Cinemanticipation 2009 (Part 1)

Hi everybody. I'm finally back. The semester is over, and I have given myself a long enough break that I can now look at my computer again without breaking out in hives. For my return posting I thought I would do something fun. I've been building a Word doc of anticipated films for the coming months, and I thought why not share it with you. This is not a particularly extensive list of upcoming film by any means, just a few flicks that I--for one reason or another--am interested in checking out this year. I'm sure there are a number of gems that have slipped my mind, and that's where all of you come in to play. Fill me in. I have to know what I'm missing, whether it's something I just forgot to include, or even better something I'm not yet familiar with. Please, share. So here it is, a nice list of anticipated films of 2009: Part 1 (listed in order of release date).

MAY

My first two films are both due out today, promising fun-filled-filmic weekend for me, along with a Godfather Double Feature Feast I have planned for Saturday. 

UP 

(Peter Docter & Bob Peterson): May 29

Up. Who isn't excited about this film. Pixar's latest installment, come on. They've been on a roll since their inception with few bumps along the way (I'm lookin' at you Cars and A Bugs Life). Without a doubt, the most consistent production company to ever grace the silver screen. And a story about a grumpy, yet adventurous old coot, with sidekick boy scout and talking dog (both of which have already made me laugh in the trailer, mind you), looks to be a promising picture, and no doubt will be a box office hit. 

The next film I am not as confident in, but am none the less interested in checking out. 

Drag Me To Hell 

(Sam Raimi): May 29

Sam Raimi's (Evil Dead trilogy, Spiderman trilogy) return to horror, is just something I can't pass up. Although the PG-13 rating is giving me something to fear beyond the narrative. Still, the trailer about a girl who trying to carve out a career for herself in the banking world who is cursed by a demon that she unwittingly denies a bank loan looks pretty good. It appears a bit more inclined toward scary than Raimi's Evil Dead series, something that as a horror fan I can really get into. I don't remember the last time I saw a truly scary film, and although I don't think this film will put much of a chink in my tough horror fan armor, anything that can get a single jolt out of me is a winner in my book.  

JUNE

Away We Go 

(Sam Mendes): June 5

Film number three on my list is Sam Mendes' (American Beauty, Revolutionary Road) new film Away We Go. It looks to be a cute film about a hard-up couple with a little one on the way. I haven't checked out much specifics, but I do like that John Krasinski (Jim from The Office) and for some reason the trailer speaks to me. It looks like a film that will be more honest than hokie. And, at the very least it's a new Mendes picture, something of a rare treat seeing as he only directs a film about once every three years--that is until just recently. 

(Check out the trailer here.)

JULY

Public Enemies 

(Michael Mann): July 1

Michael Mann's Public Enemies kicks off my July selections. I'm not a huge Mann fan, but I am a huge Johnny Depp and to a lesser extent Christian Bale fan. In my opinion Mann's films tend to feel a bit detached. So, I don't know how he will fare with a classic gangster film, a film style that relies greatly on nostalgia and alluring characters. Nonetheless, the trailer looks great, and I love the gangsters. 

Harry Potter and the Half-blood Prince 

(David Yates): July 15

The last film in my selection is the new Harry Potter installment, Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince. I'm sure like many Harry Potter nerds I will be counting down the days with a Harry Potter marathon, introducing my girlfriend to the magic that is Harry Potter for the first time. Yes, she is the last person in the world holding out on this franchise, but I finally broke her down, and she agreed to sit down for the first five films in preparation for HP6. 

(Check out the trailer and website here.)

That's all everybody. Remember to write and fill me in on the films I have not listed here, cursing me for omitting your most anticipated films of 2009 from my extremely sparse selection list. 

Image Sources

Up

Drag Me To Hell

Away We Go

Public Enemies

Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince

Flash Back Film Review

I have to apologize for my absence. I am in crunch time right now, trying to crank out three big papers for the end of my semester. I realize that the blog is taking an unjust sacrifice because of this, and although I don't really have time to write any new material (other than that which I am turning in to my professors) I thought I would post some old reviews I have backlogged on my hard drive. So here it is: installment numero uno of my Flash Back Film Review series. Enjoy. 

Lars and the Real Girl (2007)

Lars finally has a girlfriend, a plastic love doll named Bianca. Outrageous? Yes. It is the kind of premise that just should not work. Yet, somehow it does. Beautifully crafted by fledgling director Craig Gillespie, Lars and the Real Girl is a subtle yet heartfelt film that teeters between sadness and adoration. Ryan Gosling delivers a delicate performance as Lars Lindstrom. Proving once again that he is more than just a pretty face, Gosling draws us into what could have been a disaster. Playing opposite a lifeless doll is no easy task, but with support from a magnificent ensemble, Gosling delicately pulls it off. As viewers, we fall in love with the sweet-natured Lars, accepting his odd relationship with Bianca. The film has its awkwardness, but Gosling keeps us mesmerized with his quirky mannerisms and soft-spoken way. We come to find this less a film about a man in love with a doll, and more a film about a man grappling with his past. Bianca is simply a means to an end, a way for Lars to cope with his loneliness and confront his past. Emily Mortime is equally adorable as Lars' sister-in-law Karin, making the shared screen times between the two the film's best moments. Lars and the Real Girl is strung together by David Torn's soothing original score, which simultaneously captures and creates the film's mood. Subtle, sweet, sad, and captivating. These are the words that appropriately describe the latest addition to a new breed of independently produced love story in the vein of Garden State and Me and You and Everyone We Know.

Image Sources:

Lars and Bianca

A Week In Film: 3/22/2009-3/28/2009

Paris Is Burning 

(1990, Jennie Livingston)

If you are a documentary fan and/or are interested in gender studies, and you haven't seen Paris is Burning, go check it out. It is an interesting journey into the drag queen pageant circuit in New York in the 1980s. Director Jennie Livingston does a good job of bringing a generally unfamiliar audience into a rarely seen world. I won't say anything else about this film, but if what I've written so far sounds intriguing, then I say again check it out. What's the worst that can happen?

The Fountainhead 

(1949, King Vidor)

The Fountainhead was possibly the worst film I saw this week. The acting was almost as horrendous as the dialogue. Stiff, awkward, just plain bad. And the Red Scare sentiment was laid on like molasses--thick. Some great architecture, though, and an interesting use of backgrounds. 

I Love You, Man 

(2009, John Hamburg)

I Love You, Man is my pick of the week. I really enjoyed this film. It was surprisingly funny. Not that I didn't expect laughs from this film, but the consistency of the comedy was...well, surprising. I was laughing the entire way through, and not just chuckles, full-on laughing--laughing on the street when a moment pops into your head kind of laughing. ("Slappin' da bass." You know what I'm talking about.) And, to top it all off, it featured the absolutely gorgeous Rashinda Jones (remember: Karen Filippelli from The Office). Really a pleasure to watch and a lock for my 2009 Top Ten List. (I'm referring to the film, not Rashinda...although...)

Monsters vs Aliens 

(2009, Rob Letterman 

& Conrad Vernon)

I have to say, there was nothing special about this film. Monsters vs Aliens was pretty much what I expected: a lot of reference jokes, and some really old, really played-out ones at that. Easily forgettable overall. The 3-D, however, was spectacular. And the fact that I saw it on the Alamo Drafhouse, The Village's new Sony 4K digital projector was the treat of the night. Really, if you live in or near Austin, and you fancy yourself a film guy or gal, make your way out to The Village and check out their new projector. It is quite the treat. And the 3-D format was the perfect platform to showcase the crisp, new look. No, I swear this is not an advertisement. It's just a really nice projector.

And, I'm done.

Image Sources:
Paris Is Burning
Fountainhead
I Love You, Man
Monsters vs Aliens

It's a Weird Weird Weird Weird World

(Joker Pony)

I'm pretty busy right now, so my "Week in Film" postings are going to be delayed. Hopefully I'll be able to put something up later this week, but until then, enjoy the ponies. I found these guys at Cinematical. They are the creations of sick-twisted-genius film fan/sculptor/artist/all-around bad-ass Mari Kasurienen. (My favorite is the Alien one.) Check out the full line-up here. You can find more ponies at her website and some of her other works as well. Enjoy. 

(Edward Scissorhooves)

Okay. After further exploration of Mari's page, Stormtrooper Pony and Pony trapped in Carbonite are now vying for top spots. Watch out Alien. One more pic to top you off. 

(Stormtrooper Pony)

A Week In Film: 3/15/2009-3/21/2009

Okay, folks. This is going to be an easy one. For whatever reason--I'm blaming SXSW--I only watched one film for this posting. That film: Hellboy II The Golden Army. I've been pretty busy this week, and it continues still. So, I won't write much. 

My quick review: the mediocrity of the 3/8-3/14 week spilled over an extra day onto my Sunday viewing of HBII. Not a terrible movie, but not a great one either. At the very least it looks fantastic. The special effects makeup is phenomenal. And to be fair, I wasn't expecting a whole lot from this film to begin with. I liked the first film, but that viewing was undeniably enhanced by low expectations. I was never a reader of the comic books, so I had no connection to the story prior to the first film. And because I did enjoy the first installment,--surprisingly so, in fact--my expectations were a little higher (but not much) for the sequel. In the end I got what I was expecting: a film with great style (something director Guillermo del Toro always brings to the table), a story I didn't have to actively construct, but was presented for me in a mindless, yet relaxing way (not always a desirable trait, but what I was looking for at the time), and plenty of Ron Perlman. 

Image Source:

Hellboy II

Art Imitating Art

Earlier today I received an email from my friend John. Included in the email was a link to artist Justin Reed's website. I had never heard of this guy before now, but since many of his pieces are film-inspired I thought some of you out there might be interested in checking him out. At the site there is also a link to his blog. (It's under "News.") Some pretty cool stuff there. I hope all of you enjoy the art. Let me know which pieces you think are the best. Take care. 

A Week In Film: 3/8/2009-3/14/2009

The second week in my "A Week in Film" series has passed, and looking back on it I think it is safe to label it the official week of onscreen penis. Dr. Manhattan's giant-CGI-blue one, Peter Bretter's average-sized-white one, and everywhere on screen: penis, penis, penis. It was like some Bizarro World to the 1980s' gratuitous use of breasts. If you have not already guessed, two of the films I watched this week were Watchmen (2009) and Forgetting Sarah Marshall (2008), two penis-filled films of mild enjoyment. For the complete list of this week's "A Week in Film" features read on... Penis.

Watchmen (2009, Zack Snyder)

I am not going to go into a full plot synopsis or even a drawn out review. Instead, I am opting to address one or two elements of the film, some parts that I liked, and a few more that I didn't. Here we go.

SPOILER ALERT!!
Let me preface this by saying that I am a big fan of the graphic novel. And, after seeing the film I believe director Zack Snyder did about all he could for the screen translation of Watchmen. That is he succeeded in transcribing the graphic novel from the pages to the screen, which is what I believe was his intention. However, there is a fundamental problem with this approach: the screen is not the page. This is most noticeable in the dialogue. Comic book lines don't transition well into dialogue. They often come across as hammy, over the top. This was a major criticism of Snyder's previous project 300 (2006). Yet, he doesn't seem to have learned from the criticism. Or, maybe he just doesn't care. Perhaps in both instances he made the films he wanted to make. In Watchmen, however, I think a greater flaw was in the editing of the dialogue, rather than its writing. In many instances the dialogue ran on for one-too-many lines. 

Case in point (and I apologize for paraphrasing, but I have no notes on the film): After The Comedian has just attacked a crowd of citizens, Nite Owl asks him something to the tune of "What happened to us?" The Comedian responds, "The American dream, the people got it. It's me." Here, the dialogue is fine. A little hokey, but all in all, fine. But he continues, "I'm the American dream." Oh!! And you lost me. We got it. You didn't have to reiterate. What's that you say? That's just nitpicking, one line in an entire film. You want further proof? 

Example number two: Dr. Manhattan and Laurie Jupiter are on Mars. He has mentally sent her back in time to when she was a child. Laurie discovers during this flashback that The Comedian, the man who once tried to rape her mother is in fact her father. She is the product of her mother's "weakness" for The Comedian some years later. We pull back to the present. Laurie is now in tears. Dr. Manhattan looks at her. He says, "You see. The Comedian is your father." No shit Dr. Manhattan! You don't say. We just spent eight minutes in a flashback, the whole purpose of which to reveal this fact. But, we just couldn't put it together without you saying it. Are we really so stupid that we would forget a major reveal within the span of literally ten to twenty seconds. Dumb! Now I have to stop writing about these moments. They're starting to make me angry. I think it's about time I mention something positive. 

Probably the best part of the entire film was the opening montage of superhero history set to Bob Dylan's "The Times Are A-Changin'." This bit is great. The song sets the mood; the images look great and work perfectly with the song. All in all a nice bit of cinema and one of the best openings to a film I've seen in a long time. With that said, the incorporation of classic time-piece songs into the film quickly went awry. By the time Simon and Garfunkel's "The Sounds of Silence" rang out over The Comedian's funeral scene, it was all down hill.

I don't want this to sound as if I completely hated the film. There were some great little fight sequences complete with the slow-mo to sped-up transitioning photography that Snyder perfected in 300. And every scene with Rorchach was great, especially the stuff in prison. His mini speech to the other inmates in the prison: "None of you understand. I'm not locked up in her with you. You're locked up in here with me!" were just as badass as they were in the book. In the end, though, Watchmen is just a slightly better than average action film. The audience is kept at arms length. The story is interesting, the film looks great, but there is no attempt to bridge an emotional connection to any of the characters. Plus Dr. Manhattan's penis is a constant distraction. I don't think I will normally attach a rating to the films I write about in these "A Week In Film" sections, but my buddy John's rating of C+ seems to have hit the nail on the head. Not terrible, not great. Just slightly better than average. 

Forgetting Sarah Marshall 

(2008, Nicholas Stoller)

A quick summary of Forgetting Sarah Marshall: Two very attractive women, two rather unattractive men, and an overabundance of Peter Bretter's wang. Some funny instances, but easily and ironically a forgettable film. 

In Bruges 

(2008, Martin McDonagh)

What can I say about In Bruges? Well, it was not at all what the trailer marketed it to be. It was a much more solemn film. There is none of the screwball comedy that is so desperately sutured into the trailer. Instead, it is a tale of two hitmen, depressed about a botched job. To tell the truth, there is not a lot to say about this picture, except that I wouldn't recommend it. 

So that's that. Week two summarized in two words: mediocrity and PENIS!

Image Sources:

Dr. Manhattan's Unit

Watchmen

Forgetting Sarah Marshall

In Bruges