Hollywood Dump

Winter Box Office Preview - Part 1

2009-11-06T21:00:00.001-06:00

Editor's note: Every year we' put together a list of movies that will be opening during the holiday season and finishing out the year. This year, however, I have to say that there really isn't that much worth watching. Honestly, I can't think of a worse year end for films.

But that hasn't stopped Jay Jammer and myself from throwing around our $0.02 like it means something.

So here is the first part of a short list of films that are scheduled to come out between now and the end of the year that may or may not be worth watching.

Most of this was written by JJ. I just added my comments where appropriate.

By Jay Jammer-

This season reminds me of how January to March looks every year: dead. What happened to the Winter Push where they choke us with Oscar Contenders? Guess the recession and the Writer’s Strike has caught up to us. It’s like a skeleton list. It seems so small.

After looking through the major releases I’m not too excited for much. The Studios are committing suicide in a slow methodical manner of boring everyone away from the theater and into the hands of bootlegging and video games. They sure do know how to do business right.

Old men and their stubborn ways…. The film industry was afraid that the VCR would alter how people watched movies so that they wouldn't go out and see films any more. They were wrong. However, they are not winning a battle with the bootleggers. They are losing revenue because they are now really competing with the cheap bootleg as well as the awesome home theater system. What have they done to combat that? NOTHING....and so as they lose and lose and lose money every day because of their stubbornness should someone feel sorry for their old man mentality? NO. And therefore no one should be shocked by how cruddy movies continue to become with the rare The Hangover or (500) Days of Summer rattling around in obscurity and maybe becoming popular enough to give us movie lovers a glimmer of theatrical hope. Not a snowflake chance in hell that this winter will give us much of a reason to want to leave the house to pay $10 and put up with teenagers and loud talking deaf old people.

Clicking on the link will take you to the trailer for the film.

OPENING NOVEMBER 6^TH

^{A Christmas Carol}

JJ - I don’t know. Visually it looks stunning and it is an amusing trailer. However, the trailer is also annoying and I don’t care for Christmas stories…they bore me. It’s a maybe not for me.

Judge - Its apparently not the Christmas season unless we have some variation on the classic Dicken's novel. Seriously, how many versions do we really need of the same story? There should be a law that limits the amount of Charles Dickens and Jane Austin stories told, re-told, re-imagined and re-booted. Besides, "Scrooged" is better anyway. PASS.

^{The Fourth K}^ind

JJ - Boring, boring and boring. I am so sick of these kinds of movies. No.
Judge - yet another scary movie. It kind of loses its appeal after Halloween. PASS.

^{Precious: Based on the Novel "Pus}^{h" by Sapphire}

JJ - It is something that I have had an interest in. I like a good dramatic movie that will move me emotionally and get me to think of things that I have never had the opportunity to think about. This film looks like something that can do that---or put me to sleep. It’s a toss up.

Judge - this one's been getting a lot of bus from pretentious film school snobs. Its got all that heartstring-pulling, inner-city drama that a narrow demographic of the movie audience might like. In other words, its an Oscar contender that no one will see.

^{The Box}

JJ - I like James Marsden. I have always thought he was a very good actor and every single time he’s in a film I have seen he has never disappointed with his acting ability and therefore based on that alone (and the interesting story premise) I will be seeing this film.

Judge - Based solely on the plot, its got shades of Hitchcock written all over it. A great idea, but can they deliver the level of suspense that a story like this begs for? Im not sure.

^{The Men Who Stare at Goats}

JJ - Trifecta of Ewan McGregor, George Clooney and Kevin Spacey is interesting enough to get me to think about seeing this film as well. And then enough for me to totally ignore it because the storyline doesn’t totally snag me as interesting. It’s on the maybe yes side.

Judge - It has potential. I think it at least looks entertaining and its a winning cast. This is one of the few films Im actually interested in this season.

OPENING NOVEMBER 13th

2012
JJ - I’m seeing this mainly for the destruction promise. Acting and storyline ar e not of any interest, but if they become an annoyance it’ll be a topic I’ll take head on. I just want to see things destroyed in cool ways.

Judge - Story means nothing for a film like this. Only how realistic the destruction can be. But who doesnt love an opportunity to see Los Angeles destroyed over and over again?

Pirate Radio
JJ - It looks funny and historically entertaining. Finally a movie about someone else’s country’s booboos of control.

Judge - Sounds cool, and I like the music, so I'll say yes, this is one to watch.

Fantastic Mr. Fox (limited)
JJ - It looks like it tries to hard and the voice work is just people using their regular voices…it’s close to a boring trailer. It has a bit of funny in there and that is why I will maybe see it.

Judge - Its another animated flick, with only a marginally interesting plot. Pass.

The Messenger
JJ - Looks interesting on cast alone. Story seems a bit overdone, but it’s not opening near me so what do I care?

Judge - OK, I'll agree that this one looks good and I like the idea, but if the trailer gives any indication that Woody Harrelson spends the entire movie with marbles in his mouth, Im going to scream.

[ED Note:
Stay tuned for part two of this preview as soon as I get motivated enough to add all the posters and links to the trailers. ]

Is the CW on a Cliff?

2009-11-05T13:48:00.003-06:00

In an interview with Charlene Weisler, TV veteran Simon Applebaum looks at the future of television and theorizes that unless things change soon, some networks are going to be in big trouble, or just go belly up:

At least one broadcast network will flunk. Right now, I think the CW is on the edge of the cliff. I know they are going after the young audience, but their shows are not working for the most part. "Melrose Place" is a disaster. "90210" is the same thing. Both shows are done.
I think CW has a year or two to make it. This could be the final year of the CW if the ratings don't get better I think that network will drop.

The full interview, which also touches on issues like the future of PBS, privacy and Internet TV are broken up into several video clips on Weisler's blog.

Of course, this really isn't ground-breaking, earth-shattering news. People have been talking about the fate of the CW for a while. It's been up against the ratings ropes for years.

And I think the single biggest problem with their ratings is the demographic the network hopes to get: Young adults and teens. Most of this demographic is not sitting in front of a TV anymore. They're plugged into their iPhones and watching content through means other than the old boob tube. Some of the programming is sticking around a bit ("Gossip Girl" episodes are a big seller on iTunes) but I dont think this is enough to keep a network afloat.

I know I personally can't remember the last time I watched something on CW, but I'm also no longer the target demographic. It will be interesting to see what happens with all of this.

“Good Hair” Good Answer to WHERE THE HELL DOES THE MONEY GO?

2009-11-03T16:35:00.002-06:00

Genres: Comedy and Documentary
Running Time: 1 hr. 35 min.
Release Date: October 9th, 2009 (limited)
MPAA Rating: PG-13 for some language including sex and drug references, and brief partial nudity.
Distributors: Roadside Attractions, Roadside Entertainment

Directed by: Jeff Stilson

JJ Rating: B+

It’s all about what women do to look like women. Well if they are a black woman, of course with a twist of comedy here and there. Good Hair.

When a black woman goes to get their “hair did” it is a task and then some. They put chemicals into their hair to have it straightened like long blond flowing hair. Or they could just weave real human hair from India into their own. Or they could just let their hair alone and be unique and beautiful (personal preference rules).

Good Hair is a funny title in that it plays on what most black women are after: that hair that everyone else in the world has but them. Something that is workable and manageable. A something that’ll give hair full body and movement that the wind can toy with and it doesn’t stand out like an afro that makes people think the wrong kind of thoughts like uneducated and dirty (I don’t think that at all—it’s hot). No matter what they do with it at the “beauty shop” they do not like it when it’s touched. That was pretty funny part of the film with the women and men talking giving their view about touching that hair. To sum that part up: DO NOT TOUCH THE HAIR or you might lose a finger or five.

I think the afro puff is hot. Wrap a bandana around and then you know what happens? Even hotter. I never realized how much I thought that until I saw this film. I have this thing for blonds as well but it’s not as pronounced because it’s more of a flight of fancy kind of thing. Blond hair isn’t necessarily something that solidifies hotness like an afro puff, but it’s enough for a turn and look.

Good Hair is very informative and Chris Rock is amusing as well as personable. I have never seen him be such a people person as he is in this documentary. I learned that they have a Hair Olympics in Atlanta. Ha-well not really, but it does seem that way when I watched the film. There is this competition that awards a hairdresser $20,000 should they become the judges’ choice. There are four contestants. They are each interviewed throughout the film. The editing, I think, captured their personalities quite nicely. One was carefree, one was aloof, one was newbie and another was a bitter loser for year’s past. What they had to do was put on a show cutting hair. Good Hair showed me that there is an event I want to go to just so I could take pictures and don’t worry I have a black friend that would be more than willing (meaning not until she no longer needs relaxer) to take me to this event and proudly walk around with me as I take pictures of what I would deem the black people’s freak show. There was hair that would totally go against nature as well as make the French of the 1700’s gawk in pure jealousy.

Speaking of relaxer this film makes it seem like they are putting a nuclear dump into their hair. Eek. What do I know? I don’t have black hair. I’m not even black. The only thing I ever put in my hair was gel and that was only because my hair was far too straight and didn’t want to cooperate.

Then there’s where the hair comes from and that would be India the main exporter of hair. It’s such a money getter that girls could lose their hair while watching a movie, sleeping or just some random act in the street. Snip-snip. That’s just ridiculous. What makes it worse is that it’s not really looked at as a crime, because it’s just hair. Put a price on anything and people will go crazy finding ways to get it so that they can get money.

The famous black women who were interviewed talked about how much they spend, why they spend that much and how it makes them feel were amusing and interesting as well as very personal. I think it added more to what I was seeing because they were sharing and I was getting it and slowly falling in love…*clear throat*…but that’s a totally different story.

Good Hair is good because it explains what many people just don’t get. It gives a view into an industry that is run mainly by Asians but the only customers are black. That is its own controversy (Asians running it instead of blacks being the majority) that seems a bit dated, but why do I care since it’s not my race. If you have ever dated a black woman or are thinking about it or just wonder where the hell all that money goes….Good Hair is a film you should see. An arm and a leg don’t even begin to explain how much it costs to maintain that do.

Owen Wilson to Voice Marmeduke

2009-11-03T06:00:00.003-06:00

Owen Wilson has been attached to voice the slobbering Great Dane Marmeduke for Fox.

Hoping to ride the coat-tails of the "Chipmunk" success, but having learned nothing from the flop that was "Garfield," we reported back in March that Fox was fast-tracking this one to strike while the iron was hot. Wilson was the final piece to the production - which is destined to be as unfunny and un-entertaining as the played-out comic strip its adapted from.

The Hollywood Reporter gives the details:

In adapting the strip created in 1954 by Brad Anderson and Phil Leeming, the script by Tim Rasmussen and Vince Di Meglio ["License to Wed"] sees Marmaduke navigate a volatile Mutts vs. Pedigrees turf war, woo the purebred of his dreams and overcome a fall from grace.

No release date has been listed, but expect Fox to drop this steamer into some family-friendly seasonal time slot in the near future.

Weekend Box Office Recap

2009-11-01T13:57:00.005-06:00

The Michael Jackson documentary "This Is It" took the top spot, clearing an estimated $21 million according to studio estimates. But that's no surprise, since fan appreciation and good pre-release hype helped drive it forward in an otherwise soft box office weekend. Essentially behind-the-scenes b-roll that remains superficial, never really delving into a deeper exploration of the man, it's getting mostly favorable reviews and Rotten Tomatoes has it pegged at 80% fresh. Still, some people are underwhelmed.

Dave Edwards of the UK's Daily Mirror says, "As an exercise in wringing every last penny from Jackson's legacy, the movie may be a success. But if you're looking for a tribute to the man who once took pop to its absolute zenith, this most certainly isn't it. "

Last weeks big winner, the micro-budget thriller "Paranormal Activity" continues to entertain audiences and astound studio execs. The little indie film that could has been in theaters for 38 days now and has powered its way through a US domestic gross of $84 million. The astounding part is that the production budget for the film is estimated to be somewhere between $11,000 and $15,000. Thats less than what Michael Bay budgets for hair care products and tanning beds.

Paramount purchased the flick for $300,000 and spent about $10 million in prints and advertising. Assuming a budget of$15,000, that means the studio is looking at a return on investment in the unbelievable realm of 565,000%, making "Paranormal" the most successful movie ever made.

And naturally, the film's success has made director Oren Peli the next golden boy of Hollywood. According to Movieweb, Peli's next film "Area 51" has no less than six different studios in a bidding war for the rights.

And meanwhile, the biggest loser of the weekend goes to "Where the Wild Things Are," falling 63%from its previous week's numbers.

Here's the top ten for the weekend:

1 (new) Michael Jackson's This Is It $21,300,000
2 (1) Paranormal Activity $16,540,000
3 (4) Law Abiding Citizen $7,303,000 -
4 (5) Couples Retreat $6,097,390
5 (2) Saw VI $5,560,000
6 (3) Where the Wild Things Are $5,081,000
7 (8) The Stepfather $3,400,000
8 (6) Astro Boy $3,035,000
9 (11) Amelia $3,000,000 -
10 (7) Cirque du Freak: The Vampire's Assistant $2,809,080

A Sequel to Stoker's Original Dracula

2009-10-31T09:54:00.005-05:00

Dacre Stoker, first time novelist and great-grandnephew of Bram Stoker has written a sequel to the 112 year old novel, based on Stoker's original handwritten notes for characters and plot threads.

Dracula The Un-Dead begins in 1912, twenty-five years after Dracula "crumbled into dust." Van Helsing's protégé, Dr. Jack Seward, is now a disgraced morphine addict obsessed with stamping out evil across Europe. Meanwhile, an unknowing Quincey Harker, the grown son of Jonathan and Mina, leaves law school for the London stage, only to stumble upon the troubled production of "Dracula," directed and produced by Bram Stoker himself.

The play plunges Quincey into the world of his parents' terrible secrets, but before he can confront them he experiences evil in a way he had never imagined. One by one, the band of heroes that defeated Dracula a quarter-century ago is being hunted down. Could it be that Dracula somehow survived their attack and is seeking revenge? Or is their another force at work whose relentless purpose is to destroy anything and anyone associated with Dracula?

There is no denying that Bram Stoker's "Dracula" is the big daddy of vampire stories. It is THE benchmark - the prototypical foundation for every befanged bloodsucker story ever since.

However, just because you're a distant relative to a famous author doesn't necessarily mean you can write you way out of a paper bag.

On the other hand, this is the first time the Stoker family has put their support into a project since the 1931 movie with Bella Lugosi. So its at least got that going for it.

"Short Circuit" Reboot Gets a Director

2009-10-27T10:18:00.004-05:00

We mentioned back in April last year that Bob Weinstein was working on a reboot of the seen-it-once-seen-it-too-many-times 80's robot flick "Short Circuit."

And now a mere 18 months later, we have news that the project is indeed going forward and that b-list director Steve Carr will be at the helm, watching it crash and burn on takeoff.

Carr, as you may not be aware - has directed such epic hits (snicker) as Paul Blart: Mall Cop, Are We Done Yet? Daddy Day Care and Dr. Doolittle 2. So yeah, you just KNOW this one is going to be a blockbuster.

Image courtesy: LIFE

“Astro Boy” Childhood: Those were the Days

2009-10-26T13:17:00.002-05:00

Genres: Action/Adventure, Comedy, Kids/Family, Science Fiction/Fantasy, Animation and Adaptation
Running Time: 1 hr. 34 min.
Release Date: October 23rd, 2009 (wide)
MPAA Rating: PG for some action and peril, and brief mild language.
Distributors: Summit Entertainment, LLC

Directed by: David Bowers

JJ Rating: B+

Lost a son? Why not create a duplicate that’s a robot with his memories and see what happens. Astro Boy.

Oh no it’s another remake of an old cartoon. What will happen when those who love the old cartoon see this one? Will they make the cliché arguments that those who created the film have no clue what the hell they are doing because they are ruining their beloved character? Why yes, that is what they have done. Wow, that was totally unexpected was it not?

The problem isn’t that people have a problem with remakes or updates or whatever. It’s that they don’t bother to see it before they voice their very unnecessary opinions. “If you are a real fan you wouldn’t like this film.” What? I know what it feels like to see a film that is adapted from a book or a comic and it not be similar enough. Trust me. I saw Jurassic Park and X-Men, I understand. With both I allowed a few leeway moments so that I didn’t get all worked up over everything. They changed Jurassic Park enough that I started to think it was just a different movie that used the same title as the book. As for X-Men they only pissed me off with missing Storm’s claustrophobia and making Cyclops so whinny. Massive character development problems in leaving out what makes the X-Men X-Men and that is the team effort. Wolverine isn’t a leader, isn’t that important and never should be. Even though I had complaints I still liked both and yes even the III one.

One of the problems people have with Astro Boy is that he’s not shirtless like the original. Some things have to be changed for the times. X-Men was different because they changed the costumes. Colored spandex sure would have looked funny. That change to black was pretty smart move and it mad the film less campy for doing so. Changing the shirtless aspect was smart move because I think he looked more like a boy with clothes that would be associated with being a boy instead of running around shirtless in a world where perverts are ready to take anything out of context. But clothes never really mattered much to me, so what do I know? I’m more interested in the story.

I think that Astro Boy reminded me a lot of Pinocchio, except that he does NOT become a real boy at the end. He’s just a robo-boy. It also reminded me a lot of A.I. as well. He had a lot of simple-ness to him. He simply wanted a few things that we all take for granted. I think that Freddie Highmore did a great job. His voice was acting so much that I forgot I was watching a character. Silly as it sounds Astro Boy (or Toby) was more alive because of the way Highmore voiced him.

Innocent characters have a way of making me wish I could be so naïve of the bad things that people think and do and devoid of sarcasm and judgmental attitude that I can have sometimes. I was jealous of his Superman/Clark Kent like persona. He just wanted to do good for anyone he deemed worthy, but most of all he wanted to do that for his dad.

Yes the story was simple. A boy dies and then he lives again as a robot but his father doesn’t want him. It’s slightly heart breaking. I believed it worked and it was fun and silly. The line when he says, “I have machine guns…in my butt?” was so awesome because of the way he said it as well as that dramatic pause. It was perfect and by far my favorite line in the trailer. When I heard I saw it in the film it still made me laugh.

Astro Boy is a fun movie that has light spirits and pleasant delivery with a character that is charming, simple and endearing. It put me in a good mood and I wouldn’t mind having the DVD so that it could do it again. Astro Boy’s child like wonder was oddly enriching, enchanting and past childhood inviting. Those were the days…

"Saw VI" Ain't No Dexter

2009-10-26T13:13:00.002-05:00

Genres: Suspense/Horror and Sequel
Running Time: 1 hr. 31 min.
Release Date: October 23rd, 2009 (wide)
MPAA Rating: R for sequences of grisly bloody violence and torture and language.

Director: Kevin Greutert

JJ Rating: B

Time to take insurance people down a notch. Saw VI.

The editor of Saw, II, III, IV, and V is now the director. I personally liked Saw, II and IV. I did not like III and V. III was bleh and then I saw IV and liked III a little better. But V was just not good to me.

When the film started and the first two people trapped started to dance around afraid and then the voice said something about insurance companies I was snickering. What a perfect thing to go on a bloody rampage over. Totally threaten insurance companies with a film that mocks their lack of morals with a movie that totally lacks any moral high ground. The film was a drag through most of the allotted time. There wasn’t enough fun for it to keep my attention.

BUT then the last 30 minutes started playing and it started showing what the first two Saws had so much of and that was guts and glory. The poster is a snippet of that scene. There is even an ancient TV star in the mix (Family Matters). From that moment until the end it was a good ride. There are mild twists that are pleasant once they are revealed. I do love the way a script can take an assumption and twist it just right to make it factual in the viewer’s mind and ignored until it is revealed and then an oooh happens.

There is a lot of guts action as well. It is that time of the year for such to be popular as disturbing as that might be to realize. Sometimes I wonder about people that say they love horror movies. I find it disturbing that I find them interesting from time to time. But mine is a rare like. I liked The Final Destination movies and the Saw movies. That’s about it. Even watching this last installment I cringed and turned and almost threw up at the beginning.

The interesting thing was the moral conundrum that the main person is in. This film was similar to the third installment. One guy decides who lives or dies. However, there is a bit of a different ending. I think it’s a better ending than I had expected it to have. I was pleased that I had not figured it out by the time it came along. I had got one aspect of it, but that was too apparent. I have a friend that figures out the ends of movies quickly. I am not that friend and I’m glad to not be that friend. I like being shocked or surprised. I don’t put that much effort into figuring it out. I just jump to this or that conclusion and if I’m wrong, oh well. I just watch to enjoy the film.

I am not shocked that this film didn’t make the most money. Apparently Paranormal Activity is really good and so it scored number one. There wasn’t a whole lot of people at the theater when I went on Saturday night. There was like a handful of people there. There was no screaming. I’m sure there was a lot of squirming. How many more different ways to die can a film create after the fifth one? Not too many. That’s why the last “choice” one for the main character was pretty creative more so than the rest of the film.

The other good thing about Saw VI’s ending was the full circle moment. That is why the poster is so important. I like how in the Saw movies the music amps up when the end comes. I like the way they do flashbacks and the speedy camera turn around the victim. There were a few throw back moments in this film; maybe it was only a couple? I only say a few because I might have forgot one.

Overall it was a decent installment of the film. The ending made it apparent it was the last one. At least that is how I view it since it came full circle. I do think that it has finally ran its course and that the film industry will now have to find the next “awesome” thing that they can exploit now that this film is really dead in the moral lake of blood.

By the way Jigsaw is no Dexter. I could watch "Dexter" episodes again, but have never seen a Saw again. Dexter is far more interesting and far more to the point and less playful and ridiculous with redundant schemes. Dexter is a creepy conversation to have with people, because I like “Dexter” but I don’t want to hear how someone else likes it. I will discuss it but sometimes those that like it-like it a little too much and that’s not ok. I’m not ok with that. Nope, it’s creepy-creepy.

Weekend Box Office Recap

2009-10-25T15:18:00.005-05:00

The spooky "Paranormal Activity" wins the weekend, bringing in $22 million in its wide release bow.

Newcommer "Saw VI" came in a distant second, while "Where the Wild Things Are" had the biggest drop of any film in the top 10, dropping almost 56% to fall to 3rd place.

And "The Vampire's Assistant" came in a surprisingly low 8th place, bringing in only $6 million, while "Astro Boy" came in 6th.

Here's the top ten for the weekend:

1 (3) Paranormal Activity $22,000,000
2 (new) Saw VI $14,800,000
3 (1) Where the Wild Things Are $14,420,000
4 (2) Law Abiding Citizen $12,713,000
5 (4) Couples Retreat $11,097,140
6 (new) Astro Boy $7,017,000
7 (5) The Stepfather $6,500,000
8 (new) Cirque du Freak: The Vampire's Assistant $6,347,970
9 (6) Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs $5,600,000
10 (7) Zombieland $4,300,000

RIP: Soupy Sales 1926 - 2009

2009-10-23T09:48:00.003-05:00

The man known for pies in the face has died.

So long, Soupy.

Here is my favorite clip of him, during a live broadcast the crew placed a stripper off camera as a joke. and the show turned into a classic.

Plugging In

2009-10-23T09:31:00.004-05:00

OK, so we finally got smart and made ourselves a presence on Facebook.

What this means is that you can read the crazy crap that I post when I don't feel like writing up a big article for the main website. Its not always the same stuff we post here, though I will link to Jay's reviews every time we get them. Mostly its the bizarre articles, culled from several sources around the dirty fringe of Hollywood that I find amusing at any given time. Feel free to throw your comments in or steal the links for your own FB feeds. Its there for fun.

I've also linked the Facebook and website posts to Twitter, so we've got that covered as well.

So to make a long story short, you can now follow Hollywood Dump several ways.

Click here to become a fan of our Facebook page

Click here to subscribe to our RSS feed

Click here to follow us on Twitter

Or just keep visiting us the way you've always been visiting us. We're just happy you're here.

Hulu to Charge for Content in 2010?

2009-10-22T20:57:00.004-05:00

I had a feeling this would happen, I just didnt expect it so soon.

At the Broadcasting and Cable "On Screen Summit," Newscorp Deputy Chairman Chase Carey stated, "“It’s time to start getting paid for broadcast content online:”

“I think a free model is a very difficult way to capture the value of our content. I think what we need to do is deliver that content to consumers in a
way where they will appreciate the value,” Carey said. “Hulu concurs with that,
it needs to evolve to have a meaningful subscription model as part of its
business.”

Carey says there's no specific timeline, but Hulu could switch to a subscription based business plan as early as next year.

The times, they are a-changing.

“Where the Wild Things Are” Oh Yeah.

2009-10-21T14:41:00.002-05:00

Genres: Comedy, Kids/Family, Science Fiction/Fantasy, Animation and Adaptation
Running Time: 1 hr. 34 min.
Release Date: October 16th, 2009 (wide) MPAA
Rating: PG for mild thematic elements, some adventure action and brief language.
Distributors: Warner Bros. Pictures Distribution

Directed by: Spike Jonze

JJ Rating: A-

The film is taken from a little book that became very famous children’s story with few pages and monsters that came from somewhere other than from under the bed. Where the Wild Things Are.

This film is so weirdly relaxing, amazingly beautiful and slowly enchanting. I would normally feel that this kind of movie would bore me to tears. There is hardly any action. There’s a lot of subtle feeling and nuances to a child’s inner workings. It’s far deeper than I had anticipated. Where the Wild Things Are was a really slow story and more of a reveal. There was no aha moment or anything really surprising. It was just a glimpse into a world that was created to assist a child with a problem. The different ‘wild things’ represented the different aspects of his own personality.

Visually Where the Wild Things Are is stunning with the ‘wild things’ being amazing to just look at and oddly comforting. There are a few key areas where a child might get scared but the overall problem is that a child would grow bored of this film just like the one behind me was kicking and moving about while his parents totally believed the theater should double as some sort of jungle gym just for him. More and more I like Alamo Drafthouse with its rule of no children under a certain age. It’s a blessing in so many ways, as would be a theater that wouldn’t allow any teenagers because they do nothing but text and talk doing the film and that’s because they didn’t pay for it.

Back to it being visually stunning before I was distracted by obnoxious people who pay to ruin a film…I watched in amazement for the majority of the film because it’s just amazing to see. So much personality is grafted onto the ‘wild things’ as characters visually as well as their voices that infused with so much feeling, depth, pain, anger and child like care via the actors’ voices. It’s a really an artistic film.

I want it because if I have trouble sleeping I can watch it and it will rock me to sleep in a meaningful way more than a bored way. I understand if others don’t like it. I understood why people didn’t like The Village, but I loved it. These kinds of stories are not stories I would fight tooth and nail about or over why someone disliked, because I get it. I really liked this film for every reason it was created and would love to hear the commentary on why they did certain things.

On a more devious note Where the Wild Things Are could so be a shirt with an arrow pointing down or a dirty pick up line. I have not tried it so I cannot tell you how well it works or does not work based on the slap ratio, but even if I did why would I ruin the fun in finding out how great or not great the line actually is?

Do not take your child. It has many questionable moments in it that deal with two swear moments, as well as the monsters speaking of eating the boy, anger that is scary when it comes from creatures that look like they can gobble one up in a nightmare and it’s really slow for children. They would get bored and run up and down the aisle proving that movie theaters really are not a playground for the children of parents who can’t keep them being respectful for about two hours. How is that so difficult? And if it is, why did you even bother to begin with?

If you plan on seeing Where the Wild Things Are it would be best to go with a mind open to the fact that it will be a slow and the subject matter far thicker than you had anticipated from a children’s book adaptation. This is definitely a movie you have to be in the mood to see or else you’ll turn critical and angry that you are wasting your time with this thinker when you could be seeing something as hollow and crusty like Transformers II at home with covers and some yummy microwave popcorn that’s three months old.

Or go out to the bar and pick up some ladies with your dancing eyebrows and the comment of you know where some wild things are if you know what I’m saying. Or don’t do that and save yourself the trouble of being in jail for the night with some wild things that have their own case of wild things or crabs, if you will.

Wild Thing….I think I love you. Dunnnn dundundunnnn….

“The Stepfather” A Creepy Mess

2009-10-21T14:37:00.003-05:00

Genres: Suspense/Horror, Thriller and Remake
Running Time: 1 hr. 41 min.
Release Date: October 16th, 2009 (wide)
MPAA Rating: PG-13 for intense sequences of violence, disturbing images, mature thematic material and brief sensuality.
Distributors: Sony Pictures Entertainment

Directed by: Nelson McCormick
JJ Rating: D+

A divorced family having kids is a total attraction to the crazy man who likes to marry the mommy and kill the whole family. The Stepfather.

It wasn’t anything extraordinary. Three actors are worth mentioning: Amber Heard the girlfriend, Penn Badgley who was the older son and Dylan Walsh as the stepfather. They did a great job with their roles, as great as one could expect from such a poor film to begin with. Aside from that and the pretty cool looking poster, there’s not much to say that would be worth saying or complaining about.

The story was already done a few times before. Nothing too thrilling about a repeat storyline but it was creepy. Not what I was looking for when somewhat wanting to see the film. I wasn’t expecting much, though; which was good for my sanity.

The ending was obnoxious. It lacked any real semblance of reason, creativity and thriller movie magic. The whole movie lacked the thrilling aspect that makes a thriller fun. What it did have in spades was creepy, predictable and vapid. Not three things a film would want to take ownership of, especially with well known TV stars taking prime rolls in it. Don’t bother seeing this made for TV movie that coincidently has a few TV stars in it.

New Crow hopes to be Phoenix for Norrington

2009-10-21T08:52:00.005-05:00

We reported last year that Relativity Media acquired the rights to "the Crow" franchise and director Stephen Norrington was tapped to helm the project. Now there is word that a script has been written and the studio likes what they see.

Norrington made a name for himself with "Blade," but then crashed and burned trying to make "The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen" a good movie back in 2003. He hasn't directed since. He was originally scheduled to direct "Ghost Rider" in 2007, but Columbia Pictures acquired the rights to the production early on and Norrington was replaced. (dodged a bullet, perhaps?). He was also tapped to direct the upcoming reboot of "Clash of the Titans" but subsequently left (fired) from the project when he was unable to excite Warner Bros. with his vision for the film.

So after a five year sabbatical, Norrington thinks he's ready to get back in the saddle again. My guess is that he's hoping this resurrection of the James O'Barr ~~graphic novel~~ comic book will boost both his career and the story's franchise to new levels of profitability.

And according to the guys at Mania.com, "A source close to the production" says that the script has been very well received by the execs at Relativity.

Last year, Norrington told Variety that the new film would not be a remake of the original 1994 story done by Alex Proyas, and would instead reboot the character with a completely different look. "realistic, hard-edged and mysterious, almost documentary-style,” Norrington said.

The Crow series started out strong. The first film became a cult classic - due in no small part to the untimely death of its up-and-coming star, Brandon Lee. But further attempts to tell the story grew increasingly bad -culminating into a festering mess that gave us Eddie Furlong wearing the harlequin makeup and dooming the franchise to haunt the direct to DVD bin.

With that thought in mind, literally ANYTHING Norrington does with this reboot is better than where the franchise has already been. He's got nowhere to go but up.

RIP: Vic Mizzy 1916-2009

2009-10-20T07:35:00.003-05:00

TV By the Numbers just reported that Vic Mizzy, the composer of "The Adams Family" and "Green Acres" theme songs has died.

So long Vic.

Raimi Confirms Campbell's Bigger Role in Spiderman 4

2009-10-20T07:27:00.003-05:00

According to MTV Splash, Director Sam Raimi has confirmed that Bruce Campbell will have a bigger role in the next Spiderman sequel.

And there is much rejoicing in the geek community.

Daily WTF

2009-10-19T00:15:00.000-05:00

I have no idea.

Bana's Love Affair with a Beast

2009-10-14T11:48:00.007-05:00

My first car - my first REAL car - was a 1966 Ford Mustang fastback. (kinda like the one pictured at left). Mine had a 200 cubic inch (back before they measured em in liters, kids) straight six cylinder engine that worked really well, but sounded about as fierce as a window-mounted air conditioner.

To make matters worse, the car was painted to look like a Shelby GT-350. It didn't have the badges and all the details, but it was "Wimbledon white" with "guardsmen blue" stripes, side air scoops (that did nothing) and just...LOOKED fast. I called it my "reverse-sleeper." (some racing folks might get this reference). As a result, I was being challenged for street races constantly.

I ended up selling the car for far less than what it was worth and to this day, still wish I had the old pony in the stall, ready to fire up and terrorize the streets with my hamster wheel motor screaming for mercy.

So when a friend of mine told me about a new movie that's making its premiere at the Austin Film Festival about actor Eric Bana and the love affair with a car he's owned since he was a kid, I knew I had to see this thing.

Here's the trailer for "Love The Beast":

“Couples Retreat” Meh, It had a GREAT Cast!

2009-10-13T09:11:00.004-05:00

Genres: Comedy
Running Time: 1 hr. 47 min.
Release Date: October 9th, 2009 (wide)
MPAA Rating: PG-13 for sexual content and language.
Distributors: Universal Pictures

Directed by: Peter Billingsley

JJ Rating: B-

Couples go on a retreat so that they could fix their relationships. Oh yeah. Couples Retreat.

I really, really, really, really, really, really love the cast. I don’t think they could have picked better people to be in this film. It was all really great choices. I don’t see a single flaw in their casting. However, it would be nice to see Vince Vaughn be MORE than the orangutan gesturing, sarcastic pausing, head swiveling self – even though I love that self.

All the flaws in this movie have to do with the script and how they decided to go about executing the entire film. The best part of the film had to do with yoga and it was so freakin’ funny. But the remainder of the film was not as funny like that.

What it did was give me that want to laugh feeling and delivered it a few good times, but most of the time it got to the edge and stopped and left me wanting to laugh instead of laughing. There were some real relationship problems that were presented but not a whole lot of solving. They meet with counselors but there was not a whole lot of helping. It seems like the scenes with the counselors were a bit choppy like they didn’t know what to keep in and how to show it.

I understand that writers write what they know and based on how little was done with the couple counseling the writers did not know a whole lot about that aspect. They do eventually work through the problems because they were forced to via location, but that almost makes the entire film pointless because there was no building to that revelation or any throw back to what they had learned previous. It just felt abrupt like a sitcom solving a problem within 25 minutes.

Couples Retreat was fun but not nearly as fun as the cost of the movie and the time to watch it would give in an assumption. I use to get upset with people would get or sell bootleg copies, but now not so much. With this kind of film being released I don't blame them wanting to see it for free because it’s almost as if they could care less.

NBC Cancels "Southland"

2009-10-09T18:57:00.007-05:00

NBC announced today that they've pulled the trigger on the show "Southland." The cop show about life for cops in the LAPD was initially renewed and the second season was set to premiere Oct 23rd. They were six episodes into production when the plug was pulled. "Dateline" will fill the void in the meantime.

Executive producer John Wells has been NBC's golden boy for over 15 years, producing such hits as "ER" and "The West Wing." So it kind of

I’m disappointed that NBC no longer has the time periods available to support the kind of critically acclaimed series that was for so many years a hallmark of their success,” said Wells in a statement. “We remain extremely proud of ‘Southland’ and are actively looking for another home for the series.”

The show got off to a good start as a mid-season replacement for "ER" that was finally (mercifully) calling it quits last April. After the initial surge of popularity however, its numbers faded slightly. I guess that was enough for NBC to fear that they would be spending good money on a show that doesnt produce. Of course, critics disagree.

Survivor's Biggest Night

2009-10-09T12:25:00.002-05:00

I've been a fan of CBS's Survivor since the first season. Maybe it's my survivalist instincts or my years of experience with harsh environments tent camping at Burning Man, I dont know. I know that its a fun show to watch people scamper like rats in a variety of convoluted puzzles, mazes and obstacle courses. It also doesnt hurt that there are a few bouncing bikinis, either.

Apparently last night was their biggest audience this season.

From the CBS press release:

SURVIVOR: SAMOA was first in households (7.1/11), viewers (11.73m), adults 25-54 (4.4/12) and adults 18-49 (3.4/10) for the second consecutive week. This is SURVIVOR: SAMOA’s largest audience this season.

Toy Story 3 poster - yawn

2009-10-09T12:19:00.003-05:00

Disney has released a couple of posters for their new "Toy Story 3." Let the hype train commence.

TotalFilm has the info if you're interested.

“Zombieland” It’s a Fleshly Good Time

2009-10-07T23:26:00.001-05:00

Genres: Comedy and Suspense/Horror
Running Time: 1 hr. 22 min.
Release Date: October 2nd, 2009 (wide)
MPAA Rating: R for zombie horror violence/gore and language.
Distributors: Sony Pictures Releasing

Directed by: Ruben Fleischer

JJ Rating: A-

There is a virus that attacks the world at large. It seems that there a few people that are unaffected and they call each other by the city they hail from. Columbus (Jesse Eisenberg) and Tallahassee (Woody Harrelson) travel together until they meet Wichita (Emma Stone) and Little Rock (Abigail Breslin). Then there’s a whole bunch of gory zombie killing. Zombieland.

The beginning credits are normally just bland, but the beginning of Zombieland has zombies running and attacking any number of different kinds of people. The text of the credits get knocked around by the zombies. It’s a clever beginning to a very cleverly made film. It starts off on a good and fleshly foot and keeps that pace the entire film. There really isn’t a dull moment in Zombieland. It is one of the better films I’ve seen about zombies. As a matter of fact it’s on of the better movies of the entire year…well thus far, but considering how this year is going I’m pretty sure it’ll be on my list by year end.

I find zombies both gross and fascinating. I like them more than I like vampires. I like them more than I like werewolves. I think they are one of the better horror inventions. Far better, of course, than Jason and Freddy and any other film that creates a killer that walks slow but still catches up with you. Zombies are a true visual of mob mentality. So instead of calling someone a lemming (falsely, by the way; Wikipedia it) or a sheep when they share a common destructive thought, just call them a zombie. It’s made exactly for that purpose, or so it seems.

Harrelson teaming up with some youngin’s like Eisenberg, Breslin and Stone was casting genius. They could not have come up with a better cast no matter how much money their budget had. This is casting perfection like Doubt was last year. I believe the script has to be good first in order for other things to fall into place but sometimes with a cast like this the actors can totally outshine the script, which is kind of hard to do considering the script is witty.

Harrelson plays well with younger actors and it seems to give him some sort of vitality and energy. He’s great with sarcasm and passion for things like killing zombies or his, in one of the better sections of the film, favorite actor. Eisenberg does have a Michael Cera-esque thing going on but with more gestures and body movement. Opposites do attract not only in relationships of the romantic kind but in the zombie slaughtering kind. He and Harrelson play well off of one another. Eisenberg has that doubtful I’m good enough to do this kind of thing. His confidence is shot in many of his characters he plays, but still he has an ability to make them magnetic. Breslin plays a brazen character. She doesn’t disappoint with her role choices, each character is unique and she doesn’t tend to play the same role twice. That can also be stated for Stone. She’s been in several films and she has played different characters so much so that some of the characters she’s played would detest others she has played. It’s rather amusing. She plays a powerful, determined female character without much slack.

Columbus has a set of rules he has survived by and they come with amusing scenes that show why the rule was created. The way they did the text on the screen for this part as well as other parts in the film was awesome. I really love when a film plays with text like that. Instead of having it boringly sit there and be read it becomes part of the scene itself even though the characters do not notice it.

Zombieland has so many great scenes. There is a montage when they are driving in the car that is pretty funny. The script has them take the situations they are in and make light of it. It’s like if “Seinfeld” had to deal with zombies this is how it would be done. They had no real direct purpose outside of being together and beating up zombies. With only four main characters and almost only characters it could become difficult to keep the attention of the viewer without boring them. But it does that without breaking a single sweat or boring moment. It totally trumps many films in the same genre, if not most that came out this year. With the many great scenes as well as great cast and great visuals with the zombies, Zombieland just could not fail. It is a fleshly good time.