There are some pretty gnarly sights in Johnny To’s Election (most of ’em arrive in the massively disturbing final reel), but nothing in that complex, yet streamlined depiction of gangland politics could possibly prepare the viewer for the unthinkably grotesque set piece he pulls off in Triad Election‘s second act. And it isn’t that the … Continue reading
So who are you and why are you doing this? Well, my name is Andre Dellamorte, and I’m doing this cause Nick and Devin asked me to. So what makes you think you’re some kind of expert on guessin’ how movies are going to open? Honestly, I don’t think I am. Predicting a film’s box … Continue reading
When Jon Kasdan becomes a successful writer-director (and this seems a fait accompli with those writin’-directin’ genes), he’s going to look back on In the Land of Women and wince – not because it’s bad, but because it is so painfully earnest. The tragicomic tale of struggling screenwriter Carter Webb (Adam Brody) – who flees … Continue reading
Unlike Prom Night, which I eviscerated a couple of weeks ago out of nothin’ but meanness, I actually have a few nice things to say about Terror Train: it was shot by the legendary John Alcott (cinematographer of such smallish movies as A Clockwork Orange, Barry Lyndon and The Shining); it co-stars Hart Bochner ("Ellis, … Continue reading
I already have an unsolicited tip for Art Linson re: Neon Angels, his just announced Runaways biopic: cast unknowns. Though there will be no shortage of up-and-coming teenage and, of course, twentysomething actresses circling this project as a potential springboard to stardom, I think the old "nationwide search" will be the only way to go. … Continue reading
Chris Columbus is not the enemy. At least, he isn’t anymore. Though he stuffed multiplexes full of noxiously sentimental pap during the 1990s (his up-for-debate nadir being either Stepmom or Bicentennial Man), and got Devin’s beloved Harry Potter franchise off to a soulless start with those forgettable first two entries, he surprised some of us … Continue reading
Eric Bana, last seen taking it to the terrorists in Steven Spielberg’s masterful Munich (and soon to be dumped into theaters along with Curtis Hanson’s long-delayed professional poker movie, Lucky You), has signed on to star in Robert Schwentke’s big screen transfer of Audrey Niffenegger’s The Time Traveller’s Wife – as The Time Traveller, not … Continue reading
Midway through the regionally produced good-ol’-boy romp, Redneck Miller, the titular character – a hotshot DJ in some random Carolina municipality where "hotshot" bona fides are easy to come by provided one still has a functional tooth or two – breaks up the near rape of his mistress by a bunch of hoods looking to … Continue reading
Sir Ridley Scott’s next film, American Gangster (starring Denzel Washington and Russell Crowe in the most anticipated act-off since De Niro and Pacino sat down for coffee at Kate Mantilini), is currently slated to open November 2, 2007. Later that month, the director of Alien, Blade Runner and Gladiator will turn seventy-years-old. Somewhere on the … Continue reading
Two weeks ago, we learned that the Coen Brothers’ No Country for Old Men, James Grey’s We Own the Night and David Fincher’s Zodiac will be vying for Cannes glory this May; today, the list of probable competition entries expanded a bit, as Wong Kar-Wai’s My Blueberry Nights has emerged as the opening night favorite, … Continue reading