The Canadian film website Movies Online has come up with a list of Top 20 Feel-Bad Movies of the Past 20 Years, and it's worth chewing over. Of course the wrist-slitters at both ends of the list are Canadian, but they've got "Jesus' Son" in there (Billy Crudup as a heroin addict and the best title ever taken from a Velvet Underground song) and "Igby Goes Down," which is an underrated movie even if it's not a colossal bummer. "Lilya 4-Ever," about a teenage sex slave? Essential to a list of this type and, sadly, also essential viewing.

But, sheesh, where's the work of Todd Solondz -- grim masterpieces like "Welcome to the Dollhouse" and "Happiness"? Talk about bleak. Or Tim Blake Nelson's "The Grey Zone," a death-camp movie that never lets up? And, while we're at it, where's either version of Michael Haneke's "Funny Games"? If the aim is to beat an audience into cowering submission, you can't do better. Except maybe a Michael Bay movie.

It's also notable that it's a list of the last 20 years, which leaves out the New Hollywood of the 1970s -- how convenient. Downer dramas like "The Parallax View," "The King of Marvin Gardens" (photo above, and, yes, that's Jack Nicholson), and, hell, "Chinatown" would overwhelm this group like a tsunami.

Your own choices for the biggest movie bummer ever? Send 'em on in.

Filed under: Celebrities and Controversy, Exhibition

It's official! Harry Potter, otherwise known as Daniel Radcliffe, is heading to Broadway. Back in September of last year, I posted about the Brit's plans to reprise his starring role in Equus on Broadway, dropping trou for a whole new set of fans. Now Yahoo has confirmed it.

The young actor will make his Broadway debut on September 5 of this year, in previews for a limited, 22-week run that will stretch from September 25 to February 8 of 2009. Yes, folks, that means he'll be in New York City as Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince hits theaters. I'm thinking that the chances for a big premiere in the Big Apple are pretty darned good -- and just think -- if you book tickets for the play around November 2, you can have a double Radcliffe whammy!

Thea Sharrock is directing the play, which is based on the true story of a troubled young man who blinds horses with a metal hoof pick. Richard Griffiths (who plays Uncle Vernon in the Potter franchise) will also reprise his role as the psychiatrist who treats Radcliffe's troubled lead. Now the question becomes: Will Daniel's nudity and smoking create an uproar here as well? He is now 18, so that should stop some of the skin qualms, but the Big Apple certainly isn't the most smoke-friendly city these days.

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Filed under: Celebrities and Controversy, Fandom, Trailers and Clips

You might remember how the other day Cinematical and FEARnet writer Scott Weinberg clued us all in to an interview FEARnet conducted with the infamous director Uwe Boll. Shortly after our post hit, it quickly made its way all over the web -- with thousands upon thousands of people signing a petition to stop Boll from making anymore movies. See, in the interview he said he'd stop if the petition was signed by one million people. Not sure if he knew this at the time, but the internet loves a challenge.

Well, now, Boll has put out a video asking fans to start up a pro-Boll petition. Oh yes, and he wants one million folks to sign that as well. I love this guy -- hearing him, he sounds like the bizarro Arnold Schwarzenegger. Why does he want you to sign a pro-Boll petition? Well, because -- and I quote -- he's "not a f**king retard like Michael Bay or other people running around in the business ... or Eli Roth making the same sh**ty movies over and over again. If you really look at my movies, you will see my real genius."

He's definitely a unique individual -- I'll give him that. Then again, this could be wonderful promotion for his next film Postal, which comes out in May. Hmmm ... maybe Boll is a genius. Check out his scathing video message after the jump (and, yes, it's probably NSFW).

[Thanks Anthony]

Continue reading Uwe Boll Trashes Michael Bay, Eli Roth and Anti-Boll Petition

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Who's Uwe Boll? German movie director, responsible for really horrid low-budget videogame-derived stinkers like "House of the Dead," "Alone in the Dark," and "Bloodrayne." Even fans of schlock horror can't stand his stuff, to which the director tends to respond with upraised middle finger or an invitation to a boxing match.

Now there's an online petition to get him to stop making movies. Period. It had 100,000 signatures as of the other day. If it gets to one million, Boll has vowed he will quit filmmaking.

Either this is the most brilliant publicity stunt I've ever heard of or it's mercy-killing by mass ballot. Feel free to cast your vote, but if you do, play fair -- suffer through one of Boll's movies first.

For those of you keeping score, it turns out that "Nim's Island" actually made more at the box-office this weekend than "Leatherheads." The Hollywood Reporter has the details about the gap between estimates and actuals.

To me it's interesting only because the movie studios have always relied on star power as the one, true coin of value in their tinseled realm, and if George Clooney can't put a movie over in 2008, who can? (If you say Miley Cyrus, I'll scream.)