Posted on March 8, 2010 by Darren
You’re reading this asthe 82nd Academy Awards kick off, but perhaps the most interesting awards-related snippet occurred at the Razzies, the anti-Oscars which held their ceremony before the Oscars (in a calculated attempt to steal some thunder). Basically the Razzies pick out the worst-of-the-worst from the past year and give them the recognition they so sorely deserved. I am more than a little skeptical about the awards, given how they exist mainly as an in-joke, nominating the biggest flops as opposed to the real worst films of the year. In the tradition of Halle Berry, Sandra Bullock showed up in person to collect her award. As is the norm for such celebrity appearances, the crowd loved her. But what did Sandra really say?
Thanks a crateload... of All About Steve DVD's...
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Filed under: Movies | Tagged: all about steve, awards, films, Movies, razzies, sandra bullock, worst actress | 4 Comments »
Posted on March 6, 2010 by Darren
Alice in Wonderland opens this weekend, and we were lucky enough to tag along to the Irish premiere. Since we came out of the cinema, we kinda suspected that this would be a polarising film – as the Rotten Tomatoes score seems to demonstrate. However, taking a moment to step back and appreciate the breadth and depth of the critical response, is it possible that we’ve all completely missed the point? Rather than being a fantastically realised gothic fantasy that strays just a little bit closer to The Lord of the Rings rather than its own source material, has Tim Burton produced a uniquely feminist fantasy film?
Should feminists be up in arms?
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Filed under: Movies | Tagged: alice in wonderland, disney, fantasy, feminism, feminist, film, gender, Movies, tim burton | 3 Comments »
Posted on March 5, 2010 by Darren
Well, balloting is official closed. The deadline has passed and, by the time you read this, counting will more than likely be under way. It’s been an interesting Oscar season, and – since this is my last post before the ceremony – I should probably make some sort of generic observation about the competition. In truth, the acting races seem to have been sewn up since before nominations were even announced, but it looks like there’s a genuine race on for the Best Picture Oscar. In the interest of objective journalism (okay, blogging), I should concede that I have a €10 bet with my brother on the race. He expects Avatar to win because (and I quote) “it looks awesome”. I was backing The Hurt Locker, but part of me wonders if the anti-Avatar fiasco means that I should just give him the tenner now and be done.
Chartier attempts to defuse the situation...
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Filed under: Movies | Tagged: 82nd academy awards, academy awards, AMPAS, avatar, best picture oscar, film, Movies, nicola chartier, oscar, the hurt locker, the oscars | Leave a comment »
Posted on March 5, 2010 by Darren
Forget your Anti-Social Behaviour Orders and your neighbourhood watch, the only real way to stop the downward trend in modern society is to give Michael Caine a gun and let him clean house. It’s fun to see Michael Caine back in leading role and it’s fun to see that the whole ‘gritty urban vigilante’ subgenre is still alive – it’s like The Brave One in a British housing estate. The film comes apart at the end, perhaps succumbing from a need to answer the iconic question ‘what’s it all about?’, and disconnecting the movie from its initially intriquing premise, but Harry Brown is a respectable old-school law-in-the-lead-characters-hands drama.
Michael Caine is... browned off...
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Filed under: Non-Review Reviews | Tagged: asbos, britain, council housing, films, harry brown, justice, Michael Caine, Movies, non-review review, vigilante, yob | 2 Comments »
Posted on March 4, 2010 by Darren
I got to see the Irish premiere of Alice in Wonderland at the weekend, thanks to boards.ie and the Jameson Dublin International Film Festival, and afterwards there was a Q & A session with Michael Sheen and Timothy Spall. Michael Sheen casually remarked that we’d be seeing the last of Peter Morgan’s “Blair trilogy”, The Special Relationship, hitting screens in about mid-July-ish. It’s been on my must-see list for a while – and the Internet Movie Database had a release date in 2011 last time I checked – but I have to admit that I’m a bit surprised at this particular companion in the tradition “Tony Blair and x” double act format. The Deal gave us Tony Blair and Gordon Brown. The Queen gave us Tony Blair and… well, take a guess. The Special Relationship gives us Tony Blair and a US President. Which one? Dennis Quaid (yes, Dennis Quaid) as Bill Clinton. Yep, that’s not the US President I was thinking of either.
The "Special" Relationship... It even sounds like a bro-mance...
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Filed under: Movies | Tagged: bill clinton, biography, cinema, film, george w. bush, Movies, peter morgan, politics, the deal, the queen, the special relationship, tony blair | Leave a comment »
Posted on March 2, 2010 by Darren
Far be it for us to gloat over the misfortune of a major industry publication, but this story of Oscar ‘payola’ caught my eye. Basically Variety has been accused of pulping a bad review for a film which provided the magazine with $400,000 worth of advertising revenue. The film is Iron Cross – don’t worry that you haven’t heard of the would-be Oscar contender. It’s only really claim to awards prestige is that it offered the last performance of Roy Schneider. However, that $400,000 has gone along way – a lot of film nerds now know all about the film, which wasn’t on the radar last week.
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Filed under: Movies | Tagged: $400000, advertising, bribery, film, google cache, iron cross, Movies, Oscars, payola, review, scandal, variety | 4 Comments »
Posted on March 2, 2010 by Darren
I think there’s a case to be made for The Rock as a pop culture masterpiece. And, no, I’m not being sarcastic or bitchy – I genuinely believe that. It’s tough to look back no in the era of huge summer blockbusters, but the movie really codified what we should expect from a modern summer tentpole. I remember the gasps of shock when the Criterion – the gold standard of DVD releases – announced that they would be including Armageddon as part of the Criterion Collection, in what was clearly meant to be a nod to the mainstream action movies. Being honest, they should have picked The Rock.
Can you smell what The Rock is cooking?
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Filed under: Non-Review Reviews | Tagged: action movies, armageddon, cliche, ed harris, film, michael bay, Movies, nicolas cage, non-review review, review, the rock | 4 Comments »
Posted on March 1, 2010 by Darren
I saw this piece over at The Cinematical and it got me thinking. The article basically looks at how open-minded viewers can and should be:
Too often, moviegoers seem to clump into camps: I only watch romantic comedies; I stick with horror; I gotta have my action fix; I won’t watch anything made after 1950; I won’t watch anything in black and white; I won’t watch anything with subtitles. To some extent, we’re pushed that way by modern media, as niche marketing gets more and more specific. Go to Netflix or Amazon, search for A Room with a View, and suggestions for other similar, period dramas may pop up as recommended choices for you, as determined by computer algorithms. The computer won’t recommend The Crazies.
Are we too close-minded about films?
Ah, the classic "vampire/cop" movie genre...
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Filed under: Movies | Tagged: cinematical, films, genre, genre theory, Movies | Leave a comment »
Posted on March 1, 2010 by Darren
I imagine Lewis Carroll’s iconic fantasy story poses quite the problem for anybody looking to bring it to the screen. Both Alice in Wonderland and Alice’s Adventures Through The Looking Glass essentially consist of a collection of vignettes, very loosely linked to each other. One minute you’re translating The Jabberwockey and the next you’re hearing the story of The Walrus and the Carpenter. I can’t imagine it would be particularly easy to produce a film following that sort of almost random structure. Perhaps that’s why Tim Burton’s wonderfully visual fantasy seems to draw perhaps more heavily from The Lord of the Rings than its own source material, which is a shame, as the director fantastically brings the magic of Wonderland to life. If only there were more of it.
Down the rabbit hole...
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Filed under: Non-Review Reviews | Tagged: 3d, alice in wonderland, anne hathaway, disney, fantasy, films, helena bonham carter, johnny depp, lord of the rings, Movies, non-review review, review, the lord of the rings, tim burton | 3 Comments »
Posted on February 27, 2010 by Darren
I just won tickets to a preview screening of Alice in Wonderland as part of the Jameson Dublin International Film Festival. I’ll have my review up on Monday morning, but in the meantime, here’s how I won. It’s a reworked version of The Walrus and the Carpenter. Apologies in advance to Lewis Carroll, his estate, fans of the poem and people with taste.
Apologies in advance...
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Filed under: Movies | Tagged: alice in wonderland, film, jameson dublin international film festival, jdiff, lewis carroll, Movies, poetry, teh walrus and the carpenter, the blogger and the girlfriend | Leave a comment »
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