I rarely link to these, but since Lorenzo from the Reel Geezers has some personal insight into Mr. Polanski, I thought it’d be worth tossing up the video. The Reel Geezers review “Roman Polanski: Wanted and Desired”:
httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8FvE4HQwo-o
George Carlin’s passing has been in the cards for a long time. But MAN it stings.
Personally I went from youthful (and therefore ignorant) adoration of the guy to a learned and mature wariness of his humor. Later on, though, I came back around. He did things with the English language that any writer had to respect, and I have to say, I’m really sad to hear the news. I’m glad I had the chance to see him live, eight years ago now, and I wish him safe passage to that great venue in the sky.
To which he’d no doubt say, “Fuck you, there is no God.”
The infamous one:
httpv://youtube.com/watch?v=BTyzTJTNhNk
From People magazine, an excerpt from an interview with Michael Caine concerning “The Dark Knight”:
Caine, contemplating his co-star’s loss, goes so far as to predict Ledger might win an Oscar from beyond the grave for his role as The Joker in The Dark Knight. “He was just so scary. Everyone was worried beforehand, because we knew he was going to be compared with Jack Nicholson’s brilliant Joker in the 1989 Batman. He surprised the life out of us all.”
Not surprising coming from a connected source and all, though truth be told, all of the awards talk for Ledger really began to heat up nearly seven months ago when Caine began singing the highest praises for the performance.
Also worth noting: An individual who saw the film a week ago didn’t hesitate on these matters when she said, quite confidently, “He’ll when an Oscar.” Take it with a grain of salt, but just that such comments are making the rounds…
Oooooh, boy.
I finally watched this trailer for Spike Lee’s upcoming “Miracle at St. Anna” over the weekend. It’s been out and about for at least a week now, but I decided to wait a bit as I am in the middle of James McBride’s novel at the moment. Sometimes one prefers the imagination. I knew once I laid eyes on the trailer, my ideas of what was happening in the book would be replaced by Lee’s vision of them, at least in part.
The book is oddly structured to say the least, though I’ll hold off on offering an considerable comment for the moment. But Lee seems perfectly suited to the material; it’s a project I think will make him stretch somewhat (a welcome notion amid the same old behind the scenes antics from the filmmaker).
That said, the trailer plays a little flat. I can’t put my finger on why. I’m left with an incredible “So what?” feeling. As if some of the pieces of the puzzle are missing that would make me sit up and say, “Yeah, I want to see that.” The last line is great, though.
Anyway, have a look. Touchstone is set to distribute, not the most awards savvy studio. 42 West is also working on the pic (along with, as usual, countless others):
httpv://youtube.com/watch?v=YXvxFNIcVX8
It’s difficult to get a grasp on what’s going on with Quentin Tarantino’s long-mooted WWII project, “Inglorious Bastards,” not least because QT seems somewhat hazy on the subject himself. Last month, he made this rather bold claim at Cannes: “If all goes well, I will be here … in 2009 with ‘Inglorious Bastards.’” (I’d question the hubris of his assuming that Cannes will have him, but hell, they accepted “Death Proof” into competition, so I can’t.)
Now comes word that, in what’s becoming a familiar move for the director, the project will be released as two films, apparently because the story is too big for a single feature. Said story involves a group of war criminals fighting both Allied and Nazi forces on a journey to neutral Switzerland, which sounds do-able in one film to me, but what do I know? Meanwhile, the Vulture at New York Magazine is taking Tarantino’s assertions with a pinch of salt:
That gives Tarantino about ten months to finish the scripts, find himself some actors — he now says previous mentions of Michael Madsen, Adam Sandler, Christopher Walken, and others were just “conversations” — and shoot and edit two movies. It’s possible, of course, but it’s also possible that this project is but a ball of yarn for Tarantino’s mischievous-kitten tendencies, and in a year, it will be a seven-part cartoon musical.
How am I walking the streets of London and missing stuff like this? Courtesy of The London Paper (via Cinematically Correct and Awards Daily):
Truth be told, I am REALLY looking forward to “Hancock.” Despite obvious flaws here and there, I have always found Peter Berg to be a fascinating filmmaker who seems restless, always looking for something new and never corning himself into a market or fitting himself for a label. There’s a lot to be said for that, and he knows how to put some entertaining stuff on film (I’m big on “The Rundown” and am a longtime friend of “Very Bad Things”).
Additionally — and sue me — but I continue to buy into Will Smith as the shining box office star/nice guy extraordinaire. Until someone shows me a YouTube video of him calling some poor kid a mother fucker, I’m in his court.
“Hancock” (with the “Han”) lands in theaters July 2. They should just rename that weekend in Smith’s honor.
(Props also to my man Mars Crain, the muscle-bound doorman of my local bar back home, who landed a role in the film. And, despite his daunting size, another all around nice guy.)
Oy. We’ve got a long way to go.
According to the hot-off-the-presses release, the two categories that received the most nipping and tucking were these two infamously flawed arenas.
Here’s what they have to say regarding the composers:
Three items of note were altered in the Original Song rules. First, while there continues to be no limit on the number of songs from a given film that can be submitted for consideration, no more than two songs from any one film may be nominated for an Academy Award.
Good. No cuts out the possibility of another poor track (*coughhappyworkingsongcough*) pushing out far superior work (*coughsocietycough*). But there’s more:
Also, in addition to the annual screening event at which members of the Music Branch view clips featuring the eligible songs as they appear in the films and vote, DVDs of those same clips will be made available to branch members who are unable to attend the screening; ballots will accompany the DVDs and must be returned by mail.
Also good. Maybe some informed decisions can be made by a larger majority. But there’s no accounting for taste, so we’ll see how it goes.
No alteration of that pesky, subjectively rendered Rule 16B that keeps biting artists in the ass.
Music Branch members who have one or more songs in contention for nominations do not vote in that phase of the balloting. They remain eligible to vote on the final ballot to select the winner.
Got that, Shaiman?
On to the foreign language film category, where the Academy seems to be putting a band-aid on a broken arm:
The only other category with a notable change is the Foreign Language Film Award and as was the case in 2006, the alteration is a procedural one rather than one in the rules per se. For the 81st Academy Awards, the two-phase process by which the nominees are selected will remain intact. However, the Phase I committee – which is open to any voting member who views a minimum number of the eligible films – will now vote to determine only six of the nine films that will ultimately go to the Phase II committee. The other three titles will be determined by those members of the 20-member Foreign Language Film Award Executive Committee who have qualified to vote in the category. The executive committee’s selections will be made after the Phase I voting has been tallied.
Again, there’s no accounting for taste. We’ll see how it goes.
In response to Brian’s item this week about Focus Features’ animated film slate, I’ve received notification from the studio that “Coraline,” the Neil Gaiman adaptation from Henry Selick (which looks extraordinary, I might add) is set for a February 2009 release. Obviously, this takes it off the line-up for Oscar contention this year, so update your lists.
Additionally, though Brian notes that he “has heard that ‘Coraline’ [will be rated] PG-13,” Focus would like it known that the film has not yet been rated. Just so the air is clear on that.
The studio also insists that no release date has been settled yet for Shane Acker’s “9.” However, that doesn’t jive with another report I received earlier this month which indicated the film would be pushed to next year. According to the studio, since the film is still “in production,” they’re not committing to a date. Brian, meanwhile, was told at the early screening he attended that the flick was “still on for a Christmas 2008” release.
It’s all beside the point for now. Things shift and slide. Maybe the studio will find an opening in the holiday season for “9” and prime it for launch, maybe not. But none of it takes away from Brian’s point, that it is interesting to see the studio trying its hand at being an animation studio, and one dedicated to unconventional fare at that.
It’s no real secret that yours truly is in the tank for the western genre. Being brought up on the films of Sergio Leone and Clint Eastwood tends to make an impact in a young man’s life. I watch Charles Bronson square off with Henry Fonda on a daily basis. I’m knee-deep in research on the genre for a grad school thesis.
I dig it, okay?
The resurgence of saddles and spurs on the big screen has been moving steadily through the industry. I don’t think anyone expects a return to the 1950s, with pistol-toting heroes plastered on every television screen and nearly every silver screen across America, but I see these efforts taking on more introspective subject matter, perhaps giving way soon enough to the neo-western. And it is, after all, time.
Today I see that screen tests may have been revealed of Thomas Jane in the upcoming DC Comics adaptation “Jonah Hex” The film is set to be directed by the team behind “Crank,” Mark Neveldine and Brian Taylor. This might be real, might not, since the duo is filming “Crank 2” in Los Angeles at the moment. But I can’t say I’m loving it…seems quite amateurish. Regardless, “Hex” is a hell of a property with some storylines that just sing, and seeing it on the big screen will do this western fanatic a lot of good.
Meanwhile, of course, Ed Harris is set to release “Appaloosa” later this year, formerly under the New Line Cinema banner and now, presumably, as another in a long tradition of genre entries from Warner Bros. Pictures. Harris stars along with Viggo Mortensen and Renee Zellweger.
These efforts are coming on the heels of a tweak in the genre as of late, with the more abstract works of Cormac McCarthy making their way to the screen (“No Country for Old Men,” “The Road” and, soon, “Blood Meridian”) and David Milch showing in the sadly cancelled HBO series “Deadwood” that the genre could be taken to levels almost Shakespearean. Meanwhile, a revamp of “The Lone Ranger” is looking like a go, with the team behind the “Pirates of the Caribbean” films hoping to bring an element of sensationalism into the mix.
The first press conference of the 2008 Toronto International Film Festival was held yesterday for the announcement of the Opening Night film, traditionally given to a Canadian film.
Canadian filmmaker Paul Gross will kick off the 2008 Toronto International Film Festival with the world premiere of his World War I epic “Passchendaele.”
Set during the height of the First World War, the film tells the story of Sgt. Michael Dunne (Gross), a soldier who is brutally wounded in France and returns home to Calgary, torn apart by what he saw in combat. While in the military hospital he meets Sarah, a mysterious and beautiful nurse with whom he falls deeply in love. When Michael’s younger brother signs up for duty in the war, Michael re-enlists to protect his younger brother. They are among thousands of Canadians sent to Ypres where a third battle is being waged against impossible odds.
Co-Director of the Film Festival Cameron Bailey said, “Paul Gross is an inspiring Canadian and a leader in our industry. By paying tribute to our nation’s heroes — including his own grandfather an Alberta veteran of Passcehndaele — Gross uses the viceral charge of movies to contribute a foundation chapter to our national history.”
There are so few Canadian pictures about our histroy and heritage that I am damned excited about this one Gross has the talents and smarts to make this a truly magnificent epic.
Quick, how many women have ever been nominated for Best Cinematography at the Academy Awards?
Let’s just say that if you answered anything more than zero, you weren’t even close. The sad fact is that the cinematography and sound categories at the Oscars have remained gentlemen-only for eighty whole years. True, female cinematographers are vastly outnumbered in the industry, but that should be all the more reason to recognise one when she does outstanding work.
For my money, Ellen Kuras (“Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind,” “Personal Velocity,” “Summer of Sam”) is one of the most exciting talents in the business. Lisa Rinzler’s work on Tony Bui’s “Three Seasons” made it one of the most painterly films of this decade. Maryse Alberti did extraordinary work on Todd Haynes’ “Velvet Goldmine” and has contributed to some of the most important documentaries of recent years, including this year’s Oscar winner, “Taxi to the Dark Side.” These, and other, female DPs have been recognised by Sundance, the Independent Spirit Awards, and even the American Society of Cinematographers, but never at the awards holy grail that is the Oscars. Yet.
Next year, the Academy has one of their strongest chances yet to break that hex. That chance comes in the shape of Mandy Walker, the hitherto largely unheralded cinematographer of Baz Luhrmann’s upcoming epic “Australia,” who received the Kodak Vision Award at last night’s Women in Film Crystal + Lucy Awards.
