Negromancer News Bits and Bites from January 20th to 26th, 2019 - Update #26

Support Leroy on Patreon:

DISNEY - From SideshowToys:  10 Disney movies for 2019, including "Captain Marvel," "Dumbo," and "Avengers: Endgame."

-----------
CELEBRITY - From Deadline:  The cause of death of comedian, Kevin Barnett, who died Tuesday, Jan. 22nd, 2019 in Mexico, is "Non Traumatic Hemorrhage, caused by pancreatitis."  The stand-up comedian was the co-creator of FOX Network's sitcom, "Rel."

From YahooEntertainment:  The cause of the death of Kim Porter, the actress and model who had three kids with Sean "Diddy" Combs, is "lobar pneumonia."  Porter died Nov. 15th, 2018, and she was 47 years old at the time.

----------
STREAMING - From Deadline:  Netflix and Constantin Film are developing a "Resident Evil" TV series.  That series will apparently expand the "existing mythology ."

From Deadline:  Netflix has obtained Ron Howard's film, "Hillbilly Elegy" (based on J.D. Vance's bestselling book).

----------
MOVIE - From Deadline:  Warner Bros. has scheduled Christopher Nolan's next film for releases July 17, 2020.  The subject matter of the unnamed film is not known.

-----------
COMICS-FILM - From Variety:  Actor Matt Smith of "Doctor Who" has reportedly joined Sony's "Morbius" film, starring Jared Leto.  Morbius is a vampire and a Spider-Man villian.

----------
MOVIES-SCANDAL - From Newsarama:  Despite new sexual abuse of underage boys allegations levied against him, Bryan Singer is still scheduled to direct Millennium Film's "Red Sonja" film.

-----------
MOVIES - From Collider:  Nicolas Cage will star in an adaptation of H.P. Lovecraft's story, "Color Out of Space."

----------
SCANDAL - From Deadline:  In expose by "The Atlantic" magazines, director Bryan Singer ("Bohemian Rhapsody," "X-Men") is hit with more sexual abuse allegations involving underage boys.

From Deadline:  Director Bryan singer responds to "The Atlantic," calling it a "homophic smear piece..."

----------
COMICS-STREAMING - From Deadline:  Sandra Bullock is part of the team developing Mark Millar and Greg Capullo's comic book, "Reborn," for Netflix.

----------
MOVIES - From Deadline:  Actor Michael Gandolfini will play a young Tony Soprano in David Chase's in "The Many Saints of Newark," a prequel to Chase's "The Sopranos" TV series.  Michael's late father, James Gandolfini, played Tony Soprano in "The Sopranos."

----------
OSCARS - From Deadline:  The 2019 / 91st Academy Award nominations have been announced.  "Roma" and "The Favourite" lead with 10 nominations each.  "Black Panther" received 7 nominations, including a "best picture" nod.

From TheNewYorker:  "The Dismaying 2019 Oscar Nominations—and Who Should Have Made the List" by Richard Brody

From BleedingCool:  Concerning his first Oscar nomination (in the "best supporting actor" category) after 50 years of acting, Sam Elliot ("A Star is Born") says, "It's about fucking time!"

----------------------------------
BOX OFFICE - From BoxOfficeMojo:  The winner of the 1/18 - 1/20/2019 weekend box office is "Glass" with an estimated take of $40.58 million.

From Variety:  "Glass" leads the international box office with an estimated take of $48.5 million.

----------
POLITICS - From Deadline:  U.S. Senator Kamala Harris (Democrat-California) announces that she is running for President of the United States.

----------
MOVIES - From TheWrap:   Edgar Wright says that a first draft of a screenplay for "Baby Driver 6" exists.

----------
COMICS-FILM - From CNBC:   Superhero movies are in for a major shakeup in 2019

----------
STREAMING - From Deadline:  "The X-Files'" Gillian Anderson is joining Netflix's "The Crown" in the role of former British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher.

----------
OSCARS - From GoldDerby:  Paul Sheehan offers his Oscar predictions ahead of the nominations announcement Tuesday morning, Jan 22nd.

----------
AWARDS - From Deadline:  "Green Book" tops the 2019 Producers Guild Awards, winning the Producers Guild version of a "best picture" prize.

----------
OSCARS - From Deadline:  "BlackKklansman" producer Jason Blue says that it is "Spike Lee's time" if Oscar voters do the right thing.

OBIT:

From THR:  Veteran film and television director, James Frawley, has died at the age of 82, Tuesday, January 22, 2019.  Over his five-decade career, Frawley directed episodes of "Perry Mason," "The Outer Limits," and "Gunsmoke," and he directed "The Muppet Movie" (1979).  Frawley is probably best known for being a key figure in the development of "The Monkees" TV series.  Frawley also directed 28 of the series' 58 episodes.

From TheWrap:  The comedy writer and stand-up comedian, Kevin Barnett, has died at the age of 32, Tuesday, January 22, 2019.  Barnett co-created the Fox sitcom, "Rel."

From Variety:  Film producer Andrew Vajna has died at the age of 74, Sunday, January 20, 2019.  In 1976, he co-founded Carolco with Mario Kassar.  Vajna produced such films as "Nixon" and "Evita," but he was known for the numerous film on which he was an executive producer.  Among the best known are the first three "Rambo" films (including 1982's "First Blood"); "Angel Heart," "Total Recall," "Tombstone," and "Judge Dredd," to name a few.

Negromancer News Bits and Bites from July 1st to 8th, 2017 - Update #33

Support Leroy on Patreon.

CULTURE - From AlJazeera:  Teenage rape victim sentenced to 30 years in prison after stillbirth.

----------
BOX OFFICE - From Variety: "Spider-Man: Homecoming" looks to have a $120 million opening weekend.  If that holds, it would be the fourth movie of the year to have a 100 opening, following "Beauty and the Beast," "Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2," and "Wonder Woman."

----------
TELEVISION - From TheWrap:  John Cho, "Sulu" in the current "Star Trek" film series, is joining Fox's "The Exorcist" for its second season.

-----------
COMICS-FILM - From YahooMovies:  Revisiting James Cameron's "Spider-Man" film project.

----------
MUSIC - From BET:  Jay-Z's new album, "4:44," in less than a week.

----------
CRIME - From GuardianUK:  This story about the owners of Hobby Lobby buying thousands of artifacts smuggled from Iraq is simply a delight.  Church people start more hell...

----------
MOVIES - From THR:  Director Ang Lee's film, "Gemini Man," starring Will Smith, is due October 2019.  The film pits an aging assassin against a younger clone version of himself.

----------
TELEVISION - From THR:  Ava DuVernay and Netflix are tackling the infamous "Central Park Five" case in a miniseries.

----------
OBIT - From TheWrap:  Joan Lee, the wife of Marvel Comics legend Stan Lee, has died at the age of 93, Thursday, July 6, 2017.  Joan and Stan Lee had been married since December 1947.

----------
TELEVISION - From GoldDerby:  Margaret Atwood, who created the famous novel, "The Handmaid's Tale," would like fellow Canadia, Grammy-winning recording artist and rapper, Drake, to make a cameo in Season 2 of Hulu's hit adaptation of the novel.

----------
MOVIES - From Collider:  Sony wants a "Baby Driver" sequel.

----------
MOVIES - From TheVillageVoice:  Bilge Ebiri gives "War for the Planet of the Apes" a stellar review.

----------
COMICS-FILM - From ScreenRant:  The cast of Fox's "X-Men" spinoff, "New Mutants," arrives in Boston for filming.

----------
MOVIES - From Variety:  Sony is teasing the re-release of Steven Spielberg's classic 1977 film, "Close Encounters of the Third Kind."

----------
OBIT - From YahooMusic:  The musician John Blackwell, Jr. has died at the age of 43, Tuesday, July 4, 2017.  For over a decade, Blackwell was the drummer in the late Prince's band, New Power Generation.

----------
MOVIES - From Variety:  Warner Bros. and the estate of J.R.R. Tolkein have their massive "Lord of the Rings" lawsuit.

----------
MOVIES - From YahooMovies:  Yahoo Movies named the 21 best movies of 2017 so far... "Get Out" is their #1.

----------
CRIME - From YahooNews:  Imprisoned drug dealer found guilty of manslaughter in the 2012 killing of 20th Century Fox distribution executive, Gavin Smith, who was 57 at the time of his death.  Smith's body would go undiscovered in its desert shallow grave until 2014.

----------
SPORTS - From BuzzFlash:  The story of former Chicago Bull and NBA Champion, Craig Hodges.  Outspoken about poverty and racism, Hodges was blacklisted from the NBA for years.

----------
STAR WARS - From YahooMovies:  New "Star Wars" cartoon shorts debut online, focusing on female heroes.

----------
TELEVISION - From GuardianUK:  Ken Burns returns to epic television documentaries with his 10-part, 18-hour epic, "The Vietnam War."

----------
BLM - From RSN:  "What does it mean to be Black in America?" by Jeffrey Sterling.

----------
BOX OFFICE - From BoxOfficeMojo:  The winner of the 6/30 to 7/02/2017 weekend box office is "Despicable Me 3" with an estimated take of $75.4 million.  This is the first half of the extended Fourth of July holiday weekend.

From ShadowandAct:  Sony's risk with Edgar Wright's "Baby Driver" pays off.

From Variety:  "Despicable Me 3" opens with an estimated $192.3 million in global box office.

From TheWrap:  "Despicable Me 3" looks to have biggest opening by an animated film this year.

----------
MOVIES - From ShadowandAct:  Emmy-winning comedian Louis C.K. releases the documentary "Check It," about the black LGBT street gang, on his website.

----------
MOVIES - From YahooMovies:  How "Men in Black" changed movie special effects 20 years ago.

----------
COMICS-FILM - From TheWrap:  Robert Downey, Jr. would rather hang up in "Iron Man"armor "before it embarrassing."

----------
TELEVISION - From IndieWire:  The third season of HBO's "True Detective" might star Mahershala Ali, who won a best supporting actor this year of "Moonlight."

----------
MOVIES - From Variety:  The "Top Gun" sequel, "Top Gun: Maverick," is due to hit theaters July 12, 2017.

----------
TELEVISION - From TheWrap:  NBC is cancelling "The Carmichael Show" after three seasons.  The network will air the season ending episode August 9th.

----------
MANGA-FILM - From Esquire:  "Ghost in the Shell" was a movie based on a manga (Japanese comic), and a white actress, Scarlett Johansson, in the lead role.  Netflix's "Death Note" film is also based on a manga, and the lead in this American version is a white actor.  Let the controversy ensue.

From YahooMovies:  Here is the cool looking trailer for Netflix's "Death Note" film.

From Nerdreactor:  "Death Note" trailer shows the changes made to characters for the film.

----------
SPORTS - From YahooSports:  Stephen Curry of the Golden State Warriors, the world champions of the National Basketball Association (NBA), will now earn the richest annual salary in American sports history.

-------------------

TRAILERS AND SHORTS:

From YouTube:  Star Wars: Forces of Destiny Episode - Sand of Jakku

Review: "Marvel's Ant-Man" is a Tiny Marvel

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 47 (of 2015) by Leroy Douresseaux

[A version of this review first appeared on Patreon.]

Ant-Man (2015)
Running time:  117 minutes (1 hour, 57 minutes)
MPAA – PG-13 for sci-fi action violence
DIRECTOR:  Peyton Reed
WRITERS:  Edgar Wright and Joe Cornish & Adam McKay and Paul Rudd; from a story by Edgar Wright and Joe Cornish (based on the comic book created by Stan Lee, Larry Lieber, and Jack Kirby)
PRODUCER:  Kevin Feige
CINEMATOGRAPHER:  Russell Parker
EDITORS:  Dan Lebental and Colby Parker, Jr.
COMPOSER:  Christophe Beck

SUPERHERO/SCI-FI and ACTION/ADVENTURE/COMEDY

Starring:  Paul Rudd, Michael Douglas, Evangeline Lilly, Corey Stoll, Bobby Cannavale, Judy Greer, Abby Ryder Fortson, Michael Pena, David Dastmalchian, Tip “T.I.” Harris, Hayley Atwell, John Slattery, Martin Donovan, Garrett Morris, Anthony Mackie, and Stan Lee

Ant-Man is a 2015 superhero film and sci-fi action-comedy film directed by Peyton Reed and produced by Marvel Studios.  The film focuses on the Marvel Comics character, Ant-Man, who first appeared in Tales to Astonish #27 (cover date: September 1962) and was created by Stan Lee, Larry Lieber, and Jack Kirby.  Ant-Man the movie focuses on an ex-con who is given a super-suit that shrinks the wearer to microscopic size while increasing the wearer's strength, so that he can use it to pull off a heist that will save the world.

Ant-Man opens in the year 1989.  Scientist Hank Pym (Michael Douglas) discovers that his colleagues at S.H.I.E.L.D. are attempting to duplicate his shrinking technology, which he calls the “Pym particle,” so he quits.  Pym once used that shrinking tech to power his “Ant-Man” suit.  In the present day, the now-retired Pym discovers that his protégé at Pym Technologies, Darren Cross (Corey Stoll), is also trying to duplicate the “Pym particle.”  In fact, Cross is very close to doing so and has even built his own shrinking suit, which he calls “Yellowjacket.”

Pym and his estranged daughter, Hope van Dyne (Evangeline Lilly), believe that the only way to stop Cross is to steal the “Yellowjacket” suit and all of Cross' data and research.  To do that, they will have to break into the heavily-secured Pym Technologies building, and that means someone will have to wear the Ant-Man suit.  Is down-on-his-luck ex-con and master thief, Scott Lang (Paul Rudd), the perfect person to be the new Ant-Man?

As Marvel's superheroes go, Ant-Man is D-list, as far as familiarity with the public is concerned.  To bring him to the big screen, Marvel needed the right actor.  Paul Rudd is the right actor; he is irresistibly likable.  I have been a fan of his since I first saw him in Clueless about two decades ago.  His affable charm sells the idea of Scott Lang as a well-meaning criminal with a just cause.  If you find Ant-Man to be a silly concept, Rudd makes it all seem less so.  Everything about him says just-right.

Meanwhile, the rest of the cast is pretty good.  Corey Stall, who has been giving dramatic heft to FX's summer vampire television series, “The Strain,” since 2014, is Marvel's best villain-of-the-first-movie since Jeff Bridges menaced the first Iron Man film.  Michael Peña as Luis, Scott's friend, is good, although the character sometimes seems a bit like an out-of-place oddity.  Evangeline Lilly is lost in make-up as Hope van Dyne, who is also an oddity in this film.

I guess “odd” is the theme for Ant-Man the movie.  I can't believe how much I like this movie.  I saw Ant-Man at an early matinee on a Friday afternoon.  There were a few children in the audience, and they loved the movie, often squealing with delight.  I was dignified enough to force my squeals into hearty laughs.

Of all the Marvel Studios films, Ant-Man is the one that most effectively uses the avalanche of CGI and special effects we have come to expect of modern summer blockbusters, fantasy films, and superhero movies.  I would dare say that just about every use of computer-generated imagery and effects in Ant-Man is in context, serving the narrative.  Ant-Man is like The Matrix (at least the first one) in that all of the movie and computer magic is justified.  I want a sequel, so I'm asking the rest of the world to join me in loving ants and Ant-Man as you never thought you could or would.

8 of 10
A

Sunday, July 19, 2015


The text is copyright © 2015 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved. Contact this site for reprint syndication rights and fees.

Negromancer News Bits and Bites for the Week of September 6th to 12th, 2015 - Updated #14

Support Leroy on Patreon.

NEWS:

From Variety:  Oscar winner A.R. Rahman (Slumdog Millionaire) has a "fatwa" issue against him.

---------------
From Deadline:  2 people die in a plane crash on set of Tom Cruise's movie "Mena."

---------------
From YahooMovies:  Michael Moore unveils his new film, "Where to Invade Next," at the 2015 Toronto International Film Festival.

---------------
From YahooTV:  "A Charlie Brown Christmas" is celebrating its 50th anniversary with a new stamp collection and new ABC special.

---------------
From Vulture:  Ronda Rousey is set to be the lead in a remake of the Patrick Swayze flick, "Road House."

---------------
From Variety:  Tom Cruise joins Doug Liman for sci-fi film, "Luna Park."

----------------
From Variety:  Christopher Nolan's next film, of which nothing is known, is due from Warner Bros. in July 2017.

---------------
From ThePlaylist:  Jamie Foxx heads to Edgar Wright's "Baby Driver," which might not show up until 2017.

---------------
From TheHollywoodNews:  Grammy winner Sam Smith is apparently going to sing the theme song from the upcoming James Bond film, Spectre.

---------------
From BenBussey:  Marcus Dunstan talks about his Halloween franchise re-calibration, "Halloween Returns."

---------------
From RollingStone:  Danny Boyle says "Trainspotting 2" is his next film.

---------------
From BoxOfficeMojo:  The winner of the 9/4 to 9/6/2015 weekend box office is the religiously-themed film, "War Room," with an estimated take of $9.3 million.  In its debut weekend last week, War Room finished second to "Straight Outta Compton."  The weekend "Compton" finished second with a take of $8.8 million.

---------------
From THR:  Hugh Jackman says that he would consider playing James Bond.

---------------
From Variety:  On Michael Fassbender as Steve Jobs in the Danny Boyle biopic.


COMICS - Movies and Books:

From ScreenRant:  15 superhero TV shows that almost were.


OBITS:

From DeadlineHollywood:  The actor, Martin Milner, has died at the age of 83.  Milner was best known for his role as "Pete Malloy" on the popular TV cop series, "Adam-12."  Milner was also known for his lead role as "Tod Stiles" on the classic series, "Route 66."

I am a big fan of "Adam-12," and discovered "Route 66" a few years ago.  I wish to express my condolences to Milner's family.  R.I.P. Martin Milner, and "End of watch, Pete Malloy."

Negromancer News Bits and Bites for Saturday, May 31, 2014

The Washington Post began the walk back on Ann Hornaday's May 25th column/rant that blamed in part the recent Isla Vista massacre on the films like those made by Seth Rogen and Judd Apatow.  Hornaday responded to the controversy of her original column.

--------------------

Actor Josh Brolin (No Country for Old Men) will apparently play Thanos in Marvel's Guardians of the Galaxy (due August 1, 2014).

-------------------------

Apparently, Quentin Tarantino left enough of Django Unchained on the cutting room floor that he wants to re-edit the film:

“My idea, frankly, is to cut together a four-hour version of 'Django Unchained,'” he said on Friday. “But I wouldn’t show it like a four-hour movie. I would cut it up into hour chapters. Like a four-part miniseries. And show it on cable television. Show it like an hour at a time, each chapter.”

Tarantino won a best original screenplay Oscar for the film.  More at Variety.

-----------------

Monsters and Godzilla director Gareth Edwards has apparently signed on to direct one of Walt Disney's Star Wars spinoff films.  Garry Whitta (Book of Eli) is writing the script for the spinoff.  Which spinoff: no one knows.

------------------

Edgar Wright has apparently left Marvel's Ant-Man movie.

The directors interviewing to replace Wright are Rawson Marshall Thurber (We're the Millers), Adam McKay (the Anchorman movies), and Ruben Fleischer (Zombieland)

------------------

Bunny Yeager, the pin-up model turned photographer, died Sunday, May 25, 2014.  She was 85.  This New York Times obituary gives an overview of her life and work.  Yeager famously photographed pin-up queen, Bettie Page, in a leopard-print swimsuit.  I recently reviewed the documentary, Bettie Page Reveals All, which has a segment on the Page-Yeager combination.

-----------------

Herb Jeffries was a pioneering actor in Westerns that were targeted at African-America.  Best known as the "Bronze Buckaroo," Jeffries died Sunday, May 25, 2014,  He was 100-years-old.

Utah Film Critics Choose "Gravity" as the Best Picture of 2013

The Utah Film Critics Association is an organization of cinema journalists affiliated with publications, broadcasting stations, and online media based in the state of Utah.  The group meets every December to votr on the Utah Film Critics Association Awards.

2013 Utah Film Critics Association Award winners:

Best Picture: "Gravity"
(Runner-up: "12 Years a Slave")

Best Director: Alfonso Cuarón, "Gravity"
(Runner-up: Steve McQueen, "12 Years a Slave")

Best Actor: Chiwetel Ejiofor, "12 Years a Slave"
(Runner-up: Oscar Isaac, "Inside Llewyn Davis")

Best Actress: Adèle Exarchopoulos, "Blue is the Warmest Color"
(Runner-up: [tie] Cate Blanchett, "Blue Jasmine" and Sandra Bullock, "Gravity")

Best Supporting Actor: Bill Nighy, "About Time"
(Runner-up: Michael Fassbender, "12 Years a Slave")

Best Supporting Actress: Scarlett Johansson, "Her"
(Runner-up: Jennifer Lawrence, "American Hustle")

Best Adapted Screenplay: "Before Midnight"
(Runner-up: "12 Years a Slave")

Best Original Screenplay: "The World's End"
(Runner-up: "The Way, Way Back")

Best Cinematography: "Gravity"
(Runner-up: "Inside Llewyn Davis")

Best Animated Feature: "Frozen"
(Runner-up: [tie] "From Up on Poppy Hill" and "The Wind Rises")

Best Non-English Language Feature: "Blue is the Warmest Color"
(Runner-up: "The Past")

---------------------------------

Inaugural Capetown Film Festival Lineup Revealed

LINEUP ANNOUNCED FOR THE “CAPETOWN FILM FESTIVAL” CO-PRESENTED BY ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY AND THE AMERICAN CINEMATHEQUE AND SPONSORED BY TNT’s FALLING SKIES AT THE EGYPTIAN THEATRE IN HOLLYWOOD

Complete Lineup Includes Screening Details and List of Special Guests

Seven Day Festival to Run April 30th – May 6th

Entertainment Weekly today announced the complete lineup for the EW CapeTown Film Festival (CapeTown ) in Los Angeles. The inaugural film festival, in conjunction with American Cinematheque and sponsored by TNT’s Falling Skies, will feature Sci-Fi, Superhero, and Fantasy screenings along with Q&A Panels and special guests including Kurt Russell, John Carpenter, Neil Gaiman, Terry Gilliam and Edgar Wright. The EW CapeTown Festival will run from Tuesday, April 30th through Monday, May 6th at the Egyptian Theatre in Hollywood, CA.

Tickets go on sale April 8th and can be purchased at the Egyptian Theatre box office (6712 Hollywood Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90028), on www.fandango.com (theatre zip code 90028) or by calling 1-800-FANDANGO (Egyptian Theatre code: 2206). A limited number of tickets will also be available during a special April 6 presale at the Egyptian Theatre box office for EW subscribers. Tickets will be sold only between noon and 5 p.m. to EW subscribers who bring 1) their photo I.D. and 2) a recent issue of EW with a subscription label on the cover that matches their I.D. The presale is also for American Cinematheque members with photo I.D.

The complete lineup is listed below:

EW CapeTown Film Festival Schedule of Events - Egyptian Theatre, Los Angeles
Twitter: @SidGrauman
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/egyptiantheatre
Tumblr: http://amcinematheque.tumblr.com/

Tuesday, April 30
Special Announcement Coming Soon!

Wednesday, May 1
7:30pm - Shaun of the Dead
Special guest: Edgar Wright

Thursday, May 2
7:30pm - The Thing
Special guest: John Carpenter

Friday, May 3
7pm - Escape from New York
Special guest: Kurt Russell

Bonus! Advance Screening of TNT’s Falling Skies Season 3 Premiere (show premieres June 9th)
Special guest: Noah Wyle

Saturday, May 4
“May the 4th Be With You” Celebration
10am - Return of the Jedi – INVITATION ONLY
2pm - Return of the Jedi
6pm - Return of the Jedi
10pm - Return of the Jedi

Sunday, May 5
10am - Despicable Me
1pm - Coraline
Special guests: Neil Gaiman and Travis Knight

4pm - The Goonies
Special guest: Richard Donner

8pm - Twelve Monkeys
Special guest: Terry Gilliam
The evening with Terry Gilliam is co-presented by the British Academy of Film and Television Arts Los Angeles.

Monday, May 6
7:30pm - Star Trek (2009)
Special guest: Leonard Nimoy


About Entertainment Weekly and EW.com
Entertainment Weekly, with a combined print and digital audience of over 17 million loyal, engaged fans, helps readers have fun. It is your all-access pass to Hollywood’s most creative minds and most fascinating stars. The print weekly was introduced by Time Inc. in 1990 and is America’s leading consumer magazine in the entertainment category, with a guaranteed circulation rate base of nearly 1.8 million. It is a winner of four National Magazine Awards (two for General Excellence, one for Design and one for Special Interest) and was named one of min’s 25 Most Notable Magazine Launches of the Last 25 Years. Entertainment Weekly is the first to know about the best (and worst) in entertainment, and with sharp insight and a trusted voice, EW keeps readers plugged into pop culture. This is where buzz begins.

Each day, EW.com publishes myriad of online-only articles, blog posts, videos, and photo galleries – plus a complete archive of Entertainment Weekly magazine. Over the last year EW.com has received more than a half dozen industry awards including the 2012 Min Editorial and Design Award for our feature writing and a 2012 Folio Gold Eddie award for Best Online News coverage. In July 2012, the site set new records with 130MM pageviews. As of Dec 2011, Entertainment Weekly is also available on the iPad®, NOOK Color™, HP Touchpad, Kindle Fire and select Android™ devices.

On social media, join the Entertainment Weekly community on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest, and Tumblr.

About American Cinematheque
Established in 1981, the American Cinematheque is a 501 C 3 non-profit viewer-supported film exhibition and cultural organization dedicated to the celebration of the Moving Picture in all of its forms. At the Egyptian Theatre, the Cinematheque presents daily film and video programming which ranges from the classics of American and international cinema to new independent films and digital work. Exhibition of rare works, special and rare prints, etc., combined with fascinating post-screening discussions with the filmmakers who created the work, are a Cinematheque tradition that keep audiences coming back for once-in-a-lifetime cinema experiences. The American Cinematheque renovated and reopened (on Dec. 4, 1998) the historic 1922 Hollywood Egyptian Theatre. This includes a state-of-the-art 616-seat theatre housed within Sid Grauman's first grand movie palace on Hollywood Boulevard. The exotic courtyard is fully restored to its 1922 grandeur. The Egyptian was the home of the very first Hollywood movie premiere in 1922. In January 2005 the American Cinematheque expanded its programming to the 1940 Aero Theatre on Montana Avenue in Santa Monica.

www.americancinematheque.com

About TNT
TNT, one of cable's top-rated networks, is television's destination for drama. Seen in 99 million households, TNT is home to such original drama series as Rizzoli & Isles, Falling Skies, Dallas, Perception, Major Crimes, Franklin & Bash, Leverage, Southland and the upcoming Monday Mornings. The network also features dramatic unscripted originals like the upcoming Boston's Finest (working title), 72 Hours (working title) and The Hero (working title). In addition, TNT is the cable home to popular dramas like The Mentalist, Bones, Supernatural, Las Vegas, Law & Order and Castle, which starts this year; primetime specials, such as the Screen Actors Guild AwardsÒ; blockbuster movies; and championship sports coverage, including NASCAR, the NBA and the NCAA Division I Men's Basketball Championship.

Turner Broadcasting System, Inc., a Time Warner company, creates and programs branded news; entertainment; animation and young adult; and sports media environments on television and other platforms for consumers around the world.

"Attack the Block" Attacks the Sci-Fi Movie Status Quo

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 3 (of 2012) by Leroy Douresseaux

Attack the Block (2011)
COUNTRY OF ORIGIN: UK, France
Running time: 88 minutes (1 hour, 28 minutes)
MPAA – R for creature violence, drug content and pervasive language
WRITER/DIRECTOR: Joe Cornish
PRODUCERS: Nira Park and James Wilson
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Thomas Townend
EDITOR: Jonathan Amos
COMPOSER: Steven Price

SCI-FI/COMEDY/ACTION

Starring: John Boyega, Jodie Whittaker, Alex Esmail, Franz Drameh, Leeon Jones, Simon Howard, Luke Treadaway, Jumayn Hunter, Danielle Vitalis, Paige Meade, Michael Ajao, Sammy Williams, and Nick Frost

Attack the Block is a 2011 British alien invasion movie and science fiction comedy. Written and directed by English comedian Joe Cornish, the film follows the members of a South London street gang who defend their block from an alien invasion. Edgar Wright of Shaun of the Dead fame is one of the film’s executive producers.

Attack the Block opens on Bonfire Night (also known as Guy Fawkes Night) in South London. While walking home, a young nurse named Sam (Jodie Whittaker) is mugged by a gang of teenage boys and their leader, the sullen Moses (John Boyega). The attack on Sam is interrupted when an object falls from the sky and smashes into a nearby car. While Sam escapes, the boys investigate the object and find a small, strange creature which attacks them.

After killing it, Moses and the boys hope to gain fame and profit from the creature. However, more objects like the first are falling from the sky, and the creatures that emerge from them are larger and more vicious that the first creature. Now, Moses and friends have to protect their block, Wyndham Towers, from alien jaws of death.

Early in my viewing of Attack the Block, I thought of J.J. Abrams’ Summer 2011 movie Super 8, which I liked but found to be an under-achiever. Attack the Block is the imaginative, socially conscious, and fun teens vs. alien invaders film that the too-serious Super 8 could have been. While Super 8 can come across as Abrams’ Steve Spielberg masturbation fantasy, Attack the Block is Joe Cornish’s imaginative and inventive fantasy. This is a small science fiction movie that stands tall next to the big boys of 2011’s slate of science fiction and action films (Green Lantern, Super 8, Transformers: Dark of the Moon, etc.).

There are many reasons for Attack the Block’s success. One is the simple, uncomplicated creature effects. The alien monsters look like guys in gorilla suits that have a luminescent set of choppers, yet they are effectively scary. I think these monsters should make more film appearances.

Two other reasons for this film’s success are the performances and the character development. First, let me say that it is cool and makes me ecstatically happy that most of the main characters in a science fiction movie are “lower class” black teens. What is even better is that Cornish’s script delves into them, especially Moses, whom Cornish grows as a character from the beginning to the end of the story. Of course, John Boyega’s quietly potent, still-wet-behind-the-ears turn as Moses is the key reason the character rises in stature. However, Cornish sadly under-utilizes Sam, who comes across as an intriguing player from the start of the film.

Attack the Block is a blast, and that Cornish deftly inserts social commentary into this science fiction mix makes this film more than just escapism. To me, Attack the Block is real speculative, imaginative fiction simply because it takes the elements of science fiction and places them in a fresh context.

8 of 10
A

Tuesday, January 17, 2012

The Empire Awards Name "Inception" Best Film

The Empire Awards are named for Empire, Britain's best-selling film magazine. The Empire Awards are voted for entirely by the British film-going public.  The 2011 Jameson Empire Awards were presented at a ceremony in London, on Sunday, March 27.

2011 Jameson Empire Awards winner:

Best Film presented by Kirin Ichiban – Inception

Best Director presented by Sony – Edgar Wright

Jameson Best Actor – Colin Firth (The King’s Speech)

Best Actress presented by Citroën – Noomi Rapace (The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo)

Best Newcomer – Chloe Moretz (Kick-Ass)

Best Comedy – Four Lions

Best Horror – The Last Exorcism

Best Sci-Fi/Fantasy – Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 1

Best Thriller – The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo

Best British Film presented by The Industry Trust – Kick-Ass

Empire Inspiration presented by HMV – Edgar Wright

Empire Hero presented by Jameson Irish Whiskey – Keira Knightley

Empire Icon – Gary Oldman

Done in 60 Seconds – 127 Hours by Maeve Stam

Edgar Wright Did Action in Comic "Hot Fuzz"

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 132 (of 2007) by Leroy Douresseaux


Hot Fuzz (2007)
Running time: 121 minutes (2 hours, 1 minutes)
MPAA - R for violent content including some graphic images, and language
DIRECTOR: Edgar Wright
WRITERS: Edgar Wright and Simon Pegg
PRODUCERS: Nira Park, Tim Bevan, and Eric Fellner
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Jess Hall (DoP)
EDITOR: Chris Dickens

COMEDY/CRIME/ACTION/MYSTERY

Starring: Simon Pegg, Nick Frost, Jim Broadbent, Paddy Considine, Timothy Dalton, Martin Freeman, Paul Freeman, Bill Nighy, Lucy Punch, Anne Reid, Bill Whitelaw, Stuart Wilson, and Edward Woodward

The director/co-writer (Edgar Wright), co-writer/star (Simon Pegg), and co-star/sidekick (Nick Frost) of Shaun of the Dead return in Hot Fuzz, a send up of America cop movies, with a British twist.

Nicholas Angel (Simon Pegg), the finest police officer in London, has an arrest record 400% higher than any other officer on the force. Because that makes everyone else look bad, Angel's superiors transfer him to the sleepy, seemingly crime-free village of Sandford. There, he is partnered with the well-meaning but overeager police officer PC Danny Butterman (Nick Frost), who is also the son of Sandford’s amiable police chief, Inspector Frank Butterman (Jim Broadbent).

Danny is a huge action movie fan and craves the kind of action he sees in his beloved American action movies – two of his favorites being Bad Boys II and Point Break. Danny is hoping that his new big-city partner might just be a real-life “bad boy,” and that Nick Angel will help him experience the life of gunfights and car chases for which he's longed. While Nick is dismissing Danny's childish fantasies, a series of grisly accidents rocks the village, convincing Nick that Sandford is not the peaceful paradise it at first seems. As the mystery deepens, Nick may be able to make Danny's dreams of explosive, high-octane, car-chasing, gun-fighting, all-out action a reality, but it may come at a high cost for both men.

As comedies go, Hot Fuzz is a pretty special movie, primarily because, outside of comic horror movies, this is one of the few instances that a film uses graphic violence and gore in a way that is so clever and hilarious. In fact, Hot Fuzz is a beautiful send up of the American high octane action flick, and the film is so disarming. It’s not just disarmingly funny, but the entire thing is beguiling in the way droll British humor and dry wit can be. Yet, Hot Fuzz is as relentless funny and subtly manic as any joke-a-minute American gross-out comedy.

Simon Pegg is terrific as the tightly wound professional police service officer, and Nick Frost is brilliant as the sweetly naïve Butterman. They are, however, just the tip of the iceberg in a film made of superb and witty supporting performances constructed from a good script and directing that, for the most part, hits the right notes. The film falters here and there and has several noticeable extended dry stretches, but at its heart, Hot Fuzz is delicious lunacy and outrageousness in the service of a good cause – comedy.

7 of 10
A-

Sunday, October 21, 2007

Review: "Shaun of the Dead" is a Great Zombie Movie

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 248 (of 2004) by Leroy Douresseaux on Patreon

Shaun of the Dead (2004)

COUNTRY OF ORIGIN: UK

Running time: 99 minutes (1 hour, 39 minutes)

MPAA – R for zombie violence/gore and language

DIRECTOR: Edgar Wright

WRITERS: Simon Pegg & Edgar Wright

PRODUCER: Nira Park

CINEMATOGRAPHER: David M. Dunlap

EDITOR: Chris Dickens

COMEDY/HORROR/THRILLER

Starring: Simon Pegg, Kate Ashfield, Nick Frost, Lucy Davis, Dylan Moran, Nicola Cunningham, Penelope Wilton, Peter Serafinowicz, Jessica Stevenson, and Bill Nighy

Shaun’s (Simon Pegg) life is moribund, and he’d rather spend time with his best friend, Ed (Nick Frost), much to his girlfriend Liz’s (Kate Ashfield) chagrin. Tired of his lack of motivation and lameness in the romance department, Liz dumps Shaun. Shaun’s desperate to win back Liz and to reconcile his relationship with his mother Barbara (Penelope Wilton), so he’s initially ignorant of the fact that the recently dead have suddenly returned to life. However, when his community seems to fall apart, Shaun not only tries to win back his girlfriend, he also tries to save his pals from the dead who have come back to eat the living.

Shaun of the Dead is one of the best zombie movies I’ve ever seen, and it’s also a damn fine comedy. That might be difficult for some people to reconcile, but Shaun of the Dead is exceptionally hilarious, and it’s certainly a goose-flesh raising horror thriller. Anyone who likes zombie movies will surely like this, and it’s hard not to be stunned by how funny this movie is considering its subject matter. Imagine something akin to a Monty Python zombie movie.

Co-writer Edgar Wright’s directorial effort is a superb melding of dark comedy and convincing horror thrills, and his script, co-written by star Simon Pegg, breathlessly and shamelessly borrows from a host of genre films, mostly horror, in particular the gold standards of zombie films, Night of the Living Dead (1968) and Dawn of the Dead (1978). The script and resultant film are brilliant renditions of those two horror classics, but with move overt comedy. Shaun of the Dead is film heaven for the smart horror movie fan.

9 of 10

A+

--------------------------------

----------------------------------

Amazon wants me to inform/remind you that any affiliate links found on this page are PAID ADS, but I technically only get paid (eventually) if you click on affiliate links like this, MOVIES PAGE, and BUY something(s).

Review: "Grindhouse" a Two-Fisted Double Dose

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 72 (of 2007) by Leroy Douresseaux

Grindhouse (2007)
Running time: 192 minutes
MPAA – R for strong graphic bloody violence and gore, pervasive language, some sexuality, nudity, and drug use
CINEMATOGRAPHERS/WRITERS/DIRECTORS: Robert Rodriguez (Planet Terror, and fake trailer segment “Machete”) and Quentin Tarantino (Death Proof)
PRODUCERS: Elizabeth Avellan, Robert Rodriguez, Erica Steinberg, and Quentin Tarantino
EDITORS: Ethan Maniquis and Robert Rodriguez (Planet Terror) and Sally Menke (Death Proof)

ACTION/HORROR/SCI-FI/THRILLER

Starring: (Planet Terror) Rose McGowan, Freddy Rodriguez, Michael Biehn, Naveen Andrews, Josh Brolin, Jeff Fahey, Stacy Ferguson, Nicky Katt, Michael Parks, Quentin Tarantino, and Bruce Willis; (Death Proof) Kurt Russell, Rosario Dawson, Tracie Thoms, Zoe Bell, Mary Elizabeth Winstead, Sydney Tamiia Portier, Vanessa Ferlito, Rose McGowan, Jordan Ladd, Jonathan Loughran, Eli Roth, and Quentin Tarantino

Directors Robert Rodriguez (Spy Kids, Sin City) and Quentin Tarantino (Pulp Fiction, Kill Bill) present two-full length movies in their horror double feature, Grindhouse. The film is an ode to theatrical double and triple features shown at grindhouse theatres (called such because these theatres would grind out one movie after another). Most of the films shown at grind houses were exploitation films involving sex, violence, crime, sci-fi/horror, or race (blaxploitation). Rodriguez and Tarantino’s Grindhouse also includes four fake trailer segments for non-existent movies – an homage to how grindhouse theatres would show many trailers for upcoming films between double features.

The first feature is Rodriguez’s zombie horror flick, Planet Terror, in which a small Texas town finds itself inundated by fellow townsfolk who have mutated into flesh-hungry zombies. A mysterious trucker named Wray (Freddy Rodriguez) and a go-go dancer named Cherry Darling (Rose McGowan), who had her right leg ripped off by zombies, join forces to fight the monstrous invasion. Wray eventually replaces Cherry’s missing leg with an automatic rifle, and the pair lead an group of accidental warriors in a bid to stop Lt. Muldoon (Bruce Willis), a rogue military officer, from making the all-ready dire situation worse.

The second feature film is Quentin Tarantino’s Death Proof, in which Stuntman Mike (Kurt Russell), a scar-faced rebel-type, stalks college-age beauties in a small Texas town. Popular DJ, Jungle Julia (Sydney Tamiia Portier) and her pals Shanna (Jordan Ladd) and Arlene (Vanessa Ferlito) don’t know that a killer has his eyes on them. Stuntman Mike is really a murderer, who uses his muscle car as his weapon. Stuntman Mike, however, eventually meets his match when he attacks a trio of women who work as film crewmembers. On the back roads of Tennessee, Stuntman Mike engages in a duel to the death with Kim (Tracie Thoms), Zoe (Zoe Bell, a real life stuntwoman), and Abernathy (Rosario Dawson).

Although I never experienced grindhouse theatres, I am somewhat familiar with exploitation films. In fact, I’ve seen enough of those to know that well before Grindhouse, Rodriguez and Tarantino’s films were capturing the vibe of 1970’s exploitation cinema.

With the sound dropping out or fading, a scratchy picture, bad splicing, etc., Rodriguez’s Planet Terror looks like a movie played from a print that’s been dragged across the country. Besides that, it’s a damn fine sci-fi/horror movie – certainly on par with Rodriguez’s late 90’s teen horror flick, The Faculty, although not quite as good as From Dusk ‘til Dawn. It’s one of the best zombie films to come around since Resident Evil kick-started this horror sub-genre back to life in 2002.

Planet Terror is a hoary old beast of a movie, created by modern movie science, but formed and shaped with an eye on the excesses of 70’s cinema. It’s violence and gore is a work of art and a labor of love. Plus, it’s damn funny when you get down to it, with a mixture of social satire (especially the fake trailer segment “Machete,”) and movie parody with a touch of irony.

Tarantino’s Death Proof is the better of the two films, but not by much. It was born from Tarantino’s love for late 60’s/early 70’s car chase films like Bullitt and Vanishing Point. Whereas Rodriguez showed his love for exploitation movies by making one that looks like an exploitation flick, Tarantino borrows from those films and makes something that is both technically and artistically superior. It’s like Steven Spielberg directing a slasher horror movie.

As is usual with Tarantino films, the dialogue is good, but, here, the action sequences with the cars make Death Proof. In fact, that first car crash is unforgettable – a stroke of genius on Tarantino’s part for the way he executed it. Tarantino insisted that there by no CGI for the car chase sequences in Death Proof, yet the first car crash and the long chase sequence that ends the film are breathtaking and far scarier than even the cool CGI-enhanced chases in films like The Matrix Reloaded and Bad Boys II.

Ultimately Grindhouse is a gift to people who obsess about movies from two guys who obsess about movies and movie making. I left the theatre thinking that I owed them something more than just the cost of a ticket for the joy they gave me.

8 of 10
A

NOTES: The creators of three of the four fake trailer segments are as follows:
Writer/Producer/Director: Eli Roth (fake trailer segment “Thanksgiving)
Writer/Director: Edgar Wright (fake trailer segment “Don’t”)
Writer/Director: Rob Zombie (fake trailer segment “Werewolf Women of the S.S.”)
Writer: Jeff Rendell (“Thanksgiving”)
Producers: Daniel S. Frisch and Gabriel Roth (“Thanksgiving”)

Saturday, May 05, 2007

--------------------