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BOX OFFICE - From TheWrap: Disney's "Frozen II" is reviving the box office with a 42 million dollar opening Friday.
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MOVIES - From THR: Director Tim Miller talks about his film, "Terminator: Dark Fate," its box office failure, clashes with James Cameron, and not having final control of the film.
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MOVIES - From THR: With the opening of "A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood," it is time to take a look back at the early work of the film's star, Tom Hanks. Do you know his early film, "He Knows You're Alone"? Do you remember his star turn in the notorious 1982 TV movies, "Rona Jaffe's Mazes and Monsters"? [I remember the latter, dear readers. - Leroy]
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MOVIES - From ShadowandAct: Lena Waithe talks about sharing a "story by" credit with controversial author, James Frey ("A Million Little Pieces"), on the upcoming film, "Queen & Slim."
From ShadowandAct: I did not know that there was tension over Black British actors playing African-American chacters, but there is. So "Queen & Slim" stars, Daniel Kaluuya and Jodie Turner-Smith, talk about it.
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CULTURE - From TheGuardian: At the Anti-Defamation League's "Never is Now" summit on antisemitism and hate, actor Sacha Baron Cohen called tech giants like Facebook, Twitter, Google, and YouTube the greatest propaganda machine in history. Cohen, in a wide-ranging speech, said that Facebook, if it had existed at the time, would have let Adolf Hitler buy ads for the "final solution" to Germany's "Jewish problem."
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MOVIES-MUSIC - From Deadline: "Bohemian Rhapsody" producer, Graham King, has secured rights from the Michael Jackson estate to make a film about the "King of Pop's" life. King will have access to all of Jackson's music.
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SCANDAL - From Deadline: Apple is delaying the release of director George Nolfi's "The Banker," starring Samuel L. Jackson and Anthony Mackie. The film is based on a true story about Bernard Garrett, Sr., and some troubling allegations have been levied against Bernard Jr., a consultant on the film who has also been involving in its promotion.
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TELEVISION - From TheDailyBeast: Legends John Cleese and Eric Idle talk about 50 years of "Monty Python's Flying Circus," President Trump, and "Brexit."
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BROADWAY - From THR: The planned Michael Jackson Broadway musical, "MJ the Musical," has found its Michael, Tony nominee, Ephraim Sykes.
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BLM - From THR: Kareem Abdul-Jabbar wonders if films about American slavery are good for African-Americans.
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AWARDS - From Variety: The 2020 Film Independent Spirit Award nomination have been announced. The winners will be revealed Sat., Feb. 8, 2020, one day before the Academy Awards.
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MOVIES - From GQ: A look at the 50-year friendship of Oscar winners, Al Pacino and Robert De Niro, the stars of Martin Scorsese's film, "The Irishman."
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MOVIES - From THR: "Robocop Returns" a direct sequel to the original "Robocop" film (1987), has a new director, Abe Forsythe, who has been getting buzz for his zombie comedy, "Little Monsters," starring Lupita N'yongo. Forsythe replaces Neill Blomkamp.
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SCANDAL-MUSIC - From YahooCelebrity: Actor and Grammy-winning recording artist, Harry Connick, Jr., claims that in the early 1990s, legendary actor and singer, the late Frank Sinatra, acted “completely inappropriate” with Connick’s then-girlfriend and now-wife, model Jill Goodacre.
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COMICS-FILM - From Deadline: The news of a sequel to Todd Phillips' "Joker" and new films featuring origin stories of other DC Comics' characters may not be correct... yet.
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BOX OFFICE - From DigitalSpy: Writer-director Elizabeth Banks acknowledges that her just-released reboot of "Charlie's Angels" is a flop, but is still proud of the film.
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STAR TREK - From THR: Noah Fawley, creator of the "Fargo" TV series for FX, will reportedly direct the fourth film in the "Star Trek" reboot series. Chris Pine will reportedly return as Captain Kirk. This film is separate from Quentin Tarantino's long-developing "Star Trek" project.
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MOVIES - From TheHollywoodReporter: Screenwriter Gregory Allen says that once upon a time a Hollywood executive suggested that Oscar-winning actress, Julia Roberts, play Harriet Tubman, a real-life Black American historical figure. The exec said that Tubman lived so long ago that no one would remember that she was Black.
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MOVIES - From Variety: Actress Pom Klementieff ("Guardians of the Galaxy, Vol. 2") has been cast in "Mission: Impossibe 7," which is due July 2021.
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STREAMING - From Deadline: Netflix has hired legendary screenwriter Robert Towne and acclaimed director David Fincher to pen a TV pilot script that will act as a prequel to the classic 1974 film, "Chinatown." Towne won an Oscar for writing "Chinatown."
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BOX OFFICE - From BoxOfficeMojo: The winner of the 11/15 to 11/17/2019 weekend box office is "Ford v Ferrari" with an estimated gross of 31 million dollars.
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AWARDS - From Deadline: President Donald Trump names his first "National Medal of Arts" recipients.
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STREAMING - From FlickeringMyth: Bill Murray will reunite with Peter and Bobby Farrelly on the Quibi comedy, "The Now," in a recurring role. Murray appeared in the brothers 1996 film, "Kingpin."
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MOVIES - From Deadline: John Woo comments on the reboot of his 1990s hit film, "Face/Off," and adds his comments to the Scorsese vs. Marvel Studios comic book movies debate. He also mentions that Oscar-winner Lupita N'yongo has left the remake of his 1989 film, "The Killers."
OBITS:
From Variety: The actor, Michael J. Pollard, has died at the age of 80, Wednesday, November 20, 2019. He earned an best supporting actor, Oscar nomination for his appearance in the film, "Bonnie and Clyde" (1967). He also appeared in Rob Zombie's gruesome cult classic, "House of 1000 Corpses" (2003).
From YahooSports: Former National Football League player, Fred Cox, has died at the age of 80, Wednesday, November 20, 2019. Cox was a "kicker" for the Minnesota Vikings for 15 years and played in all four of the Vikings "Super Bowl" appearances. However, Cox may be best remembered for inventing the soft football that would become the "Nerf" football.
Showing posts with label Eric Idle. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Eric Idle. Show all posts
Saturday, November 23, 2019
Wednesday, October 19, 2011
Review: "South Park: Bigger, Longer & Uncut" is a Great 1999 Film (Happy B'day, Trey Parker)
South Park: Bigger, Longer & Uncut (1999) - animated
Running time: 81 minutes (1 hour, 21 minutes)
MPAA – R for pervasive vulgar language and crude sexual humor, and for some violent images
DIRECTOR: Trey Parker
WRITERS: Matt Stone and Trey Parker and Pam Brady (based upon the TV series created by Matt Stone and Trey Parker)
PRODUCERS: Trey Parker and Matt Stone
EDITOR: John Venzon
Academy Award nominee
ANIMATION/COMEDY/MUSICAL/WAR
Starring: (voice) Trey Parker, Matt Stone, Mary Kay Bergman, Isaac Hayes, George Clooney, Brent Spiner, Minnie Driver, Dave Foley, Eric Idle, Nick Rhodes, Stewart Copeland, and Mike Judge
I could list several films that were better than Oscar® winner for “Best Picture” of 1999, American Beauty. One of them is South Park: Bigger, Longer & Uncut, the film version of the hit animated series, “South Park,” on cable television channel, Comedy Central. The film did earn an Oscar® nomination in the category of “Best Music, Original Song,” and it should have won. But where it really counts, the film won – it is as good as the best episodes of the series.
Our heroic quartet: Stan Marsh (Trey Parker), Eric Cartman (Parker), Kyle Broslofski (Matt Stone), and Kenny McCormick (Stone) sneak into a theatre to see the R-rated film of Canadian bad boy duo, Terrance & Phillip, entitled Asses of Fire. The film, a wall-to-wall profanity-laden musical, warps the little boys’ minds, and they begin to freely used the most vulgar language in everyday speech. Kyle’s mother, Sheila Broslofski (Mary Kay Bergman), is horrified, so she leads the other boys’ parents in a massive crusade against Terrance and Phillip.
In true fanatical organized censorship fashion, her coalition against filth goes overboard. The parents pressure the United States government to declare war on Canada (because they generate lots of filth that finds it way to America), and to have Terrance and Phillip publicly executed just before the U.S. military invades Canada. Meanwhile, in Hell, Satan and his homosexual lover, Saddam Hussein (Stone), eagerly await the execution. For when Terrance & Phillip’s blood touches the earth, it will open a portal from Hell to Earth from which Satan and Saddam will launch an invasion.
The quality of the animation (crude and crudely manipulated paper cutout animated figures) and comedy (naughty) of the film is about the same as the TV series, except the hardcore R-rated vulgarity and profanity that would be edited out of even the series makes its way to the film. What the film has that the show doesn’t is a wonderfully satirical and farcical song score. There are certainly better musical and song scores in film history, but none are as ribald, as bold, and as hilarious as these songs.
The most important thing about South Park: Bigger, Longer & Uncut is that it is so subversive. The TV series has always used satire and farce to make political and social commentary. Creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone take their hardest hits at ultra conservative, too liberal, bigoted, and politically correct America. But the part of the U.S. that takes the biggest hit is the dishonesty of adults: lying to children, not explaining to them why they should be protected from certain things, cheating, stealing, and selfishness. Parker and Stone do it while making you laugh so hard at their outrageous sense of humor. I don’t know which is their best talent, humor or commentary; they do both so well that’s it’s unfair to most others who try both.
9 of 10
A+
NOTES:
2000 Academy Awards: 1 nomination: “Best Music, Original Song” (Trey Parker and Marc Shaiman for the song "Blame Canada")
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Thursday, May 20, 2010
Review: "Shrek the Third" is Disappointing
Shrek the Third (2007)
Running time: 93 minutes (1 hour, 33 minutes)
MPAA – PG for some crude humor, suggestive content, and swashbuckling action
DIRECTOR: Chris Miller with Raman Hui
WRITERS: Jeffrey Price & Peter S. Seaman and Chris Miller & Aron Warner
PRODUCER: Aron Warner
EDITOR: Michael Andrews
ANIMATION/COMEDY/FANTASY/ACTION/FAMILY
Starring: (voices) Mike Myers, Eddie Murphy, Cameron Diaz, Antonio Banderas, Ruper Everett, Justin Timberlake, Julie Andrews, John Cleese, Eric Idle, Cheri Oteri, Amy Poehler, Maya Rudolph, Amy Sedaris, John Krasinski, Larry King, Susanne Blakeslee, and Ian McShane
Smelly ogre Shrek (Mike Myers) returns in Shrek the Third, and finds himself in a bit of a fix. When he married Princess Fiona (Cameron Diaz), he never realized that the union would put him in line to become the next King of Far, Far Away, so when his father-in-law, King Harold (John Cleese), dies, Shrek and Fiona are facing the very real possibility of being the new King and Queen.
Determined to remain an ordinary ogre and return to his peaceful life in the swamp, Shrek sets off with reliable pals Donkey (Eddie Murphy) and Puss in Boots (Antonio Banderas) on a long journey to find Fiona’s long lost cousin, Artie (Justin Timberlake), an underachieving high school slacker. Making the rebellious Artie accept the throne proves to be a bigger challenge than Shrek suspected.
Meanwhile, Shrek’s old nemesis, Prince Charming (Rupert Everett), has returned to Far, Far Away with an army composed of some of classic fairytales most infamous villains, including Captain Hook (Ian McShane) and his crew and the Evil Queen (Susanne Blakeslee) from “Snow White.” It’s up to Fiona and her band of princesses: Cinderella (Amy Sedaris), Rapunzel (Maya Rudolph), Sleeping Beauty (Cheri Oteri), Snow White (Amy Poehler) and, of course, Doris (Larry King), to fight until Shrek and crew return to the country for the final battle with Charming.
Considering the box office success of Shrek and Shrek 2 and the fact that they were actually very good films, Shrek the Third’s mediocrity is shocking. It’s only mildly amusing, and there’s nothing distinguishing about the animation, which actually looks really bad (in terms of character movement and design) in several places. There are too many characters, and not enough of Eddie Murphy’s Donkey who is every bit the star of this franchise that Mike Myers’ Shrek is. Any future installments need a significant overhaul because Shrek the Third looks like the franchise is showing tired, old legs.
5 of 10
C+
Saturday, June 09, 2007
NOTES:
2008 BAFTA Awards: 1 nomination: “Best Animated Film” (Chris Miller)
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