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Mad Men Shocker: Glenn Beck Will Be Featured in Season 5 Episodes!

2012-01-18T19:26:00.000-08:00

St. Vincent Does An Elvis Costello Fake Out on 'Conan'

2012-01-17T12:20:00.000-08:00

Brand New and Its Fans Get Born-Again at the Croc Rock

2011-04-29T17:55:00.000-07:00

Concert Review

By Ryan Sartor

As rock screamers Brand New took the stage Thursday night, they did not conjure up images of musicians ready to play, but rather a group of priests preparing for holy mass—albeit in ratty t-shirts and jeans. The reverence with which Brand New is treated by its fans (and to a lesser extent, how the band treats itself) is sort of an anomaly. Their debut album, “Your Favorite Weapon”, was not dissimilar from other work in the pop/punk/emo factory that produced bands like Taking Back Sunday and New Found Glory. But in the years that followed, Brand New consistently showed contempt for their listeners, releasing the moody, depressing, but melodic and harmony-infused “Deja Entendu”(an album that felt ambitious enough to make them the heir apparent to Radiohead), only to follow that up with the even more moody and depressing, although stripped of any pleasant sounds, “The Devil and God Are Raging Inside Me”, which with its slow-building, go-nowhere tracks and incessant screaming, felt like a band refusing to give their listeners anything to enjoy.

Such an attitude can lead to backlash, but Brand New’s fans embraced this attitude, wanting all the more to know what they had done to upset lead singer Jesse Lacey, begging him to please love them. Lacey and his band mates upped the ante with 2009’s “Daisy”, a screaming escapade through anger and misunderstanding, which would never have been mistaken for the work of a band that penned the tongue-in-cheek song “Jude Law and a Semester Abroad” if their moniker didn’t accompany both LPs.

In a 2009 interview with music magazine “Kerrang!”, Lacey described the making of “Daisy” by saying, “We were thinking a lot more about what we'd want to play when we were up onstage rather than actually what you'd want to hear on a record.”

Seeing the band on stage, this statement makes all kinds of sense. The incessant screaming in half of the songs shouldn’t work, but it does. The melodies buried in “The Devil and God” and “Daisy” come roaring to the front, and the capacity crowd in Allentown (who all seemed to be 17-years-old, which could make one feel ancient) screamed along to just about every tune. There were a few concert-goers who remained silent during tracks from Brand New’s later albums, but these people were rocking out with them best of them as the band powered through their early hits. In recent tours, Brand New would play a few songs from “Deja Entendu” and one from “Your Favorite Weapon”, but at the Croc Rock, they performed six “Deja” songs and four from “Your Favorite Weapon”. Granted, tracks from both albums were updated with Lacey’s screams and the band’s thrashing instrumentation, but fans were happy all the same. Unexpectedly, Brand New’s early tracks (featuring impossibly immature lyrics like, “I hope the next boy that you kiss has something terribly contagious on his lips”) feel completely at home next to their more recent, contemplative efforts: through sheer will, Brand New pushes early naught pop/punk whine-o tracks through the crucible of legitimacy.

Throughout the show (which lasted nearly two hours), there was crowd surfing and a few impromptu mosh pits, but just as often fans were singing with their eyes closed, on the verge of tears, connecting with the band in a way that is rare for even the most intimate shows. Concert-goers came from New York and New Jersey, eager to worship at the altar of Brand New. It would be foolish to predict what their next album will sound like, though at a Baltimore concert two days before their show in Allentown, Lacey told the audience the band was “tired of bumming you guys out. We’re trying to write something happy.” Listening to the band’s records, one could be forgiven for thinking Brand New never cares about their fans’ happiness. At the Croc Rock Thursday night, they proved nothing could be further from the truth—at least for this tour.

"Beeswax": My Favorite Film of 2009

2010-02-04T17:36:00.000-08:00

I started writing a top ten list and found that while certain films were great and definitely worth seeing, you've probably seen something similar to anything I'd recommend that was just as good. I mean SEE whatever you're going to see. And check out the Best of '09 lists by Christopher Bell and Alex Megaro for some great titles to add to your Netflix queue.

I didn't see as many movies as I should have this past year, but the one that I liked best was BEESWAX, Andrew Bujalski's third feature film about... I'm not sure any description would make you want to run out and see it (I don't know if you could find it if you tried - at the bottom of this page I've posted theatres its opening at throughout February, none in the North East - maybe download it, it comes out on DVD in April).

What I LIKED about the film were the performances Mr. Bujalski got out of his actors. Just to use an example, a film like BROKEN EMBRACES is great, but the performance that one gets out of a trained actor will nearly always be less authentic than one out of a non-actor. For the most part, Mr. Bujalski works with non-actors. And if the people have acted before, it's been in films LIKE his own.

"Beeswax" is subtle like a Raymond Carver short story, except more fun. You watch each scene, studying the speech, looking for clues, trying to determine WHAT the people on screen are thinking. You often have no IDEA what these characters are up to - the miracle is that Mr. Bujalski is always determined to let everyone on screen act like a human being.

The film is about a pair of twin sisters. One is thinking about teaching English as a 2nd Language abroad, and the other owns a vintage clothing store and is on the verge of being sued by her co-owner. Mr. Bujalski has said in interviews that this film was difficult to write as it required a great deal of exposition, but his films are always just about people talking anyway, so it was kind of funny to read that.

The secret to BEESWAX's success, and the reason that it is difficult from every other film released this year (that I've seen), is that Mr. Bujalski's agenda is known to no one and yet simultaneously everything seems so mundane, so ordinary, so everyday. When Mr. Bujalski refuses to explain what the title BEESWAX means, he says that he thought the meaning was obvious, but when people started asking, he decided it was more interesting to not explain it.

Mr. Bujalski's previous film, the excellent MUTUAL APPRECIATION, seemed equally mysterious upon first viewing - but upon second viewing became a great indictment of human nature and went from being a fairly light comedy to a rather bleak view of humanity, or at least a foreboding one.

I don't know if additional analysis of BEESWAX will yield such answers. I think that Mr. Bujalski has learned his lesson and nothing will slip through the cracks this time. It's worth mentioning that I laughed harder during BEESWAX than I did any film this year. Naively, I thought BEESWAX would be Mr. Bujalski's first film to really expand and get a big audience - but it's been doing the usual roadshow through the country. I know it must be frustrating for him, but as long as he keeps getting just enough money to make these small, subtle, interesting films, the cinema is better for it. Many a great filmmaker has been ruined by success. I don't think success could ruin Andrew Bujalski, but if he stopped making these types of films, I think my heart would break (just a little bit).

Here's where it's playing in the future if you're near these places:

JANUARY 2010
January 26, 2010 - Real Pizza Cinerama, Bar Harbor, ME
January 26, 2010 - Tropic Cinema, Key West, FL

(That's Andrew Bujalski on the RIGHT ---->)

FEBRUARY 2010
February 5, 2009 - Gene Siskel Film Center, Chicago, IL
February 5, 2009 - Capital Theater, Olympia, WA
February 12, 2009 - The Screen, Santa Fe, NM
February 12, 2009 - Angelika Film Center, Dallas, TX
February 19, 2009 - UW-M Union Theatre, Milwaukee, WI
February 26, 2009 - Zinema Two, Duluth, MN

NBC Never Wanted Conan to Succeed

2010-01-14T22:21:00.000-08:00

The whole late night debacle going on with Conan O'Brien, Jay Leno and NBC is really interesting. Firstly, I am amazed that all of this is being discussed so publicly. The argument that affiliates would have gone public with complaints about The Jay Leno Show doesn't hold water. If that were true, then NBC could have let the affiliates speak out, and then the public would have had some sympathy for them when they announced that they had to cancel The Jay Leno Show. Either way, the cancellation of The Jay Leno Show should not have affected The Tonight Show with Conan O'Brien.

One could argue that they never should have forced Leno to leave The Tonight Show in the first place, but the fact that they did shows that the NBC executives realized how terribly unfunny Leno has always been, and wanted to get someone exciting like Conan O'Brien to host The Tonight Show.

They announced the cancellation fo The Jay Leno Show, and that Jay would host a show at 11:30, because they wanted to piss off Conan O'Brien and force him to quit. From the exiling of Friday Night Lights to DirecTV, to the bogus cancellation of Southland, NBC has only made money-based decisions in the past year.

Which brings us to Dick Ebersol. Why the chairman of NBC Sports has an opinion on late night is beyond me, but Ebersol is very upset at Conan O'Brien for speaking out publicly against Leno, calling it “chicken-hearted and gutless to blame a guy you couldn’t beat in the ratings.”

Okay, Mr. Ebersol, let's look at the facts: people watch shows at 10 o'clock, and then keep the television on through the local news, and then watch whatever late night program is on. The Tonight Show with Conan O'Brien debuted on June 1st. No one is watching prime time television in June, because there's no new programming on the big four aside from reality competitions based on Japanese game shows. So, there was nothing to draw people into Conan's Tonight Show and build an audience. This was deliberate. NBC was scared and wanted to keep Leno at this point, but knew if they backed out of their deal with O'Brien, they would have had to pay him $45 million.

So then they wait until September to debut The Jay Leno Show, a non-starter program that no one watched. It sucked up guests that Conan would have gotten and its presence showed a general lack of confidence in Mr. O'Brien's ability to hold down late night TV on NBC. If they really believed in Conan, they would have told Jay that he could take his business elsewhere, but they didn't.

Mr. Ebersol is claiming that “what this is really all about is an astounding failure by Conan.” How could Conan have ever succeeded, Mr. Ebersol? Who is going to tune into NBC at 11:30 to watch a guy talk to celebrities, do a monologue when that previously happened in nearly the exact same fashion, minus the laughs, at 10 p.m.?

“I like Conan enormously personally,” Mr. Ebersol said. “He was just stubborn about not being willing to broaden the appeal of his show.”

If by "broadening the appeal of his show" he means putting on a show like Leno's, then he's an idiot. Conan O'Brien has always been funny, and Jay Leno has always been a moron. Everyone knows this except the money men, and idiots who live in the Midwest.

Here's the Times piece on Ebersol.

Sawed by guest critic Adam Perry

2009-12-24T11:50:00.000-08:00

A look at the Saw films by guest critic Adam Perry

What came first, Tobin Bell or the Saw franchise?

Last night, a disturbing vision came to me. I was standing in a friend’s bathroom, taking a break from an intense but friendly card game. The game went on into the wee hours of the morning, ending up touching the pillow at six thirty A.M. So it is about four, five. I’m standing in this bathroom, collecting myself, as the routine types and amounts of substances have been passed about throughout the night. I look to my left, my reflection looks to its right. I see the bathtub. And I think, I’m about to be sawed. Sawed is the extremely scientific and clever-sounding term I developed over six straight years of watching the Saw horror films. To be ‘sawed’ is to be targeted by the main villain, Jigsaw (or just Saw,) as one who is not appreciative of their life and therefore must be subjected to numerous punishments, each more horrifying and gruesome than the last. Jigsaw, a cancer patient with an indeterminate amount of time to live, targets those who have abandoned life as a worthy pursuit, taking for granted time that he would literally kill to have. So he designs traps and mazes and punishments that are meant to teach the subject a lesson or two about the value of life.

Saw is unquestionably the franchise of the 2000s (or whatever we are choosing to call this decade.) In six short years, from 2004 to 2009, every October has brought with it a new film in the series. The first, released in 2004 with a budget of one million dollars, made almost twenty times that its first weekend in release. The first film, one of only two to not premier in first place (eat one, Paranormal Activity) ushered in the characteristics that would “define” the franchise.

First and foremost is incredibly poor acting, no matter the caliber of the actor hired. Bear in mind we are discussing a film that brought out Danny Glover’s worst performance, and gave us the worst piece of acting on screen of all time with Cary Elwes as Lawrence Gordon. Everyone is either a ham-handed, are-they or aren’t-they villain or a shrieking victim. The difference between the two is minimal, as almost every character of relevance, and I use that term loosely, spends screen time occupying both roles. I would be inclined to say that the acting was most tolerable in the second film, although Donnie Wahlberg and future Saw-ee Lyriq Bent make me regret typing that statement. Saw III saw the exit of many players, such as Jigsaw (live Jigsaw at least; Bell lives on in that most atrocious of storytelling techniques: the flashback) and his preening, shouting assistant Amanda. Saw III also gave us our first look at Mark Hoffman, an investigative officer of some sort (another Saw trait: law enforcement officers are always of indeterminate origin) who has connections to Jigsaw. Saw V had the bad acting showdown between Costas Mandylor, who plays Mark Hoffman, and Scott Patterson as the main character being sawed, Agent Peter Strahm, both cop characters seem to be vying for worst law enforcement officer ever. Saw VI, the first since the original to not open at number one (also opening about 4 million fewer than Saw I,) featured the lamest acting.

The second trait that one can readily link to any Saw film is that each film tries to outdo the past in terms of the twists and turns taken by the story and the shocking nature of the ending. In regards to this, logic and consistency tend to be abandoned. Sure, the endings of II through V all have a certain mathematical logic to them. Saws III-IV had one of the best plot twist combinations ever, where the two were running concurrently, and the end of Saw IV encompassed and continued the end of Saw III. This was where the series indisputably hit its peek. However, the altering of the Saw-niverse that occurred to accommodate these plot twists was rather preposterous. In the first Saw, John Kramer emerges as the villain, the presumed dead body that lay between the two main characters for the whole film. John Kramer is a regular, cancerous Joe in the first film, nothing making him special except for the fact that he was dying, and this made him angry about those who took life for granted. Over the course of films III-VI, John Kramer is revealed to be some huge mogul of sorts; flashbacks show his face on the cover of numerous magazines, and he is shown as an intellectual, man of industry, and philanthropist, occupying all roles to a certain amount of accolade from the public. This is the kind of character development that occurs on the fly. Nobody planned for this at the beginning of the series and so therefore you can feel the extremely forced nature of the change. But no matter. Tobin Bell could make reading the phone book nefariously hilarious, and as long as he has screen time the series will have something going for it.

The third and most predominant trait the Saw films are the production values and direction, both of which resemble that of the sub-par student film. Grimy, dank locations are the setting for everything, from torture chambers to police stations to doctor’s offices to doctor’s homes. Nothing can escape the production designer’s appetite for grays and dark blood reds and general grime. The city in which Saw takes place must be the most depressing to live in, making Gotham or any Alex “The Crow” Proyas-designed city look downright like Pleasantville. Jigsaw’s warehouse/funhouses always have a permanent coat of rust and stain about them; he seems only to use junkyard scrap when building his traps, not caring a bit about the germs and contaminants that inhabit rusty metal. And for such hazardous looking contraptions, they all seem to work as if there was no rust or damaged part about them. The makers of these films realized early on that budgets could be kept low using shitty locations, and that it would also be in keeping with the themes they were going for.

So here I am, standing in this bathroom, thinking that it is something like a scene out of Saw. And a realization hits me. I feel that way because I deserve to be sawed. I hold down no job, honest or otherwise, and contribute nothing to society other than tax revenue. I panic, thinking that Mark Hoffman is waiting behind those shower curtains in a pig mask, ready to strike, and unleash me upon a warehouse full of my captured friends and plenty of bloodletting devises. Then I snap out of it, and return to the game, the only fear in my mind that there won’t be a Saw VII.

Saw VI certainly did not kill the franchise. While researching facts for this article I stumbled upon a screeninglog.com article, stating that “Saw VII 3-D…David “Saw V” Hackl’s film will open in theatres Oct. 22, 2010.” (I have already marked my 2010 calendar.) So we can see that it will take world’s more than a sub-30 million theatrical run to put the final nail through Jigsaw’s coffin. The danger of Saw VI is alienating the real fans, such as myself, who enjoy such trash films as long as their intelligence is not insulted. Saw VI, tried to be topical, making the lead villain an evil life insurance provider who had at one point rejected John Kramer, Jigsaw, on the grounds that he had terminal cancer, which did not fit this magic “formula” the agent had invented. “But your formula fails to take into account the most basic of all factors, the will of the patient to live.” John Kramer warns him. Well, five years or so later I’m sure he regretted it, after what Jigsaw posthumously subjected him to. This poorly written farce dumbs down the relevance of the real crisis facing us from drug companies and insurance agents, not to mention the fact that no one is in this theatre to watch “The Informant!” or “A Civil Action.” Saw VI was also about 40% made up of scenes from other Saw movies that were literally lifted right out of them. Other films in the series, however illogical, did not feel the need to over-explain the plot twists with scenes that audiences had already seen once, or even twice. Hopefully Saw VII will have a nice million dollar budget, very doubtful given it’s 3-D nature, and return to the basics of the original film. Until that happens, and Cary Elwes returns, it’s game over.

Luna Nueva and Terminator Four reviews by Adam Perry

2009-12-24T11:28:00.000-08:00

Special guest critic Adam Perry weighs in on New Moon and Terminator: Salvation

´"Ten million flies can´t be wrong. Eat more shit."

-G.C. Hill

How long did it take Twilight to storm the most mundane hill in the world, that of mass appeal? The book Twilight came out in 2005, the final one, Breaking Dawn, in 2008. There are also apparently unpublished retellings and second parts to books one and two. The third book is called Eclipse, the second, New Moon. I think each book sold over ten copies. The author is Stephanie Meyer, a Mormon. She has never seen an R-rated film, except for parts of Interview with a Vampire.

The first film, directed by Catherine Hardwicke, came out on November 21st, 2008. Twilight the movie looked as though, from it´s exceptionally atrocious previews, like everything was saturated in grey. Maybe those were the creative differences that drove Hardwicke from the film, although it was allegedly the production timeline for New Moon. It took three hundred and fifty-seven days for New Moon, re-titled The Twilight Saga: New Moon to appear onscreens, unless, like me, you were in Spain, in which case it came out two days earlier than it did state side.

I saw the first trailer for New Moon before Where the Wild Things Are. It was a single scene, consisting of Kristen Stewart, the heroine, being threatened by an unseen attacker, and a shirtless Taylor Lautner, who nearly went the way of Hardwicke himself, run and turn into a wolf, defending her. The effects were so horrendous looking that I thought to myself, I have to see this film. Twilight´s extremely poor-looking production value and foolish greys had already tempted me, and here was new moon, with a release date falling on my birthday, tempting me again. The first full trailer of the Chris Wietz directed film looked so awful I couldn´t believe it was from a real movie, thus solidfying my need to see it.

However, things, as always, did not go according to plan. I had an opportunity to travel with a good friend, and although it meant missing both Bad LT. Port of Call New Orleans, I had to leave the country. However, as was to be expected, New Moon was playing worldwide, even earlier than in the states! I bullied my friend, a reluctent fan of the first film only, not the books, into seeing New Moon in spanish.

Since I knew nothing of Twilight or New Moon's plot, the movie did not make much sense to me. I know that New Moon starts on Bella´s birthday (because I remembered from Spanish class that cumpleaños means birthday), and that she is almost assaulted by one of her vampire lover Edward´s friends. This prompts Edward to leave the story, which I figured out because I was only seeing shadowy images of Robert Pattinson, which let me know he was in those scenes only in Bella´s mind. I knew that she was growing close to the Ducky-like Jacob (soley in personality, as Jacob is muscular enough to shame any gym-going man), who turns out to be a wolf also. Then Bella travels to a foreign country I didn´t know because I don´t speak spanish, Dakota Fanning showed up for no reason, some ancient vampires lead by Michael Sheen let Edward go, and he and Bella return to the states. The film ends with the most anti-climactic confrontation between werewolf and vampire.

I knew when I was supposed to laugh, as the audience´s laughter told me something funny was happening, and more importantly, when I wasn´t supposed to, which would be when I was the only one laughing, usually at Robert Pattinson´s hilarious ghostly images.

First, the good. The soundtrack, the entire theatre letting out a collective orgasmic gasp the first time Jacob appears shirtless, and any time Robert Pattinson is on screen.

The bad. The differences between vampires and humans in this series seem only to be strength and agility. Nary a fang or even a bite is shown, and vampires walk about during the day time freely. I´m all for reinventing the wheel and everything, but it should be reinvented with talent, not a bunch of illogical and, frankly, uninteresting stylistic choices.

At least Chris Weitz allowed a color other than grey into the film. Next job: getting Kristen Stewart to crack a smile. Current grade: A for a hilarious time. I plan to watch and review both Twilight and New Moon in english.

This morning I re-watched Terminator: Salvation. I had seen it in theatres and left taking only the discovery of Sam Worthington with me as a positive, hating the rest. This was mostly because the trailer for the film that debuted with The Dark Knight looked amazing, with the best Nine Inch Nails song (the day the world went away) playing throughout. However, upon second viewing, the film can be seen as, if nothing else positive, ambitious. Unlike the first three Terminator films, which were exaclty the same film no matter what any one says, McG and his crew cooked up a plot that did not just involve running from a machine that is unstoppable until film´s end. He split the movie into two parts, one that followed Christian Bale as the fourth person to play John Connor (yeah, I´m counting The Sarah Connor Chronicles), and the other following executed criminal Marcus Wright, played by the revelatory Sam Worthington. The film lumbers along inoffensively and is even somewhat satisfying, but it has three major problems that can make it flunk-worthy to purists.

1) the marginalization of John Connor.

for the main character of the film, John Connor is actually outmatched by Marcus Wright for screen time. It doesn´t help that the scenes he does have are full of tired shouting and predictable struggles with superiors, while Wright is an interesting, compelling, mysterious character that the audience will find way more interesting and exciting to follow. As John Connor, Christain Bale doesn´t really bring anything to the table, not giving a bad performance, but certainly not making the audience miss him when he is gone.

2) References to the other films

there are three of these that I find intolerable, one somewhat O.K. Young Kyle Reece, suprisingly not terribly played by Anton Yelchin, tells Marcus Wright "Come with me if you want to live." strike one. The second, which is atually somewhat more subtile, is Wright teaching Reece to tie his shotgun to himself, as Michael Biehn does in Terminator 1. The third is John Connor telling his wife, this time played by Bland, I mean Bryce, Dallas Howard, "I´ll be back." Not only does infuriate me to think how much that original line is taken out of context as it is, this "homage" solidified it. The fouth, and most unforgiveable, is a fake Arnold as the main terminator at the end of the film, revealed as though it is a huge surprise. Don´t treat me like an idiot McG, especially not after the dollars I pumped into Charlie´s Angels I and II and all the time I spent defending you, I know that ain´t Arnold Schwarzzenegger. Absolutly pointless.

3), and finally. the hated PG-13 rating

No, I did not want to see Moon Bloodgood naked. I wanted the old fashioned, and never abandoned unbrideled carnage of the first three films. Even the huge action set pieces that plagued Rise of the Machines were filled with the requisite creative blood-letting that had defined the franchise. The decision to make the film PG-13 felt purely financial, not artistic at all, and the bitch of it all is that Terminator: Salvation was a financial disappointment.

The film is worth it to watch simply for the Marcus Wright storyline, but mediocrity, along with the above stated issues, weigh the film down. It depends on the viewer as to how much. Marcus Wright parts, A-, Christian Bale: C-, film C plus (there is no plus sign on this spanish keyboard)

thanks for reading guys. -Adam

Tom McCarthy Directing New Film

2009-12-18T13:52:00.000-08:00

Ion Cinema is reporting that my boy Tom McCarthy (who directed the super-ill The Station Agent and the lesser-but-still-very-good The Visitor) begins filming his new movie, Win, Win February in New York and New Jersey.

There are no details yet on the plot, but here's hoping its in the "people relating to one another" game than about making grandiose homeland security statements. Its important to use film for political purposes, but I just think he's got so much potential in the realm of small character-based films (a type very few are really good at writing/directing) and he should just focus on refining that. ("I bet this idiot likes Dan In Real Life." Yeah, I do.)

P.S. - Mr. McCarthy co-wrote the story for Up. Which is funny to me just because you know John Lasseter and the rest of those guys at Pixar think they're being really artsy working with the director of The Visitor. I'd love to see them have Lars Von Trier co-write a story, but we all know it would kill the Pixar boys to take a real risk ("Wall-E didn't talk for a while!" The whale from Free Willy had no dialogue, doesn't make his film art.) I'm kidding, Free Willy is obviously art.

'It's Complicated' earns R-rating over Weed Scene

2009-12-10T08:46:00.001-08:00

In a move that is as shockingly stupid as it is thoroughly predictable, the Motion Picture Association of America has upheld its R rating of the new Nancy Meyers romantic comedy It's Complicated because of a scene in which Meryl Streep and Steve Martin smoke marijuana "with no bad consequences."

It's amazing to me that uncreative, pandering storytelling is a requirement of the MPAA. These are movies, not after-school specials. I do sympathize with the board's suggestion that young people could see the film and it might encourage drug use, but such thinking would suggest that people are going to kill robots because they see Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen.

I know the drugs/sex versus violence argument is pretty old, and that's not what I'm getting at. What really bothers me is that if the filmmakers put something trite and predictable into the film, such as Meryl Streep crashing her car after smoking weed, then the film would land a PG-13 rating. This just encourages the "movie ideal" that life is simple and bad actions have immediately, obvious consequences. This doesn't reflect life and I don't see how the MPAA could think this would be a good thing to expose children to either, unless of course they plan on indoctrinating the masses to keep up the sale of popcorn and sour patch kids. Oh wait, they do.

Good for Universal for sticking by the filmmakers. Steve Martin even video conferenced in to plead the scene's case to the MPAA. I do think it's funny that the MPAA approved a scene in the trailer in which its obvious Ms. Streep and Mr. Martin have been smoking (Martin's holding the joint), a trailer which is approved for all audiences and can play in front of PG crowds even, but won't allow it in the finished film.

It's a shame that many families who were perhaps considering taking their more mature children to a nice Christmas romantic comedy will now be stuck viewing Alvin and the Chipmunks 2: The Squeekuel.

Here's the L.A. Times piece on the issue.

And the trailer below:

Vampire Weekend Video for "Cousins"

2009-12-09T14:33:00.000-08:00

I'm really pumped for the new Vampire Weekend album Contra - music snobs be damned. Pre-order it on vinyl here.

Their new music video for first single Cousins (no, Horchata was not the first single, free downloads cause such confusion) does exactly what great videos do: takes a simple concept and has fun with it.

The Playlist has an interview with the directors, and Pitchfork reviewed of the song.

And the video itself:

"The Box" & "Boondock Saints II: All Saints Day" Reviews

2009-11-19T07:12:00.000-08:00

Guest Critic Adam Perry reviews Richard Kelly and Troy Duffy's latest films.

Recently I had reason to take in The Box at the movies. Coming from Richard “Donnie Darko” Kelly, I had little reason for excitement resume-wise. However, I cannot help but be interested in Kelly after watching the #1 Donnie Darko Fan: A Darkomentary short film DVD extra, in which a crazed, possibly fake fan explains on camera why he is the number one Donnie Darko fan. The fan eventually goes to a convention where Kelly is speaking, and asks him numerous mythology related questions about Donnie Darko. Kelly, a good-natured, jockish looking guy, responds, “I made it all up, man. I made it all up.” This answer intrigued me, as did the downward spiral of the fan in the video, and ever since his name has caught my eye, always made me read an article about his upcoming projects. So I saw The Box, my first Richard Kelly theatrical experience.

The story of The Box is simple, but it is also crowded with details. A struggling family receives a box and a key. The key opens up to a “button unit,” as Frank Langella says, and the button, when pressed, signals for the killing of an unknown individual. The family is then compensated with one million dollars cash. In 1976!

Kelly seems to have a fascination with disfigurement in this film; Cameron Diaz has only one toe as the result of botched x-ray radiation, and anyone who knows anything about this film has seen Frank “half his face was…gone” Langella in the ads. The make-up department gets points for it being slightly more realistic, and far more frightening, than Harvey Dent in The Dark Knight, but Kelly never really uses this idea for anything other than shock value.

The button is pushed, and calamity ensues. Herein lie the film's best moments, with evil Langella unleashing a torrent of unknown menaces in the form of everyday people from earlier in the film, all of whom are under his complete control and suffer bloody noses for it. It is here also where Kelly throws in many plotlines, including alien invasions and the nefarious nature of government testing. The Mars theme is eerily reminiscent of Black Bush’s, and real Bush’s, Mars follies, if I may get my Peter Travers on for a moment. The alien bit, I will give Kelly credit, is done fairly well, and gets points for originality, if anything, aping a tad bit from Sphere.

However, bad acting and lame dialogue makes the movie semi-unwatchable. Cameron Diaz has a wretched southern accent, but does not give a terrible performance. James Marsden and whoever plays the couple’s son are both terrible. Frank Langella is, of course, amazingly hilarious as Arlington “more like 1/8 of a face” Steward. I would, of course, prefer to abstain from giving the film a grade; I guess it would be [B-]

And now The Boondock Saints, being viewed in its entirety for the first time since I was a high school freshman. First time ever on DVD format.

The film opens with the theme of Smoking and Irish Stuff, including religious imagery, the font of the credits, and the music. One of my Irish friends, who is an outspoken hater of movies that are “too Irish,” which for him include Mystic River, said he thought The Boondock Saints was “a complete Tarantino rip-off” and that he “thinks so much less of [me] because [I] like those movies.”

Troy Duffy, despite his faults, does bring an amount of personal flair to this “Tarantino rip-off.” Great musical numbers, particularly the introduction of Willem Dafoe, original and humorous action set pieces, and likeable characters distract the non-anal, i.e. average viewer from the films otherwise present Tarantino biting. Also, some will disparage the time-shuffling of the script, also crediting that to Tarantino, I’ve always found the way Duffy fools with time to be like a Guillermo Arriaga script. Funny enough that The Boondock Saints came out before any of Arriaga’s big scripts, which may make the comparison fail, but that says something about the nature of comparing a work to a work, and labeling something as a rip-off. No one is original anymore; it’s the way ideas are applied that make a film like this one worthy of many a repeat viewing.

Despite myself I enjoy this film. It has the gritty, late ‘90s shoe-string budget feel of such other Dafoe classics like Animal Factory. There are diverting scenes, full of as much spectacle as any scumbucket-worthy action fair such as T-formers II or G.I. Joe. Throughout the film we get four action pieces, each recalled upon after the fact. A fight at a bar, an improbable case of self-defense, a large shoot-up of a Russian gang meeting, and a three on one gunfight that involves at least twelve firearms. The ending is a toss-up; the eventual alliance of the McManus brothers and Agent Smecker is interesting, mostly because Duffy is so clear about Smecker’s guilt over allying himself with such blatant, justice-dispensing killers, but the way events play out is a little on the weak, unbelievable side.

After re-watching The Boondock Saints, it was on to see Boondock Saints II: All Saints Day. The general public had been teased/threatened upon the general public for at least six years before a trailer and a release date were finally set, an interim during which Duffy was smeared/exposed as a megalomaniac, friend-alienating jerk in the film “Overnight,” and everyone except Norman Reedus aged noticeably. The film opens with Rocco, killed off in the first film, walking into a church, giving a monologue about being involved with the Saints. A priest is then murdered in the Saints’ style, in an effort to flush the McManus brothers out of hiding.

The hiding turns out to be Ireland, where the brothers have spent ten years growing their hair and beards and herding goats with their improbable father, Noah “Il Duce” McManus. Upon learning of the priest’s demise, the brother shave, cut hairs, and dig up the past in the form of a suitcase full of weapons, cash, and pennies. Boarding a freighter, they return to Boston, picking up Clifton “Gonzales Gonzales” Colins Jr. as a sidekick. When the Saints land in Boston, they uncover a multi-layered plan to flush them out, by Papa Joe Yakavetta’s son, Judd Nelson, who was in turn being used to lure Noah McManus out of hiding, so an old enemy can confront him. Extreme violence, time-shuffling, and unexpected cameos follow.

All Saints Day is truly a fan’s sequel. Duffy deftly recalls bits from his first film, like the brothers’ hilarious fight in a heating duct, without repeating them. The movie’s sweet spot for me was a fever dream that the McManus brothers have, in which Rocco expounds upon his death, saying, “I wouldn’t trade the good we did for the whole world…not a single minute of it.” Whether or not the viewer agrees with the film’s rampant vigilantism, it is hard not to identify with the themes of doing something with your life, even if your life ends up being the cost. Despite the films cartoonish nature, deaths sting and big ideas can blindside the viewer, while most serious films cannot even hope to evoke such feelings.

Duffy’s flair for violence is admirable, and the way his victims are shot echoes such films as The Wild Bunch, in the large scope of massacres that take place. His victims always die funny, being shot four or five times before the actor realizes that they are supposed to fall. Critics will deride his violence as unrealistic; I didn’t know we were watching Saving Private Ryan or A History of Violence here. The Saints are a cartoon unto themselves, their world is a fully realized one, and the sequel was made with that world and its fan base, all created with the first film, in mind. For entertainment value, southern Julie Benz, and crazily orchestrated scenes of carnage, look no further than the Saints, I and II. [A]. - Adam Perry.

'The Fourth Kind' Will Drown in 'Paranormal Activity' Wake

2009-11-04T13:10:00.000-08:00

There is always the unfortunate situation of an indie film coming out and catching on with the mainstream audience, destroying whatever chance the studio equivalent had of making any money. It is a rare situation to feel bad for the studio, but I do feel a bit that way in regards to Universal's The Fourth Kind. The early reviews have been very ho-hum, but what's especially troubling is that the film is going for the "these events really happened" angle, which while not exactly the same as the "this is real footage" gimmick Paranormal Activity (domestic gross: $86 million and counting) used, audiences have already believed their share of real, spooky phenomena for the year.

The Fourth Kind (which I never really wanted to see, though looks like it might resemble one of the better X-Files episode) begins with actress Milla Jovovich as herself, stating that the interviews in the film are based on real footage. It's a clever idea, but you can feel the studio's slick hands all over the trailers for this one, which will be laughabled in the face of Paranormal Activity's (pseudo) authenticity.

I suppose at this point it would just taint Fourth Kind to move it to another date. Universal will just have to bite the bullet and hope to break even. Or maybe they'll just stop making Milla Jovovich vehicles. That's not a knock on her, but rather the types of films she stars in that get green lit. Although, A Perfect Getaway was quite entertaining. Look for that when it comes out on DVD.

The First Review of 'The Box': 'Eh, It's Kinda Okay, I Guess.' I'll Take It!

2009-10-29T15:32:00.000-07:00

Click here for Variety's review of The Box (opening Nov. 6th), Richard Kelly's attempt at mainstream success. The good news is that all of the terrible buzz on the film seems to be a bit premature, as critic Jordan Mintzer says that it is "weird and [wild]," so if nothing else, Mr. Kelly hasn't gone soft.

The trailer's below:

Bill Nighy on 'Punch-Drunk Love'

2009-10-27T07:28:00.000-07:00

I agree with actor Bill Nighy (Love Actually, Notes on a Scandal) that 'Punch-Drunk Love' is P.T. Anderson's best film. Here's Nighy's piece on the film from Rotten Tomatoes, where he was listing his Five Favourite Films to promote Pirate Radio (formerly The Boat That Rocked). What do you think is Anderson's best film?

"A relatively new film that went straight into my top five, I adore Punch Drunk Love, and I can almost recite it to you. It was on TV on a loop for a while, and it's like The Godfather, you hit that film on TV and you stay there. There aren't many, but you just stay there, thinking, 'I could keep flipping, but there's not actually going to be anything better than this,' and it doesn't matter that you've seen it sixteen times - you just dig it because it's such high quality.

I think Adam Sandler and Emily Watson are completely marvellous in it, and I didn't know anything about Adam Sandler, I've never seen any of his other films, so I've only seen him in this. I love Paul Thomas Anderson, and I think it's my favourite of his films. Possibly a controversial thing to say, as his other films are, perhaps, hipper, but I love the fact that it's this fucked up love story. I love it stylistically, the jokes, the visual attitude of it and those funky links that he does. I love the apparent arbitrariness of the plot, which hinges on upon the fact that you get free air-miles with a particular brand of chocolate pudding, and I love the way it dovetails at the end.

Everyone in it is magnificent, including Philip Seymour Hoffman, who's in The Boat that Rocked and who is beautiful in Punch Drunk Love. Adam Sandler gives one of the greatest light entertainment performances I've ever seen. It's a submerged light entertainment, it's so integrated, so authentic in terms of naturalism, that you surprise yourself by laughing, because it's so deadpan, so undercover in terms of comedy, and that's my favourite thing of all time, the highest level. For the first twenty minutes you think you're in art movie hell, but you're not, so don't panic."

John Mayer: 'Who Says' & 'Battle Studies'

2009-10-19T15:48:00.000-07:00

The new John Mayer single Who Says starts just about every verse with the line "Who says I can't get stoned." It will be interesting to see how it plays on radio. I can't imagine a filler line for "stoned," let me know if you guys come up with anything. My guess is he'll do for marijuana what the Black Eyed Peas did for lady humps and Katy Perry for kissing girls. More power to him. Controversy aside, the song is really quite beautiful. It reminds me of a James Taylor style slow jam. In fact, I'd love to hear a James Taylor cover of the song immediately.

Speaking of covers, check out the album cover for John Mayer's album Battles Studies (left). At first I was thinking, "Oh, it's a joke." And then I realized, "No. It is not." But of course, it is a joke, he just doesn't seem to be in on it.

Either way, I've pre-ordered the album on vinyl. It was supposed to be released before Thanksgiving but now has a December 1st release date. This would be the time to make a joke about Mr. Mayer's lazy ways, but I'm sure every other media outlet will have a field day with that so I'll just leave them to their cheap ways.

Below is the video for Who Says:

NBC Cancels 'Southland,' Calling it "Too Good"

2009-10-16T14:20:00.000-07:00

That headline is not entirely true. I mean, it's really cancelled but NBC official reason is, well, non-existent. Southland did fine in the ratings, garnered unanimous critical acclaim, and seemed to be a worthy follow-up to E.R. (which I've never actually watched) by that show's producer John Wells (who produces some good independent films, too).

Southland will possibly find a home on basic cable or with a premium channel, but there is something very encouraging about a critically acclaimed show to have a home on one of the big four networks. Shows like (early) Lost, (the first season of) 24, or something like Friday Night Lights (which is only alive because of co-funding from DirecTv) give television hope. It says that the mainstream audiences, the people without cable, approve of quality programming - that's the real (note: only) power of television: to unite everyone under great art. It just never really happens anymore.

The only comment NBC will make is that "the quality of the show wasn't a factor in the decision." NBC execs are looking to cut costs across the board. Hence The Jay Leno Show and shipping off Medium to CBS. Their highest rated show is the cheap-to-produce The Biggest Loser.

NBC's ideal situation, it seems, would be a schedule filled with reality shows - anything cheap to make. At a certain point its just about keeping one's job. Jeff Zucker doesn't want to stop running NBC Universal, and with an offer by Comcast (and now Rupert Murdoch is jumping in) on the table to buy the company, they want NBC Universal to look as attractive as possible to stockholders. Sure, there are some losers who care about quality television, but that is 95% of the time an oxymoron anyway so fuck it - let's make some money.

Dawson's Creek: The Complete Series Coming to DVD Nov. 10th

2009-10-16T08:41:00.001-07:00

I know that none of you care, but I'm hyped for the release of the Complete Series of Dawson's Creek on DVD. I own all the seasons but can't find my copies of the 2nd and 3rd, so maybe I could justify this purchase.

The packaging looks pretty lame, but it comes with a CD of music featured on the show, a new booklet (wow!) and a new interview with series creator, Kevin Williamson (should be whack, probably less than five minutes). I've been rewatching the First Season of the show and I think it's a program that, more than any other series I can recall, completely feeds off its pilot. The pilot is amazing television, and the second episode is as well, but beyond that it's all fairly standard. I love it all, every episode, but I think if you're not hooked by the pilot, you wouldn't have much desire to find out what happened to these characters. However, if you do watch the pilot, I'm fairly certain you'll become addicted. I hope Nick Schibani comes out of hiding to comment on this.

I also found out about this book: Dawson's Creek: A Critical Understanding which features this absurd review:

"To whom it may concern,

I bought this book and I would just like to say that I do not regret it AT ALL. I would easily say that this book changed my life. I have been a Dawsons Creek fan for several years, and Bindigs point of views and ability to capture the true story of Dawson's creek is remarakable. I have never read a book that I physically could not put it down. My husband left me because I would want to read the book all day rather than spend some quality relationship bonding time with her and the kids. Im not upset about it at all. I am perfectly happy sitting with my cats in my cat pajamas just reading this book with a good cup of tea. I would recommend this book to any stranger. It changed my life for the better. Because I knew read this book. I have been changed, for good."

Here's the first part of the pilot. I think it's in Spanish, I don't have speakers here:

Early Word From Critics: 'Fantastic Mr. Fox' is Good, Not Great

2009-10-15T08:12:00.000-07:00

So far, The Playlist has given Fantastic Mr. Fox a B-, Variety has posted a moderately positive review (discussing its box office potential more than any review should, as is typical of Variety - and especially Todd McCarthy), and Comingsoon.net gave it an 8 out of 10. Comingsoon.net critics, however, are typically all over the map, never reflecting a critical consensus or any reflection of the film's quality.

Middling reviews are typical of Mr. Anderson's post-Royal Tenenbaums work (that film earned Mr. Anderson and Owen Wilson respective Academy Award nominations for Best Original Screenplay), so it could still be quite good.

The one thing the critics all agree on is that the film resembles Mr. Anderson's films more than a Roald Dahl book - which, no offense to Mr. Dahl - is the way I'd prefer it.

New Haneke/Huppert Collabo In The Works

2009-10-15T07:50:00.001-07:00

The Playlist reports that Michael Haneke's next film will star his muse, Isabelle Huppert who acted in his best film (me thinks), The Piano Teacher, as well as one of his less successful (but still great - that's the scale with Haneke) films, The Time of the Wolf. The new as-yet-untitled film centers on the idea of aging, specifically "the humiliation of the physical breakdown in the elderly." Sounds intriguing.

I haven't had a chance to see The White Ribbon yet - it opens in NY Decemeber 30th. Let me know if any of you guys hear about screenings before then.

Here's Haneke talking about The Piano Teacher:

Interview: Eleni Mandell

2009-10-07T18:29:00.000-07:00

Eleni Mandell is one of the premiere singer/songwriters working today with a prolific oeuvre dating back to 1998 where her fantastic Jon Brion co-produced debut, Wishbone, perfected the Brion sound before there was one. Every album since has seen her create filler-less opuses – from Thrill to Miracle of Five. Check out her website (elenimandell.com where you can buy all her albums, as well as some 7’’ records). Her latest album, Artificial Fire, is a fine addition to her catalog, the title track (video here) finds her rocking a bit more, and she really living up to song titles with the aptly-named Personal.

Rocket Multimedia: On my iTunes, all your albums fall into different genres. (Eleni laughs) Wishbone is folk, Miracle of Five is jazz.

Eleni Mandell: None of it makes any sense to me. If you walk into a record store, they file me under ‘Rock.’ They don’t file me under a million different places. Although, record stores don’t really exist anymore.

RM: That’s true. I feel that something like [the song] Afternoon I could totally see that being on Artificial Fire and Don’t Let It Happen could be on Miracle of Five. I feel like a song of yours is unique and even if you’re using different instruments or doing a different genre, it all comes across as one of your songs.

EM: That’s very nice, thank you.

RM: Oh no problem.

(Both laugh)

EM: Yeah, I wish there was a way I could control what they say, but, you know…

RM: I guess that wasn’t really a question, I’m sorry.

EM: It was a commiseration.

RM: When you write a song, is there a certain group of people whom you share it with? I’m a writer and I never know who to take notes from and which notes to take and how long until you say, “Okay, it’s done.”

EM: I have a few people I’ll share things with. But, when I was younger I definitely used to say, “Hey, I wrote a new song! Can I play it for you?” Now I definitely feel a bit more private about it for some reason. There are a couple of people who, if they happen to be here, I might play it for them. Then I’ll stop halfway through and be like, “You know, you get the picture.” I always have this sense that people don’t feel comfortable listening to a song that way. I don’t want to impose myself and I also don’t want to be in that position where someone says, “Hey, can I play you my latest opus?” I try to be a little on the down low about it.

RM: Lilly Allen was going on about how it’s harder for new artists to come up in music because of illegal downloading. Your` first album came out in 1998 so you’ve evolved as all the illegal downloading has gone on. What do you think about the situation?

EM: I’ve always felt that if somebody wanted my music, I was flattered - no matter how they got it. I once got a letter from somebody that said they discovered me because they stole my record from a record store. I was flattered that they were compelled to do so. In some ways, I feel like it’s a shame the way things have worked out. In a lot of ways, I feel like it’s a shame the way things have worked out in the music industry. And I was never really a part of the mainstream industry, but I always did have that dream that someday I would get a record deal and then they would make me known to the general public, and people would want to buy my music. The airwaves are just completely flooded. There are so many bands and so many people wanting to be musicians and so many people getting stuff for free. I’m not really too aware of how much free downloading goes on with my music, but I don’t really know how I feel about it. I still struggle to get my music heard and its kind of a mystery as to how things will continue. I guess if people steal it, I hope at least they come to shows.

RM: I feel like you can’t really win because if you’re saying, “Hey, you should pay for my music” then you’re not cool. And if you say, “Hey, everything’s free,” then you don’t have a career.

EM: Yeah, I don’t make most of my money from people buying my records. I never have. I’ve gotten by from licensing. But, I guess at live shows I’ve noticed over the years, a decline in people buying CDs and records. Although, vinyl shelves are filling up in small increments. So that may be where I might be losing money, when people come to shows and then don’t want to buy something. But, it’s so great when people come to shows, no matter how many people there are.

RM: Are you doing more touring for Artificial Fire coming up?

EM: I don’t think we are It’s been pretty complicated to keep my band together for the U.S. My bass player [Ryan Feves], he and his wife had twins and my drummer [Kevin Fitzgerald] of ten years was suddenly unable to get time off from work. I ended up using Nigel Harrison (wrote the hit song One Way or Another by Blondie and played bass for them) and DJ Bonebreak (drummer for the LA punk band, X) on bass and drums and they were amazing, great guys to tour with. But, I can’t really afford it to be perfectly honest. I don’t think a full band tour is in the near future.

RM: The acoustic tour.

EM: I did do a recent Southeast tour with my guitar player as a duo and that was really a lot of fun and the shows were really successful.

RM: I Believe in Spring - I love that song. Were you influenced by Cole Porter on that?

EM: I was influenced by all of the great American songwriters of that era, really more unconsciously than consciously. I grew up listening to the music of that era so its sort of ingrained in me. It’s probably the first music that I danced around the living room singing. At the time, I wasn’t specifically listening to anybody of that genre but that influence is just a constant in my brain. I can’t get away from it and I don’t think it really helps sell records.

RM: The song Cracked had one lyric that I was wondering if you could help me decipher: “You gave up God/I’ve seen the evidence in the pictures.”

EM: (laughs) One of the funny things about my songs is that the lyrics are often very literal and the person who inspired that song had been raised as a religious Christian. He was explaining to me when he gave up on believing in God, and then I had come across all these pictures of him with other women and I got really angry about it. So that’s what that is. It’s not a metaphor but I like the idea that people would listen to a song and come up with their own ideas about what something means. I’m always afraid of disappointing people by saying, “No, that conversation happened.”

RM: You did a song for the I Love You, Beth Cooper soundtrack. What was that experience like?

EM: It was great. I was invited to submit the song for that and they told me that they had had a different song in mind that they couldn’t afford to use, so that’s why they came to me. They wanted it to be a sort of bittersweet, twisted song that someone might sing at a graduation. So it should point at lyrics about moving on. I just gave it a shot and the director loved it. That lead me to record the song for the film’s final credits. It was a really different experience. Rob Cavallo [Green Day’s Dookie] produced the song.

RM: Oh yeah, wow, I’ve heard of him.

EM: Yeah, he’s a very big time producer. It was kind of fun to work with him and see the different way he approaches music from how I would do it. In the end, the director wanted something specific. It’s not really my version of the song. It’s what they wanted for the movie. I think it’s a really great song and the version that my band and I arranged originally was more Velvet Underground, but they wanted something that they thought the teenagers would like so it became something different. I always think teenagers should just like stuff that’s cool but I was never a mainstream teenager so I guess my point of view on that is very skewed.

RM: Yeah, I always like it when forty-year-old men are saying, “No, this is what teenagers like.”

EM: I know. And what they’re going by is just previous record sales. But, they’re a lot better at business than I am so I guess they don’t need to listen to me.

RM: They should, they’d be better off. Speaking of producers, on your first album, Wishbone, you worked with Jon Brion. What was that like?

EM: That was great. I learned a lot from working with Jon. He had so many incredibly foreign instruments, foreign to me at the time. Now they’ve become, “Oh yeah, I know all about that.” But at the time I’d never heard anything like it and it was a sound that I was really drawn to and that I loved. Jon can play anything. We had a lot of fun where I’d record the song on guitar with vocals and Jon would play all of this crazy stuff all over it. It was a lot of fun and it was great to work with him and with Ethan Johns who was engineering and playing drums on some things. Ethan Johns went on to be a really big producer as well, producing Kings of Leon and stuff. It was great working with them and learning from them. They kind of got swept away into their big careers and I had to finish the record with Brian Kehew, who’s also really great and whom I also made several records with. He went on to produce one of Fiona Apple’s records many years later, which is a coincidence because Jon was working on Fiona Apple’s first record when he and I were starting to go into the studio.

RM: I’m a big fan of Fiona Apple’s When the Pawn… and some of the instrument, I’m said, “That’s from ‘Wishbone!’” Some of the mad circus style, I was saying, “Oh, that was done first on ‘Wishbone.’”

EM: That’s very Jon and I kind of purposely moved away from it because it did become a very big trend in the music industry as Jon got bigger and bigger.

RM: At UC Berkeley, were the kid in the dorm who’d bring out her guitar and play for everybody?

EM: Like I always say, I don’t do campfire. I actually never lived in the dorm. When I went to college I lived in a boarding house, which was really great. Sometimes girls would come in my room and I would play to them. But I wasn’t really taking music seriously at that time, I just always had a guitar and I’d make up funny songs or try to learn peoples’ songs. But it wasn’t until I was in my senior year that I started to actually take music seriously.

RM: I read in a popgurls.com interview that you were in a writing group and writing short stories. Are you still writing short stories?

EM: I find it really, really difficult. I’ve been working on these extremely short stories, little songs that are stories for a long time and kind of honing that craft. It’s so incredibly different trying to write prose, but I do have an idea for a story. I want to learn how to write mystery/thiller/detective stuff. I don’t know when I’ll do that but I think it would be really fun.

RM: Like The Yiddish Policeman’s Union.

EM: Exactly. I always say, “This is the perfect book: it’s a Jewish/detective/heroin novel.

RM: I also read that you have a signed copy of a Charles Bukowski love poem?

EM: I do. It’s really beautiful. I didn’t meet him. My mother got that for me for a Hanukkah present because she was on jury duty with a bookseller.

RM: You said in an interview that you’re not a fan of laid-back, casual, ironic, deadpan type music. I didn’t know if there were any trends that have come out recently that you’ve kind of rolled your eyes at?

EM: I actually roll my eyes at all trends. Every now and then I jump on a bandwagon ten years too late. I think I’ve always shied away from being part of a group, a trend or a scene. I’ve always kind of felt like a spy. I feel like I have a day pass or something. It’s probably part of what’s been difficult in marketing me, for people who do that, that I’m not part of a scene or trend. What are some of the latest trends? Guys with beards?

RM: Yeah, guys with beards.

EM: Big beards like, “Hey, I’m just a farmer living here in L.A.”

(both laugh)

EM: Or the ironic mustache? I went with a friend, a guy in the music business, to see a singer/songwriter. And he said, “What did you think of him?” And I said, “I don’t really find it sexy to look up on stage and see someone who could be someone’s dad from 1979.” That’s not sexy to me. I know that’s part of the new trend, “Hey, I’m just a casual dad, wearing my tucked in shirt here.”

(both laugh)

RM: The song Don’t Let It Happen has a Bonnie Raitt vibe, I felt like. And I noticed there were some things with the vocals and melody. Does that all come to you at once or is there a layering process of, “Okay, we’re going to put this here, and…”

EM: As far as the whole recorded song with the band?

RM: Yes.

EM: I write all the songs myself in my living room, and I have my own ideas about where I want it to go a lot of the time, and sometimes I really don’t. With that record in particular, we really arranged everything as a band. So I would bring in the song. Or sometimes I wouldn’t bring in the song, I would start saying, “Can we try this at a live show?” And that was one of the songs we sort of started to figure out as we were touring a few years ago. My drummer is a collector of 45s - LPs too, but he loves old soul from the ‘60s. That was kind of the vibe we were going for. It was kind of an old soul song. Everybody brought something unique to all the songs. We’ve been playing together so long, we can really fall into a nice kind of arrangement. The only thing specific I can remember is that originally my guitar player was playing it, as he would say, kind of “country funky.” And I said, “No. I don’t want that.” And he’d say, “Why? What’s wrong with that?” I kind of cringe if anybody gets a little too bluesy. He was kind of resisting, arguing with me, and I said, “Look, you can come up with beautiful melodies, just come up with something else.” Then he came up with that beautiful melody. It was perfect.

RM: One thing that goes through your music, that I feel like more people should do, is that I feel like there’s a certain modesty to it. You’re assembling these great songs with beautiful melodies, but you’re not ever trying to say, “Oh hey, look at this, look at that.” You’re inviting people to let it wash over them. You’re not screaming for attention.

EM: Oh that’s so nice. I think that’s a really nice compliment. I do believe in subtlety and I think that’s really cool.

RM: The song I Love Planet Earth is a lot of fun. Why did you write a song like that?

EM: I wrote it because I was touring and I get really inspired touring the United States. Everybody likes touring Europe because you get treated really well, but the landscape of the United States really blows my mind. I find it incredibly beautiful. I was sort of, worrying so much about the planet and how we’re all going to survive and what we can do to make changes. And I was driving around thinking, “It’s so beautiful out here and it’s so weird.” We were in eastern Oregon leaving my bass player’s hometown of Pendleton. Normally we would cut across and angle to go back to highway 5, which goes through the Western States. It’s incredibly dull with little restaurant clusters of McDonalds and stuff. It’s a very, very boring drive. I said, “We can’t do it. We’ve got to find another route.” We ended up taking this eastern route into Utah and Idaho and Nevada and kind of going back and forth over the California border in the desert. It was just so mind-blowingly beautiful. We were on two-lane roads. We were driving through Indian reservations. There was just nothing for hours. And it was incredible. As corny as it is to write a song called “I Love Planet Earth,” there was nothing else I could say about it. That was it. No other way to put it. I highly recommend to everyone that they drive back and forth across the country a few times.

Review: Zombieland

2009-10-06T19:51:00.000-07:00

I came in with very small expectations for Zombieland. I'm still beefing with Columbia Pictures prez Amy Pascal over her treatment of Steven Soderbergh. But she done good on this one. The film is a machine. It gives the audience just what it wants - laughs, thrills, horror conventions. Jesse Eisenberg carries the film, his neurotic tendencies overwhelming Woody Harrelson, who does a fine job (although he says "Nut up or shut up" one-too-many times). The film ends just as we'd like it to, is thoroughly predictable and yet also surprising in the way it chooses to be predictable (if that makes sense). There's a great cameo, which you may have heard about, but I won't spoil it for you here.

The film's director, whose presence is so inconspicuous his name isn't worth mentioning, contributes a few interesting visual flourishes - the rules to surviving Zombieland are especially amusing.

Zombieland is the type of film that anyone - from an infant to your grandmother (god rest her soul) - can watch and enjoy: present company included. [B+] - Ryan Sartor.

Review: Vampire Weekend's 'Horchata'

2009-10-06T18:36:00.000-07:00

A few listens in, I get the impression that Vampire Weekend felt some pressure to follow up their self-titled debut. Rightfully so. Their second album's lead single, Horchata, is not an out-right retread of their previous work. It's meant as a compliment when I write that the song is different than what they've previously done, but not a terribly strong departure.

The various instruments in Horchata feel carefully chosen, their arrangement a bid at levity and originality. Maybe the same strategy was used in the writing and recording of songs like Mansard Roofand Walcott, but it never seemed that way.

Overall though, it's quite enjoyable, and as far as the dreaded 2nd album goes, I don't think there's a whole lot about which to worry. [B] - Ryan Sartor.

Check here to download 'Horchata' for free.

Einstein on 'The Informant!'

2009-10-06T10:28:00.001-07:00

I've been trying to come up with an argument to support my (unwritten, but much thought) claim that 'The Informant!,' while brilliantly made, lacks something essential. Here's an Albert Einstein quote to help me out:

“Nothing truly valuable arises from ambition or from a mere sense of duty; it stems rather from love and devotion towards men and towards objective things.”- Einsten

Interview: Ethan Vogt, producer of 'Beeswax'

2009-10-02T00:44:00.000-07:00

Ethan Vogt is the creator of Live Projections (check out liveprojections.org, there are some cool videos on the site), which has put on A/V shows with such bands as The Fiery Furnaces and Franz Ferdinand. He is also the producer of Funny Ha Ha, Mutual Appreciation and Beeswax, which premiered at this year’s Berlin Film Festival and is being released throughout the country. Look for it. It’s great. and

Rocket Multimedia: The standard question is: “What does a producer do?” Could you explain your role as a producer on films like Beeswax?

Ethan Vogt: Andrew is the only person I’ve produced for, so my role is very much a product of the particular relationship that we have. We were in the same introductory class in film school and have been working together for 12 years now, having made three features during that time. On the film set, I hope to give Andrew a sense of confidence that everything is will get done, that we will make the shooting schedule, and that crew is happy and motivated. My role is very “hands-on,” basically doing whatever is called on so that we can keep a very small crew on these films. This keeps the actors comfortable and creates an atmosphere conducive to making the kind of work that Andrew is interested in. So it’s a role that we’ve invented that has worked really well for the last three films and one that I hope to continue with him.

On Hollywood films, the “producer” can be anyone from a person who shows up at the last minute with some money, to a person who has made the project happen entirely (optioning the book, hiring a screenwriter, picking the director, having final cut in the edit). With Andrew: he’s the creator, I’m a trusted “enabler.” I try to be the kind of producer that I would like to have if I was directing by allowing Andrew to own the creative vision and just helping him achieve it. We work well together and I’m really proud of the work we’ve done so far.

R: I’ve read in various articles about how you used two minivans on Funny Ha Ha and one on Mutual Appreciation [to carry all the film equipment]. And I read in one Film Comment article that you guys used your lighting and gaffing equipment on Funny Ha Ha. And I feel like that kind of aesthetic has always appealed to me and I’ve always been told by the establishment and everybody says, “You can’t do that. You need 100 people on a film set.” How has that experience been for you as far as dealing with a small group of people whom you’re friends with and that sort of thing?

E: If there’s a “film movement” that I feel comfortable being a part of is “DIY” (Doing It Yourself). I think that the best way to learn or to be a filmmaker is to make films. Even though distribution is in transition and getting paid for this work seems harder and harder, my advice to filmmakers is to make films, even if they are short and made with a cheap video camera. And [to] not really wait around for a big deal before you are able to get your vision on the screen. Or, be waiting around for that big deal, but in the meantime be pursuing projects that you care about. We just worked with our friends and we’ve been lucky that these films have found some sort of niche audience. That said, Andrew “casts” his films very carefully, making sure to screen test everyone he is thinking about before making any decisions. Not everyone can be a decent non-professional actor and Andrew really tries to get a sense of how people behave in front of a camera before he makes a decision to put them in his film. And in terms of crew, yeah, it doesn’t take much, we had maybe a 4-person crew on Funny Ha Ha and I don’t think we ever had more than 8 people on Beeswax. I love what directors are able to do when they have a lot of money and resources, but it’s not necessary for all films.

R: That’s a good point. I feel like with each project you guys it gets a little bigger. You guys went to Berlin with this one. What was that experience like?

E: It was amazing to premiere Beeswax in Berlin. We had really fantastic audiences and we were able to have a lot of people from the cast and crew make the trip over. So it was a real honor and a pleasure.

R: So which do you prefer: being a cinematographer or a producer?

E: Actually, neither! These days, I am mostly interested in directing more experimental work and have been putting together events that combine live music along with a visual score. I call this genre: Live Projections, the website is liveprojections.org.

R: Oh cool. How did you get involved with LiveProjections.org?

E: The idea really came from seeing classic, silent films for example Man with a Movie Camera with a new live score and really being fascinated by that as a cinematic experience. I’ve always loved “found footage” films and in the last five or ten years technology allows you to use video as an instrument and to really work alongside a performance in real-time. So far, I’ve got really great responses from audiences who have seen this work and I’d like to continue to introduce more people to this.

R: Yeah, in New York City a few weeks ago, I feel like Found Footage Festivals are becoming a thing also.

E: Yeah, there are a bunch of experimental filmmakers that I admire that work with found footage. Bill Morrison, who actually was in Mutual Appreciation, is a great found footage filmmaker. And there’s an artist, Martin Arnold, who uses an optical camera and re-photographs scenes, and his work is really inspiring to me. So there are these great filmmakers who are able to make really poetic, beautiful work with found footage. But also, we are in the age of YouTube and people are digitizing these crazy video clips from the 1980s and it’s just a pleasure that we’re able to see that material again. Plus there is all the remixing or mash-ups that is taking place and being share online. Barney with Tupac is a personal favorite.

R: I’ve read, it’s on Wikipedia so I never know if these things are true, that Andrew Bujalski was hired to adapt this book, Indecision? And would you be involved producing that if that came to be?

E: Andrew was hired a couple years ago by Scott Rudin to adapt Indecision, and he’s submitted drafts and it’s in the development process. Your guess is as good as mine about when or whether that will come to fruition. Andrew writing a number of scripts, so much depends on how those screenplays develop and if they are the kind of projects that might require a large budget, or whether they’re smaller scripts that we might be able to do in a way we’ve done before. So, everything’s up in the air, but I don’t spend a lot of time wringing my hands about it. There is one script set in Montreal that he is working on that I really like a lot, so I’m hoping that we might be able to make that happen next year, but we will see.

R: I feel like every single film that you guys do, I’m always like this is gonna be the one. Like, Mutual Appreciation, I was like, “This is gonna blow up, this is gonna be huge.” [At the], Film Forum, I went opening weekend [to see Beeswax and] it had a great crowd. I just, I don’t even understand why these local kind of smaller art house theaters aren’t really jumping on board because I feel like the work you guys are doing is so much more exciting than, not to disparage other filmmakers, but is a lot more exciting than other films being shown at these types of theaters.

E: Our priority is just making good films and hoping that the audience will find them somehow. And so, we’re not distribution or marketing experts. I think that we’re in a kind of transitional time and this will be a little bit more sorted out in five more years when filmmakers will have a better sense of how to distribute their work. We’ve been really lucky to have really great reviews in lots of newspapers but less people are reading those reviews. We certainly believe that the best place to watch a movie is “on film” and in a theater, but we’ll just see what happens. Our goal is just to make films that we care about ourselves and hopefully we’ll continue to have the audience that’s supported us so far and build on that.

R: I think that it’s great that you and Andrew Bujalski aren’t concentrating on the marketing, and are just trying to make the best movie possible. I think one of the biggest problems with filmmaking nowadays is that people will try to figure out what an audience will want and that is the death [to any art form].

E: I don’t want to claim to be some sort of movie monk or purist. Andrew loves all sorts of films and you know, the next project we do may, we may find that it has a sort of broader appeal than these other films, but I think the point there we’re making is we’re going to continue to make films that are meaningful to us. Reaching an audience is exciting and we’re not trying to make things that are difficult or off-putting on purpose, but I would agree with you that trying to second-guess what would bring in an audience to your film is….I don’t think I’d be stating anything radical to say that that mindset has ruined many films.

R: Absolutely.

E: Instead of taking a personal approach.

R: I don’t know if this is broadcast everywhere, but I know in the New York area, I’ve seen Funny Ha Ha on PBS at least twice, Reel 13, I think that’s a great forum, too.

E: Right, I think the fact there we’re still able to get Funny Ha Ha broadcast now, I mean, five years later is a great testament to the value of that film and hopefully the same thing will be going on with Mutual Appreciation and Beeswax. I believe in the long-term values of these films.

R: Awesome. I have um, one final question: what has been your favorite film festival experience?

E: South by Southwest has been a great place for us to show the last two films and it feels like a “home” of sorts for us. Personally I’m really excited by the way that that event combines music and interactive, it’s the same thing that interests me about Live Projections. SxSW brings film into proximity with other art forms and ideas that is definitely something that I see a lot of value from.

R: Awesome. Yeah, have you noticed any trends or any at certain film festivals that you could do without?

E: Andrew goes to many more of the festivals than I do so he might have a better answer than I do. I guess I would say that I have been surprised that the entrance fees are getting pretty expensive. I’ve just been kind of shocked at the prices. I think film festivals can be such a great event for a town and for sponsors and I’m a little concerned that entrance fees are a barrier for some filmmakers. Of course, there’s a lot of submissions to be watched and those programmers have to get paid too… so I don’t really know what the answer is. But there may something that as a community we could look at how to make that a little bit more affordable, especially for young filmmakers.

New 'Mystery Team' Website Online!

2009-09-30T17:27:00.000-07:00

Mystery Team, the first feature from Derrick Comedy, has a new website online (click here to check it out). The film premiered at the Sundance Film Festival last year and has been praised by Entertainment Weekly, The Onion A/V Club and Slashfilm.com among others.

The site has two trailers and a new short featuring the Mystery Team. I saw it at Sundance and the crowd was dying with laughter. Director Dan Eckman did a great job of elevating the status quo for comedy directing - usually it's just, throw the camera somewhere and do all the standard set ups. Mr. Eckman took a great deal of care with every shot and it pays off brilliantly. The cast is great, too: writer/actors Dominic Dierkes, Donald Glover and Dc Pierson have worked together for years, performing shows in New York City and at various college campuses throughout the country. They've also made numerous videos along with their producer Meggie McFadden and Mr. Eckman directing, all of which are at the Derrick website. Mr. Eckman, Mr. Dierkes, Mr. Glover, Ms. McFadden and Mr. Pierson collectively make up Derrick Comedy. Full diclosure: I was a production assistant on the movie, but I've been PAs on other films that I wouldn't vouch for and this one definitely is hilarious. Look for it as it rolls out in October.

Here's the latest trailer:

Pitchfork Criticism

2009-09-29T21:33:00.000-07:00

It is interesting to check out Pitchfork founder Ryan Schreiber's (pictured left) wikipedia page. Specifically the criticism section. Slate.com suggests that Pitchfork rates albums from certain artists more favorably so that everyone knows Pitchfork was behind them when they become popular.

Dusted magazine wrote that the website's use of the 0.0 rating on such albums as Ryan Adam's Gold and Travis Morrison's Travistan is a "cheap publicity stunt" for a website that "thrives on controversy."

I have a feeling that Mr. Schreiber and his fellow critics are getting exactly the type of attention they desire. More power to them for having the ability to get people up in arms, and simultaneously influencing a whole generation of sophistocated music fans to buy up albums (or at least go to concerts) on their say so.

Review: 'Phoenix' in concert

2009-09-29T21:13:00.000-07:00

I saw Phoenix perform last night at the Electric Factory in Philadelphia, PA. I'm a big fan of Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix, their latest album, but that doesn't guarantee an awesome live show. Well, Phoenix does put on a pretty awesome live show, in case you were wondering. They opened strong with "Lisztomania," the first single from their new album. For a club gig, the lighting set up was very elaborate. All of the men played their instruments well, but its the showman/lead singer Thomas Mars that owned the stage. From song to song, Mr. Mars' enthusiasm never wavered. When some performers ask the audience to get louder, it sounds like a desperate plea. When Mr. Mars' makes this request, it is a call to action for his apostles. I knew they were a band with a pretty good following, but these guys have fans. People were singing along to every word, dancing like maniacs, and for much of the sluggish middle, I didn't see what would cause these people to act like a pack of banshees.

The key was the finale. Finishing strong with four or five of the best tracks of the night, Phoenix outdid themselves during the encore, as they performed "1901" and nearly every single person in the audience was dancing, screaming along to the chorus. When Mr. Mars descended into the crowd, walking through the standing room club on his way to the cheap seats in the balcony for a final howl, the job was already done.

Back on his throne atop the stage, Mr. Mars once again requested some noise from the audience - and the hollers and screams from men and women alike were enough to rattle the whole block. As the musicians gave their final bow, these throughly entertaining, tireless men appeared somehow modest. For them, anothing day was done: sold out concert, songs played well, and oh yeah, a new army of followers. [A-] - Ryan Sartor.

Here's a fun video of "Lisztomania" cut to Brat Pack clips (Mannequin is stretching it, but fine):

Review: 'Bored to Death'

2009-09-29T20:31:00.000-07:00

The new HBO comedy Bored to Death has an incredible pedigree: Jason Schwartzman, Zach Galifianakis and Ted Danson all star. The guest stars, after two weeks, have included Olivia Thirlby and Kristen Wiig. Troy Miller (Flight of the Conchords, Mr. Show) is an executive producer and even Seth Gordon (The King of Kong: A Fistful of Quarters) helps out as a consulting producer. So what's the wild card? What could possibly hold this show back? I'm putting my money on executive producer/primary writer/namesake for the title character: Jonathan Ames. Mr. Ames is, a very accomplished author and columnist, by the looks of his wikipedia page. Those skills, however, do not necessarily make him a great showrunner.

After the first two episodes, I didn't laugh out loud once (as opposed to its lead-in, Curb Your Enthusiasm, which had me laughing several times). The show has a really interesting idea: Jonathan (Jason Schwartzman) is a writer struggling to pen his 2nd novel. He decides to distract himself by posting a Craigslist ad offering his private detective services. Once he gets into the swing of things - seeking out clients, trying to solve the cases, the show is definitely entertaining to watch. But it's almost never humorous. There are jokes about colonics and Alcoholics Anonymous, even a few homophobic remarks. All of it feels very tired.

The actors are doing their best. Zach Galifianakis plays the best friend and Ted Danson plays Jonathan's boss at the newspaper job. Both seem just itching for a good line or two to come their way, but none ever do. Olivia Thirlby is uncharacteristically ineffective as Jonathan's ex-girlfriend, Suzanne. I think she's trying to age up and it doesn't work. She's 23 in real life and here she's portraying a woman who's dated this guy for a long time and is now moving out of the apartment and she's supposed to world weary and 23-year-olds just aren't that disillusioned yet. (I'd hope!)

The problem with the show's "hook" is that it's handled in such a careless fashion. Suzanne dumps Jonathan and then he decides to become a private investigator. They make no explanation as to why he would do this, save for the few detective novels on his desk and the fact that show is called "bored to death."

Another private investigator sitcom, the much superior Andy Barker: P.I., had a great reason for why this normal guy (an accountant played by Andy Richter) would become a private investigator. He opened his accounting firm in an office formerly owned by a private investigator, so when clients keep coming to him with P.I. jobs, and since he's not making money as an accountant, he decides to take the P.I. gigs. It's brilliant. And while a show doesn't always "need" a reason for the character to decide to do something, when its not there, in cases like Bored to Death, it doesn't come across as Mr. Ames being original, but just lazy.

I do hold out hope for the show though. Perhaps Mr. Ames will find his footing. The cast is too good for the show not to find success and the plots for the episodes are effective to suggest potential. It's just the comedy part that needs to be improved. [C-] -Ryan Sartor.

Lest We Forget, Roman Polanski DID Rape a Child

2009-09-29T10:21:00.000-07:00

Kate Harding's Slate.com article brought up the point that Roman Polanski did, in fact, rape a child. Ms. Harding does an excellent job of cutting through all the bullshit regarding the Oscar-winning director and what a "victim" he is. It's really a fantastic read. Also, The Pianist is a lame movie.

Pitchfork Counting Down Best Albums of 2000s

2009-09-28T11:35:00.000-07:00

Pitchfork did a good thing when they named B.O.B. by Outkast as the #1 song of the 2000s. I'm fairly music illiterate, so I wasn't familiar with most of the artists on their list. The same goes for their list of the best albums of the 2000s. I do take solace in the fact that they named Arctic Monkeys' debut Whatever People Say I Am, That's What I'm Not as the #183 best album of the decade, as it is not a good album. Not even a little. So I assume that while I'm certainly missing out on a lot of music, there are a few more Arctic Monkey debuts spread throughout there. (I heard Arctic Monkeys got better with their two follow-up albums).

This Onion piece about Pitchfork never gets old.

'A Nightmare on Elm Street' Trailer Online

2009-09-28T00:27:00.000-07:00

Samuel Bayer has had a long, illustrious career as a music video director (Nirvana's "Smells Like Teen Spirit" is his most famous), but has had a bit of trouble getting a feature film greenlit. He came close to reuniting Die Hard With a Vengeance stars Bruce Willis and Samuel L. Jackson for Black Water Transit, but that fell through due to "creative differences." He's finally making his feature film debut with the A Nightmare on Elm Street reboot. It stars Jackie Earle Haley (cool!) and is produced by Michael Bay (eek!). I think it looks pretty cool, but I thought the same about the Bay-produced Texas Chainsaw Massacre remake, and that was the worst film of 2003.

Here's the trailer for the new Elm Street and here's hoping it lives up to expectations:
A Nightmare on Elm Street in HD

Toy Story Double Feature! 2 Movies For Price of 1! Well, Yes and No.

2009-09-28T00:07:00.000-07:00

The Toy Story Double Feature is being advertised: "1 Ticket. 2 Movies. 3 Dimensions." And while the whole two movies for the price of one theory is intriguing, the actual price of the ticket is the really interesting part. Both films are being shown in 3D, which while entertaining to some (not to me), there is a "service charge" for those glasses that make everything appear twice and dark and make you distracted so that you're taken completely out of the story. In Milford, CT the ticket for a 7:30 PM screening is $14.75. In New York City, it's $16. And unlike other Pixar releases in 3D, like Up, the Toy Story Double Feature is only available in 3D, no 2D screens anywhere. So parents hoping to save a little money this weekend will be out of luck.

So, thanks but no thanks, Pixar. I'll settle for the old double feature: theater hopping.

Cool 'Redbelt' Poster

2009-09-27T23:54:00.000-07:00

Just found this Redbelt poster online. Thought I'd share it with any David Mamet fans out there. Here's the film's trailer:

New Releases for October 2nd

2009-09-27T23:39:00.000-07:00

Quite a few films are coming out this Friday. There is the 3D double feature re-release of Toy Story and Toy Story 2 (featuring the trailer for Toy Story 3), the New York City releases of Afterschool and A Serious Man, as well as Toronto Film Festival entry Whip It and the Jesse Eisenberg starrer Zombieland (didn't he do the horror thing with Cursed?) Below is a quiz to see what you're most looking forward to, as well as the trailer for Cursed:

Review: 'Bright Light'

2009-09-27T23:18:00.000-07:00

The fall movie season is usually defined by all those expectations for Great Movies being shattered just like the filmmakers' Oscar hopes. For every No Country for Old Men there are five The Curious Case of Benjamin Buttons. Bright Light, the truly romantic film about poet John Keats (Ben Whishaw) and Fanny Brawne (Abbie Cornish), his muse is a film that belong squarely in the former category.

Period films are typically good for only one thing: winning Costume Design Academy Awards. They usually involve an American actress getting some street cred by throwing on a British accent (Anne Hathaway in Becoming Jane) and boring us with attempts at comedy (Jessica Biel in Easy Virtue - she was pretty good in a lame film) or drama (Keira Knightly in The Duchess). What the filmmakers behind these types of movies assume is that its enough to photograph gorgeous castles. They overlook that the problems of the hero or heroine (Can't marry the one they love because of class, has to marry someone to save the family) are not modern problems and thus the modern audience can not identify with them.

Falling in love, however, is a timeless theme and writer/director Jane Campion attacks the story with such an immediacy that while it takes place in 1818, we lose ourselves in the world. I was not distracted by the beautiful landscapes (although there are plenty) and the gorgeous gowns (plenty of those) because it was serving the story, and not simply the work of a craftsman seeking to dazzle the audience and look like a really talented person in the process.

The film is the simple story of John and Fanny falling in love. Ms. Campion does a great job of taking time in the delicacy of their courtship. John is not instantly smitten with Fanny, and Fanny is really just curious to see if John is an idiot or a great poet. There are no rapid fire insults that lead the characters to hate each other and then realize that hate is love (sorry for the knock, Jane Austen). When Fanny mentions that she wants to like John's collection of poetry but doesn't quite, he takes it simply and offers no barbs in return. And Fanny is not trying to insult him, she just doesn't quite understand poetry and can't find the words to express how she felt about his work.

It is this sort of subtle back and forth that feels so true to life, and I think it could be the film's downfall with mainstream audiences. Campion takes her time to get to the big romantic moments, and even then they are handled with great care and subtlety. Ben Whishaw and Abbie Cornish both do amazing work, although its been argued by some that Ms. Cornish's is the stronger of the two, and the one likely to get an Oscar nomination.

I think the performance that deserves the most attention is that of Paul Schneider. He plays Mr. Keats' benefactor and writing partner, Charles Brown. He plays the familar role of the best friend in such a unique manner that it feels entirely fresh. He doesn't want Fanny to interfere with Mr. Keats' writing, and believes that she is a simple woman, not interested in poetry, but only of fashion and fine things. Mr. Schneider goes from obnoxious to polite, humorous and finally heartbroken, all the while making the audience wonder what he's thinking. It's a quite impressive performance and nothing in his acting resume thus far will prepare people for it.

The film is so tender and true that, as I said before, I do worry audiences will find it cold. There aren't the epic fights and passionate make-ups as in The Notebook and the simple problems the couple faces, such as not having enough money to marry, may not be compelling enough for many viewers. For most people, love is an emotion that washes over them until they are done with it and then move on to the next person. John and Fanny invest everything that they have into one another, no back-up plan imaginable. When Fanny offers herself to John, telling him, "You know you can have me if you'd like," John replies, "Yes, but I have a conscience." A bit corny to some, but in 1818 (and even today), that was a true act of devotion. Bright Star is in my opinion a film about commitment and faith and perseverance - in other words: a film about love. And it's one of the year's best. [A] - Ryan Sartor.

Rumor: Casey Wilson Fired From SNL Because Lorne Michaels Is Crazy?

2009-09-27T21:58:00.000-07:00

There's an internet rumor regarding Casey Wilson's departure from Saturday Night Light - a rumor I am more than happy to indulge. The Wrap reported that Ms. Wilson was fired from SNL after producer Lorne Michaels told her to lose 30 lbs. over the summer and she did not. In the piece, writer Josef Adalian argued the show has featured overweight women in the past, but regardless of that "fact," Casey Wilson is not overweight. Casey Wilson's body is a "normal" size (whatever that means). And I hate to go out there and express my personal views about a celebrity's hotness, but Casey Wilson is hot.

She was also extremely funny on SNL and I am really surprised (read: suspicious) regarding Mr. Michaels' reason for not renewing Ms. Wilson's contract. Ms. Wilson has been quiet about the whole thing, but she's also a successful screenwriter (Bride Wars (I'm sure it's bad, but at least it got made) and the upcoming Ass Backwards, directed by Paul Dinello (Strangers With Candy)), so she'll be fine.

I guess my "beef" with The Wrap is that they are using the word "fat" and it simply does not apply. They should word it that Mr. Michaels' fired Ms. Wilson over his own crazy delusions. But such a headline might make people actually read the piece, or rather, make them avoid it because it's not saying something hurtful and obnoxious.

Here's a video of Ms. Wilson being hilarious:

Charla Loves to Dance with Casey WIlson from Casey Wilson

There Needs to be an Albert Brooks Film Retrospective (MoMa? Film Forum? Avon?) Let's Make It Happen.

2009-09-27T02:40:00.000-07:00

An Open Letter to All Art House Movie Theatres:

To Whom It May Concern,

Albert Brooks is a comedic institution. The current reigning champions of comedy (Seth Rogen, Paul Rudd, Judd Apatow) all cite the films of Albert Brooks as a huge inspiration. Here's a few excerpts and links, in case you don't believe me:

What Rudd said: "But even as a kid, I could totally relate and loved anything Albert Brooks did. So I think that that kind of stuff was always more interesting to me."

From an Anne Thompson interview with Seth Rogen: "Rogen sees himself as a writer first, actor second. Like Quentin Tarantino? 'No.' Jon Favreau? 'No…maybe Albert Brooks.'”

Regardless of what these guys think, Brooks has simply been ahead of his time for thirty years. He predicted the current glut of reality shows with his film Real Life, which has been ripped-off more times than you'd image (The Truman Show, Ed Tv, the list goes on).

Brooks' second film, Modern Romance, is my personal favorite movie of all time. Brooks is often referred to as the West Coast Woody Allen, but I find that he sticks to his comedic sensability in such a way that the dramatic overtones are far more complex than anything Woody Allen could pull off. Woody wears his heart on his sleeve in such films as Annie Hall and Manhattan. Brooks shoves his feelings so far down that he'll never let you see them clearly - but they're there in films like Modern Romance and Mother if sought out.

Lost in America, Defending Your Life, Mother, The Muse and Looking for Comedy in the Muslim World - those films right there are my five favorite comedic films since they've each been released. Some knock The Muse and Muslim World as minor Brooks, but I think any of his films gives the viewer more to chew on that a hundred similiar Hollywood films.

Will the Avon Theatre, or Film Forum, MoMa, Lincoln Center - somebody, please, do an Albert Brooks retrospective? If not that, then please let me know who has been a greater comedic influence on filmmaking than Albert Brooks, and I'll shut up.

Yours Truly,

Ryan Sartor

Here's the Real Life trailer. Which, of course, predicted the stupid 3D trend sweeping our multiplexes today:

New Wide Releases

2009-09-25T15:27:00.000-07:00

Fame comes out. It's getting generally panned. In Ebert's review, he comments that the original was R-rated and dealt with real issues, and this one is PG and is essentially an after school special (and not the Antonio Campos kind).

Surrogates is a new Bruce Willis sci-fi action film. The complaints regarding the trailer were that it made a glossy film version of a gritty graphic novel. But it's directed by Jonathan "Paycheck" Mostow. And by that I don't mean he directed Paycheck (John Woo did, obvi), but that he works for them (Terminator 3, U-571). It's a 50 on metacritic, which isn't good, but its better than expected. All the good reviews are praising the film for it's "fun robot stuf" and "cheesy sci-fi fun." I don't think that's what the filmmakers were going for, but I haven't seen it either so maybe I should shut up.

Pandorum also comes out. It stars Ben Foster (presumably yelling) and Dennis Quaid (presumably getting paid. I hope he bought another ranch with his G.I. Joe money. I want him and Mostow to work together). Pandorum was not screened for critics, but the two reviews that have gone up have both been positive - and with no tongue-in-cheek nonsense either. Jeff Sneider, however, panned it on his Facebook wall.

I'm already bored about making predictions as to how films will do this upcoming weekend, but I'll try it out all the same:

Fame: $21 million
Surrogates: $14 million
Pandorum: $8 million

But again, who cares?

German Poster for 'The White Ribbon'

2009-09-25T15:03:00.000-07:00

It was a great moment this year when Michal Haneke's The White Ribbon won the Palme d'Or at the Cannes Film Festival. My friends and I were texting one another, I was telling people in the streets (who didn't care), even Haneke himself got a bit emotional saying, “Happiness is a rare thing. But this is a moment in my life when I am truly happy.” There are even reports that the filmmaker smiled, but those haven't been confirmed.

I told my friend Jenn that The White Ribbon is opening in New York on December 30th and then goes "wide" in January. She asked what I meant by "wide," and I realized that the film really won't go wide. It'll probably be on 100 screens. Seek it out. I'm sure it's awesome.

Here's an interview with Haneke regarding The White Ribbon:

Hyped for 'Bright Star'

2009-09-25T02:39:00.000-07:00

I'm really excited to see Bright Star. It opens on 100 screens this weekend. I'll be in front of at least one of them.

I'm a sucker for great romances and this has all the trappings of a flowers in bloom, this-is-what-love-really-is spectacle. I'll wait until I see the damn thing before I go on too much, but let me make my gripe: The problem with nearly every romance film released nowadays is that the studio is using sex (The Notebook), people dying (The Notebook) or distracting old couples who aren't important to the central story (Hat Trick: The Notebook) to market their film when the selling point should be, "We're gonna watch two people fall in love because love's awesome."

The line that got me from the trailer is at the 2:00 mark when Ben Whishaw leans into Paul Schneider telling him: "There is a holiness to the heart's affections, you know nothing of that." It's like, what's good Notebook?

"I wrote you everyday for a year."

Nick Cassavettes ain't no Jane Campion like Noah Calhoun ain't no John Keats.

Ya'll better see Bright Star this weekend. Your heart will thank you.

Here's that trailer I promised you:

Fish Tank Trailer Hits

2009-09-25T02:04:00.000-07:00

I was not a big fan of Andrea Arnold's Red Road, a film that won the Jury Prize at the 2006 Cannes Film Festival. I thought it was too much of a Dardenne brothers knock-off, but the critics loved it. During many write-ups for Ms. Arnold's new film, Fish Tank, people kept reminding readers how good Red Road was. So maybe I don't know anything. Anne Thompson liked Red Road (I'm fairly certan, I hope I didn't 'Gavin Smith' her by writing that) and she certainly loved Michael Fassbender's performance in Fish Tank.

The trailer looks decent enough. Not sure how I feel about the "Academy Award-Winning Director Andrea Arnold." She won it for a short film.

I'm just saying.

All the same, it's no small trick getting one of those. There are a lot more shorts made than features, too. On second thought, wear that Academy Award-Winning label with pride, Ms. Arnold.

A lot of back-tracking in this post.

Here's the trailer:

MichaelChabon.com

2009-09-25T00:48:00.000-07:00

Michael Chabon, author of Mysteries of Pittsburgh (my favorite book of all-time, recently adapted into an 'Eh'-fest by filmmaker Rawson Marshall Thurber) and the Pulitzer-prize winning The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay, is about to be doing some publicity for his new book, Manhood for Amateurs: The Pleasures and Regrets of a Husband, Father, and Son (which you can pre-order on Amazon.com right here).

His website (MichaelChabon.com, obvi?) has a Calendar that lists all of the places he is going to be in the upcoming months for book signings and such. He's got events scheduled as far ahead as a year. (You're in for a treat Columbia, South Carolina - on October 20th, 2010!)

He also does the reading of the audiobook. There's an LP listing, too. I thought it was the book on record.

Large Print.

Whoops.

Also, the picture of him above is on his website, so I didn't search for one to make him look... a certain way. I think it's a great picture.

How Had I Not Heard of Eleni Mandell Before?

2009-09-25T00:29:00.000-07:00

I stumbled upon Eleni Mandell as I was perusing Dashboard Confessional's Myspace page (don't judge me - 'Stolen' and 'Don't Wait' are really good songs). I haven't been this excited about a singer/songwriter since Fiona Apple's When The Pawn... came out (it's my favorite album and I still will never reprint the entire 90-word title. So much for brand loyalty).

In 2001, Ms. Mandell was named the 'Best Unsigned Artist in the Business,' by New Yorker magazine in an article that is not on their website (way to be, New Yorker). Here's a great piece from 2003 by Slate of a similar tone. I've been listening to two of her albums, Miracle of Five (really mellow and jazzy) and Artificial Fire (a bit more "rocking," as they say) incessantly. I can't find a single song that isn't absolutely appealing. I'm still looking.

Check out the video for Artificial Fire:

Solondz's "Life During Wartime" Not Amazing? Don't Believe It.

2009-09-23T23:07:00.000-07:00

Indiewire did a poll of all the films that were at the Toronto Film Festival. How is Todd Solondz's first film in five years getting an "Eh" shrug? I'm sure its awesome! I will remain ignorantly assured of it's awesomeness until I view it myself and hear otherwise from the "realistic" views in my head. Solondz did win the Best Screenplay award for Life During Wartime at the Venice Film Festival. So there's that. But look at this list of critics. Not one 'A.' The best review I've seen is by Todd "Why-Do-They-Use-VHS-Tapes-In-'Be-Kind-Rewind'?" McCarthy. Mr. McCarthy even called it "[maybe] Solondz's best film." Too many haters out there. And by 'haters' I mean, 'People Who Have Actually Seen The Movie.' Here's the critics' score card:

Life During Wartime
Mark Olsen, LA Times: B+
Marjorie Baumgarten, The Austin Chronicle: B+
Gregory Ellwood, HitFlix: B
Joshua Rothkopf, Time Out New York: B
Eric Lavallee, IonCinema: B-
Michael Tully, Hammer To Nail: B-
Sam Adams, Philadelphia City Paper: B-
Scott Tobias, A.V. Club: B-
Ben Kenigsberg, Time Out Chicago: B-
James Rocchi, MSN Movies: C+
Peter Sciretta, /Film: D
David Ansen, Newsweek: D
Alex Billington, FirstShowing.net: D
Current Average: B-

And a clip from Happiness:

Whites Stripes Doc Premieres at Toronto Film Festival

2009-09-23T22:17:00.000-07:00

I'm really excited for The White Stripes Under Great Northern Lights. Click here for Variety's review.

Also, what ever happened to D Tour: A Tenacious Documentary? Click here for that review. Was it released somewhere? Did I miss out?

What are some of your favorite concert/band documentaries? Let me know.

"Damages" adds Campbell Scott and Martin Short (?!) to Cast

2009-09-22T22:20:00.000-07:00

In a move that is a sigh of relief for Damages fans, FX announced the addition of Campbell Scott and Martin Short (once again... ?!) to the cast of the Glenn Close-starring drama (Comingsoon.net had the scoop here). I wasn't entirely convinced the show was coming back at all after FX President John Landgraf called season two a "ratings disappointment." If you haven't seen the first season of Damages, buy it immediately (click here) or rent it on Netflix. It's amazing. The second season I could take or leave (it's still good), but season one is really quite brilliant.

Campbell Scott is, in my opinion, one of the best and most underutilized actors working today. In addition to directing the totally underrated indie film Off the Map, he's also done great acting in David Mamet's The Spanish Prisoner, Roger Dodger, Saint Ralph and supplies his voice in a superb reading of Tom Perrotta's The Abstinence Teacher, which is one of the finer audio books I've heard (click here to buy it). He's the man, and I think he'll be a great addition to the Damages cast.

Martin Short, on the other hand, I'm not too sure about. Darrell Hammond's absurd presence on last year's season of Damages (check this out) was a huge distraction and there's nothing on Mr. Short's resume to suggest he can handle this cut-throat legal thriller (I double-checked, really there's nothing). I trust the executive producers, I just hope they thoroughly screen tested him. In fact, if they put the screen tests up on youtube, I'll buy it. They probably won't, but it's worth a shot.

The article mentions that the show is coming back to FX in January. After last year's 16 month delay between seasons, I won't hold my breath for a January start. But here's hoping...

Below are a clip from the pilot episode of Damages and then the trailer for Off the Map:

Silent Light is now on DVD

2009-09-22T21:30:00.000-07:00

I don't think a trailer can do it justice, but you should all rent Silent Light, one of the best films of 2008 (or 2007, when it premiered at the Cannes Film Festival). It's really, truly bizarre and interesting and beautiful. I don't want to give away anything about the plot, but I will say that it deals with morality, religion, love and all the other things in life that we can't explain. Like, in a trailer, for instance.

I guess it's misleading to call the film bizarre, it's not really. It's about normal people. And I meant it as a compliment, either way. It's on DVD now. Here's the trailer:

Protect Insurance Companies PSA

2009-09-22T18:47:00.000-07:00

This is really funny. Thanks for the tip, Greg:

Protect Insurance Companies PSA from Will Ferrell

Death Cab for Cutie's "Little Bribes" Music Video

2009-09-22T18:08:00.000-07:00

I usually hate music videos that feature the song's lyrics on screen. It's 2nd on my Hate List to having actors lip sync in place of the singer. But, Bob Dylan can pull up the whole showing the lyrics thing, and apparently Ross Ching can as well. He made this video as a fan vid (Pitchfork reported) and then Death Cab made it official. So keep plugging away, making unsolicited music videos, people. Here's the clip:

Death Cab for Cutie - Little Bribes from Ross Ching on Vimeo.

Pitchfork Defends Radiohead Over Inane Issue

2009-09-22T17:48:00.000-07:00

In this posting about file sharing, Lily Allen argues on behalf of a British government proposal to cut illegal file-sharers' internet connections. The dispute stems from Featured Artists Coalition (FAC), a British musicians' advocacy group that includes members of Radiohead, Blur, and Pink Floyd.

"Every generation has a different method," said Radiohead guitarist and FAC Board of Directors member Ed O'Brien. "File sharing is like a sampler, like taping your mate's music."

Lilly Allen, on the other hand, thinks that bands like Radiohead don't care because they're already wealthy and that up-and-coming musicians have a hard time enough time making money to sustain themselves. She went on to argue that the only artists who will be able to make music in the future will be people from Simon Cowell's assembly-line.

What really got Pitchfork upset was Lilly Allen calling out members of FAC for having "the biggest Ferrari collections in the world." The Pitchfork writer wrote: "[That] doesn't quite sound like Radiohead, but whatever."

No, not whatever. What does theat mean? Radiohead members are so down-to-earth that there's no way any of them could own a Ferrari? They gave a free CD so they couldn't own a Ferrari? The message in their music is so pure that they couldn't own a Ferrari? Does Thom Yorke have a song on the New Moon soundtrack? Yes. Is he doing that out of his deep respect for vampire movies? No, he's doing it so he can own a Ferrari.

It just seems like a really, really silly editorial flourish on Pitchfork's part. But I guess it's kind of silly to comment on it, too.

Dawson and Joey Belong Together: A Brief History of an Ongoing Obsession

2009-09-21T21:34:00.000-07:00

In this great country of ours, there are certain moments where people can be split into two categories: religious vs. atheist, pro-choice vs. pro-life, Joey/Dawson vs. Joey/Pacey. Now, anybody who knows anything knows that I am a fervent Joey/Dawson supporter – and it’s not just blind hope: there’s a method to my madness.

In the winter of 1998, “Dawson’s Creek” premiered on the WB to ecstatic critical acclaim and great fanfare. Similar in age group to the preceding “Beverly Hills 90210,” “Dawson’s” was a kinder, gentler version of that teen soap, but a teen soap nonetheless. Filmed in the quaint town of Wilmington, North Carolina, “Dawson’s Creek” had the look and feel of a warm breakfast on a Sunday morning, and dialogue of a hyperactive linguist sent back to high school with a vast understanding of one’s personal feelings. By no means realistic in speech and action, “D.C.” simply felt real, which is more than most shows can claim.

No one will argue with the first season of “Dawson’s Creek” being about nothing more or less than the question of “Will Dawson kiss Joey?” The show’s creator/(executive producer for the first two seasons) Kevin Williamson said these exact words. Sure, there was the distraction of Jen/Dawson, and even Pacey made a brief attempt at kissing Joey in one episode, but everyone was rooting for Dawson and Joey to get together. I hope I’m not giving anything away by saying that Dawson and Joey kiss at the end of the first season.

On the audio commentary for “The Complete Second Season,” executive producer (for all six seasons) Paul Stupin explains that when the writers were discussing plans for season two, there were two camps: one wanted to explore Dawson and Joey’s relationship throughout the entire second season, and another wanted to break them up as soon as possible (which is what happened six episodes into the season). Stupin admits that this was not the right decision to make because it didn’t pay off on what had been built up throughout the whole first season (which granted was shorter at 13 episodes). He goes on to say that Joey’s reason for breaking up with Dawson (a need to “find herself”) was ludicrous, and they knew it but by that point it was too far along to turn around.

If you have never seen “Dawson’s Creek” and want to watch it in the future, I implore you to read no further. In the book “Billion Dollar Kiss” (I didn’t just read it for the “Creek” info, it’s about writing for TV… I swear) written by Jeff Stepakoff (former “Dawson’s Creek” writer/co-executive producer), Stepakoff explains that when Kevin Williamson left the show at the end of the second season, he had driven the show into the ground. I’m inferring from this that a major problem was splitting up Dawson and Joey so soon. The last episode of season two ends with Joey having a wire on her to bug a conversation for police – not exactly your typical high school scenario.

Long story short, the writers were scrambling to come up with good story lines for season three. They weren’t getting written fast enough in L.A. to send to Wilmington, and James Van Der Beek (Dawson) refused to act because the scripts weren’t good enough. There was a period, Stepakoff writes, where the production studio considered pulling the plug on the whole show. Then, one of the writers said during a meeting, “What if Pacey kisses Joey?” There was stunned silence. Great opposition followed, but it was agreed that the compelling drama by such an event would propel the series on for several seasons, as it did. Stepakoff writes that the show had gone on for two years without knowing what it was about, and now it had it’s center: the show was about who gets to kiss Joey Potter.

Now, this would seem like a fair fight. Dawson had the whole first season and about a ¼ of the second to lay down some groundwork. If Pacey’s beginning in season three then he only has a 50-50 shot at winning, right?

Except that’s not how things turned out. The writers decided to spend the first half of season three developing Pacey and Joey’s friendship, the second half making them romantic and crushing Dawson with this knowledge, and then all of season four expanding their relationship in the way the writer’s should have in season two for Dawson and Joey. To top things off, Joey loses her V-card to Pacey – and then lies to Dawson about it!

Alas, all hope is not lost. In a great episode that made this man cry (I’m not ashamed), season four ends with Dawson going away to film school in California, and he and Joey reminiscing about their time together on his bed. This scene ends with a kiss, mirroring the end of season one, dashing away the wasted Pacey-time in seasons three and four and bringing the show back to the glory of how it began. I called up my friend (a fellow Dawson/Joey supporter) that night and she agreed with me that things would be right again in the world of the “Creek.” I mean, the writers came to their sense…right?

Wrong. Season five inexplicably begins with a college writing assignment where Joey explains that her and Dawson were just two friends making a mistake – the kiss leads nowhere. Seasons five and six are spent mucking around with various side characters and random whoevers – Pacey and Joey smooching here and there, Dawson and Joey finally consummating their love in season six only to split the next episode, but everything is basically up in the air until the series finale: a two hour episode co-written by the show’s creator, Kevin Williamson.

Now, mind you, Kevin Williamson had not been involved with the show for the four years since he left at the end of season two. In the series finale commentary, he admits he didn’t even watch many of the episodes from the seasons he didn’t work on. There’s more you should know: off-screen everyone got along fine, but Katie Holmes (Joey) and Joshua Jackson (Pacey) actually dated in real life for a few years. Furthermore, Kevin Williamson got along splendidly with Katie Holmes – staying up late on the phone eating pints of ice cream with her, casting her in his directorial debut, “Killing Mrs. Tingle” (later renamed “Teaching Mrs. Tingle” after Columbine). When Williamson sat down to write the series finale, he promised that he would finally decide whom Joey chose – Dawson or Pacey. He added that the choice was obvious and always had been, or something ridiculous to that effect. When you take into account all of the various relationships as well Van Der Beek’s troubles with the writers, things weren’t looking good.

I understand that since Williamson dug a hole for the writers before leaving at the end of season two that he made it impossible for Joey and Pacey to not get together in season three – there was nowhere else for the show to go. That being said, he created the show with the intent of Dawson and Joey getting together. That’s what “Dawson’s Creek” was about. You can tell where this is going, of course. Pacey and Joey are shown living together at the end and in scenes leading up to that, Joey tells Dawson she’ll always love him (like a brother or something), but my point is simply that Pacey and Joey don’t get married, so who knows what could happen in the future? Dawson and Joey made sense all through season one, for parts of season two, at the end of season four and at the beginning of season six. Certainly, Pacey is a charming character, but to get to root of what the series is about – romance winning out over cynicism and movies being an inspiring force in life (for the first few season every episode began with Dawson watching a movie – usually with Joey, later with other characters), the only true way to end the series is with Dawson and Joey getting together.

And no, I don’t get out much.

Mark Whitacre's Website

2009-09-21T11:27:00.000-07:00

Portrayed by Matt Damon in "The Informant!," Mark Whitacre is an interesting person to say the least. I found his personal website. It's pretty interesting, and if you haven't seen the movie you might not want to view it, as it could give away some spoilers. The best are the pictures of Mr. Whitacre with Matt Damon and Steven Soderbergh (above, along with Mr. Whitacre's wife, Ginger). Awesome stuff. Click here to check out his site.

I Like Awards Shows. I Don't Like Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog.

2009-09-21T10:46:00.000-07:00

The 2009 Emmy Awards were pretty good. I'm a fan of the big three: Emmys, Golden Globes, Oscars. People often complain about which films and TV shows are nominated and win, and the winners are certainly don't represent the best content out there. I do think, however, that it is not all about publicity and marketing dollars. I think the films and TV shows celebrated at these events are the best of what the mainstream will allow.

The Emmy Awards last night were a celebration of the usual favorites: 30 Rock and Mad Men. It still drives me crazy every year that Friday Night Lights, the best show on television, is never nominated. There, I said it. Now I promise not to mention any non-nominated shows for the rest of this entry.

Glenn Close won Best Actress in a Drama for her role as Patty Hewes on Damages. Even as the second season couldn't live up to the amazing first season (I highly recommend getting that on DVD - I burned through the whole thing in one weekend), she's always great on the show - balancing a ruthless business-type with human elements that make us feel for her. Her performance elicits one of the more complex character/viewer relationships on TV.

Jon Cryer won Best Supporting Actor for Two and a Half Men, easily the least-funny show on TV. I don't care what anyone says ("It's actually pretty funny now" is a common line), every clips I've seen from that show is not funny. It's terrible. It was great when Cryer won because the camera cut to nominees Rainn Wilson and Kevin Dillon, both of whom looked visibly annoyed. I don't think it was because they each lost, I think it was because they lost to an actor from Two and a Half Men.

My general rule for the evening as to take head of Kevin Kline's reaction when determining what was funny. At one point in the show, Jimmy Fallon was singing through an auto-tune microphone and fell down. As he writhed in fake pain, he still had the mic on and so all of his yelling came out as pitch perfect singing. I laughed at first, but closed my mouth when I saw Kevin Kline's expression: not even a smile. Mr. Kline was right. It was a cheap bit, and he wasn't going to fall with it and neither would I - not anymore.

The bit that got Kevin Kline rolling in the aisle (not really, but he laughed) was when Bob Newhart came out. Mr. Newhart looked at Tina Fey and said, "Tina and I had a bet. If I won tonight, she would give me a great big kiss. And if I lost... I'd continue to honor the restraining order." It was pretty funny. Bob Newhart's the man.

I was surprised that Saturday Night Live didn't win any big awards (just Best Guest Actress for Tina Fey). Last year was their biggest that I can remember. They were always in the press because of their political sketches. However, The Daily Show won. Which is right. It's just the better show, by a mile. I was hoping that Kristin Wiig might win for Best Supporting Actress in a Comedy. No luck. They gave it to Kristin Chenoweth. That's fine though. I'm a Pushing Daisies fan.

Nothing else happened that was particularly memorable. Neil Patrick Harris was the host and he did a great job. I didn't like his Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog sketch (the web series apparently won an an Emmy). I really don't like it. It's just the type of fan boy garbage that certain people go for. Some of the songs are pretty good, but I'm tired of these Firefly fans wanting Nathan Fillion to get a belated Oscar for Serenity. I like Firefly and Serenity, but Mr. Fillion isn't the Second Coming. He's just a regular actor. It bothers me how these nerds (there, I said it) get their kicks with Dr. Horrible's romantic songs, but won't go see an actual romantic comedy. You're watching it right now, just hiding behind Joss Whedon!

But yeah, the Emmys were fun.

Emmy Winners

2009-09-20T21:51:00.000-07:00

The Winners are in. I'll get into my thoughts on the whole ceremony soon, but for now, here's the winner's along with whom I thought would win. The winners are in Red and my guesses are bold. So if something is bold and in Red, then I guessed correctly.

Out of the 40 categories, I was correct 11 times. So, I was terrible. But it was a fun show.

Outstanding Voice-Over Performance
American Masters (Ron Rifkin, Narrator)
Family Guy (Seth MacFarlane as Peter Griffin)
Robot Chicken (Seth Green as Robot Chicken Nerd, Bob Goldstein, Ponda Baba, Anakin Skywalker, Imperial Officer)
The Simpsons (Hank Azaria as Moe Syzlak)
The Simpsons (Harry Shearer as Mr. Burns, Smithers, Kent Brockman, Lenny)

The Simpsons (Dan Castellaneta as Homer Simpson)

Outstanding Animated Program (for programming less than one hour)
American Dad
Robot Chicken
The Simpsons

South Park

Outstanding Directing For A Comedy Series
Entourage • Tree Trippers • Julian Farino, Director
Flight Of The Conchords • The Tough Brets • James Bobin, Director

The Office • Stress Relief • Jeffrey Blitz, Director

30 Rock • Apollo, Apollo • Millicent Shelton, Director
30 Rock • Reunion • Beth McCarthy, Director
30 Rock • Generalissimo • Todd Holland, Director

Outstanding Directing For A Drama Series
Battlestar Galactica • Daybreak (Part 2) • Michael Rymer, Director
Boston Legal • Made In China/Last Call • Bill D'Elia, Director
Damages • Trust Me • Todd A. Kessler, Director

ER • And In The End • Rod Holcomb, Director

Mad Men • The Jet Set • Phil Abraham, Director

Outstanding Directing For A Variety, Music Or Comedy Series

American Idol • Show 833 (The Final Three) • Bruce Gowers, Director

The Colbert Report • 4159 • Comedy Central • Jim Hoskinson, Director
The Daily Show With Jon Stewart • 13107 • Chuck O'Neil, Director
Late Show With David Letterman • Episode 2932 • Jerry Foley, Director
Real Time With Bill Maher • 705 • Hal Grant, Director
Saturday Night Live • Host: Justin Timberlake • Don Roy King, Director

Outstanding Original Music And Lyrics

81st Annual Academy Awards • Song Title: Hugh Jackman Opening Number

A Colbert Christmas: The Greatest Gift Of All • Song Title: Much Worse Things
The 2008 ESPYS • Song Title: I Love Sports
Flight Of The Conchords • Unnatural Love / Song Title: Carol Brown
A Muppets Christmas: Letters To Santa • Song Title: I Wish I Could Be Santa Claus
Saturday Night Live • Host: Justin Timberlake / Song Title: Motherlover

Outstanding Lead Actor In A Comedy Series
The Big Bang Theory • Jim Parsons as Sheldon Cooper
Flight Of The Conchords • Jemaine Clement as Jemaine
Monk • Tony Shalhoub as Adrian Monk
The Office • Steve Carell as Michael Scott

30 Rock • Alec Baldwin as Jack Donaghy

Two And A Half Men • Charlie Sheen as Charlie Harper

Outstanding Lead Actor In A Drama Series

Breaking Bad • Bryan Cranston as Walter White

Dexter • Michael C. Hall as Dexter Morgan
House • Hugh Laurie as Dr. Gregory House
In Treatment • Gabriel Byrne as Paul
Mad Men • Jon Hamm as Don Draper
The Mentalist • Simon Baker as Patrick Jane

Outstanding Lead Actor In A Miniseries Or A Movie
Cyrano de Bergerac (Great Performances) • Kevin Kline as Cyrano de Bergerac

Into The Storm • Brendan Gleeson as Winston Churchill

King Lear (Great Performances) • Sir Ian McKellen as King Lear
Taking Chance • Kevin Bacon as LtCol Mike Strobl
24: Redemption • Kiefer Sutherland as Jack Bauer
Wallander: One Step Behind • Kenneth Branagh as Kurt Wallander

Outstanding Lead Actress In A Comedy Series
The New Adventures Of Old Christine • Julia Louis-Dreyfus as Christine
Samantha Who? • Christina Applegate as Samantha Newly
The Sarah Silverman Program • Sarah Silverman as Sarah Silverman
30 Rock • Tina Fey as Liz Lemon

United States Of Tara • Toni Collette as Tara Gregson

Weeds • Mary-Louise Parker as Nancy Botwin

Outstanding Lead Actress In A Drama Series
Brothers & Sisters • Sally Field as Nora Walker
The Closer • Kyra Sedgwick as Brenda Leigh Johnson

Damages • Glenn Close as Patty Hewes

Law & Order: Special Victims Unit • Mariska Hargitay as Detective Olivia Benson
Mad Men • Elisabeth Moss as Peggy Olson
Saving Grace • Holly Hunter as Grace Hanadarko

Outstanding Lead Actress In A Miniseries Or A Movie
Accidental Friendship • Chandra Wilson as Yvonne
Coco Chanel • Shirley MacLaine as Coco Chanel
Grey Gardens • Drew Barrymore as Little Edie

Grey Gardens • Jessica Lange as Big Edie

Prayers For Bobby • Sigourney Weaver as Mary Griffith

Outstanding Supporting Actor In A Comedy Series
Entourage • Kevin Dillon as Johnny Drama
How I Met Your Mother • Neil Patrick Harris as Barney Stinson
The Office • Rainn Wilson as Dwight Schrute
30 Rock • Tracy Morgan as Tracy Jorda
30 Rock • Jack McBrayer as Kenneth Parcell

Two And A Half Men • Jon Cryer as Alan Harper

Outstanding Supporting Actor In A Drama Series
Boston Legal • William Shatner as Denny Crane
Boston Legal • Christian Clemenson as Jerry Espenson
Breaking Bad • Aaron Paul as Jesse Pinkman
Damages • William Hurt as Daniel Purcell

Lost • Michael Emerson as Ben Linus

Mad Men • John Slattery as Roger Sterling

Outstanding Supporting Actor In A Miniseries Or A Movie

Grey Gardens • Ken Howard as Phelan Beale

Into The Storm • Len Cariou as Franklin D. Roosevelt
The Librarian: Curse of the Judas Chalice • Bob Newhart as Judson
Little Dorrit • Sir Tom Courtenay as Mr. DorritLittle Dorrit • Andy Serkis as Rigaud

Outstanding Supporting Actress In A Comedy Series

Pushing Daisies • Kristin Chenoweth as Olive Snook

Saturday Night Live • Amy Poehler as Various Characters
Saturday Night Live • Kristen Wiig as Various Characters
30 Rock • Jane Krakowski as Jenna Maroney
Ugly Betty • Vanessa Williams as Wilhelmina Slater
Weeds • Elizabeth Perkins as Celia Hodes

Outstanding Supporting Actress In A Drama Series
Damages • Rose Byrne as Ellen Parsons
Grey's Anatomy • Sandra Oh as Dr. Cristina Yang
Grey's Anatomy • Chandra Wilson as Dr. Miranda Bailey
In Treatment • Dianne Wiest as Gina
In Treatment • Hope Davis as Mia

24 • Cherry Jones as President Allison Taylor

Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Miniseries or Movie
The Courageous Heart Of Irena Sendler (Hallmark Hall Of Fame Presentation) • Marcia Gay Harden as Janina
Grey Gardens • Jeanne Tripplehorn as Jackie O.

House Of Saddam • Shohreh Aghdashloo as Sajida

Into The Storm • Janet McTeer as Clementine Churchill
Relative Stranger • Cicely Tyson as Pearl

Outstanding Guest Actor In A Comedy Series
Desperate Housewives • Beau Bridges as Eli Scruggs

Saturday Night Live • Justin Timberlake as Various Characters

30 Rock • Steve Martin as Gavin Volure
30 Rock • Jon Hamm as Dr. Drew Baird
30 Rock • Alan Alda as Milton Greene

Outstanding Guest Actor In A Drama Series
CSI: NY • Edward Asner as Abraham Klein
Damages • Ted Danson as Arthur Frobisher
Dexter • Jimmy Smits as Miguel Prado
ER • Ernest Borgnine as Paul Manning

Rescue Me • Michael J. Fox as Dwight

Outstanding Guest Actress In A Comedy Series
The Big Bang Theory • Christine Baranski as Beverly Hofstadter
Monk • Gena Rowlands as Marge
My Name Is Earl • Betty White as Crazy Witch Lady

Saturday Night Live • Tina Fey as Governor Sarah Palin (Spoof)

30 Rock • Jennifer Aniston as Claire
30 Rock • Elaine Stritch as Colleen Donaghy

Outstanding Guest Actress In A Drama Series
Grey's Anatomy • Sharon Lawrence as Robbie Stevens

Law & Order: Special Victims Unit • Ellen Burstyn as Bernadette Stabler

Law & Order: Special Victims Unit • Brenda Blethyn as Linnie Malcolm/Caroline Cantwell
Law & Order: Special Victims Unit • Carol Burnett as Bridget "Birdie" Sulloway
The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency • CCH Pounder as Mrs. Curtin

Outstanding Comedy Series
Entourage
Family Guy
Flight Of The Conchords
How I Met Your Mother
The Office

30 Rock

Weeds

Outstanding Drama Series
Big Love
Breaking Bad
Damages
Dexter
House
Lost

Mad Men

Outstanding Miniseries
Generation Kill

Little Dorrit

Outstanding Made For Television Movie
Coco

Grey Gardens

Into The Storm
Prayers For Bobby
Taking Chance

Outstanding Variety, Music Or Comedy Series
The Colbert Report

The Daily Show With Jon Stewart

Late Show With David Letterman
Real Time With Bill Maher
Saturday Night Live

Outstanding Variety, Music Or Comedy Special
Chris Rock - Kill The Messenger
Kathy Griffin: She'll Cut A Bitch

The Kennedy Center Honors

Ricky Gervais: Out Of England – The Stand-Up Special
Will Ferrell: You're Welcome America. A Final Night With George W. Bush

Outstanding Special Class Programs
81st Annual Academy Awards

Beijing 2008 Olympic Games Opening Ceremony

Carnegie Hall Opening Night 2008: A Celebration of Leonard Bernstein (Great Performances)
George Carlin: The Kennedy Center Mark Twain Prize
The 62nd Annual Tony Awards

Outstanding Nonfiction Special
The Alzheimer's Project: Momentum In Science (Parts 1 & 2) • HBO •
Farrah's Story • NBC
Michael J. Fox: Adventures Of An Incurable Optimist • ABC •

102 Minutes That Changed America • HISTORY •

Roman Polanski: Wanted And Desired • HBO •

Outstanding Nonfiction Series
American Experience • PBS

American Masters • PBS

Anthony Bourdain: No Reservations • Travel Channel
Biography • BIO
Deadliest Catch • Discovery Channel
This American Life • Showtime

Outstanding Reality Program
Antiques Roadshow • PBS
Dirty Jobs • Discovery Channel
Dog Whisperer • NGC

Intervention • A&E

Kathy Griffin: My Life on the D-List • Bravo
MythBusters • Discovery Channel

Outstanding Reality – Competition Program

The Amazing Race • CBS

American Idol • FOX
Dancing With The Stars • ABC
Project Runway • Bravo
Top Chef • Bravo

Outstanding Writing For A Comedy Series

Flight Of The Conchords • Prime Minister • HBO • Dakota Pictures and Comedy Arts in
association with HBO Entertainment
James Bobin, Writer
Jemaine Clement, Writer
Bret McKenzie, Writer

30 Rock • Reunion • NBC • Broadway Video, Little Stranger, Inc. in association with Universal Media Studios
Matt Hubbard, Writer

30 Rock • Apollo, Apollo • NBC • Broadway Video, Little Stranger, Inc. in association with Universal Media Studios
Robert Carlock, Writer

30 Rock • Mamma Mia • NBC • Broadway Video, Little Stranger, Inc. in association with Universal Media Studios
Ron Weiner, Writer

30 Rock • Kidney Now! • NBC • Broadway Video, Little Stranger, Inc. in association with Universal Media Studios
Jack Burditt, Writer
Robert Carlock, Writer

Outstanding Writing For A Drama Series

Lost • The Incident • ABC • Grass Skirt Productions and ABC Studios
Carlton Cuse, Writer
Damon Lindelof, Writer

Mad Men • A Night To Remember • AMC • Lionsgate Television
Robin Veith, Writer
Matthew Weiner, Writer

Mad Men • Six Month Leave • AMC • Lionsgate Television
André Jacquemetton, Writer
Maria Jacquemetton, Writer
Matthew Weiner, Writer

Mad Men • The Jet Set • AMC • Lionsgate Television
Matthew Weiner, Writer

Mad Men • Meditations In An Emergency • AMC • Lionsgate Television
Kater Gordon, Writer
Matthew Weiner, Writer

Outstanding Writing For A Variety, Music Or Comedy Series

The Colbert Report • Comedy Central • Hello Doggie, Inc. with Busboy Productions and Spartina Productions
Tom Purcell, Head Writer
Stephen Colbert, Writer
Allison Silverman, Writer
Richard Dahm, Writer
Michael Brumm, Writer
Rob Dubbin, Writer
Opus Moreschi, Writer
Peter Gwinn, Writer
Jay Katsir, Writer
Frank Lesser, Writer
Glenn Eichler, Writer
Peter Grosz, Writer
Barry Julien, Writer
Meredith Scardino, Writer

The Daily Show With Jon Stewart • Comedy Central • Central Productions, LLC

Steve Bodow, Head Writer

Jon Stewart, Writer

David Javerbaum, Writer

Josh Lieb, Writer

Rory Albanese, Writer

Kevin Bleyer, Writer

Jason Ross, Writer

Tim Carvell, Writer

John Oliver, Writer

Sam Means, Writer

Rob Kutner, Writer

J.R. Havlan, Writer

Rich Blomquist, Writer

Wyatt Cenac, Writer

Elliott Kalan, Writer

Rachel Axler, Writer

Late Night With Conan O'Brien • NBC • Broadway Video, NBC Studios, Conaco
Mike Sweeney, Head Writer
Chris Albers, Writer
Jose Arroyo, Writer
Dan Cronin, Writer
Kevin Dorff, Writer
Andrés du Bouchet, Writer
Michael Gordon, Writer
Berkley Johnson, Writer
Brian Kiley, Writer
Todd Levin, Writer
Brian McCann, Writer
Guy Nicolucci, Writer
Conan O'Brien, Writer
Matt O'Brien, Writer
Brian Stack, Writer
Andrew Weinberg, Writer

Late Show With David Letterman • CBS • Worldwide Pants Incorporated
Eric Stangel, Head Writer
Justin Stangel, Head Writer
Michael Barrie, Writer
Jim Mulholland, Writer
Steve Young, Writer
Tom Ruprecht, Writer
Lee Ellenberg, Writer
Matt Roberts, Writer
Jeremy Weiner, Writer
Joe Grossman, Writer
Bill Scheft, Writer
Bob Borden, Writer
Frank Sebastiano, Writer
David Letterman, Writer

Saturday Night Live • NBC • SNL Studios in association with NBC Studios and Broadway Video
Seth Meyers, Head Writer
Doug Abeles, Writer
James Anderson, Writer
Alex Baze, Writer
Jessica Conrad, Writer
James Downey, Writer
Steve Higgins, Writer
Colin Jost, Writer
Erik Kenward, Writer
Rob Klein, Writer
John Lutz, Writer
Lorne Michaels, Writer
John Mulaney, Writer
Paula Pell, Writer
Simon Rich, Writer
Marika Sawyer, Writer
Akiva Schaffer, Writer
John Solomon, Writer
Emily Spivey, Writer
Kent Sublette, Writer
Jorma Taccone, Writer
Bryan Tucker, Writer

Outstanding Writing For A Variety, Music Or Comedy Special

81st Annual Academy Awards • ABC • Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences
Jon Macks, Writer
Jenny Bicks, Writer
Bill Condon, Writer
John Hoffman, Writer
Phil Alden Robinson, Writer
Bruce Vilanch, Writer
Dan Harmon, Special Material Written By
Rob Schrab, Special Material Written By
Ben Schwartz, Special Material Written By
Joel Stein, Special Material Written By

Chris Rock - Kill The Messenger • HBO • Chris Rock Enterprises and Funny Business in association with HBO Entertainment

Chris Rock, Writer

Louis C.K.: Chewed Up • Showtime • Image Entertainment / Art & Industry
Louis CK, Writer

Ricky Gervais: Out Of England – The Stand-Up Special • HBO • Moffitt Lee Productions in association with HBO Entertainment
Ricky Gervais, Writer

Will Ferrell: You're Welcome America. A Final Night With George W. Bush • HBO • Gary Sanchez Productions, Funny Business in association with HBO Entertainment
Will Ferrell, Writer

Outstanding Writing For A Miniseries, Movie Or A Dramatic Special

Generation Kill • Bomb In The Garden • HBO • Company Pictures and Blown Deadline
Productions in association with HBO Films
David Simon, Writer
Ed Burns, Writer

Grey Gardens • HBO • Specialty Films and Locomotive in association with HBO Films
Michael Sucsy, Writer
Patricia Rozema, Writer

Into The Storm • HBO • Scott Free and Rainmark Films production in association with the BBC and HBO Films
Hugh Whitemore, Writer

Little Dorrit • PBS • A co-production of BBC Productions and WGBH Boston

Andrew Davies, Writer

Taking Chance • HBO • Motion Picture Corp. of America and Civil Dawn Pictures in association with HBO Films
LtCol Michael R. Strobl, USMC (Ret.), Writer
Ross Katz, Writer

Soderbergh Since 'Traffic'

2009-09-20T11:20:00.000-07:00

A.O. Scott wrote a great piece in The New York Times discussing the films Steven Soderbergh has made since Traffic. In it, Mr. Scott analyzes whether or not the filmmaker is an 'auteur.'

Here's an interesting excerpt: "I will put my cards on the table and say that I have disliked quite a few, perhaps the majority, of Mr. Soderbergh’s movies of the past decade. I’ve been unmoved, perplexed, frustrated, repelled. But I’ve wanted to see them all more than once."

It's a pretty high compliment to spend your time writing an article about a filmmaker whom you admit to disliking a majority of their recent films. (Read the whole piece. That excerpt doesn't do it justice).There have definitely been some interesting films he's put out in the past eight years. I think my favorite is Full Frontal. Here's a clip:

Weekend Box Office Wrap-Up

2009-09-20T10:11:00.000-07:00

Here's how much money the new movies made this weekend, along with what I had predicted:

Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs:
My Prediction: $30 million
Weekend Gross: $30.1 million

The Informant!:
My Prediction: $6 million
Weekend Gross: $10.5 million

Love Happens:
My Prediction: $9 million
Weekend Gross: $8.5 million

Jennifer's Body:
My Prediction: $20 million
Weekend Gross: $6.8 million

I was pretty far off on Jennifer's Body, but guess right on Meatballs. Next week, Fame, Pandorum and Surrogates open wide. In limited release (probably (definitely) just NYC), Brief Interviews With Hideous Men and The Boys Are Back (actually, I read this might open wider on Friday).

Here are trailers for the latter two:

Classic French Double Feature at the Avon!

2009-09-20T00:32:00.000-07:00

The Avon Theatre in Stamford, CT is beginning to rival NYC’s Film Forum in perhaps not the volume of reissued films, but certainly in the quality of those they screen. Not that it should be a contest. It’s great they’re both showing classics.

Tonight’s Classic French Double Feature (two films for the price of one ticket!) was Fire and Ice and Truffaut’s Mississippi Mermaid (NEW 35mm prints). Both films are about the difficult task of making a relationship work and both end up with at least one dead body. Love kills, as we all know.

Fire and Ice tells the story of a not-too-happily married couple, Clément (Jean-Louis Trintignant) and Anne (played by the lovely Romy Schneider). Clément is a real hothead who doesn’t like his wife looking at other men. He’s also involved in an underground political movement and when Anne discovers a bazooka in their closet, it only adds to the marital tension.

Clément gets set up by a member of his political group, and has to go to South America to kill the fellow (seems a bit extreme, if you ask me). Anne pleads with him not to go, and his best friend Paul (Henri Serre) tells Clément he can't hide out in his cottage because he thinks all of Clément’s political business with the killings and bazookas is quite ridiculous and wrong.

The film is really intriguing because it moves through so many different genres. It goes from domestic drama to political thriller to love story to love triangle to revenge western (even though its set in Paris). And when the film is done with the political thriller part, for example, it just drops it. Director Alain Cavalier doesn’t try to blend these genres, he just moves on to the next one. This technique could be very distracting (see Hancock - or don’t), but it is such a deliberate strategy here that it really works. Mr. Cavalier knows what he’s doing and he does it quite well.
As the film heads to its grim, inevitable conclusion, you wonder at once why they don’t make movies like this anymore, and at the same time when the last gentlemanly gun duel took place (apparently it was after 1962).

Mississippi Mermaid, I will tell you right off the bat, contains no mermaids. I was sitting at the edge of my seat the whole time, waiting for a mermaid to appear and none ever came. Which is fine, but here in America when we call a movie Monkey Trouble, you’re going to get some monkeys. I’m just saying.

The film was perceived as an artistic failure when released in 1969, but is now quite appreciated. It was really fantastic to see Catherine Deneuve (my friend Stephanie’s favorite actress) on the big screen. The movie, like Fire and Ice, plays with genre. It begins as a love story, and then turns into quite a few other things. Yet, unlike Mr. Cavalier, the great François Truffaut (who wrote and directed the film) allows the genres to seep into the story, to comment on each other. It all blends together into something that resembles life. And as Ms. Denueve’s character’s behavior becomes suspicious and rotten, Louis Mahé (played by Jean-Paul Belmondo of Pierrot le fou fame) does a great job of convincing us that he really does love this woman, while Ms. Deneuve convinces us that she is worthy of being loved because, well, she’s Ms. Deneuve.

Great romantic scene from Mississippi Mermaid:

Review: 'It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia'

2009-09-19T22:53:00.000-07:00

I've had a rough relationship with It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia over the past few years. I was a huge fan of seasons 1 and 2, but from the first episode of season 3, I found that the routine was getting old. That first episode from season 3, "The Gang Finds a Dumpster Baby" gave me the feeling that the show's writers and stars (Rob McElhenney, Glenn Howerton, and Charlie Day) had run out of ideas.

It's hard to pinpoint what makes each episode funny or not. That one featured Dee and Mac trying to turn their dumpster baby into a child model. In this clip, a modeling agent explains that there is no more room for a "white baby" in the industry and suggests they find a Latino baby instead. I think this scene doesn't work because in addition to Dee and Mac behaving absurdly, the woman they are speaking with is being ridiculous as well. When there is nothing to ground the show, it feels very slight, and you can notice the writers trying desperately to make anything work.

An example of this situation being effective is in the pretty funny first episode of season 5, which debuted this past Thursday night. In one scene, Charlie challenges a lawyer (played by Brian Unger) to a duel. Much to Charlie's surprise, the lawyer accepts the duel and Charlie begins backtracking. The lawyer explains that he wants to meet Charlie the next day at high noon, even offering to show Charlie the gun he owns. The scene works because the lawyer has been pushed by Charlie so you can see why he would want to duel him. Charlie is showing up at his office, unannounced, and the lawyer doesn't have time to deal with him. So he calls Charlie's bluff, and the lawyer's real intentions are just vague enough to make the scene work. It feels real enough, and the scene got a well-deserved laugh.

I went back to my season 3 DVDs after much encouragement from friends who love the show. I enjoyed a few of them, such as the last two: "Bums: Making a Mess All Over the City" and "The Gang Dances Their Asses Off." With both episodes, however, I was more amused by the concept than actively laughing. The two-part episode, "The Gang Gets Whacked," from season 3, is a perfect example of Mr. McElhenney and the other writers getting in way over their heads with an over-complicated narrative. That two-part episode is also an example of absurd supporting characters not working with the mafia gangsters.

The gangsters are such cartoons that we don't know if we're supposed to laugh at them or how Dennis and Mac react. I know it's hoped that both will get laughs, but what's more likely is that neither will (and either does). This sort of dual absurd characterization can work in certain situations. Stella, for example, was a show that pulled it off miraculously. That show was a descendant of the Marx Brothers style of comedy, as is It's Always Sunny, to a lesser extent.

The "Novel" episode of Stella, for example, features Janeane Garofalo as a famous author named Jane Burroughs. As the episode begins, Ms. Garofalo plays the character quite straight. She's just a regular person with a problem: she needs to write a second novel. After she has sex with David (David Wain), she ends up stealing a novel written by David, Michael (Michael Ian Black) and Michael (Michael Showalter) and puts her name on it.

Her deceit is (of course) discovered and rather than playing it straight, Ms. Garofalo's performance becomes absurd. By this point, Ms. Garofalo has already established that her character is a real person, that her plight is a legitimate one, and that those surrounding her (David, Michael and Michael) are the buffoons. When she begins behaving ridiculously, it is for the purpose of the plot, which in this case is sending up the idea of a famous author stealing the work of an amateur (which has been done over and over in one form or another). We recognize the purpose of the plot as a vehicle satire and absurdism, and allow her character to go nuts along with David, Michael and Michael because we've bought everything her character has done up until this point. In contrast, when the three stereotypically dressed Mafia types waltz up to Dennis and Mac (clip here), we know instantly that these men are cartoons, and that they are not real people. We're supposed to just laugh at them upon appearance. It's a really lazy shortcut. An audience does not like to be directed in such a way. Earn the laughs, don't shove them down peoples' throats.

That's why I'm pleased to say that the writers of Philadelphia seem to have learned their lesson. Season 5 starts out with two straight-forward plots: Frank is trying to flip a house and Dee wants to become a surrogate mother. What happens throughout the episode is the natural progression of events, portrayed "realisticaly" in regards to what would happen next, and the surrounding characters (the lawyer, the parents who want Dee to have their child), all play it straight for the most part, which allows us to laugh at The Gang, as the good lord intended.

Perhaps Mr. McElhenney, Mr. Howerton, and Mr. Day didn't notice a lull in the show, but I'd like to suspect that they got stuck for a little while, and are now back on track. I look forward to the rest of season 5, and I hope they keep up the good work. [B] - Ryan Sartor.

New episodes of It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia premiere every Thursday night at 10 pm on FX. Repeats also air throughout the week.

Here's the Contract scene from The Marx Brothers' A Night at the Opera:

Charlie with his "son" from season 1 of It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia:

Brand New's "Daisy" Streaming on Myspace

2009-09-19T19:15:00.000-07:00

Brand New's latest album, Daisy, hits stores this Tuesday, but its streaming right now at their Myspace page. I really like the album. After Deja Entendu set them up as an undeniably great rock band capable of fusing catchy melodies with dead-on lyrics that rang true, they seemed poised for their next album to make them huge. Perhaps worried about this, lead singer/primary songwriter Jesse Lacey indulged the least-commercial elements of Deja on the melancholy follow-up LP, The Devil and God Are Raging Inside Me.

Remaining unpredictable, Daisy ignores all the groundwork laid by Devil and God, bringing back grunge music (of all genres) for a really heavy album with a lot of screaming, fierce guitars, and (as always) great melodies buried underneath. For a change, most of the songs on the album were written by guitarist Vinnie Accardi. Perhaps the change in writers explains the heavier tendencies, but the fact that the band switched main songwriters is another testament to how you can't put them in a box.

In today's "Do-Anything-For-A-Buck" methodology, even some Pitchfork-loved bands are playing it safe, producing album after similar album. Thank god for the small things: like whatever Brand New does next.

A full review of Daisy is coming soon. Here's an acoustic performance of The Boy Who Blocked His Own Shot, a favorite of my friend James:

Review: 'The Informant!'

2009-09-19T16:00:00.000-07:00

There was a great deal of controversy earlier this summer when Sony Pictures cancelled production on Steven Soderbergh's film Moneyball, set to star Brad Pitt. And while I think it was a real scumbag move on Amy Pascal's part to pull the plug the weekend before the film was to begin shooting, I can now think of one reason why she would do such a thing: she must have seen The Informant!

With The Informant!, Soderbergh treats the audience with a mix of disdain, and respect for their intelligence. I saw it once and I really feel like I need to see it again. It's one of those films that throws the whole story on its head in a way that cannot be predicted, and I felt like I had been duped. Which was the point, but still, it feels like a nasty little trick. At a certain point in the film, I could see where Soderbergh and screenwriter Scott Z. Burns were pulling the strings. And while it was a fun little joke, I still got the impression that they were laughing at me, rather than with me.

Once I got past this bit of scorn (it still stings a little), I began to appreciate The Informant! for what it is: an entertaining, brutally self aware film about just how messy and tangled up things can get in the corporate world. I'm not questioning the quality of the story, just the way that it was told. There I go again bringing it up - maybe I'm not over the whole thing just yet.

Matt Damon gives a really brilliant performance as Mark Whitaker, vice president of ADM, who helps the F.B.I. to uncover a price fixing scam involving major companies around the world. It's hard to get into the details of the film without giving away some spoilers, but I promise to give nothing away.

Whitaker spends 2 1/2 years working with the F.B.I. (this is all a true story, by the way). He gets audio and video recordings of meetings in which representatives from companies got together in conference rooms to discuss how they would rip off consumers. The F.B.I. Agents, played by Scott Bakula and Joel McHale (who both do a great job), are protective of Whitaker. They know that once the evidence is compiled and the bust on ADM goes down, Mark Whitaker will be out of a job.

What happens next I won't reveal. The thing that makes The Informant! worth seeing is that as it sets up its world like a comedy (casting comedic actors like Tony Hale and Patton Oswald, as well as others), it is keeping some very serious matters just below the surface. What does it mean to do justice? How important is financial security? If one is to blow the whistle at the company, to what extend should the government protect him? What Soderbergh gets so well is that he never forgets that everyone involved is a real person: complex, interesting, flawed. Even when Whitaker tries to do the right thing, it won't change him as a person, no matter how much money he saves for the consumer public.

With The Informant! and his two previous films, The Girlfriend Experience and Che, Soderbergh is establishing himself as easily the most interesting and prolific filmmaker out right now. Like Mark Whitaker, you don't know what he's going to do next. He's got best friends like Matt Damon and George Clooney, he can throw "From the director of Ocean's 11, 12, and 13" on any movie poster. Studios want to put him in a box, but they can't catch him. He'll make a film for $80 million, $50 million, $20 million or half a million dollars. What can you do to a man whom you can't buy? And how can you trust him? You fumble around and bite your nails. And if you're a studio president, you probably end up pulling the plug on a film two days before it begins shooting. [A-] - Ryan Sartor.

Book Review: 'Seconds of Pleasure: Stories' by Neil LaBute

2009-09-19T02:46:00.000-07:00

Neil LaBute, in my opinion, made two of the best films of the 1990s: In The Company of Men and Your Friends & Neighbors. He is also the respected playwright behind The Shape of Things, The Mercy Seat and numerous other plays. His legacy, though, may become his direction of the disastrous 2006 film The Wicker Man. To be sure, I hang out with too many Nic Cage enthusiasts, but whenever I mention Neil LaBute being a great screenwriter/playwright, the most common response is, “Oh, that dude who directed The Wicker Man? He sucks.” Hopefully he can shake this reputation, if it does in fact exist outside of my social circle.

Aside from “Director of The Wicker Man,” Mr. LaBute’s most critical label is that of “American theater's reigning misanthrope,” as the Village Voice declared him. A misanthrope, according to dictionary.com is a “hater of humankind.” I wouldn’t go so far as to call Mr. LaBute a “hater” of any group of people, but he certainly does notice the dark corners of the human heart. Like Todd Solondz, Mr. LaBute puts on display the side of humanity that we often ignore, and I would categorize the majority of his work as comedic. In order to do good comedy, one always has to get a little tough on his characters.

Seconds of Pleasure (published in 2004) is Neil LaBute’s only collection of short stories and it is very accurately titled. From incestuous situations to adulterous affairs of miniscule and substantial proportions, the people in his tales are obsessed with feeling good - if only for a moment. They struggle in vain to reconcile their desires with the consequences of the selfish means they go about to satisfy them. Mr. LaBute seems to take his own pleasure in watching these animalistic (or is it robotic?) humans as they try to squirm out of these situations. He knows only misery awaits these people until that next moment when they can again feel pleasure.

Described in this way, Mr. LaBute certainly does sound like a misanthrope, but to label him as such would be to fall right into his trap, just as many critics did with his debut film, In the Company of Men. In that movie (shot for only $25,000), two businessmen decide to toy with the feelings of a deaf co-worker, only to purposely break her heart right when she starts to care about one of them. For his efforts, Mr. LaBute was labeled a misogynist. And I’m sure he delighted in this label (okay, maybe he’s a tad bit misanthropic), because with the film he was making a point about how men often believe themselves superior to everyone, able to label those beneath them and put people in little boxes and categories. Every article about how Mr. LaBute “hated women” could easily have been asterisked by him with a “See? I told you so.” The film or theatre critics didn’t want to face the ugly side of themselves, so they just called Mr. LaBute a “mean name,” as one of his characters would, and wished the whole mess away.

One weakness in Mr. LaBute’s short story writing is that his description of his characters’ thoughts reveals that they have such awful, despicable viewpoints that they often come across as cartoons. It’s one thing to see the actions of a person in a film or play, but to know what they are all thinking every moment is exhausting, especially if they're such despicable thoughts.

In “Perfect,” the narrator obsesses over a mole on his wife’s shoulder. At first it is a feeling of identifying as the reader understands how one can be critical about a lover’s flaws, but as Mr. LaBute goes into details regarding just how much the narrator hates the mole, it becomes boring and is obviously the work of a writer, not this man’s actual account (as we should believe it to be). His best story in the collection is “Opportunity,” a slightly comedic at-first, and then deadly serious tragedy about a young girl's relationship with her father and how that relationship haunts her memory of her long deceased sister.

With every story, even those that go too far on a single topic, LaBute is trying quite sincerely to get at the heart of a human being’s desire and he takes to this task with great care. It would be easy for him to just direct films like The Wicker Man (as well as Lakeview Terrace and the upcoming Death at a Funeral remake), but Seconds of Pleasure is a treat and it falls in line with the best of Mr. LaBute’s work: art that is trying to confront humanity, by a writer who’s willing to take a few punches in order to get his point across. [B] - Ryan Sartor.

Season 6 of 'The Office' is (Actually) Off to a Very Funny Start

2009-09-19T02:10:00.000-07:00

I've been hating on the U.S. version of The Office ever since Season 3 started with all of those Stamford employees. I generally beef with any show that sets up a huge cliff-hanger (Jim and Pam kissing at the end of season 2) and then doesn't address it in the beginning of the next season (very reminiscent of Dawson and Joey's kiss at the end of season 4 on Dawson's Creek).

So I talked 'S' about The Office for seasons 3 and 4, and then most of season 5 because Jim and Pam were together so, what's the point?

But, I really enjoyed the season 5 episodes involving the Michael Scott Paper Company. And I'm happy to report that the first episode of season 6 is on bar with anything from season 2. I laughed out loud numerous times. Let me know what you think. Plus, Ellie Kemper of UCB and Mystery Team is the new secretary! Check out the first episode of season 6:

And here's that cliff hanger from Season 2:

'A Serious Man': Best Film of 2009?

2009-09-19T01:02:00.000-07:00

Kris Tapley of In Contention seems to think so. This movie appeared it would be a minor Coen film in the vein of The Ladykillers or The Hudsucker Proxy. The description on IMDb suggests a standard comedy instead of what is being called the Coens' most personal film.

The buzz has been great from the Toronto Film Festival and Anne Thompson and Mr. Tapley have compared Man to the films of Woody Allen (not to take away from the Coens' originality, they assure). Most everyone seems to agree that its one of the Coens' best ever. Let the high expectations begin!

Check out Thompson on Hollywood's Anne Thompson and In Contention's Kris Tapley's third edition of Oscar Talk.

And A Serious Man's trailer is below:

'Afterschool' Trailer Hits

2009-09-19T00:15:00.000-07:00

I saw 'Afterschool' last year at the New York Film Festival. I can definitely imagine Antonio Campos doing great work in the future, but Manohla Dargis was correct in referring to the director as a baby Michael Haneke. Mr. Haneke is certainly one of the best infant versions of a filmmaker to be. Regardless, the trailer for 'Afterschool' (distributed by IFC Films, it opens in limited release Oct. 2nd and On Demand September 30th) is very well put-together. The film's gotten some great reviews since premiering at the 2008 Cannes Film Festival. I'm not sure why I can't post the trailer, or why Comingsoon.net is not sure of whom the writer or director of the film is (I assure you, it's Antonio Campos) but watch the trailer here. Also, if you want, check out Mr. Campos's trailer for his disturbing short film Buy It Now, which features narrative and documentary versions of a film about a teenager selling her virginity on E-Bay.

Review: 'The September Issue'

2009-09-18T23:40:00.000-07:00

The September Issue is a tricky little documentary. At the beginning, my assumption was that the brilliant R.J. Cutler (who produced The War Room and directed and executive produced my all-time favorite doc series, American High) had chosen a poor subject. Through the first forty minutes I thought, “Oh, no. Cutler got in there, thinking there’d be a movie, and then realized too late that there wasn’t one.”

The film is about the making of the 2007 September Issue of Vogue, always the largest issue of the year, and in 2007 it was the largest in the magazine’s history. We follow Anna Wintour, editor of Vogue, as she puts the magazine together. It’s claimed that Ms. Wintour was the inspiration for Meryl Streep’s character in The Devil Wears Prada, but it soons becomes clear that Ms. Streep reduced Ms. Wintour to a caricature, and maybe not even a very accurate one. But that’s fine - that film just a light comedy, this is the real thing.

The September Issue begins with a series of photo shoots, and the process surrounding them, each step seeming arbitrary. It all appears very easy: you take some pictures, Anna says which ones she likes and which she does not, and then you move on. Even in Prada, the tension was in how Ms. Streep’s character treated her employees rather than any difficult in producing the magazine.

Ms. Wintour doesn’t seem all that terrible a person at all. Granted, this may have been an editorial decision by Mr. Cutler, but it’s easy to portray any woman in power as aggressive and distant. You’d be hard pressed to find a man in a similar situation characterized that way. Ms. Wintour is just doing her job. As one of her colleagues points out, “People call her closed off, but I don’t find that. She just doesn’t make herself accessible to people whom she doesn’t need to. She’s busy.”

The movie moves along fine, but by this point I’m getting a bit bored. And then something interesting happens: Ms. Wintour’s daughter is introduced - a college student with aspirations of attending law school. It is instantly clear that not only does Ms. Wintour adore her daughter, but that she values her opinion about the magazine and wants her to get involved in the fashion world, specifically at Vogue. Ms. Wintour’s daughter responds that, in so many words, there’s a lot more to the world than just fashion, and she doesn’t want to get mixed up with the kind of people who work at Vogue.

This becomes the film’s engine. We see all this work being done, but what does it add up to? And as Ms. Wintour talks about her siblings who each do Peace Corps. -style work, she says that they find her work at Vogue “amusing.” You really do wonder what it is that drives people like Ms. Wintour as she seems, dare I say, insecure regarding her job’s significance.

Ms. Wintour mentions that her father said one day, “You’ll be the editor of Vogue” and that was that. She is obviously a private person, but even in candid interviews Ms. Wintour does not reveal why she works at Vogue. She briefly discusses how exciting fashion was in 1960s London, but that was forty years ago. It does at certain points seem that Ms. Wintour may still be editor at Vogue because it is all that she knows, and these people (especially the magazine’s creative director, Grace Coddington) are her family.

That may be a chauvinistic view on my part. Just because Ms. Wintour doesn’t confess her desire, doesn’t mean she doesn’t have one. She’s allowed her privacy.

The film’s most interesting figure is not Anna Wintour, but Grace Coddington. In an article in the New York Times (read it here) it was revealed that Ms. Coddington was very reluctant to be filmed, and I can see why Mr. Cutler needed her to make the movie work. If Ms. Wintour won’t reveal much about what goes on at the magazine, then it is certainly revealed by those around her. Ms. Coddington is a tireless artist. She explains that she is one of the last editors who dresses the models herself, fixing dresses and shoes right before the pictures are taken. Seeing Ms. Coddington talk to the models and photographers, it becomes clear how it is an art form – getting these beautiful clothes on beautiful people and then framing it all in a really inspired way.

The tension in the film comes from Ms. Coddington’s back-and-forth with Ms. Wintour. As Ms. Wintour removes some of Ms. Coddington’s favorite photos from the magazine, Ms. Coddington grows depressed and frustrated, wondering aloud how much longer she can deal with this. Ms. Wintour also feels the pressure of her role. She speaks of her father, whom she obviously has a great deal of respect for, and says that when he left his job at a London newspaper, she asked him, “Why?” His response was that, “The anger became too much for him.” The September Issue made me wonder how much longer Ms. Wintour and Ms. Coddington will go on, but it is clear that they are not being slowed down by their frustrations and they’re still doing incredible work.

Photo shoot after photo shoot goes on and we see how the magazine comes together. The film takes shape as the deadline approaches. It becomes clear that the seemingly unimportant details Mr. Cutler included at the beginning (regarding photo shoots, layout) are essential to the story, and make the last half hour a riveting viewing experience.

R.J. Cutler spent eight months with Ms. Wintour and her team at Vogue, and what he produced is a fascinating documentary that not only asks how the September Issue of Vogue is put together, but also, very subtlety asks, “Why?” And the answer to that is perhaps as simple as, “Everybody’s got to do something.” [B] - Ryan Sartor.

Here's the trailer:

Valentine's Day: A Romantic Comedy Starring Everyone!

2009-09-18T11:31:00.000-07:00

The trailer for Valentine's Day (starring Julia Roberts, Anne Hathaway, Jamie Foxx, Jennifer Garner, Jessica Biel, Taylor Swift getting smooched by Taylor Lautner (pictured left) -- there's more actors, but you get the idea) doesn't promise a good movie, but that's not that the point. In the vein of last year's quite bad but very successful He's Just Not That Into You ($93 million grossing), New Line Cinema's strategy with Valentine's Day seems to be to put as many big name stars in the film for as short a time as possible (pay them less that way) so that all of the actors essentially make up one "character" with one "goal" - to find "love." So rather taking a risk on a Katherine Heigl movie (she was offered a role in Valentine's Day but turned it down due to monetary - oh sorry "scheduling" - issues), which could presumably fail (even though 27 Dresses and The Ugly Truth made $76 million and $88 million, respectively), I feel as though a film like Valentine's Day can never fail because most of the audience will like someone in the movie, and want to see it for that reason.

Which is a shame because it will make Hollywood screenwriters even lazier as they will simply have to string together a bunch of Meet Cutes, and then a few scenes for each actor, and the audiences will love it.

Here's the trailer. I'm definitely going to see it, I'm just disappointed in The Establishment for tempting me with such gooey, delicious trash:

Judy Greer: Sassy Sidekick for Hire

2009-09-17T22:41:00.000-07:00

Judy Greer, a fine actress who did good work in The TV Set, Arrested Development and Adaptation. (as that waitress who remembered Charlie Kaufman's "key lime pie.") is so often stuck with one of the worst types of roles written for women: the Sassy Best Friend. In 27 Dresses and now Love Happens she is constantly telling the leading actress that she needs to 'get that man,' or as in the Love Happens trailer, she pokes her head around the corner and says, "She's available" when Aaron Eckhart asks Jennifer Aniston out on a date. Do people like this really exist? Why must Ms. Greer keep playing them? She does as fine a job as any one could, because she's very good. Still, the roles should not exist.

Hollywood, please stop writing the sassy side kick roles at all. And also, write Judy Greer a lead. Thank you.

He's Just Not That Into You was a bad movie, but it had this amusing guide to Chick Flick Cliches:

And here's the Love Happens trailer so you can see Ms. Greer's sassiness in action:

Weekend Movies

2009-09-17T22:15:00.000-07:00

Opening this weekend are:

"Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs" which looks fairly Okay. It's got a 67 on Metacritic, so maybe it is good. Its presented in many locations in 3D. Here's Ebert's latest rant against 3D (you have to scroll down to read about "The Hole"). I agree completely. 3D makes the screen dark and you can never get into the story because you're always actively aware that what you're seeing is augmented by glasses on your face. Voice cast is pretty strong with Bill Hader, Anna Farris, Bruce Campbell and Andy Samberg. Mr. T also does a voice but I didn't want to be 'That Guy' and mention it. Yet, here we are.

"Love Happens" is one of those movies that I want to be good, but probably is not. It stars the very likeable pairing of Jennifer Aniston and Aaron Eckhart. From Variety's review, it sounds like a good movie's buried underneath a love story, which is barely there. I may be quoting them exactly. Sorry, Variety.

"Jennifer's Body" is written by Diablo Cody and stars the always boring Megan Fox (though I've heard she's okay or good in this) and the always enjoyable Amanda Seyfried. It premiered at the Toronto Film Festival, which must seem like a bad decision now as it was largely shrugged off or just outright hated.

Finally, "The Informant!" comes out tomorrow. It's opening WIDE - 2,500 screens. That seems like an absurd number to me, but I'm glad because it means I don't have to search for it. I'm just worried if it fails so wide, the studio will say, "See? THAT'S why don't make art films." Soderbergh directed it, The Playlist loved it, I'm satisfied.

I won't bother with films currently in release, but here are my obligatory predictions for the new films at the weekend box office (Friday-Sunday):
1. Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs: $30 million
2. Jennifer's Body: $20 million
3. The Informant!: $9 million
4. Love Happens: $6 million

Clint Eastwood Needs To Stop

2009-09-17T16:36:00.000-07:00

As reported in Variety, Clint Eastwood begins filming on a supernatural thriller titled 'Hereafter' starring Matt Damon in the fall. There's no logline, but it's in the vein of 'The Sixth Sense.' What's really interesting to me is that it'll be his second consecutive collaboration with Damon after the Nelson Mandela flick 'Invictus,' in which Damon plays the famous leader (nah, Morgan Freeman is -- but you're racist for taking issue with the joke Damon casting).

Eastwood has a history of consecutive collaborations: Brian Helgeland wrote 'Blood Work' (brick!) and then 'Mystic River' (Oscar winner) the next year. Paul Haggis wrote 'Million Dollar Baby' (Oscar winner) and then 'Flags of Our Flags' (brick!) two years later.
So which will it be? I guess we'll have to wait and see how 'Invictus' goes. And if you're thinking, "Hey, Eastwood can have two good movies in a row," yeah, he did once with 'Mystic River' and then 'Million Dollar Baby,' but that was a fluke - I cite 'Changeling' (brick)/'Gran Torino' (Oscar... whatever, it was good).

Which new film do you most want to see?
	Afterschool
	The Invention of Lying
	More Than a Game
	A Serious Man
	Toy Story Double Feature
	Whip It
	Zombieland

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