of the Earth
The lowdown: The Jules Verne classic gets a digital 3D makeover.
The box office: $50 million
The forecast: Might be good, clean fun, but this feels more like a gimmick than a full-on movie. If it had a more experienced director than a VFX supervisor (Eric Brevig), I might feel more confident. But …
The prospect: C
The lowdown: Eddie Murphy plays multiple roles yet again, where has character is actually a starship populated by a tiny version of him. It’s a bit like Innerspace crossed with the best scene of Woody Allen’s Everything You Always Wanted to Know About Sex (But Were Afraid to Ask.)
The box office: $100 million
The forecast: The idea has potential, but when was the last time Eddie Murphy delivered a truly inspired live action comedy? By my count, it was Bowfinger, way back in 1999. Two things are especially discouraging: the title was neutered from the much cleverer Starship Dave (such futzing is often a bad sign) and the director is the same guy who made Norbit. Still, if that … thing made $95 million, I suppose this can do a little better in summer.
The prospect: C
JULY 18
The lowdown: The Batman+The Joker+Chistopher Nolan+curiosity seekers = wow.
The box office: $270 million
The forecast: Even before Heath Ledger’s sudden death, the buzz was that his performance as the Joker would be iconic. Now that he’s gone, the movie’s going to attract crowds it might not have - plus I have this sneaking suspicion that the movie just might be one of the best superhero films ever made. The long trailer that played in front of IMAX screenings of I Am Legend was stunning. IMAX screenings will only boost the gross, especially considering this is the first Hollywood feature to shoot sequences using IMAX cameras. The rumored running time seems a bit long at 152 minutes, but I trust director Christopher Nolan will justify it.
The prospect: A
The lowdown: The ABBA-inspired musical comes to the big screen, with Meryl Streep and Pierce Brosnan in tow. A young girl (Amanda Seyfried of Mean Girls) is trying to figure out who her real dad is, so she invites all three candidates to her wedding.
The box office: $60 million
The forecast: Lots of people like ABBA and the musical was a big hit, so why is Universal trying to hide the fact their movie is a musical, just like Paramount did with Sweeney Todd? I don’t think it’s smart counter-programming to put it against Batman; I would have waited until fall.
The prospect: B
The lowdown: An animated movie about, well, chimps in space.
The box office: $20 million
The forecast: From the team that brought you Valiant. And Valiant is SUCH a well-loved treasure. I’d like to buy a “u” for the title, Pat.
The prospect: D
JULY 25
The lowdown: Fred Durst (yes, that guy) directs Ice Cube in a family comedy.
The box office: $30 million
The forecast: I say again, Fred Durst (yes, that guy) directs Ice Cube in a family comedy.
The prospect: D
The lowdown: Two men (Will Ferrell and John C. Reilly) become sibling rivals after their respective single parents marry.
The box office: $100 million
The forecast: The film doesn’t have an easy hook like Talladega Nights or Anchorman, and maybe that’s a good thing. At least Ferrell and company aren’t taking the obvious road. Still, I’ve long given up hope of being entertained by Ferrell, who has simply annoyed me about 2,386 times too many.
The prospect: C
The X-Files: I Want to Believe
The lowdown: Shh! It’s a seeeeecret!
The box office: $65 million
The forecast: This smells like Serenity all over again, only with a bigger gross, because the X-Files TV series, unlike Firefly, was a bona-fide hit. Still, I’m thinking only the geeks care. And aren’t the filmmakers kind of asking for it with that title?
The prospect: C
Chime in, readers- what’s worth checking out, or skipping? Am I over- or underestimating anything?
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June’s summer movies: WALL-E, Get Smart, etc.
June is a transitional month for summer movies, traditionally offering mid-level hits sandwiched in between the heavier hitters of May and July. At the end of the month, I expect there to be one giant hit.
Here’s my May forecast.
JUNE 6
The lowdown: Jack Back plays a panda trained in martial arts.
The box office: $180-200 million
The forecast: When I first saw the posters, I thought, “THAT’S the big summer movie from DreamWorks?” But then the very amusing ads started to win me over. I hope it’s more Over the Hedge than Madagascar.
The prospect: B
The lowdown: Adam Sandler plays a Mossad agent who reinvents himself as a hairstylist.
The box office: $90 million
The forecast: “Adam Sandler plays a Mossad agent who reinvents himself as a hairstylist.” Huh? The good news here is that Sandler co-wrote this with comedy god of the moment, Judd Apatow. The bad news is, it’s directed by Dennis Dugan, a member of Sandler’s stable of anonymous hacks. Think that doesn’t make a difference? Consider that Steven Brill, another member of that stable, made Drillbit Tayor, the Apatow-backed movie that made most people say “Meh” at best. I’m curious but leery.
The prospect: C
JUNE 13
The lowdown: M. Night Shyamalan returns with another world in peril thriller, this time apparently focusing on some kind of natural disaster. Mark Wahlberg and Zooey Deschanel star.
The box office: $100 million - maybe higher if it delivers
The forecast: This may be the single biggest question mark of the whole summer. After the fiasco that was Lady in the Water, Shyamalan seems to be retrenching to scary thrillers, which seems to be the right move, but will it be enough damage control? Right now it’s just too early to tell. Here’s a curio: word has it this will be his first R-rated film.
The prospect: B
The lowdown: He’s mean, and green, and he is … well, hopefully not as bad as most people thought he was last time.
The box office: $100 million
The forecast: OK, supposedly this time you’ve got more action in your Hulk movie after people complained the Ang Lee film was too slow and dour. Given all the reports of strife surrounding this do-over, I’m concerned Marvel may have erred too far in the other direction and dumbed it down. I’ll see it, but I’m worried.
The prospect: B
JUNE 20
The lowdown: It’s another remake of a beloved TV series, with Steve Carell and Anne Hathaway in the leads.
The box office: $125 million
The forecast: Simply put, the trailers are very funny. If the film is as clever as its ad campaign, this movie could be even bigger than some predict.
The prospect: B
The lowdown: Mike Meyers returns to live action comedy, playing the bearded title character who tries to help a hockey player.
The box office: $60 million, tops
The forecast: Meyers looks ugly and so does this movie. The godawful trailer gives me Cat in the Hat flashbacks. Somebody needs to tell Mike that donning makeup and talking in a funny voice just aren’t enough.
The prospect: D
JUNE 27
The lowdown: A robot janitor who remains on Earth long after the human race has left finds out what he was meant to do.
The box office: $250 million
The forecast: Pixar+robots=easy sell. I’ve heard many people say they want a WALL-E of their very own already. Still, Pixar is taking a bit of a gamble on this one by having very little human dialogue. Can Pixar make material like this work for 90 minutes plus?
I’m thinking yeah.
The prospect: A
The lowdown: James McAvoy gets sucked into his dad’s super-secret assassination organization, with an uber-babe, Angelina Jolie, as a partner.
The box office: $50 million
The forecast: I’ll admit the trailer looks like this might be loopy fun, but still - this has “been there, done that” written all over it. This will get lost in the shuffle.
Tomorrow: July’s movies, including Hancock and The Dark Knight.
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Today’s DVDs: A must-see this week
This week’s DVD roster brings us a brilliant film I urge everyone to see, so first thing’s first:
The Diving Bell and the Butterfly: This is the true story of French Elle Editor Jean-Dominique Bauby, who suffered a stroke and was completely paralyzed, except for one eyelid; he could only communicate by blinking. Via some striking visuals by director Julian Schnabel and cinematographer Janusz Kaminski (both of whom earned well-deserved Oscar nominations), this extraordinary film boldly puts us inside Bauby’s head so we can feel what it is like to be him. That means the film can be an endurance, but that’s as it should be - it makes the film deeply moving. This will be in my top 5 this year, guaranteed. GRADE: A+
The Golden Compass: This adaptation of the Philip Pullman novel attracted all kinds of attention for supposedly being an atheist tract - then the mediocre movie came out and nobody cared. Full review: GRADE: C
27 Dresses: A fairly standard romantic comedy about a woman who is eternally a bridesmaid gets a lift from solid performances by Katherine Heigl and James Marsden. GRADE: B
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Victoria makes a change to film program
Just got this blog comment from Eric Brockman, spokesman for the Victoria Theatre Association, RE this summer’s Ultra Cool Film Series and the version of Little Women that was to be shown. The 1949 film was part of the lineup, and myself and some commenters remarked it was too bad Victoria wasn’t playing the earlier version with Katharine Hepburn, which is considered superior.
That has apparently changed. Here’s the comment, on my original post about this series:
Hello film buffs: You spoke - we listened! We were able to find a copy of the 1933 version of “Little Women” with Katharine Hepburn, which we will be showing this summer. Be sure to stop by www.victoriatheatre.com/michelob.php for the latest info on our film series, including video clips, a new blog, and some cool trivia contests we will be starting next month. - Eric Brockman, Victoria Theatre Association
I don’t see that the change his been made to the Web site just yet; but all the same, it’s great to know we have a voice, and even better to know we were heard. I offer my thanks to Victoria for making an already great lineup that much better.
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May’s summer movies: Iron Man, Indy and more
Well, folks, break out the sunglasses, the towels and the sandals - summer is here!
Oh wait, no, not that kind of summer. Break out the popcorn, the candy - and a big chunk of money - because the summer movie season starts this Friday.
All week long on the blog, if all goes according to plan, I will forecast the summer movies, tackling one month per day, and topping e’m all off with my review of Iron Man on Friday. So that means that today I will tackle May’s movies.
Each movie will receive a prospect grade. This does NOT indicate how well I think the movie will do at the box office, but rather, how anxious I am to see it, according to the following scale:
A = I want to see it yesterday!
B = Not a must-see, but looks solidly entertaining.
C = Have a day.
D = D is for dreadful, dumb, dopey, dreary …
F = There’s a better chance at getting a date with Amy Adams than seeing this.
However , for the first time, I will also include a ROUGH box office estimate. I’m not great with numbers, so when I turn out to be wrong, I shall blame my inferior math skills. Do NOT place any bets based on my numbers; I won’t take that responsibility.
On with the shows:
MAY 2
The lowdown: Man in metal suit flies around a lot and blows things up.
The box office: $200 million
The forecast: The trailers are dynamite; Robert Downey Jr. seems to be having entirely too much fun in the lead. Gwyneth Paltrow only sweetens the deal. And this could make director Jon Favreau (Elf, the grossly underrated Zathura) into an A-list director. Early reviews are very promising, and pent-up demand for a solid E-ticket attraction will boost its numbers.
The prospect: A
The lowdown: Patrick Dempsey realizes he’s in love with best bud Michelle Monaghan, then she goes and gets engaged to someone else.
The box office: Maybe $50M if they’re lucky.
The forecast: Patrick Dempsey already showed he can carry a romance with Enchanted, and Monaghan has enough charisma to be a bigger star, but what is one to think when the filmmakers’ credits include Surviving Christmas and Leonard Part 6?
The prospect: C
MAY 9
The lowdown: The Japanese animated toon comes to the big screen courtesy of the Matrix team.
The box office: $130-$150 M
The forecast: The candy-colored effects certainly look wild, although how much mileage the Wachowskis can get out of this is anyone’s guess. The marketing seems slightly confused, in that they seem to be aiming for families, but interest is high among older audiences. A real wild card.
The Prospect: B
The lowdown: Ashton Kutcher and Cameron Diaz marry each other in a drunken haze, then have to make the marriage work for real to split millions Kutcher wins. So it’s kinda like “Britney’s First Wedding: The Movie.”
The box office: Around $60 million
The forecast: The trailer seemed flat to me, but this is developing pretty decent buzz, and some people seem to think it could actually beat Speed Racer on opening weekend. I’m not fully convinced, but it could break out.
The Prospect: B
MAY 16
The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian
The lowdown: The kids return to Narnia one year later in their time, but many, many years later in Narnia time, finding it in ruins. Can they help the prince claim his rightful place?
The box office: $250 million
The forecast: I liked but did not love the first movie; the sequel looks to have more action. However, I think it may do just a bit less well than its predecessor did, with only one week to go before Indy.
Prospect: B
MAY 22-23
Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull (on Thursday)
The lowdown: As if you didn’t know.
The box office: $350-$400 million.
The forecast: Will be HUGE even if Shia LaBeouf is the new Jar-Jar - which I highly doubt.
The prospect: A
Looking for you: Doctor Jones may not attract the kind of rabid followers Star Wars is famous for, but we know he has fans out there - and we want to hear from you for a story we’ll publish next month before the new movie comes out. Tell us: What makes Indy endure as he has? Do you have any Indiana Jones gear? Do you feel overshadowed by fans of more fanciful fare like Star Wars or Harry Potter?
And here’s an added bonus - if any of you are good with a whip, let us know - we’ve got a whip we’d like you to try out. We have no snakes, we promise.
Contact me (Eric Robinette) via email at erobinette@coxohio.com, or phone me at (513) 705-2836.
It’ll be fun - trust me.
Postal (on Friday)
The lowdown/the forecast: Uwe Boll directed. That’s all you (or I) need to know.
The box office: Less than $5 million
The prospect: F
MAY 30
The lowdown: The girls sashay onto the big screen in preparation of Carrie’s wedding to Mr. Big.
The box office: $90-$100 million
The forecast: Many people with no Y chromosomes are oooh-ing and aah-ing over this one; I have a feeling it will be much bigger than some observers expect.
The prospect: B
The lowdown: A couple (Scott Speedman and Liv Tyler) are holed up in a vacation home when they are terrorized by three unknown assailants.
The box office: $10 million, if that
The forecast: I don’t talk to strangers.
The prospect: F
So that’s May’s roster. What looks good? Not so good? What will you kill to see or die before seeing?
Coming Tuesday: June’s lineup, including Get Smart, WALL-E and The Incredible Hulk
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Tina Fey carries Baby Mama to mild laughs
I found Baby Mama mildly funny, but I might have found it hysterical if it were a Tina Fey movie instead of a movie with Tina Fey in it.
Let me explain the difference. There’s never really been a Tina Fey movie yet. The closest we’ve gotten is Mean Girls. She wasn’t the lead in that film, but it was still a Tina Fey movie of sorts because she wrote it, brilliantly adapting a nonfiction book about high school cliques.
Baby Mama, on the other hand, is a movie with Tina Fey in it. She makes for a very appealing leading lady, which helps Baby Mama succeed as well as it does. Nevertheless, something is missing, and that’s Fey’s sharpest wit. She didn’t write Baby Mama, except for an uncredited polish on a screenplay by her director and former Saturday Night Live colleague, Michael McCullers, who’s never directed before - and it shows.
McCullers’ premise certainly held promise. Fey plays a driven career woman who’s missing only one thing in life: a child. She’s not prone to conceiving, so she settles on a surrogate mom, an unscrupulous ne’er-do-well played by Fey’s former “Weekend Update” partner Amy Poehler, who is quite unsuited to motherhood, in more ways than one.
Unfortunately, McCullers is quite unsuited for directing. His timing on too many of the gags is sloppy, obvious, or both. When you can’t milk laughs out of Steve Martin, who plays Fey’s self-absorbed, Zen-like boss, your skills aren’t up to scratch.
McCullers relies too many times on a totally unnecessary doorman (Romany Malco) who basically spends the movie looking incredulous or saying variations of “Oh, hell no!” Other times, McCullers blows his gags. A scene of Poehler relieving herself in a sink might have been funnier if it had made sense for Fey to install a lock on the toilet months before the baby was due.
Despite these misfires, Poehler and Fey have undeniable chemistry. Their routines on “Weekend Update” were often the only funny parts of any given SNL episode. On the big screen, they’re still fun to watch, even with second-rate material. I wish Fey wasn’t so content to play the straight woman to Poehler’s wild child because Fey is funnier when she gets to crack jokes too, such as when she chides Poehler for finding America’s Funniest Home Videos to be the height of comedy. (“It’s a kid with a ball and a guy with a crotch. They’re going to hit.”)
Still, Fey has the chops to be a romantic lead, and Poehler surprised me by handling the emotional scenes just as well as she did the comic ones. These two are great together. Baby Mama shows they have potential to make something hilarious rather than mildly funny. All they need is a script and a director that they can carry to term. Maybe Fey might have done well to make What to Expect When You’re Expecting a laugh riot.
GRADE: B-
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Which summer movies will be hits/misses?
Next week on this blog I will preview the summer movies month by month in advance of my review of the first big’un, Iron Man. Before I get going on that, however, I wanted to get you all thinking about this year’s lineup and talk about which summer movies are going to be blockbusters, and which will simply be busts.
Here’s how I break down some of the highlights of summer. I’ll tackle the whole list next week.
MOST LIKELY TO SUCCEED: Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull - George Lucas may already be steeling himself for complaints about the movie (guess all the griping about the Star Wars prequels got to him). Still, even IF …. IF people perceive this movie as a Phantom Menace-level disappointment, it still clears $300 million. You can take that to the bank. After all, Phantom Menace cleared $400 million, and people talk about it like it should have made 40 cents.
MOST LIKELY TO BE THE BEST MOVIE: WALL-E - The folks at Pixar are geniuses, plain and simple. They’re taking a bit of a gamble by making the movie almost dialogue-free, but if anyone can sell that, it’s these guys.
EVEN BIGGER THAN PEOPLE THINK: Sex and the City - No other film so squarely hits the sweet spot for women this year. When I saw its trailer in front of Definitely, Maybe, EVERY female in the audience went “OOOOOOO!”
NOT AS BIG AS PEOPLE THINK: The X Files: I Want to Believe: Sure, the geeks will come out, but what about everyone else? The first movie didn’t quite make it to $85 million.
MOST LIKELY TO DISAPPOINT (again): The Incredible Hulk, for reasons already stated.
MOST LIKELY STAR VEHICLE TO FAIL: The Love Guru - Have you SEEN the trailer? Ack. And putting it directly against the much funnier-looking Get Smart seems like suicide.
MOST LIKELY TO BE THE WORST MOVIE: Postal - Uwe Boll-S*
Talk back and tell me which summer movies will either ring your bell or hit the gong. Click here for a list to jog your memory.
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Only one more week of “meh” openings!
No, it’s not QUITE summertime yet (by Hollywood standards, anyway) so there’s one more week of take-em-or-leave-em attractions.
Baby Mama: The old Weekend Update crew at SNL, Tina Fey and Amy Poehler, go all maternal when Poehler agrees to be Fey’s surrogate mom. I’ll deliver my review tomorrow.
Deception: An accountant (Ewen McGregor) is introduced to a mysterious sex club by his new lawyer friend (Jackman). But McGregor becomes the prime suspect in a woman’s disappearance and a multi-million dollar heist. Lots of talent here, so why isn’t this being screened for critics? Funny net flub of the week: the “review” on Rotten Tomatoes by Glenn Erickson links to his DVD review of Deception - the 1946 movie with Bette Davis. Whoops!
Harold and Kumar Escape from Guantanamo Bay: I really don’t have much to say about this movie, except to ask a question: Do you have to have been stoned at least once in your life to find these guys funny?
That’s it for now. Get ready for next week when I review the movie I’m sure you’re all chomping at the BIT to see, Made of Honor, with Patrick Dempsey!
(Insert awkward pause here)
Just kidding! I’ll review the movie about the flying metal guy. In fact, I’m hearing that buzz is so strong on Iron Man that Paramount MIGHT have Thursday evening shows. I’ll keep you posted.
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How to spend 24 hours in a movie theater
When you become lucky enough to make movie-watching part of your job, as I have, the prospect of spending 24 hours straight in a movie theater must seem like a dream come true.
Well, that dream has come true for me now several times, thanks to the annual 24-Hour Science Fiction Marathon in Columbus. Often, the dream is heavenly. Other times, it can turn into a hellish nightmare. And sometimes even that’s fun.
What on earth am I talking about? Well, let me take you through what happened at last weekend’s thon, as those of us who are too lazy (or tired) call it.
With my best friend, I arrived at the Drexel East theater about an hour and a half before the noon launch. In addition to playing about 10 movies, the ‘thon always treats us to a number of trailers, cartoons and other short subjects. One of the first we see is the traditional Duck Dodgers in the 24th 1/2 Century, that loony toon that has Daffy Duck tangling with Marvin the Martian. Everyone delights in shouting out the title along with Daffy, although personally, I think it’s more fun to do lines by Marvin or Porky Pig.
And then, a surprise: One of the shorts is a clip from the title number of the timeless Singin’ in the Rain - played, so we’re told, because it was supposed to rain, but I’m sure the fact that the tune figures prominently in A Clockwork Orange, one of the scheduled movies, was also a factor.
Then, it’s off to the movies:
Battlestar Galactica: This was the theatrical cut of what was basically TV’s answer to Star Wars. The fun came more from nostalgic flashbacks than anything in the movie itself.
Sputnik Mania: An intriguing if somewhat dry documentary about the hysteria that accompanied the launch of the Russian satellite. Might have been a little too PBS for this event.
The Day the Earth Stood Still/Patricia Neal: It was still fun to watch one of the four or five best sci-fi movies ever made, even with a beat-up print. The real treat, however, was the live-in-person appearance of Patricia Neal, who speaks the immortal “Klaatu Barada Nikto” line. I could devote a whole post to her, but highlights included her saying how silly The Day the Earth Stood Still seemed at the time, and her naming the great A Face in the Crowd as her favorite film she made. She struggled to remember some things, but as she so memorably put it, “I’m still here, baby!” She was delightful.
Journey to the Seventh Planet: The first of our “so bad its fun” entries, this was a Danish movie about a trip to Uranus. Many crude jokes followed; I like to think I nodded off here to avoid listening to them.
The Andromeda Strain: Our second film directed by Robert Wise, who also made The Day the Earth Stood Still. I saw this letterboxed on TV a few years ago and was disappointed, but it plays much better on the big screen. The film’s still a little too sterile for its own good, but some striking visuals make it work.
Big Man Japan: Every ‘thon has to have at least one movie of some giant thing destroying stuff. This year’s entry was this odd little story about a Japanese schlub who can grow 30 stories tall, but he’s not much of a hero then either. Offbeat idea, but it moved too slowly in the beginning for me to stay with it. I slept through the second half.
Lady Terminator: Yes, it’s exactly what it sounds like - a rip-off of the James Cameron classic with a female killer - only it’s even worse than advertised. This piece of junk had the gall not only to steal the “Come with me if you want to live” line, but also to copy the scene where the terminator cuts its eye out of its head - never mind that Lady Terminator, um - isn’t a robot. But hey - she IS an anthropologist. It’s that kind of movie.
1984: I’d really like to see this adaptation of George Orwell’s novel sometime, but I slept almost all the way through it. The shift from the silliness of Lady Terminator to this was too much for me to process. Besides, it’s about 3 in the morning zzzzz …
Pitch Black: I wake up in time to catch one of the few movies where Vin Diesel doesn’t annoy me. This is a well-executed thriller that shows a lot of style, even with a fairly low budget. By contrast, the bloated sequel, The Chronicles of Riddick, had fives times the budget, but not even one quarter of the fun.
Stranger From Venus: Our second Patricia Neal film is a bit of an oddity. It’s basically the same premise as The Day the Earth Stood Still, only without anything fancy like a robot or a spaceship. It’s a curio, but, I’m sorry to say, a very dull one.
A Clockwork Orange: I’ve always been intrigued that this film is considered sci-fi, and I suppose that fits, since it’s set in some future that never was (they still use cassettes!) and it explores the morality of mind control. It’s a great film, but a bit out of tone with most of the ‘thon, and it’s strange to close with a movie that really messes with your mind, no matter how many times you see it.
And so, with the strains of “Singin’ in the Rain” playing in my head, I step into - the blinding sunlight.
And that, folks, is how you spend 24 hours in a movie theater. I know most of you aren’t crazy enough to try it, but I would like to hear some comments. Tell me your favorite sci-fi movies, and which you’d especially like to see in a theater.
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Had it with gas prices? A movie has the answer!
There’s certainly a lot of moaning and groaning going on about gas prices these days, but I’m not worried.
Why? Well, because according to Back to the Future Part II, we’ll have our flying cars in only seven years!
Remember? In that movie, the characters went forward in time 30 years to 2015! We haven’t got that long before fossil fuels are extinct!
(Turns off sarcasm)
(sigh) I’m not sure which is more depressing: the gas prices or the fact that the future in a movie made in 1989 will actually be here in seven years - and there won’t be a flying car in sight.
Where’s a flux capacitor when ya need one?
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Today’s DVDs: ‘Cloverfield’ better at home?
The summer movies aren’t quite ready yet, but DVD picks up the slack this week with some solid picks today.
Cloverfield: Given the way it faded quickly at the box office, I’m thinking this movie isn’t as well liked as its initial buzz suggested. The most common complaint: Too much shaky-cam. That didn’t bother me personally, and I found the movie to be very inventive and great fun. Still, I can’t help but feel that for many people, this movie may play better on the small screen, where shaky-cam isn’t as strong a factor. Am I right? Full Review: GRADE: B+
Charlie Wilson’s War: Mike Nichols’ satirical look back at the arming of the Afghans against the Soviets is very funny, thanks to some sharp writing and fine performances, particularly by Tom Hanks and Philip Seymour Hoffman. However, the movie is too short, and its refusal to put Wilson’s story in the context of today’s events blunts its impact. Full review: GRADE: B
The Savages: Like many praised indie hits, this film is perhaps a bit too self-aware, but Philip Seymour Hoffman and Laura Linney (who got an Oscar nomination for this) play off each other very well as at-odds (and just plain odd) siblings trying to deal with their father’s last days. GRADE: B+
Also out today
One Missed Call: AKA One Missed Movie.
The Orphanage: Guillermo del Toro produced this well-reviewed chiller which seems a bit like a cross between his Pan’s Labyrinth and The Devil’s Backbone.
Starting Out in the Evening: Frank Langella received a great deal of praise for his turn as a once acclaimed but out of touch author trying to regain his standing.
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Have you ever met anyone famous?
I spent last weekend at the 24-hour science fiction marathon in Columbus and had the distinct pleasure of seeing Patricia Neal, who’s best known among sci-fi nuts for her role as the female lead of The Day the Earth Stood Still. She won a Best Actress Oscar for Hud, and her other credits include Breakfast at Tiffany’s and The Fountainhead, among many others.
It was great fun to hear her answer questions about her career, with her voice still containing its distinctive rasp. Probably the best moment came when she was told that Keanu Reeves was starring in a Day the Earth Stood Still remake and she answered, “Who?” I think she was being serious, but the crowd loved it.
I will post more about the marathon when time permits, but for now, I wanted to ask you all: What close encounters have you had with famous movie people? You don’t have to have met them face to face necessarily, but the encounter should ideally be better than “I passed so-and-so on the street once.” For instance, I didn’t get to meet Neal personally; she was too ill to do any signings, but seeing her was something I will long remember.
Your turn!
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Dayton’s 2008 classic film series
Since I was unable to review any of today’s new movies, it’s time instead to talk about yesterday’s old movies - and by that I mean this year’s Ultra Cool Films Series at Dayton’s Victoria Theatre.
Those modern-day blockbusters are fun and all (sometimes, anyway), but my favorite summer movies are the classics Victoria plays each year.
All of the films in this year’s lineup are readily available on DVD. In fact, that’s true most years, but I say, so what? People can pop in a DVD anytime, but there’s nothing like seeing these movies on the big screen, with the very appreciative crowd Victoria usually draws. I strongly recommend catching at least one of these films.
In most cases, each movie plays at 7:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday, and 3 p.m. Sunday. Here is your preview of coming attractions:
June 27-29 - The King and I: As great as Rodgers and Hammerstein’s musicals are, they didn’t always translate into great movies, but this is one of the better efforts, thanks in no small part to Yul Brynner’s indelible, Oscar-winning portrayal of the king. That’s Audrey Hepburn, uh, I mean Natalie Wood, no, I mean Marni Nixon doing Deborah Kerr’s vocals.
July 4-6 - Lawrence of Arabia: If you can make it to only one of the movies at Victoria this year, make it this one. Because if you haven’t seen this in a theater, you haven’t really seen it at all, hi-def or no hi-def. You can commemorate director David Lean’s 100th birthday to boot.
July 11-13 - Gentlemen Prefer Blondes: It’s no Some Like It Hot or even The Seven-Year Itch, but this remains one of Marilyn Monroe’s most vibrant movies. For extra grins and giggles, have fun when the movie mentions a town called Dayton. Fun fact: Marni Nixon dubbed some of Marilyn’s high notes.
July 18-20 - Cool Hand Luke: Say it with me now: “What we got he-ah is, fail-yuh to communicate.” And what I also have is a failure to see this movie. I will rectify that this July.
July 25-27: Little Women: This is the 1949 movie of the Louisa May Alcott classic starring June Allyson, Elizabeth Taylor and Janet Leigh. I would have preferred to see the excellent 1933 George Cukor film with Kate Hepburn, but I haven’t seen this one, so I’ll give it a chance.
Aug. 1-3 - Doctor Zhivago: More David Lean. It’s hip these days to say this film hasn’t held up very well over the years, but Lara’s theme and that gorgeous photography still work for me, so call me square.
Aug. 8 - Sabrina: Here’s where the pattern varies a bit. This week is Audrey Hepburn week, with a different film playing each day. This one is a wonderful gem directed by Billy Wilder, and co-starring Humphrey Bogart and William Holden. Maybe Bogie wasn’t so happy about the movie, but Audrey will make you forget that, if you’re aware of it at all.
Aug. 9 - Charade: It’s not very imaginative to call this the best Hitchcock film Hitch never made, but that’s still the best description of this terrific thriller nonetheless. Stanley Donen directed Audrey and Cary Grant. Check out the very cool title sequence, designed by Maurice Binder, who would go on to do the James Bond movies.
Aug. 10 - Roman Holiday: It introduced Audrey to the world and won her an Oscar. What else do you need?
Aug. 15-17 - Hello, Dolly! - This film came from the period when movie musicals were huge and elephantine and out of style. In fairness, I haven’t seen this yet, so I’m hoping it’s closer to Funny Girl than, say, Camelot.
Aug. 22-24 - A Hard Day’s Night: The selection of this film brings back major pangs of nostalgia for me; Victoria (or Victory, as it was called in the 70s) was the first place I can remember seeing a movie. OK, the movie I saw then was Yellow Submarine, but this one’s even better.
A refrain you will commonly hear at this series is, “They don’t make ‘em like that anymore.” Maybe not, but they do show ‘em.
Passbooks containing 10 tickets usable in any combination are $24; individual tickets are $4.75. Details on how to get them are here. Get a lot out of life. Go out to a classic movie. I’ll see you there.
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BOX OFFICE SMASH HULK!!!!
Never mind Kermit the Frog, the Hulk has found it’s not easy bein’ green - and that it’s not easy to make much green at the box office. Now I’m getting the impression that Hulk 2008 (The Incredible Hulk) will be like Hulk 2003 (The Hulk) all over again.
The 2003 Ang Lee film with Eric Bana, Jennifer Connelly and a zany Nick Nolte was met with yawns if not outright anger - and only $132 million at the box office, which doesn’t help when the film costs about that much. Marvel decided to make a “do-over,” casting Edward Norton as the tormented Bruce Banner - a decision Marvel might now regret.
Stories have run rampant that Norton, who rewrote the script, battled Marvel on the tone of the film. According to Entertainment Weekly, Norton wanted “a longer, more detailed film.” Marvel, probably mindful of where longer and detailed got them in 2003, wanted a movie that was leaner and faster. Marvel has supposedly won. The film will be out June 13.
Norton released a statement to EW that said, in part: “I’ve never had a better partner, and the collaboration with all the rest of the creative team has been terrific. Every good movie gets forged through collaboration, and different ideas among people who are all committed and respect the validity of each other’s opinions is the heart of filmmaking. Regrettably, our healthy process, which is and should be a private matter, was misrepresented publicly as a ‘dispute,’ seized on by people looking for a good story, and has been distorted to such a degree that it risks distracting from the film itself, which Marvel, Universal and I refuse to let happen. It has always been my firm conviction that films should speak for themselves and that knowing too much about how they are made diminishes the magic of watching them. All of us believe The Incredible Hulk will excite old fans and create new ones and be a huge hit …”
I dunno about you, but to me, that smacks of “Let me talk to my lawyer before I say anything.” It certainly doesn’t make me feel confident about the film, which is already generating negative buzz and new complaints that the Hulk “looks fake!”
Now, a little background is in order here. I am a member of that small minority that was pleased with Ang Lee’s movie. And I am also a member of an even smaller subset of that minority that loved The Hulk. I put it on my runners-up ten best list that year, and I stand by that.
I will allow that the Hulk dogs were silly, and that the pacing was a lttle too meditative at first. Once the movie got going, however, I thought it was fantastic, and I LOVED the ingenious multi-panel editing of the film that made it look like a live comic book. The Hulk got a bum rap.
That said, I’m not angry about it. I understand people probably wanted something closer to the Bill Bixby TV show, where David (Bruce) Banner repeatedly got smacked around by low-lifes, Hulked out, and thrashed people who deserved it. Maybe it would have helped if the Hulk talked like he did in the comic books. At least one “HULK SMASH!” might have netted the movie an extra $30 million.
Will this new movie succeed? I doubt it. It might be more “action-packed,” but I have this gut feeling that a dearth of imagination will sink it. I really wish Marvel had hired a more promising director than Louis Leterrier, who made the Transporter movies and Unleashed. Even if I didn’t like the Ang Lee movie, I would still rather see a noble failure by an artist than a mid-level movie by a competent action technician. But I hope Leterrier proves me wrong.
So what do you think of the new Hulk’s prosepcts? Will you see it? What does a Hulk movie need to be good? Maybe it should have lines from the 80s cartoon like “VOICE IN HULK’S HEAD MAKES HULK WANT TO SMASH” or my personal favorite, “EVERYWHERE HULK GO, PEOPLE SCREAM!!!”
Will you scream for The Incredible Hulk?
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What’s opening Friday, April 18? 1 out of 3?
It’s still April, meaning that the movie selection is still a bit iffy at the moment, but there is at least one very promising movie this week - and at least one candidate for next year’s Razzie awards.
88 Minutes: Can a thriller fronted by Al Pacino really be THAT bad? Well, the movie has been sitting on the shelf for more than a year. And the critics’ quotes go like this:
“The picture easily snatches from Revolution the prize as Al Pacino’s career worst.” - Variety.
“For sheer silliness, nothing in 88 Minutes tops the fact that (Alicia) Witt’s English ex-con husband boasts the ridiculously fanciful name Guy LaForge, presumably because ‘Fakey McMake-Believe’ was already taken.” - Slant Magazine.
“88 Minutes plays like a script Tom Cruise rejected back in the ’90s” - New York Press
But hey, the revered critic Andrew Sarris liked it, saying “88 Minutes will add a little more luster to a career that has not been adequately appreciated perhaps because of the suspiciously seductive power of a little man with an outsize talent.”
Is Sarris crazy? Or is everyone else? You can be the judge if you wish.
The Forbidden Kingdom: From that peerless director of martial arts flicks, Rob Minkoff, who brought us Haunted Mansion and the Stuart Little movies. Jet Li and Jackie Chan team up for the first time, but the picture is geared toward the younger set. Whether that’s good or bad remains to be seen.
Forgetting Sarah Marshall: The consensus was that the Judd Apatow factory had a screw loose with Drillbit Taylor, but things seem a little tighter this time around, with some very positive reviews for this comedy about a guy having a hard time getting over a breakup with his girl. Since the girl looks an awful lot like Kristen Bell, I sympathize. This is the movie I’m most looking forward to seeing.
Unfortunately, conflicts with my other duties prevented me from screening any of these this week. On Friday, I will instead preview the highlight of the moviegoing year for me: The classic film series at Victoria Theatre in Dayton.
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Do you buy many DVDs anymore? If so, how?
On an episode of The Simpsons I saw recently, a scene took place in a junkyard, which contained several piles, each with a sign: LPs, eight-tracks, laserdiscs. Then there was an empty spot with a sign that said “Reserved for DVDs.”
Pretty funny gag, but it may not be long before the joke becomes a reality. According to this recent story in the New York Times, DVD sales have started to slip, and studios are worried. Last year saw the first decline, and it’s expected to continue this year and next.
Why is this? The story says the biggest culprit may be the Internet because of the increasing availability of movie downloads and the like. Certain Fox DVDs such as Juno, which was released last Tuesday, come with a “digital copy” of the movie that you can download to your computer or iPod.
I’m not so ready to blame the ‘net, though. Sure, it has some impact, but I think the real culprits are more market saturation, and lately, an economic pinch.
In the late 90s and early this decade, I bought DVDs quite frequently, sometimes just for the special features, even if I didn’t love the movie much (example: Gladiator). Lo and behold, I found I have accumulated many DVDs I haven’t watched in years.
That’s why I’ve become choosier in how I buy DVDs - and when. I only buy new DVDs when I absolutely love the film and know I will watch it repeatedly and show it off to people (See Enchanted).
Sometimes it depends on how the DVDs are packaged. Take There Will be Blood, for instance. I loved that movie too, and I consider it the best I’ve seen this year. However, that came out in two versions: A single disc bare bones edition, and a double-disc DVD with a few extras. However, the extras are pretty sparse (they last only about an hour), so I probably won’t watch them much. Seems to me it would be better to buy the single disc, and rent the bonus one from Netflix.
I did the same thing for Munich. Its bonus DVD had only about an hour of interviews, so I rented that and picked up the movie-only disc, packaged with Schindler’s List, which I did not have, for $20. I think I got a better deal that way.
In other cases, I’m content either to rent the DVDs or buy them when I find them cheap ($10 or less) at Netflix or a used CD/DVD place. I find it pays off - literally - to be patient these days.
While I’m not keen on watching movies on an iPod, I do think technology is increasing to the point that downloads will become more and more prevalent - which is why I remain unconvinced Blu-Ray will become the main movie-watching format for long, despite its recent victory in the format war.
So how do you buy your DVDs? Do you buy many new ones anymore? Why are sales slowing down?
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Update: The last of Disney’s lead animators dies
As I scanned the headlines of the various news sites I frequent this morning, I could find many references to Ashlee Simpson’s alleged pregnancy and to Marilyn Monroe’s sex film, but as of 11 AM no regular news site - not a single one - referenced the fact that the last of the great lead animators of Walt Disney’s era, Ollie Johnston, had passed away.
Predictable - but lamentable all the same.
You may not know Ollie Johnston’s name, but you surely know his work. He was one of the “nine old men” of Walt Disney’s animators, that great crew that, in one form or another, worked on everything from Snow White to The Fox and the Hound. Some of Johnston’s specific work includes Thumper in Bambi, Smee in Peter Pan, and the fairies in Sleeping Beauty, among many others. Rufus, the cat in The Rescuers, was a caricature of Johnston.
And if you’ve seen The Iron Giant or The Incredibles, you’ve heard Ollie too, in cameos with the animator with whom Johnston was synonymous, the late Frank Thomas. Frank and Ollie are the railroad engineers in The Iron Giant, and they’re the two guys who talk about “old school” at the end of The Incredibles.
Roy Disney, nephew of Walt, said of Johnston: “Ollie was part of an amazing generation of artists, one of the real pioneers of our art, one of the major participants in the blossoming of animation into the art form we know today. One of Ollie’s strongest beliefs was that his characters should think first, then act…and they all did … We will miss him greatly, but we were all enormously enriched by him.”
John Lasseter, the creative chief of Pixar and Disney animation, said: “Ollie had such a huge heart and it came through in all of his animation, which is why his work is some of the best ever done. … He taught me to always be aware of what a character is thinking, and we continue to make sure that every character we create at Pixar and Disney has a thought process and emotion that makes them come alive.”
I cannot recommend highly enough that anyone who cares about animation should seek out Frank and Ollie, the wondrously charming documentary about these two greats. For a great compilation of tributes, see animation historian Jerry Beck’s site, Cartoon Brew. Here’s Ollie’s Disney Legends page, and Frank and Ollie’s official site. That site lists the specific characters the two animated so well.
Yes, I know, the salacious stuff like the Ashlee and Marilyn stories is what sells - but I also know the work of Ollie Johnston will endure long after people have forgotten about Simpson or that Marilyn sex film we’ll never get to see.
Ollie, I’d tell you to say hi to Frank for us, but I’m sure you guys are busy riding a train somewhere. Have fun. We’ll miss you.
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Today’s DVDs: Juno and lotsa teeth
It’s a solid DVD week on both the new and the old release shelves, ranging everywhere from everybody’s favorite snarky pregnant teen to everybody’s favorite enigmatic desert leader. Then there’s a not-so-solid release consisting mostly of teeth and slime.
Juno: The success of the teen pregnancy comedy surprised even its most fervent admirers - and people who though it was overrated. I see the detractors’ point that the movie was trying too hard to be hip, but I would argue that attitude was necessary. It’s that too-cool barrier that needs to break down for the more emotional second half to work. Ellen Page deserved all the kudos she got, and Jennifer Garner deserved more kudos than she did get as the adoptive mom-to-be. GRADE: A-
Before the Devil Knows You’re Dead: Sidney Lumet’s latest film got raves that say it’s the best thing he’s done in years, which is true, although I can’t quite elevate it to “best of the year” level. I couldn’t shake a slight but nagging “been there, done that” air of yet another “perfect crime gone wrong with jumbled chronology” film. Even so, it’s still very powerful thanks to taut direction by Lumet, and a stellar cast that includes Philip Seymour Hoffman, Ethan Hawke, Marisa Tomei and Albert Finney. GRADE: A-
Lars and the Real Girl: This story of an unbalanced man who takes to having a romantic relationship with a sex doll might be hard for some to take, but for those who can, the movie is very rewarding, particularly for an incredibly controlled performance by Ryan Gosling. GRADE: A-
From the catalog
David Lean epics: In honor of the great director’s 100th birthday, new DVDs of some of his best works are out today. The Bridge on the River Kwai and Lawrence of Arabia, are, I believe, repackagings, but his last film, A Passage to India, gets a new deluxe treatment. Buy them or at least rent them and play them on the biggest screen available.
Also out today Aliens vs. Predator: Requiem: Whatever.
In the Name of the King: A Dungeon Siege Tale: Uwe Boll’s latest? Ditto.
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Good movie audiences/bad movie audiences
This weekend I’ll be heading to the 24-Hour Sci-FI Marathon in Columbus (check the details here). If you think the idea of spending 24 hours in a movie theater sounds loopy, you should see how loopy the audiences at the ‘thon usually get.
And that, dear readers, is today’s topic: the best and worst audience reactions you’ve ever encountered in a theater.
BEST AUDIENCES
At the marathon, the audiences are just as much fun as the movies themselves - more so in some cases. One of my favorite memories of the event comes from a couple of years ago when the thon hit us with brain-melting double-whammy of Fire Maidens from Outer Space and The Apple.
Fire Maidens from Outer Space is one of those delightful 50s cheese-fests with a budget of about $16 that is tailor-made for the Mystery Science Theatre 3000 crowd. One of the many zany talkbacks that occurred came when the titular fire maidens appeared on screen. These were women dressed in toga/miniskirts and they always traveled in packs. So whenever the maidens came-a-calling, the audience would chime in “HeeheeheeHeeheeheeHeeheehee”
Still, the buzz created by that movie paled in comparison to The Apple, a flagrantly weird, stupid and insufferable musical that makes Xanadu look like Singin’ in he Rain. When the twit of a male lead was singing a wreck of a tune about how his woman left him, the camera cut to an exterir shot oh him singing from a high window. We all chanted: “JUMP! JUMP! JUMP! JUMP! JUMP! JUMP!”
Unfortunately, he was as hard of hearing as he was tone deaf.
Fun audiences responses aren’t limited to the ‘thon, however. A few of my other favorites:
One of my favorite kid reactions occurred when I went to a screening of Vanilla Ice’s magnus opus, Cool as Ice. (Yes, I am one of 68 people who saw that thing.) When our zero sang his opening number, a little girl near us piped up loudly, “This ain’t ‘Ice Ice Baby!’” Amen, sister.
One of my other favorite kid reactions was really no reactions at all. When I went to the IMAX 3D screening of The Polar Express, the audience was chock full of children, who too often tend to be prone to noise. But through most of the movie, they were quiet as mice. Why? The movie was working.
Another appropriate response came during a screening of Rising Sun, one of many misbegotten attempts to adapt Michael Chricton to the big screen. One audience member very loudly snored through most of it. Couldn’t blame him, really.
BAD AUDIENCES
I never miss a chance to see one of the greatest movies of all time, Vertigo, when it plays on the big screen. Unfortunately, my last experience made me almost regret going. Many times at these showings, you get one or two yahoos who just don’t “get” the style of the classics, so they sit there laughing at it. At one particular screening of Vertigo, however, the audience was full of these people, who kept laughing more and more as the picture got more and more tragic. Apparently to them, for instance, falling from a tower is hee-larious. I wanted to go up to every single one of these dimwits, smack them each upside the head, and scream “IT’S NOT FUNNY!”
Anytime a kid cries during an R-rated movie. The crying is bad enough in and of itself, but to hear it in a place where it REALLY doesn’t belong is even worse. A toddler bawled almost all the way through a screening of Street Kings, prompting one audience member to shout “Take him HOME!”
So I guess that was a good and bad audience at the same time.
One more note on the marathon: They’ve got a great special guest this year: Patricia Neal, who will appear in person to introduce The Day the Earth Stood Still, in which she uttered the immortal words “Klaatu barada nikto.” Stranger from Venus, also starring Neal, is in the lineup too.
Now I turn to my audience. Tell me about your favorite and not-so favorite comments from the peanut gallery.
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‘Street Kings’ should be dethroned
Does Street Kings set itself apart from every cop thriller ever made? It sure does. Unfortunately, what makes the movie distinct is how badly it goes wrong.
Keanu Reeves played a Los Angeles police officer before, when he led the cast of Speed as Jack Traven, the slightly unhinged but upstanding go-for-broke cop who isn’t afraid to look crazy. Reeves’ character in Street Kings is quite the contrast. He’s a completely unhinged, corrupt cop, Tom Ludlow, who isn’t afraid to break rules and bust heads.
Ludlow has a chip on his shoulder the size of Australia, having suffered the death of his wife. Determined to bag bad guys by any means necessary, Ludlow has lost his moral compass. When he investigates the death of a fellow officer with whom he had butted heads, the sea of corruption he encounters forces him to make even tougher choices than usual.
Directed by David Ayer, who wrote Training Day, and co-written by James Ellroy, author of LA Confidential, Street Kings feels like a particularly grimy cross between those two stories, but Street Kings isn’t as good as either of its forebears. The filmmakers get so carried away with being down and dirty, I couldn’t find anyone to root for. Instead of playing “good cop, bad cop,” this movie plays “bad cop, worse cop and worst cop.”
LA Confidential also wove a complex web of deceit, but what made that story so compelling was how charismatic the characters were, even if they were corrupt. No one rises to that level in Street Kings. Reeves deserves credit for trying to play a complex character, and he carries the movie well for awhile, but he can’t make villainy magnetic, as Denzel Washington did in Training Day. Reeves so overplays the surly card, his character become just another scuzzball among many.
Ayer directs the movie proficiently, serving up some solid action scenes, but not even Michael Mann could have saved the movie from the force of nature that is Forrest Whitaker’s performance as Reeves’ superior. Whitaker’s acting gradually devolves into histrionics that had the preview audience in stitches. With any luck, this will be the only lesson Whitaker takes from Cuba Gooding Jr.’s School of Squandering your Oscar-winning Talent.
Even without Whitaker’s performance, Street Kings might have been a noble misfire. With it, the movie not only misfires, it blows up in everyone’s faces.
GRADE: C-
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