Even though the month’s almost over, I wanted to premiere a new blog feature that I’ll be running at least once a month, Movies I’m (Actually) Looking Forward To. Here, I’ll judge movies I haven’t seen yet based on their trailers and promotional material and pass my judgment long before I’ve purchased my ticket. Here’s my pick for this week:
Step Brothers - Will Ferrell and John C. Reilly star in this R-rated comedy about two middle aged slackers thrust upon each other when their single parents get married. The previews for this one were funny, but the commercials and the red band trailer really get me. This one’s going to be hysterical.
“Chekhov in Yalta” was last week. Went pretty damn well. I’m glad I got to work with such a great director and talented cast. Usually, when actors say that, they’re bullshitting through their teeth (or, in electronic form — such as this — fingers), but I’m being completely serious. I loved working on the show, and I felt we only trully got into the swing of things by Friday (not meaning to belittle the other three shows, which were also great, I just thought our timing was *perfect* on Friday) and it’s a shame we couldn’t have kept going.
And charging admission.
Okay, I’m kidding about the admission thing.
I had an incredible revelation about cereal. Okay, less of a revelation — more of an observation. Same thing, they end in -ation. Head to my Myspace blog for more on that.
I want to see “Borat” pretty bad.
Casey Affleck can’t act. I guess it runs in the family. Although, I’ll give Ben his due props for “Hollywoodland.”
The date for “Lost” draws nearer. I’m excited about the impending DJ Dan podcast. (If you know what that last line meant, you’re as much of a dork as I am… and I love you for it.)
Until next time… ask yourself — What Would Gob Do?
I’m dead tired as I write this, at midnight on Monday.
I’ve been spending a great deal of time at Max Brenner over the past week — in fact, there’s only one day in the past seven where I haven’t been inside that building. I’ll say this much about it — the food is fantastic, the drinks are great, and the desserts are to-die-for. We’ve been busy as hell during this friends & family week, between relatives of the higher-ups and investors and such, and if the “buzz” around the area is any indication, we’re going to be doing a hell of a lot of business once we open.
I encourage everybody to stop by, starting this Thursday, to get some chocolate. It may well be the best chocolate you’ve ever had in your entire life (this is NOT a sales pitch, yet a FYI from a self-diagnosed chocoholic).
Working there has been fun. Although I think the place suffers from a lack of streamlining, it’s in far better shape than Hard Rock was at this point last year. I actually enjoy my job, which is not-all-too-common in America, and since I know the employees enjoy working there, you’ll enjoy eating there.
To say that I like my job isn’t to say that I’m not dead tired. I’m not looking forward to working tomorrow morning and following that up with a round of school for five hours (followed by a rehearsal). Speaking of school, I’m chronicling my journey through the third year at AADA at A Year At The Academy (*Shameless plug, huh?*). Check it out.
I’m surprised I’m not a bit more frustrated that I haven’t had much downtime this weekend (I wanted to see “Clerks 2″ and AT LEAST catch tonight’s “Entourage”)… but maybe that’s because I’m calming my nerves with episodes of “Lost”… frantically trying to catch up so I can play along with the Lost Experience (which I think is the coolest thing to happen towards marrying TV to the internet).
So, yeah, I wish I had something more worthwhile to blog about… but I didn’t want this to be a one line entry that read:
I’ll admit it… before this flick, I had never seen another movie in the Superman franchise. I was, however, pretty excited about it. I’d known Bryan Singer to do amazing things with comic adaptations (see X-Men and its sequel), and I knew he would do far more justice to the Man of Steel than some other directors would have done (*cough* Tim Burton *cough*). Additionally, I was pleased to learn that Singer’s involvement with the flick would mean that all previous versions of the script for this movie would find their way to the trash (which was bittersweet… for as happy as I was that the version of Superman which found Lex Luthor turning into a Kryptonian would be forever destroyed, being a longtime Kevin Smith fan I was slightly upset that his Superman Lives script would never see the light of day).
Also… I was going to see this movie, a multi-million dollar summer blockbuster, in IMAX 3D. How could I not be stoked?
Direction & Story
Although I’d never seen any of the other Superman films before, it was blatantly obvious that this entire film paid hommage to those that came before it (well, the first two, anyway) while advancing the storyline of the character. Although the plot may have been a bit simplistic, I thought it was fun to be taken back to an era where movie characters didn’t have to be in a state of constant conspiracy against one another… and stories were simplistic. The plot for this movie may well have been an old-fashioned comic book plot, which is perfect for The Man of Tomorrow. Stylistically, this film looked like an old-fashioned movie with a more modern day backdrop… which, personally, I loved.
Acting
I don’t think this movie could have been cast more perfectly. Brandon Routh looks and acts like Christopher Reeve, which is very cool and very creepy at the same time. I’ll admit it, I was insanely jealous of the man whilst watching this film. I want to open a superhero franchise picture (but, then again, who doesn’t?). I did wonder, at first, why they would re-cast Lex Luthor if they went out of their way to keep an authenticity to the original Clark Kent and resurrect Marlon Brando from the grave. I mean, Gene Hackman’s not dead… I’m sure he could have done it. On the other hand, Kevin Spacey was absolutely fantastic. I loved every minute of his performance… I just wish there would have been more of it. Even James Marsden, who annoyed the crap out of me as a cocky, unpersonable Cyclops in the X-Men films, eventually won me over. No complaints in this department.
Special Effects / The “IMAX 3D Experience”
So, I don’t think it was worth it to see this movie in the IMAX for almost $15. Granted, it was a learning experience, but I do wish it could have been a less costly one. This film was the first to be shot in 2D and be digitally enhanced to 3D… and, in some scenes, it shows. Certain objects that should have more depth to them (e.g. a house) appear flat, although their flat outlines do pop out against the rural backdrop. Other scenes look absoltuely amazing. That’s the other thing that should be mentioned — the entire movie is not in 3D… only certain scenes are. At first, that concept annoyed the crap out of me, but as the movie progressed I realized that an entire 2-and-a-half-hour long feature in 3D would have made me vomit. Perhaps that’s because the IMAX screen is 6 stories high… I’m still optimistic about the 3D releases in the future on conventional movie screens (when you’re *not* seated in the second row). I will say this about the IMAX this time around, though — I went to see Matrix Reloaded in IMAX when it was released, and all I could think about was Keanu Reeves’ razor burn in some scenes. This was not the case in this film. I do not feel that the IMAX screen was a hinderance.
Other than the problems I may have encountered with the IMAX or 3D portions of the film, the special effects were amazing. Superhero movies don’t always have the best special effects. Hell, I can tell a practical Spider-Man from a CG one anyday… and I even detected the CGI claws they gave Hugh Jackman for X-Men United… but I don’t have that complaint here. After seeing this movie, I trully believe that a man can fly.
Additionally, the Marlon Brando animations are really well done… aren’t they?
Overall Superman Returns lives up to the hype. It doesn’t exceed it, but doesn’t fall short… and is worth normal ticket price. Don’t be duped by the allure of IMAX 3D… it’s simply not worth it yet. I’m eagerly anticipating the next release in the franchise… and I’m praying that Bryan Singer comes back.
Allright, it’s been so long since I’ve seen this movie that I’m starting to forget it.
Which is a good thing.
I was intially conned into seeing this one because I had seen Keira Knightley’s “Pride & Prejudice” not too long before this one, and I didn’t hate it. Why I thought I’d like this one, I don’t know.
It’s a colorful movie. The colors are all vibrant, they pop out of the screen, and you really notice them.
Then again, almost every movie since the 1930s have been in color, so fuck off, movie!
In short, if you like wasting your hard-earned money and precious time from your life, you’ll love Bride & Prejudice.
Fucking movie… I’m not going to waste more time typing about it.
So, the most recent crop of movie trailers has got me pretty excited. This Summer’s been a pretty decent movie season so far (ignoring “Just My Luck,” as the rest of the world has) and the rest of the year is only going to get better. Although you probably don’t care, here are my picks for upcoming flicks (based on their trailers):
Clerks 2 - Of course, being a Kevin Smith fan, I’m eagerly anticipating this film’s release — trailer or no trailer. In fact, I’ve tried not to pay attention to that trailer, or the new red band (Rated-R) trailer so that I can walk into the theater virtually spoiler free. It’s testing well in Middle America, which is no easy feat, so let’s hope Smith gets his biggest opening weekend release yet.
The Last Kiss - Zach Braff returns to the big screen, this time bringing an Affleck with him. No, it’s not the one you’re thinking — it’s little brother Casey. Although not directed or written by Braff, this film has a “Garden State”-esque feel to it (perhaps that’s the power of the soundtrack, which Braff is selecting). This trailer struck an emotional chord with me, and I honestly can not wait until it hits theaters.
Charlotte’s Web - Although I probably won’t spend $10 bucks on it, I would have killed for it as a child. Some of the CG looks crap, but, in fairness, I don’t know if a pig doing a backflip could ever look real. Just a sidenote, I almost demoted this trailer to the “Crap” section because of the flatulence joke — I hate that kind of thing in trailers.
Ratatouille - We’re still a year away, but Disney / Pixar never seem to fail to entertain me (except with “Cars”… I’m not motivated to see that one at all). Now that the two companies have found harmony again, when are we going to see “Incredibles 2″?
My Super Ex-Girlfriend - I already feel like I should get my money back… and I only watched the trailer.
Step Up - Words cannot express my utter contempt for this kind of film.
The Holiday - Just not my kind of flick. Advice to Jack Black and Jude Law (who would’ve thought they’d both share a bit of celluloid): find your respective agents and fire them.
Strangers With Candy - I gave this one the benefit of the doubt until now. Although I think that keeping Matthew Broderick off the trailer was a good thing — if a show is crap on TV, it’ll be crap as a feature film. It kills me, too, because I desperately want to see Stephen Colbert on the big screen, but I’m sure I can’t stomach the rest.
John Tucker Must Die - You can’t be “Mean Girls.” No matter how hard you try. On a separate note, the whole “die” thing is a bit harsh? Kind of reminiscent of “Heathers,” in a way, though (don’t ask me to explain that, I don’t know if I can).
I can’t quite decide about the following:
Casino Royale - Looks like it could turn out to be crap. That’s upsetting, considering that this is the last Bond film that’s actually based on an Ian Fleming novel. The story should be good. Will it be? Well, it wouldn’t be the first time a Bond film has let me down (see, most recently, “Tomorrow Never Dies”).
You, Me, & Dupree - I’m not sure where I stand. It actually looks funny, as far as I can tell. Maybe I just like Owen Wilson too much.
Gridiron Gang - It looks like a dramatic rendition of “The Longest Yard.” The first of two football movies starring former Canadian football player (ha!) Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson. I’m a fan of The Rock — but I honestly can’t tell if this one will be crap yet.
Invincible - Another football movie. I’m tempted to say it’ll be crap… but I’m a fan of the period it’s set in, and football movies can damn sure be emotional (see “Brian’s Song”). Plus, it’s got Marky Mark — and that’s always good for a laugh or two. I might give it a chance on home video.
I don’t care what everyone’s been saying about X-Men 3, I thoroughly enjoyed it. Sure, I was a bit worried about the director change (especially since the new director had helmed the Rush Hour flicks), but I think that the newest installment in the X-Men franchise did more good than harm.
X-Men has never been a perfect adaptation, by any stretch of the imagination. When the first film hit theatres, it was evident that the motion picture powers-that-be decided to re-invent the tale of Marvel’s hottest mutant property, completely altering the stories that we had come to know from the comic books and 90’s-era animated series. Some favorite mutants were omitted entirely and some compeltely random, insignificant mutants were unearthed, but in the end all the “true believers” were satisfied.
Perhaps that’s why I wasn’t really surprised by The Last Stand. From the closing moments of X2, I knew that this movie would have something to do with the Dark Phoenix saga, but I also knew that the filmmakers (regardless of who they were) would change the story up a bit. Additionally, I knew a slew of new mutants were joining the gang — which fit in with rumors that James Marsden (Cyclops) would be leaving the flick to join ex-X-Men director Bryan Singer over in Superman.
At any rate, I thought that X-Men 3 had balls. Make no mistake about it, there’s a lot of killing that goes on in this movie. Not that that’s new for a comic book movie (X2, Batman, etc.)… but comic book movies that don’t directly feature any major deaths tend to flop (Batman Forever, Batman & Robin). Not only does this movie have the balls to kill off a couple of bad guys, it manages to murder a few of the good guys, as well. People may complain about this, but I see nothing but positives coming out of the move.
* SPOILER WARNING, HIGHLIGHT TO READ *So Cyclops is dead. Rumor has had it that the only reason they had been keeping Gambit out of the flicks was because he and Cyclops are too similar. With him out of the picture, it seems as if Gambit is all but confirmed for an X4. Jean Grey is dead… but is she, really? We’ve seen her die before, in X2… and she returned as the Dark Phoenix. Let’s not forget that the Phoenix rises anew from the ashes every time that it dies. Xavier is dead… or is he? If you stuck around until the end, you’ll see that he’s alive and well… in another body, of course (also a move from the comics). Maybe he’ll be able to walk around for a while. *
The film is directed beautifully. Sure, some of the acting could have been directed a bit better (*cough* Academy Award winner Halle Berry *cough*), but it’s visually great to look at. It’s shot in more-or-less the same style as the past two X-Men flicks, and the special effects are amazing. The special effects are so good, that’s all that some critics have to say that’s positive about the film.
Of course, that’s not mentioning the Juggernaut… bitch! (A reference to this popular video. Clearly the inclusion of this joke shows that the filmmakers had a sense of humor about the whole thing.)
Speaking of the Juggernaut, another one of the criticisms of this film lies in the inclusion of new characters. Although I thought that some were good additions (Kelsey Grammer as Beast, whom I wasn’t too keen on until I saw the flick), some were ultimately unnecessary (hello Kitty Pryde). I did feel as if some of the mutants didn’t get their fair share of screen time (Colossus has been promoted to the main X-Men team, but I don’t remember him having a single line of dialogue), and some mutants had disappeared altogether (not even an explanation for the absence of Nightcrawler). Worse yet, some mutants were almost completely unnecessary to the plot (Angel).
And I really, really hope that that manly looking woman thing isn’t Psylocke.
Anyway, I praise X-Men 3 for being unpredictable, and forcing the series to change heading into a fourth installment. If you liked the first two, I’d definitely check out The Last Stand.
Also, be forewarned… there’s a bit of extra film after the credits are over. Stay in your seats.
I’ll admit it… before this flick, I had never seen another movie in the Superman franchise. I was, however, pretty excited about it. I’d known Bryan Singer to do amazing things with comic adaptations (see X-Men and its sequel), and I knew he would do far more justice to the Man of Steel than some other directors would have done (*cough* Tim Burton *cough*). Additionally, I was pleased to learn that Singer’s involvement with the flick would mean that all previous versions of the script for this movie would find their way to the trash (which was bittersweet… for as happy as I was that the version of Superman which found Lex Luthor turning into a Kryptonian would be forever destroyed, being a longtime Kevin Smith fan I was slightly upset that his Superman Lives script would never see the light of day).
Allright, it’s been so long since I’ve seen this movie that I’m starting to forget it.
I don’t care what everyone’s been saying about X-Men 3, I thoroughly enjoyed it. Sure, I was a bit worried about the director change (especially since the new director had helmed the Rush Hour flicks), but I think that the newest installment in the X-Men franchise did more good than harm.
