This new extended trailer for Godzilla (May 16th) is also the best one, giving us more of the movie and just a tiny bit more of the monster (who really ought to be saved until we can see the real thing). I don't know though, I have a good feeling about this one- it looks exciting and Bryan Cranston makes everything better just by being in it. We'll see, but I bet this is going to be good.
TRAILER: "Chef"
The trailer for the new comedy written and directed by Jon Favreau has been released. This is Favreau's first personal film in a good long while, since Swingers- you can see he got a bunch of his buddies to make appearances in it, including Robert Downey, Jr. and Scarlett Johansson. It looks like it could be pretty good- I hear it's more of a father/son bonding movie than the trailer makes it look, but it got positive reviews from the critics at SXSW, where it premiered last month. It's coming out May 9th:
Mickey Rooney 1920-2014
Hollywood legend Mickey Rooney, the teen sensation and box office star of the 1930's and '40's, whose career in film, stage and television spanned nearly eight decades, has passed away at the age of 93. One of the last surviving stars who worked in the silent era, he started out as a child actor in silent and early sound films, before becoming hugely famous as a teenager in Love Finds Andy Hardy (1938) and its many sequels, along with other classics like A Midsummer NIght's Dream (1935) and Babes in Arms (1939) with Judy Garland, for which he was nominated for Best Actor. He made several musicals with Judy Garland, his fellow teen star at the time, and went on to star in National Velvet (1944) with Elizabeth Taylor, one of my favorite movies of that era. As an adult he continued to act in movies throughout his life, with several notable roles including The Black Stallion (1979) for which he was nominated again in the supporting actor category. As one of the great stars of Hollywood's golden age, throughout his career he amounted four Oscar nominations, five Emmy nods and one win, two Golden Globes and an Honorary Oscar for lifetime achievement in 1983.
Here's the trailer for National Velvet, one of his best movies:
REVIEW: "The Grand Budapest Hotel" (2014) Ralph Fiennes, Jude Law. Dir. Wes Anderson
Wes Anderson's The Grand Budapest Hotel is a delightful treat, a delicious confection to be savored from beginning to end, and preferably as many times as possible, as I intend to see this movie several more times in order to feed my new addiction. His best film since The Royal Tenenbaums, never has the director's acute and specific sensibilities been more perfectly suited to the subject matter and setting- this just may be the quintessential Wes Anderson film.
Set up by an impossibly precious framing device that sets up a "story within a story within a story," we get Tom Wilkinson as an old author relaying the details of the time that he, as a young writer (Jude Law) visited the hotel in question and came upon the owner (F. Murray Abraham), who in turn relayed the story of the hotel itself to him verbally. This takes us all the way back to 1932, when Abraham was a teenage refugee (newcomer Tony Revelori) who was employed by the hotel as a lobby boy known to the Grand Budapest's concierge, Monsieur Gustave (Ralph Fiennes) as Zero Moustafa. Gustave is the kind of hotel manager of a bygone age, the somewhat fanciful type who might nowadays be labeled a "metrosexual," and spends his time catering to the "needs" of the hotel's clientele (mostly octegenarian old ladies with lots of money lying around to spend on those who fulfill their latent sexual desires).
Gustave trains the boy as his assistant and the two get caught up in a mystery concerning the sudden death of one particular old lady (played in some astounding old woman makeup by Tilda Swinton) and the will she's bequeathed, which is sought after by some very malicious and jealous relatives. Set in a fictional European republic, the whole film is nostalgic for the bygone era Fiennes' Gustave represents, and takes pains to recreate it through Wes Anderson's usual artificial touches. The art direction is superb in this movie, every set seems lifted out of a storybook, and the period setting greatly enhances the busyness of the world onscreen, which is even more filled with delightful goodies around every corner than a typical Anderson movie (which is plentiful enough, as you know). All of the action taking place in the 1930's is filmed in a 1:37 aspect ratio, reminiscent of course of the Old Hollywood era and bringing to mind films like Grand Hotel and The Shop Around the Corner, the light comedy and grace of which is recalled here many times over. The fullscreen ratio also turns out to be entirely suitable for the meticulous framing shots of a director like Anderson, whose composition is so tightly controlled and calls attention to itself in every scene.
Ralph Fiennes is invaluable as the concierge, and he brings a comedic lightness and sly tongue in cheek quality to the role that befits the tone and makes him one of the most memorable characters in any Wes Anderson film to date. Sometimes actors in Anderson's films can be monotone and dry, seemingly at the director's behest, but here Fiennes is a bundle of sparkling charismatic energy, who seems to understand exactly what this character and film was calling for, and if there's any justice he'll be remembered at Oscar time for this performance (which is highly unlikely I know, seeing as it's only April). The rest of the cast fizzles too, with appearances by Adrien Brody and Willem Dafoe in villainous turns along with the usual stock company of Wes Anderson actors (Bill Murray,Jason Schwartzman, Edward Norton). Everyone seems to want to be part of the fun and it's not hard to see why- I myself wanted to dip into the screen and take part in this zany salute to Old Hollywood with a Wes Anderson spin, yet the film also holds a hint of danger and tragedy creeping in from the pre-war outside world, a world which most Anderson films seem entirely cut off from. Grand Budapest is entirely unique, yet fittingly nostalgic all at once- I can't wait to see it again.
* * * 1/2
BOX OFFICE 4/04-4/06: 'Captain America' Soars With Record Opening
Captain America: The Winter Soldier demolished the box office this weekend and set a new record for an April opening, pulling in $96 million over the three day frame. The movie was helped by good reviews and earned an "A" Cinemascore, so it should obviously do well going forward, especially now that studios are starting to take a chance on their tentpoles doing blockbuster business in the spring rather than summer. Looks like they're right to be confident, as Captain America should have little direct competition until the next Spider-Man comes out on May 2nd. The latest Marvel entry beat the the opening of the last Thor sequel ($86 million) and has already grossed $200 million worldwide- quite a success story for this comic book universe Marvel has created on screen.
In other news, that "C" Cinemascore took its toll on the second place Noah, which fell off a cliff this weekend, earning just $17 million for a $72 million total. It will cross $100 million easily but will need stronger overseas numbers to make its expensive budget back. In third was Divergent, which also suffered a big drop, but crossed $100 million this week for $114 million total- it's still a slight underperformer for the studio compared to other YA sensations like Hunger Games and Twilight, but it also cost less to produce. Incredibly, God's Not Dead took fourth place and now has the chance to be the top grossing indie of the year, despite little to no mainstream attention (it's barely been reviewed by the top critics), and The Grand Budapest Hotel rounded out the top five, continuing to do well, now having earned $32 million overall.
Top 5:
- Captain America: The Winter Soldier- $96.2 million
- Noah- $17 million
- Divergent- $13 million
- God's Not Dead- $7.7 million
- The Grand Budapest Hotel- $6.2 million
In limited release, Scarlett Johansson's other film, Under the Skin, earned $140,000 from just four screens, allowing her to have two movies with the highest per screen average of the weekend. Coming up next week it's the Kevin Costner football comedy Draft Day and Rio 2 for the kids, which will probably be big. Until then!
In Theaters This Weekend 4/04: Good Ink for 'Captain America 2,' 'Under the Skin'
So this weekend there are two significant releases, and it looks like both are worth seeing if you're looking to head out to the multiplex. The latest entry in the Marvel Cinematic Universe is their best reviewed film since the original Iron Man, surprisingly enough. Consensus seems to be that it's a timely, old-fashioned, more welcomingly low key conspiracy thriller, which I'm guessing is what makes it stand out from the effects heavy, CGI-ridden Marvel movies in recent years:
"Captain America: The Winter Soldier is the first superhero film since the terrorist-inflicted The Dark Knight that plugs you into what's happening right now." (EW)
"Chockful of the breathless cliffhangers dictated by the genre, but equally rich in the quiet, tender character moments that made the first film unique among recent Marvel fare..." (Variety)
"Takes the bold (for Marvel) step of reducing CGI spectacle to a relative minimum in favor of reviving the pleasures of hard-driving old-school action, surprising character development and intriguing suspense." (Hollywood Reporter)
Not that anyone who's going to see Captain America this weekend pays a lot of attention to reviews, but at least it looks like you'll be getting your money's worth. It's definitely a big ScarJo weekend, as another movie finally coming out is Jonathan Glazer's surrealist Under the Skin, a movie I've personally been looking forward to for a long time, and one that's proving to be very divisive among the critics (it's Rotten Tomatoes score is 84% but the top critics is just 59%), with some hating every minute of it while others are proclaiming it a masterpiece. I can't wait to see for myself:
"Johansson is phenomenal in every sense of the word. She joins Glazer in creating a brave experiment in cinema that richly rewards the demands it makes. The result is an amazement, a film of beauty and shocking gravity." (Rolling Stone)
"'Under the Skin' falls in love with its bleak monotony. It is a melodrama with all the thrills surgically excised." (Time)
"This stark and intensely controlled film is the work of a powerful visual stylist and storyteller, one who looks like he belongs on the short list of directors who have carried the narrative methods of the silent era deep into the modern cinema." (Salon)
"Very little in 'Under the Skin' is clear at all. Its secrets unspool in mysterious, supple ribbons, but that's part of its allure, and its great beauty." (Village Voice)
Here's the behind the scenes featurette on the making of the movie, with interviews with Scarlett and director Jonathan Glazer, whose only other feature films are Sexy Beast (2000) and Birth (2004):
TRAILER #2: "Blended"
I hesitate to post it, but here's the second trailer for Adam Sandler and Drew Barrymore in Blended, coming out May 23rd, which really makes it look just as bad as the first one did. Maybe a smidge less horrifying, if I'm being honest, but yeah, there is zero hope for this movie. Adam Sandler is a lost cause at this point:
TRAILER: "Night Moves"
Kelly Reichardt's Night Moves, which premiered way back at the Venice Film Festival and got very positive reviews there and at Toronto, is finally coming out in the U.S. on May 30th. It's a thriller starring Jesse Eisenberg and an all grown up Dakota Fanning, which is about all you can tell from the fairly ambiguous trailer. I suppose Reichardt's track record so far should give her the benefit of the doubt though, as she directed 2008's Wendy and Lucy, and 2011's Meek's Cutoff, both highly received. We'll see how this one turns out:
TRAILER: "Lucy"
Scarlett Johansson stars in this sci-fi action thriller from director Luc Besson (La Femme Nikita, The Professional and The Fifth Element) about a woman turned into a type of superhuman. Maybe ScarJo's been boosted by The Avengers to want to be a new female action star- whatever the case, her filmography lately is certainly becoming a lot more interesting, with Her, this week's Under the Skin, and now Lucy, coming out August 8th. Count me in.
REVIEW: "Anchorman 2: The Legend Continues" (2013) Will Ferrell, Christina Applegate. Dir. Adam McKay
The original Anchorman was one of the most absurd, unique, and endlessly quotable comedies of the last decade. It was a sleeper hit in 2004 but its fans only grew in numbers, waiting for the inevitable sequel to arrive, which it finally did nine years later. After so much time in the interim, and with all the original cast and crew back for the second time around, you'd hope that this new entry in the adventures of Ron Burgundy and co. would live up to the hype- and I'm happy to say it does.
Anchorman 2: The Legend Continues, is at least as funny and weird as the first movie, packed with obvious improv and one-liners, and gags stacked one on top of the other so that if a joke doesn't quite hit, it's only a few seconds before one that does. Like the best sequels, it benefits from a feeling of warm familiarity with characters you already know and love- and here everyone hits the right note, with even the one-dimensional Brick Tamland (Steve Carrell), whose role is bigger this time, expanded to include a sweetly ridiculous love story between him and his female counterpart, Chani (a pitch-perfect Kristen Wiig). Will Ferrell is of course back as the title character, the bumbling buffoon who remains as clueless and stupid, yet oddly loveable as ever, and his news team is rounded out by Paul Rudd and David Koechner, who each get their moments to shine over the course of the film (Keochner's Champ Kind has some of my favorite, laugh out loud lines in this one).
Anchorman 2 could have settled for a simple reunion movie that repeated the jokes of the first one, but happily, Ferrell and director/writer Adam McKay decided to aim higher- they had a point to make about the state of TV news, and used Ron Burgundy as the vessel through which to do it. When Ron's fired from the news desk by Mac Tannen (a grizzled Harrison Ford) in favor of his wife Veronica Corningstone (a returning Christina Applegate) for being the "worst anchorman he's ever seen," he's recruited by the upstart GNN, the network to invent the 24-hour news block, and from there the movie proceeds to take aim squarely at the likes of CNN and Fox News, essentially blaming Ron and his news team for every bad thing that's happened with cable news in the last ten years. It's sharp, pointed satire about our current news era, but without sacrificing the absurd nature of the Anchorman universe in the slightest (the way they top the news team fight from the first movie is a pretty awesome sight to behold).
For anyone who loved the first Anchorman, I can't see why you wouldn't be taken with this one as well, and with any luck, maybe in another ten years Ron, Veronica and the rest of the gang will come back to make fun of whatever the current status of TV journalism is at that time. Until then, we have this to enjoy, and whatever his faults, Ron Burgundy shows more conscience at the end of this movie (albeit thanks to a stint of blindness and bonding time with a baby shark) than most of the corporate cronies that anchor our television screens on a daily basis today- which is quite a sad state of affairs indeed.
* * *
TRAILER: "Sex Tape"
Cameron Diaz and Jason Segel reunite with their Bad Teacher director Jake Kasdan for this raunchy comedy coming out July 25th. The premise seems a little thin, but it looks like they might be able to wring some laughs out of it- although that dead dog joke is straight out of There's Something About Mary.
Blu-Ray Pick of the Week: "Once" (2006)
An absolute gem this week in John Carney's Once, from 2006. A low budget film made with amateur actors about a brief tryst with falling in love and being in love with music. Real life musicians Glen Hansard and Marketa Irglova star as two struggling artists who meet up to make a quick record in a week's time. It's hard to find a movie more charming than this one- the only reason you wouldn't like it is if you somehow didn't like the songs, which Hansard and Irglova composed themselves. The main track "Falling Slowly" won the Oscar for Best Original Song that year too.
Trailer:
