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  • Paramount moves ‘Shutter Island’ to 2010

    (from left) Mark Ruffalo and Leonardo DiCaprio in Shutter IslandThis is a stunning development.  It seems Paramount has decided to move the release date of Martin Scrosese’s “Shutter Island” from October 2009, a mere two months away, to February 2010.  The move reflects a similar last minute decision to move “The Soloist” out of last year’s fall slate to the Spring 2009 frame.  Nikki Finke has the scoop.

    The obvious answer here is money.  An awards campaign was certainly in the cards for “Shutter Island,” and those aren’t cheap.  But while “The Soloist” ultimately opened and was revealed as less than Oscar-caliber, Scorsese’s film has been testing really well and was expected to be a big 2009 awards player.

    Still, these are tough times.  Everyone’s looking for ways to cut back and deal with the here and now and obviously, an Oscar campaign just didn’t seem fiscally responsible for a studio that will already have two major hopefuls in Jason Reitman’s “Up in the Air” and Peter Jackson’s “The Lovely Bones.”

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  • Tell us what you thought of ‘Inglourious Basterds’

    (from left) Eli Roth and Brad Pitt in Inglourious Basterds

    Believe it or not, there are things going on this weekend that don’t involve “Avatar.”  Namely, Quentin Tarantino’s seventh film to date, “Inglourious Basterds,” hits theaters nationwide.  I’ve offered my considerably negative thoughts already, but be sure to let us know what you thought once you see it this weekend.  I expect it’ll do pretty decent business and will likely find an audience, but reactions have certainly been divided so far.

  • “What kind of a sick bitch takes the ice cube trays out of the freezer?”

  • ‘Avatar’ video game trailer

  • Comment of the day

    I’ll never cease to be astounded by the repeated attitude that films nominated for Oscars are all masterpieces. “It was great, but Oscars?…” is something that only makes sense coming out of the mouth of someone with no knowledge of Academy history.

    –BurmaShave in our “District 9” Oscar talk discussion.

  • Cruz looking to slow down?

    Penelope CruzI’ve always been aware that actress Penélope Cruz was somewhat ubiquitous and certainly a hard worker.  She’s also intensely focused on her craft, more so than you might naturally expect.  When I interviewed her for a Variety profile last year (she was in London shooting “Nine” at the time), she was incredibly centered, almost somberly so.  She did, however, seem to unwind a bit at a Santa Barbara Film Festival tribute back in January, though.

    Anyway, all that aside, I was nevertheless stunned to glance at her IMDb page and see that the woman has been in at least one film since 1993.  That’s 16 years without a break, ladies and gentlemen.  And this year, following an impressive one-two punch in 2008, she will be featured in no less than four films: “G-Force,” “The Cannibalistic Councilor” and Oscar hopefuls “Nine” and “Broken Embraces.”  She doesn’t have much on deck, however.

    What spurred the sudden interest in her busy career was this Times article, covering the imminent release of “Broken Embraces” in the UK next weekend.  Cruz addresses a burn-out factor that had to come sooner or later and, amid rumors of pregnancy with boyfriend Javier Bardem’s child (she’s guarded about her personal life), indicates a desire to wind things down a bit.  Pregnancy will do that, of course, but I imagine she’s earned a few years off after that streak.

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  • Visual effects: 100 years of Inspiration

    With all the “Avatar” talk lately, it seemed a fine time to point you to this interesting video covering a number of milestones in film visual effects throughout the years. Some irritating omissions, but they got most of it:

    Gerard’s recent Tech Support commentary on this year’s race for Best Visual Effects here.

    (Courtesy: Cinematical)

  • Tell us what you thought of “‘Avatar’ Day”

    Zoe Saldana in Avatar

    Okay, by now you’ve read my thoughts on extended footage unveiled at Comic-Con.  You’ve had a look at the trailer and offered some serious debate.  Now, those of you who weren’t defeated by a shoddy online RSVP process will get a look at 15 minutes from the film in IMAX 3D.  So I’m dying to hear your thoughts.   So head on back this way and give us your reaction once you take a look.

  • Great performers at their best

    Tom Cruise in MagnoliaAfter spending some time this summer watching some excellent films on DVD, I was inspired to write this piece about the great actors’ (living, with one exception) greatest performances.

    Narrowing it down to one each (brutal, believe me), I think have come up with a list of actors, young and old, that represents some of the finest talent working in film over the last 40 years, and selected the performance I believe each will be remembered for. This is obviously a subjective endeavor, so if you feel different, tell us why.

    Let’s dive in…

    Jack Nicholson
    Jack is not often given the credit for being the brilliant actor he is because we far too often expect him to be “just Jack.” But when he puts his actor’s hat on there simply may not be a greater actor in film history. For me he was never better than he was as Randall Patrick McMurphy in “One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest,” which is a breathtaking piece of work. Watch him when he’s not speaking and see the emotion he packs into this astonishing piece of acting.

    Meryl Streep
    There is no question here for me. As concentration camp survivor Sophie in “Sophie’s Choice,” Streep gave not only her best performance, but the single finest performance ever given by a woman, in my view. That terrifying silent scream paralyzes the viewer with heartache and dare I say, shame. Sophie may have survived the camp, but she walks through her life more dead than alive because her soul was left behind and somehow Streep conveys that to the audience.

    Robert Duvall
    This is a tough call because Duvall was so good in “Apocalypse Now,” but I think his best work was in “The Apostle” as a preacher challenged by his own flaws and forced to atone for his sins. A volcanic performance in which Duvall never seems to stop moving or speaking.

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  • ‘Antichrist’ poster

    Quite audacious:

    Antichrist

    (Courtesy: IMP Awards)

  • The history of Dr. Amadeus Arkham

    This one’s for the video game fans, which I understand might be a considerable minority, but this comes out in less than a week.  Color me stoked:

    (Courtesy: Cinema Blend)

  • 8/21 Web Round-up

    Bill Murray in Groundhog Day• How many days did Bill Murray re-live in “Groundhog Day?” [Chicago Tribune]

    • Screenwriter Roberto Orci to receive Imagen Awards’ Norman Lear Writer’s Award. [Variety]

    • David Poland sits down with three more Super Movie Friends to talk “Inglourious Basterds.” [The Hot Blog]

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  • New ‘Capitalism’ trailer

  • POLL: What did you think of the ‘Avatar’ trailer?

    This thing has created an intriguing division and a healthy debate, so I figured it was a good time to open a new poll to gauge an overall reaction.  Simple question: thumbs up or thumbs down?  Let us know in the sidebar poll.

  • TECH SUPPORT: Best Art Direction — Volume I

    Michael Gambon in Harry Potter and the Half-Blood PrinceSets and props can create a time period, an era or simply the feel of a scene.  And the individuals involved in this process are awarded by the Academy in the category of Best Art Direction.

    Ironically, the art director of a film is not recognized here. Rather, the production designer – the art department and design head – is awarded alongside the set decorator, who is in charge of the props and overall dressing of the set.

    Like Best Costume Design, which I covered a few weeks ago, this category has a tendency to reward period pieces. Even so, fantastical features do tend to show up more often, with nominees frequently overlapping the two genres, seen in a winner such as “Pan’s Labyrinth.”

    John Myrhe has triumphed in this category for both of his collaborations with Rob Marshall, and I fully expect him to earn his fifth nomination this year for “Nine.” Recreating the Italy of Federico Fellini will put his talents to the test.

    Janet Patterson has found herself a three-time nominee for her costume work. This year, she is also acting as production designer of Jane Campion’s “Bright Star.” Every indication we have from the film so far is that both her work and the film will be the sort that this branch will embrace.

    Sarah Greenwood has managed two nominations in recent years for collaborating with Joe Wright, both for “Atonement” and “Pride & Prejudice.” With “Sherlock Holmes,” she will once again be recreating a period England, albeit on a much larger scale. If the film proves popular, I fully expect Greenwood to be in the hunt.

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  • ‘The Wolf Man’: the OTHER trailer premiere of the day

    I must say, as cheesy as it appears (I’m getting a “Van Helsing” vibe), I was totally bummed when Universal’s “The Wolf Man” was pushed to 2010.  The techs look great all around, especially Shelly Johnson’s cinematography.  (If I’m being honest, Allen Daviau’s work behind the camera on “Van Helsing” was, frankly, some of the best of 2004.)

    Anyway, have a look:

  • Japanese ‘Shutter Island’ poster — can we have this one instead?

    By now we’ve seen two versions of the poster for Martin Scorsese’s “Shutter Island,” each of them quite similar and not altogether appealing.  Then I saw this Japanese version and thought, “That’s what I’m talkin’ about’”:

    Shutter Island

    By the way, there’s a Japanese trailer for the film up at the official Japanese site.

  • It’s heeeerrreee — ‘Avatar’ trailer lands

    (from left) Sam Worthington and Zoe Saldana in AvatarI actually got up early this morning for this. Feels like my younger, not-so-jaded movie-going days. Then again, not so much.

    It was “Avatar” fail part 2 with the trailer site still not available as of 7:04.  Then the URLs were not valid until 7:39.  You could, however, view the the trailer at MSN’s French site, Microsoft effectively scooping Apple because of the latter’s incompetence.  Seriously, why have a big countdown on your site for a week and then drop the ball at the goal line?

    Meanwhile, the Apple site lists the film as: “From the director of the ‘Titanic.’”  The “Titanic?”  Wow.

    Anyway, the trailer is, of course, beautiful.  But I imagine the avatars will catch many off guard.  This is such a vibrant, unique new vision that the instinct is, interestingly enough, to recoil.  But settle in and try to feel the vibe.  I think the imagery is slightly too rushed in appearance, cut together in a dizzying montage that isn’t as effective as it could have been.  Beyond that first dolly shot of Worthington looking at the avatar in the tank, there aren’t many chances to marinate in the imagery.  But this is just a teaser after all.

    Head on over to Apple and take a look at the new trailer, then come back here and give us your thoughts. Six new stills after the jump.

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