So yeah, I may be done with posting the relentless amount of teasers being released for this movie after today (similar to the way I finally cut off Maleficent), but I guess that's what you do when your marketing campaign is targeting a demographic that spends all its time on social media. Anyway, here's one that seems to be an early scene in the movie, with Katniss gearing up for battle.
TRAILER: "Top Five"
This movie, written and directed by Chris Rock, made a huge splash in Toronto this year, ignited a bidding war over distribution, and is now being quickly slated for a release on December 5th, in time for awards consideration. It got some very enthusiastic reviews, although I don't know if you can tell what makes it so special from this trailer- it looks funny, but apparently it's more than that, with some serious points to make about a variety of topics, including Hollywood, relationships, etc. Some referred to it as Chris Rock's Annie Hall, if that gives you a better idea of what it might be. Looking forward to seeing it though- I hope it can live up to the hype.
Movie of the Day: "Double Indemnity" (1944)
I can't recommend Body Heat without advising you to also see the Double Indemnity, just so you can compare. This is often considered one of the best movies ever made, and the film that created so many of the standard tropes used in noirs forever after- not to mention Barbara Stanwyck's alluring and deceitful Phyllis Dietrichson, one of the original femme fatales. Stanwyck in her day was considered the consummate pro- somebody who could easily move back and forth between screwball comedy, tearjerker, soap opera, and here she showed she could even be a spellbinding sex symbol who pulls Fred MacMurray into her web with ease. This film was written and directed by the great Billy Wilder, and co-written with Raymond Chandler of all people, from the book by James M. Cain. No true film buff can afford to miss this one- it's too iconic.
Original 1944 Trailer:
POSTER + TEASER: "In the Heart of the Sea"
Chris Hemsworth stars in Ron Howard's new movie In the Heart of the Sea, coming out next March. It kind of looks like an action movie involving Moby Dick, so this is going to depend a lot on the visual effects, which to me don't look all that great in this trailer. Who knows though- Howard's last film Rush was really good, so maybe this one will work.
Poster:
TRAILER #2: "Unbroken"
Here's the new trailer for Angelina Jolie's Unbroken, coming out at Christmas. I'm really not that interested in this movie- it just looks like pretty standard biopic survival stuff to me, although I do remember the lead actor Jack O'Connell from the U.K.'s teen show Skins. Good for him I guess, but otherwise this doesn't strike my fancy at all.
Movie of the Day: "Body Heat" (1981)
Moving right along in our femme fatale list, our next entry comes from a neo-noir that was actually a remake of Double Indemnity from 1944, one of the classics that set the mold for the genre. Most remakes never live up to the original, but surprisingly, this one really does stand on its own (some even say it's better than the first one- I'll leave that up to you to judge). The villainess here is Matty Walker, played by Kathleen Turner as a stunning seductress who uses all her feminine wiles to manipulate P.I. William Hurt into murdering her husband. The thing that makes this one stand apart from the original is the time in which it was made- what can be made explicit in 1981 was only allowed to be implied in the 40's, and obviously that's the sexual power a woman like Matty Walker employs to make men fall under her spell. Whether you prefer that to be implied or not will dictate which film you like more, but the sex scenes are very erotic and work really well in this updated version, and Kathleen Turner's slick, silky anti-heroine is one for the ages.
Original 1981 Trailer:
FINAL TRAILER: "Foxcatcher"
Up until now, Foxcatcher's only been promoted with a series of short teasers, but we finally have a full length trailer for this movie, and it looks awfully good, at least to me. It's been considered a major Oscar contender since Cannes, but there are those who wonder if it might be too cold and calculating for the Academy's tastes. It's possible, but they have responded to Bennett Miller's last two movies, Capote and Moneyball, so we'll see. Either way, the actor's branch should like it, as it's already been said to have three transformative performances from Steve Carell, Channing Tatum and Mark Ruffalo. It comes out on November 14th.
Neil Patrick Harris to host the 2015 Oscars
The next Oscar host has been tapped and it's veteran awards emcee Neil Patrick Harris, who's made a run of it so far, having hosted the Tonys four times and the Emmys twice. The Oscars will air on Feb 22nd of next year, with the same producing team of Craig Zadan and Neil Meron behind the scenes, making this their third year in a row producing the show, to mixed results with hosts Seth MacFarlane and Ellen Degeneres. I don't know- I realize that fans of NPH as a host come strictly from his Tonys stints, which I've never seen, but I did see both times he hosted the Emmys, and I was not impressed with either. It worries me some that he's not a comedian, but hopefully he can pull off a song and dance man kind of routine, ala Hugh Jackman. That's probably the best precedent for him. What do you think?
Movie of the Day: "Out of the Past" (1947)
Our next all time great femme fatale is from one of the all time great film noirs in general, and that's the cold and two-faced Kathie Moffat from Out of the Past. She's one of the best because she spends most of the movie parading around as the innocent victim, captivating Robert Mitchum with her faux damsel in distress act, while simultaneously playing bad guy Kirk Douglas for a fool who thinks she's in his pocket. She plays both sides with ease, her every action is motivated by self-interest, and Jane Greer does a fantastic job conveying absolute sincerity in all her evolving faces so that the audience knows no better than Mitchum whether she's ever telling the truth or not. Cold to the bitter end.
Classic scene where Mitchum first sees Greer:
Robert Downey Jr. Signs on for 'Captain America 3'
Big news in the fanboy world last night, as it was officially announced that Robert Downey Jr. will in fact be co-starring in Captain America 3 in 2016, as Marvel will be adapting the much loved "Civil War" storyline from comic books. That basically means Iron Man and Captain America will fight each other in this one, which tells us why Marvel was not at all concerned about scheduling the third Cap sequel right on the same exact date that WB's Batman/Superman movie was already slated to come out. My guess is the DC heroes will be the ones to blink now and head somewhere else. By the way, RDJ is reportedly being paid over $40 million for this, with another $50 million for the next Avengers movie, which is what he got for the last one...I'm sorry, but how much money does a person really need at that point? I don't see how somebody could spend that much if they tried.
Blu-Ray Pick of the Week: "Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein" (1948)
I promise you, this is a totally serious pick. The title may sound like a joke, but if you're not familiar with Abbott and Costello, or have heard of them but never actually seen anything they were in, trust me, go ahead and start here, because it's one of their very best. The duo accidentally run into a cavalcade of Universal's classic horror monsters, in this one Frankenstein, Dracula and The Wolf Man (with the original Dracula himself, Bela Lugosi reprising the role) and hijinks ensue, but it's still hilarious. It completely holds up and is just as funny today, plus it's perfect for Halloween!
Original 1948 Trailer:
Movie of the Day: "Leave Her to Heaven" (1945)
This week on Screen It Now! has been declared Femme Fatale week, and in honor of that theme we'll be showcasing the very best, most deliciously evil femme fatales in all of film noir. For today we're jumping right in with one the nastiest villainesses in movie history, and that's socialite Ellen Berent, who drained the life out of everyone she knew, often in a fatal manner. Played by Gene Tierney in a performance that won her an Oscar nomination, Ellen is the bearer of "suffocating love" as she calls it, and it leads to the ruin of all those who surround her. We never quite know exactly what Ellen's motives are, which makes her even scarier- what's on her mind? What is she thinking? Is she possessively jealous or just mentally ill? This is a lesser known noir from the mid 1940's, but it holds up really well, and for Tierney's character and haunting performance alone, it's a can't miss.
Original 1945 Trailer:
