Friday, August 31, 2007

Balls Of Fury

Balls of Fury

Low-brow and proud of it. I'm calling for 'Balls of Fury' to take the top spot this weekend. I like the story, Walken, the incredible comedy, and riveting suspense (who will win the tourney?). I also appreciate the boom mic in the frame over Christopher's left shoulder. Remember, top spot at the box office -- you heard it here (before the fact).

Meanwhile, here's one of the most entertaining points I've ever seen -- it really displays how much skill it takes to play this game at the highest level.

Thursday, August 30, 2007

Wednesday, August 29, 2007

The Brave One

The Brave One

The first trailer for 'The Brave One' was a bit superficial and came off too much like a feminist take on 'Death Wish' cut for the new millennium -- and the tagline 'I want my dog back' right before Jodie Foster's character shoots a bad guy didn't help.

Trailer 2 promises more of a contemporary and layered suspense thriller. The secondary plot between Foster and Terrence Howard has sizzle -- Foster wants to confess her crimes and Howard knows she is the vigilante killer (or so I'm guessing) but neither character commits to action. This one has great potential for Story. I'm thinking Foster and director Neil Jordan have raised the bar.


Tuesday, August 28, 2007

Saturday, August 25, 2007

The Illiteracyism Of The Non-Seraph Font

Shoot 'Em Up

As Dan Carlson points out, the open quote mark in the title of the poster for 'Shoot 'Em Up' should have been an apostrophe. Certainly.

Of course, clearly, the popularity of the non-seraph font (especially Arial) is to blame for the progressive illiteracyism society finds itself wrestling with. In Arial font, the single quote mark ['] looks exactly the same as the apostrophe [']. Why then would anybody at an ad agency (who presumably grew up reading Arial font) think there was a difference between the two marks? We should consider ourselves lucky they capitalize the first words of sentences.

Thank you Dan for catching yet another egrejious error in contemporary English usage.

Nod to Looker

ps -- yes, I know illiteracyism is not a word



Death Sentence

Death Sentence

Here's some more 'making of' material from 'Death Sentence'.



Charlie Rose

Brett RatnerChris TuckerSteve Buscemi

Talks with Brett Ratner and Chris Tucker about 'Rush Hour 3', and Steve Buscemi about his new work as a director.



The Last Winter

The Last Winter

A very creepy looking picture. This should be good -- think 'Picnic at Hanging Rock' + 'Blair Witch' (at the North Pole).



City Abstract

Photo by Alan Green


Thursday, August 23, 2007

New Trailers

Right At Your Door
Right At Your Door

Trailer. Cerebral, could go either way.

Vince Vaughn's Wild West Comedy Shoe...I Mean, ShowVince Vaughn's Wild West Comedy Show

This clicks.



Wednesday, August 22, 2007

Tuesday, August 21, 2007

Laundromat 10

Laundromat 10

Photo by Alan Green

Laundromat 14

Laundromat14

Photo by Alan Green

Cool Drift


This looks better than those fast and furious movies.


Saturday, August 18, 2007

Shooting Death Sentence

Making of Death Sentence

IGN has some cool making of/camera work video from 'Death Sentence'.

Fresh Air

Mike White, screenwriter of 'The School of Rock', 'The Good Girl', and 'Year of the Dog'.

Peter Fonda in 3:10 to Yuma

Peter Fonda, who is in '3:10 to Yuma'.

Friday, August 17, 2007

Thursday, August 16, 2007

Trailer Time

Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story
Walk Hard

A parody of every music biopic ever made.

Elizabeth: The Golden Age
Elizabeth: The Golden Age

Self Medicated
Self Medicated

Wednesday, August 15, 2007

Charlie Rose

No End in Sight

Charles Ferguson, director of 'No End in Sight', talks with Charlie Rose.

Behind The Scenes: Day 39

The Darjeeling Limited

Here's a peek at the production of 'The Darjeeling Limited'. This picture is looking more interesting all the time.

First Nine Minutes Of 'The Nines'

Complete with gay-writer and dogs at summer camp jokes from writer-director John August.

Tuesday, August 14, 2007

Plant



Plant. Photo by Alan Green

Sunday, August 12, 2007

Julie Delpy Re: 2 Days In Paris


Here's Indie Wire's chat with Julie Delpy (2 Days in Paris) at the Soho Apple Store. iW also did a complete interview with Delpy.


Weinstein's Asian Film Fund

The Weinstein Company has created a $285 million fund for the production of Asian film:

The Weinstein Company's $285 million Asian film fund is officially open for business. New York Asian Film Festival director Grady Hendrix talks to Rebecca Roberts about his skepticism about its efficacy in raising U.S. audiences' awareness about Asian cinema.

Weekend Edition Sunday (7:28)



Saturday, August 11, 2007

Neil Gaiman With MTV

Why he said no to earlier efforts to adapt 'Stardust'. What's in the future. How his internship as a director is going.

Friday, August 10, 2007

Stardust

Stardust with Claire Danes

I'm interested to see how 'Stardust' will do this weekend. Most don't like the trailer, which is overly complex and without a core. I loved the trailer despite its lack of focus (so, sue me) and I even wrote a dorky poem about the movie.

I never liked the posters, though. They're both half-hearted and busy. All-in-all, a poor campaign from the guys in Marketing. It's opening day and the 'Stardust' energy level is what you would expect when a film is still months from release.

From the look of things 'Stardust' should open light then bow out -- but I can't help thinking it will enjoy more ticket sales than most forecasts indicate. Luckily, director Matthew Vaughn took the correct approach when shooting the movie and, whatever happens this weekend, 'Stardust' has all the elements needed to be a huge hit on disc, cable, etc. I don't think anybody will be able to resist buying or at least renting 'Stardust' on DVD.

Thursday, August 09, 2007

2 Days in Paris

2 Days in Paris

Nerve.com scores exclusive clip from '2 Days in Paris'.

Chicks Directing Flicks

Julie Delpy

CNN covers women directors, including Julie Delpy (2 Days in Paris), Kasi Lemmons (Talk to Me), and Robin Swicord (The Jane Austin Book Club).

Stardust Interviews

Stardust

IESB has video interviews with 'Stardust' stars Michelle Pfeiffer, Claire Danes, Charlie Cox, and director Matthew Vaughn.

Shoot 'Em Up Clip

Here's the latest.

Dan In Real Life

Dan in Real Life

Steve Carell hits his stride in 'Dan in Real Life'.

Wednesday, August 08, 2007

The Treatment

David Silverman

Elvis Mitchell talks with David Silverman, director of 'The Simpsons Movie' on The Treatment on KCRW in Santa Monica.

First Looks

Rush Hour 3

Yahoo has a bunch of new stuff. Jack Black is a video store employee who accidentally erases all the videos and must remake all the movies himself in 'Be Kind Rewind'. Several new clips from 'Rush Hour 3' (The 'I am Yu' clip is money). A clip from 'Rocket Science'. Trailer #2 for 'The Brave One' in hi-def.

Evolution Of Stardust Poster

Stardust poster

Here's a good look at the evolution of a movie poster. A few weeks ago Anne Thompson asked for opinions about this poster. I said I thought it was too busy in places, had a couple poorly placed elements, and had dead corners.

Below is new version.

Stardust second poster

They removed the two characters on the right of Michelle Pfeiffer -- good but it's still too busy. They got rid of the hand on the spoke of the ship's wheel -- distracting to say the least. All good, but the real problem is the two guys between Robert De Niro and Pfeiffer -- these guys detract from the relationship between the two stars. Would suggest moving the two stars closer (make De Niro bigger) and, if they must be in the poster, put the two guys in the new space created on the left of De Niro.

One of the 'poorly placed elements' in the first poster was the sword held by character on the right -- it cut into the sun in the center, adding a jangly feel. They fixed this in the second poster but would have done better to get rid of the sword altogether (two swords in one frame should be crossed or at least pointed at one another).

The other weak element was the protagonist in center of sun -- he was the main point of focus but was too small to command attention (also, the original layout did not give enough weight to the 'boy meets girl' element of the story). Both problems are fixed in second poster.

However, with the correction of one problem comes the creation of another. Main character's sword is now pointing off in a random direction, which leaves the protagonist vulnerable to attack from the guy with sword behind him -- just not right. Sword also points in same direction as the shooting star that cuts across the title -- redundant -- protag should have a more open stance (as is he appears to be trying to shield the woman from us -- alienating the audience) with his sword pointing to our right, toward the other character who is holding a sword, and pointing in the opposite direction of the shooting star. This would give the composition a lot more energy.

Color was changed to a more friendly blue which both brightens the formally dead corners and implies a magic/fantasy element. It's way better than the orange color of the first poster -- which didn't convey anything.

Still, poster would benefit by removing the ship's wheel and maybe even the sun. Make the character on right smaller and/or move him down so his head doesn't block Pfeiffer's hands (I mean, really). Would consider a second lightning bolt on upper right side to give some balance (and imply Pfeiffer's character is as dynamic as De Niro's).

The poster is much better, but still needs tweaking.

Tuesday, August 07, 2007

The Nanny Diaries

The Nanny Diaries

Yahoo has an exclusive 'making of' video of 'The Nanny Diaries'.

Rocket Science

Jeffrey Blitz, who directed 'Spellbound' and episodes of 'The Office', discusses his new film 'Rocket Science', an autobiographical story about a stutterer who joins his high school debate team.

Monday, August 06, 2007

Damon/Aniston: Highest Return

They use a complex formula, but according to Forbes Matt Damon returns the most bang (in box office) for a buck (of salary). Jennifer Aniston leads the pack for the women.

The Kite Runner

Kite Runner

Here's a first look at 'The Kite Runner'.

The State Of Online Movies

"We're point, click and watch -- instantly," said Barry Henthorn, the chief executive and co-founder of ReelTime. "We never stop and never buffer."

NYT

Sunday, August 05, 2007

Saturday, August 04, 2007

VAR 2


Photo by Alan Green

Greengrass On The Treatment

Paul Greengrass on KCRW

Elvis Mitchell with Paul Greengrass on The Treatment on KCRW in Santa Monica.

Friday, August 03, 2007

Killer Portfolio

Kirsten Dunst from Killers Kill, Dead Men Die

Vanity Fair and Annie Leibovitz have teamed to produce a set of noir photographs for the 2007 Hollywood portfolio called 'Killers Kill, Dead Men Die'. Above is Kirsten Dunst during production on the Universal lot.

Other stars involved include: Amy Adams, Ben Affleck, Jessica Alba, Pedro Almodóvar, Alec Baldwin,Adam Beach, Jessica Biel, Abigail Breslin, Jennifer Connelly, Penélope Cruz, Judi Dench, Robert De Niro, Robert Downey Jr., Aaron Eckhart, James Franco, Djimon Hounsou, Jennifer Hudson, Anjelica Huston, Rinko Kikuchi, Diane Lane, Derek Luke, Tobey Maguire, James McAvoy, Helen Mirren, Julianne Moore, Jack Nicholson, Bill Nighy, Ed Norton, Peter O'Toole, Sylvester Stallone, Sharon Stone, Kerry Washington, Naomi Watts, Forest Whitaker, Bruce Willis, Patrick Wilson, Kate Winslet, Evan Rachel Wood.

Killers Kill, Dead Men Die poster

Annie Leibovitz writes about the project. Here is a behind the scenes making of video. Here is an excerpt with narration. Here is a behind the scenes slideshow.

This stuff is, you'll pardon me...killer.

Classicism In Gap Ads



I've always been a fan of Annie Leibovitz. Here are a few of her shots for the new Gap ads: Twyla Tharp, Forest Whitaker, and Lucy Liu. Story at NYT.

Lions For Lambs

Lions for Lambs

Here's a new trailer for 'Lions for Lambs'.

Thursday, August 02, 2007

Halloween

Halloween 4

Yahoo has a first look at 'Halloween'.

Clip From Death Sentence

Death Sentence poster

I'm liking the look of 'Death Sentence'. Here is a new poster (I'd move the title to the left side). Film.com has an exclusive clip.

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