the m0vie blog

How Is Hollywood Dealing With Recession?

Posted on September 18, 2009 by Darren

Hollywood. It’s the place where dreams come true. Where normal things like traffic don’t bother heroes like Jack Bauer, credit ratings and mortgage payments don’t halt Carrie’s spending spree and Bruce Willis never has to fill out an insurance claim form. No wonder they used to call it Hollywoodland, like some sort of fairytale kingdom (in actuality it was to advertise a housing development). This magical quality (or, if you’re cynical, ‘disengagement’) means that Hollywood can take its time in reflecting the tastes of the common people and the issues that really affect them.

High-flying corporate executive...

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Filed under: Movies | Tagged: confessions of a shopaholic, context, credit crunch, economic climate, films, george clooney, hollywood, issues, jason reitman, Movies, optimism, recession, sex and the city, sex and the city 2, studios, up in the air | 2 Comments »

More Thoughts on the Best Picture/Best Director Voting Divergence

Posted on September 17, 2009 by Darren

I read an interesting article over at The LA Times which suggested that we may be able to spot how radically the new voting rules have changed the way that the Academy awards people and films.

Going for gold...

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Filed under: Movies | Tagged: academy awards, alfred hitchcock, AMPAS, best director, best picture, driving miss daisy, hitchcock, LA Times, Oscars, plurality, stv, voting | Leave a comment »

Non-Review Review: 21

Posted on September 17, 2009 by Darren

21 is a solid middle-of-the-road coming-of-age tale. It isn’t something as deep or insightful as Good Will Hunting or The Dead Poets Society, but it doesn’t aspire to be. It sets its ambitions relatively averagely: it wants to entertain and amuse rather than stimulate or provoke. Does it succeed at these somewhat modest ambitions? Somewhat.

"You know what I'm capable of... You seen se7en, right? 21 is three times se7en. You do the math."

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Filed under: Non-Review Reviews | Tagged: 21, blackjack, casino, counting cards, film, hollywood history, kate bosworth, kevin spacey, las vega, laurence fishburne, MIT, Movie, non-review review, review, true story, vegas | Leave a comment »

Star Trek (X)II: The Search for Issues?

Posted on September 16, 2009 by Darren

This could go either way… or nowhere at all.

Recent quotes from JJ Abrams and Roberto Orci seem to suggest that the sequel to this year’s Star Trek could “reflect the things that we are all dealing with today”. It’s certainly interesting, suggesting that the movie series could reflect the goings on in the real world – but it would require a damn fine writing staff to pull it off.

Kirk will have issues...

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Filed under: Movies | Tagged: allegory, films, jj abrams, Movies, robert orci, science fiction, sequel rumours, social commentary, social issues, star trek, star trek 12, star trek sequel | 2 Comments »

The Queen is Dead? Long Live the Queen? Is Oprah’s Reign Coming to an End?

Posted on September 16, 2009 by Darren

We don’t really do chat shows in this part of the world. Well, that’s a lie. We don’t do them well. And when we do do them, they are Prime Time shows like The Late, Late Show and are more often than not cheap imitations of chatshows from the States – we’re looking at you, Tubridy Tonight. In recent years we’ve tried the morning and afternoon chatshows and they haven’t really caught on – there’s a crisis at the RTE Afternoon Show even at the moment. In the States it’s different. Oprah Winfrey is the most powerful person on television. She saved Whitney Heuston. She makes or breaks best selling novels. Oprah is powerful. So the rumours that Oprah’s time as queen of the afternoon come as a bit of a surprise to me. As do many of the suggested reasons…

O, my god!

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Filed under: Television | Tagged: afternoon television, chatshows, oprah, oprah winfrey, politics, ratings, Television, the oprah winfrey show | 1 Comment »

Riddle Me This… Is The Riddler Really An Ideal Choice for Batman 3?

Posted on September 16, 2009 by Darren

Last week I outlined why I didn’t think that Harvey Dent should be brought back for the sequel to The Dark Knight. If Nolan comes back, I trust him to do whatever he feels like doing with the franchise – he’s demonstrated that he knows what he’s doing when it comes to directing Batman. If he wants to recast the role of the Joker – or if he doesn’t – that’s fine with me. So, it’s ultimately futile to speculate about films that haven’t even entered production, but that’s never really stopped me before, has it? It keeps coming down to the Riddler – Johnny Depp or Eddie Murphy or whoever. It seems that everyone is expecting The Riddler to be the villain (or at least play a supporting role) in the next film. But I’m skeptical.

When the Riddler heard he was the new host of Bullseye, he didn't know that people would take the title so literally...

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Filed under: Comics, Movies | Tagged: bad guys, batman, Batman 3, batman 3 villain, batman 3 villains, batman begins, batman villains, Christopher Nolan, comic books, David Goyer, david s. goyer, frank gorshin, heath ledger, johnny depp, joker, Movies, riddler, rogues gallery, The Dark Knight, the dark knight sequel, the joker, the riddler | 4 Comments »

Bah Humbug! Are We Past the Point Where Technical Wizardry Can Amaze?

Posted on September 15, 2009 by Darren

Hmm… I bet Robert Zemickas was expecting a somewhat bigger reaction for the release of the first trailer for his version of A Christmas Carol (aka Jim Carrey plays almost everyone), the follow-up to The Polar Express (aka Tom Hanks plays everyone), than the collective ‘meh’ that it received. I’ve watched the trailer and it looks technically magnificent (and I’m sure it’ll be even more technically impressive in 3D) – but why should I care? If I’m going to put on a pair of glasses and look at something beautiful until it give me a mild headache, shouldn’t I at least be looking at something interesting and intriguing of itself? Are we past the point where technical wonders alone are enough to lure the geeks out in droves?

Here's hoping Santa can bring Zemickis a 150% return on his investment...

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Filed under: Movies | Tagged: 3d, a christmas carol, animation, audiences, avatar, box office, cgi, digital, films, final fantasy, final fantasy: the spirits within, first, groundbreaking, heaven's gate, imax, james cameron, jim carrey, pioneering, pixar, robert zemickis, star trek, technical, technical wizardry, the final destination, the polar express, toy story | 1 Comment »

Lisbon 2 – The Sequel

Posted on September 15, 2009 by Darren

I try not to get too political over here, seen as how this is a pop culture blog. I did happen to notice, however, that the Irish government has decided to expand the Lisbon Treaty debacle into a franchise. We’ve had economists, armchair pundits and politicians weighing in on the matter, but why don’t we ask the people who really count: the film critics? I humbly submit my thoughts on the proposed Lisbon 2.

Maybe you can go too European with the posters...

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Filed under: Opinion | Tagged: brian cowen, farce, films, Ireland, lisbon, lisbon 2, lisbon referendum, lisbon treaty, Movies, politics, referendum, referendum campaign, sequel | Leave a comment »

The Killing Joke

Posted on September 14, 2009 by Darren

Hmm… Understandably quite a controversial comic (Alan Moore himself reportedly has very little time for it), The Killing Joke remains the most definitive comic to examine the dynamic between the Caped Crusader and his polar opposite. It also reveals a bit of twisted logic to the character, providing an almost logical motivation for his countless heinous actions. It also features some of the best artwork that you are liable to see on a Batman comic.

The Joker didn't get he was meant to bleach his HAIR...

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Filed under: Comics | Tagged: alan moore, barbara gordon, batman, brian bolland, comic book, comic books, Comics, dc comics, deluxe edition, feminism in comics, graphic novel, joker, oneshot, review, The Dark Knight, the joker, the killing joke, the killing joke: deluxe edition, women in refrigerators | 4 Comments »

Non-Review Review: Star Trek – First Contact

Posted on September 14, 2009 by Darren

I love it when the movie channels have an unexpected treat for me. Like coming home from work on Saturday and finding Star Trek: First Contact playing in high definition on Sky movies. Also known as “the only good Next Generation movie”, the film stands the test of time well and is – thus far – the only movie in the franchise that all my family can agree on. It is awesome.