Review: "Finding Nemo" Recalls the Drama of Disney's "Bambi"

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 84 (of 2003) by Leroy Douresseaux

Finding Nemo (2003) – animated film
Running time: 100 minutes (1 hour, 40 minutes)
DIRECTOR: Andrew Stanton with Lee Unkrich
WRITERS: Bob Peterson, David Reynolds, and Andrew Stanton, from a story by Andrew Stanton
PRODUCER: Graham Walters
CINEMATOGRAPHERS: Sharon Calahan (director of photography) and Jeremy Lasky (director of photography)
EDITOR: David Ian Salter
COMPOSER: Thomas Newman
Academy Award winner

ANIMATION/FANTASY/ADVENTURE/COMEDY

Starring: (voices) Albert Brooks, Ellen DeGeneres, Alexander Gould, Willem Dafoe, Brad Garrett, Allison Janney, Austin Pendleton, Stephen Root, Vicki Lewis, Joe Ranft, Geoffrey Rush, Andrew Stanton, Eric Bana, and Elizabeth Perkins

Marlin (Albert Brooks), a clown fish, and his wife Coral (Elizabeth Perkins) live in an underwater suburban utopia for fish. They are about to be new parents as they await the hatching of over 400 eggs, when suddenly tragedy strikes in the form of a natural predator. After a horror that recalls the Disney classic Bambi, all that is left to Marlin is one tiny egg.

As the story moves to the future, Marlin has never really recovered from his loss. He is overprotective of his son Nemo (Alexander Gould), who was born with an underdeveloped fin (formerly known as a handicap), so he doesn’t swim well. Naturally, Nemo hates his father coddling him. One day he rebels by approaching a shipping vessel where a human captures him. Devastated, Marlin begins a desperate quest to find his only child. A blue tang fish named Dory (Ellen DeGeneres), who has short term memory loss, joins Marlin on the search for the boy. In the meantime, Nemo has found himself in the aquarium at an Aussie dentist’s office. He befriends a group of fellow captives who plot to help Nemo escape before he ends up an unfortunate gift to the dentist’s niece.

This is the fifth Walt Disney Pictures/Pixar Animation Studios co-production, and the union has produced five beautiful films. Toy Story and Toy Story 2 are two of the best animated films ever made. A Bug’s Life was a big hit, and I adore Monster’s Inc. more every time I see it. Finding Nemo ably stands with its brethren as another very fine achievement in the very short his story of computer animated feature films. I can say this without hesitation: Finding Nemo is a great animated film. I’ll save you the time reading this unless you really want to know what I have to say – rush out and see this film. It’s not perfect, and I can forgive the filmmakers the awfully syrupy fish suburbia that they created for the film’s opening scene; still, excellence must be noticed.

Directed by Andrew Stanton (co-director of A Bug’s Life) with Lee Unkrich (Monster’s Inc. and Toy Story 2) the film has the emotional resonance of the Toy Story films. Yes, it is inspired wacky fun for the kids, and they’ll laugh at lot; adults will probably laugh more than the tykes. Yes, the film has a gorgeous color palette that just dazzles the senses; it’s a colorful, visual treat on par with the great Technicolor films of yesteryear. However, the most important thing about the film is how it touches upon the relationships between people, both entertaining and connecting with the audience. You know there is something special about using animals to tell human stories. People have told these “anthropomorphic” tales since we could tell stories. It is easier for people to laugh at human foibles when we see our foolishness copied by cartoon animal-people. Animated films, cartoons, and comic art stories use this genre extremely well and through this animators and cartoonists take the craft of storytelling and make it an art.

The central story is about the protective bond between parents and their children, in this specific case, a father and his son. Marlin lost so much when he seemed about to have it all that he is way too overprotective of Nemo, essentially the only person he has left in his life. Marlin can’t deal with the fact that the older his son gets, the harder it is to micromanage the boy’s life. He can’t stop every bad thing that may happen to his child from happening. He’s also afraid of the environment in which he lives, the ocean, so he doesn’t really enjoy life. Nemo wants to be independent, but buried in the back of his mind is that he may be as physically inadequate as his father treats him. There are also many notable subplots: friends overcoming obstacles, learning to accept the differences in others instead of prejudging negative traits on them, people joining together to help a stranger in need, and of keeping hope alive.

I know that this might seem to be a bit heady for a cartoon, but this ability of a Pixar film to entertain and delight and to teach and to inspire simply continues that which is a tradition of the best Disney animated films. We’ve often considered classic Disney animation to be amongst the best films ever made (well, at least some of us), and Pixar just shows audiences that an animated film can be just as fun as the funniest comedy, that a cartoon can mimic the drama of humanity as well the best “real” movies.

9 of 10
A+

NOTES:
2004 Academy Awards: 1 win: “Best Animated Feature” (Andrew Stanton); 3 nominations: “Best Music, Original Score” (Thomas Newman), “Best Sound Editing” (Gary Rydstrom and Michael Silvers), and “Best Writing, Original Screenplay” (Andrew Stanton-screenplay/story, Bob Peterson-screenplay and David Reynolds-screenplay)

2004 BAFTA Awards: 1 nomination: “Best Screenplay – Original” (Andrew Stanton, Bob Peterson, and David Reynolds)

2004 Golden Globes: 1 nomination: “Best Motion Picture - Musical or Comedy”

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Lionsgate Acquires Gerard Butler Action Flick for 2011

Press release from Lionsgate:

LIONSGATE HITS BULLSEYE WITH MARC FORSTER’S MACHINE GUN PREACHER

Studio Acquires North American Distribution Rights To Fact-Based Action Drama Starring Gerard Butler

Fall 2011 Release Planned – Principal Photography Begins In July

SANTA MONICA, CA, June 21, 2010 – LIONSGATE® (NYSE: LGF), the leading next generation studio, today announced that it has acquired North American distribution rights to the fact-based action drama MACHINE GUN PREACHER, directed by Marc Forster (QUANTUM OF SOLACE). The film is the studio’s first collaboration with Forster since the Oscar®-winning MONSTER’S BALL. Gerard Butler (LAW ABIDING CITIZEN, 300) stars as Reverend Sam Childers, known as “the machine gun preacher.” Michelle Monaghan (EAGLE EYE, GONE BABY GONE) co-stars as his wife, Lynn Childers; Oscar nominee Michael Shannon (THE RUNAWAYS, REVOLUTIONARY ROAD) portrays Childers’s best friend, Donnie; Madeline Carroll (THE SPY NEXT DOOR, SWING VOTE) plays Childers’s daughter, Paige; Kathy Baker (LAST CHANCE HARVEY, STREET SMART) plays Childers’s mother, Daisy Childers; and Souleymane Sy Savane (GOODBYE SOLO, “Damages”) plays Deng, Childers’s right hand in Africa. The screenwriter is Jason Keller. Forster will produce under his Apparatus shingle alongside Robbie Brenner; Gary Safady and Craig Chapman of Kaushi Entertainment; and Deborah Giarratana of GG Filmz. Executive producers are Myles Nestel of Merlina Entertainment, Brad Simpson of Apparatus, Gerard Butler, Alan Siegel and Louise Rosner. The announcement was made by Joe Drake, Lionsgate Chief Operating Officer and Motion Picture Group President, and Mike Paseornek, Lionsgate President of Motion Picture Production.

Principal photography for MACHINE GUN PREACHER is scheduled to begin on July 5th in Detroit and South Africa. Lionsgate plans to release the film in fall 2011.

Said Paseornek, “MACHINE GUN PREACHER combines a fascinating, action-packed story and unique characters with great talent on both sides of the camera. We’re delighted to be back in business with our friend Marc, one of the most gifted and versatile filmmakers working today. And Gerard Butler is the ideal actor to capture the strength, complexity and charisma of this film’s real-life hero, Sam Childers.”

Said Brenner, “When I learned about Sam Childers, I thought, ‘here is a man who is making a difference, defying the odds and not just talking about what he believes but actually doing it.’ Seldom do you find a story that is gripping and relatable but is also about something bigger. Here was a movie that begged to be made. Jason Keller wrote an exceptional screenplay, and I can think of no one better able to depict this story than my dear friend, Marc Forster."

Said Safady, “I am honored to play an integral part in telling the amazing story of Sam Childers. I think this is the perfect movie as a foray into the film business, as it is both commercial and topical. In today's society, stories like his are rare and this is one that deserves to be told.”

Said Forster, “I am thrilled to be working again with Lionsgate. They have a keen understanding for the complexity of the material and will give our film the care and guidance it needs to expose the story to the masses.”

The deal was negotiated for Lionsgate by Rob McEntegart, Senior Executive Vice President, Motion Picture Group, and by Merlina Entertainment’s Nestel, on behalf of the filmmakers. Forster, Keller, Butler and Shannon are represented by CAA. Forster and Keller are represented by Guymon Casady of Management 360. Forster is represented by attorney Linda Lichter of Lichter, Grossman, Nichols, Adler & Feldman.


SYNOPSIS – MACHINE GUN PREACHER
After renouncing his outlaw ways, Sam Childers embarks on a spiritual path, becoming a warrior for the desperate and helpless children in a war-torn country in Africa.


ABOUT LIONSGATE
Lionsgate (NYSE: LGF - News) is the leading next generation studio with a strong and diversified presence in the production and distribution of motion pictures, television programming, home entertainment, family entertainment, video-on-demand and digitally delivered content. 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 nearly 20 shows on 10 different networks spanning its prime time production, distribution and syndication businesses, including such critically-acclaimed hits as "Mad Men," "Weeds" and "Nurse Jackie" along with new series such as "Blue Mountain State" and "Running Wilde" and the syndication successes "Tyler Perry's House of Payne," its spinoff "Meet The Browns" and "The Wendy Williams Show."

Its feature film business has generated such recent hits as TYLER PERRY’S WHY DID I GET MARRIED TOO?, the action film KICK-ASS, which opened at #1 at the North American box office and the critically-acclaimed PRECIOUS, which has garnered nearly $50 million at the North American box office and 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 revenue conversion rate. Lionsgate handles a prestigious and prolific library of approximately 12,000 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.

"The Karate Kid" is Still a Winner

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 47 (of 2010) by Leroy Douresseaux


The Karate Kid (2010)
Running time: 140 minutes (2 hours, 20 minutes)
MPAA – PG for bullying, martial arts action violence and some mild language
DIRECTOR: Harald Zwart
WRITERS: Christopher Murphey; from a story by Robert Mark Kamen
PRODUCERS: James Lassiter, Jada Pinkett Smith, Will Smith, Ken Stovitz, and Jerry Weintraub
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Roger Pratt
EDITOR: Joel Negron
COMPOSER: James Horner

DRAMA/MARTIAL ARTS

Starring: Jaden Smith, Jackie Chan, Taraji P. Henson, Wen Wen Han, Zhenwei Wang Rongguang Yu, Zhensu Wu, Zhiheng Wang, and Luke Carberry

The Karate Kid 2010 is, of course, a remake of the 1984 film of the same name. The new film stars Jaden Smith (son of actors Will Smith and Jada Pinkett Smith) and international martial artist and actor, Jackie Chan. The new film is an absolutely lovable, well-made film that stands on its on and does the original proud. This time, however, kung fu, not karate, is the martial art of choice.

Twelve-year-old Dre Parker (Jaden Smith) moves to Beijing from Detroit with his mother, Sherry Parker (Taraji P. Henson), because of her new job. Dre experiences love-at-first-sight when he sees a young violinist named Mei Ying (Wen Wen Han), practicing in the park, and the feeling is mutual. However, Dre’s feelings for Mei Ying make an enemy of the class bully, Cheng (Zhenwei Wang), a kung fu prodigy and rival for Mei Ying’s affections.

Dre knows a little karate, but it is not enough to help this karate kid from America safely navigate his new home. Cheng uses kung fu to beat the crap out of him. Dre finds a friend and mentor in Mr. Han (Jackie Chan), the maintenance man of Dre’s apartment complex, after he rescues Dre from a beating. After a futile attempt to settle the dispute between Dre and Cheng peaceably, Mr. Han enters Dre in the “Open Kung Fu Tournament” where Dre may face off against his nemesis. Han begins to teach Dre real kung fu, but although he is being trained by a master, Dre realizes that surviving the tournament will be the fight of his life.

At its heart, The Karate Kid is a wonderful story about a teacher-student relationship that develops into a surrogate father-son bond. It is a superbly written (by screenwriter Christopher Murphey) example of a bond between two people in which each not only helps the other heal, but also soar to new heights of achievement and happiness.

The relationship between Dre and Mr. Han works so well because of the strong screen chemistry between Jaden Smith and Jackie Chan. Their performances make the characters’ actions and emotions seem authentic and sincere. They not only ground the story’s more fantastical moments, but they also give it a touch of goofy charm, which lightens the movie’s overall dark and sometimes edgy and grim atmosphere. Jaden has inherited his father, Will Smith’s cheeky cockiness, but the young actor seems like more of a natural talent, as if he doesn’t have to try as hard as his father.

In this film, Jackie Chan gives what is by far his best performance in an American production. Perhaps, I shouldn’t be surprised, but I am. Chan gives a complex, layered performance to create in Han, a complicated and inscrutable man. This is best exemplified in the scene in which Cheng’s Master Li (Rongguang Yu) and Mr. Han have a tense confrontation. Chan plays the scene with barely checked but mostly concealed fury. It is difficult to figure out what is going on in Mr. Han’s mind at that moment, and that’s the way Chan probably wanted it because it adds another layer of mystery to Han.

Fresh of the maligned Pink Panther 2, director Harald Swart has delivered a winner. This film, however, is as much a Chinese and American take on Rocky as it is a remake of The Karate Kid 1984, itself a teen, martial arts spin on 1976 Oscar winner for “Best Picture.” It is unsettling to see 12-year-olds beating each other up, as they do here, but The Karate Kid 2010 is excellent family entertainment. Its messages about setting goals and being open-minded and resilient make it even more of a winner.

8 of 10
A

Saturday, June 26, 2010

Now, Peter Jackson Wants to Direct The Hobbit Films

Entertainment Weekly or EW.com has the details here.

Review: Strange "Little Nicky" was Also a Romantic Comedy

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 165 (of 2004) by Leroy Douresseaux

Little Nicky (2000)
Running time: 90 minutes (1 hour, 30 minutes)
MPAA – PG-13 for crude sexual humor, some drug content, language, and thematic material
DIRECTOR: Steven Brill
WRITERS: Tim Herlihy, Adam Sandler, and Steven Brill
PRODUCERS: Jack Giarraputo and Robert Simonds
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Theo van de Sande
EDITOR: Jeff Gourson

FANTASY/COMEDY/ROMANCE

Starring: Adam Sandler, Patricia Arquette, Harvey Keitel, Rhys Ifans, Tom “Tiny” Lister, Jr., Rodney Dangerfield, Allen Covert, Peter Dante, Jonathan Loughran, (voice) Robert Smigel, Reese Witherspoon, Kevin Nealon, Dana Carvey, Jon Lovitz, Carl Weathers, Quentin Tarantino, Michael McKean, Rob Schneider, John Witherspoon, Clint Howard, The Harlem Globetrotters (Orlando Antigua, Matthew Jackson, Curley “Boo” Johnson, Herbert Lang, William Stringfellow, and Lou Dunbar), George Wallace, Ellen Cleghorne, Reggie McFadden, and Philip Bolden with (uncredited) Dan Marino, Henry Winkler, and Ozzy Osbourne

Satan (Harvey Keitel) was about to give up his throne (after 10,000 years of ruling Hell) to one of his three sons: the sly Adrian (Rhys Ifans), the brutal and abusive Cassius (Tom “Tiny” Lister, Jr.) or his sweetest son, Nicky (Adam Sander). However, the King of Damnation decided to keep his throne for another ten thousand-year rule, much to the chagrin of both Adrian and Cassius, so they decide to escape to Earth and create a hell there where they can rule. Their rash behavior freezes the gates of hell, and Satan begins to disintegrate. Nicky reluctantly goes to Earth to bring his dastardly brothers back (by trapping them in a flask and returning both brothers at the same time), but he falls in love with a shy girl named Valerie (Patricia Arquette). Nicky’s love interest and his brothers’ bullying complicate his task while Adrian and Cassius turn Manhattan into a hell on Earth.

Many fans consider Little Nicky to be Adam Sandler’s worst film as a headlining star, but the film probably put off people for two reasons. First, it is a genre film that plays with magic and the supernatural, with Hell also as a major setting for the film. Secondly, it is a transition film that displays both the juvenile attitude and crude humor of Sandler’s mid to late 90’s star making turns in such films as Billy Madison, Happy Gilmore, and The Waterboy and the romance of the comedy date films like Mr. Deeds and 50 First Dates that Sandler would emphasize in the new century. The young male audience that makes up a large part of Sandler’s fan base prefers the former gross out comedy to the latter relationship films.

What also may have most turned people away is the Little Nicky’s excessive vileness, particularly in regards to religion, religious authority, and religious institutions. I found that aspect shocking, mildly offensive, and unnecessary; still, I applaud the filmmakers’ boldness in handling religion in such a fashion. That’s just one of the things that makes Little Nicky stand out from the crowded field of juvenile comedy. There’s lots of crude humor, and most of it is quite hilarious, and it’s not just visual gags because there is a frankly raw use of language that really gives this film zing. There is also a wonderful romance between the shy couple of Nicky and Valerie that works because they are such a perfectly matched, mismatched couple.

The film does go a little wrong in its second half. Nicky’s pursuit of his brothers abruptly begins to dim the film’s comedy, and more time should have been spent on the Nicky/Valerie relationship. Still, for all its rawness and crudeness, Little Nicky is a feel good film, and it accomplishes its feel good attitude with lots of movie star cameos. Even small appearances by well-known actors give a film brief bursts of energy, and Sandler fills the film with friends, especially fellow alumni of “Saturday Night Live” where Sandler starred from 1991-95.

As for Sandler’s performance, it is a bizarre part that he actually plays with a touch of sweetness and goofy charm that really sells the character. He, however, keeps his fire low to allow his wonderful supporting cast to shine, and they make Little Nicky as much theirs as it is his – an unusual film that is uncommonly funny.

7 of 10
B+

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Jamie Foxx Developing Mob TV Series

BET.com's blog, Stay Tuned..., cribbed a story from Deadline Hollywood that Jamie Foxx is developing a mob drama that he plans to pitch to the major cable networks.  You want details:

Jamie Foxx is getting entrepreneurial with a new drama TV project. I hear the Oscar winner over the past two weeks shot a trailer for a potential drama series entitled Tommy’s Little Girl. Selma Blair and Paul Sorvino star in the trailer for the project, which is based on an idea by Foxx. It revolves around several older mobster guys, played by Sorvino, Sopranos alum Tony Sirico and James Russo, and centers on Sorvino’s relationship with his daughter, played by Blair. Foxx is currently editing the trailer for the project, which is being financed by a private investor. When ready, it will be taken out to the top cable networks. Foxx has been focusing on TV producing lately.

Paul Sorvino!  I'm there already.

Review: "Quantum of Solace" Finds James Bond with a Hard-On for Payback

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 46 (of 2010) by Leroy Douresseaux

Quantum of Solace (2008)
Running time: 106 minutes (1 hour, 46 minutes)
MPAA – PG-13 for intense sequences of violence and action, and some sexual content
DIRECTOR: Marc Forster
WRITERS: Paul Haggis, Neal Purvis, and Robert Wade
PRODUCERS: Barbara Broccoli and Michael G. Wilson
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Roberto Schaefer (director of photography)
EDITORS: Matt Chesse and Richard Pearson
MAIN THEME: “Another Way to Die” performed by Alicia Keys and Jack White and composed by Jack White
BAFTA Awards nominee

ACTION/DRAMA/THRILLER

Starring: Daniel Craig, Olga Kurylenko, Mathieu Amalric, Judi Dench, Giancarlo Giannini, Gemma Arterton, Jeffrey Wright, David Harbour, Jesper Christensen, Anatole Taubman, and Joaquín Cosio

The 2006 version of Casino Royale rebooted the James Bond film franchise. The follow up film, Quantum of Solace (the 22nd Bond film), is a rough and tumble, rip-roaring action movie that is probably more Jason Bourne than it is James Bond. Still, this is a very good action thriller.

Quantum of Solace continues immediately after the events of Casino Royale. James Bond (Daniel Craig) rushes the captured Mr. White (Jesper Christensen) to Siena, Italy, where Bond and M (Judi Dench), his M16 superior, will interrogate White. The interrogation is interrupted, however, by a double agent. Bond follows the trail of the double agent to Dominic Greene (Mathieu Amalric), the charismatic leader of an ecological organization called Greene Planet. Behind Greene Planet’s seemingly legitimate business interests and benevolent aims hides Quantum, a powerful terrorist organization plotting to overthrow the government of Bolivia.

For Bond, this mission is as much about vengeance as it is about duty. Quantum is also connected to the death of the woman Bond loved, Vesper Lynn, (who betrayed him and died in Casino Royale). In Bolivia, Bond is joined by Camille Montes (Olga Kurylenko), a young woman hunting the murderer of her family, Bolivian general, Medrano (Joaquín Cosio), and a co-conspirator of Greene’s. As he gets closer to finding the man responsible for the betrayal of Vesper, Bond leaves a pile of bodies in his wake, and soon the CIA and his own agency are hunting him.

By now, moviegoers are used to the fact that the Daniel Craig James Bond is not the “shaken, not stirred” Bond of the past. Bond is now as much an ass-kicking action hero, leaping and running all over the place, as he is a cool secret agent (if not more). And Quantum of Solace is certainly kick-ass. It isn’t more of the same; the film simply takes the cool action scenes of Casino Royale and multiplies them.

Craig is ultra-cool as the ruthless “blunt instrument,” and his performance here – balancing a broken heart with a barely concealed hard-on for revenge – is tasty. Mathieu Amalric is smashing as Dominic Greene; rarely has such a weasel of a villain been so attractive. Judi Dench and Jeffrey Wright deliver their usually good performances.

From the opening rollicking car chase (one of the best I’ve seen in a long time) to the desert hotel showdown, this Bond packs a wallop. Quantum of Solace lacks the smart elegance of the typical James Bond movie (which even Casino Royale had), but I’ll take solace in this quick, sweet, brutal gem of an action movie.

7 of 10
A-

NOTES:
2009 BAFTA Awards: 2 nominations: “Best Sound” (James Boyle, Eddy Joseph, Chris Munro, Mike Prestwood Smith, and Mark Taylor) and “Best Special Visual Effects” (Chris Corbould and Kevin Tod Haug)

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