Tag: Cyrus (Page 2 of 3)

Los Angeles Film Festival Recap: The Movies, part 2

June 30, 2010 / Bob Westal

Following on from last night’s post, here are some more reactions to the movies I saw at the recently wrapped Los Angeles Film Festival…

* “Cyrus” — This played early in the festival and was pretty much concurrent with it’s opening in theaters. I’ve already said in passing elsewhere that I enjoyed the film quite a bit despite some flaws and, by now, you’ve probably heard something about this oddball romantic comedy of gently Oedipal horrors. It first came up on my radar some time ago when I interviewed Mark Duplass, one half of the directing Duplass Brothers.

About the worst thing I can say about “Cyrus” is that, unlike the similarly improvised film Mark stars in, “Humpday,” which also involved a woman caught between two problematic men, the female role here is relatively under-developed. The fact that that movie was written and directed by a woman, Lynn Shelton, is, I’m sure, not entirely coincidental.

There’s also been something of a cinephile backlash to the Duplass’s camera work, among other issues, which may interest you wonks. You can read about that via Glenn Kenny, Bill Ryan (my further thoughts are in comments at his place) and Jim Emerson.

Documentaries, External Entertainment, External Movies, Movie Comedies, Movies, News, test

Alex Gibney Amir Bar-Lev Bill Ryan Chris Meltzer Cyrus Duplass Brothrers Everday Sunshine: The Story of Fishbone Everyday Sunshine Fahrenheit 9/11 Fishbone Glenn Kenny Headlines Humpday Jim Emerson John Nolte Lev Anderson Lynn Shelton Mark Duplass Michael Moore Movieline Pat Tillman The Tillman Story

Hey, I’m back, sort of, with weekend box office results

June 27, 2010 / Bob Westal

I’m still keeping busy and enjoying the tail end of the Los Angeles Film Festival, which wraps in just a couple of hours, but I thought I’d see how quickly I can give you all at least some of this weekend’s genuinely fascinating box office results as gleaned from both Anne Thompson and Nikki Finke.

Well, it shouldn’t surprise anyone that the Pixar formula — i.e., dollops of laughter and heart (what a concept!) and now a dash of 3-D ticket prices — has once again worked wonders and “Toy Story 3” took on all comers, earning an estimated $59 million for Disney in its second weekend. Meanwhile, it was also a good weekend for the eternal appeal of low humor and, it seems Adam Sandler, at least when accompanied by four other comic known quantities of varying degrees of box office hotness. It was clear that the scatological-joke loving masses were only encouraged by, I’m guessing, entirely correct godawful reviews of Sony’s “Grown-Ups.”

Perhaps also reflecting a dearth of comedy right now, the film actually was a personal box office best — not adjusted for inflation — for Sandler, earning $41 million. Personally, though I like him in actual quality films like the, I think, severely underrated “Funny People” and the brilliant “Punch Drunk Love,” I’ve never gotten the comic appeal of Sandler, going back to his SNL days, and can’t even remember gong through a phase where I found farts inherently hysterical, so I can only throw up my hands here.

On the other hand, there is little joy in the five or six buildings the Church of Scientology owns on Hollywood Blvd, as the Tom Cruise (and Cameron Diaz) action comedy vehicle, “Knight and Day” earned an estimated $27.7 million. Not bad, actually, except considering Cruise’s far better past performances back in the day when stars like him could routinely “open” a film and, according to Finke, the budget for the film was either roughly $117 or $107 million, depending on whether you calculate tax breaks. In other words, Cruise’s thetans might take longer to clear.

In other news, I’m happy to say, that things are hopping on the indie scene. The new wartime documentary “Restrepo” and the Duplass Brother’s enjoyable entry into the semi-mainstream, “Cyrus,” are both doing quite well, as are other newish films.

On the other hand, the controversially violent “The Killer Inside Me” appears to be suffering, perhaps, from an older indie audience that might be turned off by the fuss, which some say has been exaggerated to a certain degree and appears to have surprised its skilled, if highly uneven, director Michael Winterbottom. Interesting how an adaptation of a once obscure fifty-eight year old pulp novel can still raise hackles. Also shows that while a perception of too-little blood and guts can harm a horror film, a perception of too much can perhaps harm even a “hard R” thriller/drama. Advice to the suits: know your audience.

As usual, Indiewire has the indie scoop.

Action Movies, Actors, Actresses, Animation, Documentaries, External Entertainment, External Movies, Movie Comedies, Movie Dramas, Movies, News

Adam Sandler Cameron Diaz Church of Scientology Cyrus Duplass Brothers Funny People Grown-Ups Headlines Los Angeles Film Festival Michael Winterbottom Punch Drunk Love Restrepo SNL The Killer Inside Me thetans Tom Cruise Toy Story 3

Happy movie Father’s Day

June 20, 2010 / Bob Westal

I’ve been keeping busy and seeing some very good films at the Los Angeles Film Festival, not to mention honoring today’s holiday, but with this week’s predictably huge new major release, “Toy Story 3” ($109 million says Nikki Finke), and the impressive early limited release success of “Cyrus (a boffo over $45,000 per screen says Box Office Mojo’s chart), both reflect on odd ways on the parental experience and this mash-up seems to bring it all together.

Best wishes to all the dads out there. Just remember this, if you find yourself cutting off your son’s hand with a laser weapon, something has gone badly wrong. For the rest of you, good work.

Also, just FYI, I did see the “Cyrus” premiere at LAFF on Friday night and, if anything, I’m even more enthusiastic about the film than Jason Zingale is in his review, especially regarding Jonah Hill‘s performance, which I think may be award-worthy. More on that to come, I imagine.

Movie posting from me will continue to be light and erratic for a bit, but nevertheless watch this space.

Actors, External Entertainment, External Movies, Humor, Movie Comedies, Movies, News, Sci-Fi Movies

Cyrus Jonah Hill Los Angeles Film Festival Toy Story 3

Met Them at the Greek — a press day chat with Russell Brand, Jonah Hill, Rose Byrne and Nicholas Stoller of “Get Him to the Greek”

June 3, 2010 / Bob Westal

If you saw “Forgetting Sarah Marshall” — and I hope you have as its one of the stronger comedies to be made over the last several years — you’ll likely have noticed the strong comic chemistry between British comedy sensation Russell Brand as three-quarters insane, recovering addict rock star Aldous Snow and Jonah Hill (“Superbad“) as a resort waiter and somewhat overly devoted fan of Snow’s. Well, you’re not the only one, and so we have the somewhat slapdash, sometimes brilliant, and ultimately winning new comedy, “Get Him to the Greek,” which once again brings us Brand as Aldous Snow, who, since the events of “Sarah Marshall” has suffered a failed marriage to rocker Jackie Q (Rose Byrne), had a seven-year old son, and removed the “recovering” from his addiction — kind of impressive since “Sarah Marshall” was only two years ago.

Nevertheless, having fallen headlong off the wagon, Snow needs help arriving on-time and semi-cognizant for an important TV appearance, a sound check, and a special comeback performance at L.A.’s Greek Theater. The task falls to ambitious young record company assistant Aaron Green (Hill, playing a different character than in “Sarah Marshall”), a huge fan of Snow’s in a sweet but rocky relationship with his improbably adorable doctor girlfriend (Elizabeth Moss of “Mad Men“). Frequently vomit-stained hijinks ensue as Green and Snow barely survive a number of unfortunate events, including a nearly apocalyptic visit to the set of “The Today Show,” one of the most truly mad Las Vegas sequences in film history, and the kind of freaky three-ways that would make most porn producers blanch. It’s all wrapped up with the sort of good-hearted traditional morality which reminds us that the producer is the Walt Disney of male-centric, R-rated comedies, Judd Apatow.

Actors, Actresses, Celebrities, External Entertainment, External Movies, Interviews, Movie Comedies, Movies

21 Jump Street 28 Weeks Later Aaron Green Adventures in Babysitting Aldous Snow Almost Famous Andew Sachs Arthur Back to the Future Bill Murray Boogie Nights Brad Pitt Charlie Chaplin Chris Miller Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs Cyrus Damages Dan Bern Despicable Me Devin Faraci Dudley Moore Duplass Brothers Elizabeth Moss Fawlty Towers Forgetting Sarah Marshall Get Him to the Greek Glenn Close Heckler Helen Mirren I Hop Jackie Q Jamie Kennedy Jason Schwartzman Jason Segel Jay Leno Jeff Dashnaw Jim Carrey John C. Reilly John Gielgud Johnny Depp Jonah Hill Jonah Hill interview Jonathan Ross Judd Apatow Julie Taymor Katy Perry Knocked Up Lars Ulrich Liza Minelli Mad Men Marisa Tomei Mark Duplass Mark Linn-Baker Martin Scorsese Matt Stoller Metalica Midnight Run Mike Bacall Mike Viola Moneyball Morrissey Muppets My Favorite Year Neil Young Nestle Nicholas Stoller Nicholas Stoller interview P. Diddy Paul Krugman Perfect Strangers Peter DeLuise Peter O'Toole Phil Lord Phillip Glass Phillip Seymour Hoffman Richard Greico Richard Pryor Robert Yeoman Robin Williams Rodney Rothman Rose Byrne Rose Byrne interview Russell Brand Russell Brand interview Scooby Doo Sean Combs Sergio Roma Steve Martin Superbad The Adventurers Handbook The Dail Mail The Greatest Muppet Movie Ever Made The Sitter The Tempest The Today Show Troy Walk Hard Wes Anderson Woody Allen

SXSW Film 2010: Keeping Austin Reel Weird

March 24, 2010 / Jason Zingale

One of the first things I heard after arriving in town for South by Southwest was “Keep Austin Weird.” It’s sort of the city’s unofficial motto, but it’s one that resonated with me over the course of my week-long trip. Though it’s hard to say whether Austin really is as weird during the rest of the year as it is during SXSW, the city exudes a certain energy that makes it the perfect place to hold such a unique event. It also helps to have some of the most passionate movie lovers in the country populating the streets, because while SXSW attracts cinephiles from all over the globe, it’s the locals (from the volunteers to the everyday attendees) who actually make you want to come back.

For anyone that followed my SXSW Blog throughout the course of the film festival, you already know that my experience was a rather positive one. In fact, of the 17 films screened during my time in Austin, there were only two that I didn’t particularly like. You’d think that would make selecting my personal favorites even more difficult, but my Top Three easily blows the rest of the competition out of the water. Here are some highlights from my reviews of those films:

micmacs

1. “Micmacs”

[Jean-Pierre] Jeunet’s latest film, “Micmacs,” may just be his best yet – a whimsical crime caper that boasts his trademark visual style, a classic Max Steiner score, and an ensemble cast filled with familiar faces. Though it likely won’t have the crossover appeal of “Amelie,” “Micmacs” is one of the most enjoyable moviegoing experiences of the year… It’s all done so effortlessly, and with [Dany] Boon and his co-stars so charming throughout, that you’d have to be in a pretty sour mood not to walk out of “Micmacs” with a giant grin on your face.

2. “Kick-Ass”

Director Matthew Vaughn clearly understands the world that [Mark] Millar and [John] Romita Jr. have created, and that familiarity resonates throughout, from the high-energy action scenes to the colorful performances from its cast… The end result is an entertaining blend of action and comedy that, despite falling short of its ridiculously high expectations, delivers everything that was awesome about the comic and more.

3. “Four Lions”

A pitch-black satire in the same vein as “Dr. Strangelove,” [Christopher] Morris has created a film so relevant to our current political climate that many will feel guilty just for watching it, let alone laughing at all the gut-wrenching humor along the way… “Four Lions” is one of the funniest, most provocative comedies of the last decade – and one that has more to say than any of the numerous self-important war movies that Hollywood has been cranking out for years.

Of course, one of the things that makes SXSW such a great place to watch movies is the venues. The theater experience in Austin is hands down one of the best in the country – from the historic Paramount Theater to the Alamo Drafthouse. While the Paramount is typically a more star-studded affair, complete with a red carpet and the opportunity to see a movie with its director and stars sitting just a few feet away from you, the Drafthouse (both the Ritz located on 6th Street and the South Lamar, which is a short drive from downtown) is a little more intimate. Star-crazed attendees will find little in the way of celebrity sightings, but the chance of seeing a hidden gem like Best Documentary winner, “Marwencol,” more than makes up for it. Plus, midnight showings of genre films like “Tucker and Dale vs. Evil” are usually more enjoyable when you’re watching it with a bunch of fellow cinephiles.