05.01.09

Another Screenwriter-With-Writers-Block Film. This One is Great.

Posted in Review at 3:03 am by marcomc2

 

On the verge of madness

On the verge of madness

Before you say it, let me do so: I should’ve seen Joel Coen’s Barton Fink many years ago. Thankfully, I have the option of checking off those film history essentials that have been stacking my pile-of-shame for years, as I go down my cue of Watch Instantly titles on Netflix’s online reservoir. Needless to say for most of you cine-savvy type who have most likely already seen this flick a decade or more ago, I was almost immediately sucked in by this film from the very beginning.
Barton Fink tells the story of a New York theatre writer in the early fourties, who gets a shot at the ‘big time’ and runs off to Hollywood within the first ten minutes of the film. Barton Fink is played by John Turturro, and man is he good. Were it not for his incredible work in Miller’s Crossing, etching his name into my mind as the greatest pleading-for-ones-life performance to this day, I’d be fully cooperative in saying that his work in Barton Fink is great. However, he set the bar pretty high for me, as a subtly menacing freak inMiller’s Crossing, that I think it’ll be pretty hard for me to ever judge any other of his roles by their own merit.
Barton Fink, the character, is a quiet writer who warily accepts this offer by Hollywood to write a film about a wrestler, and checks into a hotel in Los Angeles. The bellboy is of course played by a Coen favourite of mine, Mr. Steve Buscemi. His role is almost nonexistent, yet awesome, nevertheless. What I loved about the set up of this move to Hollywood is that you really get to see how Barton Fink reacts to the eccentricity and strangeness of the place, and the characters he has to interact with to accomplish this task of writing a wrestling picture. Everybody around him is like a bizarre alien to Barton Fink, and there is some great comedy to be found in that – which somebody like Joel Coen certainly knows how to employ.
Barton has trouble beginning his script, never moving past the first three lines of the first scene, until near the very end of the film. This is essentially the plot of the film: lonely writer, alone in a hotel room, trying to figure out how to begin, and what to write. His neighbor, is an annoying yet kind John Goodman - another Coen player, whom Barton befriends and somewhat mines for material. He turns out to be more than a helpful friend as the story unfolds, but I will not spoil a thing. If you like the Coen brothers, their dialogue and Joel Coen’s direction, go seek this movie out. I enjoyed it quite a bit. What made me like it even more, similarly to the Coen’s previous effort, Raising Arizona, is that the story evolves into a nightmarish opposite version of what it was during the first half, creating a sort of fantastical bookend which somehow feels genuine and natural to the story. I don’t know how they do it, but the Coen’s are pretty good at that.
The reason I wish I had seen this many years ago is not only that I am a huge Coen Brothers fan, and the shame of having to say, “Noo…haven’t seen it yet. I know, I know” is torturous to my soul, but also because I am a Charlie Kaufman lover, and Adaptation is another favourite of mine. Since I plan on becoming a writer myself, these stories of artists trying to create and their journey toward the final product, are always incredibly interesting to me. And you know what? Ask me about Synecdoche, and my response will unfortunately consist of something like, “Noo…haven’t seen it yet. I know. I know.”
John Turturro, Steve Buscemi, John Goodman, Tony Shalhoub, and Jon Polito, all directed by the Coen Brothers. What more could you ask for?

09.24.08

Notorious B.I.G. Now Has a Teaser Trailer

Posted in Trailer tagged , , , , at 5:14 pm by marcomc2

Since the death of Christopher Wallace in 1997, people all around the world have been hailing him to be amongst, if not the greatest rapper of all time. In the first biopic-feature of his we have a fellow Brooklyn native by the name of Jamal Woolard portraying Biggie. I hope this film conjures up some of the images I had whilst listening to Ready to Die and being introduced to Hip-Hop, whilst skating and doing dumb shit in my childhood. However, it seems as though too much bullshit is interfering with me seeing this movie and/or liking it. This is a personal problem, since I have a hard time accepting the reality of these strange people portraying Biggie, Tupac, etc. I’m sure I can easily get past this silly problem once I watch the film, yet it seems like I’ll be waiting for DVD or so.

Anyway, have a look at the teaser. It is filled with the usual fast cuts and flashiness, and culminates with a big show at the end. Enjoy.

Notorious will be released on January 16th of next year, and stars Derek Luke and Angela Bassett.

09.17.08

IMDb Now Offering FREE Streaming Films & Shows!

Posted in News tagged , , , , at 2:06 am by marcomc2

According to a press release posted on their site, the International Movie Database, or in short, IMDb, is now offering select feature films and episodes of old and new TV shows (such as the incredible It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia) that stream off their site, through Hulu.

IMDb. Always a reminder that I am not in the movie industry.

IMDb. Always a reminder that I am not in the movie industry.

This is not really anything special to internet savvy people, since Hulu themselves have been legally doing this for months, and most of us illegally download things anyway, right? I don’t, since my college blocks my freedom. Anyway, this is just very unexpected of IMDb, to me at least, and brings up questions such as,”Will this stay free? Will this expand? Will it end up costing us, and if so, how much?” The words “premium-IMDb user” ring a loud bell inside my head, warning me of future segregation between the two forms of user. Anyway, it matters not. Long live Hulu.

It certainly is awesome. I’m gonna go catch up on some It’s Always Sunny, to be fully prepared for the next season, airing September 18th, on FX, at 10 PM.

09.13.08

The Wrestler by Darren Aronofsky in December!

Posted in News, Production Photo tagged , , , at 8:14 pm by marcomc2

Darren Aronofsky, legendary director of Pi, Requiem For a Dream, and The Fountain, will have his new film The Wrestler starring Micky Rourke released by December 19th, according to Fox Searchlight Studios. Part of the plan is to have it in circulation in time for the Academy Award season for it to garner some momentum.

Mickey Rourke on the ground of a ring.

Mickey Rourke getting kicked while He's down

Mickey Rourke plays an old wrestler who longs for the glory days to return. I think. I can’t wait for anything Aronofsky announces, which makes this news very special to me. Mickey Rourke is the man, as is Mr. Aronofsky. I think he is a genius. And yes, I am one of those people who really really loved The Fountain. I’m excited. It’s exciting to see if Aronofsky actually gets an Oscar this time around. Keep you posted as we move closer toward December.

Thank God Clint Mansell is doing the Soundtrack for this one too.

Park Chan-Wook’s Next Film!

Posted in News tagged , , , , at 8:02 pm by marcomc2

Park Chan-Wook, for those of you not very adept of the modern Korean film boom in the past couple of years, is the director of films such as the incredibly epic Action/Dramas Oldboy, Sympathy for Mr. and Lady Vengeance. It’s actually a shame that it is only now, in late 2008, that some United States Distributors finally recognize the potential of his films and bring them over here. He is an incredible visual AND story focused director.

What a focused and elite guy. Want to meet.

What a focused and elite guy. Want to meet.

The film being picked up by Focus Features is called Thirst, and deals with a Priest who becomes a Vampire after a (very bizarre) experiment gone horribly wrong. The then Vampire priest, played by Song Kang-ho (Mr. Vengeance himself), falls in love with the wife of his friend. Should be an interesting storyline. I guess his friend will be shown how much of a pain in the neck he really is. [Not funny, I know]
In a production notice obtained from Slashfilm, Park explains, “This film was originally called “The Bat” to convey a sense of horror – after all, it is about vampires.  But it is also more than that.  It is about passion and a love triangle.  I feel that it is unique because it is not just a thriller, and not merely a horror film, but an illicit love story as well.”

Even though this love triangle business strikes an odd tone in my head, I trust Park and will probably be strangely inspired once more.

Thirst is filming right now and will probably drain into the theatres within a year. Keep checking back.

Zack & Miri Get a (legal) Poster

Posted in News, Poster tagged , , , , , at 7:43 pm by marcomc2

Kevin Smith has been hard at work on his new film about friends, being broke, and porno, starring  Seth Rogen and Elisabeth Banks. The film is pretty much completed, and was slapped around by the MPAA a little, regarding a select few scenes, and the movie’s original poster. The poster is now officially banned to be hung up in and around movie theatres across the United States, but good old Canada gladly snatched it up and accepted it.

In an awesome Kevin Smith sort of finesse, the American poster now looks like this:

Very funny. Am I wrong?

Very funny. Am I wrong?

How cool is that?! I’m glad that this is actually the official poster of the film, because its not only original, but kind of spits in the MPAAs face a little. Come on. He has to retreat all the way back to using fucking stick figures? To all the MPAA members: SEX is the reason humanity is alive.  I still wish it said something more along the lines of, “…since the nice folks at the MPAA didn’t let us…” or something more direct like that. But of course THAT wouldn’t have been allowed either, I guess.

Zack & Miri Make a Porno massages your local Cinema on October 31st, head to head (ass to ass?) with Guy Ritchie’s Rocknrolla.

09.11.08

Mark Hamill to Voice THE JOKER Once Again!

Posted in News tagged , , , at 12:03 am by marcomc2

No this is NOT news regarding a film, but since Mark Hamill will be using (part of) his acting chops again, I thought I’d report this: According to the glorious videogame related news site, Kotaku, Mark Hamill will voice the Joker in the upcoming Batman video game adaptation, Arkham Asylum.

Part of a panel of the very dark Arkham Asylum graphic novel written by Grant Morrison and illustrated by Dave McKean

Part of a panel of the very dark Arkham Asylum graphic novel written by Grant Morrison and illustrated by Dave McKean

Personally, I can’t wait for this game, which sounds serious and dark, a very welcome result of The Dark Knight’s morbid tone. Mark Hamill is my second favourite Joker portrayed on screen,  even though it was just his voice that the actor used to shape his character. In case you’ve been living on a rock for the past couple of years, the greatest portrayal of the Joker is clearly the work of Jack Nicholson. I am kidding. Please don’t kill me. Rest in Peace Heath Ledger.

09.10.08

FULL 007: QUANTUM OF SOLACE Trailer Finally Here!

Posted in Trailer tagged , , , , at 2:15 am by marcomc2

The full trailer of the new upcoming James Bond film, Quantum of Solace, is finally here!

I have been waiting for this second installment in the new phase of the Bond series for a long time now. Well, since Casino Royal was released, basically. It is directed by Marc Forster, who I’m proud to say is a German filmmaker (proud because I happen to be German). I’m glad that we are now settled, that we immediately acknowledge Daniel Craig as James Bond, that similar issues are now gone altogether. I think the action in this one seems very fluid, and direct. I don’t know if that makes any sense to you. Just go and watch it for yourself!

Synopsis: James Bond appears to start questioning the deeper intentions of his missions, and the consequences therein. There is also the mention of a group of people who have plentiful information about MI6, who in turn have very little knowledge about them. In short, there will confusion as to who is loyal and who is not, and revelations of intent regarding said groups of people. That hot chick from Hitman is in this, too.

Can’t wait for this one. Quantum of Solace hits theatres on November 18th, 2008.

You can find the HD version of this trailer can be found on Apple’s trailer site.

09.09.08

Rumour Killer – Will Smith NOT Captain America

Posted in News tagged , , at 4:43 pm by marcomc2

So, there you have it. This was first reported by AICN, yesterday, minutes before midnight. Apparently, actor Derek Luke didn’t know what the fuck he was talking about. Come on – don’t just put this news out into the movie blogosphere, for all of us to spend time and energy thinking, talking, and writing about it. Basically, Marvel never even considered Smith as the protagonist.

"Oh well"

For some reason, well, maybe obvious reasons, many people reporting this news are sighing in relief. I, for one, wouldn’t really mind Will Smith playing this character. I’m sure it would’ve been more than fine. Anyway, to let bygones be bygones, who would you like to see as this avenger?

Will Smith to play Captain America?!?

Posted in Rumours tagged , , at 12:36 am by marcomc2

According to MTV through an interview with actor Derek Luke, Will Smith has been offered the part of Captain America by Marvel. Up until this point, there have been several rumours as to who would be landing the part, ranging from Matthew McConaughey to Brad Pitt.

Kevin Feige, Marvel Studios President of Production, revealed to Slashfilm over the summer that the film – which is slated for a May 6, 2001 release – will be set in WWII, and titled

“The First Avenger: Captain America.“

The First Avenger and WWII

The First Avenger and WWII

If you ask me, all of this news is pretty badass. I don’t mind Will Smith taking the role, since he is always welcome to my eyes and ears. He has a charisma unparalleled by oh so many big time Hollywood actors. Also, I’m very glad the setting will consist of WWII, complete with Nazis and the Proud American Counterpush, as I like to label it when thinking about the ultra pro American essence of Captain America.

As for the fact that Will Smith is black and Captain America is not – who gives a shit? I have no problem whatsoever with this. It’s nothing too serious. However, I do remember a couple of years ago, hearing rumours about the upcoming Bond films, and casting considerations such as Puff Daddy for the iconic James Bond character. Now THAT would upset me. Anyway, I will keep you posted on any further news concering Marvel’s “The First Avenger: Captain America.“

Next page