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Archive for May, 2007
Thursday, May 17th, 2007
PerezHilton.com reader Megan just sent us this SIGHting at 3:46 P.M. on Thursday:
“I work in Washington, DC and from my office window, I can see the penthouse level of the Ritz Carlton in Georgetown. Right now, as I type this email to you, Gwen Stefani is out on her balcony in a jog bra and leggings talking on her phone. Kingston is out there with her, along with the nanny (perhaps) and another kid. Thought you would enjoy!”
Posted in Celebrity Gossip | No Comments »
Thursday, May 17th, 2007
Like Courteney Cox and Jennifer Aniston before them, Drew Barrymore and Cameron Diaz know how to love each other like no other.
The pair had a romantic date together at the Chateau Marmont in Los Angeles on Wednesday night.
Diaz’s new movie, Shrek the Third, opens on Friday, and the film’s producer, David Katzenberg, doesn’t seem that confident in the movie.
“I just caution everybody: for Shrek it’s not where we start, it’s where we finish,” Katzenberg told reporters at the Cannes Film Festival. “I hope we have a very, very good weekend, but I don’t expect us to set any records.”
Go team!
[Image via Buzz Foto.]
Posted in Celebrity Gossip | No Comments »
Thursday, May 17th, 2007
Everything is more dramatic is slow-motion. That’s a given. Mundane acts like sneezing and laughing become epic adventures in physiology. A bullet piercing an apple becomes some kind of sensual metaphor. But instead of stringing together a bunch of unrelated, clichéd shots showing off Phantom high speed HD cameras, Superfad decided to go the extra step and weave a loose narrative in this amazing promo produced for NAB.
There’s something mythical about the story. It has just enough suggestion of a narrative to keep you going: a protagonist (the woman in white), an antagonist (the dog/ink splatter) and god-like figures that watch over everything (the birds). But honestly, if this was shot at normal speed, it wouldn’t have worked at all. Superfad seems to understand the peculiar way that slow-motion implies narrative in the simplest of acts.
This didn’t give Superfad license to be sloppy, though. The piece is rife with beautiful (though slightly unorthodox) compositions that underscore the dramatic tension set forth in the music and editing. It’s lovingly crafted and full of detail.
I don’t mean to make too much of it. I’m sure many of you will scoff at my mini-dissertation above. Something about this film, though, snared me, and I don’t think it was accidental.
Posted in Filmmaking | No Comments »
Thursday, May 17th, 2007
I'd love to give you the on-the-ground Cannes report, but Wesley and I are stuck here reading blogs like everyone else. Maybe next year. Still, the only festival in the world that could get away with letting Jerry Seinfeld float overhead dressed as a giant bee (promoting his upcoming kid's movie "Bee Movie") is worth keeping tabs on. Personally, I triangulate between Variety's Anne Thompson, Premiere's Glenn Kenny (to whom thanks for the Seinfeld photo above), and Hollywood Elsewhere's Jeffrey Wells, currently engaging in impassioned knockabout on the merits of "My Blueberry Nights," Wong Kar-wei's first English-language film. Wells hates it, Thompson loves it, and Glenn, bless his cross-referencing little heart, is "the Derek Smalls of this debate -- the lukewarm water to Thompson's fire and Wells' ice." Without seeing the movie -- as if that's stopped me before -- I will note the legions of great filmmakers who have crashed on the Scylla and Charybdis of English dialogue and name stars. (Bergman? "The Serpent's Egg." Truffaut? "Fahrenheit 451." There are plenty more, but the only one who turned it to his advantage while biting the hand that wrote the checks was Godard with "Contempt.")
Other Cannes blogs: Time's Richard Corliss, A.O. Scott and Manohla Dargis at the Times (warning: video podcasts), the folks at IFC, the excellent GreenCine Daily, Cinematical, and the U.K.'s Guardian (they hate "My Blueberry Nights" too). There are plenty more out there, from pishers and panjandrums alike. If you find one you like, send me the link and I'll post it.
Posted in Movie News | No Comments »
Thursday, May 17th, 2007
 How come I get all my best ideas when I’m jogging? Any experience with this phenomenon?
– Ben
Los Angeles
It’s because your brain hates you.
Well, maybe not hates. After all, it is giving you what you want — a good idea. It’s just that its timing is atrocious. It’s like having a girlfriend who is only in the mood for love during the last 20 minutes of Lost. You have to choose between sex and seeing the underwater station for the first time.
Here’s my advice: always choose sex. Because if you don’t, eventually, you’ll stop being offered it.
Those great ideas that come while you’re jogging? Write ‘em down or you’ll lose them — and worse, you may dry up the well of ideas. If your brain notices you’re not paying attention to the good ideas it generates, it may decide to stop bothering. And then you’re screwed.
So always carry a pen. Pick up a piece of paper trash. Write on your hand if you have to. It’s often just one or two words which will let you remember what the idea was.
For me, the majority of these inconvenient ideas come at 11:30 at night, as I’m trying to fall asleep. There’s a weighing process as I decide whether it’s worthy of hauling my ass to the bathroom, where I keep a notebook handy to scribble down these ideas. Probably 70% of the time, I do get out of bed. At least half of the “big ideas” in The Nines were first scribbled down in this book, along with the plots of enough unwritten movies to keep me busy for a decade.
This is part of what sucks about being a writer. I have a hunch that accountants don’t have this problem.
Posted in Screenwriting | No Comments »
Thursday, May 17th, 2007
Filed under: Celebrities and Controversy, Fandom, Newsstand, Comic/Superhero/Geek  Perhaps we're just a tad late to the game on this one, but I simply had to add in my two cents about the brand new hot-to-trot statue of Spider-Man's main gal Mary Jane. For those who aren't yet aware of this priceless collectible, you can check it out to the right of your screen. Yup, that's Mary Jane holding her man's Spidey costume and casually bending over a wash-bucket with a pink thong riding high up on her waist. Created by comic-book illustrator Adam Hughes, the limited-edition Comiquette comes from Sideshow Collectibles and is licensed by Marvel. And if you're interested in placing Ms. Mary Jane in your living room (right next to your Spider-Man, Spider-Man 2 and Spider-Man 2.1 DVDs, I imagine), then she'll set you back a crisp $125.
Not surprisingly, bloggers everywhere are all up in arms over this trashy, yet smokin' hot version of Mary Jane. Hughes hilariously describes his creation as "Mary Jane discover[ing] that her superhero husband has slipped some of his laundry into the mix, but she's not looking too displeased about Peter's naughty little transgression." Funnily enough, all the outrage has done nothing by spark a feeding frenzy; the statue (which is available through the Collectibles web site) has already sold out, with a waiting list recently added. Now here's where I get to tell you what I think. First off, who cares? The majority of folks who actually buy these statues are geeked-out males (or fanboys) who like to steal a peak at their purchase while surfing for the latest Star Trek fan art. (And based on some of the fan art I've seen, this statue is quite tame). I see nothing wrong with it; she's not naked, she's not revealing too much (unlike a certain "rain scene" from one of the films) and, quite simply, she looks good. Thoughts? Permalink | Email this | Comments
Posted in Celebrity Gossip, cinematical, Movie News | No Comments »
Thursday, May 17th, 2007
 | | Captivity - Trailer 2
Top cover girl and fashion model, Jennifer Tree has it all - beauty, fame, money and power. Her face appears on covers of hundreds of magazines. At the top of her game, Jennifer is America’s sweetheart. She is loved and adored and sought after. Everyone wants her. But someone out there has been watching and waiting. Someone wants her in the worst way. Out alone at a charity event in Soho, Jennifer is drugged and taken. Held captive in a cell, Jennifer is subjected to a series of terrifying, life-threatening tortures that could only be conceived by a twisted, sadistic mind.
Directed by: Roland Joffe
Starring: Elisha Cuthbert, Daniel Gillies, Pruitt Taylor Vince, Michael Harney, Laz Alonso |
Posted in Movie News | No Comments »
Thursday, May 17th, 2007
 | | Brooklyn Rules - Trailer
Written by three-time Emmy winner Terence Winter (the Sopranos) Brooklyn Rules s a powerful story of loyalty, friendship, and sacrifice. Set in Brooklyn circa 1985 against the backdrop of John Gotti’s rise to power, the film revolves around three lifelong friends whose different ambitions threaten to shake their enduring bond.
Directed by: Michael Corrente
Starring: Freddie Prinze Jr., Scott Caan, Jerry Ferrara, Mena Suvari, Alec Baldwin |
Posted in Movie News | No Comments »
Wednesday, May 16th, 2007
Patrick Scruggs Jr is a young great LA based animator. His reel conjures up cliche action movie phrases like “action packed” and “an adrenaline rollercoaster” or just plain rad (I’ll stand by those qoutes too). He was taken in by Buck after graduating from school and quickly gained some serious animation chops there.
Scrugg’s animation style feels like a boys wet dream. His bold camera moves and great sense for timing are absolutely perfect for stations like G4, and Spike TV. Scruggs had a part in some recent big projects like the Offf title sequence and one of the Pass It On animations. Personally, I have always been a big fan of the G4 spots he worked on, the anime style and solid movement he was able to get out of it seems better than the real thing.
Action Packed!
Posted in Filmmaking | No Comments »
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