list http://www.spout.com/ Recent community activity around The Thin Man on Spout Copyright 2005-9 Spout, LLC Spout RSS http://www.spout.com/images/SpoutLogoRSS.jpg http://www.spout.com/ 136 30 http://www.spout.com/films/The_Thin_Man/34757/default.aspx Title: The Thin Man
Year: 1934
Director: W.S. Van Dyke
Plot: Filmed on what MGM considered a B-picture budget and schedule (14 days, which at Universal or Columbia would have been considered extravagant) The Thin Man proved to be "sleeper," spawning a popular film, radio and television series. Contrary to popular belief, the title does not refer to star William Powell, but to Edward Ellis, playing the mean-spirited inventor who sets the plot in motion. The recently divorced Ellis discovers that his new girl friend (Natalie Moorhead) has stolen $50,000 and is carrying on with other men. Not long afterward, he disappears. Anxious to locate her father, Ellis' daughter Maureen O'Sullivan goes to private detective Nick Charles (William Powell) for help. Having just married the lovely and wealthy Nora (Myrna Loy), Nick has no desire to return to sleuthing, but the thrill-seeking Nora eagerly talks him into taking O'Sullivan's case. Shortly thereafter, Ellis' lady friend is murdered; so far as police detective Nat Pendleton is concerned, the still-missing Ellis is the guilty party. Nick is unsatisfied with this deduction, and with the help of his wire terrier Asta he manages to uncover several vital clues--including a decomposed corpse. At a fancy dinner party, between cocktails and the first course, Nick solves the mystery and exposes a hidden murderer. The story itself, lifted almost verbatim by scenarists Albert Hackett and Frances Goodrich from the Dashiell Hammett novel on which The Thin Man is based, hardly matters. The film's strong suit is the witty repartee between Nick and Nora Charles, who managed to behave like saucily illicit lovers throughout the film even though they're married. The chemistry between William Powell and Myrna Loy would be adroitly exploited by MGM in several subsequent films, including five additional Thin Man mysteries produced between 1936 and 1948. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
Times Tagged: 19
Number of Lists: 25
Number of blog posts: 6
SpoutRating: 4
]]>Tue, 12 May 2009 02:43:02 GMTThe Thin Man1934W.S. Van DykeFilmed on what MGM considered a B-picture budget and schedule (14 days, which at Universal or Columbia would have been considered extravagant) The Thin Man proved to be "sleeper," spawning a popular film, radio and television series. Contrary to popular belief, the title does not refer to star <a href="/players/P____57536/default.aspx" style='text-decoration:underline'>William Powell</a>, but to <a href="/players/P____21668/default.aspx" style='text-decoration:underline'>Edward Ellis</a>, playing the mean-spirited inventor who sets the plot in motion. The recently divorced Ellis discovers that his new girl friend (<a href="/players/P____50394/default.aspx" style='text-decoration:underline'>Natalie Moorhead</a>) has stolen $50,000 and is carrying on with other men. Not long afterward, he disappears. Anxious to locate her father, Ellis' daughter <a href="/players/P____53671/default.aspx" style='text-decoration:underline'>Maureen O'Sullivan</a> goes to private detective Nick Charles (<a href="/players/P____57536/default.aspx" style='text-decoration:underline'>William Powell</a>) for help. Having just married the lovely and wealthy Nora (<a href="/players/P____43561/default.aspx" style='text-decoration:underline'>Myrna Loy</a>), Nick has no desire to return to sleuthing, but the thrill-seeking Nora eagerly talks him into taking O'Sullivan's case. Shortly thereafter, Ellis' lady friend is murdered; so far as police detective <a href="/players/P____55898/default.aspx" style='text-decoration:underline'>Nat Pendleton</a> is concerned, the still-missing Ellis is the guilty party. Nick is unsatisfied with this deduction, and with the help of his wire terrier Asta he manages to uncover several vital clues--including a decomposed corpse. At a fancy dinner party, between cocktails and the first course, Nick solves the mystery and exposes a hidden murderer. The story itself, lifted almost verbatim by scenarists <a href="/players/P____93020/default.aspx" style='text-decoration:underline'>Albert Hackett</a> and <a href="/players/P____92058/default.aspx" style='text-decoration:underline'>Frances Goodrich</a> from the <a href="/players/P___187974/default.aspx" style='text-decoration:underline'>Dashiell Hammett</a> novel on which The Thin Man is based, hardly matters. The film's strong suit is the witty repartee between Nick and Nora Charles, who managed to behave like saucily illicit lovers throughout the film even though they're married. The chemistry between <a href="/players/P____57536/default.aspx" style='text-decoration:underline'>William Powell</a> and <a href="/players/P____43561/default.aspx" style='text-decoration:underline'>Myrna Loy</a> would be adroitly exploited by MGM in several subsequent films, including five additional <a href=/films/34757/default.aspx style='text-decoration:underline'>Thin Man</a> mysteries produced between 1936 and 1948. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide19Tag Target (>10)2564http://www.spout.com/ProductImages/t64532eabxs.jpghttp://www.spout.com/films/The_Thin_Man/34757/default.aspxFilm http://www.spout.com/blogs/karina/archive/2008/9/4/34742.aspx Post By: Karina
Post To: Karina on SpoutBlog
Post Date: 9/4/2008 12:01:36 PM
Body: The 2008 edition of the Toronto International Film Festival begins today, and Kevin Kelly and I will be there for the next ten days reporting back. What follows is not exactly an iron-clad preview of our Toronto coverage––in addition to some of the films below, I’m definitely planning to see new works by Claire Denis, Agnes Varda, Jonathan Demme and Richard Linklater, and would of course recommend that anyone on the ground see some of my favorites from past festivals, including Medicine for Melancholy and A Christmas Tale. This is more of a list of predictions of what everyone else is going to be talking about, while I’m pushing my glasses up my nose and rushing to to the next screening of the a South Korean movie about drunken lonliness. Enjoy! If you have your own predictions for what will catch fire in Ontario, let us know in the comments. 1. Zach and Miri Make a Porno (TIFF screening info) Obviously, anything with “porno” in the title has a certain automatic contingent (hello, Google searchers! Sorry to disappoint!) But then, so does anything with the credit “written and directed by Kevin Smith.” And then there’s the leading man. Some perspective: Smith’s last three films have grossed an average of $26 million each; the last three films starring Seth Rogen have grossed an average of $117 million each. With Jay and Silent Bob finally retired (we think/hope), and Rogen in tow for the usual, MPAA-baiting Smithism, Porno could––however ironically––become what Jersey Girl was supposed to be: the tipping point that expands the Smith fan base beyond the longtime Clerks faithful. 2. Slumdog Millionaire (TIFF screening info) Crowdpleasers make me itch. But then, to borrow a line from David Fincher, I’m an asshole. Assuming you are not, you might be interested to know that Slumdog Millionaire shows all the symptoms of becoming The Next Juno. Like Juno, Slumdog premiered in a TBA slot at Telluride, where reaction from all but our own Kevin Buist was enthusiastic, even hyperbolically so. Also ike Juno, it’s a music-fueled piece of pop art in which young love results from unlikely circumstances. And, thanks to Warner Brothers’ loss of faith in this tier of the distribution market, it’s now being distributed by Fox Searchlight––just like Juno. If looking for The Next Juno is now part of our jobs, at least Searchlight is taking all the arduous work out of it. 3. Nick and Norah’s Infinite Playlist (TIFF screening info) Speaking of two devils…Michael Cera, of course, had a pretty great 2007 as an associate of both Judd Apatow and Diablo Cody, and  I think at this point, he’s star enough to guarantee some festival buzz on his own. But even more interesting is his paring in Nick and Norah with Kat Dennings, the actress who played Catherine Keener’s daughter in the 40 Year-Old Virgin, who is quickly becoming a target of fan worship on YouTube. In a video called Kat Dennings sexiest woman alive, YouTube user concedes that inkamagonkhpjacki Dennings might actually be second to Angelina Jolie, which is fitting; like the young Jolie, Dennings is a little busty, a little reckless-looking, maybe even a little goth, but––and this is *not* like the sometime Gia impersonator––at the same time kind of goofy and totally unintimidating. In the most recent video on her own YouTube channel, she puts a blanket on her head, wraps stuffed animals around her shoulders like a fur stole, then grabs a guitar and shrugs: “I don’t know, I like reading.” More, please. Also: I’m pretending like the character names (based on a book of the same name) are a Thin Man reference. 4. The Dungeon Masters (TIFF screening info) The pedigree: Director Keven McAlester, whose last film was the festival hit Roky Erickson doc, You’re Gonna Miss Me; and Lee Daniel, the cinematographer of Miss Me as well as much of Richard Linklater’s filmography. The hook: a year-long glimpse into the lives of three adults who are really into Dungeons and Dragons. The verdict: irresistible bait for both indie film nerds and nerd nerds, and, if McAlester’s previous work is any indication, likely more probing and sensitive a portrait than the logline might at first glance indicate. 5. Pedro (TIFF screening info) Produced by Wash Westmoreland (whose Quincinera won the grand prize at Sundance in 2006), Nick Oceano’s first feature is an examination of the birth of reality TV as factory for both new celebrities and cultural attitudes, via the life and early death of Pedro Zamora, AIDS activist and cast member of the Real World San Francisco, The Movie. Which sounds very important, as does the fact that this is (I believe) the first fictional film that will ostensibly reenact moments from reality TV. But we’ll excuse you if you read the above and thought only, “OMG, Puck! OMG, the peanut butter fight!!!” 6.  Religulous (TIFF screening info) Why anyone takes Bill Maher’s Borscht Belt-to-Venice Beach schtick seriously I don’t know (I suspect that if he didn’t have a Bush Jr to play off, his primary cause would be Legalizing It), but Religulous hardly needs to convert me, or anyone else. In a year in which Ben Stein’s Expelled has become the top grossing non-fiction film––beating Martin Scorsese and the Stones––by playing in non-traditional venues and appealing strictly to an audience already in its “give intelligent design a chance” wheelhouse, and in which a Republican presidential candidate picks a running mate whose conservative social politics seem like bait for the neo-conservative party wing said presidential candidate used to claim he wasn’t beholden to, it seems clear that faith is the sleeper issue of the day. I may take issue with his cringey jokes, but I still see no reason to underestimate the impact Maher and his Religulous director/savvier comic provacateur Larry Charles will have on the large portion of the typical film festival audience with which their choir overlaps. 7.  Valentino: The Last Emperor (TIFF screening info) Reviews out of Venice grumbled about a lack of depth in Valentino’s setting but offered praise for the poignancy of the characters. For those of us who have been longing for a fully-realized epic fashion doc since Unzipped––or, a semi-serious, semi-guilty pleasure celebrity doc full of cheap but completely satisfying La Dolce Vita references since Truth or Dare––Valentino, directed by Vanity Fair reporter Matt Tyrnauer, shouldn’t disappoint. 8.  Che (TIFF screening info) Steven Soderbergh’s troubled epic might have placed higher on the list had its once-dire distribution situation not recently began to look up, but it’s still by all means impossible to argue against its status as a must-see. Che will have one screening in Toronto in its 262 minute incarnation; Parts 1 and 2 will then screen twice on their own. Just having the ability to Choose Your Che should cause a certain amount of chatter. I’m imagining (and sort of fearing) the arguments from Che completists over The Right Way To See It as we speak. 9.  The Hurt Locker (TIFF screening info) One of a number of films at TIFF dealing with soldiers either in, just returned from, or on their way to Iraq (see also 3 Blind Mice, Lucky Ones). The Hurt Locker has an obvious advantage within a micro-genre of films that have tended to fall pretty flat with both audiences and critics: it’s essentially a big-budget action thriller. And it’s directed by Kathryn Bigelow of Strange Days and Point Break fame, so it’s got a good chance of putting action above ideology without being totally brainless. 10.  Paris, Not France (TIFF Screening info) As Charles Aaron used to say, I give. Originally posted on:SpoutBlog » Karina Longworth
]]>Thu, 04 Sep 2008 16:01:36 GMTKarinaKarina on SpoutBlog9/4/2008 12:01:36 PMThe 2008 edition of the Toronto International Film Festival begins today, and Kevin Kelly and I will be there for the next ten days reporting back. What follows is not exactly an iron-clad preview of our Toronto coverage––in addition to some of the films below, I’m definitely planning to see new works by Claire Denis, Agnes Varda, Jonathan Demme and Richard Linklater, and would of course recommend that anyone on the ground see some of my favorites from past festivals, including Medicine for Melancholy and A Christmas Tale. This is more of a list of predictions of what everyone else is going to be talking about, while I’m pushing my glasses up my nose and rushing to to the next screening of the a South Korean movie about drunken lonliness. Enjoy! If you have your own predictions for what will catch fire in Ontario, let us know in the comments. 1. Zach and Miri Make a Porno (TIFF screening info) Obviously, anything with “porno” in the title has a certain automatic contingent (hello, Google searchers! Sorry to disappoint!) But then, so does anything with the credit “written and directed by Kevin Smith.” And then there’s the leading man. Some perspective: Smith’s last three films have grossed an average of $26 million each; the last three films starring Seth Rogen have grossed an average of $117 million each. With Jay and Silent Bob finally retired (we think/hope), and Rogen in tow for the usual, MPAA-baiting Smithism, Porno could––however ironically––become what Jersey Girl was supposed to be: the tipping point that expands the Smith fan base beyond the longtime Clerks faithful. 2. Slumdog Millionaire (TIFF screening info) Crowdpleasers make me itch. But then, to borrow a line from David Fincher, I’m an asshole. Assuming you are not, you might be interested to know that Slumdog Millionaire shows all the symptoms of becoming The Next Juno. Like Juno, Slumdog premiered in a TBA slot at Telluride, where reaction from all but our own Kevin Buist was enthusiastic, even hyperbolically so. Also ike Juno, it’s a music-fueled piece of pop art in which young love results from unlikely circumstances. And, thanks to Warner Brothers’ loss of faith in this tier of the distribution market, it’s now being distributed by Fox Searchlight––just like Juno. If looking for The Next Juno is now part of our jobs, at least Searchlight is taking all the arduous work out of it. 3. Nick and Norah’s Infinite Playlist (TIFF screening info) Speaking of two devils…Michael Cera, of course, had a pretty great 2007 as an associate of both Judd Apatow and Diablo Cody, and  I think at this point, he’s star enough to guarantee some festival buzz on his own. But even more interesting is his paring in Nick and Norah with Kat Dennings, the actress who played Catherine Keener’s daughter in the 40 Year-Old Virgin, who is quickly becoming a target of fan worship on YouTube. In a video called Kat Dennings sexiest woman alive, YouTube user concedes that inkamagonkhpjacki Dennings might actually be second to Angelina Jolie, which is fitting; like the young Jolie, Dennings is a little busty, a little reckless-looking, maybe even a little goth, but––and this is *not* like the sometime Gia impersonator––at the same time kind of goofy and totally unintimidating. In the most recent video on her own YouTube channel, she puts a blanket on her head, wraps stuffed animals around her shoulders like a fur stole, then grabs a guitar and shrugs: “I don’t know, I like reading.” More, please. Also: I’m pretending like the character names (based on a book of the same name) are a Thin Man reference. 4. The Dungeon Masters (TIFF screening info) The pedigree: Director Keven McAlester, whose last film was the festival hit Roky Erickson doc, You’re Gonna Miss Me; and Lee Daniel, the cinematographer of Miss Me as well as much of Richard Linklater’s filmography. The hook: a year-long glimpse into the lives of three adults who are really into Dungeons and Dragons. The verdict: irresistible bait for both indie film nerds and nerd nerds, and, if McAlester’s previous work is any indication, likely more probing and sensitive a portrait than the logline might at first glance indicate. 5. Pedro (TIFF screening info) Produced by Wash Westmoreland (whose Quincinera won the grand prize at Sundance in 2006), Nick Oceano’s first feature is an examination of the birth of reality TV as factory for both new celebrities and cultural attitudes, via the life and early death of Pedro Zamora, AIDS activist and cast member of the Real World San Francisco, The Movie. Which sounds very important, as does the fact that this is (I believe) the first fictional film that will ostensibly reenact moments from reality TV. But we’ll excuse you if you read the above and thought only, “OMG, Puck! OMG, the peanut butter fight!!!” 6.  Religulous (TIFF screening info) Why anyone takes Bill Maher’s Borscht Belt-to-Venice Beach schtick seriously I don’t know (I suspect that if he didn’t have a Bush Jr to play off, his primary cause would be Legalizing It), but Religulous hardly needs to convert me, or anyone else. In a year in which Ben Stein’s Expelled has become the top grossing non-fiction film––beating Martin Scorsese and the Stones––by playing in non-traditional venues and appealing strictly to an audience already in its “give intelligent design a chance” wheelhouse, and in which a Republican presidential candidate picks a running mate whose conservative social politics seem like bait for the neo-conservative party wing said presidential candidate used to claim he wasn’t beholden to, it seems clear that faith is the sleeper issue of the day. I may take issue with his cringey jokes, but I still see no reason to underestimate the impact Maher and his Religulous director/savvier comic provacateur Larry Charles will have on the large portion of the typical film festival audience with which their choir overlaps. 7.  Valentino: The Last Emperor (TIFF screening info) Reviews out of Venice grumbled about a lack of depth in Valentino’s setting but offered praise for the poignancy of the characters. For those of us who have been longing for a fully-realized epic fashion doc since Unzipped––or, a semi-serious, semi-guilty pleasure celebrity doc full of cheap but completely satisfying La Dolce Vita references since Truth or Dare––Valentino, directed by Vanity Fair reporter Matt Tyrnauer, shouldn’t disappoint. 8.  Che (TIFF screening info) Steven Soderbergh’s troubled epic might have placed higher on the list had its once-dire distribution situation not recently began to look up, but it’s still by all means impossible to argue against its status as a must-see. Che will have one screening in Toronto in its 262 minute incarnation; Parts 1 and 2 will then screen twice on their own. Just having the ability to Choose Your Che should cause a certain amount of chatter. I’m imagining (and sort of fearing) the arguments from Che completists over The Right Way To See It as we speak. 9.  The Hurt Locker (TIFF screening info) One of a number of films at TIFF dealing with soldiers either in, just returned from, or on their way to Iraq (see also 3 Blind Mice, Lucky Ones). The Hurt Locker has an obvious advantage within a micro-genre of films that have tended to fall pretty flat with both audiences and critics: it’s essentially a big-budget action thriller. And it’s directed by Kathryn Bigelow of Strange Days and Point Break fame, so it’s got a good chance of putting action above ideology without being totally brainless. 10.  Paris, Not France (TIFF Screening info) As Charles Aaron used to say, I give. Originally posted on:SpoutBlog » Karina Longworth http://www.spout.com/blogs/spoutblog/archive/2008/9/4/34741.aspx Post By: SpoutBlog
Post To: SpoutBlog on spout.com
Post Date: 9/4/2008 12:01:21 PM
Body: The 2008 edition of the Toronto International Film Festival begins today, and Kevin Kelly and I will be there for the next ten days reporting back. What follows is not exactly an iron-clad preview of our Toronto coverage––in addition to some of the films below, I’m definitely planning to see new works by Claire Denis, Agnes Varda, Jonathan Demme and Richard Linklater, and would of course recommend that anyone on the ground see some of my favorites from past festivals, including Medicine for Melancholy and A Christmas Tale. This is more of a list of predictions of what everyone else is going to be talking about, while I’m pushing my glasses up my nose and rushing to to the next screening of the a South Korean movie about drunken lonliness. Enjoy! If you have your own predictions for what will catch fire in Ontario, let us know in the comments. 1. Zach and Miri Make a Porno (TIFF screening info) Obviously, anything with “porno” in the title has a certain automatic contingent (hello, Google searchers! Sorry to disappoint!) But then, so does anything with the credit “written and directed by Kevin Smith.” And then there’s the leading man. Some perspective: Smith’s last three films have grossed an average of $26 million each; the last three films starring Seth Rogen have grossed an average of $117 million each. With Jay and Silent Bob finally retired (we think/hope), and Rogen in tow for the usual, MPAA-baiting Smithism, Porno could––however ironically––become what Jersey Girl was supposed to be: the tipping point that expands the Smith fan base beyond the longtime Clerks faithful. 2. Slumdog Millionaire (TIFF screening info) Crowdpleasers make me itch. But then, to borrow a line from David Fincher, I’m an asshole. Assuming you are not, you might be interested to know that Slumdog Millionaire shows all the symptoms of becoming The Next Juno. Like Juno, Slumdog premiered in a TBA slot at Telluride, where reaction from all but our own Kevin Buist was enthusiastic, even hyperbolically so. Also ike Juno, it’s a music-fueled piece of pop art in which young love results from unlikely circumstances. And, thanks to Warner Brothers’ loss of faith in this tier of the distribution market, it’s now being distributed by Fox Searchlight––just like Juno. If looking for The Next Juno is now part of our jobs, at least Searchlight is taking all the arduous work out of it. 3. Nick and Norah’s Infinite Playlist (TIFF screening info) Speaking of two devils…Michael Cera, of course, had a pretty great 2007 as an associate of both Judd Apatow and Diablo Cody, and  I think at this point, he’s star enough to guarantee some festival buzz on his own. But even more interesting is his paring in Nick and Norah with Kat Dennings, the actress who played Catherine Keener’s daughter in the 40 Year-Old Virgin, who is quickly becoming a target of fan worship on YouTube. In a video called Kat Dennings sexiest woman alive, YouTube user concedes that inkamagonkhpjacki Dennings might actually be second to Angelina Jolie, which is fitting; like the young Jolie, Dennings is a little busty, a little reckless-looking, maybe even a little goth, but––and this is *not* like the sometime Gia impersonator––at the same time kind of goofy and totally unintimidating. In the most recent video on her own YouTube channel, she puts a blanket on her head, wraps stuffed animals around her shoulders like a fur stole, then grabs a guitar and shrugs: “I don’t know, I like reading.” More, please. Also: I’m pretending like the character names (based on a book of the same name) are a Thin Man reference. 4. The Dungeon Masters (TIFF screening info) The pedigree: Director Keven McAlester, whose last film was the festival hit Roky Erickson doc, You’re Gonna Miss Me; and Lee Daniel, the cinematographer of Miss Me as well as much of Richard Linklater’s filmography. The hook: a year-long glimpse into the lives of three adults who are really into Dungeons and Dragons. The verdict: irresistible bait for both indie film nerds and nerd nerds, and, if McAlester’s previous work is any indication, likely more probing and sensitive a portrait than the logline might at first glance indicate. 5. Pedro (TIFF screening info) Produced by Wash Westmoreland (whose Quincinera won the grand prize at Sundance in 2006), Nick Oceano’s first feature is an examination of the birth of reality TV as factory for both new celebrities and cultural attitudes, via the life and early death of Pedro Zamora, AIDS activist and cast member of the Real World San Francisco, The Movie. Which sounds very important, as does the fact that this is (I believe) the first fictional film that will ostensibly reenact moments from reality TV. But we’ll excuse you if you read the above and thought only, “OMG, Puck! OMG, the peanut butter fight!!!” 6.  Religulous (TIFF screening info) Why anyone takes Bill Maher’s Borscht Belt-to-Venice Beach schtick seriously I don’t know (I suspect that if he didn’t have a Bush Jr to play off, his primary cause would be Legalizing It), but Religulous hardly needs to convert me, or anyone else. In a year in which Ben Stein’s Expelled has become the top grossing non-fiction film––beating Martin Scorsese and the Stones––by playing in non-traditional venues and appealing strictly to an audience already in its “give intelligent design a chance” wheelhouse, and in which a Republican presidential candidate picks a running mate whose conservative social politics seem like bait for the neo-conservative party wing said presidential candidate used to claim he wasn’t beholden to, it seems clear that faith is the sleeper issue of the day. I may take issue with his cringey jokes, but I still see no reason to underestimate the impact Maher and his Religulous director/savvier comic provacateur Larry Charles will have on the large portion of the typical film festival audience with which their choir overlaps. 7.  Valentino: The Last Emperor (TIFF screening info) Reviews out of Venice grumbled about a lack of depth in Valentino’s setting but offered praise for the poignancy of the characters. For those of us who have been longing for a fully-realized epic fashion doc since Unzipped––or, a semi-serious, semi-guilty pleasure celebrity doc full of cheap but completely satisfying La Dolce Vita references since Truth or Dare––Valentino, directed by Vanity Fair reporter Matt Tyrnauer, shouldn’t disappoint. 8.  Che (TIFF screening info) Steven Soderbergh’s troubled epic might have placed higher on the list had its once-dire distribution situation not recently began to look up, but it’s still by all means impossible to argue against its status as a must-see. Che will have one screening in Toronto in its 262 minute incarnation; Parts 1 and 2 will then screen twice on their own. Just having the ability to Choose Your Che should cause a certain amount of chatter. I’m imagining (and sort of fearing) the arguments from Che completists over The Right Way To See It as we speak. 9.  The Hurt Locker (TIFF screening info) One of a number of films at TIFF dealing with soldiers either in, just returned from, or on their way to Iraq (see also 3 Blind Mice, Lucky Ones). The Hurt Locker has an obvious advantage within a micro-genre of films that have tended to fall pretty flat with both audiences and critics: it’s essentially a big-budget action thriller. And it’s directed by Kathryn Bigelow of Strange Days and Point Break fame, so it’s got a good chance of putting action above ideology without being totally brainless. 10.  Paris, Not France (TIFF Screening info) As Charles Aaron used to say, I give. Originally posted on:SpoutBlog
]]>Thu, 04 Sep 2008 16:01:21 GMTSpoutBlogSpoutBlog on spout.com9/4/2008 12:01:21 PMThe 2008 edition of the Toronto International Film Festival begins today, and Kevin Kelly and I will be there for the next ten days reporting back. What follows is not exactly an iron-clad preview of our Toronto coverage––in addition to some of the films below, I’m definitely planning to see new works by Claire Denis, Agnes Varda, Jonathan Demme and Richard Linklater, and would of course recommend that anyone on the ground see some of my favorites from past festivals, including Medicine for Melancholy and A Christmas Tale. This is more of a list of predictions of what everyone else is going to be talking about, while I’m pushing my glasses up my nose and rushing to to the next screening of the a South Korean movie about drunken lonliness. Enjoy! If you have your own predictions for what will catch fire in Ontario, let us know in the comments. 1. Zach and Miri Make a Porno (TIFF screening info) Obviously, anything with “porno” in the title has a certain automatic contingent (hello, Google searchers! Sorry to disappoint!) But then, so does anything with the credit “written and directed by Kevin Smith.” And then there’s the leading man. Some perspective: Smith’s last three films have grossed an average of $26 million each; the last three films starring Seth Rogen have grossed an average of $117 million each. With Jay and Silent Bob finally retired (we think/hope), and Rogen in tow for the usual, MPAA-baiting Smithism, Porno could––however ironically––become what Jersey Girl was supposed to be: the tipping point that expands the Smith fan base beyond the longtime Clerks faithful. 2. Slumdog Millionaire (TIFF screening info) Crowdpleasers make me itch. But then, to borrow a line from David Fincher, I’m an asshole. Assuming you are not, you might be interested to know that Slumdog Millionaire shows all the symptoms of becoming The Next Juno. Like Juno, Slumdog premiered in a TBA slot at Telluride, where reaction from all but our own Kevin Buist was enthusiastic, even hyperbolically so. Also ike Juno, it’s a music-fueled piece of pop art in which young love results from unlikely circumstances. And, thanks to Warner Brothers’ loss of faith in this tier of the distribution market, it’s now being distributed by Fox Searchlight––just like Juno. If looking for The Next Juno is now part of our jobs, at least Searchlight is taking all the arduous work out of it. 3. Nick and Norah’s Infinite Playlist (TIFF screening info) Speaking of two devils…Michael Cera, of course, had a pretty great 2007 as an associate of both Judd Apatow and Diablo Cody, and  I think at this point, he’s star enough to guarantee some festival buzz on his own. But even more interesting is his paring in Nick and Norah with Kat Dennings, the actress who played Catherine Keener’s daughter in the 40 Year-Old Virgin, who is quickly becoming a target of fan worship on YouTube. In a video called Kat Dennings sexiest woman alive, YouTube user concedes that inkamagonkhpjacki Dennings might actually be second to Angelina Jolie, which is fitting; like the young Jolie, Dennings is a little busty, a little reckless-looking, maybe even a little goth, but––and this is *not* like the sometime Gia impersonator––at the same time kind of goofy and totally unintimidating. In the most recent video on her own YouTube channel, she puts a blanket on her head, wraps stuffed animals around her shoulders like a fur stole, then grabs a guitar and shrugs: “I don’t know, I like reading.” More, please. Also: I’m pretending like the character names (based on a book of the same name) are a Thin Man reference. 4. The Dungeon Masters (TIFF screening info) The pedigree: Director Keven McAlester, whose last film was the festival hit Roky Erickson doc, You’re Gonna Miss Me; and Lee Daniel, the cinematographer of Miss Me as well as much of Richard Linklater’s filmography. The hook: a year-long glimpse into the lives of three adults who are really into Dungeons and Dragons. The verdict: irresistible bait for both indie film nerds and nerd nerds, and, if McAlester’s previous work is any indication, likely more probing and sensitive a portrait than the logline might at first glance indicate. 5. Pedro (TIFF screening info) Produced by Wash Westmoreland (whose Quincinera won the grand prize at Sundance in 2006), Nick Oceano’s first feature is an examination of the birth of reality TV as factory for both new celebrities and cultural attitudes, via the life and early death of Pedro Zamora, AIDS activist and cast member of the Real World San Francisco, The Movie. Which sounds very important, as does the fact that this is (I believe) the first fictional film that will ostensibly reenact moments from reality TV. But we’ll excuse you if you read the above and thought only, “OMG, Puck! OMG, the peanut butter fight!!!” 6.  Religulous (TIFF screening info) Why anyone takes Bill Maher’s Borscht Belt-to-Venice Beach schtick seriously I don’t know (I suspect that if he didn’t have a Bush Jr to play off, his primary cause would be Legalizing It), but Religulous hardly needs to convert me, or anyone else. In a year in which Ben Stein’s Expelled has become the top grossing non-fiction film––beating Martin Scorsese and the Stones––by playing in non-traditional venues and appealing strictly to an audience already in its “give intelligent design a chance” wheelhouse, and in which a Republican presidential candidate picks a running mate whose conservative social politics seem like bait for the neo-conservative party wing said presidential candidate used to claim he wasn’t beholden to, it seems clear that faith is the sleeper issue of the day. I may take issue with his cringey jokes, but I still see no reason to underestimate the impact Maher and his Religulous director/savvier comic provacateur Larry Charles will have on the large portion of the typical film festival audience with which their choir overlaps. 7.  Valentino: The Last Emperor (TIFF screening info) Reviews out of Venice grumbled about a lack of depth in Valentino’s setting but offered praise for the poignancy of the characters. For those of us who have been longing for a fully-realized epic fashion doc since Unzipped––or, a semi-serious, semi-guilty pleasure celebrity doc full of cheap but completely satisfying La Dolce Vita references since Truth or Dare––Valentino, directed by Vanity Fair reporter Matt Tyrnauer, shouldn’t disappoint. 8.  Che (TIFF screening info) Steven Soderbergh’s troubled epic might have placed higher on the list had its once-dire distribution situation not recently began to look up, but it’s still by all means impossible to argue against its status as a must-see. Che will have one screening in Toronto in its 262 minute incarnation; Parts 1 and 2 will then screen twice on their own. Just having the ability to Choose Your Che should cause a certain amount of chatter. I’m imagining (and sort of fearing) the arguments from Che completists over The Right Way To See It as we speak. 9.  The Hurt Locker (TIFF screening info) One of a number of films at TIFF dealing with soldiers either in, just returned from, or on their way to Iraq (see also 3 Blind Mice, Lucky Ones). The Hurt Locker has an obvious advantage within a micro-genre of films that have tended to fall pretty flat with both audiences and critics: it’s essentially a big-budget action thriller. And it’s directed by Kathryn Bigelow of Strange Days and Point Break fame, so it’s got a good chance of putting action above ideology without being totally brainless. 10.  Paris, Not France (TIFF Screening info) As Charles Aaron used to say, I give. Originally posted on:SpoutBlog http://www.spout.com/blogs/spoutblog/archive/2008/7/28/33192.aspx Post By: SpoutBlog
Post To: SpoutBlog on spout.com
Post Date: 7/28/2008 6:00:54 PM
Body: The third part in Universal’s rebooted Mummy franchise takes the series in a new direction. Rather than set in Egypt and dealing again with the same old villain, Imhotep, The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor brings us to China and gives us a different sort of preserved corpse baddie. And it looks like the change could actually add some freshness to the franchise. Of course, history would hint that such a move for the Mummy movies is a bad idea. While it seems beneficial in theory to redirect the focus of a series with the third installment, especially if the first sequel was too much a repetition of the original (a la The Mummy Returns), in practice many threequels mistakenly alter things for the worse. These aren’t necessarily the worst threequels ever made (*cough* X-Men: The Last Stand); they’re just some movies that took their series in a completely wrong turn. Halloween III: Season of the Witch - Now viewed as an unfortunate detour in a long series involving the slasher Michael Myers, this misstep can apparently be blamed on John Carpenter and co-writer/producer Debra Hill, who agreed to a second sequel to Halloween only if it didn’t involve Myers. But what was the point? Sure, a franchise can work with unrelated sequels, but after two movies dealing with the same villain, it seems odd to switch it up so late in the game. Still, if this wasn’t such a terrible movie in general, it’s possible Halloween III could have worked as an intended beginning to an anthology franchise. Batman Forever - I typically like to consider Joel Schumacher’s Batman movies a separate series from Tim Burton’s, but the few returning cast members (Michael Gough, Pat Hingle) are evidence that this is indeed a threequel to the 1989 Batman. Not that you’d otherwise know it from the complete change in tone from dark to candy colored (never mind the recast Batman/Bruce Wayne). Hopefully Christopher Nolan will continue with the latest run so someone like Shawn Levy doesn’t take over and make the caped crusader silly again. Another Thin Man - Honestly, I could watch all of the Thin Man movies over and over until I die (Nora Charles is the most perfect woman ever written into creation), but this third installment of the alcohol-happy detective series commits one of the cardinal sins of sequels: it introduces a child. What fun is a couple of bickering, drunken lovers who also solve murders with a baby along for the ride? Even if the kid does end up being played by a very young Dean Stockwell by the fifth installment. The Mummy movies committed the same annoyance/error with the second movie (for Tomb of the Dragon Emperor the son is now thankfully an adult). Look Who’s Talking Now - While the Thin Man movies were good enough with a cute dog and didn’t need to add in a cute kid, the Look Who’s Talking movies were inversely just fine with cute, talking babies and didn’t need to add in talking animals. Crocodile Dundee in Los Angeles - Yet another threequel guilty of having a kid add-on. But it also commits the other annoying sin of relocating the franchise to a new setting. The rural meets urban fish out of water stuff doesn’t work nearly as much in L.A. as it does in NYC. Smokey and the Bandit Part 3 - No threequel is going to be good if the main star drops out of the series and the sidekick attempts to take the place of the leading man. Well, maybe it would be okay if Iron Man 3 starred Terrence Howard only as War Machine, and maybe this movie would have actually worked if Jerry Reed stayed in the big rig and it was titled Smokey and the Trucker. But as it went down, the substitution just made us miss Burt Reynolds more. Home Alone 3 - As far as replacements go, I don’t know what is worse, changing up the whole character and family, as was done with Home Alone 3, which basically just repeated the storyline of the original movie, or the made-for-TV Home Alone 4, which recast characters from the first two movies. Either way, Fox should have just continued the series with Macauley Culkin, despite the fact that he was growing way out of his cute years by the end of the second movie. Home Alone 3 should have brought John Hughes back to focusing on high school kids and made it like a mix of Home Alone and Ferris Bueller’s Day Off, in which a teenage Kevin throws a wild house party when accidentally left home alone. Again. Ghostbusters: The Video Game - I know that video games are surpassing the movies in terms of favored entertainment, but I’m pretty bummed that the third Ghostbusters movie has become a video game rather than an actual threequel. Superman III - Some of us may have a soft spot for both Richard Pryor’s appearance and the selfish Superman, but otherwise this threequel suffers dearly from having such lame villains. Especially after the awesomeness of General Zod and friends in part II. The wrong turn, though, is not just lame villains but the complete lack of Lex Luthor, a necessity for Superman movies for those of us who never read the comics and can’t get behind a pseudo Luthor like Robert Vaughn’s “Ross Webster”. Actually, I guess it’s not so much the lack of Luthor as it is the blatant substitution for him, as well as for the diminished use of Lois Lane. The franchise didn’t exactly get back on course by bringing Gene Hackman’s Luthor in Superman IV: The Quest for Peace. Friday the 13th Part 3 - It’s perfectly debatable whether or not this slasher series took a misstep when it gave Jason a hockey mask and made him an icon. Like a number of other horror franchises, this one became less scary and more amusing beginning with the third installment. Entertaining, sure, but a wrong turn for some horror franchises. It certainly didn’t help matters having that laugh track: Originally posted on:SpoutBlog
]]>Mon, 28 Jul 2008 22:00:54 GMTSpoutBlogSpoutBlog on spout.com7/28/2008 6:00:54 PM The third part in Universal’s rebooted Mummy franchise takes the series in a new direction. Rather than set in Egypt and dealing again with the same old villain, Imhotep, The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor brings us to China and gives us a different sort of preserved corpse baddie. And it looks like the change could actually add some freshness to the franchise. Of course, history would hint that such a move for the Mummy movies is a bad idea. While it seems beneficial in theory to redirect the focus of a series with the third installment, especially if the first sequel was too much a repetition of the original (a la The Mummy Returns), in practice many threequels mistakenly alter things for the worse. These aren’t necessarily the worst threequels ever made (*cough* X-Men: The Last Stand); they’re just some movies that took their series in a completely wrong turn. Halloween III: Season of the Witch - Now viewed as an unfortunate detour in a long series involving the slasher Michael Myers, this misstep can apparently be blamed on John Carpenter and co-writer/producer Debra Hill, who agreed to a second sequel to Halloween only if it didn’t involve Myers. But what was the point? Sure, a franchise can work with unrelated sequels, but after two movies dealing with the same villain, it seems odd to switch it up so late in the game. Still, if this wasn’t such a terrible movie in general, it’s possible Halloween III could have worked as an intended beginning to an anthology franchise. Batman Forever - I typically like to consider Joel Schumacher’s Batman movies a separate series from Tim Burton’s, but the few returning cast members (Michael Gough, Pat Hingle) are evidence that this is indeed a threequel to the 1989 Batman. Not that you’d otherwise know it from the complete change in tone from dark to candy colored (never mind the recast Batman/Bruce Wayne). Hopefully Christopher Nolan will continue with the latest run so someone like Shawn Levy doesn’t take over and make the caped crusader silly again. Another Thin Man - Honestly, I could watch all of the Thin Man movies over and over until I die (Nora Charles is the most perfect woman ever written into creation), but this third installment of the alcohol-happy detective series commits one of the cardinal sins of sequels: it introduces a child. What fun is a couple of bickering, drunken lovers who also solve murders with a baby along for the ride? Even if the kid does end up being played by a very young Dean Stockwell by the fifth installment. The Mummy movies committed the same annoyance/error with the second movie (for Tomb of the Dragon Emperor the son is now thankfully an adult). Look Who’s Talking Now - While the Thin Man movies were good enough with a cute dog and didn’t need to add in a cute kid, the Look Who’s Talking movies were inversely just fine with cute, talking babies and didn’t need to add in talking animals. Crocodile Dundee in Los Angeles - Yet another threequel guilty of having a kid add-on. But it also commits the other annoying sin of relocating the franchise to a new setting. The rural meets urban fish out of water stuff doesn’t work nearly as much in L.A. as it does in NYC. Smokey and the Bandit Part 3 - No threequel is going to be good if the main star drops out of the series and the sidekick attempts to take the place of the leading man. Well, maybe it would be okay if Iron Man 3 starred Terrence Howard only as War Machine, and maybe this movie would have actually worked if Jerry Reed stayed in the big rig and it was titled Smokey and the Trucker. But as it went down, the substitution just made us miss Burt Reynolds more. Home Alone 3 - As far as replacements go, I don’t know what is worse, changing up the whole character and family, as was done with Home Alone 3, which basically just repeated the storyline of the original movie, or the made-for-TV Home Alone 4, which recast characters from the first two movies. Either way, Fox should have just continued the series with Macauley Culkin, despite the fact that he was growing way out of his cute years by the end of the second movie. Home Alone 3 should have brought John Hughes back to focusing on high school kids and made it like a mix of Home Alone and Ferris Bueller’s Day Off, in which a teenage Kevin throws a wild house party when accidentally left home alone. Again. Ghostbusters: The Video Game - I know that video games are surpassing the movies in terms of favored entertainment, but I’m pretty bummed that the third Ghostbusters movie has become a video game rather than an actual threequel. Superman III - Some of us may have a soft spot for both Richard Pryor’s appearance and the selfish Superman, but otherwise this threequel suffers dearly from having such lame villains. Especially after the awesomeness of General Zod and friends in part II. The wrong turn, though, is not just lame villains but the complete lack of Lex Luthor, a necessity for Superman movies for those of us who never read the comics and can’t get behind a pseudo Luthor like Robert Vaughn’s “Ross Webster”. Actually, I guess it’s not so much the lack of Luthor as it is the blatant substitution for him, as well as for the diminished use of Lois Lane. The franchise didn’t exactly get back on course by bringing Gene Hackman’s Luthor in Superman IV: The Quest for Peace. Friday the 13th Part 3 - It’s perfectly debatable whether or not this slasher series took a misstep when it gave Jason a hockey mask and made him an icon. Like a number of other horror franchises, this one became less scary and more amusing beginning with the third installment. Entertaining, sure, but a wrong turn for some horror franchises. It certainly didn’t help matters having that laugh track: Originally posted on:SpoutBlog http://www.spout.com/blogs/risselada/archive/2008/5/12/28696.aspx Post By: Risselada
Post To: Risselada Blog
Post Date: 5/12/2008 6:27:09 PM
Body: This blog entry is part of my “movie year countdown”. To read more about that check out my first Spout filmblog entry. The Thin Man Recommendations and reviews on this were almost too good. I'll admit this is a lot of fun, but I feel like when a movie is so well recommended and described a certain way, as a zany-comedy-mystery, you start looking for what you expect from the very beginning. The movie is fun but there is nothing overly surprising about it. Nick is a funny character, but in a mostly suave and sophisticated way. He does get into a few goofy slapstick type situations, but mostly the jokes are not at his expense, but the is making them at the expense of others. This is not to say he is antisocial. Actually his jokes are in good spirit and make him lovable to other characters. I tend to prefer characters that are the opposite in some way. Either comical characters in which the joke is on them, or if they are the ones making the jokes they are totally absurd and confusing to the other characters. I still had a great time watching this movie, but it's not my favorite of either the comedy or mystery genre. Rating: 8/10
]]>Mon, 12 May 2008 22:27:09 GMTRisseladaRisselada Blog5/12/2008 6:27:09 PMThis blog entry is part of my &ldquo;movie year countdown&rdquo;. To read more about that check out my first Spout filmblog entry. The Thin Man Recommendations and reviews on this were almost too good. I'll admit this is a lot of fun, but I feel like when a movie is so well recommended and described a certain way, as a zany-comedy-mystery, you start looking for what you expect from the very beginning. The movie is fun but there is nothing overly surprising about it. Nick is a funny character, but in a mostly suave and sophisticated way. He does get into a few goofy slapstick type situations, but mostly the jokes are not at his expense, but the is making them at the expense of others. This is not to say he is antisocial. Actually his jokes are in good spirit and make him lovable to other characters. I tend to prefer characters that are the opposite in some way. Either comical characters in which the joke is on them, or if they are the ones making the jokes they are totally absurd and confusing to the other characters. I still had a great time watching this movie, but it's not my favorite of either the comedy or mystery genre. Rating: 8/10 http://www.spout.com/blogs/jlgdrd/archive/2007/7/2/12863.aspx Post By: jlgdrd
Post To: Wicked Fun
Post Date: 7/2/2007 4:08:00 PM
Body: Sleek, evanescent, shadowy, with a low-gloss platinum luster reminiscent of Wender's Wings of Desire, Kerry Conran's Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow is a grand ride, full of whiz-bang gimmickry and homage to the glory days of retro-Science Fiction. An attempt to refine, fulfill, and exceed the spirit of wonder and astonishment that permeated comic books, novels, and movies like The Day the Earth Stood Still, Flash Gordon, and Metropolis. Funny though, once you start making a list of Sky Captain's numerous visual allusions, it's hard to know where to stop — Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom, Star Wars, The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari, and Veronica Voss — with its expressionist use of high relief, dusty sunlight, and columns of smoke. It's all tossed into the mix, with no attempt at concealment. And all things considered it works surprisingly well. Despite the borrowed structures of its milieu, there are no apparent seams. It has a look all its own. Many of the establishing or epiphany shots are stupendous, with a depth of field that is mesmerizing - rich, muted, elaborate backdrops you could gaze into forever. The film opens with the arrival of enigmatic German scientist Dr. Jenkins and the invasion of flying robots in New York City. Reporter Polly Perkins (Gwyneth Paltrow) acquires some mysterious vials in a rendezvous with Dr. Jenkins and seeks out her ex-boyfriend and fighter pilot, Joe Sullivan a.k.a. Sky Captain. Joe (Jude Law) is still pissed at Polly for sabotaging his plane in an act of jealousy, but she uses blueprints as leverage to secure a "sweetheart" deal. Equipped with souped-up flight transportation spiffier than the Mach-5, Joe and Polly set out on the trail of the nefarious Dr. Totenkopf. Along the way they are assisted by Jenkins, Joe's protégé, Dex (Giovanni Ribisi), and Captain "Franky" Cook (Angelina Jolie). Jolie is well cast, delivering the goods with wry gusto. Ribisi did not get top billing (a crime in my book) despite the fact he has more screen time than Jolie. His incredible talent often gets overlooked, because his subtlety doesn't pull him over the top. He lets the camera come to him. A film of this sort hinges on special effects and salient impact and when Sky Captain falters — when it lapses in judgment — the problems are with these aspects. There's an air-battle scene, pretty early in the film, where Joe (with Polly tagging along) returns to New York to subdue airships that resemble birds of prey. In the midst of this harrowing struggle, Polly nags and antagonizes Joe, in an attempt to heighten an already tense event and add some comic relief. It doesn't work. Which isn't to say it couldn't. For some reason, the rhythms are all wrong. This kind of sequence is like a symphony, balancing visual information with dialogue, sounds, music, and so on. When it doesn't hold together, the effect is discordant, queasy. Conran throws so much at us, we end up being distracted rather than consumed. Fortunately, as the film continues to unwind, he begins to find his balance.There's a certain degree of hokiness (part and parcel of this genre), an irresistible corniness that Conran makes no apologies for, making Sky Captain that much more giddy and gleeful. The gaps in logic, ominous musical cues, flying robots, and "Mysterious Woman" (dressed like a dominatrix seal with goggles) all seem perfectly acceptable, because it's consistent with the loopy tone. But the acting technique used by Law and Paltrow feels completely out of sync with the rest of the film. You can tell by the content the writing is funny, but there's no snap, no timing. Compare it to the work of Jennifer Jason Leigh and Tim Robbins in The Hudsucker Proxy. Or Loy And Powell in The Thin Man series. Law and Paltrow (or Conran) don't have the first clue about veiled romantic banter; they deliver it like they're doing Chekhov or Shaw. It may sound more natural, but it's inappropriate for the material. I want to give Kerry Conran credit for the women's roles in Sky Captain. To use the current terminology, there's a lot of empowerment built into the script. You can tell he's using Paltrow's looks in an ambiguous way - she's capable without losing her "damsel" appeal. But there's something else too, the use of makeup and Paltrow's semi-crooked mouth, that make her look almost boyish. Captain (Francesca) Cook and "The Mysterious Woman" (Bai Ling) deliver an even stronger message. Cook leads an all-female squadron with aplomb and Bai Ling is menacing and formidable. In a sense Conran is re-writing the sci-fi film genre, but it seems plausible. It gibes with the visionary nature of a dream of life in the future.
]]>Mon, 02 Jul 2007 20:08:00 GMTjlgdrdWicked Fun7/2/2007 4:08:00 PMSleek, evanescent, shadowy, with a low-gloss platinum luster reminiscent of Wender's Wings of Desire, Kerry Conran's Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow is a grand ride, full of whiz-bang gimmickry and homage to the glory days of retro-Science Fiction. An attempt to refine, fulfill, and exceed the spirit of wonder and astonishment that permeated comic books, novels, and movies like The Day the Earth Stood Still, Flash Gordon, and Metropolis. Funny though, once you start making a list of Sky Captain's numerous visual allusions, it's hard to know where to stop &mdash; Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom, Star Wars, The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari, and Veronica Voss &mdash; with its expressionist use of high relief, dusty sunlight, and columns of smoke. It's all tossed into the mix, with no attempt at concealment. And all things considered it works surprisingly well. Despite the borrowed structures of its milieu, there are no apparent seams. It has a look all its own. Many of the establishing or epiphany shots are stupendous, with a depth of field that is mesmerizing - rich, muted, elaborate backdrops you could gaze into forever. The film opens with the arrival of enigmatic German scientist Dr. Jenkins and the invasion of flying robots in New York City. Reporter Polly Perkins (Gwyneth Paltrow) acquires some mysterious vials in a rendezvous with Dr. Jenkins and seeks out her ex-boyfriend and fighter pilot, Joe Sullivan a.k.a. Sky Captain. Joe (Jude Law) is still pissed at Polly for sabotaging his plane in an act of jealousy, but she uses blueprints as leverage to secure a "sweetheart" deal. Equipped with souped-up flight transportation spiffier than the Mach-5, Joe and Polly set out on the trail of the nefarious Dr. Totenkopf. Along the way they are assisted by Jenkins, Joe's prot&eacute;g&eacute;, Dex (Giovanni Ribisi), and Captain "Franky" Cook (Angelina Jolie). Jolie is well cast, delivering the goods with wry gusto. Ribisi did not get top billing (a crime in my book) despite the fact he has more screen time than Jolie. His incredible talent often gets overlooked, because his subtlety doesn't pull him over the top. He lets the camera come to him. A film of this sort hinges on special effects and salient impact and when Sky Captain falters &mdash; when it lapses in judgment &mdash; the problems are with these aspects. There's an air-battle scene, pretty early in the film, where Joe (with Polly tagging along) returns to New York to subdue airships that resemble birds of prey. In the midst of this harrowing struggle, Polly nags and antagonizes Joe, in an attempt to heighten an already tense event and add some comic relief. It doesn't work. Which isn't to say it couldn't. For some reason, the rhythms are all wrong. This kind of sequence is like a symphony, balancing visual information with dialogue, sounds, music, and so on. When it doesn't hold together, the effect is discordant, queasy. Conran throws so much at us, we end up being distracted rather than consumed. Fortunately, as the film continues to unwind, he begins to find his balance.There's a certain degree of hokiness (part and parcel of this genre), an irresistible corniness that Conran makes no apologies for, making Sky Captain that much more giddy and gleeful. The gaps in logic, ominous musical cues, flying robots, and "Mysterious Woman" (dressed like a dominatrix seal with goggles) all seem perfectly acceptable, because it's consistent with the loopy tone. But the acting technique used by Law and Paltrow feels completely out of sync with the rest of the film. You can tell by the content the writing is funny, but there's no snap, no timing. Compare it to the work of Jennifer Jason Leigh and Tim Robbins in The Hudsucker Proxy. Or Loy And Powell in The Thin Man series. Law and Paltrow (or Conran) don't have the first clue about veiled romantic banter; they deliver it like they're doing Chekhov or Shaw. It may sound more natural, but it's inappropriate for the material. I want to give Kerry Conran credit for the women's roles in Sky Captain. To use the current terminology, there's a lot of empowerment built into the script. You can tell he's using Paltrow's looks in an ambiguous way - she's capable without losing her "damsel" appeal. But there's something else too, the use of makeup and Paltrow's semi-crooked mouth, that make her look almost boyish. Captain (Francesca) Cook and "The Mysterious Woman" (Bai Ling) deliver an even stronger message. Cook leads an all-female squadron with aplomb and Bai Ling is menacing and formidable. In a sense Conran is re-writing the sci-fi film genre, but it seems plausible. It gibes with the visionary nature of a dream of life in the future. http://www.spout.com/blogs/risselada/archive/2007/2/17/5581.aspx Post By: Risselada
Post To: Risselada Blog
Post Date: 2/17/2007 11:57:00 AM
Body: Here’s the dilemma. I have a list of well over three thousand movies I want to see saved on IMDB. I have a subscription to Netflix and recently every time I return a DVD it has been an extremely arduous task to make the decision as to which movie I should see next. In an effort to narrow down my choices and make the process of choosing slightly less overwhelming I have devised a system, almost a bit of a game for me. Here’s how it goes.For my first film selection, I have narrowed the options down to only films that were released in the year 2006. Then after I have watched that movie, my next selection would have to be a film released in 2005. Then I would see a film from 2004, then 2003, etc. The process of deciding is still laborious, but actually quite a bit more exciting. (I'm going by IMDB as my source for release years)I have already been making a list and have also already begun watching the films. I decided this might be a good time to start fooling around with this spoutblog I have until now left unutilized. So I’ll try to start writing a little blurb or so about each movie I watch in this process.My only limitation here is of course movies that are available on Netflix. Which sadly excludes several I know are available on DVD, and have been longing to see for a long time, but Netflix just doesn’t seem to have available. It’d sort of annoying how they do list quite a few movies that that you can put in your queue under “saved”, yet they obviously do not have available. I have countless movies in that unavailable but saved queue, and I’m not sure that a single one has ever become available. What’s the point I wonder.But if anyone has any recommendations, I'll take that into consideration. THANK YOU!---------------------------------------------------------------------------------New addition to this post:Today is Tuesday March 13, and I have completed a preliminary list of all of the movie I will be watching. Unfortunately many of them were not available on Netflix. I will hunt those down some day. I'm don't doubt that as I make my way through the list I will make a few more changes depending on my mood and other factors, but for now, here it is:1. Art School Confidential (2006)2. The Comedians of Comedy (2005)3. The Passion of the Christ (2004)4. Ruang rak noi nid mahasan (Last Life in the Universe) (2003)5. Im toten Winkel - Hitlers Sekretärin (Blind Spot. Hitler's Secretary) (2002)6. El Espinazo del diablo (The Devil's Backbone) (2001)7. Werckmeister harmóniák (Werckmeister Harmonies) (2000)8. The Virgin Suicides (1999)9. Buffalo '66 (1998)10. In the Company of Men (1997)11. Hard Core Logo (1996)12. Welcome to the Dollhouse (1995)13. Hoop Dreams (1994)14. Short Cuts (1993)15. In the Soup (1992)16. Surviving Desire (1991)17. Misery (1990)18. Der Siebente Kontinent (The Seventh Continent) (1989)19. Topio stin omichli (Landscape in the Mist) (1988)20. Evil Dead II (1987)21. Ying hung boon sik (1986)22. Sans toit ni loi (Vagabond) (1985)23. Sixteen Candles (1984)24. Videodrome (1983)25. Chan Is Missing (1982)26. Coup de torchon (1981)27. The Ninth Configuration (1980)28. Hardcore (1979)29. Halloween (1978)30. Pumping Iron (1977)31. Logan's Run (1976)32. Tommy (1975)33. The Taking of Pelham One Two Three (1974)34. The Exorcist (1973)35. Kozure Ôkami: Kowokashi udekashi tsukamatsuru (Lone Wolf and Cub: Sword of Vengeance) (1972)36. Get Carter (1971)37. Il Conformista (The Conformist) (1970)38. Hsia nu (A Touch of Zen) (1969)39. Fando y Lis (1968)40. Dutchman (1967)41. Kenka erejii (Fighting Elegy) (1966)42. Rekopis znaleziony w Saragossie (The Saragossa Manuscript) (1965)43. Sei donne per l'assassino (Blood and Black Lace) (1964)44. The Great Escape (1963)45. Cape Fear (1962)46. Yojimbo (1961)47. Plein soleil (Purple Noon) (1960)48. Some Like It Hot (1959)49. Mon oncle (1958)50. Sweet Smell of Success (1957)51. Biruma no tategoto (The Burmese Harp) (1956)52. Rebel Without a Cause (1955)53. Gojira (Godzilla) (1954)54. Ugetsu monogatari (1953)55. Ikiru (1952)56. A Streetcar Named Desire (1951)57. D.O.A. (1950)58. White Heat (1949)59. Rope (1948)60. Born to Kill (1947)61. Black Narcissus (1946)62. And Then There Were None (1945)63. The Miracle of Morgan's Creek (1944)64. Le Corbeau (1943)65. Cat People (1942)66. The Wolf Man (1941)67. Road to Singapore (1940)68. Gone with the Wind (1939)69. The Adventures of Robin Hood (1938)70. Drôle de drame ou L'étrange aventure de Docteur Molyneux (1937)71. Flash Gordon (1936/I)72. Triumph des Willens (Triumph of the Will) (1935)73. The Thin Man (1934)74. The Invisible Man (1933)75. Trouble in Paradise (1932)76. City Lights (1931)77. Der Blaue Engel (The Blue Angel) (1930)78. Chelovek s kino-apparatom (The Man with a Movie Camera) (1929)79. La Chute de la maison Usher (The Fall of the House of Usher) (1928)80. The King of Kings (1927)81. Die Abenteuer des Prinzen Achmed (The Adventures of Prince Achmed) (1926)82. Stachka (Strike) (1925)83. The Thief of Bagdad (1924)84. The Hunchback of Notre Dame (1923)85. Häxan (1922)86. Seven Years Bad Luck (1921)87. Der Golem, wie er in die Welt kam (1920)88. Blind Husbands (1919)
]]>Sat, 17 Feb 2007 16:57:00 GMTRisseladaRisselada Blog2/17/2007 11:57:00 AMHere&rsquo;s the dilemma. I have a list of well over three thousand movies I want to see saved on IMDB. I have a subscription to Netflix and recently every time I return a DVD it has been an extremely arduous task to make the decision as to which movie I should see next. In an effort to narrow down my choices and make the process of choosing slightly less overwhelming I have devised a system, almost a bit of a game for me. Here&rsquo;s how it goes.For my first film selection, I have narrowed the options down to only films that were released in the year 2006. Then after I have watched that movie, my next selection would have to be a film released in 2005. Then I would see a film from 2004, then 2003, etc. The process of deciding is still laborious, but actually quite a bit more exciting. (I&#39;m going by IMDB as my source for release years)I have already been making a list and have also already begun watching the films. I decided this might be a good time to start fooling around with this spoutblog I have until now left unutilized. So I&rsquo;ll try to start writing a little blurb or so about each movie I watch in this process.My only limitation here is of course movies that are available on Netflix. Which sadly excludes several I know are available on DVD, and have been longing to see for a long time, but Netflix just doesn&rsquo;t seem to have available. It&rsquo;d sort of annoying how they do list quite a few movies that that you can put in your queue under &ldquo;saved&rdquo;, yet they obviously do not have available. I have countless movies in that unavailable but saved queue, and I&rsquo;m not sure that a single one has ever become available. What&rsquo;s the point I wonder.But if anyone has any recommendations, I&#39;ll take that into consideration. THANK YOU!---------------------------------------------------------------------------------New addition to this post:Today is Tuesday March 13, and I have completed a preliminary list of all of the movie I will be watching. Unfortunately many of them were not available on Netflix. I will hunt those down some day. I&#39;m don&#39;t doubt that as I make my way through the list I will make a few more changes depending on my mood and other factors, but for now, here it is:1. Art School Confidential (2006)2. The Comedians of Comedy (2005)3. The Passion of the Christ (2004)4. Ruang rak noi nid mahasan (Last Life in the Universe) (2003)5. Im toten Winkel - Hitlers Sekret&auml;rin (Blind Spot. Hitler&#39;s Secretary) (2002)6. El Espinazo del diablo (The Devil&#39;s Backbone) (2001)7. Werckmeister harm&oacute;ni&aacute;k (Werckmeister Harmonies) (2000)8. The Virgin Suicides (1999)9. Buffalo &#39;66 (1998)10. In the Company of Men (1997)11. Hard Core Logo (1996)12. Welcome to the Dollhouse (1995)13. Hoop Dreams (1994)14. Short Cuts (1993)15. In the Soup (1992)16. Surviving Desire (1991)17. Misery (1990)18. Der Siebente Kontinent (The Seventh Continent) (1989)19. Topio stin omichli (Landscape in the Mist) (1988)20. Evil Dead II (1987)21. Ying hung boon sik (1986)22. Sans toit ni loi (Vagabond) (1985)23. Sixteen Candles (1984)24. Videodrome (1983)25. Chan Is Missing (1982)26. Coup de torchon (1981)27. The Ninth Configuration (1980)28. Hardcore (1979)29. Halloween (1978)30. Pumping Iron (1977)31. Logan&#39;s Run (1976)32. Tommy (1975)33. The Taking of Pelham One Two Three (1974)34. The Exorcist (1973)35. Kozure &Ocirc;kami: Kowokashi udekashi tsukamatsuru (Lone Wolf and Cub: Sword of Vengeance) (1972)36. Get Carter (1971)37. Il Conformista (The Conformist) (1970)38. Hsia nu (A Touch of Zen) (1969)39. Fando y Lis (1968)40. Dutchman (1967)41. Kenka erejii (Fighting Elegy) (1966)42. Rekopis znaleziony w Saragossie (The Saragossa Manuscript) (1965)43. Sei donne per l&#39;assassino (Blood and Black Lace) (1964)44. The Great Escape (1963)45. Cape Fear (1962)46. Yojimbo (1961)47. Plein soleil (Purple Noon) (1960)48. Some Like It Hot (1959)49. Mon oncle (1958)50. Sweet Smell of Success (1957)51. Biruma no tategoto (The Burmese Harp) (1956)52. Rebel Without a Cause (1955)53. Gojira (Godzilla) (1954)54. Ugetsu monogatari (1953)55. Ikiru (1952)56. A Streetcar Named Desire (1951)57. D.O.A. (1950)58. White Heat (1949)59. Rope (1948)60. Born to Kill (1947)61. Black Narcissus (1946)62. And Then There Were None (1945)63. The Miracle of Morgan&#39;s Creek (1944)64. Le Corbeau (1943)65. Cat People (1942)66. The Wolf Man (1941)67. Road to Singapore (1940)68. Gone with the Wind (1939)69. The Adventures of Robin Hood (1938)70. Dr&ocirc;le de drame ou L&#39;&eacute;trange aventure de Docteur Molyneux (1937)71. Flash Gordon (1936/I)72. Triumph des Willens (Triumph of the Will) (1935)73. The Thin Man (1934)74. The Invisible Man (1933)75. Trouble in Paradise (1932)76. City Lights (1931)77. Der Blaue Engel (The Blue Angel) (1930)78. Chelovek s kino-apparatom (The Man with a Movie Camera) (1929)79. La Chute de la maison Usher (The Fall of the House of Usher) (1928)80. The King of Kings (1927)81. Die Abenteuer des Prinzen Achmed (The Adventures of Prince Achmed) (1926)82. Stachka (Strike) (1925)83. The Thief of Bagdad (1924)84. The Hunchback of Notre Dame (1923)85. H&auml;xan (1922)86. Seven Years Bad Luck (1921)87. Der Golem, wie er in die Welt kam (1920)88. Blind Husbands (1919) http://www.spout.com/members/0/tags/Classic/MemberTagFilms.aspxClassic
Number of films tagged: 816

Number of people who tagged: 312

Number of times used: 1453

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Number of films tagged: 1086

Number of people who tagged: 253

Number of times used: 1340

]]>Tue, 08 Dec 2009 21:38:24 GMT10862531340Tag http://www.spout.com/members/0/tags/Loved-It/MemberTagFilms.aspxLoved-It
Number of films tagged: 509

Number of people who tagged: 179

Number of times used: 921

]]>Tue, 03 Nov 2009 17:56:35 GMT509179921Tag http://www.spout.com/members/0/tags/romance/MemberTagFilms.aspxromance
Number of films tagged: 7161

Number of people who tagged: 169

Number of times used: 1003

]]>Fri, 11 Dec 2009 01:28:29 GMT71611691003Tag http://www.spout.com/members/0/tags/murder/MemberTagFilms.aspxmurder
Number of films tagged: 8748

Number of people who tagged: 157

Number of times used: 830

]]>Fri, 04 Dec 2009 02:57:25 GMT8748157830Tag http://www.spout.com/members/0/tags/dog/MemberTagFilms.aspxdog
Number of films tagged: 1373

Number of people who tagged: 47

Number of times used: 161

]]>Fri, 20 Nov 2009 19:00:53 GMT137347161Tag http://www.spout.com/members/0/tags/inventor/MemberTagFilms.aspxinventor
Number of films tagged: 623

Number of people who tagged: 17

Number of times used: 33

]]>Wed, 18 Nov 2009 11:41:17 GMT6231733Tag http://www.spout.com/members/0/tags/husbandandwife/MemberTagFilms.aspxhusbandandwife
Number of films tagged: 767

Number of people who tagged: 10

Number of times used: 23

]]>Thu, 09 Jul 2009 13:13:22 GMT7671023Tag http://www.spout.com/members/0/tags/policedetective/MemberTagFilms.aspxpolicedetective
Number of films tagged: 440

Number of people who tagged: 8

Number of times used: 9

]]>Thu, 09 Jul 2009 13:13:22 GMT44089Tag http://www.spout.com/members/0/tags/privatedetective/MemberTagFilms.aspxprivatedetective
Number of films tagged: 1052

Number of people who tagged: 7

Number of times used: 22

]]>Fri, 26 Jun 2009 13:02:48 GMT1052722Tag http://www.spout.com/members/0/tags/missingperson/MemberTagFilms.aspxmissingperson
Number of films tagged: 742

Number of people who tagged: 6

Number of times used: 9

]]>Fri, 31 Jul 2009 13:03:15 GMT74269Tag http://www.spout.com/members/0/tags/asta/MemberTagFilms.aspxasta
Number of films tagged: 2

Number of people who tagged: 2

Number of times used: 2

]]>Sat, 14 Jul 2007 03:39:07 GMT222Tag http://www.spout.com/members/0/tags/nick-and-nora/MemberTagFilms.aspxnick-and-nora
Number of films tagged: 1

Number of people who tagged: 2

Number of times used: 2

]]>Thu, 28 Jun 2007 22:18:36 GMT122Tag http://www.spout.com/members/0/tags/classic-debonair-whodunit/MemberTagFilms.aspxclassic-debonair-whodunit
Number of films tagged: 1

Number of people who tagged: 1

Number of times used: 1

]]>Mon, 12 Jan 2009 04:16:31 GMT111Tag http://www.spout.com/members/0/tags/deja-vid/MemberTagFilms.aspxdeja-vid
Number of films tagged: 23

Number of people who tagged: 1

Number of times used: 23

]]>Tue, 15 Aug 2006 17:44:07 GMT23123Tag