Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow a Fluffy Fantasia

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 186 (of 2004) by Leroy Douresseaux


Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow (2004)
Running time: 107 minutes (1 hour, 47 minutes)
MPAA – PG for sequences of stylized sci-fi violence and brief mild language
WRITER/DIRECTOR: Kerry Conran
PRODUCERS: Jon Avnet, Marsha Oglesby, Sadie Frost, and Jude Law
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Eric Adkins
EDITOR: Sabrina Plisco, A.C.E.

SCI-FI/ACTION/ADVENTURE with elements of a mystery

Starring: Gwyneth Paltrow, Jude Law, Giovanni Ribisi, Michael Gambon, Bai Ling, Omid Djalili, and Angelina Jolie

Writer/director Kerry Conran’s Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow is the first feature film released to theatres in which the live action photography was shot entirely against a blue screen. After the completion of principal photography, the filmmakers filled in every frame-detail digitally. The film has virtually no real sets and no actual locations. Digital technology and CGI (computer generated imagery or computer graphic imagery) created the sets: from the skyscraper mountains of 1930’s New York City (an NYC that never quite existed) to the lush primordial jungle of a lost island; from the art deco offices of the Chronicle newspaper offices in New York to the streamlined sci-fi fortress of the mad villain.

In the story, Chronicle newspaper reporter Polly Perkins (Gwyneth Paltrow) is investigating the disappearances of several famous scientists when she meets Dr. Walter Jennings (Trevor Baxter) who believes that he will be the next scientific genius to be kidnapped. The doomed man whispers one word into her ear, the name of the man hunting him, Totenkopf. Polly enlists the help of her old flame, Captain H. Joseph Sullivan (Jude Law) – aka – Sky Captain, an ace aviator with daredevil flying skills, a heroic pilot who is part Buck Rogers and part Indiana Jones, who is also hunting Totenkopf. Meanwhile, the mysterious Dr. Totenkopf sends his giant robots and other diabolical machines around the world to steal machines and building supplies. Polly and Sky Captain travel to the Himalayan Alps and beyond in search of the evil mastermind behind a plot to destroy the world. With the help of Sky Captain’s old friend, Franky Cook (Angelina Jolie), the captain of an amphibious squadron, and Sky Captain’s technical super genius Dex Dearborn (Giovanni Ribisi), Polly and Sky Captain are the planet’s only hope against Totenkopf’s plot.

Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow certainly wears its influences on its sleeves. The film borrows (current PC term is homage) from films like King Kong, Lost Horizon, and 40’s aerial flicks like the Buck Rogers and Flash Gordon serials. The film also borrows heavily from Max Fleischer’s Superman cartoons, film noir, and the old sci-fi, fantasy, and adventure stories found in pulp fiction magazines like Weird Tales. The late Sir Laurence Olivier even makes a surprise cameo via archival black and white film footage.

The acting is pretty good, good enough for a film that is just a fluffy piece of adventure entertainment. There is, however, something great about Gwyneth Paltrow as reporter Polly Perkins. She plays the part with the sass and self-assuredness of the great “girl reporters” of the screen. It’s a shame her character was lost in a film in which the effects and explosions dominated the tale.

But is the movie good? Sky Captain is a rollicking adventure like Raiders of the Lost Ark, itself an homage to old Saturday matinee adventure serials, but Sky Captain isn’t as good as Raiders. In fact, sometimes, the film is quite dry, and for all its visual aplomb, the film has nothing to say. The wonderful digital visual images often come across as plastic fantastic. The film has one truly great sequence, Sky Captain’s duel with Totenkopf’s flying machines through the concrete canyons of New York City is as good as any other aerial duel every put on film. A later underwater duel is quite good, but not as great as NYC throw down, but still good.

Early on, I found the film’s retro-look and its hazy, quasi color photography that was made to look black and white annoying. The story and plot is light, tightly wound, although the villain’s motivation and plot are ridiculous. The film stumbles drunkenly through the last act to the end, and the resolution with Totenkopf is a miscalculation. It’s a good time at the movies, and Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow actually isn’t as forgettable as a lot of other summer popcorn fluff. I wouldn’t mind visiting the scenario again on DVD, and a sequel would be sweet treat on the level of a Hershey’s Kiss.

6 of 10
B

"The Craving Heart" Now on DVD

Triumphant Entertainment Releases The Craving Heart on DVD


LOS ANGELES, March 3 /PRNewswire/ -- Triumphant Entertainment is proud to announce its DVD release of The Craving Heart. The latest film by award-winning filmmaker Stan Harrington, Craving is enjoying success in DVD sales. The Craving Heart stars Golden Globe Winner John Saxon (Enter the Dragon), Rick Peters (Dexter), and Adrian Zmed (TJ Hooker).

Craving's central theme, Scientist, Alexander Tom thought he had it all, great wife, great house, career... that was until the death of his best friend and a random affair with an anonymous woman force him to re-evaluate everything. In the ensuing days his relationships with his father (Saxon), his wife, his co-worker and Walela, the mysterious woman, contribute to his edification that life is riddled with intangibles, that complacency and routine have deadened him and that despite his scientific understanding of life, there are other forces at play.

Stan Harrington has won multiple awards in his career as a director. Next up for Harrington will be the indie Christian themed drama Prodigal. Stan Harrington partners with CEO John Atterberry of Silent Noise to direct, Silent Noise is co-financing Prodigal for a 2nd quarter start date.

http://www.triumphantpictures.com/

Countdown to Oscar 2010: The 35th Los Angeles Film Critics Association Awards

The 35th Los Angeles Film Critics Association Awards, given by the Los Angeles Film Critics Association (LAFCA), honored the best in film for 2009 and were announced December 14, 2009

Winners:
Best Actor: Jeff Bridges – Crazy Heart as Bad Blake
Runner-up: Colin Firth - A Single Man as George

Best Actress: Yolande Moreau – Séraphine as Séraphine Louis
Runner-up: Carey Mulligan - An Education as Jenny

Best Animated Film: Fantastic Mr. Fox
Runner-up: Up

Best Cinematography: The White Ribbon (Das weiße Band) – Christian Berger
Runner-up: The Hurt Locker – Barry Ackroyd

Best Director: Kathryn Bigelow – The Hurt Locker
Runner-up: Michael Haneke – The White Ribbon (Das weiße Band)

Best Documentary Film (tie): The Beaches of Agnès (Les plages d'Agnès) and The Cove

Best Film: The Hurt Locker
Runner-up: Up in the Air

Best Foreign Language Film: Summer Hours (L'heure d'été) • France
Runner-up: The White Ribbon (Das weiße Band) • Germany

Best Production Design: District 9 – Philip Ivey
Runner-up: Avatar – Rick Carter and Robert Stromberg

Best Screenplay: Up in the Air – Jason Reitman and Sheldon Turner
Runner-up: In the Loop – Jesse Armstrong, Simon Blackwell, Armando Iannucci and Tony Roche

Best Supporting Actor: Christoph Waltz – Inglourious Basterds as Hans Landa
Runner-up: Peter Capaldi – In the Loop as Malcolm Tucker

Best Supporting Actress: Mo'Nique – Precious as Mary Lee Johnston
Runner-up: Anna Kendrick – Up in the Air as Natalie Keener

New Generation: NEILL BLOMKAMP "DISTRICT 9"

Career Achievement: JEAN-PAUL BELMONDO

The Douglas Edwards Experimental/Independent Film/Video Award: Anders Edstrom and C.W. Winter, "The Anchorage"

Special Citations: IN HONOR OF THE 50TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE FRENCH NEW WAVE

The Invention of Lying Tells the Truth

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 9 (of 2010) by Leroy Douresseaux

The Invention of Lying (2009)
Running time: 99 minutes
MPAA – PG-13 for language including some sexual material and a drug reference
WRITERS/DIRECTORS: Ricky Gervais and Matthew Robinson
PRODUCERS: Ricky Gervais, Dan Lin, Lynda Obst, and Oly Obst
CINEMATOGRAHER: Tim Suhrstedt (D.o.P.)
EDITOR: Chris Gill

COMEDY/ROMANCE

Starring: Ricky Gervais, Jennifer Garner, Jonah Hill, Louis C.K. Jeffrey Tambor, Fionnula Flanagan, Rob Lowe, Ruben Santiago-Hudson, and Tina Fey

Last fall, Ricky Gervais made his directorial debut with the film, The Invention of Lying, co-directed with Matthew Robinson. The film is about a man who discovers lying in a world where everyone tells the truth – even the brutal truth. Those who saw the trailers (commercials) for this film may not realize that advertising for The Invention of Lying leaves out one important fact.

The Invention of Lying is not about lying; it is about religion.

The film takes place in an alternate reality where lying and even the concept of the lie do not even exist. People are always telling the truth, and everyone: politicians, advertisers, the man and woman on the street, neighbors, coworkers, employers, and even the person you’re dating speaks the truth and nothing but the truth. Such honesty does not come with a thought of the consequences. Seeing this, even in a movie, is pretty shocking. For instance, it is never cool to hear a coworker just flatly state how much she hates you and is glad to hear that you will be fired. Such blunt truth is the norm in this world.

Mark Bellison (Ricky Gervais) is a down-on-his-luck loser. A failed screenwriter, Mark knows that he is about to be fired, and so do all his coworkers and colleagues. Mark also goes out on an arranged date with a perky young woman named Anna McDoogles (Jennifer Garner), who is brutally honest about her feelings for him. She thinks Mark is nice, but she doesn’t want to have children with a fat man who has a stubby nose.

When his life totally falls apart, Mark reaches the point of desperation when he suddenly says something that simply is not, and thus, he gives birth to the lie. Mark invents the ability to say things that are not true, and, as the only person in the world who can lie, he uses lying to make himself rich. When one of his lies spreads, the entire world starts to hang on Mark’s every word, even his beloved Anna.

Lying isn’t the only thing Mark Bellison’s world is missing. People have no concept of heaven, faith, or God. When Mark creates “the man in the sky,” people believe him because they don’t know he is lying, nor would they even understand the concept of lying. Ultimately, Ricky Gervais and Matthew Robinson use The Invention of Lying to make a few suggestions to the viewer. First, people should do the things that make them happy and not go along with the status quo if it makes them miserable. Also, a person shouldn’t wait to be told what to do, nor should others, even a divine other, make decisions for him.

The Invention of Lying is a great idea, even a wicked idea, but as the film goes on, Gervais and Robinson favor romance over the sharp social criticism about truth and about religion. This is a love story set in a parable and satire, and while the filmmakers handle both well, The Invention of Lying does lack a tangible antagonist. Much of the dramatic conflict is internal – Mark Bellison’s good side versus his selfish, greedy, petty nature. The script never really takes advantage of conflict outside of the lead character: Mark versus his job, society, and his rivals.

Still, this film is surprisingly radical, and the filmmakers mine much of the premise’s richness. Ricky Gervais is, as always, a brilliant, funny man, with a great sense of humor when it comes to poking fun at people and society. Jennifer Garner is surprisingly spry, (although she is a good comic actress), and her performance is pitch perfect for this story. I can forgive The Invention of Lying for its eventual transformation into a conventional romantic comedy, because for most of its hour and a half of story, this movie’s wit is startling. In a landscape of safe, conventional movies, that is worth a lot.

7 of 10
B+

Wednesday, March 03, 2010

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Review: God I Still Hate this Movie: "The Hours"

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 39 (of 2003) by Leroy Douresseaux

The Hours (2002)
COUNTRY OF ORIGIN: UK/USA
Running time: 114 minutes (1 hour, 54 minutes)
MPAA – PG-13 for mature thematic elements, some disturbing images, and brief language
DIRECTOR: Stephen Daldry
WRITER: David Hare (based upon the novel by Michael Cunningham)
PRODUCERS: Scott Rudin and Robert Fox
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Seamus McGarvey (D.o.P.)
EDITOR: Peter Boyle
COMPOSER: Philip Glass
Academy Award winner

DRAMA

Starring: Nicole Kidman, Julianne Moore, Meryl Streep, Ed Harris, Stephen Dillane, Miranda Richardson, John C. Reilly, Toni Collette, Allison Janney, Claire Danes, Jeff Daniels, and Jack Rovello

Director Stephen Daldry’s The Hours is one of those prestige, award season movies. It’s no secret that Hollywood, or the film industry, if you will, reserves films of a serious, meaningful, thoughtful, artistic nature for release during the last quarter of the year, especially late November and December. That is a late enough release so that the films will, hopefully, still be fresh in the minds of Oscar voters come January or February, whenever ballots are mailed to members of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.

This is like a big bake off to impress Oscar voters. Studios trot out their best baked goods to tempt the appetites of those who might award them one faux gold statue called “Oscar,” or maybe two, or three or so on. In a way, these films are often as formulaic as the trash the studios trot out during the summer and winter vacation seasons. Oscar contenders are made of varying measuring spoons and cups of serious acting by acclaimed thespians, scripts from the best scribes adapting the most recent literary sensations, veteran directors pining after that Oscar that would define their careers, and, of course drama. Oh the drama, be it initiated by disease, murder, family conflict, or international strife, the drama is so important. Comedies hardly ever win Oscars, and Oscar treats science fiction, fantasy, horror, and mystery like bastard children.

What does that have to do with The Hours? The Hours is so painfully and obviously aimed at earning awards for its cast and crew that it can’t help but show all its tricks. Like a clueless magician, The Hours spoils the show by showing its hand too early.

The story revolves around three women of different eras, two of them affected by the works of the third woman, Virginia Woolf (Nicole Kidman). From 1923 to 1941, Ms. Woolf lives in a small English country town at the behest of her doctor and her husband Leonard (Stephen Dillane) who feel London is bad for her unstable mental health. Ms. Woolf is working on her novel Mrs. Dalloway, a novel in which the story takes place over an entire day, but she’d really like to return to London social circles despite the fact that London eventually drives her wacky and makes her want to kill herself. In 1951, Laura Brown (Julianne Moore), a pregnant housewife, is preoccupied with the novel Mrs. Dalloway and is contemplating suicide on her husband’s (John C. Reilly) birthday. In 2001, Clarissa Vaughan (Meryl Streep) is living the novel the day she is planning a party for her long time friend, Richard Brown (Ed Harris), a poet who is dying of AIDS. As the story unfolds, we see how the women and the events of three eras are inextricably linked.

First, there is a better Stephen Daldry film, the wonderful Billy Elliot. However, the acting is good. How can it not be, considering the film’s stellar cast? The problem is the material. It’s so morbid and moribund, so depressed and stilted. Yes, Ms. Streep can emote. Ms. Kidman is simply mesmerizing as Ms. Woolf. The material just didn’t hold my interest. Sometimes, I couldn’t wait to see what Virginia would do next, so good was Ms. Kidman in creating this fascinating creature; other times, I couldn’t wait for her tired ass to just disappear. To be honest, if Meryl Streep wasn’t so good at emoting, her character would have been an empty shell, merely a melancholy mannequin. It seemed as if she were just there only to look earnest and sad.

And, in the end, that’s the best way to describe this film – earnest, yet sad. Nothing happens beyond people being anxious and depressed. The grimaces, the smiles to hide the emotional exhaustion, the pangs of emptiness, the feelings of regret, the etc., there was good material; it’s just that what made it onto the screen could leaving you asking, “if you’re so sad, what’re you going to do about it?” The Hours is oh-so serious with an oh-so talented cast and oh-so serious artistic intentions. In those moments between the interesting moments and dreary tedium, I could only ask, “Oh, so what?” This movie does have many good moments, and if you’re a fan of the three leads, it’s certainly worth seeing just to watch the stars.

Maybe, someone needs to have lived a long life filled with the bitter and the sweet, with lots of regret, and with lots of life experience to appreciate this film. Maybe, The Hours is geared towards an older audience, an older female audience of a particular intellectual persuasion. I think the occasionally witty Virginia Woolf character would have made for a good film had the character not been relegated to a winsome creature mindlessly chasing self-destruction. Of course, death is part of life, but the life/death struggle doesn’t always make for a good movie.

5 of 10
C+

NOTE:
2003 Academy Awards: 1 win: “Best Actress in a Leading Role” (Nicole Kidman); 8 nominations: “Best Actor in a Supporting Role” (Ed Harris), “Best Actress in a Supporting Role” (Julianne Moore), “Best Costume Design” (Ann Roth), “Best Director,” (Stephen Daldry), “Best Editing” (Peter Boyle), “Best Music, Original Score” (Philip Glass), “Best Picture” (Scott Rudin and Robert Fox), and “Best Writing, Adapted Screenplay” (David Hare)


2003 BAFTA Awards: 2 wins: “Anthony Asquith Award for Film Music” (Philip Glass) and “Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role” (Nicole Kidman); 9 nominations: “Alexander Korda Award for Best British Film” (Scott Rudin, Robert Fox, and Stephen Daldry), “BAFTA Film Award Best Editing” (Peter Boyle), “Best Film” (Scott Rudin and Robert Fox), “Best Make Up/Hair” (Ivana Primorac, Conor O'Sullivan, and Jo Allen). “Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role” (Ed Harris), “Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role” (Meryl Streep), “Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role” (Julianne Moore), “Best Screenplay – Adapted” (David Hare), and “David Lean Award for Direction” (Stephen Daldry)


2003 Golden Globes: 2 wins “Best Motion Picture – Drama” “Best Performance by an Actress in a Motion Picture – Drama” (Nicole Kidman); 5 nominations: “Best Director - Motion Picture” (Stephen Daldry), “Best Original Score - Motion Picture” (Philip Glass), “Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role in a Motion Picture” (Ed Harris), “Best Performance by an Actress in a Motion Picture – Drama” (Meryl Streep), “Best Screenplay - Motion Picture” (David Hare)

VIZ Pictures to Release Hisashi Tenmyouya Documentary

VIZ PICTURES CONTINUES TO EXPAND THE NEW PEOPLE ARTIST SERIES WITH THE DVD RELEASE OF HISASHI TENMYOUYA: SAMURAI NOUVEAU


Perceptive Documentary Profiles The Life Of A Graphic Designer Turned Contemporary Artist

VIZ Pictures, an affiliate of VIZ Media, LLC, that focuses on Japanese live-action film distribution, will release the newest volume of its ongoing NEW PEOPLE Artist Series – HISASHI TENMYOUYA: sAMURAI NOUVEAU. This interesting documentary follows the life of one of the most talented young artists in Japan today. The DVD, due to release on March 9th with an MSRP of $24.92 U.S. / $35.99 CAN, will be distributed by VIZ Media.

HISASHI TENMYOUYA: SAMURAI NOUVEAU presents a look into the artist Hisashi Tenmyouya, a graphic designer turned contemporary artist, and his NEO-Traditional Japanese Painting style. He uses gold foil and fine brushes to prepare for various exhibitions while people surrounding the artist share their thoughts. In this film, Tenmyouya reveals his soul through the melding of modern urban subjects with traditional painting methods.

In celebration of this new release, VIZ Pictures has scheduled special screenings of HISASHI TENMYOUYA at VIZ Cinema on Saturday, March 6th at 1:00 pm, and Sunday, March 7th at 3:00 pm. VIZ Cinema is located inside NEW PEOPLE, a newly opened entertainment destination in San Francisco at 1746 Post Street devoted to Japanese pop culture. For more information about this event, please visit www.vizcinema.com or www.viz-pictures.com.

“Hisashi Tenmyouya has shown steadily since his first show in 1990 at age 24, including shows at the Whitney in New York and others in Tokyo, Berlin, London, Paris, Madrid, Kiev and Sao Paulo,” says Seiji Horibuchi, President and CEO of VIZ Pictures and the founder of NEW PEOPLE. “Besides winning the Taro Okamoto Memorial Award in 2003, he was chosen as one of 14 artists in the world to participate in the design of the FIFA World Cup Poster for the in 2006 World Cup. We’re honored to release this new documentary and look forward to more people discovering the world of Hisashi Tenmyouya.”

The NEW PEOPLE Artist Series is an intriguing collection of documentaries introducing modern Japanese Pop artists to the American audience. All of the highlighted artists possess unique views and inspirations, allowing them to create captivating works of art. For more information on the NEW PEOPLE Artist Series visit www.viz-pictures.com or www.newpeopleartistseries.com, and for information on movie schedules at VIZ Cinema, please visit www.vizcinema.com.

For more information on DVD titles distributed by VIZ Media please visit www.viz.com.

Wesley Snipes is Back (A Negromancer Bits and Bites Extra)

AOL Black Voices has an exclusive interview with actor Wesley Snipes.  "BV on Movies" blogger Wilson Morales talks to Snipes about his new film, Brooklyn's Finest.  The two also discuss Snipes line of graphic novels (which may actually be webcomics) and future work.  No, Snipes says next to nothing about his legal woes.

Now, onto the good stuff:

BV:With some many reboots, remakes and now 3-D would you entertain returning to the 'Blade' franchise?

SNIPES: I would definitely consider it, but to be honest with you, I'm very proactive. While they were deciding if they wanted to have further conversations about 'Blade,' we went and created new urban superheroes. I have one where I call him the Blade killer. We have some new stuff that's contemporary, and that's putting us a 100 years in the future. It's beyond what's created by Marvel. I know how to do this very well, and I think I have a track record of success that has benefited even Marvel and this new trend of vampire movies, from 'Twilight' on down. All of those films have some residue of Blade in them.

I can dream...