Category Archives: Movies

From page to screen

Posted on December 16, 2011 | 2 Comments

I can’t believe it.

I’m actually excited about the premiere of The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo.

After slogging through that relentless tome of a book, believe you me, it’s nothing short of a miracle.

Several factors have come together to make me want to be one of the first folks in the theater.

1.  Whereas most books are better than their on-screen interpretations, the Tattoo movie can’t miss.  The English translation of Stieg Larsson’s bestseller was front-loaded with the most mind-numbing tedium imaginable before getting to the action that propelled readers through the rest of the book.  Stieg even found a way to make the ending slow.

Based on director David Fincher’s reputation and the killer trailers I’ve seen to date, I think it’s safe to say he hasn’t adopted the author’s penchant for pokey pacing.

I’m also psyched to hear Tattoo’s musical score is the work of Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross, who penned the brilliant, Oscar-winning score for The Social Network.  In fact, the score for The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo has already been nominated for a Golden Globe Award.

Of course, Tattoo has a great cast.  And I’ve already mentioned the intense trailers.  Some critics have even applauded the film for sticking closer to the book’s original plot line than the Swedish version did.

Closer to the book?  I don’t want to know!

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Posted in Books, Commentary, Entertainment, Humor, Life, Movies

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Director’s cut

Posted on December 11, 2011 | Leave a comment

I love Jason Reitman.

Or, more specifically, the movies he directs.

He first caught my attention in 2005 with Thank You for Not Smoking.  Then along came Juno, its oh-so-unique voice the brainchild of writer Diablo Cody.  And in 2009, Reitman brought us the brilliant George Clooney vehicle Up in the Air, my choice for Best Picture Oscar.

Sadly, the Academy was more impressed by tales of the war abroad than at home.  Whatever.

Reitman and Cody have teamed up once again to bring us Young Adult, starring Charlize Theron and Patton Oswalt.

This film has none of Juno’s quirky teen speak; Theron’s character is way past that. This golden girl blew out of her one-horse town years ago and is living large in the big city, a successful writer of youth literature.

Or that’s what it looks like from back home.  Her reality — and the lives of the people she left behind –  are very different than they appear on the surface.

I love this film.  I love the performances that Reitman pulled out of his actors.  I love that he didn’t feel the need to ‘nicen up’ Theron’s character as she continues her path of destruction.

And I especially love the possibility that Oswalt — Patton Oswalt, the chubby standup comedian — might get an Oscar nomination.

Jason Reitman did that.

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Posted in Academy Awards, Celebrities, Comedy, Commentary, Entertainment, Humor, Life, Movies

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By George

Posted on December 7, 2011 | Leave a comment

Have you seen this promotional pic of the new movie The Descendants?  Did you wonder what George Clooney was hiding from?

Turns out his co-stars.

I saw the movie this afternoon with my friend Caroline who is visiting from Kentucky — George Clooney’s hometown, in fact.  (She knows the man.)  So we were excited to see if the movie and George himself deserved all the Oscar buzz.

Not so much.

Apparently director Alexander Payne spent all his money on the big man himself and surrounded George with a TV movie-of-the-week cast.  I mean, Shaggy from Scooby-Doo as his co-star?  Get real.

While there were excellent turns by Shailene Woodley as George’s oldest daughter Alexandra and Beau Bridges as his cousin Hugh, no one else really measured up to George or the script.

Hey Alexander — when you center a film around a sick room, you might want to make sure your cast is healthy first.

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Posted in Advertising, Celebrities, Commentary, Entertainment, Humor, Life, Movies

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Boo

Posted on December 1, 2011 | 2 Comments

I like scary things.

I like scary movies — not gory, mind you, but scary.  I saw all three Paranormal Activity films (even the last one which spit all over the franchise) and can’t wait for Daniel Radcliffe’s new venture The Woman in Black.

The trailer totally creeps me out.

I like scary TV shows, too.  American Horror Story is easily the spookiest thing I have ever seen on television (next to Dark Shadows from my childhood days).

Being scared — if only for an instant — is big fun.

But getting a friend request from your unborn child on Facebook? That’s sick scary….as in just a little too real to laugh about later.

But that’s how Olla Condoms, a Brazilian company, has chosen to market their products.  They randomly select men on Facebook, create a fake profile for their unborn sons and then send friend requests with the message “Avoid surprises like this. Use Olla Condoms.”

Jeepers creepers.

It reminds me of a Halloween card that Shoebox had in their line years ago — they may still.  It featured a women on the cover saying, “For Halloween, I wanted to send you the scariest card I could find.”

Inside it said, “I’m pregnant.”

Talk about scary — I couldn’t even hold the card in my hand.

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Posted in Commentary, Entertainment, Home, Humor, Internet, Life, Movies, Television, TV

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Dawned on me

Posted on November 18, 2011 | 1 Comment

Of course I saw Twilight Breaking Dawn: Part 1 at the first available showing.

And it was really good.  It was romantic and sweet and surprising funny.  And then freaky and bloody and gory.

What’s not to love?

I didn’t reread the fourth book before seeing the film, so I can’t obsess over any  details that director Bill Condon might have changed.  Instead I will share with you what I learned during my initial viewing (because you know I will see it again)

  1. Audience matters.  I have seen two of the four Twilight films at midnight.  Midnight audiences rock, and make your viewing experience that much better.  Last night I saw the movie at 8:00pm during a special screening for AMC Stubs members.  There were people there talking, texting, even making fun of the movie.  Why go if you’re not into it?
  2. Talent rises to the top.  In the first Twilight movie, the actors were pretty much on par in the acting department.  Even Kristen Stewart, the star, was ticky as all get out.  In this latest installment, Kristen and Robert stand out from the rest of the cast.  They are the emotional center.  Taylor Lautner, on the other hand, may be getting worse.  Perhaps he should spend less time in the gym and more time in acting class.
  3. Big weddings are the way to go. Bella’s character is a tomboy.  She doesn’t like dressing up or being the center of attention.  But her wedding is a showstopper.  Even if you think you don’t want a big affair, learn from the Cullens.  Pull out all the stops.

If any other deep thoughts hit me at later viewings, you’ll know where to find them!

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Posted in Celebrities, Commentary, Entertainment, Humor, Life, Movies, Relationships

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Shiny things

Posted on November 17, 2011 | Leave a comment

It sparkles.  It’s sharp, so it could draw blood.  And it’s beautiful.

Is it…a vampire?

No.  (But it’s the right time of year to think so.)

Actually, this is an extreme closeup of one of several glass cacti created by artist Dale Chihuly.  They are part of his “Nature of Glass” exhibit on display through March 2012 at the Desert Botanical Garden in Phoenix.

I love glass, and thanks to a happy Google accident, I am now aware of Dale’s work.  Also, Phoenix locals can take advantage of glass blowing classes that are offered throughout the year at the Botanical Garden.

But vampires?  No.  Fire makes it tricky.

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Posted in Art, Commentary, Design, Humor, Life, Movies, Travel

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Bloody smart

Posted on November 16, 2011 | 3 Comments

Hating Twilight?  It’s practically a national pastime.

So you might expect movies that release this time of year — the same time as Twilight Breaking Dawn: Part 1, which opens this Friday — to hate the franchise as well.  Heck, some of them probably do.

But not The Muppet Movie.

Proving that puppets are smart and pretty, too, The Muppet Movie has chosen to use the frenzy that inevitably surrounds each Twilight installment to their advantage…by creating character posters that parody the sparkly franchise.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I vant to shake their marketing director’s little puppet hand.

Way to work it!

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Posted in Commentary, Entertainment, Humor, Life, Movies

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Spirit stick

Posted on November 14, 2011 | Leave a comment

Do you remember the very first DVD you ever owned?

I do.

I had just bought a combo VHS/DVD player — back when they were still pretty pricey — and a friend gave me the campy cheerleader cult classic Bring it On.  (It wasn’t a classic back then; just campy.)

It also wasn’t a musical, but it is now, and not on Broadway. My west coast friends have the bragging rights to this one.

Bring it On: The Musical may be playing at the Ahmanson Theatre in Los Angeles through December 10th, but they have recruited a bunch of Broadway award-winners to their team:

  • Tony Award-winning writer Jeff Whitty (Avenue Q)
  • Tony Award-winning composer Lin-Manuel Miranda (In The Heights)
  • Pulitzer Prize and Tony Award-winning composer Tom Kitt (Next to Normal)
  • Tony Award-winning director/choreographer Andy Blankenbuehler (In The Heights)

It’s gotta be good, right?

Tweets from audience members, both celebrity and ‘regular folk,’ have been very enthusiastic. The critics appear to have their doubts.

But it’s early yet.  There’s lots of time to polish.  Bring it On: The Musical is on a national tour, although no Broadway dates appear to be scheduled.

Yet.

I’m sexy, I’m cute,
I’m popular to boot.
I’m wanted, I’m hot,
I’m everything you’re not,
I’m pretty, I’m cool,
I dominate this school,
Who am I? Just guess,
Guys wanna touch my chest,
We cheer and we lead,
We act like we’re on speed,
Hate us ’cause we’re beautiful,
Well we don’t like you either,
We’re cheerleaders,
We are cheerleaders.

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Posted in Broadway, Commentary, Entertainment, Family, Humor, Life, Movies, Technology

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Warp speed

Posted on November 7, 2011 | 1 Comment

I know celebrities and regular people live in different worlds…

But do their clocks work differently, too?

Case in point: Lindsay Lohan.

She was recently sentenced to 30 days in jail for violating the terms of her probation. Last night at nine she checked into the Century Regional Detention Facility in Lynnwood, California…and promptly checked right back out at 1:30am.

Turns out 30 days in the real world is only 4.5 hours to the celebrity set.

I wonder if it works that way for everything.

On talk shows and interviews, actors are always bemoaning their long days on the set — sometimes 14-16 hours for some television shows and movies.  If they are using ‘regular people time’ (so we will be able to understand, bless our hearts), in celebrity terms they may actually only be working about….10 minutes.

Good work if you can get it.

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Posted in Business, Celebrities, Commentary, Entertainment, Humor, Life, Movies, News

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Censor this

Posted on November 5, 2011 | 1 Comment

After a long day yesterday, I was excited to see that Tropic Thunder, the hilarious Vietnam War movie-within-a-movie, was playing on FX. So I settled on the couch, prepared to laugh away my lethargy. But I was soon too annoyed to enjoy the film.

Why?

One of my favorite scenes in the movie — which is also one of the most controversial — was censored.  As in bleeped.  When no curse words were used.

In the scene, actors Kirk Lazarus (Robert Downey, Jr.), a five-time Oscar winner, and Tugg Speedman (Ben Stiller), an action hero whose career is definitely waning, are discussing Tugg’s recent performance in the movie Simple Jack, where Tugg portrayed a mentally challenged boy ala Forrest Gump.

The conversation pokes fun at actors — how they choose these roles to garner major awards — and not at the characters they portray.  But the comedy is apparently too subtle for some, because FX bleeped out certain words in Lazarus’s speech, thereby killing the scene and the movie (for me).

If he had belittled the Simple Jack character, that would be one thing.  But the whole scene made fun of actors.

Actors!

Trust me, they can take it.  And hopefully have maintained their sense of humor.

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Posted in Business, Comedy, Commentary, Entertainment, Humor, Life, Movies, Television, TV

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