Whenever Richard Kelly’s had anything to say about his long-anticipated sophomore feature, Southland Tales, I’ve been there to ask questions. The only difference with this final interview (i.e. unless I get roped into some DVD publicity) is that now I’ve a finished film to go with the questions. And when you finally see Southland Tales … Continue reading
He worked with John and Alan Lomax at the Library of Congress in the 1940s. He co-founded the Almanac Singers with Woody Guthrie. He adapted and co-authored the definitive protest song of the twentieth century – a little ditty you’ve probably heard called "We Shall Overcome". As one of The Weavers, he seeded the 1950s … Continue reading
My biggest worry with Peter Jackson’s adaptation of Alice Sebold’s The Lovely Bones has been that the tone might not match up to the haunting beauty of the screenplay. As we all know, Jackson has a tendency to go garish with his situations and characterizations; this is fine for The Frighteners or even Heavenly Creatures, … Continue reading
We’ve known for a couple of weeks now that a prolonged strike would probably be the death knell for Season Seven of 24. Well, ring it out: once production is completed on the eighth episode, the show will be shut down indefinitely. As for when it will be continued, that’s up to the Alliance of … Continue reading
Though Frank Miller says nothing of real interest throughout this brief video diary just posted to Lionsgate’s official website for The Spirit, he’s certainly more skilled at saying nothing than Zack Snyder. Let’s just hope that, when there is stuff to show, Miller delivers the (tantalizingly vague) goods as Snyder has done in the past … Continue reading
The idea of Jack Nicholson stepping back into the role of private dick Jake Gittes would be so much more exciting had The Two Jakes functioned better as a narrative. Though Robert Towne’s screenplay occassionally recalls the wit and intrigue of Chinatown, the story is simply too labyrinthine (and cold) for a good, but not … Continue reading
It’s encouraging to see The Weinstein Company marketing Frank Darabont’s The Mist with such gusto. Though this material offers its own challenges, they’ve at least learned from the mistakes of Grindhouse in that the TV spots are plentiful (at least during the weekend football games) and unambiguous: they’re selling the monster movie first, and the … Continue reading
Evidently, cold-blooded murder is awfully rough on the conscience. Worse, mental duress experienced in the weeks and months following the act can cause the executor to make a series of disastrous decisions that will either lead to a) his apprehension, b) more murder or c) his murder – thus, defeating the purpose of the initial … Continue reading
You will forgive me if I speak bluntly, but it’s a whole lotta ho-hum thus far on 20th Century Fox’s remake of The Day the Earth Stood Still. Its director, Scott Derrickson, doesn’t inspire much confidence (which is a nice way of saying The Exorcism of Emily Rose was to cinema what Lou Reed’s Metal … Continue reading
The good news: you’re gettin’ more Galifianakis. The bad news: he’s gonna be the side order to a main course of Kutcher. I know Galifianakis’s comedy is an acquired taste, but after his astonishing disappearing act in Sean Penn’s Into the Wild (I didn’t even know he was in the movie until the closing credits), … Continue reading