We know that Terrence Howard was upset and confused about being dropped from Iron Man 2. Robert Downey Jr. admitted he was in the dark about the decision. Guess who else was perplexed by it -- the new Rhodey himself, Don Cheadle.
IGN caught up with Cheadle, who was quick to describe the sudden and surprising offer from Marvel: "I got a phone call from my agent saying they were offering me the part. That was kind of it. It happened very fast, and I had a very short time to answer. Literally, overnight. I was unaware of what was happening with Terrence. And when they called me I asked what was going on with Terrence. I've worked with Terrence, I've known Terrence for a long time. And they said they were moving away from him. So it's not like I was taking Terrence's job, because the job was already gone. Someone else was going to do the part. I don't know who the next person in line was, but that's who they were going to. And I literally had a few hours to accept the job or not. "
(We're reposting our review of The Wrestler form the Toronto International Film Festival to coincide with the film's theatrical release.)
By James Rocchi
After winning top honors at the Venice Film Festival, Darren Aronofsky's The Wrestler rapidly became the must-see of the Toronto International Film Festival, with huge lines at the press and industry screening this afternoon seemingly unaffected by the news that Fox Searchlight had purchased the film. After seeing The Wrestler for myself, I feel the need to extend a note of caution about the film, which sailed into Toronto buoyed by advance raves for Mickey Rourke's performance as Randy "The Ram" Robinson, a low-level professional wrestler -- and we soon see how really, both those words could be in quotation marks -- whose '80s glory days are long over, scraping by at low-level, low-paying matches until a heart attack forces him to leave the ring and look at his life in the shadow of death. Many have already written about the parallels between Mickey Rourke and the swaggering, scarred wrestler he plays -- early success, fame and notoriety, a series of mis-steps and mistakes taking it all away bit by bit as the years advanced -- and the charge Rourke's own rise and fall offers a filmmaker like Aaronofsky looking to explore ruin and redemption.
But don't believe the hype -- or, more importantly, look past it; if a complicated, messy personal life were all it took to deliver a great performance, Paris Hilton and O.J. Simpson would have more Oscars than Katharine Hepburn. Rourke's work as Randy is physical, invested, powerful and sprawling -- but it's also quiet, sad and hauntingly wounded, too. And The Wrestler offers viewers far more than just Rourke's performance -- which, it must be said, is excellent -- if they're willing to not flinch from what it has to say: The Wrestler is a fascinating, rich, unblinking look at the dark, hunched mean streak that lies curled and poisonous inside of so much American popular entertainment and of so much American life. It's early to say this, but The Wrestler is one of the most grimly exciting, magnetically repellent movies we've had in a long time; it's flat-out one of the best American movies of 2008.
Don't panic! You can start to sweat a little if you want to, I'm sure everyone associated with Watchmenmight be. According to Variety, the Watchmen trial has been moved back two weeks to January 20th.
The judge in charge of the case set the new date on Monday in order to settle a criminal matter on January 6th. He has also refused to make a pre-trial summary judgment, as requested by both sides, insisting that the original contracts between Fox and producer Larry Gordon are so open to interpretation that a trial is required.
They just keep upping the drama level of this whole mess. Why is the judge insisting on taking it to trial, ignoring the wishes of both sides to do a summary judgment? Is that a good thing? Are summary judgments too hasty or something? Is he stretching this out because he can? Can they still settle out of court? If there's a legal eagle in the Cinematical house, I'd love it if you weighed in, just for the sake of discussion and clarity. (Without a first hand look at the contracts, maybe that's impossible to do.)
While I still don't believe the film will be delayed, it is worrying to see its legal troubles inching closer and closer to its March 6th date. Neither side seems willing to blink, although Warner Bros might if it threatens all the money they've put into marketing. But think about it this way, readers -- if they do delay it, anything Watchmen that you own that's marked 03/06/09 immediately becomes more valuable!
Even though this is basically a European production, Taken slipped by Dutch cinemas pretty much undetected. A terrible thing, because if you’re into this type of movie, this is a true gem. It’s been compared to the Bourne trilogy, to Man on Fire and to 24. But that doesn’t do it justice. It shares elements with all of those, but Taken isn’t a copycat movie. It’s way too good for that. (more…)
The Women Film Critics Circle have handed out their 2008 awards (with top honors -- Best Movie About Women -- going to Clint Eastwood's Changeling), and one of the more fascinating categories on their list is Most Offensive Male Characters. And ... who do the women film critics of 2008 find to be the most offensive male characters of the year? Aaron Eckhart (Towelhead), Sam Rockwell (Choke), Larry Bishop (Hell Ride), Paul Rudd, Seann William Scott (Role Models) and Jason Mewes (Zack and Miri Make a Porno). I'm actually surprised that Robert Downey Jr.'s Tony Stark (aka Iron Man) didn't make this list, what with his fairly obnoxious (but comedic) womanizing ways, and I'm sure there are several other offensive male characters spread across the films of 2008 that coulda shoulda been mentioned, but weren't.
This, however, brings up an interesting topic: Who were the most offensive movie characters of 2008? Could be male, female, talking animal (or robot) -- were there any characters that just rubbed you the wrong way? Any characters who deserved to be sent straight to human resources? Furthermore, were there any films in general that were so offensive, you either considered leaving halfway through or did, in fact, bolt out the door before the end credits rolled? Sound off below ...
Film: ?WALL-E? and ?Slumdog Millionaire? (?Milk?) Director: Gus Van Sant ?Milk? and ?Paranoid Park? (Danny Boyle and Loveleen Tandan?Slumdog Millionaire?) Foreign Language: ?Let the Right One In? (?Waltz with Bashir?) Ensemble: ?Tropic Thunder? (?The Visitor?) Actor: Mickey Rourke, ?The Wrestler? and Sean Penn in ?Milk? (Frank Langella in ?Frost/Nixon? and Richard Jenkins in ?The Visitor?) Actress: Sally Hawkins in ?Happy-Go-Lucky? (Anne Hathaway in ?Rachel Getting Married?) Supporting Actor: Heath Ledger, ?The Dark Knight? (Robert Downey, ?Tropic Thunder?) Supporting Actress: Penélope Cruz in ?Vicky Cristina Barcelona? (Viola Davis ?Doubt?) Screenplay: Dustin Lance Black, ?Milk? (Mike Leigh ?Happy Go Lucky?) First Film: Martin McDonagh ?In Bruges? (Courtney Hunt, ?Frozen River?; Lance Hammer, ?Ballast?) Documentary: ?Man on Wire? (?Young@Heart?) Cinematography: Christopher Doyle and Rain Kathy Li, ?Paranoid Park? (Anthony Dod Mantle, ?Slumdog Millionaire?) Editing: Chris Dickens, ?Slumdog Millionaire? (Gus Van Sant, ?Paranoid Park?) Animated Film: ?WALL-E? (?Waltz with Bashir?)
Best Movie Series of 2008
The Complete Joseph Losey (HFA)
Minnelli?s Melodramas (HFA)
No Borders, No Limits: Nikkatsu Action & 60s Japan (Brattle)
Return to the Grindhouse (Brattle)
Unseen Noir (HFA)
Best Revival of 2008
Taking Off (The Films of Milos Forman, MFA)
Noon Wine (Sam Peckinpah, Blood Poet, HFA)
The Exiles (MFA)
Underworld (Somerville Theatre)
Lola Montes (Coolidge Corner)
Special Awards
The BSFC would like to commend Bo Smith on the occasion of his departure as film curator of the Museum of Fine Arts. In his more than two decades at the helm of the film program, Bo brought a remarkable collection of film series and film artists to Boston and had a strong hand in making it one of the leading cities in the country to view non-mainstream and especially foreign film.
Stefanie Lubkowski, who has recently left the Museum of Fine Arts film program after several years there, catered tirelessly to our needs as Film & Concerts Press Coordinator, and, as Friends of Film Coordinator, brought that program online by encouraging and disseminating feedback about their special sneak previews.
Kelly Teer, manager of the Museum of Fine Arts' auditorium for film exhibition, put a welcoming human face on a cultural institution. Before relinquishing her post this past summer after an 8-year tenure, Ms. Teer never did less than make a difficult job look easy, always ensuring smooth operations, from the box-office straight on to your seat.
Joe Zina leaves the Boston film scene immensely richer than when he stepped into the post of Executive Director of the Coolidge Corner Theatre in 1998. With tireless energy and flair, he oversaw the theater?s physical upgrade, the launch of a $2.5 million capital campaign, the institution of the Coolidge Award, and the sustaining of the Coolidge as a beloved and necessary neighborhood cultural fixture.
To Paul Sherman, for researching, authoring, and self-distributing
an instantly indispensible, one-of-a-kind film history, ?Big Screen Boston: From Mystery Street to the Departed and Beyond.? For the fascinating story of Boston filmmaking, from imported blockbusters to tiny, heartfelt independents, Sherman's book is the place to look.
To the Harvard Film Archive?s Steve Livernash, the unofficial dean of Hub 35mm projectionists, for setting a sterling example of film projection as a serious, aesthetic calling, and for extending his job definition to include film preservation. Generations of filmmakers are indebted to Steve for taking time at work to patch and mend their prints, so that the films can be projected in the proper way.
There is Hollywood buzz word that has come about in the last few years, and while ‘reboot’ and its kin ‘re-start’ have been used quite nicely to put new life into various franchises, it’s starting to show signs of overkill. Overkill. What a word to kick off a review of Punisher: Warzone which is *not* a sequel to the 2004 film, but rather, yes, a ‘re-start’, which is suggesting that something went wrong in the previous film and now here is the correct intended vision from another director. Sadly, what worked for last summer’s Incredible Hulk, does not bode well for Marvel Comic’s one mat hit squad vigilante, The Punisher. If anyone thought John Travolta was over the top and camped up in the previous film, they haven’t seen anything yet. (more…)
While I myself believe in the theory of intellegent design, and also find Darwinian’s evolution theory flawed, it would be easy for me to say, ‘Go get those humanists Ben Stein! Attack!” It also would be easy for others to say that Expelled appeals to those who already believe in, or favor the concepts of intelligent design/creationism, and thus, appeals to me. Fair enough. But show me a non-historical documentary that doesn’t give a point of view that focuses on one side or another. It’s next to impossible. The goal set should be to convince ‘the other side’ or to raise questions and debate regarding both sides of an issue. I can say Expelled is a good documentary because it does do what it sets out to do. Sadly, it also strays off it’s own subject. (more…)
I'm sorry to post that the LA Times has reported that Bettie Page passed away Thursday night at the age of 85. The news comes after the pinup icon had spent a few weeks on life support following her heart attack earlier this month. In her memory, I thought I'd whip up a rewind for the film based on her life -- The Notorious Bettie Page, which starred Gretchen Mol as the lady with the black bangs.
In the clip below, Page gets introduced to the world of modeling and pin-up girls, and soon finds her smiling face gracing a myriad of magazines. While the film only received moderate buzz, most seem in agreement -- Mol did a heck of a job as Page, and carried the film right into a number of decent reviews.
Rest in peace, Bettie. You'll be missed.
Warning: Not entirely safe for work -- brief nudity.
(Gort shows Keanu Reeves a thing or two about acting in the original 1951 "The Day the Earth Stood Still")
The biggies this weekend are "Doubt" and "Frost/Nixon". Both are entertaining enough Oscar-bait, mostly on the strength of the performances: Frank Langella's Richard Milhous Nixon in "F/N" is a fabulously watchable conceit and beholding Meryl Streep at her most enjoyably eeevil and Philip Seymour Hoffman at his most likeable (and therefore highly suspect) is like getting a double serving of ham for the holidays. (Viola Davis, who'll get Oscar nominated on the strength of her one scene, is the mustard.)
Both of these movies are essentially theatrical two-handers transposed to the screen, and both are rather more shallow than they first appear. But that's okay: Serious drama can be fun, and when Streep and Langella are cooking, you know they know that. Just don't go to "Frost/Nixon" expecting the facts of the matter or to "Doubt" expecting subtlety.
"Nothing Like the Holidays" is everything like a home-for-the-holidays movie, with salsa. But the cast --especially Elizabeth Pena -- makes it go down easy. "How About You" is an adaptation of a Maeve Binchy story that gives Vanessa Redgrave an excuse to do things with turbans. Let that stand as either recommendation or warning.
The Brattle is going Indy rather than indie this weekend, with the airing out of all four of Spieberg's Indiana Jones movies. Yes, even the much-abused "Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull," which I still say fell victim to the youthful nostalgic delusions of much of its audience (in other words: it's a lot more like the other three than you probably want to admit). Just to gussy things up and give the series a patina of class, the excellently-named Dr. Jason Ur from Harvard's Anthropology Department will introduce the 7:00 and 9:30 shows tonight. (Does this guy really exist or will it turn out to be Brattle director Ned Hinkle in a pith helmet? Nope, he exists.)
The eerie "Manufactured Landscapes," one of my top picks from last year, has a return engagement at the Museum of Fine Arts as part of the ongoing "Photography on Film" series. With barely a word, this documentary about Edward Burtynsky's eco-photography makes a far more cogent case for man's predations than anything in "The Day the Earth Stood Still."
The Coolidge is showing "Gremlins" Sunday at 9:30, all you 80's tater-tots. Just pray that the screening doesn't go after midnight... and that it doesn't rain...
We know that Terrence Howard was upset and confused about being dropped from Iron Man 2. Robert Downey Jr. admitted he was in the dark about the decision. Guess who else was perplexed by it -- the new Rhodey himself, Don Cheadle. 
Don't panic! You can start to sweat a little if you want to, I'm sure everyone associated with 
Even though this is basically a European production, Taken slipped by Dutch cinemas pretty much undetected. A terrible thing, because if you’re into this type of movie, this is a true gem. It’s been compared to the Bourne trilogy, to .jpg)
There is Hollywood buzz word that has come about in the last few years, and while ‘reboot’ and its kin ‘re-start’ have been used quite nicely to put new life into various franchises, it’s starting to show signs of overkill. Overkill. What a word to kick off a review of Punisher: Warzone which is *not* a sequel to the 
While I myself believe in the theory of intellegent design, and also find Darwinian’s evolution theory flawed, it would be easy for me to say, ‘Go get those humanists Ben Stein! Attack!” It also would be easy for others to say that Expelled appeals to those who already believe in, or favor the concepts of intelligent design/creationism, and thus, appeals to me. Fair enough. But show me a non-historical documentary that doesn’t give a point of view that focuses on one side or another. It’s next to impossible. The goal set should be to convince ‘the other side’ or to raise questions and debate regarding both sides of an issue. I can say Expelled is a good documentary because it does do what it sets out to do. Sadly, it also strays off it’s own subject. .jpg)
