How many duds does it take to put someone in director jail? I’ve always wdondered if there’s a set number. If there is, then director Lasse Hallstrom is most likely closing in on it. He made his biggest domestic mark with a decent one-two punch of The Cider House Rules and the treacly, yet enjoyable … Continue reading
He overcame some long odds to become the governor of California. He’s survived many challenges since. He rebounded from the outright rejection of his definitive ballot initiatives to take the state in a different direction. He’s taken the lead on some of the most important issues of our day from healthcare to stem cells without … Continue reading
As filming on John Rambo gets underway, we’re getting juicy detail after juicy detail. The latest involves the badass who’s going to be opposing one John J. Rambo (please say the J) as he ends lives in the jungles of Myanmar. Apparently realizing that there are few forces in filmdowm much less humans that could … Continue reading
Even though Running Scared hit with all of the impact of a sneeze, it managed to change the way I saw Paul Walker. That is to say…I realized he had a pulse. There wasn’t a lot of convincing proof before then as every role he’d taken required little of him but to smile and stare … Continue reading
I have a lot to be thankful to Shane Black for. He’s written some of my favorite movie lines of all time. He not only got a movie starring Robert Downey Jr. and Val Kilmer made (in 2005, no less) but also (somewhat) theatrically released, and it was fantastic. But perhaps his greatest contribution to … Continue reading
A couple of years ago, Scholastic published a new book from children’s author Tony Abbott called Kringle that basically asked the question “Wouldn’t the myth of Kris Kringle/Santa Claus be a lot more interesting if it were actually The Chronicles of Narnia with a few names and details changed?” And despite Narnia briefly touching on … Continue reading
Relatively inexpensive CGI family films have been the cinematic growth story of the past couple of years. Once a cool-looking curiosity, these babies have all but monopolized the family film marketplace, and as long as you can rope up a few name actors to do voices and can recycle an old story into a new … Continue reading
During the recording of last week’s Oscar podcast, Robert Downey Jr.’s name came up as we saw the guy on TV looking good and flying high. Well, maybe not the last part so much. But it is incredible that he’s seem to overcome demons that have plagued him again and again, and even though he’s … Continue reading
White America got a pretty good glimpse at so-called “chitlin’ plays” (gospel music-based morality tales that play almost exclusively to black audiences in smaller theatrical venues) once Tyler Perry and the film adaptations of his sledgehammer-subtle Medea stage productions starting making a whole lot of money for Lionsgate. But he’s not the only hack around … Continue reading