Director Rod Lurie recently presented his film “Nothing But the Truth” (which finally benefited from a mass-market release by landing on DVD last week) at Roger Ebert’s Ebertfest. Using the sad news of Ebert’s paper, the Chicago Sun-Times, filing Chapter 11 in March as a spring-board, Lurie writes up a nice love letter to the […]
Director Lurie writes up “real man” Roger Ebert
Posted by Kristopher Tapley · 12:24 pm · May 4th, 2009
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SANTA BARBARA: ‘Truth,’ Winslet light up the town
Posted by Kristopher Tapley · 12:20 am · January 24th, 2009
I’ll dig into individual film reviews in due time. It’s been a slow start up here in Santa Barbara but the first two nights have been charming enough. Rod Lurie’s “Nothing But the Truth” gets better and better each time I see it, particularly where Lurie’s work as a writer is concerned. Some beats are […]
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Santa Barbara heats up
Posted by Kristopher Tapley · 5:29 pm · January 22nd, 2009
The air smells cleaner. The sound of waves crashing outside the hotel room is soothing. The hippies are dancing in the streets. It’s nice to get away from the mess of this morning and the frustration of Oscar season in general for eight days. But the awards circuit isn’t out of sight by any means. […]
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A night at the Critics’ Choice Awards
Posted by Kristopher Tapley · 10:43 pm · January 8th, 2009
It’s an event that keeps on getting better and better, a little awards show that’s escalated into one of the hallmarks of the film awards season, whether the “we’re one of the best Oscar predictors” stuff is annoying or not (which it is). The night had a number of surprises, but in a sense, one […]
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12/20 Oscarweb Round-up
Posted by Kristopher Tapley · 5:27 am · December 20th, 2008
• Darren Aronofsky interviews Danny Boyle about the technical aspects of “Slumdog Millioniare.” [/Film] • Erik Childress catches up with the season mid-way through the first phase. [eFilmCritic] • David Carr takes note of the big Universal trade spend. Hey, if you’re going to decide against advertising with the lowly online types, you might as […]
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What movie were you watching?
Posted by Kristopher Tapley · 4:15 am · December 19th, 2008
The last-minute switcheroo suggests, perhaps unintentionally, that Rachel is less a martyr to the cause than a schemer looking to cover her tracks. The muddying of her motives might be truer to life, but it obliterates the movie’s tidy morality play and leaves us wondering whether the bad guys had the right idea after all. […]
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12/13 Oscarweb Round-up
Posted by Kristopher Tapley · 5:27 am · December 14th, 2008
• Rod Lurie wants to steer comparisons of “Nothing But the Truth” away from Judith Miller, evokes Susan McDougal. [Los Angeles Times] • The company behind releasing his film, meanwhile, goes into chapter 11. [Variety] • Is the Academy ready to award digital performances? [Variety] • Sasha Stone spotlights the seasons actor reunions. [Awards Daily] […]
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Hell of a thesp
Posted by Kristopher Tapley · 1:32 pm · December 6th, 2008
I mostly enjoyed this by-the-numbers Adam Liptak New York Times piece concerning Rod Lurie’s upcoming “Nothing But the Truth.” I’d say this little anecdote about Vera Farmiga’s acting prowess is probably the best part of an otherwise ho-hum article, though: But the film’s most striking performance comes from Vera Farmiga, who plays the C.I.A. operative, […]
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Posters for ‘Nothing But the Truth,’ ‘What Doesn’t Kill You’
Posted by Kristopher Tapley · 6:48 am · December 6th, 2008
Yari Film Group has just released the poster art for its awards season duo, Rod Lurie’s “Nothing But the Truth” and Brian Goodman’s “What Doesn’t Kill You.” Each of these films is struggling under the weight of big-spending studios this season, and it’s a shame. Each contains an exemplary 2008 performance (Kate Beckinsale in “Truth” […]
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11/19 Oscarweb Round-up
Posted by Kristopher Tapley · 5:43 am · November 19th, 2008
• David Poland misses the stylistic point of “Revolutionary Road.” [The Hot Blog] • Anne Thompson is on the right track, though. [Thompson on Hollywood] • Dave Karger digs into the Oscar prospects of the elusive “Seven Pounds.” [Entertainment Weekly] • Pete Hammond covers the week in screenings, much of which you’ve already read here. […]
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‘Nothing But the Truth’ trailer
Posted by Kristopher Tapley · 6:48 pm · November 18th, 2008
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New original song contenders from ‘Madagascar,’ ‘Truth’
Posted by Kristopher Tapley · 12:29 pm · October 27th, 2008
It looks like that rather flimsy Best Original Song category is finding a few more contenders to hopefully erase the embarrassment of last year’s nominees (three for “Enchanted,” nothing for “Into the Wild” — at least “Once” took the gold). First up, will.i.am and Hans Zimmer have cranked out four new tracks for “Madagascar: Escape […]
OFF THE CARPET: Who we are, who we want to be
Posted by Kristopher Tapley · 9:07 am · October 6th, 2008
In an election year, topical films indicate a culture making sense of itself.
Filed in: Featured · Off the Carpet
Release date for ‘Nothing But the Truth’
Posted by Kristopher Tapley · 9:31 pm · October 2nd, 2008
Yari Film Group has locked in the release date of December 19th for Rod Lurie’s “Nothing But the Truth,” hoping to cash in on the awards season on the heels of mainly positive reaction at this year’s Toronto International Film Festival. My thoughts are here. In my opinion, the film’s best chances at nominations are […]
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9/9 Oscarweb Round-up
Posted by Kristopher Tapley · 6:13 am · September 9th, 2008
• Jeffrey Wells digs “Nothing But the Truth” (again), but wasn’t so much for the Toronto debut’s after party. [Hollywood Elsewhere] • Lou Lumenick, meanwhile, calls the film “silly” and “an endless mopefest.” [Lumenick on Film] • Nancy Kriparos catches up with a few more flicks in Toronto, including the awards sneaker “Dean Spanley.” [Awards […]
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SHORT TAKE: “Nothing But the Truth” (***)
Posted by Kristopher Tapley · 1:19 pm · September 8th, 2008
I gave a brief reaction to Rod Lurie’s “Nothing But the Truth” a few weeks ago, but I thought now would be a good time to fully explore what the film has to offer. Debuting tonight at the Toronto International Film Festival, “Truth” holds up on multiple viewings and, given the particulars of the narrative, […]
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OFF THE CARPET: Indies on the march
Posted by Kristopher Tapley · 7:39 am · September 8th, 2008
Maybe mid-way through the Toronto Film Festival, two things are strikingly clear: Darren Aronofsky has the goods with “The Wrestler” and Danny Boyle’s streak of successful versatility at the helm continues with “Slumdog Millionaire.” Both films, which enjoy pre-Toronto success at Venice and Telluride respectfully, are also evidence that surprises will happen this time of […]
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OFF THE CARPET: Make way for the little guys…or not
Posted by Kristopher Tapley · 1:51 am · September 1st, 2008
It may be Labor Day, but the work at hand is breathing down our necks. So it is that we come to the first weekly Oscar column of the new awards season. Though to be frank with you, I’m beginning to wonder whether we’ll be able to keep the conversation going, much less interesting on […]
Filed in: Off the Carpet