James McAvoy puts on an American accent for this relationship drama with Jessica Chastain, which was shown at Toronto last year, then at Cannes this year, and is now finally coming out September 26th. It's from first time writer-director Ned Benson, but the two performances were highly praised out of both film festivals, and it's even started some slight Oscar buzz for Chastain, who's set to have another prolific year with at least three films coming out this fall. You know, this movie actually looks a little bit like Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind to me, but without the sci-fi angle. What do you think?
FEATURETTE: "Guardians of the Galaxy"
This behind the scenes look at Marvel's upcoming Guardians of the Galaxy movie shows us all the different characters in the ensemble (and hey, you get to see Zoe Saldana's Gamora actually talk in this!). With the movie coming out August 1st, it's uncertain whether this lesser known property of Marvel's can really make a big splash, but since it's directed by James Gunn, the guy who made Super, the odd, faux superhero film from 2010, it might have a shot at standing out from Marvel's other movies (then again, they all have to fit in the same universe, so I wouldn't bet on too much creativity being allowed).
'Gravity,' 'Iron Man 3' and 'Her' Win Big at the 2014 Saturn Awards
The awards for genre films for the last year were announced today (I think these are the last of any kind of movie awards for 2013). Gravity and Iron Man 3 seemed to be the most popular movies with the sci-fi/horror crowd. But what's this Big Bad Wolves movie? Never even heard of it:
- Best Comic-to-Film Motion Picture: Iron Man 3
- Best Sci-Fi Film: Gravity
- Best Fantasy Film: Her
- Best Horror Film: The Conjuring
- Best Thriller Film: World War Z
- Best Action/Adventure Film: Fast & Furious 6
- Best Independent Film: 12 Years a Slave
- Best International Film: Big Bad Wolves
- Best Animated Film: Frozen
- Best Actor: Robert Downey, Jr., Iron Man 3
- Best Actress: Sandra Bullock, Gravity
- Best Supporting Actor: Ben Kingsley, Iron Man 3
- Best Supporting Actress: Scarlett Johansson, Her
- Best Performance by a Younger Actor: Chloe Grace Moretz, Carrie
- Best Director: Alfonso Cuaron, Gravity
- Best Writing: Her
- Best Editing: Gravity
- Best Production Design: The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug
- Best Music: Big Bad Wolves
- Best Costumes: The Hunger Games: Catching Fire
- Best Makeup: Prisoners
- Best Special/Visual Effects: Gravity
REVIEW: "Snowpiercer" (2014) Chris Evans, Song Kang-ho. Dir. Bong Joon-ho
Snowpiercer, the new action sci-fi thriller opening this week is one of the best movies of the year so far, and that's because it impresses upon you a world of originality and creativity that makes it something that you haven't actually seen before. And in this spring and summer of sequels and superheroes, that in itself is a desperately needed jolt to the system, when you can sit and watch a movie, and be reminded what it's like to not know what's going to happen next or feel that the story will ultimately follow a formula, even if there are dashes of cleverness along the way. No, this is a true original, and we have South Korean director Bong Joon-ho to thank for it.
Joon-ho (who directed acclaimed films Memories of Murder and The Host, both highly recommended) has his own style, and in his first English-language film with mostly American and British actors (although he brings along South Korean star Song Kang-ho in a small role) he doesn't cater in the slightest to western tastes. This film was delayed months due to a battle over the final cut between Joon-ho and distributor Harvey Weinstein, which Joon-ho eventually won, determined not to cut his film to cater to American audiences, no matter how much it may lose in box office appeal. Well, having now seen the film the way it was supposed to be seen, I'm glad they haven't butchered it, as it maintains that distinctive tone of Joon-ho's films that make them stand apart from the crowd. There's a slightly surreal, somewhat over the top, faux campiness to some scenes, with jarring tonal shifts in brutal violence or philosophical grandstanding in others, but it remains specifically South Korean in flavor, and though that may not be to everyone's tastes, the experience is all the better for it.
Chris Evans stars in a near future (the year is 2031) in which global warming has destroyed the earth, turning it into a swirling polar vortex uninhabitable for human kind. What remains of humanity has been ushered onto a kind of bullet train, miles long with thousands of residents, all of whom have been segregated and put in their "pre-ordained" places, with the abused working class citizens slogging away in the tail end, fed disgusting "protein bars" made out of bugs and insects, while the upper class slovens hang out in the various other cars, which are made up by spectacular sets that show us pools, saunas, greenhouses, nightclubs, and classrooms of indoctrinated children filled with bright, neon lights and wildly colorful costumes that make these elites seem like escapees from the Hunger Games universe. Evans is Curtis Everett, leader of an outcast group among the bottom-feeders who plan to rebel and make their way forward through the cars to the "sacred engine," which is where they can control the train and take back their lives from the oppressors. This kind of revolution has been tried and failed before, but with an obvious limited supply of weaponry in this environment, the soldiers who put down the workers may be close to finally being taken out of commission. Tilda Swinton plays Minister Mason, assistant to Mr. Wilford, the creator of the train and God-like figure in this universe, and in typical Tilda Swinton fashion, she goes all out with a nutty, bizarre and insanely campy performance that's as entertaining to watch as anything else on the screen, and that's saying a lot.
The visuals are striking in this film, and worth the price of admission alone. Joon-ho still appreciates the art of set design, as the creation of the train, with all its different cars is like walking into a new room in Willy Wonka's chocolate factory with every door Curtis manages to unlock. He does so with the help of gate opener Minsu (Kang-ho), an upper class citizen who's been drugged into a blissed out oblivion by the elites with his daughter Yona (Ko Ah-sung). The two actors help to blend the largely American cast with a South Korean perspective, but every actor who shows up gets a juicy bit part to play (watch out for Alison Pill and Ed Harris in particular, the latter of whom's Truman Show-esque role is just the latest in the actor's recent habit of playing parts that recall his most famous earlier performances). There is some CGI in this, seamlessly blended with the art direction to include absolutely breathtaking shots of a frozen and desolate planet that Wilford claims will kill anyone who sets foot on it, but will it really? There's some mystery that has to be solved in that question, but the plot twists are mostly secondary, and I don't even care if they make sense or not- the allegorical details get a little too messy and complicated to keep track of, as a lot of high minded science fiction does (this material was adapted from a French graphic novel). The movie itself is about the action, the set-up, and most of all, the train. It's a beautiful, thrilling and exciting experience that I guarantee you will be unlike any other action movie you'll pay to see this summer. So seek it out and give it a chance, if you're interested in something different. It may surprise you.
* * * 1/2
TRAILER #3: "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles"
Here we go with another TMNT trailer, and finally this one gives you lots of footage of those scary, freakish looking CG turtles. Blech. The characters seem right, but they're just so ugly! The story also looks pretty close to the original 1990 movie's plot, if anyone remembers that one (which I liked as a kid, actually). It looks a lot more action-packed though, as anything from producer Michael Bay would suggest (I'm sure he's responsible for casting the now Kardashian-resembling Megan Fox as April O'Neil, too).
TEASER: "Mockingjay, Part 1"
The new teaser for Part 1 of the final Hunger Games film has President Snow (Donald Sutherland) addressing the citizens of Panem in a bid to create hype and fan frenzy for the new movie. Something tells me they won't have much of a problem with that. Mockingjay, Part 1 is coming out November 21st, the weekend before Thanksgiving.
Eli Wallach 1915-2014
Eli Wallach passed away late last night at the age of 98. He acted for more than 60 years in movies, television and stage and was best known for his roles in The Magnificent Seven (1960), The Misfits (1961) and The Good, the Bad and the Ugly (1966, left). His other credits included Baby Doll (1956), The Holiday (2006) and most recently, Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps and The Ghost Writer, both in 2010.
Here he is getting his lifetime achievement Oscar at the Academy Governor's Awards in 2010:
TRAILER + POSTER: "Fury"
Now that the trailer for David Ayer's Fury is out, I can't say it fills me with any more confidence than that first look footage did two weeks ago. It could just be a bad trailer of course (there's got to be some reason they're releasing in the prime awards bait season of early November), but this seriously looks like the most generic WWII movie it could possibly be, one that's been done a thousand times before. One good example is going all the way back to 1949's Battleground, about a company of soldiers during the Battle of the Bulge. I can't imagine what this might have to offer that's new, at least based on this trailer.
Poster:
TRAILER: "The Drop"
This crime thriller written by author Dennis Lehane (Gone Baby Gone, Mystic River) looks pretty good, and it happens to be the last film appearance by late James Gandolfini. The rest of the cast includes Tom Hardy and Noomi Rapace (the original Girl With the Dragon Tattoo), and it's coming out September 12th, so it'll probably be shown at the Toronto Film Festival this year.
Blu-Ray Pick of the Week: "A Hard Day's Night" (1964)
I couldn't resist. The Criterion Collection of A Hard Day's Night is out now, and any chance to revisit the movie has to be taken. One of my recommendations for January, our month of musicals, what could have been and was expected to be, just a cheap and fast B-movie set to capitalize on the Beatles phenomenon turned into something a lot more innovative and timeless, thanks to its director Richard Lester. With no small amount due to the Beatles' charm, presence, sense of humor, and of course, the music. It's always a joy to watch and listen to, so here it is again in a specially restored edition- a must own for every Beatles fan.
Original 1964 Trailer:
TEASER: "Big Hero 6"
Ok, so I'm really behind on this particular teaser (over a month late actually), but Disney has a new movie coming out this year (if anything can live up to the phenomenal success of Frozen) around Thanksgiving, and it's their first based on a Marvel property, which of course they now own. A kid with his self-created robot and a bunch of amateur crime fighters try to solve a mystery, and this will probably join The Lego Movie and How to Train Your Dragon 2 as a contender for the Animated Feature Oscar next year. Big Hero 6 comes out November 7th.
TRAILER: "Love is Strange"
Another movie that was raved out of Sundance and is coming out August 22nd is called Love is Strange, and it stars John Lithgow and Alfred Molina as a couple forced to separate for economic reasons after being together for 39 years. The two leads were praised highly for their performances and the premise of the film actually reminds me of a classic movie from 1937 called Make Way for Tomorrow, where an elderly couple was forced to live the rest of their lives separately because of the Great Depression. Watch out for this one.
