"Gee willikers mommy! Do you think after the funny blue man is finished in the magical rainbow forest he'll have time to go swimming in the chocolate river where all his dreams come true?"
"Oh I'm sure he will Timmy. I'm sure he will."
So I was watching the latest trailer for James Cameron's Avatar and um...what the fuck?!
Honestly, if it wasn't for the epic trailer from last week that promised insane amounts of violence with missiles and monsters and all that awesome stuff, this trailer might have very well put me off going to see this film. I just pray that this is simply a whorish attempt on behalf of the studio to trick parents into letting their kids see what will hopefully still be a very action oriented film, and not an accurate reflection of what the movie is really like. I honestly thought I was watching the trailer for a Disney movie or something.
Anyway, just a quick note to you all you marketers out there; the following phrases should not be allowed to be used in reference to the newest film from the guy who made Terminator, Terminator 2 and Aliens:
"a place beyond your imagination" "where wonder lives and adventure rules" "experience the wonder" "greatest adventure of all time"
Seriously people, it's Pandora, not Hogwarts. Show some god damn respect.
Avatar will be in theatres worldwide from December 17th. Take the whole family.
I think this might take the cake for my favourite trailer of the year. Any time the editing matches the music in a video clip I'm pretty much guaranteed to love it; add to that the stunning cinematography, lighting and costume in this trailer and I cannot wait to check out A Serious Man, even though I know almost nothing about the film (and I plan on keeping it that way so I get the most out of my viewing experience).
Oh, on a side note, the one thing I do know about the movie is that Colin Firth's character in the film is gay, although you wouldn't know it from the trailer. Seems like an interesting thing to omit; I'm sure you can come up with your own theory as to why.
A Single Man will be in theatres in the US from December 11th, and is currently schedueled for a release in Australia at some point in February 2010
In the fourth episode of the LAMBcast, the official podcast of the Large Association of Movie Blogs, Dylan of Blog Cabins, Jason of Invasion of the B Movies and myself spent a full half-hour discussing what is perhaps the worst movie ever made. And when I say worse, I mean...best.
The film of which I speak is Tommy Wiseau's 2003 film The Room, dubbed by Entertainment Weekly as "the Citizen Kane of bad movies". An ode to wooden acting, amateurish direction and a storyline that makes absolutely no sense, if you haven't seen The Room then you are missing out on one of the greatest joys life can bring you. The film is available on Amazon or at www.theroommovie.com, and trust me when I tell you to buy it, as it may be the greatest $8-$12 plus postage and handling that you ever spend.
This episode should hopefully prove to be a fun trip down memory lane for anyone who has seen the film (it should be clear from listening to it how much fun we had discussing it). That being said, if you are amongst the uninitiated and have not yet partaken of this particular earthly delight, feel free to give the podcast a listen anyway, as it is spoiler free (although we do discuss many scenes, nothing is revealed that could effect your enjoyment of the film), and should hopefully be an enjoyable listen either way. Additionally, you can find Jason's written review of the film here and my own review here; my review also contains several clips from the film that I highly recommend you watch. What you see below is just one of the scenes that makes The Room so great.
The LAMBcast can be found on iTunes by searching "lambcast", or you can listen to the latest episode via the widget in the right sidebar.
It's currently 12.02 on Sunday morning - that should give you an idea of how eager I was to post this weeks edition of awesome scene sunday, a feature which is fast becoming my favourite aspect of the blog.
Today's scene comes from a 2004 Koren film - given the prevalence of Korean cinema in the west, from that description alone most movie buffs can probably already guess what movie it is. That's right: Pan Chan-wook'sOldboy. I love this film, and as is always the case with A.S.S, if you haven't seen it I highly recommend you do so. However even you haven't seen it, feel free to watch the clip below as it contains no spoilers and given that it's a fight scene (albiet a brilliant one), it works just as well without any context.
Personally, I think this sequence is almost perfect. There's a real black humour to it in the dialogue and the few choice camera angles, a great piece of music that plays in the background, and of course, the majority of the scene is one long continuous shot, making for one of the most unique and badass fight scenes ever put to film. According to wikipedia (my source for just about everything), the scene took a total of 17 takes to get right...those poor stunt performers!
On a quick side note, I did actually consider using a different scene from Oldboy; Oh DaeSu's breakdown at the end of the film, as it contains what I think is probably the greatest piece of acting of the decade from the pictures star Choi Min-sik. The reason I went with this instead was two fold - one, because I didn't want to post the ending and thus risk spoiling the movie for those people who can't avoid temptation, and two, because quite frankly I just can't say no to a fight scene in which the good guys weapon of choice is a hammer.
I think this trailer has me convinced. While I was always going to see the film, up until now I was still on the fence as to whether I was actually looking forward to it, unable to overcome the rather silly vibe the first trailer gave off. This trailer isn't really that difference, but for whatever reason, I've decided to embrace the fun. Law and Downey are always incredibly watchable, and Rachel McAdams is...well, you don't need to be told. The movie looks like entertaining fluff, perfect for Christmas with family or friends.
Sherlock Holmes will be in theatres in Australia and overseas from December 25th
Well, I had my first VCE (end of high school) exam a few days ago - it was for English, and honestly, I think it went pretty well. Unfortunately, with Maths and Chemistry fast approaching, it's all downhill from here.
Of course the worst thing about exams is that I don't get to see any new movies. I've already given up on seeing The Damned United, Looking for Eric,Mao's Last Dancer, Departures and Whip It theatrically to name just a few, resigning myself to wait for the DVDs. I'm also really annoyed that I won't get a chance to check out This Is It, the Michael Jackson movie, seeing as it's two week theatrical run goes until the 14th of November, and my final exam isn't till the 16th.
By November 16th it will have been exactly one month - 31 days - since I have seen a film in theatres (last one was Moon). I'm already starting to show signs of withdrawal, which include nervous twitching, trembling and the humming of various John Williams themes.
So come that fateful day, you can bet that one of the first things I'll be doing is going to the movies. And with all that will be on offer, I've decided to let you guys make the difficult choice for me as to what will be the first movie I see once I'm freed from high school forever.
A couple of disclaimers. First off, Zombieland, Where The Wild Things Are, Paranormal Activity and a few others aren't viable options because they still won't have hit theatres down under (yeah...don't get me started). Additionally, I've heard recently that Jennifer's Body might now be going direct-to-DVD, so that's out. Any other absences can probably be explained by the fact that I just don't want to see the film, but I've given you the option of suggesting alternatives for me if you think I've missed one.
UPDATE: In what was probably NOT the best move given the whole exam situation, I just got back from seeing The Box (and here's my review), so don't both voting for that.
Thanks for the advice everyone, and I can't wait to get back to the movies.
I don't have many childhood movie memories to be honest with you; I've been watching film since a young age, but very few movies, and especially not kids movies stick out in my mind as being particuarly influential to my development.
However, there is definitely one Disney film that I will always cherish. I remember having a babysitter when I was about five or six years old; I don't recall her name or what she looked like, do I remember that every time she came over, without fail, we would watch this film on VHS.
Anyway, in this past week someone posted this clip on Facebook for some reason, and after seeing it, the memories all came flooding back. In the age of Pixar we sometimes forget how beautiful 2D animation can be, but the imagery here is undeniably stunning. Of course everyone loves this song, and I'm just a sucker for a good cut-to-title, which this clip concludes with magnificently.
I haven't seen the film in probably ten years, and I'm actually really curious to watch it again with a more critical eye. But until then, I'm more than happy to escape back into my childhood with the phenominal opening scene from The Lion King.
Director: Richard Kelly Starring: Cameron Diaz, James Marsden, Frank Langella Running Time: 115 minutes (plus trailers)
"Somebody pushing your buttons?"
Director Richard Kelly’s feature film debut was Donnie Darko, a bizarre mind bending thriller that, although initially unsuccessful, has since gone on to find a massive cult following on DVD. His second film was Southland Tales, also a bizarre mind bending thriller, only without the positive reviews. Personally I think Donnie Darko is tad over-rated (but still definitely worth a watch), whilst Southland Tales can best be described as an interesting mess, probably also worth watching if only to try and deduce what Kelly was trying to say. His latest film is The Box, and much like his previous works it is at times inaccessible, confusing, and, on further reflection, it doesn’t really make much sense. However Kelly has managed to imbue the movie with a mysterious and unsettling quality that makes for an oddly gripping time at the cinema, and whilst I’m sure many people will disagree, I would consider it to be the best of his three films, and one of the more interesting and even compelling movies of 2009.
Based in concept on the short story Button Button by Richard Matheson which was later adapted into a Twilight Zone episode of the same name, the initial premise of The Box is centred around a fascinating moral dilemma: Norma (Cameron Diaz) and Arthur Lewis (James Marsden) are a married couple with one son and growing financial difficulties who are visited out of the blue by a hideously disfigured man named Arlington Steward (Frank Langella). Steward is the one who presents them with the eponymous box, a small wooden device housing a single red button, as well as a briefcase containing one million dollars in cash. The choice he presents them with is simple: they have twenty four hours to press the button. If they do so, they keep the cash and someone, somewhere in the world, who they do not know, will die.
Now the first twenty to thirty minutes of the film follows the same path as the short story, as the Lewis’s agonize over the choice of whether to push the button. Even in the early parts of the film there is an uneasy tension in the air, as the audience members are forced to contemplate what choice they themselves would make. Of course, being a full length feature and not a twenty two minute episode, there isn’t a whole lot of suspense in guessing whether they’re actually going to press it or not, and so the remainder of the movie deals with the consequences of their choice. From here we see Kelly’s pen take over – he was also the screenwriter – as the story becomes an increasingly confusing mystery that branches into the territory of science fiction as the Lewis’s attempt to uncover the true nature of Steward and his sinister “employers” before their decision catches up with them.
Without giving anything away, this film goes to some truly incomprehensible places, and at times it does seem that Kelly doesn’t really know what he wants to do with the story, cutting from one bizarre scene or situation to the next without any really explanation. However I went with it the whole way, compelled despite my confusion. I’m usually very critical of movies that don’t present a cohesive storyline (Mulholland Drive, anyone? A Space Odyssey?) But because this movie does such a great job of drawing you in in its opening act, I was invested in the story enough to accept the outlandish places the plot eventually goes. And even as it gets progressively stranger, there is always an intense feeling of suspense and uncertainty to be found in this film. The way Kelly frames things; the use of the score and production design, as well as the constant question of what the hell is going on all contribute to this perpetual,disquieting sensation that keeps your mind ticking and your eyes glued to the screen.
There are times when the weirdness does go too far – when what was meant to be creepy just comes across as kind of silly. But more times than not, Kelly, who does a good job behind the camera, succeeds in keeping things tense and interesting. I wouldn’t call the acting remarkable, but it’s definitely solid, with Langella especially putting in a nice turn as the polite yet sinister Mr Steward. And it was things like his character that ultimately made me love this movie; that constant feeling of uncertainty and unease, the thrill of literally having no idea of what was coming next. I know that the critical response to this film has been mixed at best, and I can certainly understand why that is. I doubt it will be a commercial darling either; personally, I think it’s more deserving of the cult status that Donnie Darko has already found. On an interesting side note, there are parts in the trailer that weren't in the film itself, so perhaps a more cohesive directors cut will make it's way to DVD.
At the end of the day, The Box won’t be for everyone, but I thought it was an absorbing, unsettling and at times very thrilling film that proved for a memorable although not entirely satisfying viewing experience. People who like things made clear to them probably won’t respond well to The Box – although I would normally count myself in this group of people, so who knows. You will certainly have questions after this leaving film, and you might spend some time pondering whether you actually liked it. Personally though, I didn’t have to think on that one for very long.
The Box is in cinemas in Australia now. It will open in the US on November 6th
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