John Pilger on How Wars Begin

With something called "black propaganda," the award-winning journalist writes in this Truthout essay.

Go. Read. Learn.

Shutter Island Arrives on DVD Tomorrow

FROM ACADEMY AWARD®-WINNING* DIRECTOR MARTIN SCORSESE COMES A SUSPENSEFUL THRILLER STARRING ACCLAIMED ACTOR LEONARDO DICAPRIO - SHUTTER ISLAND

Intense and Spine-Chilling Tour de Force Debuts on DVD, Blu-ray and VOD June 8, 2010

World-renowned director Martin Scorsese delivers “a stunning masterpiece that requires and demands multiple viewings” (Ain’t It Cool News) with the critically-acclaimed suspense thriller

SHUTTER ISLAND, debuting on DVD, Blu-ray and VOD June 8, 2010 from Paramount Home Entertainment. Starring three-time Academy Award® nominee Leonardo DiCaprio (The Departed), the film features an outstanding ensemble cast including Mark Ruffalo (Zodiac), Oscar® winner Sir Ben Kingsley (Gandhi),

Max von Sydow (Minority Report), Michelle Williams (Brokeback Mountain) and Emily Mortimer (Match Point). Based on the best-selling novel by celebrated writer Dennis Lehane, SHUTTER ISLAND was written for the screen by Laeta Kalogridis and tells the story of two U.S. marshals investigating the mysterious disappearance of an inmate from a hospital for the criminally insane. But as their investigation proceeds, they uncover an intricate web of deception where nothing may be as it seems. Filled with nail-biting suspense and unexpected plot twists, SHUTTER ISLAND is a must-see thriller that will keep you guessing to the very end.

The SHUTTER ISLAND Blu-ray includes making-of featurettes entitled “Behind the Shutters” and “Into the Lighthouse”. Music from the motion picture is available now from Rhino Records at all physical and digital retail outlets. The haunting double disc set was produced by music legend and frequent Scorsese collaborator Robbie Robertson and features a stunning array of modern classical music.

The SHUTTER ISLAND DVD is presented in widescreen enhanced for 16:9 TVs with Dolby Digital English 5.1 Surround, French 5.1 Surround and Spanish 5.1 Surround and English, French and Spanish subtitles. The Blu-ray is presented in 1080p high definition with English 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio, French 5.1 Dolby Digital, Spanish 5.1 Dolby Digital and Brazilian Portuguese 5.1 Dolby Digital and English, English SDH, French, Spanish and Brazilian Portuguese subtitles. The Blu-ray includes the following special features:

o Behind the Shutters—Follows the film from its inception as an acclaimed novel through the production process and to the big screen. Includes interviews with cast and crew.

o Into the Lighthouse—Discusses the historical landscape of psychiatric therapies during the 1950s through interviews with cast and crew.


About Paramount Home Entertainment
Paramount Home Entertainment (PHE) is part of Paramount Pictures Corporation (PPC), a global producer and distributor of filmed entertainment. PPC is a unit of Viacom (NYSE: VIA, VIA.B), a leading content company with prominent and respected film, television and digital entertainment brands. PHE is responsible for the sales, marketing and distribution of home entertainment products on behalf of various parties including: Paramount Pictures, Paramount Vantage, Paramount Classics, Paramount Famous Productions, Nickelodeon, MTV, Comedy Central, CBS and PBS and for providing home entertainment fulfillment services for DreamWorks Animation Home Entertainment.

Read my review of Shutter Island.

Original "Karate Kid" Still Kicking

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 41 (of 2010) by Leroy Douresseaux

The Karate Kid (1984)
Running time: 126 minutes (2 hours, 6 minutes)
DIRECTOR: John G. Avildsen
WRITER: Robert Mark Kamen
PRODUCER: Jerry Weintraub
CINEMATOGRAPHER: James Crabe (director of photography)
EDITORS: John G. Avildsen, Walt Mulconery, and Bud Smith
COMPOSER: Bill Conti
Academy Award nominee

DRAMA

Starring: Ralph Macchio, Noriyuki “Pat” Morita, Elisabeth Shue, Martin Kove, Randee Heller, William Zabka, and Larry B. Scott

It has been more than 20 years since I last saw the 1984 film, The Karate Kid (maybe even longer), so with the upcoming 2010 remake due to hit theatres shortly, I decided to see the original again. I saw The Karate Kid in a theatre, and I remember liking it a lot at the time, but back then, I’d like anything that entertained me – even bad movies.

However, I was delightfully surprised to find that The Karate Kid still had me rooting for its underdog hero, Daniel LaRusso. I cringed when he was in trouble, fretted with him over typical teen problems, and cheered when he became the victor. Some of the movie is still standard teen movie fare – even the listless romance between Daniel and Ali. It may not be perfect, but this movie is mostly a winner.

The Karate Kid is the story of Daniel LaRusso (Ralph Macchio), who is the new kid in the California town of Reseda. Daniel moved from Newark, New Jersey with his mother, Lucille LaRusso (Randee Heller), because of Lucille’s new job. It doesn’t take long before Daniel falls afoul of a gang of bullies from a local martial arts school, the Cobra Kai dojo. When Daniel befriends a new classmate, Ali Mills (Elisabeth Shue), he angers her ex-boyfriend, Cobra Kai stud and karate student, Johnny Lawrence (William Zabka). Daniel knows a little karate, but that doesn’t protect him from a few beatings at the hand of Johnny and his cronies.

Luckily, the manager of the apartment building where Daniel lives, Kesuke Miyagi (Noriyuki “Pat” Morita), is a martial arts master, and he rescues Daniel from one particularly bad beating. Hoping to resolve the situation, Mr. Miyagi and Daniel visit the Cobra Kai dojo, but the sensei (teacher), an ex-Special Forces thug named John Kreese (Martin Kove), refuses to defuse the situation between Daniel and his students. Mr. Miyagi and Kreese agree to settle the conflict between Daniel and Johnny at the “All Valley Karate Tournament.” Mr. Miyagi begins Daniel’s training, but Daniel is shocked to discover just how strange the training regimen is. Can he handle it?

Pat Morita earned an Oscar nomination for his performance as Mr. Miyagi, one certainly well deserved. Morita took what could have been an odd-duck, wizened martial arts master and turned Mr. Miyagi into a complex supporting character and guardian to the hero. Morita made Mr. Miyagi a friend when Daniel needed one, and a surrogate father even when Daniel didn’t know he needed one.

Ralph Macchio was equally as good, personifying the typical American high school teenager with skill and depth. Macchio captured the trials, tribulations, and triumphs of Daniel LaRusso in a variety of shades and colors. One of the best parts of Macchio’s performance is how he depicts Daniel’s uncertainty about how and when to confront his Cobra Kai bullies. Macchio plays those moments by giving Daniel a mixture of fear and craftiness that really defies firm description, but it exemplifies the sense of verisimilitude Macchio’s performance gives Daniel.

Morita and Macchio’s performances are why The Karate Kid resonates with audiences, then and now. They make their characters recognizable, likeable, and believable, and together, they are the kind of winning father-son and best friends dynamic duo that can make audiences love a movie enough to turn it into a franchise.

7 of 10
B+

NOTES:
1985 Academy Awards: 1 nomination: “Best Actor in a Supporting Role” (Noriyuki “Pat” Morita)

1985 Golden Globes: 1 nomination: “Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role in a Motion Picture” (Noriyuki “Pat” Morita)

Monday, June 07, 2010

Spike TV Viewers Choose Christopher Nolan's "Inception"

"Inception" Crowned Most Man-ticipated Movie at Spike TV's "Guy's Choice"

LEONARDO DICAPRIO, CHRISTOPHER NOLAN AND JOSEPH GORDON-LEVITT TO ACCEPT HONOR Fourth Annual Show Premieres Sunday, June 20th at 10 PM, ET/PT

NEW YORK, June 3 /PRNewswire/ -- Spike TV has announced another honr to be presented during its "Guys Choice" event, as the original sci-fi action thriller "Inception" will be crowned Most Man-ticipated movie of 2010. Most Man-ticipated will be presented to "Inception" writer, director, producer Christopher Nolan and film stars Leonardo DiCaprio and Joseph Gordon-Levitt. Taping Saturday, June 5 at the Sony Pictures Studios in Culver City, CA, "Guys Choice" premieres Sunday, June 20 (10:00 PM - Midnight, ET/PT).

The Most Man-ticipated Movie Award has become one of the show's highlights -- fans are treated to footage by some of Hollywood's biggest names. Last year, viewers got an exclusive first-look from director Quentin Tarantino and Brad Pitt with footage from "Inglourious Basterds." This year, DiCaprio, Nolan and Gordon-Levitt will bring Spike guys exciting footage from "Inception," which opens in theatres and IMAX on July 16, 2010.

"With its powerhouse players, incredible scope and completely original storyline, 'Inception' has it all and is hands down the most Man-ticipated movie of the summer," said Casey Patterson, SVP, event production, talent development and studio relations, Spike TV.

"Inception" marks acclaimed filmmaker Nolan's first major motion picture since his 2008 Academy Award®-winning blockbuster "The Dark Knight." In "Inception," DiCaprio stars as Dom Cobb, a skilled thief, the absolute best in the dangerous art of extraction, stealing valuable secrets from deep within the subconscious, during the dream state when the mind is at its most vulnerable. Cobb's rare ability has made him a coveted player in this treacherous new world of corporate espionage, but it has also made him an international fugitive and cost him everything he has ever loved. Now Cobb is being offered a chance at redemption. One last job could give him his life back but only if he can accomplish the impossible--inception. If he and his team of specialists succeed, it could be the perfect crime. But no amount of careful planning or expertise can prepare the team for the dangerous enemy that seems to predict their every move. An enemy that only Cobb could have seen coming. This summer, your mind is the scene of the crime.

A presentation of Warner Bros. Pictures, in association with Legendary Pictures, "Inception" also stars Ken Watanabe, Marion Cotillard, Ellen Page, Tom Hardy, Cillian Murphy, Tom Berenger, and Michael Caine. Emma Thomas produced the film with Nolan.

The star-studded, action-packed night will also feature appearances by Robert De Niro, LeBron James, Ben Affleck and Ben Kingsley and "Iron Man 2" super-stars Robert Downey, Jr. and Scarlett Johansson. Additional appearances include: James Gandolfini, Sylvester Stallone, Jessica Biel, Bradley Cooper, Samuel L. Jackson, Chris Rock, Brooklyn Decker, Jason Statham, Dwayne Johnson, Quinton "Rampage" Jackson, Liam Neeson, Ozzy Osbourne and many more.

Voting for this year's winners is being held online at www.spike.com/guyschoice through Friday, June 4th. Also online, fans can log-on to view exclusive red carpet and backstage coverage of "Guys Choice."

The official sponsors of Spike TV's "Guys Choice" are AT&T, AXE Hair, Captain Morgan, Corona and Pizza Hut.

Casey Patterson, Carol Donovan, and Beth McCarthy-Miller will serve as executive producers.

Spike TV is available in 98.6 million homes and is a division of MTV Networks. A unit of Viacom (NYSE:VIA)(NYSE:VIA.B), MTV Networks is one of the world's leading creators of programming and content across all media platforms. Spike TV's Internet address is www.spike.com and for up-to-the-minute and archival press information and photographs, visit Spike TV's press site at http://www.spike.com/press

Review: "The Fast and the Furious" is Still Furious

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 88 (of 2003) by Leroy Douresseaux

The Fast and the Furious (2001)
Running time: 106 minutes (1 hour, 46 minutes)
MPAA – PG-13 for violence, sexual content and language
DIRECTOR: Rob Cohen
WRITERS: Gary Scott Thompson, Erik Bergquist, and David Ayer, from a screen story by Gary Scott Thompson (based on a magazine article, “Racer X” by Ken Li)
PRODUCER: Neal H. Moritz
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Ericson Core (director of photography)
EDITOR: Peter Honess

ACTION/THRILLER

Starring: Paul Walker, Vin Diesel, Michelle Rodriguez, Jordana Brewster, Rick Yune, Chad Lindberg, Johnny Strong, Matt Schulze, Ted Levine, R.J. de Vera, Thom Barry, and Ja Rule

For some reason, I just felt that I had to see The Fast and the Furious before I saw its recently released sequel, 2 Fast 2 Furious. I wanted to see it when the film was first released, but I avoided it. When I asked a former associate about TFTF, he gave it a conditional approval, shrugging his shoulders to let me know that it was entertaining, but forgettable – one of those films. Yes, it certainly is one of those popcorn flicks, forgotten as soon as you walk out the theatre, but while you’re inside, you will be on one of those “rides of your life.” This is simply slick and fantastic entertainment, pure high-speed pleasure, and I wished I’d seen it on a big screen.

Brian O’Connor (Paul Walker) is an undercover cop trying to catch a ring of thieves who hijack 18-wheelers. They carry out their crimes in very fast, small cars. His bosses figure they can uncover the thieves’ identities by planting Brian into the world of L.A. street racing, where he meets the top dog of racers, Dominic Toretto (Vin Diesel). Brian falls for Dominic’s sister Mia (Jordana Brewster), and before long, he just can’t believe that Dominic and his crew could be the hijackers because he’s down with them now. Brian soon finds himself caught between his professional obligations as a law enforcement officer and his position as Dominic’s homie and Mia’s boy toy.

I’ve seen director Rob Cohen’s other film with Vin Diesel, XXX, and while it’s very good, Furious is so much better. Cohen uses every trick in the book: computer effects, editing, and camera work, all to heighten the illusion of super speed for the chase scenes and car race sequences. Actually, the begins rather slowly, but the very second the first race kicks into high gear, I knew I was in for a especially wild ride.

The script ain’t nothing to scream about; it’s a professional by-the-numbers job, and not a really good one at that. There’s lot of emoting and dramatic huffing and puffing from the mostly young cast, but it all works out. The story owes something more than just a nod to the great Keanu Reeves/Patrick Swayze actioneer, Point Break, also about a policeman who goes native when he infiltrates a gang of crooks with a charismatic leader. With his mega buff body virtually leaking testosterone, Diesel is automatic charisma. Paul Walker (also a veteran of a Cohen film, The Skulls) is almost an exact copy of the Reeves character in Point Break, and he carries his part quiet well.

OK. This is a very good action movie, the kind you want to see when you want an action movie. If you’ve never seen it, then you’re really missing something. Every chase scene and race is brilliant staged and executed. The Fast and the Furious deserves to be called “an adrenaline rush.” [If you’ve seen it already, you’ll probably still get a kick out of it, especially with the “tricked out” DVD release of the film.]

Make sure you watch all the way through the credits, where you will find a tidy wrap up to the story.

7 of 10
B+

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VIZ Media Offers Free "Kekkaishi" Download

VIZ MEDIA ANNOUNCES FREE KEKKAISHI DOWNLOAD EPISODE

Special Promotion To Celebrate the Domestic Broadcast Launch of the Shonen Sunday Animated Series

VIZ Media invites fans to explore the demon-battling action adventure of popular Shonen Sunday KEKKAISHI anime series with a FREE Download-to-Own (DTO) episode starting today through VIZ Media partners iTunes, Xbox Live's Zune Marketplace, PlayStation®Network and Amazon Video on Demand. KEKKAISHI Episode 1 will be available for free download through June 17th to celebrate the recent domestic broadcast launch of KEKKAISHI on Adult Swim.

KEKKAISHI is based on the hit manga series by Yellow Tanabe (also published in North America by VIZ Media). A story of mystical forces powerful in the region known as Karasumori. For over 400 years, it has been the duty of a clan of “kekkaishi”—barrier masters—to guard this land and exterminate the supernatural creatures that are drawn to it night after night.

Yoshimori Sumimura is a junior high school student at Karasumori Academy, which is built upon the Karasumori grounds. By night, Yoshimori follows the tradition passed down through generations and fulfills his destiny as the twenty-second “kekkaishi” of the Sumimura clan. But by day, Yoshimori's got other demons to contend with, like an obsession with cake making and a seriously crotchety grandfather! Yoshimori's pretty neighbor, childhood friend and rival, Tokine Yukimura, is also a “kekkaishi,” but their families are caught up in a feud over who is the true practitioner of the art. Protecting ordinary people from the ever-present danger of the Karasumori grounds, Yoshimori will continue to grow stronger as he battles the forces of evil again tonight!

For more information on the KEKKAISHI anime and manga series (both rated “T” for Teens), please visit www.ShonenSunday.com or http://www.viz.com/.

Tim Burton Talks "Alice in Wonderland"

The following is a general Tim Burton interview provided by Walt Disney to the media to promote the DVD release of Burton's recent film, Alice in Wonderland:

TIM BURTON is the DIRECTOR of ALICE IN WONDERLAND


QUESTION: The film almost suggests that you were Lewis Carroll in a former life?

TIM BURTON: I’m like a lot of people, I just responded to what he did. There have been so many movie versions and I hope that somewhere there is a version that might have pleased him.

QUESTION: The film is as though you put a camera into our dreams and recorded them. Was that dream-like quality what you wanted to create?

TIM BURTON: Yeah, that’s why we didn’t follow the literal stories. That seemed to be the problem with the other versions. What I liked about this was that it explored the characters and what I feel that Carroll’s work did for me and other people in exploring your dream state, and using fantasy in your dream state to deal with real issues and problems in your life. People like to separate those things but the fact is that they are things that are intertwined. That is what Carroll did so beautifully and he was so cryptic with what he wrote. You can analyze it to death but it still remains a mystical, kind of unidentifiable thing and yet it is so powerful.

QUESTION: And Lewis Carroll was so ahead of his time?

TIM BURTON: If the books were written today it would be…Woah, what’s this!…That shows you the power of it.

QUESTION: What has happened to your aversion to CGI?

TIM BURTON: In this case it was that we were using so many techniques that it felt like this was the way to go. It is like I am in love with it but at the same time it is just a tool. Whether it is stop motion or cell or CGI, it is still animation; you still deal with animators and do the same thing. You still have fun and the same goal to make the animation work.

QUESTION: Was it always going to be a 3D film?

TIM BURTON: Absolutely! That’s the only reason I did it. Three years ago when they talked to me about it I thought it seemed like the perfect material and mix. I don’t think that a few years ago that I would have been interested. But I just felt that the trippiness of Wonderland and 3D seemed like something I was interested in. Now 3D is no longer a fad but I don’t get all crazy about it and say that everything has got to be in 3D. It is a nice tool, like color or sound or whatever. I was quite intrigued and I learned, 3D opened up a lot of questions about how to use it. I think it is great. It’s like if a movie needs to be in black and white then that’s how I will shoot it. I see color as just another character or black and white as a character.

QUESTION: When Alice gets in a jam she says it’s her dream and she can do what she wants. Would that describe your approach to film making?

TIM BURTON: It is an aspiration. No matter what you go through with the business side or the Hollywood side at the end of it all, when you are there on the set, it is your thing. So it is your own private world and that’s great. That’s where you have that bubble to create something in.

QUESTION: But when a film gets as big as this is it still possible to control it?

TIM BURTON: The time issue meant it was like a backwards process of making a movie. Normally you shot a shot and see it the next day but here you did not see a shot till near the end.

QUESTION: Everyone has their own idea of Alice. Was that extra pressure for you?

TIM BURTON: Just for that reason, I did not feel there was a definitive version, one shining version that everybody loves. If there was then maybe you have trouble. But when there are 20 versions – and all the music and illustrations – the imagery comes up in so many different forms that it is in the culture. So I did not feel that pressure.

QUESTION: How tough was it to drop characters like The Walrus And The Carpenter?

TIM BURTON: There is a picture of the walrus on a wall though. Linda, the writer, and I discussed that. I felt other versions suffered in trying to be literal to the stories. We did not want to try to pack it all in. So we weaved in according to the structure of what Linda had written. Everyone probably has a favorite character but we fed in the ones that felt appropriate.

QUESTION: You made the Mad Hatter a much more focal point?

TIM BURTON: With all of the characters we felt they suffered in other versions because they were just depicted as crazy. Rather than him bouncing around being crazy we tried to layer the characters with some depth. There was a lot of research into them being called Mad Hatters because of the mercury poisoning in hat making. So all the characters in Alice In Wonderland are mad but we tried to make sure that they each have their own particular kind of madness.

QUESTION: Having made so many films with Johnny Depp do you now see him as your avatar as you go into these strange dream worlds?

TIM BURTON: To some degree, we have pretty similar tastes that way. That’s the energy, that’s what keeps it going.

QUESTION: The 3D butterfly at the end of the film is very touching. What was the reason for the last shot?

TIM BURTON: It was the Caterpillar turning into the butterfly…That was what I liked so much about the script. It’s not so much about being literal to the story, it’s about that feeling that you have been here before and you know these characters through exploring your childhood. People like to be literal about everything and that is what is so beautiful about what Carroll did. It’s not literal. It’s absurdist and yet it has cryptic meaning so that everyone will see the meaning in a different way. That’s the power of those stories.

QUESTION: Is Tim Burton now becoming more of the mainstream?

TIM BURTON: One of the things that keeps me semi-sane is not analyzing that stuff. You never want to become a thing, you want to remain a human being. People go…you have worked with Johnny seven times…and I go…really? I’ve not been counting. I try not to go there. I try to remember I like doing this and don’t think about all the trappings.

QUESTION: What about the green screen?

TIM BURTON: Johnny was acting to a tennis ball, which he loved. He was the only one who really liked that. Everyone else hated it.

QUESTION: Was finding Alice a difficult process?

TIM BURTON: We had a big search but Mia was pretty clear pretty soon. There was something about her and I liked the idea that we hadn’t seen much of her. She was a young person with an old person’s soul. That was something I felt no previous Alice had. They came across like bratty, precocious children. In most other versions she was obnoxious. Our key was not to be obnoxious. The studio was supportive in going for an unknown Alice, and at the end of the day they are happy about it.

QUESTION: Is Helena always going to be in your films?

TIM BURTON: No it’s the same way with Johnny. It is not automatic. It is important that it is the right part. If Helena is right for a part then ok. But it’s not because we are together, that would be a real mistake that would only end in tragedy.

TIM BURTON’S ALICE IN WONDERLAND is now available on Blu-ray & DVD.