The King's Speech review

I'm trying, as fast as I can, to watch all the Best Picture nominees for 2010.  The King's Speech was next in line, and boy was it worth the wait.  Tom Hooper directs Colin Firth as King George VI of Britain.  He was the country's leader just before World War II, and struggled with a stammer in his speech.  Helena Bonham Carter plays Firth's wife, Queen Elizabeth.  Geoffrey Rush plays the king's speech therapist, and the two form a close friendship as they tackle, The King's Speech. 

What I liked about the film:
The Cast

What an amazing ensemble.  Director Hooper didn't cast the biggest names, he cast the right people for the roles.  Firth has already won a Golden Globe and a SAG award for his take on the king.  He will most definitely win Best Actor at the Oscars.  He is simply brilliant.  He became the king.  His confidence was conveyed through his eyes and body, or the lack of I should say.  When Firth was around Carter and his daughters, he was comfortable, confident and stood tall.  When he was in front of an audience, he fell apart.  He was flustered and couldn't mutter a word.  It was wonderful to see Firth with his children, where he could be himself.  And even after he become king, he wanted to embrace his children with no formalities, a contradiction to the way Firth's character was raised with his father. 

He WILL win his first Oscar.  Carter, also nominated for an Oscar gives a heartbreaking performance.  She wants to be there for her husband in any way possible; even if that means recruiting Rush as the king's therapist behind his back.  She is deserving of her nomination, and it was nice to see her recognized. 

Geoffrey Rush steals the show!  He plays a failed actor who has devoted his career to helping those with speech impediments.  Rush stands for his beliefs in the face of the king.  It's either his way or the highway.  So the king must work with Rush on a daily basis, in his office, not in the comfort of his palace.  One of the best aspects of Rush's performance is how sincere he is.  He WANTS to help the king succeed.  He sees through Colin Firth's stammer and knows what kind of king he could be.  It was so fun to watch Rush and Firth go through the exercises to improve the king's speech.  They're funny, yet warm moments between the two characters.  Too bad Christian Bale will win an Oscar for Best Supporting Actor for The Fighter, otherwise it would be Rush's Oscar to lose.  Magnificent job.


The Story

The movie is about a king with a speech problem?  How do you make an interesting and compelling story about that?  Director Tom Hooper has!  With the help of writer David Seidler, the story is amazing.  As the movie proceeds, we discover more and more factors that have played into the king's stammer.  His relationship with his father, his relationship with his brother, the way kids teased him; all important factors explained throughout the film.  As the story unfolds, we discover Rush is the king's only friend.  He motivates and encourages Firth to take over the thrown when his brother, played by Guy Pearce, has been deemed unfit to rule.  It was nice to watch a film that taught me a lot about a time and place in history that I didn't know much about. 

The Director

Pretty difficult task at hand I think; make a film about one speech in the history of the world.  Tom Hooper has made me a fan for life.  The build up, the anticipation leading up to the final speech is breathtaking.  My heart was racing in anticipation of the climax, the king's speech.  Hooper captured the place, London.  He also captured the time, the 20th century time of war.  It was amazing how the film intertwined Hitler's rise without it taking over the film.  The wardrobe was great and the score was phenomenal.  He's directed several projects from this era in the UK's history, hopefully he ventures out and we can see his skills in a different setting.


What I didn't like about the film?
Supporting Characters
Not really a "dislike" as much as a question mark.  There were a couple of characters that I was intrigued by and didn't get to see more of.  The relationship with Rush and his boys was amazing, and a total contradiction to Firth and his father.  I would have loved to see more of the boys.  Also, Guy Pearce's character intrigued and bewildered me.  Imagine what his character essentially does; he gives up the right to be one of the most powerful figures in the world, to be with a woman.  Wow, there's a movie there somewhere.  Great stuff.


The Verdict:
Brilliant
The movie was under MY radar, despite all the accolades.  I didn't really feel like it was a "must see", boy was I wrong.  The movie is something every movie fan should go see.  It's human emotion at its finest.  The love and friendship between Firth, Carter and Rush is undeniable.  The final speech moved me in a way that's difficult to describe.  It wasn't my generation, it wasn't my country, but I was so proud of the king.  He brought his people together at a time when they needed it most.  He was the leader they needed him to be.  The cast and director were at their very best.  I hope the movie continues to receive the recognition it deserves, and I will continue to promote it to the best of my ability.  Amazing film.

Marketing genius: CG film "Rio" gets its own version of Angry Birds

If you don't already know, Angry Birds is one of the best, if not THEE best selling app on Apple's App Store.  Made for the iPhone, it has sold millions of copies, is rumored to be adapted into a feature film, and now is cross marketing with Fox studios.

Print marketing is almost dead, major corporations are pulling print ads left and right.  Even TV is losing advertisers.  The Super Bowl lost a regular in Pepsi last year because they felt the internet was the way to market their product.  So Fox is getting creative in marketing their new CG animated film, Rio.  In March, you will be able to download a Rio themed version of the game, Angry Birds.  Pretty smart right?  I think it's marketing genius, and if it's a hit, could be the marketing of the future.  Check out the trailer to Rio, here. 

I know I bitch a lot about how Hollywood wont take chances with creative ideas, and how they reboot or sequel anything mildly successful; but this is a fun, creative way to bring their film to a broader audience.  So am I being hypocritical, should studios stop worrying about a "build-in" audience?  Or do you agree, it's a cute and clever way to market the film?  Let us know. 

Henry Cavill's long journey to playing Superman

So yesterday the internet was a buzz with the news that British actor Henry Cavill was cast as the Man of Steel, Superman.  It turns out he has a pretty interesting story.  He was already cast as Superman before!  Check out this article from 2004 on MovieWeb.  He was cast when McG was set to direct.  That film (totally separate from Superman Returns) died out, and Bryan Singer took over the reigns.  Singer cast Brandon Routh and the rest was history.

THEN, Cavill was almost cast as Batman!  Turns out he was on Christopher Nolan's short list before ultimately casting Christian Bale.

THEN, Cavill was almost cast as James Bond, but lost the role to Daniel Craig.

THEN, Cavill was almost cast as Edward in the Twilight Saga.  That went to the douche bag of a generation, Robert Pattinson.

THEN, Cavill was almost cast as the Green Lantern, but lost the role to Ryan Reynolds.

Holy mother of wow this guy's been through a lot.  I mean those are four bonafide franchises the man lost out on.  I almost feel bad being so disappointed in the casting, but I don't.  I knew they wanted a relative unknown, so I can't say I was TOTALLY surprised by Cavill's casting.  I wanted someone who was more famous, but then I read an article in the LA Times. 

The article shares an obvious point... now Superman, Batman (Christian Bale, Welsh), Spider-Man (Andrew Garfield, UK), will all be played by British actors.  Not counting Thor (Chris Hemsworth, Australian), and Green Lantern (Ryan Reynolds, Canadian).  The article makes valid points as to why Directors cast the actors they do.  Also, it looks at why the "charismatic" American actors, don't always do well, ala George Clooney's Batman.  It's an interesting article, check it out.  For now, I still don't like Cavill's casting and can only hope Producer Nolan and director Zack Snyder make me eat my words.

Cava-who? Henry Cavill will be our next Superman

Henry Cavill, another relative unknown, will play the last son of Krypton.  And I couldn't be more disappointed.  Granted, the producers and filmmakers don't care what I think, but still.  Producer Christopher Nolan and Director, Zack Snyder, know what they're doing so I have to relax a little bit.  But really?

Back when Snyder was hired to direct, we had an idea they were going "younger".  But rumors kept coming out about various actors playing the part.  First was the Jon Hamm rumor.  I didn't totally believe this, because again, they said they wanted to go younger.  Then the Matthew Goode rumor came out, also to be proven wrong.  What about the original rumor that Brandon Routh would return and director Bryan Singer would not?  Oh man, all these rumors could give any movie fan a headache.  With the casting of Cavill, the rumors are put to rest.

I've seen Cavill's work, and I'm concerned to say the least.  He plays Guy Pearce's son in The Count of Monte Cristo, he was also in Stardust, costarring Robert De Niro.  He had a stint on TV's "The Tudors".  I don't know what to say really.  I hate the idea, but trust Nolan, Snyder and company.  Remember when Anne Hathaway was cast in The Dark Knight Rises?  I hated the idea, and still do.

But everything the filmmakers have done before has worked, and worked damn well too.  So I'll just have to wait and see screen shots and stuff before feeling better about this.  You know what else is weird, we really did hear about a short list of actors vying for the part.  Usually that's the precursor to the casting, but that wasn't the case with this.

Here's what Snyder had to say:

In the pantheon of superheroes, Superman is the most recognized and revered character of all time, and I am honored to be a part of his return to the big screen. I also join Warner Bros., Legendary and the producers in saying how excited we are about the casting of Henry. He is the perfect choice to don the cape and S shield.

You know what's a good movie? (Part 7)

Part 1: Forrest Gump

Connection: Tom Hanks

Part 2: Toy Story

Connection: Pixar

Part 3: The Incredibles

Connection: Superhero Films

Part 4: Batman (1989)

Connection: Jack Nicholson

Part 5: The Departed

Connection: Matt Damon

Part 6: Good Will Hunting

Connection: Robin Williams

Part 7: Mrs. Doubtfire


I still pop this classic in the DVD player at least once a year, and it's still hilarious!  Director Chris Columbus gave us a film for all ages (as he often does).  That film... Mrs. Doubtfire!  Robin Williams stars as a lovable dad who can't hold down a job.  He's married to Sally Field, a very serious career woman who has little time for her kids.  The kids are played by Lisa Jakub, Matthew Lawrence and Mara Wilson. 

When the parents file for divorce, it becomes harder and harder for Williams to see his kids.  So he comes up with a plan to dress as the kid new nanny, Mrs. Doubtfire.  When Sally Field's character starts dating Pierce Brosnan, hilarity ensues.

The movie is all about heart.  Yes, on the surface, it's a man dressing up like a woman, and being put into all sorts of uncomfortable situations.  But beneath the surface, is a story of a family who has an enormous amount of love for his children.  He loves them so much, he's so desperate to see them everyday, he's dressing up as a woman to do so.  That's what the best films are all about, heart. 

The movie mostly follows Williams, Field, and their children.  Each character has an arc, some growth over the course of the movie.  I think that's important too.  Williams becomes a responsible parent, Field loosens up and enjoys her life, their son gets better grades in school, etc.
Plus there are some great supporting characters, like Williams gay brother, who is played by Harvey Fierstein.  These characters fill out the movie with just great all around performances.

Chris Columbus is one of my favorite directors in Hollywood.  He's done consistently good work.  His choice of cast, setting (San Francisco), score, montage, etc.; everything played into a real life scenario, which had us thinking, 'this is possible'.  Best of all, he knows how to capture people, real people.  This is just a dad wanting to be with his kids, it's so simple, but can open up a world of possibilities with a director like Columbus.

Then there is the star of the show, one of the best situation comedy actors of our time... Robin Williams!  Give the man a spoon and he'll make a funny situation out of it.  In the picture to the right, he made the lids to two pans funny, he's that good. Examples of Williams' genius: The way he's jealous of Brosnan's character and the relationship he's developed with Field, the way he picks up on women while he's in the suit, the way a man picks up on him while he's in the suit; all brilliant acting.

He nailed the accent to Euphegenia Doubtfire, his walk in the fat suit was funny, his reaction to women was funny, everything about Williams' performance was funny.  I loved him in this and can safely say, NO ONE else in Hollywood could have done what he did in this film.

Mrs. Doubtfire went on to gross 441 million dollars worldwide during its theatrical run.  That is an incredible amount of money.  There were a ton of movies before Mrs. Doubtfire that had a man or woman acting in a fat suit.  There are a LOT of movies that came out after Mrs. Doubtfire that tried it as well (i.e. Shallow Hal, and the terrible Big Momma's House).  But no one got it quite right like Columbus and company.  It's a movie with a great message, a ton of laughs, and has endured the test of time.  I absolutely love this film.

RED DVD review

Bruce Willis, Morgan Freeman, Brian Cox, Mary Louise Parker, Karl Urban, Helen Mirren AND John Malkovich are in the same movie?  Sign me up, I don't care what it's about.  Add a bunch of guns, chases, thrills and laughs... what do you get?  RED, which was just released on DVD and Blu-Ray this week.  The acronym, RED, actually stands for Retired: Extremely Dangerous. 

Our cast are all retirees that are being hunted down by someone.  They must work together to uncover what's going on and get to the bottom of the killings.  Great premise right?!  Now I'll tell you what I liked and didn't like about the film.  Let's begin.

What I liked about the film:
The Cast
How can you ignore a cast like this?  Every single actor does a great job in this film.  Willis is the newest retiree and is having trouble adapting to his new life.  He has become friends with Mary Louise Parker, and she's helping him cope with his boredom.  Freeman, Cox, Mirren and Malkovich are also all retired and have known each other for years.  They all contribute to solving the mystery going on around them.


The Action

I always look at action films a little differently than I do any other genre.  It has to be different from anything I've seen before to be really impressed, and this one is.  The camera angles, chases sequences, and best of all... seeing old people shoot guns!  That's comedy in and of itself.  There's a particular shot of Willis walking out of a spinning car, avoids getting it by it, and shoots at his target in stride, AWESOME!

The Story
Simple to follow, but sophisticated enough that we don't go numb.  I liked it.  It was the perfect mix of mystery and mayhem.  I never felt lost during the movie, I knew everything that was going on, despite a half a dozen locations.  I also never felt like director Robert Schwentke was talking down to me either.  Great job in this department.

The Director

Speaking of Mr. Schwentke, I loved what he did in this film.  Before RED, all I had ever seen of Schwentke's work is The Time Traveler's Wife, which I hated!  I also knew he was set to direct Ryan Reynolds (rumored) in the upcoming comic book adaptation, R.I.P.D.  In this film, he takes the audience on a crazy ride; where we can just let go of our problems for two hours and enjoy!  The score was fitting, the wardrobe, the editing, all of which the director has a hand in achieving.  Plus, can you imagine the pressure that guy must of felt?  He's directing living legends, the best at what they do.  He did a great job!

The Cast

Yeah, I KNOW i already put this down as a "like".  But the cast is too big and too good not to mention again.  Freeman is terrific.  Malkovich steals every scene which is off-beat comedy, awesome!  And Karl Urban is a freakin' bad ass in the film.  He plays an up and coming agent who takes his job very seriously.  Watching him and Willis go at it was great.

What I didn't like about the film:
Mary Louise Parker's character

I love Mary Louise Parker.  She is so funny, so talented and very attractive.  She's doing really well for herself.  But her character was in the film for one reason... to simply explain what's going on.  Much like Ellen Page's character in Inception.  I understand it, but don't agree with it.  The writing could have covered what was being relayed to Parker's character.  Still, she's great.

The Verdict:
Original and worthy
The movie is original in what it does and worthy of the cast that was assembled.  Its hard to make action-comedies these days.  What's left to be seen, you know?  But RED was new, fresh AND exciting.  Really really enjoyed it and I look forward to the sequel. 

The two disc special edition Blu-Ray of the film includes Deleted and extended scenes.  Also a 6-part interactive feature that include pop ups with trivia, videos, interviews, etc.  Another feature, CIA Exposed, and an audio commentary with retired CIA Field Officer, Robert Baer.  Enjoy folks!

Love & Other Drugs review... I want 2 hours of my life back!

When your married, or in a committed relationship for that matter, your significant other makes you go see films you otherwise wouldn't be caught dead watching.  This was one of those films.  Jake Gyllenhaal is a womanizing prescription drug salesman.  He's shallow and sleeps around.  Anne Hathaway is a young woman with a rare case of Parkinsons disease.  She wants to keep it casual and so does Gyllenhaal's character... at first.  This is going to be a short review because if the actors and filmmakers weren't going to try their best, neither am I.

What I liked about the film:
Oliver Platt and Hank Azaria
It's a pretty good indicator what a movie is going to be like when the best thing about it is the screen time of two supporting actors.  Oliver Platt is Gyllenhaal's mentor at Pfizer drugs.  Hand Azaria is a doctor who Gyllenhaal tries to sell his prescription drugs to.  Platt is hilarious and is the same character he always plays, but I like it.  Azaria is so diverse I bought he was a womanizing doctor who really cared for his patients.  Great job.


What I didn't like about the film:
Its Stars
Everyone on here knows I dislike Anne Hathaway very much!  Jake Gyllenhaal is not very much behind in my book.  They both phoned in their performances.  Ho, hum, the movie was dumb.

The Writing
Typical "chick flick" fashion.  Predictable, even though they attempted the unpredictable.  So stupid.  Hathaway doesn't want to get involved with anyone because she's worried she'll get attached.  At first Gyllenhaal is in it just for the sex, but later wants more.  As his career improves, his personal life goes down the tank.  Who cares? 

The Director
Edward Zwick should just chalk this one up to a loss.  He's too good a damn director to be involved in crap like this.  He's made such classics as Defiance, Blood Diamon, The Last Samurai, The Seige, and Legends of the Fall.  Wow, that's an amazing resume and hopefully this film can be shrugged off. 

The verdict:
Horrible
There was not a memorable moment in the film.  I left the theater wondering how on Earth I got conned into watching it.  I didn't have an interest in the film whatsoever.  We never covered it on the blog, and rightfully so.  ARRG!  I'm so mad I wasted my time watching this instead of Black Swan!  The timing was just too late for Black Swan and a man's got work in the morning.  Speaking of which, goodnight!

The Virginity Hit DVD review

Have any of our 10 readers even heard of The Virginity Hit?  It's a film starring an unknown cast, but produced by some big players in Hollywood... Will Farrell and Adam McKay.  The movie is about four friends, three of which have lost their virginity.  Matt is the four and final guy to try and lose his virginity in the bunch.  He's been with his girlfriend for 2 years, and he thinks their anniversary will be the day.

What I liked about the film:
Originality
In this day and age, it's all about Facebook and Twitter and YouTube.  In almost every movie featuring teenage characters, they reference these technologies.  TVH (The Virginity Hit) is no different.  It's shot in a very unique way; as a series of home videos/camera phone footage.  It's a unique look that works.  The friends have promised to chronicle Matt's journey to losing his virginity... and posting it to YouTube.  It's definitely in the raunchy comedy genre, but done so differently, it deserves a category all its own.


The Cast

The cast used their real names for their characters to make the film feel more authentic.  I don't recognize anyone in the cast, but they're all terrific.  The actors had a real chemistry between them.  They gave each other a lot of crap but you could see they all genuinely cared about each other.  Great cast!

The Story/Heart

There are so many raunchy comedies out there that don't work, because there's no heart.  They don't make us care about the characters, TVH works.  I cared about Matt and his journey.  I felt bad about his childhood and what he's been through.  The story was well written and the delivery from the actors comes off as improv, which worked in the film.


What I didn't like about the film:
The Absurd
The movie feels real for the most part.  But as soon as it strays away from that and tries to do more, it doesn't work.  There were a few exaggerated scenes that took away from the film more than they added.

The verdict:
Hilarious with heart

It's a film you should see, especially in a group of friends.  It looks different than any movie you've seen; it doesn't have a glossy, polish finish to it.  It's raw footage, that's as real a depiction of this generation as it gets.  Teenagers are doing the things depicted in the movie, period.  Off subject, read here about the controversy surrounding the billboard to the left.  The film gets a thumbs up from me.

I know this is a "DVD review", but the DVD of the film I rented had literally no extras.  Which is too bad.  It was an independent film, but It would have been fun to see the behind the scenes goodies.  Go out and see this movie guys, then let me know what you think!

War Machine will get a solo spin-off from Iron Man

I always thought War Machine was a pretty cool character in the Marvel universe.  But is he cool enough for his own film?  Apparently Marvel thinks so.  Don Cheadle who played the armored hero will reprise his role, FOR NOW!  Remember the Terrance Howard debacle?  Or how about the Edward Norton debacle?  Yeah, no actor is a lock for a sequel with these guys.  For now, here's what Cheadle had to say about the spin-off:

Yeah they’re developing it now, they’re working on that.  I think they’ve hired a writer and so, you know, we’ll see how it goes. It’d be a lot of fun.  I don't think he shows up in ['Avengers'].  I think he's kind of a lone wolf.

That's an interesting comment towards the end of the quote.  I haven't really given The Avengers much thought of late.  Now we know War Machine isn't in the film.  But it makes sense because Marvel needs films to fill the calendar after The Avengers is released.   

One of my "dislikes" on my Iron Man 2 review was Cheadle himself; or the misuse of Cheadle anyway.  He was just a passenger on that poorly made ride.  I think he's a great actor, I just don't really like him for this.  Maybe I'm alone, but I thought Terrance Howard was a more fitting War Machine.

So are you excited to see a War Machine spin-off?  Or do you even care?

Ed Helms' Cedar Rapids trailer and movie poster

Ed Helms is one of the funniest men on TV. His character Andy, is among my favorite aspects of NBC's "The Office".  The Hangover was another example of the funny man's work.  His next film is becoming a Sundance darling.  Cedar Rapids has Helms, an insurance salesman from a small town, heading to an insurance convention.  There he meets a big shot salesman played by none other than John C. Reilly, also an AtD favorite! 

The film also star Anne Heche and is directed by Miguel Arteta.  Arteta directed the Michael Cera film, Youth In Revolt.  He's also directed Reilly before in the Jennifer Aniston/Jake Gyllenhaal, The Good Girl.  Check out the trailer to Cedar Rapids below, enjoy!

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The Social Network DVD review

This time of year is really exciting for all movie fans.  The big question is, who will be nominated for the various categories at the Oscars?  To me, the Golden Globes are... meh.  Who cares?  Oscar is the real prize, and we're really close.  And one movie that has been a lock for nominations since the first trailer is, The Social Network.

The movie is written by Aaron Sorkin and directed by David Fincher.  If you don't know, it's about Mark Zuckerberg and the creation of the phenomena, Facebook.com.  Jesse Eisenberg plays Zuckerberg, the Harvard dropout that was just voted Time Magazine's "Person of the Year".  Pretty incredible considering the unbelievable growth of Facebook.  The film also stars Andrew Garfield and Justin Timberlake, who play the real life people who helped get the site off the ground.  The film also stars Armie Hammer, who plays the Winklevoss twins.  He plays dual roles; Cameron and Tyler, who sue Zuckerberg, accusing him of stealing their idea for Facebook.


What I liked about the film:
Generational

Mark Zuckerberg

I am obviously a huge movie fan; hence this blog.  But the movies with the most notoriety are often period pieces from a time long ago.  World War II is among the Academy's favorite time.  Along with British period pieces like this years The King's Speech.  So to see a movie based on events that took place during my lifetime is a real treat.  The subject matter is fresh and relative; and a treat for the techies that understand a lot of the dialogue being spouted off by the amazing cast.

The Writing

The writing is quick, witty, smart, relative, unconventional, conventional, fragmented, organized, business oriented, abbreviated, elongated, etc.  Sorkin is a freakin' genius, period.  The man will go down as the best writer of my generation and on.  He is not only great at setting up characters and scenes, etc.; he's amazing with the dialogue in the film.  The writing is so smart, yet simple enough for anyone in the audience to understand.  The story is told in a nonlinear fashion.  It jumps from a chronological telling of the development of Facebook, and bounces back and forth to the depositions in the lawsuits brought against Zuckerberg.  Brilliant. 

The Acting

Jesse Eisenberg

Eisenberg surely be nominated for Academy Award for the film.  He delivers every line so effortlessly.  His eyes tell stories all their own, and his face expresses such a wide array of emotion, he was the perfect actor for the part.  Garfield delivers an amazing performance as Zuckerberg's best friend and co-founder of Facebook.  His character has perhaps the widest array of emotion in the film.  Happy, excited, sad, devastated, betrayed, etc.  The Winklevoss' are played by the same actor, Armie Hammer.  And boy did they do a great job of making the audience hate them.  Stuck up, entitled, arrogant, privileged jerks.  Hammer nails it!

The Director

I'm a huge fan of Fincher's work, I'll be the first to tell you that.  Se7en, The Game, Fight Club, Panic Room, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, the future Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, and of course The Social Network.  Wow, that is an amazing, and very underrated, resume!  He does a lot of things perfectly in this film.  The casting, the wardrobe of its time, the locations, and the score are all wonderful. 

What I didn't liked about the film:
The Length/Redundancy
It's exactly as the heading says.  The film is about 20-25 minutes too long.  90% of the film is fast paced and keeps the audience interested.  But there is a stretch in the middle act that just would NOT end.  Also, there are several scenes that didn't need to be there.  They added nothing to the story, and were pretty much covered earlier in the film.

Justin Timberlake
The last time I listed an actor as a "dislike" was my review for The Karate Kid.  In that case Taraji P. Henson almost ruined the film for me.  In this film, Justin Timberlake is the culprit.  I hated every SINGLE thing about his performance.  He plays Sean Parker, the founder of the song stealing site, Napster.com.  Supposedly he "earned" the part.  B-S, he got the part because the producers hoped to add a "big name" to the mostly unknown cast.  He's terrible and I hate his acting, period.


The (Two-Disc Collector's Edition) Blu-Ray of the film has a bunch of goodies.  Two audio commentaries; one with writer Sorkin, the other features director Fincher and the rest of the cast.  Also included is "How Did They Ever Make a Movie of Facebook?", a feature length documentary about the development of Facebook.  Also included are features with Trent Reznor who scored the film, and a few scene by scene breakdowns from the film.


The verdict:

Great, but not the best
The film is among the best I've seen in a long long time.  But strictly speaking in terms of my vote for Oscars, it wasn't as good as The Fighter.  I'm going to go out on a limb and say Inception & Toy Story 3 were better as well.  Not to fear, all four will be nominated and I'm sure one of them will win Best Picture.


Facebook has so quickly become embedded in our culture and our daily lives.  The fact that the events portrayed in the film occurred only 7 short years ago is pretty amazing in and of itself.  I hope this sparks a new line of films that happened in my lifetime.  War movies will always work, but these work just as well.  We'll see if I'm still blogging in 10 years, I'll have to look back at this post and see what the next Facebook will be.... as if anything could ever replace Facebook!

Buried DVD review

Buried, starring Ryan Reynolds, was one of those movies that everyone was buzzing about.... but nobody saw.  It's not that no body saw it because it was a bad movie, it was mostly because it was in such limited release!  It debuted at Sundance to amazing reviews.  Spanish director Rodrigo Cortés creates an unbelievable masterpiece of creativity.  Let me begin.

What I liked about the film:
Originality
So your telling me the entire movie takes place in a coffin?  They will never cut away from the coffin?  Like, never?  Ok, SOLD!  The entire film (95 minutes), takes place inside a coffin buried several feet beneath the earth.  Ryan Reynolds plays an American truck driver in Iraq, who's fleet was ambushed by insurgents.  He's put in the coffin with nothing but a cell phone, a new glow sticks, a flask and a knife.

We've seen movies before that take place in one, maybe two settings, i.e. Phone Booth.  But they're nothing like Buried.  Cortés does an amazing job of keeping the crowd interested.  There's never a dull moment during this film.


Subject Matter
This is an Iraqi war movie without being an Iraqi war movie.  If you've seen the trailers, you know that most of the story is told through phone calls from Ryan Reynolds to the U.S.  The film covers a wide array of topics that are both current, and significant.  It tackles the war in Iraq.  It covers corporate greed in the United States.  It covers the topic of insurance companies and the scam that they are.  Family issues and pressures to succeed.  All of this in 95 minutes within the confines of a coffin.  Amazing work by writer Chris Sparling. 

Ryan Reynolds

I am bias as a mo-fo when it comes to Reynolds.  I am a huge fan of his work.  I have followed his career since he was on TV's 'Two Guys and A Girl'.  But what he does in this film is his best work yet.  He must truly carry the picture, by the absolute definition of the word!  There are cases when actors are in every single scene of a movie, BUT they have help.  And when hearing actors talk about their roles in a film, they always talk about having other actors to bounce off of.  Reynolds didn't have that luxury in this movie.  His face, his voice, his limited movement had to do so much to keep the crowd interested, and man he nails it!

Rodrigo Cortés

Cortés had 17 days to shoot this film!  Ryan Reynolds follow-up to Buried, The Green Lantern, took 10 times that long!  The Spaniard says the film is a homage to Alfred Hitchcock films of the past.  Cortés' use of camera angles and lighting make us feel like we're caught in the coffin with Reynolds.  The shots reflect the emotion of the character in such a way, you forget the setting and just focus on Reynolds.

What I didn't liked about the film:
The Ending
Maybe it's a brilliant ending, but I disagree.  We have invested in this character for the entire movie; we've heard him get blown off by one person after another in the United States; we've seen him deal with the terrorists that captured him; we've seen him get accused of things he's never done; the ending should be just as fitting.  I'm not going to spoil anything.  But the ending is way too convenient for the complexity of the first 94 minutes in the film.  That's all I will say, let me know if you agree.


The Blu-Ray of the movie is pretty bare bones in the Special Features department.  A simple "making of" feature is all you get, along with a trailer of the film.  We have to be understanding though, it WAS an independent film with a tiny budget.

What excites me the most about this movie is... inspiration.  YES, inspiration to both up and coming directors, as well as the major studios.  Takes risks!  Give new directors the encouragement to create something new and original like Buried.  And as for the directors themselves, don't fall into the pattern of directors like Brett Ratner; an idiot who couldn't make an original film if his life depended on it!

Wow, Anne Hathaway will play Catwoman in The Dark Knight Rises; Tom Hardy will play Bane

A fan made mock-up

Remember the rumor about Megan Fox playing Catwoman?  Remember the Angelina Jolie rumor?  Yeah, I do.  Well, all the rumors can be laid to rest, Anne Hathaway has been cast as Selina Kyle aka Catwoman... and I hate it.  If you've ever, EVER read this blog, and see Anne Hathaway's name, it's usually in a negative light.  She is the undisputed, most overrated actress in Hollywood.  I just keep saying to myself... 'Director, Christopher Nolan has never let you down'.  I have to believe he made the right choice for the film.

Last week I posted about the 6 women vying for 2 major roles.  We knew Hathaway was in the running, but all along we thought the roles were that of Talia al Ghul and reporter Vicki Vale.  Not so.  It's official, the first of two lead female roles is Selina Kyle. 

Along with the casting of Hathaway, we now know who Tom Hardy will play in The Dark Knight Rises.  Hardy will play the second villain, Bane.  Hardy was cast back in October; but no one knew who he was going to play in the film.  Most people guessed Dr. Hugo Strange or Black Mask.  Both characters seemed to fit in Nolan's "real world". 

The internet/Twitter/blogs all went nuts at the announcement.  Nolan was bound to choose a lesser known villain that the Batman films in the past.  But Bane was already portrayed (horribly) in Batman & Robin.

Bane was created in 1993.  He's both brilliant and has superior strength to Batman.  He was a prisoner at one point; and the aforementioned Dr. Strange tested a new drug called "venom" on him, which acted as a steroid.  So maybe Dr. Strange will still be a player in the film, maybe even a cameo.

Like I said about Nolan before, I trust him, unquestionably.  So I know he'll find a way to make this work! 

Want to see some Irony at it's best?  Check out the picture to the right.  It's a fan made poster of Bat Girl, featuring none other than Anne Hathaway.  Considering it was on the internet soon after The Dark Knight was released in theaters, that's some irony!  Hate it or love it, Hathaway is in the film.

Photo of "Dredd" motorcycle

This little treat is from slashfilm.  It's a photo from the set of the new comic adaptation, Dredd.  We’ve covered it for a while here on AtD.  Karl Urban will fill the shoes of the lead character in hopes of erasing the memories of the Sylvester Stallone version.  Enjoy folks!

Another Captain America photo

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The LA Times gets all the good stuff!  Here's another pic of Chris Evans in full uniform in Captain America: The First Avenger.  The movie is set to be released in the Summer, but the pictures keep on a-comin'.  I'm sure we'll see a trailer within the next few weeks, most likely during the February 6th Superbowl.  But we'll have to wait and see.  Enjoy.

New "Sherlock Holmes 2" Picture

This is the second picture to be released and it comes from an article in the LA Times. The article talks about the plot for the sequel to the 2009 smash hit. I loved the first film and so did Matt. Both films are directed by Guy Ritchie. We're both looking forward to this Christmas weekend when the sequel will be released. That is all for now kids!

6 Women, 2 Roles, 1 Huge Movie... "The Dark Knight Rises" Leading Women Casting

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The title summarizes the situation, I'll go into more detail. The Dark Knight Rises is the third Batman film in Christopher Nolan's trilogy. The first was Batman Begins and it introduced us to a great villain that could live in Nolan's "real world". The villain was Ras al Ghul, played by the great Liam Neeson. Click the jump to hear about the rumored female characters, as well as what I think of each actress up for the roles.

Well, it's been rumored that Talia al Ghul will be the main villain in the TDKR, set to avenge her father's death. The rumor works on many levels. First of all, it fits within the world that Nolan has created. It COULD happen. Second, and I think more importantly is, it brings the trilogy full circle, and supplies a fitting end to an amazing run for Nolan. When I go through all the actresses that are up for the part, you can begin to see the physical similarities for this character.

The second female character to be rumored for the film is Vicki Vale. Remember when Kim Basinger played the character in 1989 for Tim Burton's Batman? She's the investigative reporter for Gotham. I can only assume her character will be investigating the whereabouts of Batman, as he was cast out at the end of The Dark Knight. You will also notice physical similarities to this character from a few of the actresses.

First, Keira Knightley. I love this pick. She would make an amazing Talia al Ghul! She looks the part, as in, she could be Liam Neeson's daughter. She has the physique, she's been in plenty of action movies. Plus, she has an accent which could play well into the story if she was raised chasing her father around the world. And last but not least, she's a good actress! Yeah, that IS still important to Mr. Nolan.

Next up is an actress I do not like, nor do I want in this film! Jessica Biel would definitely look the part of Vicki Vale, but I don't like her, so we're going to move on.

Another actress I don't like! Anne Hathaway is, I've said it before, and I'll say it again... the most overrated actress in Hollywood. I just don't understand it to be honest with you. She could NEVER pull off Talia, but possibly Vicki. She reminds me too much of Katie Holmes though and I hope that works against her.

Then there is lesser known Kate Mara. I liked her in The Shooter starring Mark Wahlberg, albeit a very small role. She physically looks the part of Talia, but I don't know. She is smart and sexy and could probably play Vicki as well. I like the dice Mr. Nolan is rolling.

Next up is a definite unknown to American fans... Charlotte Riley, who just so happens to be engaged to Tom Hardy; who has already been cast in TDKR after his amazing role in Inception. She must be up for the role of Talia. She looks the part, has an accent and could do well. I've never seen her work, but read a few bios, and it looks good.

Last but not least is Gemma Arterton. I loved her in Prince of Persia, and thought she did what she could with 007: Quantum of Solace. I think she would be up for Talia as well. I liked her in the past, but hope Nolan passes on her for this one, she just wouldn't fit in, I think.

I have to tell you who the dream casting would be... Keira Knightley for Talia al Ghul and Kate Mara for Vicki Vale. I think they're both classy, sexy and all around good actresses. Whoever it is, they're going to have to prove themselves to Christopher Nolan. That makes me feel better no matter who gets picked. We'll keep you up to date as I'm sure a decision will be made in a week or two. The movie starts shooting in May so there's no time to waste!