This Sundance Channel clip of writer/director Clark Gregg was released some time ago but I find myself bringing it up in conversation with friends and they know nothing about it. So what better reason to post something if not to inform everyone. CHOKE, an original novel written by the infamous Chuck Palahniuk has gotten the big screen treatment and will be hitting theaters August 28th of this year. No trailer has been released thus far but I really enjoyed this clip of Gregg giving a little insight on his film as well as a few short clips of the film itself. Not having read this Palahniuk book, the only knowledge I have of CHOKE is from synopsizes given by friends. Hit the link below for the Sundance Channel clip of CHOKE.
Choke - Sundance preview clip
Posted Jan 27, 2008
Monday, March 24, 2008
(Insert choking related pun here)
Saturday, March 22, 2008
From zombies to vampires
You do remember the movie UNDEAD, I'm sure of it. Well, as much as I wanted to like it...blah blah blah. Anyhoo, the two Spierig brothers that brought us that film are going in for their second feature, DAYBREAKERS. Though this time, I have a feeling they'll do a tad bit better. Why? Ethan Hawke, alongside Willem Dafoe, will be out fighting new age vampires who actually own a global corporation headed by none other than vampire President Dr. Alan Grant, I mean Sam Neil. Keep reading for more info and screens from DAYBREAKERS.
The film has already wrapped production and has been working post production for some time but piqued my interest back last summer. The actors aboard were all impressed with the new approach the Spierig brothers wanted to take on the vampire genre. Ya I know, every new vampire flick is supposed to take "a new approach on the genre," but this time I believe it's true. Taking place in 2017, the world has been taken over by vampires and their blood supply is now running low. I believe Hawke plays a scientist who sets out with an insurgent group of vampires to save humankind. YAY. I'll keep an eye out for the trailer hopefully out in the next few weeks but for now enjoy these delightful screenshots. The film is set for a hopeful Autumn release.
Michael and Peter Spierig/Directing Duo
Ethan Hawke is Will Smith is a scientist
Same Neil looking Presidential in The Evil Office. Get it? Like The Oval Office.
I'd offer you some juice or something but grocery stores are always closed at night. I haven't been shopping in 20 years. Pity
It seems this person died
Is it just me or...can anyone else go for a vampire rom-com?
Friday, March 14, 2008
One trailer to rule them all ?!
I've been gone a long time. Some of you know why, some of you don't. The truth is I just wasn't updating the site. But now I'm out of that funk and I bring with me, TRAILERS. Oodles and oodles of 'em, well a few. During my short hiatus several of this summer's biggies released new trailers and as much as am awaiting all of their releases, only one of these trailers made me pee my pants (from excitement, not my overused bladder-related excuse). Rather than posting all these trailers separately on various posts, I'm just going to post them until I reach my maximum information limit. So without further ado, well, one more thing. Please, I know there isn't much on the site but I would appreciate all visitors to leave a comment or at least vote on the polls to the right--->; just any kind of feedback so I know I'm not posting to just one loser in Tunisia. Now, let's get on with the trailers. Like I hinted earlier about my favorite trailer, I want to start with SPEED RACER. That's right, SPEED RACER. If you're as happy as I am to see this, good, if not, then just keep your mouth shut and watch IRON MAN or something. Hit the jump below to see the rest of the batch.
Friday, February 29, 2008
Review: Semi-Pro
Of course you don't remember the ABA, but Will Ferrell does, and he has done to basketball what artificial sponges did to authentic sponges. What? What I want to know is why Ferrell's films all have near identical plot structure.
1) Man at the top of his game.
2) Man at the bottom of his game.
3) Man pulls insane gag to get him back to the top.
4) Man back at the top of his game.
I'm not saying it hasn't worked for him, I'm saying it isn't going to work for me anymore...after this film...probably. Jump to read the full review and watch JoBlo.com's interview with Ferrell.
Hits The Spot (GOOD): I did very much enjoy TALLADEGA NIGHTS for its pun-heavy humor and Sasha Baron Cohen. I thought that film was a good illustration of how Will Ferrell operates; the humor, the acting and the characters were all a signifier of Ferrell and gang's interpretation of a comedy. Then they did a film called BLADES OF GLORY which I didn't think even deserved the feature film stamp. It was almost as if they got together and said, " Hey, have we made a film about ice skating yet? No? Okay, let's do that then." I liked John Heder and Jenna Fischer in the film, but how dare you subject me to a script that took three nights to write outside of a Bennigan's? SEMI-PRO is the worthy follow-up to TALLADEGA. Them deciding to make it a rated-R flick was a great decision and they really do make use of the rating. Written by Scott Armstrong, who has also wrote OLD SCHOOL and STARSKY AND HUTCH, and directed by the executive producer of A HISTORY OF VIOLENCE and LITTLE CHILDREN, Kent Alterman (don't ask me how that collaboration worked), I actually think this film puts out quality material. It is, more or less, just a different iteration of the previous films but I will laugh if some of the regurgitated jokes are funny; it's a fact. Technically, I was impressed throughout and think Alterman and the crew know what they are doing. Some directors try to keep a 60's or 70's look to the film through camera movements like in THE LAST KING OF SCOTLAND and THE BANK JOB, but it didn't happen here as much I wanted it to.
Kicks The Spot (BAD): An ongoing problem I have with many of these films is that the cameras linger too long in front of actors like Will Ferrell in hopes of them doing something incredibly funny. And another thing, I enjoy Ferrell so much more when he's in non-Ferrell films or alongside John C. Riley. Here he shows this vulnerability that none of this own characters ever show. Chazz Michael Michaels, Ron Burgundy, Ricky Bobby, and Jackie Moon, they're all just different versions of Mugatu. Although I enjoyed this film, it makes me think how much funnier it would be if Adam McKay would've co-written.
The Skinny (THE SKINNY): If you indeed were truly disappointed with both TALLADEGA NIGHTS and BLADES OF GLORY, just go play RISK with some friends instead because it's more of the same. If you were like me and liked one and not the other, catch this because it should redeem Ferrell. But regardless of whether you watch this one at all, make sure to definitely go watch STEP BROTHERS with Ferrell and J.C. Riley when that hits theaters July 25th, 2008.
Thursday, February 28, 2008
Twilight is no time for shenanigans
Don't ask me why I still haven't finished up with Stephenie Meyer's TWILIGHT series so far because I'm not sure of how to answer that. But here is something I do know: TWILIGHT, and hopefully the whole series after that, is getting the cinema treatment. This was announced back in August but I feel it's relevant now because production just recently started and also, GreenHouseFilmReviews wasn't around in August. Go read the books beforehand if you haven't and want to because they're worth it. Hit the jump for more cast and crew info.
Right, Summit Entertainment is overseeing the production of TWILIGHT with much of the cast already announced. The leads Kristen Stewart and Robert Pattinson make their jump on screen as Bella Swan and Edward Cullen respectively. Whoa, they both seem to just...fit and are beautiful. Catherine Hardwicke is in place to direct who I have a good amount of faith in because if you've seen LORDS OF DOGTOWN, you know she can pull it off. You need to definitely head over to Stepenie Meyer's site where you can catch up with bios, plot summaries as well as book and movie info.
Kristen Stewart, Stephenie Meyer, and Robert Pattinson looking like he's on a few drugs (left to right)
Friday, February 22, 2008
A film you haven't seen, but should
There was a film I saw about seven or so months ago that I had heard nothing about. Actually, I was on my way to the screening and heard a spot on the radio about the film, and said "Hey, I think I'm watching that tonight." The film was CHARLIE BARTLETT.
Well, how can I describe the film? I know the first thing that comes to mind is...RUSHMORE. I'm not sure if the film compares to Rushmore, well it sort of does. Subject matter is almost fairly similar.
-Smart kid gets kicked out of private school.
-Smart kid gets sent to public school.
-Smart kid doesn't fit in.
-Smart kid fits in.
The film stars an actor I personally have very high hopes for who started his acting career at the beginning of the decade, Anton Yelchin. Most of you might know him from his title role in Alpha Dog as Zack Mazursky. I believe I've seen about four or five of Yelchin's films as well those few episodes he was on CURB YOUR ENTHUSIASM. I love this kid. He's charming, witty, and handsome; almost like Jason Schwartzman but without the dick-ish quality of Max Fischer.
It's an understatement to say that films nowadays don't bring anything new. Unfortunately this film is no exception. That's not to say I didn't absolutely love this venture; I did. It's the characters and the beautiful performances that lit it up for me. I haven't always been a big fan of Robert Downey Jr., I still don't think I completely am, but he does have that renegade aura about him that still makes him admirable. Downey plays the coolio principal at the public school that Charlie get sent to and is also the father of the girl he falls in love with. In exception of the daughter played by Kat Dennings, who is really good looking but needs a wee bit more practice acting, all of the roles were right on. I've always liked Hope Davis, especially in AMERICAN SPLENDOR and ABOUT SCHMIDT.
Not only do I recommend this film, but I want you to go watch it today, because it comes out... today.
'Charlie Bartlett' Trailer
Is it just me or...is IN BRUGES not playing in any theaters in Central Florida? I'm pissed !!
Friday, February 15, 2008
Pourquoi Si Sérieux ?
I've always loved the French language. Combine that with my love for Batman and upcoming The Dark Knight and we get a French dubbed trailer for The Dark Knight. This trailer has been out for a little while but I only discovered it a little while ago. I love it, especially because I seemed to have memorized every line of the English trailer and recite it proudly in showers/automobiles/waiting rooms. It's a fun watch and is all the more interesting if you understand French. Enjoy.
Thursday, February 14, 2008
Review: Be Kind Rewind
Michel Gondry is an extremely creative gent. Everything he has learned from his early years making music videos has carried on to his features and you can see it all throughout his films; it's amazingly inventive. Most of you will probably remember him most from ETERNAL SUNSHINE OF THE SPOTLESS MIND. Or if you were like some people, you loved his and Charlie Kaufman's script and thought the film just directed itself. After that, his next big feature was THE SCIENCE OF SLEEP. The strange thing about that film was that when I was watching it in theaters, I almost felt taken advantage of. ETERNAL SUNSHINE had spoiled me so much and for that reason was expecting a similar love for SLEEP which was the wrong thing to expect. I've since made my peace with SLEEP and love it for what it is.
BE KIND REWIND. What a blast it would be to be on set with your buddies shooting intentionally bad renditions of some Hollywood's classics. BE KIND tells the story of two friends, Jerry and Mike, who must remake films by themselves to replace the real ones in their video rental store due to the tapes being accidentally erased. Of course, the story is a bit more complicated than that. Mr. Fletcher played by Danny Glover, the owner of the video store, who must find a way to keep his building from being demolished. Right off of the bat, a few things that I didn't like was the fact that Mos Def plays kind of a doof when he should've been playing the smart friend and Jack Black playing the dumb. And Michel Gondry, where was he? I felt like I only saw his hand for about 20 minutes of the film. Unlike SLEEP and ETERNAL SUNSHINE where every other scene was some extravegant set-up, here, it seems like he shot the standard wide angle, brought it in for a close up, and cut to a profile. I've always loved his DIY effects which he has throughout the film but not as much as I craved. THE SCIENCE OF SLEEP I think was more a Gondry film because of those effects, but here Gondry takes an extra bit of time to bring structure to his story and screenplay.
The Gondry bits in the film though are worth it. There's a film when Jerry and Mike must sabotage an electrical plant and wear special camouflaged jumpsuits which don't seem to have any specific pattern to them. Though, when they are breaking into the plant, coppers show up and Jerry and Mike must freeze where they are (one up against the fence and the other on a ladder) and they completely blend it, it's hilarious. There are a few things that Gondry forgets or just decides to not elaborate on like certain love interests and side characters which I wish there were more story about. And to be honest, I didn't feel the impact of this community that I should've felt by the end of the film.
Besides the shortcomings, I haven't seen a film quite like this in a while. I must recommend an effort like this because we most likely won't see a film like BE KIND REWIND for some time. And although I don't give star rating, for the comedy it is, I would award this film 7 out of 9 stars.
Is it just me or...does ETERNAL SUNSHINE just never get old? It makes me feel crappy, but in a good way.
Sunday, February 10, 2008
Cruz v. Johansson
Back when I was younger, I used to have a huge celebrity crush on Penelope Cruz for about five years. Why should you care? Apparently, Cruz and Scarlett Johansson will be sharing the screen in Woody Allen's new project Vicky Christina Barcelona. Did I mention they'll be having an erotic lesbian sex scene? Lucky them! Though as beautiful as Johansson is, Adam Kempenaar over at Filmspotting described her acting best as "a female version of Keanu Reeves." No, that's not my point, both Reeves and Johansson have their good roles. My point is that Woody Allen is nuts, but in the best way possible. Javier Bardem is also to star in the film as Cruz's husband and is also to have a sex scene involving himself, Penelope and Scarlett. Lucky him!
Is it just me or...is Penelope's sister Monica(left) just a beautiful as her? But I guess I do kind of like that Penelope is a Cougar.
