Review: 2021 "DUNE " is Both Tremendous and Tedious

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 63 of 2021 (No. 1801) by Leroy Douresseaux

Dune (2021)
Running time:  155 minutes (2 hours, 35 minutes)
MPAA – PG-13 for sequences of strong violence, some disturbing images and suggestive material
DIRECTOR:  Denis Villeneuve
WRITERS:  Denis Villeneuve, Jon Spaihts, and Eric Roth (based on the novel by Frank Herbert)
PRODUCERS:  Denis Villeneuve, Cale Boyter, Joseph M. Caracciolo, and Mary Parent
CINEMATOGRAPHER:  Greg Fraser (D.o.P.)
EDITOR:  Joe Walker
COMPOSER: Hans Zimmer

SCI-FI

Starring:  Timothée Chalamet, Rebecca Ferguson, Zendaya, Oscar Isaac, Jason Momoa, Stellan Skarsgard, Stephen McKinley Henderson, Josh Brolin, Javier Bardem, Sharon Duncan-Brewster, Chen Chang, Dave Bautista, David Dastmalchian, Charlotte Rampling, Babs Olusanmokun, Benjamine Clementine, and Golda Rosheuvel

Dune is a 2021 science fiction film directed by Denis Villeneuve.  It is based on the 1965 novel, Dune, written by author Frank Herbert.  This the third screen adaptation of Herbert's novel after writer-director David Lynch's 1984 film and writer-director John Harrison's 2000 television miniseries.  Dune 2021 focuses on the male heir to a noble family who finds himself in the middle of conspiracy and prophecy on a desert planet where is found the most vital element in the universe.

Dune opens in the far future in the year 10,191.  The most valuable substance in the universe is “Spice,” which extends human vitality and life and is absolutely necessary for space travel.  Spice is only found on the desert planet, Arrakis.  For over eighty years, House Harkonnen, one of the noble houses of the “Landsraad,” has mined the planet for Spice.

Now, the Emperor of the Known Universe has ordered House Harkonnen to withdraw from the planet.  The Emperor has appointed Duke Leto I (Oscar Isaac) of House Atreides and ruler of the ocean planet, Caladan, as the new fief ruler of Arrakis and the one responsible for the mining of Spice.

However, Paul Atreides (Timothée Chalamet), the son of Leto and his concubine, Lady Jessica (Rebecca Ferguson), is the focus of the Bene Gesserit, a powerful sisterhood who wield advance mental and physical abilities, to which Jessica belongs.  The Bene Gesserit have a prophecy concerning a “superbeing,” called the  “Kwisatz Haderach,” and Paul may be this superbeing because of the machinations of his mother.  Meanwhile, Paul has dreams and visions, most of them set on Arrakis and involving the natives of Arrakis, the “Fremen.”  And of the Fremen, Paul dreams most of a mysterious young woman (Zendaya) with blue in her eyes.  Paul knows that his fate lies on Arrakis, and he will discover it if he survives the plot against his family.

Although the title of this film is “Dune,” when the movie starts the credits read “Dune: Part One.”  That's right, director Denis Villeneuve refused to adapt Frank Herbert's novel as one long film when he preferred to do it as two long films.  I have seen Herbert's novel referred to as “unwieldy” source material, but the truth is that like Robert A. Heinlein's novel, Starship Troopers (1959), which was adapted into a 1997 film, Dune is philosophical and thoughtful.  Much of the narrative takes place in the minds of its major characters, and I don't think that big-budget, event Hollywood films are really good at internal philosophical monologues.

Denis Villeneuve's Dune is visually ambitious.  It is pomp and circumstance.  It focuses on the rituals of the Landsraad (the empire's noble houses) and of the Fremen – to the point of being anthropological.  Dune is costumes, uniforms, makeup, hairdos, and lavish spectacle.  Dune offers some of the most imaginatively designed space crafts, flying contraptions, utility machines, and personal devices outside of the Star Wars films.  It leans towards opulence in its breathtaking landscapes and astonishing vistas.  This visual and design aesthetic creates the kind of overwhelming cinematic sensory experience that is exactly why we need to see some films in movie theaters.

Villeneuve apparently also said that Dune has “power in details,” and his obsession with details, both in terms of visuals and narratives, is a problem for Dune, much in the way it was a problem for his acclaimed 2016 film, The Arrival … to a lesser extent.  For Dune, he builds a big world in pictures and images, and then, he and his co-writers Jon Spaihts and Eric Roth (the ones who are credited onscreen), drag the movie out by drowning every key scene and sequence in detail.  There is no better example of this than the scene with the “Herald of the Change” (Benjamin Clementine), when Duke Leto formerly excepts his assignment to Arrakis.  It was pointless scene about the pointlessness of the Emperor and his rituals.

At one point while watching this film, I checked my phone and realized that there was still an hour to go.  I wasn't sure if I could make.  I could not understand how a film could be so visually dazzling as Dune is and have a story that frustratingly seems to be going somewhere … slowly.  And Dune's wonderful cast goes right along with this, delivering performances that are earnest in their grimness.  Still, the actors didn't make me want to connect with their characters, and Rebecca Ferguson's Lady Jessica is just fucking tiresome.

I am giving this film a B+ because of two things – the sometimes unbelievable visuals and, surprisingly, Hans Zimmer's amazing musical score, for which he supposedly created new musical instruments.  Without his constantly inventive score, this film would put people to sleep.  If I were focusing only on story, I'd give Dune a B- or a B, because there are some characters that are fascinating the few times they are on screen, such as Baron Harkonnen (Stellan Skarsgard) and his nephew, Rabban (Dave Bautista).  There are also a few scenes that resonate.  I really don't know how to recommend a film that will impress you almost as much as it will tire you, but that Denis Villeneuve's Dune in a nutshell.

7 of 10
B+

Friday, October 22, 2021


The text is copyright © 2021 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved. Contact this blog or site for reprint and syndication rights and fees.

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Warner Bros.' and Legendary's "Dune" Begins Filming

Cameras Roll on Warner Bros. Pictures and Legendary Entertainment’s Epic Adaptation of “Dune”

Acclaimed director Denis Villeneuve brings Frank Herbert’s celebrated novel to the big screen with an all-star international ensemble cast.

BURBANK, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Filming has begun on Warner Bros. Pictures and Legendary Entertainment’s epic “Dune,” being directed by Oscar nominee Denis Villeneuve (“Arrival,” “Blade Runner 2049”).

The big-screen adaptation of Frank Herbert’s seminal bestseller Dune stars Oscar nominee Timothée Chalamet (“Call Me by Your Name”), Rebecca Ferguson (“Mission: Impossible – Rogue Nation”), Oscar Isaac (“Star Wars: Episode VIII – The Last Jedi”), Oscar nominee Josh Brolin (“Milk,” “Deadpool 2,” “Avengers: Infinity War”), Stellan Skarsgård (the “Mamma Mia!” films, “Avengers: Age of Ultron”), Dave Bautista (the “Guardians of the Galaxy” films, upcoming “Avengers: Endgame”), Zendaya (“Spider-Man: Homecoming”), David Dastmalchian (the “Ant-Man” movies), Stephen Henderson (“Fences,” “Lady Bird”), with Oscar nominee Charlotte Rampling (“45 Years,” “Assassin’s Creed”), with Jason Momoa (“Aquaman”), and Oscar winner Javier Bardem (“No Country for Old Men,” “Skyfall”). Chang Chen (“Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon,” “The Grandmaster”) is in discussions to join the cast.

A mythic and emotionally charged hero’s journey, “Dune” tells the story of Paul Atreides, a brilliant and gifted young man born into a great destiny beyond his understanding, who must travel to the most dangerous planet in the universe to ensure the future of his family and his people. As malevolent forces explode into conflict over the planet’s exclusive supply of the most precious resource in existence—a commodity capable of unlocking humanity’s greatest potential—only those who can conquer their fear will survive.

Villeneuve is directing “Dune” from a screenplay he co-wrote with Eric Roth and Jon Spaihts based on Herbert’s novel. The film is being produced by Mary Parent, Cale Boyter, Joe Caracciolo and Villeneuve. The executive producers are Tanya Lapointe, Brian Herbert, Byron Merritt, Kim Herbert, Thomas Tull, Jon Spaihts, Richard P. Rubinstein, John Harrison and Herbert W. Gains, with Kevin J. Anderson serving as creative consultant.

Behind the scenes, Villeneuve is collaborating for the first time with Oscar-nominated director of photography Greig Fraser (“Lion,” “Zero Dark Thirty,” “Rogue One: A Star Wars Story”); three-time Oscar-nominated costume designer Jacqueline West (“The Revenant,” “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button,” “Quills”) and co-costume designer Bob Morgan; and stunt coordinator Tom Struthers (“The Dark Knight” trilogy, “Inception”). Oscar-winning and multiple Oscar-nominated composer Hans Zimmer (“Blade Runner 2049,” “Inception,” “Gladiator,” “The Lion King”) is creating the score. Villeneuve is also reteaming with two-time Oscar-nominated production designer Patrice Vermette (“Arrival,” “Sicario,” “The Young Victoria”), two-time Oscar-nominated editor Joe Walker (“Blade Runner 2049,” “Arrival,” “12 Years a Slave”), two-time Oscar-winning visual effects supervisor Paul Lambert (“First Man,” “Blade Runner 2049”), and Oscar-winning special effects supervisor Gerd Nefzer (“Blade Runner 2049”).

“Dune” is being filmed on location in Budapest, Hungary, and in Jordan.

The film is slated for a November 20, 2020 worldwide release from Warner Bros. Pictures and Legendary Entertainment.

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Negromancer News Bits and Bites from August 6th to 12th, 2017 - Update #36

Support Leroy on Patreon.

CULTURE - From TheDailyBeast:  James Alex Fields Jr. identified as the driver who barreled his car into a crowd during protests at Charlottesville, Virginia.

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COMICS-FILM - From TheWrap:  "Silver and Black," the Spider-Man universe film from Sony is due Feb. 8, 2019.  The film will feature Spider-Man characters, Black Cat and Silver Sable.  Gina Prince-Bythewood is directing.

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CULTURE - From GuardianUK:  On Friday night (8/11th), White Nationalists and white racist begin siege of Charlottesville, Virginia.

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COMICS-FILM - From Newsarama:  "Hellboy" creator Mike Mignola says film reboot (which is no longer being called "Hellboy: Rise of the Blood Queen") is closer to his personal vision for the character.

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COMICS-FILM - From WeGotThisCovered:  Substantial changes will be made to "Justice League," as an early cut of the film is reportedly "unwatchable."  The film is due for release November 17th, 2017.

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MOVIES - From YahooMovies:  The real-life "Annabelle" doll is a simple Raggedy Ann doll.

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TELEVISION - From TheWrap:  NBC is trying to reboot classic TV sitcom, "The Munsters," again.  Remember "Mockingbird Lane?"

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BLM - From RSN:  Spike Lee says he fully supports beleaguered NFL quarterback Colin Kaepernick.

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ANIMATION - From YahooNews:  The "Deadpool" animated television series being developed by Donald Glover and his brother Stephen will have a tone different from the live-action film series starring Ryan Reynolds.

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SPORTS - From YahooSports:  The NBA has announced its five Christmas Day 2017 games, including a rematch of this year's championship series between the Cleveland Cavaliers and the world champions Golden State Warriors.

COMICS-FILM - From THR:  Ryan Reynolds shares a first look at Josh Brolin as "Cable" in "Deadpool 2."

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MOVIES - From THR:  Author William Gibson's seminal cyberpunk novel, Neuromancer (1984) may finally be making it to the big screen through "Deadpool" director, Tim Miller.

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DISNEY - From CBR:  Disney has announced that it is starting its own streaming service in 2019.  Thus, it will be pulling its films and television series from Netflix.  Marvel Studios original series (such as "Daredevil" and "Luke Cage") will remain with Netflix.

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COMIC-FILM - From TheWrap:  Riz Ahmed of "Rogue One" in early talks to join Tom Hardy in Sony's "Venom."

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TELEVISION - From Variety:  Louis C.K. says that he may not do another season of his Emmy-winning FX series, "Louie."

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COMICS-BOOKS - From EW:  Seven things you need to know about African-American/Latino Spider-Man, Miles Morales, according to Jason Reynolds, the author of the YA novel, "Miles Morales: Spider-Man.

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STAR WARS - From YahooMovies:  Set photos from "The Last Jedi" offer fresh clues.

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COMICS-FILM - From YahooMovies:  Kate Beckinsale explains why she once said "No" to a Wonder Woman film.

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TELEVISION - From THR:  Maya Rudolph is going to star in Fox's live musical version of "A Christmas Story."

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MOVIES - From THR:  Selena Gomez joins Elle Fanning in Woody Allen's next film.

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TELEVISION - From BleedingCool:  In the new FOX/Marvel X-Men, TV series, "The Gifted," the X-Men are apparently"no more."

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MOVIES - From BleedingCool:  Milla Jovovich may the the "Blood Queen" in "Hellboy: Rise of the Blood Queen."

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TELEVISION - From TVLine:  Peter Krause is joining Angela Bassett in the 9-1-1 drama for FOX produced by Ryan Murphy ("Glee," "American Horror Story").

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TELEVISION - From TheWrap:  David Letterman will have a short run talk show (of sorts) on Netflix.

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MOVIES - From Variety:  Milo Gibson, son of Mel Gibson, will appear in the WWII drama, "Hurricane."  Milo made his feature film debut in his father's hit 2016 WWII film, "Hacksaw Ridge."

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DISNEY - From THR:  Alfre Woodard has joined Disney's live-action remake of "The Lion King," which is being directed by Jon Favreau.

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TELEVISION - From ShadowandAct:  Filiming begins on Mario Van Peebles' supernatural drama for Syfy, "Superstition."

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TELEVISION - CinemaBlend:  Karl Urban in talks to take the lead in a "Judge Dredd" TV series.  Urban starred in the 2012 film, "Dredd," which disappointed at the box office, but later became a home video and cult hit.

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TELEVISION - From TVovermind:  X-Files Season 11 begins production.

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CELEBRITY- From THR:  Chris Pratt ("Guardians of the Galaxy") and Anna Faris ("Scary Movie," "Mom") have announced that they are separating after eight years of marriage.

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BOX OFFICE - From BoxOfficeMojo:  The winner of the 8/4 to 8/6/2017 weekend box office is "The Dark Tower" with an estimated take of $19.5 million.

From Deadline:  China leads international box office.

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COMICS-FILM - From THR:  James Gunn is writing "Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3" and helping Marvel Studios honcho Kevin Feige make plans for Marvel's cosmic properties.

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POLITICS - From Truthout:  Will Altering the 13th Amendment Bring Liberation to the Incarcerated 2.3 Million?

OBIT:

From People:  Country music legend, singer, songwriter, musician, and Grammy-winning recording artist, Glen Campbell has died at the age of 81, Tuesday, August 8, 2017.  Before he solo career blew up in the mid to late 1960s, Campbell was a much in-demand session musician who played on the recordings of legends like Nat King Cole, Frank Sinatra, and Elvis Presley, to name a few.

From Variety:  The man in the monster suit, Haruo Nakajima, has died at the age of 88.  He wore the Godzilla suit in every "Godzilla" film from the original film to "Godzilla vs. Gigan" (1972).

From SportsIllustrated:  Former Major League Baseball manager and player, Don Baylor, has died at the age of 68, Monday, August 7, 2017.  He was the 1979 American League MVP, and he won a World Series title with the 1987 Minnesota Twins.  He was also the first manager of the Colorado Rockies.

From SportsIllustrated:  Former Major League Baseball player Darren Daulton died at the age of 55, Sunday, August 6, 2017.  He has been fighting brain cancer for 4 years.  He was best known as a catcher for the Philadelphia Phillies.  He was on the 1993 National League pennant winning Phillies that lost the 1993 World Series to the Toronto Blue Jays.  In his final year of his career, Daulton was on the 1997 Florida Marlins that won the World Series.

Negromancer News Bits and Bites from April 9th to 15th, 2017 - Update #28

Support Leroy on Patreon.

MOVIES - From Deadline:   Robert Duvall is the latest actor to join director Steve McQueen's "Widows."

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MOVIES - From THR:  Paramount Pictures has hired the original writing team behind 1988's "Coming to America," to write a sequel.

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MOVIES - From IndieWire:  J.C. Chandor has lost his stars (Tom Hardy and Channing Taturm) and his studio (Paramount Pictures) for his action-thriller, "Triple Frontier," one month before it was to start filming.

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OBIT - From YahooSports:   Longtime Pittsburgh Steelers owner, Dan Rooney, has died at the age of 84, Thursday, April 13, 2017.  Rooney was also highly influential in the development of the NFL, initiating "the Rooney rule" to help African-American coaches have more opportunities to become head coaches.

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MOVIES - From CinemaBlend:  Loosing the role of "Jack Reacher" to Tom Cruise was motivation for Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson.

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CELEBRITY:  From BET: Tupac Shakur was arrested in Los Angeles last month...

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FILM FESTIVAL - From Variety:  Cannes 2017 film lineup is announced, and that includes 49 films and a few TV projects.

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COMICS-FILM - From TheWrap:  Josh Brolin will play the time-traveling mutant, Cable, in "Deadpool 2."

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OBIT - From People:  Actor and comedian, Charlie Murphy, has died at the age of 57, Wednesday, April 13, 2017.  He was Eddie Murphy's older brother, but Charlie established himself as an actor in comedies and rose to fame for his appearances on Comedy Central's "Chappelle's Show" from 2003 to 2004.

From THR:  The Murphy family releases a statement about the passing of Charlie Murphy.

From BET:  Charlie Murphy's final tweets.

From BET:  Dave Chappelle honors his friend, Charlie Murphy.

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OBIT - From IndieWire: German director of photography, Michael Ballhaus, has died at the age of 81.  He was known for his work with Martin Scorsese, including "Goodfellas" and "The Departed."

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OBIT - From YahooMusic:  J. Geils, guitarist and leader of the band, The J. Geils Band," has died at the age of 71.

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TELEVISION - From Variety:  John Ridley and Emmy-winner Regina King have previously teamed up for "American Crime," and are teaming again for "No Place Safe," for FX.

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MOVIES - From THR:  Oscar nominee and BAFTA winner, Barkhad Abdi ("Captain Phillps") talks about his character in "Blade Runner 2049."

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MOVIES - From YahooMovies:  How did The Rock/Vin Diesel feud begin?

From Variety:  "The Fate of the Furious" heading towards a global box office opening near $400 million.

From YahooCelebrity:  Jordana Brewster on why she is not in "The Fate of the Furious."

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MOVIES - From Variety:  Don Cheadle to star in a biopic, "Prince of Darkness," about Black American millionaire, Jeremiah G. Hamilton.

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MOVIES - From DeadlineHollywood:  Brett Ratner's production company, RatPac, options the life story rights of Hugh Hefner, founder of "Playboy" magazines and its empire.

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BOX OFFICE - From BoxOfficeMojo:  The winner of the 4/7 to 4/9/2017 weekend box office is "The Boss Baby," with an estimated take of $26.3 million.

From Variety:  "Ghost in the Shell" tops foreign box office.

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MOVIES - From IndieWire:  Anthony Hopkins says that Michael Bay is a genius...

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MOVIES - From DeadlineHollywood:  "Mission: Impossible 6" officially beings production.

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MOVIES - From THR:   Vin Diesel remembers Paul Walker at "The Fate of the Furious" premiere.

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STAR TREK - From YahooCelebrity:  Sonequa Martin-Green says her role on "Star Trek: Discovery" came after the fate of her character, Sasha, on "The Walking Dead" was already sealed.

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COMICS - From TheVox:  A Marvel VP blames diversity for Marvel's sales slumps - rather than pricey books, event/crossovers, and bad comics.

TRAILERS:

From SideshowCollectibles:  "Star Wars: The Last Jedi" first trailer.

From YahooMovies:  New trailer for "Thor: Ragnarok"

From YouTube:  New trailer for "War of the Planet of the Apes," which is due July 14th, 2017.

Review: Imaginative "Guardians of the Galaxy" is Charming and Fun

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 12 (of 2015) by Leroy Douresseaux

Guardians of the Galaxy (2014)
Running time:  121 minutes (2 hours, 1 minute)
MPAA – PG-13 for intense sequences of sci-fi violence and action, and for some language
DIRECTOR:  James Gunn
WRITERS:  James Gunn and Nicole Perlman (based on the comic book created by Dan Abnett and Andy Lanning)
PRODUCER:  Kevin Feige
CINEMATOGRAPHER:  Ben Davis
EDITORS:  Fred Raskin, Hughes Winborne, and Craig Wood
COMPOSER:  Tyler Bates
Academy Award nominee

SCI-FI/FANTASY and ACTION/ADVENTURE/COMEDY

Starring:  Chris Pratt, Zoe Saldana, Dave Bautista, Lee Pace, Michael Rooker, Karen Gillan, Djimon Hounsou, John C. Reilly, Glenn Close, Peter Serafinowicz, Benicio Del Toro, Laura Haddock, Sean Gunn, Wyatt Oleff, Gregg Henry, Christopher Fairbank, Stan Lee, and the voices of Bradley Cooper and Vin Diesel with Josh Brolin

Guardians of the Galaxy is a 2014 science fiction action film and adventure comedy from director James Gunn and is produced by Marvel Studios.  The film is based on the comic book, Guardians of the Galaxy (2008), which was created by Dan Abnett and Andy Lanning.  The film focuses on a human and a ragtag band of aliens who take on a warlord bent on galactic destruction.

Guardians of the Galaxy opens in 1988 where a young boy named Peter waits in a hospital where his mother is dying.  Shortly after she passes, the boy is abducted by the Ravagers, a group of space pirates.  26 years later, Peter Quill (Chris Pratt) is Star-Lord, and he is also a wanted man.  He arrives on the planet Morag, where he steals a mysterious orb that he is supposed to give to the leader of the Ravagers, Yondu Udonta (Michael Rooker).

However, the orb holds incredible power, and a fanatical alien named Ronan (Lee Pace) wants to use the orb's power to destroy the planet Xandar.  Ronan sends an assassin to get the orb from Quill.  On the run, Quill unites a ragtag band of oddballs:  the assassin, Gamora (Zoe Saldana); the genetically-engineered raccoon, Rocket (Bradley Cooper); the tree-like humanoid, Groot (voice of Vin Diesel); and the revenge-seeking Drax (Dave Bautista).  They may be the only ones who can save the galaxy and maybe even the universe.

Guardians of the Galaxy was one of the surprise hits of the year, if not the surprise hit of the year.  It was the highest grossing film at the North American box office during the calendar year of 2014.  Some people joked that if Marvel Studios could make a hit of Guardians of the Galaxy, it could make a hit of anything.  That may be true.

Guardians of the Galaxy's production values rival and even exceed (in some cases) most recent science and space fantasy films, including the Star Wars prequels.  The artists behind this film's production design and art direction build an entire new galaxy filled with amazing worlds and places from the ground up, with eye-popping and dazzling results.  The costumes are as creative as what is worn in the kind of costume dramas that usually earn Oscar nods for their costume design.  The make-up, both effects and hair-styling, is probably the best ever seen in a film based on a comic book.

Visually, Guardians of the Galaxy is a most unusual and imaginative film, but it is also familiar.  It is thoroughly infused with the spirit of Star Wars (1977).  Like the original Star Wars film, Guardians of the Galaxy is a lavish sci-fi movie spectacle with elements of Western and pirate adventure films.  It is fun to watch, and by the end of it, I was eager for a sequel.

Maybe co-writer and director James Gunn has created Star Wars for a new generation.  He has a fine cast of actors; a cool universe populated with awesome beings, places, and things.  Gunn also has what seems like an imagination full of ideas that want to get out and sparkle on the big screen.  Gunn can do really good things with this film as the start of a new franchise.  In the meantime, we can enjoy this first film.  Like Men in Black and Independence Day, Guardians of the Galaxy is a sci-fi blast that thrills every viewer who can enjoy the wonder of a great space adventure.

7 of 10
A-

Wednesday, March 4, 2015


NOTES:
2015 Academy Awards, USA:  2 nominations: “Best Achievement in Makeup and Hairstyling” (Elizabeth Yianni-Georgiou and David White) and “Best Achievement in Visual Effects” (Stephane Ceretti, Nicolas Aithadi, Jonathan Fawkner, and Paul Corbould)

2015 BAFTA Awards:  2 nominations:  “Best Make Up/Hair” (Elizabeth Yianni-Georgiou and David White) and “Best Achievement in Special Visual Effects” (Stephane Ceretti, Paul Corbould, Jonathan Fawkner, and Nicolas Aithadi)

2015 Black Reel Awards:  2 nominations: “Outstanding Supporting Actress, Motion Picture” (Zoe Saldana) and “Outstanding Voice Performance” (Vin Diesel for playing "Groot")


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

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.

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

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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.

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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.

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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)

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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.

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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.

Official Poster for Jason Reitman's "Labor Day" is Released

LABOR DAY

Labor Day” centers on 13-year-old Henry Wheeler, who struggles to be the man of his house and care for his reclusive mother Adele while confronting all the pangs of adolescence.  On a back-to-school shopping trip, Henry and his mother encounter Frank Chambers, a man both intimidating and clearly in need of help, who convinces them to take him into their home and later is revealed to be an escaped convict.  The events of this long Labor Day weekend will shape them for the rest of their lives.

DECEMBER 25, 2013 (Limited release)

Official site: LaborDayMovie.com

Facebook: Facebook.com/LaborDayMovie

Twitter: Twitter.com/paramountpics

Review: "Melinda and Melinda," Good Cast, Average Movie

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 8 (of 2006) by Leroy Douresseaux

Melinda and Melinda (2004)
Running time:  99 minutes (1 hour, 39 minutes)
MPAA – PG-13 for adult situations involving sexuality, and some substance material
WRITER/DIRECTOR:  Woody Allen
PRODUCER:  Letty Aronson
CINEMATOGRAPHER:  Vilmos Zsigmond
EDITOR:  Alisa Lepselter

COMEDY/DRAMA

Starring:  Radha Mitchell, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Will Ferrell, Amanda Peet, Jonny Lee Miller, Chloë Sevigny, Steve Carell, Josh Brolin, Vinessa Shaw, Daniel Sunjata, Geoffrey Nauffts, Wallace Shawn, Larry Pine, Stephanie Roth Haberle, and Neil Pepe

The subject of this movie review is Melinda and Melinda, a 2004 comedy and drama from writer/director Woody Allen.  The film follows two alternating stories about a woman named Melinda’s attempts to straighten out her life.  Fox Searchlight Pictures gave the film a limited release in the United States in March of 2005.  Except for a cameo, Allen does not appear as a significant character in this film.

Over a meal at a restaurant, four friends, two of them playwrights, discuss the essence of life.  Is it comic or tragic?  One of them brings up a story he heard from friends about the unexpected arrival of young woman named Melinda (Radha Mitchell) at a dinner party.  The two playwrights, one who writes tragedies and the other who composes hit comedies, take the incident with Melinda and embellish it, each from his point of view.

Max the Tragedian (Larry Pine) tells a story of doomed love with Melinda as a disturbed young woman who returns to New York City after having several years of misfortune and heartbreak.  She was the bored housewife of a Midwestern doctor, and her affair with a photographer ended the marriage.  Her ex-husband also took the children from Melinda, and her subsequent suicidal depression landed her straight-jacketed in a mental ward.  She arrives at the home of her friend, Laurel (Chloë Sevigny), like Melinda a former Park Avenue princess, and Laurel’s husband, Lee (Jonny Lee Miller), a struggling actor and alcoholic.  Melinda’s arrival hastens the disintegration of Laurel and Lee’s marriage, but Melinda meets Ellis Moonsong (Chiwetel Ejiofor), a smooth talking, handsome, and debonair composer.  They strike up what looks like a promising romance until Ellis notices someone else…

Sy the Comedian (Wallace Shawn) looks at Melinda’s predicament as a romantic comedy.  She is the childless downstairs neighbor of the dinner hosts, an ambitious indie filmmaker named Susan (Amanda Peet) and her husband, Hobie (Will Ferrell) an under-employed actor.  Sy’s Melinda is also coming off a broken relationship, so Hobie befriends Melinda in an attempt to help her find a new love.  However, Hobie falls for Melinda, but he has to suffer in silence when she unexpectedly starts dating an amiable and handsome broker (Daniel Sunjata).  Thus, the film goes back and forth contrasting the fate of each Melinda.

Melinda and Melinda is a decent Woody Allen film, and it’s also a bit different from most of his pictures.  For one thing, he only makes a cameo appearance in the opening sequence that most viewers will probably miss.  However, Will Ferrell’s Hobie of the comedic half of Melinda and Melinda is the stand-in for the neurotic, smart-talking type Allen plays in his films.  The tragic half of the film is quite engaging, but not overly dark and tragic, perhaps because the cast plays it so smoothly and low key.  Mitchell gives a solid performance, and Chiwetel Ejiofor (Dirty Pretty Things) plays Ellis Moonsong as a romantic figure, which lightens up a segment that plays heavily on the notion of doomed relationships.

On the other hand, Ferrell’s performance overwhelms Radha Mitchell’s in the comedic half of the film, and that’s not a bad thing.  The romantic comic angle is mostly flat, and the romance isn’t engaging.  The more Ferrell is on screen the more his comic timing and acting come forward and livens a dull segment into something mildly amusing and somewhat engaging.

Though I’m sad to admit it, I found Melinda and Melinda to be about an average film, sometimes even a chore to watch, and it would be an average film even if someone other than Woody Allen’s name were on it.

5 of 10
C+

Friday, January 13, 2006

Updated:  Wednesday, July 24, 2013

Review: "Gangster Squad" Ain't Wangsta

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 38 (of 2013) by Leroy Douresseaux


Gangster Squad (2013)
Running time: 113 minutes; MPAA – R for strong violence and language
DIRECTOR: Ruben Fleischer
WRITER: Will Beall (based on the book Gangster Squad by Paul Lieberman)
PRODUCERS: Dan Lin, Kevin McCormick, and Michael Tadross
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Dion Beebe (D.o.P.)
EDITORS: Alan Baumgarten and James Herbert
COMPOSER: Steve Jablonsky

CRIME/ACTION

Starring: Sean Penn, Josh Brolin, Ryan Gosling, Emma Stone, Anthony Mackie, Michael Peña, Giovanni Ribisi, Robert Patrick, Nick Nolte, Sullivan Stapleton, Holt McCallany, Mireille Enos, Austin Abrams, and Jon Polito

Gangster Squad is a 2013 action and crime film from director Ruben Fleischer. The film is based on Paul Lieberman’s 2012 book, Gangster Squad: Covert Cops, the Mob, and the Battle for Los Angeles. Gangster Squad the movie follows a secret crew of police officers trying to end mob king Mickey Cohen’s reign over Los Angeles.

The reality is that Gangster Squad the movie is mostly fictional. It takes the Los Angeles Police Department’s real “Gangster Squad unit” and its efforts to protect the city from Mickey Cohen and his gang in the 1940s and 50s and turns it into a fanciful tale of two-fisted cops and one crazy mutha of gangster. But Gangster Squad is a hugely entertaining fanciful tale of cops and robbers.

Gangster Squad opens in Los Angeles, 1949. In post-World War II L.A., gangster Mickey Cohen (Sean Penn) is the most powerful figure in the California criminal underworld. In fact, Cohen does not intend on letting anyone from “back east,” especially Chicago, interfere with his bid to expand his criminal enterprise across the Western United States.

In the Los Angeles Police Department, Chief Bill Parker (Nick Nolte) wants to end Cohen’s influence over the city, which extends into the police department, the courts, and City Hall. Parker personally chooses Sgt. John O’Mara (Josh Brolin), a WWII veteran with a special operations background, to wage guerilla warfare on Cohen. With the help of his reluctant wife, Connie (Mireille Enos), O’Mara recruits fellow officers into his secret squad.

They choose the hard-headed African-American detective, Coleman Harris (Anthony Mackie); wire-tap expert, Conway Keeler (Giovanni Ribisi); and legendary gangster-killer and cowboy-type, Max Kennard (Robert Patrick). Kennard’s Latino partner, Navidad Ramirez (Michael Peña), is not initially picked, but he manages to bargain his way into the squad.

Fellow WWII vet, Sgt. Jerry Wooters (Ryan Gosling), turns down O’Mara’s offer, and focuses his attention on having an affair with Mickey Cohen’s girlfriend, Grace Faraday (Emma Stone). After he witnesses Cohen’s ruthlessness, Wooters joins O’Mara’s “Gangster Squad,” but these lawmen have no idea how truly sadistic Cohen can be when it comes to protecting his empire.

Gangster Squad has Oscar-nomination quality cinematography, art direction-set decoration, costume design, and perhaps, even sound editing. This movie’s cops vs. gangsters story is familiar material and, to some extent, is just retread. But Gangster Squad’s retread sure is entertaining. Somehow, cast, story, and action come together, and it is a combination that is a recognizable, yet tasty cinematic dish.

I rented Gangster Squad through Netflix. Normally, I watch my movie rentals over two days (or maybe even three). However, I couldn’t stop watching this mesmerizing crime/action movie. Gangster Squad is like a cool, color and colorful version of the old television series, “The Untouchables” (1959 to 1963 on ABC).

The performances are good. Sean Penn and Josh Brolin each do interesting takes on deranged, with Nick Nolte throwing in a cup of crazy, here and there. Contrary to what you may have read elsewhere, there is indeed excellent chemistry between Ryan Gosling and Emma Stone in this film. Actually, the supporting characters played by Anthony Mackie, Michael Peña, Giovanni Ribisi, and Robert Patrick are the most interesting in the movie. I think they are what keep Gangster Squad from being just another wanna-be-great, gangster period film.

Inevitably, Gangster Squad will end up on cable television, where it will receive countless repeat plays. I’ll be watching quite a few of those repeats.

7 of 10
B+

Friday, June 07, 2013

Shooting Begins on Next Jason Reitman Film "Labor Day"

PARAMOUNT PICTURES AND INDIAN PAINTBRUSH ANNOUNCE THE START OF PRINCIPAL PHOTOGRAPHY ON REITMAN’S “LABOR DAY”

Paramount Pictures, a division of Viacom, Inc., and Indian Paintbrush announced today that principal photography has begun on “LABOR DAY,” from Academy Award®-nominated filmmaker Jason Reitman, with Academy Award®-winner Kate Winslet and Academy Award®-nominated Josh Brolin starring. The film is shooting in Massachusetts.

Based on Joyce Maynard’s novel of the same name, the film is written and directed by Reitman (“Young Adult,” “Up in the Air”) who will produce with his partner Helen Estabrook through their Right of Way Films banner, along with the Academy Award®-nominated team of Lianne Halfon and Russell Smith (“Young Adult,” “Juno”) of Mr. Mudd. Steven Rales (“Young Adult,” “Like Crazy”) and Mark Roybal (“Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close,” “No Country for Old Men”) of Indian Paintbrush will serve as executive producers.

“LABOR DAY” centers on 13-year-old Henry Wheeler, who struggles to be the man of his house and care for his reclusive mother Adele while confronting all the pangs of adolescence. On a back-to-school shopping trip, Henry and his mother encounter Frank Chambers, a man both intimidating and clearly in need of help, who convinces them to take him into their home and later is revealed to be an escaped convict. The events of this long Labor Day weekend will shape them for the rest of their lives.

Winslet (“REVOLUTIONARY ROAD,” “THE READER”) stars as Adele Wheeler, the reclusive mother and Josh Brolin (“TRUE GRIT,” “NO COUNTRY FOR OLD MEN”) is Frank Chambers. Gattlin Griffith (“GREEN LANTERN,” “CHANGELING”) plays Adele’s son Henry. Rounding out the cast is Tom Lipinski (“SUITS”) as the young Frank; Clark Gregg (“MARVEL’S THE AVENGERS”) as Henry’s father Gerald; Alexie Gilmore (“DEFINITELY, MAYBE”) plays Marjorie, Gerald’s new wife and Henry’s stepmom; Lucas Hedges (“MOONRISE KINGDOM”) plays her son Richard; Brighid Fleming (“GAMER”) as Henry’s friend Eleanor; James Van Der Beek (“DON’T TRUST THE B---- IN APARTMENT 23”) as Officer Treadwell; Maika Monroe as young Frank’s sweetheart Mandy; Brooke Smith (“GREY’S ANATOMY,”) as Adele’s friend Evelyn and Micah Fowler as Evelyn’s son Barry.


About Paramount Pictures CorporationParamount Pictures Corporation (PPC), a global producer and distributor of filmed entertainment, is a unit of Viacom (NASDAQ: VIA, VIAB), a leading content company with prominent and respected film, television and digital entertainment brands. Paramount controls a collection of some of the most powerful brands in filmed entertainment, including Paramount Pictures, Paramount Animation, Paramount Vantage, Paramount Classics, Insurge Pictures, MTV Films, and Nickelodeon Movies. PPC operations also include Paramount Famous Productions, Paramount Home Media Distribution, Paramount Pictures International, Paramount Licensing Inc., and Paramount Studio Group.

Will Smith Carries Pleasant "Men in Black 3"

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 43 (of 2012) by Leroy Douresseaux


Men in Black 3 (2012)
Running time: 103 minutes (1 hour, 43 minutes)
MPAA – PG-13 for sci-fi action violence, and brief suggestive content
DIRECTOR: Barry Sonnenfeld
WRITER: Etan Cohen (based upon the comic book by Lowell Cunningham)
PRODUCERS: Laurie MacDonald and Walter F. Parkes
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Bill Pope
EDITORS: Wayne Wahrman and Don Zimmerman
COMPOSER: Danny Elfman

SCI-FI/FANTASY/COMEDY/ACTION

Starring: Will Smith, Tommy Lee Jones, Josh Brolin, Jemaine Clement, Emma Thompson, Michael Stuhlbarg, Mike Colter, Nicole Scherzinger, Michael Chernus, Bill Hader, Rick Baker, and Alice Eve

Men in Black 3 is a 2012 3D science fiction comedy. It is also the second sequel to the 1997 film, Men in Black. The Men in Black film series is based upon the comic book, The Men in Black, created by Lowell Cunningham. Steven Spielberg is one of the film’s executive producers, a title he held for the first two films. In this new film, the Men in Black agency (MiB) must use time travel to stop an alien from changing history.

Men in Black 3 kicks off with the alien criminal, Boris the Animal (Jemaine Clement), making a daring prison break. Boris has a past with MiB Agent K (Tommy Lee Jones), and he hatches a plot to both remove K and to make an alien invasion of Earth possible. K’s partner, Agent J (Will Smith), travels back in time to 1969, where he meets a young Agent K (Josh Brolin). Together, they race to stop Boris and to save themselves, MiB, and Earth.

The most accurate thing that I can say about Men in Black 3 is that it is pleasantly entertaining. Honestly, I really didn’t expect more than that. The story is sentimental, and seeks to make the connection between Agents J and K a more personal and deeper relationship than it was in the previous films. That’s nice, but the screenplay inadvertently creates loose ends that it ties up; thus, it essentially makes another film starring these characters unnecessary or at least forces a possible fourth film to approach J and K from a different point of view (hopefully, the latter).

There are a number of cameos (Will Arnett, Tim Burton, Lady Gaga, Justin Bieber, etc.) in this film that are nice, if you can catch them. Jemaine Clement is marvelous as Boris. Josh Brolin’s turn as the 29-year-old Agent K is both funny and poignant (and saves the time travel segment of this story). Conversely, Tommy Lee Jones looks like a tired, old man; never has the age difference between Will Smith and Jones been more pronounced than in this third MiB movie.

As is usual with these Men in Black movies, Will Smith dominates. Men in Black 3 needs his charm and boundless energy. I strenuously disagree with the reviews that describe this as the best Men in Black movie, because the first is still the best. Like Men in Black II, this third film has enough oddball sci-fi elements and twists to keep the entire thing Men in Black kosher. Men in Black 3 won’t make you believe that a fourth film is necessary, but I’ll take more, as long as Will Smith comes back.

6 of 10
B

Sunday, May 27, 2012

"Men in Black 3" Arrives in Theatres and IMAX May 25th

Columbia Pictures' Men In Black 3 Blasts Into IMAX® Theatres Friday

LOS ANGELES, May 22, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- IMAX Corporation (NYSE: IMAX; TSX: IMX), and Columbia Pictures today announced that the action comedy Men in Black 3 will be released in the immersive IMAX® format in 474 theatres worldwide beginning Friday, May 25, simultaneous with the film's North American wide release. Domestically, the film will be released in 278 theatres and in 196 theatres internationally. Additional playdates will be added as pending bookings are confirmed. Men in Black 3 is the first in the franchise to be released in IMAX.

The IMAX release of Men in Black 3 will be digitally re-mastered into the image and sound quality of An IMAX 3D Experience® with proprietary IMAX DMR® (Digital Re-mastering) technology. The crystal-clear images coupled with IMAX's customized theatre geometry and powerful digital audio create a unique environment that will make audiences feel as if they are in the movie.

About Men in Black 3
In Men in Black 3, Agents J (Will Smith) and K (Tommy Lee Jones) are back... in time. J has seen some inexplicable things in his 15 years with the Men in Black, but nothing, not even aliens, perplexes him as much as his wry, reticent partner. But when K's life and the fate of the planet are put at stake, Agent J will have to travel back in time to put things right. J discovers that there are secrets to the universe that K never told him - secrets that will reveal themselves as he teams up with the young Agent K (Josh Brolin) to save his partner, the agency and the future of humankind. Barry Sonnenfeld directs the film. The film's screenplay is written by Etan Cohen, based on the Malibu Comic by Lowell Cunningham. Walter F. Parkes and Laurie MacDonald produce, and Steven Spielberg and G. Mac Brown are the executive producers.

http://www.meninblack.com/

Men in Black 3 has been rated PG-13 by the MPAA for sci-fi action violence, and brief suggestive content.

Warner Bros. Gives "Gangster Squad" a September 7th Release Date

“Gangster Squad” to Hit Theaters on September 7

BURBANK, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Warner Bros. Pictures and Village Roadshow Pictures announced today that the release date for “Gangster Squad” is September 7, 2012. The announcement was made by Dan Fellman, Warner Bros. Pictures President, Domestic Distribution.

Directed by Ruben Fleischer (“Zombieland”), “Gangster Squad” stars Oscar® nominees Josh Brolin (“Milk,” “True Grit”) and Ryan Gosling (“Half Nelson,” “Blue Valentine”), and Academy Award® winner Sean Penn (“Milk,” “Mystic River”), as well as Oscar® nominee Nick Nolte (“Warrior,” “Affliction”), Emma Stone (“The Help”), Anthony Mackie (upcoming “Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter”), Giovanni Ribisi (“Avatar”) and Michael Peña (“Tower Heist”).

THE STORY: Los Angeles, 1949. Ruthless, Brooklyn-born mob king Mickey Cohen (Penn) runs the show in this town, reaping the ill-gotten gains from the drugs, the guns, the prostitutes and—if he has his way—every wire bet placed west of Chicago. And he does it all with the protection of not only his own paid goons, but also the police and the politicians who are under his control. It’s enough to intimidate even the bravest, street-hardened cop…except, perhaps, for the small, secret crew of LAPD outsiders led by Sgt. John O’Mara (Brolin) and Jerry Wooters (Gosling), who come together to try to tear Cohen’s world apart.

Shot entirely in and around Los Angeles, including in many of the actual locations featured in the story, “Gangster Squad” is a colorful retelling of events surrounding the LAPD’s efforts to take back their nascent city from one of the most dangerous mafia bosses of all time. The screenplay is by Will Beall (TV’s “Castle”), based on the book Gangster Squad by Paul Lieberman. The film is produced by Dan Lin (“Sherlock Holmes”), Kevin McCormick (“The Lucky One”) and Michael Tadross (“Arthur”). The executive producers are Ruben Fleischer, Paul Lieberman and Bruce Berman.

Warner Bros. Pictures presents, in association with Village Roadshow Pictures, a Lin Pictures/Kevin McCormick production, “Gangster Squad.” The film will be distributed by Warner Bros. Pictures, a Warner Bros. Entertainment Company, and in select territories by Village Roadshow Pictures.

http://gangstersquad.warnerbros.com/

The Empty Calories of "Into the Blue" are Surprisingly Tasty

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 150 (of 2005) by Leroy Douresseaux


Into the Blue (2005)
Running time: 110 minutes (1 hour, 50 minutes)
MPAA – PG-13 for intense sequences of action violence, drug material, some sexual content, and language
DIECTOR: John Stockwell
WRITER: Matt Johnson
PRODUCER: David Zelon
CINEMATOGRAPHERS: Shane Hurlbut with Peter Zuccarini (underwater)
EDITORS: Nicolas De Toth and Dennis Virkler

ACTION/ADVENTURE/CRIME/THRILLER

Starring: Paul Walker, Jessica Alba, Scott Caan, Ashley Scott, Josh Brolin, James Frain, Tyson Beckford, and Dwayne Adway

The subject of this movie review is Into the Blue, an underwater action movie and crime thriller starring Paul Walker and Jessica Alba. The film follows a group of friends who find both a sunken treasure and trouble from drug smugglers.

Recently fired from his job as a guide on scuba diving tour boat, Jared (Paul Walker) decides to pursue his dream of salvaging for lost treasure galleys in the deep, shark-infested waters of the Bahamas. His girlfriend, Sam (Jessica Alba), believes in him, of course, and is along for the ride, and so are his best friend, Bryce (Scott Caan), a young hotshot lawyer from New York City, and his latest conquest, Amanda (Ashley Scott), a young woman he just met a few days before. When the four young divers discover what may be a legendary shipwreck containing untold millions in gold, Jared believes his dream of finding buried treasure has come true.

However, near their salvage is a sunken plane containing the dead crew… and a large cargo of cocaine that may have a street value in the hundreds of millions. The friends make a vow to keep silent about both discoveries so that they can excavate the shipwreck and file a claim on it before rival treasure hunters (namely a challenger named Bates played by Josh Brolin) learn of their find and beat them to the gold. When two of the divers make a fatal decision regarding the cargo plane, drug smugglers looking for the plane turn the young treasure hunters into the hunted.

Into the Blue is the Sport’s Illustrated swimsuit issue version of a hard-edge action movie, but it has a campy edge that would make it suitable for the CBS Sunday Night Movie or a made-for-TV USA cable network action thriller; plus its PG-13 rating makes Into the Blue safe for all but those… well, 13-year olds. Director John Stockwell doesn’t turn Matt Johnson’s screenplay into a hyper-kinetic video game, but instead makes the film into a kind of crime film, imagine a R-rated, dumbed-down heist or caper film like Out of Sight for teens or for those who can’t stomach R-movie violence. Another good thing about Matt Johnson’s screenplay is that it emphasizes characters over action. Put a competent cast and crew behind a script like this and the audience gets a nice character-driven piece that makes the audience invest itself in the players – that’s Into the Blue. The script’s glaring error is that it seems stretched out, thus giving it a few huge dry patches in which the narrative is literally spinning its wheels or drowning.

Paul Walker (The Fast and the Furious franchise) and Jessica Alba aren’t close to being good actors. Walker comes from the Keanu Reeves school of acting, which means awkward and stiff dialogue delivery, but quite frankly, he’s beautiful and looks good on screen. His face can express more emotion that he ever could through speaking, and Walker’s eyes are indeed the windows into the soul of his characters. You learn just as much about what kind of man Jared is by watching Walker’s physical acting as you could by listening to Paul struggle with lines. Alba tries to be a serious actress, but her body is the Gromit to her acting’s Wallace. You don’t want her off screen; you want to see her, whether you’re a man or woman.

The setting and beautiful locations really sell this flick. I never thought I’d enjoy seeing people diving in and jumping out of the water so much (about 60 to 70 percent of the film); this is truly an underwater action/adventure. Add Josh Brolin’s Mephisto-like turn to the mix of lithe young bodies in motion, in danger, and in the water, and Into the Blue is a very entertaining thriller – fun in the water, the movie theatre, or at home.

6 of 10
B

Kate Winslet and Josh Brolin in Next Jason Reitman Film

PARAMOUNT AND INDIAN PAINTBRUSH TEAM WITH REITMAN, WINSLET, AND BROLIN FOR “LABOR DAY”

Paramount Pictures and Indian Paintbrush jointly announced today they will co-produce, and Paramount will distribute, Academy Award®-nominated writer / director Jason Reitman’s Labor Day starring Academy Award®-winner Kate Winslet and Academy Award® nominee Josh Brolin. Indian Paintbrush will co-finance the project, with the company’s Steven Rales and Mark Roybal executive producing.

The movie will be produced by Academy Award®-nominated producers Lianne Halfon and Russell Smith of Mr. Mudd Productions, along with Reitman and Helen Estabrook of Right of Way Films.

Adapted by Reitman and based on the novel by Joyce Maynard, LABOR DAY tells the story of an escaped convict (Brolin) who seeks shelter with a single mom (Winslet) and her young son over a long Labor Day weekend.

The film marks the fourth collaboration for Jason Reitman and Paramount. His latest film “Young Adult,” starring Charlize Theron, will hit theaters on December 9, 2011. The studio previously released his Academy-Award® nominated “Up in the Air” in 2010. Earning over $160 million world-wide, the movie earned six Academy-Award® nominations, and five Golden Globe nominations, with Reitman taking home the Golden Globe for Best Adapted Screenplay.

Indian Paintbrush, Mr. Mudd and Right of Way Films also produced the upcoming Paramount Vantage film “Jeff, Who Lives At Home,” starring Jason Segel and Ed Helms. Directed by Jay and Mark Duplass, the movie is set for release in March 2012 and will have its world premiere at the 2011 Toronto International Film Festival.

Kate Winslet and Josh Brolin are repped at CAA. WME reps Jason Reitman and Mr. Mudd.


ABOUT PARAMOUNT PICTURES CORPORATION
Paramount Pictures Corporation (PPC), a global producer and distributor of filmed entertainment, is a unit of Viacom (NYSE: VIA, VIA.B), a leading content company with prominent and respected film, television and digital entertainment brands. The company's labels include Paramount Pictures, Paramount Vantage, Paramount Classics, Insurge Pictures, MTV Films and Nickelodeon Movies. PPC operations also include Paramount Digital Entertainment, Paramount Famous Productions, Paramount Home Entertainment, Paramount Pictures International, Paramount Licensing Inc., Paramount Studio Group and Paramount Television & Digital Distribution.

ABOUT INDIAN PAINTBRUSH
Indian Paintbrush, a film development/production/finance company, is currently in production on THE UNTITLED DRAKE DOREMUS PROJECT starring Guy Pearce, Amy Ryan and Felicity Jones. Indian Paintbrush and Paramount Pictures acquired Doremus' LIKE CRAZY at the 2011 Sundance Film Festival where it won the Grand Jury Prize as well as a Special Grand Jury Prize for Felicity Jones and Paramount Vantage will release the film on October 28, 2011. Indian Paintbrush is in post-production on: Lorene Scafaria’s SEEKING A FRIEND FOR THE END OF THE WORLD, starring Steve Carell and Keira Knightley to be released by Focus; Wes Anderson’s next feature, MOONRISE KINGDOM, starring Bruce Willis, Ed Norton, Bill Murray, Frances McDormand and Tilda Swinton, also distributed by Focus; and THE UNTITLED DAVID CHASE PROJECT with James Gandolfini, Brad Garrett, Bella Heathcote, Christopher McDonald, Molly Price and Lisa Lampanelli to be distributed by Paramount. Previously, Indian Paintbrush co-financed and executive produced Anderson’s FANTASTIC MR. FOX and THE DARJEELING LIMITED.

Warner Bros. Begins "The Gangster Squad" with Sean Penn and Josh Brolin

“The Gangster Squad” Hits the Streets of Los Angeles

Shooting begins on the crime drama starring Sean Penn, Josh Brolin, Ryan Gosling and Emma Stone

BURBANK, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Principal photography began today on Warner Bros. Pictures’ and Village Roadshow Pictures’ “The Gangster Squad,” starring Oscar® nominees Josh Brolin (“Milk,” “True Grit”) and Ryan Gosling (“Half Nelson,” “Blue Valentine”), Emma Stone (“The Help”) and Academy Award® winner Sean Penn (“Milk,” “Mystic River”), under the direction of Ruben Fleischer (“Zombieland”).

Los Angeles, 1949. Ruthless, Brooklyn-born mob king Mickey Cohen (Sean Penn) runs the show in this town, reaping the ill-gotten gains from the drugs, the guns, the prostitutes and—if he has his way—every wire bet placed west of Chicago. And he does it all with the protection of not only his own paid goons, but also the police and the politicians who are under his control. It’s enough to intimidate even the bravest, street-hardened cop…except, perhaps, for the small, secret crew of LAPD outsiders led by Sgt. John O’Mara (Josh Brolin) and Jerry Wooters (Ryan Gosling), who come together to try to tear Cohen’s world apart.

Shooting entirely in and around Los Angeles, including in many of the actual locations featured in the story, “The Gangster Squad” is a colorful retelling of events surrounding the LAPD’s efforts to take back their nascent city from one of the most dangerous mafia bosses of all time. The screenplay is by Will Beall (TV’s “Castle”), based on Paul Lieberman’s series of articles entitled “Tales From the Gangster Squad.” The film is being produced by Dan Lin (“Sherlock Holmes”), Kevin McCormick (upcoming “The Lucky One”) and Michael Tadross (“Arthur”).

“The Gangster Squad” stars Penn as real-life mobster Mickey Cohen; Brolin and Gosling as the LAPD’s Sgt. John O’Mara and Jerry Wooters; and Stone as Grace Faraday, Cohen’s moll and the object of Wooters’ attention.

The movie also stars Robert Patrick (“Flags of Our Fathers”) as Officer Max Kennard, a deadly cop who patrols the Olvera Street beat; Michael Peña (“Battle Los Angeles”) as Kennard’s over-eager sidekick, Navidad Ramirez; Giovanni Ribisi (“Avatar”) as the force’s Conway Keeler, an electronics expert who takes as much pleasure in fixing his son’s bike as he does tinkering with experimental, military-grade equipment; and Anthony Mackie (“The Adjustment Bureau”) as Coleman Harris, a switchblade-wielding cop who proudly patrols one of the most crime-ridden areas of the city.

Joining Fleischer behind the scenes are the director’s regular collaborators, production designer Maher Ahmad and editor Alan Baumgarten (“30 Minutes or Less,” “Zombieland”), as well as Academy Award®-winning director of photography Dion Beebe (“Memoirs of a Geisha”) and Oscar®-nominated costume designer Mary Zophres (“True Grit”).

“The Gangster Squad” will be distributed by Warner Bros. Pictures, a Warner Bros. Entertainment Company, and in select territories by Village Roadshow Pictures.

Review: Woody Allen's "You Will Meet a Tall Dark Stranger" is Not an Exciting Encounter

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 16 (of 2011) by Leroy Douresseaux

You Will Meet a Tall Dark Stranger (2010)
Running time: 98 minutes (1 hour, 38 minutes)
MPAA – R for some language
WRITER/DIRECTOR: Woody Allen
PRODUCERS: Letty Aronson, Jaume Roures, and Stephen Tenenbaum
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Vilmos Zsigmond
EDITOR: Alisa Lepselter

COMEDY/DRAMA/ROMANCE

Starring: Antonio Banderas, Josh Brolin, Anthony Hopkins, Gemma Jones, Freida Pinto, Lucy Punch, Naomi Watts, Pauline Collins, Roger Ashton-Griffiths, Ewen Bremner, and Zak Orth (narrator)

You Will Meet a Tall Dark Stranger is the fourth London-set film from famed director Woody Allen. The film follows a pair of married couples in some state of marital dissolution.

After her husband, Alfie Shepridge (Anthony Hopkins), divorces her, Helena Shepridge (Gemma Jones) consults Cristal (Pauline Collins), a psychic, to learn what fate has in store for her. Alfie, in the midst of an old man’s version of a midlife crisis, is engaged to a prostitute named Charmaine Foxx (Lucy Punch). Helena and Alfie’s daughter, Sally Channing (Naomi Watts), and her husband, Roy Channing (Josh Brolin), are having their own marital problems. Sally is smitten with Greg Clemente (Antonio Banderas), the owner of the art gallery where she works. Roy, a struggling writer, falls in love with Dia (Freida Pinto), a grad student who is already engaged to be married. Meanwhile, Helena waits for the tall, dark stranger Cristal predicted would come into her life.

When one considers the films Woody Allen made in the 1970s, 80s, and even into the 90s, You Will Meet a Tall Dark Stranger, like most of Allen’s films from the last decade, does not measure up. Parts of this film are dull and uninspired, but some of it is also shocking and sincere in its depiction of how a person’s dissatisfaction with his or her life can manifest itself.

I think credit should go to the cast who seem to not only make the best of this middling material, but in some cases, make it better. Gemma Jones and Anthony Hopkins are the best examples of that in this film. I’m not familiar with Jones, but I am with Hopkins. As much as I always expect him to be good, Hopkins surprises me with his fantastic turn as the vain, confused, and ultimately tragic Alfie. Hopkins brings complexity to a character that needs complexity.

The themes of this film seem to be vanity and discontent, and the characters yearn for material things while ignoring how bankrupt they are spiritually. However, You Will Meet a Tall Dark Stranger doesn’t seem to yearn for anything, being largely philosophically and spiritually empty. This movie doesn’t even have an ending so much as the story just seems to fade away.

I have to be honest. If anyone else other than Woody Allen pulled what he does with this movie, I would be intolerant. So if you are a fan of Allen or of at least one of the cast members, you may want to meet this movie. Otherwise, you will not want to meet You Will Meet a Tall Dark Stranger.

5 of 10
C+

Saturday, February 19, 2011

Review: In "Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps" Michael Douglas is Still King

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 9 (of 2011) by Leroy Douresseaux

Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps (2010)
Running time: 133 minutes (2 hours, 13 minutes)
MPAA – PG-13 for brief strong language and thematic elements
DIRECTOR: Oliver Stone
WRITERS: Allan Loeb and Stephen Schiff (based upon characters created by Stanley Weiser and Oliver Stone)
PRODUCER: Edward R. Pressman, Eric Kopeloff, and Oliver Stone
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Rodrigo Prieto (D.o.P.)
EDITORS: David Brenner and Julie Monroe
Golden Globe nominee

DRAMA

Starring: Michael Douglas, Shia LaBeouf, Josh Brolin, Carey Mulligan, Frank Langella, Susan Sarandon, Vanessa Ferlito, John Buffalo Mailer, Eli Wallach, Austin Pendleton, Oliver Stone and Charlie Sheen

Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps, a film from Oliver Stone, is a sequel to Stone’s 1987 movie, Wall Street. Money Never Sleeps is set 23 years after the original and revolves around the 2008 financial crisis. It focuses on a young trader working to unite a legendary Wall Street figure with his daughter, the trader’s girlfriend. As good as it is, however, the new film does not resonate the way the original did.

The film opens in 2001 with Gordon Gekko (Michael Douglas), the Wall Street titan of the first film, being released from federal prison after serving eight years for insider trading and securities fraud. Jumping seven years later, the film shifts focus to Jacob “Jake” Moore (Shia LaBeouf), a trader at Keller Zabel, a major Wall Street investment bank. Jake is trying to raise 100 million dollars to fund a fusion research project. Keller Zabel, however, is in trouble, and the firm’s managing director, Louis Zabel (Frank Langella), who is also Jake’s mentor, goes down with his firm.

In the aftermath, Jake proposes to his girlfriend, Winnie Gekko (Carey Mulligan), Gordon Gekko’s daughter. Jake also meets Gordon and retries to reunite him with Winnie, who wants nothing to do with her father. Behind Winnie’s back, Jake and Gekko plot revenge against Bretton James (Josh Brolin). The CEO of investment firm Churchill Schwartz, James helped bring down Keller Zabel. Gekko also has a score to settle, but Jake is about to learn how troublesome Gekko is to friend and foe alike.

The original Wall Street was about power, insiders, information, influence, and greed. Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps is about lying, cheating, and a monstrous form of greed that will eat and/or destroy everything around it, regardless of the damage done or even potential harm done to itself. With that kind of subject matter, Money Never Sleeps should be a better film than it is. It is certainly a good film, with excellent performances, but it never reaches its potential.

Neither the film’s writers nor Stone, its director, seem able to distinguish what Money Never Sleeps’ focus is supposed to be. Is it about Jake and Gekko or Jake versus Bretton James or Jake and Gekko versus Bretton? Is it about Jake trying to reunite Gekko with his estranged daughter, Winnie? The film tries all these plots and storylines, but mostly leaves them with unsatisfying and/or half-done resolutions.

Where as the first film had the central conflict of Douglas’ Gordon Gekko versus Charlie Sheen’s Bud Fox (who makes a cameo in the new film), Money Never Sleeps lacks a strong central conflict. The first film dealt with insider trading, giving the audience clear details into how this illegal practice works. Because the bugaboo of the new film is the confusing matter of derivatives, the screenplay avoids the details, and the movie suffers for it.

The performances are all good. Shia LaBeouf is surprising and holds his own against Michael Douglas, affirming that the young actor can be a leading man. Douglas gets better with age, and he has been good for longer than LaBeouf has been alive. It is easy to forget how capable Douglas is of being subtle, as he gives Gekko more layers than the viewer can count.

Watching Douglas, it becomes obvious that even if the new movie is about the new players on Wall Street, the movie loves the smartest, most dangerous, and most enigmatic player, Gordon Gekko. One of the reasons that Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps is good is because it has the strongest element from the first film, Gekko. Despite its strengths, the new film cannot come up with anything of its own that is as memorable as Gordon Gekko.

7 of 10
B+

NOTES:
2011 Golden Globes: 1 nomination: “Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role in a Motion Picture” (Michael Douglas)

Friday, January 28, 2011

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Review: Gritty "True Grit" Offers Great Characters and Superb Performances

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 6 (of 2011) by Leroy Douresseaux

True Grit (2010)
Running time: 110 minutes (1 hour, 50 minutes)
MPAA – PG-13 for some intense sequences of western violence including disturbing images
DIRECTORS: The Coen Brothers
WRITERS: Joel Coen and Ethan Coen (based upon the novel by Charles Portis)
PRODUCERS: Ethan Coen, Joel Coen, and Scott Rudin
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Roger Deakins (D.o.P.)
EDITORS: Roderick Jaynes (Ethan Coen and Joel Coen)
COMPOSER: Carter Burwell

WESTERN/ADVENTURE/DRAMA

Starring: Jeff Bridges, Hailee Steinfeld, Matt Damon, Josh Brolin, Barry Pepper, Candyce Hinkle, Roy Lee Jones, Orlando Smart, and Ed Corbin

The latest film from the Coen Bros. (Joel and Ethan) is the Western, True Grit. It is the second film adaptation of the 1968 Charles Portis novel, True Grit; the first was a 1969 film starring John Wayne. True Grit is the story of a stubborn young woman who convinces a tough U.S. Marshal to help her find her father’s murderer.

After her father is murdered by one of his hired hands, a man named Tom Chaney (Josh Brolin), 14-year-old Mattie Ross (Hailee Steinfeld) arrives in a small town to collect her father’s body and get his killer. She attempts to hire U.S. Marshal Reuben “Rooster” Cogburn (Jeff Bridges) to track Chaney into Indian country where he is hiding with a gang of criminals. Mattie tells Cogburn that she chose him because he has “true grit,” but that isn’t enough to convince Cogburn to take the job. When he does accept the offer, Cogburn decides to take a vain Texas Ranger, LaBoeuf (Matt Damon), with him instead of Mattie. But the young woman is about to show them both that she also has “true grit.”

As they do in all their movies, Joel and Ethan Coen get great performances from their actors. Jeff Bridges gives so many layers to Rooster Cogburn (the role John Wayne played in the 1969 film). The viewer will spend the entire movie peeling those layers back and still not have the whole story on this character that Bridges makes so real. Although LaBoeuf isn’t quite as interesting as Rooster, Matt Damon shows his true grit by making a vain chatterbox and (at best) semi-competent lawman/nincompoop a character that I wish was onscreen more.

Yes, the praise that newcomer Hailee Steinfeld, as Mattie, has received for her performance in this film is not mere hype. She’s a natural, and she makes this movie as much as anyone else does – including the Coen Bros.

The one glaring weakness that keeps True Grit from being a truly great film is how the filmmakers treat the villains. There is potential in Josh Brolin’s Tom Chaney and especially in Barry Pepper’s “Lucky” Ned Pepper, but both are hardly ever on screen. The film spends so much time showing us the tremendous work of Bridges, Steinfeld, and Damon and their characters that everyone else gets shorted.

There isn’t anything really profound about True Grit, except this tidbit at the end: time catches up with everyone. This film is really not about ideas. True Grit, even with the performances at its heart, is a Coen Brothers film. This is about how they do it – their style, their rhythms, their quirks, their directorial trademarks and flourishes. That’s not a bad thing simply because Joel and Ethan Coen do their thang so well.

8 of 10
A

Wednesday, January 19, 2011

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Review: "American Gangster" is Gangsta, Though it Falls Short of Greatness

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 28 (of 2008) by Leroy Douresseaux

American Gangster (2007)
Running time: 157 minutes (2 hours, 37 minutes)
MPAA – R for violence, pervasive drug content and language, nudity, and sexuality
DIRECTOR: Ridley Scott
WRITER: Steven Zallian (based upon the article “The Return of Superfly” by Mark Jacobson)
PRODUCERS: Brian Grazer and Ridley Scott
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Harris Savides (D.o.P.)
EDITOR: Pietro Scalia
2007 Academy Award nominee

CRIME/DRAMA

Starring: Denzel Washington, Russell Crowe, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Josh Brolin, Lymari Nadal, Ted Levine, Roger Guenveur Smith, John Hawkes, RZA, Ruby Dee, Ruben Santiago-Hudson, Carla Gugino, Cuba Gooding, Jr., Armand Assante, Idris Elba, Common, Warner Miller, Albert Jones, J. Kyle Manzay, T.I., and Clarence Williams III

In the late 80’s, a critic (I don’t remember whom) said, in reference to Joel and Ethan Coen’s Miller’s Crossing, that every American director who wanted to achieve greatness had to make at least one epic crime film (like The Godfather or Mean Streets). Ridley Scott was born in Great Britain, but the majority of his work has been for American movie studios. It seems only right that, in the tradition of great crime movies by such uniquely American filmmakers as Francis Ford Coppola and Martin Scorcese, Scott tackle a great American crime story. Scott’s Oscar-nominated 2007 film, American Gangster, chronicles the rise of Frank Lucas, the real-life Harlem drug kingpin who left segregated North Carolina and eventually started a heroin ring in the late 1960’s that netted him over a quarter of a billion dollars in assets by the time he was brought down.

After the death of his mentor, Elsworth “Bumpy” Johnson (Clarence Williams III), Frank Lucas (Denzel Washington) slowly, but gradually takes his place, building an international heroin ring that begins in Asia’s Golden Triangle. With the help of his cousin, a military officer named Nate (Roger Guenveur Smith), Lucas smuggles the heroin through the military back to the east coast of the U.S. Under the name, “Blue Magic,” Lucas sells a product that is twice as pure as other heroin on the street, but at half the price.

Meanwhile, Detective Richie Roberts (Russell Crowe), a New Jersey police detective, is finding that his unwillingness to steal money and drugs like many of his crooked colleagues has made him an outcast. His fortunes change when he’s pegged to start his own special investigative unit that will focus not on small time dealers, but on the major players, which puts Frank Lucas squarely in his sights. However, Roberts’ shadowy hunt might land him more than just another crime boss.

American Gangster is an engrossing story that is smoothly and efficiently told, considering that its epic scope seems too large for a single film that runs under three hours. [American Gangster’s DVD release has a longer version of the film.] As well told as this film is, it seems to be missing a lot, thus, making it seem like a shadow version of classic 70’s crime dramas that are also set in the gritty, crime-ridden metropolis that was New York City then. This is certainly a juicy period piece, in which everything: the clothes, cars, sets, and furnishings feel like the 1970’s. Even the members of the cast seem caught in a malaise of poverty, crime, and corruption, as if they were caught in a 70’s time warp.

Still, although the mood is right, the heart of this movie is the duel between Washington’s Lucas and Crowe’s Roberts, and much of that is relegated to the film’s last half hour. Ridley Scott and his screenwriter, Oscar winner Steve Zallian (Schindler’s List), certainly create an engaging story chronicling both Lucas’ rise and Roberts’ reinvention of himself and resurrection of his career. Washington plays Lucas as if he were a cool big cat, a predator stalking the room – seen and unseen. He’s the smartest guy in the room and the most dangerous man among many bad men, because Lucas knows when to use violence and how much. Like many of Washington’s performances, it is a blast to behold and so good because he gives so many layers to Lucas – many of which we only glimpse. Crowe reveals Roberts to be a man of honor and integrity in his professional life, but woefully pathetic in his personal life. In that way, Crowe keeps Roberts as interesting as the alluring bad guy, Lucas. That we know Roberts is so pathetic as a family man balances the Boy Scout cop side of him – which by itself is not entirely interesting.

This film is ultimately missing the meat of the confrontation and larger relationship between these two men. American Gangster, Scott’s film, is mostly about Lucas building his empire, and that story is attractive. However, a complete story about a great gangster recounts both his rise in the criminal underworld and his fall at the hands of a determined lawman (or men). American Gangster is a fine film, but it shorts us on the epic battle between criminal and detective and thus, shorts itself of greatness.

7 of 10
B+

NOTES:
2008 Academy Awards: 2 nominations: “Best Achievement in Art Direction” (Arthur Max-art director and Beth A. Rubino-set decorator) and “Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role” (Ruby Dee)

2008 BAFTA Awards: 5 nominations: “Best Cinematography” (Harris Savides), “Best Editing” (Pietro Scalia), “Best Film” (Brian Grazer and Ridley Scott), “Best Music” (Marc Streitenfeld), “Best Screenplay – Original” (Steven Zaillian)

2008 Golden Globes: 3 nominations: “Best Director - Motion Picture” (Ridley Scott), “Best Motion Picture – Drama,” and “Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture – Drama” (Denzel Washington)

Sunday, June 01, 2008

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