Cult Animated Film, "Wizards," Gets Anniversary Blu-ray Release

DELVE INTO RALPH BAKSHI’S CULT CLASSIC LIKE NEVER BEFORE

WIZARDS

The Fantastical Allegory Comes to Life for the First Time On Blu-ray March 13

Twentieth Century Fox’s first-ever animated film, created by renowned director Ralph Bakshi, Wizards appears in a 35th Anniversary Edition Blu-ray + Book release on March 13 from Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment. Celebrating its 35th anniversary, the “epic fantasy of peace and magic” stars the voice talent of Mark Hamill (Star Wars Saga). The special edition Blu-ray + Book release is a must-have for fans and collectors, featuring 24-pages of amazing artwork from the film, some of the artwork never-before-seen, and a special message from Bakshi!

Set on a post-apocalyptic Earth, this fantasy adventure follows the story of Avatar, the kindly, eccentric sorcerer-ruler of Montagar, a rainbow paradise inhabited by elves and fairies. Avatar's evil brother, Blackwolf, dominates Scortch, a bleak land of goblins and wraiths. When the power-hungry Blackwolf attacks Montagar, Avatar, accompanied only by a spirited young woman and a courageous elf, must enter the darkness of Scortch to save his world.

WIZARDS will be available as a Blu-ray + Book release for the ARP of $19.99.

Review: Ralph Bakshi's "Wizards" is Still Distinctive

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 82 (of 2003) by Leroy Douresseaux

Wizards (1977) – animation
Running time: 82 minutes (1 hour, 22 minutes)
MPAA – PG
WRITER/PRODUCER/DIRECTOR: Ralph Bakshi
EDITOR: Donald W. Ernst
COMPOSER: Andrew Belling

ANIMATION/FANTASY/SCI-FI/WAR

Starring: (voices) Bob Holt, Jim Connell, Steve Gravers, Jessie Welles, Susan Tyrrell, Richard Romanus, David Proval, Peter Hobbs, Barbara Sloane, Angelo Grisanti, Mark Hamill, and Adolf Hitler (archival audio recordings)

With very few Disney films to compete with his output in the 1970’s, Ralph Bakshi was certainly one of the best known directors of animation and one of the most controversial. Lacking the resources of an animation giant, Bakshi often had to be quite savvy in presenting his animated creations, mixing traditional cel animation with other techniques to make animated film, and that is the case with his 1977 film, Wizards.

Wizards is set on a post-apocalyptic Earth long after the horrors of a nuclear holocaust, when magic has returned to the earth. Avatar (Bob Holt), a good wizard, and his fairy folk comrades must battle Avatar’s evil brother Blackwolf (Steve Gravers), also a wizard, to save the world. Blackwolf has discovered a cache of 20th century weapons, tanks, and other long-forgotten instruments of war, as well as archival film footage of Adolf Hitler and of Nazi Germany. Blackwolf uses the Nazi propaganda films to whip his army of goblins and wraiths into a frenzy and sends them on to ravage Montagar, Avatar’s sanctuary of elves and fairies. Avatar, accompanied by a spirited young fairy-in-training Elinore (Jessie Welles) and a brave elf Weehawk (Richard Romanus) set off to Blackwolf’s kingdom of Scortch to stop him.

I liked the style of animation used in this film, which didn’t strive for realism, and was influenced by “underground” cartoonists, especially the work of the late Vaughn Bode. Bakshi also uses lots of rotoscoping, a process in which animators simply draw or add color over film footage to make it look “animated.” All the battle footage, including fighters, weapons, and tanks is simply hand drawing and coloring over footage from other war films or over archival documentary film. Coloring over film stock simply saved Bakshi and his crew from what would have been an impossible task, with their resources, of drawing battle scenes featuring hundreds of combatants and lots of weapons. However, what is drawn is very beautiful, and it really reminded me of cartoons and comic books. It’s not high-falutin,’ but it gives the tale a funky, out there feel. Some of the best work are the gorgeous still drawings by cartoonist Michael Ploog (who also did the storyboards for Michael Jackson’s “Smooth Criminal” video).

The story is a straight-on, blunt anti-war film. Wizards is a strong statement in the popularly held image of a hippie tradition against violence, hatred, and prejudice and for peace and love. Although it is not naïve, but it is an artistic statement based on seemingly impossible to reach ideals. I can’t help but respect what Bakshi did with this film; he delivered his message in an artistic medium that’s usually reserved for, at best, tepid commentary and for children’s entertainment, at least in American animation. The film drags a bit, and in the end, its ideal of a society based on love and peace is simplistic, underdeveloped, unrealistic, and impractical given human nature. But hey, it’s just a movie, right? However, because of the combination of the beautiful animation and colors and forceful delivery of its story about peace, Wizards is a unique film experience, unlike most live action films and most animated films you will ever see.

6 of 10
B

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Brendan Gleeson Shines in "The Guard"

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 20 (of 2012) by Leroy Douresseaux


The Guard (2011)
COUNTRY OF ORIGIN: Ireland
Running time: 96 minutes (1 hour, 36 minutes)
MPAA – R for pervasive language, some violence, drug material and sexual content
WRITER/DIRECTOR: John Michael McDonagh
PRODUCERS: Chris Clark, Flora Fernandez-Marengo, Ed Guiney, and Andrew Lowe
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Larry Smith
EDITOR: Chris Gill
COMPOSER: Calexico
BAFTA nominee

CRIME/COMEDY

Starring: Brendan Gleeson, Don Cheadle, Liam Cunningham, David Wilmot, Rory Keenan, Mark Strong, Fionnula Flanagan, Katarina Cas, Laurence Kinlan, Pat Shortt, Darren Healy, Gary Lydon, Wale Ojo, and Michael Og Lane

The Guard is a 2011 Irish crime comedy starring Brendan Gleeson and Don Cheadle (who is also one of the film’s executive producers). Written and directed by John Michael McDonagh (Ned Kelly), the film focuses on an unorthodox Garda (Irish policeman) and a tightly wound FBI agent in pursuit of international drug dealers.

Straight-laced FBI Special Agent Wendell Everett (Don Cheadle) arrives in Ireland on the trail of international drug dealers, specifically four suspects. Everett meets Sergeant Gerry Boyle (Brendan Gleeson), a wisecracking and confrontational local Garda from the village of Galway. Boyle may already have a lead on the drug smugglers, but he chooses to annoy the American instead of helping him. When the drug-related violence and murder get close to him, however, Boyle suddenly finds himself doing police work way beyond anything he has ever done before.

The Guard is a weird film. Perhaps, I did not expect an Irish film to be so quirky as to seem like a movie from Wes Anderson (Rushmore, The Royal Tennenbaums). This film is both a crime comedy and a black comedy, so it is violent and twisted. Also, every moment in the film that attempts to be poignant are sabotaged by the profane and scabrous.

Writer/director John Michael McDonagh gives the film satirical flourishes by poking fun at the Irish city of Dublin and also at the miscues of the highest law enforcement agencies in both the U.S. and the U.K. He defiantly fills his film with so many odd characters, like Eugene Moloney (Michael Og Lane), the weird kid obsessed with the Irish Republican Army (IRA), and a young odd duck who photographs crime scenes in loving, gruesome detail. That many eccentrics could ruin a movie, but McDonagh deftly keeps these characters and their strangeness in check.

He has to keep these characters under control so that they don’t stand in the way of Brendan Gleeson’s fragrantly pungent turn as Gerry Boyle. The verbally adroit Gleeson spits out the dialogue McDonagh wrote for him as if he were battling Eminem. It is a showy performance on the part of Gleeson, but he does it with such veteran ease that his seems natural. Boyle may be a loser living a crude life of lust and drink, but he isn’t doing it half-assed.

What keeps the film from being great is that it does not give us what its premise promises – a warped version of the buddy-cop movie. Gleeson and Don Cheadle are not together enough – for me, at least. When Cheadle’s Wendell Everett is with Gleeson’s Boyle, they seem perfectly matched for some mismatched comedy duo gold. The Guard only gives us Boyle/Everett in chopped up bits that never last that long, until the last act, which is a shame.

I must also note that I wish Mark Strong, Liam Cunningham, and David Wilmot’s villainous characters were more developed, as they could be the stars of their own movie. There is nothing wrong with The Guard focusing on Gleeson’s Boyle, but as the film’s final moments focus on Cheadle’s Everett, it becomes obvious that The Guard misses out on being a buddy-cop classic.

7 of 10
A-

NOTES:
2012 BAFTA Awards: 1 nomination: “Best Original Screenplay” (John Michael McDonagh)

2012 Golden Globes: 1 nomination: “Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture - Comedy or Musical” (Brendan Gleeson)

2012 Black Reel Awards: 1 win: “Outstanding Supporting Actor” (Don Cheadle)

2012 Image Awards: 1 nomination: “Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Motion Picture” (Don Cheadle)

Don Cheadle Turns "Traitor" into a Hot Thriller

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 19 (of 2012) by Leroy Douresseaux


Traitor (2008)
Running time: 114 minutes (1 hour, 54 minutes)
MPAA – PG-13 for intense violent sequences, thematic material and brief language
DIRECTOR: Jeffrey Nachmanoff
WRITERS: Jeffrey Nachmanoff; from a story by Steve Martin and Jeffrey Nachmanoff
PRODUCERS: Don Cheadle, David Hoberman, Todd Lieberman, and Jeffrey Silver
CINEMATOGRAPHER: J. Michael Muro (D.o.P.)
EDITOR: Billy Fox
COMPOSER: Mark Kilian

DRAMA/THRILLER

Starring: Don Cheadle, Guy Pearce, Saïd Taghmaoui, Neal McDonough, Alvy Khan, Archie Panjabi, Raad Rawi, Lorena Gale, and Jeff Daniels

Traitor is a 2008 drama and thriller starring Don Cheadle. Based on an idea by Steve Martin (yes, that Steve Martin), who is also an executive producer on this film, Traitor focuses on a U.S. citizen turned terrorist and the FBI agent who is tracking him.

Born in Sudan and a naturalized Arabic-speaking, U.S. citizen, Samir Horn (Don Cheadle) is working as an arms dealer when he is arrested in Yemen and thrown in a Yemeni prison. There, he meets Omar (Saïd Taghmaoui), who is part of the Al-Nathir terrorist network. Omar befriends Samir, and after they escape from prison, Omar gets Samir to join the Islamic Brotherhood.

Meanwhile, FBI Special Agent Roy Clayton (Guy Pearce) has been hunting Samir, who is also former U.S. Special Operations Forces, through numerous countries. After he learns that Samir has returned to America, Clayton must discover the secrets behind this complicated man before the mysterious Risala Shukra Al-hiba event begins. Samir is a traitor, but exactly who or what is he betraying.

While it examines the beliefs and motivations behind terrorism, Traitor operates like a spy thriller similar to the 2010 Angelina Jolie film, Salt. Traitor is also a kind of dual procedural thriller, as it depicts how an FBI international terrorism investigation works and how terrorists plan (recruiting, financing, infiltrating, etc.). This is a film that seems to really know its subject matter. Of course, this is a bare-bones version of the inner workings of a terrorist organization, but the audience will get the idea that this movie isn’t something thrown together like an exploitation film.

Traitor has lots of twists and turns, and not only does it have one major reveal, but it also has a few big ones in the last half-hour, alone. Don Cheadle, who gives another high-quality performance, holds the story together, so this fast-moving narrative has dramatic heft. Sometimes, Traitor made me feel uncomfortable because it seems so plausible, and credit that to Cheadle’s performance. Traitor is his movie, and he makes it a good one. It also doesn’t hurt that the radiant Archie Panjabi appears in this film in a nice supporting role.

7 of 10
A-

NOTES:
2009 Black Reel Awards: 3 nominations: “Best Actor” (Don Cheadle), “Best Breakthrough Performance” (Saïd Taghmaoui), and “Best Film” (Jeffrey Silver, Kay Liberman, Steve Martin, Todd Lieberman, David Hoberman, Ashok Amritraj, Steve Gaub, Don Cheadle, and Arlene Gibbs)

2009 Image Awards: 1 nomination: “Outstanding Actor in a Motion Picture” (Don Cheadle)

Sunday, March 11, 2012

Review: "Daddy Day Care" is Eddie Murphy Empty Calories

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 91 (of 2003) by Leroy Douresseaux


Daddy Day Care (2003)
Running time: 92 minutes (1 hour, 32 minutes)
MPAA – PG for language
DIRECTOR: Steve Carr
WRITER: Geoff Rodkey
PRODUCERS: Matt Berenson, John Davis, and Wyck Godfrey
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Steven Poster
EDITOR: Christopher Greenbury
COMPOSER: David Newman

COMEDY/FAMILY with elements of fantasy

Starring: Eddie Murphy, Jeff Garlin, Steve Zahn, Regina King, Kevin Nealon, Anjelica Huston, Jonathan Katz, Leila Arcieri, Khamani Griffin, and Max Burkholder

Once upon a time Eddie Murphy starred in movies people couldn’t get enough of like Trading Places and Beverly Hills Cop. Then, according to bigoted critics, Murphy turned his back on his “white audience” with films like Harlem Nights and Boomerang, which were not blockbusters but were nevertheless both excellent films featuring mostly African-American casts. Since the mid-90’s Murphy has starred in a number of “family-oriented” films that have been huge hits: The Nutty Professor, Mulan, Dr. Doolittle, and Shrek, etc. Frankly, I wouldn’t mind a combination of the star that appeared in Trading Places and Boomerang, but I can deal with the family friendly fare like Murphy’s recent hit, Daddy Day Care.

Charlie Hinton (Eddie Murphy) and Phil (Jeff Garlin) are laid off (fired) from their well paying jobs. As the weeks of being unemployed blow by they are spending more time with their sons, not that that’s a bad thing; they’re just not used to being employed. Like a light bulb exploding in his head, Charlie gets the idea of opening a daycare center, partly because he can no longer afford the posh Chapman Academy his son was attending when he was working. After initial skepticism, a growing number of mothers begin to rely on the affordable care that Charlie and Phil provide. However, the Chapman dowager, Mrs. Haridan (Anjelica Huston), doesn’t like the competition and schemes to have Charlie and Phil’s increasingly popular Daddy Day Care closed.

There’s no point in beating around the bush. Daddy Day Care is an entertainment delivery vehicle meant to give the “family audience” a few chuckles while affirming the bushy middle-class, suburban lifestyle. If that’s sounds like a criticism, it isn’t, not quiet. It’s simply that this film doesn’t have to be so vapid. Even the menace of Mrs. Haridan’s attempt to close the school is at best a lukewarm threat. If not for Ms. Huston’s ability to chew into even the most cardboard cutout characters, there would have been no dramatic tension in this film. The two male leads have lost their well-paying jobs, for chrissakes. That resonates with much of the audience in these shaky-as-ever economic times. Hell yeah, there are lots of laughs; I certainly found many, but this film could have been about something – about two dads struggling with new roles, roles men are not used to playing.

Oh well, I don’t regret seeing Daddy Day Care, and there are lots of warm and fuzzy feelings. It’s a safe trip to the movies for the entire family. Steve Zahn as Marvin, Daddy Day Care’s first new employee is an absolute show stealing delight. Impossible as it might seem, I like him more each time I see him in a movie. His inspired performance and off-kilter character were more than worth my time.

P.S. Two characters speak Klingon (a language from the Star Trek television and film franchise, for those who don’t know) in this movie; that alone is worth $1 of your admission price.

6 of 10
B

Review: Refn and Gosling "Drive" to Greatness

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 18 (of 2012) by Leroy Douresseaux

Drive (2011)
Running time: 100 minutes (1 hour, 40 minutes)
MPAA – R for strong brutal bloody violence, language and some nudity
DIRECTOR: Nicolas Winding Refn
WRITER: Hossein Amini (based upon the novel by James Sallis)
PRODUCERS: Michel Litvak, John Palermo, Marc Platt, Gigi Pritzker, and Adam Siegel
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Newton Thomas Sigel (D.o.P.)
EDITOR: Mat Newman
COMPOSER: Cliff Martinez
Academy Award nominee

CRIME/DRAMA/ACTION/THRILLER with elements of romance

Starring: Ryan Gosling, Carey Mulligan, Bryan Cranston, Albert Brooks, Oscar Isaac, Christina Hendricks, Ron Perlman, and Kaden Leos

I kept hearing good things about the film Drive, a 2011 crime drama and action thriller starring Ryan Gosling. Directed by critically-acclaimed Danish filmmaker, Nicolas Winding Refn, Drive centers on a mysterious getaway driver who lands himself in trouble when he helps out his neighbor’s troubled husband. The good things I heard about this film turned out to be true, and it is one of the very best films of 2011.

In the film, he is only known as The Driver (Ryan Gosling), and he is a supremely skilled getaway driver for those who need to get away after pulling off a heist or robbery. The Driver is also a Hollywood stuntman and mechanic, working on both jobs for garage owner, Shannon (Bryan Cranston). Shannon wants to get involved in stock car racing with The Driver as the man behind the wheel, so Shannon brings in mobster, Bernie Rose (Albert Brooks), as an investor in this venture.

The Driver lives in a low-rent apartment building where he meets and befriends his neighbor, Irene (Carey Mulligan), and her son, Benicio (Kaden Leos). The Driver begins to date Irene, but she is actually married to a man named Standard Gabriel (Oscar Isaac), who is about to be released from prison. After Standard is released, he must find a way to pay back protection money that he owes to a gangster. The Driver tries to help Standard and things go bad on all sides.

Drive is a hard-edged crime thriller with a neo-Film-Noir pedigree. Those who watch it may see the influence of a lot of Los Angeles-based films, including Pulp Fiction and various Michael Mann films. There is also more than a touch of John Carpenter – from the atmospheric, 1980s synth-pop score (created by the always interesting Cliff Martinez) to the somewhat Michael Myers-like Driver. I also see this as partially a blend of Carpenter’s original Halloween (1978) and The Transporter film series.

Whatever its influences are, Drive is simply brilliant. It is cool without being slick and overly produced (like many Hollywood crime movies). Drive is more modern than retro, but it has a timeless quality that also makes it seem to be from a vague near-future. Director Nicolas Winding Refn turned in one of the year’s best feats of film directing simply by making a movie that takes so many influences and inspirations and turns them into an original vision and a film apart from the rest.

This movie has a number of good performances. Of course, Ryan Gosling is the centerpiece. At first, he may come across as flat and too cool, but he slowly unveils a great big darkness that lives just under the surface. Gosling also shows a gentle, romantic, and human side that surprisingly breaks through in the most surprising moments. Plus, Gosling creates, in The Driver, a most memorable man-of-few-words anti-hero. The Driver is another performance that shows just how much talent Gosling has.

Carey Mulligan is solid in a relatively quiet and restrained performance, but she sells every scene in which she appears and matches Gosling when they appear in the same scene. Everything Albert Brooks does in this movie seems fresh and sensational, even when he does something that a movie mobster typically does. He makes the old mobster stereotypes edgy, contemporary, and original.

Drive is a crime flick that is also a dark L.A. fairy tale. It makes violence and brutality seem as if it could be no cooler than it is in Los Angeles. I would have enjoyed seeing more action sequences with cars, but I like Drive too much to complain.

9 of 10
A+

NOTES:
2012 Academy Awards: 1 nomination: “Best Achievement in Sound Editing” (Lon Bender and Victor Ray Ennis)

2012 BAFTA Awards: 4 nominations: “Best Film” (Marc Platt and Adam Siegel), “Best Director” (Nicolas Winding Refn), “Best Editing” (Matthew Newman), “Best Supporting Actress” (Carey Mulligan)

2011 Cannes Film Festival: 1 win: “Best Director” (Nicolas Winding Refn); 1 nomination: “Palme d'Or” (Nicolas Winding Refn)

2012 Golden Globes: 1 nomination: “Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role in a Motion Picture” (Albert Brooks)

Friday, March 09, 2012

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Robert Sherman, "Mary Poppins" Songwriter, Dies at 86

(From left to right: Robert Sherman, Richard Sherman, and Walt Disney.  Courtesy of of Walt Disney Company.)

Oscar®-Winning Mary Poppins Songwriter Robert B. Sherman, of the Legendary Sherman Brothers, Dies in London at Age 86; His Credits Include Beloved Songs for The Jungle Book, Winnie the Pooh, Plus “it’s a small world (after all)”

BURBANK, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Robert B. Sherman, half of the acclaimed and prolific Sherman Brothers songwriting team, passed away in London, England, on March 5 at The London Clinic, from an age-related illness. He was 86 years old. In collaboration with his brother, Richard M. Sherman (who survives him), Robert wrote some of the most memorable and beloved songs in the history of modern family entertainment. Personally selected by Walt Disney to write songs for his films, television shows, and theme parks, the Sherman Brothers had perhaps their biggest career milestone with the 1964 Disney masterpiece Mary Poppins, for which they received two of the film’s five Oscar® wins for Best Song (“Chim Chim Cher-ee”) and Best Original Score. They are responsible for more motion picture musical song scores than any other songwriting team in film history.

Throughout their incredible 50-year career as a songwriting team, the Sherman Brothers garnered nine Academy Award® nominations; won three Grammy Awards®; were inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame; received a remarkable array of 24 gold and platinum albums; and were the recipients of a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. Robert and his brother were the subject of an acclaimed 2009 documentary, the boys: the sherman brothers story, and recipients of the National Medal of Arts (the highest honor the United States government bestows on artists). In recent years, the Shermans have enjoyed great success on the London and Broadway stage with twin theatrical productions of two of their most beloved films: Mary Poppins and Chitty Chitty Bang Bang.

Commenting on Robert’s passing, Richard Sherman said, “My brother Bob was a poetic soul with limitless imagination and talent. He was my loyal friend all through the years. We were fortunate to have been blessed by two great men, our key inspirations—our father, Al, who teamed us up and taught us the craft, and Walt Disney, who provided us with an opportunity to realize our greatest dreams. Bob will be lovingly missed by all of us in his family.”

“Today, on behalf of everyone at Disney, we mourn the loss of an extraordinary talent, Robert Sherman,” said Disney President and CEO Bob Iger. “One of the world’s greatest songwriters and a true Disney legend, his legacy will endure forever through the magic of his music. From Mary Poppins and it’s a small world to Winnie the Pooh and The Jungle Book, Robert, along with his brother Richard, wrote many of Disney’s most memorable and beloved songs, which continue to enchant millions of people around the world to this day.”

Robert’s son, Jeff Sherman, who co-directed the documentary, the boys, noted, “My dad passed away peacefully in London on Monday night. He was an incredible man who loved life and lived it to the fullest. As he often said, he wanted to bring happiness into the world, and unquestionably he succeeded. His love and his prayers, his philosophy and his poetry will live on forever. Forever his songs and his genius will bring hope, joy, and love to this small world.”

Multiple Oscar®-winning composer/songwriter Alan Menken said, “The Sherman brothers legacy goes far beyond the craft of songwriting. There is a magic in their songs and in the films and musicals they breathed life into. My thoughts and prayers are with Robert’s family, and with Richard Sherman, who has become a dear and precious friend to me.”

Leonard Maltin, film historian and author of the book The Disney Films, observed, “Robert Sherman and his brother Richard spent a decade providing lively, tuneful, and memorable songs for Walt Disney’s movies, TV shows, and theme parks—and worked their way into the hearts of millions of fans all over the world. Their songs have the unusual—and inimitable—ability to make you feel good. No wonder people took to them when they were new and still respond to them today.”

Jeff Kurtti, co-author of the 1998 Sherman Brothers biography, Walt’s Time: From Before to Beyond, said, “Bob, along with his brother Dick, wrote the songbook of youth for generations. I am often confronted with the idea that Sherman songs are ‘kiddie songs.’ This couldn’t be further from the truth. Bob in particular had an affection for, and a felicity with, words that gave the illusion of simplicity to truly complex works. He was a quiet center of intellect and feeling, and nothing revealed his inner life more than when he and his brother expressed rich ideas and deep emotions through music.”

Born in New York City on December 19, 1925, Robert Sherman was the son of popular Tin Pan Alley songwriter Al Sherman. His father was famous for composing such early 20th century song hits as “You’ve Got to Be a Football Hero,” “Potatoes are Cheaper, Tomatoes are Cheaper (Now’s the Time to Fall in Love!)” and “No! No! A Thousand Times, No!” But perhaps father Sherman’s greatest achievement was in the teaming of his sons to form one of the most successful and enduring songwriting partnerships in music history.

After a series of fits and starts the brothers found themselves composing numerous top-10 tunes for teen star and original Mouseketeer Annette Funicello, including the 1959 hit “Tall Paul” (marking the first time that a female singer reached a top ten slot for a rock ‘n’ roll single). The Shermans penned songs for such popular Funicello record albums as Hawaiianette (including “Pineapple Princess”), Dance Annette and The Story of My Teens, all presented on Buena Vista Records, a music subsidiary of Walt Disney Productions.

In December 1960, the Sherman brothers debuted their classic rock and roll song “You're Sixteen.” The tune carries the distinction of having twice gone to Billboard's No. 1 spot: once with Johnny Burnette and then an unprecedented second time with Ringo Starr in 1974. This seminal Sherman Brothers song hit, along with their tunes that helped to make Annette Funicello Disney’s first-ever musical teen star, caught the attention of Walt Disney himself and he quickly hired them as staff songwriters for his studio in 1960.
The early 1960s saw the Shermans compose a number of songs for such classic Disney films and TV productions such as Zorro, The Absent-Minded Professor, The Parent Trap (“Let’s Get Together,” performed by Hayley Mills), Walt Disney’s Wonderful World of Color (theme song), In Search of the Castaways, Summer Magic (their first film musical) and The Sword in the Stone (their first Disney animated feature).

When Walt Disney produced four shows for 1964-65 New York World’s Fair, he turned to the Sherman brothers to provide memorable music for three of the attractions. For the General Electric Carousel of Progress, they penned the show's optimistic theme song “There’s a Great Big Beautiful Tomorrow.” The Ford Motor Company sponsored the Disney attraction Magic Skyway, featuring the song “Get the Feel of the Wheel of a Ford.”

The New York World’s Fair also provided the Shermans with the opportunity to create perhaps their most famous song. After Walt Disney decided that his salute to the children of the world, being developed for the UNICEF pavilion and sponsored by Pepsi-Cola, needed a catchy theme song, he turned to his trusted songwriting team of Richard and Robert. The brothers composed “it’s a small world (after all).” Since then, it has become one of the most perennially translated and performed songs on earth.

In 1964, the Sherman brothers began work on what they affectionately refer to as their “magnum opus,” Walt Disney's 1964 musical film fantasy Mary Poppins. The film was nominated for a Disney-record 13 Academy Awards, including Best Picture. On April 5, 1965, at the 37th Annual Academy Awards the film won five Oscars, including two statuettes for the Shermans—Best Song (“Chim Chim Cher-ee”) and Best Original Score.

The remainder of the 1960s and early 70s saw the Sherman brothers contributing popular songs and scores to numerous classic Disney films. Some of their memorable Disney top box-office film credits of the era include The Monkey’s Uncle (1965), That Darn Cat! (1965), Winnie the Pooh and the Honey Tree (1966), The Gnome-Mobile (1967), The Jungle Book (1967), The Happiest Millionaire (1967), Winnie the Pooh and the Blustery Day (1969), The One and Only Genuine Original Family Band (1969), The Aristocats (1970) and Bedknobs and Broomsticks (1971).

In the early 1970s, the Sherman brothers left the Walt Disney Studios to pursue other film projects. They went on to provide an array of music, songs and occasional screenplays to such memorable family films as Chitty Chitty Bang Bang (1968), Snoopy Come Home (1972) Charlotte’s Web (1973), The Adventures of Tom Sawyer (1973), Huckleberry Finn (1974) and The Slipper and the Rose (1976).

In 1990, the Sherman brothers received the prestigious Disney Legends Award given by The Walt Disney Company. The award is given to individuals whose body of work has made a significant impact on the Disney entertainment legacy. They were also honored in 1991 with BMI’s (Broadcast Music Incorporated) Lifetime Achievement Award and share a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame directly across from Grauman’s Chinese Theatre, where Mary Poppins premiered in 1964.

In 1999, Camphor Tree Publishers released the Sherman brothers’ autobiographical book entitled Walt’s Time: From Before to Beyond. The impressive family album-style book chronicles their amazing career(s) from childhood through their current endeavors using personal recollections and rarely seen family photos, film production photos and artwork.

The following year the Sherman brothers marked the new millennium with their fifth score for a Disney animated Winnie the Pooh film—The Tigger Movie (released in February 2000). For the film’s keynote song “Your Heart Will Lead You Home,” they shared composing credits with famed pop star Kenny Loggins.

Accolades continued in September 2002 as the Sherman brothers received the Lifetime Achievement Award from the Themed Entertainment Association in a ceremony at Hollywood’s historic El Capitan Theatre. In February 2003, Richard and Robert received the Windsor McCay Lifetime Achievement Award during the 30th Annual Annie Awards, presented by the International Animated Film Society.

In March 2010, the Disneyland Resort in California saluted the Shermans for their musical contributions to Disney Parks around the world. They were honored with their very own “window” on Main Street, U.S.A., which states: “Two Brothers Tunemakers – Richard M. Sherman and Robert B. Sherman: We’ll Write Your Tunes For a Song.”

In November 2006, a stage musical of their 2004 Olivier Award winning London West End production of Mary Poppins, produced by Disney and Cameron Mackintosh, opened on Broadway to acclaim and received seven Tony Award® nominations. The show combines the stories of P.L. Travers and the Academy Award-winning film to create an unforgettable theatrical experience and is currently playing to packed theaters on Broadway and on tour across North America and Australia.

In April 2002, the stage version of their classic 1968 film musical Chitty Chitty Bang Bang opened to acclaim at the historic London Palladium. Nominated for three Olivier Awards in the United Kingdom and five Tony Awards on Broadway, the show won Best Musical at the 2002 Variety Awards and the coveted 2006 Manchester Evening News Theatre Award for Best Family Show. The popular show is currently on tour throughout North America and the United Kingdom.

Thanks to their musical contributions to the Disney Parks around the world, the sun never sets on a Sherman Brothers song—their tunes are heard daily in California, Florida, Japan, France and China. Through the years many popular Disney Park attractions and entertainment spectaculars have featured Sherman brothers tunes, including Walt Disney's Enchanted Tiki Room, Carousel of Progress, it’s a small world, Adventure Thru Inner Space, Innoventions, The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh, Meet the World, Journey into Imagination, Fantasmic! and, most recently, World of Color.

Following the successful West End debut of Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, and the death of his beloved wife of 50 years, Joyce, Robert moved to London in 2002 to embark on a life filled with personal projects that included painting, writing poems and completing a long gestating collection of short stories entitled Moose.
In addition to his brother, Richard M. Sherman, Robert is survived by four children—Jeff Sherman, Robert J. Sherman, Laurie Sherman, and Tracy Sherman; as well as five grandchildren: Alex and Ryan (Jeff’s sons), and Josh, Amy and Sarah (Laurie’s children).

A public funeral service is planned at Hillside Memorial Park and Mortuary in Culver City on Friday, March 9 at 1 p.m. in the Large Chapel. Plans for a life celebration will be announced shortly.

Review: "The Rules of Attraction" Breaks Rules (Happy B'day, James Van Der Beek)

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 49 (of 2003) by Leroy Douresseaux

The Rules of Attraction (2002)
Running time: 100 minutes (1 hour, 40 minutes)
MPAA – R for strong sexual content, drug use, language and violent images (edited for re-rating)
DIRECTOR: Roger Avary
WRITER: Roger Avary (based upon the novel by Bret Easton Ellis)
PRODUCER: Greg Shapiro
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Robert Brinkmann
EDITOR: Sharon Rutter
COMPOSERS: tomandandy

DRAMA

Starring: James Van Der Beek, Ian Somerhalder, Shannyn Sossamon, Jessica Biel, Kate Bosworth, Jay Baruchel, Clifton Collins, Jr., Faye Dunaway, Swoosie Kurtz, Eric Stoltz, Fred Savage, and Kip Pardue

Roger Avary’s (who won an Oscar for co-writing Pulp Fiction) film The Rules of Attraction, an adaptation of Bret Easton Ellis’s novel of the same name, initially received an NC-17 rating before being edited to an R, and I have to say that I’d be afraid to see the “harsher” version that was too much for the tepid appetites of the MPAA rating board. It’s an apocalyptic love story about a love triangle involving three very self-absorbed students at a small New England college. It’s not for everyone, but it’s a bracing movie that throws safe filmmaking conventions to the wind and takes the viewer on a helter-skelter ride into the lust lives of hedonistic youth.

Paul Denton (Ian Somerhalder) is in love with Sean Bateman (James Van Der Beek, Varsity Blues, “Dawson’s Creek”), while Sean is in love with Lauren Hynde (Shannyn Sossamon) who is in love with the mostly absent Victor Johnson (Kip Pardue). Sean and Lauren manage to cobble up some kind of relationship, and while Sean really starts to dig Lauren, he can’t help but screw it up. Meanwhile, the beautiful, bisexual Paul has the extreme hots for Sean, but Sean barely even notices him. So Paul pursues; Sean pursues, and Lauren kind of pursues, but she’s in sort of a zone of indecision – attracted to Sean and pining for Victor.

The novel was apparently told from several points of view, so to keep that spirit, Avary breaks linear time, shifts between varying points of view, compares and contrasts POV, and allows interior communication between character and viewer. In Sean’s case, we get a jumble and confusing mess of interior monologues that serve to establish his inability to relate to others beyond his need of them. Avary gives the film the running theme of that no one really ever knows anyone else and that maybe people don’t really want other people to know them. And to ask another for such an intimate entry is looked upon as disingenuous. Each character is so caught up in his desire for his object of attraction that he never really tries to know that person.

The Rules of Attraction is a fascinating, satiric, and darkly comic look at attraction and at obtaining the object of attraction. If it has a fault, it’s is that the film lapses into small, but periodic dry spells and moments of pointless observation that stop the movie instead of moving the story forward. However, the acting is very good, particular Van Der Beek in one of those roles that supposed to show the world that the pretty boy actor can be grim and gritty.

If there are rules of attraction, no one here seems to know them; the characters seem to play it by the seats of the pants they’re so quick to drop. I love this film. It’s a stunning visual testament to the ugliness and unbridled power of pursuit, a love story that’s different yet uncomfortably familiar.

7 of 10
B+

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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

"Dark Tide," Starring Halle Berry, Debuts on Video-on-Demand March 8th

DARK TIDE - LIONSGATE AND WREKIN HILL ENTERTAINMENT, IN ASSOCIATION WITH ROW 1 PRODUCTIONS, UNREEL DARK TIDE, STARRING ACADEMY AWARD® WINNER HALLE BERRY, WITH MULTI-TIER RELEASE STRATEGY

Film To Debut On Ultra VOD March 8th Prior To US Theatrical Run March 30th With Packaged Media To Follow

LIONSGATE® (NYSE: LGF), a leading diversified global entertainment company, and Wrekin Hill Entertainment, an LA based film production and distribution company, in association with Row 1 Productions, announced today their multi-tiered release strategy to distribute the Academy Award® winner Halle Berry and Olivier Martinez action thriller DARK TIDE. Wrekin Hill Entertainment, in association with Row 1 Productions, acquired the US rights to director John Stockwell’s deep sea adventure for theatrical exhibition. Lionsgate, as part of its agreement with Wrekin Hill Entertainment will release the film on Video-on-Demand (VOD), Electronic Sell-Through (EST) and packaged media. The distribution plan leads off with a three week Ultra VOD window on March 8th with a theatrical release on March 30th, culminating in a packaged media and Digital Download release.

“The star power that Halle Berry brings to DARK TIDE paired with a genre that hits VOD audiences make it a perfect addition to our Ultra VOD strategy.” said Jim Packer, Lionsgate President of Worldwide Television and Digital Distribution.

Noted Chris Ball, President and CEO of Wrekin Hill Entertainment: “We are thrilled to be working with our partners at Lionsgate to attack the U.S. with this terrifying suspense thriller. Our multiplatform release assures that audiences across the country will have the opportunity to be bitten by DARK TIDE.”

Director John Stockwell (BLUE CRUSH, INTO THE BLUE) returns to the ocean with the thrilling feature DARK TIDE starring Academy Award® winner Berry and award-winning actor Martinez in their first on-screen roles together. The film, written by Amy Sorlie and Ronnie Christensen and based on a story by Sorlie, was produced by Jeanette Buerling and Matthew Chausse.

Synopsis: Kate (Berry) is a shark expert whose business has been failing since a shark attack killed a fellow diver under her command. Once dubbed "the shark whisperer," Kate is haunted by the memory of the attack and unable to get back into the water. With bills piling up and the bank about to foreclose on Kate's boat, Kate's old flame Jeff (Martinez) presents her with a lucrative opportunity: lead a thrill-seeking millionaire businessman on a dangerous shark dive…outside the cage. Battling her self-doubts and fear, Kate accepts the proposal -- and sets a course for the world's deadliest feeding ground: Shark Alley.

The deal for DARK TIDE was negotiated by Ball and Rene Cogan for Wrekin Hill and Brandt Andersen on behalf of Row 1 Productions, with Stuart Ford and Jonathan Deckter of IM Global on behalf of the filmmakers.

YouTube Link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0Wn544fBnS0


ABOUT LIONSGATE
Lionsgate is a leading global entertainment company with a strong and diversified presence in motion picture production and distribution, television programming and syndication, home entertainment, family entertainment, digital distribution and new channel platforms. The Company has built a strong television presence in production of prime time cable and broadcast network series, distribution and syndication of programming through Debmar-Mercury and an array of channel assets. Lionsgate currently has 15 shows on more than 10 networks spanning its prime time production, distribution and syndication businesses, including such critically-acclaimed hits as "Mad Men," "Weeds" and "Nurse Jackie" along with the comedy "Blue Mountain State," the Golden Globe winning drama "Boss" and the syndication successes "Tyler Perry's House Of Payne," its spinoff "Meet The Browns," "The Wendy Williams Show" and "Are We There Yet?".

Its feature film business has been fueled by such recent successes as THE LINCOLN LAWYER, TYLER PERRY'S MADEA'S BIG HAPPY FAMILY, MARGIN CALL, THE EXPENDABLES, THE LAST EXORCISM, TYLER PERRY'S WHY DID I GET MARRIED TOO?, KICK ASS and the critically-acclaimed PRECIOUS, which won two Academy Awards®. The Company's home entertainment business has grown to more than 7% market share and is an industry leader in box office-to-DVD and box office-to-VOD revenue conversion rate. Lionsgate handles a prestigious and prolific library of approximately 13,000 motion picture and television titles that is an important source of recurring revenue and serves as the foundation for the growth of the Company's core businesses. The Lionsgate brand remains synonymous with original, daring, quality entertainment in markets around the world.

About Wrekin Hill Entertainment
WREKIN HILL ENTERTAINMENT is a Los Angeles-based production and distribution company, founded by the former Newmarket Films team of Chris Ball and Rene Cogan. Ball and Cogan built a reputation at Newmarket for producing and distributing such indie classics as MEMENTO, DONNIE DARKO, WHALE RIDER, MONSTER, and THE PASSION OF THE CHRIST. Wrekin Hill has a multi-year US home entertainment distribution deal with Lionsgate, and a three-year multi-platform output deal with Canadian distributor eOne. The company aims to distribute four to five quality theatrical releases each year, in addition to its ancillary driven output, with a focus on the same kind of director-driven specialty films on which the team has built its reputation. During 2011, Wrekin Hill has theatrically released such films as Peter Weir’s THE WAY BACK, and Spencer Susser’s HESHER starring Joseph Gordon Levitt and Natalie Portman. In early 2012, the company will release award-winning Chinese director Zhang Yimou’s (House of Flying Daggers, Hero) and producer Zhang Weiping’s THE FLOWERS OF WAR starring Academy Award® winning actor Christian Bale. The film, which has been nominated for a Golden Globe for Best Foreign Language Film, also had a highly successful one-week awards qualifying run in late 2011. Other 2012 releases include Academy Award®-nominated Morgan Spurlock's fanboy documentary COMIC-CON EPISODE IV - A FAN'S HOPE; and Ben Palmer’s UK box office phenomenon THE INBETWEENERS, based on the award-winning British TV series of the same name.

About Row 1 Productions
Row 1 Productions was founded by a group of private investors including world-renowned Orthopedic Surgeon Dr. Rick Lehman. In addition to his prestigious medical practice, Lehman also has several holdings which include entertainment, medicine and an ownership stake in the NHL's Florida Panthers. Row 1 Production's investments include domestic rights acquisition and early stage bridge financing for production. Row 1 has provided financing for Stephen Frears’ LAY THE FAVORITE, FROZEN GROUND starring Nicholas Cage, and BROKEN CITY starring Mark Wahlberg and Russell Crowe. Row 1 Productions is headquartered in Beverly Hills, California.

Happy Birthday, Anna Douresseaux

I would enjoy celebrating your 45th birthday with you.

Review: "This is Spinal Tap" Never Stops Being Funny (Happy B'day, Rob Reiner)

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 106 (of 2005) by Leroy Douresseaux

This is Spinal Tap (1984)
Running time: 83 minutes (1 hour, 23 minutes)
MPAA – R
DIRECTOR: Rob Reiner
WRITERS: Christopher Guest, Michael McKean, Harry Shearer, & Rob Reiner
PRODUCER: Karen Murphy
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Peter Smokler
EDITOR: Kent Beyda and Kim Secrist

COMEDY/MUSIC

Starring: Christopher Guest, Michael McKean, Harry Shearer, Rob Reiner, June Chadwick, Tony Hendra, RJ Parnell, Fran Drescher, Patrick MacNee, Bruno Kirby, Ed Begley, Jr., Billy Crystal, Dana Carvey, Howard Hessman, Fred Willard, Paul Shaffer, Gloria Gifford, and Anjelica Huston

The subject of this review is This is Spinal Tap, a faux documentary that parodies rock documentary films. Directed by Rob Reiner, the film also satirizes the behavior and attitudes of members of hard rock and heavy metal bands.

This is Spinal Tap basically says that, “It’s time to get personal with one of music history’s greatest and loudest rock bands… Spinal Tap.” Documentary filmmaker Marty DiBergi (Rob Reiner) is making a “rockumentary,” a rock documentary of the band’s 1982 tour in support of the release of its 15th album, but the band has falling on some hard times. They’re playing smaller venues in front of an ever-shrinking audience, and the band’s front men: guitarist/co-songwriter David St. Hubbins (Michael McKean), lead guitarist/co-songwriter Nigel Tufnel (Christopher Guest), and bassist Derek Smalls (Harry Shearer) are older and struggling with inner band turmoil. DiBergi’s documentary gives them a chance to talk about themselves, their history, and their music and gives the audience a behind the scenes look at rare footage and a chance to hear lots of music. Will Spinal Tap survive, or will we die laughing first?

This is Spinal Tap, Rob Reiner’s faux documentary, created a film genre, the “mockumentary” or mock documentary. This is Spinal Tap is a fake documentary that follows the life and times of an aged metal band on an less-than-successful American tour, and everyone involved, especially the band comes across as twits. They don’t, in all seriousness, see themselves as pathetically funny as they actually are. Reiner, Christopher Guest, Michael McKean, and Harry Shearer wrote all the songs for the fake band called Spinal Tap (which some movie audiences initial thought was a real band), and with the rest of the cast, adlibbed most of the dialogue.

Anyone with more than a passing knowledge of heavy metal music and the eccentricities of metal’s most famous practitioners will double over in laughter at this “behind the scenes” look at band infighting, groupies, cancelled concerts, impractical stage sets, musical and performance pretensions, tight pants, misogynistic music, and the long hair and makeup. Even if you don’t like music, This is Spinal Tab is still funny; in fact the magazine, Entertainment Weekly, named it the #1 cult film of all time.

The film’s strength is in the music; one is actors playing the front men are all competent musicians. Spinal Tap’s songs are so funny and so dead on rock and roll and heavy metal, that for all that they are satires of metal songs, they also work quite well as actually metal music. Great parodies have to work as the thing they are parodying; Mel Brooks has made a career on getting the setting right in such films as Young Frankenstein, which looked like the classic black and white Universal Studios Frankenstein films and Blazing Saddles, which looked and acted like a western. The film’s other strength is the cast. Everyone is so good at playing so many absurd situations and saying so many ridiculous things with the straightest faces, as if the entire Spinal Tap scenario were all real and serious. This is Spinal Tap is a must-see for lovers of comedy.

8 of 10
A

NOTES:
2002 National Film Registry: National Film Preservation Board, USA

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"The Lion King 1½" and "The Lion King" Now on Blu-ray

The Lion King 1½

Simba, Nala, Timon and Pumbaa are Back For a Limited Time, Includes a New Timon and Pumbaa Bonus Feature Available March 6, 2012 on Blu-ray™, DVD and Digital

Synopsis: Hilarity reigns in the motion picture comedy-adventure that takes you waaay back to the beginning before Simba’s tale began…now more fabulous than ever for the first time in a 2-disc Blu-ray Combo Pack!

From their uniquely hysterical perspective, Timon and his windy pal Pumbaa—the greatest unsung heroes of the savanna—reveal where they came from, how they helped Simba save the Serengeti and what really happened behind the scenes of The Lion King’s biggest events.

This essential chapter of The Lion King trilogy features your favorite characters voiced by the original cast (Nathan Lane, Matthew Broderick, Ernie Sabella plus Julie Kavner and Jerry Stiller) and music by Elton John and Tim Rice. You’ll feel the love for every outrageously funny moment.

Cast:
Nathan Lane (Broadway’s “The Producers”) as voice of Timon
Ernie Sabella (The Lion King) as voice of Pumbaa
Julie Kavner (TV’s “The Simpsons”) as voice of Mom
Jerry Stiller (TV’s “The King of Queens”) as voice of Uncle Max
Matthew Broderick (Ferris Bueller’s Day Off) as voice of Simba
Robert Guillaume (TV’s “Benson”) as voice of Rafiki
Moira Kelly (The Lion King) as voice ofNala
Whoopi Goldberg (voice in Snow Buddies) as voice of Shenzi
Cheech Marin (Cars) as voice of Banzai
Jim Cummings (Winnie The Pooh) as voice of Ed
Director: Bradley Raymond (Tinker Bell and Tinker Bell and the Great Fairy Rescue)

Bonus Features: Timon & Pumbaa’s Vacation Safari
This new animated bonus feature shows Timon & Pumbaa watching home movies of their animal friends at Disney’s Animal Kingdom theme park.

Deleted Scenes
Director Bradley Raymond and Producer George Mendoza explain why these segments did not make the final film.

1. Opening Concept #1
2. Opening Concept #2
3. Old Fearless Buzz
4. Timon talks to Dad
5. Timon, Dad & Mom
6. Intro to “Scurry, Flinch, Sniff”
7. Timon & Pumbaa look for Oasis

Timon: Behind the Legend
Hosted by Peter Graves, this mock-umentary traces Timon’s childhood. There are interviews with Timon’s mom, Uncle Max & Pumbaa, plus snapshots show him growing up.

Before the Beginning: The Making of Lion King 1 1?2
Director Bradley Raymond and Producer George Mendoza walk viewers through the film… from before the beginning. Brad and George are silhouetted against their own film with a remote, just like Timon and Pumbaa.

“Grazing in the Grass”
Music video performed by Raven.

Digital Bonus Features: Timon & Pumbaa’s Vacation Safari
Timon: Behind The Legend

Rating: G in U.S. and G in Canada
Bonus materials not rated.
Feature Run Time: Approximately 76 minutes
Suggested Retail Prices: 2-Disc Blu-ray (Blu-ray + DVD) = $39.99 U.S./$46.99 Canada
1-Disc DVD = $29.99 U.S./$35.99 Canada
High Definition Digital = $39.99 U.S./$46.99 Canada
Standard Definition Digital = $29.99 U.S./$35.99
Aspect Ratio: Blu-ray: 1.66: 1/1080p High Definition
DVD: 1.66:1/Widescreen
Sound: Blu-ray: English 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio, French and Spanish, 5.1 Dolby Digital
DVD: 5.1 Dolby Digital English, French andSpanish
Languages: English
Subtitles: English SDH, French and Spanish
Special Edition Available March 6, 2012 on Blu-ray™, DVD and Digital
Includes a New Timon and Pumbaa Animated Short




The Lion King 2

Synopsis: The king of animated films reigns in this final chapter of The Lion King trilogy, now breathtakingly beautiful for the first time in a 2-Disc Blu-ray Combo Pack! Experience the power of “Upendi”—which means “love”—as Kiara, Simba’s strong-willed daughter, seeks adventure away from her father’s watchful gaze. Timon and Pumbaa can do only so much to protect her, especially when she encounters an intriguing rival, Kovu, a cub who is being groomed to lead Scar’s pride.

As Kiara and Kovu search for their proper places in the great “Circle Of Life,” they discover that it may be their destiny to reunite their prides andbring peace to the Pride Lands.

Featuring the original all-star voice cast, breathtaking animation and enchanting songs, Kiara and Kovu’s adventure thrills audiences of all ages as the glorious “Circle Of Life” continues for a new generation.

Cast: Matthew Broderick (Ferris Bueller’s Day Off) as voice of Simba
Nathan Lane (Broadway’s “The Producers”) as voice of Timon
Ernie Sabella (The Lion King) as voice of Pumbaa
Neve Campbell (Scream) as voice of Kiara
Jason Marsden (TV’s “G.I. Joe: Renegades”) as voice of Kova
Andy Dick (TV’s “Community”) as voice of Nuka
Robert Guillaume (TV’s “Benson”) as voice of Rafiki
James Earl Jones (The Lion King) as voice of Mufasa
Moira Kelly (The Lion King) as voice ofNala

Directors: Darrell Rooney (Mulan II) and Rob LaDuca (Mickey’s Adventures in Wonderland)

Bonus Features: Timon & Pumbaa’s Insectapedia
In this new animated bonus feature, Timon & Pumbaa gaze at the night sky as the star constellations resemble their favorite meal, insects!

“One By One”
An original animated short with vocals by The Lion King vocalist Lebo Morake.

Timon & Pumbaa: Find Out Why
In this series of animated shorts, Timon and Pumbaa provide answers to some of life’s most puzzling questions including:

1. Why is there lightning and thunder?
2. Why do we sneeze?
3. Why don’t Pandas live in the desert?
4. Why is there wind?
5. Why does an airplane fly?

Proud of Simba’s Pride
A featurette that traces the making of the movie.

“Love Will Find a Way” Music Video
Performed by Kenny Lattimore and Heather Headley.

Digital Bonus Features: Timon & Pumbaa’s Insectapedia
“One By One”

Street Date: March 6, 2012
Rating: G in U.S. and G in Canada
Bonus materials not rated.
Feature Run Time: Approximately 81 minutes
Suggested Retail Prices: 2-Disc Blu-ray (Blu-ray + DVD) = $39.99 U.S./$46.99 Canada
1-Disc DVD = $29.99 U.S./$35.99 Canada
High Definition Digital = $39.99 U.S./$46.99 Canada
Standard Definition Digital = $29.99 U.S./$35.99
Aspect Ratio: Blu-ray: 1.78: 1/1080p High Definition
DVD: 1.78:1/Widescreen
Sound: Blu-ray: English 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio, French and Spanish 5.1 Dolby Digital
DVD: 5.1 Dolby Digital English, French and Spanish
Languages: English
Subtitles: English SDH, French and Spanish

Review: "Hitch" is Funny and Sweet (Happy B'day, Eva Mendes)

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 22 (of 2005) by Leroy Douresseaux

Hitch (2005)
Running time: 115 minutes (1 hour, 55 minutes)
MPAA – PG-13 for language and some strong sexual references
DIRECTOR: Andy Tennant
WRITER: Kevin Bisch
PRODUCERS: Will Smith and Teddy Zee
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Andrew Dunn
EDITOR: Troy Takaki and Tracey Wadmore-Smith

COMEDY/ROMANCE

Starring: Will Smith, Eva Mendes, Kevin James, Amber Valletta, Julie Ann Emery, Robinne Lee, Nathan Lee Graham, Adam Arkin, Michael Rapaport, Jeffrey Donovan, and Matt Malloy

The subject of this movie review is Hitch, the 2005 romantic comedy starring Will Smith. In the film, directed by Andy Tennant, Smith plays a professional matchmaker.

Alex “Hitch” Hitchens (Will Smith) is a professional “date doctor,” who helps mostly shy, insecure, and nervous men learn to be confident enough to date the woman they just can’t get out their minds. His biggest project is to help a pleasantly plumb accountant named Albert (Kevin James) find his confidence so that he can woo his employer’s biggest client, wealthy playgirl, Allegra Cole (Amber Valletta). Hitch runs into his own complications when he becomes smitten with Sara (Eva Mendes), a New York gossip columnist. Both Hitch and Sara have dating issues, especially Sara, who usually erects an impenetrable wall whenever a man attempts to be friendly with her. However, Sara is determined to discover and publicize the identity of the mysterious “date doctor” about whom she’s been hearing in relation to the Allegra-Albert romance, even if it costs her personally.

Early reviews of the film suggest that Hitch is a trifle and a bit a fluff that Will Smith manages to save with his endearing film personality. Hitch is lightweight subject matter, but Will Smith and his co-conspirators make this a winning romantic comedy and comic romance. It’s not as good as When Harry Met Sally, but there is a lot more meat on Hitch’s film bones than on most romantic comedies about mismatches and misunderstandings. Will Smith does give this film vibrant life because he is a fine actor and a radiant movie star. He is comfortable and super confident on the big screen, and the camera loves him. If Denzel Washington is the heir to Sidney Portier, then, Smith is the black Cary Grant.

The rest of the cast, however, does it part. Eva Mendes is more like a co-star than supporting player. She carries this film, and there is an air about her that suggests she can go toe to toe with a man in the vein of Katherine Hepburn. No, Ms. Mendes isn’t yet as good as Ms. Hepburn, but she seems headed in the direction of being a movie star because in this film, she shows that she can carry a lead role by making her end of the story as engaging as that of the central character.

Kevin James is surprisingly delightful. I like him, but I’ve never quite enjoyed his CBS television comedy series, “The King of Queens.” James usually plays charming, fat guys, and everyone seems to love a fat guy who can make fun of himself. James is also witty and sarcastic; his self-effacing tendency and smart alec cool serves him well in Hitch, making him a scene-stealer.

After spending years directing episodic TV, director Andy Tennant has worked mostly on romantic comedies, Sweet Home Alabama being his biggest hit to date. At present, Hitch may be his best work as he took Kevin Bisch’s funny script and made it into a high-energy comic romp of misunderstandings and dating chess matches. Some might see this as a “chick flick,” but Hitch is simply funny. Like many films, the ending is too sweet by a mile. Still, it works, and Will Smith has another winner.

7 of 10
A-

NOTES:
2006 Black Reel Awards: 3 nominations: “Best Actor” (Will Smith), “Best Film” (Will Smith, Teddy Zee, and James Lassiter), and “Best Original Soundtrack”

2006 Image Awards: 2 nominations: “Outstanding Actor in a Motion Picture” (Will Smith) and “Outstanding Motion Picture”

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Star Wars Artist Ralph McQuarrie Dies at 82

George Lucas did not do it alone.  Conceptual designer and illustrator Ralph McQuarrie has died.  He is best known for his work on the original Star Wars trilogy.  In 1975, George Lucas hired McQuarrie to illustrate scenes from his Star Wars script, and McQuarrie also designed many of the characters, including Darth Vader, R2-D2, and C-3PO.

McQuarrie did design and concept work for some of Steven Spielberg's films, including Close Encounters of the Third Kind, Raiders of the Lost Ark, E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial, and Jurassic Park.  McQuarrie won an Oscar for best visual effects for his work on the film Cocoon.

McQuarrie was born on June 3, 1929 in Gary, Indiana, and passed away Saturday, March 3, 2012 at his home in Berkeley, California.  R.I.P. Mr. McQuarrie.  You work continues to inspire me.

38th Annual Saturn Award Nominations - Complete List

The Saturn Award is an award presented annually by the Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy & Horror Films to honor the top works in science fiction, fantasy, and horror in film, television, and home video. Dr. Donald A. Reed devised the Saturn Awards in 1972 because he felt that genre films were frequently overlooked by mainstream entertainment industry awards. The Saturn Award trophy is a representation of the planet Saturn, surrounded with a ring of film.

Like the Oscars, the Emmys, and the Grammys, the Saturn Awards are voted on by members of a presenting Academy, in this case, the Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy & Horror Films. This Academy is a non-profit organization with membership open to the public.

Although the awards still primarily nominate films and television programs in the science fiction, fantasy and horror categories, the Saturn Awards have also recognized productions in standard dramatic genres. There are also special awards for lifetime achievement in the field, such as the George Pal Memorial Award (which goes to Martin Scorsese this year).

The qualifying period for the 38th annual Saturn Awards was Feb. 1, 2011, to Jan. 31, 2012. This year’s Saturn Awards will be presented on Wednesday, June 20, 2012 in Burbank.

38th Saturn Award nominations:

FILM NOMINATIONS

Best Science Fiction Film:
The Adjustment Bureau - Universal
Captain America: The First Avenger - Paramount/Marvel
Limitless - Relativity Media
Rise of the Planet of the Apes - 20th Century Fox
Super 8 - Paramount
X-Men: First Class - 20th Century Fox

Best Fantasy Film:
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2 - Warner Bros.
Hugo - Paramount
Immortals - Relativity Media
Midnight in Paris - Sony Pictures Classics
The Muppets - Walt Disney Studios
Thor - Paramount/Marvel

Best Horror/Thriller Film:
Contagion - Warner Bros.
The Devil’s Double - Lionsgate
The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo - Sony
The Grey - Open Road Films
Take Shelter - Sony Pictures Classics
The Thing - Universal

Best Action/Adventure Film:
Fast Five - Universal
The Lincoln Lawyer - Lionsgate
Mission: Impossible Ghost Protocol - Paramount
Red Tails - 20th Century Fox/Lucasfilm Ltd.
Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows - Warner Bros.
War Horse - Walt Disney/DreamWorks

Best Actor:
Antonio Banderas, The Skin I Live In - Sony Pictures Classics
Dominic Cooper, The Devil’s Double - Lionsgate
Tom Cruise, Mission: Impossible Ghost Protocol - Paramount
Chris Evans, Captain America: The First Avenger - Paramount/Marvel
Ben Kingsley, Hugo - Paramount
Michael Shannon, Take Shelter - Sony Pictures Classics

Best Actress:
Jessica Chastain, Take Shelter - Sony Pictures Classics
Kirsten Dunst, Melancholia - Magnolia
Rooney Mara, The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo - Sony
Brit Marling, Another Earth - Fox Searchlight
Keira Knightley, A Dangerous Method - Sony Pictures Classics
Elizabeth Olson, Martha Marcy May Marlene - Fox Searchlight

Best Supporting Actor:
Ralph Fiennes, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Part 2 - Warner Bros.
Harrison Ford, Cowboys and Aliens - Universal
Tom Hiddleston, Thor - Paramount/Marvel
Alan Rickman, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Part 2 - Warner Bros.
Andy Serkis, Rise of the Planet of the Apes - 20th Century Fox
Stanley Tucci, Captain America: The First Avenger - Paramount/Marvel

Best Supporting Actress:
Elena Anaya, The Skin I Live In - Sony Pictures Classics
Emily Blunt, The Adjustment Bureau - Universal
Charlotte Gainsbourg, Melancholia - Magnolia
Paula Patton, Mission: Impossible Ghost Protocol - Paramount
Lin Shaye, Insidious - FilmDistrict
Emma Watson, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Part 2 - Warner Bros.

Best Performance by a Younger Actor:
Asa Butterfield, Hugo - Paramount
Joel Courtney, Super 8 - Paramount
Elle Fanning, Super 8 - Paramount
Dakota Goyo, Real Steel - Walt Disney
Chloe Grace Moretz, Hugo - Paramount
Saoirse Ronan, Hanna - Focus

Best Direction:
J.J. Abrams, Super 8 - Paramount
Brad Bird, Mission: Impossible Ghost Protocol - Paramount
Martin Scorsese, Hugo - Paramount
Steven Spielberg, The Adventures of Tintin - Paramount
Rupert Wyatt, Rise of the Planet of the Apes - 20th Century Fox
David Yates, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Part 2 - Warner Bros.

Best Writing:
J.J. Abrams, Super 8 - Paramount
Woody Allen, Midnight in Paris - Sony Pictures Classics
Mike Cahill, Brit Marling, Another Earth - Fox Searchlight
Rick Jaffa, Amanda Silver, Rise of the Planet of the Apes - 20th Century Fox
John Logan, Hugo - Paramount
Jeff Nichols, Take Shelter - Sony Pictures Classics

Best Music:
Michael Giacchino, Mission: Impossible Ghost Protocol - Paramount
Michael Giacchino, Super 8 - Paramount
Howard Shore, Hugo Paramount
Alan Silvestri, Captain America: The First Avenger - Paramount/Marvel
John Williams, The Adventures of Tintin - Paramount
John Williams, War Horse - Walt Disney/DreamWorks

Best Production Design:
Stuart Craig, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Part 2 - Warner Bros.
Dante Ferretti, Hugo - Paramount
Tom Foden, Immortals - Relativity
Rick Heinrichs, Captain America: The First Avenger - Paramount/Marvel
Kim Sinclair, The Adventures of Tintin - Paramount
Bo Welch, Thor - Paramount/Marvel

Best Editing:
Maryann Brandon, Mary Jo Markey, Super 8 - Paramount
Mark Day, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Part 2 - Warner Bros.
Paul Hirsch, Mission: Impossible Ghost Protocol - Paramount
Michael Kahn, The Adventures of Tintin - Paramount
Kelly Matsumoto, Fred Raskin, Christian Watner, Five Five - Universal
Thelma Schoonmaker, Hugo - Paramount

Best Costume:
Jenny Beavan, Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows - Warner Bros.
Alexandra Byrne, Thor - Paramount/Marvel
Lisy Christl, Anonymous - Sony
Sandy Powell, Hugo - Paramount
Anna B. Sheppard, Captain America: The First Avenger - Paramount/Marvel
Jany Temime, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Part 2 - Warner Bros.

Best Make-Up:
Shaun Smith, Scott Wheeler, Conan the Barbarian - Lionsgate
Nick Dudman, Amanda Knight, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Part 2 - Warner Bros.
Annick Chartier, Adrien Morot, Nikoletta Skarlatos, Immortals - Relativity Media
Tamar Aviv, The Skin I Live In - Sony Pictures Classics
Tom Woodruff Jr., Alec Gillis, The Thing - Universal
Dave Elsey, Fran Needham, Conor O’ Sullivan, X-Men: First Class - 20th Century Fox

Best Special Effects:
Scott E. Anderson, Matt Aitken, Joe Letteri, Matthias Menz, Keith Miller, The Adventures of Tintin - Paramount
Tim Burke, Greg Butler, John Richardson, David Vickery, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Part 2 - Warner Bros.
Dan Lemmon, Joe Letteri, R. Christopher White, Daniel Barrett, Rise of the Planet of the Apes - 20th Century Fox
Steven Riley, Russell Earl, Kim Libreri, Dennis Muren, Super 8 - Paramount
Scott Benza, John Frazier, Matthew Butler, Scott Farar, Transformers: Dark of the Moon - Paramount

Best International Film:
Attack the Block - Screen Gems/Sony
The Heir Apparent: Largo Winch - Music Box
Melancholia - Magnolia
Point Blank - Magnolia
The Skin I Live In - Sony Pictures Classics
Troll Hunter - Magnet/Magnolia

Best Animated Film:
The Adventures of Tintin - Paramount
Cars 2 - Walt Disney/Pixar
Kung Fu Panda 2 - Paramount/DreamWorks Animation
Puss in Boots - Paramount/DreamWorks Animation
Rango - Paramount
Rio - 20th Century Fox

TELEVISION NOMINATIONS

Best Network Television Series:
Fringe - Fox
A Gifted Man - CBS
Grimm - NBC
Once Upon a Time - ABC
Supernatural - CW
Terra Nova - Fox

Best Syndicated/Cable Television Series:
American Horror Story - F/X
Breaking Bad - AMC
The Closer - TNT
Dexter - Showtime
Leverage - TNT
True Blood - HBO

Best Presentation on Television (10 Episodes or Less):
Camelot - Starz
Falling Skies - TNT
Game of Thrones - HBO
The Killing - AMC
Torchwood: Miracle Day - Starz
Trek Nation - The Science Channel
The Walking Dead - AMC

Best Youth-Oriented Series on Television:
Being Human - Syfy
Doctor Who - BBC America
The Nine Lives of Chloe King - ABC Family
Secret Circle - CW
Teen Wolf - MTV
The Vampire Diaries - CW

Best Actor on Television:
Sean Bean, Game of Thrones - HBO
Bryan Cranston, Breaking Bad - AMC
Michael C. Hall, Dexter - Showtime
Timothy Hutton, Leverage - TNT
Dylan McDermott, American Horror Story - F/X
Noah Wylie, Falling Skies - TNT

Best Actress on Television:
Mireille Enos, The Killing - AMC
Lena Headey, Game of Thrones - HBO
Jessica Lange, American Horror Story - F/X
Eve Myles, Torchwood: Miracle Day - Starz
Kyra Sedgwick, The Closer - TNT
Anna Torv, Fringe - Fox

Best Supporting Actor on Television:
Giancarlo Esposito, Breaking Bad - AMC
Kit Harington, Game of Thrones - HBO
Joel Kinnaman, The Killing - AMC
John Noble, Fringe - Fox
Aaron Paul, Breaking Bad - AMC
Bill Pullman, Torchwood: Miracle Day - Starz
Norman Reedus, The Walking Dead - AMC

Best Supporting Actress on Television:
Lauren Ambrose, Torchwood: Miracle Day - Starz
Jennifer Carpenter, Dexter - Showtime
Frances Conroy, American Horror Story - F/X
Michelle Forbes, The Killing - AMC
Lana Parrilla, Once Upon a Time - ABC
Beth Riesgraf, Leverage - TNT

Best Guest Performer on Television:
Steven Bauer, Breaking Bad - AMC
Orla Brady, Fringe - Fox
Mark Margolis, Breaking Bad - AMC
Edward James Olmos, Dexter - Showtime
Zachary Quinto, American Horror Story - F/X
Tom Skerritt, Leverage - TNT

HOME-ENTERTAINMENT NOMINATIONS

Best DVD Release:
13 - Anchor Bay
Atlas Shrugged: Part One - Fox
City of Life and Death - Kino International
The Double - Image
The Perfect Host - Magnolia
Kill the Irishman - Anchor Bay
The Reef - Image

Best DVD Special Edition Release:
Citizen Kane (70th Anniversary Ultimate Collector’s Edition) - Warner
Giorgio Moroder Presents Metropolis - Kino International
Mimic (The Director’s Cut) - Lionsgate
Phantom of the Opera (1925 Silent, Blu-Ray) - Image
The Rocketeer (20th Anniversary Edition) - Walt Disney
Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory (40th Anniversary Collector’s Edition) - Warner

Best DVD Collection:
Jean Rollin Cinema Collection - Kino International
Jurassic Park Ultimate Trilogy - Universal
The Lord of the Rings: The Motion Picture Trilogy (Extended Editions) - Warner
Stanley Kubrick: The Essential Collection - Warner
Star Wars: The Complete Saga - Fox
Superman: The Motion Picture Anthology, 1978-2006 - Warner

Best DVD Television Series Release:
The Bionic Woman: Seasons 2 & 3 - Universal
Camelot: The Complete First Season - Starz
Farscape: The Complete Series - A&E Entertainment
Nikita: The Complete First Season - Warner
Spartacus: Gods of the Arena - Starz
The Twilight Zone: Season 3-5 - Image

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Paramount Pictures Dominates 2012 Saturn Awards with 46 Nominations

Hugo and Harry Potter Cast Their Spells and Lead Film Nominations for 38th Saturn Awards

Breaking Bad and American Horror Story Scare Up Most TV Nominations in Banner Year for Science Fiction, Fantasy and Horror; Winners to be Announced June 20

LOS ANGELES--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Hugo and Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2 each received 10 nominations as the Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy & Horror Films today announced nominations for the 38th Annual Saturn Awards, which will be presented on Wednesday, June 20.

Other leading titles in the Academy’s film category were Super 8 (eight nominations); Marvel’s Captain America: The First Avenger (seven); The Adventures of Tintin and Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol (six each); and Rise of the Planet of the Apes (five).

In TV categories, AMC’s Breaking Bad cooked up six nominations, while F/X’s first foray into a genre series, American Horror Story, scored five nominations. TV series with four nominations each are: Fringe (Fox), Dexter (Showtime), Leverage (TNT), Game of Thrones (HBO), The Killing (AMC) and Torchwood: Miracle Day (Starz). Once Upon a Time (ABC), TNT’s The Closer and Falling Skies, and The Walking Dead (AMC) each earned two nominations.

The 2012 Saturn Award nominees for Best Science Fiction film are The Adjustment Bureau, Captain America: The First Avenger, Limitless, Rise of the Planet of the Apes, Super 8 and X-Men: First Class. Best Fantasy film nominees are Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2, Hugo, Immortals, Midnight in Paris, The Muppets and Thor. Best Horror/Thriller film nominees are Contagion, The Devil’s Double, The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo, The Grey, Take Shelter and The Thing. Best Action/Adventure film nominees are Fast Five, The Lincoln Lawyer, Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol, Red Tails, Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows and War Horse.

In addition to the competitive Saturn Awards, the Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy & Horror Films announced that filmmaker Martin Scorsese will receive its prestigious George Pal Memorial Award.

“This was a phenomenal year for genre films and TV series, which broadened the horizons of storytelling and technology, bringing audiences new ways to dream,” said Robert Holguin, president of the Academy, which this year marks its 40th anniversary. The Academy was founded in 1972 by noted film historian Dr. Donald A. Reed to honor and recognize films often overlooked by mainstream awards. Over the years, the Academy has expanded its reach to include recognizing excellence in television and home entertainment, as well as other genres, including adventure, thriller and action.

The organization’s qualifying period for the 38th annual Saturn Awards was Feb. 1, 2011, to Jan. 31, 2012. This year’s Saturn Awards will be presented on Wednesday, June 20, in Burbank. For a complete list of nominations and more information about the Academy, visit http://www.saturnawards.org/.

Review: "The Illusionist" Casts a Spell (Happy B'day, Jessica Biel)

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 36 (of 2007) by Leroy Douresseaux

The Illusionist (2006)
Running time: 110 minutes (1 hour, 50 minutes)
MPAA – PG-13 for some sexual and violent content
DIRECTOR: Neil Burger
WRITER: Neil Burger (based upon the short story “Eisenheim the Illusionist” by Steven Millhauser)
PRODUCERS: Michael London, Brian Koppelman, David Levien, and Bob Yari & Cathy Schulman
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Dick Pope, BSC
EDITOR: Naomi Geraghty
2007 Academy Award nominee

DRAMA/FANTASY/MYSTERY/ROMANCE

Starring: Edward Norton, Paul Giamatti, Jessica Biel, Rufus Sewell, Eddie Marson, Jake Wood, Tom Fisher, Karl Johnson, Eleanor Tomlinson, and Aaron Johnson

The subject of this movie review is The Illusionist, a 2006 period drama written and directed by Neil Burger. Burger loosely bases his screenplay on “Eisenheim the Illusionist,” a 1989 short story by Pulitzer Prize-winner, Steven Millhauser.

When he was a boy, Eduard Abramovicz (Aaron Johnson) fell in love with the Duchess Sophie von Teschen (Eleanor Tomlinson) an aristocrat well above his social standing. Her parents kept them apart, so Eduard left his home and traveled the world. Early 1900’s, Eduard returns to Vienna as Eisenheim the Illusionist (Edward Norton), an extraordinary conjurer and master magician. During one of his performances, Eisenheim fatefully encounters the Duchess (Jessica Biel), now a beautiful young woman engaged to marry Crown Prince Leopold (Rufus Sewell). Eisenheim employs his powers to win back her love, which is not necessary, as she never stopped loving him.

While Sophie is smitten with Eisenheim, Leopold feels threatened by the stage magician’s strange tricks, and attempts to apply cold logic to expose what he sees as Eisenheim’s scams. Leopold, however, has a history of abusing his female companions, and his apparent assault of Sophie during a jealous rage pits him against the illusionist extraordinaire in a duel of authority and stage magic. Caught in the middle of Eisenheim and Leopold’s feud is Chief Inspector Walter Uhl (Paul Giamatti), who deeply admires Eisenheim’s skills, but must serve Leopold if he wishes to advance socially and politically.

In his film, The Illusionist, director Neil Burger uses a mesmerizing performance by two-time Oscar nominee Edward Norton (Primal Fear, American History X) to deliver an enchanting supernatural mystery tale full of forbidden romance, imperial politics, and dazzling magic. Burger and cinematographer Dick Pope use autochrome photography to take the recognizable world and transfer it to the realm of mystery where everything is beautiful, but also has a disturbing undertone. Director and cinematographer saturate the world of The Illusionist in gold and green and then, allow the shadows to play ever so slightly on the edges of the picture’s frame. It’s a unique look that heightens the sense of magic, mystery, dreams, and that feeling of an otherness – the paranormal.

Not only did Burger build an enthralling world with his creative staff, but he also allowed his actors to play, guiding their considerable talents into selling this narrative. Paul Giamatti is excellent as the Chief Inspector Uhl, who admires Eisenheim, but is trapped between a rock and a hard place as Leopold’s strong-arm man. Giamatti wears his emotions on his face quite well – obvious, but with subtlety and grace, so he lets us see the struggle. Uhl admires Eisenheim even as he must control him. Sewell is super intense as Leopold, and he also allows to the audience to see the brilliant mind behind the face of a man with control issues. Jessica Biel is tolerable, but even her best moments seem weak compared to everyone else.

Still, this movie’s star is Edward Norton. Intelligent and intense, Norton always brings an air of elegance to his performances. Truthfully, he’s just too damn talented, and the fire of his abilities can burn through a weekly structured film. Here, there is no such problem. Norton’s Eisenheim is dark and mysterious, and we are drawn to this handsome creature who seems to have dark forces at play behind his placid face and his genial smile. Norton never lets us truly know Eisenheim, but he draws us to the character like moths to the magician’s exquisite flame. In the end, The Illusionist leaves so many questions unanswered, and it is indeed a great film that makes the viewer love the magic, mystery, and the great unknown of that which is supernatural. Neither The Illusionist nor its star character will let us know how a magician does “it,” but that won’t stop the audience from being spellbound and loving both.

8 of 10
A

NOTES:
2007 Academy Awards: 1 nomination: “Best Achievement in Cinematography” (Dick Pope)

Friday, February 16, 2007

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