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November 13th, 2009
In this piece over at the New York Times, critic A.O. Scott  discusses the semi-controversy springing up in the wake of Spike Jonze’s WHERE THE WILD THINGS ARE (and set to revive itself when Wes Anderson’s THE FANTASTIC MR. FOX opens this week) — namely, are these movies based on children’s books actually aimed at (or just plain suitable for) children?
He comes to an interesting conclusion. Most adult movies, Scott says, are driven by childish wish-fulfillment, where “Justice is served. The bad guys pay. Love conquers all. The naughty boys come home from their crazy adventures and find that their mommies still love them.”
But kids’ movies? Actual kids’ movies? They’re something else entirely…
“But things are much more complicated in some children’s movies, it seems, where the regressive infantilism of grown-up comedies and action pictures is answered by a grave precocity. A movie like WHERE THE WILD THINGS ARE or Wes Anderson’s FANTASTIC MR. FOX play a kind of reverse dress-up, disguising adult anxieties in the costumes of innocent make-believe and fanciful spectacle.”Â
I haven’t seen either movie yet, one (FOX) because it hasn’t opened yet, and one (WILD THINGS) because, tellingly, I don’t think my four-year-old daughter would be willing to sit through it. But I’m dying to see both, and one of the main reasons is that I hope they’ll tap into that illusive inner child lurking somewhere deep inside my dark, FIGHT CLUB-lovin’ soul.
November 12th, 2009
Jason Zinoman of VANITY FAIR spends the day at one of screenwriting guru Robert McKee’s day-long seminars and lives to tell about it. What’s more, he remains unimpressed with the man who proclaims ““You can’t work in this business without reading my book.” Read about Zinoman’s experience here, in a piece tellingly called “Robert McKee’s Unconvincing Story.”
And if you haven’t read McKee’s book (titled STORY, by the way), but you feel like you’ve heard of the guy, it’s probably from Brian Cox’s wonderful portrayal of a storytelling guru in Spike Jonze’s movie, ADAPTATION.
Here’s a clip to refresh your memory. (Warning — the language is pretty salty, so consider yourself warned).
By the way, the fictional McKee (mirroring the real-life McKee) is dead wrong about voiceovers. Here’s a partial list of great movies that use them: SUNSET BLVD., THE APARTMENT, A CLOCKWORK ORANGE, FULL METAL JACKET, TAXI DRIVER, GOODFELLAS, FIGHT CLUB, THE ROYAL TENENBAUMS, DOUBLE INDEMNITY…
October 30th, 2009
Being that Halloween is tomorrow and the folks at both The Onion AV Club and Cinematical are sharing their selections of scary movies, I thought I’d throw in my two cents. So here, in the spirit of the season, are five movies that did a number on me.
1. THE SHINING: Thanks to Kubrick’s masterful direction, Nicholson’s unhinged performance and numerous random factors — the pages of the novel, that scene with the guy in the bear suit, those twins! — I’d say this is one movie that gets scarier the more often you see it.
2. THE TEXAS CHAINSAW MASSACRE: If you’ve never seen Tobe Hooper’s symphony of dread and horror, you might think it’s a non-stop gorefest. It’s not. Instead, it’s a perfectly paced, excrutiating experience. And yes, that’s a good thing.
3. THE STRANGERS: It’s relatively new, but this movie about a nightmarish home invasion does a better job building its tension than anything I’ve seen in years. When we were watching it, during the opening moments before anything had happened, my wife turned and said “I don’t think I can watch this.” I know exactly what she meant.
4. MULHOLLAND DR.: David Lynch’s movie isn’t a horror film, but the scene set at Winkie’s — an innocent-looking Los Angeles diner — might be the scariest thing I’ve ever seen in a movie … in any more. I posted a link to the clip here. Don’t worry if you don’t know anything else about the movie. It doesn’t matter.
 5. PINK FLAMINGOS: Again, this isn’t a standard horror movie, but there are things in John Waters’ cult classic that I wish I could somehow un-see. That’s pretty scary, isn’t it?
October 13th, 2009
If you’re looking to spend the night at the movies, check out a showing of UNCLE NINO Wednesday, Oct. 14, at Eigerlab,605 Fulton St., Rockford. The show begins at 7 p.m., and the admission cost is $2.
Released in 2003, the film stars Joe Mantegna, Anne Archer and Chelcie Ross (currently playing Conrad Hilton on MAD MEN) in a story of a slightly dysfunctional family that grows closer when their Uncle Nino (Pierrino Mascarino) comes to stay with them.
Here’s the trailer…
September 15th, 2009
Not to be confused with the excellent NBC cop show HOMICIDE, David Mamet’s 1991 movie of the same name stars Joe Mantagna as a detective forced to work on a murder he doesn’t care about — and forced to confront some ugly truths about himself and the world around him. It’s a great film — maybe Mamet’s best — and after years of being AWOL on home video, it’s finally been re-released on a beautiful new DVD from Criterion. It’s also what I’m reviewing in this week’s Movie Man column.
Click here to see the video version, and click here to read the print review — which, as a bonus, includes comments on the excellent new NIKKATSU NOIR set from Eclipse/Criterion.
September 14th, 2009
Check out this week’s MAD MEN podcast, which puts the spotlight on one of the most unusual episodes of MAD MEN thus far. Plus, the long-awaited return of Duck!
August 31st, 2009
It’s true! Here’s the report from Variety…
LOS ANGELES — The Walt Disney Co. says it is acquiring Marvel Entertainment Inc. for $4 billion in cash and stock, bringing characters like IRON MAN and SPIDER-MAN into the Disney family. Under the deal, Disney will acquire ownership of 5,000 Marvel characters.
Looks like we might see those CAPTAIN AMERICA, THOR and AVENGERS movies a lot sooner than we expected. The Marvel comics super heroes are powerful, but they’re nothing compared to the might of The Mouse.
August 3rd, 2009
From Variety.com…
Steven Spielberg has committed to his next film, and it will be an adaptation of the Mary Chase Pulitzer Prize-winning play HARVEY, which will be done as a co-production between 20th Century Fox and DreamWorks.
I’m not one of those people who think Steven Spielberg is the best director of the modern era, but I have no doubt that he’s the most powerful director of the modern era — and maybe ever. When he wants to make a movie, he can get studios to line up financing, stars to beg for a role and the best writers/cameramen/crew to kill themselves to work with him. That’s because everyone knows, with all that Spielbergian power at the helm, the movie will (a) get made and (b) have a good shot at being a hit.
If you ask me, the trouble is Spielberg never really uses all that power at his disposal. With his clout (and not inconsiderable personal fortune), he could literally make any movie he wants. So this is it? A remake of a 1954 fantasy about a guy and an imaginary rabbit that was cute — but no means classic?
Pretty safe — and, frankly, boring — choice there, Steven. How about a stark drama? Or some science fiction epic that really pushes the boundaries of cinema, ala Kubrick’s 2001? You’re the guy who made SCHINDLER’S LIST, MUNICH and MINORITY REPORT — all unusual films that seemed like the work of a guy challenging himself. You had that Lincoln biopic with Liam Neeson slated to play Honest Abe in the works — I hope that’s still a go once you get HARVEY out of your system. Sure, we’ve seen Lincoln movies before, but with the resources at your disposal and Neeson a perfect fit (visually, at least) for the role, that movie had real potential. But this movie about the rabbit — that’s a remake?
Sounds like something I’ll catch on TV if — and it’s a big if — I happen to be channel surfing and there’s nothing else on. Sorry.
July 27th, 2009
Ten years ago this December, I compiled the following list of my favorite movies of the 1990s. Though I stand by most of the picks and still think GOODFELLAS deserves the top spot, in retrospect I’d probably replace TOY STORY with TOY STORY 2 (a better, richer movie) and leave off, believe it or not, SCHINDLER’S LIST, which frankly doesn’t seem as good as it did 10 years ago. (Schinder’s final speech is way too over the top, and destroys much of the subtle power of what came before.) What would I replace it with? Maybe, believe it or not, the documentary AMERICAN MOVIE, which is one of the best films I’ve ever seen about life in modern America that I’ve ever seen. Spielberg’s “masterpiece” for a horror movie making-of? Hey, It’s my list. I can do whatever I want.
Here’s that list, just as it originally appeared on Dec. 26, 1999, with all my decade-old, cringe-inducing writing left intact.Â
1. GOODFELLAS — The best movie of the decade finds America’s finest director at the top of his game. In telling the life story of gangster Henry Hill, Martin Scorsese uses scenes and shots like tiny, overlapping brushstrokes that gradually form a fascinating portrait not just of Hill, but of an entire era in American history. (1990)
2. FIGHT CLUB — Director David Fincher’s “Seven” held this spot until October, but his most recent movie, which opened that month, is even better. A bold script, revolutionary visuals and bracing performances from Brad Pitt and Edward Norton make this provocative, funny film striking in every sense of the word. It demands repeat viewing. (1999)
3. RUSHMORE — The best comedy of the decade. Writer/director Wes Anderson crafts this movie like a Swiss watch, and each piece - acting, music, cinematography, script - works in perfect synchronization with the rest. At its calm center spins Max Fischer (Jason Schwartzmann), one of the most memorable characters of the decade. (1998)
4. SLING BLADE — No special effects and no stars, just a heartbreakingly human story about loss and redemption. Billy Bob Thornton writes and directs “Sling Blade,” but his greatest achievement is the creation of Karl Childers, a good-hearted man who will go to any length to protect the innocent. (1996)
5. SCHINDLER’S LIST — Director Steven Spielberg leaves the sharks and aliens behind for this harrowing look at the Holocaust. Brilliantly shot in black and white and featuring a trio of great performances (from Liam Neeson, Ralph Fiennes and Ben Kingsley), “Schindler’s List” manages to explore the 20th century’s darkest moment and somehow end on a hopeful note. (1993)
6. PULP FICTION — The noble hitman. The femme fatale. The proud boxer. Cliches one and all, but Quentin Tarantino makes them fresh by infusing the story with a dose of humor and shocking bursts of violence. It revived the career of John Travolta, jolted the career of Samuel Jackson and reminded us that Bruce Willis really can act. (1994)
7. BOOGIE NIGHTS — Director Paul Thomas Anderson reveals his love of cinema in every frame of this sprawling epic about the ’70s porn world. And, for a movie about such a seamy subject, what shines through is the film’s striking sense of compassion for its characters. (1997)
8. THE MATRIX — Hard science-fiction, Hong Kong fight scenes and mind-blowing special effects unite in this invigorating thriller. The Wachowski brothers demonstrate that an action flick actually can be about something, which, of course, makes it even more exciting. (1999)
9. TOY STORY — Proving that a computer-generated movie can have humanity, this revolutionary animated film also has humor, rich characters and nail-biting suspense. This year’s sequel is just as good, but I’m listing “Toy Story” because it came first. (1995)
10. JFK — Oliver Stone takes the Kennedy assassination, shatters it into a million pieces, then examines the conspiracy behind each one. Stone’s theory about what happened is a little nutty, but he conveys the impending chaos lurking behind the shiny curtain of Camelot. (1991)
July 24th, 2009
Director Wes Anderson and his MR. FOX cast. (Image by Greg Williams of Fox — heh heh –Â Searchlight Pictures via USA Today)
USA Today has a story about Wes Anderson’s upcoming movie, THE FANTASTIC MR. FOX, that offers some more details on this intriguing project. Among them…
1. George Clooney will provide the voice of the hero, Mr. Fox
2. The movie will include side shots of the tunnels Mr. Fox digs. The article compares the image to an Ant Farm, but anyone who saw Anderson’s LIFE AQUATIC WITH STEVE ZISSOU will probably think of the memorable side shot of his ship, the Belafonte…
3. Jason Schwartzmann (who starred in Anderson’s RUSHMORE and THE DARJEELING LIMITED) will voice one of Fox’s children, a misfit who wears a superhero cape.
4. Quoth Schwartzman:Â “It’s funny, but also visually beautiful. Instead of adapting his style of directing to animation, he brought animation to him. He made a Wes film.”
Sounds good to me!
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