Author Topic: The Movie Thread  (Read 544521 times)

RGMike

  • The Core
  • Eight Miles High
  • *****
  • Posts: 79473
    • View Profile
The Movie Thread
« Reply #705 on: September 12, 2007, 04:02:57 PM »
Quote from: "mshray"
Quote from: "RGMike"
Quote from: "mshray"
More importantly though, Peter Finch announced on the news this morning that Gus Van Sant has signed up Sean Penn to play Harvey Milk & Matt Damon to play Dan White in his next film (listed currently as 'Untitiled Harvey Milk Project 2009' on IMDb).

Wow!


it's a Wow if it happens, but according to Hollywood Elsewhere, it's a bit iify-er than that. And Bryan Singer has a Harvey Milk project in the works at Warners, he's supposed to do it after he finished Valkyrie, the Tom Cruise-tries-to-kill-Hitler movie.  So it may be dueling Harveys.


Is Gus gay?  I know Bryan is.  Just wondering.


Yes, they both are. Bitch fight!

Two other suggestions to play Harvey Milk I've read elsewhere that I think are quite good are Adrian Brody and (don't laugh) Hank Azaria.
You spin me right 'round, baby, right 'round

RGMike

  • The Core
  • Eight Miles High
  • *****
  • Posts: 79473
    • View Profile
The Movie Thread
« Reply #706 on: September 14, 2007, 03:02:31 PM »
Still more on Across the Universe:  Serious Beatle fan Roger Ebert gave it four stars; but the Chicago Reader chimes in with

Quote
If a bullet hadn't killed John Lennon, this Beatles-scored musical might have. Director Julie Taymor and Revolution Studios head Joe Roth engaged in a well-publicized feud over the final cut, but the movie's cartoonish rehash of the turbulent 60s was in place long before that. Taymor's calling card is still her Broadway adaptation of The Lion King, and she delivers some comparably grand set pieces here: Eddie Izzard fronts a chorus of Blue Meanies on "Being for the Benefit of Mr. Kite," and "I Want You . . . She's So Heavy" is divided between a baleful Uncle Sam at an army induction center and a platoon of U.S. soldiers carrying the Statue of Liberty across southeast Asia. But the Rent-like ensemble of yearning young people at the center of the story is a drag; I wanted to turn the sound down on them and say rude things


and then there's this pan from the Boston Globe:

http://www.boston.com/movies/display?display=movie&id=8798
You spin me right 'round, baby, right 'round

Lightnin' Rod

  • Administrator
  • Heavy Duty
  • *****
  • Posts: 4504
    • View Profile
The Movie Thread
« Reply #707 on: September 14, 2007, 03:41:11 PM »
Quote from: "RGMike"
Still more on Across the Universe:  Serious Beatle fan Roger Ebert gave it four stars; but the Chicago Reader chimes in with

Quote
If a bullet hadn't killed John Lennon, this Beatles-scored musical might have. Director Julie Taymor and Revolution Studios head Joe Roth engaged in a well-publicized feud over the final cut, but the movie's cartoonish rehash of the turbulent 60s was in place long before that. Taymor's calling card is still her Broadway adaptation of The Lion King, and she delivers some comparably grand set pieces here: Eddie Izzard fronts a chorus of Blue Meanies on "Being for the Benefit of Mr. Kite," and "I Want You . . . She's So Heavy" is divided between a baleful Uncle Sam at an army induction center and a platoon of U.S. soldiers carrying the Statue of Liberty across southeast Asia. But the Rent-like ensemble of yearning young people at the center of the story is a drag; I wanted to turn the sound down on them and say rude things


and then there's this pan from the Boston Globe:

http://www.boston.com/movies/display?display=movie&id=8798


Wow, sounds bloody awful -- I MUST see this movie!

And seriously, since Sgt. Pepper ... didn't kill John, how is it possible that this thing could?  This can't be worse than that.
and any fool knows
a dog needs a home
a shelter
from pigs on the wing

Gazoo

  • The Core
  • Transcendent Typist
  • *****
  • Posts: 15259
    • View Profile
The Movie Thread
« Reply #708 on: September 14, 2007, 09:45:16 PM »
Quote from: "Rod"
Quote from: "RGMike"
Still more on Across the Universe:  Serious Beatle fan Roger Ebert gave it four stars; but the Chicago Reader chimes in with

Quote
If a bullet hadn't killed John Lennon, this Beatles-scored musical might have. Director Julie Taymor and Revolution Studios head Joe Roth engaged in a well-publicized feud over the final cut, but the movie's cartoonish rehash of the turbulent 60s was in place long before that. Taymor's calling card is still her Broadway adaptation of The Lion King, and she delivers some comparably grand set pieces here: Eddie Izzard fronts a chorus of Blue Meanies on "Being for the Benefit of Mr. Kite," and "I Want You . . . She's So Heavy" is divided between a baleful Uncle Sam at an army induction center and a platoon of U.S. soldiers carrying the Statue of Liberty across southeast Asia. But the Rent-like ensemble of yearning young people at the center of the story is a drag; I wanted to turn the sound down on them and say rude things


and then there's this pan from the Boston Globe:

http://www.boston.com/movies/display?display=movie&id=8798


Wow, sounds bloody awful -- I MUST see this movie!

And seriously, since Sgt. Pepper ... didn't kill John, how is it possible that this thing could?  This can't be worse than that.


The NY Times gave it a glowing review:
http://movies.nytimes.com/2007/09/14/movies/14univ.html

It sounds to me like the precise midway point between Yellow Submarine and Sgt. Pepper (the movies, both).  I'll see it, but I need to be with other Beatles fans to do so.  This is no indifferent date movie.
“The choir of children sing their song.  They've practiced all year long.  Ding dong.  Ding dong.  Ding dong.”

RGMike

  • The Core
  • Eight Miles High
  • *****
  • Posts: 79473
    • View Profile
The Movie Thread
« Reply #709 on: September 15, 2007, 09:53:51 PM »
I saw a very bad movie tonite -- and no, it wasn't Across the Universe.  I saw Dragon Wars, the Korean-made (but in English, with American actors) fantasy flick about dragons destroying LA. It is gloriously bad -- Mystery Science Theater 3000-level bad, despite a big budget and some impressive CGI.  After it goes to DVD (in about a month, I'd wager) it will play on the Sci-Fi Channel for years to come.
You spin me right 'round, baby, right 'round

RGMike

  • The Core
  • Eight Miles High
  • *****
  • Posts: 79473
    • View Profile
The Movie Thread
« Reply #710 on: September 21, 2007, 12:32:58 PM »
You spin me right 'round, baby, right 'round

mshray

  • The Core
  • Transcendent Typist
  • *****
  • Posts: 15129
    • View Profile
The Movie Thread
« Reply #711 on: September 21, 2007, 02:45:26 PM »
Quote from: "Rod"
Wow, sounds bloody awful -- I MUST see this movie!

And seriously, since Sgt. Pepper ... didn't kill John, how is it possible that this thing could?  This can't be worse than that.


Renee did this one this morning & the fogheads completely loved it, and according to her it got 2 thumbs up from Ebert & Roeper.

In the meantime, I just came from Eastern Promises.

Wow.

Every bit as good as Infernal Affairs The Departed last year in my book.  Says here that the picture might get a nom, Cronenberg & Mortenson fer sure get noms, and Armin Mueller-Stahl is a lock for Best Supporting Actor Oscar.
"Music is the Earth, People are the Flowers, and I am the Hose."

--Carlos Santana, 2010

RGMike

  • The Core
  • Eight Miles High
  • *****
  • Posts: 79473
    • View Profile
The Movie Thread
« Reply #712 on: September 21, 2007, 03:10:36 PM »
Quote from: "mshray"
Quote from: "Rod"
Wow, sounds bloody awful -- I MUST see this movie!

And seriously, since Sgt. Pepper ... didn't kill John, how is it possible that this thing could?  This can't be worse than that.


Renee did this one this morning & the fogheads completely loved it, and according to her it got 2 thumbs up from Ebert & Roeper.

In the meantime, I just came from Eastern Promises.

Wow.

Every bit as good as Infernal Affairs The Departed last year in my book.  Says here that the picture might get a nom, Cronenberg & Mortenson fer sure get noms, and Armin Mueller-Stahl is a lock for Best Supporting Actor Oscar.


I saw it Wed nite; I liked it a lot, tho' I think it was (graphic violence notwithstanding) a tad conventional for a Cronenburg pic. I liked History of Violence more. But yeah, Mortenson and Mueller-Stahl absolutely deserve noms.  I'm seeing Across... on Mon nite.
You spin me right 'round, baby, right 'round

RGMike

  • The Core
  • Eight Miles High
  • *****
  • Posts: 79473
    • View Profile
The Movie Thread
« Reply #713 on: September 26, 2007, 08:07:07 AM »
Well, I finally saw Across the Universe last nite. 12 people in the theater; it'll be on DVD before Xmas, no doubt.  And, sad to say, it really is horrendously bad IMHO.  A few bright spots: "I Wanna Hold Your Hand" as a ballad of lesbian longing was inspired; "Guitar Gently Weeps" as a cry of pain after MLK's assassination was affecting. (Conversely, "Let it Be" as a gospel number just reminded me that Aretha did it better 35 years ago.)  And an actress named Dana Fuchs (new to me; I thought she was Portia DeRossi at first) is quite good as the Joplin-esque Sadie -- she made me wonder why the real Janis never covered "Why Don't We Do It In the Road".

But the rest of it is laughably ham-handed, particularly in any scene involving Vietnam. Every overripe '60s cliche you can think of thrown into a blender. When Bono showed up as Dr Robert to sing "I Am the Walrus", I looked at my watch and realized there was more than an hour still to go, and my eyes rolled back in my head. And then Eddie Izzard did "Mr Kite" (because, apparently, Tim Curry was busy that day) and I just wanted to scream.  As Lily Tomlin once said: "Is this really happening, or is it the hash?"
You spin me right 'round, baby, right 'round

urth

  • The Core
  • Transcendent Typist
  • *****
  • Posts: 15274
    • View Profile
The Movie Thread
« Reply #714 on: September 26, 2007, 11:22:50 AM »
Speaking of Janis, what became of all those rumored Joplin biopics that were on the table a couple years ago? We were hearing names like Melissa Etheridge and Renee Zellweger, to name two. Guess they went the way of many Hollywood projects--into mothballs.
Let's get right to it.

RGMike

  • The Core
  • Eight Miles High
  • *****
  • Posts: 79473
    • View Profile
The Movie Thread
« Reply #715 on: September 26, 2007, 12:08:21 PM »
Quote from: "urth"
Speaking of Janis, what became of all those rumored Joplin biopics that were on the table a couple years ago? We were hearing names like Melissa Etheridge and Renee Zellweger, to name two. Guess they went the way of many Hollywood projects--into mothballs.


And don't forget Lili Taylor and (no kidding) Pink.

There's a Joplin film currently in production with Zooey Deschanel as Janis:

http://us.imdb.com/title/tt0384141/
You spin me right 'round, baby, right 'round

RGMike

  • The Core
  • Eight Miles High
  • *****
  • Posts: 79473
    • View Profile
The Movie Thread
« Reply #716 on: October 05, 2007, 10:03:22 PM »
Saw Michael Clayton tonite -- wow. Terrific movie, Clooney is wonderful, great writing and superb supporting perfs from Tom Wilkinson, Tilda Swinton and Sidney Pollack.

A throwback of sorts to the paranoid thrillers of the '70s, with Clooney as a lawyer on the ropes, up against a big nasty Archer-Daniels-Midland type corporation.  Written and directed (directorial debut, actually) by Tony Gilroy who co-wrote the Bourne movies.  MikeBob sez check it out!
You spin me right 'round, baby, right 'round

RGMike

  • The Core
  • Eight Miles High
  • *****
  • Posts: 79473
    • View Profile
The Movie Thread
« Reply #717 on: October 22, 2007, 12:26:50 PM »
The Castro is doing a mini-fest of "Disco-Vision" next month:

Quote

NOV10: Saturday Night Fever
NEW PRINT! 30TH ANNIVERSARY!
 
NOV 11 DOUBLE FEATURE
Xanadu
Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band

NOV 13 DOUBLE FEATURE
Roller Boogie
Skatetown U.S.A.

NOV 14 DOUBLE FEATURE
Eyes of Laura Mars
Looking for Mr. Goodbar

NOVEMBER 15 DOUBLE FEATURE
Thank God It’s Friday
Car Wash

Woo Hoo!
You spin me right 'round, baby, right 'round

Alicat

  • The Core
  • Super Scribe
  • *****
  • Posts: 5456
    • View Profile
The Movie Thread
« Reply #718 on: October 22, 2007, 09:50:06 PM »
Nice. You going to any? I'd go Tues/Thurs but too hard on a weeknight. I know, I say that after going to weeknight hockey but it feels different.
Sharks bleed teal.

RGMike

  • The Core
  • Eight Miles High
  • *****
  • Posts: 79473
    • View Profile
The Movie Thread
« Reply #719 on: October 23, 2007, 07:54:10 AM »
Quote from: "Alicat"
Nice. You going to any? I'd go Tues/Thurs but too hard on a weeknight. I know, I say that after going to weeknight hockey but it feels different.


The only one I've any interest in is theTGIF/Car Wash bill; I've never seen either one. Saw Xanadu (horrendously bad, and NOT in a good way) and Roller Boogie at a roller-disco-themed show they did 2 years ago. I've seen SNF many times and Goodbar is a very good movie -- Keaton won the Oscar that year for Annie Hall, but she's even better in Goodbar.

I'm thinking maybe I'm better off never seeing Sgt Pepper...
You spin me right 'round, baby, right 'round