This looks pretty nuts, right? With the Toronto film festival underway as we speak, this movie premiered to some pretty enthusiastic responses, with most calling it a violent, bloody, fun B-movie, which has to be all this was aspiring to be anyway, based on this trailer. The fact that it's a shootout all taking place in one room looks to me like it could get old fast (no matter how short the movie actually is), but who knows. I'd just need a little more of a story there.
'La La Land' Takes Off in Telluride
Telluride & Venice Round-Up: "La La Land," "Arrival," "Moonlight" and "Sully"
'La La Land' Takes Off in Telluride
Well, with the arrival of the Venice and Telluride film festivals, it's time to round up some of the early Oscar contenders that made their debuts at one or both of these. Remember, the Best Picture winner has been seen at one or both of these festivals for the last eight years and counting, so judging by this year's buzz, I kind of think we may be able to call it early this year.
Yup, this is the one. Damien Chazelle (director of Whiplash) has apparently delivered a perfect crowdpleaser in La La Land, an original musical that everyone simply loves, which got a standing ovation in Venice and again at Telluride, with the consensus being that it's both a throwback and love letter to movie musicals from Hollywood's Golden Age, but with enough originality and style to stand on its own. The admiration appears to be unanimous from the critics to the festival goers (which include many Academy members at Telluride, which is why the perception there is so predictive of success). Emma Stone is now the frontrunner for Best Actress, as the movie appears to be all about her and she completely steals the show. This kind of across the board love reminds me of The Artist, which wound up sweeping the season in 2011- we could be in for another one of those sweep years, I'm thinking. It's plenty early and there's lots of movies to come, but the acclaim is pretty overwhelming, and most importantly, it's paired with real passion and love from people who've seen it. Crowdpleasers like this (and about Hollwyood, no less, one of their favorite topics as we've seen from The Artist to Argo and Birdman) are traditionally hard to overcome.
Emma Stone's moment has arrived
"'La La Land' is both a love letter to a confounding and magical city and an ode to the idea of the might-have-been romance, in all its piercing sweetness. It’s a movie with the potential to make lovers of us all. All we have to do is fall into its arms." (Time)
"'La La Land' wants to remind us how beautiful the half-forgotten dreams of the old days can be – the ones made up of nothing more than faces, music, romance and movement. It has its head in the stars, and for a little over two wonderstruck hours, it lifts you up there too." (The Telegraph)
"For Chazelle to be able to pull this off the way he has is something close to remarkable. The director's feel for a classic but, for all intents and purposes, discarded genre format is instinctive and intense." (The Hollywood Reporter)
"I was utterly absorbed by this movie’s simple storytelling verve and the terrific lead performances from Ryan Gosling and Emma Stone who are both excellent – particularly Stone, who has never been better." (The Guardian)
Amy Adams looks for her sixth Oscar nomination
La La Land is the big across the board Oscar contender to emerge here, while other films that premiered were seen to have some raves and some drawbacks, but could be potential players if the cards stack up right. One of them is Arrival, Denis Villeneuve's sci-fi drama, which is being lauded as an intelligent, cerebral effort that plays up the emotion, wonder and awe of life in the universe. It also comes with another fantastic performance from Amy Adams, who will likely earn her sixth Oscar nomination, along with acclaim and consideration for the movie in at least many tech categories. Some reviews were a little muted, but I'm certainly detecting plenty of passion for this film as well, so it may turn out to be a bigger player than in the end than it looks right now. I personally can't wait to see it, as the comparisons to Contact and Close Encounters definitely make it seem like my kind of sci-fi movie, as opposed to more obvious big audience ones like The Martian and Interstellar.
"Anchored by an internalized performance from Amy Adams rich in emotional depth, this is a grownup sci-fi drama that sustains fear and tension while striking affecting chords on love and loss." (The Hollywood Reporter)
"'Arrival,' the shimmering apex of Villeneuve’s run of form that started back in 2010 with 'Incendies,' calmly, unfussily and with superb craft, thinks its way out of the black hole that tends to open up when ideas like time travel, alien contact and the next phase of human evolution are bandied about." (The Playlist)
"'Arrival' becomes an unexpectedly moving rumination on life’s bigger questions by its end. While it looks to other worlds, its main pleasure turns out to be the most intimate of questions." (Screen International)
Another film that showed at Telluride that could get some traction is Moonlight (below), from independent director Barry Jenkins, about a man struggling with his masculinity and sexuality. This is a small indie that will be distributed by A24, but critical acclaim is through the roof, so that could help it find an audience and possible awards love, if critics remember it at the end of the year, especially in categories like screenplay and supporting actress for Naomie Harris.
"Like 'Brokeback Mountain' a decade ago, 'Moonlight' is a piece of art that will transform lives long after it leaves theaters." (The Playlist)
"It’s a thrilling, deeply necessary work that opens up a much-needed and rarely approached on-screen conversation about the nature of gay masculinity." (The Guardian)
"A socially conscious work of art as essential as it is insightful." (Variety)
Tom Hanks talks up his own movie, plus 'La La Land' in his appearance at Telluride
And finally we have Sully, Clint Eastwood's latest starring Tom Hanks as Sully Sullenberger, the pilot who pulled off the "Miracle on the Hudson"- the reviews are very solid, even if the story itself might not BE much of a story, outside of the actual event. And only solid reviews won't necessarily make for an Oscar contender, unless the movie does huge business, like American Sniper did a couple years ago. The movie actually opens this weekend, so we'll see, but for now it's a fringe contender, with Tom Hanks as a possible nominee for turning in yet another lived-in, unactorly performance. We ought to be calling him 'Ol Reliable by now, right?
"The movie is economical and solid, and generally low-key when it’s not freaking you out. That it unnerves you as much as it does may seem surprising, given that going in, we know how this story ends. But Mr. Eastwood is also very good at his job, a talent that gives the movie its tension along with an autobiographical sheen." (New York Times)
"'Sully' is a classy, enormously satisfying ode to simple competence. To paraphrase the title character, it’s just a movie doing its job. And amen to that." (Washingon Post)
"Efficient and effective in Eastwood's experienced hands, 'Sully' has interwoven a crisp and electric retelling of the story of the landing we know with a story we do not." (Los Angeles Times)
Barry Jenkins' 'Moonlight' gets launched into the awards conversation
Matthew McConaughey Goes Bald for His New Movie 'Gold'
This kinda looks like Wolf of Wall Street meets American Hustle, am I right? Is that a new genre now? McConaughey goes bald and gains a whole bunch of weight for this one (kinda like Christian Bale did in Hustle), and the tone seems more of a comedy than a drama, as had been reported earlier (this is coming from Stephen Gaghan, the guy who made Syriana). It's coming out in late December, for any potential Oscar buzz, most likely McConaughey in Best Actor, but we'll see. It may a little too much been there, done that, as far as the story goes.
First Trailer for Ben Affleck's Gangster Movie 'Live By Night'
I don't think this looks like anything that hasn't already been said in a thousand other gangster movies before, and I wonder if that's why it's coming out January 17th. I mean, that's the month for dumpster releases if ever there is one, so if this was any good, why wouldn't it be coming out this fall? It's Ben Affleck's first post-Argo directing project, if anyone still thinks his directing career wasn't really about rebooting his own image so he can star in whatever movies he wants again...I'm not so sure about that, given his recent acting choices.
Will Smith Meets Love, Time and Death in 'Collateral Beauty'
This movie's coming out at Christmas as ultimate counter programming to the juggernaut that is Rogue One, and it looks pretty Hallmark-y, but what a cast, huh? There must have been something there that attracted all these names. It looks like a spin on A Christmas Carol, which makes it good for the holiday release, but I don't know. You want to root for these kinds of movies, because it's what we wish studios would make more of- an original script with big name actors. But they also have to be good (or at least successful) to keep that concept alive. So here's hoping.
10 Back to School Movies for September
So, it's officially back to school season, and you know what that means. One of my favorite movie months is here! Yup, my back to school theme has some of the best movies ever to take place in a "school setting," which means I get to include teachers and colleges and all that other stuff, so we get the full experience in there. We've got everything from Clueless to Cooley High to Stand and Deliver, Fame (the original, above) and To Sir, With Love, among lots of others. It really is one of my most enjoyable movie months, as every film is fun and kind of uplifting in their own ways, so it's not a downer theme, no matter how you might feel about going back to school this month. So kick back with these ten great school themed films, and have at it. Go the Movies for Every month page to read up on September and head to the September movie page to see the full list of ten films, complete with trailers. Happy Movie Watching!
'Don't Breathe' comes out on top again
BOX OFFICE 9/02-9/05: 'Don't Breathe' Stays on Top For Labor Day
'Don't Breathe' comes out on top again
The last weekend of summer kinda flew by, didn't it? It was a sleepy one at the box office, as the low budget horror hit Don't Breathe repeated in first place, bringing in $15 million over three days and $19 million over four days, an excellent drop from last week, as its total now sits at $55 million so far, a big success for a film costing just $10 million to produce. In second was Suicide Squad, which hit $300 million over the four day frame, and now rests on $672 million globally. That kind of number is very depressing to see for a movie so poorly received, I gotta tell ya.
Kubo and the Two Strings and Pete's Dragon were neck and neck for the family audience over the holiday, with Kubo coming out on top only after the Labor Day totals were added in, with nearly $9 million, while Pete's Dragon earned about $8.5 million. Of course, neither one is a huge hit with audiences, but at least Dragon did pass its production budget of $65 million this weekend. Sausage Party rounded out the top five with $6.4 million as its own total nears $90 million domestic. New release The Light Between Oceans earned a paltry $6 million on top of mixed reviews while the ski-fi Morgan completely bombed with under $3 million from over 2000 theaters. Yikes.
No one was much interested in real life couple Michael Fassbender and Alicia Vikander's melodrama
Top 5 (4-Day totals):
- Don't Breathe- $19.7 million
- Suicide Squad- $12.7 million
- Kubo and the Two Strings- $8.7 million
- Pete's Dragon- $8.4 million
- Sausage Party- $6.4 million
Bad Moms officially crossed the $100 million mark, becoming the first film to do so for the upstart studio STX, and in limited release, Hell or High Water continues to thrive, looking on its way to secure possibly $30-$40 million overall. As September rolls on, the major new release next weekend is Tom Hanks and Clint Eastwood's Sully, which has garnered some solid reviews out of its premiere in Telluride this weekend, but not a lot on the horizon this month, as is typically the case as movies begin targeting the adult audience and summer blockbuster season comes to an end. It couldn't come any faster, especially this year.
Jackie Chan Among 2016's Honorary Oscar Recipients
The honorees for this year's Governor's Awards have been announced, and the Academy has made some unusual, but inspired choices this time around. The most familiar name among the bunch is the legendary Jackie Chan of course, who receives the award after four decades of brilliant and innovative contributions to action cinema as a master choreographer, stuntman and filmmaker as well as global superstar. In fact, it's hard to believe that at 62, the only question might be is he too young to receive what's seen as the equivalent of a lifetime achievement award (but hey, Spike Lee got this last year at 58, so if he can get one...). The other recipients are the British film editor Anne Coates, whose work includes Lawrence of Arabia, Becket, The Elephant Man, In the Line of Fire and Out of Sight, documentarian Frederick Wiseman, whose films were never even nominated for an Oscar, and casting director Lynn Stalmaster, who's filmography dates from the late 1950's to the early 1980's, and includes films like I Want to Live!, Judgment at Nuremberg, In the Heat of the Night, Jeremiah Johnson, Fiddler on the Roof, The Last Detail, Bound for Glory, Superman (we can thank him for discovering Christopher Reeve) and Being There. The 8th Annual Governor's Awards will take place on November 12th.
New Trailer for Isabelle Huppert in Paul Verhoeven's 'Elle'
For me, this is absolutely my most anticipated film of the year. Verhoeven at his best makes shocking, bold, fiercely original and often female empowering films, and despite the controversy amidst the raves that this movie drew at Cannes, its garnered some of the best reviews I think I've ever seen for his usually divisive films. I'm betting that Isabelle Huppert will finally land her long overdue Oscar nomination for Best Actress, since this is really her movie, through and through.
Trailer for Sweden's Animated Oscar Entry 'My Life as a Courgette'
GKids, the studio that does the noble work of distributing foreign animated films in the U.S., has officially picked up Sweden's Oscar entry for animated film this year, the French language My Life as a Courgette (or zucchini). If you're like me, who's often tired of the same looking CG animation that comes out all the time here, this one looks like a gem, and it apparently is to the people who saw it at Cannes. Just from watching this, I'm pretty sure that it will be one of the year's Oscar nominees in the category.
Gene Wilder 1933-2016
Another star has been taken from us in the year 2016, which has sadly seen the departures of many icons from this earth. Gene Wilder, the comedic legend who had been immortalized on screen for Willy Wonka and his collaborations with director Mel Brooks, has passed away at the age of 83, from complications of Alzheimer's. He leaves so many great films and performances behind, most notably The Producers (1968), Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory (1971), Blazing Saddles (1974) and Young Frankenstein (also 1974). All four of those classics have stood the test of time to be remembered today as iconic, and his Willy Wonka was so dominant a character that the original title of that book had to be renamed from Charlie and the Chocolate Factory to accommodate who the true star was. Wilder was Oscar nominated for Best Supporting Actor for his turn in 1967's Bonnie and Clyde, and was also known for his four films with Richard Pryor, most notably 1976's Silver Streak. His marriage to SNL star Gilda Radner in 1984 was well documented, as they starred in three films together and stayed married until her death from ovarian cancer in 1989, after which he stayed involved in promoting cancer awareness and founded a detection center and community organization both named after her. He was nominated for a second Oscar for co-writing the Young Frankenstein screenplay with Mel Brooks, and his last acting appearance was an episode of Will & Grace in 2003. He had an amazingly sweet, vulnerable, open screen presence that invited you in to see the bursts of manic energy and eccentricity hidden under the surface of his performances. He will be dearly missed.
It's really amazing to think that Gene Wilder essentially makes this movie work, as he was really the only compelling character in it. You can thank Wilder's inspired, magical performance for that entirely, epitomized in this song:
And if you haven't seen Young Frankenstein, please do so immediately. I think this was his greatest performance (although some would probably stick with Willy Wonka):
BOX OFFICE 8/26-8/28: 'Don't Breathe' Scares Up $26 Million
As the dog days of August drag on, the $10 million horror flick Don't Breathe exceeded expectations to earn $26 million at the box office this weekend, vaulting into first place and knocking Suicide Squad from the top spot. The movie got pretty great reviews as well, with a Rotten Tomatoes rating of over 90% from critics, although audiences gave it a lukewarm Cinemascore of "B+"- still, it almost tripled its budget in the first three days of release, so that's a smashing success.
Suicide Squad picked up another $12 million for second place, with its total now at $282 million and $635 million globally, while Kubo and the Two Strings came in third with $7 million, just above Sausage Party, which fell to fourth. Rounding out the top five was the poorly reviewed Jason Statham actioner Mechanic: Resurrection, which didn't make much of a splash at all (not totally sure how Statham has managed to keep starring in movies all these years- they don't exactly make a lot of coin).
Top 5:
- Don't Breathe- $26.1 million
- Suicide Squad- $12.1 million
- Kubo and the Two Strings- $7.9 million
- Sausage Party- $7.7 million
- Mechanic: Resurrection- $7.5 million
In limited release, Southside With You, the Obama's first date movie, opened on over 800 screens with an okay $3 million, but may hold well with great reviews of its own, while Hell or High Water keeps plugging along, bringing in $3.7 million from over 900 screens as it continues to expand. In totals news, Bad Moms keeps showing off strong staying power, pulling in another $5 million for a total of $95 million and now sure to cross $100 million for that underserved female demographic, so congratulations to STX for that one. There's really nothing of note coming out next weekend over Labor Day, so expect to see the holdovers do well next week.
